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Eastern Province women thrashed Kei women by 464 runs in a group-stage match in the Women’s Provincial League in South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jan-2011The phrase ‘men against boys’ is in desperate need of change to a more gender-unbiased alternative (women against girls doesn’t quite sound right). Four hundred and sixty four – not the number of people in the stadium, not even the aggregate number of runs in the match – but the margin of victory for Eastern Province women against Kei women in a domestic match in South Africa.Eastern Province amassed 494 in their fifty overs in the Women’s Provincial League group game – a record for the tournament – with Claire Terblanche smacking 181 and Marizanne Kapp getting 163. It was always going to be a testing total for Kei, but their resistance was not just meek, it was non-existent. They rolled over for 30, with Kapp taking 6 for 6 in seven overs.Unfortunately for Kei, this wasn’t just a freak off day. In their first game of the season, in October 2010, they were hammered by 306 runs by South Western Districts. On that occasion South Western Districts had been slightly less merciless with the bat, scoring 329, but only allowed Kei 11.3 overs at the crease before bowling them out for 23.In fact, the League has seen several ridiculously one-sided results. In November last year, Gauteng trounced Limpopo by 302 runs, scoring 365 in an innings that saw Limpopo use nine bowlers, none of whom went for less than seven runs an over. Limpopo’s innings of 63 in that match was inflated by 28 extras. Gauteng hadn’t been that generous in the team’ first meeting in October, when they gave away just six extras, bowled Limpopo out for 30 and chased the score in 7.4 overs.Women’s international cricket has seen some maulings too. In 1997, New Zealand beat Pakistan by 408 runs, and there have been three more matches which have seen victory margins of more than 300 runs.Four hundred and sixty four, though, will be difficult to match. But it’s not completely inconceivable. Kei still have seven more matches to play this season, including another encounter against Eastern Province, and two against the leaders of their West/East group – Boland Women.

Discretion has never been a quality associated with Harbhajan Singh, and after the euphoria of helping India to a series-levelling innings win came the outpouring of anger

S Aga18-Feb-2010Discretion has never been a quality associated with Harbhajan Singh and, after the euphoria of helping India to a series-levelling innings win came the outpouring of anger. Having sprinted more than halfway to the boundary to make his point to the media gallery, he didn’t mince words at the press conference that followed.”I have been hearing a lot of things from them [the media], but today they were on the receiving end,” he said in response to an unrelated question. “They should be getting that kind of treatment because they should know what to play on national television and what not to play. We play for our country with a lot of passion and it disappoints all the players sometimes to see what characters they make out of us. If I don’t do well on the ground they will show us as (a Bollywood flick). Harbhajan is one of the idiots, MS Dhoni is the other. That is not right. I know it sounds funny but it is not.”It’s a shame and it should not be done. But if that is the way you want to sell your programmes, we are not worried about that. I was there for a bigger purpose. I was playing for my country, which means more than anything else for me. I won a game for my country and that is a special feeling.”The last 12 months have presented Harbhajan with a new challenge. Anil Kumble is no longer around to wheel away metronomically at the other end and, with neither Amit Mishra nor Pragyan Ojha established as India’s second slow bowler, the onus has been on Harbhajan to deliver. Against South Africa at Eden Gardens on Thursday, that responsibility was increased by the thigh strain that prevented Zaheer Khan from even taking the field.”Zaheer was definitely missed in the second innings,” said Harbhajan. “I think all three bowlers and Sehwag also, the fourth bowler, we have taken the pressure, we have taken the responsibility. We knew that we were one guy short and we had to do it with whatever resources we had.”I think Zaheer has been fantastic in the last three or four series. We have got the unit, we have got young bowlers, talented bowlers and we need to help them. As for myself, I need to work hard in the nets and keep on getting better and fitter so I can perform well in the future.”There was praise too for Mishra, whose every step is dogged by the shadow of Kumble. “Those are big shoes to fill,” he said. “Anil was fantastic from the other end and Mishra is still very new and young in international cricket. He is learning everyday but he bowled well in the second innings and even in the first innings. He is improving with every game and I am sure he will play for India for a long time.”As for him, the love affair with Eden Gardens remains a passionate one. “Every player has his own special ground. Anil always enjoyed bowling in Delhi and I always enjoyed bowling at the Eden Gardens because I have always done well here.”The crowd was fantastic. Eden has always been special. I have not heard this kind of noise anywhere in India. In Test matches, we don’t even get crowds but Eden is probably the best ground as you get the crowds for the whole five days. It does not matter whether India is batting or bowling, so it’s fantastic.”Despite widespread criticism of his performance in Nagpur, Harbhajan insisted he had changed very little for this match. “The whole game I have been just been very relaxed and I knew that if I bowled in the right areas then I would create the opportunities to get batsmen out. I was very focused and I knew what I was doing. I knew my plans and we got it right. I wanted to pitch the ball up and I wanted to get him [Morkel] leg before wicket or bat-pad at silly point or in the slips, so there were a lot of options. That is what I was trying to do by keeping things simple.”Having snatched victory at the last, there was appreciation too for Hashim Amla’s lionhearted display. “Obviously Amla batted very well,” he said. “Most of the teams when they come here, they don’t know much about the spin, whether it is turning, bouncing or keeping low from the wicket. But he was very calm throughout his batting and that was probably the key. He kept on playing his style of cricket, he never took any chances, he never looked to do something fancy, he just played cricketing shots. I think he was the best batsman in the South African batting line-up.”In the build-up to this game, media reports referred to Harbhajan seeking advice from Kumble, but having bowled through the pain barrier – “I was in a lot of pain today. My shin was hurting but I tried to bowl the way I can do” – he scotched such speculation. “Anil Kumble will probably always be the one who will call me and tell me that there is nothing wrong with you. It’s just that you guys [media] have been creating sensational stories and calling Kumble to ask what is wrong with Harbhajan.”He just told me to be the way you are and you will bowl well. ‘You have taken 300-plus wickets and it doesn’t come through fluke. You know what you can do and I have played so much with you. You just have to be confident and it is just a matter of time before you will get the
wickets’. He was pretty much right. I would like to give him big thanks for the advice and even on the field settings for batsmen like Jacques Kallis.”In Harbhajan’s eyes, the drawn series was a fair reflection of nine days that saw some exceptional cricket played. “To be honest, South Africa are a really good side and they played fantastic cricket in Nagpur. I wish we had won the toss in Nagpur. Things might have been different. We played better cricket here and we set our fields, bowled according to the fields and we created pressure. We batted well – Laxman was special, Dhoni was brilliant, Sachin was amazing and so was Viru. I think overall we played terrific cricket and we are very happy.”We have learnt that if we fight till the end, we will do special things. Everyone was up for the fight and we knew that it was an important game for all of us. There has been a lot of talk about us that it was a fluke to be the number-one side and all that. It was not a fluke at all. We have worked really hard to reach the top and today we have shown the world that we deserve to be number one. I hope now you guys will put some positive stories about it.”

Litchfield and Mooney’s half-centuries for Australia went in vain

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Sep-2025Alice Capsey and Sarah Glenn headlined England’s four-wicket victory over Australia in their Women’s World Cup warm-up match in Bengaluru. After the legspinner claimed 5 for 32 to dismantle Australia’s middle and lower order, Capsey anchored the chase with an unbeaten 88.After a shaky start, Australia found stability through Phoebe Litchfield’s 71. However, after her dismissal, wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. Beth Mooney was forced to come in unusually low at No. 9, where she counterattacked with an unbeaten 59 off just 42 balls. Despite her efforts, Australia were bowled out for 247 in 34.4 overs.In reply, England suffered an early collapse, slipping to 32 for 3, but Sophia Dunkley and Emma Lamb steadied the innings with their half-centuries. But it was Capsey who was the difference-maker, pacing the chase well to take England home with 5.3 overs to spare.Kim Garth was the pick of the Australia bowlers, taking 2 for 17, but lacked support as the English batting line-up found its rhythm.

Kuhnemann set to join Tasmania after not playing any Shield cricket last summer while Burns was left off the contract list as Queensland opt to promote youth

Alex Malcolm19-Apr-2024Left-arm orthodox Test spinner Matthew Kuhnemann has left Queensland and is set to head to Tasmania in a bid to play more first-class cricket to put himself in the frame for the tour of Sri Lanka, while former Test opener Joe Burns has not been offered a contract as Queensland revamp their list after a poor season.Kuhnemann, 27, played three Tests for Australia last year on the tour of India after being flown in following the first Test defeat and he took 5 for 16 in Australia’s sole victory in Indore.But since that Test appearance he has not played a single Sheffield Shield match for Queensland, and no first-class matches since an appearance for Australia A last September, with the Bulls preferring legspinner Mitchell Swepson as their No.1 spinner. The conditions in Brisbane, and in Shield cricket generally, have not been conducive to picking two spinners in the same XI meaning Kuhnemann’s only appearances for Queensland were in the Marsh Cup, and the only red-ball cricket he played was for Queensland’s Second XI and for his Queensland premier club Gold Coast.Related

• Kuhnemann joins Tasmania to push for a Test return

• Agar, Stoinis, Behrendorff and Tye go freelance without WA contracts

• Philippe and Maddinson make move to New South Wales

• Jason Sangha and Mackenzie Harvey sign with South Australia

• Under-19 World Cup trio Konstas, Hicks and Anderson earn NSW contracts

Kuhnemann is set to move to Tasmania to become their No.1 spinner in Shield and Marsh Cup cricket and will strengthen Tasmania’s attack after they fell just short of winning the Shield title. He is still contracted to play for Brisbane Heat in the BBL for the next two seasons.Meanwhile, Burns has been left off Queensland’s contract after he was left out of both the Shield and Marsh Cup sides last summer. His Shield omission in February came as a surprise given he had performed well in the early part of the season. He made a 133 and 55 against eventual finalists Tasmania in Hobart and 91 in a nail-biting fourth innings chase against South Australia in Brisbane. He also made an unbeaten 62 not out in a draw against eventual champions Western Australia before the BBL against an attack featuring Jhye Richardson and Cameron Green.Joe Burns has not been offered a contract•Getty Images

But despite being the Bulls leading run-scorer through the first seven games and averaging a healthy 37.16 in a season dominated by the bowlers, Queensland decided to blood some young batters in the second half of the season when they fell out of Shield final contention. He spent some time away from the squad late in the season due to a family bereavement.Queensland have opted not to offer the 34-year-old a contract. Burns has played 23 Tests for Australia and made four Test hundreds. He is also out of contract at the Melbourne Stars.The Bulls have instead promoted opener Angus Lovell onto the contract list after making his Shield debut last summer and playing four matches.Queensland have also signed four of Australia’s Under-19 World Cup winners for next season. Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Hugh Weibgen and promising quick Callum Vidler have received full contracts. Vidler made his Shield debut in the final round of the season against New South Wales and took five wickets.Fellow Australia Under-19 squad members Lachlan Aitken and Tom Straker have been handed rookie deals. Straker has been recruited from New South Wales after he took a record-breaking 6 for 24 in the Under-19 World Cup semi-final win over Pakistan.Queensland are still searching for a new coach after parting ways with Wade Seccombe last month.Queensland squad 2024-25: Lachlan Aitken (rookie), Xavier Bartlett (CA contract), Max Bryant, Hugo Burdon, Jack Clayton, Liam Guthrie, Lachlan Hearne, Usman Khawaja (CA), Marnus Labuschagne (CA), Angus Lovell, Ben McDermott, Michael Neser, Jimmy Pierson, Matthew Renshaw, Jem Ryan (rookie), Gurinder Sandhu, Jack Sinfield, Mark Steketee, Tom Straker (rookie), Connor Sully, Mitch Swepson, Bryce Street, Callum Vidler, Hugh Weibgen, Tom Whitney (rookie), Jack WildermuthIns: Angus Lovell, Lachlan Hearne, Callum Vidler, Lachlan Aitken, Jem Ryan, Tom StrakerOuts: Joe Burns, James Bazley, Blake Edwards, Aryan Jain, Matthew Kuhnemann, Will Prestwidge

But Sanderson, White tear through top order to bowl Northants back into contention

ECB Reporters Network28-Sep-2022Ben Sanderson and Jack White removed Essex’s top order to bowl their side back into contention at the end of the third day of this LV= County Championship clash at Wantage Road.Sanderson struck twice early in Essex’s second innings to account for Sir Alastair Cook and Tom Westley in consecutive maiden overs. White also picked up a wicket in successive overs to reduce the Eagles to 52 for 5 and snatch back the momentum after the hosts had conceded a first innings deficit of 100.Earlier Essex seamer Ben Allison returned career-best bowling figures of 5 for 32 as Northamptonshire were bundled out for 163. Allison’s maiden five wicket haul followed his heroics with the bat yesterday when he registered his highest score of 69 not out. With Shane Snater also taking two scalps, Northamptonshire lost their last five wickets for 16 runs.When bad light prompted an early finish Essex were 63 for 5, a lead of 163, which sets up an intriguing final day.In the morning session, Will Young (37) and Luke Procter made a solid start extending their overnight partnership to 39, before Allison found some extra bounce to take Young’s glove with keeper Michael Pepper taking the catch.Rob Keogh started brightly, playing a conventional sweep and reverse sweep off Simon Harmer for consecutive boundaries before the South African spinner spun one back to hit the stumps.Procter cut Allison crisply for a boundary and had advanced to 28 when he played down the on-side to the same bowler and was well caught low down at leg slip by Matt Critchley.Saif Zaib (18) played some attacking shots either side of lunch including a back-foot punch off Allison for four and a blow over extra cover off Harmer. But after driving Snater through cover to the ropes, he edged Snater’s next delivery to Harmer at second slip.It precipitated a lower-order collapse as Northamptonshire fell from 147 for 5 to 163 all out. Two balls after Zaib’s wicket, Tom Taylor edged a well-directed short ball from Snater through to Pepper.Allison was back in the action with some sharp work in the field to run out Gareth Berg before angling one back in to castle Sanderson.James Sales struck four boundaries in his 28 to ensure Northamptonshire passed 150. He had an early reprieve when Harmer put him down at second slip, taking a blow to his spinning fingers in the process and requiring attention from the Essex physio. However the young all-rounder eventually became Allison’s fifth victim when he edged to Cook at slip.With the bat, Cook (10) offered two chances to the slips on 0 and 2 but both were missed by Emilio Gay and Young. He was out shortly afterwards when he drilled Sanderson straight to Taylor at cover. It meant he missed out by 34 runs on 1,000 for the season. In his next over Sanderson trapped Tom Westey lbw to leave Essex 23 for 2.Nick Browne (18) looked solid throughout a lengthy stay at the crease, but after facing 63 balls Taylor got one to jag back and knock over his middle stump.Dan Lawrence walked to the crease on a king pair and played and missed to his first ball from Sanderson. He looked skittish early on but started to settle, taking consecutive boundaries off Berg. His downfall came thanks to an ugly looking cut shot off White which flew to Gay who took a stunning diving catch at second slip.White struck again in his next over when he got one to jag back and knock over Feroze Khushi’s stumps, but Matt Critchley, who played some pleasant shots including a drive straight down the ground off Taylor, was unbeaten on 14 at stumps.On a day of presentations, Procter was named player of the year by the Northamptonshire Supporters’ Club and presented with his award at lunch. He has so far scored 959 runs at an average of 56.41 this season with one innings left to bat in this match..At tea Adam Rossington, who skippered Northamptonshire to promotion in 2019, was given a special presentation by the club to mark his eight years of service. He joined Essex on loan earlier this season ahead of signing a permanent deal.

All the stats, analysis and colour from the title bout of the inaugural World Test Championship

Sidharth Monga20-Jun-2021
Those in the US can watch in English or Hindi here6.30pm

That is stumps

That is also stumps. New Zealand will love what they have managed today, dragging India back with seven wickets for just 71 runs and then scoring 101 themselves for the loss of just two wickets. The full report on the day that belonged to Kyle Jamieson and Devon Conway is in the works. See you tomorrow.6.25pm

The extravagant flick

That is a shot that Devon Conway loves. He flicks with a flourish if you overpitch on the pads. Remember how he found out the fielder in the last Test? He has done it again, this time wide mid-on. There was build-up to this shot: three straight maidens, 26 dot balls, and Conway saw some release in that leg-side half-volley and ended up playing a touch early and chipping it to Mohammed Shami at wide mid-on.Between the wicket and Ross Taylor’s arrival, they check the light and deem it good enough to continue. Remember how New Zealand lost crucial wickets to Bhuvneshwar Kumar in fading light at Eden Gardens in 2016-17?New Zealand 101 for 2 in 48.4 overs. Conway gone for 54 off 153 balls.PS: As it usually happens, the umpires take players off for bad light just after a wicket has fallen.6pm

First fifty of the match

ICC/Getty Images

Quite unsurprisingly, it has come from Devon Conway, the find of this summer. He has looked as assured as one can on this pitch and against bowling of this quality. He has progressively picked up the scoring rate. New Zealand 99 for 1 in 44 overs.5.30pm

Ashwin the conjurer

Shiva Jayaraman has tried to put numbers here to “being threatening irrespective of conditions”. It is not perfect but is as good as it can be without the help of HawkEye data on spin. Here he is

Eyebrows would have been raised when both R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were included in the playing XI, notwithstanding the conditions that were expected with the inclement weather around. If you had to drop one of R Ashwin or Ravindra Jadeja, who was it going to be? While Jadeja’s batting and fielding add a lot more all-round value to the side compared with Ashwin, the offspinner offers something that the Indian team management has perhaps come to realize in recent times: the ability to create something irrespective of the conditions. Ashwin was the first to take a wicket here, as he has been on eight previous occasions when India haven’t taken a wicket in the first 20 overs of an innings. No other bowler since 2010 has provided his team the breakthrough after 20 overs more often. New Zealand’s Tim Southee is next in this list with seven such dismissals.

New Zealand 76 for 1 in 39 overs.5.20pm

Ashwin finds the breakthrough

The discipline of Ashwin pays off for the first wicket for spin in this Test. Tom Latham started this session with a hard-hands drive first ball, and has played the kind of shot he has been avoiding two balls after the drinks break. Yes, Ashwin got dip on this, he has been playing around with his pace too, but Latham has done without driving away from the body so far. Here he has done just that and chipped to short extra cover.New Zealand 70 for 1. Latham gone for 30 off 104.5.15pm

India still looking for a breakthrough

Devon Conway and Tom Latham keep growing in confidence as they get surer and surer of what the pitch is doing. Classic batting against high-quality seam bowling. India might not be swinging it, but the ball is still doing enough to keep them interested. But they are a three-man seam attack, which means the fourth bowler is only doing a limiting job, which R Ashwin has done quite well, bowling zero bad balls in eight overs for just 10 runs. New Zealand’s control percentage stays around 83, but the real chances are getting fewer.New Zealand 70 for 0 in 34 overs. Conway 38 off 102, Latham 30 off 102.4.45pm

Another half hour gone

4:15

Match Day Masterclass: Swing vs seam – Dale Steyn explains

Six overs, 18 runs, no further wicket. Tom Latham has edged one between third slip and gully, and once driven uppishly through mid-off. Still the key figure is no wicket has fallen. New Zealand 54 for 0 in 27 overs. And the important discussion is between seam and swing. India are predominantly seam bowlers, New Zealand swung it a lot. That was the difference back in New Zealand too. However, India looked similarly comfortable against the new ball before the slightly older ball started to cause them problems. They will hope so for sure, but right now their fans will be nervous.3.55pm

Openers go to tea

AFP/Getty Images

This has definitely been New Zealand’s session. They took out the last three Indian wickets for just six runs, and then their openers have batted out the testing period to tea for no loss. India haven’t let them run away, conceding just 36 runs in 21 overs. They came close to getting a wicket, especially Mohammed Shami, who took the shoulder of the bat only for the ball to sail over the cordon. New Zealand’s control percentage is 83, which means they have survived 22 false responses without losing a wicket. India were bowled out in 108 of those.New Zealand trail by 181 runs, and if light stays good we are in for another humdinger of a session. Quite a long one too: possibly more than three hours.3pm

Tom Leavam

ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Tom Latham has left alone 15 balls in his 30. He leaves a lot of balls. On length many of them. This is quite a contest going on with Ishant Sharma looking to bowl straight with a strong leg-side field to make him play. Jasprit Bumrah is trying to get closer to him without getting straight. They will also remember perhaps how Mohammed Shami got him out leaving the ball in Christchurch last year. Also it takes courage to keep trusting your leaves if you are Latham. He has been dismissed four times leaving the ball in Tests.New Zealand 17 for 0 after nine overs.2.10pm

Five time, five time, five time, five time, five time

ICC via Getty

Kyle Jamieson takes out Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah in successive balls to seal his fifth five-wicket haul in a young career. That’s the most five-fors for anyone in this WTC cycle. Ishant gone fishing, and Bumrah – promoted ahead of Mohammed Shami – trapped by a yorker.Minutes later, following a long sight-screen adjustment break, Ravindra Jadeja edges down the leg side for India to be bowled out for 217. They will be disappointed after they started the day at 146 for 3, but won’t mind this score overall because the conditions continue to be helpful for bowling. There is swing, there is seam, and the sun has gone hiding again.India’s control percentage yesterday was close to 85 yesterday but it has now come down to 80. It has taken 108 balls of false responses for India to be bowled out.The stat of the innings, courtesy Nasser Hussain: zero byes in the innings. BJ Watling was exceptional behind the wicket in his last Test. He will have crucial work to do in front too.India 217 in 92.1 overs (Rahane 49, Kohli 44, Jamieson 5-31)Post-lunch session is on

And the sun is out