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Manicaland’s cricketers advanced closer to the top of the table with a crushing eight-wicket win over league leaders Kwekwe Sports Club at Mutare Sports Club last Sunday. Winning the league has assumed huge proportions for cash-strapped Manicaland with the generous prize money that comes with the title.Caught with the majority of their first team away on national duty, the Midlands side was dispatched by early afternoon. Three pensioners who left the ground at the end of the first innings for a quick lunch were amazed to find the game all over by the time they returned. Families of the players outnumber regular spectators at most matches so there was concern the old-timers might feel cheated.Batting first, Kwekwe were rolled over for 145 in 47.2 overs. Having rested up after driving the five hours from Kwekwe the day before, the visitors couldn’t blame road-weariness for their abject display. Jameson High School coach Luther Mutyambizi from Kadoma hit an assured 39 and was the only batsman to look comfortable. He was particularly severe on Mark Burmester who found himself withdrawn from the attack earlier than he might have fancied.Queuing up to take wickets for Manicaland were Richie Sims (three for 32), Ian `Coolbox’ Coulson (two for 28) and — making a rare comeback — veteran Zimbabwean seamer Jon Brent (two for 6). An unusual spectacle was the sight of young wicket-keeper Neil Ferreira standing up to the former Manicaland assassin whose nickname `Moggy’ is still well earned. As one seasoned spectator remarked, the 45-year-old Brent would have spent much of his spell hitting the gloves as hard as he could to drive Ferreira back.Manicaland reached the target in 21.1 overs with Burmester blasting 39 and Sims a powerful unbeaten 73. Standing with umpire Kevan Barbour for the first time in a Manicaland match was 46-year-old medical doctor Mike Deary. Such was his enthusiasm for a game that he had driven the five hours from his home town of Chiredzi the day before.The Manicaland second team travelled to Alexandra Sports Club in Harare the same day to play BAC second team in a rain-reduced 25-over match. The high-flying seconds had an easy 60-run victory to consolidate their position at the top of the second league. Manicaland posted 190 for nine with demoted first-team batsman Tafadzwa Madondo hitting 77. Former Manicaland stalwart Lee Adams (currently living in Harare) weighed in with 44. BAC sank to 130 for nine off their 25 overs.This Sunday Manicaland first team travels to Harare to meet Bulawayo Athletic Club at Old Hararians. Home and away games between Manicaland and Bulawayo clubs are played in Harare to allow Bulawayo sides to fly in and avoid lengthy car trips. BAC – mischievously nicknamed `Bring Another Crate’ after recently scoring only 28 and losing to OGs in two overs (before the pub had opened) – were promoted from the second league last season. So far they have done little to justify the ZCU’s regular Z$170 000.00 air-bill to keep them in first league cricket.

Canterbury will need no special motivation for their State Shield opener against Central Districts in New Plymouth tomorrow.The two teams are the finalists from last year’s one-day competition and with Central Districts upsetting Canterbury there is every incentive to give the holders a reminder of who the real bosses are.On the occasion, Canterbury has to be favoured. With its internationals back in for the match it has a formidable look to it.Craig McMillan, Chris Cairns, Shane Bond and Chris Martin give the side a real edge, and CD without their mastermind captain from last year Jacob Oram will have a real battle to take this game out.Canterbury will also be looking to get a good start to the competition as they follow up with a game on Thursday in Auckland, so maximum points would be a good start from which to launch the remainder of the campaign.CD are not without hope however, as Mathew Sinclair especially is looking for runs in a big way and if he could get going on the Pukekura Park pitch there could be some scoring fireworks.The teams are:Central Districts: Glen Sulzberger (captain), David Kelly, Jamie How, Mathew Sinclair, Ben Smith, Richard King, Campbell Furlong, Bevan Griggs, Andrew Schwass, Michael Mason, Brent Hefford, Richard Scragg (12th man).Canterbury: Gary Stead (captain), Craig McMillan, Chris Harris, Chris Cairns, Paul Wiseman, Shane Bond, Chris Martin, Brad Doody, Michael Papps, Darron Reekers, Gareth Hopkins, Carl Anderson, Warren Wisneski.

Prasad, Watekar lead dramatic Andhra recoveryAn unbeaten hundred from RVC Prasad and his remarkable 168-run with No. 9 Hemal Watekar brought Andhra within shouting distance of Gujarat’s first-innings score of 499 on the penultimate day of the five-day Ranji pre-quarterfinal between the two sides at the Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad.Earlier, Andhra, who resumed at 250 for six, lost two early wickets in the morning. The score was 269 for eight when Watekar joined Prasad. In the 86 overs that followed the two men resuscitated Andhra hopes. When stumps were drawn, Prasad was batting on142 off 378 balls, a knock which included 20 fours, while Watekar was batting on a patient 61. All is now set for an engrossing first session on the final day. Whichever team secures the lead will make it to the quarterfinal. Gujarat needing just two quick wickets are still the favourites. But as anyone who has followed Andhra’s fairytale run would tell, one would be writing off the latter at one’s own peril.Tamil Nadu thrash MumbaiTamil Nadu have run out winners in their clash against Mumbai at the Guru Nanak College Ground, Chennai. A Mumbai capitulation was what sealed Tamil Nadu’s passage into the Ranji Trophy quarterfinals.In the morning, Tamil Nadu, who resumed at 265 for eight, folded almost immediately. Sridharan Sharath was the last man to go after a good hand of 56. The eventual Tamil Nadu score of 272 left Mumbai chasing a stiff victory target of 269 in their second innings.The start was ominous. Tamil Nadu new-ball bowler MR Shrinivas snared Wasim Jaffer in just his second over. Then followed stands of 40 and 30 for the second and third wicket respectively. But the fall of top-scorer Kunal More (39) with the Mumbai score on 71 signalled the beginning of the end. Except for Amol Mazumudar, who made 28, none of the other batsmen could even get to double figures as the visitors slumped to a 140-run defeat. For Tamil Nadu, Robin Singh and Laxmipathy Balaji claimed three wickets each while Shrinivas chipped in with two.Hyderabad win by ten wicketsHyderabad completed a ten wicket win over Himachal Pradesh at the end of the fourth day’s play at the Gymkhana Ground, Secunderabad. The hosts, who had reduced Himachal to 175 for eight at the end of third day after putting up 403 in the first innings, managed to dislodge Nischal Gaur after the latter had put on a spirited resistance for the best part of 28 overs. They then rattled the 31 runs without much ado to seal a ten-wicket win and a place in the Ranji quarter-finals.On the third day, Anirudh Singh (37) and Arjun Yadav (39) were the only two Hyderabadi batsmen who did anything of note. The home team’s eventual total of 403, after they had resumed at 288 for five, though secured them a massive 211-run first innings lead.When Himachal replied for the second time, the openers Sandeep Sharma and wicket-keeper Ravikanth Shrama provided a sound platform. The duo put on 78 runs before Sharma was out for a well-made 50. Off-spinner Jogram Singh, who snared him, went on to claim three more wickets. Later on, the other Hyderabad bowlers also joined the party. No.7 Gaur though proved a determined foe. He made 73 while holding fort for 129 balls. Shakti Singh, who made a rapid 31 off 22 balls, was the other batsman to score a few runs. Yadav, who ended with figures of 5 for 91 from 31 overs, was the most successful bowler for Hyderabad.Railways secure vital first-innings lead against DelhiDelhi failed to gain the first-innings lead despite a double hundred from opener Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir made 214 before being run-out by a substitute. Railways reached 27 for one before stumps were drawn at the Karnail Singh Stadium, Delhi.Earlier, Delhi, who resumed at 262 for three, had to suffer the mortification seeinf her bastmen make a beeline for the pavilion. Only with the arrival of No. 10 Ashish Nehra did Gambhir find a partner who was willing to give him worthwhile company. The two put on 50 runs before Gambhir’s long vigil ended. Nehra went on to make 25 before becoming the last man to be dismissed. Railways bowlers Harvinder Singh and Murali Kartik, who claimed three wickets each, played a big role in helping their team secure the vital 102-run lead. With just a day’s play remaining, Railways are well on their way to the Ranji quarter-final.Bengal secure massive win over RajasthanThe powerful Bengal side have secured a place in the Ranji quarterfinals after thrashing Rajasthan by an innings and 51 runs at the KL Saini Ground, Jaipur on Sunday. Bengal, who had claimed a 197-run lead by the end of the fourth day’s play, then dismissed the hosts for 146 runs on Sunday.The 41 overs play on Saturday had seen Bengal batsman Subhomoy Das, resuming on 99, complete a well-deserved century. He was eventually out for 129. The rest of the willow-wielders did not add too many runs as the visitors were dismissed for 518. They had though secured a massive lead and this had already assured them of a place in the quarterfinals. A six-wicket haul by their new-ball bowler Sabir Ali on the fifth day though saw them have the pleasure of securing an outright win.

The bad news for England after last night’s 155-run loss to New Zealand in the National Bank Series ODI in Wellington is that Stephen Fleming and his side are only partly on the journey to where they want to be.Delighted as he was with the margin and manner of the victory the CLEAR Black Caps captain was looking for bigger and better things.The side had developed a lot of resolve in Australia recently and that had been reflected in the first and second games of this series. They understood there was still a lot more to do.”We haven’t nailed it, we haven’t cracked it, but we’re a lot closer to it,” he said.Part of the reason for yesterday’s effort was the performance of the side in the middle-order batting.”We’ve flirted with it in the last few games but we haven’t put it together as a middle-order unit and we were determined to rectify that. We did some good things today and while I’m very happy because I’m part of it we’re very happy that that base was given to the team.”Fielding is something we’re very proud of. It’s a way of creating pressure, it’s a way of creating outs and it’s a way of trying to assert some dominance. If you’re fielding well it becomes tougher as a batter, the bowlers get a lift from it. A good stop or a great catch and all of a sudden you can turn a game around with a couple of good bits of fielding,” he said.The slow pitch had been a concern going into the game and Fleming said he would have bowled first had he won the toss.As it turned out the pitch held no demons.”It just played slow. We’ve certainly got the players to use those conditions. And they did a fantastic job with the new ball. We took points out of today and we certainly adjusted better than the opposition and came away with a very good win and go 2-0 up in the series which is a very good position to be.”In Napier we’d like to stamp our dominance with a different form of cricket with our pace bowlers which that wicket is more conducive to,” he said.Andre Adams’ effort in opening with the new ball had been impressive.”He’s just growing in confidence. We all know he’s got exciting ability but with confidence that can be dangerous. And he’s certainly playing with confidence at the moment. His batting has been explosive. Some times it’s going to be high risk.”And there was more evidence of Lou Vincent’s versatility, back in the middle-order where he made his mark last summer.”He’s a quality player, he’s fast. Don’t ever under-estimate what a fast player will do for you in the middle.”It can often be just as destructive as a hitter and combine him between Chris Cairns and Andre Adams you have got some work to do in the last 10 to defend it. And in the field as well he adds massive value,” Fleming said.

In a dramatic turnaround Mashonaland came from behind to beat Manicaland by73 runs at Mutare Sports Club yesterday. Resuming the day on 290 for six(effectively 3 for six after being forced to follow on 287 runs behind),Mashonaland hit themselves out of trouble and set Manicaland a victorytarget of 219 off 46 overs.Craig Evans had the day of his life, taking his overnight score of 109 to210 (33 fours, one six) before demolishing Manicaland with six for 37 off 16overs. This was his top score in first-class cricket, eclipsing a previousbest 153 (also in the Logan Cup) against Matabeleland. A huge bear of man -nicknamed Obelix by one brave Manica – his runs came off 273 balls in 373minutes of machismo theatre. Much more than a mere slogger, he wouldhowever shudder if people should remember him as a worker or nudger of theball.Donald Campbell hit 54 (8 fours, one six), sharing a 189-run partnershipwith Evans for the seventh wicket before falling to a slow ball from GuyWhittall. Whittall was the pick of the Manicaland bowlers, finishing withfour for 80 off 23 overs, but needed better fielding and better support toembarrass Mashonaland a second time. He worried all the batsmen – deceptively mixing off and leg cutters, in-swingers and 140-km effort balls – but in the end was overwhelmed by fatigue and the weight of team expectancy. A measure of frustration erupted after being hit for two sixes by new batsman Gus Mackay as he lashed a return throw in his direction.Mackay’s 68 (6 fours, 4 sixes), which added 96 for the eighth wicket, wasthe straw that broke Manicaland. They never anticipating chasing more than50 for victory. Their tactics of refusing the new ball proved disastrous -wickets never came, runs mounted, fielding worsened, heads dropped,recriminations mounted and failure loomed. When they did take the new ballin the 115th over, Mashonaland collapsed within a few overs.With an even time 79-run opening partnership between Neil Ferreira (39) andTino Mawoyo (38), Manicaland looked on course. An unlucky late cut thatdragged onto the stumps by Ferreira precipitated a slide no one could halt.Mashonaland changed tactics by slowing the game down and bowling leg theory.Sims was sucked in after five balls, chipping an innocuous leg-stumper toshort midwicket.Panic set in as first Kingsley Went then the Soma brothers departed cheaply.Evans was wheeling in off three paces like a vulture, hitting the seam,bouncing it, cutting it, remorselessly searching. Mashonaland were nowrunning between overs fearing their earlier negativity would cost them.Once Whittall flashed the game was up, although the tail fought bravely towithin touching distance of safety.

Concerns over prospective terrorist action against Westerners in Kenya is expected to be a catalyst for the removal of World Cup games planned for that country back to South Africa.New Zealand Cricket (NZC) have told the International Cricket Council (ICC) today that they have serious concerns about the safety of the New Zealand side which is about to play a World Cup match in Kenya on February 21.Last year, the New Zealanders were within 10 minutes of being even more exposed to a terrorist bomb than they already were while travelling from their Karachi hotel to their Test venue in Pakistan. As it was their hotel was badly damaged in a bomb blast which forced the end of the tour.New Zealand team manager Jeff Crowe and the NZC security advisor Reg Dickason were part of the ICC security delegation that recently visited Kenya.NZC chief executive Martin Snedden said today: “The delegation received strong information that there are active terrorist organisations currently operating in Nairobi which have the means and capability of launching a terrorist attack.”We have received information which strongly suggests it is not safe for the New Zealand team to travel to Nairobi for the scheduled match on February 21.”The information was that these terrorist groups are looking to target Western interests in Nairobi.”The information indicates that Kenyan authorities are not capable of providing adequate security,” he said.Snedden expects the ICC executive board will make a decision on Thursday night (New Zealand time) about whether the two matches to be played in Kenya should be rescheduled.”I would anticipate that in the light of the information on the table the ICC’s executive board will recognise the risk to player safety and move the games to South Africa,” Snedden said.Dickason reported to NZC that a security document that had been prepared for the matches was not of a suitable standard.From what Dickason viewed it was his opinion that neither the Kenyan Cricket Association nor the Government and Police had the required level of security available to ensure the safety of players.While official briefings were held in Kenya, Crowe and Dickason also sought independent meetings.Australian advice was that the Kenyan police were poorly equipped to deal with security threats and that they (the Australians) were in receipt of information about potential targets. They were not able to disclose what these might be. The source of that information had advised three weeks before the Mombasa incident that it could happen.American advice was that there was a terrorist cell in operation in Nairobi that had already established the means and assets for an attack and the threat was “real and present.”The likely targets were: civil aviation, kidnap, car bombings and attacks against Western interests.United States intelligence has Kenya, and specifically Nairobi, on critical alert status, its highest status of alert.The inability of the Kenyan police to track down the perpetrators of the Mombasa incident showed how vulnerable the Kenyan security system was because the police themselves lacked the skills to adequately combat a potential terrorist threat.At a meeting with the deputy regional security officer for the US Embassy in Nairobi, Ed Fortney, he outlined five points which influenced potential target selection.They were: availability of a soft target, the opportunity to assemble assets to commit a terrorist act, the impact and publicity an attack would generate globally, the diminished likelihood of detection and apprehension in relation to the attack and the profile of the targets.”When consideration is given to the points raised by Fortney, and, in particular, the five points he raises in relation to the factors influencing potential target selection, it is clearly apparent that a high level international sporting event in Nairobi meets all the criteria to put it in the high-risk category the likelihood of attack,” Dickason said.Based on the information gleaned and the fact that it came from sources with no vested interests he strongly urged that matches planned for Kenya be played in South Africa.

The so-called Zimbabwe A team, which turned out to be almost the full national side and only included players in the World Cup squad, recovered to beat a more genuine South Africa A team, winning the last two matches of the series last weekend in Harare.CONTENTS

• Zimbabwe A v South Africa A (2nd match): Scorecard and Report
• Zimbabwe A v South Africa A (3rd match): Scorecard and Report
• Manicaland v Mashonaland: Scorecard and Report
• Midlands v Matabeleland: Scorecard and Report
• Eddo Brandes: Biography and first-class Career Record
• Vigne Cup scores

The South African A team, captained by Graeme Smith, had probably been expecting to play a similar side from Zimbabwe, perhaps strengthened by three or four World Cup players. Certainly their mood in the deciding match at Harare Sports Club on Sunday was not very pleasant. The ICC Code of Conduct was blatantly ignored as certain players made their dissent at certain umpiring decisions very clear, with Alan Dawson reportedly the leading culprit. Fortunately umpire Duncan Frost handled the situation very firmly and well, or there might have been some very unpleasant incidents.Later in the week the Faithwear One-Day Series between the provinces continued in Bulawayo and Kwekwe. Local support at Bulawayo was even worse than in Harare. At the match between Mashonaland and Manicaland at Queens Sports Club on Wednesday, I counted a maximum of 13 genuine spectators at one time during the afternoon. Meanwhile at Kwekwe they had 500, with a sponsored braaivleis (barbecue) afterwards.ZCU should consider taking these matches away from Harare and Bulawayo, and next season playing them in Kwekwe and Mutare instead, where the provincial unions are energetic and capable of marketing the game effectively and the local population is still appreciative of inter-provincial cricket. It may be more difficult logistically, but a six-day cricket week at each of these centres will be far better supported than at Harare or Bulawayo. We must take the game to the supporters – and there are obviously precious few for inter-provincial cricket in the two main centres.Congratulations to Manicaland for finally ending Mashonaland’s seven-year run without defeat. Even with several leading players loaned out to the other provinces this season, Mashonaland have still turned in the best results; before Wednesday they had won all three one-day matches against other provinces and also sit on top of the Logan Cup table with two victories and a draw against Midlands. Their strength is partly psychological: they expect to win, and the other provinces have become conditioned to losing. Now Manicaland have finally broken their undefeated run of official matches stretching back seven years, perhaps the other provinces will realize that they can do it too. A more even competition will be all the better for Zimbabwe cricket.In this issue we also pay tribute to Eddo Brandes, who has now emigrated to Australia. We include an updated biography and a detailed summary of his first-class career.

So, against all expectations and unfortunately not on merit, Zimbabwe go through to the Super Six stage of the World Cup. It was done without beating a Test-playing country on the field and thanks are due to four points donated by England and another two by the weather.CONTENTS:

• Zimbabwe v Holland: scorecard and report
• Zimbabwe v Pakistan: scorecard and report
• Andy Blignaut: updated biography and first-class career record
• Letters

Quite a few people have commented that the World Cup has become a farce, with both Zimbabwe and Kenya reaching the Super Six stage. This is not far off the truth, but the culprits are England and New Zealand, whose refusal to play brought this situation to pass. It is difficult to see what else the ICC could have done once their honest assessments of the security of these countries had been rejected by two others; they could not have allowed themselves to be blackmailed into changing the venues.The irony is obvious in Zimbabwe pushing out England for the final place in Pool A. New Zealand were a little more fortunate, but their walkover by Kenya has cost them four vital points in the Super Six stage.The Zimbabwe team’s celebrations after picking up their two points against Pakistan were muted, probably as muted as they were after they beat South Africa in England four years ago to reach the Super Six then. Where one would have expected celebrations then, instead the dressing room was incredibly quiet as the players were overwhelmed by disbelief at what they had done. And unfortunately they went on to play in the Super Sixes as if they didn’t believe they deserved to be there.They had much more right to be there in 1999, when they beat India and South Africa in the first round, than they have this year. So my worry is that they will fail to do themselves justice in their coming three matches and bow out of the tournament as ignominiously as they did in 1999. Even if the spirit is there, the resources are much weaker this time round, especially in bowling. We should beat Kenya, unless they handle their success far more efficiently than we do, but it will be a test to see if we can put up a worthwhile fight against New Zealand and Sri Lanka.Most unsatisfactory, though, was the elimination of South Africa, yet again with much controversy, and West Indies. Both were frustrated by the weather, West Indies losing a probable victory over hapless Bangladesh and South Africa denied an exciting finish against Sri Lanka. However difficult it may be, the ICC must find a way to allocate reserve days so as to avoid farcical situations like this.Had the tournament been played in a wet rainy season, like 2000 or 2001, there would have been many more draws and the tournament would have degenerated into a complete lottery. In fact, in those years the teams would hardly have got on to the field in Zimbabwe at all.In the meantime we can reflect on a World Cup that was in many ways a disappointment to the cricket community of Zimbabwe. Overshadowing it all was the controversy surrounding the suitability of Zimbabwe as a venue. Those who felt that Zimbabwe was an unsuitable venue were entitled to their opinion, but their contribution was essentially negative. They wanted to pull out and leave us in the lurch, without any appreciation for all the tremendous work that had been put into this World Cup by the cricket community here. At times like this Zimbabwe cricket needs their support, but so many just wanted to turn their backs and walk away.Administering the tournament was also not easy, and the Zimbabwe Cricket Union was no responsible for this. The security measures taken were grossly overdone and a nuisance and inconvenience to all. Those needing accreditation, the media and others, had to go through major inconveniences to get what they needed from the company responsible, who did not even allocate press seating until the morning of the match, requiring long delays. At the first Bulawayo match those who needed telephones had to wait almost two hours after the match started before getting them.Another complaint was that the grounds were half-empty. At the matches against other Test-playing countries every seat had been allocated, but thousands were not taken up. Many had been allocated to sponsors and others and sent to South Africa, but when they were not taken up they were not returned in time for them to be sold locally.So these arrangements too were somewhat farcical. It will be many years before Zimbabwe is able to host any World Cup matches again. At least the ICC itself supported us from beginning to end, for which we are grateful, but many others combined to make this first time rather a disappointment for the struggling cricket community in Zimbabwe.

GCCC are playing a number of pre-season friendly matches6/7 April v Sussex at Hove8/9 April v Northants at Bristol10/11 April v Kent at Canterbury.

Worcestershire CCC has won its first match on Thursday during the pre-season tour to Northern Transvaal in South Africa. Playing against a Limpopo Province Invitation XI in Polokwane, Ben Smith won the toss and elected to bat on good batting track in fine weather.The County scored 323 for 6 in 45 overs. Anurag Singh scored an unbeaten hundred before retiring and was backed up by Hick with 77, Peters with 46, Solanki with 29 and Smith with 24. In reply the Provincial XI were dismissed for 145 in 37 overs. Chris Liptrot took 4/33 off 9 overs with Matt Mason taking 2/33 and Kadeer Ali 2/30.The previous day the squad took part in a coaching session for 70 local children as part of their schedule. The entire tour is being hosted by the Limpopo Youth Cricket Association based in Polokwane (Pietersberg). The next game is on Saturday.Mark Harrity will join the squad this morning and Nantie Hayward will meet up with his new County teammates on Saturday morning.