Australia | Pakistan

Cameron Green slapped a 47-ball century with Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh also blasting tons as Australia crushed South Africa by 276 runs in a record-breaking third and final one-day international on Sunday in Mackay. The hosts were playing for pride, down 2-0 in the series, and responded magnificently, posting an ominous 431-2 after opting to bat — their highest ODI total on home soil. They then dismissed the Proteas for 155 in the 25th over, with spinner Cooper Connolly taking 5-22. Head was supreme in blazing 142 off 103 balls, ably supported by skipper Marsh (100 from 106). Their 250-run platform at Great Barrier Reef Arena was Australia’s highest ever opening partnership against the Proteas, bettering the 170 by Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist in Durban in 2002. Green then took over with a whirlwind 118 not out to mark the first time Australia’s top three have all scored centuries. Alex Carey was unbeaten on 50, with the 18 sixes slogged between them also a record at home. “A pretty crazy day, a ful...

South Africa’s Aiden Markram hit 82 before left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj tore through Australia’s new-look batting order as the Proteas claimed the One-Day International series opener by 98 runs in Cairns on Tuesday. Sent in to bat, Markram — opening for the first time in ODIs since 2021 — crunched nine boundaries in his 81-ball knock to power South Africa to a formidable 296-8. Skipper Temba Bavuma (65) and Matthew Breetzke (57) also helped set the tone for the three-match ODI series. In reply, openers Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head flattened South Africa’s pacemen as Australia raced to 60-0 after seven overs. But the match flipped after the introduction of spin, with Maharaj conjuring rampant turn, and he picked up four wickets in his first 15 balls. He finished with career-best figures of 5-33 from 10 overs as Australia were dismissed for 198 in the 41st over. It was a strong bounce back from South Africa after their 2-1 defeat in the Twenty20 series between the teams. “I just tried to utilise the condit...

England batter Joe Root said his experience of 158 tests makes him better equipped than ever to end a victory drought in Australia, as he ramps up preparations for the upcoming Ashes series. Joe Root, who moved to second on the all-time test run-scorer charts during England’s five-match series against India, which was drawn 2-2 […]

Shamar Joseph produced a magnificent spell on his return to Tests as he ripped through the Aussies’ top order in the first Australia vs West Indies Test in Barbados. The right-arm pacer looked dangerous from the start after Australia won the toss and elected to bat first at Kensington Oval on Wednesday. The 25-year-old got […]

South Africa won the World Test Championship on Saturday, completing a remarkable turnaround to beat Australia by five wickets as they successfully chased down an imposing 282-run target. But it was an edgy finish as they took 27.4 overs to slowly score the 69 runs needed to secure success on the fourth day at Lord’s after resuming at 213-2 overnight. In so doing, South Africa completed a successful pursuit of the joint second-highest winning fourth-innings total in test history at the London venue. It was a first major cricket triumph for South Africa, who had earned an unwanted reputation for failure when on the cusp of victory over the last decades in limited overs competitions. This was their first appearance in the WTC final, with opener Aiden Markram delivering a heroic innings of 136 to ensure success. Markram, who reached his century late in the third day, added 34 more runs on Saturday, accumulating carefully before falling to a sharp catch by Travis Head with six runs needed to win. Kyle Verreynne h...

A calf injury forced Josh Hazlewood to miss being part of Australia’s World Test Championship (WTC) final win two years ago and the fast bowler is keen to avoid a second such heartbreak as they defend their title next week. Hazlewood is vying with Scott Boland to claim the last slot in Australia’s pace attack […]

Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has retired from one-day internationals to focus on next year’s T20 World Cup, the country’s cricket board said on Monday. Maxwell took the decision to prioritise his preparation for the T20 World Cup, to be held in India and Sri Lanka, and his commitment to franchise leagues, Cricket Australia (CA) said in a statement. “I think back to right at the start I was picked ahead of my time and out of the blue. I was just proud just to be playing a couple of games for Australia. I thought I was just going to have that,” the two-time World Cup winner said in the statement. “Since then, I have been able to go through the up and downs of being dropped, being brought back, playing in a few World Cups and being a part of some great teams.” View this post on Instagram The 36-year-old has played 149 ODIs for Australia, scoring 3,990 runs at a strike rate of 126.7 — second only to Andre Russell’s 130.22. Maxwell’s 201 not out from 128 balls while battling cramps in a 2023 World Cup match...