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Charlie Dean became Southern Vipers’ all-time leading wicket-taker as Vipers began Champions Day at the Ageas Bowl with a crushing victory over Western Storm.England offspinner Dean overtook Tara Norris as her 2 for 15 catapulted her to 52 wickets for the side across the Kia Super League, Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, and Charlotte Edwards Cup.Lauren Bell’s two wickets in the first over meant sure Storm never truly got going, as they only set holders Vipers 106. Maia Bouchier ensured it wasn’t a stressful chase with a measured 45 to bring home the seven-wicket bonus point victory with 35 balls to spare.Storm chose to bat first on a dry wicket under clear blue skies but were 4 for 3 before the end of the second over.Nat Wraith chipped Bell to cover third ball before Dani Gibson edged behind a hooping in-swinging delivery. Anya Shrubsole then had her former England captain Heather Knight stumped off a wide to continue the procession of wickets.Vipers had walked out past the Charlotte Edwards Cup trophy, with Hampshire’s Vitality Blast trophy also on show, as the two sides celebrated their 2022 triumphs.Fran Wilson attempted to settle things down and carved Bell for boundaries through point either side of being dropped at first slip. She was soon stumped off Dean before Orla Prendergast failed to take her life – having been put down by Bouchier – as she stepped across her stumps and was lbw. Alex Griffith didn’t fare much better as she picked out long-on.Around all the wickets, captain Sophie Luff was using her textbook running to good effect, while almost single-handily taking Storm to some sort of respectability with five fours. She fell for 44 when slapping a returning Bell to point – the fast bowler returning 3 for 19. Niamh Holland was the last to depart when she was castled by Linsey Smith as Storm limped to 105 for 8.Danni Wyatt got the reply off to a flyer with a trio of powerfully struck boundaries off the first over before Bouchier took over with some brutal striking down the ground.Wyatt was yorked by Prendergast and Nicole Faltum was bowled through the gate by Lauren Filer. But Bouchier’s effortless run making made sure there was no wobble as she put on 47 with Georgia Adams to take them within 11 runs.Having struck eight fours, Bouchier attempted to reach a half-century with a six over midwicket but was caught on the boundary edge. But Georgia Elwiss clubbed the winning runs after her swing to the leg side was dropped on the ropes and pushed for four to make sure Vipers remain unbeaten since the 2021 Eliminator in the Charlotte Edwards Cup.

Shortly after winning his last game of the season at Chepauk and leading CSK into the IPL final, MS Dhoni was asked whether he’d be back in Chennai next year. He continued to be non-committal about the subject, saying he had another eight-nine months to decide, but acknowledged that it had taken a “heavy toll” on him.”I don’t know, I have eight to nine months to decide, the small auction may be around December, so why take that headache right now?” Dhoni said after CSK’s win against Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1. “I have ample time to decide.”Dhoni has had an issue with his knee all through the season and was seen wearing a brace after CSK’s final league game. While he hasn’t missed a match, he has had trouble running between wickets.”I will always be there for CSK, whether that is in the playing form or sitting somewhere outside…I don’t really know. Frankly, it takes a heavy toll. I have been out of home for literally four months. January 31 was when I got out of the house, finished my work, and started practicing from 2nd or 3rd of March. It takes a lot, but I have ample time to decide.”Related

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• CSK squeeze the Titans to enter their tenth IPL final

Dhoni and CSK now travel from Chennai to Ahmedabad for their tenth IPL final in 14 seasons. When asked whether an IPL final now felt like just another game, Dhoni said it did not.”IPL is too big to say that it is just another … and not to be forgetting that there used to be eight top teams, who used to compete with the best players available in the world and now it is tougher.”I won’t say it is just another final. It is hard work of more than two months because of which we are standing over here. Lot of character shown by the individuals, from where we started to where we are, and I feel everybody has contributed. Yes, the middle order has not got ample opportunity, but in between everybody has got a chance to chip in and they have done that.”CSK managed to score 172 after losing the toss in Qualifier 1 on a pitch that was tough for batting. During the defence, Dhoni was in his element, marshalling his bowlers and making field placements to stifle the Titans’ chase.MS Dhoni gets his fielders exactly where he wants them•BCCI

“You see the wicket, you see the conditions and according to that, you keep adjusting the field,” he said. “I can be a very annoying captain because I shift the fielder one or two feet here and there every time.”The fielder needs to keep an eye on me. Imagine you are fielding and every two balls or three balls, I am like, ‘Okay two feet to your right, three feet to your left.’ It can be annoying. I always say I believe in my gut feel, I see the wicket, the line, what is really happening and more often than not, it pays off. The only request I ask from the fielders is ‘keep an eye on me, if you drop a catch, there won’t be any reactions but just keep an eye on me.'”It hasn’t been an easy road to the final for CSK. They have grappled with several injuries, but have managed with the resources they have, especially in the pace department where Tushar Deshpande and Matheesha Pathirana have grown into their roles over the course of the season.”We try to create an environment. Other than that, we reiterate as to what is the strength of the fast bowler. Along with that, we make sure that they are improving in the areas where they need to be good at,” Dhoni said. “At the IPL, more often than not with the new ball, they know what needs to be done. The question is when it is not swinging, when it is not in your favour, then with the two fielders, where you can bowl to a particular batsman and what field you can keep. If a bowler knows that, more often than not, he will be successful.”We try to motivate them as much as possible. The support staff is there, they are always there. Now, [Dwayne] Bravo is there, Eric [Simons] is there. There are lot of people who can help them out. At the end of the day, when they are standing, they are there on their own. It is a very lonely place, but that’s where you can be brave and courageous.”Deepak Chahar took 2 for 29 in Qualifier 1•BCCI

Deepak Chahar: “Everything is okay”

CSK’s most experienced fast bowler Deepak Chahar has said that “everything is okay” despite appearing to pull up with some discomfort in his leg after taking the final catch of the game against the Titans.”Everything is okay, one more to go,” Chahar said after the match.Chahar has missed six games this season due to a hamstring injury he suffered in an earlier match after missing the whole of the 2022 season due to a back injury. In Qualifier 1, Chahar picked up 2 for 29, which included the wickets of the Titans openers, Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill.”The ball was doing something on the track and it was sticking to it [the pitch]. So, as a bowling unit, we decided to bowl more length,” Chahar said. “When you get support from the wicket, then you obviously don’t need to experiment too much – just bowl the basic ball and let them take the chances because we scored the runs and, when it comes to semi-finals, it’s all about handling the pressure. And scoring 170, chasing 170 in a semi-final when the crowd is against you, is very difficult.”

Alyssa Healy is racing the clock to play in Australia’s looming ODIs against India after being ruled out of the remainder of the WBBL with a knee injury.Sydney Sixers on Saturday said Australia’s captain would not play for them again this tournament, after picking up an injury in her left knee. Australia’s three-match ODI series starts four days after the WBBL final, leaving Healy in significant doubt for international duties.Related

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• Healy opens up on injury: 'Probably took the wrong risk'

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Healy did not keep in Sixers’ last-start loss against Brisbane Heat because of body management, and had entered the tournament with a foot injury that ended her T20 World Cup early. Australia host India in three ODIs, before travelling to New Zealand over Christmas for three more one-dayers.It’s understood Healy will be assessed in the next fortnight ahead of those two series, with a squad to be announced next weekend.The injury is not believed to be serious enough to have her in any current doubt for the multi-format Ashes, which begin with an ODI at North Sydney on January 12.Healy had warned on her return from her foot injury that she may need to be managed through the summer.”There are higher powers sitting above that are quite vocal in what can and can’t happen, which I completely understand,” Healy said earlier this month.  “Being skipper as well is a fairly big role for me. I want to be available for as much of the summer as I can.”I’ve hardly played a game for the Sixers for the past two seasons, and it’s a place I really enjoy playing cricket.  I want to be available for every game that I possibly can, but the reality is that might not be the case.”It’s going to be managing the pain, function and what I can and can’t do [all summer]. How I pull up from games is going to be really important as well.”Healy’s injury comes as a serious blow to Sixers, who face the prospect of needing to win their last three matches to make the WBBL finals.If Healy does miss international matches, Tahlia McGrath would be expected to deputise as captain again after doing so in the World Cup.

The remainder of Sri Lanka A’s tour of Pakistan has been indefinitely postponed due to mass protests in Islamabad by supporters of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), a political party led by former Pakistan captain and prime minister Imran Khan. The two remaining one-dayers were scheduled to be held at the Rawalpindi Cricket Ground, the international cricket stadium in Rawalpindi.The PCB said the postponement was due to “political activity” in Islamabad, Rawalpindi’s twin city and the capital of Pakistan. “The Pakistan Cricket Board, in consultation with Sri Lanka Cricket, has postponed the last two 50-over matches of the Pakistan Shaheens-Sri Lanka A series due to a political activity in the federal capital,” a PCB statement said. “The last two matches were scheduled for Wednesday and Friday at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Both boards will collaborate to finalise new dates to complete the series.”The PCB had been concerned about the impact the PTI protests would have on the series since the previous week. A few days ago, it announced that the first one-dayer, which was also scheduled to take place at the Rawalpindi Cricket Ground, would be moved to Islamabad Club. The remaining two games, according to the PCB, would have been played as scheduled at the Rawalpindi Cricket Ground on 27 and 29 November. The change in venue for the first game was seen as necessary because it was scheduled for 25 November, the day after Imran Khan has issued what he termed as a “final call” for his supporters to march to the capital to demand, among other things, his release from prison.The protests, which have brought the capital to a virtual standstill, have resulted in a tense standoff between Imran’s supporters and the federal government. It has also demanded the attention of the PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the country’s Interior Minister.Pakistan lead the one-day series against Sri Lanka, having won the first 50-over match by 108 runs. They had also won the preceding two-match first-class series 1-0.

Tristan Stubbs’ coming-of-age season continued as he batted South Africa to a series-levelling win over India at St George’s Park. Stubbs rescued South Africa from 66 for 6 and shared in a 42-run stand off 20 balls with Gerald Coetzee to end India’s winning streak in T20Is, which extended back 11 matches. In the last month, Stubbs has scored his first Test and ODI centuries and though his 47* in Gqeberha will not go down as a milestone, it was an innings of maturity that turned things around for a struggling South African side.Since reaching the T20 World Cup final in June, South Africa had played six matches before today and won only one. They appeared to lack a certain structure to their game, which showed glimpses of returning when they put together a complete performance in the field and kept India to 124. The fast bowlers set the tone upfront before the spinners put on a squeeze and all but Keshav Maharaj were among the wickets. Importantly, they removed India’s top three early, and for a combined total of eight runs, and their middle-order had to play catch up. A 37-run stand between Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh for the seventh wicket was the only time India’s scoring rate went above six an over.Given the target, South Africa may have thought the win would come easily but they were made to work for it. Varun Chakravarthy’s first international five-for left them reeling while captain Aiden Markam’s poor form remains a concern. It has been 26 innings since he last scored a T20I half-century. South Africa were kept quiet by India’s spinners and as wickets fell, the required run-rate climbed to the point where they needed 40 off the last five overs. Stubbs held his nerve, Coetzee showed his batting prowess and South Africa got home with an over to spare.Gerald Coetzee – the batter Coetzee was put on a 12-week conditioning break to work on his bowling, but it seems as though he’s paid as much attention to his batting. After an 11-ball 23 at Kingsmead, with the game all but lost, Coetzee came in with everything at stake at St George’s Park. South Africa were 86 for 7 and needed 39 runs in 26 balls. He was off the mark with a single and that was all the sighting he needed. He dispatched the next ball he faced, a full delivery from Arshdeep Singh, over long-off to relieve the pressure. Stubbs ended the 17th over with a stunning drive through the covers which left South Africa needing 25 runs from 18 balls. Coetzee got that down to 17 off 16 balls with back-to-back boundaries off Avesh Khan, who erred in length. South Africa scored 12 runs off the 18th over and needed 13 off the last 12 balls to level the series.Varun confounds South Africa South Africa insist they have made progress in their batting against spin but then someone like Varun comes along and it doesn’t seem that way. He followed up a career-best in Durban with another in Gqeberha and made India’s modest total appear much bigger than it was. His second ball was a slow googly that Markram, struggling for form, did not pick. Markram slogged, missed and was bowled. The same delivery did Reeza Hendricks in in the next over. Hendricks had just hit Varun for four and was foxed by the wrong ‘un as he played for turn away and was bowled. Then, he changed ends and was equally dangerous from the other side. In his third over, Marco Jansen had no idea what to do against the googly but it was the final over where Varun all but ended South Africa’s hopes. Heinrich Klaasen tried to take him on and could only find long-off and with his next ball, Varun bowled David Miller to claim his five-for.Varun Chakravarthy removed Marco Jansen for 7 on his way to a five-for•AFP/Getty Images

South Africa’s sensational bowling start Cricket has its way of humbling humans and it did to Sanju Samson, who was bowled off the third ball of the innings for a duck, after back-to-back hundreds in his last two matches. The delivery was impressive as Jansen got the ball to seam and then swing but Samson moved too early to give himself room and may have been in a better place to keep it out if he had remained in line. Jansen’s first over was scoreless and South Africa had set the tone. Four balls later, Coetzee and umpire Lubabalo Gcume thought Abhishek Sharma gloved him down the leg side but an immediate review proved otherwise. Coetzee had the last laugh when Abhishek top-edged him to Jansen at short fine. But the moment of the powerplay came when Andile Simelane, who was wicketless on debut in Durban, seared in a yorker to Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav to get his first international wicket. Suryakumar tried to flick it away but was beaten for pace and hit on the pad and did not even bother to review. India were 15 for 3 after four overs and recovered to 34 for 3 after the powerplay. David Miller’s wonder catch Tilak Varma smashed Markram towards cover. The ball rocketed towards Miller who moved to his right, reached overhead and plucked it out of the Gqeberha. Tilak stood open-mouthed and stared at Miller in disbelief. At the stands, the spectators’ eyes were the size of saucers. The commentators struggled to get the words out.’Oh, my, word’, was the overall sentiment as India slumped to 45 for 4. South Africa stayed sharp in the field and legspinner Nqaba Peter reacted quickly when Hardik drove the ball to him at the end of his second over. Peter got a touch as the ball deflected onto the non-striker’s stumps and Axar Patel was run out. Hardik hits out Hardik scored 19 runs off the first 29 balls he faced and only found the boundary off the 28th as South Africa dried up India’s run-scoring opportunities. The middle overs were heavy going as India scored 24 runs in five overs and went 35 deliveries without scoring a boundary. Finally, in the 18th over, Hardik found his touch. Jansen was brought back on after his first two overs cost only five runs and Hardik immediately punched them through the covers for four. Two balls later, he got under a wider delivery and hit it over extra cover for six and then closed out the over with a ramp shot off a short ball for India’s most profitable over.

Haryana opener Yashvardhan Dalal created history by scoring a record unbeaten 428 against Mumbai in the Under-23 CK Nayudu Trophy match on Saturday. He is the first batter to cross 400 in the history of the tournament, being played since the 1973-74 season.