Andre Russell (left), Roston Chase (right) and Sherfane Rutherford celebrate a wicket.
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A record sixth-wicket stand between Andre Russell and Sherfane Rutherford was backed by a dazzling spell of spin bowling by Roston Chase, as West Indies salvaged some pride with a 37-run win over Australia to end their three-match Twenty20 (T20) series on a high, on Tuesday.
While Australia took the series 2-1, the consolation win and, by extension the performances of Russell and Rutherford in a 139-run stand, provides a solid platform on which West Indies at can continue to build in their charge towards the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup later this year.
With West Indies in trouble at 79-5, after Rovman Powell opted to bat first, Russell and Rutherford took Australia’s bowlers to task, as they combined for 12 sixes in the record stand that propelled the Caribbean side to a competitive 220-6 at Optus Stadium.
Russell was particularly destructive, as the Jamaican utilized only 29 balls for his 71, which included seven maximums and four fours, while Rutherford’s unbeaten 40-ball 67, included five maximums and five fours.
David Warner, who struck nine fours and three sixes in a 49-ball 81, briefly threatened to overhaul the total, but Australia suffered a mini collapse after his dismissal, as West Indies bowlers came up trumps on this occasion. Tim David with a quickfire 19-ball 41, was Australia's next best scorer. His unbeaten knock had two fours and four sixes.
Scores: West Indies 220-6 (Russell 71, Rutherford 67 not out, Bartlett 2-37) beat Australia 183-5 (Warner 81, David 41 not out, Chase 2-19, Shepherd 2-31) by 37 runs
Having failed to chase down daunting totals when they lost the first two matches, West Indies captain Powell decided to switch strategies and bat first, but it almost seemed futile when the top-order failed to navigate the extra bounce. Johnson Charles (four), Kyle Mayers (11) and Nicholas Pooran (one), all fell cheaply, as West Indies slipped to 17-3 in the third over.
Powell and Chase restored some semblance of respectability to the innings with a 55-run fourth-wicket stand. But when Chase fell for 37 off 20 balls, including three fours and two sixes, Powell went soon after for a 14-ball 21 that had three boundaries, and West Indies were steering down the proverbial barrel at that point.
However, Russell and Rutherford were in defiant mood. The two slaughtered Australia’s bowlers and raised their half-centuries in 25 balls and 33 balls respectively, and inevitably pushed West Indies past the 200-run mark.
Much like he started his innings, Russell ended in explosive fashion, as he struck Adam Zampa for three-consecutive sixes in a penultimate over that yielded 28 runs, but later holed out in the last over and walked off the ground to a standing ovation from the over 17,000 crowd.
Xavier Bartlett was Australia’s most successful bowler with 2-37 from his four overs.
Knowing they required a solid start, Australia reshuffled their batting order, with captain Mitchell Marsh taking opening duties alongside Warner. But Marsh struggled for rhythm and was overshadowed by Warner, who overcame a rough start when a short delivery from Alzarri Joseph banged into the grill via his shoulder.
After Marsh fell for 17, wickets continued to tumble around Warner, who raced to a half-century off 25 balls. The left-hander seemed set for a second T20I century, but was overburdened in the middle overs, and eventually holed out to Russell off Chase.
From there, Australia’s innings fell apart, even with David's late burst, as Chase, who proved an inspired selection, ended with tidy figures of 2-19 from four overs. He was well supported by seamer Romario Shepherd, who had 2-31.
Sherdon Cowan is a five-time award-winning journalist with 10 years' experience covering sports.
Russell defends CPL's contribution to regional cricket but open to suggestions on improvements
With their long-term agreement with Cricket West Indies (CWI) heavily scrutinised by government leaders and cricket stalwarts, chief executive, Pete Russell of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) defended the product’s positive contribution to cricket in the region.
Addressing the gathering on Friday’s final day of the CARICOM conference on West Indies cricket themed ‘Reinvigorating West Indies Cricket’, Russell said the CPL is one of CWI’s largest domestic commercial partners.
While noting that CPL contributed significantly to player economic welfare, with nearly US$28 million spent on salaries since the start of the tournament in 2013, Russell, also revealed that cumulative losses, across both the league and franchises for the past 11 years, stand at US$40 million.
“Dennis O’Brien and Digicel have been the principal investors, not only investing in the league from day one but they also spent money on sponsorship and media rights. The franchises have also pumped in significant money, money that helps pay players and coaches, as well as investing in local businesses around the region that help make the games happen. All the franchises have made losses.
“So, on the positive side, Cricket West Indies has been paid close to US$17 million in sanction fees, so over the past 12 years CPL would be one of CWI’s largest domestic, commercial partners. Caribbean players have taken home US$27.7 million in player salaries since the tournament’s inception, all paid for by the franchises,” Russell declared during the event held in Trinidad and Tobago.
“Each year, it takes US$25 million to run this tournament over five weeks. CPL and the franchises bear all these costs. There is no financial burden on CWI or the territorial boards, so the risk is 100 per cent ours.
“So that is our starting point each and every year. So as you can imagine, the commercial challenges are considerable just to break even,” he added.
Russell’s response came as government leaders and West Indies legend Sir Clive Lloyd, suggested that the 50-year contract between CPL and CWI be re-negotiated.
The issue of the league’s ownership was also called into question, as they view was largely expressed that there would potentially be more development and earnings for players, if CWI controlled the tournament.
But, Russell, a member of the CPL management team rebutted.
“What is interesting is that other leagues around the world are following the lead of CWI. They are also looking for third-party investors to help fund their leagues. The English Cricket Board are in the process of selling The Hundred, the Australian Cricket Board are courting outside investors for the Big Bash, Cricket South Africa sold all their rights to host broadcaster Supersport, and the new American Major League Cricket is 100 per cent privately owned,” Russell shared.
“In time, only the IPL will end up being 100 per cent owned by its domestic board and that is simply because they can afford to do so. So, trust me when I say, ownership isn’t everything, and smart stewardship and partnership can yield better results. But of course, we’re always happy to listen to any suggestions on how we can improve things,” he ended.
IPL: Royals extend lead at the top after Samson and Jurel see off LSG
Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel combined for an unbeaten partnership of 121 as Indian Premier League leaders Rajasthan Royals defeated Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday.
The Royals have now won eight of their nine matches in the 2024 campaign and are almost certain to be involved in the playoffs after chasing down their victory target of 197 with an over to spare in a seven-wicket triumph.
Another Royals win had looked unlikely when they fell to 78-3 in their run chase after Jos Buttler (34), Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) and Riyan Parag (14) all fell in quick succession shortly before the halfway mark.
But Rajasthan captain Samson fought back as he blasted 71 runs from 33 balls including seven fours and four maximums, while Jurel bounced back from a poor period of form to finish unbeaten on 52 from 34.
LSG reached 196-5 from their innings courtesy of a fine knock from their own skipper, KL Rahul. He reached 76 from 48 before eventually falling to Avesh Khan (1-42) in the 18th over.
Deepak Hooda made it to 50 as LSG rallied from 11-2, but ultimately their competitive total was within reach of the visiting Royals.
Data Debrief
This is the second time in as many home games Rahul has passed fifty, after he scored 82 against Chennai Super Kings last week.
Samson (385) and Rahul (378) are second and third respectively in the race to win this season’s orange cap, although RCB’s Virat Kohli continues to set the pace with 430 runs.
They also narrowly trail Kohli (40) when it comes to the most fours hit in this season’s competition, with Samson on 36 and Rahul just behind with 34.
Babar's captain's innings leads Pakistan to victory as series drawn with New Zealand
Babar Azam top scored as he led his Pakistan team to a nine-run victory over New Zealand in Lahore that saw the five-game T20I series end in a draw.
Babar hit 69 runs off 44 balls before being bowled by Ben Sears, smashing six fours and two sixes to take his team to 123/3 at the time of his dismissal.
Fakhar Zaman (43 from 33) and Usman Khan (31 off 24) also chipped in with important innings as Pakistan ended on 178/5.
With a target of 179 to secure a 3-1 series victory, New Zealand's run chase faltered almost immediately as opener Tom Blundell was removed within the first over with his team having managed just five runs on the board.
Blundell's fellow opener Tim Seifert steadied the ship with a vital 52-run innings off 33 deliveries before being bowled by Usama Mir, but Shaheen Shah Afridi led the way for Pakistan, finishing with figures of 4-30 to stem the New Zealand run chase
Josh Clarkson's 38 off 26 set up a nervy conclusion, but Pakistan held on to avoid defeat in the T20 series as the teams share the spoils at two wins apiece after the first game was abandoned.
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