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It is understood that Haider was arrested in Beckenham where the Shaheens were playing

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Aug-2025Haider Ali has been arrested by the Greater Manchester Police on suspicion of rape and bailed pending further enquiries. The Pakistan batter, who was with the Shaheens squad, the de facto ‘A’ team on a tour against of England, remains in the UK. A Shaheens squad, which includes a number of players on the England tour, has flown to Australia to take part in a multi-team T20 series. Haider was part of the squad due to go to Australia, and has been replaced by allrounder Mohammad Faiq”After receiving a report on Monday 4 August 2025 of a rape, we have arrested a 24-year-old man,” a statement from Greater Manchester Police confirmed to ESPNcricinfo. “It’s alleged that the incident occurred on Wednesday 23 July 2025 at a premises in Manchester. The man has since been bailed pending further enquiries. The victim is being supported by officers.”It is understood that Haider was arrested in Beckenham where the Shaheens were playing the last of their five games of the tour. Haider played each of the five games, including the first two on 22 and 25 July, between which the incident he was arrested for is alleged to have occurred in Manchester on 23 July. The offence carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment in the UK.Related

• Manchester police drop all charges against Haider Ali

• Haider Ali under criminal investigation in the UK, suspended by the PCB

On Thursday, the PCB issued a statement confirming Haider was under criminal investigation in the UK and suspended him pending the results of that investigation. It affirmed that the board “fully respects the legal procedures and processes of the UK” and were providing the player with legal support.Haider, 24, has played two ODIs and 35 T20Is for Pakistan. Initially feted as a destructive power hitter, his reputation burnished with standout performances in the PSL with Peshawar Zalmi in 2020, when he scored 239 runs at a strike rate of over 157. He was called up to the national side later that year, his international debut coming in a T20I game in Manchester, where he scored a 33-ball 54 as Pakistan won by five runs.Inconsistency has dogged him since, and he has repeatedly found himself in and out of the side. However, his talent and explosiveness have kept him in international contention, and the current Shaheens tour was widely viewed as an opportunity to reintegrate a player whose batting approach aligns with the aggressive style Pakistan’s current T20 set-up has made no secret they want to pursue.The PCB has said that they intend to make no further public comment until legal proceedings are complete.

Australia’s women’s T20 world champions want to pile on the runs in Brisbane before heading “into the unknown” to defend their title in Dubai

AAP23-Sep-2024Australia have banned the pre-game activity that threatened to derail Ashleigh Gardner’s T20 World Cup as the allrounder challenged her side’s batters to fill their boots in the third T20I against New Zealand in Brisbane on Tuesday.Gardner missed the series opener against New Zealand in Mackay last Thursday after colliding with team-mate Georgia Wareham attempting to catch a soft “Vortex” ball in a warm-up drill.The reigning Belinda Clark Medallist initially laughed off the incident before leaving the ground in tears, fearing an eighth career concussion as she was ruled out of the contest.Related

• Gardner seals series win after Kerr puts Australia in a spin

• Gardner cleared of concussion after Wareham head clash

• Litchfield rescues Australia after dramatic pre-game injury to Gardner

She was cleared though and returned on Sunday with a Player-of the-Match effort, her 3 for 16 the headline act of a disciplined bowling performance in a 29-run win over New Zealand.The 27-year-old saw a neuropsychologist in 2018 after suffering four concussions in the space of 20 months.”It’s been nice to get back out there after a weird occasion, a head collision in a warm-up,” she said. “It was weird to wrap my head around, but I’ve felt really good the last couple of days.”I’ve had a lot of head knocks in the past; I know when I am concussed and when I’m not.”There was no sign of the Vortex before Sunday’s game, Gardner confirming their pre-match routine had been tweaked.”That’s the end of the Vortex for the rest of the tour,” she said.Ashleigh Gardner returned three wickets after missing the opening game due to a concussion scare•Getty Images

Usually happy to chase, captain Alyssa Healy opted to bat first on Sunday and force her team to set the pace ahead of next month’s World Cup defence in Dubai.Healy (38 off 25) got off to a flyer but Australia’s innings stalled, the hosts recording their worst collapse in the format when they lost their last seven wickets for 28 runs as Amelia Kerr returned career-best figures of 4 for 20.A total of 142 proved more than enough thanks to Australia’s bowlers. But Gardner wants to see improvements in their final hit-out in Brisbane on Tuesday before flying to the UAE.”There’s still a lot left in the tank; hopefully in this last game if we do bat first we can put a massive total on the board,” she said.She said there were no excuses given the side’s incredible batting depth meant Annabel Sutherland entered at the fall of the sixth wicket.”Sutherland at eight is pretty ridiculous,” she said. “Going into conditions like Dubai, we haven’t played there before [for Australia] so we’re kind of going into the unknown a little bit.”But knowing we have a defendable total like 140, we know our bowling unit is good enough to restrict them”The skill we possess, in all facets… it was pretty clinical.”

Afghanistan were 95 for 2 at stumps, staring at a mammoth 491-run deficit

Sreshth Shah27-Dec-2024Bulawayo was buzzing on the second day of the Boxing Day Test as the home fans celebrated one landmark after another, with Zimbabwe creating history against Afghanistan by getting to their highest Test score of all time. Overnight centurion Sean Williams posted his personal best in Tests, the captain Craig Ervine scored his fourth Test ton in a 13-year career, and Brian Bennett struck a dramatic maiden hundred, taking Zimbabwe to 586.Williams set the tone early with a cut through point to pass 150. He looked to be aggressive to the leg side but mistimed a pull off Naveen Zadran to deep midwicket, adding only nine to his overnight score before departing for 154 in the day’s sixth over.The No. 7 Bennett, playing only his second Test, then looked busy upon arrival. His early strokes allowed Ervine, starting overnight on 56, to get his eyes in, and together they put on 82 in only 20.2 overs for the sixth wicket. Ervine showed off his ease against spin to dominate square of the wicket. He reached triple figures with a flick towards backward square leg in the 109th over, took off his helmet, and revealed a smile that bore a feeling of satisfaction.Left-arm spinner Zia-Ur-Rehman had Ervine nicking to the keeper for 104 two overs later, followed by Brandon Mavuta’s dismissal for 0 in the same over, those two wickets did not bring any respite for the inexperienced Afghanistan bowling unit. The turn was predictable, the pacers were ineffective, allowing Bennett and the lower-order to score freely.Bennett, a few streaky boundaries aside, peppered boundaries through the covers, and after lunch the message was clear that the remaining batters would also play positively. Teen debutant Newman Nyamhuri, known for his left-arm seam bowling in the domestic circuit, showed he can also contribute with the bat. He was out on 26 to Zahir Khan, but not before bringing up Zimbabwe’s 500 with a big six down the ground. It ended a 21-year wait for Zimbabwe to breach that mark in Tests.Naveed Zadran celebrates the wicket of Sean Williams•Zimbabwe Cricket

The mystery spin of AM Ghazanfar didn’t have much impact either, with Bennett and Blessing Muzarabani (19) crunching sixes off his overpitched deliveries. As Zimbabwe pushed towards their previous highest score of 563 for 9, achieved against West Indies in 2001, errors crept into the Afghan fielding effort too. Fumbles and misfields allowed singles to become doubles, and Muzarabani survived a dropped chance at deep midwicket too.However Muzarabani fell with Zimbabwe at 550 for 9, earning Azmatullah Omarzai a maiden Test wicket, and with only the No. 11 remaining, Bennett, on 82, moved to fifth gear. A six off Zia-ur-Rehman through midwicket took him to 89, and back-to-back twos in Trevor Gwandu’s company got him closer to triple digits. His 96th run also took Zimbabwe to 564, a new high in their 32-year history in the format.But that was not enough for the crowd. Only a Bennett century would make the innings perfect, and it arrived in cinematic fashion in the 135th over. Zadran had set up a short-ball ploy with two sweeper fielders in the deep on the leg side, but Bennett went for the pull anyway. The fielder in the deep took the catch, only to see that he had stepped into the boundary line, and Bennett roared “come on” in the direction of his family on the grass banks, which included his father and twin brother. He would pin another six next ball over the same region before Ghazanfar picked up his third wicket by removing Gwandu, leaving Bennett unbeaten on 110.”[It is] not just my first Test century but my first century for Zimbabwe, so it’s a great feeling,” Bennett said after the day’s play. “To get a Test match hundred at Queen’s [Sports Club] with my family watching, with Sean Williams and Craig Ervine also getting hundreds and putting on a record score for Zimbabwe in Test matches. I don’t think there’s any better feeling to that. So, yeah, I’m just very proud.”At first, when I saw it going, I thought it was six, but when I saw it coming down, I was like, oh shucks, I’m in trouble here,” he recalled the drama. “But you know what? You create your own luck in cricket. And when it stepped over the boundary there, I was lost for words, actually.”It wasn’t too much about me getting to my hundred. It was more about us getting a big score and getting the Afghan guys out on the field for as long as possible. So credit to the tail-enders as well. They did a good effort for me to get my hundred but also, I think we were six down, and with our tail, we added 120 [121] runs.”Afghanistan’s reply to 587 began in overcast conditions after tea, and Sediqullah Atal lost the battle of the debutants to Gwandu trying to flick across the line in the second over. Gwandu got a ball to swing in and shape away late to gain his maiden Test scalp. The seamer would bowl four overs before an injury while fielding ended his day early.Muzarabani was metronic from the other end, bowling in the channel around off stump, and challenged Abdul Malik’s bat on occasion. It needed someone of Rahmat Shah’s experience at No. 3 to get the runs flowing. His strong off-side play earned him four fours in the space of as many overs bowled by Gwandu and Nyamhuri. Malik, instead, offered soft hands when possible, with his only boundary a gentle glance towards fine leg.With the pitch still good for batting and the effects of the new ball wearing off, both batters milked the Zimbabwe bowling, but looking to make something happen Ervine brought Muzarabani back and the idea worked. Malik, who had mostly offered defensive shots, was proffered a short ball by Muzarabani and the rising delivery forced the error, straight to Ben Curran at fine leg.Hashmatullah Shahidi, at No. 4, battled against the fading light to face some tricky overs of spin from Williams and part-timers Mavuta and Bennett. He struck three boundaries in 24 balls, while Rahmat moved to 49 after surviving one catching chance at slip. Bad light stopped play three overs before close, with Afghanistan on 95 for 2, staring at a mammoth 491-run deficit.

Record partnership helps reigning champions to comfortable victory

ECB Reporters Network24-May-2024England past Georgia Elwiss and future Freya Kemp recorded their highest Charlotte Edwards Cup scores as holders Southern Vipers comfortably beat Sunrisers by 19 runs.Elwiss and Kemp put on an unbroken 110-run stand – a Vipers record for any wicket – with 73 and 55 respectively to set Sunrisers an imposing target of 172. Mady Villiers and Jo Gardner – who bagged her maiden CEC half-century – put on 75 to give Sunrisers hope but Vipers’ attack squeezed and secured them their first victory of the campaign – as they aim for a three-peat.Charli Knott got Vipers off to a flier after they were stuck in, with three boundaries in the first over as she took the aggressor role in the early stages. It proved her downfall as with the penultimate ball of the powerplay she was sublimely caught by Cordelia Griffith at cover, with Vipers ending the first six overs on 47 for 1.Spin duo Jodi Grewcock and Mady Villiers stemmed the tide with their first four overs only conceding 17 runs. But it was Nicola Hancock who reaped the rewards of the pressure, as her reintroduction found Georgia Adams splicing to mid-off.Throughout the spells of profligacy and struggle, Elwiss had kept the scoreboard ticking along and was compensated with a 43-ball half-century – her first in the Charlotte Edwards Cup.With a platform of 105 for 2 and wickets in the shed, Elwiss and Kemp went ballistic to get Vipers above par – with 66 runs coming from the last five overs.Kemp scored all but two of her runs either on the leg side or straight, as she prioritised power – summed up by hitting all three sixes of the innings – to strike her second Vipers fifty, and first in T20s. She ended up with 55 off 35 balls, placing a full stop with a last-ball maximum, while the experienced Elwiss returned with a 57-ball 73, having gone at a run-a-ball for much of the innings.Their 110 beat Danni Wyatt and Maia Bouchier’s 108 in last year’s Eliminator as Vipers’ best alliance and slots in as the CEC’s all-time seventh-highest.In reply, it took just two balls for Freya Davies to breakthrough as Knott stuck out her right hand to catch high above her head at cover to dismiss Amara Carr. Griffith was bowled through the gate by Linsey Smith in the following over, but Gardner and Villiers countered against Adams and Smith to reach 46 for 2 by the end of the powerplay.Gardner play the role of anchor – albeit with a life on 25 – which allowed Villiers to free her arms, stride past her previous CEC best of 36 but fall six short of fifty as she was stumped off Knott.It ended a 75-run stand and swung the momentum to the visitors and while Gardner reached her first CEC fifty, in 47 deliveries, the run-rate was always slightly out of reach.Lissy Macleod and Hancock holed out in successive Mary Taylor balls before Davies and Adams saw out the last two overs, despite some late Gardner power-hitting after the game had gone.

Warwickshire have chance to put big total on the board after inducing a slump from visitors

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay 23-Jun-2025Careless batting and missed opportunities in the field cost Somerset a position of dominance against Warwickshire on the second day of their Rothesay County Championship clash at Edgbaston.On a pitch which is excellent for batting, Somerset were 407 for three (Tom Lammonby 133, 196 balls) but collapsed to 498 all out – a total that insures against defeat but does not apply the major scoreboard pressure that beckoned.Warwickshire closed the second day on 157 for one with Alex Davies (63 not out, 152) and Tom Latham (65 not out, 142) having added 125 in 43 overs. Both were reprieved as Davies, on 36, survived a high chance to Archie Vaughan at point and Latham, on 28 escaped a missed stumping by James Rew off Jack Leach.On such a batter-friendly pitch, offering seamers nothing and spinners only very slight turn, near-flawless cricket is required to craft a victory. Somerset’s was that on the first day, but on the second they relieved the pressure on the hosts to leave the match already 99.47% certain to end in a draw.After Somerset resumed on the second morning on 327 for three and overnight pair Lammonby and Tom Abell (48, 103) took the total past 400, the platform was there for a mammoth total for Craig Overton’s side. Instead of showing the required ruthlessness, however, they succumbed to collective carelessness.The collapse began when Abell, seeking to accelerate towards another batting point, hit Corey Rocchiccioli for three successive fours then pulled a short ball to mid-wicket to supply the Australian’s first wicket for Warwickshire. Lammonby had batted beautifully to turn his ninth first-class century into a career-best but chipped Ethan Bamber tamely to mid off.Warwickshire’s part-time spinners Rob Yates and Jacob Bethell then shared the last five wickets in 15 overs. Tom Banton skied Bethell to mid off and Vaughan missed a sweep and was lbw to Yates who quickly had Migael Pretorius caught at slip. Leach conjured up another way to get out when he reverse-swept Bethell to slip. When Matt Henry slogged Yates to long off, Somerset were left with 498 – a tall total but not the intimidating score which would have forced Warwickshire to bat very long even to avoid the follow on.The moment that Warwickshire avoid the follow-on figure – 349 – this match will be doomed to a draw. Yates perished in infuriating fashion, caught down the leg side by Rew off Pretorius, but Davies and Latham reined in their attacking instincts to ensure it was an isolated early wicket.Davies reached his half-century from 109 balls and Latham followed to his from 95. As the shadows lengthened, Somerset’s bowlers gave very little away, so did the batters and so did the pitch and something truly remarkable has to happen if this 148th Championship meeting of these teams is not to conclude in a 68th draw.

He has been among the runs as well as wickets in the Major League Tournament, Sri Lanka’s domestic first-class competition, this season

Andrew Fidel Fernando05-Feb-2025Ramesh Mendis has been added to Sri Lanka’s squad for the second Test against Australia, while seamer Vishwa Fernando and top-order batter Lahiru Udara have been released from what had been an 18-member squad. Sri Lanka team manager Mahinda Halangoda confirmed the changes, and said Ramesh had joined the squad on Monday.Ramesh had been dropped both from the Test XI, and later from the squad entirely, on account of what Sri Lanka’s team management believed to be a sub-par bowling performance against New Zealand in November.But having conceded 654 for 6 in the first innings of the first Test against Australia in Galle, Sri Lanka have brought back Ramesh. Partly this is down to his bowling form in the ongoing first-class competition – the Major League Tournament – in which he has claimed 24 wickets at an average of 21.91 plus scored 260 runs at an average of 52 from six innings.His bowling returns among the top Test teams has been more modest, however, though he has played all 15 of his Tests so far in Asia. Against Australia, for example, he has seven wickets at an average of 40.85 from two matches that were played in Galle in 2022.Sri Lanka will seriously consider him for a spot in the XI given the inexperience in their spin attack. In the previous match, in which Sri Lanka slipped to their worst Test defeat in history, Sri Lanka had two frontline spinners playing their second Test.The second Test starts in Galle on Thursday.

Mitchell Johnson has spoken for the first time of the personal turmoil that led to his stunning meltdown during the Lord’s Test

Alex Brown23-Nov-2009Mitchell Johnson has spoken for the first time of the personal turmoil that led to his stunning meltdown during the Lord’s Test. In a frank and revealing interview, Johnson – the ICC’s player of the year – conceded that a tabloid spat between his mother and fiancee played on his mind throughout the match, culminating in a performance so awry as to convince him he would be demoted for the ensuing encounter at Edgbaston.Johnson’s match return of 3 for 200 from 38.4 overs in the second Test played a significant role in Australia’s eventual 115-run defeat to England. At the time, team-mates and staff sought to play down the link between Johnson’s delicate family situation and his errant bowling, however he has moved to set the record straight on the eve of this week’s Test against West Indies.”I’m probably going back on myself a little bit,” Johnson said. “I said in the past that I’d blocked things out. I guess it started off with the personal side of things. That probably really did get to me. I was denying it at the time, and copping it from the crowd didn’t help, but mentally I’ve probably learned to be a lot stronger and just concentrate on what I’m doing out in the middle. This is what I have to do for a living and I have to leave everything behind me when I’m out there.”I think that I block things out pretty well normally. It was just the Ashes: the whole hype of it and the personal things that came out. It was mostly through Lord’s where I felt that pressure. Obviously I was a little bit disappointed in some of the games I played in. I’m not always going to be at my best. I think I probably put a bit too much pressure on myself with how well I did in in South Africa. Coming into that series I probably relaxed a little bit as well.”Johnson flirted with the selectorial axe after Australia’s shock defeat at Lord’s, their first at the venue in 75 years. Stuart Clark’s precision appeared the ideal alternative to Johnson’s waywardness, but Andrew Hilditch’s panel pulled a major surprise by instead dropping Phillip Hughes and installing the relatively untried Shane Watson at the top of the order.The move to call-in an allrounder provided Ricky Ponting with insurance in the event of another Johnson blow-out, and underlined the lengths Australia’s selectors were prepared to go to accommodate their fragile fast bowler. That unexpected show of faith, Johnson said, went far to restoring his confidence for the final three Tests of the Ashes series and beyond.”I definitely thought I wasn’t going to play the Edgbaston Test,” he said. “I was quite nervous about it. I’m glad I got that opportunity again. You just can’t take anything for granted. I am glad I got that opportunity because who knows, I could have been back playing state cricket, which might not have been a bad thing. I could have been working on different things with my bowling. I’m glad I’ve been given that chance. I don’t know what the selectors were thinking, I don’t know what Ricky was thinking, if they were going to drop me or not. Just in my mind, I just thought that was going to happen.”For those guys to have that confidence in me just gave me confidence as well. It made me think a lot more positively about what my role was in the team, so it definitely helped. I had a lot more confidence in Egbaston and then Headingley. I think sometimes I think a bit negatively with my bowling, and it can get me in a bit of trouble, obviously.”Johnson also admitted to mechanical problems during the Ashes series – low arm height and awkward wrist position among them – but insisted all could be attributed to a clouded state of mind. “It got technical because I was thinking about it, but in the end it was more of a mental thing,” he said. “I had to concentrate on my bowling – where I wanted to bowl the ball and what I wanted to do, how I wanted to get these guys out. I just wasn’t doing that. Definitely in the Lord’s Test I was thinking about everything possible – I was thinking about my front arm, release point, swinging the ball, just everything. I probably concentrated more towards the end of the tour. I just forgot about off-field stuff.”The Australians are gearing for their first Test series since their Ashes disappointment, and Johnson is expected to headline an attack similar, if not identical, to that which slumped to defeat at Lord’s. He is convinced the chastening experiences of four months ago have hardened the resolve of Australia’s youthful bowling unit, all of whom are determined to re-establish themselves as an international force against West Indies from Thursday.The first Test at the Gabba represents an unusual homecoming for Johnson – he originally hails from Queensland, but these days makes his home in Perth. He hopes his previous experiences of the Gabba wicket for Queensland and Australia will convince Ponting to restore him to the new ball role taken away from him in England earlier this year.”I’m playing for my country, I’m a fast bowler and I’d love the new ball,” said Johnson, who has taken 13 wickets at 12.69 in two Tests at the Gabba, including a nine-wicket haul against New Zealand last summer. “That’s one of my goals: to open the bowling for Australia.”Hopefully I can bowl a little bit fuller than I probably have in the past if I get the new ball or whatever it may be. You’ve got to be a touch fuller, just like the WACA. That’s when you get your nicks and your lbws.”

Ferguson could join NZ team-mate Allen in securing a BBL deal while Knight and Ecclestone have also nominated for the WBBL draft

Andrew McGlashan19-Aug-2024Shamar Joseph could return to the scene of his triumphant start to Test cricket after nominating for the BBL while India captain Harmanpreet Kaur is among the first group of players confirmed for the WBBL draft.Initial batches of ten names for both the BBL and WBBL were released on Monday after nominations closed ahead of the drafts which will take place on September 1. New Zealand quick Lockie Ferguson is among them having opted out of a central contract and could join Finn Allen in the tournament after his signing with Perth Scorchers was confirmed.England captain Heather Knight has nominated alongside left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone who is currently the No. 1-ranked bowler in both ODIs and T20Is. However, England players won’t be available for the entire tournament due to a tour of South Africa from late November.Related

• All the BBL and WBBL squads for 2025-26 season

• Devine stays with Perth Scorchers for two more seasons

• Chamari Athapaththu signs three-season WBBL deal with Sydney Thunder

• All the BBL and WBBL squads for 2024-25 season

• Finn Allen set for two-year Perth Scorchers deal

Players being included in the nominations list also confirm that they have not been signed under the pre-draft mechanism but 14 of the 20 are eligible for retention by their teams. That includes South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt who has been part of back-to-back titles with Adelaide Strikers. Harmanpreet can also be retained by Melbourne Renegades. From India, Jemimah Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma have also been confirmed in the draft.Other notable retention options include Jamie Overton (Adelaide Strikers), Alex Hales (Sydney Thunder), James Vince (Sydney Sixers), Alice Capsey (Melbourne Stars) and Shabnim Ismail (Hobart Hurricanes). Although Danni Wyatt withdrew from last season’s WBBL, she is eligible for retention by Perth Scorchers having originally been signed in the draft.Schedule clashes will again be a key issue in the BBL. West Indies have a Test series starting against Pakistan starting on January 16 and after his Gabba heroics Joseph said he would always be available for Tests although his current availability is stated as full including finals. Meanwhile Vince and Hales are among those who have deals in the ILT20 which will start on January 11. Overton was also retained in the ILT20 but is currently down as having full BBL availability.Players are drafted in either Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze categories and clubs must select at least two during the draft. Those signed under pre-draft agreements are allocated a pick that matches their salary band. The gaps in the pre-draft signings are expected to be fill in the coming days.The WBBL runs from October 27 to December 1 and the BBL from December 15 to January 27.

BBL nominations

(retention eligibility in brackets)Laurie Evans (Perth Scorchers), Lockie Ferguson, Alex Hales (Sydney Thunder), Shamar Joseph, Shadab Khan, Jamie Overton (Adelaide Strikers), Haris Rauf (Melbourne Stars), Jason Roy, Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Melbourne Renegades), James Vince (Sydney Sixers)

WBBL nominations

(retention eligibility in brackets)Suzie Bates (Sydney Sixers), Alice Capsey (Melbourne Stars), Sophie Ecclestone (Sydney Sixers), Shabnim Ismail (Hobart Hurricanes), Harmanpreet Kaur (Melbourne Renegades), Heather Knight (Sydney Thunder), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Laura Wolvaardt (Adelaide Strikers), Danni Wyatt (Perth Scorchers)

Confirmed pre-draft signings

Adelaide Strikers: –
Brisbane Heat: Nadine de Klerk, Colin Munro
Hobart Hurricanes: Chris Jordan
Melbourne Renegades: Hayley Matthews, Tim Seifert
Melbourne Stars: Marizanne Kapp, Tom Curran
Perth Scorchers: Sophie Devine, Finn Allen
Sydney Sixers: Amelia Kerr
Sydney Thunder: Chamari Athapaththu, Sam Billings

On the assumption England beat Namibia, Richie Berrington’s team have a simple but daunting equation

Andrew McGlashan15-Jun-20241:17

Roller: ‘Scotland have been a smart team so far’

Match details

Australia vs Scotland
St Lucia, 8.30pm local time

Big Picture

England’s thumping win over Oman has ensured against any run-rate shenanigans in this match (and David Warner won’t be opening the bowling). Providing Namibia don’t pull off an upset against England in the hours leading into this game, the equation will be simple: Scotland win and they go through – although a washout would also do.Simple equation, difficult prospect.Scotland are not planning on the earlier result to help them. “We always knew this was going to be a must-win game for us and look, it’s a hell of an opportunity for us to go and play really good cricket and take on one of the best in the world,” Michael Leask said.Related

• Scenarios: How can Bangladesh, Netherlands still qualify?

• Cummins: Australia would never have manipulated England's exit

• Australia to tour Scotland after 11 years for first bilateral men's T20I series

• Michael Jones: 'If David Warner opens the bowling it'd be pretty funny'

• Mark Watt set to continue with 24-yard delivery against Australia

Australia have looked like one of the best sides in the competition and even if, as expected, they rest a few players for this one they will retain a very strong XI. However, Scotland have played some excellent cricket themselves and are not without a chance of pulling off what would be one of their most famous results. Progression to the Super Eight would also guarantee a place in the next T20 World Cup.As they showed against Oman, the top order is full of power, led by George Munsey, while captain Richie Berrington provides an experienced and calming influence in the middle order. He and Leask combined critically in the matchwinning stand against Namibia.Australia have the luxury of looking ahead to the Super Eight stage – where they will face Afghanistan, India and most likely Bangladesh – and can rotate players for this game if they wish. Pat Cummins said it was an aim pre-tournament to get a match into as many of the squad as possible.The last time they met was at the 2015 ODI World Cup when Australia won by seven wickets. Leask hoped that could work in their favour. “It does kind of hold us in a little bit of good stead as well because they don’t know what we’re capable of, given the fact that we’re playing really good cricket at the moment.”

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
AustraliaWWWWW
Scotland WWLWLGeorge Munsey provides power at the top of the order•ICC/Getty Images

In the spotlight: Nathan Ellis and Mark Watt

With Australia likely to manage some players Nathan Ellis would appear set for another outing, meaning three games for him in the group stage. A sign that he has yet to break into the big three came when he didn’t play against England, but he is a very consistent performer when called upon. It’s hard to make a case to leave out one of the other quicks, but Ellis’ skiddy style and his excellent yorker does offer a good contrast.Mark Watt is a crafty and clever left-arm spinner – his 24-yard delivery is much talked-about – who in the last T20 World Cup in Australia became centre of attention for the notes he had written down in his pocket against West Indies. He can operate at various phases of an innings and against Oman took the new ball – having been a touch more expensive than is often the case against Namibia – although a repeat of that may be unlikely against the left-handed opening pair of Warner and Travis Head.

Team news: Possible outing for Green; Currie could return

Australia have strongly suggested there will be some rotation, but who sits out remains to be seen. It would appear sensible not to rush Mitchell Starc back while, given the compressed schedule from the Super Eight onwards, there may be some consideration to managing Marcus Stoinis. Cameron Green, Ashton Agar and Josh Inglis are yet to feature.Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Travis Head, 3 Mitchell Marsh (capt), 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Marcus Stoinis/Cameron Green, 6 Tim David, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Nathan Ellis, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh HazlewoodBrad Currie missed the Oman game with a niggle but Leask said that everyone was fit so he could return in place of Safyaan Sharif.Scotland (possible) 1 George Munsey, 2 Michael Jones, 3 Brandon McMullen, 4 Richie Berrington (capt), 5 Matthew Cross (wk), 6 Michael Leask, 7 Chris Greaves, 8 Mark Watt, 9 Chris Sole, 10 Brad Wheal, 11 Brad Currie.

Pitch and conditions

It is the first game of the tournament for St Lucia, so another venue for the teams to get used to. Australia will return for their Super Eight game against India and either Scotland or England will face West Indies at the ground which carries the name of their coach Daren Sammy. The forecast suggests only a small chance of a shower. A reminder, a no result would be good enough for Scotland.

Stats that matter

• George Munsey needs 29 runs to reach 2000 in T20Is. He would be the second Scotland player to reach that mark after Richie Berrington
• Of players to have scored at least 500 T20 runs this year, Travis Head has the third-highest strike-rate of 183.57, behind Jake Fraser-McGurk and Andre Russell. If the cut-off is 700 runs (which 21 players have reached) Head is No. 1
• Australia have played nine T20Is in St Lucia with a 5-4 winning record, although lost 4-1 in 2021. It is the venue of one of their most famous T20 wins when Mike Hussey pulled off a remarkable chase in the semi-final of the 2010 T20 World Cup.
• Since the start of 2023, no team has scored faster in the powerplay than Australia’s 10.08.

Quotes

“I think coming here a lot of us have prepared for plenty of spin depending on what venue you get to. I know here’s a good wicket. I think this might be the venue we play India at so that’ll be nice. But, yeah, we’re going to get a heap of spin. We expect nothing different and they’re all, on their day, they’re all going to be very very hard teams to beat.”
“I think it’d be an incredibly proud moment for Scottish cricket if we did progress to the Super Eight. And look, let’s not beat around the bush. It would be the tough way. We know we’re going to have to beat Australia. So, I think that would make it extra special for us, knowing that we’ve played an incredibly good game of cricket, taking on the best in the world, beat the best in the world to progress.”