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Home side bowled out for 92 then lose four wickets after being forced to follow on

ECB Reporters Network04-May-2024Lancashire 92 (Gilchrist 6-24, Agar 4-35) and 119 for 4 (Jennings 40) trail Kent 261 (Evison 71*, Williams 3-44, Lyon 3-50, Balderson 3-67) by 50 runsNathan Gilchrist took a career-best 6 for 24 to deepen Lancashire’s current batting woes and help Kent take complete control of their Vitality County Championship match on a dramatic afternoon at Emirates Old Trafford.Replying to the visitors’ 261, Keaton Jennings’ side were bowled out for 92 in 30 overs, with both Gilchrist and Wes Agar, who bagged 4 for 35, making the most of cloudy conditions.Presented with the luxury of a 169-run first-innings lead, the Kent skipper, Daniel Bell-Drummond, chose to enforce the follow-on and his decision was justified as Lancashire lost three wickets for as many runs late in the day to finish on 119 for 4, still 50 runs in arrears.In the 40 minutes’ play that had been possible before lunch, Kent resumed on 203 for 7 and added 36 runs for the loss of Agar, who was bowled for 13 when he went back to a quicker delivery from Lyon that turned through the gate.The new ball was taken immediately after lunch and brought dividends when Gilchrist was caught behind by Matty Hurst off Tom Bailey for 10, but Matthew Parkinson, who was playing his first innings at Emirates Old Trafford since he left Lancashire for Kent, ensured that his new team would collect a bonus point when he edged two runs through the slip cordon.That, however, was the extent of the last man’s modest heroics as he was caught behind for 3 two overs later, thus giving Will Williams his 200th wicket in first-class cricket. Joey Evison ended the innings unbeaten on 71, his runs scored off 150 balls, ten of which he hit for four.The value of Evison’s 198-minute innings was soon apparent as Lancashire collapsed to 40 for 7 in 17.4 overs. Luke Wells was the first to go when he edged Agar to Jack Leaning and departed for 10 but the disintegration really gathered pace when the home side lost four wickets for five runs in ten balls.Josh Bohannon cover-drove Gilchrist for four but lost his middle stump next ball when he inside-edged an attempted pull into his wicket. Next over, skipper Keaton Jennings nicked behind to Harry Finch for 4 when caught half-forward by Agar, who then trapped Tom Bruce lbw first ball.The tumble of wickets continued next over when George Bell nicked Gilchrist to Finch and the same bowler had George Balderson caught at slip by Denly for 2 to leave Lancashire in tatters. Tom Hartley added to the mayhem when his wild slash to a ball outside the off stump merely gave Zak Crawley his first catch and Gilchrist his fourth wicket.Lancashire’s disastrous afternoon continued when Tom Bailey was caught down the leg side off Agar for 5 but some defiance was shown by Hurst, who hit three fours and two sixes in an innings of 36 that took his side past 61, their lowest first-class score against Kent, which they made at Old Trafford in 1884.Hurst became Gilchrist’s fifth wicket when he pulled him straight to Crawley at deep midwicket and the innings ended when Williams edged a ball from Gilchrist to give Finch his fourth catch.In their second innings, Wells and Jennings immediately took the attack to Kent’s new-ball attack. The fifty partnership came up in the ninth over and the aggression continued even after Wells had been caught at slip by Leaning off Gilchrist.Bohannon helped his skipper add a further 51 before he was caught by Leaning off Evison for 31 when attempting a drive and Lancashire suffered another crucial blow when Jennings was brilliantly stumped by Finch off Parkinson for 40. Will Williams lasted only one ball before being bowled by Gilchrist for a single.

The India quick admitted to bowling an “Indian length” on the opening day of the Cape Town Test, a tactic that hurt the visitors

Sidharth Monga in Centurion11-Jan-20182:42

Any wicket in Test cricket makes me happy – Bumrah

Bowling an “Indian length” in the first innings in Cape Town, on Test debut, is an error Jasprit Bumrah has admitted to. In a low-scoring match that featured no centuries, just three half-centuries, and assistance for seam bowlers throughout, India conceded 286 in the first innings after having reduced South Africa to 12 for 3. After that India were left to play catch-up, which they did with an improved performance with the ball in the second innings, but the damage had already been done on the first day.Bumrah himself was the main culprit, the only bowler to bowl half-volleys in the first session, which Faf du Plessis drove at with relish. “In the first innings we thought we bowled a little fuller than the normal because in India the wickets are different where we have to pitch fuller to get the swing and to get the batsmen on the front foot,” he said. “Over here there is bounce, there is a little bit of difference. We analysed that and tried to adapt in the second innings, and as a unit we were able to create pressure, so that was the basic plan going into the second innings. That worked well. So hopefully, we will see videos of these wickets, what happens over here and we plan according to it.”India didn’t train at all on the day before the first Test, and at the end of the match the visiting captain Virat Kohli said there was nothing wrong with the preparation. However, this is not the first time that India’s fast bowlers have failed to adjust to conditions, and it cannot be all down to preparation. What happens out in the middle is completely different.Bumrah is reputed to be a quick learner, which has already made him one of the best – if not the best – bowlers in limited-overs cricket. To his credit, Bumrah showed that ability to learn quickly and did not repeat the mistakes in the second innings. He was driven 28 times in 19 overs in the first innings, but once he realised the mistake, he pulled the length back and was driven only 12 times in the 11.2 overs he bowled. He began to hit the pitch hard on that heavy in-between length, and bowled a brute to dismiss du Plessis.”We realised what mistakes we made in the first innings, so we were trying to create pressure from both ends and focus on our lengths, which were wrong in the first innings,” Bumrah said. “We just tried to correct them and not overdo things because over here, when there is help from the wicket, you try to do extra but that won’t help. So we were just trying to be disciplined and stick to basics.”Jasprit Bumrah’s pitch maps•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The Cape Town Test was Bumrah’s first first-class match in a year although he did have 89 first-class wickets from 26 matches. Not having played the format for this long, he said, was not on his mind as he prepared for his debut. “Not nervousness, it’s not like in my life I was playing a first-class game for the first time, I have played a lot of four-day games,” Bumrah said when asked if he felt nervous when he was told he was going to play.”There was a discussion that I would play the match, so I was talking to our bowling coach on what kind of things I should do, what kind of wickets are over here or what should I expect. You can think ‘this is going to happen’ and ‘that’s going to happen’ but as soon as you’re in, things are different. My basic plan was to go inside and have a feel of the wicket and changes should be made accordingly.”The performance on the first day, and the part it might have played in the eventual result, didn’t hurt Bumrah’s confidence. “Confidence doesn’t dent after one match,” Bumrah said. “If it happens, then you don’t deserve to play. Learn from the mistake you made, and go forward. There is not a single cricketer who has not made a mistake. You keep learning and you keep improving all the time. We are trying to rectify our mistakes and move forward.”The team management seems to be impressed with how quickly Bumrah made amends to his lengths. Indeed, in admitting a mistake is the first step to rectifying it, but in a tight series such as this, India can’t afford to have a whole session of ordinary bowling because as Newlands showed us, the visitors only played catch-up thereafter.

Batting at No. 3, Nafay hit a 31-ball 60 not out as Gladiators romped home with five wickets and five balls to spare

Associated Press20-Feb-2024Quetta Gladiators clinched a second win from two matches in the PSL 2024 by defeating scrappy defending champions Lahore Qalandars by five wickets.Unheralded Khawaja Nafay showed plenty of confidence against the star-studded pace attack of Qalandars. Nafay defied the likes of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf by hitting three sixes and four boundaries. He flicked Zaman Khan to the fine leg boundary for the winning runs to finish unbeaten on 60 off 31 balls.Gladiators romped to 188 for 5 with five balls to spare after Qalandars’ 187 for 7. Qalandars lost a second successive home home after dropping three catches.Qalandars opening batter Sahibzada Farhan, dropped on 44, made 62 off 43 balls but it was a breezy unbeaten 45 off 17 balls by Jahandad Khan, who was promoted at No. 5, which propelled them.Jahandad claimed the momentum in the death overs by hitting four sixes and three boundaries. He upped the ante when he smacked Abrar Ahmed for three sixes in the leg-spinner’s last over which went for 23. Despite the onslaught, Akeal Hosein, opening the bowling for Gladiators, conceded only 17 and picked up two wickets in his four-over spell.Gladiators made a brisk start to their chase thanks to Jason Roy (24 runs) and Saud Shakeel (40). Roy was dropped twice as they combined for 69, another scintillating opening stand after their century partnership against Zalmi.Both batters fell in successive overs after dominating the powerplay. Zaman clean-bowled Shakeel with a yorker and Roy swiped wildly at spinner Raza’s short ball that hit the middle stump.Qalandars’ part-time wicketkeeper Farhan had another lapse in the field when he dropped former Gladiators captain Sarfaraz Ahmed off the first ball he faced from Rauf.

Captain vows to stick by defeated batting core for next month’s New Zealand tour, including out-of-sorts Ollie Pope

Matt Roller26-Oct-2024England are unlikely to change their batting line-up ahead of their tour to New Zealand next month despite two heavy defeats to Pakistan. They were bowled out for 112 in Rawalpindi on Saturday, but their captain Ben Stokes insisted: “There’s no doubt in my mind that we have got the best top six batsmen in England.”After they racked up 823 for 7 in the first Test in Multan, England scored only 814 runs for the loss of 40 wickets – 39 of them to spin – across the second and third Tests. Ollie Pope had a particularly poor series at No. 3, making 55 runs at 11, while Stokes himself managed 53 in four and Zak Crawley was out four times in a row to Noman Ali’s left-arm spin.England initially planned to announce their squad for their three-match series in New Zealand immediately after the third Test in Rawalpindi, but have opted to let the dust settle and will wait until early next week to do so. But Stokes and Brendon McCullum suggested firmly that there are unlikely to be major changes to their batting line-up.”They’re the best players in England,” Stokes told Sky Sports. “We play all around the world and going to New Zealand in a couple of weeks’ time is going to be completely different [to Pakistan]. But there’s no doubt in my mind, no doubt in Brendon’s mind, that we have got the best top-six players in England.”You can’t shut the door on everything, because then you’re just being very single-minded towards what you want to do. But going back to the point before, there’s no doubt in my mind that we have got the best top-six batsmen in England. Sometimes guys will reap the rewards of performing well out in the middle, and unfortunately, some other guys will miss out.”McCullum gave a clear indication that Pope will be retained at No. 3 despite his lean run. “It is not an easy place to bat at No. 3,” he told the BBC. “I know Popey will be disappointed with the volume of runs he got in this series, but I expect him to bounce back strongly in New Zealand and we will make sure he’s got the required support around him to do so.”Obviously, Popey’s had a bit of a tough tour in terms of his output of runs… [but] we know that when Popey gets in, he makes big scores – and makes defining scores as well…We’ve got a pretty good idea of what the make-up of the squad will be for New Zealand, with the conditions that we’ll be confronted with.”Pope made three single-figure scores – including a duck – in five innings•Getty Images

England will make a forced change at No. 7, with Jamie Smith set to miss at least one Test and increasingly unlikely to be part of the tour at all due to paternity leave, with his partner expecting their first child in mid-December. McCullum has previously indicated that Jordan Cox, the Essex keeper-batter, will deputise for Smith and take the gloves.Stokes also conceded that England’s fingerspinners had been outbowled by Pakistan’s on favourable surfaces, yet claimed they had still done “a fantastic job”. Across the second and third Tests, Sajid Khan and Noman Ali took 39 wickets between them at a combined average of 17.38, while Shoaib Bashir and Jack Leach managed 17 wickets at 35.47.”The difference between [the teams in] these two games was the understanding of how to bowl in these conditions the Pakistan spinners showed, but that’s not taking anything away from how our spinners have played in this series,” Stokes said. “I think they’ve done a fantastic job to take the wickets that they’ve done.”Shoaib in particular, I said to him the other day, ‘You are getting to learn on the job here. You’re getting to learn about yourself as a bowler through the Test match. You’re being able to work out how to bowl in different conditions at different phases of the game, and how exciting, how good is that?’ He’s absolutely loved it.”Stokes himself returned from a torn hamstring in the second Test and did not bowl a ball in the third, but insisted he is fully fit. “I worked very, very hard to get back in for that second Test,” he said. “I just didn’t feel like my bowling was going to be anywhere near as threatening as the [other] options we had… in terms of my fitness with me not bowling, that’s got nothing to do with it.”England’s first of three Tests in New Zealand starts on November 27 in Christchurch, with the squad arriving in time to play a warm-up match in Queenstown on November 23-24. Their white-ball squads leave the UK on Monday ahead of three ODIs and five T20Is against West Indies.

Fifties for James Bracey, Ben Charlesworth and Miles Hammond give visitors something to smile about

Alan Gardner19-Apr-2024Gloucestershire, recipients of the wooden spoon last season, have not won a County Championship fixture since September 2022. Their last red-ball win over Sussex, meanwhile, came almost 20 years ago, when the current head coach, Mark Alleyne, was in the twilight of his playing career. Phil Weston top-scored at Arundel with 81 while Jon Lewis – a Gloucestershire legend who ended up in Hove – took 8 for 100 in a nine-wicket win.They could be forgiven, then, for not relishing this trip to the seaside. But Alleyne, who returned for his second spell in charge over the winter and is trying to rebuild confidence, will have been quietly encouraged by his side’s performance here. After losing the toss and being inserted on a chilly, changeable spring morning, Gloucestershire battled through the interruptions to give themselves a first-innings foothold in the face of the jinkin’, jivin’ Dukes: Ben Charlesworth, Miles Hammond and James Bracey – one of the heroes of last week’s rescue act against Yorkshire – all produced fifties of notable pugnacity.Sussex had the best of their two draws in the opening rounds of the season to sit top of the early standings, and there seems to be increasing optimism at Hove that Paul Farbrace can put together a side capable of securing promotion. They were able to call on Ollie Robinson, a bowler looking to make a statement about his England credentials, after he sat out last week’s trip to Leicester. But while Robinson went wicketless, his frustrations compounded by seeing Bracey dropped, it is perhaps a mark of Sussex’s development that they found contributions from other quarters.While the Dukes, in this case, did not fly back and forth like the waltzer on Brighton pier, Sussex chipped away, chiefly through the efforts of Danny Lamb, Jayden Seales and Jack Carson, who shared seven wickets. A century stand between Charlesworth and Hammond provided the main plank for Gloucestershire before Bracey steered them to a brace of batting points before the close.Rob Key, England men’s managing director of cricket, had described the experiment with the Kookaburra in the first two rounds of the Championship as “fantastic” and expanded on his views while talking to Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast. Essentially, he said, the less-biddable Australian ball encouraged faster bowlers and spinners at the expense of those classical English seamers who bring the keeper up and nip it around at 75mph and below. There was mention of Darren Stevens – the former Kent allrounder whose reign of medium-paced terror began under Key’s captaincy – but not a favourable one.We can easily imagine Key’s reaction then, as the return of the Dukes coincided with scoreboard wickets columns rattling into life up and down the country, with the likes of Ben Sanderson, Shane Snater and Ryan Higgins threatening to run amok. In Hove, after fruitless opening spells from Sussex’s two Test match seam bowlers, Robinson and Seales, it was Lamb who made the breakthroughs with his nibbly mediums. Little more than an hour into the day, John Simpson was stood up behind the stumps as Lamb applied the shackles to Gloucestershire’s top order. Fynn Hudson-Prentice was next into the attack, followed by Tom Clark. At which point, presumably, Key would have closed the livestream window.This, of course, is not to denigrate Lamb, whose opening analysis of 8-1-19-2 reflected the threat he brought to proceedings after Charlesworth, opening in place of the injured Chris Dent, and Cam Bancroft had ticked along comfortably enough during a stand worth 49. The former Lancashire allrounder scored a century up at Leicestershire and already looks a shrewd signing. He had Bancroft lbw as he shuffled across to one angling in and then saw Ollie Price taken at second slip on the drive after coaxing some movement away from right-hander.Later, after squally showers led to an extended lunch break, Gloucestershire opted to take a more assertive approach to Lamb and his brethren. Hammond lofted him over mid-off and followed up with a slap that flew all the way over extra cover; Charlesworth then went to his half-century with a dismissive leg-side flick off Hudson-Prentice that sailed out towards the scoreboard for another six.Hammond had just followed suit in striking Hudson-Prentice over midwicket when the partnership came to an end as Jack Carson found some turn in his third over to trap the Gloucestershire No. 4 in front. Seales then struck with the first ball of his fourth spell, finally inducing an error outside off stump from Charlesworth. The West Indies bowler celebrated by charging off towards backward point, and generally bowled better than figures of 2 for 72 would suggest, having also seen Hammond badly dropped by Clark at second slip when he had made just 17.Sussex’s other blemish in the field was even more costly. Three balls after being swatted dismissively for four, Robinson found Bracey’s outside edge only for a low catch to be grassed by James Coles at third slip. Bracey was on 23 at the time, and had progressed to 69 by the time Seales finally won an lbw decision as the shadows lengthened.

The laws were changed in 2017 to remove the handled-the-ball category and include such dismissals under obstructing the field

Mohammad Isam06-Dec-2023Mushfiqur Rahim became the first Bangladesh batter to be given out obstructing the field in Test cricket, on the first day of the second Test against New Zealand in Mirpur.He was dismissed in the 41st over, after defending a delivery from Kyle Jamieson into the ground and then swatting the ball away with his right hand after it had bounced up wide outside off stump. New Zealand appealed immediately and it was upheld by the TV umpire Ahsan Raza.At the end of the day’s play, Mushfiqur’s team-mate Mehidy Hasan Miraz suggested that the action had been an instinctive one.”It happened in the flow of the game,” Mehidy said. “A batter has to take a split-second decision while at the crease. His hand probably went in the flow of his batting. Mushfiq didn’t do it intentionally. A lot of things happen in the back of your mind during a game. We got a time-out dismissal in the World Cup, so these things happen.”On TV commentary, former Bangladesh captain Tamim Iqbal reckoned the dismissal could have come about as a reflex, because batters practising in the nets often pick up the ball and throw it back to the bowlers.”A cricketer who has played over 80 Tests should know he can’t do that,” Tamim said. “Practice habit can make this happen. In the nets, batters often take the ball in hand and return it back to the bowler. Maybe Mushfiqur did it unconsciously and extended his hands. But this obviously can’t be an excuse.”While such dismissals were classified as “handled the ball” previously, a change in the laws in 2017 removed the “handled the ball” category and brought it under “obstructing the field”.According to Law 37.1.2, “The striker is out obstructing the field if, except in the circumstances of 37.2, in the act of receiving a ball delivered by the bowler, he/she wilfully strikes the ball with a hand not holding the bat. This will apply whether it is the first strike or a second or subsequent strike. The act of receiving the ball shall extend both to playing at the ball and to striking the ball more than once in defence of his/her wicket.”Handled the ball was brought under obstructing the field to streamline the mode of dismissals, according to the MCC, because in effect the former was a specific case of the latter. “The reason for the change was largely based around timing. For handled the ball, the offence had to be in the act of receiving the ball and it was felt to be simpler to include it as obstructing the field, of which it was a special example. A batter handling the ball later (e.g. blocking a throw deliberately) would have been obstruction and so it was decided it would be easier to include handling the ball within the obstructing the field Law. Whether or not the batter would be dismissed did not change – rather just the method of dismissal.”Ball 40.4 wasn’t the first time Mushfiqur had attempted to touch the ball with his glove during his innings in Mirpur. In the 29th over, the first after lunch, he had tried to knock the ball away from the stumps with his right hand but failed to make contact.The wicket eventually came against the run of play, after Mushfiqur and Shahadat Hossain had added 57 for the fifth wicket, steering Bangladesh from 47 for 4 to 104 for 5. Mushfiqur was dismissed for 35 off 83 balls.New Zealand left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner said the dismissal was a fortunate one for his team, given the position Mushfiqur had batted Bangladesh into.”It was probably not a great option [from Mushfiqur],” Santner said. “He was looking so good. I mean it was handy for us in terms of the time. Him and [Shahadat] applied themselves and that was a very good partnership for them.”

The West Indies captain has been spectacular in the T20 series and has given her side the chance of a famous series win

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff04-Oct-2023Hayley Matthews expects Australia’s bowlers to change their plans – and fields – but the West Indies skipper reckons she’s in good enough form to counter them as a historic series victory beckons.Thursday’s third T20I in Brisbane will centre on how the hosts handle in-form opener Matthews, who clubbed 132 off 64 balls in a record run chase to level the series on Monday night.She also made 99 not out in a game-one loss and has won player of the match in an incredible seven straight games.Related

• Hayley Matthews credits leadership role for 'incredible' run of form

• Australia insist T20 losses aren't part of rising trend

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Australia captain Alyssa Healy persevered with fielders inside the ring on the offside on Monday, but her bowlers were unable to keep to the straighter line required on the tiny North Sydney Oval. Matthews obliged, flaying 11 fours and three sixes between backward point and cover.”A job of a captain is hard,” Matthews said when asked what she expects on Thursday night at Allan Border Field. “I’m pretty sure Alyssa would have had conversations with her bowlers, pretty sure from being captain myself the plan was to bowl straighter.”But I know how tough it can be as a captain when bowlers don’t hit where they need to. I’m pretty sure they’re going to go back and look pretty hard at the footage and at what happened and definitely have some different game plans.”The bigger square boundaries will add another element of intrigue to the contest as West Indies seek their first series win over the champion side.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“I’ve been striking them really well no matter what part of the ground I’ve been trying to access,” Matthew said. “Have it be that a different area of the field opens up, I [am confident] I can access right around, 360 [degrees].”Monday’s loss marked Australia’s third defeat in their last four T20s, having previously enjoyed a 12-match winning streak before being shocked twice by England in this year’s Ashes.Matthews said increased investment from rival nations in their women’s programs was starting to reap rewards. Sri Lanka recently beat England in a T20 series while Pakistan overcame South Africa.”That’s what is going to close the gap,” she said. “Australia just got way ahead of the game because their board made a big, early investment and we saw them go from strength to strength.”We’re going to see that gap closing. It’s going to take some time for other teams to catch up but it’s good we’re seeing results thrown up around the world.”For us, we didn’t want to play with any fear at all, even before we won a game. We know the quality they have; we try not to be afraid of that and, like I keep saying, be up for the challenge.”Australia have not lost a T20I series at home since facing England in 2017-18. The sides will also contest a three-match 50-over series, beginning in Brisbane on Sunday.

ESPNcricinfo’s live updates and analysis on Pakistan v South Africa

Liam Brickhill23-Jun-2019

Leigh Kasperek last played an ODI in February 2016 and suffered multiple injuries after that but returned with figures of 10-6-17-3 when she got a chance to play West Indies on Thursday

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jul-2017Leigh Kasperek had played all of nine ODIs – the last one in February 2016 – until Thursday and only against three oppositions – India, Sri Lanka and Australia. She made her debut nearly two years ago, but Kasperek had suffered multiple finger fractures recently and missed almost the entire international 2016-17 season in the New Zealand summer.Once the World Cup started, New Zealand decided to play two legspinners – Erin Bermingham and Amelia Kerr – for their first few matches. But Kasperek got her chance against West Indies on Thursday because Bermingham picked up a niggle. Kasperek was now without much match practice, against an unfamiliar team, and the captain Suzie Bates even decided to open the bowling with her, along with pace spearhead Lea Tahuhu. And what happened? Kasperek’s offspin fetched her the wickets of Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin (for a golden duck) and Merissa Aguilleira.”She knew she was going to go for little runs and take wickets,” Bates joked about Kasperek’s magical figures of 10-6-17-3. “Before the game she said she didn’t know much about the West Indies, we’ve played Australia so much and she knows the plan. She said, ‘I don’t really know too much about them’, so when players like Dottin and Taylor come out, she just bowls.”After opting to bowl with hopes of some “juice in the wicket”, New Zealand were planning to start the match with Tahuhu and Holly Huddleston. But Bates saw a left-handed Kycia Knight, coming in the squad as an injury replacement, walk out with Hayley Matthews and the captain changed her plan to hand the second over to Kasperek.The offspinner started with two maidens and conceded only a run in her third over with control, flight and fuller lengths. Once Tahuhu got rid of the openers from the other end, Bates brought on the medium-pacers and Kasperek returned to bowl alongside Kerr in the 17th over to dismiss Taylor and Dottin with her first two deliveries, strikes that went a long way in contributing towards New Zealand’s eight-wicket win. Aguilleira survived the hat-trick ball but was eventually stumped off Kasperek 10 overs later, trying to up the run rate.Kasperek was quick make her mark but was happy to pass the question about bowling in the first Powerplay to Bates, saying, “you take it”, prompting a few laughs around.It was just after Kasperek had been sidelined with her first injury of the 2016-17 season that 16-year-old Kerr made a memorable start with 3 for 16 in a T20I against Pakistan. And when Kasperek was injured again four months later, she was replaced by Kerr in the squad to play against Australia. On Thursday, the two spinners bowled in tandem – for the first time in international cricket – to stifle the West Indies middle and lower order.”We thought it was an opportunity with Amelia Kerr still in the side to add Leigh, and it just shows that we’ve got real competition in three world-class spinners,” Bates said of the spin combination. “So it’s going to be a tough team to pick and hopefully in Derby (against England on July 12) where the wicket’s a bit slow, our spinners will come into play.”Kasperek barely spoke at the post-match conference, only saying she was “stoked to be back playing” and felt “good to get a couple of wickets”. Bates, also her captain at Otago, teased Kasperek, quipping: “She would have liked to bat today as well, though.”

Glamorgan declare on 521 for 8 at Derby after Chris Cooke plunders 70 from 51 balls

ECB Reporters Network26-Jul-2023A combination of determined batting and rain frustrated promotion hopefuls Glamorgan on the second day of the LV=Insurance County Championship match against Derbyshire.Glamorgan racked up 521 for 8 declared, the county’s highest ever score at Derby, with wicketkeeper Chris Cooke plundering 70 from 51 balls.But their bowlers also struggled on another placid Incora County Ground pitch as Luis Reece, 52, and Harry Came, 37, shared an unbroken opening stand of 95 in 40 overs before rain prevented any play after tea.Only two wickets fell in two sessions with the pattern of the first day repeated in the morning as Cooke and the lower order punished some erratic bowling.Cooke pulled Anuj Dal, who was fit to bowl after turning an ankle yesterday evening, for six on his way to a 40-ball fifty and took his team to maximum batting points by steering the medium-pacer to the third man boundary. He drove off-spinner Alex Thomson for a second six over wide long on but three overs later he edged Dal to the only slip.Andy Gorvin, who had helped Cooke add 65 from 81 balls for the seventh wicket, was caught behind trying to turn Sam Conners to leg but Glamorgan batted on for six more overs before the declaration came.It had been another chastening spell in the field for Derbyshire with 113 runs coming from 22 overs and in total, 322 of Glamorgan’s runs had come in boundaries.The home side was left with a potentially tricky eight overs to bat before lunch but the benign nature of the pitch meant there were few alarms for Reece and Came apart from a close run-out chance just before the interval.Timm van der Gugten and Jamie McIlroy did beat the bat after the break but there was little encouragement for the Glamorgan attack.Their bowlers did at least keep it tight but Reece, who became the 19th Derbyshire player to score 6,000 runs and take 150 wickets in all cricket, completed his fifty from 111 balls as he and Came batted through the second session.It was back-to-back fifties for Reece after his unbeaten 54 against Durham on Friday but his chances of converting it into a century on Wednesday were dashed when rain arrived during the tea interval with play called off for the day at 17.10.