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“A couple of years ago we would have thrown the towel in pretty early. It shows the mindset of the group that we stay in the fight”

Vishal Dikshit01-Oct-20253:43

Australia’s batting depth comes to the fore

An opening World Cup game. Against the world champions. New Zealand trying to cross the 300 barrier for the first time while chasing. A deflating record of 15 consecutive ODI losses against Australia from the last eight years hanging over their head. And sapping heat and humidity at the end of the monsoon season in Indore that took a lot out of Sophie Devine, who had fielded for nearly 50 overs and bowled eight overs under the sun.If pressure could take different shapes and sizes, it did for the New Zealand captain in their opening World Cup clash against Australia, which resulted in an 89-run loss after she batted for over two-and-a-half hours for a fighting and valiant century, her ninth in the format. Soon after she wrung out the last drop of energy from her 36-year-old body after being on the field for 91.1 overs on an exacting evening, Devine said it was “probably the most demanding” game she played in her 19-year ODI career that will end with this World Cup.Related

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“I’ll just say come and feel my shirt, I think you’ll see how tough that was,” Devine said about her sweat-soaked jersey having walked in for the press conference only minutes after the match ended. “But I guess that’s the thing that I probably took strength from, is the work that the girls have done over the last six to 12 months, it’s been exactly for a knock like that, it’s the hard stuff that no one sees behind closed doors and every single one of this group has been slogging away, making sure that they’re fit and ready to be able to go out there and do a job like I was able to do today.”So I’m incredibly proud that, well I was probably a little bit slow towards the end getting a bit tired and things, but I know every one of our players wants to be there and wants to be contributing throughout the full 100 overs. So to answer your question, yeah, I think it probably was the most demanding; running around in the field, bowling, trying to keep the Aussies under 400. So yeah, I think both physically and mentally as well, it was pretty draining.”Devine had the arduous task of rescuing her team from the pits of 0 for 2 in the second over in a chase of 327, even if on a flat surface in what was the first women’s international in Indore. Devine first made sure she found her feet against the accurate bowling of the Australian attack that swung and turned the ball under the lights, and tried to ensure New Zealand had a somewhat gettable equation towards the end. Her steady half-century came off 69 balls before she raced from 50 to 100 in just 38 balls even as no other team-mate who batted lower than her crossed 30. When Brooke Halliday holed out for 28, New Zealand needed a stiff 200 runs from the last 20. Maddy Green lasted just 18 balls, and it was Devine’s rapid partnership of 54 in 35 balls for the sixth wicket that saw Isabella Gaze take the lead with six fours that saw New Zealand claw back in the game as some tense Australian faces started to appear on the field and in the dugout.They fell short by a distance in the end as Gaze and Devine were dismissed in the space of 13 balls and New Zealand lasted just two more runs after that.”Just happy with the fight this team showed, a couple of years ago we would have thrown the towel in pretty early,” Devine said at the presentation. “It shows the mindset of the group that we stay in the fight.”Sophie Devine’s knock of 111 went in vain•Getty Images

New Zealand would have thought earlier in the game they had a golden chance of downing the world champions early in the tournament when they had Australia on 128 for 5 in the 22nd over. But Ashleigh Gardner struck a counter-attacking 115 off just 83 balls to power Australia to their highest ODI score opposite New Zealand after turning the tables on them.”The fact that we got them in that position is really pleasing and really positive for us,” Devine said. “It is though, about finding ways that we can really put the foot on the throat and skittle them for 200-250 and that’s looking like a different game. I think that’s probably shown the most resilience from this White Ferns side, do you know what I mean? That despite being two down for nothing, we still keep coming out.”The fight and the resilience shown just to knuckle down rather than throw our wickets, it’s something I’m really proud of for this group and the way the likes of Izzy Gaze came out to bat, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, the way that people just keep going to their strengths and taking the game on, that’s something that I spoke at an earlier press conference, it’s about how we play this game. Yes, results are important and we want to win, but the way that we played tonight, it’s made me really proud and I certainly know that we can keep pushing the best teams in the world really hard. But also we can be at the business end of the tournament if we can make sure that we’re playing good cricket for longer periods of time.”New Zealand haven’t beaten Australia in an ODI for over eight years•Getty Images

New Zealand have five days to rest, assess and prepare in Indore before their next game against South Africa on October 6. They would perhaps want that their younger players step up too and not leave the heavy lifting for the seniors, as Devine, Lea Tahuhu (3 for 42) and Amelia Kerr (2 for 54 and 33) were their top performers against Australia.”I think to win a World Cup, it’s going to take 15 players, and at different stages it’s going to be different people,” Devine said about what she expected from the squad. “Expectations are there that everyone wants to be the one that stands up and takes responsibility, and today, you mentioned it, the experienced players are the ones, but I’ve got full faith that anyone in that 15 can go out and win a game for us. And to have that belief and confidence and trust in the group, I think that’s something that’s really special about this group, and I know that everyone feels that too, is that despite the loss today, we pushed the world champs pretty hard, and we got them nervous at different times there, which it doesn’t happen often.”So, absolutely, I know at different stages different people are going to stand up in this group, and it’s going to be their time, and that’s what we’ve spoken about – when it’s your day, you really be selfish, and you take control of it, and you be the one to get this team over the line.”

Sarah Glenn takes four-wicket haul as South Africa slump in pursuit of 205-run target

Alan Gardner27-Nov-2024A powerful batting performance underpinned England’s 36-run victory in Benoni, sealing the T20I series against South Africa with one to play. Danni Wyatt-Hodge and Nat Sciver-Brunt both hit half-centuries, with their 112-run stand for the third wicket setting up England for their joint-third highest total in T20 internationals, before Sarah Glenn’s four-wicket haul strangled the South Africa chase.Having won while batting second in the first match of the series, in East London, this time around England were asked to put up a score. They hit an early speed bump, when Ayanda Hlubi struck twice in her opening over to reduced them to 15 for 2 – but Wyatt-Hodge and Sciver-Brunt simply floored the accelerator in response to put England in the driving seat.Wyatt-Hodge was particularly aggressive, hitting 66 of her 78 from 45 balls in boundaries and doing the bulk of the scoring during her stand with Sciver-Brunt, England’s second-highest in T20Is against South Africa. Sciver-Brunt then added 54 off 35 in partnership with Heather Knight, before Amy Jones took them past 200 with back-to-back scoops in the final over.Asked to pull off what would have been only the second successful chase of 200-plus in women’s T20Is, South Africa needed to come out firing. But they lost Tazmin Brits in Sciver-Brunt’s first over, pulling tamely to midwicket, and had edged along to 30 for 1 at the end of the powerplay. Glenn took out the middle order as the asking rate rose, and although some late hitting from Chloe Tryon and Nadine de Klerk made the final margin respectable, South Africa were well short.Wyatt-Hodge leads swift counter
England were already going at 10 an over when Hlubi struck with her third and fifth legitimate balls, Maia Bouchier following up consecutive boundaries with a tame chip to midwicket, before Sophia Dunkley played on for a duck. Wyatt-Hodge responded by taking five fours from the next three overs, either side of a tough chance to Sinolo Jafta off de Klerk, as England ended the powerplay in buoyant mood on 48 for 2.She might have been dismissed from the first ball with the restrictions off, but Nonkululeko Mlaba misjudged a swirling top edge to deep third from Annerie Derckson’s first ball. Two more boundaries came in the same over, followed up by Wyatt-Hodge hitting Mlaba for six and then four to bring up her half-century from 31 balls. She continued to find the ropes thereafter, taking Tryon for back-to-back boundaries and doing the same to Nondumiso Shangase, whose sole over went for 16.Wyatt-Hodge finally departed in the 13th over, defeated by a dipping de Klerk yorker (having hit the previous ball for four), for a career-best T20I score against South Africa – and having become the first Englishwoman to pass 3000 runs in the format along the way.Sciver-Brunt continues fine form
Although she was comfortably outscored by Wyatt-Hodge during their stand, Sciver-Brunt eased into another telling display, having been the driving force behind England’s successful chase in the first T20I. She was also dropped, on 32, top-edging a sweep off Mlaba, but kept the momentum of the England innings going, frequently using her feet to manipulate the field while picking off boundaries along the way. Two in a row off Eliz-Mari Marx took Sciver-Brunt to a 33-ball fifty, and she then demonstrated her power with an 88-metre six off Mlaba to end the 18th over.Knight departed at the start of the next, chipping a return catch to the persevering de Klerk, but England were well on track to breach the 200-mark. Across the course of the innings, 11 overs went for double-figures, and all of South Africa’s bowlers took punishment during a wayward effort that left them too much to do with the bat.Glenn harries South Africa
Although South Africa avoided losing more than one wicket in the powerplay, the top order struggled to combine laying a platform and scoring at the required rate. Faye Tunnicliffe, in her first international appearance in three-and-a-half years, made 22 off 28 on the way to becoming Glenn’s first victim, and Laura Wolvaardt had just got her innings above a run a ball when she fell to Charlie Dean.Dean’s third over was an eventful one that went for 18 as well as seeing the back of Wolvaardt, but although Dercksen had got going with back-to-back sixes off Freya Kemp, the requirement was getting out of hand. Dercksen survived being bowled off a no-ball by Lauren Filer but when she and Shangase had their stumps rattled by consecutive Glenn deliveries, the jig was up for South Africa, needing 119 off the last eight – even though Tryon, de Klerk and Jafta all cleared the ropes in the closing stages to give the scoreline some respectability.

With Washington Sundar likely to miss a chunk of the TNPL, he went to Trichy Grand Cholas for a fairly low price of INR 6 lakh

Deivarayan Muthu15-Feb-2025Vijay Shankar, Swapnil Singh, M Mohammed and C Andre Siddarth were among the major buys at the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) 2025 mega auction that was held in Chennai on Saturday.Former UAE international Karthik Meiyappan, who has now moved back to Chennai, his city of birth, headed to Madurai Panthers for INR 9.2 lakh. The wristspinner had bagged a hat-trick in the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia and brings with him the experience of having played in the ILT20 and Global T20 Canada.In the lead-up to the auction, the likes of R Ashwin and Varun Chakravarthy (both Dindigul Dragons), Shahrukh Khan and Sai Sudharsan (both Lyca Kovai Kings) and Tamil Nadu captain R Sai Kishore (Tiruppur Tamizhans) were retained by the franchises.Vijay had kicked off the auction by triggering a bidding war, having at least four of the eight franchises, including Ashwin’s Dindigul, raising the paddle for his all-round skills before Chepauk Super Gillies scooped him up for INR 18 lakh. It was Mohammed who fetched the highest bid of INR 18.8 lakh, with Salem Spartans staving off competition from his former team Kovai Kings and Madurai.Mohammed hasn’t played in the IPL yet but has had a stint with Punjab Kings as a net bowler in the past. Swapnil, the UP-born left-arm fingerspinner, who often bowls in the powerplay for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), was picked by Chepauk for INR 10.8 lakh. In the IPL 2025 auction, RCB had used their right-to-match card to get Swapnil back for INR 50 lakh.Karthik Meiyappan bagged a hat-trick for UAE in the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia•ICC via Getty Images

Swapnil, who had started his domestic career with Baroda, left the side during the Covid-19 pandemic after not getting regular game-time with them. He moved to Uttarakhand as an outstation player and since he has enrolled himself into TNCA’s first-division league, he is eligible to play in the TNPL.Sudharsan had returned to action from sports hernia in Tamil Nadu’s Ranji Trophy quarter-final clash against Vidarbha recently, but his availability for the TNPL is unclear as he might be picked in the India A or India squad for the England tour. In a bid to fill that void, Kovai Kings snapped up Siddarth for INR 8.4 lakh. Siddarth, the nephew of former Tamil Nadu stalwart and current national selector S Sharath, has also broken into the IPL, earning a deal worth INR 30 lakh with Chennai Super Kings. Siddarth had also played for India Under-19s in the 50-overs Under-19 Asia Cup in late 2024.With Washington Sundar set to slot into Ashwin’s spot as the frontline offspinner in India’s Test side, and likely to miss a chunk of the TNPL, he went to Trichy Grand Cholas for a low price of INR 6 lakh.Dindigul are the defending champions of the TNPL, having won their maiden title under Ashwin’s leadership in August 2024.

The 2025 edition will be a T20 tournament and the 2027 one an ODI event, serving as precursors to the respective format’s World Cups

Edited PTI copy29-Jul-2024India will host the next edition of the Men’s Asia Cup cricket tournament in the T20 format in 2025 as a precursor to the T20 World Cup scheduled in the country in 2026, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) stated in its Invitation for Expression of Interest (IEOI).Since 2016, when the tournament was first played as a T20 event, the Asia Cup has been used as a dress rehearsal for the global event and played in the format in which the World Cup will be held.The 2023 edition, hosted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), was held in a ‘Hybrid Model’ as India refused to travel to the neighbouring country and played their matches in Sri Lanka.The 2027 Asia Cup will be held in the ODI format in Bangladesh as the 50-over World Cup is scheduled in South Africa in the same year.The T20 Asia Cup in India and the 50-over continental event in Bangladesh in 2027 will comprise 13 games each as there are 26 matches allocated in the said period.”‘Men’s Asia Cup Tournament’ means the biennial senior men’s cricket tournament organised and administered by the ACC involving designated Members, and shall include participation by the teams from Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and one Non Test playing Member of ACC selected through qualifying events,” the ACC stated in its IEOI statement.India are the defending Asia Cup champions, and have won three of the last four editions of the tournament. They beat Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in the final of last year’s 50-overs edition in Colombo.

Veteran rolls back the years to overcome favourites Surrey and secure place in Finals Day

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Sep-2025Ravi Bopara rolled back the years with a sensational century – his third in a T20 career that has now spanned 22 years and almost 500 individual contests – to power Northamptonshire into Vitality Blast Finals Day at the expense of the tournament favourites, Surrey, on a thrilling night at the Kia Oval.Bopara has been on the scene so long that he is old enough to have featured in the second-ever day of T20 fixtures – for Essex, also against Surrey, in the original Twenty20 Cup in June 2003. But now, at the age of 40, he produced arguably his greatest knock in the format, to give Northants a shot at their third Blast title, and first since 2016.The contest had already been reduced to 14 overs a side due to heavy evening rain when Northants – asked to bat first – slumped to 1 for 2 in the first over. Jordan Clark removed Ricardo Vasconcelos with his first ball and David Willey with his sixth, also for a duck.Bopara, however, remained unfazed by the tough conditions, insisting that Northamptonshire’s gameplan was to “just keep going”, irrespective of the threat posed by a Surrey team that had topped the South Group with eight wins out of 11 in the competition’s group stages.”It was an amazing win,” Bopara told Sky Sports as he accepted his player-of-the-match award. “We knew there was going to be a bit of rain about, and we knew that this pitch might nibble at the start, but our philosophy was ‘just keep going’ and it will come off. And today it did.”We’re always going to stick with it. Because if someone has a day out, you end up posting a score like that. If someone gets a quick 80 or 100, you’re away.”That someone turned out to be Bopara himself, with 12 fours and five sixes in a magnificent unbeaten 105 from 46 balls. Afterwards he said that an inner calmness had been the key to his composure.”I don’t know if I’m getting better, but I was thinking about it all night,” he said. “I didn’t have that fire in my belly today, and that’s when I prefer it, when I feel a bit dead. That’s when I feel like I’m going to perform my best. It doesn’t always work, but [when it does] it’s good.”He also praised his team’s bowling effort for closing out the contest, despite a battling 69 not out from 38 balls from Surrey’s captain, Sam Curran.”It was very slippery out there,” Bopara said. “The chat was just to hold length. Length was the hardest ball to hit because it just nipped a little bit, and didn’t come off the surface at the same pace. We faltered from our plan a little bit in the middle, which brought them back into the game, but then went back to it towards the death. So that was good stuff.”Willey, whose composure with the ball was key to Northants’ successful defence, heaped praise on his team-mate, who will head to Edgbaston next week hoping to land his second Blast title, after a match-sealing knock of 36 not out from 22 balls in Essex’s victory over Worcestershire in 2019.”We got him for his experience, and that’s exactly what we got … big game, and he stood up,” Willey said. “He’s had a few murmurs of hanging the boots up, but hopefully we can prise him out for one more year, when he can play like that. It was just exceptional power, and also the skill that he showed there in that innings, from two-down for next to nothing, was fantastic.”Northants are now two games away from joining Leicestershire and Hampshire as the most successful team in T20 Blast history, with three titles each.”For a small club like us to get to Finals Day [is huge],” Willey said. “We’re obviously delighted to be there. It was a fantastic game of cricket here tonight. Hopefully we can build on that going into next weekend.”For Curran, the loss came just days after his pivotal role in Oval Invincibles’ third consecutive Men’s Hundred title. He is on course to land a second trophy this season, with Surrey favourites to claim the County Championship for the fourth season in a row. But he admitted he was ‘gutted’ at letting this contest slip.”It was a great game of cricket, credit to everyone for getting it on,” he said. “We’re gutted, it hurts very much when you get so close but credit to Northants – they held their nerve and nailed their skills in tough conditions. Good luck to them on Finals Day.”I thought anything around 140 would be a decent score and obviously with a wet outfield and wet ball it was tough. When I was batting and we kept it at two a ball, I felt like we were in the game, with the batting we had to come.”Ravi played an incredible knock and showed that world-class experience – in these kind of games, it just takes that one innings. Sometimes you just have to say ‘well played’ and learn from it.”It hurts now and it should – this is a tournament we’ve struggled to win over the years. The boys are in a good place with the four-day stuff and we’ll dust ourselves down, keep our heads up and hope to come running in hard on Monday (in the County Championship).”

He cut a frustrated figure at the pre-match conference when it was suggested that the team might be looking for a new batting coach

Mohammad Isam15-Jul-2025Bangladesh have had plenty of troubles on and off the field in 2025. They have suffered series defeats against UAE, Pakistan and Zimbabwe. They have also lost the Test and ODI series in Sri Lanka with one match left on the tour. Ahead of the third T20I on Wednesday, frustration within the Bangladesh dressing room spilt out.Assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin reacted strongly at the pre-match press conference when it was suggested that the BCB is looking for a new batting coach. Salahuddin was appointed last November primarily as the team’s batting coach, but the batting unit has not completely clicked over the last nine months, with some holding Salahuddin responsible.Related

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“My role as a coach in the Bangladesh team isn’t set in stone,” Salahuddin said. “I have never had any ego about it. If someone better comes (in the role of a batting coach), it will be for the team. The Bangladesh team is not the property of my father and grandfather. I will get criticised when I don’t do well, I will get praised when I do well. It is the reality. Whether I give 100% for my team, whether I am honest or not, is the main concern.”Salahuddin’s main gripe was with recent media reports that he has heavily influenced team decisions including selection and player roles. Given his stellar record in domestic cricket for the last two decades, he has also developed long-standing working relations with many cricketers, including those in the current Bangladesh squad.”After coaching for 27-28 years, I am hearing that there are lots of complaints in the team against me. I really would like to know about those complaints. Best if it was given to me in writing. You have to provide hard evidence. It will help me correct myself.”If I feel that the team needs a change for the good of the team, I will most likely do that. Our team has been losing regularly, so how will I benefit from favouritism?”It is not the first time during this Sri Lanka tour that discord within the Bangladesh team has come out in public. Last month, Najmul Hossain Shanto resigned from the Test captaincy, stating that the dressing room had too many captains. Litton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz are the T20I and ODI captains, respectively.

India captain says match simulation gives them a better chance at maximising their three days at the WACA in the lead-up to the Test series

Alagappan Muthu03-Nov-20245:43

Rohit: Not going to look beyond the Australia series

India will go from their 0-3 defeat to New Zealand to Australia in a couple of weeks’ time and they will face that challenge without the aid of any practice matches. This was their choice. They’ve scrapped a game they were supposed to play against India A at the WACA in favour of centre-wicket training with India A. This means the first game of any kind they will play during the Border-Gavaskar series is the opening Test match in Perth.India took this decision before the whitewash happened on Sunday and the captain Rohit Sharma explained why. “Look, you know, rather than practice match, we planned a very match simulation kind of a thing with India A,” he said. “I think sometimes when you play that practice match, we’re travelling with a squad of 19 players and it was only three days that were allotted to us. And I don’t know how much workload we can get done in those three days in terms of getting everyone prepared.”So we, as a management as well, we feel that rather than having that, the match simulation where the batters can spend more time in the middle, batting in the middle, and then the bowlers as well can bowl a lot of balls, so that is something that, we as a team feel more comfortable doing rather than playing a practice game because game time is not a problem. All of us have been playing a lot of cricket. So it’s just about spending time in the middle.”Related

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India A are already on site and have played a four-day game against Australia A in Mackay. That squad includes members who are part of the Test squad as well and several other leading performers in first-class cricket. So Rohit is hopeful of getting reasonably good prep, especially now with the shift from practice match to match simulation.”If a batter gets out, he has to sit in the dugout for the whole day, you know, and he doesn’t get too much of batting done,” Rohit said. “Whereas in match simulation kind of a thing, you know, the batters can go out and play 50-70 balls and then if you feel that he’s had enough, we can retire him out and then get someone else in. So that is the plan.”We want to maximise this three-day slot that we’ve got and I feel this is the best way to do it where the batters can have a lot of time in the middle and the bowlers at the same time can get their workload in terms of getting the number of balls bowled in the middle. So that was the idea and we will be.”I think we’ll be training at WACA, which is as close to Optus where you have that bounce and carry. So hopefully we can use those three days perfectly and maximise how much ever we can from our point of view.”The five Tests in Australia now assume even greater importance because India will need to win four of them to make it to the WTC final next year. They may have to start the series without Rohit, who mentioned that he “wasn’t too sure if I’ll be going to [Perth]. But let’s see. Fingers crossed.”

Hendricks gave South Africa a good start but a collapse of 7 for 20 in 36 balls knocked them out

Firdose Moonda25-Aug-2024West Indies won a third successive T20I series against South Africa by defending 179 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, where they dismantled a chase that was well set up. South Africa were 129 for 3 in the 14th over but lost 7 for 20 in 36 balls and were bowled out for 149 in 19.4 overs to fall short by 30 runs.Akeal Hosein and Gudakesh Motie made the crucial breakthroughs when they removed Tristan Stubbs and Donovan Ferreira, respectively, but then it was over to Romario Shepherd and Shamar Joseph to finish it off. Shepherd ended with 3 for 15 from his four overs and Joseph with a career-best 3 for 31. Between them, they took South Africa’s chances of levelling the series from on track to derailed.West Indies would have known that the total they posted was gettable after they pulled off the highest successful chase at the venue – 175 – two days ago and South Africa were off to a quick start. They raced to 100 inside ten overs but West Indies conceded only one boundary between tenth and 14th overs to force South Africa into making mistakes that ultimately cost them the game.South Africa’s middle order will be a cause for concern as only one batter after No. 3 got past 20 in a match where individual run-scoring accolades were scarce. There were no half-centuries across the two teams but West Indies were clearly the better big-hitting side. They hit 13 sixes compared to South Africa’s six, which was one marker of where the game was won.Shai Hope made an enterprising 41 off 22 balls•AFP/Getty Images

Hope floats and flies

After a match-winning 51 in the opening game, Shai Hope announced his intent in this match when he slog-swept Bjorn Fortuin over midwicket to score his first boundary of the innings. Hope’s pull off Kwena Maphaka in the next over, which went between the wicketkeeper and short fine, opened up a scoring area in the V behind the stumps. Alick Athanaze also exploited that area when he played Lizaad Williams late through third. West Indies finished the powerplay on 43 for 1, before Hope’s best came out. He smashed Aiden Markram for back-to-back sixes over midwicket, with the turn and wind. Two more sixes came when he pulled Maphaka over cow corner and flicked Patrick Kruger over a wide fine leg to underline his preference for leg-side play. Hope scored 39 of his 41 runs on the leg side, and had a third fifty in four innings in his sights, before he reached for a wide Kruger delivery and was caught at deep point.

Kruger doubles up

Hope was Kruger’s first T20I wicket and it was not long before he had his second. After a change of ends, but with the same plan, Kruger struck with the first ball in the 12th over. He maintained a wide line outside off and Roston Chase was enticed into attempting a big shot. He only got enough to find Maphaka on the edge of the point boundary, who took a good low catch to leave West Indies 94 for 3. Kruger is not South Africa’s first-choice allrounder, even in this squad, but has done enough to keep Wiaan Mulder on the bench and perhaps even edge out Ferreira. But West Indies scored 50 runs in their last five overs, with Rovman Powell and Sherfane Rutherford adding 47 off 28 balls for the fifth wicket to give them the edge.Reeza Hendricks gave South Africa a flying start in pursuit of 180•AFP/Getty Images

Reeza’s return

The last ball of Hosein’s opening over was not particularly short, but Reeza Hendricks pulled it for four over midwicket for the first boundary of South Africa’s reply. And it was as though a switch had flipped. Hendricks went on to hit a wide ball from Matthew Forde over point, a full delivery through the covers and then seemed to do nothing more than attempt a back-foot defensive block but timed it well enough to get past mid-off for four more. His coup de grâce came against Chase, whom he hit for 22 runs in five balls, including back-to-back sixes either side of the wicket, to give South Africa fifty inside four overs, and 71 in the powerplay albeit that he fell on the penultimate ball. Hendricks under-edged Shepherd onto his stumps and was out for 44 but showed signs that he was back to his best. In 12 innings before this one, Hendricks had only gone past 40 once and though he would have been disappointed not to get a half-century, he set up the chase well.

Hosein has South Africa on the ropes

Hosein’s first two overs – at the start of the innings – cost 17 runs and he was brought back in the 14th. South Africa were 125 for 3 after 13 with Tristan Stubbs and Rassie van der Dussen both in and scoring quickly. Hosein made a crucial breakthrough, foxing Stubbs. Stubbs tried to loft a slow, flighted ball over long-off but did not get enough on it and was caught by substitute fielder Fabian Allen. Pace-off also did Ferreira in, as Motie had him stumped in the next over, but it was Hosein’s final delivery that put South Africa’s hopes to bed. Van der Dussen tried to hit him over midwicket but only made contact with the inside half of the bat and was caught by Joseph. South Africa were 138 for 6 after 16 overs and needed 42 runs off 24 balls. Joseph and Shepherd took it out of South Africa’s reach and cleaned up the tail before Matthew Forde finished off the match

Ahmedabad has been named as the venue for the first qualifier on May 21 and the eliminator on May 22, and the other qualifier will be played in Chennai

Nagraj Gollapudi25-Mar-2024Chennai is set to host its first IPL final in 12 years, with Chepauk named as the venue for the IPL 2024 title match, to be played on May 26. The MA Chidambaram Stadium, or the Chepauk, the home venue of defending IPL champions Chennai Super Kings, has hosted two previous IPL finals, in 2011 and 2012.Chennai will also host the second qualifier on May 24, with the first qualifier on May 21 and the eliminator on May 22 set to take place in Ahmedabad.The second part of the IPL schedule, comprising 52 matches including the playoffs, will begin on April 8, with CSK hosting Kolkata Knight Riders in Chennai. All playoff matches will be evening games, as usual.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

As in 2023, the ten teams have been divided across two groups of five each. Each team plays the other four teams in their group twice and four teams in the other group once while playing the remaining team from the other group – picked via a draw – twice.CSK are grouped with 2022 IPL champions Gujarat Titans, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings. The second group comprises five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians along with KKR, Royals, Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants.In all, the 2024 league phase will include 11 double-header days, two of which took place on the opening weekend.On February 22, the IPL had released a partial schedule of an initial set of 21 matches from March 22 to April 7. A complete schedule could not be put out since, at the time, the IPL was waiting for the Election Commission of India to announce the dates for the country’s general elections, which have since been made public. They will take place in seven phases from April 19 to June 1.Apart from the main home grounds of the ten teams, the tournament will also travel to Visakhapatnam, Dharamsala and Guwahati, which will host two games each as the respective second home grounds of Delhi Capitals, Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals respectively. Guwahati will host the final league game of the season on May 19, between Royals and KKR.