Windies humiliated, heartbreak for Indian women and more - Cricket News Today, 9th March 2019

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It’s been a pretty hectic week with cricket going around in four different continents. South Africa have taken a 2-0 lead and are in with a chance to seal the series. Meanwhile, despite Virat Kohli’s sublime 41st ODI ton, Australia pulled one back in the five-match series. MS Dhoni has been rested for the last couple of ODIs as India look to try a few combinations ahead of the World Cup.

England have come storming back after losing the Test series and drawing the ODI series as they have sealed the T20I series with a game to go. Also, New Zealand are busy playing Bangladesh in a three-Test series and it’s the only long-form cricket going around across the globe.

Here are all the top news that made headlines in the cricketing world today.

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West Indies bowled out for the second lowest total ever in T20Is

West Indies were brilliant in the Test and ODI formats. They surprised the world as they inflicted a series win in the longest format. But what was even more surprising was the way they played the ODI series. They drew 2-2 against the world No. 1 side and that would’ve given them a massive boost ahead of the World Cup.

However, they came crashing down in the T20I series. After losing the first T20I by 4 wickets, they hit a new low as they were bundled out for a mere 45 in 11.5 overs. Chasing 183, only two batsmen made it to double figures as the entire innings lasted a mere 71 deliveries.

It was the second lowest total ever in a T20I and the lowest by a Test playing nation. Sam Billings and Joe Root scored fifties while Chris Jordan picked up four wickets for six runs.

India women suffer second straight T20I whitewash

The Indian women’s team have taken some giant strides in the 50-over format but have fallen short in T20I cricket. They have now crashed to their second straight series whitewash. Last month they suffered a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of New Zealand and now, it was England’s turn as India bottled up an easy chase.

The Indian spinners bowled really well to restrict England to 119. The spinners combined to take six wickets as they didn’t allow the England batters to get away. In reply, Smriti Mandhana’s fifty put India on course for a consolation win. India lost their skipper at the end of the 13th over and at that stage, they needed 33 runs in 7 overs. However, some tight bowling pulled the game to the last over.

India still had Mithali Raj batting at one end on 30 and with three runs to get and six wickets in hand, India were favourites. However, Kate Cross bowled three successive dot balls before picking up back-to-back wickets to bring it down to three off the final ball. Shikha Pandey could get only a single off the last ball as England stole a one-run win and completed a series white-wash.

Mark Ramprakash axed as England batting coach

England’s Mark Ramprakash has been asked to step down as the batting coach and he will not be a part of the coaching set-up for the Ashes later this year. The 49-year-old who played 70 international matches (52 Tests and 18 ODIs) for England took to Twitter to reveal the news.

“I've just been informed that I will not be involved in the Ashes series. It's been a huge privilege to support the team over the last five years. I'd like to wish all the staff and players the very best of luck for the future,” a tweet from Ramprakash read.

He was appointed England’s batting coach back in November 2014 in Sri Lanka and served the role for over four years. The move to sack him comes after England’s poor run in the Caribbean where they lost the Test series 2-1 and drew the ODI series 2-2.

2 days washed out in the 2nd Test between NZ and Bangladesh

After persistent rain washed out day one, the second day of the Wellington Test followed suit as there was no play once again. The rain was relentless and such was the impact that the toss hasn’t even taken place yet.

The first day was very grim as the rain pelted down throughout the day. However, it was a tad different on day two. Rain did stop at some point and the covers did come off. The umpires also had a look at the conditions as the groundsmen worked hard to get the ground ready for play. The sun didn’t peak out but it looked a little brighter than what it had in the last two days.

However, another spell of rain put an end to any chances of play as the umpires decided to end the day’s play at 4:30 PM local time. The forecast for the rest of the Test match isn’t great either as scattered showers are predicted for the remaining three days as well.

New Zealand currently lead the three-match series 1-0.