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Good morning, Pakistan
Jacques Kallis played with intent yesterday, scoring his 25th Test century, and taking the game away from the home side. Although he slowed down after reaching his hundred, he started in fifth gear this morning. In one over early on, Mohammad Asif was first guided down past point for a four, then driven, straight-backed to extra cover for another, and finally flicked to square leg for the third boundary of the over. The tone was already set.Unlucky mate
Kamran Akmal has dropped too many catches recently, especially off Danish Kaneria. He gave Kallis a life yesterday on 36, but when the spinner came round the wicket today, Kallis having added 119, a faint edge was gratefully accepted. Someone quipped, ‘caught Akmal’ is the unluckiest dismissal in cricket today. The joy was obvious on Kaneria’s face; the relief, on Akmal’s.Another catch, more joy
Having dismissed Kallis, Kaneria persisted in exploiting the rough outside the right-hander’s leg-stump. However, as he pitched one on the middle to the left-handed Ashwell Prince, it was the lack of spin, and bounce, that resulted in a return catch, held with both hands and a beaming smile. The reason? It was wicket number 200, duly celebrated with fist-pumping and a turf kiss.Catch of the day
Kallis might have thought his work was done when he was placed at first slip, perhaps aware of Mohammad Hafeez’s frailties outside off. Paul Harris was getting sharp turn and bounce and Hafeez, bogged down by an immaculate line and some sharp fielding, tried guiding one such ball past slip. Out shot a diving right hand, however, and duly followed a walk to the pavilion, Kallis taking a startling catch inches off the ground. He went on to take a wicket as well; not bad for a 31-year old not deemed right for his country’s Twenty20 squad.The way the pitch crumbles
Hashim Amla made it clear on the first day that this was a crumbling pitch and will only deteriorate more as time goes on. Younis Khan knows exactly what he means after he was dismissed by Andre Nel. Pitched at a three-quarter length, the ball should have easily gone over the stumps. Instead, it crashed into the lower half of the middle stump, Younis almost doubled over. With one Paul Harris ball crashing into Mark Boucher’s mouth, it isn’t going to get any easier.Are we in South Africa still?
Akmal and Hafeez were blazing away as Pakistan reached 52 for no loss after 10. It was, by far, their best start at the ICC World Twenty20 … except of course, this wasn’t Twenty20. With Akmal racing to 42 off 34 balls, it was easy to forget this was a Test match. When Misbah-ul-Haq later chased and edged a ball so wide, he did forget. Of course, paddling it over fine leg was an option, but clearly no one heard Shoaib Malik’s reminder that this was a Test match not a Twenty20.

Judah Reuben, who umpired ten Tests in India between 1969-70 and 1976-77, has died at his Mumbai home after a fall. He was 84.Reuben’s international career started and ended amid controversy. His debut, in the India-Australia Test at Eden Gardens, came in a match marred by rioting, and his last match at Madras is best remembered for being the one where England’s John Lever was accused of cheating after using a gauze strip soaked in Vaseline to counteract sweating.Reuben worked as a finger print expert in the Mumbai police.

Scorecard
Nerves were on edge as Barbados defeated the Windward Islands by one run in a dramatic third round match of the KFC Cup yesterday.All and sundry at the Cable & Wireless ground, Wildey, kept their eyes fixed on the middle in fading light when fast bowler Corey Collymore ran in from the south to bowl the third-to-last over with seven runs required and two wickets standing.Needing 221 for victory off 50 overs, the Windwards recovered significantly from 129 for six in the 34th through an 81-run partnership off 14.1 overs between captain Rawl Lewis with 38 from 56 balls, and Liam Sebastien, the fellow all-rounder, who was left high and dry on 43 without facing a ball in the final over.The pair kept Barbados under pressure with excellent running between the wicket apart from a few telling boundaries and seemingly had victory secured when Collymore plucked out Lewis’ leg stump with a yorker off the last ball of the 48th over, leaving the score 210 for seven. Ronald Etienne was then leg before wicket by Sulieman Benn, the left-arm spinner, without scoring as he played across a full-length ball in the next over which yielded four runs.Mervyn Matthew was bowled off the first delivery of the final over and last man Alvin LaFuille could only find short midwicket three times as a helpless Sebastien looked on. With six runs required off the last delivery, LaFuille managed an edge to the fine-leg boundary – the total ending on 219 for nine – as Barbados celebrated their second win to join their victims on eight points.Sebastien’s only consolation was the man-of-the-match award. Apart from his knock, which took 39 balls and included five fours, he picked up two for 42 with his off-breaks. Earlier, Barbados, powered by opener Dale Richards’ 71, scored 220 in 48.4 overs.

Bangladesh 97 and 178 (Bashar 54, Al Sahariar 36; MacGill 5-65) lost to Australia 407 for 7 dec
Scorecard
Day 2 Bulletin

Australia just upped the pressure and Bangladesh folded 7.1 overs afterlunch on the third day of their first Test in Darwin today, the home side completing a comprehensive win by an innings and 132 runs.The end came quickly for Bangladesh, who lost their last nine wickets for 89 runs. It was their ninth loss in 20 Tests in under three days, and their 11th innings defeat in the last 13 Tests. Stuart MacGill had a good day on the field and finished with 5 for 65, his seventh five-wicket haul in Tests.Bangladesh paid the price for the loss of three topand middle-order batsmen in the space of eight balls near the end of the morning session. They proved unable to read, or negotiate, MacGill’s wrong ‘un and while some lusty hitting – more desperation than calculated counter-attack – reduced the final margin of defeat, it was still another debilitating loss for the tourists against an Australian side that was still not firing on a full head of steam.The Test was played on a slow wicket, and Australia, at this time of the year, would generally have expected to be relaxing at home, following their favourite football teams during the winter. The early finish today will probably allow them to catch the action on television from the comfort of their hotel suites.Steve Waugh was named man of the match and gained exclusive ownership of the title of the most successful captain in Test cricket history to go alongside the various other records this team has secured under hisleadership. His 37 Test victories were one more than Clive Lloyd enjoyed during his time in charge of West Indies. And there was thesatisfaction, for one who is imbued with the tradition of the game, ofcompleting a century against each of the opposing nine nations – something he shares with South Africa’s Gary Kirsten.For Bangladesh, Habibul Bashar showed why he has to be regarded as their best batsman, and it was significant that after his dismissal for 54, his 12th half-century, the rot set into the innings. Going tolunch at 142 for 6, it was only a matter of time before the end came, aprocess Jason Gillespie sped up when he bowled Khaled Mahmud for five off the last ball of the first over after the break.Moshrafe Mortaza, in typical fast bowler’s style, relished the chance to swing the willow like an axe. He hammered 14 runs from a MacGill over, including a six and two fours, but his six-ball innings was ended when Darren Lehmann ran him out with a direct hit from backward square leg.Al Sahariar dominated the latter part of the innings with some attacking strokeplay, and it was his dismissal for 36, caught and bowled by MacGill running toward the cover region, that ended the match.The off-season cricket roadshow heads across to the east coast for thesecond Test starting in Cairns on Friday but given the continuing incapacity of Bangladesh’s batsmen to build an innings by graft and application it is difficult to see the result being any different.

And so it has come to pass.Lou Vincent will be required to overcome the sadly predictable ineffectiveness of New Zealand’s opening partnership on the tour of Australia.New Zealand was always going to be fighting history on this point, and it has succumbed to that history.This situation is of no particular joy to anyone.Last summer when it seemed Mark Richardson and Matthew Bell had provided an answer to New Zealand cricket’s open and weeping sore, the opening positions, there was genuine hope that this was going to be a partnership that would genuinely flourish.It wasn’t an instant fix however, and was something that needed to be worked on.There was no reason why, when the New Zealand team was named to tour Australia, that the pressure the selectors were keen to place on the middle-order by selecting Vincent, could not be extended to the vulnerable opening position.The selectors decided not to include Matthew Horne and they said at that time that if there were problems at the top of the order, Vincent would be the player asked to do the job.As stated earlier the situation is of no joy.It is difficult for the replaced Bell who demanded inclusion in the New Zealand team by virtue of the sheer weight of runs he scored in domestic cricket last year. But with his change of batting stance in the earlier stages of this year’s tour and his reversion to the style he used last year for the second Test, he is clearly a player down on his confidence.His replacement Vincent may have opened the batting at earlier stages in his career, but the point remains that the niche he has carved for himself has been in the middle-order and that is what attracted the national selectors to consider his case.His selection achieved its aim of putting the pressure on the middle-order, who have generally had a much more consistent series, but it is sad that his Test debut will not be in that comfort zone.Napoleon’s claim that those who forget the lessons of the past are doomed to repeat them are borne out here as yet another tour of Australia throws up the problems experienced by opening batsmen.While Vincent’s competitive nature is such that he could well make a good fist of the job required, and he has had some experience opening, it has not been on a consistent level by comparison with his middle-order batting.Had Horne been on the tour, perhaps in place of one of the bowlers, the openers might well have felt the pressure of competition for their places with the resultant application competition usually provides.Now the situation facing the selectors when they return to New Zealand for the National Bank Series against Bangladesh is whether they recall Bell, or give Horne the chance against the lesser Bangladesh attack with a view to ensuring this problem is not a factor in New Zealand’s series against England.

Corey Anderson’s 18-ball 42 and wickets from Jono Boult and Anton Devcich helped Northern Districts to a 12-run win over Canterbury.Put in to bat, Northern Districts were reduced to 56 for 3 by the tenth over. Anderson led the recovery, adding 44 off 26 deliveries with Dean Brownlie for the fourth wicket. Ed Nuttall dismissed Anderson in the 16th over with the score at 123, and Northern Districts’ surge at the end came from Daryl Mitchell who struck 24 off 13 deliveries, before he was run out off the final ball of the innings.Aiden Blizzard, who scored 69 off 53 deliveries, was the common factor in two partnerships of 44 and 53 runs for the second and third wicket with Henry Nicholls and Peter Fulton respectively. Northern Districts, however, kept chipping away at the wickets. Boult and Devcich picked up two wickets apiece as Canterbury were eventually restricted to 160 for 6 in their 20 overs.Neil Broom’s unbeaten 70 steered Otago to a seven-wicket victory in Dunedin after their bowlers, led by Bradley Scott, had limited Wellington to 139 for 6. The win extended Otago’s run at the top of the points table, giving them a four-point lead over second-placed Northern Districts.Broom shared a 105-run opening partnership with Anaru Kitchen, setting base for Otago’s comfortable chase of 140, as he completed his second fifty-plus score in the last three matches. Broom’s knock came off 53 deliveries and included five fours and three sixes.Earlier, Otago’s bowlers tied Wellington down after their openers, Alecz Day and Michael Papps, had started the innings with a 55-run stand. Wellington struggled to stitch partnerships together once the opening stand was broken and Scott’s 3 for 25 limited their scoring at the death.Matthew Quinn (3 for 46) and Donovan Grobbelaar(2 for 33) staved off a tough challenge from Central Districts to help Auckland defend a total of 217 by 10 runs.Quinn and Grobbelaar’s stellar performance choked Central Districts’ chase in the death overs, as Quinn removed Will Young (96) and Josh Clarkson for a duck in 17th over. Defending 23 in the last over, Grobbelaar accounted for the well-set Tom Bruce (46) off the first ball of the over, virtually sealing Auckland’s victory.Quinn accounted for opener George Worker in the first over, after which Central Districts’ chase was built around Young’s 96, which came off only 50 balls. Young combined with Indika Senaratne and Bruce to put on 67 and 68 for the second and fourth wickets respectively.Auckland managed a mammoth 217 in the first innings thanks to Colin Munro’s 89 and Colin de Grandhomme’s unbeaten 49. The pair shared a 133-run partnership in the last nine overs, at a scoring rate of nearly 14. Munro’s 89 comprised eight sixes and five fours.

Big picture – SL’s first T20I since March

India return to T20Is with the afterglow of a maiden ODI World Cup title at home. But the spotlight now shifts to the shortest format. The first T20I against Sri Lanka in Visakhapatnam marks the start of a five-match series that makes up nearly half of India’s limited build-up to the 2026 T20 World Cup in England. With just 11 T20Is scheduled before that tournament, India will be eager to build momentum and rhythm ahead of the global event.Since their group-stage exit at the 2024 T20 World Cup, India’s approach has been notably more aggressive. They have scored at the second-highest run rate in T20Is during this period, behind only Australia, among teams to have played at least five matches. Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh and Shafali Verma have all struck at 140-plus, signalling a batting unit intent on dictating terms. Results have broadly followed that shift: five wins from eight T20Is across two series, including a 3-2 victory over England in July, their only T20I assignment this year so far.While the batting appears largely settled, focus turns to the bowling attack. Renuka Singh returns; Radha Yadav, joint-leading wicket-taker for India since the 2024 World Cup, has been left out; and young left-arm spinner Vaishnavi Sharma could make her international debut.Sri Lanka, meanwhile, arrive with a different set of priorities. Their last T20I came on a tour of New Zealand back in March, where they drew the three-match series 1-1. Since then, they have moved on from several senior players, and invested in youth for this tour. With Sri Lanka scheduled to tour West Indies in February and Bangladesh in March-April in 2026 ahead of the World Cup in June, this series is less about immediate outcomes and more about assessing how the new group copes against a confident Indian side.

Form guide

India: LWLWW
Sri Lanka: WLLLLSmriti Mandhana has struck at 146.80 in T20Is since last year’s World Cup•Getty Images

In the spotlight – Smriti Mandhana and Shashini Gimhani

Smriti Mandhana has been India’s most consistent T20I batter since the 2024 World Cup. Among players from Full Member nations, only Hayley Matthews has scored more runs in this period than Mandhana, who has piled up 414 runs, including a century and four half-centuries. She has averaged 51.75 and struck at an imposing 146.80 in this phase, anchoring India’s aggressive approach at the top. After a successful campaign at the ODI World Cup this year, Mandhana will look to continue that run into the T20 World Cup.Shashini Gimhani is one of Sri Lanka’s most exciting young talents. An ambidextrous spinner, she primarily bowls left-arm wristspin. Gimhani impressed with strong showings against Australia Under-19 in September, and has already taken six wickets in five T20Is at an economy of 5.53. With left-arm spinner Sugandika Kumari dropped, one place in the squad remains vacant, giving Gimhani a chance to shine on the big stage.

Team news – Will India hand Vaishnavi a debut?

India like to field three seamers and as many spinners in the XI. With Radha out, the hosts might be tempted to hand Vaishnavi Sharma a cap, with Deepti Sharma and N Shree Charani occupying the other two spinners’ slots.India (probable): 1 Shafali Verma, 2 Smriti Mandhana, 3 Jemimah Rodrigues, 4 Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), 5 Amanjot Kaur, 6 Richa Ghosh (wk), 7 Deepti Sharma, 8 Sneh Rana/Vaishnavi Sharma, 9 Kranti Gaud/Arundhati Reddy, 10 Renuka Singh, 11 N Shree CharaniVaishnavi Sharma could make her India debut against Sri Lanka•ICC/Getty Images

Wicketkeeper Anushka Sanjeewni has been dropped, so Kaushini Nuthyangana is likely to replace her. Apart from the experienced Inoka Ranaweera, Sri Lanka also have Shashini Gimhani, Kawya Sewwandi, Rashmika Kavindi and uncapped Nimasha Madushani to choose from.Sri Lanka XI (probable): 1 Chamari Athapaththu (capt), 2 Vishmi Gunaratne, 3 Harshitha Samarawickrama, 4 Kavisha Dilhari, 5 Nilakshika Silva, 6 Kaushini Nuthyangana (wk), 7 Manudi Nanayakkara, 8 Inoka Ranaweera/Nimasha Madushani, 9 Inoshi Priyadharshani, 10 Shashini Gimhani, 11 Malki Madara

Pitch and conditions

India Women last played a T20I in Visakhapatnam in 2014, also against Sri Lanka. In the six women’s T20Is at this venue, 115 has been the average first-innings total. However, it proved to be a high-scoring track during the recent ODI World Cup. Dew could play a factor as the match progresses. The forecast is for sunny conditions, with temperatures expected around 23 degree Celsius for the start of the game.

Stats and trivia

Four expatriate fans of Pakistani origin were arrested at Gaddafi Stadiumduring the final afternoon of the second Test between Pakistan and SouthAfrica for making racially-motivated comments and gestures at members ofthe South African team.The four, sitting in the Imran Khan stand, were arrested by local securityofficials during the afternoon session , after abusing three South African players andofficials who were on their way to the nets.”They were making racial comments about the South African team and they are nowin lock-up,” said a Pakistan board official. The remarks were directed atallrounder Vernon Philander, the assistant coach Vincent Barnes, and FaisulNagel, the South African security consultant.The incident mirrors the monkey chants directed at Australia’s allrounder Andrew Symonds during the fifth ODI at Vadodara, but South Africa, like Australia, will not be lodging any complaints. Michael Owen-Smith, the team’s media manager, said: “The matter was swiftly handled and we are not going to lodge an official complaint.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) may ask the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to pay damages up to $1.5 million for losses the ECB incurred because of the cancellation of the fifth day of The Oval Test. In the next few days the PCB is likely to receive formal notification from the ECB on this matter, reported.After Pakistan refused to come out of the dressing room to resume play following the tea interval on day four because of being penalised for unproven ball-tampering charges, the match was awarded to England. The spectators who turned up on day four have been refunded 40% of their ticket price and those who bought tickets for the fifth day have been refunded the entire ticket amount by the ECB.On their part, the Pakistan board feels that Darrell Hair, the umpire at the centre of the controversy, and not the PCB, is to blame for the abandonment of play at The Oval. “We consider it not our responsibility that this Test was abandoned in the way it was,” Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman told .Given the cordial relations that exist between the two boards it is unlikely that either of them would risk confrontation on this issue. Meanwhile, the PCB plans to ask the ICC that the charge of bringing the game to disrepute be brought upon Hair. This would make the ICC responsible for reimbursing the ECB for the monetary losses suffered.”The situation won’t be left as it is,” said Waseem Khokhar, of the Pakistan board’s lawyers DLA Piper. “There is the strength and resolve to see that the right course of action is taken. There is an immense amount of hurt and sense of grievance.”Earlier, after the ICC’s hearing into The Oval fiasco, Inzamam-ul-Haq, the Pakistan captain, said he would not seek legal action against Hair. “Our religion Islam teaches us to forgive and forget, so I forgive Hair and will not take any action against him,” Inzamam told AFP on Friday. Inzamam was declared not guilty on ball-tampering charges, though he was penalised for bringing the game to disrepute and placed under an immediate ban of four one-day matches.