WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — England opted to keep Ollie Pope as its stand-in wicketkeeper for the second test against New Zealand starting Thursday.
After Jordan Cox broke his thumb ahead of the series opener in Christchurch last week, Ollie Robinson was called up as wicketkeeping cover and was in contention to make his first international appearance in the second test at Wellington’s Basin Reserve.
However, England kept faith with the same team that won by eight wickets on the fourth afternoon of the first test at Hagley Oval, meaning Pope retained the gloves and Jacob Bethell stayed at No. 3.
Pope was solid behind the stumps and hit 77 after moving down to No. 6 in the batting order. Bethell was also impressive on his debut, hitting 50 not out in the second innings.
“They always say when you don’t notice a keeper, he’s done a good job and Ollie certainly did that," England fast bowler Chris Woakes said. "To step up at short notice like that and do the job he did was fantastic.
“For him to score runs just shows his character, putting his hand up for the team without any fuss and cracking on."
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope, Ben Stokes (captain), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
New Zealand's Glenn Phillips is airborne as he makes his ground while England's Ollie Pope attempts a run out during play on the second day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (Chris Symes/Photosport via AP)
England's Ollie Pope bats during play on the second day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (John Davidson/Photosport via AP)
CHIBA, Japan (AP) — A Japanese court on Wednesday sentenced an Australian woman who says she was tricked amphetamines into the country to six years in prison, despite accepting her testimony that she was the victim of an online romance scam.
The Chiba District Court said it found Donna Nelson from Perth, Australia, guilty of violating the stimulants control and customs laws. It ordered her to pay a fine of 1 million yen ($6,671) in addition to serving a prison term.
Nelson was arrested at Japan’s Narita International Airport just outside Tokyo on Jan. 3, 2023 when customs officials found about 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of phenylaminopropane, a stimulant, hidden under a false bottom in a suitcase she was carrying as checked luggage.
Nelson, 58, told the court that she did not know that drugs were hidden in the suitcase and that she was carrying them for a man she thought she loved and hoped to marry.
The man, whom she met online in 2020, told her he was the Nigerian owner of a fashion business. In 2023, he paid to travel to Japan via Laos, and asked her to collect dress samples from an acquaintance in Laos, her lawyers said.
She was supposed to meet the man in Japan but he never showed up, according to prosecutors.
Nelson has already been in custody for nearly two years. The court said 430 days of that will be counted toward her sentence.
Presiding Judge Masakazu Kamakura said that although Nelson was decieved, she had a sense that something was wrong with the arrangement and that something illegal could be hidden in the suitcase, and she could have stopped.
However, the judge said there was room for sympathy and imposed a shorter sentence than would be typical for the amount of drugs she was carrying.
Prosecutors demanded 10 years in prison and a fine of 3 million yen (about $20,000) in their closing argument last month.
Nelson’s lawyer Rie Nishida said the ruling was unjust and did not make sense, and that she planned to appeal.
On Wednesday, Nelson dropped her head and seen sobbing as she listened to the verdict in the witness seat in front of a panel of judges. One of her daughters, Kristal Hilaire, was also seen wiping away tears as she looked on from her seat in the audience.
Several other family members who attended earlier sessions, seeing Nelson for the first time since her arrest nearly two years ago, returned home ahead of the verdict.
The Chiba District Court is seen where the opening day of the trial over Australian citizen Donna Nelson for allegedly attempting to import drugs into Japan is taking place Monday, Nov. 18, 2024, in Chiba, near Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Family members of Australian citizen Donna Nelson walk out from the Chiba District Court after the opening day of the trial over Nelson for allegedly attempting to import drugs into Japan Monday, Nov. 18, 2024, in Chiba, east of Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
