All posts by csb10.top

James Foster’s second misfortune with injury this season has ruled him out of the remainder of England’s Test series against India.The 22-year-old Essex wicket-keeper broke his left thumb while keeping wicket to John Stephenson in the current Frizzell County Championship match against Glamorgan at Chelmsford. He is expected to be out of action for between four and six weeks.Foster said: “This is a huge blow for me coming so soon after breaking my arm earlier in the season. The early indications are that I could be out for a while, but we will have a clearer idea once I have seen the specialist tomorrow.”Foster, who was given a central contract by England in the spring, was playing in only his third game for Essex this season, after breaking his arm in the nets in April.The injury forced him to miss England’s Test series against Sri Lanka, as well as the recent NatWest triangular series, allowing Surrey’s Alec Stewart to return to England colours. Stewart today made his 119th Test appearance, breaking Graham Gooch’s record as England’s most-capped player.Foster’s latest setback means he will have precious little cricket before England announce their squads for the ICC Champions’ trophy and the Ashes tour of Australia that follows.Foster was the guest on CricInfo’s Norwich Union League live chat feature onTuesday, when he was asked how his arm was feeling. He replied: “It’s prettymuch recovered. In the last championship and one-day game the arm was a bitsore. It’s good enough to play and it’s not ‘end of the world’ pain. I don’talways feel it, and it comes on just through tiredness or weakness in the arm.”It was obviously a huge disappointment breaking it, and it couldn’t have come at a worse time. I missed out on all the good Essex matches like the B&H final, and I missed the chance of playing with England at start of the season. It’s been a tough ten weeks out of action, but now I’m raring to go.”Asked if he felt he was close to getting back into the England set-up for the tour to Australia this winter, he said: “At the moment I’m just trying to do well for Essex and I can’t afford to look too far ahead into the future. If I do well for Essex I hope that people will take notice and I can get back into contention for England again.”Obviously an Ashes tour would be marvellous but I can’t be wrapped up in that – I’ve just got to concentrate on each performance now rather than letting that cloud the issue.”

Mike Findlay and his fellow selectors should have a relatively simple task when they sit down tomorrow to pick the West Indies team for the opening Cable & Wireless Test against India.Providing that Brian Lara and Ramnaresh Sarwan are recovered and ready to return, five of the top six places are settled Chris Gayle, Sarwan, Lara, captain Carl Hooper and Shivnarine Chanderpaul.The wicket-keeping slot, if barely, should go to the incumbent Ridley Jacobs. It is evident that Jacobs’ keeping has been on the decline and his reliability as a No.7 batsman is also under the microscope, but his overall record and his known qualities as a fighter should be enough for him to retain a place.Two of the fast bowling places are also straightforward, with the new ball going to Mervyn Dillon and Cameron Cuffy.So Findlay and company are essentially only trying to fill the missing link of three players.The existing vacancies are the second opening batsman, the third fast bowler and the individual identified as the fourth specialist bowler.Two weeks ago, I gave you chapter and verse of why we should not revert to Stuart Williams in spite of his record-breaking runs in the Busta Series.It leaves Daren Ganga and Devon Smith as those vying to partner Gayle.Smith has done all that has been asked of him his season, but Ganga, who is yet to transform his seemingly solid technique into significant runs in 15 Tests, which have been spread over three years in six countries, at least deserves a chance to fail at home.Based on what our fast bowlers did in Sharjah and Sri Lanka, one might want to suggest we place some names in a hat and pull one. Whether we tried Pedro Collins, Colin Stuart, Marlon Black, the results were very much the same.Collins and Black are again in contention and are joined by the uncapped Darren Powell and Adam Sanford. Powell, spoken highly of by Andy Roberts, brings a breath of freshness and should strongly challenge Collins for the place.Under normal circumstances, leg-spinner Din-anath Ramnarine should be the preferred choice as the fourth specialist bowler. But, as we saw in Sharjah, the selectors were prepared to leave him out for the first Test and instead opt for a batsman who could bowl to fill the No. 7 slot ahead of Jacobs.The same policy should be applied here.The first name that comes to mind for that position is Ryan Hinds, who in fact, filled the role for his debut Test in Sharjah. As a batsman, Hinds performed with supreme aplomb in his first taste of Test cricket and deserves to be retained. But the fact of the matter is that as long as Lara and Sarwan are back, there is no place from him in the top six.The person coming in at No. 7 is intended to be one who is good enough to play as the fourth bowler. Hinds is a more than useful left-arm spinner for Barbados in regional competitions.I distinctly get the impression, however, that Hooper doesn’t have much faith in him as a bowler and the statistics can back up the point. In his two Tests, he has been given only 21 overs and in five One-Day Internationals he has had 18 overs.Here is where the name of the uncapped Gareth Breese comes into the picture. He is a well-organised batsman with a first-class hundred and his off-spin bowling has been a revelation over the last two seasons.This year, the 26-year-old Jamaican has performed the phenomenal feat of winning four successive Man-of-the-match awards in the Busta Series and his 377 runs (ave. 41.88) and 40 wickets (ave. 19.67) should not go unrecognised.My 13 (with the starting 11 mentioned first), therefore, is: Gayle, Ganga, Sarwan, Lara, Hooper, Chanderpaul, Breese, Jacobs, Dillon, Cuffy, Collins, Powell, and Ryan Hinds.

	Simon Taufel: “If I’m selected to be an umpire, I will not hesitate to go” © Getty Images

Simon Taufel, the world’s No. 1 umpire, will not hesitate to stand in the Champions Trophy in Pakistan in September. Taufel has been to the country on ten occasions, most recently for the Asia Cup in June, and is confident over the security arrangements.”There are no guarantees in any area of life,” Taufel told the . “In all my experiences there, the Pakistan people have been friendly and hospitable. Everything is absolutely first class.”They make a huge effort in the security stakes. At no stage have I felt worried, in danger or threatened in Pakistan. If I’m selected to be an umpire, I will not hesitate to go.”Taufel’s comments come in the wake of fears that members of the Australian team could opt out of the Champions Trophy. Ricky Ponting indicated in June that his team-mates were uneasy over touring, while Andrew Symonds was not convinced about safety. However, the players are expected to take a final call after security briefings by Cricket Australia.

PERTH’S new-look WACA Ground is on course to host record Test Match attendances against England on Friday.Australia’s World Champion Test side could retain the Ashes with a third successive win over England in Perth’s Test. Even a draw would be sufficient to guarantee that Steve Waugh’s team retain the coveted Urn for a record eighth successive series.Perth’s 30th Test could surpass all previous attendance records, including opening day crowds of the first two Ashes Tests staged at the ground on December 1970 and four years later.A WACA first day record attendance could be more than 22,000 on Friday. The final figure will depend on Membership attendance.Perth’s first Test attracted 15,840 to the opening day’s play on December 11, 1970.The WACA Ground’s biggest first day attendance (16,894) was recorded on December 1, 2000 when Australia confronted the West Indies.Other big first day crowds include:

December 13, 1974, against England 16,381November 12, 1982 against England 16,276November 28, 1998 against England 16,788December 12, 1975 against West Indies 15,482The WACA’s biggest second day crowd is 22,680 on December 14, 1974, against England.The WACA’s biggest third day figure is 24,151 on December 15, 1974 against England.The WACA’s biggest fourth day attendance is 19,808 on December 15, 1975, against the West Indies.The WACA’s Five Biggest overall Test attendances:December 11-16, 1970 against England 84,142December 13-17, 1974 against England 75,196February 3-7, 1995, against England 71,679

With such a rush of sales in recent weeks, prospects of record first, second and third day attendances are mounting.On the strength of such enthusiastic sales, WACA Chief Executive Mrs Kath White advised all cricket fans to purchase tickets well before Perth’s Third Orange Test."The rate of pre-sales for a Test Match, exceeds the rate of pre-sales at all previous Test matches held at the WACA," said Mrs White."We expect most seating for the first three days could be sold prior to the Test match starting."Mrs White said that recently installed Perimeter seating, with its enhanced comfort levels and extensive public and member interest in the recently completed $12million refurbishment of the WACA had heightened interest in Perth’s Test.She said that sales for Perth’s One Day Internationals in December (Friday Dec 20 and Sunday Dec 22) are also selling rapidly.

Former Test cricketer Manzoor Elahi has been named captain of the Lahore City Cricket Association Blues side and Tariq Mahmood of Whites. Both the teams will take part in the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy Grade-I, starting from Dec 21.Manzoor, earlier was named as member of the LCCA selection committee, but later he showed his interest for playing as a member of the team. Manzoor is the only Test cricketer representing LCCA in the country’s sole first class tournament.The selection committee headed by LCCA president, Aamir Hayat Khan Rokri, selected 25 players for each side included 20 seniors and five Under-19 after holding three days trials at the Model Town Greens ground from Nov 28 to 30.Blues: Manzoor Elahi (captain), Sohail Idrees, Ali Hussain, Ziaur Rehman, Latif Gohar, Kashif Mehmood, Ashraf Ali, Hafiz Yawar, Ali Raza (wicketkeeper), Shahzad Butt, Mohammad Khalil, Mohammad Afzal, Ahmed Khan, Moeez Siddiqi, Kashif Ejaz, Mustaqeem Ahmed, Faisal Mehmood, Ahmed Dar, Kashif Shafi, Mohammad Shafiq. Under- 19: Amjad Ali, Atif Ejaz, Kashif Mehmood, Khurram Irshad, Salman Qadir.Whites: Tariq Mehmood (captain), Tariq Rasheed, Aamir Sajjad, Khurram Siddique, Rizwan Aslam,Adnan Usman Khan, Muntazir Mehdi, Irfan Munawar, Saleem Shehzad, Faisal Javed, Attiqur Rehman, Ikramullah (wicketkeeper), Imran Butt, Sajid Ali, Khurram Chuhan, Mudassar Mehboob, Hafiz Azam Khan, Mohammad Asif, Salman Khan, Irfan Sohail. Under-19: Shahnawaz Malik, Umer Javed, Fahadul Haq, Adnan Butt, Wahab Riaz.

TANGIERS, Aug 17: A top Indian government and cricket board official Saturday said situation was ideal for its team to resume cricketing relations with neighbors Pakistan.Rajeev Shukla, member of the Indian Parliament and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), further said if touring each other’s country was out of question, the resumption should be from a neutral venue.”The resumption of cricket relations is extremely essential. As I see things, the tension is easing out and if cricket is resumed, it would further help the two countries to come close to each other,” he told Dawn.India is scheduled to tour Pakistan next year in April and May for three Tests and five one-day internationals. But that tour is subject to New Delhi’s approval that has slapped a ban on any bilateral series.”The BCCI president (Jaghmohan Dalmiya) had a discussion with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee who gave a very patient hearing. Besides other issues, Dalmiya also argued that if a ban has to be slapped, it should be on all sports. The BCCI has received a very encouraging response from the Prime Minister.”I agree that the sports minister has clamped the ban, but if the Prime Minister wants, he can reverse the decision,” Shukla said.India has not played a Test series in Pakistan since 1988-89 though they crossed border in 1997 to participate in the Pakistan’s Golden Jubilee three-match series. Pakistan, on the contrary, played three Tests and a tri-nation one-day series in early 1999.”The general feeling within the BCCI is that cricket between the two countries should resume. After all, we are playing at junior level, aren’t we?”For the ICC Champions Trophy and next year’s World Cup, the government has given its clearance to play Pakistan. So there is no problem on that front,” he said.Shukla said the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) should send a fresh invitation to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BBCI) suggesting for the series to be played at a neutral venue.”The objective should be to break the ice instead of pressing for the series to be played in Pakistan. If we go to a neutral venue, things would start tonormalize and eventually one day, India would tour Pakistan.”The irony is that by not playing against each other, the rest of the countries are getting an excuse. The Australians refusal to tour Pakistan was certainly a setback and has left, at least, India on a backfoot since we can’t press them to tour Pakistan as we have ourselves not toured that country,” Shukla said.When pointed out New Delhi has banned its team playing in Sharjah, one of the possible venues for the Test series, Shukla said it was because of the investigations that were going on in the aftermath of Hansiegate scandal. “But we have other options available,”he said.The PCB played its home series against West Indies in Sharjah earlier this year while the desert city along with Colombo are likely to be the venues of the home series against Australia.Last week, the chief executive of the International Cricket Council (ICC) had also indicated that Pakistan and India could lock horns on neutral territory. He had got the feedback from Dalmiya who met Prime Minister Monday last.”Naturally if there is players security, the BCCI will have to seek clearance from the foreign office. But why jump to conclusions. Let the PCB first send a fresh invitation to the BCCI so that it can present it before the sports ministry and the Prime Minister,” the MP said.He admitted that the BCCI feared isolation and suspension from the ICC if it continued to cancel bilateral series with Pakistan.”We can cancel a series once or twice. But eventually, the excuse will become lame and might lead to complications. The BCCI is aware of that fact and that’s why it is seriously interested in revival of cricket between the two boards,” Shukla said.

SYDNEY, Oct 31 AAP – A keen student of cricket’s history books, Steve Waugh has watched his Australian side force them to be rewritten time and again during his reign as captain.And a poll published today revealed the current squad was considered the best Australian side ever, which is no mean statement considering the feats of Sir Donald Bradman’s Invincibles.The Hawker Britton survey concluded that 52 per cent of Australia’s cricket supporters believed Waugh’s men are the greatest, with only 34 per cent voting otherwise.Since Waugh assumed the Test captaincy from Mark Taylor in 1999, Australia has sat untouchable atop the world rankings and became the inaugural ICC World Test Champions.Against India in February 2001, Australia set a world record for a 16th consecutive Test victory, a run which stretched 16 months and included a memorable 5-0 whitewash of the West Indies.In one-day cricket, Waugh lifted the 1999 World Cup after victory over Pakistan at Lord’s.While the limited overs game was not around in Bradman’s time, those lucky enough to have witnessed both sides in action – those aged 65 or more – voted Waugh’s side as the best.In 1948, Bradman led an Australia side including Ray Lindwall, Keith Miller and Neil Harvey on an unbeaten tour of England, winning the series 4-0.But of the age group who would be expected to favour the Invincibles, 59 per cent backed Waugh’s XI as the best they had ever seen.In a week where he has faced questions on when he might retire, following the retirement of brother Mark, Steve Waugh has the backing of 81 per cent of supporters to remain as skipper.

The Queen’s Park Oval at Trinidad might be one of India’s favouriteaway grounds but that did not save them from a thrashing at the handsof the West Indians on Saturday.The game began on a sombre note with the players observing a minute’ssilence in memory of the recently departed Subhash Gupte, whom Iconsider to be the greatest leg-spinner the game has seen, and HansieCronje.I feel sorry for the present generation of cricket lovers who neversaw the great Gupte in action. He was a genius in the true sense ofthe word and could work magic on any wicket and against any batsman. Iwould venture to say that if he were playing now, he would haveclaimed 500 Test wickets with ease, considering the high quality offielding support that he would be getting.I still cherish the memory of playing against the great man in aCentral Zone v South Zone encounter at Bangalore. In the course of aface-saving partnership for South which I forged in the company of thelate Kripal Singh, I picked up various nuances of the art of spinbowling from the maestro. Truly, it was a blessed moment for me.Naturally, at the start of the match, I then thought that the Indians,after electing to bat, would spare no effort in earning a win thatthey could subsequently dedicate to memory of the late genius. But therain seemed to have played spoilsport as far as they were concerned.They clearly seemed to lack a gameplan to tackle the contingency ofbatting first in a contest truncated to a 25-over-a-side affair.Batsman after batsman started going for quick runs, as the touristsplayed into the hands of the West Indies side who bundled them out for123 runs. The home side were favourites from thereon and the only hopethe Indians lay in the prospect of another shower washing out thematch before the West Indies reached the modest victory target.A shower did come early on in the West Indies innings but it was anunwelcome sight for the Indians. In the seventh over of the hometeam’s innings bowled by Tinu Yohanan it rained boundaries as WestIndies opener Chris Gayle, who had begun middling the ball well,opened his broad shoulders and plundered 25 runs. The savage attackeffectively sealed the fate of the match.Gayle and his partner Wavell Hinds went on to add 117 runs at wellover a run a ball and this meant that the West Indies easily achievedthe series-leveling win that they had been seeking at the start of thematch.The home team proved that they were ready to take the bull by thehorns in a must-win encounter and their aggressive approach paid richdividends indeed. Now, with the series hanging in the balance, it isup to the Indians to prove that they can bounce back and at least winthe one-day series before leaving the Caribbean.

The second day of the three day championship match between Somerset Second Eleven and Gloucestershire ended evenly balanced, after the hosts dismissed their visitors for 244 by the close of play.Earlier in the day Somerset scored 248 for 3, with opener Neil Edwards scoring his maiden century at this level before in mid afternoon rain forced the players from the field.During the break Somerset skipper Tom Webley declared to leave Edwards unbeaten on 101 and Wes Durston 54 not out.When play started again in late afternoon Gloucestershire were bowled out for 244, with Durston having the impressive figures of 10 overs, 5 wickets for 53 runs.Tomorrow is the final day of the match, and if the weather remains fine an interesting finish could be in prospect

The interim committee running the affairs of the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) decided to resign on Wednesday night.Vijaya Malalsekara, the chairman of the interim committee, announced the decision at a BCCSL management meeting and also briefed the Sri Lankan team.The interim committee will offer a formal letter of resignation to the Minister of Sports, Johnston Fernando, shortly, which will take effect from April 1.According to BCCSL sources, the reason for the committee’s resignation was a prior verbal agreement between Malasekara and the government that the interim committee stands down after a year in office.Fernando will now be required to decide to call fresh BCCSL elections or appoint a fresh interim committee.The government’s fear of factionalism in the Sri Lanka’s highest profile sports body, in a year that will see the country host the ICC Champions Trophy, suggests that elections will be avoided for the time being.Malalsekera has indicated a desire to return to focus on his own business interests and Hemaka Amarasuriya, the chairman of Singer, is tipped to take charge of a new committee.