Diandra Dottin (AFP Photo)

New Delhi: There was a worrying moment ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final between West Indies and Australia at The Oval on Tuesday when star all-rounder Deandra Dottin had to be carried off the field by her teammates just before the start of the match.This incident happened immediately after the national anthem. Dottin was clearly feeling uncomfortable, although it was not immediately clear whether she was injured or had a medical problem.His early exit added to the anxiety in the West Indies camp ahead of one of the biggest matches of the tournament.

Dottin returns to fight for West Indies

Despite the scare, Dottin returned later in the innings when West Indies were in deep trouble at 83/6.Batting at number 8, she played a fighting knock of 26 not out off 16 balls and stitched a crucial partnership with Genelia Glasgow to help West Indies score 125/7 in 20 overs.At one point the Caribbean team looked set to score very low, but Dottin’s late cameo gave them a fighting chance.

Coach provides health update

Speaking during the innings break, West Indies head coach Shane Deitz confirmed that Dottin was feeling better.“He had a little bit of trouble but he’s fine now and he played a great innings there.”After the inning, Deitz revealed that Dottin had suffered a medical problem but praised his determination.“He had a little medical problem,” Coach Dietz said.“He’s fine now and he played a great innings at the end. Gave us a bit of a score.”“Hopefully if we bowl well, take some early wickets, we have a chance to win this.“She’s a tough character. It’s hard to contain her. Hopefully she’ll come out and get a wicket or two.”

Australia reached the final

West Indies reached the semi-finals after wins over New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Scotland in the group stage.However, their campaign ended in the last four as Australia chased down the target with ease.The six-time champions reached 126/2 in just 13 overs and sealed their place in the Women’s T20 World Cup final with an eight-wicket win.Ashley Gardner led the chase with a brilliant unbeaten 61 off 36 balls, allowing Australia to progress comfortably.

There is growing demand for Vaibhav Suryavanshi to make his India debut, but captain Shreyas Iyer believes the limelight should not come at the expense of those who have already performed well on the biggest stage. Ahead of the England T20I series, Iyer said India’s World Cup-winning senior players have earned the right to be supported despite the teenage wait.

The 15-year-old was ignored once again It was during India’s disappointing 2-0 T20 series defeat to Ireland, where debut caps went to all-rounder Suryansh Shedge and fast bowler Prince Yadav. Speaking ahead of the first T20I against England on Tuesday, Iyer defended the team management’s approach, and insisted that every player in the current XI has earned their place through consistent performances.

“Everybody playing in the team has performed; it’s not just one person who has done it,” Iyer said during the pre-match press conference.

“We need to provide opportunities for everyone and create protections so that everyone has the confidence to move forward in the tournament.”

The India captain also underlined why the team is relying on the core group that headlined the T20 World Cup earlier this year.

“Those who helped us win the last World Cup, definitely those. We also know how to play T20 and play consistently in those formats. In a way, I have a lot of pillars to pack.”

The comments come at a time when pressure is mounting on the selectors and team management to give Suryavanshi a chance to make his long-awaited India debut, as the teenage batting sensation remained on the bench for both the matches against Ireland.

The wait for glory continues

Very few youngsters have generated as much enthusiasm as Vaibhav Suryavanshi before making his debut in India.

At just 15 years and 91 days, the left-handed batsman would have become the youngest player to represent India in international cricket, men’s or women’s, had he played against Ireland. Instead, India retained the top order of Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan while relying on the experience of players who have been central to the team’s recent success.

The logic is easy to understand.

Abhishek has established himself as one of India’s most explosive T20 batsmen, while Samson was among the architects of India’s successful T20 World Cup campaign before enjoying another excellent IPL season. Replacing one of the uncapped teenagers would have been one of the boldest selection calls in recent memory.

Yet the Ireland series also strengthened the argument for change.

Samson scored 0 and 0 in the two matches, while Kishan scored 1 and 12 as India’s batting struggled on the Belfast surfaces. The defeat not only handed India an unexpected 2-0 series defeat, but also ended their remarkable run of 16 consecutive T20I bilateral series wins.

assistant coach Ryan Ten Doeschate has already said that Suryavanshi “will have to go through the process”. Like every other player, acknowledging that the teenager is ready for international cricket.

England is now presenting an even tougher test.

Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Saqib Mahmood and Sonny Baker provide real pace, while Adil Rashid and Rehan Ahmed provide plenty of variety in the middle overs. Chester-le-Street has also traditionally favored the bowlers, with the average T20I score in the first innings being just 138, making batting adjustments from the start crucial.

Whether those conditions ultimately persuade India to hand over Suryavanshi or not, his debut remains one of the biggest talking points in the five-match series.

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India women’s cricket team (Getty Images)

England cricketer kate cross And Alex Hartley She has clarified that her criticism of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final schedule was never directed at India, adding that she has received abuse and even death threats after her comments were widely circulated on social media.The pair addressed the issue on No Balls: The Cricket Podcast, explaining that their original criticism was aimed solely at the tournament’s scheduling policy and not the Indian team.Cross revealed the scale of the response.“That post received 450 comments. It seems there has been some confusion because I don’t think what we said was worth the death threats and abuse we received.”He then clarified that India was never the target of his criticism.“We would like to clarify that this has nothing to do with India. According to the ICC, the scheduling was done to optimize viewership and attendance in the UK keeping in mind the global audience.”

What was the dispute about?

The debate began after the ICC confirmed the Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final schedule ahead of the knockout stage.Under tournament rules, the top two teams from Groups A and B qualified for the semi-finals. Normally, the Group A winners will face the Group B runners-up in one semi-final, while the Group B winners will face the Group A runners-up in the other semi-final.However, there was one exception. If India qualifies for the semi-finals, they will automatically play the first semi-final on 30 June, which was scheduled to start at 8:00 pm IST, a prime-time television slot for Indian audiences. The second semi-final, starting at 12:00 IST on July 3, was believed to be more suited to UK audiences, especially with hosts England still in contention.If India failed to qualify, the tournament would follow only the standard knockout bracket.

What Cross and Hartley originally said

Speaking ahead of India’s final group-stage match, Cross questioned why a team’s semi-final should be decided in advance.“Can we talk about the fact that I saw today that if India qualifies for the semi-finals, they are guaranteed to play in Tuesday’s semi-finals because the ICC feels it is best for them to play time-wise.”Hartley responded by saying that the practice was not new.“It happens in men’s cricket, women’s cricket, all World Cups.”Cross acknowledged that she understood the business reasons but believed the theory was flawed.“Everyone can plan based on when India will play. It is absolutely mental. I don’t understand how you can go into a tournament and the governing body would prioritize a team like this. I understand why they are doing it, but I think it is absolutely ridiculous.”Hartley also said that the scheduling debate may be irrelevant if India do not make the final four.“Yeah, it’s bad but it looks like they may have to struggle to qualify anyway.”

India lost, program followed normal format

The discussion eventually turned academic after India crashed out of the tournament after losing to Australia in their final group-stage match.Due to India failing to reach the semi-finals, the special scheduling provision was not used and the competition reverted to the standard knockout bracket.Australia will face West Indies in the first semi-final on Tuesday, while England will face South Africa in the second semi-final on Thursday.Following the online backlash, Cross and Hartley reiterated that their criticism was directed at the ICC’s scheduling policy, not India, stressing that their comments were misinterpreted and should not have resulted in personal abuse or threats.

Punjab Kings cricketer Shashank Singh has denied the allegations of assault and wrongful confinement made by the home cook. Instead the cricketer has claimed that the employee had entered private areas of the family home and recorded video without permission, and was therefore fired from his job.

Shashank and his father Shailesh Singh – A former IPS officer was earlier named in an FIR lodged at Ratibad police station in Bhopal after his former cook Vipendra Singh Tomar accused him of physical assault, verbal abuse and keeping him in captivity against his will.

Responding to the allegations, Shashank rejected the claims and questioned the timeline presented in the complaint.

“Nothing like this happened. A person who comes on the evening of the 25th and leaves on the morning of the 28th – how can you call this taking someone hostage?” Shashank told PTI in an interview on Tuesday, June 30.

The cricketer also alleged that the chef misrepresented his experience and later admitted that he could not prepare the dishes he had initially claimed.

“The man came to us saying, ‘I know how to cook. I can cook all kinds of food.’ But then he himself admitted that actually he does not know how to cook properly. So how can you trust such a person?” He said.

Shashank Singh retaliated on the allegations

Shashank leveled allegations against the complainant, claiming that the employee had recorded videos inside the private parts of the family residence.

“He came into the house and started recording videos of the bedrooms. He also entered the bedroom, where expensive and luxury items were kept, recorded videos and sent them to other people,” alleged Shashank.

The Punjab Kings batsman said that his interaction with the chef was minimal and was largely limited to discussing his cooking background. According to Shashank, an acquaintance of his father had recommended the cook and asked for advance payment immediately after his arrival.

“He came through a friend of my father’s who recommended him, saying he knew how to cook all these dishes,” Shashank said.

“That’s why he was brought home, but as soon as he arrived he demanded an advance payment of Rs 20,000.”

Shashank claimed that his family had asked the cook to work for a few days before discussing compensation and deciding whether to continue the arrangement. The FIR against Shashank, his father and the family driver was lodged after Tomar alleged that he was assaulted after he expressed his desire to quit the job. Police said investigation is underway.

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Following India’s defeat in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-finals against Australia on Sunday, the BCCI Women’s Selection Committee announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming 2026 Asian Games to be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan in September.led by Harmanpreet Kaurwith Smriti Mandhana Serving as vice-captain, India will enter the continental competition as defending champions, having won a historic gold medal in women’s cricket at the 2022 Asian Games to be held in Hangzhou in 2023.India’s squad for 2026 Asian Games: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wicketkeeper), G. Kamalini (wicketkeeper), Bharti Phulmali, Shree Charnani, Renuka Thakur, Kranti Gaur, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil*, Radha Yadav, Nandini Sharma.India’s overall World Cup campaign did not live up to expectations. Although the team recorded comfortable wins over Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Netherlands, losses to fellow semi-final contenders South Africa and Australia exposed several weaknesses. Although Shreyanka Patil has been included in the squad for the Asian Games, her participation is dependent on fitness as she suffered a serious tear to her right ankle ligament in India’s group stage match against the Netherlands on June 17.

India’s men’s team for Asian Games 2026

Earlier, the BCCI Men’s Selection Committee announced India’s 15-member squad for the 2026 Asian Games. Shreyas Iyer will lead the team while Tilak Verma has been named the vice-captain as India aim to defend the historic gold medal won in the last edition in Hangzhou. Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Shivam Dubey, Tilak Verma (vice-captain), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakraborty, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah.Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Suryavanshi.

The first half ended 0-0. And Morocco will be kicking themselves for failing to capitalize on their chances.

Saibari missed a simple tap in at the back post after a curling free-kick from the right in added time.

Netherlands does not have many chances. The one shot that was on target was saved by Yassin Bonnou.

bad temper game

The story of the match is that there was a heated argument between both the sides. The game turned into some messy moments, after a clash between Dutch defender Van Hecke and Moroccan striker Saibari, with the referee failing to control the game.

There have been some ugly challenges, one of which resulted in Van Hecke bleeding profusely from the head, where the referee was forced to stop play.

Tremendous save by Verbruggen

Some close saves from goalkeeper VanBruggen kept the Netherlands alive. The best was when he lobbed the outside edge of Hakimi’s boot curler midway through the first half of the match.

The Netherlands have been left disappointed after failing to connect in the final third. Somerville has been better than the rest, but Brobbie and especially Gakpo need to do better.

England captain Ben Stokes during the fourth day of the third Test match between England and New Zealand at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, England on June 28, 2026. (Photo/Getty Images)

England’s hopes of a winning end to Ben Stokes’ captaincy were dashed on the fifth morning at Trent Bridge as New Zealand clinched the three-match Test series 2-1 with a 160-run victory.Chasing 373, England started the final day at 103 for 4, but were never able to build the partnership needed to threaten the target. They were out for 212 shortly after lunch, giving New Zealand their first win in the three-Test series after losing the opening match.The visiting team recorded only their fourth Test series win in England, adding to the tally of two-match series wins in 1986, 1999 and 2021.At the beginning of the day, England’s hopes rested on Joe Root and Emilio Gay, but both were out in the fourth over of the day. Gay was out on 10, while Root was run out on 18 by some sharp fielding by Henry Nicholls. Around the ground, boundary boards displayed the message, “Thank you Ben Stokes,” as the England captain watched from the dressing room after being dismissed for 30 on the evening of the fourth day.Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson put on a 75-run partnership for the seventh wicket to delay the New Zealand attack. Atkinson scored 19 runs but was trapped LBW by Mitchell Santner just before lunch.Smith continued to fight after the intermission but his innings ended on 60 when Nathan Smith took a diving catch at long-on off Santner’s bowling. The dismissal effectively ended England’s resistance and sealed victory for the visitors.Nathan Smith finished the series as New Zealand’s leading wicket-taker with 15 wickets. He was the only member of New Zealand’s pace attack to feature in every match of the series.“It would have been great to go out winning the series,” Stokes said, “but that’s in an ideal world and this world is certainly not perfect.”Four years ago, the Stokes-McCullum partnership started while chasing the target of 299 runs against New Zealand on this very ground. That victory became the opening chapter of what the cricket world came to call Buzzball. It promised fearless cricket and a team willing to risk defeat in the pursuit of victory.On Monday, New Zealand won the series. The team that had lost 3–0 at the birth of the baseball era returned to Trent Bridge to end it with a 2–1 series win.The defeat is England’s first home series defeat of three or more Test matches since 2012. They have now lost seven of their last nine Test matches, increasing the scrutiny on coach Brendon McCullum and managing director Rob Key.

Here’s the full transcript of Hayley Matthews’ press conference before the Australia vs West Indies clash 

[Reporter:]

So the big match coming up, so how is the team gearing up for it and what are your expectations going into the match tomorrow?  So how are you preparing for it and how excited are you to play in the semifinals? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, we’re really excited as a group. We certainly feel like coming up against OZ, we have nothing to lose, and that puts us in a position where we can be quite fearless going out there. It’s obviously been quite a journey to get here, but I think as a team we’re really proud of probably the way we’ve played so far, but still know that we haven’t been at our best, which gives us a lot of confidence knowing that we can still get a lot better.

[Reporter:]

You are one of the 3 players who was— I mean, who were there at the Eden Gardens in 2016. Of course, that’s when West Indies won the World Cup. So do you think that that game you will look to, think about before going into this particular game? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Slightly. That was 10 years ago and a much different group. I also think the game was a lot different at that time. I feel like if we want to look back on any match, we could probably look back at the one in 2023 when we were in Aus. Feel like at the Oval, conditions might be pretty similar. We saw the game that England played the other day at home nicely. The wicket was coming on and the par score we feel is certainly going to be a lot higher than it was so far in the competition. But yeah, like I said, for us there’s nothing to lose. And coming up against a team like Aus who we know has a bunch of great players and superstars, we’re going to have to have somebody stand out and do something special, but also have a lot of different people from the team contribute. But I think when you look in our dressing room, we have a lot of match winners. We also have a lot of players, I think, who’ve got a lot of potential to play some really big roles that are probably a bit more unknown as well too, which works for us. 

[Reporter:]

You’ve played Australia a lot recently at home and then in a warm-up match. What have you learned from those encounters with them?

[Hayley Matthews:]

You can’t take your foot off the gas at any point in time, I think, especially when you’re bowling. They seem to come hard from ball one and have a mantra where they just want to keep going. I certainly feel as though that keeps you in play a lot when it comes to having the opportunity to possibly take wickets. But you’re going to have to hold on to your chances for sure and understand that at some point in the game a partnership likely will build. They’ve got a lot of really good players. But it’s about trying to, I guess, control the flow of the runs as much as possible and just try to build as much pressure as possible. Like I said, they’re going to keep coming every single time and you’re just going to have to kind of look to defend and hold things together until you get that breakthrough, I think. 

[Reporter:]

I suppose, people will be looking at Australia, especially after yesterday, and saying that they’re on an extreme roll. Do you feel— you have to feel that you can stop them, of course, but what do you feel needs to be done in order to stop such a powerful team? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, we’re going to need big performances from big players. I think we’re certainly going to need a standout individual performance, I believe. But I think to beat a team like Australia, you still need more than one player, and we’re going to have to have our best players really stepping up to the plate tomorrow. I feel like players like Aliyah Alleyne, Jahzara Claxton, they’ve been great role players throughout the tournament. And I think with our stars alongside players like them really playing massive roles, we’re going to have to put together an all-round game as a group. I think I said multiple times that we haven’t had our best match yet. We haven’t had the likes of myself or Deandra Dottin in the runs really—  And that leaves a lot of room for improvement for us as a team. So hopefully we can see some of us stepping up a bit more and taking it to the Aussies. 

[Reporter:]

Do you expect Chinelle will be fully fit to bowl? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, hopefully. I think not training today, but I think that’s purely a matter of just giving her an opportunity to rest and recover. But yeah, hopefully we get the chance to see her out there rearing and ready for tomorrow. 

[Reporter:]

And can you just talk about Aliyah a little bit? Like, she’s had a really good World Cup and I guess flies under the radar sometimes. Has she been working on anything in particular, or what have you seen change or improve? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, Aliyah, she’s been really good this World Cup, and I feel like she’s a player that certainly improved over the last 6 to 7 months or so, especially with the ball. She’s shown bright sparks in the past. I think last year when we were at the qualifiers in Pakistan, she took a 4-for. That was some amazing bowling regardless of the opposition. I think she’s someone who really tends to want to step up during the big opportunities and the big moments. She has been working, I guess, on some change-ups, which I think has been really valuable this tournament, especially with the wickets probably being a bit better. But yeah, she’s certainly someone who’s made a big difference this World Cup. I think especially in that first match against New Zealand where she was able to take those wickets. And we haven’t even gotten the opportunity, I think, to see her properly with the bat yet as well too, where I also feel that she can make a real difference.

[Reporter:]

And personally, do you feel a lot of pressure on yourself as a high-performing captain?

[Hayley Matthews:]

Somewhat, yes, but I don’t think that’s anything abnormal. I certainly feel like I As a captain and as one of the, I guess, more renowned players in the team, I feel like that pressure is probably a bit deserved and just means that I want to do really well and I want to perform really well. On a big occasion like this, the semi-finals— we got to the semis last year— and yeah, I think to take it one step further would mean a whole lot to us as a group. I know we’ve got some older girls within the team who are really passionate about taking it all the way this World Cup, and we certainly feel like— we’re not like a lot of the other teams where we’re guaranteed a semifinal spot every single World Cup, so we certainly want to make the most of it when we get this opportunity. So personally, I want to be able to play well to help the team, and although I’ve been going really well with the ball, I still know that the team needs me there with the bat, and I want to be able to step up and perform.

[Reporter:]

So you just spoke about how you all are going into this match knowing that you all have nothing to lose, given that there’s Australia of course in front of you all. How different is it to approach a game like this mentally when you’re playing with this kind of a freedom in that sense, and allows, say, so many players in your team who are such free-flowing players, batters. And does that change the way you all prepare for it, or mentally does that leave you in a different space? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

I don’t think it necessarily changes the preparation as much. I just feel like when we step out onto that field, everyone’s expecting us not to win in a sense. And when you go into a game with people probably looking at you thinking that if you do win, it’s going to be a surprise, you certainly feel like you said, that you can just go there, be free. And I almost feel like a bit more of the pressure is on a team like Australia who are going to be expected to beat us, and if they don’t, it’ll probably be a massive disappointment for them. So even though we have a lot of care and a lot of passion and we want to win, we’re certainly not expected to, I think, by the masses, and that eases, I think, a bit of the pressure off of our shoulders. When it comes to expectations, I think. 

[Reporter:]

You’ve just said, nobody expects us to win, or people don’t expect us to win. How does that feel knowing that— I mean, it’s not just because it’s Australia, maybe it’s also, because of maybe West Indies not qualifying, whatever it is. Does it irritate you that people don’t expect that?

[Hayley Matthews:]

I mean, realistically, I think if you look at our T20 performances probably this year – some of it might be down to the way we have performed and I guess the disappointing results we would have had in the Caribbean. But at the same time, I feel like we kind of show up almost every single time we come to a World Cup. And I don’t know what it is within the group, if it’s the passion or the drive, but I certainly feel like there is a sense of loving to prove people wrong and knowing that, yes, we have to prove ourselves over and over, but I think it drives a lot of our players, and we try to use it as motivation and use it as fuel to just want to play harder and want to prove ourselves every single time. 

[Reporter:]

Do you think that when, as you said, that when people are not expecting you to win, do you think that that can channelize— I mean, as you said, is the extra motivation— do you think that that can bring the best out of your players? Like, some of your players are yet, as you said, that you have— you are yet to have your perfect game. As a team? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, certainly. As a group, I think we love to take on the fight when we step onto that field, and I know every single person is geared up. It certainly feels like it’s the games where people don’t expect as much from us. And then we obviously had the game against Ireland the other day where it was the complete opposite. We were probably expected to win a bit easier as well, and I don’t want to say choke, but we choked up a little bit. But yeah, I think there is an added fire to us when people think we can’t get the job done. And I’m not just saying that. I think I see it amongst the group and even within the huddle before we step out onto the field. You can always sort of feel a different sense of energy when it is that people are doubting us. And I think we just relish in that a lot of the time.

[Reporter:]

Did you have a look at yesterday’s game, India-Australia, and are you surprised that India is not there in the semifinals at all? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, I did have a look at the match yesterday. Certainly a tough group that they were in. Obviously South Africa being a team that’s been in the last 3 World Cup finals now, and Australia being the number 1 ranked team, it was always going to be hard, I think, to pick 2 out of the 3 teams to go through. Unfortunate for India not to be there, but at the same time, one team had to be out, And yeah, South Africa played really good cricket, Australia played really good cricket, and yeah, I guess India didn’t get the cup for it.

[Reporter:]

Haley, so did losing to Ireland really affect you? Not yourself personally, but as a team, was it quite bad afterwards, or how did you reflect on it?

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, as a group, I think we were just disappointed. We didn’t want to have to depend on results to get to the semifinals, and I certainly think for the few hours before England— or before the result between England and New Zealand, we all felt a kind of way that we didn’t want to. Disappointed, probably hurt, like we let ourselves down a bit. But once again, now that we’re through, I could probably say that maybe it’s a blessing in disguise a little bit that we got to experience what that felt like then and there, and use that once again to kind of drive us. It’s certainly something that we did when we got knocked out from the qualifiers back in 2025, and we kind of let that pain motivate us, not in the matches but through our training over the next few months. And yeah, I know we certainly don’t want to let ourselves down like that again. I keep going back to it, but we’re a very, very passionate group and we care a lot. And yeah, when we let ourselves down like that, it certainly doesn’t feel good. So we want to stop that from happening as much as possible. 

[Reporter:]

Hails, a couple of the younger players have stepped up in the group stage matches. Now that you’re coming up against Australia, you’re saying that the bigger, more experienced names have to really step up. But what are you telling the younger ones who have been performing as they’re about to face a juggernaut that is Australia?

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, enjoy it. These are the moments that they can go out and have their best time ever. I think when I think about something like that, I go back to when we just played Australia in the Caribbean and Ashmini Munisar bowled her first ball at Ellyse Perry. She got a leading edge, she jumped in the air with one hand and caught it and did a full 100-meter sprint to the boundary. That’s what it’s all about,. They obviously are coming up against people who they saw, I guess, ruling the cricket world a bit when they were a bit younger now. And I know they look up to a few of those players, but at the same time, I know it’ll mean so much to them if they can come up against them and perform really well too. So they’re definitely going to be out there gunning for them, I hope. And our young players, they’re full of passion and drive as well, so I know they’ll use that to their best advantage. 

[Reporter:]

Do you think this is probably one of your better performing World Cups in terms of having more players step up to the crease, if you want to use it as that, to contribute to the team’s success in the tournament? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

100%. 100%. I keep going back to it. I haven’t made a 50. Deandra Dottin hasn’t gotten runs. Chinelle Henry’s got a 1 score. Stefanie Taylor hasn’t gotten a 50. And we’re winning games, and that’s probably something that we haven’t seen in a very, very, very long time. So the fact that we have other people, and it certainly feels like we have a team collective getting the job done rather than one or two players pulling the weight, and like I keep saying, it certainly means that we have so much better that we can get if we do see some of our bigger players step up. So I think it’s just about us going out there and actually executing it and getting the job done. But it certainly leaves a scope for a lot of belief for us. 

[Reporter:]

You had a really long knock on the net today. Do you think your game is tomorrow for you to really get that score and get the West Indies over the line? 

[Hayley Matthews:]

Yeah, hopefully. I feel like tomorrow is a really big occasion, and I know the team depends on me a lot at the top of the order to not only set the tone but control the innings as well. And I certainly feel that as a group we’re at our best when I’m flowing well and some of the other senior players are flowing well in the middle. So it would be really special if I could have a big innings tomorrow. But yeah, at the same time, not taking away that if I don’t score runs we can’t win. However, I think tomorrow is set up for the perfect occasion for me to step up to the plate, hopefully.

Ben Stokes walks off the field after his final innings after announcing his international retirement on the fourth day of the third Test between England and New Zealand at Trent Bridge on June 28, 2026 in Nottingham, England. (Photo/Getty Images)

There is a special cruelty in the way Ben Stokes decided to retire. On the afternoon of the fourth at Trent Bridge, with the Test still in progress and tea time approaching, he announced that it would be his final match for England. Not at the end of a series, neatly wrapped up in a guard of honor and orchestral montage, but halfway through the story, which was the way he seemed to play most of his cricket. Wait a moment—wait a moment—and that moment was already gone.I have spent a large part of my adult life saying that Test cricket is dying, that five-day cricket is a colonial relic awaiting euthanasia as an attention-grabbing economy. And then along came a left-handed man, born in Christchurch and brought up in Cumbria, who almost single-handedly and certainly with a single mind decided that the patient would not go quietly. They called it Buzzball, after Koch, because the British always liked to name their revolutions after some safe antipodean. Yet it was Stokes who batted as if the scorecard was a personal affront, who declared that when sensible people will settle for survival, and who turned dead rubbers and lost causes into the only kind of cricket that interested him.Of course, there’s Headingley in 2019, because there always is. England were all out for 67 in the first innings, chasing 359, stumbling to 286 for 9, and had only Jack Leach, whose contribution was the equivalent of moral support in cricket. What happened next was less an innings than an argument with probability. Stokes won because, somehow, Stokes usually did. Leach’s solitary run has become one of the most famous singles in cricket history, while a man at the other end was determined to convince mathematics that he had underestimated his authority.

The numbers, while impressive, always felt a little inadequate. Over 7,200 Test runs, over 240 wickets before this final match was over, fourteen Test centuries, and a batting average that critics continue to talk about as if it settled an argument. This does not decide anything. Stokes was never a mediocre man. He was concerned with moments, and moments have an inconvenient habit of resisting arithmetic. 258 runs in Cape Town, the fastest Test 250 ever, tells you more about him than any spreadsheet. The mean is for actuaries. Stokes described, in the extreme, the farce, the impossible stories that grandparents tell to children who politely pretend they have never heard them before.

What I keep coming back to, however, is that the first part of his career did not look like a biography. There was Bristol, controversy, arrests, missing the Ashes, being stripped of the vice-captaincy, and a reputation that appeared beyond repair. Kolkata had Carlos Brathwaite, who sent four consecutive balls into the stands and with him, every comfortable assumption was that redemption from the game followed a straight line. For a while, Stokes became a cautionary tale of English cricket.That it re-established itself in its conscience is, perhaps, its greatest achievement. He spoke openly about mental health at a time when elite sports still considered the vulnerability an administrative error. He stepped away from the game indefinitely and in doing so tacitly gave others permission to do the same. He captained with a body that often appeared to be laced with surgery, stubbornness and belief in almost equal measure. Those are the innings that highlight reels rarely replay.And so he went, not at the end of the series, where tradition would have preferred him, but in the middle of the Test match, when tea was approaching and the result was unresolved. This is the most brilliant end to Ben Stokes that can be imagined. For more than a decade, he played as if the prospect was just another opponent to be defeated. Now they have decided to announce the end of the match even before it ends.Khuda Hafiz, Ben.There will always be a scoreboard and statistics in the fourth innings. It may take longer before he finds someone else who is willing to accept both as mere suggestions.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have officially unveiled the qualification blueprint for cricket’s historic return to action at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. Marking the game’s first appearance on the Olympic stage since 1900, the event featured the top 15-man teams competing in a compact, ultra-competitive Twenty20 format.

Only six nations will make the cut Ensuring a specific field for each men’s and women’s event, at the purpose-built cricket venue in Pomona. While the five spots are decided based on ranking and placement in major tournaments, the final ticket introduces a high-stakes wildcard: the first-ever ICC Olympic Qualifier in 2027.

men’s roadmap

For the men, the entire path depends heavily on the official ICC T20I rankings, making every single bilateral series and tournament over the next six months absolutely crucial.

A total of five automatic berths are available with a fixed ranking cut-off date of 31 December 2026. Here are details of the routes available for the men’s teams.

Route 1: Host Nation Section (1 place)

As the host country, the United States is eligible for automatic entry. However, it’s not a free pass.

As the host country, the United States is eligible for automatic entry, but the ICC has added a highly specific condition. The USA men’s team must touch the top 15 of the Official ICC T20I Rankings at any one point during the six-month period from June 30, 2026, to December 31, 2026.

Importantly, this is a limitation rather than a final deadline requirement. Because the rules state that they only have to finish in the top 15 “at any time,” the U.S. team could theoretically clinch its Olympic spot on the first day of the qualification window based on its current rank of 13th. Once that box is ticked, their ticket to Los Angeles is secure – even if they suffer a dip in form and fall out of the top 15 at the end of the year.

Route 2: Continental dominance through rankings (4th place)

To ensure global representation, the IOC mandated that Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania must each have a guaranteed representative on the starting grid. These four places will go directly to the highest ranked eligible team from each respective continent at the deadline of 31 December 2026.

Looking at the current T20I ranking table, the race is as follows:

• Asia: India (ranked 1) is currently leading the world and is easily on course for automatic qualification.
• Europe: England (ranked 2) is in the top European position.
• oceania: Australia (Rank 3) is safely in the lead.
• Africa: South Africa (Rank 5) takes the lead as the top African country.

Route 3: ICC Olympic Qualifier 2027 (1st place)

The sixth and final spot in the tournament is reserved for the winner of a brand new, winner-take-all event. The ICC Olympic Qualifier 2027 will have an eight-team bracket.

The line-up for this tournament will consist of the next seven highest ranked teams globally that missed automatic continental qualification. Based on the current situation, giants like Pakistan (ranked 6) and New Zealand (ranked 4) will find themselves in a fierce wildcard battle if they lag behind their continental peers at the end of 2026.

West Indies Complexity

The West Indies cannot compete at the Olympic Games as a unified cricket board because they represent a composite group of Caribbean countries rather than a single National Olympic Committee (NOC).

To navigate this, the ICC has announced that if the West Indies men’s team finishes in the top eight of non-qualified teams by 31 December 2026, a separate Caribbean Qualifier event will be organised. The winning island region in that tournament will earn the right to represent the region at the global ICC Olympic Qualifier in 2027.

Women’s Roadmap: 4 Slot Lock

While the men’s grid is fully open, the women’s qualification process is already well underway. The ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 serves as the primary gateway, immediately filling four of the six Olympic slots.

Eligible teams: Australia, Great Britain (represented through England), India and South Africa have officially secured their tickets to Los Angeles.

How they did it: They booked their place at the T20 World Cup 2026 by finishing as the highest qualified teams from Oceania, Europe, Asia and Africa respectively, meeting the one-per-continent rule.

The United States women retain the same hosting privileges as the men, requiring a top 15 ranking spot to secure fifth place. If they miss out, the position defaults to the highest ranked non-qualified team on 1 March 2027. The women’s sixth and final spot will also be determined in an eight-team global qualifier tournament in 2027.

LA28 tournament format

Once the six teams are decided, the Olympic tournament will follow a different format. The six countries will be divided into two groups of three each. After a single round-robin group stage, teams would play two additional cross-pool fixtures against opponents who finished in different positions in the opposite group.

The top two teams in the overall multi-stage standings will advance directly to the gold medal match, while the third and fourth placed teams will face off in the bronze medal play-off.

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