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Tickets for the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup have gone on sale with less than a month to go for the start of the tournament on September 30 in Guwahati.On Thursday, the ICC announced that tickets for all the group matches in India and Sri Lanka were available on pre-sale on tickets.cricketworldcup.com for four days from 1900 IST and SLST on September 4 via the Google Pay platform. The second phase of ticket sales will begin on September 9 at 2000 IST and SLST (1430 GMT) on tickets.cricketworldcup.com.According to the ICC, ticket prices will start at INR 100 (USD 1.14 approx.) in the first pre-sale phase – “the most affordable pricing for any ICC global event in history.”Related

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• Sri Lanka select Prabodhani, Dulani for Women's World Cup

• Navi Mumbai replaces Bengaluru as fourth Indian venue

• India Women to begin World Cup preparation with Visakhapatnam training camp

• USD 13.88 million prize money for Women's ODI World Cup

The Women’s ODI World Cup will be contested by eight teams – India, Sri Lanka, England, Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand and Bangladesh – across five venues: Colombo, Guwahati, Indore, Visakhapatnam, and Navi Mumbai. India and Sri Lanka open the tournament on September 30 in Guwahati, and the final is on November 2 at a yet-to-be-decided venue.The ICC recently announced that the total prize money for the tournament is USD $13.88 million, nearly a fourfold increase from the USD 3.5 million for the previous women’s ODI World Cup in New Zealand in 2022.

Chris Lynn hit the first century in a Vitality Blast Finals Day to power Hampshire Hawks to a six-wicket (DLS) win over Northamptonshire Steelbacks in the second semi-final at Edgbaston.Lynn smashed an unbeaten 108 from 51 balls with five fours and 11 sixes as the Hawks galloped to a DLS target of 155 in 18 overs with 14 balls to spare. It was a chase pulled off virtually single-handedly as no other batter passed 12.The Steelbacks’ rain-interrupted innings had been lifted to 158 for seven from 18 overs by Justin Broad’s sixth T20 half-century – 61 not out from 39 balls – which dragged the innings back from the ruins of 86 for six. But Lynn’s hitting masterclass turned the chase into a cruise to book the Hawks a place in this evening’s final against Somerset.Hampshire chose to bowl and immediately struck a huge blow when David Willey edged his first ball, from Chris Wood, to wicketkeeper Toby Albert. Two more big wickets soon fell and Wood was again involved in each, this time as fielder. He was at third to take the catch when Ricardo Vasconcelos sliced Scott Currie, then took a stinging catch at short third when quarter-final hero Ravi Bopara edged a big drive at Sonny Baker.Bjorn Fortuin, who had played for South Africa against England in Manchester less than 24 hours earlier, added a wicket with his fifth ball when he bowled Tim Robinson. The Steelbacks were in a pickle at 65 for five when Saif Zaib pulled a Benny Howell long hop to Ali Orr on the mid-wicket boundary. It was an acrobatic grab by the fielder but Zaib may reflect that the catch should have been taken by somebody in the Hollies Stand.Smart work from James Vince ran out Lewis McManus just before the rain break, after which Broad and Luke Procter (30, 20) delivered some sparkling improvisation to added 70 in 40 balls.After DLS had trimmed the Hawks’ target, Lynn was soon making heavy inroads into it. Toby Albert and James Vince son sent up catches off the spinners but the Aussie thundered to a 24-ball half-century including 16 from four balls by Procter.Ben Mayes top-edged a reverse-sweep at Zaib and fell to a brilliant catch by George Scrimshaw but Lynn lifted Ben Sanderson for successive sixes to send his side into the last five overs needing a manageable 41. Four successive sixes off Lloyd Pope took Lynn to a 49-ball century and left the Hawks needing eight from the last three overs. They made it.

West Indies took an unassailable 2-0 lead in their three-match series against Bangladesh, shrugging off a batting collapse that had taken them from 106 for 1 to 149 for 9 in Chattogram. It also marked their first T20I series win after seven consecutive defeats.The West Indies bowlers – Romario Shepherd and Akeal Hosein played lead roles with three wickets each – were effective in defending the moderate total. Bangladesh could not chase 150 on a good batting pitch despite the presence of dew, which hampered the bowlers. Tanzid Hasan kept them going with 61, but the rest were often caught in two minds on a surface that encouraged playing through one’s shots.The Bangladesh line-up did not do justice to their bowlers, who engineered West Indies’ batting collapse. Mustafizur Rahman picked up three wickets, while Nasum Ahmed and Rishad Hossain took two each.

Hope, Athanaze lift West Indies

West Indies had luck in the first half of their innings. Litton Das dropped Brandon King first ball, and Towhid Hridoy couldn’t hang on to a tough chance at mid-on off Alick Athanaze in the third over.Related

• Athanaze lauds bowlers, Tanzid rues batting failures in second T20I

Athanaze launched Tanzim Hasan over square-leg in the same over, before Shai Hope struck Taskin Ahmed straight down the ground for his first six in the next one. The pair struck boundaries at ease during the powerplay and beyond. Athanaze hit five in total, while Hope picked up three.Athanaze and Hope both reached their half-centuries off their 30th deliveries. They brought up their 100-run stand shortly afterwards too, in 10.5 overs, as the pair put West Indies in a position from where they could aim for 200 and beyond.

Nasum, Rishad wreck West Indies

Athanaze fell in the 12th over, holing out on the deep square-leg boundary, giving Nasum his first wicket. Sherfane Rutherford fell next ball for his second successive golden duck.Mustafizur then removed Hope for 55, when the West Indies captain mistimed a slower ball and was caught at point. By the time Rishad got Rovman Powell also caught at point in the 15th over, West Indies were in free fall. Jason Holder was dismissed in the same over, caught at long-on for 4.Romario Shepherd tried to resurrect the innings but did not succeed. Mustafizur had him caught at deep point in the last over, before hitting Khary Pierre’s stumps next ball. Hosein was run out off the last delivery to complete a remarkable turnaround for the home side.The Bangladesh bowlers dominated the second half of the West Indies innings•AFP/Getty Images

West Indies drop four chances

Bangladesh lost Saif Hassan early in a slow start, when Holder sucked him into an uppish shot against a short ball. Brandon King took the catch in the covers, making up for dropping the same batter in the second over. Litton Das got the chase on track with three fours in the fifth over, using Jayden Seales’ pace – twice playing the ball down to deep third, and also scooping over short fine leg.Rutherford dropped Litton but the Bangladesh captain could not press on for much longer. Hosein bowled him for 23. Tanzid hit big sixes over midwicket, even as another catch went down in the field: Seales dropped Hridoy in the 11th over.Seales made amends in the 13th over when he took a tumbling catch, after Hridoy top edged Shepherd. Tanzid reached his fifty with a boundary soon after but Bangladesh still needed 50 off the last five overs.

Shepherd, Hosein deal final blows

Tanzid started the death overs with a four past cover, but Jaker Ali could not accelerate at the other end. Tanzid perished in the hunt for boundaries, caught on at deep point. He finished on 61 off 48 balls, having hit three sixes and three fours. Jaker fell in the same over to Shepherd, caught at the deep square-leg boundary for 17 off 18 balls.Holder started the 19th over by hitting Shamim Hossain’s off-stump with a yorker, and gave away just five runs. Bangladesh were left needing 21 off the last over. Hosein did not concede a boundary and also taking two wickets to finish with 3 for 22.

Player representatives have reiterated their fear of burnout in the wake of the full fixture release for the 2026 domestic season in England and Wales.Following the announcement of the County Championship and One-Day Cup schedules on Thursday, the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) was particularly critical of the period from late August to late September, which comprises six rounds of Championship fixtures and the 50-over final.The 2026 Rothesay County Championship will be played in three blocks of matches – with each side playing a total of 14 times after counties rejected a proposal earlier this year to cut the number of first-class games to 13, a decision which had already raised the ire of the players’ union.Related

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Each county will play six matches during the first seven-week block, with all matches during that period starting on a Friday. A mid-summer block will be staged in June with each county playing twice while the third block of matches begins on August 20 with each team playing six times. The final round begins on September 24.Daryl Mitchell, the PCA Chief Executive, said he “feared” for that latter part of the season.”Unfortunately, the County Championship schedule does raise concerns with player burnout with mental and physical dangers attached to an overly intense end to the season following the conclusion of The Hundred,” Mitchell said.”The reduction of just one game could have gone a long way to resolving a period that does not look manageable for the majority. I already fear this section of the season.”This is through no fault of the schedulers, but the decision by the county Chairs to not allow for sufficient minimum standards regarding time between games has meant we have a period of 12 days of Championship cricket in just over two weeks with some lengthy travel for the majority.”Nottinghamshire will open their County Championship title defence at Somerset while Leicestershire and Glamorgan, both back in Division One for the first time in more than two decades, host Sussex and Yorkshire respectively in the opening round from April 3.Nottinghamshire won their first Championship trophy for 15 years and seventh overall when their South African wicketkeeper, Kyle Verreynne, hit a six to secure a batting bonus point and top spot in Division One on the penultimate day of the 2025 season.Lancashire, winners of the Metro Bank One-Day Cup Women’s Competition and the Vitality T20 Women’s County Cup, will begin their 50-over title defence away to Durham on April 11 ahead of a historic first professional Roses clash with Yorkshire at Emirates Old Trafford on April 25.Yorkshire, the 2025 Metro Bank One-Day Cup Women’s League 2 champions, begin life as a Tier 1 side away to Somerset after their elevation to the top flight was brought forward by one year following a restructure of the women’s domestic competition ahead of last season.Men’s One-Day Cup champions Worcestershire Rapids will begin their 2026 campaign at home to Derbyshire Falcons on July 24, with groups randomly drawn and each county playing once against every team in their group.Gloucestershire, Kent Spitfires, Lancashire, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Notts Outlaws, Somerset, Surrey and Warwickshire make up Group A while Group B comprises Derbyshire Falcons, Durham, Essex, Glamorgan, Hampshire, Middlesex, Sussex Sharks, Worcestershire Rapids and Yorkshire.The One-Day Cup Women’s final will be played at the Utilita Bowl in Southampton on Saturday, September 19 followed by both the men’s final at Trent Bridge and the Women’s League 2 Final at Seat Unique Stadium in Bristol the following day.Ellie Threlkeld holds the One-Day Cup aloft•ECB via Getty Images

The second season of the Vitality T20 Women’s County Cup will involve 37 counties vying for a place on finals day at Emirates Old Trafford on August 29, including inaugural champions Lancashire Thunder.The opening round, from April 26, features 28 counties before the nine Tier 1 counties – Durham, Essex, Hampshire, Lancashire Thunder, Somerset, Surrey, The Blaze, Warwickshire and Yorkshire – enter the competition in Round 3 from June 21.Two all-Tier 1 ties have been confirmed for Round 3 with The Blaze at home to Durham and Yorkshire hosting Somerset.The PCA noted favourably a significant reduction in back-to-back games across men’s and women’s T20 fixtures, announced on Tuesday, down from 54 in 2025 to just six next season.Olly Hannon-Dalby, the PCA Chair, believed that holding the men’s Blast Finals Day ahead of the Hundred along with an improved schedule and less travel represented significant progress.”For the first time in a number of years, I feel the men’s Blast will have the energy and priority within the schedule to show everybody just how great this competition is,” he said. “The Vitality Blast lining up on an equal platform with men’s and women’s teams is something I’m very passionate about and is absolutely the right way to grow the game. We’ve seen the success in The Hundred and double headers should be an opportunity to attract bigger crowds for all.”But he echoed Mitchell’s concern over the Championship schedule.”At a time when many counties have threadbare squads, to start six four-day games and a 50-over final in the space of five weeks is so far from optimum it is something that needs addressing,” Hannon-Dalby said.”We will actively be canvassing opinion on how we could avoid this congestion in the future with options such as starting the season slightly earlier or ending it later. Conversations need to continue to prioritise the wellbeing of its players.”

Australia’s incumbent Test allrounder Beau Webster has taken eight wickets, including Travis Head twice and Alex Carey once, but it wasn’t enough for Tasmania as Liam Scott and Ben Manenti guided South Australia to their first win of the Sheffield Shield season in Hobart.Needing to manufacture the highest innings of a bowler-dominated match, the reigning champions recovered from 88 for 5 to chase down the target of 217.Cult hero Manenti was one of the heroes, scoring an unbeaten 49 from No.8. Manenti also took the crucial wickets of Beau Webster, Tim Ward and Brad Hope in Tasmania’s second innings to help bowl the Tigers out for 184. He put on a crucial 71-run stand with player of the match Scott to steer the visitors out of trouble.Related

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South Australia were winless from their first three games of the season, losing two and drawing the other. The result came against stiff opposition, with Australia’s incumbent Test No.6 Beau Webster starring with the ball to ensure he remains in contention to keep his spot.After claiming 5 for 50 in the first innings, Webster backed it up with 3 for 73 in the losing cause.Two of his victims were Travis Head and Alex Carey, his Australian teammates. Head edged Webster to slips on 15 from a ripping off-cutter, continuing his disappointing run of form leading into the Ashes.Since smashing a blazing ODI century against South Africa in August, his highest score has been 31 in 11 innings.Although Webster got the better of his Test teammates, he was taken apart by Manenti and Scott, with his wickets coming at more than six runs an over.Manenti was thrilled with the win.”We’ve been pretty successful down here the last couple of years. It’s a place we love to come and play at,” he said. “Probably rode the game a bit, it was a tricky wicket early.”We needed it. We’ve been close the last couple of weeks, playing some really good cricket, we’ve just lost patches.”South Australia will return to Adelaide Oval for their next match against Western Australia, starting on November 22.

Left-arm spinning allrounder Dunith Wellalage will lead Sri Lanka A in the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Rising Stars T20 tournament, in Doha later this month.Also in the squad are legspinners Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and Sahan Arachchige, allrounders Milan Rathnayake and Ramesh Mendis, and top-order batters Nuwanidu Fernando and Nishan Madushka, and seamer Pramod Madushan.Though none of the players in this squad have consistent places in the senior XI, Wellalage, Nuwanidu, and Madushka have all played white-ball cricket for Sri Lanka in the last few months. Rathnayake also played in Sri Lanka’s most recent Test series, against Bangladesh in June. Madushan has not played for Sri Lanka since 2024.Elsewhere in the squad is 20-year-old batting allrounder Vishen Halambage, who has been called up to the Sri Lanka senior squad, though has yet to play a match for the national team. Ramesh Mendis, meanwhile, last played for Sri Lanka in February this year, in a Test against Australia.

ACC Rising Stars tournament schedule

Nov 14 – Oman vs Pak; Ind vs UAE
Nov 15 – Ban vs HK; Afg vs SL
Nov 16 – Oman vs UAE; Ind vs Pak
Nov 17 – HK vs SL; Afg vs Ban
Nov 18 – Pak vs UAE; Ind vs Oman
Nov 19 – Afg vs HK; Ban vs SL
Nov 21 – Semi-finals: A1 vs B2; B1 vs A2
Nov 23 – Final

Viyaskanth, 23, has also been on the fringes of the national team for several years, though the presence of Wanindu Hasaranga, and more recently Jeffrey Vandersay, has kept him out. He has continued to do well domestically however, including in the recent SLC T20 competition – the top T20 domestic tournament this year, in the absence of the postponed Lanka Premier League.The Rising Stars tournament begins on November 14. Sri Lanka A play Afghanistan A, Hong Kong, and Bangladesh A in the group stage. Group B comprises India A, Oman, Pakistan A and UAE. Two teams from each group will then qualify for the semi finals.

Sri Lanka A squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup T20 tournament

Dunith Wellalage (capt.), Vishen Halambage, Nishan Madushka (wk), Nuwanidu Fernando, Lasith Croospulle, Ramesh Mendis, Kavindu de Livera, Sahan Arachchige, Ahan Wickramasinghe, Pramod Madushan, Garuka Sanketh, Isitha Wijesundara, Milan Rathnayake, V Viyaskanth, Traveen Mathew

Hampshire 293 (Middleton 79, Weatherley 62, Taylor 5-55) and 139 for 2 (Gubbins 55*) lead Worcestershire 249 (Libby 100*, Hose 82, Baker 5-72) by 183 runsSonny Baker’s five-wicket haul and a Nick Gubbins half-century helped drive Hampshire into the ascendency on Day Three of the Rothesay County Championship clash against Worcestershire.Baker’s morning burst of three wickets saw him to figures of 5 for 72, as Jake Libby’s 100 not out could not see Worcestershire into the lead despite early promise, as his side were bowled out for 249.With a lead of 44, the visiting side batted through the day with relative comfort on a flattening wicket, as Joe Weatherley and Fletcha Middleton made early progress for their side.Gubbins then scored an unbeaten 55 to see his side to 139 for 2 at the close, with the away side well in the hunt for a third County Championship victory of the season.With a lengthy delay to the start of proceedings on the third morning of the match, Hampshire enjoyed an excellent start to the day as Baker produced an eye-catching three wicket burst to reduce Worcestershire to 189 for 5.The visitors welcomed a stroke of luck in the second over of the day when Adam Hose feathered a strangle down the leg-side, to depart without adding to his overnight score, before Baker picked up the wickets of Brett D’Oliveira (1) and Ethan Brookes (0) as the hosts reeled under the clouds at Visit Worcestershire New Road.Searching for their first Rothesay County Championship win since mid-May, Hampshire began the afternoon session in similar vein to the morning, with Libby watching his side fall behind in the contest.Matthew Waite helped add 34 with the Worcestershire opener, before he nicked off to James Fuller for a cautious 21 as the Division One strugglers watched another promising position fall away beneath them as they limped to 223 for 6.Part-timer Nick Gubbins was thrown the ball in the 80th over of the innings as the visitors looked to move things on before taking the new ball but were overjoyed when Tom Taylor was pinned LBW in an innocuous over as the home side slid further behind the eight-ball.Hampshire tightened their grip on the match, as Kyle Abbott (1 for 27) and Baker removed Ben Allison and Adam Finch, with Libby 98 not out and his side still trailing by 46 runs.Libby added the two runs required to reach a gritty century off 235 balls, registering the first century by a Worcestershire player at Visit Worcestershire New Road this summer.Baker capped a fine individual performance as he returned in the next over to secure his five-wicket haul and ensure his side took a healthy lead of 44 runs into their second innings, with Worcestershire all-out one run short of a batting bonus-point.Hampshire lost Joe Weatherley in the 11th over of their reply, when he was LBW to a full ball from Waite but marched on unfazed to pass fifty with comfort.Middleton got in and showed signs of extending his good form from the first innings but was unable to capitalise on his positive start as he was caught behind off an Adam Finch delivery, with his side 120 runs in front.Gubbins made his way to a comfortable half-century as the evening drew to a close, as he and Tilak Varma batted through to stumps with Hampshire in total control at 139 for 2, with a commanding 183-run lead heading into the final day.

Shreyas Iyer has requested the BCCI for a six-month break from red-ball cricket due to concerns about his back, which the board has approved*. ESPNcricinfo learned that Iyer sent an email to the board to that effect and pulled out of the ongoing four-day match between India A and Australia A in Lucknow.Confirming the update on Thursday morning, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said in a press statement that Iyer “has informed the BCCI of his decision to take a six-month break from red-ball cricket”. “Having undergone back surgery in the UK and managed his recovery well, he has recently experienced recurring back spasms and stiffness while playing the longer format,” Saikia wrote. “He wishes to utilise this period to build endurance, body resilience and work on his fitness. In view of his decision, he was not considered for selection for the Irani Cup.”Iyer was the India A captain in the first four-day game against Australia A, but withdrew from the second. He was likely to have been picked in the Rest of India squad to play defending Ranji Trophy champions Vidarbha in the Irani Cup, but will now miss that game.Before scoring 8 in his only innings against Australia A last week in Lucknow, Iyer had played the Duleep Trophy semi-final for West Zone against Central Zone in September at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence on the outskirts of Bengaluru. He made 25 and 12 in that outing, his first competitive match since the end of IPL 2025.Iyer had problems with his back in December 2022 and the injury flared up during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series at home in March 2023, after which he had surgery in April and missed the IPL that year. He returned for the Asia Cup in September and was a key part of India’s unbeaten run to the 2023 ODI World Cup final in November.He continued to have issues with his back, though, and skipped some first-class matches for Mumbai, as a result of which he was omitted from the BCCI’s central contracts list in February 2024. Iyer was back on the list of contracted players the following year. More recently, in February-March this year, Iyer was India’s highest run-getter (243 in five innings) and the second-highest run-getter overall in the run to the Champions Trophy title, after which he led Punjab Kings to the final of IPL 2025.

Two wins from South Africa’s last eight ODIs against England does not make for pretty reading but allrounder Chloe Tryon isn’t bothered by that record.Ahead of her team’s Women’s World Cup opener in Guwahati on Friday, Tryon said those results don’t reflect the reality of a South African side that has reached two T20 World Cup finals since they last met England in the 50-over version, including a memorable semi-final victory at Newlands in 2023.”The team has changed a lot over the last couple of years,” Tryon told the media on Wednesday. “We’ve got some young players coming in and we’ve got a lot of experienced players, and everyone’s just taken up their role really beautifully. And the way that we’ve worked behind the scenes has been really good, so I’m not looking at too much of the stats.”South Africa’s World Cup squad is missing three of the players that lost 2-1 to England in their home ODI series last year. But they have five changes in personnel from the squad that beat England in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup before losing to them in the semi-final.Since then, South Africa have a new captain, a new wicket-keeper, a new pace spearhead, a new coach and most importantly, a new frame of reference, thanks to their progress in the shorter format. They’ve also got far more experience of their opposition than was the case three years ago. Tryon is one of three South Africans in this squad – Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp are the others – who are fresh off the Women’s Hundred.Though Tryon herself didn’t have a good tournament, making just 31 runs in nine matches, she benefitted from first-hand experience of her English opponents which she hopes she can use to South Africa’s advantage.”It’s a really good tournament to be part of and I obviously got to play with a couple of the England girls, which was pretty exciting,” she said. “Just watching them, how they go about their skill and how they go about their business is really good, so hopefully I can give a lot of insight to the team.”Tryon and Wolvaardt’s team-mates at Southern Brave included Lauren Bell and Danni Wyatt-Hodge, two of the “matchwinners” of which Tryon is wary, in an England side laden with superstars.”As a unit they’re just really that strong,” she said. “They’re led by one of the best all-rounders in the world (Nat Sciver-Brunt), and everyone just feeds off her. Every single one of them are matchwinners. We have to make sure that we show up with a lot of presence and we give 200%. We’ve shown that we can beat them in the past and we have, so we need to be really positive going into the first game.”Related

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South Africa have turned their 50-over fortunes around since losing eight out of 10 ODIs between June 2024 and May 2025, and have won four of their last six games. Admittedly, these came against West Indies (who are not at this tournament) and Pakistan (who had to qualify) so they need to be understood in context, but they also hinted at a succcessful adjustment to a new style under coach Mandla Mashimbyi.Mashimbyi has been in charge for nine months now, in which time the team has bought into his aggressive style of cricket. They have bulked up their middle order with Anneke Bosch, Annerie Dercksen, Sune Luus, Tryon, Nadine de Klerk and the option of Karabo Meso from No.3 to 7 or 8. “We bat really deep which is really important in a 50-over tournament like this,” Tryon said. “As a batting unit, we’ve come a lot of strides over the last couple of months, you can see that there’s a big difference in our batting and our approach in our batting department.”On flat pitches, this is expected to be a World Cup of high scores. However, South Africa’s early observations from the India-Sri Lanka match were that “it takes a little bit of turn,” as Tryon put it.Her allround abilities could be crucial to South Africa’s fortunes, but so too her experience. Tryon and Luus are both playing at their fourth World Cup, while Kapp is entering her fifth. Each has the knowledge that this could be their last, and they want to make a statement.”As a senior group we just want to lead the way for the team,” Tryon said. “We’ve got some girls that haven’t played a 50-over World Cup before, so for us, it’s making sure that we’re taking a lot of the responsibility in the middle and creating really good environments within the squad. It’s been really good so far. The way that everyone has gelled together has been so good. We’re really excited for the first game and we want to lead the way as a senior group by just making sure that we keep everyone as a tight unit.”

Mitchell Marsh’s return to red-ball cricket has not gone to plan with the Ashes outsider failing for Western Australia against Victoria in the Sheffield Shield.Marsh had been touted as a potential shock factor at the top of Australia’s order in the series against England. But his return to Shield ranks yielded only nine runs, batting at No.3 for WA on Thursday’s opening day at the MCG.WA struggled to 194 all out, with Sam Elliott taking 5 for 33, before ladder-leading Victoria reached 51 without loss at stumps.Marsh’s most recent Shield match was in October last year. And he hadn’t played a first-class game since being axed from the Test side after the Boxing Day win against India last year, when he scored four and a duck.Marsh’s surprise return to red-ball cricket came amid speculation Test selectors are toying with deploying the hard-hitting batter as an opener against England.But after Travis Head’s first Test heroics at the top of the order, Marsh’s prospects of adding to his 46 Tests appear slimmer.On Thursday, the 34-year-old struck two fours, including a trademark pull shot. But he was also troubled by the movement of Victorian quick Mitchell Perry, who had a couple of lbw shouts turned down against Marsh.Australia’s T20 captain lasted only 16 balls, launching at a full, wide delivery from Perry and edging to wicketkeeper Sam Harper.Allrounder Aaron Hardie top-scored with 53 from 73 balls and Cameron Bancroft was next best with 39, while Jayden Goodwin and Cameron Gannon chipped in.But the West Australians collectively folded late as Elliott crashed through the lower order after Perry captured the initial three wickets.Elliott, who also took a five-for against NSW last month, took five of the last six wickets to fall as WA lost 5 for 42.Victoria’s opening batters Blake Macdonald and Harry Dixon posted a half-century stand inside 13 overs.Eight points clear atop the table, Victoria are chasing a fifth win from six games against WA who have one win from five games.