Winter Watch (w/e 17 Mar): Tymal Mills & Chris Jordan take Zalmi to Pakistan Super League final

In his first action since being cruelly ruled out of the Big Bash through injury, Tymal Mills was back bowling rockets as he helped Peshawar Zalmi to the final of Pakistan Super League. Having replaced Chris Jordan on the Zalmi roster, Tymal impressed straight away taking three for 29 in the win against Lahore Qalandars on the Tuesday before last.

It was then on to the Karachi leg of the tournament. Tymal took two for 25 balls during Zalmi’s crushing 61-run win against Karachi Kings on Monday. One of his victims was Colin Ingram who had looked like chasing down the Kings’ hefty target of 204 almost single-handedly. The South African had smashed 71 off 36 balls, before Tymal proved too hot to handle and had him caught  at mid-off, prompting the Kings’ chase to completely fizzle out.

That win secured Zalmi top spot in the group stage and meant their next match was a qualifier for the final against second-placed Quetta Gladiators on Wednesday. Despite a superbly economical four overs from Tymal in which he took one for 21, it was Quetta that prevailed, winning by ten-runs.

That meant the Zalmi had to win an eliminator against Islamabad United on to make it through to the final. Tymal was joined by Chris Jordan  - returning to the tournament after his successful stint with England in the Caribbean – for the match on Friday. CJ made it out to the middle during Zalmi’s mammoth innings of 214 for five, but didn’t face a ball. He played a rather more significant role during Islamabad’s reply, however, taking three for 26, including the wicket of England-teammate Alex Hales. Tymal put in another solid performance, once again taking the wicket of the opposition’s top-scorer, Chadwick Walton, and finishing with one for 31 as Peshawar made it home by 48 runs. Phil Salt was in the Islamabad squad but did not feature in the match.

🔥 @CJordan’s three wickets in @PeshawarZalmi’s win over @IsbUnited last night. 🙌pic.twitter.com/QKpTpDgwL8

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) March 16, 2019

Sadly, Quetta Gladiators proved to be Peshawar’s nemesis once more in Sunday’s final. Batting first the Zalmi struggled to 138 for eight from their twenty overs, CJ once again making it out to bat without facing a ball. Quetta made light work of their chase, winning by eight wickets with 13 balls remaining to take the title. Tymal bowled four overs for 31 runs, while CJ’s three went for 38 runs.

🦈 There were some familiar faces in last night’s #HBLPSL eliminator! @tmills15 and @CJordan helped @PeshawarZalmi beat @PhilSalt1’s @IsbUnited by 48 runs. 👏 pic.twitter.com/fNghfsYRX4

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) March 16, 2019

Freya Davies and Danni Wyatt started their tour of Sri Lanka with England last week. In Wednesday’s warm-up match against a Sri Lanka Women Emerging Team, Freya took the new ball as the hosts looked to chase down England’s 319 for seven. The 23-year-old seamer picked took one for 14 from six overs, while Danni’s four overs cost 31 runs, as England dismissed the opposition for 166 to take a 153-run win.

Danni continued her fine form with the bat once the ODIs got underway. In the first  match of the three-game series at Hambantota on Saturday, she belted 47 from 26 balls to complement Nat Sciver’s 93. The pair put on 90 for the fifth wicket as England made their way to 331 for seven. Danni then bowled four tidy overs, conceding just 22 runs as Sri Lanka were restricted to 159 for eight in a reply reduced to 40 overs by rain. That was well short of their Duckworth/Lewis adjusted target of 314 and so England took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The series was wrapped up earlier this morning at the same venue with England winning the second ODI by six wickets. Danni was unbeaten on 13 when her batting partner and captain, Heather Knight hit the winning runs, overhauling Sri Lanka’s 187 for nine with more than sixteen overs to spare.

Rashid Khan starred for Afghanistan as they recorded their first ever Test victory in just their second match against Ireland in Dehra Dun, India. Rashid took two for 20 from 12 overs as Ireland were dismissed for 172 having elected to bat first, before scoring ten as Afghanistan secured a healthy first-innings lead of 144. The leg-spinner then picked up his maiden Test five-wicket haul, recording figures of five for 82 from 32 overs as Ireland were bowled out for 288 in their second innings. That left Afghanistan requiring 147 to secure a famous win, a target they reached for the loss of three wickets earlier today.