The unlikeliest win since ‘83?
NZ are world champions, AFG-W’s covert escape from the Taliban, & Atkinson on bowling as his mother’s killer is sentenced.
Is this the unlikeliest win since ‘83?
NZ are world champions, Kerr wrote stories about this moment as a kid, & SA’s consecutive finals heartbreak.
New Zealand beat South Africa by 32 runs to become one of unlikelier World Cup winners in recent history. Sophie Devine, Suzie Bates and others talk about what it means to them, while ESPNcricinfo’s Sampath Bandarupalli has the stats from a record-breaking day for the White Ferns.
ESPNcricinfo’s Shashank Kishore recounts how New Zealand’s opening victory over India turned their form around after 10 straight pre-tournament losses, while Cricket Australia’s Laura Jolly writes about Player of the Match (and Tournament) Amelia Kerr’s literal childhood dream of winning with Devine & Bates!
ESPNcricinfo’s Firdose Moonda writes about the pain of a second consecutive finals loss for South Africa, but also humanises the players from the Rainbow Nation. [That second piece in particular is great]
Additionally, Moonda writes about why it’s such a big deal the “other” nations overcame the Big Three’s structural advantages. Meanwhile, The Guardian’s Raf Nicholson calls for change after England’s poor outing.
I created a new batch of World Cup-specific crosswords yesterday, and the answer sheets have been uploaded too.
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New Zealand’s very good, no complaints day
NZ close out an absorbing Test, Shakib continues to divide BAN, & what’s the real value of a Hundred franchise?
New Zealand beat India by 8 wickets to win their first Test in India in nearly 36 years. Cricbuzz’s Shashikant Singh has the stats behind an incredible victory. Meanwhile, India have cause for optimism after Mohammad Shami bowled flat out in the nets.
Pro- and anti-Shakib Al Hasan fan groups fought it out outside the Mirpur Stadium, as Bangladesh prepares for a Shakib-less Test series against South Africa.
Multiple IPL and WPL teams have emerged as potential buyers of The Hundred teams. Being Outside Cricket’s Danny Frankland goes through the numbers to determine the actual value of the franchises, and can’t go higher than an extremely optimistic £400 million (the ECB thinks it should be £1 billion).
For Indian fans, some good news; the new, merged Hotstar-Jio media entity will host all their content (including cricket matches) on the pre-existing Hotstar app. For everyone who’s struggled through Jio Cinema’s glitchy nonsense to watch a match recently, this is a major boon!
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Burning her bats to save her career (and life)
AFG-W’s covert escape from the Taliban, Atkinson on bowling as his mother’s killer is sentenced, & the story of IND-W’s prodigious 16-year old all-rounder.
Sydney Morning Herald’s Daniel Brettig writes about the covert emigration that Afghanistan’s female players had to endure to get out of the country after the Taliban came to power, and how they are faring in their new homeland of Australia.
The Times’ Simon Wilde has a fantastic interview with Gus Atkinson on dealing with the sentencing of his mother’s killer while bowling for England, the motivation that comes with playing on TV, and the confidence that Brendon McCullum gave him to score a century against Sri Lanka.
Indian Express’ Venkata Krishna B reports on the rise of the next big thing in Indian Women’s cricket; 16-year old Kamalini, whose prodigious career exists because of extremely supportive parents who shrugged off their community’s scepticism of supporting a female child in sports.
The Guardian’s Tom Davies writes about five factors that will determine the deciding England-Pakistan Test, ESPNcricinfo’s Matt Roller writes that Shoaib Bashir has been less impactful than Jack Leach but his presence is more important, & Ian Chappell on Joe Root’s brilliance everywhere but Australia.
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Fresh blood
TGC interviews Brad Hodge and gets stunned by a couple of kids.
The Grade Cricketer’s Ian Higgins & Sam Perry are back from the break as the Australian summer kicks off. They talk about the obvious death of all kinds of Aussie teams and the need for fresh blood, catch up with the matches of the week, and talk to Brad Hodge about shifting tin, car parks, and becoming an artist!