All posts by csb10.top

West Indies’ third most-capped player, and the second in line to the captaincy, has expressed one opinion on the team’s final preparations for the World Cup, now only two months away. Last week, the selectors gave another.Following December’s one-day series in Pakistan, for which he was entrusted with the vice-captaincy, Chris Gayle wrote that it was “about time” the West Indies had “a steady World Cup squad”. “There is no time to experiment now,” was his logical conclusion.That would have meant choosing the World Cup 14, all to the injured Ramnaresh Sarwan, for the ODI series in India, starting next weekend.The four matches are the last prior to the World Cup that gets underway with the West Indies meeting Pakistan at Sabina Park on March 13. The one-day games present a timely opportunity for the team to sharpen their edge in some tough contests and for the coach Bennett King and captain Brian Lara to determine the best combinations.Above all, to have decided on the World Cup lineup at this early stage would have given peace of mind to those unsure of their places.When the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) finally got around to officially naming the team on January 12, several days after it was disclosed on various media outlets, convenor of selectors Gordon Greenidge outlined a somewhat different scenario.”This is our last chance to look at a few players and they have been included because you do know what might happen in the next few weeks,” he explained. “We have a few injuries, and we want to have a look at a few players at international level to see what they have to offer.”The “few players” Greenidge and his colleagues want to have a final look at are Devon Smith, Darren Sammy and Reyad Emrit who replace Daren Ganga, Dwayne Smith and Corey Collymore from the Pakistan series.Dwayne Bravo (on compassionate grounds) and Sarwan (injury) both missed the Pakistan ODIs. But while Bravo is back Sarwan has still not recovered from his fractured left foot, crushed by Umar Gul’s yorker in the final Test in Pakistan on December 1.Their absence was a severe setback in Pakistan and Sarwan’s long recovery remains a genuine cause for concern. For all his problems last year, culminating in his dropping from the Test team in Pakistan, he remains an essential component in a potentially strong, but inherently inconsistent batting team. His average of 44 in 115 ODIs compares with the best of the day.

Without him in Pakistan, West Indies turned to Lendl Simmons, a talented player but still an apprentice, and have now brought back Devon Smith as cover, two and a half years after he was seen as unsuited to the abbreviated game and dropped.Such juggling accentuates Sarwan’s significance. As it is, he has not had an innings since December 1 and, since he misses the Indian series, he will be short of match practice when the World Cup comes around.There are also injury doubts over Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Simmons, neither of whom has yet appeared in the current domestic season although both are included in the squad for India. Chanderpaul has found a new lease of life since his reinstatement as Gayle’s partner in an opening pairing that is the most prolific on ODI record. His value is enhanced at the top of the order and his fitness, to be assessed before he is passed for India, is as essential as Sarwan’s.Dwayne Smith has been left out of the team for India so that Greenidge’s panel can assess Sammy and Emrit, both useful allrounders, at a level higher than the ‘A’ team to which they have been confined.They appear to be contesting one place in the final 14, mainly as medium-pace bowlers who can score handy lower-order runs.Perhaps Dwayne Smith’s exclusion is down to the selectors’ frustration over his failure to produce more with the bat but it is inconceivable that he won’t be the World Cup team.For all his inconsistency, he remains capable of the kind of match-winning innings Collis King, a similarly explosive hitter, produced in the 1979 World Cup final. He bowls effective medium-pace and, above all, is a fielder on par with any in the contemporary game.The value of fielding, more especially in the limited-overs game, cannot be overstated. Viv Richards’ run outs of the Chappell brothers and Alan Turner were as crucial in the victory in the inaugural World Cup in 1975 as Clive Lloyd’s violent hundred.Lara’s three close-in catches and a run out and Bravo’s sharp run out of Andrew Strauss were mainly responsible for restricting England’s score in the victorious ICC Champions Trophy final in 2004.Roger Harper and Jonty Rhodes commanded places in their teams as much on the strength of their fielding as on their other, somewhat lesser virtues. Herschelle Gibbs and Andrew Symonds have offset lean patches with the bat by their value in the field.If the top four in the batting – Gayle, Chanderpaul, Sarwan and Lara – are consistently at their best and build challenging totals and if the fielders support their bowlers and energise the team into limiting, or defending, totals then West Indies has a chance of winning the World Cup. Every one must play his part, one of the many aspects of their cricket that sets Australia apart.

The West Indies carry one or two slow coaches with weak arms but Smith and Bravo are two of the sharpest around in patrolling opposite side of the semi-circles during the early and mid-overs and then protecting the boundaries with their speed and power-throwing in the hectic closing stages.If Smith has been left at home for no other reason than for the selectors “to have a look at a few players at international level to see what they have to offer”, longer term inferences can be made for some who did not make the cut in the initial World Cup squad of 30.Merv Dillon can certainly take it that his stated ambition to return to international cricket is over, as can Reon King. So, as far as the one-day version is concerned, can Pedro Collins and Tino Best. Apart from Best, they are all cricketers on the wrong side of 30 who have had their moments and are in the twilight of their careers.Richard Kelly is at the start of his career and has been left to reflect, as so many others before him, what a fickle game it is. A regular in the ‘A’ team in four successive series as an energetic allrounder and seen as a strong contender for promotion as recently as a few months ago, he suddenly finds himself excluded from the top 30.He is simply the latest West Indian to follow such an undulating path recently. Remember Donovan Pagon, Dave Bernard, Xavier Marshall? It is better he remember a few Australians who also disappeared from the selectors’ radar after early recognition. Their names are Justin Langer, Matthew Hayden and Damien Martyn.

At the MCG on Friday, the world champions will attempt to maintain their unbeaten run against a talented opposition boasting a number of fresh faces. But in a reversal of the usual trend in recent years, Australia are the challengers and India are out to confirm their status as the world’s best Twenty20 side.The teams have met twice before in the shortest format and India came out on top both times, first with a 15-run semi-final win at the ICC World Twenty20 and then with a seven-wicket triumph in Mumbai a month later. However, India’s captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his side was not overly concerned about Friday’s result.They have a 17-man squad to choose from and nine of those players were not part of the Test group. Dhoni said because the new arrivals had had only one training session in Melbourne, India would need to treat the Twenty20 as a chance to warm up ahead of the tri-series that also features Sri Lanka.”We will take the Twenty20 as one of the practice games,” Dhoni said in Melbourne. “The guys are more serious about the Twenty20 World Cup rather than just winning one game. I don’t know how the Australians will take it but we’ll take it as a good opportunity to get the new guys in and let them get used to the conditions.”Ricky Ponting said Australia were keen to stamp their authority on Twenty20 cricket after India’s successes against them. “For us, maybe there are some scores to settle,” Ponting said. “We are going to be playing more of it and there’s definitely room for improvement for Australia.”Australia have typically rested some senior players for one-off Twenty20 internationals, and this time Mitchell Johnson and Matthew Hayden are being given a break after a Test series that strained the relationship between the two sides. There is a chance that neither team will be led by the man who guided them through the Tests, with Ponting’s back injury giving Michael Clarke a slim hope of captaining Australia for the second time in two months, and Anil Kumble having returned home.Ponting picked up the problem during the Adelaide Test and although he is confident of playing, he conceded it was difficult to tell how much the complaint would affect his play. “I’ve been pretty much flat on my back for the last couple of days, just trying to give myself the best chance to recover,” he said. “At the moment I’m feeling okay but I haven’t done anything to test it out yet.”Ponting will likely have one new face in his line-up with David Hussey expected to make his international debut on his adopted home ground at the MCG. Hussey’s outstanding domestic Twenty20 form earned him a place and it will give him the chance to play alongside his brother Michael for the first time in three years.The pair has not been on the same side since a couple of Australia A games three seasons ago, and they never played together at Western Australia with David having to move to Victoria to break into state cricket. “It’s always been my goal to play for Australia,” he said, “so hopefully it can happen and can be a special night for me with my parents flying over.”The match will be preceded by a women’s Twenty20 international between Australia and England, which will be exposed to a huge audience with Channel set to air a highlights package on February 10. The MCG crowd is also expected to be something special, with Cricket Victoria hoping to break the ground’s record of 90,800 spectators, set during one day of an Australia-West Indies Test in 1961.Australia squad Michael Clarke, Adam Gilchrist (wk), Ricky Ponting (capt), Brad Hodge, Andrew Symonds, Michael Hussey, David Hussey, Adam Voges, James Hopes, Brett Lee, Ashley Noffke, Nathan Bracken, Ben Hilfenhaus.India squad Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Robin Uthappa, Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Manoj Tiwary, MS Dhoni (capt, wk), Suresh Raina, Piyush Chawla, Praveen Kumar, Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma, Sreesanth.

The Indian Cricket League (ICL) is preparing for a legal battle against the English board if the ECB rejects the appeals of cricketers involved in the league to register for their respective counties.”It is unfortunate that the ECB has chosen not to register some players who are currently playing for the ICL,” Himanshu Mody, business head, ICL, told Cricinfo. “These players and their respective counties have begun the process of appeal, and are confident that the ECB will see reason.”Many ICL players, including South Africans Justin Kemp (Kent), Johan van der Wath and Andrew Hall (both Northamptonshire), New Zealander Hamish Marshall (Gloucestershire) and West Indian Wavell Hinds (Derbyshire) have expressed concerns in the wake of the regulations recently released by the ECB that prohibit county players from playing in the ICL.Recently, Tony Greig, a member of the ICL’s executive board, had cautioned that the ECB’s stand would leave the players with no other alternative but to take legal action.”If their appeals fail, the players and their counties may have no option but to adopt a legal remedy in English courts. ICL, on its part, will support the players,” Mody said.Mody added that the BCCI’s threat to file a complaint against the ECB if it cleared ICL players to join counties was “just another way to create a barrier”. The BCCI’s move came after the PCB granted NOCs to Mushtaq Ahmed and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan to play for the counties. But the BCCI has an understanding with other boards that they wouldn’t allow any of their players to participate in the ICL.Mody welcomed the PCB decision and felt the other boards will also follow suit. “The PCB’s decision to give the Pakistani players the NOC is a decision of the PCB and the ICL appreciates the decision. The ICL is hopeful that justice and sense will prevail and the other boards realise the contribution of the ICL.”The Edelweiss 20s challenge, the ICL’s latest tournament, has entered the final stages with the best-of-three finals being staged over the weekend. The ICL will then conduct an ‘international’ tri-series involving a World XI, a Pakistan XI and an India XI.

Scorecard

The Delhi top three scored half-centuries to take their side within one shot of Tamil Nadu’s 268, with four wickets in hand. For Delhi, this is a definitive step towards the semi-finals as the other contenders, Mumbai and Maharashtra, have struggled to bowl their oppositions out.After Rajat Bhatia finished the Tamil Nadu innings early, Gautam Gambhir and Aakash Chopra put on their third 100-plus stand of the season. Gambhir missed out on what would have been his third century this season, as he and Chopra fell one after the other. Chopra was the first to go for 55, while Gambhir scored 84. Shikhar Dhawan, the No. 3, held firm even as Delhi kept losing wickets frequently. Dhawan was the last wicket to fall in the day, but his 59 had seen Delhi to within 16 runs of the Tamil Nadu score. For Tamil Nadu, C Suresh took 4 for 65.
Scorecard
Piyush Chawla and Praveen Gupta took four wickets apiece to bowl Hyderabad out for 193, a first-innings lead of 143 runs, and thus laid a foundation for Uttar Pradesh to go for an outright win that will ensure them a place in the semi-finals.After an early blow, Hyderabad had proceeded to 69 for 2 when Gupta removed captain Arjun Yadav. In the same over, he got Amol Shinde and Hyderabad struggled for partnerships following that. Only a 46-run eighth-wicket stand between Pragyan Ojha and MP Arjun helped Hyderabad avoid the follow-on.Earlier, resuming the day at 293 for 6, UP added 43 runs before being bowled out.
Scorecard
P Vijay Kumar bagged his maiden first-class five-for to bowl Bengal out for 98, a first-innings lead of 23 for Andhra. Andhra were 147 for 6 in their second innings, setting up an exciting finish to the low-scoring match at the Eden Gardens.Bengal needed an outright win to give themselves a chance of avoiding relegation and their abject batting performance didn’t help their cause after the bowlers had shot Andhra out for 121. They were 46 for 1 at one stage. Vijay Kumar struck twice in one over and triggered a dramatic collapse – nine wickets fell for 52 runs. Vijay Kumar also accounted for the crucial wickets of Manoj Tiwary and Laxmi Shukla.Hemal Watekar gave Andhra a quick start, but they they too collapsed from 88 for 1 to 109 for 6, thanks to Ranadeb Bose. After the middle-order caved in, MSK Prasad and AG Pradeep consolidated, adding an unbroken 38 runs for the seventh wicket.
ScorecardIn the relegation face-off match, Himachal Pradesh obtained a crucial first-innings lead over Rajasthan by bowling them out for 218. Vikramjeet Malik took four wickets, while Vishal Bhatia and Ashok Thakur took two apiece.The rot for Rajasthan started in the first over of the day when Malik claimed Vineet Saxena’s wicket. Although Shubhanshu Vijay put together two useful partnerships with Rajesh Bishnoi and Nikhil Doru, the rest folded easily. Vijay missed out on a maiden century by 12 runs when he became the sixth wicket to fall with Rajasthan 90 behind Himachal’s score. Malik, Bhatia and Thakur took a wicket apiece in quick time and Bhatia effected a run-out to take the last four wickets for 28 runs.
ScorecardShiv Sunder Das scored a painstaking unbeaten century to take Orissa close to a first-innings lead against Baroda which, if they hold on for a draw should be enough to ensure they don’t get relegated.After Orissa took the last Baroda wicket early in the day, their batsmen dug in and ground the bowlers down. Baroda had to wait for 15 overs for their first breakthrough, following which Das and Niranjan Behera added 65 for the second wicket in 32.4 overs. Although Baroda got the third wicket soon, Das and debutant left-hand batsman Payas Sinha batted the rest of the day out. Das ended the day on 100 from 275 deliveries, while Sinha had scored 43.
Scorecard
The Shitanshu Kotak special continued for the second day running as he scored a personal-best unbeaten 162 to all but ensure Saurashtra would not lose the match, the only circumstance that can keep them out of the semi-final line-up.Barring the three overs that Mumbai took to get their first wicket, Kotak has now batted for the rest of the two days and has faced a whopping 514 deliveries for his 162. Resuming the day at 202 for 2, Saurashtra had lost three wickets for 43 runs, but Kotak found support in Ravindra Jadeja who also outdid his previous best of 53. When Jadeja got out for 87, Saurashtra were one short of 400, but Kotak was clearly not done.For Mumbai the medium-pacers Murtaza Hussain and Mun Mangela managed four wickets apiece.Karnataka 239 for 5 (Pawan 102, Raghu 67) trail Maharashtra 276 by 37 runs
Scorecard KB Pawan scored a century and C Raghu a half-century to take Karnataka close to a first-innings Maharashtra in Ratnagiri. After Robin Uthappa and Devraj Patil fell early, Pawan and Raghu consolidated the innings and added 156 runs for the third wicket. This was Pawan’s second first-class century.Although Maharashtra took three wickets for 28 to come back into the match, they met dour resistance from Yere Goud and Thilak Naidu who added 27 unbeaten runs for the sixth wicket. Maharashtra need no less than an outright win to stay alive in the competition, while Karnataka are already out of the semi-finals race.

Sport has always drawn crowds, even in the most hostile conditions. Tuesday morning in Canberra was no different with dark grey clouds looming ominously. Rains lashed the Manuka Oval from between seven and half past ten, raising doubts if any game was possible in the first place.That didn’t dampen the hundreds who started gathering outside the oval in little flocks at the scheduled start time (10 am). For them, despite the weather, the game was still on. And like in every crowd, where there is a bunch that stands out with its characteristic fervour, there was one here too making heads turn. Shaking their bodies and tapping their feet, they created a buzz with their livewire intensity.The Appu Army, the latest addition to the existing bunch that includes the Barmy Army (England), Wave the Flag (Australia) and Bharat Army (India), were here to follow their side closely. The pouring rain didn’t matter to them. They had come down from Sydney in droves. Their red coloured T-shirts made them stand out and were joined by their friends in hay-coloured sombrero-hats.They kept playing the distinctive tune that lets you know the Sri Lankans are around. The Appu Army was in full swing and lent a carnival-like atmosphere as they marched up and down the main drag behind the Don Bradman stand inside the ground. The horns and the whistles kept blowing, so did the conch shells and the hand bells. So festive was the atmosphere that it was difficult for the Indians not to soak it in.The Appu Army, under a month old, is the concept of Lal Jacobs, a Sydney-based web designer. Jacobs’ friends had been coaxing him to starting something like the Barmy Army for a while and he decided to do something about it during Sri Lanka’s tour game against the Australian Prime Minister’s XI here last month.”I just wanted to start something that would help the Sri Lankans enjoy the game more,” Jacobs says with a smile, adding that he doesn’t intend to emulate the Barmy Army’s style of traveling with the team around the world. For Jacobs, originally from Sri Lanka, it’s about getting people together whenever there is an opportunity.Interestingly there were a few Tamils wearing red T-shirts with a map of Sri Lanka that had “Voice of Tamils. Where’s humanity” painted across the north and east, which has borne the bulk of the violence over the past few decades. Jacobs agrees sport is one of the best mediums to get the message of peace across. “Cricket is one game that gets both the Tamils and the Sinhalese together which is such a good thing”. It was definitely the case at the Manuka Oval, where ethnic Tamils were seen mingling freely with the Sinhalese. In the aftermath of the Harbhajan Singh-Andrew Symonds affair, where cricket was pushed to the background and the crowds turned partisan, this was a happy turn of events.”It doesn’t matter if it’s a truncated game. We are here to enjoy Sehwag, Tendulkar and Jayasuriya blast, that’s what matters,” a beaming Jacobs said as he emptied his pint of beer. Meanwhile the drum beats carried on as did the rain.

Rain affected more than half a day’s play as Tamil Nadu and Hyderabadsettled for a tame draw in their KSCA Coca Cola Under-25 Tournamentmatch at the Maharaja Jayachamarajendra Wodayar Sports Complex inBangalore on Saturday.Play started only at 14.15 hours on the third and final day due to acontinuous drizzle in the morning. Resuming at the overnight score of262 for 8, Hyderabad’s first innings folded up at 290. Ravichandra(104), who was stranded at 97 overnight, completed his century in notime. However he was the first to go when he was caught at square legby K Velmurugan off DS Doss. Then Fatima Reddy (17 notout) andMallikarjun (6) took the score on to 290 when Mallikarjun foundhimself stranded out of his crease.Tamil Nadu in reply made a disasterous start to their second inningslosing opener Ravindra John (0) off the fifth ball of the innings whenhe offered a catch to Saberwal off Ghouse Baba. Then the other openerS Badrinath (3) and N Lokesh (19) took the score upto 26. Badrinathwas the next to be dismissed when he gave a chance to Fatima Reddy atmidwicket off the bowling of Ghouse Baba. Ghouse Baba claimed histhird wicket of the innings, that of Lokesh, when he shattered thebatsman’s defences.C Hemanth Kumar (11) and R Satish (10) then took the score on to 49for 3 when play was called off for the day. Tamil Nadu got 5 pointswhile Hyderabad had to be content with three. Tamil Nadu now take onKarnataka in the finals which is to be played at M Chinnaswamy Stadiumin Bangalore from October 9 to 11.

In the Super Eights at the World Cup, Bangladesh were expected to win one match – against Ireland. They didn’t. On the eve of the series against India, living up to expectations remains the biggest challenge for them. Now that they have been allowed the company of big teams – mainly after wins over India and South Africa at the World Cup – it’s up to them to stay there. They are somewhere at a set and a break up in the course of making an upset in a tennis match. Winning a series against India will give them the second set.Saqibul Hasan, one of Bangladesh’s left-arm-spinner trio and more than a handy batsman, admitted today that there was a lot of expectation from their side, and playing in front of home crowds added to the pressure. “We won against India at World Cup; that’s past. And this is home ground. There is big pressure, because there’s lot of expectation.”The joke that they didn’t get enough time to practise has become a serious question from the Bangladeshi press. But Saqib said it was not a major concern for them. “The last tour, the World Cup was good for us, so we do not need much time to practice.”The team, according to Saqib, are trying to not think about the expectations. Their practice session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium was one of a team at peace with themselves. The first ones to walk out of the dressing room shouted in glee as they saw a game of football being set up. The bowlers played against the batsmen for 20 minutes. Mashrafe Moratza scored for the bowlers, and Aftab Ahmed equalised and then scored the winner for the batsmen. This was followed by fielding drills; one mini-stump was hit regularly by Bangladeshi fieldsmen throwing on the run. Fielding, as it should be, was enjoyed as much as batting or . The nets focused at big-hitting too – they are not big power-hitters, most of the Bangladeshi batsmen.The looks of the team do no suggest they have put too much pressure on themselves, but to prove – in front of home crowds – that their exploits at the World Cup were not a fluke has to be at the back of their minds.This series is also the last series for Dav Whatmore as their coach. Bangladesh have spent a memorable time with Whatmore at the helm, so they would also want to give him a suitable farewell.When Saqib said they would be under pressure, and looking at the way Bangladesh played against Ireland, one can’t help but feel that they themselves are their first competition. India will feature later – after an inner battle is won.The ground where they practised today so joyously will undergo a metamorphosis on May 10. Around 35,000 pairs of eyes will be watching them. They will be playing an Indian team which the people now believe they can beat. This will be an entirely new pressure for them. On paper, man for man, India are still a stronger team and Bangladesh will have to bring more than their A game. Welcome to the big league.

Cricket Australia has signed off on a drugs policy that allows players to be caught four times before they are in danger of losing their contract. The document, which was prepared with the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA), was formed after a survey of the country’s players, with 88% saying the game needed an illicit substances code.The policy allows for a suspended fine and ban of 20 days for a first transgression and a second offence results in more small fines, a 40-day ban and the player’s state and country administration being told. A break of 12 months comes with a third violation and a fourth could lead to immediate termination of the player’s contract.”Cricket Australia is serious about keeping our sport drug free with a policy which balances deterrence with player welfare,” James Sutherland, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, said. “Cricket Australia, state and territory associations and the ACA understand that cricketers have the ability to influence the lives of others.”Paul Marsh, the ACA chief executive, said the policy had the right formula between stopping players from using drugs and providing support for those who were caught. The code will cover all men’s and women’s internationals, domestic and 2nd XI games and allows for random out-of-competition testing.

England 253 and 467 for 7 dec beat New Zealand 168 and 431 (Southee 77*, Taylor 74, Bell 69, Fleming 66, Panesar 6-126) by 121 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out

England secured their first overseas series victory in three years with a convincing 121-run win in Napier, even though they were delayed by a thrilling onslaught from New Zealand’s impressive debutant, Tim Southee, who clubbed his country’s fastest Test half century off 29 balls and finished on 77 off 40 deliveries with nine sixes. However, Monty Panesar was the final-day match-winner and ended with career-best 6 for 126 despite a late mauling from Southee.It was an enjoyable end to a series that has been played in fine spirit. Southee’s display gives New Zealand something to cling to after a summer that has seen their resources stretched to breaking point by various departures. For a while his mighty swinging after lunch rekindled memories of Nathan Astle’s onslaught at Christchurch seven years ago. He took 41 off two Panesar overs on his way to a fifty, and then continued to swing hard when England went back to pace. But when he lost the strike in Ryan Sidebottom’s comeback over he left Chris Martin five balls to face and it only took four as Sidebottom, England’s outstanding bowler of series, fittingly finished the match by plucking out the off stump for his 24th wicket.Although some of England’s cricket has been far from impressive it’s a commendable fightback after going 1-0 down after their humiliation in Hamilton. They also had to fight back from a disastrous start in this match when they slumped to 4 for 3 on the first morning. A number of players have rehabilitated themselves after lean spells, notably Andrew Strauss with his 177 and today it was the turn of Panesar, who continued his probing display from the fourth day even if he was clinging to his career-best at the end.This was his seventh five-wicket haul and first for nine Tests dating back to his successful series against West Indies last year. He finished the Sri Lanka tour before Christmas with a few questions being raised over his effectiveness and this match-winning contribution is a timely boost. Panesar’s role in the second innings was crucial because there was nothing in the surface for the quick bowlers.New Zealand raced out of the blocks against the new ball as Michael Vaughan set attacking fields. Ross Taylor took three boundaries off Sidebottom’s opening over and a slew of shots took him to fifty off 85 balls and carried him top of the series run chart. With New Zealand searching for someone to replace Stephen Fleming’s runs, Taylor has a huge role to play. He also took a positive route against Panesar, but then one gripped a little and took the outside edge for Paul Collingwood to take a sharp low catch at slip.The sixth-wicket stand was worth 104 with Brendon McCullum for once being overshadowed, providing 38 of the partnership, and after cutting a short ball from Panesar through point he was beaten on the back foot by a quicker delivery. Sidebottom and Stuart Broad looked tired after their earlier exertions , while Jeetan Patel showed there were few demons even for a limited batsman as he twice drove Sidebottom straight down the ground.Patel and Daniel Vettori added a comfortable 48 in 14 overs with threat only coming from one end. Panesar broke through again when Patel swept firmly to backward square-leg and was well held by Broad diving low to his right. Vettori flayed away merrily while he could before providing James Anderson with his first wicket of a disappointing match when he gloved a pull. It came in rather curious circumstances as the previous delivery had been called dead ball to Anderson’s annoyance, but he made the next delivery count.With Martin the last man it looked as though England would be able to celebrate over lunch. Anderson struck him a nasty blow on the helmet with the first ball of the final over, but Martin then squeezed a single. Southee swung the last delivery before the break onto the midwicket stand roof, a prelude to what was to follow as 71 runs came off 6.5 overs. It was far too late to save this series, but Southee is part of the young brigade who will have a key role to play when these two teams meet up again, at Lord’s, in six week’s time.

The Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) is stepping in to help make sense of the conflict that has developed between the ECB and the Indian Cricket League (ICL). A number of county players are effected by the ECB’s recent tough stance against ‘unofficial events’ and face the prospect of bans if they return to the ICL.Chris Read, Paul Nixon, Darren Maddy and Vikram Solanki all played in the first ICL tournament last year and, although that won’t impact on their domestic future, they have been warned that if they return a one-year ban will be imposed. Overseas players are also caught in the middle with Shane Bond, Jason Gillespie, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Mushtaq Ahmed unlikely to gain the No Obligation Certificates they require from their home boards.”The ECB have recently announced profound regulatory and policy changes with regard to players’ participation in unauthorised cricket,” said a PCA statement. “Several cricketers, including a number who are currently playing in ICL and have connections to English counties, have expressed serious reservations about the changes themselves, the rationale for them and the ultimate consequences for players and have asked for the PCA’s help and advice.”The ECB have been keen to ward off the threat of the ICL while getting on board with the Indian Premier League (IPL). Although no England players will be involved in the first IPL tournament which starts next month, that is set to change in the future even though it could impact the domestic season.”The PCA is about to begin pre-season meetings with every county squad and will be able to comment further in early April after it has discussed all of these complex issues with its members in detail,” they added.”In the best interests of its members and the game in England and Wales, the PCA will work with the individual players, the ECB and the counties to try to resolve the many outstanding individual player issues created by the ECB’s recent decisions and regulatory changes.”Around 20 players due to participate in county cricket this coming season are directly affected, and the longer-term consequences for all players are not yet fully understood. The PCA are optimistic that honest and open dialogue with all stakeholders will ensure the best outcome for the sport.”