All posts by n8rngtd.top

Removal of set batter, with lesser hitters to come, could have made the difference

S Rajesh11-Nov-202118.3 Dropped! That was ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball commentary for the third ball of the 19th over, when Matthew Wade, then on 21 off 13, was given a life by Hasan Ali. You could sense that it could be a vital drop, and it was confirmed emphatically when Wade smoked the next three balls for sixes to end the contest without even the need for a 20th over.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

How costly was that missed chance?According to ESPNcricinfo’s Luck Index, that error cost Pakistan 15 runs. Wade took two runs off the ball off which he was dropped, and then hit 18 off the next three, which means 20 runs were scored off four balls. Luck Index estimates that those four balls would have only gone for five runs had the catch been taken.

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This calculation is done by assuming that Wade would have been dismissed off that ball, and three balls he played subsequently would have been played by Pat Cummins and Marcus Stoinis, who was the non-striker. Based on the scoring patterns of these batters, Luck Index estimates that five runs would have been scored off those three balls, which would have left Australia needing 15 from the last over. That, the algorithm estimates, would have been too much for the remaining batters to achieve.Babar Azam, the Pakistan captain, made a mention of that error in his post-match comments, and seeing the impact of that missed opportunity, it’s not difficult to see why.

He is set to move to England to become the performance director at Warwickshire

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Mar-2023Gavin Larsen has decided to step down as New Zealand selector after almost eight years in the job. The former New Zealand seamer will now move to England along with his wife Karen to take up the role of performance director at Warwickshire, subject to a visa approval. He is set to replace Paul Farbrace, who had left his job as sporting director at Warwickshire in October last year.Under Larsen, who took up the selector’s role in 2015, New Zealand enjoyed tremendous success across formats, including reaching the finals of the 2019 50-over World Cup and 2021 T20 World Cup, and winning the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) in 2021.”The past seven-and-a-half years have just flown by and I’ve relished and enjoyed every minute of it,” Larsen said in an NZC media release.”The discussions and deliberations have always been robust and challenging but my enduring memory will always be the quality of the people I’ve worked with – from high performance right through to the administration.”Larsen will be overseeing both the men’s and women’s high performance programmes at Warwickshire.”WCCC is a club with an amazing history and tradition and I’m looking forward to joining the team and helping to drive the club’s ongoing success,” Larsen said. “I have a number of great memories of playing at Edgbaston during my New Zealand playing days and the atmosphere was simply terrific.”NZC’s GM High Performance Bryan Stronach spoke highly of Larsen’s contribution to New Zealand cricket as a selector.”Gavin was part of a support team that made a key contribution to arguably the most successful period in the history of the New Zealand men’s team,” Stronach said.”His appointment at Edgbaston reflects the respect in which he’s held around the cricketing world.”Stronach added that the process to find a new selector will begin in due course.

David Warner has maintained that he feels in good touch in the Ashes, and Stuart Broad’s record over him is not a concern

AAP19-Jul-2023David Warner insists Stuart Broad has not got inside his head, despite admitting he has Barmy Army taunts over the English seamer’s record against him stuck on the mind.Warner has retained his spot at the top of Australia’s order for the fourth Test at Old Trafford, as the tourists push for their first Ashes series win in England since 2001 .The decision came after speculation over whether Warner could be squeezed out, after a double failure at Headingley last week took his series average to 23.5.Related

• Australia pick Green over Murphy for Old Trafford Ashes Test

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• Stuart Broad vs David Warner: 17 and counting

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Also of rising concern to a number of ex-players is Warner’s record against Broad. The left-hander has now been dismissed by Broad 17 times in his career, including twice in seven balls against him at Headingley last week.Devoid of any real sledging aimed in his direction in this series, Warner quipped on a podcast this week he had been playing Barmy Army chants over and over while facing up to bat.Included in those is the chant of “Broady is gonna get you” after the opener heard it on repeat throughout the opening Test at Edgbaston and in the matches that followed.But regardless, the 36-year-old insisted Broad’s record against him was not genuinely on his mind when facing up the quick.”I don’t really think about the match-up,” Warner said on the podcast.”You think about the ball that’s coming at you, how you are going to score. He bowls in a great area all the time.”I always love facing Broady. We have two left-handed opening batters and he is one of, if not the best bowler to left-handers in today’s game. He is so good at it.”Jimmy (Anderson) is there as well. These are guys we have watched and played against for a long time.”Stuart Broad celebrates dismissing David Warner again•Getty Images

Warner was also adamant he still feels in fine form ahead of the fourth Ashes Test, arguing Broad simply beat him with two good balls at Headingley.The left-hander began the tour with a fighting 43 against India in the World Test Championship final and made 66 in the second Ashes Test at Lords. Australia have also regularly pointed to the fact he and Usman Khawaja have made three half-century opening stands to help set up their 2-1 series lead.”I feel like I am in great touch,” Warner said. “I have felt good in the nets, leading in I had good sessions against our quicks at Beckenham (before the series).”Lord’s was probably the best I’ve batted in the last two years. Just holding my line.”We have batted in probably the toughest conditions so far. In Leeds, I got two good balls.”You can’t do too much about that … You just have to take it on the chin, can’t do anything about it.”

He is understood to have hurt his hand during a first-division club game in Chennai last Sunday

Deivarayan Muthu15-Aug-2025Tamil Nadu captain R Sai Kishore will miss the pre-season Buchi Babu tournament with injury but is hopeful of recovering in time for the Duleep Trophy, which is set to begin in Bengaluru on August 28.It’s understood that Sai Kishore had hurt his hand while intercepting a drive from M Shahrukh Khan in his follow-through during a first-division club game at the Guru Nanak college ground in Chennai last Sunday.Related

• Prithvi Shaw set for Maharashtra debut in Buchi Babu Tournament

• Tilak Varma to lead South Zone in Duleep Trophy

Sai Kishore, 28, is part of the South Zone squad that will start its campaign on September 4 at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.In the absence of Sai Kishore, Pradosh Ranjan Paul will take over as captain of the TNCA President’s XI in the Buchi Babu tournament, with C Andre Siddarth as his deputy. Paul had initially been named captain of the TNCA XI, but Shahrukh will now take charge of that side after the reshuffle.Sai Kishore’s injury has depleted Tamil Nadu’s spin stocks in the build-up to their domestic season. Fellow left-arm spinner S Ajith Ram, who was the third-highest wicket-taker in the 2023-24 Ranji season, is also injured while M Siddarth has been moved from the TNCA President’s XI to the TNCA XI due to personal commitments.Sai Kishore had tuned up for the red-ball domestic season by playing county cricket for Surrey and one match for his club team upon returning to Chennai. Last month, he took 11 wickets across two matches for Surrey, including a five-wicket haul against Durham, which helped his side take a key step towards their retention of the Rothesay County Championship.Seam-bowling allrounder RS Ambrish and fast bowler D Deepesh, who had played for India Under-19s in England, have also been named in the two Tamil Nadu Buchi Babu squads.The TNCA XI will face a Mumbai side featuring Ayush Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan and his brother Musheer from August 18 at the Gojan ground in the outskirts of Chennai.

Squads

TNCA President’s XI: Pradosh Ranjan Paul (capt), C Andre Siddarth (vice-capt), B Indrajith, Vijay Shankar, R Vimal Khumar, S Radhakrishnan, S Lokeshwar, G Ajitesh, J Hemchudeshan, RS Ambrish, CV Achyuth, H Trilok Nag, P Saravana Kumar, P Vidyuth and K Abhinav.TNCA XI: M Shahrukh Khan (capt), Boopathi Vaishna Kumar (vice-capt), B Sachin, M Siddharth, Tushar Raheja, Kiran Karthikeyan, S Mohamed Ali, S Rithik Easwaran, SR Athish, S Lakshay Jain, DT Chandrasekar, P Vignesh, R Sonu Yadav, D Deepesh, J Prem Kumar, A Esakkimuthu and TD Lokesh Raj

Oshada Fernando has been subbed in for the second match running

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jul-2022Sri Lanka have been hit with another Covid-19 case after opener Pathum Nissanka tested positive, taking the number of players since the start of the Australia series to six.”He was found to be positive during an Antigen test conducted on the player yesterday morning, following the player complaining of feeling unwell,” an SLC statement said. “A PCR test carried out later in the day confirmed the result. Nissanaka was immediately isolated in a different hotel upon identification and will undergo Covid-19 protocols.”For the second time in two matches, Oshada Fernando has been brought in as the Covid substitute after he replaced Angelo Mathews, the first player to test positive, during the opening game in Galle.Since then Praveen Jayawickrama, Dhananjaya de Silva, Asitha Fernando and Jeffrey Vandersay have also been positive with the quartet ruled out of the second Test.Mathews was able to take his place in the side for this game having completed his five-day isolation period.With two days of the series remaining, Australia have managed to avoid any Covid cases within their squad. Andrew McDonald, the head coach, arrived late for the tour last month after testing positive before leaving.Sri Lanka have a short turnaround to their next Test with the opening match against Pakistan getting underway in Galle on June 16.

After having battled each other for Associate supremacy throughout the 2010s, the sides come together for their first meeting in a T20 World Cup proper

Peter Della Penna27-Oct-20224:54

O’Brien: ‘Huge game for Ireland after the England win’

Big picture

On geographical terms, Afghanistan and Ireland are perhaps two of the most peculiar rivals across cricket, but the intensity of this rivalry was borne out of a battle for Associate supremacy throughout the 2010s before both sides were elevated to Test status in 2017. Whether locked in a virtual dead heat in that era, or joined at the hip in the time since then as the fresh faces of the Full-Member society, these two sides know each other better than most at this tournament.Ireland and Afghanistan faced off in three consecutive tournament finals at the Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier in 2010, 2012 and 2013, of which the men in green won the latter two. Those are part of the 23 times these sides have met before in the format since their first encounter in 2010. Remarkably though, this will be the first time they face off in a T20 World Cup proper.Barring those back-to-back wins in the finals of the qualifier, Afghanistan have dominated the rivalry, thanks in large part to Ireland’s inability to negotiate Rashid Khan. But the tide shifted this past summer in Belfast when Ireland took a five-match series by a 3-2 margin. Rashid only took one wicket in the three matches that Ireland won, highlighting a simple equation that has often determined the fate of the result over the years. Rashid takes wickets – Afghanistan wins. Ireland sees him off – Ireland wins.

Form guide

Afghanistan: LLLLW (last five completed matches, most recent result first)
Ireland: WLWWL

In the spotlight

For most of his career, Ireland captain Andy Balbirnie batted at No. 3. But since Kevin O’Brien was dropped following Ireland’s disastrous performance in the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE, Balbirnie has moved himself into the opening role and has justified the decision by doubling his prior career tally of four T20I half-centuries. The most recent of those came against England at the MCG, and he also served as a catalyst for the opening round win over West Indies that took them into the Super 12s with 37 off 23 balls.Rahmanullah Gurbaz was the best six-hitter in the Asia Cup, clearing the ropes on 12 occasions to make 152 runs at a strike rate of 163. It might take that kind of muscle to clear the ropes at the MCG. He was also one of only three players to score a half-century for Afghanistan during the five-match series held in Belfast in August.Rashid Khan vs Ireland batters could be a key contest at the MCG•ICC via Getty Images

Team news

George Dockrell has recovered from Covid-19 – he played anyway against England and Sri Lanka after testing positive – and should be fine to go against Afghanistan. It’s unlikely Ireland will change the winning combination that saw them beat England at the same ground.Ireland (probable): 1 Paul Stirling, 2 Andy Balbirnie (capt.), 3 Lorcan Tucker (wk), 4 Harry Tector, 5 Curtis Campher, 6 George Dockrell, 7 Gareth Delany, 8 Mark Adair, 9 Barry McCarthy, 10 Fionn Hand, 11 Josh LittleAfghanistan too are likely to stick with the same combination that took the field five days earlier against England despite a losing effort.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Hazratullah Zazai, 2 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 3 Ibrahim Zadran, 4 Usman Ghani, 5 Najibullah Zadran, 6 Mohammad Nabi (capt.), 7 Azmatullah Omarzai, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Fareed Ahmad, 11 Fazalhaq Farooqi

Pitch and conditions

The MCG has favored seamers in this tournament and historically favors chasing sides with 10 out of 16 men’s T20I matches won by the team batting second. The decision to chase may be even more enhanced by the forecast for Friday. Following the rain that halted England’s chase against Ireland and forced Afghanistan’s match against New Zealand to be washed out entirely, an 80% chance of showers is forecast from 8 am until 8 pm on Friday.

Stats and trivia

• Hazratullah Zazai needs 33 runs to get to 1000 in T20Is. Nobody has more runs or a better average for Afghanistan against Ireland in T20Is than Zazai, who has made 466 at an average of 51.77, including a famous 162 not out off 62 balls at Dehradun in 2019.
• Paul Stirling has an equally enviable record at the top of the order in this rivalry, scoring nearly 20% (614) of his T20I career runs (3133) against Afghanistan. He’s saved his best for ICC tournaments against Afghanistan. Two of his four half-centuries in 22 innings against Afghanistan came in Player-of-the-Match performances to win the final of the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier.

Quotes

“I’ve seen a lot of rain in my time playing cricket, and I’ve never been happier to see that rain come down when it did.”
“We’re not just here to participate but here to win matches. We’ve got players and a squad that can do that.”

Royals’ Impact Player strategy and use of Holder has come into sharp focus following back-to-back losses

Sidharth Monga26-Apr-20235:32

Dasgupta: Jaiswal needs to find the right tempo after powerplay

Big picture: Royals are under threat of losing steam

Not for a long time have these two teams been thought of and spoken of as the two finalists of the first IPL. Fifteen years later, halfway into the 16th IPL, you think of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals as the top contenders because they have been that good.Without making drastic changes in personnel, CSK have become the most explosive team with the bat even though they like to start a little conservatively. Their pace bowling is slightly thin but they are putting up large totals to give them the cushion.A large total is what Royals put up for CSK in their first encounter this IPL only for CSK to come within striking distance. Even though they might be among the top teams on the table, Royals are under threat of losing steam having lost their last two matches.In sharp focus will be Royals’ toss and Impact Player strategy. Their XIs have not tended to depend on the toss. Last time they named just the five bowlers in their field-first XI, and didn’t have a proper batter in the substitutes should they need one in the second innings.Royals’ use of Jason Holder the batter, too, remains a mystery: he has batted just two balls in seven matches, and has been sent behind R Ashwin regularly. With 10 needed off two balls in the last match, with even Ashwin dismissed, they chose to send Abdul Basith, an IPL debutant with a highest T20 score of 27, ahead of Holder.

Form guide

Rajasthan Royals LLWWW (8 points from 7 matches)
Chennai Super Kings WWWLW (10 points from 7 matches)

Team news: Stokes and Chahar still unlikely

Before their last match, the CSK coach Stephen Fleming had said Ben Stokes had “another little setback” on his road to recovery. Deepak Chahar is also unlikely to return to action soon.Yashasvi Jaiswal could pose a threat to CSK with his big-hitting•PTI

Toss and Impact Player strategy

Rajasthan Royals
The last match in Jaipur was played on a slow and low pitch where scoring was difficult. Assuming a similar pitch is in the offing, Royals might like to include Adam Zampa in their plans, especially considering how they have been using Holder just as a specialist bowler.Possible XII: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Jos Butter, 3 Sanju Samson (capt. & wk), 4 Devdutt Padikkal, 5 Riyan Parag, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Dhruv Jurel 8 R Ashwin, 9 Trent Boult, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Sandeep Sharma, 12 Adam Zampa/ Jason HolderChennai Super Kings
CSK have had great success with a fixed combination for the last three matches, but if the pitch is slow there might be temptation to go in with Mitchell Santner in place Matheesha Pathirana. Ambati Rayudu will continue to be the batter to not field.Possible XII: 1 Devon Conway, 2 Ruturaj Gaikwad, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Moeen Ali, 5 Shivam Dube 6 Ambati Rayudu 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 MS Dhoni (capt. & wk), 9 Matheesha Pathirana/ Mitchell Santner, 10 Tushar Deshpande, 11 Maheesh Theekshana, 12 Akash Singh

Stats that matter

• Of all the IPL venues, sixes are hit most infrequently in Jaipur: one every 29.7 balls.
• Ruturaj Gaikwad strikes at under a run a ball against the two RR opening bowlers, Trent Boult and Sandeep Sharma.
• Only Bhuvneshwar Kumar has got Jos Buttler more often in T20s than Moeen Ali: 44 balls, 60 runs, four wickets.

Pitch and conditions

Even if the pitch is not as slow as it was in the first match in Jaipur, Sawai Mansingh Stadium has historically not been a high-scoring venue. So don’t expect too much fireworks.

The big question

Yorkshire claim fourth win in a row despite sliding to 78 for 7 batting first

ECB Reporters Network06-Jun-2023Beaten in their opening three North Group fixtures, Yorkshire Vikings extended the turnaround in their Vitality Blast campaign to four wins from four, defeating Leicestershire Foxes by 30 runs after the home side were bowled out for 126 at a chilly Uptonsteel County Ground.Having opted to bat first, the Vikings recovered from a perilous 78 for 7 on a green-tinged pitch to post 156 from their 20 overs, allrounder David Wiese finishing on 50 not out from 32 balls and former Leicestershire allrounder Ben Mike 30 from 17 after the pair set a Vikings record by adding 78 for the eighth wicket.Jordan Thompson was the most effective bowler for the Vikings, taking a career-best 5 for 21, with 20-year-old legspinner Jafer Chohan impressing with 1 for 16 from four overs.Wiaan Mulder – playing solely as a batter after missing the last two games with a hamstring injury – top-scored for the Foxes with 46 but although Rishi Patel, with 36 from 25 balls, proved effective in the powerplay, the home side could not build sustained partnerships, dismissed with three balls left of the 20th over.England’s young legspinner Rehan Ahmed took 3 for 21 and left-arm seamer Josh Hull took 2 for 30 – both just 18 years old – as the best of the Foxes bowlers, but strike bowlers Mikey Finan and Naveen-ul-Haq took some punishment as the home attack leaked 69 runs in the last five overs.Dawid Malan’s hot streak ended in the second over as a leading edge to a ball from left-arm spinner Callum Parkinson saw him caught at short third man for 2 following his run of 95 not out, 83 and 81 not out in three innings. James Wharton cashed in on a couple of balls wide of off stump by Hull but there was another success for the Foxes as Naveen beat Adam Lyth’s swinging bat and the Vikings were 42 for 2 from their batting powerplay.Wharton and Shan Masood added 36 in 29 balls but three more wickets before the halfway point had the visitors on the back foot at 65 for 5.Rehan, among the contenders for an England Ashes spot following the injury to Jack Leach, did his prospects no harm by bowling Wharton with one that skidded through before holding an easy return catch next ball as Jonathan Tattersall chipped one back.The Vikings were in more trouble as Masood under-edged a catch behind off the tall Hull before Rehan claimed his third scalp via a catch in the deep on the leg side, well taken by Finan.Yorkshire had no momentum at all at this point and were six overs without a boundary at 75 for 6 when Rehan finished his spell in the 13th over, suffering a further setback in the next over as Matthew Revis nicked one off Hull.But a loose over from Finan gave Wiese a helping hand as he lofted a free hit over long-off for the first six of the Vikings innings and hammered a full toss for four, setting off a strong finish for Yorkshire side and a poor one for Leicestershire, who up to that point had given little away.Wiese and Mike hit eight fours and three sixes from 38 balls after the fall of the seventh wicket, Mike clearing the rope off former team-mates Naveen and Finan to give his old county a tougher chase than they had anticipated.On a roll, Wiese began the home side’s batting powerplay with a maiden and when Nick Welch was grabbed behind the stumps at the second attempt off spinner Dom Bess, the Foxes were 1 for 1. They recovered to put 44 on the board in the opening six but also lost Lewis Hill, who skewed Thompson to third man.At the halfway point, the outcome looked in the balance after a couple of tight overs from Chohan, with 93 needed from 60 balls at 64 for 2. When Patel – hit on the helmet by Revis on 31 – was leg before to Thompson for 36 from 24 balls, and Louis Kimber was bowled by Chohan sweeping, the Vikings looked favourites, an assessment quickly confirmed as Rehan thumped a short delivery from Revis in the air to Wharton at mid-off.Mike held a steepling return catch to remove Arron Lilley, after which a flurry of boundaries by Mulder raised hopes that the Foxes could still make a game of it until Thompson dismissed him and Naveen with consecutive deliveries, both via catches in the deep. Parkinson departed in similar fashion off Mike and Thompson kept steady under another soaring return catch put up by Finan to complete his maiden five-for.

Starc revealed words from a former Australia coach spurred him to push through pain barrier as he closes in on Dennis Lillee’s tally

Alex Malcolm05-Mar-20241:39

Clarke: Marnus needs to believe in himself

Mitchell Starc has the strong words of former Australia coach Tim Nielsen still ringing in his ears as he stands on the brink of a remarkable achievement.If he takes two wickets at Hagley Oval this week against New Zealand in the second Test he will surpass Dennis Lillee on Australia’s all-time leading Test wicket-takers list and move to fourth behind Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Nathan Lyon.Related

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As impressive as that is, Starc is arguably prouder of the fact he is set to play his seventh straight Test of a southern hemisphere summer. It is something he has not done in his 14-year international career. The closest he has come was 2017-18, where he missed one Test out of eight when Australia played five against England at home and three against South Africa away in the span of four months.A once fragile Starc has become Australia’s iron man, pushing through pain to play game after game for his country. He distinctly remembers a conversation on one of his early tours with Australia in 2010, that led him to realise that pushing through pain was part of the job.”I was still learning what all those pains were and obviously the reports get around from physios to coaches and I sort of got told to harden the f*** up a little bit,” Starc said. “Timmy Nielsen probably made me aware that early doors. Obviously, there’s plenty of times you need to be honest with the medical staff but other times you got to know when to push through things.”The last 12 months has been one of those times. Starc was Australia’s leading wicket-taker in the away Ashes last year despite only playing four Tests.He was supposed to go on the limited-overs tour of South Africa before the ODI World Cup but was withdrawn due to lingering groin soreness. Starc has never revealed the exact details of the issue nor has he outlined the pain he was in. He remains tightlipped on both.Mitchell Starc has often pushed through the pain barrier•Getty Images

But there were grave concerns for him during the World Cup, where he hardly trained and had to make slight changes to his run-up to mitigate against long-term injury.That he got through the tournament without issue was impressive. That he has been able to back up and play seven Tests in a row since is even more so.”I think a lot of work goes into that a lot of work that people don’t see or whether it be the rehab or the handling of niggles or there’s certainly sore mornings for a lot of people,” Starc said. “But I think that comes down to experiencing and knowing how to deal with certain things and finding ways through them to still make an impact with a team or perform and carry out your role.”Surpassing Lillee will be a monumental achievement. He is the only bowler in Australia’s top eight wicket-takers with a strike-rate under 50. Of the 27 men who have taken more than 350 Test wickets, only Dale Steyn, Waqar Younis and Malcolm Marshall have a better strike-rate than Starc.”It’s cool. It’s humbling,” Starc said. “It means I’m old. I’ve played a little bit of cricket.”Starc also has another landmark in sight. Tim Southee will become the latest pace bowler to bring up 100 Tests in Christchurch this week and Starc is 12 away. If his body and form hold up, he could join the club in 2025.”To play 100 Test matches as a fast bowler is a huge achievement for [Southee],” Starc said. “If I can get that far, that’d be nice as a bowler and again that’s probably showing a bit of age and experience but a bit of longevity as well and then the work to become resilient and to push through a few things. So if I can get that far it’d be a nice touch but at this stage, it’s one week at a time.”

Pakistan bat out full 50 overs as England struggle to make dominance tell

Valkerie Baynes23-May-2024Alice Capsey set the foundations by finding her 50-over form with the bat before England’s spin twins, Sophie Ecclestone and Charlie Dean, sealed a “scrappy” victory for the hosts in their opening ODI against Pakistan in Derby.Pakistan’s search for an ODI win over England continues after this, their 13th match, which England won by 37 runs with two more games to come, at Taunton on Sunday and Chelmsford on Wednesday.Capsey top-scored with 44, her ODI career-best, as England set a victory target of 244 for Pakistan, who had never scored more than 209 in the format against England, although they gave that a nudge, finishing on 206 for 9 as England failed to finish the game off when they had their opponents on the ropes.Capsey’s innings broke a run of six in ODIs where she had failed to pass 6 and followed scores of 5, 31 and 1 during the T20I series with Pakistan, which England swept 3-0.Pakistan were well in the contest through the first powerplay but struggled against the spin of Ecclestone and Dean – who claimed five wickets between them – in a win Heather Knight, England’s captain, described at the presentation as “scrappy”. Seamers Lauren Bell and Kate Cross finished with two wickets apiece.After being put in to bat, England had a number of moderate contributors, as they did through the first two T20Is, with Amy Jones, Tammy Beaumont and Nat Sciver-Brunt making it into the 30s but failing to kick on. Capsey – the player of the match in Northampton with 31 and two wickets – threatened to do just that here after overturning an lbw decision off Dar when she was on 35. But she hung her head in disappointment after spooning a return catch to Nashra Sandhu with six overs of England’s innings left.Capsey faced 18 deliveries for her first boundary, picking the gap between extra cover and mid-off beautifully with a well-timed drive off Aliya Riaz and she followed that two balls later with a sumptuous drive for four.Capsey and Jones combined for a 67-run partnership after Knight fell for a laboured 29 from 49 deliveries, which included two chances, before Jones swept Dar and sent a top edge to Ayesha Zafar at square leg for 37.Openers Maia Bouchier and Beaumont had fallen lbw to Nashra and Umm-e-Hani respectively to leave England 61 for 2 in the 14th over.Knight was dropped on nought off Nashra when she skied one towards mid-on where Hani made a meal of the opportunity and Hani was again the culprit when Knight, on 18, struck Dar straight to midwicket only to see the chance spilled.It was Aliya who finally removed Knight, slashing at a wide delivery and producing a thick edge to Najiha Alvi behind the stumps. Sciver-Brunt fell in similar fashion, attempting to drive another wide one from Aliya but managing only to edge behind as England slipped to 118 for 4 just after the halfway point of their innings.Charlie Dean halted Pakistan’s recovery•PA Photos/Getty Images

After Capsey’s dismissal, the wickets fell steadily for an England side missing Danni Wyatt, who had scored a 48-ball 87 in the third and final T20I at Headingley but woke up feeling unwell on Thursday. Dean offered a neat cameo worth 20 before she was bowled, giving Dar her third wicket for the match, and Sarah Glenn remained unbeaten on 16 off 13 balls as England reached 243 for 9 in 50 their overs.In pursuit, Sidra Amin was dropped on 2 by wicketkeeper Jones off Bell but Jones made amends a while later by holding on as Sidra drove at a lovely Bell delivery which nipped away off the pitch outside off stump and brushed the outside edge on its way to the keeper without adding to her score.After 15 overs, Pakistan were 66 for 1 but, immediately after the drinks break, Ecclestone had Sadaf Shamas out chopping onto her stumps for 28.Muneeba Ali survived when Jones failed to hold an edge as the batter attempted a cut shot against Dean. But then Ecclestone pushed a gem through the gap between bat and pad to remove Ayesha Zafar in single figures and, although Muneeba reached 34, she fell driving at another excellent Bell delivery, full and jagging away to catch the edge for caught behind.Pakistan needed to score at around a run-a-ball going into the last 20 overs with four wickets down but when their captain, Dar, slog-swept Dean to Beaumont at deep midwicket it was the breakthrough England needed.Ecclestone claimed her third wicket in the next over when she pinned Fatima Sana on the front pad in line with leg stump as she strode forward and Dean then had Aliya out lbw as Pakistan lost three wickets for seven runs in the space of 15 balls.From there, the task proved too steep for Pakistan, despite Nashra and Najiha proving stubborn with an unbroken 28-run stand for the 10th wicket, underlining England’s inability to fully kill off the match. The hosts faced 157 dot balls compared to Pakistan’s 203, although England gifted them 40 extras, including 31 wides, and so they leave Derby with a good amount of work still to do.