Faf du Plessis has been ruled out of the ODI series against New Zealand and will be out of action for at least four weeks with a knee injury

Firdose Moonda19-Aug-2015Faf du Plessis has been ruled out of the ODI series against New Zealand and will be out of action for at least four weeks due to a knee injury. Du Plessis did not play the T20s after picking up the injury during training ahead of the series. He should recover in time for South Africa’s tour of India, which starts in October.”It’s frustrating for me because I feel good and in form,” du Plessis said while doing a commentary stint during the first ODI. “Brandon Jackson, the physiotherapist, said I will need about three or four weeks of no running at all and then can get back into training.”This is the second injury du Plessis has had in the last few months after he suffered a broken finger during IPL 2015. Du Plessis played in the final despite the finger injury; he took the injury into South Africa’s tour of Bangladesh but did not miss any matches. “At Chennai, my nickname is Ferrari because everything looks pretty good on the outside but there’s not much going on on the inside.”Du Plessis’ absence means that South Africa are without a third senior player after JP Duminy and Morne Morkel were given time off from the series for paternity leave. Rilee Rossouw will bat in du Plessis’ place at No. 3 with Farhaan Behardien included in the lower middle order. Dean Elgar has been added to the squad as cover.

The importance of England’s batsmen not becoming bogged down by Pakistan’s spinners has been pinpointed as a key factor for the Test series

Andrew McGlashan07-Oct-2015Could Alastair Cook pull out the reverse sweep during the Test series against Pakistan? For one of England’s most orthodox batsmen, and an increasingly rare link back to the traditional form of Test batting, it would appear an unlikely prospect. But the importance of England not becoming bogged down by Pakistan’s spinners has been pinpointed by Paul Farbrace, the assistant coach, as a key route to success this winterCook is one of three left-handers likely to be part of England’s top seven at the start of the series. His opening partner is set to be Moeen Ali, while Ben Stokes will bat at No. 6. They are going to be facing two spinners, legspinner Yasir Shah and left-armer Zulfiqar Babar, turning the ball into them with fields that are likely to stifle their leg-side scoring options.England had an early taste of such a tactic during their opening warm-up match when, on occasions, the Pakistan A spinners – the two who bowled the most, Zafar Gohar and Mohammad Ashgar, were left-armers – had a seven-two leg-side field.England have previously been criticised for their obsession with the conventional sweep in Test cricket, instead of hitting straight down the ground, and Farbrace said that playing straight should be the preferred option in the first innings. However, he believes that all variations of the sweep could have a key part to play, especially deeper into the Test matches.”Second innings, the sweep is going to be a huge part of the game,” Farbrace said. “Even [in the first warm-up], we saw to the left-handers with a seven-two leg-side field bowling into the stumps, it might be that the left-handers have to learn to reverse to get the ball into the offside, just to manoeuvre the field.”People talk about ‘you’ve got to play straight’ but all you’re looking to do with the reverse sweep is play it once or twice to manoeuvre the field. What the best batsmen do against spin is manoeuvre the field to where they want the fielders to be to create gaps to knock the ball into. That’s something you have to do. On slow pitches, you have constantly to be rotating the strike and getting the ball into gaps.”The biggest danger, Farbrace says, is when a batsman becomes stuck at the single end, giving a spinner the time to work him over. After the warm-up match Mark Wood conceded how England will have to play a different game compared to their expansive Ashes cricket, but it must not go from bash to block.The 2007 vintage of Alastair Cook attempts a rare reverse sweep•Getty Images

“The bowler builds pressure, fielders around the bat, and eventually you bat-pad one and you get out,” Farbrace said. “The key for our batters is, one, to adapt to the conditions very quickly and have the options to play the sweep, reverse sweep, whatever it might be. Even hitting over the top, down the ground, all of our batsmen have got to have that option within their game as well.”England’s 3-0 whitewash against Pakistan in 2012 will be a regular reference point, but since then they have drawn in Sri Lanka and won in India so their record in subcontinental conditions – which the UAE can be bracketed as – is not as bad as some would make out.In two of the victories – Colombo and Mumbai – the now absent Kevin Pietersen was to the fore making 158 and 186 with astonishing strokeplay, including the switch hit, and quick footwork that did not allow the spinners to dominate.However, Cook was also immense, making 94 against Sri Lanka and three centuries in India. He played to his strengths, working off his pads, playing square into the off side and picking off anything that was dropped short. So the odds of Cook moving away from his method are slim. The first innings of the recent Ashes series was also instructive when he tried to attack Nathan Lyon early on and edged a cut. His is the long game. For anything more extravagant from the lefties, you probably need to look to Stokes.But not over-hitting has been a key message from short-term consultant Mahela Jayawardene who is working with England until the end of the first Test. The outfield in Sharjah for the first warm-up match was slow, reducing value for shots, but England’s batsmen are being told not to get frustrated.”Rather than trying to hit the ball harder because the ball is not getting to you as easily as it might do at home, the key is to let the ball come a bit more, hitting more under your nose, actually looking to bunt the ball into gaps,” Farbrace said. “If you see a long hop, the natural reaction is to pull it as hard as you can…[Jayawardene] is talking about letting the ball come, hitting it as late as you can, guide it into gaps. You’re only going to get one [run] anyway.”We saw people whacking the ball hard still only getting ones. Rather than whacking it and nicking behind, just guide the ball. They are the very simple things that he’s talked about. And it is simple. There’s nothing rocket science about what he’s talked about. He’s just offered some of his thoughts.”How many of those thoughts England’s batsmen implement, only time will tell.

Mark Wood picked up a solitary wicket but his discipline and determination kept England in contention on a tough first day in Dubai

Andrew McGlashan in Dubai22-Oct-2015There was an almost apologetic look on Misbah-ul-Haq’s face when he won his second toss of the series. As if to say, ‘sorry, Alastair, but you know what’s coming’. And there certainly was a case of déjà vu.The close-of-play score – 282 for 4 – was remarkably similar to last week’s at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium when Pakistan finished on 286 for 4, and there was even a sense of having seen it all before in the way Misbah disdainfully raced to his hundred in the final over.There is an expectation that this surface will deteriorate more rapidly than Abu Dhabi, which offered virtually nothing until the penultimate session of the match, so having first use was seen as a major coup, especially with Yasir Shah back in Pakistan’s ranks. Yet, despite Misbah’s hundred, England reached the close knowing they remain firmly in the contest after the bowling attack strained every sinew.An opening stand of 51 was countered by two pieces of sharp work at short leg from Jonny Bairstow. Then Shan Masood’s elegant fifty was snuffed out straight after lunch – both he and Mohammad Hafeez fell to that notorious helping hand, the break in play – and Younis Khan was extracted before his partnership with Misbah could swell to vast proportions. The final hour swung the day, but not the match.As on the first day in Abu Dhabi, there was a stark contrast between pace and spin: the four quicks compiled 57-16-138-3 and the two spinners 33-4-142-1. The value of having six frontline bowlers was again on display from Alastair Cook. He did not have to over-expose Adil Rashid or over-burden any of his quicks.The heaviest workload of the day went to Moeen Ali with 20 overs. He was introduced in just the eighth over and was also the man to feel the force of Misbah in the last, while the tireless James Anderson was the hardest-worked of the quicks, with 16 overs stretched across four spells. However, it was the effort of Mark Wood that was most notable – with a worthy nod to Ben Stokes who was still recovering from the effects of a stomach bug – even though his wicket tally remains limited.”It’s three or four overs as a bowler and then you are off and then the next guy has to back that up,” Wood said. “It’s no good, say, Jimmy putting in a great three overs and I come on and let the pressure off. I think that’s why we all look out for each other and are quite a close unit. You sort of have that badge of honour in these conditions, you know you’ve put a hard shift in and done it for the team.Mark Wood grabbed the key wicket of Younis Khan in a fine spell after tea•Getty Images

“I think the pitch is a little more skiddy than [Abu Dhabi], this comes onto the bat a little bit better. As a seam group I think we did our job, we set traps and tried different things. They attacked the spinners but I don’t think they bowled badly.”In Wood’s case, how his body reacts to back-to-back Tests is always the focus of attention. Against New Zealand, at Headingley, he laboured after his debut the week before; against Australia at Lord’s he struggled after impressing in Cardiff – and those matches were not in 35-degree heat. In Abu Dhabi he sent down 29 overs in the match, comparable to the other quicks but not a huge workload.Still, the strain needs to be carefully monitored; if he plays all three Tests in this series that will be above expectation. Wood does not hide his concerns, he has been happy to talk about them in the past, conceding surgery made be needed on his ankle eventually. Still, as a player deemed worthy of selection Wood can’t then expect special protection. Besides, it’s not in his nature to hold anything back.Each spell was full of hostility. In his first burst he attempted to unsettle Masood, who had not played the short ball at all well during his brief pair of innings in Abu Dhabi; then in his second spell, Wood twice stuck Misbah on the shoulder and the back of the helmet as the Pakistan captain turned his head away from short deliveries.What must go through the mind of a fast bowler, on these pitches, when the captain asks for a spell of bouncers? There was, however, a modicum of extra carry compared to last week and Wood threw his all into trying to make the most of it.”I tried to make more aggressive use of the short ball,” Wood said. “With my height, in these conditions, it tends not to go over them very much, it’s always at them, so I can use that to my advantage. But they played it pretty well, I know I hit Misbah a couple of times but he’s still out there and has a hundred so I’ll have to try again tomorrow.”After tea Wood produced an outstanding spell of 4-2-3-1; between him and Moeen the first 17 balls of the final session were dots, the 18th brought the wicket of Younis who was set solid on 56. A leg-side catch it may have been, but it is worth noting the build-up in the over – the third ball, a short delivery, made Younis flinch out of the line and the next he was beaten playing a flat-footed drive. Younis, a batsman enjoying the prime of his career late on, had been unsettled on a flat pitch.Next over, Wood gave Asad Shafiq a testing time, zipping one past the outside edge and then creating a nick which landed short of gully. In the fourth over of his spell he pummelled Misbah’s gloves with a rising delivery and nipped another past the outside edge. On another day, Wood could easily have had more reward. But although both batsmen survived, he had left nothing in the shed, or should that be the stable. Wood’s own horse may be imaginary, but England’s most certainly has not bolted.

George Bailey’s unbeaten century helped Tasmania post a commanding total of 433 for 8 before they declared against Queensland on the second day in Hobart

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Nov-2015
ScorecardFile photo – George Bailey scored an unbeaten 148 off 190 balls•Getty Images

George Bailey’s unbeaten century helped Tasmania post a commanding total of 433 for 8 before they declared on the second day in Hobart.Resuming on 278 for 3, Bailey and Ben Dunk pushed the score past 300 before Dunk was dismissed by Jack Wildermuth for 142.Bailey, however, ensured there was no let up in momentum and, despite minimal contributions from lower-order batsmen, he kept scoring at a healthy rate. He put on 48 runs for the eighth wicket with Xavier Dorthy and remained unbeaten on 148 off 190 balls when Tasmania declared.Tasmania had a wobbly beginning to their reply when they lost Scott Henry to seamer Andrew Fekete, but Sam Heazlett and Matt Renshaw put on 90 runs for the second wicket. Fekete, however, struck a blow late in the day too, to remove Renshaw for 37, but Heazlett’s unbeaten 69 on first-class debut held the visitors’ innings together.

A round-up of the Ranji Trophy Group B matches on November 18, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Nov-2015
ScorecardFile photo: RP Singh claimed 5 for 33 as Madhya Pradesh were bowled out for 160•AFP

RP Singh’s five-wicket haul on the final day handed Gujarat a 153-run victory over Madhya Pradesh in Surat. RP Singh ran through Madhya Pradesh’s batting line-up, reducing them to 5 for 32 in their chase of 314 on the final day. Ankit Sharma provided Gujarat with some lower-order resistance by scoring 55, but his team was eventually bowled out for 160. RP Singh’s 5 for 33 in the second innings earned him the Man-of-the-Match award.
ScorecardOpeners Baba Aparajith and Abhinav Mukund top-scored with 71 each, as their side’s fixture with Uttar Pradesh winded down to a draw on the final day. Chasing 391 after Suresh Raina’s blitzkrieg innings on day three, Aparajith and Mukund put on a 135-run opening stand. Dinesh Karthik then batted out the day after Tamil Nadu lost a couple of quick wickets, scoring a patient 38. Raina won the Man-of-the-Match award for his unbeaten 145 in the second innings.

Hosts Bangladesh will take on defending champions South Africa in the opening game of the Under-19 World Cup in Chittagong on January 27 next year

Mohammad Isam07-Dec-2015Hosts Bangladesh will take on defending champions South Africa in the opening game of the Under-19 World Cup in Chittagong on January 27 next year. The match is one of 20 games that will be broadcast live, compared to 11 matches telecast during the 2014 competition in the UAE. The tournament final will be played in Dhaka on February 14.Sixteen teams will participate in the tournament including six qualifiers – Scotland, Namibia, Afghanistan, Canada, Fiji and Nepal – across eight venues in Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet and Cox’s Bazar. Group D looks the most notable of the four groups as Australia, India, New Zealand and Nepal will compete for two knockout berths.Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara and Bangladesh fast bowlers Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed attended the tournament launch programme in Dhaka on Monday, along with BCB president Nazmul Hassan and ICC general manager Geoff Allardice.

The pools

Group A: Bangladesh, South Africa, Namibia, Scotland
Group B: Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Canada
Group C: England, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Fiji
Group D: Australia, India, New Zealand, Nepal

Sangakkara joked he wasn’t “good enough” to play in the U-19 World Cup all those years ago, but identified the importance of the tournament for the transition of young players into international cricket.”I watched a lot of players around the world who played in the U-19 World Cup,” Sangakkara said. “It is great to see talent being recognised at a very young age and then get the exposure at an international stage to showcase their skills. It introduces them to professionalism, structure and the expectations of what they should be doing to step up to the international level.”Allardice recognised Bangladesh – who are hosting the event for the second time – as an ideal candidate in terms of amenities, especially with the addition of two stadiums in Cox’s Bazar for this tournament.”It is a very important tournament for the ICC. It is the aspiration of every young cricketer to make it to their U-19 national team,” Allardice said. “Nine of the ten Test captains have played in the U-19 World Cup at some stage.”I think the global nature of this tournament is important for cricket. It tends to expose the young players to the world stage. They are also exposed to education programmes like anti-corruption and anti-doping.”One of the things about the U-19 World Cup is to find a host city or country that has sufficient match and training facilities to host the 16 teams. Bangladesh ticks all the boxes in that regard. We hosted 26 teams in the ICC World T20 in Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet and this time we are also playing in Cox’s Bazar.”BCB chief Hassan said he was confident of the competition’s success. “Bangladesh has a proud history of hosting ICC events,” he said. “This is the second Under-19 World Cup that Bangladesh will be hosting. Given the passion and enthusiasm with which we organise and follow cricket, I am confident this tournament will also be successful.”

After his omission from the 50-over side, Shane Watson’s call-up for the T20 series against India means that he is well and truly in line for a role at the World T20 in India

Daniel Brettig18-Jan-20161:54

Call up a pleasant surprise – Watson

On Saturday, Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin will be conveyed around the SCG in open-topped cars to say farewell to the Sydney faithful at the end of their international careers. In Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth the same courtesy has been extended to Ryan Harris, Chris Rogers and Mitchell Johnson.Missing from all this pageantry has been Shane Watson, also retired from Tests but not yet done with the limited-overs forms of the game. Omission from the 50-over side to face India had Watson concluding that his ODI days were done, but inclusion in the Twenty20 squad for the three fixtures that follow mean he is well and truly in line for a role at the World T20 in India. The open-topped car can wait.”It came down to me really wanting to play for the Thunder and doing well for them over this BBL, and whatever happened from there with the Aussie side of things I wasn’t worrying about it at all anymore,” Watson said at the SCG. “After being dropped from the one-day squad I knew my international days were probably over, so it’s nice to get that surprise and call from Rod Marsh yesterday.”It’s very nice to still be one of the old guys even though I don’t feel that old, 34 didn’t seem that old when I was playing but it is nowadays with the amount of cricket that’s being played. But it’s nice to know I can still contribute like I have over the last three or four games for the Thunder. That’s the most important thing, that I know I can play my best like I did out here the other night. If that means I’m one of the old guys still playing, that’s nice as well.”Playing in happy and successful teams is a motivator for Watson these days, something he has been able to be a part of at the Thunder and is hopeful to help maintain in the national team. The T20 captain Aaron Finch will welcome Watson’s wealth of short-form experience, particularly as so much of it pertains to India, home to the IPL but also this year’s edition of the global tournament.”That would be the goal that’s for sure,” Watson said of the World T20. “Being played in India, that’s something that we haven’t played incredibly well at over the previous few tournaments, but in the end it really comes down to me hopefully playing for the Thunder this week during the finals if we’re able to get through and just enjoying every moment. I know it’s not too far away before those days are done, so I’m just making the most of every day I’ve got.”It’s nice to know I’ve had a lot of experience over in India, playing a lot of IPL tournaments and having some success over there as well. That was always going to give me more of an opportunity to get picked, but in the end it comes down to performance and lucky I’ve performed over the last couple of games.”Watson had started the BBL in rather grim fashion, with scores of 16, 1, 13 and a duck boding ill for his chances of receiving a call from Marsh. However, he had been working closely with his fellow allrounder Jacques Kallis on his technique and mental approach during that time, and a windfall sequence of 46, 18, 62, then 66 in the Sydney Derby, proved Watson was moving in the right direction. His bowling, too, has been effective for the Thunder.”I’ve been very lucky to have one of the best batters to play the game in Jacques Kallis who’s helped me out over the last month,” Watson said, “just working through a couple of technical things that have had an incredible impact on my batting.”To get back to batting how I have the last few games, especially here against the Sixers, which was the best I’ve batted in a long time, is great. Playing Twenty20 now I have to have the power game to be sure I can hit the ball over the fence and give myself the best chance. I’ve certainly been working on that.”As for what is left for Watson to achieve, his goals in the game are now more about fostering happy and successful teams rather than anything individual. He has enjoyed that experience at the Thunder, and either side of the World T20 he will be taking part in the Pakistan Super League for Islamabad United and the Caribbean Premier League for St Lucia Zouks. A fresh IPL deal, following the suspension of the Rajasthan Royals, is also on Watson’s wish list.”The thing that really drives me is playing for really good teams and franchises that want me to be there and I want to be there,” he said. “The Sydney Thunder’s certainly been that way, I love being a part of the Thunder, it’s a great franchise, there’s a lot of great people around it off the field but also on the field as well. We’ve got some great cricketers but some great people as well. That drives me to be able to perform at my best.”

United Arab Emirates stormed to the main draw of the Asia Cup after a convincing 71-run win against Oman in Dhaka

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Feb-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Mohammad Naveed returned figures of 2 for 14 from his four overs•AFP

United Arab Emirates entered the main draw of the Asia Cup after a convincing 71-run win against Oman in Dhaka. UAE won all three of their qualifying matches to finish first on the points table and book their berth.Oman were still alive going into the last match of the qualifying group, but had to chase the target in 13.5 overs after opting to bowl. UAE just needed a win to qualify.Oman were given a boost in the second over after Rohan Mustafa was run-out after failing to slide his bat into the crease. The innings was quickly resurrected by Mohammad Shahzad, who struck a fifty in the previous game, and Muhammad Kaleem. The pair added 86 in 65 balls to set a strong platform for the middle order. Sufyan Mehmood, drafted in for this game, removed Kaleem for a 40-ball 50.Left-arm spinner Aamir Kaleem brought his side back into the contest with two wickets in three balls in the 14th over, dismissing Shahzad and Shaiman Anwar. However, the momentum swung again as Muhammad Usman played a match-turning cameo to lift his side to 172 for 6. He plundered 35 off his last 10 balls and finished with an unbeaten 46 off 22, an innings that featured six fours and two sixes. His innings earned him the Man-of-the-Match award. Aamir Kaleem took two more wickets in the final over to finish with figures of 4 for 36.Oman’s hopes of qualification were dashed within seven overs of the chase, as they were reduced to 38 for 5 in the search for quick runs to get ahead on net run-rate. UAE took two more wickets in the next four overs to effectively kill the match.The rest of the innings was a formality as Oman crawled to 101 for 8 in 20 overs. Zeeshan Maqsood offered resistance with a 42-ball 46 but no other batsman crossed 15. Fast bowler Mohammad Naveed was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4-1-14-2.

Essex’s square played enough tricks last year to suit the circus troupe across the river, but the mood has shifted as a new coach takes charge at Chelmsford

David Hopps at Chelmsford10-Apr-2016
Scorecard0:48

What effect will one up from Division Two have?

It will be with some relief that the ECB receives reports that Carter’s Steam Fair – the world’s largest vintage travelling fun fair – has this season set up its stalls and marquees on the other bank of the River Can.There have been times in recent seasons when the circus marquees seemed to have been erected on the Chelmsford square with tumblers a plenty to be found on the most responsive pitches in the country.An opposing captain choosing to bat risked being offered a contract with the clowns, and pointed in the general direction of the top hats and red noses, but Gloucestershire’s captain Gareth Roderick did just that and personally ensured that he was not immediately punished by his brazen disregard of history by making a judicious unbeaten 88.There was an influence brought to bear in all this. Considerable evidence will be needed to judge the ECB’s historic decision to give the opposing captain the right to bowl first this season, without recourse to a toss, in an attempt to improve pitches. But there will be initial satisfaction that even in Essex, considering that the opening day of the Championship season had been preceded by enough dank weather for Premier League footballers to be still wearing mittens, there was a learned contest between bat and ball.April pitches, however, are bound to be sappy and, from 164 for 6, Gloucestershire would have been satisfied to emerge with 262, around par, and to have 16 overs at Essex on the first evening. Within six balls, England’s captain, Alastair Cook, had adopted the hands-on-hips stance at the non-striker’s end that signifies the loss of his batting partner – Nick Browne lbw to Liam Norwell – but Cook found a sound ally in Tom Westley, no more damage was done and Essex’s powerful batting line-up has the chance on the second day to make an early pronouncement that this season they can mount a serious Division Two title challenge.Chris Silverwood, Essex’s new head coach, is committed, irrespective of ECB toss regulations, to better cricket pitches and he has recruited with that in mind, strengthening Essex’s seam bowling roster by bringing in two dual-national pace bowlers: Western Australian Matt Dixon and New Zealander Matt Quinn.Quinn had only just arrived so rested out. It seemed wise enough, although he might have been the target of the first utterance overheard on walking into the ground: “It’s a farce – they’re all molly coddled these days.” So another county season begins where ambitious young cricketers are regularly denounced by predominantly elderly members who secretly cherish their presence like little else in the world.Dixon, who has expressed a desire to build a “10 to 15-year career”, looked a solid acquisition as he removed both openers, although there was little distinguished in the ball that bowled Chris Dent, who dragged on a wide half-volley. His slender new-ball partner, Jamie Porter, lacked the same consistency, but included three middle-order wickets in his 4 for 59.Essex caught wonderfully well, Porter the beneficiary on each occasion as Cook snapped up Ian Cockbain at first slip and Jesse Ryder sprung low to his right at backward point to silence Hamish Marshall’s threatening half-century with Gloucestershire wresting control at 143 for 3. The best catch of all, though, was a combo between Westley, who flung himself to his left at second slip to knock up Kieran Noema-Barnett’s edge for Dan Lawrence to complete the job at third.Essex’s balance was slightly batsman-heavy with the new-ball attack supported by a trio of medium-pacers and, although Graham Napier’s burst of 3 for 1 in six balls wrapped up the tail, their effectiveness can be expected to decline as the summer wears on.Ryder’s constitutionals brought him 44 Championship wickets at 25.45 last summer, the most affable of approaches followed by something more threatening when the seam hit the pitch. As he offered up temptation, one wondered how Ryder the batsman would respond to Ryder the bowler. It would not be too long, you would wager, before there would be an almighty flay in the general direction of extra cover.

Australia Women’s captain Meg Lanning said after her side’s eight-wicket loss in the Women’s World T20 final that other teams were catching up and even going past them

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Apr-2016Australia Women’s captain Meg Lanning said after her side’s eight-wicket loss in the Women’s World T20 final that other teams were catching up and even going past them. Australia had posted a competitive 148 for 5 after opting to bat but witnessed a solid opening stand of 120 from West Indies, before the match was sealed with three balls to spare. It was the first time a team apart from Australia, England and New Zealand won a global tournament in women’s cricket.”We’ve spoken about it a lot, that everyone is sort of catching up and going past, I guess,” Lanning said. “We need to keep improving to make sure we stay on top. We did that [this tournament], I think, but we weren’t good enough today to beat the West Indies. It just did not go our way today.”There’s no easy games in women’s cricket any more. If you’re not on, not 100%, you’re not going to win. We certainly found that out at this tournament.”Australia coach Matthew Mott felt that they fell a little short of the target that would have taken them to their fourth straight World T20 title. Australia were set for a big score when they were 92 for 2 after 12 overs but scored only 17 runs in the last three overs, as Deandra Dottin conceded only one run in the final over.”We knew we were in for a big fight today and halfway through our batting innings I thought we’d really put our foot on it,” Mott said. “But we missed a couple of opportunities to bury the game and other teams will knock you over in that case. “I thought the Windies batted exceptionally well tonight.”Lanning also admitted that they “needed 160-plus” to set things up for a win. Mott further said that there were still positives to be taken out of the tournament”As you saw in the back end of our innings even when we were out of the game, we didn’t give up, and I think that’s part of the culture in this team and I think it’s exciting,” Mott said. “We didn’t get over the line tonight but we put ourselves in a position to win and in the end it’s a line ball, they can come down to a couple of key moments and we didn’t quite win them tonight.””It has been a tough, long road but if we won today I think we would have said what an amazing preparation we had. No excuses, I think we put our best foot forward, we were just a little bit shy of the mark today but the spirit that’s been shown in this group over the last few weeks in particular is something we’re really proud of.”I know this group is going to be really strong for a long time and it’s great that other teams are challenging Australia. Any team could win it out of this tournament and the West Indies turning over a good side like New Zealand in the semi is a great example.”Lanning also heaped praise on West Indies opener Hayley Matthews, who struck a 45-ball 66 to set up her side’s win.”She’s very talented, she had a good series against us,” she said. “It was not a surprise, she played exceptionally well.”