ITA vs NED-XI

So that will be all from this game at the Cartama Oval. The next one starts in 15 minutes so do switch tabs and join us for that one. For now, this is the pair of Pradeep and Bidipto taking your leave. Keep following Sportskeeda! 

Italy win by 6 wickets with 16 balls to spare! 

Dinidu Marage 43 (14) | Zain Ali - 3/24 (2)
Roel Verhagen 18 (10) | Clayton Floyd - 2/18 (2)

It was about which team had a better power play. And as it turned out, Italy's blitzkrieg got the job very much done early in the piece. Even though there were just a few stutters in the middle, they managed to rom home in the end! 

Openers Zain Naqvi and Dinidu Marage went berserk against pace on both sides of the wicket and by the time spin was introduced by the Dutch captain, more than half the runs had been scored. 

However, the spin duo of Clayton Floyd and Arnav Jain did out the brakes on slightly and more importantly, picked up all the 4 wickets to fall. But then, Italy skipper Joy Perera and Nishermal Fernando made sure that the win was just a matter of time! 

15 runs were given away as extras by Netherlands XI. They need some thinking to do before their next game tomorrow. But Italy could not have asked for a better start than this! 

7.3 Sikander Zulfiqar to Nishermal Fernando, WIDE! IT'S ALL OVER! Italy thrash Netherlands XI in their opening game of the Championship Week. The Dutch XI needs to come back stronger as they are the defending champions. Zulfiqar fails to land it inside the tramline, a wide has sealed the game for Italy!

7.3 Sikander Zulfiqar to Joy Perera, NO-BALL! Full toss, above waist height as Perera swipes it to deep square-leg for one. Free-hit coming up!

7.1 Sikander Zulfiqar to Nishermal Fernando, SIX! BAM! Brilliant timing from Fernando, one handed stunning six. Change of pace, dips in a low full toss. Fernando reaches and goes one bounce for a maximum over deep square-leg.

7.1 Sikander Zulfiqar to Nishermal Fernando, WIDE! Bangs in the short delivery, but goes way outside the off-stump and has been called a wide.

Sikander Zulfiqar, right-arm medium fast, is into the attack.

Only 11 runs left to get now but a chance went a begging in the over. It was slightly tough but holding on to those does indeed make things interesting. 

6.6 Arnav Jain to Joy Perera, short and very wide of off-stump, Perera walks across to hammer it, but mistimes it straight to the extra-cover fielder.

6.5 Arnav Jain to Joy Perera, SIX! This time no second thoughts from Perera. Length delivery on the stumps, strides out and clobbered it all the way over deep mid-wicket for a maximum.

6.4 Arnav Jain to Joy Perera, OH! Half-tracker, but it gets stuck on the surface and also turns away. Perera was shaping up for a big one, but gets surprised by it and let's it go.

6.2 Arnav Jain to Nishermal Fernando, DROPPED! Proper outside edge and the keeper makes a meal of it. Fernando has a wild slog across the line, takes the outside edge and the keeper makes a hash of it.