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Brandon McMullen’s name sounds quite similar to Brendon McCullum’s. On Sunday morning, in what seemed like a Bazball effort in Bulawayo, McMullen also played quite like McCullum, switching gears from being 9 off 21 balls at one stage to finishing with 136 from 121. That took Scotland to 320 in 50 overs after they had managed just 47 in the first 13. In reply, Oman too took their time: they got 16 in the first five overs, but their run rate went past three again only at the end of 19 overs. They eventually fell short by 76 runs.The win confirmed Scotland’s progress to the Super Sixes, and Oman too qualified despite the loss after Sri Lanka beat Ireland earlier in the day. However, Oman – having lost to Sri Lanka as well – will not be carrying any points to the next stage, with points only against fellow qualifying teams from the same group considered. That also means Scotland’s next game, against Sri Lanka, is a big one as the winner will carry two extra points into the Super Six round.Scotland’s new-ball bowlers Chris Sole, Adrian Neill and McMullen himself were spot on to start with as they bowled tight, Test-match-like lines and lengths to never let Oman off the hook. But Oman’s batters had never really attempted to attack until then either, so much so that the first signs of intent from them came only after the first drinks break.Chris Greaves was among the wickets•ICC/Getty Images

But the fact that they had so much to do was all down to McMullen and his captain Richie Berrington. They added 138 off 122 deliveries for the third wicket, during which Oman’s hopes of restricting Scotland to a manageable total had all but evaporated despite the sedate start. When Berrington fell for 60 in the 39th over, the score was 220 already.The partnership was dominated by McMullen, who brought up his maiden ODI hundred off 92 balls. He piled up runs all across – whether it meant swinging for the leg side or pumping boundaries down the ground. The innings even included a funky, Suryakumar Yadav-inspired scoop for four over short fine leg, attempting which had McMullen lose his balance and fall on his back.Scotland lost their last seven wickets for 77 in a rush for rapid runs, four of which went to Bilal Khan, who eventually finished with 5 for 55. But in return, Oman’s batters never really backed up his efforts. The only time when Oman looked to be having a say with the bat was during the seventh-wicket stand of 105 between Naseem Khushi and Shoaib Khan. They provided some late entertainment in a union that lasted for 83 deliveries, with Khushi cracking a half-century. He smashed 69 off 53 balls, thus only delaying the inevitable.As for Scotland, apart from making it to the Super Sixes, they had another positive in the form of a five-wicket haul from legspinner Chris Greaves, who took all of the last five Oman wickets to fall.

Joe Clarke posted his first century in first-class cricket since September 2021 but Warwickshire remain favourites to complete the fourth win of their LV= Insurance County Championship season and stay in contention for the Division One title.Nottinghamshire were following on after being bowled out for just 155 in reply to Warwickshire’s 571 for 9 declared but despite Clarke’s impressive performance they remained 149 runs behind at the close of the third day at 267 for 4 and a second new ball available to the visiting bowlers after just two more overs.Clarke finished unbeaten on 119 from 178 balls, having batted for almost four hours and not given a chance, picking up 22 boundaries. Skipper Steven Mullaney was not out on 37 in an unbroken fifth-wicket stand worth 81 yet even with the pitch flattening out, Warwickshire will be disappointed not to turn their dominance over the first three days into a victory.Earlier, Pakistan quick Hasan Ali had taken three for 30 and Will Rhodes and Chris Rushworth two wickets each as Nottinghamshire were dismissed in 56 overs to trail by 416 on first innings.Having left the field to rumbles of thunder and lightning flashes on Monday evening, Nottinghamshire emerged in glorious sunshine for day three having been urged to fight for their survival, despite being five down for 82, still 489 runs behind. Yet 24 overs and two balls later, they were being asked to follow on.Mullaney, not out with Tom Moores overnight, was well caught at short midwicket at the end of the fifth full over of the day, a third victim for Hasan. Moores and Calvin Harrison attacked defiantly before departing in consecutive overs. Moores was bowled driving loosely – a first wicket of the season for skipper Rhodes – and Harrison, somewhat inevitably after being tempted by several short deliveries on the leg side, miscued one to long leg.Rhodes picked up his second when Jake Ball fended a short ball to first slip and one over of spin from Danny Briggs was enough to tempt last man Dane Paterson to put one down the throat of long-off.There was an argument for Rhodes not enforcing the follow-on, given the rising heat and the effort put in by his bowlers to staunch any threat of a Nottinghamshire recovery. If discussed it was rejected, although he might have thought about it again as openers Ben Slater and Haseeb Hameed put on 61 without too many alarms.But as in the first innings, the introduction of Hasan changed the picture. Hameed, misreading a ball angled in by the Pakistan quick, lost his off stump offering no shot. Two balls later, new man Matt Montgomery was hit in front, beaten for pace.Clarke, patient at first, hit three lovely straight drives to the boundary off Rhodes but just as it seemed he and Slater might assert themselves and get the innings back on an even keel, the captain brought Briggs on for Hasan at the pavilion end and Slater, perhaps misjudging the bounce, spooned the ball tamely to short midwicket.Responsibility now sat heavily on Clarke, who passed his first test alongside Lyndon James by ensuring Nottinghamshire reached tea with no more casualties. By then he was on 53 and though 40 of them had come in boundaries he had taken them without unnecessary risk.James, by contrast, was content simply to block, and the combination worked well as Clarke – helped by four boundaries in one over off the medium pace of Rhodes – moved into the 80s for the first time this season until James, having tucked one away nicely through midwicket for only his third boundary in an hour and three-quarters at the crease, was drawn into playing a ball from Rushworth that took the edge and had him caught at first slip. The fourth-wicket partnership had added exactly 100, easily the biggest of the match for Nottinghamshire, although the deficit remained a daunting 230 runs.Clarke, who had gone past fifty eight times since his 109 against Yorkshire in the final fixture of the 2021 season without being able to convert, picked up a couple more boundaries off Oliver Hannon-Dalby to move into the 90s but looked nervous as he edged closer to three figures and when he drove Hasan through extra cover to reach the milestone with his 19th boundary it prompted no more than a low-key celebration, perhaps acknowledging that his side still had much to do to save the game.

Northern Superchargers 112 for 3 (Litchfield 42*) beat Birmingham Phoenix 110 for 8 (Devine 46, Davidson-Richards 3-20) by seven wickets England allrounder Alice Davidson-Richards stole the show for Northern Superchargers as they beat Birmingham Phoenix by seven wickets to get their Hundred campaign off to the perfect start.Davidson-Richards took three wickets for just 11 runs from her 20 balls as well as taking two catches and claiming a brilliant run-out in an excellent team display from Superchargers, as they restricted Birmingham Phoenix to a total of 110 for 8 off their 100 balls.Australian Phoebe Litchfield top-scored for the home team with an unbeaten 42 as they eased their way to victory with 22 balls to spare with Marie Kelly also adding a valuable 24 at the top of the order.The visitors had got off to a flying start with New Zealand veteran Sophie Devine hitting England’s Kate Cross for two boundaries from her first set of five balls. But Superchargers quickly pulled things back with Cross claiming the wicket of Eve Jones for 10 before England wicketkeeper Amy Jones became Davidson-Richard’s first victim when she holed out to Leah Dobson on the square leg boundary for 13.Devine took centre stage throughout the Phoenix innings scoring an entertaining 46 runs off 36 balls before she was superbly run out by Davidson-Richards’ direct hit from mid-off. The Phoenix middle-order failed to offer any meaningful support to Devine with Erin Burns, Tess Flintoff and Emily Arlott all falling cheaply with Georgia Wareham’s caught-and-bowled dismissal of Burns a particular highlight.The hosts were brilliant in the field with Phoenix reliant on late-order runs from Abigail Freeborn and Issy Wong to get them up over the 100 mark, Wong hitting a mighty six into the crowd at one point before she became Linsey Smith’s one wicket.Kelly and Jemimah Rodrigues gave Superchargers an ideal start with a partnership of 23 for the first wicket. Rodrigues’ knock of 16 consisted of four boundaries before she was trapped in front by Wong.Kelly was bowled reverse sweeping by Katie Levick for 24 but Litchfield quickly took charge of the innings as she steered Superchargers home with an unbeaten 42 off 29 balls including seven fours. But this was Davidson-Richards’ day and she completed the win with a towering straight six off Hannah Baker to end an excellent showing by Superchargers.

Durham secured their second win in four games in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, edging out Derbyshire Falcons by 27 runs at Seat Unique Riverside.Graham Clark led the way for the home side, top-scoring with 89 from 78 balls, sharing an opening partnership worth 142 with Alex Lees. However, Alex Thomson claimed 3 for 53 for the Falcons to spark a middle-order collapse before a career-best 76 from Liam Trevaskis propelled Durham to a competitive total of 333 for 8.Derbyshire threatened to chase down the total after impressive knocks from Wayne Madsen and Brooke Guest. But the visitors lost wickets at regular intervals and four strikes from Migael Pretorius allowed Durham to clinch their second win of the campaign.After being inserted, Durham made a measured start to the contest as Lees and Clark took time to settle against the new ball. Suranga Lakmal and Sam Conners controlled the early exchanges, conceding only 23 from the opening six overs.But, Clark and Lees began to find their range against the Derbyshire change bowlers to accelerate the innings. The two players took Mark Watt’s first three overs for 31 that included a flat six by Clark over the leg-side boundary.Clark secured his third List A fifty on the bounce to continue his outstanding form. Lees followed his team-mate to another score of fifty-plus, ushering the hosts past the 100-run mark in the process.But, the Falcons broke back into the game courtesy of a mix-up between Clark and Lees, which resulted in the left-hander’s dismissal run out for 62. The home side faltered from 142 without loss to 182 for four as Clark fell 11 runs shy of a deserved ton, while David Bedingham and Ben McKinney fell cheaply.Thomson allowed the visitors to control the middle overs, putting the clamps and putting pressure on the hosts. He struck twice in two balls to dismiss Jonathan Bushnell and Scott Borthwick. Trevaskis survived the hat-trick ball and began to rebuild the innings.Trevaskis and Jones combined for a seventh-wicket stand of 80 from 61 balls to propel Durham over the 300-run mark. Trevaskis scored a career-best 76 not out to ensure the hosts capitalised on their strong start to set Derbyshire a tricky chase in the afternoon.The visitors responded with early boundaries against Luke Robinson and Migael Pretorius with Harry Came setting the tone. Trevaskis broke the opening stand for 48 taking a sharp return catch to remove Luis Reece.Came caused problems with a brisk 33-ball 44 before he miscued a drive down to George Drissell at third man, while Scott Borthwick prised out David Lloyd for 30, reducing Derbyshire to 105 for three.Haider Ali joined Madsen in the middle, and added quick runs, smashing Borthwick down the ground to register two sixes. He added fifty with Madsen for the fourth wicket, but then fell lbw to George Drissell.Despite the fall of wickets, Derbyshire didn’t allow their run rate to drop after operating at above seven per over at the half-way stage.Madsen took control of the chase and eased his way to a 43-ball fifty. He and Brooke Guest appeared at ease, but in a sense of deja vu, the fifth and sixth Derbyshire wickets fell in successive deliveries as Pretorius dragged Durham back into the game. Madsen picked out Jones, while Matty McKiernan was dismissed first ball.Guest kept the chase alive and pressed the Durham bowlers with a flawless half-century. It took a brilliant diving catch from McKinney in the deep to remove him for 63 and Lees took another to dismiss Thomson for a well-made 35 to turn the game in Durham’s favour. The hosts were clinical at the death to secure a 27-run win as Pretorious and Bushnell claimed the final two Derbyshire wickets.

Offspinner R Ashwin has replaced left-arm spinner Axar Patel in India’s final 15 for the 2023 World Cup*. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Axar, who left the Asia Cup with a quadriceps strain, needs at least three more weeks to recover fully.September 28 is the deadline for teams to make changes – no questions asked – to their World Cup squads, as per the ICC’s regulations. From Friday, any further changes will need the consent of the World Cup’s technical committee.This means Ashwin joins Virat Kohli as one of only two players in this squad who also featured in India’s 2011 World Cup winning run. He was not part of the 15-man squad announced by the BCCI in late August. At the time, India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar pointed out that while Ashwin was one of the contenders, the selectors and the team management had opted for Axar, whom they felt provided batting depth. In the Asia Cup, when Axar got injured and returned to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, the BCCI drafted Washington Sundar as his replacement.Both Washington and Ashwin were included three-match ODI series against Australia that followed, which India won 2-1. That series was the first time Ashwin, 37, had played for India in ODIs in 18 months.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

He played the first two of those Australia games, taking 1 for 47 and 3 for 41, before being rested for the third ODI in Rajkot where Washington replaced him.Rahul Dravid, India’s head coach, had said at a media briefing on Wednesday, after the third ODI, that “there were no changes” to the World Cup squad. Dravid said that Agarkar had been in touch with the NCA on Axar’s rehab. However, following the latest update on Axar, Ashwin has been slotted in, and Washington will fly to China on Friday to join India’s squad for the Asian Games.Ashwin is the only specialist offspinner in India’s World Cup squad, and brings with him the experience of 115 ODIs (155 wickets, economy rate 4.94). He had made his ODI debut a year before the 2011 World Cup, and was part of India’s successful campaign with four wickets in two games. He also played the 2015 World Cup in Australia, where he took 13 wickets in eight matches. He was not part of India’s 2019 World Cup squad in England.India captain Rohit Sharma had said on the eve of the third ODI against Australia that all this experience worked in Ashwin’s favour. “Ashwin has got the class, he’s got experience of playing the sport and handling the pressure. It’s just that he hasn’t played ODIs [for] a year or so. But you cannot take away the class and the experience that the individual has over the years, and in the last couple of games [against Australia], we saw how well he bowled. He’s got a lot of variations up his sleeves.”

India’s updated World Cup squad

Rohit Sharma (capt), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (vice-capt), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj*Sep 28, 2023 14.20 GMT The story was updated after the ICC confirmation.

Will Sutherland and Scott Boland combined for eight wickets to lead Victoria to a pulsating 113-run Sheffield Shield victory over Queensland at the MCG.Chasing 272 for victory in 87 overs, Queensland were dismissed for 158 in 81.5 overs late on the final day, with Sutherland (4-32 off 19 overs) and Boland (4-49) proving crucial.Victoria’s second win of the season lifted them into fourth spot, with Queensland now last.”It was a really good team performance, probably one of the best wins I’ve played in,” Sutherland said. “Unbelievable effort from the boys.”Victoria started the day at 156 for 6 in their second innings, and they added 34 in seven overs before declaring at 190 for 9.Matt Renshaw was the first Queenslander to fall when he edged Boland to Sutherland at first slip. Joe Burns should have been dismissed next ball, but Sutherland dropped a tough chance at slip.The dropped catch proved costly – not for how many runs Burns scored, but by how much time he was able to chew up. Burns scored 9 off 55 balls before edging Boland behind, 22 overs after he was first dropped. Sutherland made up for that earlier miss by snaring the scalps of Bryce Street (46 off 134 balls) and Jack Clayton to reduce Queensland to 86 for 4.He wasn’t done yet. The 24-year-old took a catch low and to his left at slip off the bowling of Boland to remove the dangerous Usman Khawaja.Sutherland, who scored a crucial 66 with the bat in Victoria’s second innings, then trapped Jimmy Peirson lbw for 16. He had his fourth wicket when James Bazley edged one behind – with Peter Handscomb’s fumble at second slip snapped up by Will Pucovski.At 146 for 8 with 12.4 overs remaining, it was all about survival for Queensland. They still had two wickets in hand with 33 balls remaining in the match.But their hopes of salvaging a draw were dashed in the blink of an eye when Fergus O’Neill removed Gurinder Sandhu and Mitchell Swepson in consecutive balls, sparking wild celebrations.”It’s never nice to lose a game,” Queensland captain Khawaja said. “We were probably never in the contest to win the game. But credit to Victoria, they played the game really well. I thought they declared at really good times, they allowed the game to move forward. They deserved the win.”