Sport
Defending T20 World Cup champions England washed out after Scotland scare
Scotland openers George Munsey and Michael Jones gave England a fright in their T20 World Cup opener in Barbados on Tuesday before rain spared the defending champions a potentially tough chase.
Scotland, in their first T20 against their border rivals, were bidding to match their shock success when they last met England — a six-run one-day international win in Edinburgh back in 2018.
England, meanwhile, were desperate to improve on a woeful defence of their 50-over global title in India last year, where Jos Buttler’s men lost six of their nine matches.
But after Scotland captain Richie Berrington won the toss on Tuesday, they failed to create one clear and legitimate wicket-taking chance.
Munsey (41 not out off 31 balls) and Jones (45 not out off 30) batted superbly to take non-Test nation Scotland to 90-0 in a rain-interrupted innings of 10 overs at the Kensington Oval.
But a fresh downpour led the umpires to abandon the Group B match before England, on a ground where they won the 2010 T20 World Cup final, could begin their reply.
Both England and Scotland received a point each.
“We expected a tough challenge, there are no easy games, but we were confident coming into the game,” said England captain Buttler.
“It’s disappointment for everyone… We scrapped hard and we were confident of chasing that score down.”
“Hopefully we get a dry day and we can get into the tournament.”
In the Group D clash on Tuesday, Max O’Dowd’s unbeaten half-century steered the Netherlands to a six-wicket victory over Nepal in their T20 World Cup clash.
Set a target of 107 to win, O’Dowd anchored the Netherlands’ run chase with 54 off 48 balls to see the Dutch over the line at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas.
The Netherlands finished on 109-4 off 18.4 overs, with Bas de Leede hitting the winning runs with a boundary to seal victory.
Watch Live!
Ariana Television Network is broadcasting the T20 World Cup live in Afghanistan. Fans can tune in daily to watch the event. – AFP
Afghanistan’s cricket stars Rashid Khan and Azmatullah Omarzai have maintained their positions at the top of the latest ICC Men’s ODI rankings.
Rashid Khan remains the No. 1 ODI bowler in the world with 714 rating points.
Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed is second with 675 points, while South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj has moved up to third with 667 points.
New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner is fourth with 644 points, followed by India’s Kuldeep Yadav on 623.
Meanwhile, Azmatullah Omarzai continues to hold the top position in the ICC ODI all-rounder rankings with 337 points, giving Afghanistan two players at No. 1 in different ODI categories. Sikandar Raza of Zimbabwe and Mehidy Hasan Miraz of Bangladesh follow him in the list.
Abu Muslim Farah beat Omar Zawak Herat 4-0 in the 30th match of the sixth season of the Roshan Afghanistan Champions League, delivering an impressive performance.
The match was played today (Wednesday) at the Afghanistan Football Federation Stadium.
Samiullah Naderi scored Abu Muslim Farah’s opening goal in the final minutes of the first half.
Abu Muslim Farah continued their attacking play in the second half, with Aman Sardari scoring the team’s second goal in the 69th minute with a spectacular header.
Omid Rajabi and Mirois Ghafouri then added two more goals to complete a 4-0 victory for Abu Muslim Farah.
Amanullah Sardari, captain of Abu Muslim Farah, was named Player of the Match against Omar Zawak Herat.
Abu Muslim Farah will face Ariana Khost in their next match on October 2, while Omar Zawak Herat will take on Istiqlal Kabul on the same day.
The sixth season of the Roshan Afghanistan Champions League is being broadcast live on Ariana Television.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board’s High Performance Center is set to launch a nationwide fast-bowling talent identification program, titled “Afghan Thunder,” across several provinces throughout October.
According to the ACB, the program will begin in Kunduz on October 4, with assessments continuing in Herat, Kandahar, Kabul, Khost, Paktia and Kunar before concluding in Nangarhar on October 27.
The board says eligible participants must be between 19 and 26 years old, at least 180 centimeters tall, hold a valid electronic National ID (e-Tazkira) and be capable of bowling at speeds of at least 140 kilometers per hour.
The assessment schedule is as follows: Kunduz on October 4–5, Herat on October 9–10, Kandahar on October 12, Kabul on October 14–15, Khost on October 19, Paktia on October 21, Kunar on October 25 and Nangarhar on October 27.
The ACB has encouraged eligible players who believe they have the potential to develop into high-level fast bowlers to take part in the Afghan Thunder Fast-Bowling Talent Hunt Program on the designated dates.
The board says the initiative aims to identify promising fast-bowling talent from across Afghanistan and provide talented players with a pathway into the country’s high-performance cricket system.
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