The run fest continued on what has turned out to be a dress rehearsal for next week’s final in Dambulla. North Central Province, missing six rested players included their captain Mahela Jayawardene, responded strongly to Central Province’s 545 and secured an easy draw. Play was called off seven overs before the scheduled close of play.Tillakaratne Dilshan, the acting captain, was the star of the show with an unbeaten 200. The innings spanned just 233 balls and included 22 fours and one six. But while Dilshan will have enjoyed the chance to find his best form, the runs were scored against a diet of gentle spin as Central Province naturally protected their pace bowlers who now have just 48 hours rest before the final.Dilshan came to the crease after the fall of Avishka Gunwardene in the morning, just one of two wickets to fall in the day. Gunwardene was bowled by Thilan Samaraweera for 120. Lanka de Silva, meanwhile, extended his overnight 51 to 175 before being snared by Sajith Fernando’s off breaks.Southern Province had started the day with an outside chance of qualifying for the finals. But while Marvan Atapattu eased his way to 106 from 205 balls, wickets tumbled in the morning session. Slipping 98 for 1 to 122 for 5, their chances soon evaporated despite a 104-run stand between Atapattu and Prasanna Jayawardene. Chaminda Vaas, who had an outstanding match with bat and ball, was the chief destroyer taking 7 for 54 to finish with 11 for 93 in the game.
Ashley Ross, New Zealand’s coach, is a man on a mission. Speaking to The Times of India just before New Zealand’s second tour game in India, Ross said, "We are here to make history. We have been preparing for this tour for a long time. Expectations are high."Ross wasn’t particularly concerned about his two missing stars, Chris Cairns and Shane Bond. "This is a good opportunity for those who made the trip," he said. "We have some fantastic players right here."Ross downplayed the likelihood of New Zealand struggling in Indian conditions. "We are a good team," he said. "That, along with our ability to adapt to different conditions, is our strength. We have been playing all over the world from Sydney to Colombo and are used to it. It doesn’t matter much who the opponents are."Ross agreed that Indian conditions favour spinners, but said, speaking to reporters after a practice session, that New Zealand’s medium pacers would nevertheless be effective. "If the medium pacers can make inroads into the Indian batting, then there is need for only one spinner. We have high hopes on Vettori on this tour."He also praised Stephen Fleming’s captaincy. "Fleming is an outstanding captain as he takes full advantage of planning before a big match and uses his cricket acumen to his benefit. He leads from the front whenever his team is fighting with its backs to the wall."
Manicaland seconds came down to earth last Sunday with a six-wicket thrashing from Kwekwe Sports Club (Midlands) at Mutare Sports Club. Missing their captain and a few talented schoolboys on Christmas leave, Manicaland looked title no-hopers rather than title favourites.Sent in to bat on an underdone pitch, the home side stumbled to 240 for five in their 50 overs. Top scoring with 60 not-out was Manicaland debutante Jan Oosterhuisen. 22-year-old son of ex-Makoni leg-spinner Jan Oosterhuisen senior, he threatened to destroy the Midlands attack with a series of early sixes but grew curiously watchful the longer he batted. A former Zimbabwe Under-19 and Harare Sports Club player who divides his time between Scotland and the family Halfway House farm, he and his older brother plan to play regularly for Manicaland in future.Schoolboys Mike Robinson and Keegan Taylor both scored 34, including one straight drive by Taylor into the armpit of diving umpire Alan Walsh. Other batsmen to make starts were James Cripps (23), Sheth Naeem (25) and Don Percival (28 not out).Assuming they had scored enough on an outfield resembling the short-rough on nearby Hillside golf course, Manicaland did little to protect their position. Using a Z$7000 (US$23) Kookaburra `Turf’ ball they bowled like millionaires, gifting Kwekwe a never-ending supply of long-hops, full-tosses and wides. Naeem conceded nine an over whilst Taylor, Tafadzwa and Wright each went for six.Particularly appreciative of this unexpected happy hour was Craig Grant who plundered 134 (16 fours, two sixes) before literally collapsing from over-indulgence. Helped by eccentric field settings from stand-in skipper Dave Wright, Grant spent the afternoon flicking the ball over the in-field to the vacant boundaries. Also feeding at the trough was Kwekwe captain correspondent Ken Connelly. Hitting a characteristic in-your-face 48 he perished finally to a cross-bat swipe to yet another free-lunch delivery. Inexplicably Wright waited until the 31st over to introduce Oosterhuisen whose spell of 8-0-26-2 came too late to save the Manicas.The Manicaland first-team game against Bulawayo Sports Club due to be played at OH in Harare was called off because BSC failed to arrive. Air Zimbabwe have withdrawn a number of inter-city flights, making it impossible to fly to cricket games at weekends. It will be interesting to see if the modern pampered cricketers will rough it on the overnight train in future.It has been confirmed that Manicaland’s Justin Lewis has finally been drafted into the Zimbabwe Under-19 side to tour New Zealand. He may find a heavy workload awaits him – most reports indicate he will be the best bowler in the party. As a personable and modest cricketer, this overdue selection corrects a glaring injustice.It has also been confirmed that Test umpire Kevan Barbour has been appointed ZCU Manicaland Cricket Administrator. A long-time resident of Mutare with over 20 years of part-time cricket and hockey administration, he assumes this new post at a critical stage ofZimbabwe’s cricket history.
beat Middlesex convincinglyHaving begun the season with high hopes after their overseas signing, thehighest paid player on the county circuit, Shane Warne, and acquiring theservices of Allan Mullally from Leicestershire, Hampshire would now have faced the possibility of ending the season with no significant achievement if they had made their exit from this quarter-final of the NatWest Trophy.Now having despatched Middlesex so convincingly, by seven wickets, they stand just one step away from a place in a showpiece final.The visitors looked in control of this match all the way through except,perhaps, for a brief moment when their second and third wickets fell in a space of eleven runs: even then they were nearly two-thirds of the way towards theirvictory target of 128.Top-scorer of their innings, John Stephenson, 35, had given them a solidenough foundation in a low scoring game, putting on fifty for the first wicket with Giles White who was dismissed for 18, followed by Warne, promoted up the order and responding with a quick twenty from 19 balls.After Keith Dutch, with his off-spin had taken his second wicket, that ofStephenson, Jason Laney and Will Kendall saw their side home, putting on forty in nine overs during their unbroken fourth wicket stand in an innings of only 34.5 overs.Hampshire will, no doubt, be more than a little concerned about the absence of Warne from the semi-final as the Australian leg-spinner returns home in afortnight owing to commitments with his national team.Hampshire look to NatWest Trophy semi-final for consolation for the seasonStruggling at the bottom of Division One in the county championship andoccupying only a second division position in the National League, Hampshiremust look to their semi-final as a vitally important fixture to have thepossibility of showing a trophy for their season’s work.Having been asked to bat first, Middlesex could have had very little excusefor an utterly inept batting, even allowing for the slowness of the pitchand the heavy overcast conditions.They would have been grateful to the lower order of their line-up whichprovided valuable contribution to the 127-run total ( in 44 overs ) as noless than 54 of those runs were accounted for by the last two wickets.Hosts struggle against accurate bowlingWith just three batsmen managing double figures, one of whom was a numberten, it gave a fair indication of Middlesex’s struggle against accuratebowling.Hampshire’s bowlers struck early and having got the stranglehold on theinnings, refused to loosen the grip. Dimitri Mascarenhas led the attackclaiming his first two wickets in successive overs.He hit Michael Roseberry’s leg stump in his third over and in the next one,with a slight change of pace, a slower ball, he had David Alleyne mis-timehis lofted drive to be caught at mid-off. It was two down for seventeen andthe plight continued.And worse was to comeMark Ramprakash was trapped leg-before-wicket with the total on 41 and a runlater Allan Mullally, coming in as second change, held a return catch todismiss Andrew Strauss for 24. But worse was to come for Middlesex withtheir fifth and sixth wickets falling on 57. Two batsmen who were much among theruns in the two previous rounds, both failed.Justin Langer, who had hit a century in the third round became man-of-matchMascarenhas’ fourth victim and Paul Weekes, unbeaten with 71 in the lastround, fell for six.Shane Warne found considerable turn on this pitch and had two for fivebefore Richard Johnson took the long handle to him and distorted his figures alittle with four boundaries. There seemed nothing left of the Middlesexinnings on 73 for eight, but then came that late flourish.
Newcastle United will be looking to continue their fantastic run in the Premier League as they travel away to face Southampton at St. Mary’s tonight.
The Magpies are on an eight-game unbeaten run in the division and now play two games in the space of four days with a chance to go ten matches without a defeat in the top-flight.
Eddie Howe’s side won 2-1 in their last outing as they beat Brighton last weekend. Ryan Fraser and Fabian Schar scored the goals as the Toon stayed 14th in the table.
How many changes will Howe make to the team? Here is our predicted XI…
We are predicting that he will make three alterations to the side, with Javier Manquillo, Bruno Guimaraes and Miguel Almiron all coming in.
The first change may come at right-back with Manquillo replacing Emil Krafth. Against Brighton, the Swedish defender lost four of his seven duels and only completed 59% of his attempted passes, whilst Manquillo has won 64% of his duels and completed 71% of his passes this season in the Premier League.
This suggests that the Spaniard would be more reliable on and off the ball with his ability to retain possession and his physicality in individual battles. Therefore, Howe could opt for the ex-Liverpool man in the only change we are predicting to the defence.
In midfield, Bruno Guimares could finally be named in the starting XI for the first time since his January switch from Lyon. Joe Willock struggled badly against the Seagulls and could have taken out of the team for this match as a result.
As per SofaScore, the dud, who Freddie Ljungberg previously dubbed “passive”, lost seven of his ten ground duels and was dribbled past a staggering five times, whilst also committing one error directly leading to a shot at Martin Dubravka’s goal. In an attempt to avoid burning the ex-Arsenal man out, Howe could start the Brazilian January signing in his place.
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FFC published an article explaining why Jacob Murphy should be axed from the team, although Allan Saint-Maximin may not be fit enough to start.
This could offer Miguel Almiron, who was dubbed a “manager’s dream” by Steve Bruce, the chance to come in on the right. The ex-Norwich man would then be able to rest and be fully prepared for the clash with Chelsea, where he could be needed to run his socks off to track Thomas Tuchel’s flying full-backs.
AND in other news, Game-changer: Howe must finally unleash “exceptionally talented” £27m-rated NUFC star…
In the build-up to this Test, playing in Sri Lanka has been described as one of the game’s toughest challenges and England responded with an outstanding bowling performance on the opening day at Kandy. Matthew Hoggard took four wickets in 25 balls during the morning session as Sri Lanka hit the depths of 42 for 5, then Monty Panesar chipped in with three after a partial resurrection from Kumar Sangakkara and Prasanna Jayawardene who added 106 for the sixth wicket to lift them to 188.The morning session was a dream for England as Hoggard, playing his first Test since June, swung the ball as though back on home soil at Headingley. Three of Sri Lanka’s middle order were dispatched for single figures as Hoggard added Kandy to his list of overseas success stories, alongside diverse locations such as Nagpur, Adelaide and Johannesburg. However, home embarrassment was averted to some degree by Sangakkara and Jayawardene who mixed caution with aggression before the second collapse of the innings as the last four wickets fell for eight runs.But England couldn’t finish with their full card intact after facing 17 overs. Alastair Cook went third ball, planting his front foot across the line to Chaminda Vaas, using his 100 Tests worth of experience with the new ball as Hoggard did so successfully. Michael Vaughan could have gone, too, but Asad Rauf gave him the benefit of very little doubt against Lasith Malinga. There were three overs from Muttiah Muralitharan; that’s a battle that will unfold on Sunday.It was always expected that this ground would offer England their best chance in the series, the conditions being less fierce than Colombo and Galle while the pitch offers more for seam and swing merchants. But Vaughan would have had no hesitation in batting first and Mahela Jayawardene was smiling widely at the toss. However his grin disappeared as quickly as Sri Lanka’s openers; Sanath Jayasuriya driving to backward point to increase speculation he will be forced to retire and Michael Vandort chipping limply to mid-on to open Hoggard’s account.The next three came in a rush with Matt Prior holding three outside edges. Jayawardene was undone straight after drinks, Chamara Silva was squared up by a beauty and Jehan Mubarak completed the trio with a lazy prod at his fifth ball. Hoggard was making the ball talk, adjusting faultlessly between left- and right-handers and England sensed a chance to run through a shocked batting line-up still suffering a hangover from Australia.
But after Hoggard’s burst, it was much more how Test cricket is meant to be in Sri Lanka; batsmen settling in while the pitch is at its best for scoring and bowlers having to bust a gut. Sangakkara followed his efforts in the Hobart Test last month, where he scored 57 and 192, with another innings to show why he is ranked No. 3 in the world. He had two moments of concern, an edge off James Anderson which flew through a vacant third slip before lunch and a close lbw appeal against Panesar when he padded up to a ball which spat out of the footmarks. As Sangakkara escaped, Muralitharan may just have made a mental note in the dressing room.Sangakkara’s half century took 80 balls and he played Hoggard, who only bowled four overs in the afternoon after 10 in the morning, with more ease than any of his team-mates. Vaughan began to work harder with his field settings, putting men on the drive and sweepers on the fence to try and stifle the scoring. England benefited from youthfulness, maintaining their focus except for lapses apiece from Ryan Sidebottom and Hoggard which allowed boundaries to escape.Jayawardene belied his recent form – a pair at Hobart – with a positive innings after taking 17 balls to open his account. He always gave the bowlers a chance, but there were a fair share of handsome boundaries. Panesar struggled to find his rhythm, but his confidence was given a timely boost when Jayawardene chipped straight to short leg, where Cook held on after a juggle, and he added two more either side of tea as he settled into his role.Sangakkara deserved a century, but left with the tail he chanced his arm and skewed an outside edge towards backward point where Paul Collingwood leapt to his right to hand Anderson reward for an economical performance. The last wicket came in typically comical style as Malinga heaved the ball through midwicket and Muralitharan was nowhere near making the second as Ravi Bopara, handed his debut after edging out Owais Shah, acted swiftly in the outfield. But Muralitharan’s main role is with the ball and, having seen the turn on offer for Panesar, he is the biggest threat to England’s strong position.
ScorecardZimbabwe A’s batsmen enjoyed a solid opening day to their second and final first-class match against Bangladesh A at Fatullah. They reached 276 for 4 by the close, with Sean Williams making 82 and Stuart Matsikenyeri unbeaten on 68; the pair putting on 106 for the fourth wicket.Matsikenyeri later began to build another useful stand, this time with Elton Chigumbura (37*), and their partnership was worth 62 by stumps. Enamul Haque jnr was the most successful bowler, with two wickets; he dismissed the openers Tino Mawoyo (16) and Tinashe Hove (23) in successive overs as Zimbabwe slipped from 44 without loss to 55 for 2.Chamu Chibhabha’s wicket was the only other to fall in the day, to Mohammad Shahadza, but not before he made 36 from just 45 balls.Zimbabwe A need a win in this match to level the series after Bangladesh won the opener by one wicket.
Inzamam-ul-Haq said the Supersub rule benefits teams winning the toss and his side would like to cash in on when Pakistan take on England in the second day-night one-day match against England on Monday with an aim to level the series. England won the first match on Saturday.”The Supersub advantage lies with the team that wins the toss,” Pakistan’s captain Inzamam told reporters ahead of the match. “Had we won the toss we could have utilized our super sub had we bowled second, so we would like a better use of it next time.”Pakistan named the offspinner Arhsad Khan as their Supersub in the first of five one-day internationals on Saturday but could not use him at any stage during their 42-run defeat.England compiled their highest one-day score against Pakistan in Pakistan – 327 for 4 in 50 overs – before reducing the home side to 285 all out in 46.5 overs.The Supersub rule, which was implemented in May this year, allows teams a soccer-style replacement at any stage in a limited overs international. The replaced player will be ruled out of the rest of the match while the replacement will be entitled to assume any remaining batting or bowling duties. England benefited from the rule as they replaced Kevin Pietersen, who scored a brisk 36-ball 56, with debutant paceman Liam Plunkett who took 3 for 51.England’s captain Marcus Trescothick has warned that his side must not get complacent with just one victory in the five-match series. “We have got four massive games ahead of us,” he told reporters, “and we can’t get carried away with one win. We have got to get our consistency going.”Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen are both expected to play despite suffering from injuries. Pietersen had a problem with his back and Flintoff was nursing an ankle injury. Flintoff hit an unbeaten 72 in England’s innings, chipped in with three wickets in the first match as Pakistan lost their last six wickets in the space of just 18 balls. Andrew Strauss, who won the Man-of-the-Match award for his 94, said the win was important for England after a 2-0 defeat in the preceding three-Test series. “There is no substitute to winning and I think we are delighted to come through a pretty tough game,” said Strauss, who managed just 44 runs in the two Tests against Pakistan.Strauss agreed the Supersub rule complicates matters for teams. “It (the rule) makes selection meetings pretty difficult,” he said. “I would have thought with who to sub and who not to, and when to sub, it makes things more complicated for the captain.”Pakistan (probable) 1 Salman Butt, 2 Kamran Akmal (wk), 3 Shoaib Malik, 4 Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Mohammad Yousuf, 6 Younis Khan, 7 Abdul Razzaq, 8 Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, 9 Shoaib Akhtar, 10 Mohammad Sami, 11 Danish Kaneria. Supersub Yasir ArafatEngland (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick (capt), 2 Andrew Strauss, 3 Vikram Solanki, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Andrew Flintoff, 6 Paul Collingwood, 7 Geraint Jones (wk), 8 Ian Blackwell, 9 Liam Plunkett, 10 Steve Harmison, 11 James Anderson. Supersub Matt Prior.
Sachin Tendulkar is a self-confessed doubt for India’s forthcoming Test series against Pakistan because of the same elbow injury which caused him to sit out most of last year’s home series against Australia.Tendulkar was sidelined for almost three months last year with tennis elbow, and on Monday he told reporters in Mumbai that he was again struggling. ” I played my last match on December 27 and have not touched the bat or ball since then. As of now I’ve been advised (to take) five to six weeks’ rest by the doctors,” Tendulkar said. “We’ll have to wait and see. After the rest period is over, I’ll meet the doctors again and we’ll take a decision.”I am not going to hurry my return,” he continued. “I am eager to play against Pakistan but I would do so only if I am fully fit and able to play. I will strictly go by what the doctors say. “Tendulkar’s injury dominated the headlines last year and, although he returned at the end of the Australia series, he struggled. In six innings against Australia and South Africa he managed 93 runs, but he did make a big double-hundred against Bangladesh.There were those who blamed a heavy bat for his problems, but Tendulkar again dismissed those suggestions. “I have been reading articles wrongly attributing my injury to my usage of heavy bats,” he explained. “A lot of people have been saying that but they don’t know much about the game. I have used heavy bats for 15 years without any trouble.”The dates for the Pakistan series have not been confirmed but the first Test is expected to start on March 4.
The Adelaide Turf Cricket Association (ATCA) has been rescued by its member Clubs and players and the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA).The rescue package, which was overwhelmingly supported last night at a general meeting for the Association’s members, included a $10 per player rescue levy, payable at the beginning of the coming season.The meeting saw representation from 44 out of their 45 member clubs, including life members, umpires and players.The package also included a $52,000 interest-free, 5-year loan, negotiated with the SACA, which has enabled the Association to clear itself of its immediate creditors and remain solvent.General manager of the Adelaide Turf Cricket Association, Andrew Ramsay, who commenced in the role at the beginning of August, was encouraged by the support shown by all member clubs."It was fantastic to see such a healthy turn out last night. Everyone at the Association is thrilled with the support from of our member clubs and players during such a difficult time.""The proposed rescue levy was strongly embraced, with clubs simply wanting to see the Association get on with administering the game of cricket for our 4,000 players."The rescue levy will be officially tabled at the Association’s annual general meeting of September 22, and is anticipated to be positively endorsed.The Association also plans a number of fundraising and other activities to secure its financial future.