Geoff Lemon's Blog

Updates from the first ODI, 1pm BST start at Leicester

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Capsey as keeper is away! I can’t say that was the most conventional method – she lunges across and sticks out one hand in front of slip, rather than moving her feet and getting both gloves to it – but she holds the take. Good bowling from Wong, a bit of swing away, and Tector just places the bat there looking to push square on the off side again.

4th over: Ireland 13-0 (Tector 11, Lewis 0) Almost through! Filer gets the ball swinging into Lewis, so far in that it smacks the pads outside the line of leg stump, then deflects back past the off stump! Lewis still hasn’t scored, and somehow survives. Leg bye.

The quick-fire series in the Northern Territory did little to answer batting line-up questions and the top of the order remains an almighty jumble

Cricket Australia didn’t host a Bangladesh Test for 23 years for a simple reason: it would have cost money to stage and earned less money back. That wouldn’t have been a concern for whichever generation of players would have taken the field, but for the suits, the equation was lose-lose. Now that the mandate of the World Test Championship has forced administrators to end that long wait, the result for Australia’s current batting outfit was also been lose-lose, even if the series scoreline ended up lose-win.

Defeat in the Darwin Test will remain a punchline at Australia’s expense, especially if the upcoming cavalcade of cricket against South Africa, New Zealand, India and England goes poorly. The follow-up win in Mackay, no matter the ruthlessness of concluding it in five sessions, won’t provide corresponding solace, given the manner in which it was built.

Mitchell Starc takes 10 wickets as Bangladesh capitulate at Great Barrier Reef Arena

45th over: Australia 184-8 (Green 65, Lyon 15) After that loose over from Hasan, we have Taijul Islam coming into the attack with his left arm orthodox. Green defends the first ball, then rotates the strike to give Lyon a look at his fellow spinner. Just the one run from the over.

44th over: Australia 183-8 (Green 64, Lyon 15) Shoriful resumes and Lyon starts the over defensively. Shoriful throws in a bouncer and then strikes the thigh pad and appeals for LBW, but the umpire isn’t interested and Bangaldesh eventually decide that it’s probably too high to bother reviewing. A maiden from Shoriful.

Good Morning Megan,

The problem is no one is demanding selection by scoring mountains of runs. Looking up something Picky Ponting mentioned yesterday, from the last Shield season of the top twenty-two run scorers only three average 40 or above: Renshaw, Carey and Weatherald.

Mitchell Starc rips through Bangladesh with six wickets before Australia build 101-run lead as Cameron Green holds innings together in Mackay

Bangladesh have also made one change with rangy left-armer Shoriful Islam replacing Ebadot Hossain in the attack.

The XI selected will go in full of confidence, as skipper Shanto explained earlier this week. “When you score against this kind of team, it gives you a lot of confidence going forward when we play in these kind of conditions or against this kind of bowling attack.”

Despite overwhelming odds against them, Bangladesh still found a way to win – but their success wasn’t down to any Australian complacency

Sport coverage is powered by hyperbole and recency bias, but the following statement is justifiable: Bangladesh’s defeat of Australia in Darwin is the most profound upset, the greatest revolt against the pre-game odds, in international cricket history. Australia’s win in England in 1882 so shocked locals that they published a cremation-themed obituary, but the same result had already happened four times on the other side of the world. Zimbabwe stunned India in 1998, but that was at least in the underdogs’ home conditions.

India’s bench-depth win at the Gabba in 2021 has a claim, or the new nation of Pakistan winning either in India in 1952 or England in 1954. But in truth, Sunday’s result is now the title holder, not just because of the disparity between the resources and histories of the two teams, not just because of the location, but because of the manufactured rarity of this match-up even taking place. Since Bangladesh’s admission to Test ranks in 2000, Cricket Australia have treated a cricket populace of well over 100 million people with the most blatant condescension.

60th over: Australia 178-5 (Green 49, Webster 0) Beau Webster to the middle, blocks his first three balls.

There it is for Bangladesh! And still with a lead of 50. Mehidy comes around the wicket, floats his off-breaks in, straightens them down the line. Carey goes down the wrong line, more leg stump, even though that ball pitches more on middle. It turns away slightly, grazes the edge, and is well caught. Such a dangerous player gone, and now Bangladesh are one wicket away from the bowlers.

Australia are on the ropes as they trail Bangladesh by 67 runs with six wickets in hand at Marrara Cricket Ground

Australia strike and it’s Josh Hazlewood doing the job with a beautiful seaming delivery that caught Mahmud on a leg stump line. That’s the breakthrough. Can the home side go on with it?

114th over: Bangladesh 354-6 (Miraz 33, Mahmud 14) There’s a lot of cameras trained on Australian allrounder Cameron Green today. He finished day two with a dropped catch from the last ball of the day to cap off a calamitous afternoon for his side. Hazlewood follows four dots with a ducking ball that thunders into Mahmud’s pads. Umpire says OUT! DRS says…

Australia claim five wickets across the second day as Bangladesh reach 351 for 6 and build an ominous first-innings lead in Darwin

28th over: Bangladesh 108-1 (Tanzid 37, Mominul 42) Cummins adjusts his approach to around the wicket to Mominul but is fortunate a half-volley is driven straight to the alert Labuschagne in the covers. The first attempted lifter of the day gets up high enough to clip the batter’s bottom hand., but it was slow and loopy bounce, consistent with what we’ve seen all Test so far.

There is little sideways movement on offer for Australia, and the tennis ball bounce means the window of a good length is very short. AKA: a Scott Boland pitch.

Australia’s fragile batting lineup was exposed as Bangladesh fast bowler Hasan Mahmud claimed six wickets on the opening day in Darwin

5th over: Australia 18-0 (Head 7, Weatherald 4) Taskin with more late movement, jagging a ball back into Weatherald’s knee roll, a keen appeal but it was going over and Umpire Dharmasena is rightly unmoved. The bowler goes full, trying to get through Weatherald in a similar way to how England had some success against him in the Ashes - with him falling over to the off side - but the radar is awry and it slides away for four byes.

4th over: Australia 13-0 (Head 7, Weatherald 4) Hasan Mahmud nearly pockets Head as a meaty leading edge loops over the bowler but short of mid off. The bowler then beats Weatherald all ends up with a ripper that seams back and looks like it skimmed the off bail. Weatherald aims a booming drive at the final ball but connects only with hot and humid Darwin air.

Updates from the series finale (2.30pm BST start)
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1st over: England 4-0 (Salt 2, Buttler 1) Another quiet opening over for England with the bat. Arshdeep Singh is swinging the ball with his left-arm efforts, and neither Salt nor Buttler tries anything expansive.

Looks like we’re finally going to get a game.