England booked their place in the second round Super Eights of the ICC World Twenty20 with a 48-run win over Pakistan at the Oval on Sunday.
The hosts, 48 hours after their shock four-wicket loss to the Netherlands, bounced back to record a win which, because their net run-rate was now superior to that of the Dutch, ensured their progress in the tournament.
Pakistan, finalists at the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa two years ago, now face a make or break Group B clash against the Netherlands at Lord’s today.
Kevin Pietersen came back from an Achilles injury to lead England to a total of 185 for five with 58 after missing Friday’s Dutch debacle at Lord’s.
“It was exactly what we needed,” England captain Paul Collingwood said. “I think we showed a lot of character. Friday night was a massive blow for us. We were under a lot of pressure to put in a good performance but this showed how much we wanted it.”
Collingwood, who said Pietersen had been passed fit on Sunday morning, added: “He was desperate to play and he made a huge impact.”
Asked how England could play so poorly against the Dutch and yet win so well against Pakistan, all-rounder Collingwood said: “I wish I knew the reasons, I’m still convinced Friday night was just meant to happen.”
Defeat left Pakistan needing a big win against the Dutch to go through to the Super Eights and Younus said: “We must win against them and the onus lies on the senior guys like Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik and myself.”
But Younus Khan refused to get too downhearted about the possibility of Pakistan making an early exit from the tournament.
“It will be sad if we don’t make it to the Super Eights but it won’t be a disaster,” he said. “Twenty20 cricket is fun cricket. It’s more for entertainment even if it is international cricket.”
Also See: De Villiers stars as S Africa thrash Scots by 130 runs
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB