The day after reaching the national finals of the ESCA Under 13’s competition, Somerset went to Dowty CC in Gloucester to take on the old rivals Gloucestershire.Batting first Somerset score 225, with Patick Ost top scoring with 48, Ben Lyon making 32 and Bradley Derrick 30.In reply Gloucestershire were bowled out for 83, giving Somerset victory by 142 runs. There were two wickets each for Ben Lyons, Adam Howarth, and Alex Barrowman.
Day 2 close of play: CFX Academy 222 and 117/8 (Soma 16*, Chari 0*); Manicaland250.Accurate Manicaland bowling tilted the match against the CFX Academy by the close of the second day. After taking a first innings lead of 28, their bowlers seized the initiative by working steadily through a rather submissive batting order, and they should be left with not too difficult a target on the third morning.Patrick Gada and Gary Brent continued to build steadily on Manicaland’sovernight score of 122 for four, in reply to CFX Academy’s total of 222.Gada, 67 overnight and with a century obviously preying on his mind, wasfortunate to survive an easy chance to mid-off when on 71. He did not livelong to enjoy it, being caught at silly point a few minutes later withoutadding to his score; his four runs of the day took more than 40 minutes.Brent played a positive innings of 61 before being surprised andcontroversially given run out by a fine throw from Guy Croxford whenattempting a run off a push by his partner to mid on. He did not receivemuch help from the later batsmen, though, until a determined ninth-wicketpartnership between Andre Soma and Terry Denyer took Manicaland into thelead.After lunch the promising 17-year-old Soma opened his shoulders to goodeffect, but Academy brother Leon broke the annoying stand by bowling Denyerwith a low full toss for 12 and then finishing the innings by having hisbrother caught at mid-on for 22. Manicaland were all out for 250, a lead of28.The Academy second innings never looked confident. Under heavy skies, thebatsmen seemed to find trouble in getting the ball away and wickets fellsteadily against determined and accurate Manicaland seam bowling. GuyCroxford was the only batsman who looked capable of carrying the attack backto the bowlers, but by tea the Academy had lost four wickets and were only20 runs ahead.After the break the batsmen again got bogged down and Croxford added onlythree runs in 25 minutes before being caught off an uppish cut. For afurther hour it seemed as if the team was to subside slowly without spirit,but then Blessing Mahwire discovered that it was possible after all to scoreruns against these bowlers.A good partnership was developing between Mahwire and Leon Soma before they inexplicably seemed to go into their shells again, only for Mahwire (29) to be dismissed lbw just before the close after a 35-run partnership.Unless rain intervenes – which so far it has not – the Academy will have abig task in their attempt to snatch an unlikely victory on the finalmorning.
Mudassar Nazar Photo © CricInfo |
Pakistan went into this match with five pace bowlers expecting the ball to deviate sharply and to take advantage of a pitch, which had been under cover all day yesterday. In my opinion, playing both all-rounders, Razzaq and Azhar was a defensive ploy. Oddly, in recent series the selectors are forever trying to bolster Pakistan’s fragile batting. Saqlain, on the other hand, would have provided Pakistan with much relished variety. No other side in the world could ever comprehend dropping such a world-class performer. I bet some of the Surrey members are mystified by this strange decision.Waqar was very upbeat in his pre-match interview but strangely, the whole team seemed subdued in the morning session. Rashid Latif had a decent workout after a long stint away from the national team but he could have been more vocal and energetic to help boost-up his teammates and keep them on their toes. Right from the outset, Wasim Akram looked out of sorts. He never cocked his wrist properly and seemed unable to hit the seam consistently today. Apart from Azhar Mahmood, all the other bowlers were guilty of bowling short. They forgot that in England in May, one must pitch the ball up to the batsman to give it more distance to swing.Waqar and Razzaq were steady but never looked menacing. Azhar Mahmood was the pick of the bowlers and benefited from bowling a tight line and pitching the ball up to the batsman. Shoaib bowled fast but bowled only three overs in his first spell, casting doubt over his match fitness. Under the same conditions at Lord’s, Glen McGrath decimated the English batting in the last Ashes series.It was important for Pakistan to make an early breakthrough, but Atherton was resolute and gritty and it was a surprise when he played down the wrong line in the end, to give Azhar a much-deserved second wicket. Trescothick has struck a rich vein of form all through the last few weeks of the new English season and was aggressive to put a lot of pressure on Pakistani bowlers by being positive.Eventually, he played a loose shot against Razzaq’s well pitched up ball and was snapped up at gully by Azhar. Vaughan batted like a seasoned professional but the Pakistanis furthered his case by bowling short outside off-stump, clearly his strong suit. Bowling to Vaughan, seemed lacking a game plan and if they had one, they did not stick to it. In the end it was pure luck and a good catch by Rashid Latif to bring his down fall.Nasser Hussain and Graham Thorpe were determined and batted as though they knew their mission. Thorpe, who was Pakistan’s nemesis last winter, looks set to haunt them in summer too. He is by far the best England batsman and the stroke, which brought his fifty, was so reminiscent of my old friend, Javed Miandad. Like Miandad, he is tenacious and has his own agenda in every match. The way he batted against our spinners last winter was a real eye opener for all of us. It took a lot of imagination from Waqar to prize him out. Nevertheless it was a brilliant innings and he may well have already done enough damage in this game.Nasser Hussain was at his patient best. He survived a couple of close leg before decisions but he hung in there for his team’s sake. He blocked our best bowler Azhar in the afternoon and prospered in the post-tea session with some help from our tiring bowlers.While all is not lost, Pakistan needs to have a good day tomorrow otherwise they might be looking up at the gray skies to ease them out of their predicament. My honest view is their dilemma is self-inflected.Pakistan’s out fielding today, was at its worst. English batsmen were allowed to pick up singles at will and some of the balls that crossed the boundary were well within the reach of the fielders. Modern dives and slides seemed to be a thing of the past again.If Pakistan team wants to recapture its glory days in England, I am afraid their work rate needs serious examination. Why were the tourists forced to bowl Younis Khan on the 1st day when they had five fast bowlers at their disposal? It does not make any sense to me. Does it to you?
Ed:Mudassar Nazar is a veteran of 76 tests and 122 ODIs. He is currently the chief coach of Pakistan’s National and Regional Cricket Academies. In view of the overwhelming interest of users in CricInfo’s articles, we have invited him to write for us.
In a bid to revive international cricket in Pakistan, a World XI will play two exhibition Twenty20 matches against a Pakistan Star XI, the Sindh sports minister Dr Mohammad Ali Shah has announced.The ‘World XI’ team – a name the ICC has objected to*, since, as per an report, it “doesn’t permit the names World or World XI for exhibition matches” – is comprised of former and active professional players from Sri Lanka, West Indies, South Africa and Afghanistan. The two matches will be played on October 20 and 21 at the National Stadium Karachi with former Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya slated to lead the World XI against a Shahid Afridi-led Pakistan XI.”World XI team will be arriving in Karachi on October 18 to play a series of two twenty20 matches,” Shah said. “There are some notable player touring and this is a big breakthrough.”I have been working from last one year to make this event possible. We have finalised all the arrangements to hold these matches in a befitting manner under tight security. Both matches will be played under floodlights. The event will give a soft image of Pakistan around the world and would encourage the teams to visit Pakistan.””Around 5,000 policemen will be employed to avoid any lapse and we are sure that these arrangements will put the players at ease,” said Shah. “All the players are excited over the prospect of visiting Pakistan.”The idea to bring a World XI to Pakistan was first lobbied a year ago, but the tour was cancelled twice earlier this year when PCB refused to sanction the tournament. The PCB has issued ‘No Objection Certificates’ to the contracted players due to participate this time and has allowed the use of the National Stadium, but all the logistic arrangements, broadcasting deals and security arrangements were made by Shah with the support of the local government in Karachi.Pakistan has not had international cricket since terrorists ambushed the Sri Lanka team bus during a Test match in Lahore in March 2009. Since then, Pakistan has had to play most of their ‘home’ matches in the UAE. The PCB’s recent attempt to have Bangladesh tour were stymied when the Bangladesh high court set a four-week embargo on the national team’s plans to visit Pakistan, citing concerns over security.World XI: Sanath Jayasuriya (capt), Ricardo Powell, Steven Taylor, Jermaine Lawson, Adam Sanford (West Indies), Justin Kemp, Loots Bosman, Andre Nel, Andre Seymore, Nantie Hayward (South Africa), Shapoor Zadran and Mohammad Shahzad (Afghanistan). Officials: Alvin Kallicharran (coach cum manager)Pakistan XI: Shahid Afridi (capt), Younis Khan, Nasir Jamshed, Asad Shafiq, Shahzaib Hasan, Khalid Latif, Umar Akmal, Fawad Alam, Shoaib Malik, Umar Gul, Mohammad Sami, Wahab Riaz, Sarfraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper), Imran Nazir*04:44pm GMT, October 17: This article has been updated following the ICC’s objection to the team name
ScorecardJeetan Patel took two Sussex wickets in the second innings after his unbeaten 78 gave Warwickshire a useful lead•Getty Images
It is sometimes in their absence that a player’s worth becomes most apparent.Certainly the absence of Monty Panesar has had a vast impact on Sussex. Not only are they missing him in this game, but his departure has forced them to change their whole first-class strategy. It might even cost them the title.If that sounds like hyperbole, consider this: if Yorkshire are defeated or even held to a draw by Durham and Sussex win this match, the distance between the clubs will narrow substantially. Then bear in mind that Sussex’s final three games are against Durham, home and away, and Yorkshire, at home, and the potential points swing is vast.The problem is, without Panesar, Sussex are going to struggle to win games. While his returns in the first months of the season were modest, this dry pitch might have suited him nicely. There is not vast turn, but had Panesar been here, Sussex would have had a far better chance of forcing a result on the final day.That does not mean Sussex were wrong to part company with Panesar. His behaviour had become aloof and bizarre and that late-night incident outside a nightclub was not the aberration some might like to suggest. At a club that prides itself on its family values, Panesar asking children in search of autographs for money – as he sometimes did – was not acceptable.So both parties had to move on. But there is no getting away from the fact that Sussex, without their stock bowler and spin threat, look bereft in the field. Their pace attack, led by the excellent Steve Magoffin and the vastly improved Chris Jordan, remains dangerous but without Panesar to plug up an end while they rest, or to exploit the helpful conditions when they arise, Sussex lack a Plan B.In the long term, Sussex may well look to bring in another spinner. With Magoffin, who here claimed his third five-wicket haul of an excellent season, likely to retain the overseas spot, one option will be to explore the Kolpak market. Robin Peterson is one name that may well be of interest.In the short term Panesar’s place, in this game at least, has been taken by Will Beer, a locally developed legspinner, with decent control and a clear affinity for the club. Whether he has the pace or the bite to sustain a career at this level is open to debate. On this slow wicket, he has looked painfully slow but perhaps when the nerves subside and the pitch offers more pace, he can threaten more.He may have a huge opportunity, perhaps even a career-defining opportunity, on the final day. Judging by the enterprising manner in which Michael Yardy, in particular, batted in the third session of the final day, Sussex retain hopes of setting up a declaration. Their seamers will, no doubt, threaten with the new ball. But on a dry, fourth-innings pitch, much may be required of Beer.Sussex’s current difficulties underline the worth of Jeetan Patel, the New Zealand offspinner, to Warwickshire. At first glance, he may have appeared a modest overseas signing. He had, after all, a first-class bowling average over 38 and few pretensions as a batsman.But his worth to Warwickshire has been immense. Not only is he almost ever present – he may well be the only Warwickshire player to have participated in every Championship fixture by the end of the season and he is already signed to return in 2014 – but he has claimed 49 Championship wickets and scored four half-centuries. He has now scored 81 more runs in one fewer innings than his top-order colleague, William Porterfield.Patel’s no nonsense lower-order batting has been a bonus. Here, as so often before, he took the game away from a tired attack with a spirited innings that turned a likely first-innings deficit into a lead of 83 runs.While Tom Milnes fell two short of an increasingly impressive half-century, Patel added 126 for Warwickshire’s last three wickets, with Maurice Chambers and Recordo Gordon both contributing well by their standards. Indeed, the 45 minutes for which Chambers batted is believed to constitute one of the longest innings of his career. It is remarkable how the prospect of unemployment can motivate.There was bad news for Warwickshire, though. The ball that dismissed Tim Ambrose on day two, a fine bouncer from Jordan, also broke his right thumb. While the club hope he may be able to bat if required and insist the injury is not season ending, they were obliged to draft 18-year-old Peter McKay behind the stumps as a replacement.Sussex’s openers almost worked off the deficit on their own but, once Patel struck – removing Chris Nash and Luke Wells before Yardy, responding to Ed Joyce’s sharp call, was run out a super throw from Chambers – Sussex reached stumps with the game, once again, just about in the balance.An intriguing final day looms. Both sides may fancy their chances of a result but, with that short boundary on one side – just 49 yards – and Sussex looking a little short in terms of their spin threat, it will prove desperately difficult to set a target. The incentive is there, though. If either one of these sides can engineer a victory here, their title aspirations will remain just about viable.
Australia may depart from nearly a century of tradition – and global cricket custom – to play Sheffield Shield matches over five days in order to more closely mirror Test match playing conditions, under a proposal placed before Cricket Australia by the national team performance manager Pat Howard.Among numerous ideas floated by Howard as a way of revitalising the Shield and ensuring it provides a better grounding for international aspirants in the wake of Australia’s grim Test match results so far in 2013, the concept of five-day first-class combat down under has been costed and will be discussed by CA for possible introduction in future summers beyond 2013-14.Howard’s proposal underlines the CA high performance regime’s concern about the drift of Shield matches towards three-day results and “sporting” pitches, a trend that has been reflected in the breakdown of Australia’s batting production line in recent years. In the wake of the Lord’s Test, the Ashes tourists Usman Khawaja and Matthew Wade both expressed a desire for domestic pitches to return to their more traditionally contrasting characteristics, from Sydney’s spin to Perth’s bounce.”We want as much of what is happening at international level to be mirrored at domestic level,” Howard told ESPNcricinfo. “The goal here in the shorter term is get far more domestic cricket to go in to the fourth day at the moment. If there was five days of cricket available we would be confident of matches having results, but also both batsman and bowlers having to deal with different conditions.”Other concepts designed to ensure Shield matches are played over a more considerable duration include closer monitoring of the standard of first-class pitches with possible penalties for days in which more than 14 wickets fall. Next summer’s domestic limited overs competition has been shifted to an early season slot in the forthcoming summer, allowing six Shield matches to be played in the lead-up to the final two Tests of 2013-14 without any change in format for players to negotiate.The lengthening of Shield matches to five days is not without precedent, as the competition final has always been played over that length of time. In the competition’s earliest years between 1892 and 1927, every match was played to a finish, often stretching into a fifth day. Between 1927-28 and 1930 the Shield was contested over five days. But in every season since 1930-31 each fixture excluding the decider has been fought over four.A move to five-day matches would also take after the universal introduction of four-day County Championship fixtures for the 1993 English season, after more than 120 years of three-day cricket. This change has been cited often as one of the turning points in the English game, and was encouraged in part by the status of Australia’s domestic system as that which best grounded players for Test match duty.Twenty years on and CA may be about to venture even further into recreating the conditions and rhythms of a Test.
Mohammad Ashraful was the elephant in the room when the ICC and BCB were making their announcements on match-fixing. Though he was not named, and there was no official confirmation from the ICC that he was among the nine individuals charged with alleged violation of the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s anti-corruption code during the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League, he was present in every other way – and had met the officials earlier in the day.The player said he had received a letter from the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) officials when he met them early in the morning at the hotel where the ACSU are staying and where the ICC-BCB press conference was held in the afternoon.The ICC CEO Dave Richardson was pressed a number of times during the press conference to name the nine individuals but he didn’t budge. However, he said that the disciplinary tribunal could find Ashraful’s confession and cooperation as “mitigating factors”.”In any disciplinary proceedings where the accused show remorse, tell the truth or cooperate with the inquiry, [these] are mitigating factors which the disciplinary tribunal can take into account in determining an appropriate punishment,” Richardson said. “That would apply to Ashraful as all the other individuals who may be charged.”Ashraful, speaking to reporters at same hotel, said the ASCU had handed him papers detailing what he’d revealed to them earlier. “They have given us these papers,” Ashraful said, pointing to the envelope in his hand. “The same papers are supposed to be given to the BCB. The papers basically contain what I have said to them.”I have helped the ICC, and will try to help them in the future. I have spoken from my guilty conscience, so I told the ACSU I want to return to cricket as soon as possible. The next step requires me to have a lawyer. The board won’t help, because they need to stay in a safe position.”Ashraful had said earlier that the ICC respected his honesty and that he looked forward to see the other individuals charged to come out clean. “They did appreciate me, because not many come forward with the truth,” Ashraful said. “I do hope those guilty will come out with the truth.”However, Ashraful’s reported disclosure of his involvement in match-fixing and spot-fixing in international games in 2004, 2010 and 2012 is yet to be investigated, after the BCB said last month that it would be.Richardson clarified that the current investigation applied only to the BPL. “This investigation will be specific to allegations of fixing and attempts to fix matches in BPL 2013,” Richardson said. “If other incidents do get unearthed, we will decide at a later stage whether those need to be prosecuted further.”
ScorecardSimon Kerrigan, seen here for England Lions, took his ninth first-class five-for•PA Photos
Simon Kerrigan took seven wickets as Lancashire claimed a big victory in the race for promotion with an eight-wicket victory over Northamptonshire at Wantage Road. Lancashire replace their hosts at the top of the table.Kerrigan returned magnificent figures of 7 for 63 as Northants were bowledout for 241 with James Middlebrook top-scoring with 75 off 171 balls, givingLancashire a target of 110. The visitors wrapped up the win thanks to Andrea Agathangelou’s unbeaten 57 off75 deliveries to move a point clear of their opponents with a game in hand.Northants began the day on 123 for 4, requiring nine runs to make theiropponents bat again, with Middlebrook resuming on 46 and Andrew Hall on 3. Middlebrook was to comfortably complete his second half-century of the matchoff 113 balls as the fifth-wicket pair survived the first hour of the daywithout any alarm.Former South Africa allrounder Hall went through 10,000 first-class runs inthe process but Middlebrook went cheaply by needlessly launching Kerrigan toKyle Hogg at deep square leg.Kerrigan completed his third five-wicket haul of the season and his ninth infirst-class cricket when Agathangelou took a sharp one-handed catch at short legto dismiss Matthew Spriegel. He then claimed his third wicket in four balls whenDavid Willey was also taken by Agathangelou at short leg to depart for a goldenduck.Kerrigan took his tally up to seven by trapping Northants wicketkeeper DavidMurphy lbw, meaning four wickets had fallen for 12 runs. But Hall, who needed the aid of a runner after a muscle strain, reached 50 off 127 deliveries in the afternoon.Lee Daggett plundered 11 before he was bowled by Lancashire captain GlenChapple and Hall was the last to fall on 57 when he was superbly caught andbowled one-handed by the same man.Chasing 110, Lancashire lost Karl Brown in the second over when he edged thefirst ball he faced to Middlebrook at first slip off Muhammad Azharullah. Middlebrook then pinned South Africa batsman Ashwell Prince lbw asLancashire reached tea on 30 for 2 – still requiring another 80 runs.But any doubts the visitors may have had were eased by Agathangelou racing past50 off just 61 deliveries with opener Luis Reece contributing 40 not out. The winning run came through Agathangelou running a single off Daggett asLancashire took a big step towards a return to Division One.
ScorecardChris Dent’s previous highest score in one-day cricket was 36•Getty Images
Chris Dent scored a maiden one-day century to help Gloucestershire to an exciting seven-run victory over Glamorgan in a high-scoring Group C clash.Dent’s 151 not out led Gloucestershire to 288 for 5 from their 40 overs at the SWALEC Stadium, before Mark Wallace (118 not out) and Graham Wagg (54) saw Glamorgan fall just short.On an easy-paced pitch Dent was able to help Gloucestershire punish Glamorgan’s attack after being put into bat by Marcus North. The visitors lost Hamish Marshall early on but they were nevertheless not hanging about with Dean Cosker’s first two overs conceded 19 runs.Gloucestershire lost captain Michael Klinger for 40 from 47 balls, caught off a leading edge at cover, but the 100 came up in only the 16th over with Dent bringing up his 50 off 39 balls. Former England paceman Simon Jones, playing his first game of the season, did peg Gloucestershire back briefly by bowling a maiden to Dent, whose previous List A best was just 36.Gloucestershire reached the halfway stage in a good position at 120 for 2 but they lost Alex Gidman to Will Bragg, who claimed his first wicket in one-day cricket. Dent, though, continued his assault on the Glamorgan bowlers and brought up his century off 89 balls, including 10 fours and two sixes.In the final 10 overs Gloucestershire racked up 110 runs, with Dent remaining instrumental as he put on 73 with James Fuller in just 24 balls.Glamorgan made a disastrous start to their run-chase with Bragg out for a duck, trapped lbw to James Fuller’s second ball, and then having Chris Cooke removed by the same bowler for 15. Glamorgan’s hopes looked dashed when North was run out for 5 with a direct hit from Benny Howell, leaving the hosts on 27 for 3.But Wallace and Jim Allenby launched a recovery, with a slog sweep for six by the latter bringing up the Glamorgan 100 in the 17th over. Wallace shared in partnerships of 95 with Allenby in 12.3 overs and then 67 with Murray Goodwin. But it was the Wallace-Wagg alliance that so nearly brought Glamorgan victory.The pair put on 82 in 8.4 overs to bring the prospect of victory ever closer. Glamorgan had needed 100 off the final 10 overs, but that was brought down to 60 off six overs and then 31 off three overs as Wallace reached 100 off 98 balls and Wagg struck three big sixes.But with 18 needed off eight balls, the pressure mounted on Glamorgan and Wagg holed out to Marshall at long-on off Fuller. And the 17 required from the final over proved too much for Wallace and Will Owen as Gloucestershire held on for the win.
Essex have signed New Zealand batsman Hamish Rutherford to replace Rob Quiney as their overseas player for the remainder of the season. Rutherford will become available after New Zealand’s tour of England.Quiney suffered a shoulder injury attempting a catch on the final day of Essex’s defeat to Lancashire at Old Trafford on May 10. He requires an operation and has flown home to Australia. He played in the first four of Essex’s County Championship matches, scoring only one half-century in seven innings.But in Rutherford, a 24-year-old left-hander, Essex have a like-for-like replacement at the top of the order. Rutherford’s weight of runs in domestic cricket in New Zealand earned him a call-up for the Test side against England in March and he made 171 in his first innings in Dunedin. He also struck 126 against England Lions at Grace Road in the second match of the New Zealand tour.New Zealand’s T20 series against England concludes the tour with the final match at The Oval on June 27. Rutherford would therefore become available for Essex’s T20 against Hampshire at Chelmsford a day later.”We are delighted to be signing Hamish and we welcome him to the club,” Essex head coach Paul Grayson said. “The coaching staff and myself look forward to working with him and are pleased that he is joining Essex. He is an attacking opening batsman that will definitely benefit us in both the Yorkshire Bank 40 competition and Friends Life t20 too.”I was very impressed with how he played for New Zealand this winter against England and Hamish comes highly recommended from some good judges in the game, so will be a great acquisition for us I’m sure.”