Pakistan set for ODI decider after West Indies level series
Sherfane Rutherford made 45 from 33 balls to help the hosts recover from a poor start. Chase sealed the win with a boundary off Hasan Ali.
Hasan Ali (L) of Pakistan walks off the field while Justin Greaves (C) and Roston Chase (R) of West Indies celebrate winning the second ODI in Tarouba, San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago on August 10, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)
PAKISTAN will head into a series decider after West Indies beat them by five wickets in the second one-day international on Sunday in Tarouba to level the three-match series at 1-1.
Roston Chase scored 49 and Justin Greaves remained unbeaten on 26 in a rain-shortened match.
Sherfane Rutherford made 45 from 33 balls to help the hosts recover from a poor start. Chase sealed the win with a boundary off Hasan Ali.
"I'm happy with the win. We had to come in and level the series, so very pleased," Chase said after being named man of the match.
Pakistan had won the opening ODI on Friday, with debutant Hasan Nawaz scoring 63 not out and sharing an unbeaten 104-run stand with Hussain Talat to chase down West Indies’ 280 with five wickets and seven balls to spare.
Shaheen Shah Afridi took four wickets in that match.
The third and final ODI will be played in Tarouba on Tuesday.
TEST captain Shubman Gill has replaced Rohit Sharma as India's ODI skipper, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said on Saturday. The change takes effect from the upcoming series in Australia.
Rohit, 38, and Virat Kohli, 36, were both included in the squad for the three-match ODI series starting October 19.
Gill, 26, will now lead India in both Tests and ODIs. He remains vice-captain to Suryakumar Yadav in T20 internationals.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar said Gill was chosen to lead the one-day side with the 2027 World Cup in mind.
"Firstly, it's practically impossible to have three different captains for three formats," Agarkar said in Ahmedabad, where Gill led India to victory over the West Indies in the first Test.
"Obviously, at some stage, you've got to start looking at where the next World Cup is.
"It's also a format which is played the least now, so you don't get that many games to actually give the next guy that much time to prepare himself or plan."
Agarkar said he had informed Rohit of the decision but did not share further details.
He said he was keen to see how Rohit and Kohli adjust to playing just one format of international cricket. They have both retired from T20Is and Tests.
"Those are two really experienced guys who've been around for a long time, so they would perhaps find it a little bit alien just to play one format which is played the least," Agarkar said.
"Whether not playing a lot of cricket makes a difference, one should ask them and we'll find out when they play, but it doesn't happen too many times."
Gill took over the Test captaincy from Rohit during the England series earlier this year and earned praise for his leadership and batting. He scored 754 runs in five Tests as India drew the series 2-2.
Gill also captains Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League.
Rohit, one of India's most successful white-ball captains, led the team to a record third Champions Trophy title in Dubai earlier this year.
Shreyas Iyer will be vice-captain for the ODI series in Australia, while Suryakumar Yadav will lead the T20 side.
India will play five T20 matches after the ODIs in Australia as part of preparations for the T20 World Cup scheduled for February-March in India and Sri Lanka.
India currently top both the ODI and T20 rankings of the International Cricket Council.
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KL Rahul struck 12 fours to reach his century. (Photo credit: BCCI)
KL RAHUL scored his 11th Test century to put India ahead of West Indies on day two of the opening Test in Ahmedabad on Friday.
India reached 218-3 at lunch, with a 56-run lead over the visitors. Captain Shubman Gill was dismissed for 50, the only wicket to fall in the morning session at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
Rahul, who struck 12 fours, was unbeaten on 100 at the interval. He was batting with Dhruv Jurel, who was on 14.
West Indies were bowled out for 162 on Thursday. India resumed the second day on 121-2 and accelerated through the morning with Rahul and Gill at the crease.
Rahul survived an early chance when he edged Jaydon Seales but the ball went between the wicketkeeper and slip to the boundary.
Gill attacked the bowlers, flicking Justin Greaves for a boundary and pulling Johann Layne for another. He also hit debutant spinner Khary Pierre for two fours in the same over to bring up his eighth Test fifty.
The India captain was then out to Roston Chase, attempting a reverse sweep that went to Justin Greaves at slip.
Rahul reached his century with a single off Chase.
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Indian players celebrate after their team's comfortable win over Sri Lanka in Guwahati on Monday. (Photo: Getty Images)
INDIA began their ICC Women’s World Cup campaign with a 59-run win over Sri Lanka in the opening match in Guwahati on Tuesday.
Deepti Sharma and Amanjot Kaur scored half-centuries to help India reach 269 for eight in 47 overs after rain shortened the game.
Sri Lanka started their chase strongly, reaching 82 for one in 15 overs. Skipper Chamari Athapaththu scored 43 off 47 balls, hitting freely against anything loose.
India’s spinners then turned the game. Deepti dismissed Athapaththu with a straight delivery, leaving Sri Lanka’s middle order under pressure.
Earlier, India had slipped to 124 for six after Inoka Ranaweera struck three times in one over. The 39-year-old left-arm spinner finished with four for 46.
Sri Lanka, however, dropped several chances, allowing Deepti and Amanjot to build a 103-run stand for the seventh wicket. Ranaweera also missed a return catch off Amanjot.
Amanjot top-scored with 57 from 59 balls, hitting five fours and a six. Deepti made 53 from 53 balls, her 16th ODI fifty.
With the ball, Deepti also moved past Neetu David to become India’s second-highest wicket-taker with 143, behind Jhulan Goswami’s 255.
“We lost back to back wickets and we needed to steady the innings,” said Deepti, who was named Player of the Match. “(I’m) Happy to have done that. I’m used to batting under pressure and enjoyed the challenge today.”
Sri Lanka, returning after missing the 2022 World Cup, could not recover and their batting struggled again.
The 13th Women’s World Cup is being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka with eight teams. The top four from the league stage will qualify for the semi-finals.
More than 23,000 spectators attended the opener. The tournament prize money is $13.88 million, a 297 per cent increase from $3.5 million in 2022.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Dasun Shanaka congratulates Shubman Gill after the Super Over at the end of the Asia Cup 2025 match between India and Sri Lanka at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai on September 26, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)
INDIA defeated Sri Lanka in a Super Over after their Asia Cup Super Four match ended in a tie in Dubai on Friday.
Pathum Nissanka hit 107 off 58 balls to power Sri Lanka’s reply to India’s 202-5. His effort took the match into a Super Over after Sri Lanka also finished on 202-5.
Arshdeep Singh bowled the Super Over and conceded only two runs. Kusal Perera cut the first ball to deep point and Dasun Shanaka was dismissed on the fifth delivery.
Suryakumar Yadav sealed the match for India with a boundary off the first ball of their Super Over. India have now won all six matches and will face Pakistan in the final on Sunday at the same venue.
Nissanka’s maiden T20 century included seven fours and six sixes. He added 127 for the second wicket with Perera, who scored 58. Varun Chakravarthy broke the stand by dismissing Perera as India’s spinners pulled the game back.
Harshit Rana dismissed Nissanka at the start of the final over with Sri Lanka needing 12 runs, and restricted them to 11.
Earlier, India batted first and reached 202-5. Opener Abhishek Sharma made 61 off 31 balls and shared a 59-run stand with Suryakumar, who scored 12. Abhishek, with a strike-rate of over 200 in the tournament, completed his third consecutive half-century with back-to-back boundaries.
Captain Charith Asalanka dismissed Abhishek before Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson added 66 for the fourth wicket. Samson made 39, while Varma scored 49. Axar Patel remained unbeaten on 21 to push India past 200.
India will meet Pakistan for the third time in the tournament. The two sides have not played a bilateral series in more than 10 years. Their group-stage and Super Four matches also ended without the customary post-match handshakes, with Suryakumar Yadav declining to shake hands with Pakistan captain Salman Agha.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Pakistan's players celebrate after defeating Bangladesh in the Asia Cup 2025 Super Four Twenty20 international cricket match between Bangladesh and Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai on September 25, 2025. (Photo by SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP via Getty Images)
INDIA and Pakistan will face off in a high-stakes Asia Cup final in Dubai on Sunday (28), with political and on-field friction overshadowing their first-ever title clash in the regional tournament.
Pakistan secured their place in the final after edging past Bangladesh by 11 runs on Thursday (25), setting the stage for a blockbuster meeting with defending champions India.
The showdown comes months after deadly fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbours, who have not played a bilateral series in over a decade.
Their most recent meetings in the group stage and Super Four round of this Asia Cup saw India skipper Suryakumar Yadav refusing to shake hands with counterpart Salman Agha.
Players from both sides also skipped post-match handshakes after the first and second encounters.
India comfortably won both the games, stretching their unbeaten run against Pakistan to seven matches dating back to 2022 -- three one-day internationals and four T20Is. India lead 12-3 in T20 matches.
In the Super Four clash, opener Sahibzada Farhan mimicked a gun celebration after his half-century, while pacer Haris Rauf made gestures appearing to mock India's military action during the four-day border conflict in May that left more than 70 people dead.
"Look, my message to the players is just focus on cricket and that certainly we will be doing," said Pakistan coach Mike Hesson after the team's narrow win over Bangladesh.
"In terms of gestures there has always been passion in terms of high-pressure games."
India, the reigning T20 world champions, remain tournament favourites.
They have won all five of their matches in this 17th edition of the Asia Cup, played in the T20 format, and are chasing a record-extending ninth title.
Opener Abhishek Sharma has been in scintillating form with successive half-centuries, while left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav leads the bowling charts with 12 wickets.
But their fielding has been suspect, with 12 dropped catches in the tournament so far.
Spinner Varun Chakravarthy blamed the "ring of fire" created by the stadium's 350 floodlights for the butter-fingered display.
"We have to pick up our fielding, and definitely, the fielding coach has a lot to say," Chakravarthy said.
India, who won the 50-over Asia Cup in the previous edition, play Sri Lanka in an inconsequential Super Four match in Dubai on Friday (26).
Pakistan, two-time Asia Cup champions, will rely on their pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Rauf to provide early breakthroughs, while spinners Abrar Ahmed and Mohammad Nawaz will aim to contain India's powerful batting lineup.
Their batting, however, remains a concern after collapsing to 49-5 against Bangladesh before recovering to post 135-8 which proved to be a winning total.
Suryakumar downplayed the on-field rivalry after hammering Pakistan for the second time in the tournament, but Hesson believes his team can throw up a challenge to the number one ranked T20 side.
The Asia Cup is being widely seen as a dress rehearsal for the T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka in February-March.