Magic moments

Rambo inspires Afghans
Afghanistan fast bowler Hamid Hassan has become a cult hero, charging in with bandanna strapped tightly around his head, with cheeks painted in the colours of the Afghan flag. He admits his hero is Rambo but unlike Sylvester Stallone's on-screen lone wolf, he performs a nifty cartwheel when he takes a wicket. 

Gayle takes tweet revenge
If West Indies Cricket Board president Dave Cameron was trying to get Chris Gayle fired up when he retweeted a call from a fan to pension off the star opener, it certainly did the trick.
"Gayle goes ... Can't buy a run. Let's give him a retirement package ... Can't fail repeatedly and still front up based on reputation," was the post retweeted by the Windies boss.
Two days later, Gayle smashed the first ever World Cup double century in the win over Zimbabwe.
Cameron apologised for his blunder.
"No offense intended. Full apologies extended. Rally round the West Indies," he wrote on Twitter.

Joyce freed on bail
Ireland's Ed Joyce had a lucky break when he survived the ball hitting the stumps while batting against the United Arab Emirates in Brisbane.
Amjad Javed thought he'd struck with his fourth ball when an inswinger beat Joyce's defence and caused the LED lights on the bails to flash. But although the off-bail was disturbed, it landed back in its groove and Joyce, who stood his ground as seamer Javed celebrated prematurely, was not out.

Afghanistan to win World Cup, says robot
A New Zealand robot predicted World Cup glory for Afghanistan although even the machine's programmer said such an outcome was unlikely.
The University of Canterbury's robot Ikram made the prediction using software developed by doctoral student Eduardo Sandoval.
It was wide of the mark as Afghanistan went out of the tournament with just a win against Scotland to their name.

Choke's on you, Maxwell
Glenn Maxwell joked with the Auckland crowd that New Zealand would crumble in their pursuit of a modest 152-run target to defeat his Australians by turning to the fans and making a choking gesture by clasping his hands around his throat. Moments later, Kane Williamson launched a six over Maxwell's head for a dramatic one-wicket win.

Bugs life in Hamilton
New Zealand and Bangladesh players had to call for insect sprays to fend off swarms of black bugs which descended on Hamilton's Seddon Park.
On a steamy, muggy day in the city, bugs caused a number of brief stoppages as Bangladesh batted in the early afternoon.
It was also reported that nearby pharmacies had run out of insect repellent as players and fans sought relief.