Ian Bell, who has been recalled to the one-day squad, knew he had to expand his game otherwise he would be left behind

Andrew McGlashan16-Jun-2010One of the key improvements in England’s recent rise as a one-day side has been their ability to hit sixes and it is clear that power is now a pre-requisite to get into the team. This has led to a number of batsmen reinventing themselves and Ian Bell, who has been recalled to the one-day squad, knew he had to follow suit or get left behind.Bell last played an ODI in November 2008 and his one-dimensional style of batting, perfectly suited to Test cricket, meant he was struggling to find a place in the increasingly forceful limited-overs game. His priority became saving a Test career that looked like falling by the wayside in South Africa last winter, but following a successful tour he was given hope of a future in one-day cricket when he toured UAE with the Lions and now he is back in the limited-overs set up.”I’ve certainly tried to be stronger in terms of hitting over the top but I think it’s about recognising situations when I need to do that and also when to knock it around,” he said. “Going on the Lions trip to Dubai I found a method to my game that worked quite nicely in Twenty20 with a lot of advice from Graham Thorpe.”It’s just a matter of moving that to England. If you are going to bat at the top in the modern game you have to be able to have a mixed game in terms of hitting over the top and being assertive at certain times in the game. I’ve tried to do that with Warwickshire and hopefully I can carry it forward.”His one-day county form certainly suggests that the changes Bell has made are working. He has been making runs at an eye-catching strike-rate of 145.13 in the Friends Provident t20, alongside scoring at better than a run-a-ball in the Clydesdale Bank 40 while maintaining an average over 50 in both. He was under instructions to become more commanding at the crease and take charge of situations, rather than playing in his own bubble.”It’s something Andy [Flower] has spoken to me about,” he said. “It’s something he wants to see more of, he’s seen glimpses of it but more consistently. A few things were asked of me in one-day cricket which I needed to go away and work on with Gilo [Ashley Giles, Warwickshire’s director of cricket] and hopefully the way I have played for Warwickshire is the way England have wanted me to play.”Modern one-day cricket has moved on from guys who play normal shots. You can’t be one dimensional. No one has told me to change as a person but one-day cricket has moved on from what it was 10 or even five years ago. Playing on the subcontinent, and anywhere around the world, you have to have different strengths to your game.”It’s not going to be every game you are going to be required to play like that but I’ve got to show I don’t just have the touch game but the other side as well. It’s trying to get two parts of my game working together.”Bell will hope for a chance to show off his new expansive repertoire in the next two weeks, beginning with the one-off match against Scotland and followed by five against Australia. Plenty can change between now and the start of the Ashes on November 25, but that doesn’t dampen the enthusiasm for some early sparring.”It’s a great time to see where both teams are,” said Bell. “The World Twenty20 final was a great momentum booster for us and I’m sure the Australians will be desperate to do well in the series. It’s a good chance for us to go out and show we are improving.”

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said his team couldn’t have scripted it better after they beat India by ten wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the first Test

Sa'adi Thawfeeq in Galle22-Jul-2010Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said his team couldn’t have scripted it better after they beat India by ten wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the series. The hosts experienced the dual joy of winning comprehensively and watching Muttiah Muralitharan bag his 800th wicket in his final Test to seal victory.”When we came here on the first day, we got to a good start, “Sangakkara said. “The second day was washed out and there were some doubts in my mind whether we could get a result. Once we got that 500 platform and the way Lasith (Malinga) bowled, there was no way we were going to lose the match,” Sangakkara said.Sangakkara said Murali, despite talk of whether he would get to the 800-wicket landmark, remained focused on winning the Test. “What we spoke about was let’s enjoy. There was no other person to do it than Murali. We’ve got to enjoy the test because he had done so much for us over the years.”There’s nothing more we can do, we wanted to win this match. Murali never spoke about the 800 wickets, although the press did. He was focused on winning the match.””I don’t think we gave Murali a gift, he gave us one. At the start the game I said that if Murali picks up eight wickets, we will win the match. He got eight wickets and on the other hand Malinga gave good support. As a team, we are thrilled that in his last game, Murali, like he has done for 18 years, gave us one more win.”Sangakkara also paid tribute to Murali for his contribution to Sri Lankan cricket and hoped he would continue to remain part of the set-up. “We are indebted for him for all what he’s done. People like Arjuna (Ranatunga) were able to get us to this state. After 18 years for the work load he did, Murali is retiring from Tests today, but I feel as a team we are happy that we played with him for so long and hopefully he’ll join us in the ODIs. If we can get Murali’s service in some way or the other, even as a consultant or just to come and sit and have a chat in the dressing room is a great thing. I don’t think anyone in our dressing room gets the amount of respect Murali does.”Murali and Lasith Malinga shared 15 of the 20 Indian wickets, and Sangakkara said they, along with a strong collective performance with the bat in the first innings, kept the pressure on India throughout. “It was important that we used Lasith and Murali in spells that counted and got us wickets. I think every spell they bowled they managed to do that.”You can’t forget Tharanga Paranavitana’s contributions with the bat, as well as Rangana Herath’s and Malinga’s. Those are things that won us the game. Lasith came and did what he usually does for us in one-day cricket. The Indians were constantly under pressure. When something gives, usually a couple more follow. We are happy with that.”Malinga returned to the Test format after almost 30 months, and Sangakkara said it was a challenge to have him fit throughout. “We’ve been trying to get Lasith to play all forms of cricket for two years now. We believe in him immensely. He’s a fighter, works as hard as anyone as I have seen. He prepares well to play matches for Sri Lanka. Unfortunately he was feeling a bit stiff. We don’t want to bowl him into the ground. You know, we’ve done it with Murali for so many years. He’s feeling it now.”Test cricket is like that. It’s a hard place for bowlers. Everyone forgets how difficult it is to be in the sun and bowl constantly on sometimes wickets that give you very little. With our cricket board we have been discussing to introduce a bonus scheme for bowlers who play an x number of games per year. At the end of the day, an injury will end your career. This is the prime form of the game and we need everyone hungry to play in this form,” he said.Murali was irreplaceable, Sangakkara said, and the onus was on the rest of the bowling unit to step up in his absence. “My theory is that I am not going to look for another Murali because you are not going to find one. There’ll be just one.”For me, leading out the side without Murali is a huge loss. But it gives us an opportunity to see how really the other bowlers will be able to give us test wins. I don’t think anyone is going to take us eight-fors and nine-fors for us. They might to do it once in a while. We’ll share the wickets out, do the hard work necessary and win games for Sri Lanka by bowling the unique way.”

Mohammad Yousuf’s rehabilitation back into the Pakistan fold is complete as the batsman was recalled to a 16-man squad to face England in a five-ODI series and two Twenty20 internationals in September

Osman Samiuddin24-Aug-2010 Mohammad Yousuf’s rehabilitation back into the Pakistan fold is complete as the batsman was recalled to a 16-man squad to face England in a five-ODI series and two Twenty20 internationals in September. There was no recall, however, for Yousuf’s long time middle-order ally, Younis Khan, the selection committee and captain claiming he has not been “cleared” by the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt.In another significant move, Shoaib Malik, a limited-overs fixture in Pakistan sides for a number of years, has been dropped. Mohsin Khan, the chairman of selectors, was economical with his words when asked about the significance of Malik’s dropping. “Lack of form, lack of performance,” he told Cricinfo.Yousuf was retired from all cricket until recently in protest at an indefinite ban from selection the board had placed on him. After being cleared by the PCB, though, he answered an SOS to bolster an inexperienced and flimsy middle order in the England Test series and played a vital role in Pakistan’s third Test win at The Oval. Yousuf had led Pakistan in four ODIs in Australia at the turn of the year but missed their last ODI assignment, the Asia Cup in June, because of the punishment.Younis had also played in the ODIs in Australia, but with limited success. In the aftermath of the tour, he was also handed the same punishment as Yousuf but has not been able to reach a resolution with the board. A number of other players who were banned have reached a compromise with Butt and had their punishments overturned. “I asked the chairman PCB about the situation with Younis twice,” captain Shahid Afridi said. “But the clearance wasn’t given by the PCB. I did what I had to do.”The other major news is the axing of Malik, who also had a ban imposed and lifted in quick time after the Australia tour. Malik was in poor form during the ongoing Test series in England and was dropped from the side for the third Test. Over the last 12 months Malik averaged 30 with the bat in 11 ODIs, with only one fifty-plus score: a Champions Trophy hundred against India. Take that out and he averaged 20The squad is a significant one as the countdown begins to the 2011 World Cup, due to start in February. Afridi said he was looking to build a pool of 20-25 players between now and then; Pakistan are scheduled to take on England, South Africa, New Zealand and possibly Zimbabwe in ODIs in that time.In that light, two notable performers from the Tests against England have been called up. Azhar Ali, who played two innings of immense significance amid a sequence of low scores, had his first limited-overs call up. Wahab Riaz, who was a part of the ODI squad two years ago, also returned following an impressive Test debut at The Oval.”In a 50-over game, there is still a lot of batting to be done,” Mohsin said. “We’ve had problems batting the fulll quota of overs in the past so we felt the need for batsmen in this squad who can play long innings. Yousuf is one, and that is why he is in the side, and Azhar we feel is another.”Three others picks are significant. Fawad Alam, whose exclusion from the Asia Cup and the England Tests , was criticised, returned to beef up a lower middle-order in which he impressed in Australia. Mohammad Hafeez, in and out of the side, over the last two years came back in place of Imran Farhat, presumably as an opening option. And Shoaib Akhtar continued his remarkable return to the international scene, retaining his place from the Asia Cup and the Twenty20 internationals against Australia to complete a strong pace attack that includes Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir and a fit-again Umar Gul, alongisde Riaz.Squad: Shahid Afridi (capt), Salman Butt, Shahzaib Hasan, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Yousuf, Azhar Ali, Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal, Fawad Alam, Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Wahab Riaz.Reserves: Sarfraz Ahmed, Asad Shafiq, Mohammad Irfan, Abdur Rehman.

Andrew Flintoff has announced his retirement from all cricket later on Thursday after giving in to his long-standing knee injuries

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2010Andrew Flintoff has announced his retirement from all cricket after giving in to his long-standing knee injury.Flintoff retired from Test cricket after last year’s Ashes victory and underwent knee surgery straight away. He hoped to return to action this season, but that was ruled out last month and he then aimed for Twenty20 stints in Australia and the IPL. However, his latest meeting with the surgeon has led to what has long seemed the inevitable decision.”It is with both disappointment and sadness that I am today announcing my retirement from all forms of cricket,” said Flintoff. “The decision to end my career came yesterday after consultation with medical advisers. I was told that the problems I have been trying to overcome in re-hab for the last year following the latest in a series of operations would not recover sufficiently to allow a comeback.”Having been told that my body would no longer stand up to the rigours of cricket, I had no alternative but to retire,” he added. “I would like to thank my family, Lancashire Cricket Club, England, all my sponsors, friends and advisers for all the help and support they have given me throughout my career.”Last, but by no means least, I am indebted to the encouragement and support I have always received from England’s magnificent supporters. I will now be taking a break before deciding which future direction to take.”England’s captain, Andrew Strauss, gave a warm tribute to Flintoff ahead of the third ODI against Pakistan at The Oval, the scene of Flintoff’s last hurrah in the 2009 Ashes, when his direct-hit run-out of Ricky Ponting turned the tide of the decisive fifth Test. “I would just like to say on behalf of the England team we would like to congratulate Andrew on an outstanding career,” he said. “”The impact he has had on English cricket has been immense.”Of course, it is a sad day when somebody like that can no longer keep playing. But we would prefer today to celebrate everything he has achieved as an England cricketer.
“The biggest memories I will have of him are how incredibly able he was to make something happen out of nothing with both bat and ball.”He was always the ultimate impact cricketer, somebody who on so many occasions stepped up to the plate. He would put his body on the line on flat wickets when other bowlers were maybe starting to struggle.”Flintoff finishes his career with a tally of 3845 runs in 79 Tests, at an average of 31.77 with five centuries and a best of 167 against West Indies at Edgbaston in 2004. He also claimed 226 wickets at 32.78, with three five-wicket hauls, the last of which came on an emotional final morning against Australia at Lord’s in 2009. In 141 ODIs he finished with 3394 runs and 169 wickets respectively.”Because of the way he bowled, and what he put into it, it was probably not as easy for him to get seven-fors and eight-fors,” said Strauss. “But if you talked to other players around the world, they would always say Andrew was one of the bowlers they least wanted to face – because he could be so hostile. We are all striving to gain the respect of our peers. Andrew certainly did that.”Flintoff’s former England team-mate, Graeme Swann, against whom he first played as a 10-year-old in the 1980s, admitted it was a sad day for English cricket, but suggested that the team had already moved on without him. “This team is bigger than any one individual, but it’s nice when you do get an individual along whom the opposition fear and can win a game off their own back.” he said. “I’m sure a lot of people around the country were looking forward to him coming back. If he can’t, it’s sad, but so be it.””I haven’t seen him for a while, so I don’t know the extent of his injuries, but when you go a while without playing you start to think there’s a reason for it,” added Swann. “But it’s a shame because any team with Fred in is a better side for it. But our team last year was very confident, and didn’t need people going round and geeing up little quivering leaves in the corner.”The zenith of Flintoff’s career was unquestionably the 2005 Ashes, in which he starred with bat and ball to topple the Australians and win back the urn after an 18-year hiatus. It was also, as Swann pointed, a summer that changed the profile of English cricket as a whole. “Itwas a pivotal moment for English cricket,” he said. “The football was terrible at the time and everyone was watching cricket in a cracking summer.”Suddenly Fred was a superstar and deservedly so for the way he played,” added Swann. “He raised the profile of cricket, and out of the whole team he was the ultimate hero. He’s always been the same, never shy to offer his opinion and be the playmaker of the team. That’s why he was such a loveable rogue for the English public to get behind.””I don’t think anyone can put him up in the Botham stakes because Botham is the best allrounder we’ve had, but Fred changed the face of cricket if you like, because he’s the first real celebrity that we’ve had for a long time. And that was all because he was a guy who could change the face of a game at the drop of a hat. His stats don’t back that up, but everyone knows how world-class he could be on his day.”

Salman Butt is continuing to undergo an active training regime and hopes to return to the national side for the series against South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Oct-2010Salman Butt, the former Pakistan captain who’s been provisionally suspended by the ICC for his alleged involvement in the spot-fixing controversy, is continuing with an active training regime and hopes to return to the national side for the series against South Africa in the UAE.Butt and fast bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir – the three suspended players – have lodged appeals against the ICC’s suspension and the hearings will take place in Qatar on October 30 and 31.”My cricket career was going well and I was also doing well, these allegations have damaged by career,” Butt said. “I hope these hurdles are crossed as soon as possible. I think after passing through so much difficulty in your career, your exposure helps you become wiser.”You start to understand your surroundings better and especially who is more sincere with you. This is a hurdle which is a learning process of life.”Butt said he has continued to follow his daily two-hour training and practice routine so he can be ready for a comeback. “I am working hard and doing my bit. The conditions in Lahore and the UAE are the same so I am preparing hard on playing spin.”Following the allegations, made during the fourth Test at Lord’s, the trio were withdrawn from the Pakistan squad for the subsequent ODI series and they returned to Pakistan before being suspended. Pakistan play South Africa in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in a full series, starting this month, comprising two Twenty20s, five ODIs and two Tests.None of the trio have been named in the limited overs or Test squads for the series.

The elite spin of Graeme Swann could be the difference between England and Australia in the upcoming Ashes series, according to one of Australia’s most successful Test offspinners, Ashley Mallett

Brydon Coverdale14-Oct-2010The elite spin of Graeme Swann could be the difference between England and Australia in the upcoming Ashes series, according to one of Australia’s most successful Test offspinners, Ashley Mallett. He believes the selectors should throw Steven Smith in to the side to help Nathan Hauritz, who took six wickets at 65.00 during his disappointing tour of India.Hauritz was barely a threat against India’s strong batting line-up and on the final day of the series, he bowled to a field so defensive that Shane Warne aired his frustration via Twitter. There were also reports of conflict between Hauritz and the captain Ricky Ponting over the line he should bowl, and in the second innings in Bangalore he conceded more than a run a ball.In Hauritz’s defence, few Australian spinners have thrived in India, where even Warne battled for 34 Test wickets at an average of 43.11. One of the best performers was Mallett, who, in five Tests in India claimed 28 victims, and he said the presence of Swann in England’s attack was one of the factors that would go against Australia in the Ashes.”The way it’s shaping I reckon England are going to win the series pretty easily,” Mallett told ESPNcricinfo. “They’ve got a genuine No. 1 spinner, a pretty good attack and they’ve got a pretty good balance in their batting. They’ve got to be favourites.”[Hauritz] has always had a very good temperament, but whether he’s world-class, that’s another thing. They’re crying out for a spinner that’s genuine Test class at the moment. Steve Smith has got to play. I’d play him as a batsman anyway, in front of [Marcus] North, against England.”Mallett said using Smith as a second slow bowler would be a good way to continue his transition into Test cricket without the pressure of being the lead spinner, after he made his first two appearances against Pakistan in England in July. And Mallett believes Hauritz deserves further opportunities, especially with “not much” high-quality spin on the domestic scene.”I think they should go with Hauritz,” Mallett said. “He’s bowled steadily without being an absolute world-beater. He’s been a good support bowler and has kept it pretty tight. He bowled well in England and bowled well last summer in Australia. Okay, he’s had a few downers in India but we’re not playing India in India, we’re playing England in Australia.”The difference in conditions should lift the spirits of Hauritz, who picked up his first two five-wicket hauls during last summer’s home series against Pakistan. Although India is traditionally regarded as the perfect place to bowl spin due to the favourable pitches it is not always as simple as it seems, as the left-armer Ray Bright found during Australia’s 1986 tour.”It’s not all that easy,” Bright said. “You’ve got the heat and humidity, which make gripping the ball difficult. At times the lack of pace and bounce in the wicket makes your margin of error very minimal, so at times you have to bowl tighter length and lines to get through that.”And traditionally India have been magnificent players of spin bowling. They’re used to playing good quality spin bowling all the time and they’re quick on their feet, whether it be going forward or back, so they make you change your length quite often. That can be a difficult part of bowling in those conditions.”Bright, who sees plenty of Australian domestic cricket in his role as a Victoria selector, described Hauritz’s efforts in Test cricket over the past two years as “outstanding”. However, he also believes the national selectors missed an opportunity in Bangalore to give Smith more exposure at the highest level, given that the Border-Gavaskar Trophy was already lost.”He [Smith] needs to bowl a lot more and this is the problem – they take him to India and he doesn’t bowl in matches,” Bright said. “He could have been playing Shield matches but they’ve taken him over there and sat him on the bench. For the development of a spin bowler, you don’t get any better by not bowling.”Both Hauritz and Smith will remain in India over the next couple of weeks for Australia’s one-day series, before they return home to acclimatise back to Australian conditions ahead of the Ashes. England will have just as much opportunity to warm up, with three tour games scheduled before the first Test.

Anil Kumble and his former India team-mates have won the Karnataka State Cricket Association elections

Siddhartha Talya in Bangalore21-Nov-2010Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath have won the elections for president and secretary of the Karnataka State Cricket Association, and Venkatesh Prasad has claimed one of the three vice-president posts, potentially ushering in a new era in cricket administration in India. Their group, formed a few weeks ago, swept aside the challenge led by the incumbent president, Srikanta Datta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, the former maharaja of Mysore, winning 22 of the 24 seats up for grabs.Also elected from their group, as the other two vice-presidents, were former India seamer Roger Binny and Bangalore-based industrialist Sadanand Mayya .The elections were held through Sunday in the KSCA’s clubhouse at Bangalore’s Chinnaswamy Stadium. Counting began late in the evening and Kumble’s win was known well before it was officially announced. He spoke to reporters and claimed victory and, while not formally announcing an agenda, said he would come up with a blueprint for the association over the next few days.”Our idea is to make the KSCA a model association,” he said. “The challenge is to ensure that we deliver. We’d like to include all the members’ inputs.””It’s a victory that will change the perception of sportsmen entering sports administration,” Binny – a World Cup winner in 1983 – told . “Personally for me, this is one of the sweetest victories in an election.” He said cricket would be a priority, with the main goal being “to improve the standard of cricket in Karnataka and develop a great infrastructure at the grassroots level.”Kumble, Srinath and Prasad have all held administrative posts with the BCCI and the ICC. Kumble was named the chairman of the National Cricket Academy in September, while Srinath has been an ICC match referee since 2006.Prasad, currently the bowling coach with Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, has coached the India Under-19 team and the Karnataka Ranji team and was the bowling coach of the national side for two years. He has an administration management degree from the Asian Cricket Council, and is now on assignment with the ACC to help promote the game and develop talent in countries that do not have a cricket playing tradition.

Paul Collingwood enlivened an insufferably dull day of cricket with
three wickets in five overs

Andrew Miller in Melbourne11-Dec-2010

ScorecardIan Bell made another half-century before England’s early declaration•Getty Images

Paul Collingwood enlivened an insufferably dull day of cricket with
three wickets in five overs, before Andrew Strauss scalped the
first-innings centurion, Michael Hill, for 4 with his rarely seen
left-arm chinaman bowling, as England’s pace bowlers aborted their
attempts to impress the selectors ahead of the Perth Test, and left
Monty Panesar and the declaration bowlers to get through their day’s
work on a dreadfully slow pitch.By the close, Victoria had reached 2 for 278 in their second innings,
a lead of 310 following England’s lunchtime declaration on 2 for 184.
With Chris Tremlett, Ajmal Shahzad and Tim Bresnan thwarted by the
conditions, the only wicket to fall in the afternoon session was Aaron
Finch, who set Victoria’s tempo with 45 from 74 balls, before miscuing
a lofted drive at Panesar and holing out to mid-off.Thereafter, England were held up by a pair of debutants, the
20-year-old Ryan Carters, who made 68, and the 18-year-old Alex Keath, who turned his back on an AFL contract with Gold Coast to concentrate on a career in cricket. He started uncertainly as Bresnan and Shahzad probed his defences
with a hint of reverse swing, but grew in confidence as the afternoon
wore on and the sting went out of England’s efforts.It was left to Collingwood’s offcutters to make England’s long-awaited
breakthrough, as Carters stepped across his stumps to be bowled behind
his legs, and two overs later he added a second courtesy of a smart
one-handed catch by Alastair Cook at silly mid-off, as Matthew Wade
drove airily back down the ground. Cook had been off the field
apparently nursing a sore back, but his mobility seemed not in the
slightest bit impaired.Panesar, who had bowled tidily but without assistance from the pitch,
then added a second as John Hastings swung across the line and
top-edged a sweep to Collingwood, running round from slip, who then denied Keath a fifty on debut with a slow, ballooning bouncer that was scuffed through to the keeper. The
session then degenerated into farce with the introduction of Strauss and
Eoin Morgan, who has yet to bat on this tour, but has now bowled three
overs for 37.The highlight of England’s day, however, was Strauss’s third
first-class victim, as Hill was adjudged lbw, a touch unluckily it
appeared, to a back-of-the-hand delivery that appeared to pitch
outside the line of leg stump. Either way, he joined elite company,
with Kevin Pietersen and Stephen Fleming the only two other batsmen to
succumb to his assortment of long-hops. It was left to Jayde Herrick
and Clint McKay to climb into the offerings, with Strauss conceding 51
runs in four overs, and McKay posting 58 not out, his highest
first-class score.”We want to make a competitive game tomorrow, so in order for that to happen we had to allow Victoria to get enough runs to make it competitive tomorrow,” explained Ian Bell at the close of play. “That was really the idea behind it.”In the morning session, England’s batsmen continued where they had
left off in the Brisbane and Adelaide Tests, with Strauss making a
boundary-laden 66, and Bell unbeaten at lunch on 60, his fifth
consecutive fifty-plus score of the tour.Strauss, who resumed on 17 not out, offered a chance on 40 when he
snicked Herrick to Cameron White at first slip, who shelled a
regulation catch, but was otherwise watertight as he brought up his
fifty from 79 balls with a sweep off the left-arm spinner Jon Holland.
It was Holland who ended his stay via a chip to midwicket.By that stage, however, Bell was fully into his stride, and he posted
his fifty with a sweetly timed cover drive off Hastings. Collingwood,
whose opportunities on the tour to date have been limited, cracked
Holland for a big six into the Members’ stand to go to the interval on
29 not out, as England moved to within 32 runs of Victoria’s
first-innings 2 for 216 before declaring.Despite the unhelpful nature of the wicket, Bell reckoned that England would be more than content with the work-out that their bowlers had got, especially with the prospect of a livelier surface at the WACA next week.”It’s always nice to get a couple of wickets, but I think it’s been a hard wicket for the bowlers,” said Bell. “Let’s be fair, it’s so slow out there, but they’ve toiled away and it’s reverse swung, which is good to see because those sorts of skills which might come in at some point at the WACA.”They’ve worked hard, and to be honest with you, it’s great going into Perth that all three of them had a good work-out in batting friendly conditions. It’s much better that than a green seamer where they’ve all taken five-for and bowled a couple of good balls but a couple of bad balls as well. They’ve generally gone at two an over all game and that’s exactly what we want going into a Test match.”

South Africa’s fast bowlers blew India away for 154 after AB de Villiers and JP Duminy had set up a 290-run chase

The Bulletin by Sriram Veera12-Jan-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
AB de Villiers’ 76 off 69 balls set up what turned out to be a winning total of 289 for South Africa•Getty Images

India had to survive the new ball if they were going to make a fist of chasing 290 but they were gasping for breath within 11 overs, after slipping to 43 for 4, and never quite recovered. South Africa had threatened twice to run away to a mammoth total in their innings. India pulled them back on both occasions to keep the target below 300, but the chase went nowhere. South Africa were 82 for 2 in the 14th over before Munaf Patel removed Hashim Amla to slow the innings down, but the hosts bounced back to reach 213 for 3 in the 36th over, when AB de Villiers fell and India clawed their way back once again.The ball was expected to do a bit under lights and the top order, barring Virat Kohli, collapsed without much fight. The dismissal of Yuvraj Singh perfectly captured South Africa’s dominance on a bouncy track. Morne Morkel got one to kick up and jag away from Yuvraj, who got his feet into an awful tangle, and ended up stabbing the ball to first slip.It was that kind of a night: the India batsmen struggled to adapt to the conditions and they went down in a heap. M Vijay was trapped in front in the first over of the innings by a full delivery from Dale Steyn and Sachin Tendulkar perished to a pre-determined move to shuffle across his stumps. There was a short fine-leg in place for Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Tendulkar moved across to drag a short-of-length delivery past that fielder but only succeeded in top-edging a dolly to Steyn.India recovered from 13 for 2 to reach 41 without further damage but a double strike by Morne Morkel pushed them further back. Morne had hustled and hurried Rohit Sharma into having a few injudicious wafts outside off but Rohit was eventually unlucky to be given out, caught behind by AB de Villiers. It was a gem of a delivery that kicked up and straightened just outside off and Rohit hit his pad with the bat as he pushed inside the line but the umpire mistook the sound for an edge.Yuvraj proved a walking wicket in these seaming conditions and India were left staring down the barrel after MS Dhoni’s run out just before the half-way mark. Kohli hit a straight drive but the bowler Wayne Parnell got a hand on it to accidentally run out Dhoni and leave India with a mountain to climb. Kohli hung around for a while but once he fell to Steyn, the lower order just crumbled.South Africa’s bowlers blew away India but it was their batsmen who set up the win. It was a fascinating late afternoon at Durban after Amla’s exit. There was an imminent threat of a collapse in the air: South Africa had a long tail, JP Duminy can be an iffy starter against spin and the ball was starting to stop on the batsman a touch. de Villiers and Duminy initially batted like men who were aware of these threats. They added 47 runs in a little over 12 overs and the hosts had reached 132 for 3 in 25.4 overs when a single shot turned things around for them. de Villiers charged down the track to Harbhajan Singh and didn’t quite seem to connect well, but his sliced golf shot sent the ball into the screaming fans beyond long-off. When Duminy slog swept Yuvraj Singh for a six in the next over, it was official: they had broken free of the shackles.They followed it up with a smart move: they took the Batting Powerplay in the 28th over and looted 45 runs off the five overs. de Villiers made 28 of them, with a hat-trick of fours – a pull, a skillful inside-out hit over cover, and a slice over point – against Ashish Nehra in the final Powerplay over to leave South Africa sitting pretty at 192 for 3.Things were looking dire for India and Dhoni decided to bring in part-time spinners Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina. de Villiers pulled Rohit straight to deep midwicket in the 36th over, David Miller played inside the line to lose his off stump against Raina in the 39th, and then in the 42nd Duminy missed a reverse sweep and was trapped in front by Rohit. The tail didn’t have the skill to add too many and South Africa meandered along to their final score.It was quite a contrast to the frenetic start to the innings, with Amla going after Nehra in some style. The bat-speed was rapid, and time and again he played on the up and through the line. There were some trademark cover drives on a stretched front foot and the highlight was the hat-trick of fours he unleashed against Nehra in the seventh over. Amla whacked a short ball to the midwicket boundary, then walked down the pitch to lace a length delivery to the left of mid-off before he pinged that region with an off drive. There was a caressed straight drive for three runs in the same over and he put away a couple of slower ones from Munaf for boundaries. His dismissal put pressure on the middle order but de Villiers and Duminy ensured that their bowlers had a score to defend.

Kevin Pietersen is targeting an “amazing” one-day series comeback over the next ten days to give the tour of Australia a perfect finish

Andrew McGlashan in Brisbane29-Jan-2011Kevin Pietersen is targeting an “amazing” one-day series comeback over the next ten days to give the tour of Australia a perfect finish. England handed themselves a lifeline with a 21-run victory at Adelaide, but still need to win the three remain matches, starting with the game in Brisbane on Sunday, to steal the trophy.If they can pull it off, it would be a fightback similar to the one England achieved four years ago after appearing down and out during the CB Series before winning two matches to reach the final ahead of New Zealand, and then beating the hosts 2-0. Pietersen missed most of that tournament, having broken a rib in an early match, but has set his sights on a deciding encounter at Perth on February 6.”It’ll be amazing. We were 3-0 down and to be able to fight to the end and turn out in Perth on what could be a final would be incredible. It was nice to win in Adelaide, you always look for momentum but momentum hasn’t meant a lot on this trip so far. It’s a different ground with different conditions and whoever adjusts best will win tomorrow. We can’t afford to lose.”Pietersen has had a mixed series with the bat, beginning with a dominant 78 at the MCG before falling first ball at Hobart. He then missed the Sydney match with a groin strain but returned for Adelaide, where he was caught at long-on for 12.This series has been Pietersen’s comeback into the one-day set-up after he was dropped against Pakistan in September, so he needed a productive series to reaffirm his credentials. England played seven batsmen in the previous match but that’s unlikely to be a long-term solution heading into the World Cup, so no one can afford to lose their form at this juncture.”You are going to get frustrated. I’ve been playing really nicely and have been on this whole trip so far,” Pietersen said. “I was frustrated in Hobart then I’m not sure it was the wrong option the other night but it looked like the wrong option the way I going out, just trying to hit a boundary. But these things happen.”England have a quick turnaround between the end of this tour and the World Cup. The players will have three days at home before departing for the subcontinent to begin preparations, although Paul Collingwood and Graeme Swann have been given extra time off for paternity leave.There are injury concerns over Swann and Tim Bresnan, who flew home from Australia with back and calf injuries respectively, although both remain confident of making the start of the tournament. Pietersen thinks that the enforced breaks can actually benefit England.”The boys will be fresh, the boys will be firing,” he said. “In a weird sort of way it’s quite nice that a few guys have had a few games off and been rested and some guys are back in England because they’ll come back fresh and rearing to go as soon as we jump on that plane.”Although Pietersen remains desperate to finish this tour on a successful he doesn’t think these one-dayers will have a huge bearing on what happens when the World Cup starts. “I’m not sure how vital it will be because conditions will be totally different. I think the first week in the subcontinent when we start getting used to conditions and the make-up of our side, having a full strength team out, that will be really crucial.”