All posts by csb10.top

Scorecard
It was a day with two outstanding figures, one of them, unusually, a fielder. Steven Croft’s first century for three years – only the second of the all-rounder’s career in first-class cricket – had the most influence on the match, putting Lancashire in a position from which at least they ought not to lose. Yet for those with a fascination for records, the man of the moment was Rikki Clarke.The 29-year-old all-rounder, whose accomplishments with bat and ball have earned him two Test caps and 20 one-day international appearances, also has a reputation as a fine slip fielder and upheld it here by equalling the record for the number of catches by an outfielder in a single innings.By holding seven out of seven offered as Warwickshire’s bowlers stuck to their task on a pitch that flattened out under a hot sun, Clarke matched the number by Surrey’s Mickey Stewart against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road in 1957 and equalled by Tony Brown of Gloucestershire against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge in 1966.Clarke, fielding at second slip, took five catches off Warwickshire’s seamers — two after the second new ball was taken — and another two fielding to the off-spinner Jeetan Patel, the last involving a dash from leg slip to get under a top-edged slog-sweep from Saj Mahmood.Having already taken two catches in the first innings, he became one of only two outfielders in the history of the first-class game to hold nine in a match, the other being the former England captain Wally Hammond, another specialist slip, who caught 10 for Gloucestershire against Surrey at Cheltenham in 1928.Had he not dropped what looked a relatively easy chance offered by Stephen Moore in Lancashire’s first innings, he would have been rubbing figurative shoulders with the legendary Hammond already but as it is he still has one more chance after Lancashire closed on 374 for 9.Modesty dissuaded Clarke from crowing, however. “I can’t take too much credit because the bowlers toiled away on a decent wicket with the sun out and got the edges,” he said. “It is my job to catch them. It has been a match that has been strange because most of the catches have gone to second slip and I happened to be there for us.”Sometimes they stick and sometimes they don’t and in this game more have stuck than haven’t. I was most pleased with the one off Stephen Moore in the second innings because that one absolutely flew and I was lucky to get a hand on it let alone catch it. I was disappointed not to catch him in the first innings but that one moved in the air so it was tough.”Really, though, it was Croft who did most to shape the position of the match, his career-best-equalling 122 helping Lancashire to a lead of 283 going into the final day and addressing the concerns of some Lancashire supporters as Glen Chapple’s team seeks to end the county’s title drought that too few batsmen are delivering substantial scores.Croft, a 24-year-old all-rounder from Blackpool, who went in with Lancashire 84 for 3, which was a difficult moment given that they were still seven runs in arrears. Warwickshire, who began the match in third place, are no less eager to forge a result and they had made good progress after Clarke’s first catch ended an opening partnership of 57 when Paul Horton edged a delivery from Neil Carter from low on the bat.Moore soon followed in an attempt to fend off a rising ball from Boyd Rankin and then Mark Chilton edged a drive off Chris Woakes. But Croft and Karl Brown fought back superbly, holding the innings together for three hours in which an edge dropped by wicketkeeper Tim Ambrose when Brown was on 46 was the only proper chance offered until, bizarrely, Croft was almost ran out on 98.He called for a quick single after pushing Patel to mid on but wound up diving full length as Laurie Evans aimed at the stumps from long-on, then scrambling to his feet to take an extra run on the overthrow to reach his hundred.Croft offered half a chance to Will Porterfield at gully on 110 off Keith Barker, who must have thought his luck was really out when the Lancashire batsman then hit a weary drive that fell just short of Jim Troughton at mid-off. In fact, he was out in the same over, Barker finding an edge he had earned as Clarke pouched victim number four.Lancashire lost Tom Smith when Patel – preferred here to Shivnarine Chanderpaul, in effect (although the West Indian would have started the match with only a few hours’ sleep had he played) – took his first wicket of the match and then Brown, who was only nine short of a century of his own when he was undone by a lifter from Rankin and Clarke made it six out of six.Gareth Cross and Glen Chapple both perished in the slog but Lancashire’s advantage looks big enough on a pitch not likely to play easily on the last day. Any morning moisture will bring swing back into play and there is enough turn and bounce for left-arm spinner Gary Keedy to anticipate a productive afternoon.The questions to be answered then, on a potentially enthralling last day, are whether Clarke can get his 10th and whether Lancashire’s bowlers have time to get their 10 and step up the pressure on leaders Durham.

Former Sri Lanka fast bowler Rumesh Ratnayake has been appointed as the interim Sri Lanka coach for the home series against Australia that begins next month.”We have appointed Rumesh Ratnayake only for the Australian tour because there is hardly any time to look for another coach,” Upali Dharmadasa, Sri Lanka Cricket’s interim committee chairman, said.Former Australia batsman Stuart Law, who was appointed the interim coach for Sri Lanka’s tour of England, after Trevor Bayliss relinquished the post after the World Cup, stepped down at the conclusion of the England tour.Ratnayake, 47, who has played 23 Tests and 70 ODIs for Sri Lanka is presently a development officer with the Asian Cricket Council. “We had to get permission from the Asian Cricket Council president Ashraful Haq to have Rumesh released for the series,” Dharmadas said.Ratnayake, who picked up nine wickets in Sri Lanka’s maiden Test victory in the second Test against India in Colombo in 1985, had signed a four-year contract to be Sri Lanka’s assistant coach in 2007, but withdrew citing family commitments.Dharmadasa said that the hunt for a new national coach would begin within the next three months. “We will call for fresh applicants for the post by advertising on the ICC and SLC websites and also in the national newspapers,” he said, adding that candidates who had shown interest in the job after Bayliss stepped down would have to make fresh applications if they are to be considered.Australia are scheduled to play three Tests, five ODIs and two Twenty20 Internationals in Sri Lanka, with the first T20 game to be played on August 6 in Pallekele. Dinesh Chandimal and Dhammika Prasad, who impressed on the limited-over leg of the tour of England and Scotland, will be part of the mix for the Australia series after they have been withdrawn from the Sri Lanka A squad that is due to tour England in July and August. Kanishka Alvitigala and Kushal Janith are their replacements in the Sri Lanka A squad.

Kaushal Silva, the Sinhalese SC captain and wicketkeeper-batsman, will lead the Sri Lanka A team on a one month tour of England starting in July. Dinesh Chandimal, another wicketkeeper batsman, will be Silva’s deputy and is one of three players in the 16-member squad who are already touring England with the senior team.Batsmen Lahiru Thirimanne and Dimuth Karunaratne, who are part of the Sri Lanka ODI squad against England, are the other two. The squad also includes batsman Banuka Rajapakse, who dominated the recently concluded school cricket season and excelled for Sri Lanka Under-19 in the World Cup and against England Under-19.Sri Lanka A will play three first-class matches on the tour, including a four-day match against England Lions, and five list A games between July 20 and August 16.Squad: Kaushal Silva (capt), Dinesh Chandimal (vc), Malinda Warnapura, Dimuth Karunaratne, Lahiru Thirimanne, Sachithra Serasinghe, Roshen Silva, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Kosala Kulasekara, Sachithra Senanayake, Seekkuge Prasanna, Shaminda Eranga, Nilanka Premaratne, Dhammika Prasad, Tharanga Lakshitha, Sajeewa Weerakoon.

ScorecardMark Ramprakash’s milestone of reaching 35,000 first-class runs was overshadowed by Alviro Petersen’s double century as Glamorgan ended day two in control of their County Championship clash with Surrey at the Oval.In response to the visitors’ 419, Surrey ended the day 179 runs adrift with four first innings wickets intact having found themselves in trouble at 18 for 2. Jason Roy fell leg before to Chris Ashling, who struck again two overs later when Rory Hamilton-Brown was caught at the third attempt at third slip for 12.But thanks to Ramprakash (67), Surrey recovered to 113 for 3 at tea, having also lost Zander de Bruyn, who became Alex Jones’ maiden first-class scalp when he was caught and bowled off a leading edge.Ramprakash cut Will Owen for four to go 39th in the all-time list of first-class run-makers, overtaking Brian Close and, five balls later, went past the 35,000-mark by despatching Owen to the rope at extra cover.He raised his 69-ball half-century with a cut four off Robert Croft and added 90 in 24 overs in tandem with Steve Davies before driving loosely at Ashling to be bowled via an inside edge for 67. With support from Tom Maynard, Davies then shared another half-century partnership and moved to his own fifty in 94 deliveries.With 11 overs to go, Mark Wallace, leading Glamorgan in the absence of Petersen, who did not take the field after his marathon knock, appeared to be running out of ideas when Davies slashed at Owen and was caught at first slip. The Welshmen were given a further boost when Maynard shouldered arms to Owen in the penultimate over.Earlier, Glamorgan lost their last six wickets for 64 runs to leave their card looking decidedly top-heavy. Tim Linley could have picked up six wickets in the first half hour, but two chances went to ground and another flew at a catchable height in-between second and third slip.In the third over of the day, Maynard pulled off a brilliant catch at third slip to see the back of nightwatchman Owen. Four overs later, Wallace was snapped up at first slip before Croft, who was caught down the leg side, started his 41st birthday with a second ball duck.Resuming on 178, Petersen duly became the fourth Glamorgan batsman to make a double century against Surrey when he cut Chris Jordan for four in the 113th over. It had taken the Glamorgan skipper seven hours 40 minutes, 326 balls and it included 23 fours and six.Just before lunch, Jordan struck twice in the space of three deliveries when he accounted for Dean Cosker, who was caught at first slip, and Petersen (210), with one that nipped back off the seam.

Rahul Dravid has said the lack of experience in the Rajasthan Royals squad hampered the team’s performance but was confident of a better show in the next season. Rajasthan were top of the table midway through the season but four straight defeats have put them out of contention for a play-off spot.”Our side has got a little bit of inexperience,” Dravid said on Tuesday. “There are 10 teams and at the end of the day other teams probably had more experienced players in this competition.” While most of the other franchises picked up at least a dozen players in January’s auction of top cricketers, Rajasthan were content with buying only six players with international experience and building the squad with lesser-known Indians.Even a victory in Rajasthan’s final league match, against Mumbai Indians on Friday, won’t lift them above sixth spot. Dravid, though, said there were bright spots for Rajasthan in the campaign such as the performances of 20-year-old Ashok Menaria and 22-year-old Ajinkya Rahane.”We have some youngsters doing well for us. We can improve next year,” he said. “Happy to see some young players like Ajinkya Rahane and Ashok Menaria come through … they have shown a glimpse of what they can do. Rahane has done well for Mumbai in Ranji and domestic cricket while Menaria has done well for Rajasthan.”After the IPL, Dravid’s next engagement is the West Indies tour, with the Tests starting June 20. One of his career highlights was leading India to their first Test series win in the Caribbean in 35 years when they toured five years ago, and Dravid hoped the team could repeat that success.”We won the series there last time around, but I hope we will do better this time,” he said. “If the West Indies play their full strength side, they will be a tough team to beat. But it will be interesting to see if they have their full side.”

Stumps
Scorecard
Kent are in a strong position in their County Championship match with Essex as they finished the second day with a lead of 192 runs and seven second-innings wickets intact. The visitors gained a first-innings lead of 46 runs before adding a further 146 for the loss of three wickets by the close with Martin van Jaarsveld 43 not out.A fighting unbeaten 88 from Essex captain James Foster led a recovery for the home side from their perilous overnight position of 49 for 6 before they were eventually bowled out for 201. Foster played responsibly throughout yet was always quick to take advantage of some wayward bowling reaching his half-century from 84 deliveries.Timing the ball sweetly, he collected boundaries on both sides of the wicket, setting the tone by driving the first ball of the day to the ropes. Together with Matt Walker – who scored 22 – and then Tim Phillips, he provided the backbone that the innings lacked on the opening day.Former Kent batsman Walker joined his skipper in a seventh-wicket stand worth 42 runs that included an enforced changing of the ball that had caused the home side so many problems yesterday. Walker drove a delivery from Darren Stevens to the boundary and the ballcontinued over the terraces before finishing in the River Can.It was Simon Cook who brought Walker’s innings to an end when he turned the left-hander around and Stevens held the catch at third slip. Phillips played resolutely spending two hours at the crease whilst contributing 20 out of an eighth-wicket partnership of 80 with Foster before Stevens returned to the attack to end the resistance with a ball that swung across theleft-hander, who steered it into the gloves of Geraint Jones.The pace of Robbie Joseph accounted for David Masters, who drove into the handsof Van Jaarsveld at second slip. Joseph conceded a no-ball to give Essex a batting point, but then had Reece Topley caught at third slip when the batsman played back leaving Foster stranded after three-and-a-half hours at the crease and just 12 runs short of hiscentury.The visitors made a brisk start to their second innings, putting on 36 in nine overs before Topley prised out Joe Denly for the second time in the match when a full-length delivery rapped the batsman, who had scored 18, on the pads.First innings century-maker Sam Northeast had reached 18 when Ravi Bopara cut aball back to remove the batsman’s off stump but Key and Van Jaarsveld composed a69-run stand before Key fell in the penultimate over of the day. He had completed a 97-ball half-century that included six boundaries and had advanced onto 61 when he drove fast left-armer Topley to Billy Godleman at short midwicket giving the championship debutant bowler his fourth wicket of the match.

Amid all the discussion and debate about the structure of future World Cups, and whether Associates will retain a place in the tournament, it’s worth remembering one team who almost completed a remarkable journey to the current event. Afghanistan finished fifth in the qualifying tournament two years ago, enough to earn ODI status but agonisingly short of being one of the four extra teams in the subcontinent.Nobody is quite sure what the future holds for Afghanistan cricket; whether they were riding on the crest of a wave – both in terms of the emotion behind their success and a talented group players who came together at the right time – or whether there is a real chance of them developing into a fully-fledged cricketing nation. Regardless, though, they deserve the chance to try again.Hamid Hassan, 23, is one of their poster boys and marquee players, an opening bowler with an ODI average of 20.86 and Twenty20 economy rate of under a run-a-ball. He has time on his side and is desperate that the ICC don’t close off the World Cup to the Associate and Affiliate nations.”We were so close to getting into this year’s tournament, just one win away, and we’d be very disappointed if he didn’t have another chance,” Hassan told ESPNcricinfo. “I know ICC have announced the next tournament will be 10 nations, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to not let the Associates in. Hopefully we get a chance to qualify.”A year ago Afghanistan were the talk of the town as they took on India and South Africa during the group stage of the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean. There was no fairytale upset, but they certainly weren’t embarrassed in either match. However, in recent months they have drifted into the background with the focus of the world game elsewhere and are now entering a crucial phase to determine which direction the sport heads in the country.”Facilities are getting better for us and hopefully over the next year the grounds will be ready. There is a huge passion for the game in Afghanistan,” Hassan said. “But Afghanistan needs to play more cricket like Ireland, Canada and Kenya do. It’s the only way we will get better.” Currently, Afghanistan’s ODI status runs until 2013 but there aren’t many teams queuing up to play them.Hassan, and team-mate Mohammad Nabi, will have a chance to fly the flag for Afghanistan cricket when they appear for MCC against Nottinghamshire in Abu Dhabi from Sunday. The match is again being played with a pink ball under lights as part of the MCC’s drive to examine the possibilities of day/night Test cricket. It won’t gain the same following as last year’s inaugural game as the novelty factor is no longer there, while there is the smaller matter of World Cup semi-finals taking place, but for Hassan it’s an important occasion.He was part of the MCC groundstaff in 2006 along with Nabi and has never been one to hide his ambitions. He has previously spoken about a dream of playing county cricket and although nothing has materialised as yet it isn’t beyond the realms of possibility that the chance could arrive. Hassan is gunning for some Nottinghamshire wickets and hoping to help his cause.”I’d love to have the chance to play county cricket and maybe if I do well in this game against Nottinghamshire somebody will spot me,” he said. “I just want to play cricket at the highest level possible. It’s a huge part of my life.”Hassan will be taking the field with Rahul Dravid and former Australia opener Chris Rogers alongside England wicketkeeper Steven Davies. Nottinghamshire are short of full strength but have a decent batting line-up including Samit Patel who was publicly criticised by Andy Flower, the England coach, over his fitness after being left out of the World Cup squad and will want to begin the domestic season next month in good form.

The Surrey seamer Tim Linley has signed a new deal that will keep him at the club for the next two years. Linley, 28, has been with Surrey since 2008, and earned the deal after a breakthrough season in 2010 in which he took 20 wickets in first-team cricket, backed up with another 23 for the Surrey second XI.This haul came despite a freak foot injury that struck him down for a large part of the season, suffered immediately after he had recorded superb figures of 4 for 13 as he ripped through the Derbyshire middle order at Chesterfield.According to a Surrey press release, the stability granted by the two-year contract will enable Linley to continue to develop the range and consistency of his deliveries as he seeks to fully establish himself as a first-team regular, competing alongside young talent such as Stuart Meaker, Matthew Dunn and the returning Chris Jordan.Speaking about his new deal, Linley said: “Signing on for two years at Surrey is the culmination of a huge amount of hard work and is a very rewarding feeling. Surrey is a massive club moving in the right direction and I am very excited to be a part of it for the next two seasons.”Surrey Professional Cricket Manager, Chris Adams, added: “I can’t think of many that have worked harder to get a deal and make a professional career than Tim Linley. He absolutely deserves everything he receives today.”Often the part you don’t see as a supporter or a member is what a player brings into a dressing room and Tim is a fantastic team man, is good to have around and brings a great deal to the squad.”

Australia’s 15-man World Cup squad must be named by Wednesday, but after years of planning the selectors face a string of last-minute decisions. The injured Ricky Ponting is expected back in time for the tournament as he aims for his fourth win in a row, but this time he will have to do it with a team missing its usual batch of superstars. Here are some of the questions facing the selectors.Brett Lee is fit and ready for a second World Cup•Getty Images

Can Brett Lee and Shaun Tait fit into the same squad?
Brett Lee and Shaun Tait are almost unchallenged as fast men when they are at full fitness. The major problem for Australia is it doesn’t happen very often, setting up a risk-or-reward gamble. If they are on-song at 150kph, they will terrorise batsmen in most games and be expensive in others, but wickets are virtually guaranteed. If Australia take only one of the pair the other could be on standby as a like-for-like replacement in case of breakdown. Lee, 34, is now the front-runner after impressing at the MCG on Sunday after Tait pulled out with a back strain.Neither plays first-class cricket any longer, so this tournament is their international peak – and also a warm-up for the IPL. Lee’s return from injury – he had elbow surgery at the start of last year – could provide the side with a link to its all-conquering past, and help him overcome the disappointment of missing the 2007 event with damaged ankle ligaments. His international career started just after the 1999 triumph and he was the second-leading wicket-taker in South Africa four years later.How many spinners do Australia need?
Australia have always had slow-bowling problems when heading to the subcontinent, even when Shane Warne was around. How many do they need this time, and will any of those selected be able to make any impact? The offspinner Nathan Hauritz didn’t play in the opening ODI but is with the squad for the current one-day series against England and has been promised some games. That wouldn’t have occurred if he hadn’t been marked for a part at the World Cup.Xavier Doherty, the left-arm orthodox from Tasmania, was on trial at the MCG in his third ODI and went wicket-less. Steven Smith has a big future and his legbreaks will be required over the next couple of months, but he is not yet good enough to be a specialist with either bat or ball. And then there are the real part-timers. David Hussey, who must make a mark as a batsman first, collected two victims with his offspin in Melbourne when he was preferred in the early stages to Doherty; Michael Clarke can dart in some handy left-armers when his back allows; and at some point Cameron White might be asked if he still remembers how to roll his arm over. Even the selectors and coaching staff really don’t know the best combination in this key department.Are Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke worth their leadership roles?
Of course they are. Both Ponting and Clarke have had poor Test summers but they will be crucial ingredients if Australia are to have a successful campaign. Ponting is out with a broken little finger but expects to be back to lead the team in a tournament in which he has never lost a game as captain. He has been a part of the past three previous world-beating outfits and brings authority and aggression, even if his best days are behind him. However, whatever happens, he should seriously consider stepping down at the end of the competition and let the next generation emerge. Clarke is a vital piece in the middle order and is desperate to find some form and fluency to return to the top of his game after a rare, extended slump.Does Brad Haddin need an understudy?
Tim Paine was appointed Australia’s vice-captain for the T20s against England and Brad Haddin was dropped. Paine, 26, is being groomed for future leadership roles while Haddin was Clarke’s deputy for the SCG Test. It’s a strange time for Australia’s incumbent wicketkeeper, who usually gets to choose his engagements. Haddin, 33, is the more attacking batsman and will start at the top of the order, but his glovework is less assured. He was sloppy in the opening ODI, with three missed stumpings, and may struggle over two months in challenging conditions. There is no way he will be around for the next World Cup, so it would be sensible to send Paine for the experience, and to give Haddin a rest against Canada and Kenya.Who is going to miss out?
David Hussey and Tait sit right on the edge of selection, while a host of other players in the 30-man preliminary outfit are now no chance of making this week’s unit. It always seems crazy that Brad Hodge misses out despite his regular domestic heroics, while Ryan Harris, Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson have been injured. Dan Christian, John Hastings and Callum Ferguson, who broke his nose when he missed a short ball last week, should come into consideration if there are any injuries to the preferred 15.Possible squad Shane Watson, Brad Haddin (wk), Ricky Ponting (capt), Michael Clarke, Cameron White, Michael Hussey, Steven Smith, Tim Paine (wk), Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Brett Lee, Xavier Doherty, Peter Siddle, Shaun Tait, Doug Bollinger.

India came here as a potential threat to South Africa’s proud home record, but while people would have expected the result in Tests, it comes as a surprise that for the second time on the tour India find themselves one match away from winning a series. It didn’t happen in the Tests, although 1-1 was a hugely creditable result, but in the ODIs they have two chances to become only the third side to win a bilateral series in South Africa.They have come close without the services of key players; something they have become used to in limited-over series. Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Praveen Kumar have played no part in the series, and Sachin Tendulkar went home after the second game.On the eve of the fourth ODI, MS Dhoni said his side was approaching the game the same way as any other. “The mood is the same,” he said. “When we lost the first game, we felt it was very important to keep a positive state of mind throughout the series. We play so many games, so our mood and mental state cannot fluctuate too much. We always concentrate on the process, and don’t really see what the scorecard is saying or what the series position is. We are not thinking about anything right now. We just need to make sure that we don’t repeat all the wrong things that we have done so far in the tournament. That will be our focus.”One of the big positives from this series for India has been the way the spinners have performed on tracks that, in theory, should be less helpful than the ones in the subcontinent. Harbhajan Singh, Dhoni said, “is bowling as well as you have seen him bowl through his career”, and the part-timers are “a big plus for us”.”Harbhajan has done really well. We are using him regularly in the Powerplay and have used him even before the 10th over.” Harbhajan has gone for just 3.82 runs an over in the first three games.Dhoni said the reasons for the improvement in Harbhajan’s form could be a mix of conditions and batsmen’s attitude. “If the batsmen are successful, we tend to turn around and say maybe the bowler is not bowling well, but sometimes it may just be that the batsmen are playing really well.”Some of the Indian tracks are too flat to do anything on. The batsmen have the momentum from the very start. If they get off to a good start, then once you bring the spinner on, it is a 50-50 scenario. They go after the spinners. If in the first few overs they are able to apply some pressure, then the spinner is on the back foot. A lot depends on where you are playing, and how the batsmen are coping with you.”Dhoni is also pleased with the work the other spinners have put in. “Along with him, the part-timers are doing a real good job, and of course the team composition allows me to have a few more part-timers than we would [with a full-strength squad]. Virender Sehwag is not bowling regularly, if Gautam Gambhir is part of the side he doesn’t bowl, and we are not using Sachin Tendulkar that much, but because of their absence we are featuring players who can contribute with the ball. It gives me the liberty of using even eight bowlers in one innings.”Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh have combined to bowl 40 overs over the three ODIs played so far and have taken five wickets between them.That, though, doesn’t undermine the importance of the three big batsmen when they are back. “We will have to use the resources that are part of the side at that point of time. If you see the best batting line-up the Indian team has, Viru will be part of it, so will Sachin and Gautam, which means we will have maybe just two part-timers in the side. The surprise element of who is going to bowl from the other end won’t be there, because I won’t have so many options. But still they are the best batting line-up, and they will feature, that’s why we need to perform with the bat more than the ball.”