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Keith Barker’s explosive innings allowed the Warwickshire Bears to ease to victory by six wickets against the Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Wantage Road and move second in the North Group

10-Jul-2010
Scorecard
Keith Barker’s explosive innings allowed the Warwickshire Bears to ease to victory by six wickets against the Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Wantage Road and move second in the North Group.Alex Wakely, with 41 from 30 balls including three fours and one six, top-scored for the hosts as they recovered from 41 for three to post 149 for 5 in their 20 overs, with Chris Woakes taking 3 for 21.Barker then crunched 48 from 28 balls as the Bears chased down their target with 11 balls to spare, despite Zimbabwe international Elton Chigumbura taking three wickets in four balls in the middle of a spell where he took 3 for 19.Northamptonshire won the toss and chose to bat in glorious conditions and David Sales made 16 before holing out in the fourth over to Chris Woakes, with Ant Botha taking the catch at mid-off. Ireland wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien (8) followed him back to the pavilion when he launched Barker high in the air and was caught by the bowler.Chaminda Vaas, who has made a string of half-centuries in this competition recently, made 16 before edging Imran Tahir to former England wicketkeeper Tim Ambrose to leave the Steelbacks on 41 for 3.The fourth-wicket pairing of Stephen Peters and Wakely stabilised the hosts’ innings, however, putting on 77 between them in 11 overs. But Woakes removed both in the 17th over when he forced Peters, who scored 39 off 31 balls, to top-edge him and be caught at short third man by Botha.Two balls later, Wakely smashed him down to Steffan Piolet at long-off, then Chigumbura’s 15 not out and captain Andrew Hall with an unbeaten seven guided Northants to the end of their innings.Chasing 147, Warwickshire lost Neil Carter (8) with the last ball of the first over when he drove Vaas to David Lucas at gully. Darren Maddy and Barker then rapidly built a fifty partnership in the next five overs as the Bears managed to put themselves comfortably ahead of the required run-rate.The second-wicket pair had added 77 between them in 41 balls before Chigumbura forced Maddy, who made 30 off 24 balls, to edge to O’Brien. Needing 54 runs from 10 overs, Warwickshire lost two wickets in consecutive balls when Barker smashed Chigumbura to Hall at extra cover before captain Jim Troughton (1) edged him to O’Brien.But an unbeaten stand of 54 between Ian Westwood and Ambrose, not out on 24 and 30 respectively, eased the Bears home in the penultimate over.

World Sports Group has warned the BCCI that it will take necessary steps to enforce its agreement after the BCCI terminated the IPL media rights on grounds that WSG negotiated an improper payment from MSM

Tariq Engineer30-Jun-2010Sports marketing agency World Sports Group has warned the BCCI that it will take “whatever steps are necessary” to enforce its business agreement after the BCCI terminated the IPL media rights on the grounds that WSG negotiated an “improper” payment from MSM (Satellite) PTE LTD, the parent company of the league’s Indian broadcaster.In a letter to BCCI secretary N Srinivasan, WSG chairman and CEO Seamus O’Brian termed the charges levelled against the agency as baseless and said that the facilitation fee MSM had agreed to pay his company was legitimate.In 2009, MSM agreed to pay WSG a facilitation fee of Rs 425 crore as compensation for WSG relinquishing the Indian portion of the IPL media rights. The BCCI recently asserted that it had been unaware of the deal and having learnt of it, believes the money rightfully belongs to it, not WSG. The board subsequently cancelled its contract with WSG in a letter dated 28th June.In the same letter, Srinivasan accused WSG of colluding with suspended IPL chairman Lalit Modi to cheat the board. “We strongly believe that the agreement was signed by you and Mr. Lalit Modi to defraud the BCCI of the amount of at least $80 million,” Srinivasan said. Modi had committed the board to compensating WSG if MSM defaulted on payment of the fee, something Srinivasan said Modi did not have the authority to do.In reply, O’Brian argued the BCCI made it plain to everyone since the beginning of the IPL that the chairman’s signature was the sole requirement for any contract and “binding on all matters.” To backtrack on that arrangement now would give everyone who signed agreements with Modi reason to believe the board had committed fraud by “telling the world that one of its officers had powers that he did not.”He went on to say that the BCCI and its advisors agreed that the board would compensate WSG if Sony defaulted on its payment and that the BCCI “needs to take responsibility for reading their contracts before and after they are signed, and not to feign knowledge when it best suits them.”On the subject of the fee itself, O’Brien said WSG does not do business without the opportunity to make a fair return, so it is no surprise the agency was compensated for giving up the Indian media rights. According to him, WSG has “considerable correspondence” with MSM on how the fee was agreed.”Your claim that this money belong to the BCCI is baseless,” O’Brian said. “On 15 March 2009, the BCCI agreed to license the Indian media rights to WSG (Mauritius) for Rs 4791.89 crores and on 25 March 2009 Sony entered into a license agreement to pay the BCCI Rs 4791.89 crores. Had an agreement not been in place, WSG would most likely have sub-licensed one of the other broadcasters it had been in negotiations with over the period (or indeed a sub-license with Sony itself), and any margin would also have been for our account and not the BCCI’s.”Furthermore, O’Brian contended that if WSG (Mauritius) and not signed the agreement on March 15, the BCCI would have found itself deadlocked in a contract dispute and without a broadcaster mere weeks before IPL 2. He also takes credit for the increased value of the new rights contract over the original one signed in 2008, saying “this would not and could not have been achieved without WSG.”O’Brian insisted it was impossible for BCCI to be unaware of the agreement as it was ratified by the IPL governing council. “Your claim that the BCCI was ‘never made aware’ of our agreement with Sony can simply not be true. The BCCI-Sony contract, subsequently ratified by the IPL governing council upon which you and many other BCCI officials sit, clearly references such an agreement, and what is more, it clearly references the fact that the payment obligations were created between Sony and WSG (Mauritius).”MSM had already paid WSG Rs 125 crores and was to pay the balance over the next seven years. However, MSM agreed last week to pay the BCCI the facilitation fee of Rs 425 crores instead, and has filed a suit in the Bombay High Court to recover the Rs 125 crores it has already paid WSG.

When preparing for every new Test, England’s mantra is invariably one of “controlling the controllables” – and against a team as volatile as Pakistan, that’s generally a wise approach

Andrew Miller at Edgbaston05-Aug-2010When preparing for every new Test, England’s mantra is invariably one of “controlling the controllables” – and against a team as volatile as Pakistan, that’s generally a wise approach. Every once in a while, however, a situation arises in the opposition camp that can’t help but encroach on one’s best-laid gameplans. Such is the case with Mohammad Yousuf, because until he is ruled in or out of contention for Friday’s second Test, England will have little choice but to prepare as if he is playing.Yousuf may appear to be just another batsman – albeit one who averages an even 70.00 in 12 Tests against England – but such is his reputation, he could prove to be the man who makes or breaks Pakistan’s tour, in the most polarised sense imaginable. On the one hand, a veteran of 88 Tests and 7431 runs is a very tempting trump for the PCB to pull from its sleeve for the very innings after their team has been bowled out for 80. On the other, Yousuf’s most recent role in international cricket was back in January, when he captained Pakistan on a tour of Australia so “dysfunctional” that the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit was unable to distinguish allegations of match-fixing from a more general morass of squabbling and back-biting.Salman Butt, a young captain who has been impressively forthcoming with the media so far in his tenure, appeared understandably fed up of the speculation as he glowered out from behind dark glasses during his press conference. If Yousuf’s recent description of him as a “lazy little runner” hinted at a certain level of antipathy, then Butt’s failure to address “him” by name at any stage of his press conference rather suggested that the feeling was mutual. It’s little wonder that Andrew Strauss wanted to steer as far from the subject as possible.”It is for me to back what is with me,” said Butt. “The youngsters have shown the ability and they are the people for the future and nobody is denying that. But we also welcome the experienced person coming in. If he can do us something good, that will be good for the team, and also there’s a chance for a youngster to speak to him and get something based from his experience, and benefit from that. I hope that his presence has a good effect on the rest of the guys, especially the young batsmen.”Whether Yousuf’s game-brain is sufficiently switched on is a moot point. He announced his international retirement back in March, and though he volunteered a willingness on renege on that decision last week, it is still a sizeable step back into the big-time for a man who will turn 36 next month. Nevertheless, on his last visit to England in 2006, Yousuf averaged a formidable 90.14, with three hundreds in five Tests including 202 at Lord’s, and is therefore a player who could provide the backbone that a desperately brittle batting line-up desperately requires.”We saw far too much of him last time because he had a great series, and his average suggests he’s a top-quality Test performer,” said Strauss, “But it’s not a particularly big deal for us, only that we have to have plans in place for him and know how we are going to try to bowl to him. It’s up to them to worry about whether he’ll be in a position to play in a Test or not, but we know he’s a dangerous player – he’ s a very good player. But if he does play and he’s a bit jetlagged, then hopefully we can get enough balls in the right area to make it difficult for him.”Yousuf’s call-up echoes a scenario that also took place in the summer of 2006, when Sanath Jayasuriya was persuaded to come out of Test retirement by Sri Lanka’s president, Mahinda Rajapakse, and duly arrived in the country midway through the first Test at Lord’s – to the general bemusement of his team-mates, including the captain, Mahela Jayawardene. He, however, was not cast straight into the fray within 24 hours of landing. After a spirited performance in the drawn first Test, Sri Lanka stuck to their young guns for the subsequent defeat at Edgbaston, before he was finally selected for a memorable win at Trent Bridge – in which he made scores of 4 and 4, but chimed in with three important wickets.More recently, West Indies’ captain, Chris Gayle, flew in for last summer’s Lord’s Test with hours to spare before the start, but he at least had been playing competitive cricket for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. Yousuf cannot claim to have had a similar experience in the past six months, with his only outings coming in the lowly Lahore Premier League. “I am sure he would’ve picked up a bat at some point, because even he knows he is coming to play a Test match,” said Butt. “But he has to tell me what kind of physical state he is because it has been a quite a lot of travel for him.”In terms of the challenge that awaits him should he declare himself fit to play – and it would appear that the decision rests entirely on his own state of mind – Yousuf’s comeback is likely to take place in conditions that are, in their own way, as inhospitable as those that Colin Cowdrey faced in 1974-75, when he was drafted in as an injury replacement on England’s ill-fated Ashes tour. Anderson, Finn and Broad may not present a physical threat to match Lillee and Thomson at Perth 35 years ago, but with thick grey clouds hanging over Birmingham on the eve of the match, Yousuf will do well to match Cowdrey’s scores in that contest of 22 and 41.Strauss, however, in an admirable attempt to keep his team’s collective eye on the ball, refused to get drawn into any such presumptuous notions. “That sort of chat is very dangerous, and easy to slip into because we’ve won one Test match,” he said. “I’m a little bit concerned about us just turning up and assuming we are going to win this Test, because that’s the wrong way to look at it. Even if we are 2% at the back of our minds starting to think this Test is going to be easy, we’re going to get bitten pretty quickly.”It’s a case of going back to square one and being prepared to do all the hard work we did in the first Test, and if we do that, hopefully we’ll get a good result,” he added. Pakistan, after all, overcame the seismic shock of losing their original tour captain, Shahid Afridi, after one Test at Lord’s, but bounced straight back to defeat Australia in their very next outing at Headingley. Controlling the controllables is all England can do, because the wild beast that is Pakistan cricket will never be tamed.

Hampshire secured the Friends Provident t20 in extraordinary style by losing fewer wickets than Somerset after scores finished level after a crazy final two overs that turned a comfortable chase into a mad scramble across the line

Andrew McGlashan at the Rose Bowl14-Aug-2010
Scorecard
Sean Ervine powered Hampshire with 44 in an extraordinary finish at the Rose Bowl•Getty Images

Hampshire secured the Friends Provident t20 in extraordinary style by losing fewer wickets than Somerset after scores finished level after a frantic final two overs that turned a comfortable chase into a mad scramble. It ended with Dan Christian, who had to call for a runner for the final ball, scoring a leg bye and then, forgetting his injury, sprinting the length of the pitch only for Somerset to miss the chance to run him out and secure victory themselves. One-hundred-and-fifty-one matches came down to one ball.The game looked done and dusted when the penultimate over started with Hampshire needing 11 to win, but Ben Phillips claimed two wickets as he removed Neil McKenzie for 52 then had Michael Carberry caught for a duck from a top edge. In between he’d seen Sean Ervine spilled at deep square-leg by Nick Compton, who was only on the field because of a horrid eye injury suffered by Kieron Pollard at the end of Somerset’s innings.The final over began with eight needed and both batsmen swung at fresh air while Craig Kieswetter missed two chances to hit the stumps with under-arms. Off the penultimate ball Christian pulled his hamstring coming back for a second which meant Jimmy Adams had to come out as a runner. When Christian missed the last ball it looked mighty close for lbw, but replays showed it was just sliding down leg side, yet still there was confusion.Eventually the result was confirmed by the umpires and Hampshire launched into their celebrations, led by the 39-year-old Dominic Cork who had been pacing the sidelines during the closing stages. In the final outcome his last over of the Somerset innings proved vital as he conceded just three runs, claimed two wickets and sent Pollard to hospital as a sharp bouncer squeezed between the grill into his right eye. It was an incident that shook Cork.Pollard’s absence in the field left Somerset a key bowler and fielder short and it became telling after Hampshire started the chase with a string of boundaries. Abdul Razzaq helped them collect the best Powerplay score of the day with the fifty stand coming off 29 balls, a significant achievement on a surface being used for its third match in nine hours. However, two balls before the fielding restrictions were lifted Razzaq got a top edge against Peter Trego and Kieswetter just managed to settle under the spiralling catch as it dropped from the floodlights.Three balls later James Vince was on his way after a sharp piece of work from James Hildreth at short third-man who threw to the keeper while still on his knees. The chase then went into accumulation mode as Adams and McKenzie consolidated while Marcus Trescothick juggled his attack without Pollard. His sixth bowler proved an inspired choice as Arul Suppiah removed Adams via an inside edge into the stumps first ball.Then came the major stand as McKenzie and Ervine used all their experience to soak up the pressure as they added 79. It was smart, risk-free batting which kept the required rate under control until McKenzie had a rush of blood and carved a catch to cover. It looked nothing more than a minor blip, but it almost turned the match completely on its head.With the rare situation of a home team being in a final it was one of the better attended conclusions to the tournament where the last game has often been played to large sections of empty seats as supporters from eliminated sides head home. Some did filter out during the day, but the stands were still well populated during the mad closing stages.Somerset’s innings only came to life in the second half as Kieswetter anchored the effort with 71 off 59 balls. After a stodgy start, where he took 37 balls to make 29, he hit 42 off his last 22 deliveries having done well not to throw his innings away as the pressure mounted. It’s a display that is likely to come in for criticism, and Kieswetter still isn’t back to his best, but a straight six off Danny Briggs and another cover drive that cleared the ropes were positive signs.Crucially for Hampshire’s hopes, they snuffed out Trescothick before he could do major damage having threatened something violent with 19 from eight balls. After his second six he managed to pull a long hop to midwicket and couldn’t believe what he had done. With Kieswetter and Trego not connecting cleanly the boundaries dried up.Key to that was another impressive spell of left-arm spin from Briggs to follow his 3 for 29 in the semi-final. He isn’t afraid to give the ball a rip and throw it up a touch, easier said than done when batsmen want to charge, and he is a rapidly developing cricketer.That was one of the most pleasing aspects about Hampshire’s success.
Although the main part of their chase was fashioned by two former seasoned internationals – and the end was chaotic – there is a strong core of English youth in the side which can help carry them forward.They said they didn’t want Kevin Pietersen and their faith has been fully justified. Even if it was too close for comfort.

Yorkshire have released Jacques Rudolph from the final year of his contract, paving the way for a possible return to the South Africa line-up

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Sep-2010Yorkshire have released Jacques Rudolph from the final year of his contract, paving the way for a possible return to the South Africa line-up. The county have said that family reasons are behind Rudolph’s desire to return home, but it is known that he has been contacted about making a comeback to the international stage.Rudolph joined Yorkshire as Kolpak player in 2007 – meaning he didn’t count as an overseas cricketer – and passed 1000 Championship runs in each of his four seasons including 1375 runs in the recently completed 2010 campaign. In total he scored 8629 runs for Yorkshire in all competitions and his consistent form hasn’t been lost on the South Africa coach Corrie van Zyl. “We are aware that he has excelled in England over the past few years,” he told Sport24.co.za.”Whilst Jacques has thoroughly enjoyed his time with Yorkshire, he and his wife Elna have found it difficult adjusting to life in England,” said a Yorkshire statement. “Jacques has spent each winter with his family in South Africa and whilst his wife Elna moved to Leeds in an attempt to find suitable employment as a doctor, nevertheless this has not worked out as they both would have liked.”They are both very keen to start a family and, with an unsettled lifestyle, felt it was impossible to put down roots and make plans for the future. As such, they formally requested to be released from the final year of Jacques’s contract and the board of directors have granted this wish.”Rudolph played the last of his 35 Tests in August 2006 against Sri Lanka, in Colombo, and has scored 2028 runs at 36.21 after launching his career with an unbeaten 222 on debut against Bangladesh in 2003.

Half-centuries to Ed Cowan, Mark Cosgrove and George Bailey set up Tasmania’s convincing 91-run victory over South Australia in Adelaide

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Oct-2010Tasmania 6 for 274 (Cowan 75, Cosgrove 61, Bailey 50) beat South Australia 183 (Cooper 56, Doherty 3-20) by 91 runs

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George Bailey gave the Tigers a strong push with 50 off 32 balls•Getty Images

Half-centuries to Ed Cowan, Mark Cosgrove and George Bailey set up Tasmania’s convincing 91-run victory over South Australia in Adelaide. The Tigers batted first and Cosgrove’s 61 was followed by Cowan’s strong 75 before Bailey provided a surge of 50 from 32 balls to push them to 6 for 274.South Australia were quickly in trouble, dropping to 3 for 23 after six overs, and after their first bat were struggling at 4 for 77. Tom Cooper, who was unbeaten on 44 at the break, added another 12 before falling to James Faulkner and Tasmania kept breaking through.Xavier Doherty, the left-arm spinner, took the new ball and was rewarded with 3 for 20 off seven overs, while Faulkner, Luke Butterworth and Brendan Drew picked up two each. The bowling highlight for the hosts was three wickets for Ben Edmondson, who was picked up from Western Australia in the off-season.

Only a man blessed with immense powers of endurance could sustain a 20-year Test career and Sachin Tendulkar displayed exactly that quality on a day of Indian dominance in Bangalore

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale11-Oct-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsSachin Tendulkar’s harshest punishment was kept for Nathan Hauritz•AFP

Only a man blessed with immense powers of endurance could sustain a 20-year Test career and Sachin Tendulkar displayed exactly that quality on a day of Indian dominance in Bangalore. Tendulkar batted through the day, along the way recording his 49th Test century and helping to steer M Vijay to his first, as India all but demolished Australia’s first-innings advantage.Tendulkar finished the day unbeaten on 191 and MS Dhoni was on 11, and with India requiring only a draw to win the series, there was no need for Dhoni to consider a declaration. How Ricky Ponting would love to have called a close to India’s innings himself, after a day on which his attack looked toothless and failed to make a breakthrough until 3.21pm.When they did, they quickly made it two. Vijay’s edge behind off Mitchell Johnson was followed four balls later by the departure of the unlucky debutant Cheteshwar Pujara, who was padded up for more than six hours only to be greeted with skidder from Johnson, who trapped the new man lbw for 4.Suresh Raina made 32 before he drove Michael Clarke to mid-off late in the afternoon, but by then India were within sight of Australia’s first-innings 478. They had Tendulkar and Vijay to thank; their third-wicket partnership began on Sunday afternoon, stretched until after tea on Monday and was worth 308 runs. Both players batted wonderfully well, barely giving Australia the sniff of a wicket.Tendulkar moved to 99 with a slog-swept six off Nathan Hauritz and repeated the stroke to move into triple figures while offering the spectators at long-on a catch. Nobody has scored more Test hundreds than Tendulkar, who celebrated his seventh in the past year with his usual bat-raise and glance to the heavens, but without any major display of emotion.Vijay witnessed the ease with which his senior partner raced through the nineties but found it not so simple himself, and was stuck on 99 for more than 20 minutes. The Australians tried to dry up his options with short balls and when he eventually pushed a quick single to cover, he leapt for joy and was embraced by Tendulkar, who had started his Test career when Vijay was five years old.In those two decades, Tendulkar has had only one year – 2002 – better than his vintage efforts of 2010, which earned him the ICC Cricketer of the Year award last week. He continued that form by handling all of Australia’s bowlers with supreme comfort, racing to triple figures before lunch after he had started the day on 44.Tendulkar pulled Johnson for consecutive fours, sliced Shane Watson over cover with ease and respectfully kept out the most consistent of Australia’s bowlers, Ben Hilfenhaus. But the harshest punishment was saved for Hauritz. Even Shane Warne failed to mesmerise Tendulkar and in comparison, he found Hauritz easier to read than a cheap paperback.