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Salman Ali Agha’s unbeaten century and Haris Rauf’s four-wicket burst helped Pakistan pip Sri Lanka by just six runs in the opening ODI of the three-match series as they successfully defended the 299-run total Tuesday at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.Pakistan’s pace arsenal led by Haris (4-61) picked up eight of the nine Sri Lankan wickets to fall as Faheem Ashraf and Naseem Shah also chipped in with two scalps apiece. Meanwhile, Mohammad Nawaz outfoxed Sri Lankan skipper Charith Asalanka at a crucial juncture in the chase.Wanindu Hasaranga top-scored for his side with a 52-ball 59 hitting seven fours and kept them well in the hunt till 49th over after walking in to bat at 191-6, when Sri Lanka required 109 runs off the remaining 102 balls.Hasaranga – who struck his fifth half-century in the format – stitched a 19-run stand with Kamindu Mendis, a 42-ball 37-run stand with Dushmantha Chameera and finally a 26-ball 32-run ninth-wicket stand with Maheesh Theekshana (21 not out, 18b, 2x4s) before being caught at long-on boundary off Naseem in the penultimate over.With 21 required off the last over delivered by Hussain Talat, Theekshana threatened Pakistan with two consecutive fours off the third and fourth ball before only gathering two runs off the remaining two as Sri Lanka agonisingly fell six runs short.In pursuit of the 300-run target, Sri Lankan opening duo of debutant Kamil Mishara (38, 36b, 5x4s, 1x6) and Pathum Nissanka (29, 39b, 3x4s) got their team to a flying start as they belted 85 runs off the opening 11.5 overs including 75 in the Powerplay.Haris missed out on a hat-trick after he he got Mishara caught at mid-off and castled Kusal Mendis for a golden duck. He then returned to further dent Sri Lanka’s audacious progress by getting Nissanka caught behind with the scorecard reading 90-3 in 13.2 overs.Sadeera Samarawickrama (39, 48b, 6x4s) and Charith Asalanka (32, 49b, 2x4s) then rebuilt the innings with a dogged 80-ball 57-run stand, which was again broken by Haris courtesy an outstanding one-handed grab by Babar Azam at first slip to remove the former.Asalanka then put on 36 runs with Janith Liyanage before Nawaz got him stumped in the 32nd over. Liyanage, who lifted Sri Lanka’s spirits with two fours and as many sixes in a 24-ball 28 was bowled by Naseem in the 33rd over with 191 on the board and four wickets in hand.Earlier, Pakistan were asked to bat first and Sri Lanka took 4.1 overs to draw first blood as Asitha Fernando trapped Saim Ayub leg-before for a 14-ball six following which Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman dug deep for a 54-run second-wicket stand.Hasaranga then cut open Pakistan’s innings with three valuable scalps getting Fakhar (32, 55b, 2x4s) stumped, Rizwan trapped leg-before and beating Babar’s defenses to hit the stumps as the hosts were reduced to 95-4 in 23.2 overs.Salman – who brought up his second ODI ton (105 not out, 87b, 9x4s) – joined forces with Hussain Talat (62, 63b, 6x4s, 1x6) to lift Pakistan out of the hole as the duo put on a game-changing 138-run stand for the fifth wicket.That Pakistan converted their 96-4 from first 25 overs to 299-5 by collecting 203 runs in the second half of the innings was due to the Salman and Hussain’s counterattacking effort. The duo picked the pace after 35th over when they were 152-4, getting at least a boundary off each over except 40th and 43rd.Hussain fell to Theekshana in the 44th over before Nawaz arrived to provide Pakistan a late flourish with his brisk 23-ball 36 not out hitting five four and one six. He also shared an unbeaten 66-run stand with Salman.Salman brought up his century off 83 balls in the 48th over – which yielded 20 runs - hitting Chameera for two consecutive fours and a single off the first three balls. Pakistan crucially took 22 runs off the last two overs of their innings including a four on the last ball to post their fourth-highest ODI total at the venue.Brief ScoresPakistan 299-5, 50 overs (Salman Ali Agha 105 not out, Hussain Talat 62, Mohammad Nawaz 36 not out, Fakhar Zamn 32, Babar Azam 29; Wanindu Hasaranga 3-54) bt Sri Lanka 293-9, 50 overs (Wanindu Hasaranga 59, Sadeera Samarawickrama 39, Kamil Mishara 38, Charith Asalanka 32, Pathum Nissanka 29, Janith Liyanage 28, Maheesh Theekshana 21 not out; Haris Rauf 4-61, Faheem Ashraf 2-49, Naseem Shah 2-55)

Cricket tradition is being turned upside down in Guwahati where the India and South Africa players will take tea before lunch in the second Test due to the region's early sunrise and sunset.The Indian cricket board (BCCI) has taken the unusual step of reversing the normal refreshment order for the second test starting on November 22, which will be Guwahati's first-ever Test match at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium. The decision was driven by the early sunrise and fast-fading light in north-east India."It is a practical decision," BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, who hails from Guwahati, said. "In winters, sunrise and sunset are very early here in north-east India. By 4 pm the (day) light recedes and you can't play much after. Because of that we have decided to start early, so play will start at 9 am."The match will begin half an hour earlier than usual for red-ball Tests in India. The first Test in Kolkata from November 14-18 begins at 9:30am local time, but the revised schedule for the second Test will have the toss at 8:30am before a 9am start.The first session will be played until 11 am when players have a 20-minute tea break. Lunch will be taken between 1:20pm and 2pm, with the final session wrapping up by 4pm. The teams will have key players returning, with Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant set to make his comeback from a foot fracture while South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma is back in the squad after recovering from a calf injury. India are third in the World Test Championship while defending champions South Africa are fourth.

The Qatar Cricket Association (QCA) will be playing hosts to the upcoming Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Rising Stars Asia Cup, earlier the Emerging Teams tournament, to be played in Doha from November 14 to 23 at the West-End International Cricket Stadium.The T20 event will feature eight teams India A, Pakistan A, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Oman, UAE, Hong Kong, and Sri Lanka. In this new format, full member nations will field their A teams, while associate nations will field their main teams.QCA said the tournament will be open to public with ticketed entry.Meanwhile, Jitesh Sharma has been named captain of the India A squad and Naman Dhir has been appointed his deputy. The selectors have also included 14-year-old IPL sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi in the squad.Pakistan A and Oman will kick off the tournament, with the showpiece India A vs Pakistan A match slotted for November 16. The teams are divided into two groups: Group A has Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka, while Group B has India, Oman, Pakistan and UAE.This will be the first cricketing exchange between the men's teams of India and Pakistan since the senior Asia Cup in September, though the senior women's teams faced off at the ODI World Cup earlier this month.ACC Rising Stars Tournament Schedule:Nov 14 - Oman vs Pakistan; India A vs UAENov 15 – Bangladesh vs Hong Kong; Afghanistan vs Sri LankaNov 16 - Oman vs UAE; India A vs Pakistan ANov 17 – Hong Kong vs Sri Lanka; Afghanistan vs BangladeshNov 18 – Pakistan A vs UAE; India A vs OmanNov 19 - Afghanistan vs Hong Kong; Bangladesh vs Sri LankaNov 21 - Semi-finals: A1 vs B2; B1 vs A2Nov 23 - Final.

A torrential downpour once again called the tune in Colombo as the Women's Cricket World Cup fixture between Pakistan and Sri Lanka was abandoned after just 4.2 overs on Friday.Heavy rain refused to relent, leaving players and fans drenched in disappointment. It was the last game in the Colombo leg of the tournament.Of the 11 matches staged in the Sri Lankan capital, five ended in no-results, forcing teams to split points.Several other games too were rain-disrupted, prompting questions as to whether Colombo's monsoon-prone month was the right window to stage a global event.Both Pakistan and Sri Lanka have borne the brunt of inclement weather, with three of their seven outings each washed down the drain.On Friday, the toss was delayed by more than three hours and the game was trimmed to 34 overs per side.Pakistan had reached 18 without loss when the heavens opened again. Despite the tireless efforts of the ground staff, match officials finally threw in the towel at 8:00 pm local time with parts of the outfield still under water.Sri Lanka climbed to fifth in the points table with five points, courtesy of one win and a point each from their three washed out games.They will stay there if England defeat New Zealand on Sunday, ensuring the islanders finish above the White Ferns. It's a commendable outcome for a side that had failed to qualify for the previous World Cup in New Zealand in 2022."We cannot control the weather. It has been very disappointing. We came into this tournament with lots of hope as we had beaten teams like India, New Zealand and South Africa in the recent past. But not much went our way in this campaign," Sri Lanka's captain Chamari Athapaththu said.Pakistan ended their campaign without a single win, finishing in seventh place, one ahead of Bangladesh in the eight nation competition with all their points coming through rain affected games."The weather didn't go in our favour. ICC must look into the best venues for World Cups. We are waiting for four years for a World Cup and it's disappointing to finish like this," Pakistan captain Fatima Sana said.

India beat Pakistan by five wickets in the final to retain the Asia Cup title on Sunday, capping a remarkable unbeaten run with their third victory against their arch-rivals at this year's tournament.Put into bat, Pakistan could not capitalise on an 84-run opening stand between Sahibzada Farhan (57) and Fakhar Zaman (46) and were bundled out for 146 with five deliveries still left in their innings.Pakistan lost their last nine wickets for 33 runs in a spectacular meltdown with India's left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav (4-30) being the wrecker-in-chief.Tilak Varma anchored India's nervy chase with an unbeaten 69 and Shivam Dube (33) provided some support as they overwhelmed the target with two deliveries to spare at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium."Pretty amazing," India vice-captain Shubman Gill summed up their feeling after clinching their ninth Asia Cup title."(Finishing) the whole tournament unbeaten - it's pretty amazing to be in this position."Emotions ran high around the contest between the neighbours who engaged in a military conflict in May and Gill said India's ability to absorb pressure stood the reigning 20-overs world champions in good stead."The conversation was to take it as deep as possible," he said of India's chase."The target was not much but important to soak in the pressure. Losing three wickets early, never easy. The partnership with Sanju and Tilak, and then how Dube hit those big sixes - it was very important."Earlier, Pakistan got off to a strong start with Farhan leading their charge against an Indian attack weakened by the absence of their injured all-rounder Hardik Pandya.Pakistan scored 45 runs in the first six powerplay overs but soon stepped up on the gas.With Farhan in full flow and Fakhar playing the second fiddle to perfection, there was no inkling of the collapse lurking around until spinner Varun Chakravarthy (2-30) dismissed Farhan in the 10th over.Kuldeep then took over, tying the batters in tangles while Axar Patel picked up a couple of wickets to hasten Pakistan's collapse. Jasprit Bumrah also finished with two wickets.India's start was rather wobbly as they lost their in-form opener Abhishek Sharma, also the tournament's leading scorer, and skipper Suryakumar Yadav inside the first 10 deliveries of their innings.They slumped to 20-3 after Gill's exit but Varma and Sanju Samson (24) decided to rebuild the innings.Even that recovery would not have been possible but for the reprieve Samson, then on 12, got when Hussain Talat dropped him in the deep.Abrar Ahmed dismissed Samson to break the 57-run stand but Dube combined with Varma to take India closer to the target before falling in the penultimate over.Needing 10 runs from the last over from Haris Rauf, Varma hit the second ball for a six to effectively seal India's thrilling victory and triggering wild celebration in the Indian camp.

Australia’s white-ball pace spearhead Mitchell Starc has retired from Twenty20 internationals six months out from the World Cup in India and Sri Lanka to focus on extending his career in Test and one-day cricket.The 35-year-old left-armer retires as the nation’s most prolific fast bowler in the format, with 79 wickets from 65 T20Is, second on the all-time Australia list to spin bowling teammate Adam Zampa.“Test cricket is and has always been my highest priority,” he said in a Cricket Australia statement Tuesday.“I have loved every minute of every T20 game I have played for Australia, particularly the 2021 World Cup, not just because we won but the incredible group and the fun along the way.“Looking ahead to an away Indian Test tour, the Ashes and an ODI World Cup in 2027, I feel this is my best way forward to remain fresh, fit and at my best for those campaigns.“It also gives the bowling group time to prepare for the T20 World Cup in the matches leading into that tournament.”Starc was not included in Australia’s T20I squad released Tuesday for the upcoming series against New Zealand.Selectors chairman George Bailey said the rangy, swing-bowling maestro would be hard to replace.“His ability to impact early with the new ball and bowl clutch overs at the death (will be missed),” he told reporters Tuesday.“You don’t find many swinging it at 145km per hour. His fielding’s also outstanding.“We won’t replace him like-for-like, but we’ve exposed others to key roles – Nathan Ellis, Ben Dwarshuis, Sean Abbott, and Xavier Bartlett.”Starc played a pivotal role in Australia’s first and only T20 World Cup title in 2021, taking nine wickets in seven matches in the United Arab Emirates.His retirement, 13 years on from his 2012 debut, is a big blow for Australia’s hopes of another T20 World Cup triumph next year and continues the winding-down of a golden generation of players.Following opening batsman David Warner’s retirement last year, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis have all retired from the one-day game. Cricket Australia boss Todd Greenberg praised Starc for making “significant sacrifices” to play for his country. “To allow the next crop of fast bowlers a clear path to the T20 World Cup early next year is another example of putting team first,” he said.Australia T20I squad vs New Zealand:Mitchell Marsh (capt), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa