Ravichandran Ashwin rattles Somerset, bags 6/27 in county match ahead of Test series

We have a lot of work to do as a batting unit says Smriti Mandhana

Indian women’s team opener Smriti Mandhana heaped praises on her teammates hailing them for a sensational turnaround in the second T20I against England and showing character after going 0-1 down. It was a dramatic comeback from the Indian Women’s team in the final stretch of the second T20I against hosts England to level the three-match series 1-1. The Indian bowling cartel especially the spinners spun a web around the English batters especially in the final few overs of the match to hand India a 8 runs victory to force the series into a decider which is slated to be held on July 14 (Wednesday). "It was a very important win for the team, especially with the way we came back in the last five overs... to win that match," Mandhana said on Tuesday ahead of the final match of the multi-format tour. "That showed a lot of character from the bowlers and also the fielders... winning the second match - especially the way we came back in the last five overs - showed a lot of character. That was something which was needed. The way we played in the third one-day and again in the second T20, that is something which was much needed, that confidence is going to really help us. But we all know that it's going to be a new day tomorrow. So we won't have anything but the confidence is going to be high for our girls to go out there and give a hundred percent and probably win the match,” she added. After batting first, India posted a challenging 148/4 on the board in their allotted 20 overs courtesy a sensational start provided by openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma. The duo shared a 70 runs stand in less than 9 overs to lay the foundation for the rest of the batters. Shafali Verma who was dismissed by Katherine Brunt in the series opener got her revenge by smashing Brunt for five consecutive boundaries. Harmanpreet Kaur and Deepti Sharma chipped in with crucial knocks to get India near the 150 mark. England were well and truly coasting towards the victory target when the spin trio of Deepti Sharma, Poonam Yadav and Sneh Rana turned the match on it’s head with their skilful bowling. England could eventually muster just 24 runs in the final 6 overs thus surrendering the match by 8 runs. "Harry [Harmanpreet Kaur] coming back (to form) and hitting a few balls - that's a very good thing for the Indian team. The win was really important and it also puts us in a position to win the T20I series in the next match and draw the multi-format series, Mandhana said. "There are lots of things we need to work on as a team, especially in the batting department. Going forward, the next seven months are going to be really crucial. We have to start putting up good scores. If I talk about the one-day format, we have to start posting 250/260-plus scores when you are batting first consistently. Of course, our bowling and fielding can get consistent. We are probably having one good performance and probably one which is 'okay'. I think we can be consistent in that department. So the next seven months are going to be very crucial to get ourselves completely ready for the one-day World Cup. Of course, the Australia series is also going to be big in terms of preparations for the World Cup,” she further added.

Fabian Allen breaks into top 10 of bowler’s rankings, Babar Azam attain best-ever rating point

West Indian spinner Fabian Allen has risen up 16 places to break into the top 10 of the T20I bowler’s rankings. This has come on the back o back to back brilliant series that the left-arm spinner has had with his national team against South Africa and Australia respectively. The 26-year-old has represented Windies in 17 ODIs and 26 T20Is since making his debut in 2018. In total the Jamiac born has taken 24 wickets and scored 378 runs. In the latest ODI rankings, Pakistan captain Babar Azam consolidated his position at the top with a career-best 158 that he scored in the final ODI of the three-match series against England at Edgbaston. Courtesy that, the 25-year-old skipper has now achieved a career-best 873 rating point, which is 16 more than India captain Virat Kohli, who occupies second place in the table. Among the other gainers in the ICC Test rankings is Bangladesh’s Mehidy Hasan Miraz. He has moved to the 26th spot in the bowler’s ranking after claiming a nine-wicket match haul including a five-for in the first innings against Zimbabwe.

SL vs IND | SLC launches disciplinary action against Covid positive batting coach Grant Flower

The Sri Lanka Cricket is thinking of launching disciplinary action against batting coach Grant Flower after it was found that the latter had contracted Covid-19 while on tour with the team in England. It was also found out that even after testing positive for the virus, the former Zimbabwe player mingled with players during self-isolation in a hotel in Sri Lanka. This action by the coach further infuriated the board which is trying its best to get the series against India going. The Sri Lankan players will now undergo another round of RT-PCR tests before being declared to take the field against India. The white ball tour of India comprising of three ODIs and an equal number of T20Is, supposed to start from July 13 onwards was postponed after a Sri Lankan team Analyst and the batting coach tested positive on their return from England. “We have to find out how Flower got infected, and also which variant of the virus he has been infected with," an SLC official on account of anonymity was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo. The series, now slated to start from July 18 is under the pump and it would require a great effort from the SLC to pull this off without further embarrassments.

WI vs Aus | 4th T20I: Australia look to salvage some pride after surrendering series

The visiting Australian side will look to salvage some pride when they meet West Indies in the 4th encounter at St Lucia. Ever since making a dramatic comeback in the opening encounter, West Indies has been over Australia like a rash and there has been no way back for them. Ever since winning the 2016 T20 World Cup, West Indies did fall off the radar resulting in their decline in the latest T20I rankings. However, with the showpiece event around the horizon, the team seems to be gelling at the right moment. With another five-match series against Pakistan being lined up, the Caribbean outfit is looking in great shape to defend their world title. The majority of the opening encounter was dominated by the Aussies but they lost their plot in the final few overs of the match surrendering the advantage and allowing West Indies to claw their way back and clinch a sensational come-from-behind victory. Since then, it has been a thoroughly professional performance from the home team with the batting and the bowling unit performing as a unit. Chris Gayle’s return to form is a massive boost to the defending world champions while the middle order which failed to live up to their expectations in the series against the Proteas has finally found some much-needed form. Shimron Hetmyer scored a match-winning half-century in the second encounter but it has been Andre Russell’s firepower that has provided the much-needed slate impetus to the home team and resulted in their unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series. The bowling department has been bolstered with the return of leg-spinner Hayden Walsh Jr who has been the most successful bowler in the series so far. He has been at his deceptive best bagging 8 wickets in just 3 matches. Obed McCoy has continued his dream run in the series but has been pegged by an injury. With Dwayne Bravo leading the attack, the bowling department looks very settled but with the series already done and dusted, the home team might be looking at changing a few combinations going into the final two matches. On the other hand, Australia has struggled with their inexperienced batting line-up. The only experiment which has worked so far is sending Mitchell Marsh to bat at No 5. He smashed two back to back half-centuries in the first two matches but that wasn’t enough to get his side over the line. Australia has been nowhere close to their best but the reality is they are missing the services of some of their top players. While skipper Aaron Finch hinted at some harsh calls ahead of the showpiece event later this year, the below-par performance in the first three matches might force the Australian team management to bring back all their first-choice players for the World Cup slated to be played in October-November in UAE. The middle-order remains a serious concern for the Aussies but that might be solved once everybody is available for selection. The pace bowling cartel led by Mitchell Starc has shown their class but have lacked consistency. Josh Hazlewood had a wonderful time with the ball in the opening encounter but received some serious stick at the hands of Chris Gayle in the 3rd encounter. Match Details West Indies vs Australia, 4th T20I Venue: Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia Date & Time: July 15th, at 5:00 AM IST and July 14th, at 7:30 PM Local Time Live Streaming: Fan code Pitch Report and Toss The strip at St Lucia has always been a belter and it was no different in the second and the 3rd T20I in the ongoing series. While the pitch for the opening match was a bit two-paced with run-scoring becoming difficult as the game progressed. However, in the next two encounters, the pitch was pretty good to bat on. While the Aussies struggled, the home team made hay with commanding batting performances. Despite teams batting first winning the first two matches, chasing is always a better option on this ground. Weather forecast The temperature is expected to hover around 27 degrees during match time with very little chances of rain for the course of the day. In all likelihood, we should be in for a full 40 overs match. Team News West Indies Obed McCoy left the field after bowling just one over in the previous encounter and it is believed that he is nursing an injury. Veteran speedster Fidel Edwards who replaced McCoy in the 2nd match is also unavailable due to an injury that presents a chance to Oshane Thomas to have look in. Kieron Pollard is yet to recover and Nicholas Pooran will continue leading the side. The rest of the XI is expected to remain the same as the previous assignment. Meanwhile, if Evin Lewis is fit enough to play, Andre Fletcher might make way for him at the top of the order. Probable Playing XI Lendl Simmons, Evin Lewis, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, Nicholas Pooran (c and wk), Fabian Allen, Hayden Walsh Jr, Oshane Thomas, Sheldon Cottrell. Australia With the series already done and dusted, the visiting side looks to tinker with their combination in the two inconsequential matches. Ben McDermott and Ashton Agar who missed the previous encounter owing to injuries might return to the XI subject to their fitness ahead of the encounter. Alex Carey who replaced Joshua Philippe in the middle order might retain his place for the 4th encounter. Probable Playing XI Aaron Finch (c), Matthew Wade (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Moises Henriques, Ashton Turner/Ben McDermott, Dan Christian, Mitchell Starc, Riley Meredith/Ashton Agar, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood. Fantasy/Dream11 team Wicket-keepers- Matthew Wade, Nicholas Pooran Batsmen- Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Moises Henriques All-rounders- Mitchell Marsh, Andre Russell, Dwayne Bravo Bowlers- Hayden Walsh Jr, Josh Hazlewood, Riley Meredith