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Int'l Cricket Council
2 days ago
- Sport
- Int'l Cricket Council
England's stellar cast scale maiden milestones in WI win
Coming on the back of a comprehensive T20I series sweep against the West Indies, England registered another impactful performance with a 108-run win against the same opponents in the opening ODI. Among the key performers for the hosts were the opening duo of Tammy Beaumont and Amy Jones, who scored scintillating tons, and ODI debutant Linsey Smith, returning with a five-wicket haul. Jones, who was opening for England in the ODIs for the first time since 2019, added 222 runs with Beaumont for the first wicket. The seasoned campaigner with 98 ODI appearances went on to score her first century in the format, scoring 122 runs off 121 deliveries and was named the Player of the Match. "It's pretty special. I've played a fair few games now without one so to tick that off is a brilliant feeling," Jones told Sky Sports. "I was so excited when Lottie (head coach Charlotte Edwards) first had that thought and shared with me that opening could be an option. "I've obviously done it in the past - while Lottie was in the team, in fact - and so it has come full circle. To have her backing and have that partnership with Tammy, it means a lot." AUS v ENG: Amy Jones, England's budding superstar Having posted 345/6 on the board, England's bowlers managed to halt the Windies at 237, with left-arm spinner Linsey Smith leading the charge with a five-for. Closing with figures of 5/36, Smith opened up on a remarkable ODI debut, 'It's pretty surreal. Today feels like a bit of a blur but I guess initial feelings are pretty over the moon. "One, to make my debut. Two, to put in a performance and help the team win, so I'm pretty proud of myself right now. But there's another game coming up quickly and we want to win the series as well." "I know for quite a while I only played T20 and I knew deep down within me that I wanted to play every format and really push my case for that.' The Nat Sciver-Brunt-led side will next meet the West Indies in the second ODI on 4 June in Leicester. NewsEngland WomenAmy JonesLinsey Smith
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
'Relief' and 'pride' as Jones takes her chance
Amy Jones had waited a while for her first international century - 12 years, 225 matches and 190 innings, to be exact. Against a struggling West Indies at Derby, in England's first one-day international under the new leadership regime of Nat Sciver-Brunt and Charlotte Edwards, the wicketkeeper finally made it out of the 90s. Edwards' first tactical move in the 50-over format was to promote Jones back up the order after Maia Bouchier's omission from the side, and she repaid the faith immediately. Jones had opened for England 23 times previously between 2016 and 2019, but said the simplicity of Edwards' approach helped take the pressure off upon her return to the top."She said, 'you've scored big runs at county level opening and you did pretty well opening before so have a good go at it'. For it to be an option was really exciting for me," Jones told BBC Test Match Special. "It feels really special [to make the century]. It feels like it has been a long time, especially with a bit of an opportunity to bat at the top of the order at the start of my career, so it just feels like a lot of relief and a huge amount of pride." The Ashes drubbing which started the year was one to forget for all of England's players, but Jones suffered a particularly painful experience in the second ODI at Melbourne which really kickstarted England's with chasing 181 to level the series, Jones was left unbeaten on 47 having failed to marshal the tail and miscounting the balls left in an over. Since that series, Edwards had made her intentions clear regarding England's "smartness" in 50-over cricket so it is fitting that Jones has immediately answered the had made it past 90 three times in an England shirt before, making 94 against India in 2018, 91 v West Indies in 2019 and an unbeaten 92 against New Zealand in 2024 - and the nerves did seem to be kicking in when she was dropped on 92 and 93 in this opposition will certainly come - in fact, rather soon, with India's arrival next month, but the smile on Jones' face as she embraced fellow centurion Tammy Beaumont in celebration indicated the sheer weight lifted from her shoulders. "There would have been a few people scratching their heads on why she would be opening the batting," said former England seamer Katherine Sciver-Brunt on BBC Test Match Special. "I never thought she lost that spot, so I am massively pleased. She didn't say to whoever was in charge, 'I want that spot back', she just took that she would be four, five or six. "The last two years she has done that well. I am over the moon for her that she has got the first hundred out of the way under some pressure. "I am mega happy for her but the ones that will stand out are the ones that really matter against the best teams in the world."
The Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Amy Jones and Linsey Smith star as England's opening gambit pays off in West Indies win
Opening pair Amy Jones and Tammy Beaumont both struck centuries as England secured a convincing 108-run victory over the West Indies in the first one-day international in Derby. Jones returned to the top order for the first time in six years and hit her maiden ODI century – 12 years after her debut in India – while the dominant Beaumont also impressed with the 11th of her career as the duo frustrated the West Indies in the first innings. The visitors' attack had to wait till the 36th over for their first wicket but England set their opponents 346 to win and they made a fist of things through the opening powerplay courtesy of Hayley Matthews and Qiana Joseph. Linsey Smith claimed a five-wicket haul on her ODI debut, with fellow 50-over debutant Em Arlott getting two wickets of her own and, despite Joseph's half-century, the West Indies fell to a heavy defeat. Jones quickly brought up her half-century while Beaumont was holding it up down the other end – she finally smashed the first six of the innings over wide long-on as she passed the 50 mark from 74 balls. The pair were cruising and the visitors had no answer to their superiority. Beaumont began to put the pedal to the metal after her half-century, with Aaliyah Alleyne slapped for two fours and a six in the first over of her second spell as England flew to 200 with 17 overs still to go. Perhaps Jones was feeling the pressure of being in the nervous 90s and she was let off the hook twice in two overs as the West Indies blew the chance to get her back in the shed with a pair of dropped catches from Jahzara Claxton and Karishma Ramharack. Beaumont needed just 22 balls for her next 50 runs and raised the bat after reaching her century, and her partner was not far behind her as she drilled one through the covers to reach her ton from 108 balls. The West Indies finally made their breakthrough as Cherry-Ann Fraser bowled Beaumont, who looked to dance down the track, and one wicket brought another as Emma Lamb lasted just three balls. Jones' stay at the crease ended in the 39th over and Nat Sciver-Brunt brought up her 23rd ODI fifty before she was caught lbw by Fletcher as England reached 345 at the halfway stage. The West Indies started well with the bat, with Joseph and Matthews finding the boundary regularly in the powerplay to put on an opening partnership of 91 before the latter nicked Arlott into the gloves of Jones. Joseph brought up her second ODI half-century before she was bowled by Alice Capsey and that started a procession of wickets as the West Indies lost their last eight for 98 runs with Smith slicing through the middle order.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Linsey Smith: It's surreal to celebrate five-for on my ODI debut for England
England bowler Linsey Smith admitted it was a 'surreal' feeling to claim a five-wicket haul on her one-day international debut after the hosts earned a convincing 108-run victory over the West Indies in Derby. Tammy Beaumont (107) and Amy Jones (122) put on a stunning 222-run partnership for the first wicket which saw both openers claim their centuries, while captain Nat Sciver-Brunt added 52 late on as England climbed to 345 for six at the halfway point. West Indies struggled with the bat in the previous T20 series but put up a bit more a fight this time around. Hayley Matthews and Qiana Joseph's opening stand of 91 had them in the contest until the former was caught behind and – despite Joseph's 62 – the visitors slipped to defeat. Smith ripped through the West Indies middle order and marked the occasion with a five-for haul which sealed a dominant performance from the hosts with both bat and ball. The 30-year-old was happy with her performance but quickly switched the focus onto game two in Leicester next week. She said: 'It's pretty surreal to be honest. Today feels like a bit of a blur but I guess initial feelings are, pretty over the moon. 'One, to make my debut; Two, to put in a performance and help the team win so I'm pretty proud of myself right now. But, there's another game coming up quickly and we want to win the series as well. 'I was just telling myself to try and hit the stumps and then obviously saw it go up in the air for what felt like about five minutes. But yeah, saw Dunks (Sophia Dunkley) underneath it and obviously she'd had a really good day in the field. 'So yeah, I felt pretty confident and it was nice, obviously fitting. She did my cap this morning as well, so to top it off with her was really nice.' Smith made her England T20 debut against Bangladesh in 2018 and had to wait seven years to get her first cap in the 50-over format. Smith became only the second woman to take a five-wicket haul in her first ODI for England and insisted she did not want to give up on her dream of playing in an ODI for her country. She added: 'I've been reminded quite a few times today how many days in between debut I've had, but I just feel quite proud of myself because it's a dream that I didn't want to give up on. 'I know for quite a while I only played T20 and I knew deep down within me that I wanted to play every format and really push my case for that. 'I started off with Hampshire this year, putting in some good performances and then to carry that into this series to get the win is a good feeling.'
The Guardian
3 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
England's Smith takes five after Jones and Beaumont tons in ODI canter past West Indies
In Charlotte Edwards's first press conference as England head coach back in April, she was pretty clear about her priorities: 'I think we've got to look at our ODI game. I think that's probably an area that we've underperformed in for a while.' Perhaps nobody epitomised that more than Amy Jones, who in 12 years of international cricket – including 97 ODIs – had never scored a century. On Friday at Derby, with Edwards grinning away on the dressing-room balcony, Jones punched through the off-side for the boundary which finally broke that duck. They say the years are short, while the days are long: the five overs which Jones spent in the nervous 90s felt almost as long as the 12 years which preceded them. First, the umpires called for drinks; then Jones offered up two nervy return catches to Jahzara Claxton and Karishma Ramharack, which were both shelled; and finally her opening partner Tammy Beaumont got impatient and decided to beat Jones to the milestone, having played second fiddle for almost the whole of their record-breaking partnership. When the vital boundary from Jones finally came, the celebrations were partly just relief to have got a very big monkey off a very senior back. Jones's and Beaumont's centuries, combined with a second half-century in three matches from the captain, Nat Sciver-Brunt, at a healthy strike rate of 144, provided the platform for England's formidable total of 345 for six: their eighth-highest in history. In reply, West Indies came out with intent, led by another chaotic innings from Qiana Joseph, who pulled off the same trick as in last October's World Cup, scoring 62 from 74 balls simply by swinging and hoping. But Capsey eventually bust one into Joseph's stumps, and with Hayley Matthews already long departed – a decent maiden ODI wicket for Em Arlott – Sciver-Brunt belatedly, in the 23rd over, introduced her second debutant, Linsey Smith. The left-arm spinner – who made her 20-over debut in 2018 but had astonishingly never previously featured in this format – proceeded to turn the ball just enough on a good length to bamboozle the tourists' middle order. Finally, Sophia Dunkley pouched two good catches in the deep – the second off the final ball of Smith's 10-over allocation – to ensure her teammate (just) achieved her five-fer. From there it was slow death for West Indies, who clung on until the 49th over but were eventually all out for 237, handing England a 108-run win. In the light of Thursday's news that Heather Knight is out for the rest of the summer with the hamstring injury she sustained at Chelmsford, this was a good time for the remainder of England's senior batters to stand up and be counted. Edwards could hardly have asked for more: Jones and Beaumont put on 222 runs for the first wicket, vindicating the coach's decision to promote the England wicketkeeper to the top of the order for the first time since 2019. In her first two months as head coach, Edwards has kept a close eye on county cricket, which may explain England's new-look opening partnership: Beaumont and Jones have scored 237 runs together for The Blaze in seven One-Day Cup matches this season. While the pair started sedately at Derby, there was a dramatic acceleration in the 26th over: Beaumont came down the track to Matthews, fired the first six of the day over long-on, and proceeded to add another 50 runs in just 22 balls. Sign up to The Spin Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week's action after newsletter promotion The highlight was a 25-run over against Claxton, during which the diminutive Beaumont leapt into the air as if she had launched herself off a trampoline and somehow reached a ball a metre above her head, uppercutting it to the boundary. Spare a thought for Emma Lamb, who after a two-year absence from international cricket and a 36-over wait to assume her new position at No 3, was adjudged caught behind to Matthews after just three balls. Oddly, she opted not to review the decision, despite replays suggesting the ball had come off her forearm. She will be hoping for a chance at vindication when the two sides go again, at Leicester on Wednesday.
