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Orange Cap leaderboard

After the first game of IPL 2025, Virat Kohli of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) had the No. 1 spot for his 59 not out against KKR. In the second, Ishan Kishan slammed 106 not out for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) against Rajasthan Royals (RR) and took the top spot. Then, in the fourth match, Nicholas Pooran of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) hit 75 vs Delhi Capitals (DC) and, while that didn’t dislodge Kishan, Pooran’s 70 against SRH in the seventh game did, putting him at the top of the pile.And there he stayed. Till Match No. 39. When GT’s B Sai Sudharsan, who had been second on the table almost this entire while, hit 52 in 36 balls to not only take the top spot, but also become the first batter in the competition to go past the 400-run mark.Pooran is now in the unfamiliar position of No. 2, and while Sai Sudharsan’s prolific form – he has 74, 63, 49, 5, 82, 56 and 36 now – has a lot to do with it, Pooran’s own lack of runs in his last two outings – 8 and 11 – is a contributing factor. He still has 368 runs, mind you, and plays the next game in the tournament, against DC at home in Lucknow on Tuesday. He will want to take that cap right back.Not to forget the new No. 3. It’s Jos Buttler. His 41 not out in 23 balls against KKR has taken his tally for the IPL to 345 runs. His captain, Shubman Gill, meanwhile, hit 90 in 55 balls against KKR, and that has made him zoom past a whole selection of batters to 305 runs, and the seventh spot on the table.Mumbai Indians’ (MI) Suryakumar Yadav, Sunday night’s No. 3, Kohli of RCB and RR’s Yashasvi Jaiswal are the others in the 300-plus club at the moment.Purple Cap leaderboardLess drama on the other table, but Prasidh Krishna, courtesy his 2 for 25, strengthened his position at the top of the table with 16 wickets against his name, that’s four clear of the next best.Not just him, two other GT bowlers, R Sai Kishore and Mohammed Siraj picked up a wicket apiece to take their respective tallies to 12 wickets, which put them level with Kuldeep Yadav (DC), Noor Ahmad of Chennai Super Kings (CSK), RCB’s Josh Hazlewood and Shardul Thakur of LSG.You can check other IPL 2025 stats here:

• Highest batting strike rates
• Best bowling economy rates
• Most sixes
• Best bowling figures in a match

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) started IPL 2025 with two big totals in away games – even though one resulted in a very slim loss – but when they got to Lucknow for their first home game, they fell “20-25 runs short” after they were put in to bat because they are “still assessing” the conditions at the Ekana Stadium and captain Rishabh Pant said he is “still figuring out a lot of things for the team.”LSG managed 171 for 7 against Punjab Kings (PBKS) and saw the visitors chase that down in just 16.2 overs with eight wickets in hand.”Definitely [our total] wasn’t enough, we were like 20-25 runs short but that’s part and parcel of the game,” Pant said after the game. “It’s our first home game so still assessing the conditions.”LSG went for a track on the slower side, but it came back to bite them after they were asked to bat by PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer. The hosts stuttered to 35 for 3 in the fifth over as Pant fell for a third low score of 2 off five balls to follow a duck and 15 in the first two outings, and finished the first six overs with just 39 on the board, their slowest powerplay of this IPL.”Definitely it’s always going to be tough to get a big total when you lose early wickets, but that’s how the game progresses every day, like you can’t control everything,” Pant said. “Each and every player is trying to take the game forward from there.”When it was time for LSG to defend their below-par total, Pant used three overs of spin – two from Digvesh Rathi and one from Ravi Bishnoi – hoping that the slowness of the track would get him success, but only Rathi got the wicket of Priyansh Arya while Bishnoi was taken apart for 15 runs by Prabhsimran Singh.”The idea was to get a slower wicket because we felt that it was a home game, it’s going to stop a little bit. And I think when you were bowling slow into the wicket, they were still sticking in but we weren’t good enough on the given day. We going to learn from it and move forward.”LSG now have two losses from their first three games but have three more home games out of their next four to get used to the conditions at Ekana.”It’s early in the tournament, can’t say much, still figuring out a lot of things for the team but hopefully it’s going to come nicely for us.”2:11

Aaron: Bishnoi needs to take more responsibility

After Prabhsimran set the base with a 34-ball 69, Iyer sealed his side’s second straight victory, staying unbeaten on 52 off 30 balls. Nehal Wadhera, who was not out on 43 off 25 at the other end, said “all the credit” went to Iyer for the way he is leading them.”All credit goes to the way he’s captaining us and also the way he is boosting our confidence and the way he was telling me things, like, ‘play your natural game, just go with the flow,’ and I just love playing like that,” Wadhera said.Wadhera came on as an Impact Player, in place of Yuzvendra Chahal after he had bowled out, and said he didn’t even know when he reached he ground that he was going to play and was carrying just the one kit for the day. Wadhera was bought by PBKS after playing for two seasons for Mumbai Indians, and is now under a new captain and a new coach, Ricky Ponting.”He’s one of the best coaches I have ever worked under,” Wadhera said. “I’ve never heard any negative talk ever from his mouth and that’s the best thing about him. He just talks positive and when a coach gives you such positive remarks, that automatically boosts your confidence.”

Heather Graham, Nicole Faltum and Charli Knott will captain Australia A in a multi-format series against England A from late March.The series includes three T20s, three one-day games and a four-day match with all the games being played in Sydney.Graham will lead the Australia A T20 side while Faltum, who has been called up for the T20I tour of New Zealand starting March 21, will captain the one-dayers and Queensland allrounder Knott will take charge of the four-day contest from April 12-15 at Cricket Central.

Australia A vs England A fixtures

26 March: First T20, Hurstville Oval

28 March: Second T20, Hurstville Oval

30 March: Third T20, Hurstville Oval

2 April: First 50-over match, Cricket Central, Sydney

4 April: Second 50-over match, Cricket Central, Sydney

7 April: Third 50-over match, Cricket Central, Sydney

12-15 April: Four-day match, Cricket Central, Sydney

The England A matches will be preceded by the second running of the Green vs Gold fixture where two groups of Australian players face each other in a three-day game which will be held in Canberra from March 12-14. The concept was introduced last year and Georgia Voll scored a double century.Faltum will captain the Green side while Gold will be led by Knott.”These series make up a crucial part of the elite player pathway, providing some our best and most promising domestic players with additional development opportunities and the chance to show selectors what they can do against strong international opposition,” national selector Shawn Flegler said.”The National Selection Panel is always looking to the future as we’ve seen in recent years with Georgia Voll and Phoebe Litchfield transitioning into the Australian team with great success, so this is a great opportunity to get a look at a wide range of players.”We’ve included some fresh faces across the squads and are excited to see the likes of Grace Dignam, Elsa Hunter, Gabby Sutcliffe, Sianna Ginger and Rhys McKenna in action.”With a one-day World Cup in India this year and a T20 World Cup next year, the ‘A’ series in particular, will allow us to have a good look at players we think could push for selection.”The visit of England A comes after the senior side was whitewashed 16-0 in the Ashes earlier in the season.

Australia A squads vs England A

T20s
Lauren Cheatle, Hannah Darlington, Sophie Day, Amy Edgar, Tess Flintoff, Sianna Ginger, Heather Graham (capt), Charli Knott, Anika Learoyd, Rhys McKenna, Madeline Penna, Amy Smith, Courtney Webb, Tahlia Wilson50-overs
Lauren Cheatle, Hannah Darlington, Sophie Day, Nicole Faltum (capt), Tess Flintoff, Sianna Ginger, Nicola Hancock, Ella Hayward, Charli Knott, Anika Learoyd, Amy Smith, Georgia Voll, Courtney Webb, Tahlia WilsonFour-day
Maitlan Brown, Lauren Cheatle, Maddy Darke, Sophie Day, Nicole Faltum, Tess Flintoff, Sianna Ginger, Nicola Hancock, Ella Hayward, Charli Knott (capt), Anika Learoyd, Lilly Mills, Rachel Trenaman, Tahlia Wilson

Australia Green v Gold Squads

Green
Lauren Cheatle, Maddy Darke, Grace Dignam, Nicole Faltum (capt), Sianna Ginger, Ella Hayward, Elsa Hunter, Katie Mack, Lilly Mills, Georgia Prestwidge, Gabby Sutcliffe, Rachel Trenaman, Amanda-Jade WellingtonGold
Maitlan Brown, Hannah Darlington, Sophie Day, Emma de Broughe, Amy Edgar, Tess Flintoff, Nicola Hancock, Charli Knott (capt), Anika Learoyd, Bridget Patterson, Amy Smith, Courtney Webb, Tahlia Wilson

Rishabh Pant has come under criticism for the risks he has taken during this Border-Gavaskar Trophy, risks that have left him with scores of 37, 1, 21, 28, 9, 28, 30. Perception from both outside the Indian team, and inside it, is that he doesn’t rein in his natural game when he needs to.Pant showed he could bat differently in Sydney where Australia’s discipline on a pitch with seam movement and bounce resulted in him taking body blow after body blow in an innings where he faced 98 balls and hit only four of them to the boundary. He came in to bat just as India lost a little bit of their advantage, losing a wicket the last ball before lunch, to become 57 for 2 after 25 overs.Pant took them to tea for the loss of one more wicket, batting in a way he normally doesn’t. India were 107 for 4 after 50 overs.”I think in this innings I was not in a frame of mind where I wanted to take charge of the game because the wicket was doing too much,” he said. “And the kind of situation we were in and while playing inside I felt like I could do like play a little bit of defensive cricket yes there is a time to attack but when you have to feel that from inside. I can’t just pre-meditate that I’m going to play this way whatever the game asked me to do on that given day that’s what I try to do and that was the mindset.”Following the defeat in Melbourne, Gautam Gambhir, the India coach, had communicated the need for a team-first approach where all the players need to decide whether their natural game would help their cause or hinder it. Four days ago, Rohit Sharma had placed the onus on Pant to figure out what was best for both himself and the team.”I think it’s a little bit not very difficult,” Pant said as he spoke about prioritising survival over strokeplay. “Yes, initial part would be very difficult because when you see a ball which you can hit but sometimes you have to play more sensible cricket, I would say. Like there might be 50-50 chance which I could have taken early on in this innings but sometimes you have to play more secure cricket especially the way [SCG] wicket was behaving we knew that if we get one more wicket here we might lose two-three in a quick succession so that was the idea behind the way I was playing and last match there was nothing much to do the kind of target we had I think I had to play that [defensively] way so I think pretty fine with the way I’m playing.Related

• India find other heroes with Bumrah forced to the back seat

• Rohit: Pant needs to figure out the risk-reward game himself

• Boland leads the charge as Australia dominate on green pitch

• India's day of futility, until Bumrah catches fire

• Great Scott Boland, the supersub calling the shots for Australia

Pant is in no mood to sacrifice his gifts entirely. “I think mostly you want to back whatever the way you have played game but eventually you gotta keep on evolving. There is, I feel, there is not one way to play cricket but whatever comes more naturally is always better but you’ve got to find that balance between playing aggressive cricket and having that balance when you play all those shots and that’s what I’m trying to do.”Just trying to make most out of whatever the way I’m playing and just keep it simple not to overthink because you know when you’re not having best of the tours you might overthink too much but I just try to keep it simple and give my 200% on the field and that’s the idea about playing cricket for me.”

Rohit decision was a management call – Pant

India went into the Sydney Test with their captain Rohit sitting out after a prolonged spell of bad form, alongside poor results. “I think definitely it was an emotional decision,” Pant said, “Because he’s been captain for a long time we see him as a leader of the team but I think there are some decisions which you are not involved with and it’s a very management call so I was not part of that conversation so can’t explain anything other than that.”Bumrah who took over in Rohit’s stead had a simple message for India. “I think mostly the message is like be positive all the time don’t think what has already happened just give your best on the field,” Pant said, “And that’s what you want from your captain like being in a positive frame of mind and keep moving the game forward each and every day.”India felt they ended up on the wrong side of a DRS call, when an on-field decision of not-out was overturned in the last session and Washington Sundar was eventually adjudged caught behind. There was a murmur on Snicko as ball passed the glove. Umpire Joel Wilson took that as confirmation of contact. In the previous Test, Yashasvi Jaiswal was caught behind and there he definitely hit the ball but Snicko did not corroborate that evidence. Pant felt technology needed to get better.”I think there is not much to say because technology is one part which as a cricketer you can’t control,” Pant said, “But I feel whatever decision we make on the field it has to stay with the on-field umpire that’s the only thing until unless it’s so conclusive to change the decision I think we should stay with on-field umpire rest is umpire’s decision end of the day I can’t challenge that every day but technology can be a little better I guess.”

Rajshahi Division upset the champions Sylhet Division, beating them by 54 runs in the last round of the 2024-25 National Cricket League. The result ended Sylhet’s unbeaten run, which had paved the way for their maiden title.Batting first, Rajshahi were bowled out for 226, with Sabbir Hossain hitting his third first-class century. Sabbir and Habibur Rahman Sohan added 119 runs for the opening stand but Rajshahi collapsed thereafter. Fast bowler Sofor Ali took his maiden five-wicket haul while Tofael Ahmed took four wickets.Sylhet were then bowled out for 212 despite fifties from captain Amite Hasan and Pinak Ghosh. Amite reached 700 runs in the tournament in this innings. Left-arm spinner Nihaduzzaman took four wickets, while Shafiqul Islam, Asaduzzaman Payel and legspinner Wasi Siddiquee nabbed two each.Sofor, Tofael and Nabil Samad took three wickets each as Rajshahi were bowled out for 186 runs in their second innings. Amite struck his second fifty of the match but it wasn’t enough as Sylhet were bowled out for 146 runs in the fourth innings.Nihaduzzaman took 5 for 24, giving him career-best match figures of 9 for 85. It earned him the Player-of-the-Match award. Amite, meanwhile, was adjudged the Player of the Tournament for finishing on 785 runs, and leading Sylhet to the trophy.Dhaka Metropolis finished the competition in second place after they beat Chattogram Division by five wickets in Rajshahi.Batting first, Chattogram were bowled out for 160, with the left-arm spin pair of Rakibul Hasan and Arif Ahmed taking four wickets each.Aich Mollah then struck 57 as Dhaka Metro finished on 268, leading by 108 runs. Left-arm spinner Ashraful Islam Rohan took four wickets. Sajjadul Haque and Nayeem Hasan made fifties as Chattogram reached 246. Arif took five wickets while left-arm quick Abu Hider picked up four.Dhaka Metro then completed the fourth-innings chase of 141 runs in 29.5 overs.Sylhet captain Amite Hasan was named Player of the Tournament•BCB

Barishal Division picked up their first win of the season after beating Dhaka Division by 122 runs in Bogra.Batting first, Sohag Gazi and Fazle Mahmud made fifties to take Barishal to 289. Rony Talukdar then struck his 12th first-class hundred, to help Dhaka to 310 for 9. Barishal got bowled out for 241, taking their lead to 220 runs.Left-arm quick Ruyel Miah then took six wickets as Dhaka were bowled out for 98.Fast bowler Mehedi Hasan Rana took eleven wickets in the drawn match between Khulna Division and Rangpur Division in Khulna. It was only the second 10-wicket match haul of the season, while it was the first of Rana’s first-class career.He took 7 for 31 to help bowl out Rangpur for just 133, in reply to Khulna’s 244. Khulna then declared their second innings on 147 for 6, before Rangpur batted out the remaining 55 overs to finish on 242 for 7. Rana took four wickets in the second innings.

Rangpur Riders have appointed Mickey Arthur as their head coach. The 56-year-old will take charge of the franchise from the Global Super League, which begins on November 26. He will also be in charge of the Rangpur side during this season’s Bangladesh Premier League.Arthur has recently worked with the Dambulla Aura team in the Lanka Premier League. He is also currently Derbyshire’s director of cricket. Arthur has previously been the head coach of South Africa, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.”We have signed Mickey Arthur for the GSL and BPL this year,” Rangpur team director Shanian Taneem said. “It is a one-year deal. He will take care of us for these two tournaments this year. He is a great addition to our side. The local players are really excited to be coached by him. We have been in touch with Mickey for the last seven-eight days to build the squad for GSL and BPL. He is very active, always gladly helping us.”I think he is perfect for Rangpur Riders’ culture. He is a very friendly guy. He will be of great benefit for the Bangladeshi cricketers in particular. He has huge experience. He has already taken care of so many international sides like Sri Lanka, South Africa and Pakistan.”Arthur has also coached in the BPL previously, with the Dhaka Dynamites side in 2015.

Big picture: Rematch of T20 World Cup final

In one way, Friday’s T20I between South Africa and India is a grudge match. The last time these two sides met was in Barbados, in the 2024 T20 World Cup final. India had no business winning that match when South Africa needed 30 off 30 balls with six wickets in hand. But Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Co snatched the win, and the trophy, from South Africa’s grasp, leaving them heartbroken.In another way, it is not. Many protagonists of that final will not be in action in this series. From India’s XI for the final, only four – Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya Axar Patel and Arshdeep Singh – are part of the current squad. South Africa, too, are without Quinton de Kock, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Tabraiz Shamsi.Therefore, this four-match series might look inconsequential. But don’t forget, the next T20 World Cup is only 15 months away, and the teams have already started preparing for it.Related

• Sanju Samson century, spinners hand India big win in T20I series opener

• Suryakumar: 'If Test comeback has to happen, it will happen'

• Stage set for another Abhishek-Samson audition

India recently faced a shock whitewash at home at the hands of New Zealand, but that was in Test cricket. Their T20I side, which has never been more different from their Test team, is coming on the back of a thumping 3-0 series win against Bangladesh. Continuing their attacking template from the World Cup, they posted a gigantic 297 for 6 in their most recent T20I.South Africa are yet to recover from their defeat in the final. Since then, they have lost 3-0 to West Indies and drew 1-1 against Ireland in the format. Playing at home now, can they bounce back?

Form guide

South Africa LWLLL (last five T20Is, most recent first)
India WWWWW

In the spotlight: Aiden Markram and Tilak Varma

Aiden Markram has crossed 25 only once in 14 T20I innings this year. His tally in the format is 201, at an average of 16.75 and a strike rate of 118.23. This is in complete contrast to his career numbers: average 32.17, strike rate 144.62. On the eve of the first T20I against India, he said he was in a good space mentally. Both he and South Africa would want that to be converted into runs.Can Aiden Markram turn his form around?•Getty Images

A couple of freak hand injuries earlier this year had put Tilak Varma’s career on hold. While he is back in the mix now, the competition has got intense. He was drafted in for the Bangladesh T20Is as an injury replacement for Shivam Dube but did not get a match. After that, he led India at the Emerging Asia Cup in Oman where his returns were unglamorous: 117 runs in four innings at a strike rate of 120.61. Can he step up against a much tougher opponent?

Team news: Debuts for Simelane and Ramandeep?

South Africa could hand a debut to allrounder Andile Simelane. Simelane plays his domestic cricket at Kingsmead, which could come in handy.South Africa (probable): 1 Reeza Hendricks, 2 Ryan Rickelton (wk), 3 Aiden Markram (capt), 4 Tristan Stubbs, 5 Heinrich Klaasen, 6 David Miller, 7 Marco Jansen/Gerald Coetzee, 8 Andile Simelane, 9 Nqabayomzi Peter, 10 Keshav Maharaj, 11 Ottneil BaartmanIndia are likely to hand batting allrounder Ramandeep Singh his T20I cap. Axar Patel should also get a chance after warming the bench during the New Zealand Test series.India (probable): 1 Sanju Samson (wk), 2 Abhishek Sharma, 3 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Ramandeep Singh, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Avesh Khan, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Varun Chakravarthy

Pitch and conditions: Runs ‘n Rains

South Africa do not have happy memories of Durban. Last year, Australia whitewashed them in a series of three T20Is, all played at this venue. It’s a high-scoring venue; the average first-innings total in the last seven T20Is here is 184. However, the weather could spoil things – there is a 40% chance of rain on Friday. The last time India were supposed to play a T20I here, in December 2023, rain did not allow even the toss.

Stats and trivia: Suryakumar’s strike rate

• India have a strong head-to-head record against South Africa in South Africa: six wins and three losses in nine T20Is.
• Among those who have scored at least 1000 T20I runs, Suryakumar has the highest strike rate (169.48).
• Arshdeep Singh is India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is this year, with 28 scalps in 14 games.
• In nine T20I innings against India, Heinrich Klaasen has three half-centuries and a strike rate of 168.09.

Quotes

“It has been a testing few months now. Obviously, we have addressed the reasons behind it, growth opportunities, things that are going to make cricketers better in South Africa over a long period of time. But as a captain, it hurts your pride and I have got a lot of pride wearing this badge and want to carry it forward and want to win games and win series for South Africa. But you lock into the bigger picture, you lock into how much it is going to help cricket in South Africa moving forward. Sometimes you have to go through these tough times and hopefully there will be some light at the end of the tunnel.”
“It has always been challenging playing against South Africa, be it in the T20 World Cup or any bilateral. The last time when we were here, we had a good series. Hopefully, we will have a game [tomorrow]; last time we missed out on the game here. But yeah, it’s always fun and challenging and both sides enjoy having that great competition.”

Sri Lanka 302 for 7 (Kamindu 114, Kusal 50, O’Rourke 3-54, Phillips 2-52) vs New ZealandKamindu Mendis continued his phenomenal start to Test cricket notching up a fourth Test ton, but a couple of late wickets at the end of play ensured that New Zealand were not completely out of it after an engrossing opening day’s play in Galle.That one of those wickets was that of Kamindu will have brought the visitors particular joy, though the nature of the wicket – with it spitting out of the rough outside the left-handers off stump, to catch his glove – might give New Zealand’s left-hand heavy batting line-up some pause.Kamindu’s 114 off 173 was part of two key partnerships, the first worth 72 with Angelo Mathews and the second for 103 with Kusal Mendis. Around those New Zealand did what they do best. They put their best foot forward, set up solid plans, and threw themselves at everything.It meant Sri Lanka were unable to take complete control of the game having won the toss and elected to bat first on an unusually grass-strewn surface.Will O’Rourke was the pick of the bowlers, grabbing three wickets, including that of both Sri Lanka openers within the first hour of the morning session, while Glenn Phillips was the pick of the spinners with figures of 2 for 52. Mitchell Santner was wicketless, though that was less a reflection of his efforts and more a case of bad luck.Ramesh Mendis was unbeaten on 14 off 42 at stumps, alongside him was the Prabath Jayasuriya, but this was a day that belonged to Kamindu.His best work was done alongside the other Mendis in the lineup, Kusal, whose 50 off 68 provided the ideal foil to Kamindu’s steady hand. While missteps were rare for New Zealand, one in particular – a missed chance off a Kamindu miscue when he was still on 21 – might linger a little longer in the memory. That was also a rare Kamindu misstep, as for the most part, he dealt with whatever the visitors threw at him with consummate ease.William O’Rourke got his third wicket on the stroke of tea•Associated Press

The most striking feature of his innings was the ease with which he used his feat against the spinners, a concerted ploy geared towards not allowing them to settle on their lines and lengths. It meant the use of sweeps was more targeted than prolific, hounding out gaps in the field for a consistent flow of runs.His partnership with Mathews offered a much-needed period of consolidation after Sri Lanka had slumped to 106 for 4. Mathews had looked far from his best during a laboured 36 off 116, and it meant the scoreboard also wasn’t moving as swiftly as the hosts might have hoped.However once Mathews fell, edging behind off the excellent O’Rourke, it also brought up Sri Lanka’s best period of the day.With the ball softening and Kamindu already settled, Kusal’s natural aggression ran a tiring attack ragged. It took a freak dismissal to break the stand, as a hard pull off a Phillip’s long-hop saw the ball loop up off an evasive short leg and balloon to midwicket. Kusal looked on in disbelief, though by then Sri Lanka had already played themselves into a considerable position of strength.New Zealand though had started the day the better of the two sides with O’Rourke lighting up a gloomy morning session with a menacing opening burst full of pace, bounce and lateral movement. Through it he accounted for the wickets of Dimuth Karunaratne and Pathum Nissanka, while he also wrought some pain on Mathews, after one seamed back in sharply to strike his right forefinger. That knock forced Mathews to retire hurt, but he was able to return later on to complete his innings.New Zealand’s persistence continued to pay off after lunch, as they grabbed a further three wickets to bookend the session. Dinesh Chandimal fell right at the start, chipping to midwicket for a sharp catch, while Mathews fell on the stroke of tea. In between, Dhananjaya de Silva had a ripper from Phillips turn right through bat and pad to clip the top of off.On another day, all that might have signalled a successful day for the visitors, but Kamindu ensured that it was the hosts that would take home honours on a hard-fought opening day.

Rory Burns followed his double-hundred against Lancashire last week with 161 as champions-elect Surrey ended day one of their Vitality County Championship match against Nottinghamshire on 339 for 5.But by the close of proceedings at Trent Bridge, the Surrey skipper found himself pushed out of the spotlight by 16-year-old offspinner Farhan Ahmed, who not only claimed the wicket of Burns and two more Test players in Ben Foakes and Will Jacks, but finished a sensational first day in Championship cricket with figures of 4 for 69 from 28 overs.The younger brother of Leicestershire and England prodigy Rehan Ahmed, at the age of 16 years and 189 days, Farhan is the youngest first-class player in Nottinghamshire’s history. Earlier this month, he set another record on his first-class debut as the youngest player to be selected for England Lions when they faced Sri Lanka at Worcester.Nonetheless, with half-centuries from Jacks and Ryan Patel against a depleted and relegation-threatened Nottinghamshire side, the defending champions and runaway Division One leaders are in a good position as they seek to edge closer to a third consecutive title.Wheir options reduced by injuries, a Test call-up for Olly Stone and, in the case of Dane Paterson, paternity leave, the home side also gave a first-class debut to 23-year-old pace bowler Rob Lord.Farhan, whose selection displaced Cris Tinley as the youngest first-class player in the Nottinghamshire record books 177 years since the latter made his debut at 16 years 288 days in 1847, was trusted to enter the attack as early as the seventh over, by which time it was already clear that it was not a pitch for persevering with seamers, especially with the Kookaburra ball.Farhan Ahmed became Nottinghamshire’s youngest first-class debutant (file photo)•Nottinghamshire CCC

Unfazed by being swept for six and four by Burns, Ahmed was unlucky not to claim the Surrey skipper as his maiden Championship wicket before the visitors reached lunch at 88 for 1, having the left-hander perilously close to being caught at slip on 36 and at midwicket on 41.Lord, who has played national counties cricket for Cheshire and signed a short-term contract with Nottinghamshire last month, took the only wicket to fall in the session as Dom Sibley was caught at second slip, the ball glancing off the opener’s bat as he swayed out of the path of a rising delivery.Burns completed his fifty from 104 balls soon after lunch before surviving a confident appeal for leg before by Farhan on 78. It was not the most fluent innings he has played, his hundred coming up off a streaky inside edge off seamer Lyndon James that ran away for his eighth four, but his stand of 175 for the second wicket with Patel put Surrey in a commanding position on 203 for 2 at tea.Patel had been caught behind for 77, a well-deserved maiden Championship wicket for Farhan, who asked questions of the batters consistently and was rewarded when he straightened one enough from round the wicket to find the edge.Patel was a first victim behind the stumps for Nottinghamshire’s latest overseas recruit, the South African Test wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne.There was a heavy workload, too, for left-arm spinner Liam Patterson-White and, on only his second first-class appearance, a busy day for Freddie McCann, the 19-year-old top-order batter, who also bowls offspin.Burns clubbed McCann for his third six shortly before reaching 150, prompting Nottinghamshire to take the new ball after 84 overs, although it was only two overs old when they turned again to Farhan, who was lofted down the ground by Burns for his fourth maximum but then dismissed Burns and Ben Foakes with consecutive deliveries.A catch at wide mid-on accounted for Burns as the erstwhile England opener attempted to clear the ropes again before Foakes, capped as recently as March this year, prodded outside off-stump and was caught behind.Jacks survived the hat-trick ball but after hitting Farhan for his third six he was caught on the long-off boundary to give the youngster his fourth scalp.

The seed was planted in Nelson back in March, when a bungled run-chase saw England squander the chance to go 3-0 up in a T20I series against New Zealand.England ended up winning 4-1 and, while the White Ferns threw on some fertiliser with a consolation win in the last of three ODIs, England captain Heather Knight believes the root of her team’s domination of the return tour can be traced back to that third T20I.Now, England are on the cusp of securing an undefeated home summer at Lord’s in the fifth and final T20I after sweeping the ODIs against New Zealand 3-0 and beating Pakistan 3-0 and 2-0 in T20I and ODI series respectively.Related

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“That T20 that we lost in New Zealand, Amy Jones actually spoke brilliantly after that and talked about her fears in T20 chases, and actually made a conscious effort to address that mentally and how she wants to go about chasing,” Knight said at Lord’s on Wednesday.”She spoke really well in front of the group around that, and I think that was quite infectious really, and was a bit of a fire-starter for us wanting to be a bit more ruthless and really nail teams when we are on top. That’s something that’s going to be so important in tournament cricket.”I think our skill level has continued to improve as well. That New Zealand loss in the T20 series where we didn’t chase down a score that we should have was a bit of a catalyst for us to ultimately not let that happen again, and when we’re really on top, to really nail teams.”Against Pakistan, the ‘nailing teams’ objective remained beneath the surface with England winning but without the ruthless streak that has blossomed while hosting New Zealand.England went unbeaten against Pakistan and can do the same against New Zealand•Getty Images

“A lot of people have said to me, ‘New Zealand haven’t been great’. But I think we’ve been awesome,” Knight said. “I think the way we’ve kept their key players quiet probably needs a little bit more credit, to be honest.”The way we’ve played and put them under pressure, and been relentless when we’ve been on top and trying to keep them quiet has been great. We are desperate to finish this summer unbeaten. It’s not something we’ve done very often. It’s our last game of the summer and we want to continue what we’ve done.”The White Ferns’ batting has let them down against England’s top-class bowling attack, led by spinners Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn and Charlie Dean. That has coincided with the hosts showing off the depth of their line-up, with several batters finding form. It has also left England with some difficult selection decisions ahead of the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October.Maia Bouchier appears to have secured an opening berth alongside Danni Wyatt, with both having rested at various stages of the T20I series to give Sophia Dunkley a chance to show her improvement after losing her place following the tour of New Zealand and rediscovering her touch in regional cricket.In both matches she has played, Dunkley has made solid starts with 35 and 26 and her versatility in being able to bat up and down the order could earn her a place in the squad as the spare batter.”She’s looked completely at home again,” Knight said. “She’s got us off to some brilliant starts in the two games that she’s played and that is something that Sophia does give us when she’s at her best. For me, it looks like she’s back towards her best. That decision is pretty tricky around the players that we have and that’s a really good place to be.”Sophia Dunkley has won her place in the squad back•ECB via Getty Images

Mahika Gaur, England’s teenage left-arm seamer, has thrown up another conundrum after missing the early part of the summer to complete her high school exams, then picking up a side strain which has kept her out and prompted her to withdraw from the Hundred to continue her rehabilitation.”It’s tricky,” Knight said. “She hasn’t played a huge amount for England because of her exams and then injury. We were hoping she could get a few games in this series, but that side issue has obviously come back and I think the thing with young players, you have to be really careful – particularly young, fast bowlers – with how you manage them and not push them too far.”She’s not completely out of our plans, but it does make it harder for us to pick her now obviously with those seamers that we’ve got performing really well.”England look set to take a spin-heavy attack to Bangladesh. Lauren Filer offers raw pace to offset her relative inexperience at international level, fellow seamer Lauren Bell is starting to see the benefits of changing her action and Nat Sciver-Brunt is increasing her bowling load after a knee problem. Freya Kemp, who has added to England’s batting depth, is also returning to her allrounder role after a back injury.If Pakistan and New Zealand’s performances have made putting England’s into context difficult, it’s worth looking back to their tour of India late last year, where they lost the Test but won the T20I series 2-1, and last year’s Ashes, where England won both white-ball series in a drawn campaign after Australia won the Test.”I guess we’ve proved in the last 12 months that we can beat anyone on our day,” Knight said. “The Ashes series last summer showed that, particularly in the white-ball series, how we played, winning those series 2-1.”But ultimately we’re just trying to keep improving as well. That’s been a really pleasing thing: [not just] the way we’ve played, but also the fact that as individuals, we’re still trying to get better, we’re still trying to work on things.”We know other teams around the world are going to be doing that. We can only look after ourselves as a team and try and keep moving the game forward and playing how we want to. Bangladesh will be a tough test to see if we can do that in a big tournament as well.”