Mithali Raj stars in a four-wicket victory for India
Mithali Raj remained unbeaten on 75 to guide India to a thrilling victory over England in the last ODI, on Saturday, 3 July. There is a five-day break before the action shifts to Northampton for the T20I series.
England rode on forties from Heather Knight and Nate Sciver to post 219 in 47 overs. Deepti Sharma picked up three wickets, while five other bowlers claimed a wicket each.
Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana added 46 runs for the opening wicket. Verma got out on 19, while Mandhana fell one shy of her half-century. Raj held the fort from one end, and also got the winning runs for her team in the last over. Sneh Rana (24 off 22) too played a crucial knock.
Markram, de Kock helps South Africa win decider
With the T20I series at stake, Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock rose up to the occasion before bowlers put up a disciplined show to lead South Africa to a 25-run victory.
De Kock and Markram forged a 128-run partnership for the second wicket after Temba Bavuma got our early. South Africa, however, failed to capitalise on a solid start, and could only manage 40 in the last six overs.
Evin Lewis got West Indies off a decent start. But they kept losing wickets regularly, and a sluggish innings from Shimron Hetmyer did not help their cause. In the end, they could only reach 143.
BCCI announces domestic sason for 2021/22
The Ranji Trophy will begin in November this year, and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in October, as per the domestic schedule released by the BCCI for 2021/22. The Vijay Hazare Trophy will commence on 23 February 2022, while the final will be played on 26 March. The Women’s One Day League, the season starter, starts on 21 September.
The dates for the Cooch Behar Trophy and Vijay Merchant Trophy have also been announced. Both competitions involve junior cricketers, and some state bodies have raised the concerns since the vaccination is not yet available for those under 18.
Test cricket priority: Steven Smith
Steven Smith will not mind missing the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup to keep himself fully fit for the Ashes series, starting 8 December. Smith said he wants to emulate what he achieved in 2018.
Smith's heroics in 2018/19 helped Australia retain the urn. He amasses 774 runs at a Bradmanesque average of 110.57. He is currently nursing a tendon injury, and feels that it is improving on a daily basis.
‘I’ve made a bit of progress with it the last few weeks. I started some batting, just 10 minutes at a time, and basically my path now to getting back to playing is building up from there,’ said Smith to cricket.com.au.