betfair360

[betfair360]

For the New Zealand Test team, the past 12 months have been nothing short of a wild trip. Before the three Test matches in India, they had only won one of four series, against a weak South African team. The problems were made worse by Tim Southee resigning as captain following the 2-0 series loss in Sri Lanka. Nobody had given them a chance, either. All went well for New Zealand during the series, as they won crucial moments in all three games after bowling out India for 46 on the opening morning of play in Bengaluru. They accomplished the unimaginable by defeating India 3-0 in a series in India when they had nothing to lose. An accomplishment never before accomplished by a touring team on Indian soil, rendered the more significant by Kane Williamson's exclusion from the series.

With a spot in the World Test Championship final still up for grabs, if other outcomes go their way, New Zealand suddenly has everything on the line once more. If they do not make it to the final at Lord's, this will also be the final Test series for former captain and fast bowler Tim Southee, and the hosts will try to give him a spectacular send-off.

In contrast, England enters this series hoping to recover from their October 2-1 series loss to Pakistan under circumstances they would describe as extremely unfamiliar. On both of their subcontinental trips this year, their strategy of remaining aggressive even in challenging situations with "Bazball" has failed them, as wickets have fallen in clusters even when one batsman got his eye in.

The two-day warm-up game before the series demonstrated the same thing. None of the other batters were able to turn their starts into significant totals, with the exception of Ben Stokes, Joe Root, and Zak Crawley, who each reached a half-century. Tim Southee's Test debut coincided with England's most recent series victory in New Zealand, which came under Michael Vaughan in 2008. After 16 long years, the visitors will feel much more at home on New Zealand's faster courses and try to change the course of history.

When: November 28 to December 2, 2024; 11:00am Local Time | 10pm GMT (Nov 27) | 3:30am IST

Where: Hagley Oval, Christchurch

What to expect: Most days in Christchurch should be gloomy, but there should not be any rain that would stop play. Hagley Oval has historically favored bowlers on the first day, but as four of the top five chases in New Zealand have taken place here, including two in the past two years, it gradually becomes easier to bat on.

Team news

New Zealand: All-rounder Nathan Smith will make his Test debut, while Kane Williamson will take Will Young's spot as Player of the Series in India, according to a news conference held by Tom Latham prior to the match.

Devon Conway, Tom Latham (C), Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (WK), Nathan Smith, Tim Southee, Matt Henry, and Will O'Rourke are the likely starting lineup.

England: Two days prior to the game, the visitors revealed their starting lineup. Ollie Pope will take over after Jamie Smith is unable to play due to an injury sustained during practice, which prevented Jordan Cox from making his debut. Jacob Bethell, a batting all-rounder, will bat at the third position in his Test debut.

Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope (wk), Ben Stokes (C), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir, and Zak Crawley are the confirmed starting lineup.

What they said:

"I followed up after Steady (Gary Stead) spoke with Young regarding it. As previously stated, he is an excellent team player and did nothing improper. Although it was a difficult choice, Tom Latham said, "I suppose that when you are in a position to make difficult decisions, it shows your team is in a good spot, so yeah, obviously heartbroken for Young but thrilled with Kane coming back."

[betfair360]

After Tim Ward scored a second half-century in the match against New South Wales at the SCG, Tasmania is aiming for their first victory of the Sheffield Shield summer.

At the end of play, Tasmania was up by 252 runs, but they probably will not have a chance to win until early on day four.

Gabe Bell, a pacer for Tasmania, stated, "We have not won a game this year, so we have got to put ourselves in a position to perhaps risk losing in order to try and win." "However, based on the past three days, I believe this pitch has enough to yield ten wickets tomorrow."

In the third session, Ward blasted Australian white-ball spinner Adam Zampa to backward square leg for a single, marking his third half-century from as many first-class knocks this summer. It came after the 26-year-old put Tasmania leading in the first innings with a top score of 92.

Bell said, "Tim's batted quite well this whole match,"

In an attempt to increase his chances of being selected for Test matches later this summer, Beau Webster assisted Tasmania in increasing their total.

Australia coach Andrew McDonald has stated that he intends to use the same starting lineup in Adelaide despite the team's crushing defeat to India in Perth. However, given worries about Mitchell Marsh's workload and the fact that the all-rounder pulled up sore after Perth, a position might eventually open up for Webster.

Webster, who was named the Sheffield Shield's player of the year the previous summer, is the all-rounder who will be next in line if Marsh needs a break.

Earlier, Webster dismissed Chris Green with a low sliding catch, showcasing his athleticism. Bell, a right-arm quick, was to take the first wicket before tearing through the tail to guarantee that NSW would be back in the sheds by lunchtime.

Prior to that, Matthew Gilkes returned at 38, chopping on for one of Matt Kuhnemann's two wickets after hitting Kieran Elliott's short ball for four to reach his 14th first-class half-century.

[betfair360]

mushfiqur rahim unavailable for West Indies ODIs, Najmul Hossain Shanto

Officials from the Bangladesh Cricket Board announced on Sunday that captain Najmul Hossain is also uncertain for the ODI series against the West Indies, and veteran batsman Mushfiqur Rahim is not available.

They are both recuperating from injuries they suffered during the ODIs against Afghanistan, therefore they were unable to play in the Test series against the West Indies.

Mushfiqur hurt the tip of his left index finger while taking wickets towards the end of Afghanistan's innings in the three-match series opener in the United Arab Emirates. The X-ray taken after the game revealed a fracture, which kept him out of action for four to six weeks.

Following the game, Najmul had scans that showed a Grade II strain on his left groin, which he had sustained while fielding in the second ODI. This prevented him from playing in the Test series against the West Indies.

As far as Mushfiqur is concerned, a BCB official told Cricbuzz, "I do not think he would be able to make it to the ODIs against West Indies since he will need more time to rehabilitate." In order to assess our usual captain Najmul's progress and determine if he can make it or not, he continued, "We are not announcing our team as we are seeing his progress."

"I understand that he is making good progress, but we cannot take any chances with him because this is a groin injury. If he hurts it more playing the ODIs against Windies, he may have to miss one to one and a half months of cricket, which could be devastating because we have the Champions Trophy," he said.

On December 8, the ODI series will kick off, and on December 16, the T20I series will follow.

[betfair360]

Molineux, Matthews fire Renegades to a top-two finish

Melbourne Renegades defeated Sydney Thunder by nine wickets at the Junction Oval to guarantee a top-two finish in the WBBL 2024 league stage after to standout performances from Sophie Molineux and Hayley Matthews. With Hayley Matthews' undefeated 60 off 37 and her 95-run partnership with Molineux (42* off 29), Molineux took 4 for 23 as Renegades reduced Thunder to 133, a total they subsequently brought down in just 14.2 overs.

[betfair360]

Starc, Hazlewood dent India on the first morning in Perth

https://betfair360.com/

India was rattled by Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood's two wickets apiece on the opening morning of the Perth Test, as the visitors reached lunch at 51 for 4. Although Virat Kohli collected five wickets and Yashasvi Jaiswal and Devdutt Padikkal were sent for a duck each, the most significant dismissal of the session came from Starc, who removed a resolute KL Rahul in a highly controversial dismissal.

Although Australia lost the toss for the first time in five Test matches at the Optus Stadium, Pat Cummins said that he was not entirely sure what to do. The top order faltered early on, but Jasprit Bumrah did not think twice about batting first.

Rahul did well to play within the line of the ball against an extremely accurate Hazlewood who was also getting the ball seam abundantly. Rahul was starting in Tests once more without Rohit Sharma. However, Starc tricked Jaiswal into trying to drive away from his body, and he nicked to Nathan McSweeney for an eight-ball duck at Gully. After being brought into the main squad and substituted for the injured Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal was cautious at first because of his hesitant footwork. He edged a ball from Hazlewood that appeared to have seamed 1.39 degrees after pitching, which was the second-highest for the pacer in the session, following a prolonged stretch of survival.

To great acclaim, Virat Kohli came out, but the additional bounce undid him after only 12 balls. Kohli was caught off guard when Hazlewood moved his length back a bit and got one to rise on him. Nevertheless, he resisted it and lost to Usman Khawaja at first slip, bringing India down to 32 for 3. As the practice went on, Rahul gradually gained confidence and kept his bat under check while defending. However, the third umpire's decision to reverse an on-field call for a caught-behind appeal sent him packing, leaving him furious.

As the ball brushed the outside edge, he once again got his vertical bat near to his body against a delivery that was slanted across from Starc. The home side appealed and was reviewed. The snicko spiked immediately after the ball crossed the bat's outside edge, according to replays. Rahul struck his bat onto his front pad at the same moment the ball passed the bat, but the third umpire decided in Australia's favor because of the spike he saw. With a shake of his head, Rahul left.

When Nathan Lyon was added in the final fifteen minutes of the session, Rishabh Pant maintained his composure. Dhruv Jurel led India to the interval unscathed after surviving a play-and-a-miss and a sliced shot over the crowded cordon behind the stumps from Starc.

Short scores: India 51/4 against Australia (KL Rahul 26; Josh Hazlewood 2-10, Mitchell Starc 2-10)