The big news: Williamson give Kiwis much-needed win

New Zealand levelled the five-match One-Day International series against India after winning the second game by six runs on Thursday at the Ferozshah Kotla in Delhi. After being put in to bat, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson scored his eighth ODI century to take his side to 242/9 in 50 overs.

Williamson turned out to be the difference between the two sides. Apart from his 118 and Tom Latham's 46 at the top of the order, none of the other Kiwi batsmen applied themselves. However, the Indian batting collapse was also a spectacle, with the players getting out thanks to some ridiculous shot making. The Kiwis deserved to win this match and the loss might help India regroup and get their act together.

Other top stories

  1. Bangladesh’s Mehdi Hasan dismantled the England batting line-up with a splendid 5/64 on debut to give the hosts the edge on day one of the first Test at Chittagong on Thursday. England were in trouble at 21/3 early in the day after Alastair Cook elected to bat. However, Moeen Ali (68), who was promoted to No. 5, and Jonny Bairstow (52) helped their side get to 258/7 at the close of play.
  2. West Indies will look to make amends as they take on Pakistan in the second Test in Abu Dhabi on Friday. After losing the first Test, played with a pink ball, West Indies will look to learn from the mistakes made in in Dubai last week.
  3. Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi has handed over the captaincy of Pakistan Super League (PSL) team Peshawar Zalmi to Darren Sammy, who led West Indies to two World T20 titles. Younis Khan was named as Peshawar's batting mentor.
  4. In order to save Test match cricket, the International Cricket Council has discussed the concept of a conference-based split among 12 Test-playing nations. This was after the idea of two divisions based on ranking was struck down by some member nations including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and India. Under the conference proposal, alternately-ranked teams would be grouped in separate conferences, down to teams placed 11th and 12th. This would then mean that all six teams in each conference would play each other in at least one series over two years. At the end of the competition, a Test Championship playoff between the two conference winners will decide the winner.
  5. Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum said that he will never forgive his former teammate Chris Cairns for trying to destroy his credibility over match-fixing allegations. "I felt that I was the one on trial and I found that really hard to deal with," McCullum told a radio channel. 
  6. Younis Khan wants India and Pakistan to set aside their differences and resume five-day matches as both are giants of the game. “It’s my wish to play a Test in Pakistan again, play against India and against all top teams,” Younis said. There has been no Test cricket between the two nations since 2007.
  7. Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc is confident that he will be ready for the first Test against South Africa in Perth in November. He has already declared himself fit for a Sheffield Shield appearance next week. Starc was operated upon five weeks ago after a training accident injured his left shin severely.