All posts by n8rngtd.top

The Jamaica leg of South Africa’s tour of West Indies has been shifted to Trinidad following the ongoing violence in Kingston which has now killed 44

Cricinfo staff24-May-2010The Jamaica leg of South Africa’s tour of West Indies has been shifted to Trinidad following the ongoing violence in Kingston which has now killed 44.A state of emergency is in operation in the capital after serious fighting broke out involving supporters of a local drug lord whom Jamaica officials are aiming to extradite to the US.Sabina Park was due to host the final ODI, a warm-up match and the first Test starting on June 10 but the two internationals will now be held at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad with a venue for the practice match still to be confirmed.Trinidad had originally been scheduled to hold the two Twenty20 internationals and the opening two ODIs but they were moved to Antigua after a general election was called. The remaining Tests will be held in St Kitts and Barbados later in June.Last year Sabina Park was the scene for a rare West Indies victory as they skittled England for 51 in the first Test.

18-Jun-2010

ScorecardIan Blackwell took a brilliant return catch as Durham restricted Yorkshire•Getty Images

Durham consolidated third place in Friends Provident t20 North when they cruised to a six-wicket home win against Yorkshire. After the visitors struggled to 131 for 8, Durham were rocking on 1 for 2 when Tino Best removed both openers in his first over.But Ross Taylor and Dale Benkenstein followed their unbroken partnership of 117 against Leicestershire on Monday by putting on 101 in 11 overs for the third wicket. Taylor fell for 49 when trying to cut Adil Rashid, who then had Ben Stokes brilliantly caught at deep midwicket by Best. However, Benkenstein remained unbeaten on 57 – which included four sixes – as Durham got home with 4.5 overs to spare.Inept batting saw the Yorkshire innings stagnate after they reached 54 for 1 after six overs. The next five overs produced only 13 runs for the loss of three more wickets and it was left to Anthony McGrath to try to salvage something from the wreckage.But he was unable to reproduce the previous evening’s form in the win against Lancashire as he scored only 16 in his first nine overs at the crease and finished on 34 not out off 34 balls. With his brother Steve still resting because of a back problem, Ben Harmison played a key part for Durham.He started Yorkshire’s slide by holding a fine, tumbling catch when running in from long-on to get rid of Herschelle Gibbs for 10. Harmison also helped to throttle the Tykes with two tight overs in mid-innings, in which he also bowled Jacques Rudolph.The innings stalled after being given a good start by skipper Andrew Gale, who drove sixes off Mitch Claydon and Albie Morkel in scoring 28 off 16 balls. Ian Blackwell tightened Durham’s grip by bowling Gerard Brophy through an attempted sweep and holding a superb, left-handed return catch to see off Jonny Bairstow.Durham fielded a team with nine potential bowlers and Phil Mustard changed the bowling almost every over until Blackwell came on for the ninth. He bowled straight through his four-over allocation to take 2 for 16.After struggling when brought in for the previous night’s match, Best was ecstatic when Mustard miscued to mid-wicket then Blackwell’s off stump went flying. But Taylor immediately clipped Best through square leg for four then Benkenstein lifted Steve Patterson over the rope at midwicket as the third wicket pair took control.

Plays of the Day from the third day of the second Test between Pakistan and Australia at Headingley

Brydon Coverdale and Nagraj Gollapudi at Headingley23-Jul-2010A costly slip-up
In a chase of 180, an early wicket could have been decisive and Shane Watson had that opportunity in his grasp. And then out of it. Imran Farhat was on 4 when he edged a good delivery from Doug Bollinger just to the right of Watson at first slip. It should have been a straightforward take but it struck Watson on the wrist and bounced away, and he was despondent as he hung his head, rueing what he knew could be one of the most crucial moments of the match.Smith shows some muscle
Steven Smith was six the last time Australia lost a Test to Pakistan. He certainly did his best to extend the winning run with a brutal batting display that included two sixes onto the Football Stand roof. “I was batting with the tail for quite a bit of time so I thought I had to get a few boundaries away and sort of stay on strike for most of the overs,” Smith said of his aggressive approach. “So that was sort of the way forward, a few premeditated shots and that sort of thing.”Lunch breaks concentration again
For the third straight day, there was a wicket shortly after lunch. On the first two days, two breakthroughs had been made in the first over following the interval but on this occasion it was almost prosaic by comparison. Danish Kaneria sent down the first over and didn’t strike, but with the first ball of the session’s second over, Mohammad Asif caught the edge of Michael Clarke’s bat with an excellent outswinger.Missing a trick
Most captains would attack first thing in the morning. Salman Butt missed a trick when he had two slips in the first three overs of the morning for his opening pair of Mohammad Asif and Aamer. Inadvertently an outside edge from Ricky Ponting flew past the spot where ideally a third would stand. Asif was understandably annoyed. Luckily Ponting got out soon after, chasing a wide delivery to give Kamran Akmal a simple chance off Aamer a couple of overs later. But the positioning of the slips and the number of slip fielders continued to be debatable over the length of the Australian innings.Power play
As if the day wasn’t dramatic enough, a power cut during the morning session stopped the supply of electricity into the ground for nearly an hour. The main electronic scoreboard was blacked out completely, while the smaller board was stuck with Michael Clarke on 56. The Test Match Special radio commentators had to resort to battery power and there was uncertainty over whether the third umpire would have access to TV replays. It turned out an underground cable fault was the cause, affecting the Headingley area, and by the time play resumed after lunch, all was well again.Koertzen courtesy
When the Pakistan players took the field for the second session, they gave the umpire Rudi Koertzen a clap and pat on the back as he walked to the centre. It is Koertzen’s final Test match and it’s understandable that the Pakistanis wanted to pay their respects, but they must have had plenty of confidence in their bowlers. Australia were only five down, so finishing Australia off in the session was no certainty. As it turned out, it was Pakistan’s final session in the field with Koertzen, though only just.

Gemaal Hussain was the pick of the bowlers as Gloucestershire took 15 Northamptonshire wickets to move to the brink of victory on the second day of their County Championship clash at Wantage Road

17-Aug-2010
ScorecardGemaal Hussain was the pick of the bowlers as Gloucestershire took 15 Northamptonshire wickets to move to the brink of victory on the second day of their County Championship clash at Wantage Road.On a day where their promotion prospects nosedived, Northamptonshire were skittled out for 124, 29 short of avoiding the follow-on, with Hussain (3 for 39), James Franklin (3 for 22) and Steve Kirby (3 for 32) all weighing in. Gloucestershire’s attack then reduced the hosts to 128 for 7, with Hussain taking 4 for 20 as the visitors reignited their hopes of reaching Division One.Northamptonshire began the day on 4 for 2, 298 runs behind their opponents, with Ben Howgego yet to score and Alex Wakely beginning his innings. The hosts lost both batsmen in the space of three balls with Howgego (17) being pinned lbw by Hussain before Franklin sent Wakely’s (21) off stump tumbling with the first ball of the 13th over.Rain then interrupted play for 24 minutes and when it resumed, Northamptonshire captain Andrew Hall departed on 23 when he was superbly caught by Ed Young, diving to his left at square leg, off the bowling of Kirby. Rob Newton was bowled by a terrific delivery by Kirby and David Sales made 25 before edging his attempted drive off Hussain to wicketkeeper Jonathan Batty in the following over.Zimbabwe international Elton Chigumbura then bottom-edged Kirby onto his middle stump to leave Hall’s men in all sorts of trouble. Franklin ended the home innings with two wickets in the 37th over when Jack Brooks launched him to Jon Lewis at deep mid-on and Lee Daggett edged him to Batty after facing two balls without scoring.Now forced to follow-on, still 178 runs behind Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire lost Stephen Peters for 25 when his off stump was taken out by Hussain. The same bowler then dismissed Howgego for the second time in the day when he was well caught by Batty diving low to his right.Kirby bowled Sales in the penultimate over before tea and Rob Newton edged Lewis to Chris Dent at second slip before play was stopped for bad light. Heavy rain then began to fall, meaning a lengthy delay and the loss of 26 overs but when play resumed, Wakely smashed Hussain to Young at backward point before Hall was caught by Batty off Franklin.Chigumbura then clouted Hussain to Lewis at mid-off as the home side slid towards an innings defeat.

Shafqat Rana, Pakistan’s associate manager, has said that Mohammad Amir’s age should have no bearing on possible punishment if the spot-fixing charges leveled against the 18-year old seamer are proved to be true

Cricinfo staff06-Sep-2010Shafqat Rana, Pakistan’s associate manager, has said that Mohammad Amir’s age should have no bearing on possible punishment if the spot-fixing charges leveled against the 18-year old seamer are proved to be true.”Even if he is so young, it doesn’t matter,” Rana said ahead of Pakistan’s second Twenty20 against England in Cardiff. “They [cricket fans] want everything in the best spirit of the game. I think it should be the same with everybody, if he breaks the law.”Rana’s remarks came a day after ICC chief Haroon Lorgat was quoted as saying of Amir’s case, “In my own honest personal view, yes I would think age would come into account in these matters. But that is something the independent tribunal will have to decide upon.”Amir is the youngest of the three Pakistan players suspended by the ICC following the NOTW sting operation centred around spot-fixing. Speaking in Cardiff ahead of the second game, England allrounder Stuart Broad said age should be no excuse in dealing with the guilty since the ICC provided adequate education on cricket corruption. “With the amount of books I’ve got from the ICC at home, full of information, there’s certainly no excuse as players,” Broad said.”As soon as you come into the England team, the ICC gets hold of you; you’re put through this video, which is very watchable, very clear – it takes you back to when you were five or six, that’s how clear it is. It outlines everything you’re not allowed to do, everything you are allowed to do.”Broad’s opinions were echoed by Nasser Hussain, the former England captain. “If it was a first offence maybe we need to be lenient,” Hussain wrote of Amir’s case in the , “but if there have been other alleged misdemeanours then the game needs to be very tough with him, too. He is old enough to know right from wrong.”Amir will be facing scrutiny not only from the ICC’s tribunal but also Pakistan’s tax authorities who will reportedly probe the finances of Pakistan’s cricketers, a move endorsed by both Rana and limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi. “It was there in their (the government’s) mind before we came over,” Rana said about the tax probe. “I think it’s a good thing, it will open things out so they (the players) will be very careful.”

James Franklin and Chris Taylor both hit centuries as Gloucestershire beat Northamptonshire Steelbacks but it wasn’t enough to earn the Gladiators a last-four spot in the Clydesdale Bank 40

Cricinfo staff04-Sep-2010
Scorecard
James Franklin and Chris Taylor both hit centuries as Gloucestershire beat Northamptonshire Steelbacks but it wasn’t enough to earn the Gladiators a last-four spot in the Clydesdale Bank 40. Needing a win and Essex to lose to Yorkshire, Gloucester did their bit with a comfortable 82-run win only for James Foster’s men to comfortably see off the Tykes.Franklin and Taylor combined for a partnership of 207 after they had come together with their side struggling on 61 for 3 before four wickets from David Payne ripped the heart out of the hosts’ batting line-up in reply.Gloucestershire won the toss and elected to bat but a slow start saw them lose both openers in quick succession, with the score on 19, inside the first five overs. First to go in the fourth over was skipper Alex Gidman, who was caught by David Sales off the bowling of Northants captain Andrew Hall for 12.Then in the very next over, fellow opener Will Porterfield offered a loose shot to a ball from David Lucas that was snared by Hall at first slip. After their somewhat shaky start, the visitors then steadied the ship, with Hamish Marshall and Franklin putting on 42 for the third wicket before the former was brilliantly run out in the 12th over by Mal Loye from long-on for 23.Franklin was then joined at the crease by Taylor and the pair stayed together for the duration. Franklin, who finished unbeaten on 108, hit six fours and two sixes while Taylor (105) smacked 14 fours in his maiden one-day century before being caught by James Middlebrook off the bowling of Gavin Baker from the very last ball of the innings.Gloucestershire then got off to the perfect start with the ball, taking two early wickets. Northants’ opening stand was just 14 before Rob Newton was trapped lbw in the third over by Steve Kirby for four. No. 3 David Sales then lasted just four deliveries before throwing his wicket away for a duck in the next over, as he chipped a ball from Jon Lewis straight to Gidman at midwicket.Alex Wakely was next to go for 12 in the 15th over, sending a catch straight to Ed Young at midwicket off the bowling of Payne. The hosts received a further blow five overs later when opener Mal Loye, who had been the backbone of their innings up until that point, was given out lbw for 43 attempting a reverse sweep to former Steelback Richard Dawson to leave them struggling on 69 for 4.Hall (17) and Middlebrook (14) got starts before getting out, while Stephen Peters offered stubborn resistance for Northants as he passed 50 in what turned out to be an anti-climactic finish.

England’s coach, Andy Flower, says that he expects “great things” from Kevin Pietersen on the forthcoming Ashes tour, despite a prolonged slump in form that Pietersen was unable to arrest during his brief stint with the Natal Dolphins

Andrew Miller at Lord's25-Oct-2010England’s coach, Andy Flower, says that he expects “great things” from Kevin Pietersen on the forthcoming Ashes tour, despite a prolonged slump in form that Pietersen was unable to arrest during his brief stint with the Natal Dolphins in South Africa earlier this month, in which he made scores of 36 and 0 in his two first-class outings.England depart for Australia on Friday with their star batsman still searching for his first first-class hundred since the tour of West Indies in March 2009, while at the same time facing new questions about his team ethos following comments from the former Australia coach and recent ECB consultant, John Buchanan. However, Flower insisted that Pietersen’s credentials and commitment were not being called into question by anyone within the England set-up, and backed him to be a major factor in the biggest event in the English Test calendar.”I expect great things from Kevin on this tour,” Flower told reporters at Lord’s “He’s a fine player and he’s very motivated to do well for England. He wants to make a big contribution and this is a great stage to do it. He’s an exceptional player – he’s very talented, and very special actually – and I just expect great things from him.”Pietersen was one of England’s few outstanding performers during the ill-fated 2006-07 series in Australia, in which he scored 490 runs at 54.44 in the course of the 5-0 whitewash, including 398 at 79.60 in the first three matches when the Ashes were still at stake. However, his apparent reluctance to move up from his then-preferred No. 5 position attracted the attention of the then-Australia coach Buchanan, who reopened old wounds in the November edition of the Wisden Cricketer when he stated that Pietersen had a tendency to be “individualist and fragmentary”.With four days to go until England’s departure, Pietersen is currently in Mumbai filming an advert for a soft drinks company, which Flower conceded was not normal preparation for such a high-profile tour. However, he dismissed any suggestion that such behaviour alienated Pietersen from the wider team ethic. “He’s an integral part of our side, and a very healthy part of our side,” he said. “He’s an exceptional cricketer, but also he is a role model in the way that he trains and goes about his business, and we don’t expect any different [on this tour]. We are all quite comfortable with Kevin’s role in the side, both as a player and a team member. It’s as simple as that.”Nevertheless, Pietersen’s family life has been a clear priority since the birth of his son Dylan in May, and the man himself stated in a recent interview that, at the age of 30, he had “probably got to the top of the fence and [was] on the way down now”. Flower, however, dismissed any suggestion that his best was now behind him, and cited Pietersen’s decision to head to South Africa – albeit with his family in tow – as evidence of his enduring ambition.”It was his decision and it was a brave one because he wasn’t sure what he’d face out there,” said Flower. “He could easily have taken the month off after a hectic 18 months, but he didn’t. He wanted to go out and score runs, and be as ready as he can, and I think he feels confident after some of the work he’s done out there. He’s hit a lot of balls, he’s practised hard and worked with a guy in Graham Ford [Dolphins coach] who he’s got a lot of respect for and who I’ve got a lot of respect for. If he’d wanted to go on holiday in South Africa, he’d have gone on holiday.”However, there will be no doubts about the intensity of Pietersen and England’s preparation when the squad arrives in Perth later this week. With three first-class warm-up matches leading into the first Test at Brisbane on November 25, every member of the squad will be obliged to keep their focus squarely on the task in hand, with the players’ families not due to arrive in Australia until after the second Test in early December. While opinions have long differed over the value of wives, girlfriends and children on tour, Flower stated that it was important that the squad bonded without distraction in the crucial early weeks of the series.”Cricket is a strange profession in that you spend so long away on tours, so to keep a fairly healthy family environment the ECB pay for families to come out and join their players,” he said. “The available time is five weeks, but they will not be allowed for a period at the beginning and at the end, because I think it’s important we get together as a group, and focus fully on the game[s]. In such a big party you’re going to get differing opinions, but I think once the intent of the decision had been explained to the players, they respected that.”While the worries persist about Pietersen’s form and focus, his struggles with the bat in 2009 were mitigated by the conditions that all the players faced in a bowler-dominated summer. Armed with a batch of cherry-red Duke balls which exacerbated their natural movement off the seam and through the air, Pakistan’s outstanding (and controversial) new-ball pairing of Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir cut swathes through their opponents – English and Australian alike – and might have delivered more than just two wins out of six Tests had it not been for the weaknesses of their own batsmen.Things will be different in Australia – and they will have to be, admitted Flower – if England are to have any hope of securing their first Ashes victory Down Under since 1986-87. “This summer was extraordinary, and I don’t think we can ignore that,” he said. “The swinging, and sometimes swinging and seaming, conditions were very difficult to bat in, so I don’t think we should worry too much on that front. But getting heavy runs is going to be an absolute key. We know the pitches will be good and the climate is conducive to batting, and big runs to give your bowlers something to bowl at will be vital for us. Our top six or seven have a huge responsibility to set up the game.”In general terms, however, Flower is determined to approach the series with a calm resolve; confident in his team’s status as Ashes holders, and mindful of the need not to overstate the challenge that lies ahead. “I’d hesitate to call it [the toughest tour],” he said. “They’ve got a very good record in Australia and they are a very fine side, so we do respect them, but we also feel that we can beat them. Our side is confident about its own abilities and its strength as a unit, and we believe we can beat them.”I don’t think there’s anything to be afraid of in Australia,” he added. “We understand that there are certain pressures involved in playing international cricket, but equally, one of the best things about playing professional sport is travelling the world and experiencing other countries. And this is one of the best places to go. The players should be looking forward to enjoying it, and that means enjoying the challenges that you face on the field, and also enjoying seeing another country, another culture, and meeting new people. It’s a great country and it should be a lot of fun.”Andy Flower is an ambassador for the Sky Sports ECB Coach Education Programme

Michael Clarke warmed up for the first Ashes Test with a century but the Sheffield Shield’s form batsman, Andrew McDonald, compiled his second hundred of the match to drive Victoria into a strong position with a day to play

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Nov-2010
Scorecard
Michael Clarke was the standout for New South Wales with 113•Getty Images

Michael Clarke warmed up for the first Ashes Test with a century but the Sheffield Shield’s form batsman, Andrew McDonald, compiled his second hundred of the match to drive Victoria into a strong position with a day to play. Clarke’s 113 was the only bright spot in the New South Wales innings, but it wasn’t all good news for him either, as he didn’t field in the afternoon due to back stiffness.Clarke said he was “not too concerned” by the problem that flared after the first day. “I pulled up a little bit stiff [again] today, so we thought obviously with what’s coming up I’m better off just doing the right things and I had some treatment,” he said after play. “I’ve got to see how it pulls up tomorrow morning, but hopefully I’ll be right to get back out there.”The hosts’ problems continued when the fast bowler Mitchell Starc was sidelined by a side-strain injury. Starc is expected to be out for at least four weeks, ending any slim hope he had of becoming an Ashes bolter following his strong ODI showing against Sri Lanka. He will now be unavailable for the Australia A match against England next week and his absence left the Blues a bowler down.Without Starc, Stuart Clark made the unusual decision to hand Nathan Hauritz the new ball, which was a brave move given Hauritz’s struggles in the first innings. It proved an inspired choice, and the Australian selectors might thank Clark for his creativity after Hauritz bowled himself back into some sort of form by picking up two early wickets.Hauritz had Michael Hill lbw for 8 and then took a ripping return catch when David Hussey (9) smashed the ball straight back towards the bowler. However, the Victorians recovered through Rob Quiney and McDonald, before Quiney was snapped up at slip by the substitute Peter Forrest off the bowling of Shane Watson for 49.McDonald continued to pile up the runs and had support from Matthew Wade, who made 40 before he was one of three victims for Mark Cameron. McDonald stuck around until stumps and brought up century from the second-last ball with a single off Hauritz, to leave Victoria at 7 for 242, with an advantage of 357.But New South Wales are not without a chance of chasing almost any target, given the quality of their batting line-up. Usman Khawaja is the only player in the top eight who has not played Test cricket, although he has toured with the Test squad during their series against Pakistan in England this year.The strong batting group made it all the more surprising that they conceded a 115-run first-innings lead to Victoria. Clarke was the only man who made more than 30, and after some lower-order support from Steven Smith, who made 18, and Hauritz (27), the rest of the tail offered little resistance.Clarke was the last man out, caught behind off Peter Siddle, who collected 2 for 55. The left-arm spinner Jon Holland, whose selection is a strong indication that the veteran Bryce McGain could be running of chances at state level, picked up 3 for 70.