Page 25 - New Zealand Cricket Team

NZ vs PAK: Abbas Afridi to miss third T20I, Kane Williamson ruled out

Young Pakistan fast bowler Abbas Afridi was on Tuesday ruled out of the third T20I while hosts New Zealand lost the services of their captain Kane Williamson for the remainder of the five-match series. The Pakistan team management confirmed in a statement that a low grade abdominal muscle strain to Afridi will keep him out of the third T20I, with a decision on his availability for the remaining two matches to be taken later. His scan has shown no sign of significant injury, and he will be managed symptomatically. His availability for the last two games will be made at a later stage, the management statement said. The 22-year-old right-arm pacer Afridi made his international debut for Pakistan in this series. Pakistan are already without fast bowler Khurram Shahzad, who played in their opening Test against Australia last month, as well as spinners Abrar Ahmed and Noman Ali owing to injuries. The spin duo did not feature in any of their three Tests in Australia. Williamson suffered

New Zealand beats Pakistan by 21 runs in 2nd T20, leads 5-match series 2-0

New Zealand overcame the loss of its captain in an innings that faltered late to beat Pakistan by 21 runs in the second Twenty20 International Sunday, taking a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. The Black Caps failed to build on the foundation of the first half of its innings, making 194 for eight batting first after being 111 for one at the end of 10 overs. The batting slump followed captain Kane Williamson retiring hurt after 10 overs with a tight hamstring. Pakistan also stumbled in the second half of its innings and was bowled out for 173 in the 20th over. Williamson is making a managed return from a serious knee injury and New Zealand would fear any setback to his rehabilitation. But, while he didn't field, Williamson was still padded up and apparently prepared to bat at the end of the New Zealand innings. Finn Allen's 74 from 41 balls set a cracking pace early on in the New Zealand innings. Allen put on 59 in 5.1 overs with Devon Conway (20) for the first wicket and 52 in 4.9

Adams named New Zealand bowling coach for Pakistan series

Former New Zealand international Andre Adams will join the Blackcaps support staff for the home T20I series against Pakistan beginning January 12. Adams will work as bowling coach for the five-match series as part of head coach Gary Stead's coaching group, which also features regular batting coach Luke Ronchi. The decision follows Adams' work as pace-bowling coach for the New Zealand women's team during the side's 2023 tour to South Africa. New Zealand Strength and Conditioning coach Chris Donaldson and Team Performance Manager Simon Insley will both take a break during the series against Pakistan with their roles being filled by Matt Long and Dave Meiring respectively.

Pakistan likely to go in with new opening pairing in T20s vs New Zealand

Pakistan are expected to go for a new opening pair in the T20 series in New Zealand with Muhammad Rizwan to partner young Saim Ayub instead of Babar Azam. According to reports from Auckland, the team management had Rizwan and Saim batting in the nets against the new ball bowlers while Babar and Fakhar Zaman had their knocks against mainly spinners in the other nets. Babar and Rizwan have opened pretty successfully for Pakistan in the T20 format since 2021 but apparently new captain Shaheen Shah Afridi, new high performance coach Yasir Arafat and the team director Muhammad Hafeez are keen to try out something new against New Zealand in the five-match series beginning on January 12. Their 150 plus runs unbeaten partnership helped Pakistan beat India for the first time in any World Cup game during the T20 WC in Dubai in 2021. The 21-year Saim, who played 8 T20 internationals last year and made his Test debut in Sydney earlier this month, is known for his hard hitting style of batting

Why South Africa named uncapped Neil Brand as captain for New Zealand tour?

The SA 20 will start on January 10 while South Africa's tour of New Zeeland will begin on January 19 with the first Test in Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui

Rain washes out 2nd Twenty20 between New Zealand and Bangladesh at Bay Oval

Rain washed out the second Twenty20 international between New Zealand and Bangladesh after only 11 overs Friday, leaving Bangladesh with a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. The match began on time and New Zealand was 72-2 after 11 overs when the heavy rain which had fallen throughout the day in this seaside city returned to Bay Oval. The third match of the series will be played at the same venue on Sunday. Bangladesh won the toss Friday and sent New Zealand in as it did in the first match of the series, which it won by five wickets for its first ever T20 win over New Zealand in New Zealand. Finn Allen again fell early, dismissed in the second over, but Tim Seifert struck six fours and a six in a quickfire innings of 43 from 23 balls. Bangladesh had begun to curtail the New Zealand run rate when the rain returned. Players left the field at 8 p.m. and umpires called off the match just before 10 p.m. when not even a five over shootout was possible.

WTC points table: Check India, Pak, Australia, South Africa rankings here

India slipped to the fifth spot while Pakistan to the sixth as South Africa topped the World Test Championship 2023-25 points table

NZ vs BAN: Litton Das carries his bat as Bangladesh beat Kiwis by 5 wickets

Litton Das carried his bat for 42 to steer Bangladesh to a five-wicket win in the opening Twenty20 International on Wednesday as it rolled New Zealand out cheaply at McLean Park for the second time in four days. On Saturday, Bangladesh bowled out New Zealand for 98 on the same pitch to set up a nine-wicket win in the third one-day international, its first limited-overs victory over the Black Caps on their home soil. Four days later, Bangladesh claimed three wickets with the first nine balls of the New Zealand innings and contained the home side to 134 for nine. The Black Caps were one for three after Shoriful Islam dismissed Finn Allen and Glenn Phillips with consecutive balls in the second over, and then 20 for four following the fall of Daryl Mitchell. Jimmy Neesham made 48 and captain Mitchell Santner 23 as New Zealand staged a partial recovery. Das led an unhurried run chase that saw Bangladesh reach its target with eight balls to spare. The opener was given out lbw to Tim Sout

Big paycheck moment will stick to us for rest of our lives: Daryl Mitchell

When New Zealander Daryl Mitchell was bought for a whopping Rs 14 crore by Chennai Super Kings during the IPL auction, he was wrapping presents for his daughter's birthday at his home and his heartbeat increased when his name popped up on the screen. His family kept the domestic chores aside and remained glued to the television. In the space of few minutes, the 32-year-old secured a life-changing paycheck at the auction held in Dubai on Tuesday. "It was obviously a pretty special night for us as a family, sitting here with my wife watching the whole auction," Mitchell said, according to local media. "To see your name come up and then to go through that whole experience is definitely something that will stick with us for the rest of our lives." Mitchell became the second-most expensive Black Caps ever purchased in the 15-year history of the IPL, level with Kane Williamson and behind only Kyle Jamieson, who was picked up by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 15 crore in 2021. "(Elde

Soumya Sarkar's 169 not enough as New Zealand beat Bangladesh by 7 wickets

Henry Nicholls made 95 and Will Young 89, trumping Soumya Sarkar's career-best 169 and leading New Zealand to a seven-wicket win over Bangladesh on Wednesday in the second One-Day International. New Zealand hold a winning 2-0 lead in the three-match series which ends Saturday in Napier. Nicholls returned to form but fell just short of his second ODI century while Young narrowly missed his second straight ODI century as New Zealand made 296-3 in reply to Bangladesh's 291. Young made 105 as New Zealand won the rain-affected first match of the series by 44 runs. Young put on 76 for the first wicket with Rachin Ravindra who made 45 from 33 balls after making a first-ball duck in the first match on Sunday. Young then added 128, effectively in a match-winning partnership, for the second wicket with Nicholls who also bounced back after a second-ball duck in the opening ODI. New Zealand were 204-2 in the 33rd over when Young was out, having made his 89 runs from 94 balls with eight fours

Bangladesh vs New Zealand ODIs: Uncapped Ben Sears replaces Kyle Jamieson

Uncapped New Zealand pacer Ben Sears has been called up to Kiwi's ODI squad for the upcoming three-match series against Bangladesh to replace Kyle Jamieson after he sustained a stiff left hamstring

ICC deems Mirpur pitch unsatisfactory after Bangladesh-New Zealand 2nd Test

The Mirpur pitch, which hosted the second and final test match between Bangladesh and New Zealand, has received a demerit point after the International Cricket Council rated it as unsatisfactory. ICC match referee David Boon in his assessment said that the pitch may have been underprepared" and that deliveries from spin bowlers often went over the batter's shoulder when playing forward and then occasionally stayed very low. New Zealand won the match by four wickets to level the two-match series, thanks to Glenn Phillips' all-round performance. The match overall saw just 178.1 overs of action over the course of 3 1/2 days after all of Day 2 and some sizable chunks of the first and third days got chopped off due to rain and wet outfields, making it the shortest-ever test in Mirpur. A total of 36 wickets fell in that period. The report has been forwarded to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), which now has 14 days to appeal against the sanction.

BAN vs NZ Test: Taijul's 10-wicket haul helps Tigers beat Kiwis by 150 runs

Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam took his second 10-wicket haul in tests as Bangladesh secured a 150-run victory in the series-opening match against New Zealand on Saturday. Taijul followed his 4-109 with 6-75 in the second innings to wrap up New Zealand's innings for 181 in the first session of the final day, with the tourists chasing a target of 332 runs. Offspinner Nayeem Hasan complemented him with 2-40, while pacer Shoriful Islam (1-13) and offspinner Mehidy Hasan (1-44) contributed a wicket apiece. We are just thinking about the process, not the result, Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto said. We have so many test matches coming up. This win will give us a confidence to do well. "As I said earlier, we want to make winning a habit at home. Hopefully we will be able to continue the performance. Daryl Mitchell battled to top-score for the visitors with a patient 58 from 120 balls. Resuming at 113-7, Mitchell's presence gave New Zealand a slim hope of an unlikely victory and

BAN vs NZ 1st Test: Taijul keeps Bangladesh ahead despite Williamson's ton

Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam claimed 4-89 as Bangladesh dominated the second day of the opening test against New Zealand on Wednesday despite a century from Kane Williamson on a spin-friendly pitch. Williamson hit a 104 for his 29th century amid a relentless spin attack as New Zealand reached 266-8 at stumps, trailing by 44 runs. Bangladesh folded on its overnight score of 310 when skipper Tim Southee had Shoriful Islam out leg before wicket with the first ball of the morning. The home side's spinners got into act immediately, turning the balls admirably to trouble the New Zealand batters. Still, Williamson defied them with solid defence to keep the visitors in the game. He got support from Glenn Phillips (42) and Daryl Mitchell (41) before the Bangladeshi bowlers made inroads in the last hour with the second new ball. It is one of those surfaces where it is hard to get a rhythm. You will get some good balls as well. I thought the application was good, Williamson said. It would

Record 1.25 mn spectators watched World Cup 2023 matches from stadiums

ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2015, held in Australia and New Zealand, witnessed 1,016,420 spectators, while the 2019 edition in England and Wales saw 752,000 fans come through the turnstiles.

Cricket World Cup 2023 Prize money: How much winner and runner-ups will get

The losing semi-finalists - South Africa and New Zealand - got $800,000 (Rs 6 crore approximately) each from the total prize pot of $10 million in ICC Cricket World Cup 2023

ICC Cricket World Cup: Winners list in ODIs, history, all you need to know

West Indies and India have each won two titles, but Australia has taken home five trophies. England, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka round out the list of ODI World Cup winners.

Rachin Ravindra to Madushanka: Debutants that impressed at World Cup 2023

Players playing their first ODI World Cup showed maturity and shined at Cricket World Cup 2023. While Ravindra is a find for Kiwis, Shreyas Iyer solved India's number 4 problem

What did Satya Nadella do during the India-New Zealand semi-final match?

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said he stayed awake all night to watch the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup semi-final between India and New Zealand before delivering his keynote speech

World Cup 2023: India reach fourth final, one step away from third title

After beating New Zealand in the semi-final, India reached fourth final in the ICC Cricket World Cup. They will eye their 3rd title at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, November 19