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.
Only the intervention of rain spared Nottinghamshire the embarrassment of losing inside three days to Hampshire at the Rose Bowl.When rain came there were two overs left and with Hampshire captain Robin Smith about to claim the extra half hour. At that stage Nottinghamshire were a wretched 113 for seven chasing a victory target of 491.Smith might even now be regretting his decision to bat on deep into the afternoon session before declaring his side’s second innings at 352 for eight.Derek Kenway scored a career-best 166 on a blameless wicket with a six and 26 fours as Hampshire built hungrily on their first innings lead of 138. Kenway batted for five hours before getting under a delivery from Richard Stemp to be caught at the wicket.Nottinghamshire had no answer to Kenway or to Neil Johnson who shared in a stand of 153 for the fourth wicket. Johnson, Dimitri Mascarenhas and Adrian Aymes all took advantage of a Nottinghamshire attack which appeared to be playing for the declaration.Any hopes Nottinghamshire supporters had of their side repeating the heroics against Worcestershire earlier this summer when they overhauled a target of 458 quickly disappeared.At nine for three and then 39 for five defeat became inevitable. Alan Mullally did much of the damage with figures of four for 48 but there was some indifferent batting and some great catching, not least by man-of-the-day Kenway in the slips to send back Kevin Pietersen.
West Ham United are interested in a deal to bring Nikola Milenkovic to the London Stadium in the summer transfer window.
What’s the talk?
That’s according to a report by Italian publication Corriere Fiorentino (via Sport Witness), who claim that, after failing to land the centre-back last summer, David Moyes is once again plotting a move for the ACF Fiorentina defender at the end of the current campaign.
The report goes on to state that the Hammers are currently leading the race to sign the 24-year-old, who is believed to be open to a move away from the Artemio Franchi Stadium this summer, as the Serbia international is keen to join a side who are competing in European competition next season.
Moyes can axe Diop with Milenkovic
With Craig Dawson turning 32 and Angelo Ogbonna turning 34 in May, as well as the Italian sustaining an ACL injury last November, in addition to Issa Diop having failed to live up to initial expectations following his £22m signing back in 2018, it is easy to understand why Moyes would be interested in a move for Milenkovic this summer.
Indeed, over his 25 Serie A appearances so far this season, the £20.7m-rated defender has been in imperious form in the heart of the Fiorentina backline, helping his side keep five clean sheets, as well as making an average of 1.3 interceptions, 1.6 tackles, 3.1 clearances, 54.9 passes and winning 5.5 duels – at a success rate of 69% – per game.
These returns have seen the £75k-per-week Serbian who Sacha Pisani dubbed a “beast” average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.04, ranking him as Vincenzo Italiano’s third-best performer in the top flight of Italian football.
In comparison, over Diop’s 11 Premier League outings this term, the £10.8m-rated centre-back has been in rather less impressive form, helping his side keep just two clean sheets, in addition to making an average of 0.5 interceptions, 0.8 tackles, three clearances and winning 2.4 duels – at a success rate of 53% – per fixture.
These returns have seen the £67k-per-week Frenchman who Toby Cudworth dubbed “shocking” average an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of just 6.64, ranking him as Moyes’ sixth-worst player in the division.
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As such, with Diop having been linked with a move away from east London this summer, it would appear extremely wise for Moyes to cash in on the 25-year-old while the interest is there, before subsequently reinvesting the funds received from the former French youth international’s sale into a move for the player who Dejan Stankovic claimed is “better than Vidic.”
AND in other news: West Ham handed huge boost in race for £17m Haaland alternative, he’s a goal “machine”
Kate Hoey, the former sports minister and the chair of the UK’s all parliamentary committee on Zimbabwe, has called on the government to renew attempts to obtain a copy of the independent forensic audit commissioned from KPMG by the ICC.The audit, which the ICC executive board voted not to release, is believed to have been unsuccessfully requested by the government last month. David Morgan, the ICC’s president-elect, revealed at the weekend that Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, was one of those on the ICC executive that voted not to make the report public.Speaking in a debate on Zimbabwe in the House of Commons, Hoey, who is also a honorary vice-president of Surrey, renewed her demands that Peter Chingoka, Zimbabwe Cricket’s chairman, not be allowed to enter the country.”[Robert] Mugabe is a ZCU patron, and Chingoka and managing director, Ozias Bvute, are both deeply implicated in the financial corruption that props up the regime,” she said. “Through cricket, they have access to hard currency, which they misuse to exercise corrupt patronage in collaboration with the bigwigs of Zimbabwe’s ruling party.”At international matches Chingoka uses the VIP pavilion to host the ZANU-PF politicians, CIO operatives and senior army officers on whom he relies for protection.”Zimbabwe cricket is an extension of the worst aspects of Mugabe’s regime. Those of us who care for Zimbabwe and cricket in particular, or human rights and sport in general, must do all we can to support the prime minister’s proposal to ban the Zimbabwean cricket team from touring in the UK. I hope the [foreign] minister will confirm that no UK visa will be given for Chingoka to come here to attend any ICC meetings, or for any other reason, in the next few months.”The minister did not respond to the questions but it is likely Hoey will seek a formal answer in the coming days.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has taken over the possession of the Niaz Stadium in Hyderabad (Sind), ending a decade-long struggle for cricket fans, players and organisers.Dr Nasim Ashraf, the board chairman, will arrive to take over the possession of the stadium and finalise the arrangements for upgrading it to international standards for meeting the requirements of the ICC.Ashraf will also sign the Memorandum of Understanding with the District Nazim Hyderabad, Kanwar Naveed Jamil, at the stadium. With the possession of this stadium, a historic cricket centre, it is expected that the board will not neglect Hyderabad in future while allotting Tests or ODI matches. It is the only venue in the country where Pakistan has never lost a Test or one-dayer.The venue last hosted an international match in September 1997, a one-dayer between India and Pakistan.
He may be older, he may be struggling with injuries, he may not even be batting as well as he once was, but Sachin Tendulkar, the icon, the brand, still sells. This much at least, after signing a new three-year marketing deal reportedly worth in the region of US$40 million, hasn’t changed.Tendulkar signed the deal with Iconix, a newly-formed marketing branch of international advertising giant Saatchi & Saatchi. The deal comes after the expiry of a successful ten-year agreement with WorldTel, run by the late Mark Mascarenhas and a man whom Tendulkar once described as being like an older brother.”It’s great to have a legend like Sachin as the first client of Iconix,” said V. Shantakumar, the chief executive officer and managing director of Saatchi’s Indian operations. “Sachin is more than just a cricket player. He’s a role model for young and old India. He’s still the nation’s youth icon and he’s still considered by cricket pundits as the world’s best batsman. The value he commands comes from the respect and love people feel for him.” Shantakumar refused to confirm, however, the value of the deal, saying only that “the amount mentioned is a nice sum, but I am not going to say more.”In a statement, Tendulkar said, “I’ve entrusted Iconix with managing my affairs and have confidence in its ability to provide requisite continuity to the brands I am associated with.” And it is a fair number of brands, as despite the emergence of new stars and his own poor form, Tendulkar has endorsed soft drinks, motorcycles, credit cards, mobile phone operators and much more. He is widely-believed to be cricket’s top money-earner.Tendulkar has been bedeviled by injuries and poor form over the last year and following a poor Test series against England and Pakistan (admittedly sandwiching a superb ODI series against the latter), is likely to miss at least the ODI series against West Indies while recovering from shoulder surgery. Additionally, he also sat out the ODI series against England. He has started light batting drills and although he is aiming to make the Test series in the Carribean, a final decision will rest on an assessment of his fitness next week.In his last 10 Tests, he averages only 28 with one hundred and after a low dismissal at his home ground of Mumbai against England in March, Tendulkar was booed off the field by a section of the crowd. But 132 Tests, 10,469 runs, 35 Test centuries, 362 ODIs, 14,146 runs and 39 ODI hundreds, a 16-year career and only 33 years of age, still hold considerable value, as Iconix have now confirmed.
1st day Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsThe cream of South African cricket came face to face at Kingsmead in Durban as the Dolphins took on Western Province Boland (WPB) in the first SuperSport Series match of the season. Losing the toss, was asked to bat first. Thanks to an undefeated 105 by JP Duminy and a 99 from Jacques Kallis they ended on 310 for 6 in 89.4 overs when bad light stopped play. Mfuneko Ngam, after a long lay-off, pulled up in his seventh over with a shoulder injury and had to leave the field. Shaun Pollock, taking the first three wickets, that of Graeme Smith (14),Herschelle Gibbs (42) and Andrew Puttick (0), was ably assisted by Lance Klusener, who bagged two for himself.1st day Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsIn Potchefstroom the Lions won the toss and batted first against the Warriors. An opening partnership of 87 between Stephen Cook (40) and Adam Bacher (49) was overshadowed by Justin Ontong scoring 60 and HD Ackerman getting 54. Some disciplined bowling from Makhaya Ntini, Mornantau Hayward and Monde Zondeki never allowed the Lions to get above three runs an over. At close of play the Lions had crawled to 241 for 6 from 97 overs.1st day Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsSuperSport Park saw the Eagles misread the pitch, asking the Titans to bat first. Jacques Rudolph (88) and Daryll Cullinan (75) were the destroyers-in-chief and were followed by Zander de Bruyn, who ended undefeated on 74, seemingly picking up from where he left off last season.
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.
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.