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Opener hits unbeaten 72 off 40 balls to keep Rockets winless

ECB Media10-Aug-2025Eighteen-year-old Davina Perrin continued her impressive domestic form with a sparkling 42-ball 70 to overpower Trent Rockets in The Hundred.It was Perrin’s first half-century in The Hundred, and the second-highest score by a female English player uncapped at international level. More importantly for Perrin and Northern Superchargers, it took them to the top of the table with two wins from two.”I had a conversation with one of the coaches before and he said: ‘What are you going to do when you go out?’ And I was like: ‘have fun,'” Perrin said. “It was a pretty decent deck, it was coming onto the bat nicely, so it allowed me to lean into it and just try and play strong shots. It’s nice to do it front of so many people and on a decent ground, so happy days.”It was a dominant performance from the team in purple, who were on top straight away and rarely let their foot off the gas, save some customary excellence from Trent Rockets skipper Ash Gardner.The Superchargers had Rockets at 5 for 3 after 18 balls and right up against it, Gardner did her thing to fight back with a 32-ball 61 but it was essentially a lone hand and her side’s eventual total of 128 felt light at a sun-dappled Trent Bridge.Ash Gardner forces one away through the off side•Warren Little/Getty Images

Perrin dominated the opening partnership of 62 with Alice Davidson-Richards and entertained the crowd throughout, with strong shots all around the wicket and even a one-handed scoop. Phoebe Litchfield matched her stroke for stroke with her 10-ball 22 and Annabel Sutherland finished things off in a fittingly creative way, reverse-sweeping through the off-side.It was a performance of great promise from the Superchargers who will feel they’re laying down a marker, for Rockets the need to get a win on the board is getting ever greater.

Unlike in recent years when Everton have been engulfed in misery when times have been tough, there will a hope in the air that David Moyes can turn around his side’s blip in form in the Premier League.

After all, the Toffees did slip up against two top sides in Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur in recent matches, with Everton arguably only a few positive results away from being back in the early top-four reckoning in the league standings.

The Scotsman also has the likes of Jack Grealish and Iliman Ndiaye at his disposal, who have the immense quality to get their side out of some sticky situations, on top of further possessing ex-Chelsea midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the number ten slot.

Moyes has often been spoiled rotten with his midfield choices on Merseyside across his two spells in charge; therefore, with plenty more standout talents coming to mind who are yet to be named…

Everton's best midfielders under Moyes

The Glaswegian will just be praying his team aren’t loitering in the bottom half of the division for too long, having once been responsible for a top-four finish during his first spell in charge, alongside two memorable fifth-place finishes.

Marouane Fellaini would be a consistent bright spark during his side’s fifth-place finish come the end of the 2008/09 season from the middle of the park, as the eccentric Belgian collected a weighty 12 goal contributions from 30 league outings.

Moyes was also able to call upon the likes of Mikel Arteta for some quality centrally, before he took on management at Arsenal, while also possessing a similar Fellaini-like hero in Leon Osman, who seemed to always pop with a magic strike for the Toffees in a moment of crisis.

Right now, Idrissa Gueye and James Garner could be viewed as solid members of the Scotsman’s side centrally, with Garner managing to win eight duels last time out against Spurs to be seen as a battler for his team’s cause, as per Sofascore, despite the final outcome.

But, there is one emerging midfield talent at the Hill Dickinson Stadium right now, who will seriously excite those behind the scenes with what he could be capable of, as he potentially goes on to be Everton’s own version of Crystal Palace hotshot Adam Wharton.

Everton could have their own Wharton in "abnormal" star

Not too long ago, Wharton’s name wouldn’t have been that well-known among avid Premier League fans.

But, after a breakout season on the books of Blackburn Rovers in the Championship during the 2023/24 season, which saw him collect five goal contributions and win an average of 4.8 duels per league contest, the 21-year-old was catapulted to top-flight stardom with Crystal Palace, and he hasn’t looked back since.

Indeed, Wharton has continued to stylishly go about his business right at the very top of English football, with a sublime five big chances created by the “generational” talent – as he was once branded by Matthew Stanger – already this season, continuing on his absurd rise which has also seen him be capped by England at a senior level.

Thankfully, Everton won’t need to splash out a rumoured £100m on Wharton to bag themselves a talent of his ilk, with homegrown gem Harrison Armstrong in line to be Moyes’ own version of the masterful youngster, if all goes to plan.

Much like Wharton, Armstrong has looked a cut above in the Championship in Lancashire, only this time with Blackburn’s near rivals Preston North End, as the Lilywhites loanee has won a strong 3.9 duels on average when battling in the middle of the pitch this season, alongside further looking assured with the ball at his feet with an 82% pass accuracy notched up.

He has yet to grab a goal or an assist for Paul Heckingbottom’s men, but he does have that in his locker too, as he bids to be a Premier League-calibre talent very shortly, despite only being 18 years of age, with three assists already tallied up from minimal senior chances on Merseyside.

Lauded as being “abnormal” for “how good he is” for his age by one analyst, the proof will soon be in the pudding as to whether Armstrong can return to Everton and kick on like Wharton managed at Selhurst Park.

Both Wharton and the 18-year-old sensation could even line up alongside each other for the Three Lions down the line, with recent claims suggesting that Armstrong “will play for England one day”.

Like Wharton before him, the teenager Evertonian is currently ripping it up in the second tier – hopefully it’s not long before he’s doing the same back at the Hill Dickinson.

Not just Grealish: £30k-p/w Everton gem can be England's World Cup wildcard

Everton have a whole host of English players gunning for a seat on the plane next summer.

By
Angus Sinclair

Oct 31, 2025

He rewrote the record books, piled on runs for fun, and once again put Sri Lanka in a position of dominance

Madushka Balasuriya27-Sep-2024Grab the popcorn, guys, another Kamindu Mendis century/milestone/diss track has dropped.It’s eight fifties in eight straight Tests now, five centuries in 13 Test innings – his latest, 182 not out, being his best yet – making him the fastest Asian to that feat, and oh, he’s also the third-fastest ever to do so equalling Don Bradman.Wait, he’s not done yet? Oh yeah, he reached 1000 Test runs, the third-fastest to do that too – again equalling Bradman.Related

• Chandimal takes on No. 3 challenge 'for the future of Sri Lankan cricket'

• Peiris, Jayasuriya ravage New Zealand on 13-wicket day

• Dinesh Chandimal rises to the occasion, with a 'bit of luck' on his side

• Mendises hit powerful centuries to put Sri Lanka in position of dominance

• Stats – Kamindu's dream start in Test cricket puts him alongside Bradman

All of which makes the fact he was dropped for two years from the Test side after making a half-century on debut against Australia in 2022 kinda hilarious. One could question the selectors’ thinking, but at this point maybe we should be grateful. I mean, the guy really does make us all look bad.New Zealand for one were definitely fed up with his antics, with throws from the deep after a point resembling an angsty teen asked to play catch with his absentee father. Just a token gesture, waiting for the misery to be brought to a hopefully swift end.Even the weather gods seemed to have been stunned into inaction, perhaps taken by his majestic drives on the up. See, there’s actually been an extreme weather warning issued for the entirety of the Galle district, but while grey clouds shielded the sun across the day’s proceedings, the rain never arrived.Sure, it was there overnight – quick shoutout to the always excellent Galle ground staff for sorting out the covers blanketed in rainwater promptly – and it had definitely arrived all around Galle, and probably will again later in the evening. But in the middle, the mugginess from the previous day had dissipated, replaced by a comforting breeze, all seemingly to make Kamindu’s day of fun all that more pleasant.But all these records and achievements aside, perhaps the best thing about Kamindu is that his mere presence has forced a quiet transformative change in the playing XI.

“Kamindu, he has just taken off, hasn’t he? He has been unbelievable over the eight games that he has played. So happy that one of our own is breaking all the records”Angelo Mathews

It wasn’t long before his stirring form in 2024 resulted in a clamour for him to be pushed up the order. The solution, therefore, was to push Dinesh Chandimal up to No. 3 and give the gloves to Kusal Mendis, who in turn would go down to No. 7. As for Kamindu, he would push up to No. 5.It may be a small sample size since the switch, but the results speak for themselves.Kamindu, of course, hasn’t missed a beat, merely continuing from his performances at No. 7. If anything, he’s gotten better, only being deprived of a maiden double-century by virtue of a pre-planned declaration. “At tea, the talk was to bat for 15 overs before declaring,” Angelo Mathews explained after the day’s play.Chandimal’s flexibility in approach, meanwhile, has seen him thrive at three since taking it up at the start of the series – 30, 61 and 116 in three innings – while Kusal has flourished at seven, where his natural attacking instincts can be the difference between a competitive total and a winning one.Kusal Mendis and Kamindu Mendis added an unbroken 200-stand for the sixth wicket•Associated PressIt might have been a welcome change as well for a batter that has long been seen as underperforming. Kusal’s unbeaten 106 was his third century since the start of 2023, but it was his first against opposition that wasn’t Ireland or Zimbabwe since December 2018. In terms of strike rate, it was also his fastest at 71.14 (excluding his centuries against Ireland).”All three of them have responded well, and it worked perfectly – most importantly for the team,” Mathews said. “It’s all about the team, it’s all about the balance. And it’s all about every individual, where they’re suited to playing in the team. I think it all worked really well, and it was a very good decision by everyone.”And for Kamindu? Well, at this point there’s not much more that can be said. The most striking aspect of his batting has been the seemingly effortless repeatability of it, and a measuredness that many only find much later in their careers. Something Mathews himself touched on.”Kamindu, he has just taken off, hasn’t he? He has been unbelievable over the eight games that he has played. So happy that one of our own is breaking all the records,” Matthews said. “He has been unbelievable, he has got the skill, he’s got the temperament, he’s got the courage, he’s got everything that a batter and cricketer needs.”His maturity also belies his age. None of us were able to do the kinds of things he’s doing at that point in our careers. Definitely one of the best batters I have seen in recent years.”This purple patch of course isn’t going to go on forever, but for now, more than speculating on how long he can carry on this form, maybe we should all just sit back and enjoy the show.

In the final minutes before the trade deadline hit, the Minnesota Twins agreed to trade reliever Griffin Jax to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for starting pitcher Taj Bradley, ESPN'sJeff Passan reported.

The Rays ship off another starting pitcher after previously sending right-handed starter Zack Littell to the Reds on Wednesday. They bring in Jax, who is 1-– with a 4.50 ERA and 72 strikeouts through 46 innings pitched this season. While his ERA isn't ideal, Jax has tallied an impressive amount of strikeouts, and holds a 5.5 strikeout-walk ratio this season.

After being the biggest sellers at the deadline this year, the Twins bring in Bradley, who is 6–6 with a 4.61 ERA and 95 strikeouts through 21 starts this season. Minnesota had previously traded away utilityman Willi Castro, infielder Carlos Correa, outfielder Harrison Bader, starting pitcher Chris Paddack, and relievers Jhoan Duran, Danny Coulombe and Brock Stewart all in the final days before the deadline.

By the time the Twins take the field again for Friday's game against the Guardians, their lineup and bullpen might be unrecognizable.