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They showed promise, but lacked execution in Lahore, leaving them with several lessons ahead of the second Test

Firdose Moonda15-Oct-2025″They lost the game but they did not lose the plot.”Hardly words of consolation for a team that is trying to earn wins, not compliments, but South Africa will take them from Ramiz Raja after losing in Lahore.In theory, only two big things went wrong for South Africa: the toss and South Africa conceding 114 runs in the final session of the first day. In practice, you only need those two things to go wrong to end up on the wrong side, especially in conditions that quickly become more difficult to bat on and against one of the craftiest attacks going.Aiden Markram was careful not to dwell too much on the former because, “you don’t come to win the toss, you come to win the game and you’ve got to find ways to do that,” which suggests South Africa didn’t have enough of the latter. “It felt like there were moments where if we got on top and ran with a bit of momentum, it could have been a different result.”Related

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The most obvious of those was when South Africa had Pakistan 199 for 5 shortly after tea on the first day. Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Agha counterattacked with an intensity South Africa could not control. “We thought we had good plans, but they played the sweep shot really well and made it quite tough to set fields that can limit scoring,” Markam said. “Through that, I suppose you leak a couple of runs or a couple too many runs per over instead of maybe going at twos and threes, you might be going at fours, and that does eventually add up at the end of the game.”Pakistan scored at 3.45 runs an over in the third session on the opening day, which is not an alarming run-rate by any means but if South Africa wanted to squeeze them, what could they have done? A solution may lie in their bowling selections and combinations. With the resources they had at their disposal, they used offspinner Simon Harmer, who looked dangerous earlier in the day, and left-arm spinner Senuran Muthusamy immediately post-tea, then Prenelan Subrayen and eventually Kagiso Rabada with the second new ball. Could a second specialist seamer, a left-armer perhaps, bowling with an older ball do something similar to what Shaheen Shah Afridi did on day four, when he took 3 for 16 in a three-over spell to end the match?South Africa didn’t have Marco Jansen in the XI, which meant that they did not have that option available to them, which is something for them to consider going forward. “We did still have (Wiaan) Mulder but we felt the ball only tails or reverses for a few overs and then naturally gets softer and that reverse goes away,” Markram said. “But we’ll look at it, we’ll reflect and see if there’s an opportunity to get another seamer in if we feel it can make a positive difference. But if we’re going to back our spin with Kesh(av Maharaj) being back now as well, we’ll have to weigh that up when we see conditions.”Keshav Maharaj should be back in the team for the second Test after sitting out the first as he recovered from a groin injury and he hasn’t just been putting his feet up in preparation for the series. Last week, Maharaj captained his domestic team, the Dolphins in a first-class match against the Lions, scored an unbeaten 43 and bowled 49 overs with a return of 3 for 105 so if anyone is ready for Test action, it’s him.Tristan Stubbs hasn’t had the best of times in red-ball cricket recently•ICC/Getty ImagesWhich brings us to another area South Africa need to address in their batting line-up:A misfiring Tristan Stubbs If enthusiasm and potential were the defining criteria for picking a player, Stubbs would be the one of the first names on the team-sheet but since form is more important, he has to be sent back to the domestic system. Stubbs has only got into double figures once in his last nine Test innings and South Africa cannot afford to have someone who is struggling that much in a position as important as No.5. For the immediate term, they have two other options on this tour – David Bedingham (who sat out this match), and Zubayr Hamza – and for the longer term, the return of regular captain Temba Bavuma means they are all covered for extra batters. But what of Stubbs?Even though he is not part of the South African white-ball squads for Pakistan, by the time he returns home after the second Test, there will be no domestic red-ball cricket until early December. At that point, South Africa will be in India, where they play two Tests. An option would be to leave Stubbs at home to play a round of first-class cricket but it would be just one round and whether that can make a material difference is questionable. The rest of the red-ball competition takes place in February, when Stubbs is likely to be at the T20 World Cup. Given the scheduling crunch, it’s difficult to find a proper window for Stubbs to get consistent red-ball game time unless he is given the harshest treatment: dropped and told to spend next summer with his domestic team.That hasn’t happened to a player for some time which makes it seem unlikely it will now. An example is Tony de Zorzi, who lost his place earlier this year but has stayed with the Test squad and scored his second Test century in this match. Markram said that behind the scenes de Zorzi, and left-arm spin bowling allrounder Senuran Muthusamy, had both been “working really hard at their games trying to come up with plans to succeed wherever they are in the world,” and that their performances in Lahore were “a big feather in their cap.” So maybe all Stubbs needs is some extended time in the nets with South Africa’s batting coach Ashwell Prince, which seems to have benefitted de Zorzi immensely.Simon Harmer celebrates a wicket•Getty ImagesAnd so back to the positives South Africa will take from a match they did not disgrace themselves in despite what a 93-run margin suggests. The early parts of de Zorzi’s first innings century involved a lot of luck and the man himself said he was “just trying to hang in there,” but then gave way too good application. Ryan Rickelton showed patience and determination across both innings and faced a total of 282 balls in the match, more than anyone else, and Dewald Brevis appeared to be batting on a different surface as he breezed his way to a run-a-ball 54. With that kind of combination, Markram believes South Africa had what it took to chase a record score at the Gaddafi Stadium.”A guy like Brevis always takes the game on. That’s what he’s known for and that’s when he’s at his best so it was actually great to see him bring out that side today,” Markram said. “But Rickleton and other batters in the group might pack their defence a lot more and feed off the scraps that come around that. So, there’s two different ways of approaching it and two ways I still think you can be successful in these conditions. It’s about committing to one way and living by that.”That kind of thinking shows that South Africa very much have the plot but not the result. They hope to be able to turn that around in the second Test. “I would expect the conditions to be similar,” Markram said. “We expected conditions to be like this and we expect it again for the second Test match. It’s on us now as a group to go back and find ways to be better and to give ourselves a chance to win.”

And how many women have fifties from No. 10 in a World Cup match?

Steven Lynch14-Oct-2025Who’s scored the most runs at the women’s World Cup over the years? Is it Mithali Raj? asked Anjuli Desai from India

That’s a decent guess, as Mithali Raj is currently second on this list with 1321 runs in all editions of the women’s one-day World Cup. But she’s some way behind the leader, New Zealand’s Debbie Hockley, who made 1501 runs in 45 World Cup matches between 1982 and 2000.The leading current player is another New Zealander, Suzie Bates, who started this year’s competition with 1179 runs. Nat Sciver-Brunt’s 117 against Sri Lanka in Colombo last weekend – a record fifth World Cup century, passing the four of Bates and England’s Jan Brittin – put her in sight of four figures with 974 runs.How many women have scored a half-century from No. 10 in a World Cup match, as Alana King did against Pakistan? asked Melanie Crozier from Australia

Alana King’s staunch 51 not out against Pakistan in Colombo last week, which helped Beth Mooney rescue Australia from 115 for 8 and take them to a match-winning 221 for 9, was not only the highest by an No. 10 in the women’s World Cup – previously 42 not out by Yulandi van der Merwe for South Africa against India in Christchurch in 2000 – but also the highest in any women’s white-ball international (Kim Garth also made 42 not out for Australia vs South Africa in North Sydney in 2024).There have been three bigger scores from No. 10 in women’s Tests, the highest being Shelley Nitschke’s unbeaten 81 for Australia against England in Hove in 2005.I noticed that Ricky Ponting scored more than 1000 Test runs at four different grounds. Has anyone else done this? asked Michael Chesterton from Australia

Ricky Ponting scored 1743 Test runs in Adelaide, 1480 in Sydney, 1338 in Melbourne and 1335 in Brisbane. The only other man to reach 1000 on four different grounds is Jacques Kallis, with 2181 in Cape Town, 1267 in Centurion, 1266 in Durban and 1148 in Johannesburg.Seven men made more than 1000 Test runs on three different grounds: Hashim Amla, Allan Border, Greg Chappell, Javed Miandad, Brian Lara, Kumar Sangakkara and Steve Waugh. Sangakkara’s long-time Sri Lanka team-mate Mahela Jayawardene only did it at two grounds, but made it count with 2921 at the Sinhalese Sport Club in Colombo (his home club) and 2382 in Galle. Those are the two highest aggregates at any single venue: Jayawardene is the only player to make 2000 Test runs on two different Test grounds.Rather surprisingly perhaps, the England opener Jack Hobbs didn’t make 1000 Test runs on any home ground, but he did amass 1178 in Melbourne: he’s still the only man to pass 1000 at an away venue.Jacques Kallis has over 1000 runs at each of four grounds in South Africa, including 2181 at Newlands, Cape Town•Getty ImagesHarry Brook has a healthy Test average of 57 after 30 matches. Where does he rank among batters after their 30th Test? asked Vinod Nair from India

England’s new vice-captain Harry Brook goes into the Ashes with a batting average of 57.55 after 30 Tests. It turns out there are 40 men who averaged 50 or more after 30 matches, and Brook lies 18th among those, not far behind Jack Hobbs (57.77), Viv Richards (58.21) and Steve Smith (58.52).Way out at the top, as regular readers will probably already have guessed, is Don Bradman, who averaged 92.30 after 30 Tests. Next comes England’s Denis Compton with 64.10, just ahead of another Australian, Michael Hussey (64.05). Six other men averaged over 60 after 30 Tests: Javed Miandad (62.38), Herbert Sutcliffe (62.33), Everton Weekes (61.21), Neil Harvey (60.92), Marnus Labuschagne (60.82) and Adam Gilchrist (60.38).I noticed that David Warner scored exactly 100 in a T20 international on his 33rd birthday. Has anyone else made a birthday ton in a T20? asked Kyle Morton from Australia

Australia’s David Warner hit 100 not out against Sri Lanka in Adelaideon October 27, 2019, his 33rd birthday. He was the second (and last to date) to score a T20 international century on his birthday, after Afghanistan’s Mohammad Shahzad, who hit 118 not out against Zimbabwe in Sharjah on January 10, 2016, his 29th birthday.Seven men have scored a birthday century in a one-day international: Vinod Kambli, Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar of India, Tom Latham and Ross Taylor of New Zealand (against Pakistan in Pallekele during the 2011 World Cup), Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka (on his 39th birthday in 2008, against Bangladesh in Karachi) and Mitchell Marsh of Australia.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Wolverhampton Wanderers have now registered their interest in signing Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia on loan in the January transfer window, alongside a whole host of rival Premier League clubs.

Fosun would’ve been hoping Rob Edwards could breathe new life into a Wolves side that have massively disappointed so far this season, but the manager was on the receiving end of a defeat in his first match in charge, with Crystal Palace emerging as 2-0 winners at Molineux on Saturday.

Edwards’ side actually looked better from an attacking point of view, recording an xG of 1.79, compared to 1.27 from the Eagles, but they were unable to take their chances, with both Jhon Arias and Ladislav Krejci squandering big opportunities.

Things are looking bleak for the Old Gold, who are still searching for their first win of the Premier League season, and now sit nine points from safety, given that they have the worst attacking and defensive records in the top flight, scoring seven and conceding 27.

As such, if the Wanderers are to stand any chance of avoiding the drop, they may need to make major improvements at both ends of the pitch in the upcoming transfer window, and they have now made an approach for a new centre-forward.

Wolves make approach to sign Gonzalo Garcia on loan

According to journalist Pete O’Rourke, in a report for Football Insider, Wolves are one of a number of clubs in the race for Real Madrid forward Garcia this January, although it remains to be seen whether they will be willing to sanction a departure.

The Spanish side are concerned about a lack of attacking depth, which means they may not be willing to let the 21-year-old leave, despite several English sides queuing up to get a deal done, with O’Rourke saying: “If Real Madrid are willing to loan him out, I’m sure it’s more than just Leeds will be interested in him. I believe Brighton, Villa and Wolves have all registered interest.

“A lot will depend on Real Madrid. If there’s any injuries to their forwards then it might mean there’s no chance that Garcia goes out and loan.”

Hailed as a “goal machine” in the media, the youngster clearly has a lot of potential, having starred for Madrid at the Club World Cup in the summer, bagging four goals and an assist in six outings out in the USA.

Wolves are in dire need of a fresh injection of quality in attack, having failed to score in four out of their last five Premier League games, with Jorgen Strand Larsen failing to impress, finding the back of the net just once in 10 top-flight outings.

As such, a move for Garcia would make sense, but it will be strange if the Real Madrid ace is willing to move to a club in huge danger of relegation, given that there is likely to be plenty of other options on the table.

Wolves prioritising move for ex-Man City target as Edwards' first signing Wolves now prioritising move for ex-Man City target as Edwards' first signing

The Midlands side are ready to back their new manager.

ByTom Cunningham Nov 22, 2025

Hampshire 154 for 3 (Albert 37*) lead Surrey 147 (Sundar 3-5, Abbott 3-27, Fuller 3-46) by seven runsSurrey were rolled out for 147 to all but snuff out their Rothesay County Championship title-winning hopes, as Hampshire boosted their chance of remaining in Division One.The defending champions went into the last round 14 points behind Nottinghamshire – whom they lost to last week – but after they collapsed, their hopes of a fourth successive crown dwindled further.Kyle Abbott led the rout with three for 27 – taking his 50th Championship scalp of the season in the process – with James Fuller and Washington Sundar also picking up three-wicket hauls.Hampshire had eased themselves into a first-innings lead, picking up three vital bonus points in their fight for safety.Surrey chose to bat first and gave 17-year-old Ralphie Albert his first-class debut. The all-rounder wasn’t even born when Hampshire’s Liam Dawson made his professional bow.Surrey were massively depleted with Gus Atkinson, Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Tom Curran, Jordan Clark and Cam Steel all unavailable, but even still their display was surprising.Dom Sibley had already been dropped at second slip before he was lbw to Abbott, before the South African drew a loose drive out of Ryan Patel to celebrate his 50th wicket of the season.It is the sixth Championship campaign that Abbott has reached the landmark, and he would later add No. 51 when he bowled Albert.Fuller also grabbed three wickets to gut the rest of the top order, as Rory Burns wafted to a juggling Sundar at first slip before Ben Foakes was bowled by a nip backer and Dan Lawrence skied an attempted pull – the latter walked before the ball was caught having scrapped hard for his innings-high 36.The back end of the innings saw wickets fall to spin. Indian international Sundar was particularly wily in his 20 balls, in which he only conceded five runs while taking three wickets.Ollie Sykes went back to one that skidded into his stumps, Matt Fisher was undone by a stunner that ripped across him and into off stump, while compatriot Rahul Chahar guided to first slip. In the middle of it, Tom Lawes was caught and bowled by Dawson.Surrey were bowled out for 147 inside 44 overs – their lowest total of the season at the least opportune moment as the title slipped away from them.The pitch had offered a fair amount of movement, but not excessive, and wickets were mostly down to batting errors and high-quality bowling rather than the elements.Hampshire further suggested a poor pitch wasn’t to blame as Ali Orr glided through the opening overs.He smashed 18 of the second over of the innings and by the fifth over had already secured a partnership higher than anything Surrey had managed in their innings – their best being the 32 between Lawrence and Sykes.Orr’s fast start was undone by a careless swing down leg side but Fletcha Middleton and Nick Gubbins put on 50 to set the sort of foundation that the visitors couldn’t lay.Both the bowled Gubbins and leg-before Middleton fell to Lawrence – who ended the day with two for 12 after an exceptional nine-over spell of off-spin.But Hampshire avoided any serious wobble as Toby Albert and Ben Brown stayed cautiously positive to take them to close with a lead – despite 13 wickets falling on the opening day.

Pakistan were hurt by dot balls while batting and in managing the fifth-bowling options while bowling

Danyal Rasool10-Aug-2025West Indies overcame Pakistan’s spinners as well as the weather to power home by five wickets to level the ODI series 1-1. In a chase which ebbed and flowed, a blitz from Sherfane Rutherford and a controlled innings at the death by Roston Chase saw them home with ten balls to spare.Their task was made significantly harder than it might have been when Jayden Seales’ standout fast-bowling performance had restricted Pakistan to 171 for 7 in 37 overs. The target was slightly upwards (181 in 35 overs) of what was scored owing to multiple rain delays in the first innings.Pakistan were put in to bat first and played stodgy cricket inconsistent with the decade they were playing in. Abdullah Shafique and Saim Ayub found the occasional powerplay boundary but interspersed it with strings of dot deliveries; the first ten overs had just five singles taken. When Seales’ extra pace and Shai Hope’s canny field placement extracted an outside edge from Ayub in the ninth over, it was the ninth successive ball the left-hand batter had faced that had not produced a run.Mohammad Rizwan couldn’t make up for a slow start•AFP/Getty ImagesThree balls later, Babar Azam was cleaned up by a Seales special that burst through the gate and made a mess of his stumps, and put West Indies firmly on top.It brought Mohammad Rizwan out, but he appeared to have left positivity behind in the dressing room – he scored just 4 off his first 23 deliveries. A shower that delayed play by 90 minutes did not help Pakistan find their rhythm. Jediah Blades took his maiden ODI wicket by drawing an edge from Shafique that ended his battle of an innings the over after play resumed.As run-scoring increasingly became a struggle, West Indies’ bowlers – spinners and seamers alike – kept making inroads. Gudakesh Motie trapped the Pakistan captain in front. Chase got a ball to keep low and produce an under edge off Hussain Talat’s bat to conclude his comparatively brighter innings. Salman Agha struggled to see any scoring area beside the little dab to deep third, and when Shamar Joseph surprised him with the straighter bouncer, a top edge sent him packing.Multiple rain breaks curtailed Pakistan’s innings•AFP/Getty ImagesA further rain delay truncated the game to Pakistan’s benefit with the innings winding down, allowing Hasan Nawaz to go for broke in what became seven death overs. Cruelly for Pakistan, though, that stubborn cloud unloaded its contents upon the Brian Lara Stadium once more just as he had begun to get going. That little passage of play saw 32 scored in 3.1 overs, but Pakistan were denied a big finish with their final three overs wiped out.West Indies were set an entirely manageable target, though Hasan Ali’s opening salvo soon cast that expectation into jeopardy. Wickets in each of his first two overs sent the openers back, and the hosts found themselves stuck in the same mire that had dogged Pakistan. Rizwan, sensing an opportunity to strangle, brought the spinners on after six overs, with Mohammad Nawaz and Abrar Ahmed producing the desired results.The scoring rate briefly slowed to a trickle, particularly as far as Keacy Carty was concerned. His first 26 balls produced just three singles, piling the pressure on his captain at the other end. An intriguing plot point concerned Pakistan’s fifth bowling option; the one over Ayub had bowled leaked 10, and another from Salman shed another 11.Sherfane Rutherford took Shaheen Afridi down in the 17th over•AFP/Getty ImagesWith a newly arrived Rutherford at the crease and the asking rate over six, Rizwan made the fateful decision of turning to Shaheen Afridi, and the batter picked his moment. Two fours and a six saw him plunder 17 that over, and with Rizwan turning immediately to the part-timer Salman, another 20 were lopped off the target.It bought West Indies the cushion to see off the primary spinners Abrar and Mohammad Nawaz more respectfully, but the pair wasn’t content with containment. Nawaz found extra turn to have Hope stumped before, in what felt like a game-turning moment, he induced Rutherford into a smear that found square leg. It was part of an eight-over period that saw just 17 scored, but just as significantly, Pakistan had bowled out Nawaz.Chase slapped a couple of sixes the following Ayub over to wrench the asking rate below six once more, and it was there that it would stay for the rest of the game.The returning fast bowlers never packed the same threat, and West Indies began to milk them in addition to finding the odd boundary that took the game further out of the visitors’ reach. Justin Greaves had looked uncertain against the turn, but was impressively assured now, a wristy flick over mid-on for six off Hasan perhaps the shot of the innings. By now, the equation was purely mathematical, With Chase’s crisp drive through the off side sealing a topsy-turvy win on a day that promised each outcome at certain points, before settling on the one the Trinidad crowd had come to witness.

Vikram Rathour has moved up from batting coach to assistant coach in the back room that also includes Shane Bond, Trevor Penney and Sid Lahiri

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-20255:40

What will RR’s rejig look like?

Kumar Sangakkara will perform the dual role of head coach and director of cricket at Rajasthan Royals (RR) in IPL 2026, with Vikram Rathour, batting coach last season, elevated to assistant coach.As reported by ESPNcricinfo in September, in Sangakkara’s case, the change in designation is a formality, even as Rahul Dravid, who was head coach during IPL 2025, and the franchise, parted ways in August.Sangakkara had previously served as the team’s head coach from 2021 to 2024, “a period that marked a clear rise in the team’s performance and consistency,” an RR statement said. While Sangakkara was in charge, RR reached the IPL final in 2022 and made the playoffs in IPL 2024.Related

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“We are delighted to have Kumar return as head coach,” Manoj Badale, the franchise’s lead owner, said. “As we looked at what the team needed at this stage, we felt that his familiarity within the squad, his leadership and his deep understanding of the Royals culture would bring the right balance of continuity and stability.”Kumar has always had our complete trust as a leader. His clarity, calmness and cricketing intelligence will play an important role in guiding the squad into this next phase.”Along with Rathour’s promotion, the franchise also announced that Shane Bond would continue as the bowling coach, while Trevor Penney and Sid Lahiri will remain assistant coach and performance coach respectively.

“I’m honoured to return as head coach and continue working with this talented group,” Sangakkara said. “I’m also pleased to have a strong coaching team alongside me. Vikram, Trevor, Shane and Sid each bring valuable experience in their areas, and together we are focused on preparing the players in the best possible way.”We have a clear understanding of where we want to go as a group, and our aim is to build a team that plays with clarity, resilience, and purpose.”The team management group will, however, have a new captain to work with after RR released Sanju Samson in a trade deal with Chennai Super Kings, where they acquired Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran, ahead of the next auction.They have also released or traded out Nitish Rana, Akash Madhwal, Ashok Sharma, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kumar Kartikeya, Kunal Singh Rathore, Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga. And, along with Jadeja and Curran, have also traded in Donovan Ferreira from Delhi Capitals.At the upcoming auction, they will have a purse of INR 16.05 crore and have nine slots, including one overseas, to fill.

Australia seamer pleased with how he bounced back after wayward start to first Test

Andrew McGlashan02-Dec-20250:54

Clarke: Australia going to a venue where they play well

Even when Mitchell Starc blew England away with seven wickets during the first innings in Perth it did not go unnoticed that, in an attack missing Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, the visitors had taken Scott Boland for more than six an over.It came following pre-series debate about how they would look to take on Boland after largely dominating him in the two matches he played in the 2023 Ashes. However, the second day was a different story. Boland’s three-wicket burst after lunch – removing Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Harry Brook in the space of 11 balls – turned the match on its head when England had been 105 runs ahead with nine wickets in hand.”It probably just proves to me that my good stuff, it doesn’t matter who it’s to, I think it feels like when I’m getting in the right areas it’s good enough to anyone,” Boland said ahead of the second Test at the Gabba. “I think that gives me a little bit of confidence that if I’m nailing my game… I’m good enough to compete with anyone.”Related

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Having overpitched too often in the first innings, Boland adjusted both his line and length in the second, hanging the ball wider, drawing Pope and Brook into drives away from their body. After the match, Andrew McDonald said the initial plans were partly to blame for the tactics Boland used with the new ball on the opening day.”I think Ronnie’s pretty nice to me there,” Boland said. “I just had one of those days where I just felt like I was over-pitching too much. Obviously, I wanted to start a little bit fuller than normal with the new ball, but I probably bowled seven or eight half-volleys and they all went for four. Some days half of them don’t and you think it’s [going] a little bit better.”I was pretty happy with how I bounced back in the second innings. I sort of went back to my natural length. Stuff that I know I’m really good at. I was obviously really disappointed with how I bowled in the first innings because generally I don’t bowl too many half-volleys.”On a pitch at the Gabba likely to have good pace and carry, if not perhaps to quite the level of Perth Stadium, Boland expects similar tactics to come into play. “I think we’ll get some good bounce here at the Gabba, which we usually do,” he said. “We went through what worked in Perth and what’s going to work here. It feels like a lot of the stuff is very similar.”Pope, who was tied down before losing patience and edging to Alex Carey, accepted there were things to learn but continued to see opportunity if Australia’s bowlers kept targeting a wider line.Scott Boland’s burst on day two in Perth helped swing the first Test•Getty Images

“It’s trying to learn the lessons, and take some positives,” he said. “I think it is just about being really precise with how you go about it. They can hang it out wide but as soon as they do miss their lengths it is about trying to put them under pressure there as well.”I look back on that [second] innings and the dismissal, [and] it’s just being that bit more precise, going about it in the same way but having that little bit more [precision] in my game.”Boland, who averages 13.16 from four day-night Tests, also sees the short ball being a threat again with England unlikely to back down from a challenge despite the bigger boundaries on most Australian grounds. However, he did note that their lower order had briefly rallied in the second innings, with Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse added 50 in 36 balls, when the quicks banged in the ball in.”Definitely the ground size plays a big part in that,” Boland said. “Perth Stadium is really wide, really big pockets. And the ground is quite similar here. Same as the MCG and SCG. Adelaide’s probably the only one that’s a little bit different. I think that worked in our favour.”They [England] tried some bouncer plans which worked well at different times. I think sometimes when you do go to that bouncer plan, you can leak runs pretty quickly. I think we had them 6 for 80 [88] and then we sort of went into some full-on bouncer plans and leaked [runs] a little bit [but] we got some wickets. First innings, it worked really quick and then second things, they played a little bit better. So I think we’ll just be adjusting on the fly.”There has been intrigue this week around whether Cummins could make a late entrance for the Brisbane Test, as he ramps up his return to bowling, despite not being named in the squad although a return in Adelaide remains the likely outcome. “He looked in red-hot form the other night, as good as you’ll see [from] a fast bowler charging in in the nets,” Boland said.Meanwhile, Hazlewood is due to join the squad on Thursday to continue his return to bowling after being ruled out of the first two Tests with a hamstring injury. He is considered unlikely to be in contention until either Melbourne or Sydney.

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has said he thinks Piero Hincapie should have been dismissed for a challenge on Trevoh Chalobah during Sunday's Premier League draw at Stamford Bridge. The Bayer Leverkusen loanee's elbow struck the England international under the eye, just minutes after Blues midfielder Moises Caicedo was shown a straight red for his late challenge on Mikel Merino.

Hincapie let off following VAR check

Hincapie and Chalobah came together while competing for a header. The Ecuadorian defender entered the challenge with a raised arm, striking the 25-year-old under the eye with his elbow. Chalobah received treatment on the pitch immediately, with a large contusion on his cheekbone almost immediately visible on the broadcast. Hinacpie was shown a yellow card by on-field referee Anthony Taylor, with the incident checked by the VAR. 

Hincapie was adjudged to have had his eyes on the ball and not Chalobah, meaning the challenge was ruled to be reckless rather than dangerous or with excessive force, remaining a yellow card. 

Maresca took exception to the decision in his post-match press conference, suggesting the decision should have been upgraded to a red. The Italian admitted that while Caicedo was correctly dismissed for his tackle – a challenge that Merino described as "horrible" – he lamented inconsistencies against his side. Maresca referenced a decision not to dismiss Rodrigo Bentancur in a recent Premier League clash with Tottenham as a further example of his side's poor luck with the referees in the 2025-26 season. 

AdvertisementGetty Images SportMaresca: We struggle to understand refs' decisions

The Blues boss was asked to comment on post-match quotes by his captain Reece James, who suggested Hincapie should have been shown a red for the challenge. Maresca replied: “I think Reece is right. But they (officials) decide. I just said there, he asked me about Moises’ red card. It’s a red card, but why was Bentancur’s against Reece not a red card when we were at Spurs away? So us, as a manager, we struggle to understand why they judge in a different way.

“Moises’ is a red card, yes. Bentancur’s is a red card, yes. Why don’t they give him a red card? It’s just that we struggle to understand. The reality is that it’s a red card. But why do they judge it differently?

“And the Trevoh one, I asked the referee, he said to me that it was not an elbow. So, this is what they said. (He had a) black eye, with ice at half-time. But they judge in different way.”

Maresca proud of Chelsea players

Despite taking the blow, Chalobah was able to open the scoring for the Blues, in a massive London derby with implications for the title race. Following Caicedo's departure, it appeared the Blues were about to miss their chance to push their inter-city rivals for the Premier League crown. Chelsea took the lead shortly after the break, though, as Chalobah rose at the front post to glance James' in-swinging corner beyond David Raya in the Arsenal net. 

However, the west London club were unable to press home on their advantage, with Merino heading home a Bukayo Saka cross on the hour mark. 

Despite losing their lead, Maresca was proud of his side. He said: "The effort of the players (is what I’m most proud of). Arsenal, they are top of the Premier League, top of the Champions League, best defenders in the Premier League, probably best defenders in the Champions League. So, in this moment, they are the best team. And I think 11 vs 11, we were better than them. Then, with 10 players again, the dynamic changed. So, the effort from the players has been outstanding."

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AFPWhat comes next?

The point keeps Chelsea six points adrift of Arsenal in their pursuit of the title. The Blues travel to Leeds on Wednesday, before heading down to the South Coast to take on Bournemouth on December 6. 

The Diamondbacks placed star Ketel Marte on the restricted list on Friday days after the second baseman's Scottsdale home was burglarized. The incident happened during the All-Star break this week, reportedly on Tuesday night when Marte was in Atlanta for the All-Star Game.

It's been previously reported that Marte requested to have some personal days off after the break-in happened. It's unknown how long Marte will be out of the Diamondbacks' lineup. The Diamondbacks begin a three-game home series vs. the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.

The original robbery report said no one was home when the incident occurred, and "numerous personal items and jewelry" were taken. An investigation into the matter is currently ongoing.

The incident is just the latest in a series of recent robberies involving well-known athletes across multiple leagues, where players' homes have been repeatedly targeted while they are traveling for events or away games. Among those impacted are NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow, as well as basketball bigwigs Luka Doncic and Bobby Portis.

Through 68 games this season, Marte's averaged .290/.394/.567 with 73 hits, 52 runs, 40 RBIs and 19 home runs.

England have a 6-2 superior record against South Africa in the tournament

S Sudarshanan02-Oct-20252:05

Sciver-Brunt: WPL experience will benefit us

Big picture: England’s strong record vs SA

England have been South Africa’s banana peel in the Women’s ODI World Cup. They have a 6-2 superior record in the tournament heading into the clash in Guwahati on Friday. While South Africa beat England in the group stages in 2022, they lost to England in the semi-final. The result was the same in the 2017 semi-final as well.”I feel like we’ve beaten them in the group stages in the past World Cups and then lost to them in the semi-final. So we know as a group, we can beat them, especially in the group stages,” South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt said on Thursday. “We have played some good cricket recently. We’ve been batting really well. We’ve been bowling better and better. I think all of us know that if we really stick to our plans and are really clear with what we want to do, we can beat them tomorrow.”South Africa enter the World Cup on the back of a solid run of games. They played a tri-series with India and Sri Lanka, then played Pakistan in Pakistan. They have been in action regularly with the same set of players, high on confidence. While the women made it to successive T20 World Cup finals in 2023 and 2024, the men ended the drought of ICC titles with the World Test Championship win this year.”It’s been amazing to see how the country has supported them and how excited everyone was back at home and united to support them in that trophy,” Wolvaardt said. “Hopefully we have the chance to do something similar to really get the country behind us in this tournament.”England have had a contrasting run in this regard. Their leadership group underwent a change after the Women’s Ashes. Under head coach Charlotte Edwards and captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, England played just the two series – winning comfortably against West Indies and losing to India, both at home.Sciver-Brunt, however, was okay with the team’s preparation away from internationals. They had a ten-day camp in Abu Dhabi, where they acclimatised to the conditions they would encounter at the World Cup. Plus, there are eight players in the England squad with WPL experience.”We got some great time out in the middle in really hot, humid conditions where in England it’s not like that,” she said. “So preparing physically in that way was really good. That is going to be a massive part of our tournament, making sure that we are adapting as quickly as we can.”During the India vs Sri Lanka match at the ACA Stadium, spin played a part in the middle overs while it was easier to face pace at the start. That is a template that Sciver-Brunt backed England to follow.”That’s a blueprint that we work with, especially when we’re bowling, making sure the spinners in the middle are doing a really good job for us and making it really hard for people to get away. I think that has been a really good strength of ours for a number of years. We’ve got a brilliant spin attack.”

Form guide

England LWLWW (last five matches, most recent first)
South Africa LWWWW

In the spotlight: Nat Sciver-Brunt and Marizanne Kapp

In her first World Cup match as captain, the spotlight will be firmly on Nat Sciver-Brunt. She is England’s leading run-scorer since the 2022 World Cup and only Amy Jones has more than her so far this year. That is in addition to her 20 wickets in the last three years. With a view to manage her workload, she hadn’t bowled since the WPL but resumed duties with the ball at the warm-up games. With Heather Knight returning from a hamstring injury, Sciver-Brunt will draw from her WPL experience to navigate the side at the ACA Stadium, where the track could be slightly two-paced.This will be Nat Sciver-Brunt’s first World Cup as captain•Getty Images

A like-for-like, South Africa allrounder Marizanne Kapp is at the peak of her powers. Give her the new ball, she’ll dry up the runs and pick up wickets. Send her in with South Africa in a spot, she will not just arrest the slide but also transfer the pressure back on the opponents. A WPL regular for Delhi Capitals, Kapp is into her fifth World Cup and would want her team to cross the finish line this time. “The amount of experience that she has is invaluable,” Wolvaardt said on match eve. “She knows every player going around. She’s bowled to basically all of them.”

Team news

Sciver-Brunt will bowl at the World Cup, which means England could play an extra spinner or an extra seamer. But she said on match eve that she would “like to select seven batters to go into this tournament” which opens the door for Alice Capsey, who also bowls offspin.England (probable): 1 Amy Jones (wk), 2 Tammy Beaumont, 3 Heather Knight, 4 Nat Sciver-Brunt (capt), 5 Sophia Dunkley, 6 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 7 Alice Capsey, 8 Sophie Ecclestone, 9 Charlie Dean, 10. Em Arlott, 11 Lauren BellAyabonga Khaka bowled full-tilt on the eve of the game. She could shoulder duties with fellow seamers Marizanne Kapp, Nadine de Klerk and Annerie Dercksen. Karabo Meso had a long batting stint ahead of Sinalo Jafta, who is South Africa’s preferred wicketkeeper.South Africa (probable): 1 Laura Wolvaardt (capt), 2 Tazmin Brits, 3 Sune Luus, 4 Marizanne Kapp, 5 Annerie Dercksen, 6 Chloe Tryon, 7 Sinalo Jafta (wk), 8 Nadine de Klerk, 9 Nondumiso Shangase, 10 Nonkululeko Mlaba, 11 Ayabonga Khaka

Pitch and conditions

Rain washed out England’s pre-game practice session, while South Africa managed to get theirs done under lights. Showers are expected on Friday as well with IMD issuing thunderstorm alerts. A washout isn’t on the cards, though.A fresh pitch will be used for the game. Expect spin to come into play as the game goes on, as was the case during the India vs Sri Lanka contest.

Stats and trivia

• No opening pair has scored more runs than Laura Wolvaardt-Tazmin Brits in ODIs since January 2023. They have 1536 runs at an average close to 60. The next best is Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal with 1316
• South Africa have won only two of their last six ODIs against England
• Marizanne Kapp has dismissed Heather Knight five times in 15 innings, Nat Sciver-Brunt three times in nine innings and Tammy Beaumont five times in 13 innings
• Charlie Dean has got Laura Wolvaardt out three times in seven innings for only 65 runs and Sune Luus three times in four innings for just 19 runs

Quotes

“She obviously has a lot of experience. I think it would be stupid of me not to listen to her. She’s a hugely valuable person in our side, whether it’s with the bat or just that tactical thinking. She’s got a brilliant brain for cricket. So, yeah, I’m encouraging her to be as vocal as she wants to be.”
“The biggest learnings in that series are probably just how to play spin, especially being nice and proactive with the bat against the spinners in that middle phase. We generally get off to good starts, and I think we had really good death overs with the bat in that series in Sri Lanka, but probably could have done a bit more in that middle phase.”