Taiwan Daredevils flew the flag by beating visiting Hong Kong side Harper’s Home Mix twice in a pair of matches hosted by the Chinese Cricket Development Association (CCDA) in Pingtung over the weekend.
In Saturday’s first match Harper’s captain Adam Harper won the toss and elected to send the Daredevils in to bat.
The local side had a shaky start as the top order crumbled and thing looked ominous. However, a spate of extras and a stunning half-century from John Nettleton turned things round, the Aussie smashing four sixes and six fours to finish on 62 off just 23 balls. The tail wagged to add more runs as the Daredevils rattled up 172 off their 15 overs.
Anthony Hopewell was Harper’s best bowler, taking 3-22 off his three overs, including the scalp of veteran South African Duane Christie and Nettleton.
Faced with a daunting total, Harper’s could only manage 80, with a late flurry of runs from Hopewell saving the visitors from an even heavier defeat.
Kiwi Kris Cokes Lal starred with the ball, taking 3-8 from two overs. Tight bowling from Pakistani paceman Mahroof Hussain and Taiwanese-Englishman Laurence Fell also helped restrict Harper’s.
The second match was reduced to 12 overs and saw Harper’s bat first, but once more they failed to shine with the bat, finishing with 42-5.
Again the Daredevils bowling proved too strong, with Fell taking 2-4.
Batsmen Andrew Carrick and Nettleton scored freely to see the Daredevils coast to a second victory and the game ended with a six from Australian Stephen White.
“Enthusiasm is high and cricket is alive and well in Taiwan,” Carrick said.
Next up for the Daredevils is the annual Pingtung SixesTournament — to be hosted by the CCDA this coming weekend at the Pingtung Pro Baseball Ground — which will also feature Geckos CC, Pakistan Cricket Club Taipei and Formosa Cricket Club.
Tallon Griekspoor on Friday stunned top seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/4) in the second round at Indian Wells, avenging a devastating loss to the German at Roland Garros last year. Zverev, the world No. 2 who is heading the field of the prestigious ATP Masters event with No. 1 Jannik Sinner serving a three-month drugs ban, is the first Indian Wells men’s top seed to lose his opening match since Andy Murray in 2017. It was a cherished win for Griekspoor, who had lost five straight matches — including four last year — to the German. That included a five-setter
Donovan Mitchell on Wednesday scored 26 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers punched their ticket to the NBA playoffs with a hard-fought 112-107 victory over the Miami Heat. A seesaw battle in Cleveland saw the Heat threaten to end the Cavs’ 11-game unbeaten streak after opening up a seven-point lead late in the fourth quarter, but the Cavs clawed back the deficit in the closing minutes to seal their 12th straight victory and a place in the post-season. The Cavaliers improved to 52-10, maintaining their stranglehold on the Eastern Conference with 20 games of the regular season remaining. Mitchell was one of six Cleveland
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic on Saturday tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz advanced. “No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat. “It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he said. “But congratulations to my opponent — just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.” Djokovic is just the latest in Van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims. He
Manchester United on Thursday settled for a 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Europa League round-of-16 tie. United led on Joshua Zirkzee’s goal in the 58th minute, but the hosts equalized 12 minutes later after Bruno Fernandes’ hand ball and Mikel Oyarzabal sent Andre Onana the wrong way from the penalty spot. The Europa League could be a way for United to finish the season with a trophy after crashing out of the FA Cup on Sunday. A spot in the quarter-finals is to be on the line at Old Trafford in the second leg on Thursday next
RSS