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Somerset’s upheaval has continued as chief executive, Lee Cooper, has signalled his intention to step down after only nine months in the job

David Hopps14-Mar-2018Lee Cooper, who took over the role of Somerset chief executive only nine months ago, is to relinquish the position because of pressures of work.Cooper had told Somerset that he could stand aside from the bulk of his duties at Cooper Associates, one of England’s fastest-growing financial services companies, where he remains as a non-executive director.But that scenario has not materialised as he has found it increasingly difficult to distance himself from a company that he founded, and which lies just across the road from the Taunton ground that carries its name.Alarm calls several hours before dawn have not been uncommon as he has attempted to balance both roles.In a statement issued by the club, Cooper said: “When I took up the role of chief executive at Somerset, I assured the then chairman and the committee that I would be able to fulfil my duties whilst standing aside completely from my former responsibilities with Cooper Associates.”It has become increasingly apparent to me that it has not been as straight forward as I envisaged to do so.”I do not believe that it is fair to the club that I continue as Chief Executive if it is likely that other business commitments begin to affect the amount of time that I can properly devote to its affairs.”Andy Nash, Somerset’s former chairman, has confirmed that he has no interest in returning to the county in a new role, remarking that his own chief executive days are behind him.Nash resigned as Somerset chairman to become a Board member of the ECB but he stood down from the Board last week in protest about additional payments to Test-hosting grounds.Nash claimed the payments were further evidence of a desire within the higher echelons of ECB to dismantle the 18-county system in favour of as few as eight city-based teams – precisely the model being used for the new Twenty20 competition.Charles Clark, Nash’s replacement as chairman, will now supervise the latest upheaval in Taunton: “I have been aware for some time that Lee has been facing some very challenging personal decisions,” he said. “Whilst his tenure has been relatively short, he has impressed all who have come into contact with him with his enormous work ethic, diligence, openness, organisational capabilities, courage, determination and passion for our club.”Cooper certainly achieved much in his short time. He restructured the cricket department, resulting in the return of Andy Hurry and the departure at the end of last season of Matthew Maynard as coach.At the end of last season, he threatened legal action action against the ECB during Middlesex’s appeal over relegation which, had it been successful, would have sent Somerset down in their place.He also revamped the club’s membership structure, raising additional revenue but bringing a mixed response. He was forced to publish an an open letter in which he addressed claims of a “conflict of interest” between his roles at Somerset CCC and Cooper Associates, stressing: “Personally, I’m a Somerset supporter first and an employee second and from my perspective, we’re in this together.”To complete a feverish period, there was also disappointment. When the ECB released their Major Match List for 2020-2024, Taunton failed to gain any England internationals and also failed to be chosen as a venue – even a part-time venue – for the the new domestic T20 tournament due to start in 2020. In the West Country, there was talk of ECB betrayal.

Pakistan’s Test captain has said a change of captaincy won’t make as much difference to Pakistan’s cricket as an overhaul of the domestic system

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Feb-2017

PCB invites current and former players to conference

Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman, will conduct a round-table conference with current and former players on March 6 and 7 in Lahore to discuss ways to improve the performances of Pakistan’s senior and junior teams. The conference will be chaired by Inzamam-ul-Haq, the chief selector, and Mudassar Nazar, director academies. Mushtaq Ahmed, the NCA head coach, will serve as co-ordinator.
Current and former players invited to the conference include Imran Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram, Zaheer Abbas, Wasim Bari, Shoaib Akhtar, Aamir Sohail, Javed Miandad, Rashid Latif, Ramiz Raja, Moin Khan, Abdul Qadir, Aaqib Javed, Iqbal Qasim, Bazid Khan and Saeed Ajmal.
The five main topics of discussion are improving team performance, domestic structure, improvement of pitches, coaching of national and junior teams, and encouraging of foreign teams to tour Pakistan.

Pakistan Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq has said a change of captaincy won’t make as much difference to Pakistan’s cricket as an overhaul of the domestic system will.Misbah’s comments come at a time when the PCB is set to overhaul Pakistan’s team, following recent tours of New Zealand and Australia where they lost five straight Test matches and managed only one victory in the ODIs. At the forefront of this agenda seems to be the removal of Azhar Ali as the ODI captain and the appointment of one captain – most likely Sarfraz Ahmed – across all formats, although this is subject to Misbah stepping down as Test captain himself. However, Misbah doesn’t believe Pakistan’s problems will end there.”Make anyone captain – Azhar or Sarfraz – but unless we solve our problem deep down, whoever comes in will face problems,” Misbah said in Faisalabad on Wednesday. “We have to improve domestic cricket and groom talent. If we want to do well in England, Australia and South Africa, we have to give the players maximum experience of playing there. If a player keeps on playing here [in Asia] and all of a sudden does a tour of Australia or South Africa after six years, it will be difficult for him [to perform].”Pakistan’s domestic cricket has often been a subject of revamp and the standard of pitches and the ball have also been inconsistent, while the focus on fitness has also been in question. When asked if the Pakistan Super League (PSL) might offer some resolve, Misbah said it wasn’t feasible to expect that.”Don’t start thinking that there will be change in the team after PSL,” he said. “I think we have to improve [the domestic structure] overall. It is just a tournament. Obviously players will come from it and it will give them exposure, [but] otherwise we have to do a lot of work. We have to bring our domestic cricket close to international standards for whatever talent comes through from the Under-16s and Under-19s. We have to prepare better pitches and improve the standards of our cricket in domestic set-up.”Misbah has been under pressure amid suggestions from cricketing quarters in the country that he should retire. However, he is keen to assess his batting and hunger for the game as he leads Islamabad United, the defending champions, during the PSL’s second edition in the UAE.”We need consistency in the thinking of our nation, and then there will be consistency in our team,” he said. “If your thinking is not consistent and it changes after one match, then the team’s performance will also be like that.”If you are talking about me – I retired one year ago, but at that time the whole nation said I should keep on touring. Now the whole nation is saying that I should be ashamed of myself and go. If you do such things, nobody will be ready to become captain. It’s not necessary you win every series, it’s not necessary you perform in every series. One can put in his best effort. Our views change if you don’t perform in four matches, despite performing for six years.”

Challenging light conditions and a system crash contributed to the unavailability of ball-tracking for an LBW appeal against Jason Holder late on the final day of the Boxing Day Test, the technology operators EagleEye have revealed

Daniel Brettig30-Dec-2015Challenging light conditions and a system crash contributed to the unavailability of ball-tracking for an lbw appeal against Jason Holder late on the final day of the Boxing Day Test, the technology operators EagleEye have revealed.An ageing ball and stark shadows across the MCG were making it difficult for ball-tracking cameras to pick up the ball to a level that satisfied the technology’s handlers, causing them to state to the broadcast producer that they could not provide a ball-tracking model of the Holder lbw appeal immediately.When EagleEye operators then attempted to track the Peter Siddle delivery via Nine’s video footage – the secondary option – a system crash meant they were unable to do so in time for the DRS referral, though it was shown later to demonstrate the ball was missing leg stump.Such eventualities are accounted for in DRS protocols, with the third umpire Ian Gould duly compelled to return to the on-field umpire Marais Erasmus’ original decision of not out. Australia did not lose a review as a result of the course of events. Ian Taylor, head of the New Zealand company Animation Research that provides EagleEye for the broadcaster Channel Nine, said the firm took responsibility for the outcome.”The guys weren’t happy with the first data they got because of a lighting issue so they did a re-track from the video. Unfortunately when they did that the system crashed and they lost the video,” Taylor told ESPNcricinfo. “Doing the re-track without the video takes much longer.”They had to let the producer know they weren’t happy with what they had and advised him there was no useable track available at the time. That is part of the protocol and in that case ‘umpire’s call’ stands. They did retrieve the track in the end but it was too late to use, but they did put it to air.”I want to be clear this is our responsibility. We weren’t able to track this ball to a satisfactory standard and said so.”Taylor said this was only the third such occasion that EagleEye operators had needed to indicate they were unhappy with the data they were getting, in an association with cricket in Australia that dates back to the 2010-11 Ashes summer. By contrast, Taylor said that the Marlon Samuels lbw in the first innings of the match – considered by many to be out though tracking had the ball clearing the stumps – was not a source of consternation for the company.”They were happy with it,” Taylor said of the operators at the MCG. “Side-on showed he was on his tip toes and he was hit on the top of the pad. They felt happy with that tracking, based on what the side-on cameras showed.”There are ongoing discussions between technology operators and the ICC about how to further improve the system, including the advent of a specialist third umpires rather than the current rotation between on-field and off-field duty. It is believed that this concept is also supported by the umpires themselves, as they find it difficult to make the adjustment from the instincts required in the middle to the data analysis of the television review job.Taylor is also an advocate for a system of universal DRS training to be undertaken by umpires and technology operators alike, so all are accredited with the same knowledge base and thus have a greater degree of trust in each other. The Holder lbw was discussed between the match referee Chris Broad and officials from both teams following the conclusion of the Test. Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann said his team remained staunch supporters of the system.”You just want them to get it right, that’s all, make sure the technology is up to speed,” Lehmann said. “Everyone loves it, we’re pro it, it’s just making sure they get it right. It was missing leg stump, they handled it well from a match referee/ICC point of view, where we didn’t lose a review, got that back. Making sure it’s working 100% of the time is the key.”

At the close Lancashire’s lead was 327 runs and should give them a chance to force their third Championship win of the season

Paul Edwards at Aigburth31-May-2013
ScorecardGareth Cross hit 64 to push Lancashire into a commanding position•Getty Images

Many more days like this and county cricket runs the risk of getting some rather decent publicity. In near perfect weather and on a good wicket Lancashire and Gloucestershire’s cricketers tussled for advantage in a game which neither side never completely bossed until the last hour of play.By then Glen Chapple’s batsmen were scoring more or less as they pleased against a tiring attack that was missing the left-arm spin of Ed Young, who has a wrist injury. At the close Lancashire’s lead was 327 runs and only some daft, ultra-cautious declaration will prevent them having a chance to force their third Championship win of the season on the final day.Perhaps the cricketer who personifies the search for hard-won advantage
which this match has been all about is Gareth Cross. The Lancashire wicketkeeper-batsman made a hundred in his side’s last game against Hampshire but that game was as dead as last month’s Radio Times for a good proportion of his innings. More valuable was Cross’s 30 against Glamorgan or his 45 against Essex, both knocks which contributed important runs to eventual wins.On Friday, Cross signed up to do some more heavy lifting and this was all the more laudable given that he had been smacked in the mouth by the ball when keeping wicket in the morning session. Coming to the crease with Lancashire on 62 for 5, an advantage of a mere 150, and having lost five prime wickets to the Gloucestershire seam trio of Craig Miles, Liam Norwell and Graeme McCarter, Cross fought alongside Ashwell Prince – another cricketer who savours trench warfare – to build a potentially match-winning lead.Their 85-run stand had gone a long way towards achieving that goal when Prince chipped Benny Howell to Norwell at mid-off, but Cross then increased the tempo of the innings with Wayne White in some style. The pair added 67 in 12 overs before Cross was caught in the deep for 64 off the persevering Norwell. White completed his first fifty for Lancashire off 47 balls three overs before the close, but he would be the first to admit that Prince and Cross had earned him his licence to attack.”It was good to spend some time in the middle and continue from Hampshire,” Cross said. “I did a bit of work in the indoor nets in the winter on occupying the crease and, while I can play the shots, it’s also more risky to do that so I’m just trying to play to my ability. I’ve felt in good form all year and it’s nice to be making a contribution. If Ashwell or I had got out, we’d have been in trouble but he’s a calming influence and we played well, I think.”Yet each session of this day’s play produced players from each side whose qualities could be applauded by the good-sized crowd. In the morning Alex Gidman and Simon Kerrigan dominated proceedings, the Gloucestershire batsman completing his first Championship century of the season and the Lancashire spinner, bowling unchanged from the River End to take 5 for 40 in 14.2 overs.Indeed, at times the play constituted something of a duel befitting d’Artagnan et al, Gidman’s boundaries – he also hit Kerrigan and Kyle Hogg for sixes – being countered by the spinner’s wickets. Lancashire probably wanted something more than the 88-run first -innings lead they eventually gained whereas Gloucestershire entertained hopes of whittling the advantage down to less than 50. Both teams had to settle for less than their ideal; it made for splendid cricket.Gidman scored his century off 170 balls, hitting eight fours and two sixes in the process. On the point of lunch, he was caught by White at deep square leg off Kerrigan for 110. The large Liverpool crowd applauded him generously; his innings had determined the strength of Gloucestershire’s position. For his part Kerrigan finished with 5 for 68 in the innings and there is every chance he will add a few more on the final day of this game. If so, the name of Gareth Cross may be to the fore once again.

Sri Lanka’s chairman of selectors Ashantha de Mel has said the Sri Lanka batsmen should be wary of the Pakistani spinners during the upcoming series

Sa'adi Thawfeeq27-May-2012Sri Lanka’s chairman of selectors Ashantha de Mel has said the Sri Lanka batsmen should to be wary of the two Pakistan spinners, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, during the upcoming Twenty20, ODI and Test series.”It is the Pakistani spinners we need to be careful of. Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman are of a different class compared to our spinners. Only Rangana Herath comes anywhere close to them,” De Mel said.Offspinner Ajmal and left-arm spinner Rehman have been at the forefront of Pakistan’s recent successes. The pair took 43 wickets in Pakistan’s 3-0 win over No. 1 ranked England in their last Test series played in the UAE early this year. Ajmal was also the leading wicket-taker with 18 wickets during Sri Lanka’s three-Test series against Pakistan in the UAE last year.”The advantage the Pakistan team has is that it also has batsmen who can be useful bowlers, for instance opener Mohammad Hafeez, who can bowl offbreaks,” he said. “This adds a lot of variety to their attack and balances their team nicely.”Their fast bowlers are quite effective with the reverse swing. That’s another area our batsmen have got to be wary of. Pakistan have mastered the art of reverse swing from the era of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis. Umar Gul and left-arm fast bowler Junaid Khan are very good at using the old ball.”A former fast bowler himself, De Mel said Sri Lanka’s fast bowlers need to develop their skills to master reverse swing, an art that needs a lot of practice to be perfected.Recollecting Sri Lanka’s last Test series against England at home which ended in a 1-1 draw, De Mel said the batsmen needed to put up 400-plus totals in the first innings if Sri Lanka are to have any chance of winning. Sri Lanka’s highest total in that series was 318 in the Galle Test and they failed to go past the 300-run mark in the Colombo Test.”At least three of the top five batsmen need to get a big score if we are to come up with competitive totals. Off the middle-order, two of the three most experienced batsmen must score runs,” De Mel said, referring to the trio of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera who have a combined tally of 25,001 runs and 73 hundreds in Tests.De Mel admitted the middle order had been put under pressure due to the poor starts provided by the openers. Sri Lanka tried Tharanga Paranavitana and Lahiru Thirimanne as opening partners with Tillakaratne Dilshan in the series against South Africa and England, but none of them were able to settle into the role.”I don’t think Thirimanne is an opener. He is good in the middle order. We persisted with him because the previous selection committee had picked him as an opener and we wanted to give Thirimanne a fair chance to prove himself. We are thinking of bringing back Paranavitana to open with Dilshan.”Thirimanne, who has been named in Sri Lanka’s Twenty20 and ODI squads, bats in the middle order in the shorter versions, but is unlikely to be named in the Test squad. In seven Tests in which he has opened the batting, he has only gone past 50 once.When questioned why former Test opener Upul Tharanga is not being considered for the position, De Mel said, “Upul’s technique against the new ball is suspect. He is playing well away from his body and that is why we have decided to bring him down the order in the ODIs and play him in the middle where he has contributed.”There’s, at present, a paucity of quality opening batsmen in the country. We are looking at Dimuth Karunaratne as an opener for the Sri Lanka A tour to South Africa and also wicketkeeper Kushal Janith Perera, who bats at No. 3, as an opener in the limited-overs version.”The Sri Lanka A team is due to tour South Africa and Zimbabwe next month.Another youngster Dinesh Chandimal is likely to be named in the Test squad but will find it difficult to make it into a line-up that comprises Dilshan, Paranavitana, Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Samaraweera, Angelo Mathews and Prasanna Jayawardene. De Mel added Mathews would be picked purely as a batsman and may bowl occasionally.”Our bowlers are not penetrative enough. To win a Test you need to take 20 wickets. What I have observed about our quick bowlers is that they come at you initially around 135 [kph] but are about ten kilometers (per hour) slower when they return for their second spell. The four to five bowlers in the line-up should all contribute to take wickets.”Predicting a close contest during the Test series, De Mel said the pitches used would play a key role. “The side that performs on the day will hold the advantage. I hope we get some decent wickets with some bounce. We make slow and low wickets and end up losing. The P Sara Oval wicket (where Sri Lanka lost to England) was slow and low and lacked bounce.”Sri Lanka and Pakistan play two Twenty20 matches before the ODIs and Tests. De Mel said the selectors had picked the 14-member squad for the two Twenty20s in Hambantota with an eye on the forthcoming World Twenty20 (which will be hosted by Sri Lanka in September).”We have picked Isuru Udana who is a specialist Twenty20 bowler and legspinning all-rounder Kaushal Lokuarachchi whom we think can be useful in the shorter version.”De Mel said that apart from spinner Ajantha Mendis, who is still recuperating from a back injury and was not considered for selection, Farvez Maharoof and Suranga Lakmal were left out because Nuwan Pradeep and Dilhara Fernando were declared fit.

Shahid Afridi has downplayed the PCB’s decision to seek an “explanation” from him for the comments he made on Sunday after returning to Pakistan from the Caribbean

ESPNcricinfo staff11-May-2011Shahid Afridi has downplayed the PCB’s decision to seek an “explanation” from him for the comments he made on Sunday after returning to Pakistan from the Caribbean.”I have received a letter from the Board and will send my reply tomorrow,” Afridi told the . “It’s all the result of misunderstanding and I’m sure the matter will be resolved soon.”Afridi all but confirmed to reporters that there had been differences between him and the team management over selection issues during the five-match ODI series that Pakistan won 3-2, when he said, “Although the differences in team management are not such which could not be solved, I feel everyone should do his job and need not interfere in other’s work.”Though he didn’t take anyone’s name specifically, it was coach Waqar Younis he was referring to, growing differences between the pair a fact which PCB officials confirmed to ESPNcricinfo last week.The board took exception to the statement Afridi made and served him a notice on Monday to explain to the board what he has said, stating that he had violated the Code of Conduct by making such statements publicly.Afridi however said that he had made a few general comments and that he “didn’t say anything that I haven’t said before.”Afridi is no stranger to board notices and his public straight-talking ways have often landed him up at board headquarters with some explaining to do. Late last year, he criticised his team publicly after a Twenty20 loss to New Zealand and the fall-out was that he was almost removed from the limited-overs captaincy after a number of players grew unhappy with his comments.

The team will play three four-day games against Glamorgan and India A between June 5 and 20 before two limited-overs matches against Ireland in Stormont

Cricinfo staff22-May-2010Devon Smith has been named captain of the West Indies A team for the tour of England and Ireland this summer.The team will play three four-day games against Glamorgan and India A between June 5 and 20 before two limited-overs matches against Ireland in Stormont. West Indies A will then take part in a tri-series involving England Lions and India A.Clyde Butts, West Indies’ chairman of selectors, had said that scheduling of regular matches for the A team was a step in the right direction for the development of the region’s cricket. The team had a recent home series against Zimbabwe and also toured Bangladesh.West Indies A: Devon Smith (capt), David Bernard (vc), Omar Phillips, Lionel Baker, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Odean Brown, Kirk Edwards, Andre Fletcher, Justin Guillen, Imran Khan, Nelon Pascal, Gavin Tonge, Chadwick Walton.Kieron Pollard and Nikita Miller will replace Justin Guillen and Odean Brown for the one-day section of the tour.

All ODIs that end in a tie should feature a Super Over, time and conditions permitting, as per the ICC’s playing conditions

Nagraj Gollapudi & Andrew Fidel Fernando14-Aug-2024The match officials involved in the tied first ODI of the recent Sri Lanka-India series made the mistake of not taking the game to a Super Over as per the ICC’s playing conditions.ESPNcricinfo has learned that the on-field umpires Joel Wilson and Raveendra Wimalasiri, along with the match referee Ranjan Madugalle, TV umpire Paul Reiffel and fourth umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge, internally acknowledged having misinterpreted the ODI playing conditions, which state in case of a tie teams will contest a Super Over to procure a result. While in this case there was some confusion over whether the Memorandum of Understanding between SLC and the BCCI for this tour allowed for a Super Over to be played, it has since become clear that all ODIs that end in ties will feature a Super Over, time and conditions permitting.Related

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While the umpires brushed off the bails to signal the end of the match after the tie, neither team enquired about the absence of the Super Over, with the players shaking hands immediately. Questions, though, quickly started to pile up n social media.The latest edition of the ODI playing conditions, released by the ICC in December 2023, says this: “If the teams’ scores are equal after both innings have been completed, then a Super Over shall be played. If the Super Over is a tie, then unless exceptional circumstances arise subsequent Super Overs shall be played until there is a winner. Should it not be possible to play or to complete the Super Overs needed to determine a winner, the match shall be tied.”It is understood that Madugalle, Wilson and Wimalasiri did not immediately discuss any specific reason behind not having the Super Over. Following later discussions, though, the match officials decided they would activate the Super Over in case there was another tie in the remaining two ODIs of the three-match series, which was eventually won by Sri Lanka 2-0.In the match in question, India needed five runs from the final three overs, with two wickets in hand, to chase down the target of 231. Shivam Dube managed a four, before India lost consecutive wickets in the 48th over, delivered by the hosts’ newly appointed captain Charith Asalanka, resulting in the tie.

He will lead a side with Buttler, who will join on June 1 and play ten group games plus any knockout fixture

Matt Roller24-May-2023Liam Livingstone will captain Lancashire in the 2023 T20 Blast – with his England white-ball skipper Jos Buttler in the ranks for the majority of the season.Livingstone spent a single season as Lancashire’s all-format club captain as a 24-year-old in 2018 but stepped down after struggling for form as the club were relegated from Division One of the County Championship.”I think I was a very different person and player back then,” Livingstone told LancsTV. “I think my experience around the world over the last couple of years will obviously make things a little bit different for me, and we’ve got a lot of players to bounce ideas off so it certainly won’t just be me making all the decisions.”We’ve got a really good squad. I don’t think it’s too difficult a job: we’ve got a lot of experience, we’ve got more experience coming back in – hopefully Jos in the next couple of games. I don’t think it’s a difficult task. We’ve got a lot of people to bounce ideas off and hopefully the team should pretty much captain itself anyway – it’s just a few decisions here and there.”Livingstone will deputise for club captain Keaton Jennings, who sustained a hamstring injury while playing in the Championship last month. “Handing Liam the reins for this summer’s Blast gives us some consistency and allows Keaton to focus fully on his recovery,” Glen Chapple, Lancashire’s head coach, said.Lancashire played in the opening game of the Blast season against Derbyshire on Saturday, winning by four wickets. They initially named Dane Vilas as captain when announcing their squad, but left Vilas out of the side altogether to accommodate Daryl Mitchell and Colin de Grandhomme as their two overseas players and were instead led by veteran batter Steven Croft.Buttler, Livingstone and Phil Salt all returned from the IPL this weekend but Buttler will take a short break before returning to the Lancashire set-up on June 1, when they play Yorkshire at Headingley. He is due to play 10 group games for Lancashire this season – more than he has managed across the last five years combined – as well as any knockout fixtures, having dropped out of England’s Test set-up and with no clash between the Blast and England’s white-ball fixtures this season.”I’m really looking forward to pulling on the Red Rose once again and representing Lancashire Lightning in this summer’s Vitality Blast,” Buttler said in a press release.”To have the opportunity to play so many matches in this year’s Blast is really exciting for me and it’s a chance to really help the team after coming so close in last year’s final.”Lancashire’s next Blast fixture is against Leicestershire on Thursday afternoon.

Cross, Ecclestone play stellar roles with the ball to restrict the hosts

S Sudarshanan19-Mar-2022 England Women 204 for 9 (Sciver 61, Knight 42, Mackay 4-34) beat New Zealand Women 203 (Green 52*, Devine 41, Cross 3-35, Ecclestone 3-41) by one wicket It is a World Cup of thrillers. And England took the tough route to get home to all but knock the hosts out.Nat Sciver and her partnership with Sophia Dunkley had almost done it for England. They had added 70 for the fifth wicket and England were just 28 away. But Frances Mackay, with a wet ball thanks to constant drizzle, picked three wickets for just eight runs after the 40th over to trigger a collapse that saw England lose five wickets for 20 to go from a comfortable 176 for 4 to a nervy 196 for 9.Mackay first got one to spin in sharply past the outside edge of Dunkley’s bat to bowl her. An over later, she had Sophie Ecclestone inside-edging one on to the stumps, before having Kate Cross lbw to a ball she should have been forward to. Then Katherine Brunt ran herself out going for a non-existent second run to add to the chaos. It was panic stations in the England dressing room.In the interim, Sciver, on 61, missed a cut off Jess Kerr to be bowled. But Anya Shrubsole and Charlie Dean saw England home eventually to help them notch up their second win in the competition to keep their title defence alive.On a day of intermittent drizzle, it was the trio of Cross, Charlie Dean and Sophie Ecclestone who combined to dismiss New Zealand for 203 after they had gotten off to a quick start in Auckland. Maddy Green’s half-century helped the hosts past the 200-run mark, something that looked to be at a distance after a late collapse.After a 15-minute toss delay where Knight inserted New Zealand in, Devine and Suzie Bates cashed in on some wayward bowling. Brunt struggled to adjust to the wind and didn’t get her lines and lengths right, much like Ellyse Perry in the India-Australia match on Saturday, and the ‘Smash Sisters’ took full toll.Shrubsole wasn’t spared either as New Zealand raced to 44 for 0 in seven overs. That prompted England to get Cross and Sciver on early, but Devine and Bates brought up their first fifty partnership in the competition.Cross then gave England an opening when she got Bates to miscue one high for mid-off. Soon, Devine had to retire hurt on 37 after going down with a sore back and barely managing to get up and walk off.While Cross and Sciver kept the lid on the scoring, Dean’s introduction further slowed things down as Amelia Kerr and Amy Satterthwaite struggled to rotate strike. The offspinner, who had returned career-best of 4 for 23 against India, got Amelia Kerr to top-edge a sweep, the shot that she had employed successfully throughout the series against India.Green then took on Ecclestone after a watchful start, while Satterthwaite, too, began to accelerate with a slight drizzle making an appearance. However, Dean trapped Satterthwaite to start the slide for New Zealand. They lost five wickets for just 27 runs from there, including that of Devine, who walked back in after the sixth wicket. It was Green’s innings coupled with a last-wicket cameo by Jess Kerr, where she scored 14 off just 13 balls, that saw the home side cross 200.New Zealand began the 204-run defence well, dismissing Danni Wyatt early after she had gotten off to a quick start. It took the long, outstretched arms of Hannah Rowe running backwards from mid-off to get the breakthrough. Tammy Beaumont, on the other hand, was busy and hit three fours in the space of six balls against Rowe and Jess Kerr. She had gotten the measure of the surface that seemed to hold up a bit in the second innings, pulling Lea Tahuhu for four before the bowler undid her with pace to knock her over.New Zealand were disciplined without being incisive enough, and Sciver was happy to bide her time. In fact, it was Sciver’s slowest fifty in ODIs. It was set up by Heather Knight earlier, who scored 42 off 53 balls, unlucky to miss out on a half-century of her own.Knight and Sciver, as they had done against India, prevented the slide and at the same time kept England on course. The England captain waited for spinners to err before reverse-sweeping Mackay through backward point and using the leg glance to collect a boundary off Amelia Kerr.Mackay, though, extracted revenge when she trapped Knight in front of the stumps in an attempted reverse sweep, the DRS not coming to Knight’s aid. Brooke Halliday, who was called in to fill Tahuhu’s quota, had England in a brief discomfort that resulted in Amy Jones’ wicket.It was then than Sciver and Dunkley got together to effectively seal the chase. Sciver showed restraint in attacking Amelia Kerr and was happy to wait for the bad balls, which was one of the characteristics of her knock. She pulled Rowe through backward point to get to her half-century off 97 balls. But with England in pole position, needing 31 off the last ten overs, they committed hara-kiri.Somehow, they managed to squeeze home in the end, by the barest of margins.