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Therese Walsh, who was chief operating officer for last year’s Rugby World Cup, has been appointed to lead the New Zealand operations for the 2015 World Cup. Walsh, who has been a director of New Zealand Cricket since 2011, will be head of New Zealand for the tournament to be hosted jointly by Australia and New Zealand.”Therese will play a leading role across the whole tournament but pay special attention to delivery in New Zealand,” John Harnden, the World Cup CEO, said. “Our aim is to put on a fan-friendly event which reaches as many communities as possible across both countries. Therese brings great experience in sport and major events to the role and has invaluable insights from what has been recognised as the best Rugby World Cup ever.”Walsh served as the chief financial officer and general manager corporate services for the New Zealand Rugby Union before she took on the Rugby World Cup role. Walsh said she was looking forward to working across both Australia and New Zealand in the lead-up to the tournament, which will be held in February-March 2015.”This was a perfect chance to be a part of another global sporting event that is going to have a direct and positive impact not only on cricket in New Zealand but on communities, businesses and individuals,” Walsh said. “While my title is Head of New Zealand, my focus will be on creating a memorable event across both countries that will leave a legacy for years to come.”

Andrew Balbirnie has played four ODIs for Ireland•International Cricket Council

Ireland A produced a miraculous fightback to beat Gloucestershire 2nd XI at Bath. They chased 411 to win in 92 overs on the final day.With the wicket taking an increasing amount of spin and Ireland A 98 for 3, any chance of victory looked remote. But Andrew Balbirnie played a match-winning innings, striking 19 fours in a 201-ball knock. He added 178 for the fourth wicket with Stuart Thompson, who hit 14 boundaries of his own for a 122-ball 93 but he was dismissed with135 still required to win.John Anderson – who made a first-innings 72 – arrived at the crease and he and Balbirnie added a further 79 but it was left to Balbirnie to take his side to the target.”We knew it was a flat pitch and if you got in, then you could score quickly,” Balbirnie said. “I had a bit of luck early on but as the innings progressed I got more confident and started to hit the ball cleanly. We knew we had to build partnerships and that was the key to the win. Stuart Thompson played superbly, and that was a great knock from John Anderson when things could have gone wrong.”Balbirnie had already scored a century against Gloucestershire 2nd XI, having made 100 not out at Bristol last season playing for Middlesex second XI. He also played in the World Cricket League in the Netherlands in 2010.

Marchant de Lange has become the second South Africa player to withdraw from the Test series against England through injury in the opening week of the tour. De Lange sustained a lower back injury during the Twenty20 tri-series in Zimbabwe last month and has not recovered. He will be replaced by Albie Morkel.South Africa had already suffered a major blow on Tuesday, when wicketkeeper Mark Boucher sustained a career-threatening injury and was forced to retire from international cricket.”Marchant has been diagnosed with a lower-back stress fracture and will require at least six weeks rest and rehabilitation,” Brandon Jackson, the team’s physiotherapist, said. “A bone scan was done after his lower-back pain worsened in the past week, showing inflammation in the bottom vertebrae of the spine.”De Lange was not part of the first-choice XI and was only expected to play if there was an injury to one of Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander or Morne Morkel. He has played just two Tests – his debut against Sri Lanka in Durban, where he took 7 for 84 in the first-innings and a match against New Zealand in Wellington that Jacques Kallis had to sit out with a stiff neck – but has been part of three South Africa squads.Injuries have been a major part of de Lange’s short career. He broke both his ankles at Under-19 level and could not represent South Africa at age-group level. His back problem is believed to have started during the IPL, when de Lange was contracted to the Kolkata Knight Riders.South Africa have back up in the bowling department even in De Lange’s absence. Left-arm seamer Lonwabo Tsotsobe remains part of the squad and has already shown match readiness. Tsotsobe was the leading wicket-taker in South Africa’s practice match against Somerset earlier in the week, taking 3 for 46 in the first innings.He will have now competition from Albie Morkel, who will join up with the squad later on Friday. Morkel was already in England, where he was playing for Somerset in the Friends Life t20 and was called an “ideal replacement” for De Lange by convenor of selectors, Andrew Hudson.”He comes into the squad with invaluable knowledge and experience of UK conditions,” Hudson said. “He has a good first-class record and his ability to swing the ball and to contribute with the bat lower down the order gave us the extra incentive to rope him in.”Morkel played five matches in last season’s SuperSport Series and scored 326 runs, including a century and two half-centuries, at an average of 46.57. He also took 17 wickets at an average of 27.58. He has only played one Test for South Africa, in 2009, against Australia in Cape Town.

Angelo Mathews has said dropped catches have cost Sri Lanka the ongoing ODI series against India. Suresh Raina, who was involved in match-winning partnerships during the third and the fourth ODI in Colombo, was put down at crucial stages in both games. Virender Sehwag was dropped on zero in the opening game in Hambantota before he made 96 as India posted a winning 314. “Against the Indian batting line up, you can’t drop that many catches,” Mathews said. “If you take from number one to seven, they’re all are very good batters.”The series has been played on largely flat batting-friendly pitches so far. Mathews said he favoured “sporting” wickets, especially against a strong Indian batting line-up. “I’ve always fancied good sporting tracks, rather than playing on dead tracks. We all know that they [India] have a very strong batting line up. We need to come up with ideas, if we’re to win against them. Preparing certain wickets also will help.”Sri Lanka have not beaten India in a bilateral ODI series since 1997. Mathews said Sri Lanka had made more mistakes than India had, and cited the example of the current series. “It happened three times so far in this series. If we make more mistakes, we’re going to get more penalised. I’m sure the guys are aware of that and if we’re to win, we need to me more positive and aggressive.”Sri Lanka have had a heavy workload since the 2011 World Cup while India have had a two-month break. Mathews said that professional players could not cite fatigue as an excuse, but admitted that India’s break had helped them. “We’re all professionals and we play the game with busy schedules. It’s certainly not an excuse. It’s always better to have a few days off. We really haven’t had a long break in the last one and half years. Yes, I think it [the break] has helped them [India] to freshen up.”With tomorrow’s game of little consequence, Mathews said Sri Lanka might consider giving fringe players a chance. Batsman Chamara Kapugedara and offspinner Sachithra Senanayake are yet to play a game in the series.Mathews also backed young batsman Dinesh Chandimal, whose highest score in the series has been 28, to come good. “We don’t try to distract him with too much talking. He’s a player who can always come back and do his part. He’s shown lots of character. A player can fail in three four innings but a guy like Chandimal will always come back.”

Ernest Hilaire, the outgoing chief executive of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), has revealed that a “commercial Twenty20″ league in the Caribbean is in the works. Hilaire’s term comes to an end on September 30, but he said he would like to leave having finalised the deal, which was being supported by an unnamed investor.”We’re in the advanced stages of discussions to have a commercial Twenty20 league in the region and I have been leading the negotiations on that. We’re very close to completing the negotiations. I would like to complete that whole process before I move on,” Hilaire said in an interview with the Antigua-based . “We are in discussions with an investor. Once we have an understanding, we can move forward with it.”Hilaire did not elaborate on the exact structure of the Twenty20 league and if it would be a mirror image of other popular domestic leagues like the IPL. He did make it clear though that the existing Caribbean Twenty20 will be played next year. “We will be having the Caribbean Twenty20 in January as scheduled. The board will meet next week and make some decisions on its structure and how it will be organised.”On September 14, the WICB directors are scheduled to meet to discuss the governance structure of the board. Hilaire said the board would also discuss the planned T20 league and finalise its structure. He would be bringing on board both the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) to discuss issues pertaining to players, he said, to make sure there were no hurdles. “We will need to speak to WIPA and FICA, and other stakeholders, to make sure everybody is on board.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsTillakaratne Dilshan hit his fourth ODI century of the year•AFP

Early in the evening, BJ Watling missed his century by four runs but returned to the pavilion with a spring in his step after propelling New Zealand to a competitive total in difficult circumstances, with rain curtailing the game to 33 overs a side. Tillakaratne Dilshan not only passed three figures, but also ensured Sri Lanka passed the finish line without panic in a controlled chase.The two innings were statistically similar – in terms of strike-rate and number of boundaries hit – but the difference lay in the way they were paced. Watling came alive after he passed fifty, while Dilshan built his innings steadily and pushed on once his partnership with Angelo Mathews had all but ensured Sri Lanka to safety.New Zealand had scored 188, but the target was revised to 197. The chase began positively with Dilshan finding the gaps early on, but New Zealand hit back in the fifth over. After being caressed for two boundaries through the off side, Tim Southee bowled a bouncer and Upul Tharanga ducked and the ball deflected off his helmet for four. Southee exchanged words with the batsman but Tharanga barely had time to gather himself when he hooked the following ball – dug in short again – awkwardly to fine leg.The challenge for the New Zealand bowlers was the heavy dew and their seamers did well to keep it tight and not let the likes of Kumar Sangakkara to get away. In the urge to find the boundary, Sangakkara chipped down the track to Kyle Mills and pulled straight to midwicket. It wasn’t Mahela Jayawardene’s night either, as his reverse sweep off Nathan McCullum found short third man, giving New Zealand an opening in the 15th over with Sri Lanka needing 124.The boundaries had dried up for the hosts and the drought lasted eight overs before Mathews charged Southee and swatted him over mid-on. The required rate crept up to seven and beyond but Dilshan and Mathews ensured things didn’t get out of hand, perhaps gaining a psychological edge watching the bowlers furiously wipe the ball trying to get rid of the dew. The fielders showed good commitment, sliding and diving with purpose but the bowlers couldn’t sustain the pressure, giving away regular boundaries.Dilshan crashed one on the up and nearly cleaned up the bowler Trent Boult, before Mathews slapped two ordinary deliveries from Mills wide of point in a three-over period that produced a vital 30 runs. It was a matter of time before Dilshan produced his trademark lap shot, sending one off Jacob Oram to fine leg. Sri Lanka took their last Powerplay block of three overs in the end, when Dilshan muscled his way towards his century, reaching the landmark with a six over deep square leg.Sri Lanka were fortunate their innings wasn’t constantly interrupted by the weather. Two lengthy rain interruptions – both exceeding 100 minutes each – couldn’t have been easy for New Zealand as they looked to build after being put in to bat. After the second break, they had 19 remaining overs to get as many as they could, with the threat of rain at the back of their heads.The stand of 56 between James Franklin and Watling gave New Zealand the push they needed. Watling had nothing to lose in attacking. His first fifty came of 70 balls – his next 46 came off just 18. It included slogs to midwicket off the spinners, powerful drives to the deep square on the off side off the seamers and three boundaries in an over off Lasith Malinga. That over – the penultimate – yielded 15, as Malinga dished out low full tosses. It was one of those nights when he couldn’t land his yorkers. Nathan McCullum gave him good support at the other end with clean hits.A century for Watling seemed a possibility but he lost strike after the third ball in the final over. New Zealand had made enough to set Sri Lanka a required rate of just under a run-a-ball, but Dilshan and Mathews settled the issue with nearly two overs to spare and give Sri Lanka an unassailable 2-0 lead.

ScorecardVA Jagadeesh scored his second century of the season but his team-mates couldn’t give him support and Kerala slipped to 192 for 5 on the first day against Services in Delhi. Jagadeesh batted the entire day, facing 225 balls for 126. Kerala’s openers added 49 before Abhishek Hegde was lbw to Suraj Yadav. The Kerala captain Rohan Prem made 5 off 69 balls before he was dismissed and his team them slumped to 112 for 4. Jagadeesh dominated a 70-run stand for the fifth wicket before Sachin Baby fell close to stumps.
ScorecardAfter making half-centuries in his previous two games, Tripura opener Subhrajit Roy scored his first hundred of the season to lead his team towards an imposing first-innings score against Himachal Pradesh in Nadaun. Roy made 111 with 20 fours, adding 160 runs for the third wicket with Abbas Ali, who made 83. Roy did not see the day out but the Tripura captain Ajay Ratra made an unbeaten 55 to lead his team to 325 for 4 at stumps. Rishi Dhawan was the pick of Himachal’s bowlers, taking 2 for 83 in 25 overs.
ScorecardAssam seamer Arup Das took 4 for 58, his best figures this season, to prevent Jammu & Kashmir from having sizeable partnerships on the first day in Guwahati. J&K’s openers fell cheaply after they were asked to bat but the middle-order batsmen got starts. Only Parvez Rassol went past fifty though as Nos 3 and 5 were dismissed in the 30s. Wicketkeeper Obaid Haroon was unbeaten on 35 at stumps.
ScorecardAndhra were reduced to 137 for 4 by Goa in Visakhapatnam before Amol Muzumdar steadied the innings with a half-century. Muzumdar made and unbeaten 56, and had partnerships of 57 with AG Pradeep and 46 with Duvvarapu Shivakumar to lift his team to 240 for 5 at stumps. New-ball bowler Saurabh Bandekar caused the most damage for Goa, taking 3 for 63.

South Africa batsman Alviro Petersen has stepped down as captain of the Highveld Lions franchise with immediate effect, due to his commitments with the national side. Stephen Cook will captain the team for the remainder of the first-class Sunfoil Series.”When I took over as Lions captain, my immediate focus, together with then coach Dave Nosworthy, was to build a squad who can compete in all three competitions, hence the recruitment of [Thami] Tsolekile, [Gulam] Bodi, [Imran] Tahir and [Hardus] Viljoen,” Petersen said.”We have also seen young talented cricketers emerging and also the squad mature as a whole. I do think the squad is complete now, and ready to win silverware. I would like to thank the Lions board, coaching staff, supporters and most of all the players, for their support and commitment the last three years.”I wish the new leadership team of Lions cricket all the best, while I look forward to the new challenges and opportunities in my career.”Petersen captained the side for three years, during which they played in the final round of four limited-overs competitions and qualified for the Champions League T20 twice. Lions reached the final of the latest edition of the Champions League, losing to Sydney Sixers.

A day after India and Pakistan met to decide who would finish last in the tournament, another traditional rivalry, between Australia and England, will kick off the Super Six stage. Brabourne Stadium is miles away from Lord’s or the SCG, but as England allrounder Arran Brindle put it, regardless of the venue, “a game against Australia means a huge amount to both teams.”While most of the spotlight was on Group A, which had the defending champions England, hosts India, exciting West Indies and surprise package Sri Lanka, Australia quietly racked up three wins out of three in Group B in Cuttack. They are the only side to have carried the maximum possible four points into the Super Six stage. If anything, they have only upped their level over the past week, as have England following the shock last-ball defeat to Sri Lanka. In Australia’s final group game, against New Zealand, they chased down 228 with more than 11 overs and seven wickets to spare.”I think we have actually been able to improve over those three games,” Lisa Sthalekar, the Australia allrounder, said. “The first two games [v Pakistan and v South Africa] were against an opposition we weren’t familiar with. We were faced with some difficult situations but we were able to get through and then the last game against the Kiwis we finally came out with the type of game we wanted to play in this tournament.”That was in Cuttack, though, on the eastern part of India. On the western seafront in Mumbai, Sthalekar said conditions were different. “In Cuttack there wasn’t a lot of turn. The wicket was two-paced and had variable bounce, especially the game against South Africa. The wicket that we played against New Zealand was truer and that reflected in the scores.”Here, what we had been able to see over the televised matches and in our warm-ups, there’s a bit of turn that excites me as a spinner. The fast outfield and the warm-ups that we played here have given us a good insight as to what the wicket will hold.”England have played two of their three group games at Brabourne Stadium and Sthalekar admitted that gave them a slight advantage. “They have played three more matches to get an idea of the pitch and the conditions. It depends on what wicket you were on and how many times that has been played. But I still feel that our match – the warm-up – was a good enough preparation. We just trained out there which is similar conditions so the girls are getting a good grip and understanding of the wicket. They might have a slight advantage but we are coming here fresh as well, so they might be a bit over the scenery.”Brindle said England now knew the lines and lengths they needed to bowl at Brabourne Stadium and felt the surprise loss to Sri Lanka in their opening game had been an early wake-up call. “As soon as you lose a game in any competition it makes you re-evaluate and fine-tune every part,” Brindle said. “We have done that in the last two games. We are looking to carry that into the Super Six. I think you sometimes learn more in defeat than you do when you go on winning every game.”We have played the last few games with the pressure of having had to win those games. If we perform like we have had, we’ll be a tough side to beat.”England are yet to beat Australia in an ODI at a neutral venue, following 13 defeats and a tie. The previous time the two sides met on neutral territory, in October 2012 in Colombo, Australia won the Women’s World Twenty20 final by four runs.

ScorecardChamu Chibhabha’s century on the final day kept Mashonaland Eagles in hunt of a win, but wickets pegged them back•Zimbabwe Cricket

A fighting century from Chamu Chibhabha and an unbeaten knock of 80 from wicketkeeper Regis Chakabva helped Mashonaland Eagles secure a draw in a thrilling finish against Matabeleland Tuskers in Harare. Chasing 288, Chibhabha’s wicket, which fell 14.2 overs before stumps on the final day, sparked a collapse and Eagles slipped from at 192 for 4 to 218 for 7. Tuskers picked two more wickets, the ninth in the last over of the match, but could not take the final one.The match, over the course of four days, had been evenly contested, with no team scoring more than 269 or less than 250 in any innings. After scoring 268 in the first innings, led by half-centuries from Sean Williams and Bilal Shafayat, Tuskers had reduced Eagles to 55 for 5. Seamer Glen Querl had done most of the damage, taking four of the five wickets. The captain Stuart Matsikenyeri and Chakabva rescued Eagles with a 148-run stand, scoring 78 and 79 respectively. The Eagles were eventually bowled out 18 runs short of their opponents’ score, with seamer Keegan Meth taking six wickets.Tuskers put on a commanding batting performance in their second dig, with another fifty from Shafayat, and decent contributions of 44, 44, 38 and 31 from four of their other top-order batsmen. They declared on 269 for 6 on the final day, before a spirited chase from Eagles looked likely to achieve the target. But left-arm spinner Williams turned the game around with three quick wickets, and the match ended with Tuskers one wicket short of achieving a win.