All posts by csb10.top

Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft and a part-owner of the Seattle Sounders franchise in Major League Soccer, has been announced as a lead investor in a $44 million Series A and A1 fundraising round by Major League Cricket (MLC), the six-team franchise T20 competition sanctioned by USA Cricket through its commercial partner ACE, which is targeted to launch in 2023.According to a press release issued by MLC on Wednesday, another $76 million has been pledged by investors for a total of $120 million to be utilised primarily for stadium infrastructure projects over the next several years.”The significant funding committed by an outstanding group of investors will allow Major League Cricket to build first-class facilities and accelerate the sport’s development across the country, bringing world-class professional cricket to the world’s largest sports market,” said Sameer Mehta and Vijay Srinivasan, co-founders of Major League Cricket, through a press release. “This investor group comprises leading business executives and successful tech entrepreneurs who have led some of the world’s most prominent companies. They bring tremendous experience and expertise in support of MLC’s plans to launch a transformative Twenty20 league and establish America as one of the world’s leading homes for international cricket events.”Nadella and Soma Somasegar, also a part-owner of Seattle Sounders and a former long-time senior vice president at Microsoft who is currently the managing director of venture capital firm Madrona Venture Group, are majority investors based out of Seattle. It is there that a new stadium venue project is being spearheaded at Marymoor Park in the Seattle suburb of Redmond, Washington. When that venue is complete, it is expected to be the home of one of the six anchor franchises for MLC.Related

• MLC, Knight Riders team up for 10,000-seat stadium near Los Angeles

• USA T20 franchise league MLC projected to spend $110 million on facilities ahead of 2023 launch

• Knight Riders Group buys stake in USA T20 franchise project Major League Cricket

• Former Dallas baseball stadium to become 'new home of USA cricket'

“I share the vision Major League Cricket has for the launch of a world-class T20 cricket league and the potential for the United States to become one of the leading cricket nations in the world,” Somasegar said. “I am delighted to be part of a dynamic group of investors who will help the sport reach that level through an unprecedented commitment of resources by MLC to developing the sport.”Ross Perot Jr and Anurag Jain, the founders of Dallas-based venture capital firm Perot Jain, are also among the investors listed in the latest round of fundraising. Airhogs Stadium, a former minor league baseball facility in the Dallas suburb of Grand Prairie, Texas that was the first venue acquired for redevelopment by ACE and MLC in 2020, will also become the home of another MLC franchise.”The ceiling for cricket’s growth in the United States is incredibly high, with the passion for the game at the grassroots level I’ve observed in Texas proof of its potential,” Jain said. “I am proud to be part of a group of investors committed to rapidly accelerating cricket’s progress through Major League Cricket. The plans MLC have laid out to develop infrastructure and build a foundation for professional cricket to thrive nationwide put the sport on a tremendous trajectory and I am excited to support this vision.”Among the other headline investors recruited by MLC are Anand Rajaraman and Venky Harinarayan, the founding partners at Millways Ventures and Rocketship VC; Sanjay Govil, the founder of Infinite Computer Solutions and CEO of Zyter; the Baheti Family, the owners of YASH Technologies; and Tanweer Ahmed, the CEO of PAK Foods and the owner of the Prairie View Cricket Complex, the largest turf wicket complex in America located 50 miles northwest of Houston which opened in 2019 and has been regularly used to host USA Cricket national championship tournaments. As part of Ahmed’s PAK Foods brand, the entrepreneur and cricket enthusiast owns more than 200 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell franchises spread between Texas, Colorado and Las Vegas.Although not listed in Wednesday’s release, the Knight Riders Group had previously been announced as one of the original lead investors in MLC. They have recently pledged their commitment toward helping to fund the development of a $30 million facility at Great Park in Irvine, California, which will be the home of the future Knight Riders franchise in MLC.ESPNcricinfo has learned that the other three MLC anchor franchise locations for the league’s targeted launch date in 2023 are expected to be in San Francisco, New York and Washington, DC. However, there are currently no turf wicket venues located in the two east coast locations as MLC officials continue to pursue options with regards to land acquisition and venue development in those territories.

Kyle Jamieson will not take the field on day four, as New Zealand look to eke out a first-innings lead against England in the second LV= Insurance Test at Trent Bridge.Jamieson walked off midway through his 17th over of the innings late on day three after he experienced, what was described by team management, as a “sharp pain” in his lower left back. He will now undergo an MRI scan to determine the extent of the injury.Even with Jamieson, New Zealand had struggled to contain England’s run-rate through the day, the hosts scoring 383 runs. Jamieson struggled to make an impact, conceding four runs per over in a wicketless spell, the most expensive he’s been across an innings since his debut over two years ago.In that time he has become an essential component of New Zealand’s attack, missing only one of the 17 Tests New Zealand have played since his debut (he was rotated out to manage workloads in their Test win against England at Edgbaston last year). Sixteen Tests into his career, he’s still averaging under 20. Last week, after he took six wickets at Lord’s in New Zealand’s five-wicket defeat, he rose to No.3 in the ICC men’s Test bowling rankings.Jamieson hasn’t had any major injury concerns since his debut, though he did pull up during a County Championship game for Surrey last summer.There is a week’s gap between the end of this Test and the start of the third at Headingley. New Zealand have Neil Wagner in the squad as well who has – to the surprise of some – not yet featured in the series.New Zealand are already missing the services of captain Kane Williamson, who had to pull out on the eve of this Test after he tested positive for Covid-19.

India remain undaunted by the prospect of facing a revitalised England side, one much changed in attitude to the side they played in the first four Tests of the Pataudi Trophy last year. That series finds its culmination in the Edgbaston Test which starts on Friday. England are fresh off a 3-0 sweep of the WTC champions New Zealand, and playing a brand new, ultra-attacking style of cricket.India lead the series 2-1, mostly because – as coach Rahul Dravid pointed out – they have been playing their own style of “aggressive” and “positive” cricket. That brand got them to the WTC final last summer and keeps them in the hunt for another trip to the final in this cycle.Related

• England vs India – the decider of a series from a different era

• Bumrah: Test captaincy 'one of the biggest achievements of my career'

• Bazball and the allure of the Edgbaston Test that awaits India

Both Dravid and interim captain Jasprit Bumrah were posed similar queries about England’s new batting approach”Any which way they play gives us opportunities,” Dravid said on Wednesday. “We are leading the series 2-1. Any which way they play the game, we believe it’s up to us, I think we have got to focus on our cricket and not so much worry about what England is doing and what it is they’re playing.”We’ve been a pretty positive side as well. We were second in the World Test Championship cycle last year. This year we find ourselves third in the table, just underneath the top two. So we have been pretty successful, we have been pretty successful in getting 20 wickets and winning Test matches. That for me is positive cricket as well. Of course, they might have a strategy, or they might have some tactics that they might come in and play with on the particular day – that can change as well depending on conditions. It’s our job to respond to whatever they put out and we will be focused on trying to do that.”Jasprit Bumrah – “What has happened in the past, that’s all gone. We try to be in the moment”•Getty Images

Behind India’s dominance in Test cricket in the past few years – both home and overseas – has been their bowling attack, led by the quicks, which has prised out 20 wickets consistently. Last summer the England batters were put under constant pressure by an attack led by Bumrah, but also including Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav and Shardul Thakur. Barring Joe Root, no other England batter showed consistency. Since the start of 2021, Indian bowlers have the second-best average and are also second in terms of strike rate, well ahead of England who are mid-table.Freshly appointed as captain, Bumrah insisted that India still held the edge. Asked about his opinion on England’s attacking approach against New Zealand, Bumrah said: “I am not focusing on how the England team is playing. We know our strengths and if we do our job well, we believe that our team can win and do well anywhere, in any condition. So, we want to give more attention to our team because we don’t want to give a mental advantage to anyone thinking about what the other team is doing. If we do our job well, things will fall in place.”Bumrah nearly rolled his eyes when asked whether it was frightening to see England batters chase down targets as they did against New Zealand. “I play my cricket very differently in comparison to any other players. I do not want to give any mental advantage to any of the players. I look at myself and I feel that what I have to do to prepare best and to be in the right frame of mind because if I am in a very good head space then we are very difficult to beat. That is the mindset that we want to get into. And then if we are there then everything else would be taken care of.”Bumrah said he did not want to look back at what had already happened in the first four Tests, including wins at Lord’s and Oval, matches in which he was the catalyst with bat and ball.”We don’t look in the past. Every cricket game you want to win. Isn’t it? We never play any game to lose or just to compete or play for a draw. We want to play for a win. What has happened in the past, that’s all gone. We try to be in the moment. We want to try to be immersed in the moment and try to focus on the job at hand and try to job at hand and try to give our best shot.”

Virat Kohli played nine balls in two innings in this T20I series against England. He attempted boundaries off five of them. Two of them resulted in vintage Kohli boundaries – a four over wide mid-on and a six straight down the ground, but the other three got him out twice. On the evidence of Kohli’s T20 career, it is perhaps true that this is not the best approach for him.However, Kohli doesn’t play in isolation. He bats in India’s top order. It is incumbent upon them to take the risks and either score quickly themselves or let those behind them face more balls. That is the approach this team wants everyone to buy into, and Kohli is no exception.”It’s a bit of both,” India’s captain Rohit Sharma said, when asked if Kohli’s new ultra-aggressive approach is a team instruction or a personal attempt to fight his way out of a rut. “We, as a team, we want to play in a certain way, and every player needs to buy into that thought process. Otherwise, you know, it’s not gonna happen for you. And all the players, all the batters, who are part of this squad, are willing to take that extra risk and go and see what extra they can do with the bat.”It’s important to find out within yourself, you know, to try and do different kinds of things. Unless you try it, you will never be able to find out [what you are capable of]. So I think it is something that we have been trying to do for a while now. Some days it might come off, some days it might not. But we don’t want to be afraid of going in and taking that extra risk. That’s how we’re going to learn as a team and that’s how we will move forward as a team. So it’s in everyone’s thought process, everyone is quite comfortable with that idea. So yeah, that’s the kind of direction the team is going to move in.”For years India played T20s as a shortened ODI, taking risks when batting first only when behind in the series or in must-win games. But this new management is quietly slipping in revolutionary ideas, such as wanting to play ODIs as an extension of T20Is. It has left observers mighty impressed. Eoin Morgan, who played an integral part in England’s white-ball revolution, has found India’s new attitude towards risk “unbelievably impressive”. Nasser Hussain believes India should be in the final of every white-ball tournament, given the quality they have.”It is important for us to understand white-ball cricket properly,” Rohit said, disagreeing with the notion that the upcoming ODI series will be of lower priority for India in a T20 World Cup year. “I mean 50-over cricket is an extension of T20 cricket. You might take slightly fewer risks than you do in T20s, but we to take risks. It is not as if we won’t take risks.Related

• Rohit Sharma bats for Virat Kohli again amid 'slump' talk

• Ganguly says Kohli 'has to find his way' to score again; Nehra wants him to take a break

• Kohli's form, Iyer vs Suryakumar, and Pandya's ODI return on India's discussion table

• Attacking mantra, Bhuvneshwar's form and Suryakumar's consistency bode well for India

• Kapil Dev: 'If Kohli isn't performing, you can't keep youngsters out'

“We need to get used to playing freely. When you try to play freely, it comes with its failures both in individual performance and in team results, but you get to learn a lot from that. We are looking at the bigger picture, not the small picture. As it is, in India we are used to two-and-a-half-hour pictures. All these matches are crucial for us because somewhere we need to change something, and we can see things have started to change slightly.”The biggest takeaway from this series has been the approach of each and every individual who has played in this series for us. How they have come and relished the moment in the middle, taking on the opportunity, taking on the opposition, taking that extra risk. The mindset is something that we are trying to change, and they are willing to do that. They’re willing to take that risk. And when I go and talk to certain individuals, I hear the same kind of response from them.”One of the biggest reasons for not playing freely, for valuing your wicket too much, is insecurity because of the intense competition for slots. If the leadership wants its players to fully realise their potential, there can be no space for mixed messages. That is why we don’t expect Kohli to be penalised for going out and trying to do what the team needs from him. So all the pressure building up from outside – look at Kapil Dev’s comments, Virender Sehwag’s tweet and Venkatesh Prasad’s too – is not likely to change their view on Kohli.”I don’t know who the experts are,” Rohit said, when asked if he found himself in an awkward position given Kohli’s lack of runs and the experts calling for him to be dropped. “I don’t even understand why they are called experts. They are watching it from outside, they don’t know what is going on the inside. We are building a team. A lot of deliberation goes behind it. There is a lot of thinking behind it. Boys are backed. Boys are given chances. People outside don’t know all these things. It is not important what is going on outside.Suryakumar Yadav and Shreyas Iyer added 119 after getting together at 31 for 3•AFP/Getty Images

“If you talk of form, it goes up and down for everyone. The quality of a player never goes down. We should remember that. And we back that quality, and back them based on their quality. It has happened with me, it has happened with XYZ, it has happened with everyone, it is nothing new. When some player has done so well consistently for so long, that can’t be written off in one or two series or one or two years. It takes people time to understand it completely, but those who are running the team know the importance of that quality.”However, that doesn’t mean it is going to be easy for Kohli to return to being the central figure in the T20I team that he used to be, because other batters have presented their claim while Kohli has been away. Deepak Hooda scored a hundred in Ireland before scoring a fluent 33 in the first match of this series. Suryakumar Yadav enchanted all and sundry with his hundred in the final T20I. Like Suryakumar, Hardik Pandya, too, has sealed a spot now that his bowling fitness is in order. Once KL Rahul comes back, someone will have make way for him. And these youngsters are all going to get similar backing. There is no room for mixed messaging.”The captain, the coach, selector, they all have a role,” Rohit said. “Because if we do one thing, and the selectors do something else, then it will not work. It is important for those who are building the team to be on the same page. These boys need to be given the freedom. It is very important to consistently keep sending them the message to play with freedom. Because they are very talented, and that talent will be utilised only if we give them that freedom.”We have seen some boys have been playing under pressure. We don’t want them to play under pressure. If they play with that freedom, they will do better than their own expectations from themselves. You saw an example today [Suryakumar], saw another one in Ireland [Hooda]. I won’t take names. That’s how boys emerge. It is important to let them know what we want from them as a team management. That message has to be consistent. If you say something today, something else tomorrow, it won’t work.”

“Winning ugly” might be a fairly new facet of Australia’s game, but given that it worked in their Commonwealth Games semi-final, they won’t be afraid to go there again when they face India for the gold medal.Beth Mooney, who combined with Tahlia McGrath to lift the title favourites from another troubled start for the second match running, admitted New Zealand had got a little too close for comfort before Australia won their semi-final at Edgbaston by five wickets and three balls to spare.Related

• Schutt: Australia 'thrive' on the favourites tag

• Australia's team of matchwinners will take some stopping

• Schutt three-for, all-round McGrath, New Zealand's fielding lapses help Australia to final

A key to this Australian team’s success – they are looking to add the inaugural women’s Commonwealth Games cricket title to their T20I and ODI world crowns – is their justifiable confidence that if one player or area of their game falls down, someone is there to step into the breach.”The belief in the dressing room is probably at an unprecedented level, to be honest, just because we seem to find a way to win and win ugly,” Mooney said.”It’s not always pretty, which perhaps in the past – probably five or six years ago – we were looking for that perfect game and trying to make it look as good as it could. We’ve sort of got an understanding now that it can look a bit ugly at times.”Tonight wasn’t the ugliest we’ve played, but there are certainly a few things we can touch up on before tomorrow.”On this occasion, Australia stumbled to 28 for 2 in pursuit of 145 for a place in the gold-medal match-up with India. But a 56-run partnership between Mooney and McGrath steadied the innings and kept Australia on top of the required run rate at most times.And, while the duo didn’t kick on to the heights of their century-plus stand from a similar situation in their last group game against Pakistan, a composed innings of 19 not out from Ashleigh Gardner as the common thread in stands of 26 with Rachael Haynes and an unbroken 16 with Grace Harris, meant Australia were always in touch and ultimately able to overhaul the target.”From my point of view, I was pretty disappointed to get out at the time I did just because the game was sort of in our hands a bit,” said Mooney. “I thought Rachael and I could get us home and hosed from that position, so that was disappointing, and probably something for me to reflect on.”But I think at the same time, Ash and Grace showed their maturity again and got us over the line. We can’t discount New Zealand. They’re a great side and really put us onto the pump tonight, as they have done over the last few years.”Tahlia McGrath made another significant contribution to take Australia towards victory•Getty Images

Just as Mooney and McGrath had rescued Australia against Pakistan, Gardner and Harris did the same with a 51-run stand for the sixth wicket against India, who defeated England by four runs in the other semi-final.”Ash is showing a different side of her game, which is really exciting for this group and for Ash herself. I think she’s absolutely going to be a player for our team for a long period of time that can win games for us off her own bat,” Mooney reflected.”I’m really excited to see that, and obviously the evolution of Grace has been pretty special. Seeing her back in the green and gold and being able to contribute like she has, and those guys will play for a long time, so for me, it’s always going to be nervous on the sideline until we get the winning runs, but today, they made it look a bit easier than it probably was.”At the T20 World Cup in 2020, Australia lost their opening match to India and then won their final clash. At this tournament, Australia won their first group game – also against India – with an over remaining and they are ready for the challenge India will pose again.”Semi-finals are tough,” Mooney added. “We do feel for England, it looked like a pretty tough game. But we also know the threat that India pose and we certainly didn’t take New Zealand lightly tonight either.”They really challenged us at times and I’m sure India will bring a similar game plan tomorrow against us, so hopefully we’re ready for that and can put on a show for it.”New Zealand were left to rue a rash of missed chances on the field against Australia. But Suzie Bates, New Zealand’s leading run-scorer and second behind Smriti Mandhana for the tournament, said all focus would now be on their bronze-medal play-off against hosts England, who beat them by seven wickets with 50 balls to spare in their last group match.”I always believe, and that’s one thing about this team is that we always fight and, especially against Australia, we fight right to the end,” Bates said just 12 hours before the start of their next game. “We know that we’ve got to give it our best and it’s disappointing, but I’m just really proud of the game that we put up after a really disappointing effort against England.”It just gives us confidence going into tomorrow, but tonight there’s going to be moments that are going to wake us up because there are some chances that we didn’t quite take. That’s cricket and you’ve got to be at your best against Australia.”It is quick, but you only get one chance to win a Commonwealth Games medal, so there’s going to be no problems for motivation. We can reflect on that [game against Australia] after the tournament. Right now it’s just about getting ourselves ready for tomorrow.”

“It hurt,” Keegan Petersen said, referring to defeat at Old Trafford and not the blow Dean Elgar took to his right shoulder on Tuesday morning.The South African captain was the victim of a hostile throw from his own coach, Mark Boucher, which bounced off the front of his shoulder and hit him on the grille. Elgar was later spotted holding the arm awkwardly with an ice pack to the injured area, and he did not take part in any slip catching. But sources confirm his participation in the decider is not in any doubt. If it was, it would really have hurt as South Africa are still searching for a way to put more runs on the board.For Petersen, the task ahead is simple in word, albeit tricky in practice. “It’s obvious. We need to score hundreds up top,” he said. “That hasn’t happened for a while now. The batters have to step up now and get a couple of big scores.”He wouldn’t go as far as to say some of them are playing for their Test places, but with at least one of the reserves certain of a start in Rassie van der Dussen’s injury-enforced absence, the writing must be close to being on the wall. “I don’t think we want to think that way,” Petersen said. “As an individual you’re probably going to feel that way, but I don’t believe there’s pressure from up top that’s going to make us feel that way.”Related

• Sarel Erwee: 'England is where you learn Test cricket as an opener'

• Race and role-definition collide as Zondo, Markram, van der Dussen jostle for one batting spot

• Khaya Zondo ends eight-year wait for a double-century

• Stokes inspires England as Anderson, Robinson round up South Africa for innings win

• Bavuma to lead South Africa at T20 World Cup, injured van der Dussen out

Even if van der Dussen had not broken his left index finger in Manchester, his place for The Oval was in doubt. He has gone 13 innings without a half-century and averages 24.17 from his last seven Tests. Either he or Aiden Markram, who averages 15.56 in his last nine Tests, would have had to make way for Ryan Rickelton.With van der Dussen definitely out, Rickelton seems certain to play but South Africa may see fit to make a double-change, with Markram sitting out for Khaya Zondo. Neither Rickelton nor Zondo have extensive Test experience – Rickelton played two Tests against Bangladesh and Zondo debuted as a Covid-19 substitute in the same series but did not bat – and whoever plays will be under scrutiny from the get-go. But if they are given an opportunity, they’re batting for the bigger picture and the opportunity to make a middle-order spot their own.Rickleton comes in off a second hot streak of form, both of which South Africa have failed to capitalise on. He scored three hundreds and a ninety in five first-class innings between November 2021 and January 2022 but did not play against New Zealand on South Africa’s February tour despite Petersen missing the tour after he contracted Covid-19. Now, Rickelton has two hundreds and four fifties in eight innings for Northamptonshire on a short-term deal he got by chance but specifically in preparation to play in England.Ryan Rickelton is likely to play in the third Test at The Oval•Getty Images

Rickelton was gearing up for winter training in South Africa when his old school friend Ricardo Vasconcelos asked him if he was interested in a county stint. With the Test tour in mind, Rickelton jumped at the chance and has been in the country since late June, familiarising himself with conditions, specifically the swing. If he can counter that, as Sarel Erwee said in an interview with ESPNcricinfo, that’s a big part of the challenge overcome.In South Africa, Rickelton is known for his temperament – honed by years of practising in the school nets when his father was sporting director – and ability to build an innings, something no South African batter besides Erwee has done on the tour so far. He has struck the balance between patience and power-hitting and crucially, converts his starts. He has 14 first-class fifties and 12 hundreds. Of Rickleton’s 12 centuries, five are scores of 150-plus. No-one in South Africa’s Test squad has made a score of that significance since Faf du Plessis’ 199 against Sri Lanka in the Boxing Day Test in 2020, 14 Test matches ago.Petersen puts the lack of big runs down to mindset rather than application, and doesn’t yet have a solution other than showing more resolve. “It’s all mental. I don’t think we’ve struggled to get in. It’s getting starts and getting out, that’s the problem,” he said. “It’s the situation in the middle that you have to prepare for, and you know it’s going to be tough. You have to at least try and fight through that tough period. That’s where you have to challenge yourself mentally all the time. There’s no real process of doing that. It’s just going to happen in the moment.”Keegan Petersen: “It’s obvious. We need to score hundreds up top”•AFP/Getty Images

That’s also why Zondo may come into the mix. He doesn’t have Rickelton’s recent numbers but more than enough mental resolve after the anguish of non-selection several years before, his testimony at the Social Justice and Nation-Building hearings and his first double-hundred last summer. As a black African batter, Zondo is also a rarity in South African cricket and will recognise the symbolism of his selection and the importance attached to his performances. In some ways, it may create an unfair burden on him, but he has spoken powerfully about issues of discrimination and his commitment to representing what he believes is right.The final option for South Africa’s line-up is Wiaan Mulder, who joined the squad when van der Dussen was ruled out and adds to their lower-order reserves. Like Rickelton, he has also had good performances in the County Championship, and scored two hundreds and two fifties for Leicestershire in Division Two and is the third-highest run-scorer in the one-day Cup.Mulder’s place in South Africa’s set-up remains confusing – he hasn’t played a white-ball game in a year, has lost ground to Dwaine Pretorius and Wayne Parnell and did not make the T20 World Cup squad. He played Tests as recently as the Bangladesh series in March-April and then missed out on this squad. With Marco Jansen the preferred allrounder, it’s difficult to see how Mulder will get a more regular run but if the opportunity presents itself, given the form he is in, he’s in a good place to grab it.With some parts of their XI unsettled, South Africa are not going into the decider in as stable a position as they may like to. Their batting still presents more questions than answers, it’s still scraping along thanks to several small contributions and it has to improve markedly if it’s going to challenge the best bowling attacks in the world.But it has got them through four series undefeated (West Indies, India, New Zealand and Bangladesh) and is one win (or draw, though South Africa have not drawn a Test since 2017) away from a fifth and it’s as ready as it can be. “This is what we live for as cricketers: series deciders. It’s going to be thrilling,” Petersen said. “There’s a lot on the line for both teams and I think you’re going to get a good game.”

Ten years can be a good time to wait for some things – inspiration, lifetime service awards, the right blend of salt and pepper in your hair – but not a win. New Zealand last beat Australia in Australia in December 2011. They’ve finally followed it up, 15 matches later, with a performance that maybe makes it all worth it.Finn Allen announced himself as the new face of this batting line-up. His 42 of 16 balls was the spark that sharpened the iron, which his opening partner then took and promptly plunged into the heart of the defending champions.Devon Conway batted through the entire 20 overs to make 92 off 58 and posed a question to Australia. Can you make the highest total ever made in this country – 201 – to win a T20I? The answer was, well…By the end, the Kiwis were doing things that shouldn’t be possible. Like flying.Glenn Phillips was the man who gut-punched gravity as he ran to his right, about 15 yards, leaped off his feet, got horizontal with the ground, sent his resume to Warner Bros just in case they’re looking for a new Superman, and came up with a catch that will become the image of this very one-sided match.Glenn Phillips’ blinder to remove Marcus Stoinis•ICC/Getty Images

How it began
It began like it almost always does in the first over. It ended here too. Just like in that game.Mitchell Starc once broke New Zealand with the fifth ball he bowled. Here he was sent packing into the crowd beyond the straight boundary. Allen went for the same shot Brendon McCullum did all those years ago. Minus all the hurtling down the track. Turns out, having a stable base, and presenting a straight bat can be fun too.New Zealand ransacked 14 runs off the first over. Not since the third season of Game of Thrones has a man named Starc been taken down with such ferocity.How it kept going
Allen is a 360-degree player. More than that, he is pure power. Ever since he made his debut in March 2021, his strike rate of 156 in the first six overs is head and shoulders above everybody else in T20Is (min. 10 innings).The problem was he got out too early. Fifty-five percent of his knocks ended within 10 balls. In Sydney, he got to face six more than that, and that was enough. Those brutal swings down the ground off Starc were followed by skillful punches off the back foot off Josh Hazlewood and the most full-blooded of all full-blooded pulls off Pat Cummins.Australia’s big three were lined up one by one and… bang, bang, bang.How it ended
Allen fell in the fifth over, but New Zealand already had 56 runs on the board. That gave them so much cushion that Kane Williamson could come in, struggle, look short of the answers everyone wants him to find and still end up on the winning side. The New Zealand captain’s run-a-ball 23 wasn’t the story on Saturday but it may be one later on in the tournament.Finn Allen got off to a rollicking start•ICC/Getty Images

Conway is owed some credit for things turning out this way. Unlike most left-handers, he looks for his boundaries on the off side, which is where he found 58 of his runs tonight at a strike rate of 187. He’s also better against spin than he is against pace. So when Australia realised they had to slow things down, they fell into his trap. Adam Zampa went for 39 runs in his four overs at the SCG. Conway clattered 32 of them, including two sixes.The final flourish came from Jimmy Neesham, which was very much on brand. Since the 2021 World Cup, he’s hit 23 fours and 22 sixes in the last four overs of a T20, putting him in the same calibre of finishers as Andre Russell, Tim David, Dinesh Karthik and David Miller.How it never really began
Bad luck and the bizarre had a baby and it turned into the ball that got David Warner out. One second it was an innocuous change-up, the next, it took the inside edge of a pull shot, bounced up off the thigh and just hovered in the air; in that perfect spot for the bat to catch up with it on the follow-through, and rebound onto the stumps.Talk about a sign. Warner, who averages 90 in home T20Is since 2019, gone.New Zealand then did the most New Zealand thing. They a win.Trent Boult was getting loads of swing, but they stopped his first spell at two overs and went to Mitchell Santner.Why, because Mitchell Marsh was at the crease and he doesn’t do spin (T20 strike rate 110) as well as he does pace (T20 strike rate 140). Also, the other batter, Aaron Finch has been woeful against left-arm spin this year (14 runs in five innings and two dismissals). Guess what happened…Finch c Williamson b Santner 13 off 11. Australia 30 for 2, then 68 for 5, then 111 all out.In the midst of all that, Tim Southee became the highest wicket-taker in T20Is. He has recently realised he can’t bowl the same ball over and over again. He needed variation. So a man who only turned to change of pace as the last resort (8% of his overs between 2008 and 2017) is now totally committed to them. Since 2018, he bowls his offcutters alone more often (11%). One of them brought New Zealand the all-important Marsh wicket.Who knew 343 days could make such a difference.

No result A stop-start day ended in victory for rain, with the Hamilton ODI washed out after only 12.5 overs of play. Suryakumar Yadav, with 34 off 25 balls, and Shubman Gill, with 45 off 42, entertained during an unbroken 66-run partnership off 46 deliveries, before the second rain interruption of the day killed all hopes of further action.The threat of rain loomed over Seddon Park when Kane Williamson inserted India, with overcast skies having already delayed the toss by 15 minutes. A drizzle began within three overs of their innings, as Shikhar Dhawan made another sedate start, and grew heavier in the fifth over, by which time Gill had hit two boundaries. The umpires called the players off the field with India at 22 for no loss.

Watch India’s tour of New Zealand, in India, live on Prime Video from November 18 to 30.

It was 2.53pm at the time, and on-and-off rain allowed a restart only at 6.40pm, with the match reduced to 29 overs a side. Dhawan made his intentions clear first ball after the restart, charging down to Tim Southee, only to fall the very next ball, miscuing a loft to mid-on off Matt Henry.Gill slapped Henry for a six over fine leg in the eighth over, even as the promoted Suryakumar struggled to get going at the other end, scoring only five runs off his first 11 balls. But he picked up pace the moment he ramped Lockie Ferguson off the last delivery of the ninth over. Williamson introduced spin in the next over in the form of Michael Bracewell, and Gill lofted him inside out over cover; when Mitchell Santner came on for the 11th, Suryakumar hit his first six, slog-sweeping the left-arm spinner over deep square leg.That was the first of three sixes, as he followed up by reverse-swatting Bracewell over backward point and bashing Ferguson over midwicket. Off what turned out to be the last ball of the contest, Suryakumar clipped Ferguson for four behind the wicket.Play was suspended at 7.21pm, and the match called off some 45 minutes later.The teams shared points as a result of the washout, with New Zealand taking a 1-0 lead into Wednesday’s third ODI in Christchurch.

Pakistan are facing the prospect of another significant length of time without Shaheen Shah Afridi after he hurt* his right knee again in the men’s T20 World Cup final on Sunday in Melbourne.He has been advised two weeks of rehabilitation after a scan on Monday morning confirmed there were no signs of an injury and the knee discomfort was likely “due to a forced knee flexion whilst landing”. However, it appears unlikely that Afridi will be available for the home Tests against England and New Zealand through December-January; the PCB said his “return to international cricket will be subject to the champion fast bowler’s successful completion of the rehabilitation programme and following go-aheads by the medical staff.”Related

• Shan Masood 'takes blame' for Pakistan not finishing strongly

• Hafeez: PCB handling of Afridi injury 'criminal'

• From injury rust to purple patch – Afridi is back

Afridi was, in any case, expected to sit out the England Test series, which starts from December 1 in Rawalpindi. That was part of a planned gradual return to the longer format from the original knee injury – which had kept him for three-and-a-half months – that he had also picked up while fielding during a Test against Sri Lanka in Galle in July.He returned in time for the World Cup, and started Pakistan’s campaign at the marquee tournament slowly, feeling his way back into rhythm. By the time of the final, he appeared to be back to his best, reflected in returns of 4 for 22 against Bangladesh, 3 for 14 against South Africa, 3 and 24 in the semi-final against New Zealand, and 1 for 13 in the final against England until the injury. With 11 wickets, he was Pakistan’s joint-highest wicket-taker in the competition.As with the original injury, this one occurred while he was fielding during the 13th over of England’s chase. On this occasion in the final at the MCG, he ran in from long-off to hold on to a sharp chance from Harry Brook. As he slid low to hold on, he appeared to hurt his knee and was immediately in some pain. He was helped off the field by the team physio and doctor. He returned an over later, ran in gingerly to send down one delivery, but couldn’t carry on.The right knee appeared to buckle as Shaheen Afridi completed the catch to dismiss Harry Brook•PA Photos/Getty Images

His right knee is currently believed to be in a brace. Afridi will fly back home via Dubai with the rest of the Pakistan squad today. Haris Rauf is understood to be in line for a shot at red-ball cricket for the first time as Afridi’s replacement.The PCB’s handling of Afridi’s rehab from the original injury had come under scrutiny and criticism at the time. After he got injured he travelled with the team to the Netherlands for a three-match ODI series in August, in the hope that he would recover while on tour. That didn’t pan out as expected and the PCB eventually announced that he would be out for four to six weeks.Afridi continued to travel with the team to the UAE for the Asia Cup, as another attempt was made to get his rehab going. But medical scans and reports confirmed a posterior cruciate ligament injury and it was eventually decided that he would travel to the UK for further rehab and work with doctors on the PCB medical panel, Zafar Iqbal and Imtiaz Ahmed. He missed the Asia Cup as well as the seven-T20I home series against England in September, before joining up with the squad in Brisbane ahead of the start of the world event.14:23 GMT – *This story has been updated to reflect details from the PCB’s statement