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Big picture: Big-ticket visit, but small beer for visitors

It’s a state of affairs that sums up the imbalances of international cricket. England and Ireland are about to play their first-ever bilateral game of T20 cricket – even though the format has consumed the sport in the course of the past two decades – at a moment in the respective itineraries of the two nations that could scarcely be more polarized.On the one hand, there’s the visitors England, girding their loins for one final push after an exhausting home season comprising a five-Test series against India, while already casting their eyes forward to the single biggest date on their 2025 calendar: November 21, and the start of their legacy-defining Ashes campaign.Despite the notable pick of Jacob Bethell as captain, they’ve arrived in Dublin with something close to their first-choice XI, or at least the version that took the field with such stunning success in their most recently completed match, against South Africa at Old Trafford last week.Jamie Smith and Ben Duckett were scarcely missed while Phil Salt and Jos Buttler were blazing England towards that record 304 for 2, but they remain in mothballs alongside the regular captain Harry Brook and Jofra Archer – each of whom, with as much respect as can be mustered in such circumstances, has bigger fish to fry in the coming months. As indeed has the head coach, Brendon McCullum, who has already flown home to New Zealand.And then, there’s the hosts Ireland – for the most part exiles in their own land, given how rarely they are able to attract the quality of opposition that justifies the outlay required to accommodate them. This three-match series is their biggest ticket since India popped over for three T20Is in August 2023 (one of which was abandoned).Sure enough, Malahide has rolled out its temporary stands (at considerable expense) to take the ground’s capacity to around 4,000 for these three games. Happily, Friday and Sunday are already sold out, while Wednesday’s series opener should be at least 80% full, with tickets still available. Given that last year’s visit by Australia was canned on the grounds that even those broadcast rights couldn’t have covered Cricket Ireland’s costs, their financial tightrope is real and terrifying.For both teams, however, this series remains a key staging post for a significant and looming peak. England’s thoughts will have to turn to the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka almost before they’ve completed their Ashes comedown, and such are the reasons why experimentation for this leg has been relatively limited, even if the conditions in Malahide will be as far removed from those in the subcontinent in February as can be imagined.For Ireland, however, that focus will be nothing less than full-bore. So much of their raison d’etre revolves around ICC events, from the long and anxious qualification bids that precede them, to the crucial exposure and funding that their moments on the big stage provide. But here, in a slender weather-threatened five-day window, that stage has at long last come back to their own shores.

Form guide

Ireland LLWLL (last five T20Is, most recent first)
England WLWWW

In the spotlight: Jordan Cox and Ross Adair

All he ever seems to get are scraps from the table, but to Jordan Cox’s immense credit, he has not yet been consumed by frustration at an international career that simply cannot stick a landing. The false starts have been numerous – most gallingly the broken thumb that robbed him of three guaranteed Tests in New Zealand last winter – while his two previous T20I appearances, against Australia last year, were – just like this potential recall – tacked onto the end of a long international summer. But his belated call-up to the squad is entirely on merit, after his MVP displays for Oval Invincibles in the Hundred. Given half a chance, he is still hungry to make the most of it.At the age of 31, and having parked his previous career in rugby union, Ross Adair is a significant bolter for this winter’s T20 World Cup. His last-but-one international innings was a storming knock of 100 from 58 balls as Ireland beat South Africa in Abu Dhabi this time last year, and as he told ESPNcricinfo this week, the explosive nature of T20 cricket means there are plenty of transferrable skills from his previous incarnation as a winger.

Team news: Calitz, Baker in line for debuts

Ireland could hand a maiden cap to Ben Calitz, the 23-year-old Canada-born batter, with Paul Stirling, their captain, saying they were “crying out” for a left-hander in their middle order. Their bowling stocks have taken a hit with Josh Little and Mark Adair both absent for this series – Little has played just once for Middlesex in two months as he nurses a side injury. Matthew Humphreys is set to lead the attack once more, after impressing in his only outing against West Indies in June.Ireland: (possible) 1 Paul Stirling (capt), 2 Ross Adair, 3 Harry Tector, 4 Lorcan Tucker (wk), 5 Ben Calitz, 6 George Dockrell, 7 Curtis Campher, 8 Barry McCarthy, 9 Graham Hume, 10 Matthew Humphreys, 11 Craig Young.Sonny Baker seems in line for a maiden T20I outing, and ideally a less brutal return to England colours, after being launched for 76 runs on his wicketless ODI debut against South Africa earlier this month. Cox is the obvious replacement for Brook in the middle-order, with England likely to persevere with their spin-heavy attack in preparation for the T20 World Cup.England: (possible) 1 Phil Salt, 2 Jos Buttler (wk), 3 Jacob Bethell (capt), 4 Jordan Cox, 5 Sam Curran, 6 Tom Banton, 7 Will Jacks, 8 Liam Dawson, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 Luke Wood, 11 Sonny Baker.

Pitch and conditions

Dublin in early autumn is unlikely to be the sort of batting paradise that England encountered in that Old Trafford contest. Stirling predicted conditions would be as “alien” to those at next year’s World Cup as you could imagine: “September in Ireland is going to be green, it’s going to nip a little bit, and it’s going to be slightly slow.” The weather for Wednesday is mostly set to be clear, though torrential overnight rain is anticipated, which may well influence the decisions at the toss.

Stats and trivia

• England and Ireland have played only twice before in the T20I format – at the T20 World Cups in 2010 (then the World T20) and 2022. Ireland memorably won the second of those at the MCG and might well have won the first but for a washout. England, remarkably, recovered from those set-backs to claim the title on each occasion.
• At 21 years and 329 days, Jacob Bethell is set to become the youngest captain in England’s history, beating the mark currently held by Monty Bowden, who was 23 and 144 days when he led England against South Africa at Cape Town on the Test tour of 1888-89.

Quotes

“It was fantastic viewing… Hopefully it’ll be a bit different than Old Trafford, where the pitch didn’t seem to be doing much. Coming here, it might be a bit slower, it might do a bit more, and hopefully we can catch a team off-guard that way if things go our way – maybe win the toss and go from there.”
“I’ve played with Paul Stirling myself, and I’ve seen how destructive he is at the other end. He’ll be someone we’ll be looking to target early and try to get him walking back into the sheds.”

Southern Brave started life after Charlotte Edwards with a convincing win over Manchester Originals at Emirates Old Trafford.The damage was all done with the ball, as Lauren Bell took 3 for 28 and Mady Villiers 2 for 19 to limit the hosts to just 95 for 8 from their 100 balls.Seren Smale fought a lone hand for Originals on a wicket that none of her team-mates ever looked at home on, making 40 from 34 balls to give her side the faintest hope at the halfway mark but no side has ever defended fewer than 109 in the Hundred women’s competition and their total never looked like enough.And while Brave were rarely fluent, they were always comfortable – easing to a six-wicket win with 11 balls to spare. Former Originals batter Laura Wolvaardt, a direct signing for Southern Brave this season, showed her old team what they were missing with an assured and unbeaten 42.She was supported by Danni Wyatt-Hodge, who made 32, as Brave’s batting line-up eased over the line in first gear. Having endured a surprising eighth-placed finish last summer, with just one win, Brave – and their new head coach Luke Williams in particular – will have been pleased to start the campaign with a victory.For Originals it was a disappointing start to the season and, Smale’s innings aside, a day of few positives – they’ll hope to demonstrate it was mere blip next time out at the Kia Oval on Saturday.Meerkat Match Hero Bell said: “It’s great to get our first win on the board. In tournament cricket it’s really important to get a good start, and it was a good team performance.”The girls stuck in. The wicket was a bit tricky but we’ve got a great line-up and the batters did the job. We’ve had a lot of really good chats about being really confident, backing our strengths, and having fun out there.”

Delhi Capitals (DC) were down and out at 7 for 3 and then 65 for 5 in their chase of 210 against Lucknow Super Giants in Visakhapatnam. But the lower order, led by Ashutosh Sharma, performed a rescue act that reduced the equation to 22 off two overs and then six off six balls. Last man Mohit Sharma survived a close lbw appeal off the first ball of the 20th over before taking a single. Ashutosh then smacked the winning six to seal DC’s one-wicket win, only the fifth in IPL history.DC vice-captain Faf du Plessis said the finish reminded him of the famous 438-run chaseSouth Africa pulled off against Australia at the Wanderers in 2006, calling that run “the most important single” of Mohit’s life.”Unbelievable, it actually reminded me a little bit of the 438 game against Australia when Makhaya [Ntini] got that important single towards the end,” du Plessis said. “That’s probably the best and most important single that Mohit Sharma has ever taken in his life – beautiful forward defence, just pushing it into the gap. What a story to get the big man back on strike to hit it for six.”Related

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Ashutosh walked in as DC’s Impact Player with the score 65 for 5 in the seventh over. After the 13th over of the chase, DC were 116 for 6, needing 94 runs off 42 balls with four wickets in hand. ESPNcricinfo’s win predictor gave them a 1.56% of winning.”A lot of the cricketers, if you ask them, they would complain about the [Impact Player] rule in the IPL,” du Plessis said, “but this is obviously why that rule is there – for games when you think that you’re completely dead and buried, someone comes in and plays like that. I’m definitely going to drink some more masala tea to make sure I can hit the ball like the boys do at the end.”To be honest, when I looked at the wicket and saw how much the ball was gripping and losing five wickets, I thought it was going to be an almost impossible task. But it’s even great for the old brain of mine just to make sure that you can never be out of a game completely. The extra batter really makes a big difference.”Ashutosh got together with Vipraj Nigam when DC needed 97 off 45 balls. Their 55-run stand off just 22 balls brought DC’s equation down to 42 off 24 before Nigam fell for 39 off 15. Ashutosh was unbeaten on 66 off 31.”As an overseas player, one thing that’s remarkable for me to watch is the amount of Indian players that are so powerful and they got the ability to just strike the ball so easily,” du Plessis said. “It wasn’t an easy pitch. There was a lot going on, but the two boys at the back end there, just the way they came in and just effortless hitting boundaries.”

Durbar Rajshahi’s overseas players are effectively stranded in their team hotel in Dhaka after the franchise continued to miss payment deadlines. The team owner and management haven’t responded to the players’ calls for updates as they await tickets for flights back home. When this report was filed, the players were still in Dhaka.Rajshahi were eliminated from the Bangladesh Premier Leauge (BPL) on Saturday when Khulna Tigers beat Dhaka Capitals on the last day of the league stage.Mohammad Haris (Pakistan), Aftab Alam (Afghanistan), Mark Deyal (West Indies), Ryan Burl (Zimbabwe) and Miguel Cummins (West Indies) are all waiting for some portion of their payments due. A couple of them have been paid 25%, while some haven’t been paid at all. Furthermore, the players haven’t received daily allowance for the last 11 days.Related

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• Rajshahi promise to pay local players after training boycott

• Rajshahi's overseas players sit out Sunday's game over non-payment of dues

Rajshahi have been dogged by financial problems from the start of this BPL. Anamul Haque said that the local players hadn’t received any payments prior to the start of the tournament as they are usually played 25% before the tournament starts. They boycotted a training session in Chattogram last month, while the overseas players boycotted a match. Burl and Haris eventually made themselves available to play and helped them stay in contention for a playoff finish, but they fell short on net run rate.Rajshahi owner Shafique Rahman got into trouble with the team hotel in Chattogram after failing to pay them on time. Photos of security personnel sitting outside his room went viral, while Rahman’s car was seized by the hotel authorities. Later, when the Rajshahi team returned to Dhaka, they were forced to check out of one hotel due to payment issues.Nazmul Abedeen Fahim, member-secretary of BPL’s governing council, said that the BCB didn’t vet the Rajshahi franchise properly when they were taken on board last year. “I think we didn’t judge the franchises properly. I think we didn’t verify their experience and financial strength. It has now put us in a difficult situation.”On Saturday, Bangladesh’s sports adviser Asif Mahmud said that he spoke to Rahman, warning him of the consequences.”I spoke to the Rajshahi owner, who assured us that he will clear the payments,” Mahmud said. “I have told him clearly that if he fails to do so, we will take legal steps. No more discussions. Our fact-finding committee will be looking into how this team came to be.”

New Zealand and England will compete for The Crowe-Thorpe Trophy, honoring the legacies of the late Martin Crowe and Graham Thorpe.The trophy, made from wood sourced from a bat from each player, in collaboration with NZC, ECB and the families of each player, will be unveiled on Thursday morning in Christchurch ahead of the start of the three-match series. The trophy was designed by David Ngawati of Mahu Creative, who also designed the Tangiwai Shield for New Zealand’s Test series with South Africa.Both Crowe and Thorpe enjoyed hugely successful Test careers. Crowe, regarded as New Zealand’s finest batter, averaged 45.36 with 17 centuries. Thorpe, who tragically passed in August, averaged 44.66 with 16 hundreds.The bats gifted by the two families to create the trophy carry special meaning for these two sides. Crowe’s was the Gunn and Moore with which he scored his century at Lord’s 1994. Thorpe’s Kookaburra was the one used for back-to-back hundreds against New Zealand in 1997.Crowe and Thorpe went on to become mentors for latter generations, including members of both squad who will compete for this three-match series.”It is absolutely an honour,” said Joe Root, who worked closely with Thorpe during his time as a batting coach with the ECB. “What a great man. For me personally, to have someone who you watched growing up and took a lot from, then to get the opportunity to work with him as a coach. The amount he put into to my game, to have the opportunity to play for something with his name on it is really quite special and a nice way to remember his legacy and a player.”It’s a side that he had a lot of success against, a brilliant double hundred. He told us many times about that innings here in Christchurch [an unbeaten 200 in 2002], normally over a glass of sauvignon blanc.”It’s a really fitting way to remember two of England and New Zealand’s great players. How both sides play represents how they played the game pretty well. I expect a really exciting series, like the previous one was. It will be a really fitting way to remember two brilliant players.”In a statement released on Tuesday, NZC CEO Scott Weenink added: “Today’s generation of players are standing on the shoulders of those who went before them, players like Graham and Martin. It’s good that we recognise this and respect their legacy. Both those players were seriously good batsmen who understood the game intimately – they commanded respect wherever they went.”ECB chief executive Richard Gould said: “Martin and Graham are two legends of the game, and it is fitting that Test series between our two men’s sides will now be contested in their name.”It’s heart-breaking to have lost both men so early, but by honouring them in this way I hope we can help ensure the memories and legacies of two of our nations’ finest cricketers live on long into the future.”The Crowe-Thorpe Trophy will be unveiled by Deb Crowe (Martin’s sister) and former England Test captain Michael Atherton at the Hagley Oval ahead on the national anthems on Thursday.

The ICC board will congregate on Friday in the hopes of ending the saga of where and how the 2025 Champions Trophy will be played, with less than three months to the scheduled start of the event. They will consider three options:

• A hybrid option, where the majority of matches are played in Pakistan but those involving India are played outside Pakistan.
• The tournament is played entirely outside of Pakistan, with the option of the PCB retaining hosting rights.
• The entire event is played in Pakistan but without India.

The last of those options is almost a non-starter, given the negative financial and commercial impact it will have on the tournament. The chances of the first – a hybrid model – were reduced on Thursday after a PCB official told ESPNcricinfo they had informed the ICC once again that it was off the table. “The PCB has asked the ICC to give a reasonable or acceptable proposal to Pakistan before the ICC Board meeting tomorrow,” the official said.Twelve hours earlier, in the early hours of Thursday morning in Pakistan, the chances of a hybrid model seemed to have increased slightly, at least going by the words of Mohsin Naqvi, the PCB chairman. Asked specifically about it multiple times, Naqvi said only that he would take whatever decision the ICC board makes to the Pakistan government.Related

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• PCB 'not prepared to accept' hybrid model for Champions Trophy

That was slightly different to the previous public and emphatic rejections of a hybrid model being considered. Nevertheless, Naqvi doubled down on the prospect of Pakistan no longer being willing or able to play in India which, given India is hosting a Women’s World Cup next year, an Asia Cup in 2025, a Men’s T20 World Cup in 2026 and a Champions Trophy in 2029, is going to be a recurring problem.That, in fact, might be one of the conditions under which the PCB accepts any hybrid model for now: that the ICC then considers the same option for tournaments in India where Pakistan is – as of now – unlikely to be given permission to travel by its government.Naqvi did not say whether Pakistan will play India in this tournament, as they are drawn to by dint of being in the same group. A hybrid model, or an entire relocation, means they will be scheduled to play at a neutral venue; the game not taking place would also mean a significant commercial hit to the tournament.”Whatever we do, we will make sure the best outcome for Pakistan is achieved,” Naqvi said multiple times. “But I repeat, and I am sure you know what I mean, it’s not possible that Pakistan play in India, and they don’t come here.”Mohsin Naqvi: ‘We’ll not just sell our rights out just for more money […] But we’ll do whatever is best for Pakistan’•AFP/Getty Images

Naqvi said the PCB would not be motivated by the pursuit of any financial settlement, quashing informal chatter that the PCB might try and negotiate a heftier hosting fee in return for a hybrid model, promising “that we’ll not just sell our rights out just for more money. This will never happen. But we’ll do whatever is best for Pakistan.” In any event, two countries for venues would require a revised tournament budget.The meeting will be a virtual one and will likely come down to a vote only if a consensus isn’t reached within the board. But the pressure will be on to reach a resolution swiftly, as time runs out before the tournament and preparations for it begin. An alternate or additional venue will have to be chosen depending on what option the board chooses, and a schedule for the event has to be finalised and released.Additionally, the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and the National Stadium in Karachi – two of the Pakistan venues – are undergoing significant renovation and upgradation work, in a race against time to be ready for the tournament. The PCB has assured the ICC board that the venues will be ready for the tournament by the end of this year.Pakistan won hosting rights to the Champions Trophy in November 2021 and, if it goes to plan, it will be the first ICC event they have hosted since the 1996 World Cup. But its status was thrown into disarray when the BCCI informed the ICC earlier this month that its team had not been given permission by the Indian government to travel to Pakistan.That was hardly a surprise, given no India team has toured Pakistan since 2008, with the Mumbai attacks later that year throwing relations between the two countries into a downward spiral. Pakistan have visited India three times since then, for a bilateral series in 2012-13, the 2016 T20 World Cup and, most recently, the 2023 ODI World Cup. That trip only happened after a government committee cleared it, despite considerable opposition within certain members.The PCB had to adopt a hybrid model for the Asia Cup just before the World Cup but had hoped that going to India would result in a reciprocal gesture for the Champions Trophy.

West Indies 180 for 5 (King 63, Lewis 50, Pathirana 2-27) beat Sri Lanka 179 for 7 (Asalanka 59, Kamindu 51, Shepherd 2-39) by five wicketsBrandon King and Evin Lewis crashed 107 off 55 balls at the top of the order, to set West Indies beautifully on course to their target of 180, in the first T20I against Sri Lanka. Although the hosts’ middle-overs bowlers slowed West Indies’ progress, they were never in serious trouble.They had plenty of batting to see the chase through, and Sherfane Rutherford finished it off with a four off the first ball of the final over.Shamar Joseph was the most economical of West Indies’ bowlers, conceding only 27 from his four overs. Though King and Lewis later outshone them, Sri Lanka had two half-centurions too, in Kamindu Mendis and Charith Asalanka, whose 82-run stand was the most substantial of the innings.

King, Lewis blast the powerplay

Lewis struck the first boundaries, launching Chamindu Wickramasinghe for a six and four at the end of the first over, but it was King who made the greatest impression while the fielding restrictions were in play. King’s standard move was to run at the bowlers and blast them down the ground. So good was his hand-eye coordination, that he did it twice against seamer Asitha Fernando in the second over, before taking aim at the spin of Maheesh Theekshana in the third over.By the end of the powerplay, King had eight fours (some of them edged, to be fair), and 39 runs off 20 balls. Lewis, who had blasted boundaries off Wickramasinghe almost exclusively, had 31 off 16 balls. And West Indies had 74 off the first six.They kept swinging, and by the end, Lewis made 50 off 28, and King 63 off 33. The requirement was fairly simple after their onslaught.Shamar Springer celebrates his maiden T20I wicket•AP Photo/Viraj Kothalawala

WI quicks strike early

By contrast, Sri Lanka’s top order had failed to prosper on a helpful surface, thanks in part to sharp bowling from West Indies’ quicks. Romario Shepherd caught the edge of Pathum Nissanka’s bat three times, conceded fours behind the wicket and then had him caught by the keeper on the third occasion, to make West Indies’ first breakthrough. Kusal Perera was then bowled by Shamar Joseph early in the following over.When Kusal Mendis was also bowled by an excellent quicker delivery from Gudakesh Motie, leaving Sri Lanka at 58 for 3, it felt as if West Indies were about to carve open the game.

Kamindu may be good at cricket

But then perhaps it’s time to admit that Kamindu appears to know what he is doing on a cricket field. Having recently become the fastest batter since 1950 to 1000 Test runs, he produced 50 off 41 here in the shortest format, outdone in his team only by Asalanka who clubbed 59 off 35, Kamindu would also bowl two overs for 14, switching arms when necessary. He took the wicket of the opposition’s top scorer, King, with his left-arm spin, and collected figures of 1 for 14.

Vikram Rathour, the former India batting coach, will once again team up with Rahul Dravid as he joins the support staff at Rajasthan Royals in a similar capacity. Dravid was named the RR head coach earlier this month.Rathour’s association comes on the back of a five-year stint with the Indian team, where he worked alongside Ravi Shastri and later Dravid. In June, Rathour’s contract ended soon after India’s triumph at the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.”Having worked closely with Vikram for many years, I can confidently say that his technical expertise, calm demeanor, and deep understanding of Indian conditions make him a perfect fit for the Royals,” Dravid said in a statement.Related

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“Together, we’ve built a strong rapport, guiding India to key successes, and I’m thrilled to reunite with him. His ability to nurture young talent and elevate players’ potential will be invaluable as we aim to further strengthen our squad and continue building a world-class team here at Rajasthan Royals.”This will be Rathour’s second IPL stint, having earlier been part of the coaching set up at Punjab Kings. He has also been the director of cricket at Himachal Pradesh previously.Earlier this month, Rathour was part of New Zealand’s coaching set-up as batting consultant in Greater Noida, as part of their preparation for six Tests they were to play in Asia.”The opportunity to work again with Rahul, and now with a talented group of young cricketers, is hugely exciting,” Rathour said. “I look forward to contributing to the team’s vision and working toward our goal of developing top-class players for the Royals and for India which can help in winning championships.”Back in the day, Rathour was a prolific scorer for Punjab, scoring a majority of his 11,473 first-class runs for them. His international career was very brief; he played six Tests and seven ODIs between 1996 and 1997.

Zaheer Khan has joined Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) as their mentor, filling the vacancy left by Gautam Gambhir’s exit after IPL 2023. Gambhir had taken up the mentor role at Kolkata Knight Riders for IPL 2024 and has since become head coach of the India men’s team.Zaheer will also take on bowling coach duties, after Morne Morkel left the franchise to join Gambhir’s coaching staff with the Indian team. During a media interaction after his unveiling, Zaheer did not specify that he would be bowling coach, but said with a smile: “If I am there in the set-up, does the team need another bowling coach?”From 2018 to 2022, Zaheer was involved with the Mumbai Indians (MI) franchise, first as director of cricket and then head of global development. Prior to that, he was part of three IPL teams as a player – MI, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Delhi Daredevils. In all, he featured in 100 games for the three teams across ten seasons, picking up 102 wickets at an economy of 7.58. He last played in the tournament in 2017, when he led Daredevils, before retiring from all forms of cricket.As reported earlier by ESPNcricinfo, apart from the role of mentor, LSG are keen on giving Zaheer a wider profile that will mean involvement with the scouting and player-development programmes during the off season.Related

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LSG’s coaching set-up is currently headed by Justin Langer, who will continue in the role after having replaced Andy Flower as head coach ahead of IPL 2024, with Lance Klusener and Adam Voges as his assistants. After securing playoff berths in their first two seasons, the KL Rahul-led side was pipped on net run rate for a spot in the top four in 2024.Zaheer’s return to the IPL fold comes at a time when teams are preparing for a mega auction. The IPL is likely to announce the retention rules by early September.

Northern Diamonds 199 for 4 (Armitage 101*) beat Western Storm 200 for 5 (Wilson 61, Corney 40) by six wickets – DLSHollie Armitage scored a brilliant unbeaten hundred to guide Northern Diamonds to an impressive six-wicket victory over Western Storm on the Duckworth/Lewis/Stern method in an entertaining Rachel Heyhoe Flint Trophy match at Cheltenham.Chasing a revised target of 199 on a day when 41 overs were lost to rain, the visitors reached their target with 16 balls in hand thanks to a captain’s innings from Armitage, who posted 101 from 76 balls with nine fours and a six to help Diamonds close the gap on leaders Southern Vipers.She received valuable support from Sterre Kalis, who contributed 34 in a third wicket stand of 71, and Australia international Erin Burns, who weighed in with 21 not out in an unbroken partnership of 67 in 6.5 overs for the fifth wicket. For their part, Storm were left to rue missed opportunities, having twice dropped Armitage on 23 and 53.Fran Wilson had earlier raised a perfectly-judged innings of 61 off 63 balls as Storm recovered from a poor start to post 200-5 after losing the toss. Emma Corney made 40 at the top of the order, Nat Wraith struck a forthright 34 and overseas all-rounder Amanda-Jade Wellington provided a hard-hitting 27 at the death. Abi Glen was the pick of the Diamonds bowlers, claiming 2 for 24 from six overs.Diamonds inserted Storm on a drying surface and promptly reduced them to 26 for 2 in the powerplay, Glen and Rachel Slater removing Sophia Smale and Sophie Luff respectively. Determined to break the stranglehold and afford the innings impetus, Corney twice drove Glen down the ground for four in the ninth, Storm eventually realising 50 two overs later.Adept at working the gaps, Wilson proved an effective ally and acceleration came with the advent of Katie Levick’s leg breaks, Corney launching her over mid-wicket for another boundary. Hampered by a slow outfield, the third wicket pair nevertheless ran hard between the wickets to gain momentum, taking advantage of the College Ground’s short boundaries to punish the bad ball when it came along.Having contributed a 54-ball 40 in an increasingly progressive stand of 61 in 11 overs, Corney had a half century firmly in her sights when she took on Sophia Turner and miss-cued high to Kalis at point, just seconds before a heavy rain shower moved in to force the players off with the score on 87 for 3 at the end of 17 overs.The loss of a further four overs set the tone for the remainder of the innings, Wilson and Wraith engaging in frenetic running as the Diamonds bowlers were forced to contend with a wet ball. Wraith hit the ground running, scoring at better than a run-a-ball and registering the first six of the innings, while the assured Wilson also picked up the pace to move to 50 via 57 deliveries.Wraith drove Glen to short extra cover and departed for a 28-ball 34, but Wellington picked up the cudgels immediately, pulling Levick for a six over square and then driving compatriot Erin Burns for four in raising a quickfire 27 from just 14 balls. Applying pressure at the death, Wilson then hoisted Phoebe Turner high over mid-wicket for a massive six as Diamonds wilted under pressure.Carrying that momentum into the second half of the contest, Storm struck a couple of early blows, Ellie Anderson having Lauren Winfield-Hill held at point and Smale enticing Emma Marlow to miss-cue to extra cover. Wellington then passed up an opportunity to remove influential Diamonds skipper Armitage on 23, dropping what appeared to be a straightforward catch at mid-off and disappointing off spinner Chloe Skelton.It proved a costly slip, Armitage pulling a Wellington full toss for six to put the visitors ahead on DLS before the next rain break. When they re-emerged to chase a revised target of 199 from one over fewer, the third-wicket pair continued to power on, Armitage going to a 41-ball 50 with her fifth four, a pull shot to mid-wicket at the expense of Wellington.Trusting in pace off the ball and struggling to exert control in the soggy conditions, Storm needed a breakthrough. Niamh Holland provided inspiration, bowling Kalis via a bottom edge in the act of cutting, the Dutch international having contributed a valuable 37-ball 34 in a stand of 72 in 11 overs.Requiring 70 to win off 10 overs, Diamonds received another let-off when Armitage was dropped on 53 by Issy Wong on the deep mid-wicket boundary off the bowling of Holland. Alex Griffiths showed how it should be done later in the same over, holding on in the deep to send back Bess Heath for 10 and reduce the visitors to 132 for 4.But Armitage ensured the home side paid for their profligacy, finding the boundary with increasing regularity to provide acceleration at just the right time in a match-winning partnership with Burns, who used all of her experience to score 21 not out from 13 balls and ensure Diamonds reached their target without any further slip-ups.