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The Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) ground in Colombo will get floodlights and other upgrades in preparation for the Men’s T20 World Cup, which Sri Lanka co-hosts with India in February and March next year. Although the SSC has occasionally hosted daytime limited-overs internationals – especially women’s games – Colombo’s day-night games have all been played at Khettarama (R Premadasa Stadium), which in any case is the highest-capacity stadium in the country.SSC’s first match that will require lights will be the T20 World Cup Group B game between Oman and Zimbabwe, scheduled to start at 3pm local time on February 9. It is one of five matches the SSC is due to host at this World Cup. The first of those – between Netherlands and Pakistan on February 7 – will begin at 11am local time whereas the third fixture – between Pakistan and USA on February 10 – is the only match there to start at 7pm local time. Khettarama is set to host at least eight matches, and possibly the first semi-final and the final if Pakistan make it that far. Pallekele, the only Sri Lanka World Cup venue not in Colombo, will host seven games.Building floodlights at the SSC will open up fresh possibilities for Sri Lankan cricket with day-night Tests becoming more viable in the country. Although Khettarama is the preferred limited-overs venue in Colombo, the SSC and the P Sara Oval are still preferred for Tests, owing partly to their reputation for being boutique Test venues.Related

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Sri Lanka has never hosted a day-night Test, but Sri Lanka’s Test captains have also asked their board to arrange such a fixture, over the years.SLC confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that floodlights construction were already under way at the SSC.The ICC announced the schedule for the T20 World Cup on Tuesday, with the tournament set to run from February 7 to March 8 across five venues in India and three in Sri Lanka.

India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has been named in Mumbai’s squad for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy starting on November 26. Allrounder Shardul Thakur will lead the 17-member squad, which also includes Shivam Dube, Sarfaraz Khan, Ajinkya Rahane and Ayush Mhatre.Suryakumar’s inclusion in Mumbai’s T20 side comes ahead of India’s T20I series against South Africa from December 9. Despite a prolific IPL for Mumbai Indians – 717 runs at a strike rate of 167.91 this season – he hasn’t been among the runs in international cricket, scoring only 184 runs in 15 innings in 2025 at an average of 15.33 and strike rate of 127.77.India play ten T20Is at home – five each against South Africa and New Zealand – ahead of a T20 World Cup they will be co-hosting with Sri Lanka in February and March 2026.Related

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Like Suryakumar, Dube will also be looking for match practice. He has batted in only six out of 11 T20Is across the Asia Cup and the series in Australia, scoring 76 runs off 60 balls in those games.Mumbai are the defending champions of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, having beaten Madhya Pradesh in the final in 2024-25. This season, they start their campaign against Railways in Lucknow.

Mumbai squad for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025-26

Shardul Thakur (capt), Ajinkya Rahane, Ayush Mhatre, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Siddhesh Lad, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Sairaj Patil, Musheer Khan, Suryansh Shedge, Atharva Ankolekar, Tanush Kotian, Shams Mulani, Tushar Deshpande, Irfan Umair and Hardik Tamore (wk)

Harmanpreet Kaur sat down for the pre-match press conference at the DY Patil Stadium, her face seemingly devoid of any emotion. There was only a simmering fire.She had cried uncontrollably after India sealed a high-octane victory over Australia in the semi-final. That was only two nights ago. Two nights to digest the high of beating serial World Cup winners. Two nights to come to terms with the fact the job isn’t quite done.”Well, the semi-final was a very high-pressure game and very intense,” Harmanpreet said on the eve of the final against South Africa. “After that, recovery was something which we all paid more attention to because the fresher we are, mentally, for the final, the better it will be.”Because we have been working hard for so many years and we have been batting day and night, whenever our batters camped or there were team camps. So, skill-wise we know we have done a lot and now it’s only about keeping ourselves fresh for tomorrow and recovery is something which we all talk about, and everybody is really taking that thing very seriously and hopefully tomorrow we will feel even fresher for the main game.India will be playing their third ODI World Cup final. South Africa, just their first.”Keeping yourself balanced and focused is something which is the key,” Harmanpreet said. “We are having those sessions where we have been talking about how we can be more focused and more balanced and at the same time keeping ourselves relaxed because this is the biggest stage and biggest opportunity for us, playing in home conditions and that also final match.2:27

WWC final – Can India come down from their high in time?

“But I think the most important thing is that we have to enjoy this because there is nothing bigger than this in our life as a cricketer and as a captain. So our focus is to enjoy this moment and keep taking small targets which we have to achieve as a team rather than thinking bigger targets because you can achieve bigger targets if you achieve the small targets.”Harmanpreet is into her fifth World Cup now, but this is her first as captain. India have arrived at the final after a topsy-turvy league stage that saw them win only three of their seven games. She was clear “there’s no bigger motivation than a World Cup final” to up their game.Related

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“We know pretty well how it feels after losing [a World Cup final],” she said. “We’re really looking forward to the feeling of winning a final. Hopefully it’s going to be a special day for us tomorrow. We’ve worked really hard, and now it’s about getting everything together tomorrow.”India’s road to the semis looked wobbly right from the start. They began with collapses against Sri Lanka and Pakistan but turned things around to win both games. They lost all the matches they played against higher-ranked teams – South Africa, Australia and England – and it was only when they arrived in Navi Mumbai, a ground where they have had lots of success, that things picked back up.”We weren’t shaken up even once in the team because of those three big losses,” Harmanpreet said. “Even after that, everyone was together and everyone was talking about how to reach the final. We had a positive mindset which really helped us that we’re here now. When you have such a positive mindset and everyone feels from within to perform for the country…”We were definitely talking about where to improve but at the same time there was a common goal, there was the awareness that it’s a long process and there would be ups and downs, wins and losses. At the end of the day, what matters is we’re here in the final. So we used to think how to move forward after those losses, how to improve, be there for each other.”2:43

WWC final: Harmanpreet and Tryon will be key players

India have looked far more convincing over their last three matches, including a washout against Bangladesh. The XI seems more balanced, with six bowling options, bigger contributions from the bat, and all of it culminating in another historic victory against forever favourites Australia. That night ended with plenty of tears, from Jemimah Rodrigues on the field and Harmanpreet in the dugout as she hugged whoever came her way, crying into their arms.”I think I’m a very emotional person, and I cry a lot,” Harmanpreet said with a smile. “So it’s not like I cry only after losing. I have cried a lot after winning too, maybe yesterday you have seen me on television. But my team-mates have seen me in the dressing room many times – on small occasions also, whenever we have done well. I am the first person to cry.”As a player, these moments are very important. To beat a team like Australia, which is a big team and has always done well on the world stage. It’s not an easy thing to perform and be mentally strong in front of them. But I think overcoming that hurdle was something very special to all of us. I always tell my team that you don’t need to control your emotions. If you feel like crying, cry. At the same time, just keep enjoying. I think there is no bigger achievement or thing for us. Tomorrow is a special day and we will go with the same mindset.”There is a sell-out crowd expected for the final on Sunday.”The entire team is charged up, we’re there for each other and praying for each other,” Harmanpreet said. “That shows how close this team is and how ready we are for this match. Now it’s only giving your best, all the strategies and plans have been taking shape for the last two years. We had been planning for a home World Cup, what kind of conditions we’d get, so know it’s only about giving your 100%.”

Reacting to allegations of sexual harassment in the West Indies women’s team during the T20 World Cup in 2020, Cricket West Indies (CWI) and the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) have decided to meet and review “all aspects of athlete safeguarding within West Indies cricket”.Saying in a statement on Saturday that the two bodies “take such matters seriously and remain fully committed to ensuring a safe, professional, and supportive environment for all players and staff”, CWI and WIPA added that they had “already taken significant steps to enhance player protection”. No details have been provided by CWI or the WIPA about the alleged incident.”In 2021, improved safeguarding measures were introduced for women’s tours, strengthening security and well-being,” the statement said. “In May 2023, CWI implemented additional policies, including single-room accommodations for the West Indies Senior Women’s team on all international assignments, ensuring parity with the men’s team. These are among other policy initiatives within the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the period 1 October 2023 to 30 September 2027.Related

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“Additionally, the CWI Women’s Cricket Transformation Committee was established to further advance women’s cricket.”Furthermore, we have implemented and strictly adhered to UNICEF’s Children Protection Policy, ensuring that minors never share rooms with adults under any circumstance. Additionally, we have mandated ongoing training for all officials to reinforce and uphold these standards.”The 2020 women’s T20 World Cup was played across Australia. West Indies, led by Stafanie Taylor, failed to get out of Group B after winning one and losing two, while their final game, against South Africa, was abandoned without a ball bowled. Australia won the tournament, beating India in the final in front of 86,174 people at the MCG.

South Africa have taken the 18-hour stopover in Dubai between matches in Pakistan in their stride and used the opportunity to “get out and walk and have some nice steak” between the end of the Champions Trophy group stage and their semi-final against New Zealand on Wednesday.They are one of two teams, the other being Australia, who left Pakistan after their last pool match, in case they were required to play in Tuesday’s semi-final against India in Dubai. Australia are confirmed for that match, so South Africa have returned to Pakistan and viewed the quick flights as just another part of the tournament.”We knew that there was a big possibility that we might have to fly up and down,” Heinrich Klaasen said in Lahore. “It’s not ideal for the bodies, but at least we had some time to get out and walk around and get loose and just had some nice steak, to be fair. We knew it’s going to happen and it’s part of the scheduling so two teams had to do it, and unfortunately, we were one of them.”Related

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South Africa left Karachi on Sunday morning after confirming their final-four spot with a seven-wicket victory over England. They flew back to Pakistan on Monday at 11am, later than New Zealand, who left at 4am after losing to India on Sunday evening. As a result, Klaasen expects South Africa to be slightly more rested, especially since they did not have to leave Pakistan, as the other teams in Group A did, during the league stage.”We haven’t really travelled a lot in this competition,” he said. “It was obviously just a crazy 18 hours. They [New Zealand] played a game and they had to travel six hours after the game. We had at least that off time and we could stretch our legs and recover as well before we had to come back. I think our bodies will be in a better position than their bodies but it’s part of professional cricket at this moment. You just have to suck it up and go back and see if you can recover well and just get the job done at the end of the day.”Part of the downtime for three of the South Africa players, including Marco Jansen, also included night golf in Dubai. Though the teams are allowed to go out of their hotels in Pakistan to play golf, South Africa have not made use of this provision and have remained in their hotels, as necessitated by the security situation in the country, which is not the case in Dubai, where they are allowed out. Several other squad members used the time in Dubai to visit a mall and Klaasen confirmed none of them, apart from some support staff, watched the match between India and New Zealand.As it turns out, South Africa won’t need any intel into conditions in Dubai unless both they and India reach the final, but Klaasen pointed out obvious differences. “The conditions are quite different,” he said. “The conditions in Pakistan are quite nice to bat on, so the bowlers have a harder job to do. In Dubai, the wickets are slow, but you still have to play good cricket.”Regardless of where you play, you still need to beat two good teams. If we beat New Zealand and India beat Australia, we still have to beat India there. Or if Australia beat them, we still have to beat a good Australian team to win this trophy. Regardless of where you play, you just have to play good cricket.”After reaching a third successive knockout fixture in an ICC event, South Africa may argue that they have done exactly that – played good cricket – over the last two years and are hoping to pick up a major trophy after winning a World Cup semi-final for the first time at last year’s T20 tournament. The majority of that squad is also at this Champions Trophy and ready to go one step further.”The nerves are a little bit less because we have a little bit more experience in the semi-final department now. We’re playing good cricket,” Klaasen said. “Since I’ve been around from 2018, we have played some incredible cricket. We just had some bad luck here and there and one or two games that didn’t go our way, but we’ve been playing good cricket. It’s the rewards that we’re seeing now. The boys are holding a little bit more composure in the bigger moments in the game. Hopefully, we can get into another final. We’ve got the experience now. The big boys need to step up on Wednesday.”South Africa haven’t lost a game so far in the Champions Trophy•Associated Press

However far South Africa go, they have already eased pre-event concerns about poor form, which included being clean swept in an ODI home series for the first time, by Pakistan, and being on a six-match losing streak. White-ball coach Rob Walter put those results down to being without his first-choice players, who he believed will stand up when it counted, and he has been proven right. Klaasen asked South Africans to expect more of the same in future bilateral events, which will be used to blood players at the expense of results to ensure that the best can come together when it matters most.”The public needs to understand that after the ICC event, you’re trying to explore a little bit as a group, see what’s out there and give guys opportunities so when they need to come in as back-up players, at least they’ve got international experience,” he said. “You can’t expect a young guy to just come in and perform and win every game.”We were in a position over the last couple of years where we really tried to broaden our group a little bit. And with that will come some losses. And as long as your main team and the guys that are your first picks bring it everytime we need to come play, then I don’t see the issue.”

Well, how do you sum that up? A madcap two sessions of cricket on the third day saw 17 wickets fall. Pakistan lost seven for 48, with Jomel Warrican registering the third-best figures for a visiting bowler in Pakistan. And yet, with half an hour to go for tea, Pakistan’s spinners had wrapped up a 127-run victory, skittling West Indies out for 123 in 36.3 overs to go 1-0 up in the series. Sajid Khan and Abrar Ahmed were the chief architects, taking nine of West Indies’ ten wickets as the visitors’ challenge appeared to melt away along with the solidity of the playing strip.West Indies had about 15 overs to face before lunch, and Pakistan just about made victory safe in this time. The visitors began with positive intent, having realised that poking and prodding would get them nowhere. It saw them through the first four overs, but as Sajid said yesterday, the strategy was to attack with the ball and defend with the field. Brathwaite employed the slog sweep to good effect so Pakistan had a fielder at deep midwicket, and it was him that the opener picked out to give Pakistan their first breakthrough.With prodigious turn around, especially to the right-hander off the footmarks, the stumps were always in play, and it helped Sajid clean up Mikyle Louis and Kavem Hodge to reduce West Indies to 37 for 4. Noman Ali, who had surprisingly not opened the bowling from the other end, came into the attack and picked up a wicket on the stroke of lunch when Justin Greaves missed a sweep laden with risk in front of middle stump.Alick Athanaze was the only West Indies batter to score a fifty in the match•PCB

There was plenty of West Indian resistance in the first hour after lunch, most notably from Alick Athanaze, whose half-century – West Indies’ only such contribution all Test – just about kept them alive. Alongside Tevin Imlach first and then Kevin Sinclair, Athanaze worked to give the Pakistan spinners as little as possible. They ditched the belligerent shot-making, and for the first time all Test, Sajid and Noman briefly didn’t look like a huge threat.But the momentum shifted once more when Shan Masood turned to Abrar Ahmed. The slightly different challenge his legspin poses saw a beauty to dismiss Imlach, the ball drifting in and ripping away to take his outside edge. He would also break the next partnership, thanks to some variable bounce and a splendid diving catch at first slip from Salman Agha, before Agha took the regulation catch the following ball to send Gudakesh Motie on his way.By now, West Indies’ resistance had been completely broken. Athanaze missed a straight one from Sajid to leave Pakistan one away, and Abrar put a bow on proceedings as the shot West Indies played often to try to cope on this surface – the high-risk reverse sweep – carried onto the stumps.Jomel Warrican took his career-best 7 for 32•AFP/Getty Images

The omens for this kind of day were there. It began with Pakistan’s best player of spin, Saud Shakeel, falling off the first delivery when he clipped one into short midwicket’s hands. Warrican followed it up with the wicket of Rizwan the following over, and on a pitch where grip and turn became ever more variable, Pakistan’s batters were finding it hard work.Kamran Ghulam had hung around until then, but some extra turn from Warrican drew his outside edge to give Warrican his first five-wicket haul in Test cricket. West Indies began to burrow into the tail as Warrican grew in confidence. He varied his pace to trap Noman in front of the stumps as he tried a reverse sweep, before making it seven when Sajid miscued a slog and got an edge to backward point.The ninth wicket did not register directly in Warrican’s account, but it may as well have. Agha prodded one to him on the off side and hared off for a single, but Warrican picked up cleanly and hit the stumps direct, catching Khurram Shahzad well out of his crease. The innings wrapped up when Agha tried to go over the top against Motie, only to find long-off, and Pakistan were all out for 157.On a surface like this, and with the spinners Pakistan have, though, it was still, by some distance, more than enough.

Litton Das has been appointed Bangladesh captain for an entire T20I series for the first time – he filled in once for Mahmudullah on the tour of New Zealand in April 2021 – for the three-match series to round off the ongoing all-format tour of the West Indies.There is a return for batting allrounder Shamim Hossain, who last played in a T20I – or any international match – in December 2023 in New Zealand. Shamim, 24, has had a run in the format but hasn’t quite broken through yet. In 14 T20I innings, he has 254 runs at a strike rate of 115.98, and a highest of 51, his only half-century.

West Indies vs Bangladesh T20I series

December 16 – 1st T20I
December 18 – 2nd T20I
December 18 – 3rd T20I

The somewhat left-field pick is that of Ripon Mondol, the tall 21-year-old medium-fast bowler who played three T20Is in October 2023, all at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, where he picked up four wickets as Bangladesh finished third.There is still no Najmul Hossain Shanto, the regular all-format captain, who is recovering after picking up a hamstring injury during the series against Afghanistan in November. There is also no update on Shakib Al Hasan’s availability, or future, in international cricket.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Mehidy Hasan Miraz led Bangladesh in the two-Test series in the Caribbean, which was split 1-1, and is also their leader in the ongoing ODI series.From the last T20I squad that played in India in October, Towhid Hridoy (groin injury), Mustafizur Rahman (on a break after becoming a father) and Rakibul Hasan are missing, along with Mahmudullah, who has since retired from the format.Apart from Shamim and Mondal, fast bowler Hasan Mahmud, left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed, top-order batter Soumya Sarkar, who starred in Rangpur Riders’ Global Super League title win recently, and middle-order batter Afif Hossain have come in for this series.

Bangladesh squad for T20I series against West Indies

Litton Das (capt), Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Afif Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Ripon Mondol

Wiaan Mulder became the third maiden centurion for South Africa in the Chattogram Test, as the visitors completely dominated proceedings on the second day. They declared on 575 for 6, with Mulder, Tony de Zorzi and Tristan Stubbs hitting centuries, before their pacers knocked off Bangladesh’s top three inside the first six overs.The hosts sunk to 38 for 4 at stumps, as their recent batting frailties showed up even on the batting-friendly pitch of the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. Even an award of five penalty runs, due to the umpires finding Senuran Muthusamy damaging the pitch, couldn’t inspire Bangladesh.Kagiso Rabada, recently ranked No. 1 among Test bowlers, had Shadman Islam strangle down the leg side for a duck in the first over. Rabada then removed Zakir Hasan, also caught behind, for 2, in his next over.Dane Paterson got into the act in the sixth over when Mahmudul Hasan Joy chased a wide ball, and edged to Aiden Markram at second slip. Keshav Maharaj bowled a beauty to nightwatcher Hasan Mahmud, who missed it completely to be bowled for 3. It completed an amazing day for South Africa, who dominated from start to finish.If the first day belonged to de Zorzi and Stubbs, the second day was all about Mulder’s century and his partnership with Muthusamy. The pair added 152 runs for the unbroken seventh wicket, breaking South Africa’s record for this wicket against Bangladesh from the previous Test in Dhaka, where Mulder and Kyle Verreynne had added 119.Mulder and Muthusamy had come together when Bangladesh suddenly grabbed a bit of momentum in the day’s first session. Taijul Islam snapped up David Bedingham, de Zorzi and Verreynne in consecutive overs to give the home team some respite. Bedingham missed a slog-sweep to be bowled, while de Zorzi and Verreynne also missed sweeps to be given out lbw.Taijul completed his five-for, before Nahid Rana removed Ryan Rickelton. Bangladesh were hopeful of wrapping South Africa up early at the time, but Mulder and Muthusamy took South Africa towards a massive total. Mulder was generally good down the ground, hitting all his eight fours and four sixes between wide long-off and mid-on. Muthusamy fed Mulder the strike regularly, but also struck the ball sweetly.Muthusamy struck two sixes through long-on, apart from fours through mid-off, fine leg and backward point. His ticked boundary through the slips took him to his maiden Test fifty.Taijul was the pick of the Bangladesh bowlers with his 14th five-wicket haul, but it was also the team’s most expensive five-for, as he went for 198 runs. Nahid took a wicket, but Hasan Mahmud and Mehidy Hasan Miraz disappointed with their wicketless efforts.

Only one side has ever won a Test after scoring fewer than the 46 they did in the first innings of the match, but India were entertaining thoughts of doing it. They are onto something special in Bengaluru, and that through a sensational attacking approach with the bat. Don’t get it wrong, New Zealand were still ahead on cold numbers, but India have been pulling off unbelievable wins of late and a fourth-innings chase of even a 100 or so will not be easy.A day after being bowled out for 46 and falling behind by 136 runs, which then ballooned up to a total deficit of 356, India batted at well over five an over until the last few overs to finish 125 behind with seven of their wickets still in hand. New Zealand got themselves late fillip through Glenn Phillips, who snuck in an outside edge from Virat Kohli to the last ball of the day.When you get bowled out for 46 in the first innings, you need pretty much everything to go your way, but India kept marching on even when things didn’t go their way. Their testing bowling early in the day was interrupted by the quickest hundred-run stand against India in India, but their batters came out positive, putting New Zealand under immense pressure on what was now a flat pitch. The bowlers erred regularly, spread-out fields allowed easy runs, and a catch went down.Even the falling wickets failed to slow India down. When Yashasvi Jaiswal got out stumped, Rohit Sharma scored 16 off the next eight balls he played. Rohit’s freakish dismissal, played on off a dead defensive, brought out Sarfaraz Khan, who raced away to 23 off 16. Like Joe Root among the hectic England batters, Virat Kohli remained serene, but also skipped down the track to hit a six off Ajaz Patel almost as a nod to acknowledge the positive approach. However, this approach will be tested as a new batter will join Sarfaraz, unbeaten on 70, on the fourth morning.1:39

Manjrekar: Very rarely did Rachin defend against the spinners

A lot will also depend on whether Rishabh Pant’s movements will be hampered after he missed one-and-a-half day’s play because of a blow on the knee he had injured in his road accident. The good news for India is that he was padded up along with KL Rahul, and also that he removed the pads even without having to bat on day three.That was not the case in the morning. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj got India off to a relentless start, taking a wicket each in their five-over spells. The way Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry kept swinging at the ball didn’t inspire much confidence nor did it bring many runs. The first four wickets fell for 53, and India were now looking at a long tail.Rachin Ravindra, back to the city where his father was born, had other ideas. He and Tim Southee added 137 runs in a little over 20 overs, the second-quickest stand of 100 or more against India. Ravindra trusted Southee to an extent that he faced only the first three balls of the first 19 in the stand, which seemed to coax responsibility out of the seam bowler known for his six-hitting.Having started the day on 22 and having taken a boundary off the first ball he faced, a loosener from Siraj, Ravindra batted with urgency but also with respect. He scored 101 of his runs against spin because Bumrah and Siraj hardly gave him a loose ball.The first signs of any manufacturing of shots came 11 overs before the new ball became available when Ravindra charged Kuldeep Yadav and lofted him back over his head to get to his fifty. He then went over midwicket to take the lead past 200. In the same over, Southee got a half-volley, which he lofted for his first boundary.1:06

Stokes, McCullum, Gilchrist… Southee??

Just like that, the flood gates had opened. From waiting for the new ball, India went to delaying the new ball because it only became available close to lunch and they needed a breather to regroup. In the 12 overs leading up to the break, New Zealand scored 102 runs, Ravindra went from 48 off 86 to 104 off 125, and Southee hit three sixes to go past Virender Sehwag’s tally of 91. R Ashwin was taken down ruthlessly as he provided overpitched balls, his 16 overs going for 94 and one wicket off a reverse-sweep.Post lunch, the new ball kept going past the bat, but New Zealand managed to go past 400. India doubled down on their aggressive approach when they came out to bat, which did make sense on a flatter pitch. Jaiswal still needed some luck when the ball was new, but he also charged down the wicket to drill Matt Henry through mid-off for four.With the ball not seaming, Henry went too full looking for swing, giving Rohit early momentum in the innings. The run-rate kept growing progressively, but the attacking approach also comes with risk, which it appeared India were happy to live with. There were gasps when Jaiswal ran at Ajaz, and was stumped off a ball that didn’t turn, but this team was not going to give any mixed messages. This is the approach that had brought India a quick 72 runs and had spread the field, and they were happy to live with a dismissal doing this.Rohit’s immediate assault on Henry even as Kohli took 15 balls to get off the pair summed up India’s mindset. A drive for a four, a pull for a six, then a pull for a four brought up his fifty in just 59 balls.0:45

Manjrekar: Sarfaraz a 2024 version of Miandad

And then a wicket conjured itself. Rohit defended Ajaz with a dead bat, the ball hit the inner half of the bat and top spun onto the wicket after bouncing behind the crease. Rohit was not aware of where the ball was, which might suggest lack of awareness, but it is doubtful if he had enough time to kick it away.A delightful partnership of 136 followed. Sarfaraz was cheeky, playing the ball impossibly late or audaciously early. Spin was tackled with sweeps, pace was almost exclusively shown direction behind the wicket. At one point he was ducking William O’Rourke, but the ball nipped back at him, and he ramped it over the keeper just because he could. Kohli was more orthodox in skipping down and lofting Ajaz over long-off.Runs flowed, bowlers erred, a Henry spell of reverse swing was negotiated, Ajaz dropped Kohli at slip off Phillips, an odd choice for a slip fielder. Phillips is a wicketkeeper who has forced himself to become a utility offspinner to survive in international cricket. It seems he puts a lot more body into the ball than fingers, but he keeps using the angles and keeps trying. With the last ball of the day, he managed to get less turn than expected, and took the faintest of edges to lift New Zealand.

The “mystery” surrounding India’s No. 3 has been unboxed. The answer to the puzzle that Amol Muzumdar, the head coach, had been tight-lipped about is now set to be Harmanpreet Kaur.”Absolutely. Not just the warm-up games, but we had already decided back in India, in the camps that happened before we set off for the World Cup” Muzumdar said ahead of India’s tournament opener on Friday against New Zealand. “We had a lovely camp in Bangalore. We had decided there itself. These pre-World Cup matches absolutely stamped that for us.”You can guess it. If you go through the scorecards, you will find it.”It’s a position that has seen a number of occupants recently. And it’s one that was borne out of necessity, primarily because of Yastika Bhatia, who seemed the frontrunner until April, got injured during the Bangladesh tour.Related

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• Rodrigues on batting at No. 5: 'I'm working on going all out from the first ball'

Yastika has since returned from a knee injury and is part of the squad in the UAE. But it appears now that she has to wait for her opportunities. Harmanpreet batted at No.3 in both of India’s warm-ups, with scores of 10 and 1. But that, it seems, was immaterial in the large scheme of things.It would appear the reasoning behind the decision is to give Harmanpreet the best chance of being able to maximise on her power game once set. At the position she otherwise bats, at four or five, Harmanpreet has largely found herself playing catch up; the telling evidence being her strike rate of 94.09 across 84 T20 innings since 2022.Since Muzumdar took over, there have been four others who’ve been tried there. Among them, Dayalan Hemalatha’s was the experiment that lasted the longest. But in seven games, she managed just 139 runs, 41 of which came in one innings. Sajeevan Sajana and Uma Chetry were the others tried out briefly.Muzumdar could’ve turned to Jemimah Rodrigues if required, but her maneuverability against spin makes her key at No. 4 or 5. The line of thinking is that Rodrigues, a touch player. can find it easier to pick gaps with spread out fields.The sample size is small, but Rodrigues strikes at 143.81 in 10 innings at No. 5, a marked improvement to the 110.19 at No. 3, albeit across across 59 innings. Even so, Rodrigues herself is working towards “striking from ball one” as the next step in her evolution as a T20 batter.

WPL given us a strong base to find players

Muzumdar talked up India’s squad strength while also underlining how key back-up players were handed certain roles. Like Sajana, who enhanced her reputation as an X-factor player, being sent on the ‘A’ tour to Australia to “tick off certain boxes” as part of her development.”I think it’s been a collective effort not just from the Indian team or the Indian contingent but also from the NCA,” Muzumdar. “We’ve been completely in sync with the coaches over there who went on the India A tour to Australia. [We’ve] had constant chats, feedback were given post the tour as well.”I think we’re trying to formalise a lot of stuff. Apart from the Indian contingent as I said, the India A [setup] is also very important for us so that we get a lot of players, and the bench strength is stronger. We’ve seen the results.”Some of the players that have come into the Indian squad here at the World Cup are the product of what WPL is. Of course, not undermining the first-class [domestic] cricketers back home. But WPL has given us a strong base to find players.”Shreyanka Patil finished WPL 2024 as the Purple Cap winner•BCCI

One of the players to have enhanced her reputation courtesy the WPL is Shreyanka Patil. The allrounder was the highest wicket-taker during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s run to the title earlier this year, including a stellar 4 for 12 in the final.Shreyanka is just 12 T20Is old but has already been identified as a key death bowler capable of creating angles, like her fast-bowling team-mates, from around the stumps. With her variations in pace, she has also shown the propensity to bowl in every phase of the game.Another player who has accelerated her journey through the WPL route is Radha Yadav, who found herself in the cold for over a year after the previous edition in South Africa. As has S Asha, the legspinner, another RCB find, who made her debut this April in Bangladesh.The WPL has also contributed to elevated fitness levels, through close monitoring and off-season camps where physios have continued to monitor players and have been in sync with the NCA through the Athlete Monitoring System (AMS) designed to give markers over a player’s workload and map performances.The byproduct of all this, apart from primary skills, is elevated fielding levels, something Muzumdar underlined as top priority when he took over last December.”We’ve worked upon it,” Muzumdar said. “Thoroughly gone deeper into it and tried to absolutely work individually, first in regard to the volume as far as fielding is concerned. And then in fitness we’ve paid attention to each individual to take their fitness levels to the next level.”So, I think we’ve put in that effort. The effort has been there. I think you’ll definitely see the results.”