All posts by csb10.top

After injuries hampered their tour to Australia, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra have announced themselves fully fit, and ready to tour Pakistan, in a report by PTI. Dennis Lillee is currently guiding both fast bowlers at the MRF Pace Foundation.”The advice of Lillee at the nets has made me feel better,” Khan said, “and I am raring to make the trip to Pakistan, if selected.”He has been of great help to our bowling and this was our routine trip to the foundation. I was not feeling fully comfortable last week. For over two years now, I have been taking Lillee’s advice before every tour.”Khan found himself out of the Australian tour after a hamstring injury during the first Test at Brisbane. Nehra, too, was affected by an ankle injury that hindered his bowling in Australia, but was confident about his fitness.”I made a comeback during the tour after being out of action for nearly eight months,” Nehra said. “I am fit now and always make use of Lillee’s visit to fine-tune myself.”Lillee worked with Khan and Nehra’s run-up after noticing the pressure they exerted on their legs.”I have advised Zaheer to take fewer steps in his run-up and avoid jumping too high before releasing the ball,” Lillee said. “Nehra needed some changes. He has been asked to be more side-on to avoid putting the load on his legs.”

Bangladesh’s selectors have included eight of the team currently touring Zimbabwe in a 25-strong Bangladesh A squad for two four-day matches and five one-day games against the Zimbabwe A team, who arrive in Dhaka on March 10 for their nmonth-long tour.Faruque Ahmed, the chairman of selectors, explained that the series of washouts in Zimbabwe had robbed the senior players of precious experience, which is why his panel had added Alok Kapali, Al Shahriar, Hannan Sarker, Manjural Islam Rana, Mohammad Ashraful, Rajin Saleh, Shahriar Hossain and Tareq Aziz Khan to the A-team squad.”The tour of Zimbabwe has been very frustrating so far,” said Faruque. “Only one Test match could be held properly, and the players hardly had any chance to take the field. That’s why we wanted to have them in the A squad.” He added that the team needed to be strong, as Zimbabwe’s A side included seven players with Test experience.Some of the players who helped Bangladesh win the Plate Championship of the recent Under-19 World Cup – they beat Australia in the plate final – were also included: the left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Junior, who was the leading wicket-taker in the U19 World Cup, the fast bowler Shahadat Hossain Rajib, his new-ball partner Nazmul Hossain, wicketkeeper Dhiman Ghosh, and opener Nafis Iqbal. Aftab Ahmed, an attacking batsman, missed out as he is sitting exams, while the fast bowler Talha Jubair and U19 captain Ashiqur Rahman were battling injuries.Faisal Hossain, a left-hander from Chittagong who has been a consistent success in domestic cricket this season, also got the call. He was the highest runscorer in the four-day competition with 730 in 18 innings.Bangladesh A squad for series against Zimbabwe A
Shahriar Hossain, Hannan Sarker, Alok Kapali, Rajin Saleh, Tareq Aziz Khan, Mohammed Ashraful, Manzarul Islam Rana, Enamul Haque Junior, Al Shahriar, Anwar Hossain Munir, Alamgir Kabir, Nafees Iqbal, Nasiruddin Faruque, Dhiman Gosh, Shahadat Hossain, Abdur Razzak, Rashedul Haq, Mazharul Haq, Tushar Imran, Mohammad Selim, Gazi Alamgir, Jamaluddin Babu, Nazmul Hossain, Faisal Hossain, Ehsanul Haque.

Guyana 248 for 7 (Sarwan 121, Chanderpaul 81, Collins 4-72) v Barbados
ScorecardFour wickets in the final hour gave Barbados the edge on the first day of their Carib Beer Series semi-final against Guyana at Bridgetown. Until then it looked as if the defiance of Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul had wiped out the early success Barbados enjoyed.Sarwan and Chanderpaul came together inside the first hour with Guyana on the rack at 29 for 3, and added 203 runs for the fourth wicket in a little under five hours. Sarwan, coming into the match in good touch, hammered 13 fours on his way to 121, driving with ease and confidence. Chanderpaul, more circumspect, was the ideal foil with a determined 81.But when Ian Bradshaw had Chanderpaul caught behind by Courtney Browne (232 for 4) the floodgates opened, Sarwan fell in an identical manner one run later, and then Pedro Collins struck twice in the closing overs as Barbados battled back.Collins was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 72 in 20 overs, while Bradshaw’s accuracy tied the batsmen down. He took 2 for 38 from 30 overs, and at one stage bowled eight consecutive maidens.Barbados opted for an all-pace attack on what was a hard and fast track. “I’m a fast bowlers captain. I like fast bowlers,” Browne, their captain, explained. “If I had to choose, I would always choose four fast bowlers, especially if they are of good quality. We do have four good quality fast bowlers, so for me, that’s what I love.”Guyana’s form this season – they lost all three games on the road and only scraped into the semis thanks to their 100 per cent home record – and the frailty of the batting today – Sarwan and Chanderpaul excepted – means that Barbados are odds-on to reach next month’s final.

Shaun Pollock overtook Allan Donald as South Africa’s leading wicket-taker in Tests on a day when little else went right against New Zealand at Auckland.Pollock’s landmark came when he had the opener Michael Papps caught by Nicky Boje for a duck. It was his 331st wicket, putting him 15th on the alltime list: his next target is Dennis Lillee, with 355.”It [the ball] was coming out sweet from the start,” said Pollock. “I was feeling really relaxed and the conditions suited me, I just knew Papps would be my man. I’m really chuffed about it. When you start your career you concentrate really hard on getting your first wicket. Now I’ve beaten someone like Allan Donald.”In a way, it’s sad to go better than someone’s record like that, but I’m glad I’ve done it and now I’ll concentrate on trying to win the match.”But the early breakthrough was followed by frustration as New Zealand reached 201 for 3 in reply to South Africa’s 296 on the second day of the second Test. Pollock finished the day with 1 for 31.

New Zealanders 128 for 3 (Astle 64*) drew with British Universities at Fenner’s
ScorecardNew Zealand were frustrated by the weather for the third day running, as the opening fixture of their tour of England – against a British Universities XI – was abandoned as a draw.Nevertheless, at least they made it onto the pitch today, and in the 35.1 overs available to them, Nathan Astle scored an unbeaten 64 to confirm that he is well on the way to full match fitness after his lengthy injury lay-off.Scott Styris thumped three fours and a six in a brief cameo before the rains arrived, after Mark Richardson had located the middle of his bat in compiling a solid 39. But for Michael Papps the day was less of a success. He was trapped lbw by David Wigley for a first-ball duck.Assuming the weather clears, New Zealand will have another chance to get their tour off the ground when they take on Worcestershire in a four-day match at New Road on Friday. The first Test begins at Lord’s in little more than a fortnight – on May 20.

Worcestershire 204 (Smith 54) beat Essex 183 (Flower 58) by 21 runs
Scorecard

Worcestershire snuck through to the semi-finals of the C&G Trophy with a thrilling 21-run win over Essex at New Road. In a low-scoring match, Worcestershire batted first and made 204 – a total that owed everything to a level-headed 76-run stand for the sixth wicket between Ben Smith and David Leatherdale. Despite a similarly ropey start, Essex were on course for victory, but were undone by a pair of calamitous run-outs.Worcestershire won the toss and chose to bat first, but were soon given reason to regret that decision, when Stephen Peters wafted Scott Brant through to the keeper, and Andy Bichel was bowled by Darren Gough for a third-ball duck (14 for 2). That situation got even worse when Ravinder Bopara popped up with the big wicket of Graeme Hick in his first over.Vikram Solanki and Andrew Hall gave their wickets away to poor strokes, but Smith and Leatherdale steadied the innings with a cool partnership. Apart from one wayward over from Graham Napier, which went for three leg-side fours, they were content to rotate the strike, until Bopara returned to the attack and Smith steered him to midwicket (151 for 6). Bopara then clung onto a good catch at backward-point to send Leatherdale on his way for 42, and the innings subsided.Essex’s reply was inauspicious. They lost Will Jefferson, Alastair Cook and the captain Ronnie Irani inside the opening 15 overs (36 for 3), and at 75 for 5, everything was resting on Andy Flower. But when he was run out for an excellent 58 from 98 balls (116 for 6), Worcestershire had taken control of the match.Nobody told James Middlebrook, however, and with Darren Gough providing solid support, he set about hunting down the total. The match was tilting back into the balance, however, when Middlebrook was superbly run out by Kabir Ali at backward square-leg, who fielded and threw in a flash. There was a long delay as the third umpire decided whether Steve Rhodes had broken the wicket too soon, but once he was sent on his way, the game was up for Essex.

Imran Khan’s high-profile marriage to Jemima Goldsmith, the daughter of the late British billionaire Sir James Goldsmith, has ended in divorce after nine years.The couple’s marriage in 1995 caught the world’s imagination, although the differences that were evident then – she was 21 and Jewish, he was 42 and a Muslim – have become more apparent in recent years, especially now that Imran has stepped up his political ambitions.”I sadly announce that Jemima and I are divorced,” said Imran today in a statement released by his Justice Movement party. “While Jemima tried her best to settle here, my political life made it difficult for her to adapt to life in Pakistan. This was a mutual decision and is clearly very sad for both of us. My home and my future is in Pakistan.”Jemima, an ambassador for the United Nations children’s fund UNICEF, recently moved back to London, in order that their two sons – Suleiman and Kasim – could be educated in Britain. Imran became a Pakistani MP in 2002, although as yet his party has had little support.

Derbyshire had little difficulty in forcing a draw against Yorkshire in their Second Division clash at Headingley. Derbyshire followed on this morning 202 behind, but batted calmly through 92 overs to finish with 245 for 5. Jon Moss, their Australian import, top-scored with 87. Play finally got under way after two washed-out days at the Riverside: Durham were shot out for 231, with Gavin Hamilton top-scoring with 41. Simon Francis took five wickets for Somerset – and Rob Turner caught five behind the stumps – but it’s hard to see how a draw can be avoided. Somerset had reduced the deficit to 104 by the close. It was a torrid start for Shaun Tait, Durham’s new signing from South Australia: touted as the next Brett Lee, he sent down 14 no-balls in four overs that cost 43 runs.In the First Division of the Totesport League Warwickshire wrapped up a quick victory over Kent, bowling them out for 135 – Heath Streak took 3 for 7 in six overs – and then knocking off the runs in just 24.1 overs. Centuries from Mark Chilton and Iain Sutcliffe set Lancashire up for a victory at Whitgift School to make amends for their three-day Championship defeat there. Chilton spanked 19 fours and Sutcliffe 17, and they shared an opening stand of 223, only a dozen short of Surrey’s total. Surrey had been in disarray at 72 for 6 before Alex Tudor joined Adam Hollioake and they put on 128. At the Rose Bowl Matthew Elliott inched Glamorgan to a narrow three-wicket victory over Hampshire, for whom Shane Warne went wicketless for once.Down in Division Two Scotland fell to their 11th defeat out of 12 completed matches (they’ve also had two no-results), going down by 114 runs to Sussex at the Grange in Edinburgh. Michael Yardy made 83 of Sussex’s 263 for 6, then Mushtaq Ahmed, with 4 for 46, made sure there was no upset. Graeme Hick’s 120 set up an 83-run win for Worcestershire at Lord’s, despite Simon Cook’s 5 for 34 for Middlesex. And Nottinghamshire’s 249 proved too much for Leicestershire at Trent Bridge, where Stuart MacGill’s three wickets all came courtesy of stumpings by Chris Read.

County Championship Division Two

Scorecard
Day 1 report: Flying start by Wood – The Telegraph
Day 2 report: McGrath continues fine form – The Times
Day 3 report: Draw looming at Headingley – The Sunday Telegraph
Day 4 report: Yorkshire lack cutting edge – The Daily Telegraph

Scorecard
Day 1: no play due to rain
Day 2: no play due to rain
Day 3 report: Francis duo impress on familiar turf – The Daily Telegraph

National League Division One

Glamorgan 209 for 7 (Croft 52, Elliott 79*) beat Hampshire 208 (Adams 40, Crawley 56, Hemp 3-11) by 3 wickets at the Rose Bowl
Scorecard
Match report: Croft’s payback robs Hampshire – The Times
Lancashire 238 for 2 (Chilton 115, Sutcliffe 102*) beat Surrey 235 for 8 (Hollioake 66, Tudor 56, Cork 3-35) by 8 wickets at Whitgift School
Scorecard
Match report: Sutcliffe and Chilton hit Surrey with killer blow – The Times
Warwickshire 139 for 4 (Bell 51) beat Kent 135 (Streak 3-7) by 6 wickets at Edgbaston
Scorecard
Match report: Streak burst takes pressure off batsmen – The Times

National League Division Two

Worcestershire 261 for 7 (Hick 120, Leatherdale 63, Cook 5-34) beat Middlesex 178 (Scott 42, Shah 55, Batty 3-41) by 83 runs at Lord’s
Scorecard
Match report: Hick gives his Sunday best to close gap – The Guardian
Nottinghamshire 249 for 6 (Gallian 75, Singh 45, Pietersen 51) beat Leicestershire 229 (Maddy 75, MacGill 3-50) by 20 runs at Trent Bridge
Scorecard
Match report: Maddy battles in vain – The Times
Sussex 263 for 6 (Yardy 83, Prior 44, Yasir Arafat 3-49) beat Scotland 149 (Mushtaq Ahmed 4-46) by 114 runs at Edinburgh
Scorecard
Match report: Saltires cut down to size – The Scotsman

Ricky Ponting, Australia’s captain, has been ruled out of the first Test against India at Bangalore, which starts on October 6, with a fractured left thumb. The injury occurred while Ponting was fielding at slip during Australia’s loss to England in the semi-final of the Champions Trophy at Edgbaston yesterday, with diagnostic scans revealing a break. Ponting will return to Australia for medical consultation, with his prospects for the rest of the series yet to be determined.”Ricky was in considerable pain overnight and got very little sleep, so we had the injury seen to as quickly as possible today," explained Errol Alcott, the Australian physiotherapist. “The scans have detected a fracture in his left thumb, and we feel that it is in his best interests to get home now and receive the best possible medical advice. We can’t make any bold predictions about a return date for Ricky until he has seen a hand specialist back in Australia.”Ponting, who averages almost 56 with the bat against India in Tests, expressed his sadness at missing the first Test, but backed his side to fill in admirably without him. “I’m obviously very disappointed but have great faith in all of my team-mates to do the job in my absence," he said. "I’ll do everything I can to get back as quickly as possible, but to achieve that I will have to be guided by the experts. I desperately want to be on that plane to India, and if everything goes according to plan, I’ll still be able to play some part in the series, sooner I hope, rather than later.”In the meantime, the boys know exactly what needs to be done because we have put a great deal of work into preparing for this tour. This series means so much to us all. It could be one of the biggest Test series ever played, so to be missing the start of it is really disappointing.”Ponting’s replacement in the 16-man squad is yet to be named, and the position of captain will also be reviewed in his absence.

Ah, the first one-day international of the Australian summer! Time to dust off the hole-in-the-ozone-layer-deflecting hats. Time to test the endurance of the plus-30-factor sunscreen. Time to iron the singlet tops, shorts, and/or amusing costumes, and enter the stadium arguing about possible match-affecting weather patterns, while casting a glance at the unpredictable early-December skies. Yes, the first pyjama party of the long, hot season took place tonight in Melbourne.It was the inaugural game of the newly-instigated Chappell-Hadlee Trophy between Australia and New Zealand. Players were donning red ribbons to raise awareness for HIV/AIDS. And boy, was the match hyped: Michael Clarke even strode to the crease wearing the No. 23 shirt handed to him earlier in the week by Shane Warne. The game itself was slapdash and wham-bam and took place at Melbourne’s Telstra Dome. Under a closed roof.That’s right. There was little need for the hats and sun-screen, and even less requirement for climatic investigations or text-messaging the weather bureau. The much-touted state-of-the-art roof, capable of retracing in 20 minutes, was shut tighter than a politician’s wallet, and anyone expecting a typical summer’s evening of cricket had obviously boarded the wrong tram. The Telstra Dome’s overseers were calling it the advent of a new sporting era. Some fans, however, were calling it anything but cricket.”The weather and this game are supposed to go hand in hand,” claimed Daniel from the neighbouring suburb of North Melbourne. “In here it’s more like a mad scientist’s laboratory.” He slumped down in his seat, ignoring the personalised pop-up screen capable of displaying statistics, bowling changes and field placements on demand. “All this high-tech stuff doesn’t mean much to me. It’s a simple game. Why complicate it?” he moaned. “The wind should dictate the bowling. The light should influence the batsman. In here we don’t know if it’s day or night, hot or cold. I’m part of some controlled experiment.”

In the upper section, a group of New Zealand supporters agreed. “I can’t believe I’ll go home tonight without a T-shirt tan,” laughed Rebecca from Auckland, as she displayed her black shirt with the silver fern proudly emblazoned on the back.”Where’s the smell of sunscreen? Where’s the breeze? Where’s the atmosphere?” asked her husband Morris. He’d opted for the beige polyester figure-hugging World Series Cricket-inspired T-shirt, set off by the Dennis Lillee-inspired terry-towelling headband. “Somehow it doesn’t seem like the kind of stadium you could grow to love.”Fair point. The Telstra Dome in Melbourne’s Docklands isn’t exactly what you’d call lovable. The grey, metallic architecture is far from pretty. Four years old and having already undergone three name changes, it’s eons away from being historical, and with a capacity of a tad over 53,000, it’s not really a behemoth to pack ’em in the aisles, so doesn’t hold a candle to the MCG or Eden Gardens. What it lacks in form, however, it makes up for in content. This shiny, easily accessible venue hosts a plethora of top-notch sporting events, including Australian Rules footy, soccer, rugby league, rugby union – and the odd bit of international cricket. As the 30,000-strong crowd applauded, Mexican waved, and brandished a sea of blow-up plastic fingers in the air, even detractors had to admit that the Telstra Dome is a very efficient host.And for those who still needed convincing, there were the sporting optimists, ready to embrace the venue and all its facets. “I first saw cricket here in the winter of 2000 when the South Africans played, and I came again for the Pakistan game in 2002,” said Martin from the nearby city of Geelong. “It’s fascinating to watch the game with the roof closed,” he continued. “You don’t get distracted by anything, and can concentrate on what’s going on in the middle. The outside world doesn’t exist, and sometimes that’s a good thing.”His friend Nigel was keen to interrupt: “It’s more egalitarian than other cricket venues,” he nodded, while enjoying his own pop-up screen. “No-one is in the sun all day. No-one has to complain about the seating. Everyone can get to the bar. The toilets are clean. It’s a spectator’s dream come true.”Fair point too. The Telstra Dome is perfectly functional. By the end of the night, as the Kiwis snatched victory, and the fans went into applauding, Mexican-waving and finger-brandishing overdrive, it seemed the perfect, slapdash, wham-bam start to the limited-overs circus. And everyone had forgotten that the roof was closed.Christine Davey is a freelance writer based in Melbourne.