Fast bowlers earn S outh Afric a dramatic win in first ODI against England

BLOEMFONTEIN, SOUTH AFRICA

ag e n c e S

Fast bowlers Sisanda Magala, Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada earned South Africa a dramatic 27-run win in the first one-day international against England at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein on Friday England seemed headed for a comfortable win as Jason Roy and Dawid Malan put on 146 for the first wicket inside the first 20 overs of England’s reply to South Africa’s 298 for seven

Roy went on to score a thrilling 113 off 91 balls but the rest of the batting collapsed

Magala made the crucial breakthrough when Malan mistimed an attempted pull against a short-pitched ball and was caught for 59

He followed up by trapping debutant Harry Brook leg before wicket for nought Magala took three for 46 and was named man of the match, while Nortje (four for 62) and Rabada (two for 46) were irresistible as the match reached a climax

Five of the wickets fell to shortpitched bowling “The pitch was a bit two-paced and it made the bouncers effective, said Magala

England captain Jos Buttler said he was disappointed that his side had not maintained the aggressive intent shown by Roy and Malan “South Africa came back really well but I thought we could have kept trying to take it on and put pressure on them,” he said

Although he finished on the losing side, Roy gave an emphatic answer to critics who have questioned his place in the team after a poor run of form since he helped England win the World Cup in 2019 He had made only one century since the World

Shoaib Malik pays tribute to Sania Mirza on her final Grand Slam appearance

LAHORE S ta f f R e p o R t

A s I n d i a n t e n n i s s t a r S a n i a M i r z a b o w e d o u t o f h e r G r a n d S l a m c a r e e r, h e r h u s b a n d a n d P a k i s t a n i c r i c k e t e r, S h o a i b M a l i k , p o s t e d a h e a r t f e l t m e s s a g e f o r h e r T h e 3 6y e a r- o l d a t h l e t e w h o p l a y e d h e r f i r s t G r a n d S l a m 1 8 y e a r s a g o e a r l i e r t o d a y p a r t i c i p a t e d i n t h e l a s t A u s t r a l i a n O p e n e v e n t o f h e r c a r e e r C a l l i n g h e r h o p e f o r a l l w o m e n i n s p o r t s , t h e c r i c k e t e r s a i d t h a t h e w a s p r o u d o f e v e r y t h i n g t h a t M i r z a h a s a c h i e v e d i n h e r l o n g - s p a n n i n g c a r e e r Ta ki n g t o I n s t a g r a m , t h e P a k i s t a n c r i c k e t e r s t a t e d : Yo u a r e t h e m u c h - n e e d e d h o p e f o r a l l t h e w o m e n i n s p o r t s S u p e r p r o u d o f y o u f o r a l l y o u h a v e a c h i e v e d i n y o u r c a r e e r Yo u r e a n i n s p i r a t i o n f o r m a n y, k e e p g o i n g s t r o n g M a n y c o n g r a t u l a t i o n s o n a n u n b el i e v a b l e c a r e e r ”

Cup, against second-tier Netherlands, and his previous eight innings had yielded only 160 runs with a highest score of 43 Archer expensive: But Roy was in dominant form from the start of his innings, reaching his fifty off 45 balls and his century off 79 deliveries He hit 11 fours and four sixes Rassie van der Dussen hit a contrasting century to enable South Africa to post a challenging total Van der Dussen made 111 off 117 balls, hitting only six boundaries He held the innings together as England’s bowlers came back strongly after an opening stand of 61 off 52 balls between Quinton de Kock and captain Temba Bavuma

England fast bowler Jofra Archer was expensive in his first one-day international since September 2020, taking one for 81 in ten overs But the rest of the England bowlers made the batsmen work hard for their runs on a slow pitch

South Africa’s total was only 12 runs higher than the average first innings total on a ground known for high scoring

Left-armer Sam Curran took three for 35 in nine overs mixing up his pace and making good use of the bouncer a formula which later worked well for the South Africans The three-match series is part of the World Cup Super League and the win was a boost for South Africa who have yet to earn automatic qualification for the World Cup in India later this year Bavuma said South Africa had gone into the series determined to play good cricket whether or not they qualified for the World Cup “We’re happy with the way we went about our business but obviously we need the points,” he said

Ludhiana Gymkhana Cricket Club won the 20-K Cup 2023 T20 Cricket Tournament title after defeating Cricket Center Cricket Club by 47 runs in the final played here at the Model Town Greens Ground on Saturday Dawood Barry President Managing Committee of Cooperative Model Town Society, along with Mr Nabeel Ahmad, sponsor and patron of the 20-K Cup 2023, graced the prize distribution ceremony as chief guests and distributed prizes among the winners and top performers in the presence of galaxy of former Test cricketers Misbah ul Haq, Abdul Razzaq Aizaz Cheema Muhammad Ilyas as well as Muhammad Mushtaq, Shoaib Dar, Wahab Dar, Bilal Javaid, Kashif Butt, Farhan Nisar and others Ludhiana Gymkhana were off to flying start as they stitched some good partnerships to pile up a decent total of 163 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in the allotted 20 overs Asim Ali Nasir was the hero of the match as he played a sensational knock of 54 runs off 35 balls that included a good number of boundaries and sixes The other key contributors from the winning team, who batted with authority and struck significant runs were Muhammad Waqas, hammered 48-ball 53 runs, and Fahad Munir, who slammed 27 runs Muhammad Ali bowled well for Cricket Center Center and bagged two wickets for 32 runs while Usama Mir got one wicket Cricket Center couldn’t chase the required target because of some irresponsible batting displays by their players, who also failed to create a big partnership, that might save their sing ship The losing side could score just 116 runs for the loss of 9 wickets in 20 overs Bilawal Iqbal was top scorer from Cricket Center as he scored 32 runs off 27 balls while Ali Zafar played 26 balls to gather only 18 runs No other batters could add significant runs in their team’s total, which lost the final by 47 runs Kashif Saddiuqe bowled well and clinched three wickets for 12 runs while Muhammad Junaid grabbed three wickets for 31 and Intasar Ali got one wicket Asim Ali Nasir emerged as player of the final Speaking on the occasion, Mr Nabeel Ahmad said that the purpose of conducting this event which was named after my father Col Fateh Sher Khan, was to provide the club cricketers a big platform to showcase their talent and earn big prize money

brian lara to act as per formance mentor for West indies

BARBADOS

S ta f f R e p o R t

Cricket West Indies (CWI) said batting great Brian Lara has agreed to take on the role of performance mentor to help players and coaches in all three formats of the game The 53-year-old, who was part of a review panel formed after West Indies faltered in the first round of last year ’s T20 World Cup would support the head coaches in providing players with tactical advice and improving their game sense”, the CWI said in a statement The former captain would also work closely with Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams on World Cup planning, the board added “Having spent time with the players and coaches in Australia and in discussions with CWI I really believe that I can help the players with their mental approach to the game and with their tactics to be more successful,” Lara said in the statement I m looking forward to joining the group in Zimbabwe and the opportunity to work with other West Indies teams later in the year ” Lara’s first assignment will be a two-test series in Zimbabwe beginning in Bulawayo on Feb 4, while the 50-overs World Cup in India later this year will be high on the men’s team’s agenda

Djokovic stands on brink of 22nd major title

MELBOURNE

S ta f f R e p o R t

Novak Djokovic stands on the brink of a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title and it is his determination to be the greatest ever which drives him on through the controversies

The 35-year-old Serb is already one major clear of Roger Federer and victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open final on Sunday will draw him level with Rafael Nadal

For Djokovic, it matters to be the best and he has a strong sense of his historical place in tennis

But he also keeps ploughing on through the highs and lows because it is a great school of life

“I play professional tennis for several different reasons,” he said in Melbourne

“Some personal reason is that I feel on the tennis court I always have an opportunity to learn something new about myself, I guess fight with my own demons that I guess we all have

When we re on the tennis court in the midst of a battle, some of the things surface, and I have to deal with it, so it’s a great school of life for me

“Then at the same time, of course, I have professional goals and ambitions he added “Those are Grand Slams and being number one in the world

So I do want to make more history in this sport, no doubt ”

But while Federer and Nadal are widely admired Djokovic continues to divide as well as unite, despite being one of the greatest players to grace tennis His staggering achievements on court have often been overshadowed by blunders and missteps off it

The latest was his father posing with a Russian flag featuring Vladimir Putin’s face at this year ’s Australian Open But easily the most controversial was his refusal to get vaccinated against Covid, which culminated with Djokovic last year being deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament

Even before that, the Serb was seemingly doomed never to be held in the same esteem as Federer or Nadal, the undisputed people’s champions

There are those who see something too calculating in the Djokovic make-up – an intense, brooding presence prone to affectation His infamous default from the US Open in 2020 for petulantly swiping at a ball that hit a female line judge gave a glimpse of his fiery character And some of his personal stances have drawn criticism – one claim that raised eyebrows was his belief that it was possible to alter the composition of water and food through positive thinking

However, the career achievements and resolve of a player who was the first to smash through the $150 million prize-money barrier cannot be doubted

Djokovic who left Belgrade when he was 12 to train in Munich and escape NATO’s bombardment of his home city, has won 21 Grand Slam titles in his career haul of 92

He captured the first of his majors at the Australian Open in 2008 but it was three years before he added his second He dropped gluten from his diet, his lithe physique allowing him to chase down lost causes, transforming him into the rubber man of tennis with a rocksteady defence

In 2011 he enjoyed a spectacular year, winning three of three Slams and becoming world number one for the first time In total, he has nine Australian Opens, seven Wimbledons, three US Open titles and two French Opens

And time appears to be on his side