Heavy overnight rain delayed the start of play at the Riverside, Chester-le-Street in Durham’s Division Two game against Gloucestershire in the CricInfo Championship.Durham lead Gloucestershire by 276 runs with 4 second innings wickets remaining.
USA, Caymans on topThe United States and the Cayman Islands top the standings after two rounds of the Americas Cup with both their matches won.The US team beat defending champions Canada by three wickets in the closest match, while the Cayman Islands won against hosts Argentina by 7 wickets. In the other match, Bermuda beat the Bahamas by 68 runs.US Outplay North American rivalsAt Hurlingham, Canada, batting first, scored 165 for 9 in their 50 overs, with Samad top-scoring with 67 and skipper De Groot getting 37. Johnson notched 5 for 43 for the USA.The US team passed that score with 7 wickets down and five overs to spare, with opener Rohan Alexander keeping one end up with a slow 50 in 132 minutes. Donavan Blake was 28 not out, and former West Indian international Faoud Bacchus made 15. Dennis Pilgrim took 3 wickets for 14 runs.Caymans march onAt Belgrano, Argentina started disastrously and were 59 for 8, but Donny Forrester made their total look a bit more respectable scoring 55 runs against good bowling, and putting on 70 for the ninth wicket with Hernan Pereyra, who was 18 not out. Ryan Bovell bowled superbly to take 5 for 25 in 8 overs.Argentina were all out for 134 in 43 overs, and the Cayman Islanders had no problems in scoring the required 135 runs for the loss of 3 wickets in 36 overs. Highlight of their innings was 46 by Chris Wight, including 4 fours and 2 sixes.Bermuda beat BahamasAt Longchamps, Bermuda scored 196 for 9 in their 50 overs, and then dismissed the Bahamas for 128 in 42 overs.For the winners, captain Charlie Marshall scored 66 and Chris Foggo 25, while Dennis Pilgrim took 3 for 14.For the Bahamas, Garcia Blair top-scored with 24.
England’s second practice match, originally scheduled at the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) Cricket ground, has been shifted to DY Patil Cricket Stadium in Mumbai.According to Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI chief administrative officer, the venue change for the match in the first week of November came at the request of the local organisers, Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA). “The ECB team had done a recce and were happy but the MCA wanted the venue to be shifted and that has been approved,” Shetty said.The MCA had requested a shift in the venue citing security issues at the BKC ground, but the BCCI had rejected it. In the end, the MCA president Ravi Savant met the BCCI chief N Srinivasan and explained the reasons for MCA’s concerns, after which the venue change was accepted.”I don’t know how that match was scheduled at BKC,” Savant said. “But once the match is given to the association, it is our prerogative to hold the match anywhere we want. When we came to know about the ECB officials inspecting the facilities at the BKC Ground, we immediately wrote to the Board about considering the DY Patil Stadium as an option. The BCCI president was magnanimous in agreeing to shift the match to DY Patil during the meeting. And, within five minutes it was decided. The Mumbai Police had also raised some concerns regarding security.”Savant said that the England board had reservations regarding the choice of the venue too. “The fence around the ground is too low, so anyone can enter the playing area. There are high-rise buildings around. There are no basic facilities like toilets, a cafeteria and seating arrangements for public. So, the best option was to shift the match to the DY Patil Stadium which is a tried and tested venue.”
There wouldn’t have been too many people betting on an outright result between Western Province and North West at the North West Stadium in Potchefstroom on Saturday morning, given that the second innings of the match was still in progress, but some time before 6pm, that was exactly what transpired.Not that the home faithful would have been pleased. They had just seen their team fold for 126 in their second knock to lose by an innings and seven runs, with left-arm paceman Charl Willoughby and left-arm spinner Claude Henderson each taking three wickets.What was so amazing about the outcome was that Province had started the third day still 62 runs behind North West’s first innings total of 330, with five wickets standing. The overnight tally of 268/5 was largely based on the 163 added by Lloyd Ferreira and Neil Johnson for the fifth wicket and on Saturday, it was another partnership involving Ferreira that swung the game Province’s way.He and wicketkeeper Thami Tsolekile took their overnight stand of four to 171, a partnership fashioned in just 35.4 overs, before both were out with the total on 435. Tsolekile made 78 off 115 balls, including 12 fours, while Ferreira, who had made 120 off 190 balls on Friday, faced another 100 in moving to a superb 201, including 26 fours and a six.Of the home side’s bowlers, none suffered more than Mark Lavine. Having bowled 15 overs for 74 on Friday, he sent down another nine on Saturday at a cost of 70 runs. His 4/144 off just 24 overs included 20 no-balls, matching the tally sent down by Roger Telemachus in the first North West innings.Telemachus managed to gain the ascendancy in the no-ball count in the 43.4 overs that the home side’s second knock lasted, overstepping a further 14 times, but it was ultimately of no consequence as North West capitulated with time to spare on the third day, handing Province a healthy haul of 20 log points.First innings hero Morne Strydom stood unbowed at the close on 33, but there was to be no repeat of the 204-run first-innings stand with Alfonso Thomas. Incidentally, just to place that stand in perspective, 204 is what you get if you subtract 126 from 330.
September 29, 2012
Start time 3.30pm local (1000 GMT/1100 BST)England’s bowlers will have to tame the tournament’s leading run-scorer, Brendon McCullum•ICC/Getty
Group 1 of the Super Eights may be a collection of runners-up but second-best is an accurate summary of England and New Zealand’s performances so far. After this match, one team is going to be propping up the group and, depending on the result of Sri Lanka versus West Indies, potentially checking the departures timetable from Bandaranaike International.Of the two, New Zealand should enter the match in better fettle, having scrapped like cornered kiwis in their exhilarating Super Over defeat against the tournament hosts. They also pushed Pakistan – fast turning into one of the favourites – all the way in the group stage and in Brendon McCullum they have the World T20’s leading run-scorer. By contrast, England made their lowest T20I score against India in Colombo and then followed that up by ushering Johnson Charles to his best showing in all senior cricket, and West Indies to a first win.Unsurprisingly, England’s green (not to mention KP-free) batting order has been the problem. Stuart Broad was explicit in blaming the batsmen after the failure to chase 180 against West Indies and first-over performances of 0 for 1, 2 for 1 and 0 for 2 in their three games have given England more of a stop than a start. If they can get through the first six balls, one crumb of comfort may be the fact that New Zealand’s slow bowlers are of the orthodox finger-spin variety.For New Zealand, the challenge is to convert the disappointment of two close defeats into match-winning momentum. The Black Caps are often dark horses but they have still tended to fall before the final fence. Their only T20I win against England came during the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007, when they progressed to the semi-finals; the teams also met in the 2010 Super Eights, when England went on to lift the trophy. Of those two precedents, a repeat of the former looks more likely than the latter.
(completed matches, most recent first) England LLWWL
New Zealand LLWWL
The sceptics have increasingly begun to circle Craig Kieswetter‘s name at the top of the order with red ink. Having not made a duck his first 21 T20I innings, Kieswetter has picked up two in three matches at this tournament. His anxiety to play the six-hitting blunderbuss, with Alex Hales a more subtle opening partner, appears to have clouded Kieswetter’s mind – he has made four of his six single-figure scores this year – while there is also concern about the number of dot balls he faces. Needs a big innings.Daniel Vettori has had a quiet World T20 so far, with one wicket at a cost of 83 runs and a 16-ball 18 when promoted to No. 4 as a pinch hitter against Pakistan. His experience and economy (Vettori’s rate of 5.63 is among the most miserly in T20 internationals) mean he remains a valuable member of the side and one who can remember what it is like to beat England, having played in Durban five years ago. England’s much-discussed uncertainty about how to tackle spin bowling adds further spice.
England set a lot of store by continuity and, even if they didn’t, their options are limited. Ravi Bopara’s batting form is unlikely to have improved while carrying the drinks and replacing Kieswetter with Michael Lumb at opener would be a gamble that would also require either Jonny Bairstow or Jos Buttler to take over the wicketkeeping duties.England (possible) 1 Craig Kieswetter (wk), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Luke Wright, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Jos Buttler, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Stuart Broad (capt), 9 Graeme Swann, 10 Steven Finn, 11 Jade Dernbach.New Zealand might be tempted to give Ronnie Hira a run-out, in light of the knockout matches being played in spin-friendly Colombo. His left-arm spin may not be exotic, and would replicate Vettori’s angle of attack, but after the gentle welcome England gave West Indies’ Samuel Badree it could be a tempting option.New Zealand (possible) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Rob Nicol, 3 Brendon McCullum (wk), 4 Ross Taylor (capt), 5 James Franklin, 6 Kane Williamson, 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Daniel Vettori, 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Kyle Mills.
Broad described the Pallekele pitch as a “batter’s paradise” after the first round of Super Eight games there, with minimal spin or seam movement and plenty of pace. Saturday is expected to be clear, which should help the runs flow again.
“We back the guys up there [at the top of the order], we know they’re all dangerous players. But losing wickets in the first over, especially, is not acceptable.”
“Personally, I don’t keep an eye on the strike rate or balls faced. If you can get your boundaries and your ones and twos, the strike rate is going to take care of itself.”
US readers can watch the match live here, coverage starts 30 minutes before the game begins.
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsNathan Lyon was Man of the Match for his 3 for 14•Getty Images
Nathan Lyon and Nic Maddinson helped Sydney Sixers to a comfortable eight-wicket win over Sydney Thunder that gave the Sixers a good chance of hosting a BBL semi-final. Although the four finalists were already decided before this match, the Sixers needed to win to move themselves up to second position and they will now host a semi-final unless Perth Scorchers beat the top-placed Melbourne Stars on Monday.After being sent in by the Sixers, the Thunder struggled to post a competitive target as Lyon, who took 3 for 14 from his four overs, kept things tight. Daniel Hughes top scored with 32 from 33 balls and Michael Hussey made a quick 21 but they were both victims of Lyon, who prevented the Thunder from gaining any sort of momentum.Kurtis Patterson (27) and Ryan Carters (15 not out) pushed the total up to 6 for 128 but it always appeared below par, even when Michael Lumb was run out for 2 in the second over of the chase. Mark Cosgrove and Maddinson steered the chase comfortably and the departure of Cosgrove, caught at long-on for 32, was the only other breakthrough made by the Thunder.Maddinson and Moises Henriques kept the runs ticking over and although they took the match into the 20th over, they never appeared in danger of failing to reach their target. Maddinson finished unbeaten on 59 and Henrqiues was on 27 as they consigned the Thunder to their seventh loss of the BBL season and the wooden spoon for the third consecutive season.The only negative for the Sixers was an injury to the spinner Steve O’Keefe, who hurt his shoulder while fielding and will be in doubt for the remainder of the tournament.
Sydney’s cricket ground has undergone major redevelopment since the last Ashes Test at the ground, with last-minute work on the new MA Noble and Don Bradman Stands set to go on into the night on match eve. But the SCG curator Tom Parker is adamant that concessions to the demands of multi-sport stadiums will not go so far as to force Sydney to resort to the drop-in pitches now used in Melbourne and Adelaide.”It’s only myself here and Gabba that have traditional pitches,” Parker said. “We’re a dual purpose ground and it is a mammoth task to change over from AFL to cricket and maintain a first-class pitch. For the characteristics of the SCG, even if you had a drop-in here, you’re not going to replicate the centre that’s out there at the moment. No I think we’re right, the Trust is pretty staunch. Can’t say it’s never ever going to happen but in near future nothing on the drawing board I can assure you of that.”Parker said the SCG surface for this Test was slightly grassier than usual because a recent Big Bash League fixture had encroached on his preparation time, but expected the strip to offer the sort of balance between ball and bat witnessed in recent summers. A sunny day will encourage batting, while overcast skies may result in the seam-friendly conditions offered to Pakistan on day one in 2010.”It has a green tinge to this pitch and we had BBL match here on the 29th so we had to limit our preparations so we could ensure if someone ran across this pitch it didn’t get damaged in that match,” Parker said. “But in saying that beautiful humid, hot day today. Been here for hours on the heavy roller, we’ve cut that down now at 3mm and we’ll be cutting it again and rolling it again so a lot of that greenness will go out of it.”I anticipate it’s going to be very similar to what we’ve seen here last year. More looking for good, consistent carry to the keeper, should see a bit of bounce in this pitch as well given the amount of grass on it and the mature grass that’s on this pitch. It’s different to tour match pitch here earlier in the season when we were changing over from AFL and we didn’t have as much time.”If it’s overcast and the forecast is for some possible light showers or drizzly rain and if it’s like that you may well bowl. And I think you’ve seen here in the past when it’s overcast and cloudy the ball does move around a bit here at the SCG, so we’ve really got to wait for the day and hopefully it’s a bright sunny day.”Parker was one of the nation’s groundsmen directed by Cricket Australia at the outset of summer to prepare surfaces less grassy and more reflective of international conditions for the Sheffield Shield. Several curators were unhappy to be dictated to, and Parker stated his own intentions with similar bluntness.”I prepare a pitch that’s fair and just for both teams,” he said. “I’m not about preparing pitches for batters or bowlers or any other side.”
ScorecardEngland Under-19s began their campaign in style as they held on to a 42-run victory over UAE Under-19s, with Joe Clarke’s late, unbeaten 64-ball 81 proving the difference between the two sides in their match at the Nursery Oval in Abu Dhabi. England won the toss and elected to bat, with the openers putting on 33. Once Ryan Higgins was run out for 23, England suffered a couple of blows in the eight and ninth over to leave them at a dodgy 47 for 3. A fourth-wicket stand of 87 between Jonathan Tattersall and captain Ed Barnard helped steady the ship, with Barnard falling for 53. Tattersall’s innings came to an end on 40, and knocks from Will Rhodes (35), Clarke and Rob Jones (37*) helped propel England to 300 for 6 after 50 overs.UAE began confidently, with the openers adding 45 for the first wicket. Once wicketkeeper S Vijayakumar fell on 23, this brought captain Rohit Singh to the crease, and together with Chirag Suri, the pair put on 107 runs for the second wicket. With UAE cruising on 152 for 1 in the 31st over, it looked as though they had set up a decent platform to see off the chase, but Tattersall chipped in with two vital breaks as UAE went from 152 for 1 to 190 for 5 by the 39th over. With half of the side in the pavilion, and still requiring 110 runs off just 11 overs, the task was too great as UAE stumbled to 258. Suri ended up top-scoring with 70, while Tattersall added to his 40 from the first innings with 3 for 34 in seven overs.
A 16-team Associate and Affiliate battle royal known as the World Twenty20 Qualifier gets underway on Friday across Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. Last year’s event in the UAE was a physically taxing experience for all the teams that took part. The winners, Ireland, toiled through 11 matches in 12 days of desert heat to outlast all other comers, only to have one of their two matches at the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka cruelly halted by rain.Ireland return to the UAE to defend their title, and this time, they won’t be running on fumes by the time the play-off stage begins in Abu Dhabi. This year’s qualifying tournament has been extended by four days, giving each of the participants a few more precious days off to recharge.The tournament will be no less of a slugfest though, with 72 games in 16 days, and the reward for finishing in the top six and reaching the main event next year in Bangladesh is not a guaranteed date with Australia or West Indies like in 2012. Another hurdle will have to be cleared, in the form of a second qualifying round of fixtures featuring Full Members Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.Aside from the fact that six teams will now advance to the opening phase in Bangladesh instead of two, the biggest change to this year’s format is the increase from six to 10 teams for the play-offs. A team can finish as low as fifth in their respective eight-team round-robin pool and still have a chance to finish in the top six in the final standings if they can pull off wins in two consecutive play-off contests.
Ireland
Namibia
Canada
Uganda
USA
Italy
Hong Kong
UAE
The favouritesThe defending champions Ireland trade off the departure of Boyd Rankin from the squad that won this tournament in 2012 for the addition of Niall O’Brien, who missed last year’s event, in part due to his decision to play in the Bangladesh Premier League. While Rankin will be missed, Ireland still managed to finish in the top two at the qualifiers in 2010, when Rankin was out of action due to injury, and they have enough depth without him to do well again. Paul Stirling was the Man of the Match in last year’s final and Ireland will be banking on him to intimidate bowling attacks throughout the tournament.UAE finished third in the World Cricket League Championship table, behind only Ireland and Afghanistan. They were especially formidable in home conditions, winning six out of eight games in Sharjah including a sweep of Afghanistan. Opposing teams will struggle to match up against their plethora of tweakers, including a trio of left-arm spin options led by allrounder and captain Khurram Khan, Ahmed Raza and Shadeep Silva. Canada have been revitalised recently by the return of Ashish Bagai, who finished graduate school in Pennsylvania this year and has now come back to take over as captain. His middle-order presence reinforces the top order, which is anchored by the rapidly improving Ruvindu Gunasekera.Battle for play-off spotsNamibia were surging on a wave of confidence heading into last year’s qualifier and went undefeated in the group stage before faltering in the play-offs. However, it’s highly unlikely they will finish the group stages with an unblemished record this time around. Louis van der Westhuizen smashed a century against Scotland in the group stage last year, and Raymond van Schoor was named Player of the Tournament after leading the runs list in the group stage but van der Westhuizen has struggled for runs lately and the team is also missing the presence of the veteran Gerrie Snyman. They were beaten comfortably in their two pre-tournament warm-up games by Kenya and Scotland and will be targeted by some of the mid-tier teams in the group.Hong Kong in particular are a well-balanced side, and will be expected to show a stark improvement from their disappointing sixth-place finish in Group A last year. While conditions will generally favour spinners during the event, pace bowlers who can bowl above 135 kph, like Irfan Ahmed and Aizaz Khan, will be key to their team. Italy do not have the overall depth of the better teams in the group but they still have enough tools to keep the pressure on Hong Kong and Namibia. That they nearly beat Ireland at last year’s event should not be forgotten.Wooden spoon candidatesUSA and Uganda both have strong spin attacks suited to the conditions at this tournament. However, neither side has the batting depth to be serious contenders and they will realistically need to restrict teams to no more than 130 to have any chance of chasing down a target. USA have the experience of captain Neil McGarrell and Adam Sanford, as well as power-hitters in Steven Taylor and Timroy Allen, but the team is far too reliant on Taylor to be able to consistently post big scores. Even 130 may look like a mountain for Uganda. They were held to 76 for 9 in a pre-tournament warm-up against Afghanistan.
Afghanistan
Netherland
Scotland
Kenya
Bermuda
Denmark
Nepal
Papua New Guinea
The FavoritesThis group is likely to be the more tightly contested one of the two. While Afghanistan are expected to top the group, the finishing positions for slots two through five are anyone’s guess. Afghanistan did lose to Canada in a warm-up match earlier in the week but they were without the services of former captain Nawroz Mangal and Shapoor Zadran due to visa issues. Afghanistan were dominant throughout the group stage last year, thanks to the team’s leading scorer Mohammad Shahzad. This time, they will have Hamid Hassan back at full strength to bolster their fast bowling even more. Hassan’s presence makes Afghanistan favourites to dethrone Ireland as the kings of the Associates.While Netherlands are not as strong without Tom Cooper and Timm van der Gugten, they still have enough experience to get them into the top three of their group. Peter Borren and Eric Szwarczynski are lynchpins for the Dutch and will provide some much-needed stability in their batting order. Scotland have had the benefit of reinforcements from the English county scene, thanks to a revision of ICC eligibility requirements. Matt Machan in particular has been a key addition and should help take some pressure off of captain Kyle Coetzer as they look to secure a strong position heading into the play-offs.Battle for play-off spotsThis is where the group is likely to turn into a dogfight. Nepal finished seventh a year ago, with a win over Kenya and a narrow defeat to Canada. They are riding high after winning WCL Division Three in May to advance to the 50-over World Cup Qualifier in January. Nepal aspire to be a top-flight Associate, and this is their chance to show how much they’ve matured. Paras Khadka was one of the stars of last year’s tournament with his solid all-round performances, while Gyanendra Malla is one of the most dynamic batsmen outside of the Full Member world. Nepal also have a slew of spinners led by Shakti Gauchan and Basant Regmi, that will look to strangle opposition scoring rates and put Nepal in a good position to advance to the play-offs.Kenya’s shellacking at the hands of Afghanistan in October sounded off alarm bells in Nairobi. An SOS call went out to Steve Tikolo and the 42-year-old responded to come out of retirement. Kenya are depending on him to galvanise the rest of the team in order to arrest their free fall from the heights of 2003. Papua New Guinea are a hungry and energetic side who’ll be breathing down the necks of Kenya and Nepal in an effort to squeeze them out of the top five. PNG finished fourth in Group A last year and an 18-run win over Ireland in a tournament warm-up match on Wednesday has made the rest of the teams in Group B take notice of their bid to progress into the knockout stages.Wooden spoon candidatesBermuda were swept aside in a set of three trial matches by USA ahead of the tournament. They struggled to get to 100 runs in each game, with their highest total only being 108. They chased down 182 against a good Canada side in a tournament warm-up match but also failed to get the 129 needed to win against a weaker Italy side. This is a mercurial unit who are more likely to go bust than boom. Denmark are also unlikely to make a splash. The team won just a single match in the 2012 Qualifier, against Bermuda, and wound up finishing in last place. After Freddie Klokker, the batting is paper thin and the likelihood of Denmark challenging anyone in Group B is remote.
Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim said that the absence of Shakib Al Hasan due to illness made winning the first ODI against New Zealand imperative. Shakib was hospitalised with a high temperature the night before the game and was later diagnosed with dengue fever.”We really needed this win,” Mushfiqur said after Bangladesh had taken a 1-0 lead. “Shakib wasn’t in the team. It is a big loss. He played very well against them last time. So I tried telling everyone that we shouldn’t lose in our minds before we have actually lost.”In the 2010 home series against New Zealand that Bangladesh won 4-0, Shakib was the highest run-scorer and wicket-taker, and he had led the side too after Mashrafe Mortaza was injured in the first game. Three years on, Shakib was once again expected to recreate the same performance only to be sidelined with illness.The 43-run victory by D/L method was only Bangladesh’s sixth win without Shakib since his ODI debut in August 2006. They had beaten West Indies last year at home without him.”We won 3-2 against West Indies last year without him, and I thought that we could have won 5-0 had he been in the team,” Mushfiqur said. “We will always miss him, although we may not see him in this series.”Mushfiqur was one of those who stepped up. Though Bangladesh had lost three wickets by the seventh over, he attacked the bowlers whenever they gave him room or strayed on to the pads. He was particularly aggressive against the spinners, and forced Nathan McCullum out of the attack. He fell for 90 off 97 balls, his first half-century score after eight innings.Mushfiqur also praised Naeem Islam, who scored 84 and put on 154 for the fourth wicket. Naeem was a last-minute replacement for Shakib and he was making a comeback after last playing in December 2012.”I have no regrets [for not getting the hundred] because the team won. I felt a little bad not to complete the century because I hadn’t scored a fifty in quite a while,” Mushfiqur said. “I was determined to give it my all today, get a partnership going. Naeem played very well. He supported me. We really needed it at the time. Everyone helps each other, not just the seniors, the younger players also chip in.”Mushfiqur is looking forward to winning the series in the second match, but he wouldn’t necessarily change the winning combination. However, the dew factor and Rubel Hossain’s success means he might still think about it.”There is not much of a chance [of playing three seamers], although we have the option of picking Ziaur Rahman. The spinners didn’t bowl too badly. Dew also has an adverse affect on the pace bowlers as it becomes slightly easier to play them when it skids through.”