Gary Kirsten’s support staff, Russell Domingo and Allan Donald, have been preparing South Africa’s new season that begins in October

Firdose Moonda01-Aug-2011The first few letters of the latest chapter in Gary Kirsten’s coaching career will be written on Monday when the former India coach officially starts work in his home country, South Africa. Kirsten’s contract, and that of his assistant Russell Domingo, comes in to effect on August 1, but they will have a gentle easing in to their new jobs.The national team, who are in the middle of a seven-month break from the game, will only convene in four weeks’ time, effectively giving Kirsten more time to devise strategies. “We will have a camp towards the end of August where we will be workshopping ideas for the new season,” Allan Donald, South Africa bowling coach told ESPNCricinfo. “There will probably be no cricket played in that time, just a lot of planning.”Donald has not had the same break as Kirsten and Domingo have, and started work a month ago, when he went with the A-team to Zimbabwe. Donald travelled as the assistant to his predecessor Vincent Barnes, who now works as High Performance coach, with a specific view to looking at the next generation of bowlers in the country.The short ODI tour came at an awkward time, in the middle of the South African winter, and many of the players had to shake off the cobwebs before getting back into the groove. Donald was concerned that the team only managed to bowl out their opposition once in five matches. “We restricted sides, but we could not bowl teams out and we never really threatened,” he said. “Everyone was a bit underdone. Australia A spent three weeks together before then, we only had three days, but I fully expect the structures to change now that we have Vinnie and Corrie [van Zyl] at the High Performance Centre.”While Kirsten and Domingo’s views on the way forward for South African cricket will be known over the next few weeks, Donald has already outlined his mission. “We need to find a second wave of bowlers to Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel. That will be vital. Those two need to be challenged because that will make them even more potent,” he said. He identified left-arm seamer Wayne Parnell as one of the bowlers who will form a crucial part of the team’s future plans. “He needs to make an impact and stake a Test claim.”Donald has also been working with the bowlers at his home franchise, the Knights, in Bloemfontein and will soon start “going to the other franchises to talk to the bowlers there”. He has been in regular telephonic and email communication with Kirsten, working on compiling reports on some of players who are on the fringes of the national side.Domingo, who is the only one of the three to have coached in the franchise set up, has been working on similar dossiers. “I’ve communicated with Gary about some ideas I’ve got for players around the country,” he said. “I’ve also been in close touch with Vinnie Barnes, and have been following how the players have been doing in the A-side and on the [English] county circuit.”In between compiling the database of players that Kirsten will scrutinise during the course of the next month, Domingo has spent the winter “taking the kids to school and fetching them and fishing a lot.” He will still be able to do that until the end of August, because only then does the real preparation for the future begin. South Africa’s season kicks off with a Twenty20 on October 13 against Australia in Cape Town.

Graham Onions has been called up to the England squad for the final Test against India at The Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Aug-2011Graham Onions has been called up to the England squad for the final Test against India at The Oval after Chris Tremlett was ruled out due to his back injury while concerns emerged over James Anderson.Tremlett has failed to recover from the problems that ruled him out of the second and third Tests, meanwhile Anderson has experienced tightness in his right quadriceps since the victory at Edgbaston, on Sunday, which sealed the series and took England to No. 1 in the world. Steven Finn was already in the 13-man squad and now Onions will provide a further option for Andy Flower.For Onions it is his first call-up to the full national side since leaving the tour of Bangladesh in March 2010 with a back injury that would subsequently be diagnosed as a stress fracture and put his career in doubt. He missed the whole of the 2010 season and towards the end of the summer had metal pins inserted in his back.”Unfortunately Chris Tremlett has failed a fitness test and won’t be available for selection for the fourth Test, despite showing strong signs of recovery over the past few days,” Geoff Miller, the national selector, said. “Chris’s absence in conjunction with what appears to be a minor injury concern with Jimmy Anderson has led to a call up for Graham Onions as precautionary bowling cover.”We are hopeful that Jimmy will overcome this niggle by Thursday but more time is required before a decision on his availability can be made conclusively. Steven Finn is obviously in the squad and he is now joined by Graham Onions who has been in good form for Durham since returning from a back injury at the start of the season.”Onions has taken 39 wickets at 28.82 in nine Championship matches for Durham this season and played for England Lions against Sri Lanka at Derby in May. He only took three wickets in that match but bowled with good pace and has remained highly rated by the selectors throughout his injury lay-off.In eight Tests Onions has taken 28 wickets at 31.03 including a best of 5 for 38 which came on debut against West Indies at Lord’s. However, he is equally famous for two efforts with the bat when he survived the final overs against South Africa at Centurion and Cape Town. The Test at Newlands was his last because he was then dropped for the final match of the series at Johannesburg before injury struck in Bangladesh.Onions has been preferred over Jade Dernbach, the Surrey fast bowler, who was named as cover for the Lord’s Test against Sri Lanka earlier this season and has also made his one-day international debut. Whether he earns a recall to the XI will depend on whether Anderson, who has 18 wickets in the series including his four-wicket burst to remove the India top order on the fourth day at Edgbaston, is replaced with a like-for-like bowler should he not recover by Thursday.Finn is the next pace bowler in line for a spot having played against Sri Lanka and has been a regular part of the squad, but Flower and Andrew Strauss may decide that with Stuart Broad and Tim Bresnan able to trouble India with the short ball that Onions’ fuller length is a better option.

Varun Aaron has said he won’t compromise on his pace because it is his strength and he loves bowling fast

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Aug-2011Varun Aaron, the Jharkhand fast bowler who has replaced Ishant Sharma in India’s ODI squad for the England series, said he will not cut back on his pace as his career progresses because he loves bowling fast. Indian fast bowlers have a history of dropping their pace dramatically as their careers take off – Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel and to some extent Ishant Sharma – but Aaron, who regularly clocks over 140kph and impressed for India Emerging Players during the recent tournament in Australia, said he will not go down that road.”It’s an individual thing, I guess. I don’t know why they decided to give up on their pace. I love bowling fast, and it is my strength. I will never compromise on my pace,” he told the . “And it’s a lot of fun to hit people on the head.”Aaron, who played for Delhi Daredevils in this year’s IPL, does know the value of accuracy too. “Speed is okay; you have to bowl quick. But it troubles international batsmen only to a certain extent. After that, they adjust pretty easily,” he told . “You have got to have a few tricks up your sleeve and you have got to bowl a good line and length consistently to get wickets. Even genuine fast bowlers have to have the right line and length.”With India struggling in the pace department in England, there were calls for Aaron, who is just 21, to be drafted into the national team, and when Ishant sustained an ankle injury, Aaron was called up to the one-day squad. He, however, said he would not be bogged down by the pressure of expectation. “It’s tough to ignore the expectations that people have. But I don’t want to think about that and I’m concentrating on bowling as fast and as well as I can.”One thing that could work in Aaron’s favour is that the assistant coach at Delhi Daredevils is Eric Simons, who is also India’s bowling coach. “Working with Eric was great,” Aaron said. “Generally, he just tells you to do the most basic of things perfectly or a small little change here or there which somehow you fail to notice. But I am always open to advice.”Aaron took 13 wickets for Jharkhand during last year’s Ranji season, followed by another nine in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, during which he reportedly bowled a 153-kph ball. He took 10 wickets in three games in the three-day leg of the Emerging Players Tournament , including 4 for 40 in the first innings against Australia Institute of Sport.

The 2012 World Twenty20 will be held between September 18 and October 12, 2012 in Sri Lanka the ICC have confirmed

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Sep-2011The 2012 World Twenty20 will be held between September 18 and October 12, 2012 in Sri Lanka the ICC have confirmed. Colombo, Pallekele and Hambantota will be venues for the men’s tournament, while the women’s group games will be played in Galle.The format will see four groups of three in a preliminary round. England, the defending champions, and India are in Group A and will be joined by one of the Associate or Affiliate teams that qualify. The other qualifying team will be in Group B with West Indies and Australia. Sri Lanka, South Africa and Zimbabwe make up Group C, and Pakistan, New Zealand and Bangladesh are in Group D.The top two teams in each group will make it through the preliminary round, after which there will be a Super Eight stage, featuring two groups. The format is essentially the same as the last edition in 2010, though there are four fewer teams this time.The tournament will include two teams qualifying from the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2012, which will be staged in the United Arab Emirates from March 13-14 2012.Hosts Sri Lanka will play the tournament’s opening fixture against Zimbabwe in Hambantota. England begin their defence against a qualifying team on September 21 and will then play India in Colombo on September 23.The women’s tournament has Australia, India and England in one group with a qualifying team, and New Zealand, West Indies and Sri Lanka with the other qualifying team in the other. The men’s and women’s semi-finals and finals will be played on the same day, in Colombo. The semi-finals are on October 4 and October 5 with the finals on October 7.Tickets for the tournament are planned to go on sale to the public from March 1, 2012 and will be available via website and box-office sales in Sri Lanka. The ICC’s chief executive Haroon Lorgat assured they would be reasonably priced.”We all know how passionate and loyal the Sri Lankan public is towards our sport and we will ensure the tickets are affordable so that they can enjoy the event,” he said at the launch of the tournament in Colombo. “Following the success of the recent ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, I am confident that the hosts, Sri Lanka, will deliver a world-class event.”Lorgat also said the tournament was another opportunity to promote women’s cricket. “I am happy that the men’s and women’s semi-finals and finals will once again be played on the same days at the same venues. We remain committed to showcase women’s cricket in this way, which is unique in the world of team sports.”

Northamptonshire have announced that their chief executive, Mark Tagg, will leave the club at the end of October after eight years in the role

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2011Northamptonshire have announced that their chief executive, Mark Tagg, will leave the club at the end of October after eight years in the role.Tagg has been involved during a tough period for the domestic game where money has been tight and Northamptonshire are one of the smaller counties on the circuit. However, they were on the verge of promotion to Division One in the County Championship in the recent season but slipped up in the closing weeks and missed out by a point to Surrey.”I feel I have achieved what I came here to do and after eight years the time has come for me to move on, to explore new opportunities, and allow a new chief executive to continue to drive the club forward,” Tagg said.Martin Lawrence, the club’s cricket chairman, added: “In the rapidly changing world of professional sport it is vital for the club to continue to move forward and develop. Thanks to the good work over the last eight years we have many opportunities both on and off the field and the new chief executive will be appointed in the next few months to develop these.”

VVS Laxman was relieved to get his first century in 15 months, a period in which he scored several crucial fifties

S Aga15-Nov-2011Many modern coaches speak of the importance of visualisation. VVS Laxman doesn’t need to imagine things when he arrives at Eden Gardens. He just needs to tap into the memory bank and recall the greatest innings in India’s cricket history. Whatever he does, it works. This was his fifth century in 10 Kolkata Tests. No one apart from Donald Bradman (128.53 at the MCG) and Greg Chappell (111.77 at The Gabba) averages more at a venue where they have batted at least ten times, than Laxman at Eden (110.63).”I have always enjoyed batting at the Eden Gardens,” he said after the second day’s play. “It’s a great ground with a lot of history. Even though there were not a lot at this Test match, the spectators make it special.”For such a gifted batsman, Laxman would be the first to admit that he could have made bigger scores. This was his first century since August 2010. “It was a relief to get a hundred,” he said. “The last hundred I got was against Sri Lanka in the last Test match at P Sara Oval where the team was under tremendous pressure. After that, I have played knocks in pressure situations. Luckily, in this Test match, Sehwag and Gautam gave us a good start, and Rahul and Sachin had a good partnership.”When I went in to bat, the position wasn’t very challenging but it was important for us to build a partnership at that stage and that’s what Rahul and I tried to do. It was also important to get a big score in the first innings especially seeing the nature of the wicket, which will deteriorate on the third and fourth days. Even though I had some valuable 50s under my belt, it is always satisfying to get a hundred.”His best efforts in that 15-month period between tons came at Mohali and Kingsmead. The first inspired a remarkable one-wicket win against Australia, while the second was a matchless 96 in conditions that no other batsman could master. When the going’s good though, Laxman hasn’t always thrived, and he admitted as much.”When Paddy Upton was the mental conditioning coach, we tried various strategies to get the best out of me, especially in a situation where the team is not under a lot of pressure,” he said. “This is the first time in a long time where the team has not been in a difficult or challenging position and I have gone and got a hundred.”Thoughts of a double-hundred were quickly scotched as the light waned in the afternoon, and he had no hesitation in walking off with an unbeaten 176 to his name. “The light was fading, especially after MS [Dhoni] got out,” he said. “We wanted to bowl at least 20 to 22 overs at the West Indies this evening, that’s why we declared when we did.”The declaration was made possible by a stunning onslaught from Dhoni, who bludgeoned 116 runs in an extended second session in which India rattled 180 runs. Laxman did the sensible thing and picked off as many singles as he could, watching from the bowler’s end as Dhoni laid waste an exhausted attack.

Rahane released for Ranji duties

Top-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane has been released from the Indian side so that he can participate in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy fixture against Karnataka from November 17-20 at the Brabourne Stadium. The India selectors are yet to name the squad for the third Test against West Indies to be played from November 22 at the Wankhede Stadium, also in Mumbai. Rahane remains in contention for a spot in that squad.

“Whenever he hits a six, he says he didn’t connect the ball,” said Laxman with a big grin on his face. “I just start laughing because he easily clears the boundary. In fact even in the last Test match here against South Africa, we had a similar partnership where both of us remained unbeaten. It was the same today.”When we needed quick runs, it was easy for me because Dhoni was at the other side and common sense says you take a single and give him as much strike as possible because he is definitely a cleaner hitter than me. It’s always great to see Dhoni [batting]. He is a brilliant batsman, he puts the bowlers under pressure right from the word go.”Laxman’s innings spanned 391 minutes and given the problems he’s had with his back in recent years, he was pleased to have emerged from it with little discomfort. He did cramp up after playing a pull shot, but credited the physio and trainer for his improved fitness levels.If there was a hint of disappointment, it was at the sparse turnout, at a ground renowned for vociferous and intimidating crowds. “We always felt that Kolkata was one place where you had a lot of support for Test match cricket,” he said. “It’s quite strange, I am not sure what the exact reason behind that is, but as I said earlier, it’s always a great feeling playing here. Whenever I come here, all of you remind me about the 2001 Test match. That gives a lot of inspiration to me and all the guys who were involved in that game.”Light permitting, Laxman was confident that India could make scoreboard pressure tell over the coming days. “The wicket is already turning and there is good bounce for the spinners,” he said. “Hopefully, our bowlers can bowl in the right areas and we can win the game.”

Harbhajan Singh, the India offspinner, is likely to miss the rest of the Ranji Trophy group stages with an injury to his left shin

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Dec-2011Harbhajan Singh, the India offspinner, is likely to miss the rest of the Ranji Trophy group stages with an injury to his left shin. Harbhajan had been ruled out of Punjab’s game against Railways, from which they took three points, and is now likely to be out for the rest of the year. The injury is suspected to be a recurrence of an old problem with his leg; he felt pain during Punjab’s game against Saurashtra and is undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.The injury is another in a series of blows for Harbhajan: after a disappointing tour of England during which he took two wickets in the first two Tests before returning due to a strain in his abdomen, he was left out of India’s squads for the home ODI series against England, the Tests and one-dayers against West Indies and the Tests on the tour of Australia.His performance in the Ranji Trophy was also disappointing – he took two wickets in three matches – and he will now face a wait before he can return to action and try to regain his spot in the India side.Punjab named Uday Kaul as captain for the Railways game in the absence of Harbhajan. They are currently fourth in Group A of the Elite division with three games to play. Their next match is against Rajasthan from December 6.

Daniel Vettori could miss nearly a month due to the injury to his left hamstring that ruled him out of the second Test against Australia in Hobart

Brydon Coverdale at the Bellerive Oval09-Dec-2011Daniel Vettori could miss nearly a month due to the injury to his left hamstring that ruled him out of the second Test against Australia in Hobart. Vettori arrived at Bellerive Oval with tightness in the muscle and aggravated the problem during New Zealand’s warm-up, forcing him out of the side and allowing fast bowler Trent Boult to make his debut.Fortunately for New Zealand, their next international appointment is not until the end of January, when they take on Zimbabwe in a one-off Test. That means he should only miss out on Twenty20 cricket, with both New Zealand’s HRV Cup and Australia’s Big Bash League – Vettori has signed with the Brisbane Heat – to be played in late December and early January.”Unfortunately Dan sustained a recurrence of his left hamstring injury that’s been problematic for him over the last few years,” the New Zealand physio Paul Close said. “We expect him to be rehabbing the injury and back to full fitness within three to four weeks. We are confident he will be back to play some HRV Cup cricket at some stage in the new year.”The loss of Vettori was a major blow for New Zealand in Hobart, after he again proved himself one of their most reliable batsmen in the first Test at the Gabba. He also sent down 37 overs and collected two wickets, keeping things tight in Australia’s first innings, and in his absence New Zealand might need to find extra overs of part-time spin from Kane Williamson and Martin Guptill.”He started to warm up and realised that it wasn’t good enough and decided to pull the pin,” the batsman Dean Brownlie said after play. “With it seaming, hopefully our four seamers can do the job. Hopefully it doesn’t prove any price [cost] really.”

In a surprisingly one-sided match, South Africa Under-19s beat Pakistan Under-19s comprehensively in Paarl, and won the tri-nation tournament that also involved Zimbabwe Under-19s

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jan-2012
ScorecardIn a surprisingly one-sided match, South Africa Under-19s beat Pakistan Under-19s comprehensively in Paarl, and won the tri-nation tournament that also involved Zimbabwe Under-19s. Pakistan had been the best team in the league phase, winning five of their six games and beating South Africa twice. But in the final they failed collectively: the bowlers conceded more than they had in any of the previous games, and the batsmen sunk to their lowest total of the tournament.South Africa’s strong total was built almost exclusively by Quinton de Kock , who scored 146 off 148 balls, his second century of the tournament. de Kock lost partners at regular intervals but found someone to stick with him in Diego Rosier. The two put together 113 runs for the fifth wicket, and though there was a flurry of wickets towards the end, South Africa set Pakistan an imposing 276 to win. Mohammad Nawaz finished as the second-highest wicket-taker in the tournament after taking 4 for 59.Pakistan’s batting had been strong through the tournament, but crumbled on this occasion. Sami Aslam, the tournament’s leading run-getter, was the only batsman to go past 30. All South Africa’s bowlers chipped in with wickets, with offspinner Prenelan Subrayen finishing with figures of 3 for 38 from his ten overs.The match was over by the 34th over of Pakistan’s innings, with Pakistan having disintegrated to 141 all out.

A supremely calm MS Dhoni guided India to victory, with two balls to spare, over a sluggish Australia in the ODI at Adelaide Oval

The Report by Daniel Brettig12-Feb-2012
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsIndia’s chase was anchored by Gautam Gambhir’s fluent 92•AFP

A supremely calm MS Dhoni guided India to victory, with two balls to spare, over a sluggish Australia in the ODI at Adelaide Oval.Dhoni’s composure was best measured by how he paced his innings. It bordered on the statuesque early, before he raised tempo with swift running between the wickets. He saved his one stroke to the boundary – a towering six over long on – for when he most needed it: the third ball of the final over delivered by Clint McKay, which began with 13 still required.The next ball was a high full toss that Dhoni swung to deep midwicket, but the no-ball – called for height – gifted India a third run in addition to the two scampered between the wickets. The next delivery was helped around to backward square leg, and the final three runs were collected to take India alongside Australia on two wins from three matches.India’s chase was anchored by Gautam Gambhir’s fluent 92, before Dhoni and Suresh Raina took the visitors close with a stand of 61. Raina perished in the 47th over and Ravindra Jadeja followed in the 49th, but Dhoni remained to collar the remaining runs. Test match difficulties notwithstanding, he remains the master technician in limited-overs matches.Australia’s fielding display was its least attentive of the Michael Clarke era. Only one catch of note went down but outfield fumbles were legion, and both Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja could have been run-out in the closing stages had in-fielders held their nerve.Of even greater concern was an apparent hamstring twinge for Michael Clarke, who was running gingerly from the innings’ midpoint and hobbling noticeably by the end, having left the field briefly for treatment. Clarke may now be due a spell of rest after an unbroken sequence of Tests and ODIs dating back to his first tour as captain – to Bangladesh in April 2011.Until the final over, McKay provided the most lasting threat for the home attack, maintaining a disciplined line and changing his pace, while Xavier Doherty bowled some particularly nagging deliveries at the death to make India work for the points.Looking very much at home in international company, the debutant Peter Forrest had built Australia’s total alongside David Hussey after the innings was in danger of stalling at 3 for 81. Clarke’s fluent 38 had ended when he sallied forth to attack Umesh Yadav and dragged a slower ball wretchedly onto the stumps.Forrest was strong square of the wicket and down the ground, while Hussey’s innings was another reminder of his usefulness in most limited-overs contests. Following their departure, allrounder Daniel Christian put together a handy closing contribution at the home ground of his adopted state. Few boundaries were collected in the closing overs, reflecting some diligent bowling but also the slowing of an otherwise friendly batting surface.Yadav and Zaheer Khan were the most effective of India’s bowlers, attacking the stumps while also keeping the runs down, as the tourists sought a manageable target after the selectors chose to rest Sachin Tendulkar.