Trent Boult had reduced hosts to 8 for 3, before Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali and Sam Curran also joined the rescue act

Matt Roller10-Sep-2023Liam Livingstone’s 95 not out rescued England and set up a series-squaring victory over New Zealand at the Ageas Bowl. His highest ODI score enabled England to set New Zealand 227 to win in a match reduced to 34 overs a side by rain. And despite Daryl Mitchell’s 57, the visitors fell a long way short after a lower-order implosion.Trent Boult marked his return to New Zealand colours by taking three early wickets in eight balls in his 100th ODI to leave England 8 for 3 in helpful bowling conditions. And by the time Livingstone walked out at No. 7, they had further slipped to 55 for 5 and were facing a fourth consecutive white-ball defeat.But in partnerships with Moeen Ali and Sam Curran – worth 48 and 112, respectively – Livingstone dragged England up to a competitive total. He started steadily before isolating Tim Southee as the weak link in New Zealand’s attack: Livingstone carted him for six boundaries in 17 balls, and the only surprise was that he could not jump from 91 to three figures off the final two.”I haven’t had the greatest couple of months,” Livingstone reflected. “Unfortunately, there’s a reason why there’s not many lower-order hitters that have mastered the art of the game: it’s a pretty difficult role to do. If you get on a roll, it’s pretty nice, but if you get yourself in a bit of a rut, it’s quite hard to get out of. It’s probably the first time in my career where I’ve had two months of struggling so I’ve put in a lot of work behind the scenes to try and go back to knowing what I can do – and that’s win games for England.”Despite his patchy form this summer, Livingstone’s all-round ability and superb IPL record means there has never been any real doubt of his spot in England’s World Cup squad. With two contrasting half-centuries in three days, he has emphatically proved why. This was his longest innings in international cricket, and his highest in a win.New Zealand lost Finn Allen to the second ball of their chase, castled by David Willey, but looked on course at 111 for 3, with Mitchell in dominant mood. But Reece Topley took three wickets in eight balls in his second spell to finish with 3 for 27, as New Zealand imploded, losing their last seven wickets for 36.Sam Curran added 112 with Liam Livingstone•Getty Images

Boult, playing international cricket for the first time since last year’s T20 World Cup, did the early damage. His New Zealand career has been on hold since late last year after he negotiated a release from his central contract in order to maximise his availability for franchise leagues around the world, but New Zealand were always likely to welcome him back ahead of next month’s World Cup, and his new-ball spell demonstrated why.He struck with his seventh ball, as Jonny Bairstow’s leading edge spooned up towards cover where Mitchell Santner took a spectacular catch, nailing the timing of his leap. Joe Root lasted two balls, smashed on the knee roll by an inswinger, and Ben Stokes gave Boult the charge only to loft to mid-off.In the absence of Jason Roy (back spasm) and Dawid Malan (paternity leave), Harry Brook was again given the opportunity to open the batting, but he fell immediately after a shortened powerplay. Brook looked to swing Matt Henry over the infield, but his leading edge looped up to the back-pedalling mid-on fielder.Jos Buttler then led the counterpunch, flaying Boult down the ground for three boundaries in four balls, but fell for 30 off 25 when he chopped Santner’s drag-down onto his own stumps. As with Bairstow and Brook, Buttler’s dismissal hinted at a slowish surface, with several balls sticking in the pitch.When Livingstone walked out at No. 7 to join Moeen, England had more than 20 overs left to bat. The pair added 48 in 50 balls, starting watchfully before occasionally freeing their arms when New Zealand offered width. Moeen fell for 33 to a brilliant diving catch at point by Glenn Phillips, at which point Livingstone decided it was time to shift gears.Daryl Mitchell kept New Zealand ticking, before giving Moeen Ali his 100th ODI wicket•AFP/Getty Images

Livingstone targeted Southee, hitting 17 runs off an over – including three boundaries in four balls; by the time he brought up a 47-ball half-century, his second in three days, he had already played his longest innings for England. At the far end, Curran, playing his first game since the Hundred final, belted both left-arm spinners – Santner and Rachin Ravindra – for sixes.The pair brought up a 100-run partnership at the end of the 32nd over when Livingstone swiped Henry’s slower ball into the stands for his first six. Curran fell shovelling Southee to short third, and after Mitchell trod on the boundary toblerone while attempting a catch off Willey at long-off, Livingstone could only heave the final two balls for a brace of twos.Allen, who will not feature in the provisional World Cup squad that New Zealand name tomorrow, survived an lbw review off the first ball of the chase but was castled on the second by Willey, even as Gus Atkinson bowled a bright first spell to keep England ahead of the game. He had Devon Conway caught behind, before Will Young was lazily run-out as Willey pounced at mid-off.Mitchell kept New Zealand ticking, adding 56 with Tom Latham, but Topley’s second spell changed the game. Latham chased a wide one before Phillips fell to a stunning caught-and-bowled, and Ravindra edged his second ball to slip. From 123 for 6, it was Mitchell or bust.Having hoisted Moeen over long-off for six, Mitchell miscued a full toss to mid-off to give Moeen his 100th ODI wicket; he soon had his 101st too, as Santner sliced to point. Willey mopped up the tail to finish with three wickets of his own, to leave England basking in the early-evening sunshine.

Derbyshire batter records sixth successive 50-plus score with unbeaten 139 at Cardiff

ECB Reporters Network26-Sep-2023Luis Reece continued to wage his personal battle against the Glamorgan bowlers as he equaled the Derbyshire record of six successive fifties in first-class cricket on the way to plundering his third century of the summer against the Welsh county at Sophia Gardens.Glamorgan’s decision to put Derbyshire into bat on a green wicket in Cardiff came back to haunt them as the visitors settled in and made hay, ending the first day on 308 for 2.It was also a significant day for Sue Redfern, who became the first female umpire to stand in a first-class match in England or Wales – although Glamorgan asked few questions of either the batters or the officials.Reece, 33, was at the heart of the action all day long as he put his side in control with an unbeaten 139 in 96 overs. He put on 80 for the first wicket with Harry Came and then 180 for the second with Brooke Guest.Leus du Plooy joined him for the final 75 minutes of the day and ended on 22 not out as his contribution to an unbroken third wicket stand of 48.The home side are due to say goodbye to their chief executive, Hugh Morris, captain, David Lloyd, and head coach, Matt Maynard, and were hoping to push for a final to potentially take them up to third in the table. But the bowlers were once again made to toil in the field by the left-handed Reece as he took his tally of first-class runs against Glamorgan this summer to 471.He scored 139 and an unbeaten 201, his highest score in first-class cricket, in the drawn game at the County Ground, in Derby in July. He also made 69 against them in the One-Day Cup clash in Derby last month.Reece’s hot streak began in the home clash with Durham in July when he scored 54 in the second innings. From there he notched his twin centuries against Glamorgan before taking 77 off the Gloucestershire attack and 86 against Sussex.In his latest success, he reached 50 off 74 balls, his century off 175 balls and currently has 16 fours and a six to his credit. Fellow opener Came looked comfortable until he was caught at the wicket by Chris Cooke off the bowling of Zain-ul-Hassan in the 27th over. The next departure was 50 overs later when James Harris had Guest trapped lbw four runs short of his century.Glamorgan tried seven bowlers throughout the day and four of them went for more than 50 runs.

She comfortably set a new mark for an individual score and also broke the record for sixes in an innings

Andrew McGlashan22-Oct-2023A day after a new low total was set in the WBBL, Grace Harris tore up the record books with the highest individual score in the tournament’s history with a brutal 136 not out off 59 balls against Perth Scorchers at North Sydney Oval.Harris, who was recently left out of Australia’s T20I side against West Indies, reached her third WBBL hundred from 48 balls. She also set a new record with 11 sixes, overtaking the previous mark of ten set by Ash Gardner, at the same ground, against Melbourne Stars in 2017.”I don’t know if I could top that,” she said. “I always find North Sydney to be a great ground for a batter, the wickets are quite nice and true surfaces. The boundary here, I back myself in to clear it if I give it a good swing. Might have got a bit of inspiration from Hayley Matthews recently…on what she did, she did tear our Aussie bowling attack apart.”One of those sixes came during an extraordinary passage of play where she had called for a new bat, but carried on using the one she wanted replaced then crunched the next ball for six as the handle ripped off from the blade. Having replaced the bat, for good measure she also sent the next delivery from Piepa Cleary over the ropes. “Thought it [the handle] just clicked a little bit and didn’t want to be given nicked off as the ball went past and I didn’t hit the ball,” she said. “When I faced up, I thought it’s probably hanging on, when they get that looser handle they are at their best, they are pinging. Thought I’d still hit it for six, they’d been going miles today…it went for six, so paid off for me then.”Scorchers had made early inroads when Chloe Ainsworth, who struck twice in her opening over on debut against Hobart Hurricanes, found herself on a hat-trick in the fourth over.To add to the context of Harris’ ferocious display, she had been 9 off eight balls at the end of the four-over powerplay before she took the attack to Australia team-mate Alana King with three sixes in her first two overs.She and Mignon du Preez added 91 off 47 balls for the third wicket. Harris then dominated a stand of 51 with Bess Heath as she took advantage of the favourable boundaries and some poor Scorchers bowling. Of the 37 runs added with Mikayla Hinkley, Harris contributed 32 off 10 balls.Heat’s eventual total was the second highest in WBBL history.Scorchers made a brave attempt early in their mammoth chase, led by Beth Mooney’s 25-ball fifty, and on the comparison were ahead of Heat at stages.Heat also lost Nicola Hancock from their attack after consecutive beamers against Sophie Devine, but they were able to regather themselves with Courtney Sippel coming to the fore.Devine, who came in at No. 3, couldn’t quite get going before picking out deep square leg and Sippel made it three wickets in the 10th to all-but end the contest when she claimed a return catch to remove Maddy Darke and had then had Mooney slicing to short third.To cap the records, the final overall tally of 408 runs in the match was also a new tournament record.

The lack of a TV official in streamed games has been highlighted this season

AAP30-Oct-2023Cricket Australia will look to introduce third-umpire technology for all WBBL games next season in a bid to introduce parity between televised and streamed matches.Inconsistencies in officiating have been highlighted time and time again this season, raising concerns from current and past players.Hobart Hurricanes opener Lizelle Lee should have been out stumped for 12 on Monday night against Sydney Thunder, only to be given not out and finish with 91.Brisbane Heat’s Mignon du Preez was also declared run out in bizarre fashion against Adelaide Strikers on Sunday night.With the bails already off, Strikers bowler Amanda-Jade Wellington removed one of the stumps to effect the dismissal.Related

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As she did not have the ball in the same hand that removed the stump, AAP has been told du Preez should not have been ruled out.Melbourne Stars copped a poor call the previous week against Adelaide, when Rhys McKenna was given out stumped despite replays clearly showing she was in her crease when the bails came off.Both instances happened in streamed matches, meaning no third umpire was available to rule on them. It’s understood CA has already begun internal discussions to remedy the issue for next year. After introducing the decision review system for the 24 free-to-air games last year, CA will expand that to include an extra 10 matches next season.Talks are already in place to have fixed run-out cameras positioned for all other games, ensuring a third-umpire can be called upon in every WBBL match.”We’re always focused on continuous improvement around the competition, whether that’s scheduling, players, technology or officiating,” Big Bash boss Alistair Dobson told AAP.”Next year is the first year of our new media rights agreement, which will bring with it some further growth in the technology and facilities available at WBBL games”We’re really optimistic we’ll be able to continue to improve and enhance WBBL matches around the use of technology and decision making.”Tahlia McGrath at the launch of the WBBL’s Stadium Series•Getty Images

CA continues to consider their long-term plans around the league, including a potential shortening to 40 regular-season games for next year.Dobson launched the ‘stadium series’ in Adelaide on Monday, which will see WBBL matches played at Adelaide Oval, MCG and SCG later in the tournament.Ellyse Perry spoke earlier this month of the ultimate goal of playing the majority of games in big stadiums in front of large crowds.CA shares a similar vision, with the Gabba likely to also host a game next summer as part of a longer-term goal of a closer balance between matches at suburban grounds and major stadiums”We’ll look at the success of the stadium series post-season, and determine whether that can be expanded,” Dobson said. “If in the future, more games in these big stadiums suits the competition – our schedule, partners and players – I would love to think there’s more.”

Tait’s time with Pakistan earlier means he has worked with most of the bowlers he will now take charge of

Danyal Rasool17-Dec-2023Days after appointing former Australian allrounder Shane Watson as head coach, Quetta Gladiators have announced Shaun Tait as bowling coach. Tait, who was Pakistan’s fast bowling coach until earlier this year, will take up the role ahead of the ninth season of the PSL.”I’d like to thank Nadeem Omar (Quetta Gladiators owner) who trusted me with the bowling group,” Tait said in an official statement, “including Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, and Mohammad Amir. Some great talent there to work with alongside the great Shane Watson.”Tait’s time with Pakistan means he has worked with most of the bowlers he will now take charge of. During his stint, he was vocal in his criticism of any attempts to get Pakistan’s express pace bowlers to maintain high workloads. In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, he had said there was “no way – no way – express pace bowlers can currently play all three formats consistently.”In the same interview, he was effusive in his praise for Hasnain – currently recuperating from an ankle injury – who falls under his wing once more. “Hasnain has got the ability to bowl proper rapid, but there’s no doubt [there’s an air of vulnerability to him],” he said at the time. “My input with Hasnain is purely about just using his athleticism. Getting that grunt as a fast bowler and being angry. Just running in fast and feeling good.”The announcement marks Gladiators’ push towards an overhaul of the coaching staff as they look to break out of a rut that has seen them miss the playoffs for four successive seasons. Gladiators were the most consistent franchise of the PSL during its first four editions, when they reached the final three times, and also won the title in 2019.Tait was appointed Pakistan coach in February 2022 on a one-year contract. While there was uncertainty on whether it was a rolling contract, and he was understood to be keen on an extension, the contract was not renewed.The PSL starts on February 8, and runs till March 24.

Former Northants captain sign on one-year deal that covers T20 Blast and Metro Bank Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jan-2024Worcestershire have signed Josh Cobb to strengthen their white-ball sides for 2024, and have handed a first professional contract to 28-year-old fast bowler Yadvinder Singh who will initially appear for them as an overseas player.Cobb, 33, was released early from his contract with Northamptonshire after losing the T20 captaincy at short notice, and being frozen out from their first team in the second half of last season. He has signed an initial one-year deal which covers the Vitality Blast and the Metro Bank Cup.”I am thrilled to be joining Worcestershire for 2024,” Cobb said. “The club has always been a well-drilled white-ball unit, and I hope to bring my A-game to New Road and assist in challenging for trophies. I would like to thank Ashley Giles for giving me this fresh opportunity to once again do what I love – play exciting cricket and win trophies.”Giles, the club’s chief executive, said: “Josh’s experience and skills align perfectly with our plans for the upcoming season. He’s a highly experienced white-ball cricketer, who’s tasted regular success. He will fit into the dressing room well, and will really add to the group.”Worcestershire reached the quarter-finals of the Blast last year, finishing third in the group stage before being thrashed by Hampshire in their first knockout game. They have re-signed Usama Mir, the Pakistani legspinner, for next year’s tournament and have recruited the New Zealander Nathan Smith for all formats.