Sport

South Africa sink spirited US in WC Super 8

American opener Steven Taylor (24) underlined his intent when he smashed a boundary off the first ball, but after four fours and a six, he fell to Rabada when a mistimed shot was caught at mid-off.

Published

6 months ago

June 20, 2024

Ariana News

South Africa beat the United States by 18 runs in the first T20 World Cup Super 8 game in Antigua on Wednesday as Kagiso Rabada's experience came to the fore at the end of a tense game.

Having struggled on New York's slow pitches in the group stage, South Africa scored freely at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, posting 194-4 on the back of Quinton de Kock's fine knock of 74.

In response, U.S. opener Andries Gous (80 not out) provided the fireworks along with Harmeet Singh (38) down the order but fast bowler Rabada picked up crucial wickets in his spell of 3-18 and restricted the run rate as the U.S. fell short.

"We've had some tricky wickets coming up to this game and I think it's just nice to spend some time out in the middle," player of the match De Kock said.

The U.S. had won the toss and opted to field first, picking up the wicket of Reeza Hendricks early but De Kock cut loose as South Africa scored at over 10 runs per over during the powerplay.

De Kock reached his fifty in 26 balls and shared a 110-run partnership with skipper Aiden Markram off 60 deliveries.

Harmeet Singh dismissed De Kock when he mistimed a full toss and was caught near the boundary and the all-rounder was on a hat-trick when he had David Miller caught and bowled.

Markram fell four runs short of his fifty when he chased a wide loose ball and Ali Khan took a sharp diving catch to give Saurabh Netravalkar his second wicket.

SUPERB SPELL

Despite Netravalkar's superb spell (2-21), the others failed to contain South Africa as Heinrich Klaasen dealt in sixes and scored a quick-fire 36 in an unbroken 53-run partnership with Tristan Stubbs (20) to propel them to 194-4.

American opener Steven Taylor (24) underlined his intent when he smashed a boundary off the first ball, but after four fours and a six, he fell to Rabada when a mistimed shot was caught at mid-off.

The fast bowler also dismissed Nitish Kumar, who was caught at deep square leg, and U.S. captain Aaron Jones fell for a duck to spinner Keshav Maharaj.

Gous continued to resist, bringing up his fifty with back-to-back sixes, but the required run rate continued to climb.

There was hope when Shamsi went for 22 runs in an expensive 18th over but Rabada returned to dismiss Harmeet, conceding only two runs in the penultimate over.

"It's hard to take the defeat after getting so close. We could have been a little more disciplined bowling-wise," Jones said.

"It could have been a closer game and we could have got over the line." – Reuters

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Sport

Afghanistan clinches ODI series victory against Zimbabwe

Published

22 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Ariana News

Afghanistan's national cricket team triumphed over Zimbabwe by 8 wickets in the third and final One-Day International (ODI) to claim the series victory.

In a dominant bowling display, Afghanistan dismissed Zimbabwe for just 127 runs in 30.1 overs. The Afghan batsmen then chased down the target comfortably in 26.5 overs, losing only 2 wickets along the way.

The standout performer of the match was Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, who took a remarkable 5 wickets, while Rashid Khan supported with 3 wickets. Azmatullah Omarzai and Farid Ahmad each claimed 1 wicket.

The first match of the series was abandoned due to rain, but Afghanistan bounced back strongly in the second match, securing a commanding 232-run victory.

This series win follows Afghanistan's earlier success in the T20I series against Zimbabwe, further cementing their dominance in international cricket.

Sport

Bangla Tigers lift Lanka T10 Super League title

Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.

Published

3 days ago

December 19, 2024

Ariana News

Hambantota Bangla Tigers beat favorites Jaffna Titans by 26 runs in Thursday’s Lanka T10 Super League final at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy.

The Tigers produced a fine all-round performance to beat the Titans, who had won all their matches in the lead up to the final.

Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.

Hambantota Bangla Tigers, put into bat first, posted 133 for seven from their allotted 10 overs through some useful contributions from their top order batsmen.

The openers Mohammad Shahzad and Kusal Perera added 35 runs from 2.4 overs before they suffered a middle order collapse and reached 59 for three at the halfway stage of the innings.

However, skipper Dasun Shanaka and Shevon Daniel revived the innings with a fourth-wicket partnership of 44 runs in three overs.

Shanaka made 21 with two sixes and two boundaries while Daniel struck 26 with one six and three boundaries before Kennar Lewis and Dhananjaya Lakshan added the finishing touches.

Chasing 133 runs for victory, Jaffna Titans lost wickets at regular intervals and they eventually finished at 107 for six despite a fighting unbeaten half century from middle order batsman Tom Abell.
Richard Gleeson wrecked the Hambantota Bangla Tigers’ innings with excellent figures of three wickets for 21 while Shanaka captured two wickets for four runs.