World Cup Warm-up Highlights: England & NZ win on DLS, De Kock, Moeen shine

World Cup Warm-up Highlights: In Guwahati, England breezed past Bangladesh by 4 wickets with 77 balls remaining to complete warm-ups. Chasing a 197-run target on DLS, Moeen Ali blasted 56 while Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler also scored blazing knocks. In Thiruvananthapuram, it’s the third match where rain has the final say. New Zealand win by 7 runs on DLS method. South Africa were 211/4 in 37 overs when rain returned and both captains shook hands.

NZ vs SA Highlights

Rain had the final say in Thiruvananthapuram once again. This was the third match in a row when rain impacted the game. But with some portion of the match possible, there is a result finally. New Zealand win by 7 runs on the DLS method. NZ posted 321/6 in 50 overs. South Africa were 211/4 in 37 overs when rain returned.

NZ innings summary: The biggest news was Kane Williamson returning to lead the side. He won the toss and opted to bat. Despite Will Young falling early to Kagiso Rabada, Devon Conway (78) and Kane Williamson (37) rebuilt the innings.

Williamson was first to retire hurt (not retire out). Conway continued with a brilliant 73-ball 78 before pulling the plugs on his innings. Tom Latham, however, continued with a 52-run knock before Marco Jansen dealt two quick blows. After dismissing Glenn Phillips for 43, Jansen trapped Latham LBW. Ultimately, Daryl Mitchell (25 off 16) helped New Zealand post 321/6 in 50 overs.

Lungi Ngidi was the most successful bowler with 3/33 while Marco Jansen also bagged three wickets for 45 runs.

South Africa innings summary: Like New Zealand, South Africa also suffered early with Trent Boult trapping Reeza Hendricks leg-before with a classic left-arm seam yorker. Trent Boult and Matt Henry extracted some swing to trouble Proteas early on. But Quinton De Kock and Rassie Van der Dussen added 72-run for the 2^nd wicket.

While Mitchell Santner dismissed Rassie van der Dussen, De Kock upped the ante with Heinrich Klaasen. But Boult returned to dismiss Klaasen for 39. Before called it a day, De Kock was unbeaten on 84 while David Miller was not out on 18.

Meanwhile, New Zealand heads into this World Cup warm-up match with a successful warm-up encounter against Pakistan, where they performed well. South Africa, on the other hand, faced a setback as their opening practice match against Afghanistan was abandoned due to rain. They will be eager to make the most of this opportunity in their upcoming match.

England vs Bangladesh Highlights:

England and Bangladesh have wrapped up World Cup preparations in Guwahati. England beat Bangladesh by 4 wickets in a rain-curtailed match. Opting to bat, Bangladesh could only manage 188/9 in 37 overs with rain washing out 2 hours. England chased down the target in 24.1 overs with 4 wickets to spare.

Bangladesh Innings Summary: The only two Bangladeshi batters to make any impact were Tanzid Hasan (45) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (74). The rest fell like a pack of cards. Before rain stopped play, Bangladesh were 150/5 in 29 overs. But with just 8 overs left to play, Bangladesh collapsed. They could only manage to score 38 more runs.

Reece Topley was the best English bowler with 3/23 while David Willey (2/26) and Adil Rashid (2/27) also made an impact.

England Innings Summary: What seemed to be a smooth sailing, England faltered early. Dawid Malan continued his poor run of form in India, perishing for just 4 with Mustafizur Rahman dealing the early blow. But then on, it was Jonny Bairstow blitz. Bairstow smashed 34 off 21 balls to put Bangladesh bowlers on the backfoot.

But Mustafizur removed him with a fantastic delivery to arrest the slide. Harry Brook too fell cheaply. Jos Buttler then came on and blasted 15-ball 31 before falling to Shoriful Islam. However, Moeen Ali finished any chance Bangladesh had with 39-ball 56.

Mustafizur Rahman bowled just three overs but bagged two wickets for 23 runs. Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, Taskin Ahmed and Nasum Ahmed bagged a wicket each.