All posts by h716a5.icu

Andrew, Shantry fire out Netherlands

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Worcestershire produced a stunning bowling performance to condemn Group A leaders Netherlands to only their second CB40 defeat of the campaign courtesy of a nine-wicket victory at The Hague.

08-Jun-2012
ScorecardTom Cooper top scored with 25 – almost half of Netherlands’ total•Getty ImagesWorcestershire produced a stunning bowling performance to condemn Group A leaders Netherlands to only their second CB40 defeat of the campaign courtesy of a nine-wicket victory at The Hague.After the contest was reduced to 39 overs per side due to the inclement weather, Worcestershire skittled the hosts for just 57 inside 24 overs after winning the toss, with only Tom Cooper, who made 25, and captain Peter Borren making double figures. Gareth Andrew and Jack Shantry both claimed three wickets, and David Lucas and skipper Daryl Mitchell took two wickets apiece.Vikram Solanki’s unbeaten 39 from 40 balls saw Worcestershire home inside 14 overs, with the convincing triumph moving them into second place in the table, five points behind the Dutch but with three games in hand.Netherlands never recovered from having Stephan Myburgh caught behind by Ben Scott off the first ball of the innings from Lucas. He and Shantry combined in successive overs to remove Michael Swart and Wesley Barresi to leave the Netherlands 24 for 3 in the eighth over.Cooper had 25 of the Netherlands’ 33, but was trapped in front by Andrew before Lucas caught Cameron Borgas off Shantry seven balls later.Mitchell introduced himself into the attack and made a double breakthrough in the space of five balls, accounting for Tim Gruijters and Mudassar Bukhari as the hosts found themselves seven down for just 47.Borren made 12, but his 33-ball knock came to an end at the hands of Andrew, who trapped him in front and then dismissed Tom Heggelman in similar fashion next ball to complete figures of 3 for 9 off seven overs. Shantry took 3 for 26, wrapping up the innings by dismissing last man Timm van der Gugten for just a single.Despite the loss of Moeen Ali to van der Gugten in the fifth over, Solanki, who struck a century in his side’s defeat to Lancashire on Monday, ensured Worcestershire had no further alarms by hitting five fours. He was accompanied in an unbroken second-wicket stand of 48 by Phil Hughes, who hit one four in his 12 not out.

West Indies to remember Runako Morton

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Darren Sammy has declared his intention to donate his match fee for Wednesday’s one-day international against New Zealand to the family of Runako Morton, the West Indies batsman who died in a car accident in March

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jul-2012Darren Sammy has declared his intention to donate his match fee for Wednesday’s one-day international against New Zealand to the family of Runako Morton, the West Indies batsman who died in a car accident in March.Morton, who was from St Kitts and Nevis, will be remembered during the third ODI at Warner Park in St Kitts, and the day has been declared a public holiday. Sammy said he and the allrounder Dwayne Bravo had been trying to raise money for Morton’s family through online auctions of cricket memorabilia, and they would continue to help out with the donation of their match fees.”The third ODI, we as a West Indies team have devoted that game to Runako Morton,” Sammy said. “St Kitts is the closest we’ll get to playing international cricket [in Nevis, where Morton was born]. We thought it would be a good way to play tribute to him. It was brought about by WIPA and all the players agreed it was a good initiative to remember Runako Morton.”Myself and Dwayne Bravo have devoted our match fees for the third ODI to Runako Morton and we’ll be making a donation to his wife. He left behind his family and kids … It will be a big thing on Wednesday, remembering Morton and the chance for West Indies to clinch a series win.”Chris Gayle said the West Indians would wear jerseys with 37, Morton’s number, on it during the game. “The last time I was here was sad moment for the funeral of my friend Runako Morton. We are using this as a tribute game to Runako. As players, we came together and decided to pull this together,” Gayle said. “This is one for Runako.”I gather that his wife will be here for the match and we want to give his family and the crowd something to cheer about. We will wear his number on our shirts. We will put in the extra work and try to win tomorrow for Runako. It’s a Public Holiday and we are hoping for a huge turn-out.”Morton played 15 Tests, 56 one-day internationals and seven Twenty20s for West Indies and he was particularly impressive against New Zealand. His highest ODI score of 110 not out came against New Zealand, in Napier in 2006, and his highest Test score of 70 not out also came in Napier on that same tour.

Hampshire sliding towards defeat

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Leicestershire snapped up four late wickets to close in on victory againstHampshire at the end of the third day

23-Aug-2012
ScorecardLeicestershire snapped up four late wickets to close in on victory againstHampshire at the end of the third day of their LV= County Championship DivisionTwo game at Grace Road.They set promotion-chasing Hampshire a target of 441 to win, and then left themreeling on 77 for 4 at stumps. Leicestershire skipper Matthew Hoggard took 2 for 24 in 11 overs and Wayne White and Alex Wyatt picked up a wicket apiece as Hampshire’s top order crumbled.Leicestershire declared on 265 for 8, leaving Hampshire with 132 overs in which to chase the unlikely target. However, the four wickets in the evening session put bottom-of-the-tableLeicestershire in with a real chance of clinching their second win of the season.Starting the day on 68 for 2, Leicestershire’s objective was to add as many runs as possible to their healthy overnight lead of 243 and give themselves enough time to bowl out Hampshire for a second time.They achieved the first part of the target with little fuss, scoring 197 runs in just under 60 overs for the loss of six wickets. Ramnaresh Sarwan and Ned Eckersley made a confident start to the day, taking their third-wicket partnership to 86.Then both were dismissed in successive overs from Sean Ervine. He bowled Eckersley with a ball that nipped back into him before uprooting Sarwan’s off stump as the West Indian batsman failed to connect with an expansive off drive. Sarwan had made 46 off 86 balls and hit seven fours.The rest of the Leicestershire innings saw useful contributions from all the batsmen without anyone managing to reach a half century. Josh Cobb hit 42 with seven fours but then chipped a return catch to Liam Dawson, and Shiv Thakor scored another impressive 45 off 71 balls. He fell gloving a catch behind trying to pull a short ball from Kabir Ali.White injected some momentum into the innings with an unbeaten 35 which included a towering six off Dawson. When the left-arm spinner dismissed Nathan Buck to claim his second wicket just before tea, the declaration. Ervine finished with three for 37 off 20 overs.It meant Hampshire were left with four sessions to score the 441 they needed for victory, but they made a poor start losing three wickets for 42 runs in 18 overs. Hoggard had Michael Carberry caught at short mid-wicket, White knocked back Neil McKenzie’s leg stump and Simon Katich edged behind off Wyatt.However, they suffered an even bigger blow when captain Jimmy Adams was caughtbehind off Hoggard shortly before the close, after grinding it out for two hours and scoring 22.

A grand final before the semis

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Australia and India start their respective Super Eights World T20 campaigns against each other in Colombo

The Preview by Brydon Coverdale27-Sep-2012Match facts September 28, 2012
Start time 1930 local (1400 GMT)Batting or fielding, David Warner is unlikely to keep quiet•AFPBig Picture An early grand final, Michael Hussey called this match. A loss won’t end the tournament for either side but in a difficult Super Eights group also featuring South Africa and Pakistan, Australia and India are both desperate to begin with a victory. Both teams enter the match with a solid if not spectacular form-line behind them. India accounted for a plucky Afghanistan and then annihilated a lacklustre England in the group stages, while Australia thrashed Ireland and then did enough against a strong West Indies side to be ahead on Duckworth-Lewis when the rain came halfway through their hefty chase.Australia have had a settled line-up so far in this tournament and that is unlikely to change now. Shane Watson in particular has been outstanding, both with the ball and at the top of the batting order, and has been Man of the Match in both games so far. India’s team selections are much less obvious, especially after Virender Sehwag was left out of their second match. Zaheer Khan and R Ashwin also didn’t play against England and finding someone to squeeze out of the side after their 90-run win won’t be easy. Harbhajan Singh, who didn’t play the first game, seems to have cemented his spot with four wickets against England.The presence of Harbhajan will add an extra dimension to the match. These are teams with a history of fiery clashes, and Harbhajan has often been part of that. However, in recent battles between India and Australia the tensions have faded considerably. Australia’s captain George Bailey still expects some verbal stoushes in the heat of a World Twenty20 contest, especially with Harbhajan back and Australia’s mouthy opener David Warner unlikely to keep quiet. “We have players who probably engage in some of that and players who don’t,” Bailey told reporters on Thursday. “You’ll find that most of those guys who like to verbal, they instigate it. That’s the way they get their juices flowing. It gets them switched on.”Just as long as neither side allows such sideshows to distract them from the main game.Form guide (completed matches, most recent first)Australia WWWLL
India WWLWLWatch out for Last time these two teams met in a World T20 match, in Bridgetown in May 2010, David Warner was Man of the Match for his 72 from 42 balls. He hasn’t made that many in a T20 international since, but he has consistently made contributions in recent times: in his past six innings he has scored 58, 22, 31, 59, 26 and 28. A Warner whirlwind can’t be far away.Harbhajan Singh has tormented Australia for nearly 15 years, though his best against them has come in Test cricket; in limited-overs matches he hasn’t had the same impact. But after gaining confidence with four wickets against England at the same venue, Harbhajan will be full of self-belief and could be a handful for Australia’s batsmen.Team news Australia are expected to name an unchanged side after using the same XI for their victories over Ireland and West Indies in the group stage. That would mean still no place for David Hussey, the leading run scorer in Twenty20 history.Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Shane Watson, 3 Michael Hussey, 4 George Bailey (capt), 5 Cameron White, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Daniel Christian, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Mitchell Starc, 11 Brad Hogg.Mystery still surrounds Virender Sehwag’s place in the side after he was left out of the England game. MS Dhoni said on the day before the match that India were likely to play five bowlers, which could in turn mean Sehwag is squeezed out. That would be a monumental decision, although Sehwag has never managed to bring his best against Australia in limited-overs cricket. In ODIs against them he averages 21.68 and in five T20s his average has been 8.20.India (possible) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Irfan Pathan, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Rohit Sharma, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (capt, wk), 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 R Ashwin, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 L Balaji/Ashok Dinda.Pitch and conditions India’s spinners enjoyed working at the R Premadasa Stadium against England – Harbhajan Singh took four wickets and Piyush Chawla two. There have also been plenty of runs in the pitch for the batsmen.Stats and trivia Australia and India have met six times in T20 internationals for three victories each In those six matches Australia have had four different captains: Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and George Bailey. India have been led only by MS DhoniQuotes”What we’d like to focus on is if you can keep some wickets in the shed for the back end then India’s bowlers have been put under a bit of pressure and you can score quite well.”
“They are one of the best because they have done consistently well. Both of them play aggressive cricket and look to score as many runs as possible in the first six overs.”
India’s captain MS Dhoni knows the importance of restricting Shane Watson and David Warner

Scarred India strive for motivation

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ESPNCricinfo previews the first T20I between India and England in Pune

The Preview by Devashish Fuloria19-Dec-2012Match factsIndia would hope for change in fortunes with the change in format•Getty ImagesDecember 20, 2012
Start time 1900 (1330 GMT)Big PictureOnly three days ago, the two teams were part of a draining battle in the Test series in which things went from bad to worse for India while England rose in confidence and three days later, they are ready to take on each other for a couple of Twenty20s. Of the two, India need a win, any win.For India, it is a strange situation. First, they fell in their own trap in the Tests and now they need to find the motivation to come out of the slump and play positive cricket. It doesn’t help that the nucleus of their T20 squad is still the same as the Test side. MS Dhoni, whose leadership has been under fire, needs to arrest the slide and switch gears for a format, which appears, suited to the Indian team – hard-hitting batsmen, restrictive bowlers and a wait-and-watch style of captaincy. The reality, though, is that India haven’t really dominated on the international level even in T20s.Unlike India, England’s T20 side bears a completely different look. The architects of the series win are already back in England for Christmas, but they have left a scarred Indian team for their T20 generation to feast upon. Most in the side, captained by Eoin Morgan, have been in India for some time now and would have spent time getting used to the spinning conditions. So on paper, England have again been methodical in their preparations. That doesn’t directly translate to success – if pitches take spin, the young side could again appear like rabbit in headlights. But it points to one clear difference between the two sides – one fighting their demons, the other ignoring theirs.Form guide(Most recent first)
India WWLWW
England LWLLWIn the spotlightYuvraj Singh may have flopped in the Tests, but he remains a dangerous limited-overs player. His inclusion in the T20 squad three months back appeared driven by emotions, but since then, Yuvraj has spent a considerable amount of time in the middle. He has scored a couple of hundreds at the first-class level and although he appeared inept in the Tests, he would prefer England’s new-look bowling attack to stamp his authority.Eoin Morgan has been a regular in England’s limited-overs sides and in Stuart Broad’s absence, he has been awarded with the captaincy. Morgan, one of England’s best players against spin, will not only be the lynchpin in the middle order, he will have the responsibility of mentoring the inexperienced players. His IPL experience will come in handy for England to draw up plans against the Indian players.Team newsTen of the 15 players in India’s squad also took part in the Test series. Ambati Rayudu, who replaced the injured Manoj Tiwary, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar are the two new additions apart from the regulars but could find it hard to make it to the XI. Parwinder Awana could make his international debut after L Balaji and Vinay Kumar were withdrawn from the squad due to injuries.India: (likely) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rohit Sharma, 5 Yuvraj Singh, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (capt), 8 R Ashwin, 9 Piyush Chawla, 10 Ashok Dinda, 11 Parwinder AwanaEngland lost Stuart Broad to a heel injury and was replaced by the Middlesex seamer James Harris. However, he is unlikely to make it to the XI with Tim Bresnan, Jade Dernbach and Stuart Meaker ahead of him. Joe Root, who was not part of the original T20 squad, could find a place after his impressive showing in the Nagpur Test.England (likely) 1 Alex Hales, 2 Michael Lumb/Joe Root, 3 Luke Wright, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Jos Buttler, 6 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 7 Samit Patel, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 James Tredwell, 10 Jade Dernbach, 11 Stuart MeakerStats and trivia This will be the first international match at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium in Pune. England have played 53 T20Is to India’s 41. Their win-loss record is 27-23, which is similar to India’s 22-17. The two teams have met each other only five times, with England winning three. MS Dhoni is the only player to have played in all five matches. Of the players in the two teams, Jade Dernbach has the most wickets in T20Is – 18. Quotes”It’s a completely different format. I don’t think there is anything carrying forward from the Test series.”

New Zealand to receive ICC assistance for development

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New Zealand Cricket will be a beneficiary of the ICC’s Targeted Assistance and Performance Programme (TAPP), and will receive US$1.8 million over a period of three years

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jan-2013New Zealand Cricket will be a beneficiary of the ICC’s Targeted Assistance and Performance Programme (TAPP), and will receive US$1.8 million over a period of three years. The programme is geared towards developing more competitive teams among the ICC’s Full and Associate/Affiliate Members. New Zealand are currently No.8 in both the Test and ODI rankings. The decision was made at the meeting of the ICC board in Dubai. The first Full members to receive ICC funding as part of the TAPP were West Indies and Zimbabwe last year.”The New Zealand Cricket initiative will focus on a programme of ‘A’ Team cricket and the development of coaching and sports science expertise,” an ICC release stated.The TAPP programme, which formed part of the ICC’s strategic plan for 2011-2015, began at the start of last year, with a $12m fund aimed at giving teams at all levels a chance to generate funding support from the ICC in order to improve team performance.Ireland and Scotland were the first to receive TAPP assistance in June last year, at the end of the ICC’s annual conference in Kuala Lumpur, with an award of $500,000 per annum for three years.Countries that would like to receive funding are asked to go through a bidding process starting with a formal application that could lead up to a possible presentation, before the award is recommended by the ICC’s finance and commercial affairs committee to the board. The ICC then works with the board to develop a three-year MOU to detail the specific activities to be supported by the funding.The increasing number of domestic T20 leagues was also discussed at the meeting and the board agreed that further deliberations must be aimed at “attaining co-existence between domestic T20 leagues and the international game”. “Domestic Twenty20 leagues have provided so many opportunities for players and officials alike as well as entertaining large domestic crowds,” the release quoted the ICC chief executive David Richardson as saying. “A workable and balanced international playing calendar is key to the sustainability of the game.”In an interview with ESPNcricinfo in October last year, Richardson said, “there has to be a way to make sure that they [domestic T20 leagues] can exist and complement international cricket rather than destroy or cannibalise it.”The next ICC Annual Conference will be held in London in June this year.The ICC Board consists of the president or chairman from each of the 10 Full members plus three Associate member representatives. Also present at ICC Board meetings is the ICC President, who chairs proceedings, the ICC Vice-President and the ICC Chief Executive.

Spirited Services stun UP to enter semi-finals

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Services stunned UP, beating them by five wickets, to enter the semi-finals of the Ranji Trophy 2012-13

The Report by Abhishek Purohit in Indore08-Jan-2013
ScorecardServices captain Soumik Chatterjee won the match batting bravely with an injured leg•Dainik Dabang DuniaSoumik Chatterjee, the Services captain, unable to walk with a badly injured left knee, dragged himself out at 54 for 5 in a chase of 113. He went on to pull the rampaging Uttar Pradesh fast bowlers for fours and sixes. He hopped on one good leg from one end of the pitch to the other for several singles. Fittingly, he stepped out to loft Ali Murtaza over mid-on to end the match. Uttar Pradesh, the best side of the Ranji league stage, had been beaten by the promoted toppers from a humble Group C before tea on the third afternoon of the five-day quarter-final.While Chatterjee’s brave effort made him the star of the chase, fast bowler Suraj Yadav, with a career-best haul of 7 for 71 in UP’s second innings, and Rajat Paliwal, with a century in Services’ first innings and an unbeaten 32 in the chase, were the chief architects of the win.For UP, they will look back to the moment early this morning when their last specialist batsman Arish Alam, backing up at the non-striker’s end, was caught short of the crease by an Eklavya Dwivedi drive that burst out through the bowler Yadav’s hands. Alam and Dwivedi had batted without bother till then, and had already added 33 for the day in just under seven overs.Alam had just reached his 50, and his fall took most of the fight out of UP. Dwivedi was trapped leg-before next over by Nishan Singh. Piyush Chawla flailed a pitched-up delivery straight to first slip, exactly the same way he had fallen in the first innings. During his short stay, he had already been caught in the same manner, off a Yadav no-ball.Strongly-built fast bowler Imtiaz Ahmed fought back, like he had in the first innings, with calm hitting that would have done a specialist batsman proud. Even as Services posted eight men on the boundary, Imtiaz nonchalantly swung four sixes over them.He also started to protect the No. 11 Sudeep Tyagi, but Yadav needed just the one delivery in the 78th over to flatten Tyagi’s off stump.Services needed just 113, but Ankit Rajpoot, the young UP fast bowler, was to make it really hard for them. After Nakul Verma started brightly with a few fours, Rajpoot started striking. Soon after lunch, Services slumped from 29 for 0 in the eighth over to 54 for 5 in the 14th.Verma was caught at gully after a slash was fended away by one of the slips, Avishek Sinha was bowled trying to work it to leg, Soumya Swain hit it low to gully, Yashpal Singh went lbw first ball pushing forward, and Anshul Gupta lost his off stump on the defensive push.Services, full of spirit and bravado but lacking in big-match experience, were still 59 short. In walked Chatterjee, and slowly, the game swung again Services’ way. He would wait a bit till he was certain he could make it across for a single, and then drag, limp and hop his way along. He would push his fit right leg forward, cover the line of the delivery, and defend it if it was on the stumps, or let it go by holding the bat inside the line.Paliwal, solid at the other end, steered Imtiaz over the cordon for four to ease some of the pressure. Chatterjee summoned enough strength to pull Rajpoot over square leg for four on one leg. He bettered it by pulling Tyagi for six, and Paliwal slog-swept Chawla in his only over for six over deep midwicket. The hundred or so spectators cheered every Services run, as did their dressing room. About an hour after he had slowly made his way to the middle, Chatterjee was holding his arms out to his rushing team-mates. UP had been unbeaten through the league stage, and it had taken something special from an injured captain to bring them down.

New Zealand not far from being favourites

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ESPNcricinfo previews the opening Twenty20 between New Zealand and England

Preview by Andrew McGlashan08-Feb-2013Match factsFebruary 9, 2013
Start time 7.00pm (0600GMT)Brendon McCullum is the only batsman with two Twenty20 international hundreds•Gallo ImagesBig pictureIt might only feel five minutes since the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka – and it is only five months – but the next tournament is little more than a year away so there is no time like the present to start the planning, especially with the fragmented nature of bilateral T20s at international level.This three-match series gives both teams a decent chance to bed into the format. The structure of the tour is also to New Zealand’s benefit with the shorter formats (50-over matches follow later this month) their best chance of turning England over – the odds favouring England could even be a little generous – and success in coloured clothes would allow them to enter the Test series in decent heart.Both teams had a disappointing World T20 in Sri Lanka, exiting in the Super Eights, and have enjoyed mixed results since. England shared their series in India while New Zealand lost against South Africa, although they did gain one victory through a stunning innings by Martin Guptill.Batting is probably the stronger department of both sides, especially with Ross Taylor’s return for the hosts, and coupled with some short boundaries around New Zealand it should lead to a high-scoring series. England are still trying to work out their best combination of bowlers and Steven Finn’s poor warm-up form has confused matters a little.Form guide(Most recent first, completed matches) New Zealand LWLTL
England WLLWLIn the spotlightRoss Taylor has admitted his relationship with coach Mike Hesson remains a “work in progress” but so long as his mind is switched to batting he will considerably strength the New Zealand side. However, his T20 numbers are perhaps a little lower than expected – an average of 24.37 and strike-rate of 120 – and it has been suggested that he has not always been best utilised in the order. New Zealand are not good enough not to make the most of him.The England wicketkeeping merry-go-round continues and currently Jos Buttler is the man hanging on. Yet while questions remain about his glovework, as a batsman he is starting to show his rare ability. He has produced a couple of sparkling T20 displays in the last few months and prepared for this series with back-to-back rapid half centuries against the New Zealand XI.Team newsGrant Elliott (quad) and Ian Butler (ankle) have been ruled out of the opening game meaning a call-up for allrounder Jimmy Neesham who now has a good chance of playing. Hamish Rutherford, the son of Ken, is in line for a debut to open the batting and Taylor’s return is likely to come at No. 4 followed by a clutch of allrounders.New Zealand (probable) 1 Hamish Rutherford, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Brendon McCullum (capt & wk), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Colin Munro, 6 James Franklin, 7 Andrew Ellis, 8 Jimmy Neesham, 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Mitchell McClenaghanJoe Root did not appear in any of the warm-up matches so is unlikely to feature and the main issue is to solve being who plays at No. 7. Samit Patel bowled well in the second warm-up match and may be asked to share some overs with Luke Wright. Eoin Morgan’s batting position will depend on the state of the innings and overs remaining.England (probable) 1 Alex Hales, 2 Michael Lumb, 3 Luke Wright, 4 Jonny Bairstow, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Samit Patel, 8 Stuart Broad (capt), 9 James Tredwell, 10 Steven Finn, 11 Jade DernbachPitch and conditionsIt is a drop-in surface at Eden Park and is expected to be of decent pace, ideal for Twenty20 cricket. The unusual dimensions of the ground, which is also a rugby stadium, mean exceedingly short straight boundaries which will make life hard work for all the bowlers, but particularly the spinners. The forecast is for a warm, sunny day leading to a very pleasant evening.Stats and trivia New Zealand’s top order will include three T20 hundreds (two for Brendon McCullum and one for Guptill) but England’s batsmen have yet to score one. Alex Hales and Luke Wright have both reached 99. England have only lost once in six T20s against New Zealand. Their most recent meeting was at the World T20 in Sri Lanka when England won by six wickets.Quotes”I’d imagine it will be a feisty contest, like we always have with New Zealand, and both teams will be going hell for leather to win.”
Stuart Broad”He’s come back in and he was smiling and happy and a definite part of the group. Ross is a fabulous cricketer and he’s shown that so far in his career, his ability to step up time and time again on the international stage.”
Brendon McCullum

Dumped Lyon remains confident

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Nathan Lyon believes he is bowling well despite being axed after the Chennai Test and asked to work on some technical issues

Brydon Coverdale08-Mar-2013Australia offspinner Nathan Lyon believes he is bowling well despite being axed after the Chennai Test and asked to work on some technical issues. Lyon said he knew he had leaked too many runs in the first Test but felt he had bowled alright under the circumstances.Lyon’s immediate future remains unclear after the Australia coach Mickey Arthur said during the week that the offspinner had been down on form for some time and that there were technical aspects of his game that had to be addressed after he collected 4 for 244 during the loss in Chennai, an analysis that included a beautiful ball that turned between bat and pad to bowl Sachin Tendulkar. He was replaced for the second Test in Hyderabad by Xavier Doherty and Glenn Maxwell, who bowled in tandem, and Australia’s preferred spin strategy for the third Test in Mohali remains a mystery.”I thought they came out alright in Chennai,” Lyon said. “To bowl Sachin Tendulkar through the gate you must be doing something right. I was quite happy with that, I went for a few runs here and there, but bowling against the best bats in the world in their conditions, they were obviously going to come hard at me playing one spinner in the side.”But I’ve worked hard in the nets and I’m feeling confident in my own bowling. The technical stuff … it’s all the same, I haven’t changed anything … since I was 16. I reckon it [my confidence] has gone up if anything, bowling the best batsman in the world through the gate. As an offspinner growing up that’s what you dream of. My confidence has gone up a level rather than down.”Since his Test debut in August 2011, Lyon has been the seventh-highest wicket-taker in Tests and the only spinners ahead of him on the list are Rangana Herath, Saeed Ajmal and R Ashwin. However, his home summer was disappointing. Hyderabad was the first Test in which he had been dumped for another spinner, having previously only missed out against India at the WACA when Australia went with a four-man pace attack.”You are never safe, especially playing at the top level, especially having quality spinners in and around the squad,” Lyon said. “That’s the great thing about Australian cricket. We have different options we can go in with, that is the selectors’ choice they made for Hyderabad and hopefully it is a different scenario in Mohali.”I haven’t spoken to [chairman of selectors] John Inverarity, but Mickey and all our coaches have worked hard in the past week and we had a good training session in the middle. I’m still feeling confident in my bowling so hopefully they haven’t lost faith.”Inverarity has flown home to Australia and Lyon’s chances of playing in Mohali will be determined by the new selector on duty, Rod Marsh, along with Arthur and the captain Michael Clarke. After the Chennai Test, Clarke said he had been impressed by the way Lyon bounced back in the second innings to get rid of Virender Sehwag. Later, Lyon received advice from both Shane Warne in Hyderabad and spin mentor Stuart MacGill on the phone from Australia.”We spoke about the more mental side of the game over here in India,” Lyon said of his chat with MacGill. “Yes, I bowled one maiden in Chennai but they are the best players of spin and that was quite a difficult pitch to bowl on. It was turning a lot then some weren’t turning at all. To have MS Dhoni go off like that was something unbelievable and I have taken a lot out of that, I feel I’ve grown within myself and learnt a lot about my bowling.”

Martin makes his wait worth it

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Bruce Martin, with nine wickets in a Test-and-a-half, is comfortably the most successful stand-in spinner they have had since the tour of West Indies last year

Andrew McGlashan in Wellington15-Mar-2013No New Zealand player had waited longer for a Test debut than Bruce Martin when he was handed his cap in Dunedin last week after 115 first-class matches. The contrast with the man he’s covering for could hardly be greater. Daniel Vettori made his debut, as a bespectacled 18-year-old, after two games in 1997.Vettori is hoping to make his first tentative steps back into action next week when he plays in the domestic Ford Trophy one-day competition having not appeared for New Zealand since the World Twenty20. Martin, with nine wickets in a Test-and-a-half, is comfortably the most successful stand-in they have had since the tour of West Indies last year.However, it would just be Martin’s luck if Vettori proved his fitness in time for the England tour in May. There is room for both in a squad, but missing out would not be a foreign concept for him. “I wish someone had picked two left-arm spinners. He was a thorn in my side, so to speak, but he was a good fella to learn off as well,” Martin said.Watching Martin bowl, it’s as though he has done more than just learn off Vettori with an action and delivery that looks like a clone. “Everyone says it, but it’s just the way I bowl. I happen to look a bit like him, without the glasses.”Before his recall to the squad that toured South Africa earlier this year, the closest Martin had come before was being in a squad against Australia in 2000. Yes, that’s right, when Vettori was injured. Thirteen years later, in Dunedin, his opportunity came and he finished with a highly creditable five wickets in the match. Four more followed in England’s first innings at the Basin Reserve on a surface that “turned more than I’ve had this season.” It would have been five if the DRS had not been around to save Matt Prior from an lbw decision.”I’ve had 13 years to visualise playing Test cricket,” he said. “I’ve been playing this game for a long time in my head, so it’s nice to get out there and have a crack. Today was good, I picked up some pretty big wickets.”The reserves of knowledge those years of toil on the domestic circuit helped him to build up are not to be underestimated especially when Kevin Pietersen dispatches your first ball of the day straight down the ground for six. The fact that Pietersen could not do it again, and more than once found himself in a bit of tangle against Martin, is credit to the bowler who certainly did not take a backward step.”It’s nice to test yourself against a guy like that. He’s pretty ruthless the way he gets forward and gets back, such a big fella, and it was hard to get past him there at times. He’s such an imposing figure with the bat. I wanted to try and get in the fight a little bit, let him know I was there.”Such has been the dominance of New Zealand’s spin department by Vettori, that in the 16 years since his debut in 1997, the next most successful spinner for them in Tests has been Paul Wiseman with 61 scalps. Martin is already fifth on the list with his nine. Kane Williamson is one above him.However, as strange as it may sound regarding a bowler with 360 Test wickets, never mind 4516 runs, does Vettori walk back into the New Zealand side? In his last nine Tests, which date back to January 2011, he has taken 21 wickets at 41.57 which includes a five-wicket haul against Zimbabwe. Clearly, you do not leave out a cricketer of Vettori’s calibre without a great deal of thought, but time catches up with everyone.In those same nine Tests Vettori averages 28.93 with the bat, with a hundred against Pakistan, so he still brings all-round value but Martin showed, with a bristling 41 in Dunedin, that he was not a rabbit. Martin is not going to lose the enjoyment of the moment by thinking about the future.”Every time I get a bowl out there I just treat it as my last Test and I’ve got to perform,” he said. “That’s kind of what’s like when you are my age. You have to keep putting the numbers up there and make them pick you. It’s all gone past so quick that it’s a bit of a blur to be honest. Test, sleep, Test. It’s a way it’s nice to get a bit of reward for 100-odd games of toil.”