Cricket recap: Australia 62 all out against Bangladesh!

Australia’s miserable run in T20Is continued in the tour of Bangladesh that concluded in Dhaka on August 9. Mahmudullah’s men did the unthinkable. They beat Australia 4-1.

The historic and maiden series win over the Aussies, in any format, became all the more special when the five-time ODI World Cup champion folded for 62 in the fifth game.

Shakib Al Hasan stood as the wrecker-in-chief returning 4/9 and creating a new record of being the only T20I cricketer with 100 wickets and 1,000-plus runs. His effort helped Bangladesh dominate and defend 122.

READ - ICC Player of the Month: Shakib, Marsh highlight July nominations

The all-rounder also bagged the Player of the Series award for seven wickets and 114 runs in five outings. “The wicket was tough to play on. We held our nerves. A good series for us overall. It wasn’t easy for the batsmen in this series, but the bowlers did well,” he said.

England in Pakistan after 16 years

FILE - In this Feb. 10, 2019, photo, Pakistan Cricket Board's new managing director Wasim Khan, right, looks on during a press conference with the PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani in Lahore, Pakistan. A top official says his country has lost serious income and a generation of players because it couldn't host a test match at home for a decade. "We've probably lost part of a generation (of potential players) because they've not been able to grow up watching their heroes," Khan told the Australian Associated Press. "We want players to be playing at home so our kids can be inspired to want to become cricketers, take up the game, like any other country." (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary, file)

Pakistan has been slowly opening up for international cricket in the past couple of years, and in October, the England men and women’s teams will be touring the country. It will be a maiden tour for the women, while the men will return after 16 years.

Both the teams will play two T20Is at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi on October 13 and 14 as double-headers. Eoin Morgan’s side will move to Dubai on October 15, a three-hour flight from Islamabad, for the T20 World Cup starting the next day. The women will remain in Rawalpindi to play three ODIs on October 17, 19 and 21.

READ: New Zealand to tour Pakistan after 18 years

“Both are additional tours with England men’s side scheduled to return to Pakistan in the last quarter of 2022 for white-ball and ICC World Test Championship fixtures,” PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said.

Black Caps’ T20 World Cup squad

Mark Chapman, who represented Hong Kong in the T20 World Cup in 2014 and 2016, has been included in New Zealand's World Cup squad.

New Zealand has announced a 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup in October. The management has selected a bowling group featuring all T20I stars. Ish Sodhi, Mitchell Santner and Tim Southee are in the top 10 of the ICC rankings. Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson, Todd Astle and Kyle Jamieson will bolster the bowling attack.

Williamson will lead the batting department, alongside the gutsy Martin Guptill and the very effective Devon Conway.

Hard-hitting opener Colin Munro, all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme and seasoned batsman Ross Taylor are notable absentees. There was no place for Finn Allen either.

Mark Chapman, who represented Hong Kong in the T20 World Cup in 2014 and 2016, has been included in the squad. Fast bowler Adam Milne is the 16th name on the list as injury cover.

The ICC has asked every team to select 15 players and eight officials. The deadline for submission of the list is September 10.

Full squad: K. Williamson (c), T. Astle, T. Boult, M. Chapman, D. Conway, L. Ferguson, M. Guptill, K. Jamieson, D. Mitchell, J. Neesham, G. Phillips, M. Santner, T. Seifert (wk), I. Sodhi, T. Southee, A. Milne* (injury cover).

Cricket in Olympics?

Cricket’s only appearance at the Olympics was in 1900 Paris, with Great Britain and France being the only competitors.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) wants to push cricket into the Olympics. It is due to start preparations for a bid. The primary target is to ensure the sport makes it to Los Angeles in 2028.

The ICC has asked a Working Group, headed by England and Wales Cricket Board chairman Ian Watmore, to lead the bid. The group will also comprise ICC independent director Indra Nooyi, Chair of Zimbabwe Cricket Tavengwa Mukuhlani, ICC associate member director Mahinda Vallipuram, and USA Cricket chairman Parag Marathe.

Cricket’s only appearance at the Olympics was in 1900 Paris, with Great Britain and France being the only competitors.

“Thirty-million cricket fans live in the USA, making LA 2028 the ideal Games for cricket to make its return to Olympic competition... the sport’s inclusion in 2028 would mark the end of a 128-year absence,” the ICC said in a statement.

The start of the Olympic road begins in Birmingham as the 2022 Commonwealth Games will include cricket.