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Fast bowler in for injured Shane Bond in New Zealand’s squad for the second Test against Pakistan

Cricinfo staff02-Dec-2009Tim Southee, the New Zealand fast bowler, has been drafted into the squad as cover for the injured Shane Bond for the second Test against Pakistan. Bond suffered minor abdominal discomfort following the 32-run victory in Dunedin and was subsequently ruled out of the remaining two matches.However, captain Daniel Vettori said that Daryl Tuffey , who was part of the squad for the first Test, would most likely be starting in place of Bond for the match tomorrow in Wellington. Southee, on the other hand, would be backup, in case any injuries were sustained during the period before that match.Southee’s inclusion comes after a strong outing for Northern Districts against Wellington in Hamilton during the Plunket Shield last week. Southee wrecked Wellington’s first innings, finishing with extraordinary figures of 25-12-27-8, but it was a terrific effort in vain as the home side lost by 38 runs.The 20-year-old did well in the limited-overs series against Pakistan in the UAE. He last played a Test against India in April.Tuffey, whose last Test was against England in 2004, hoped to make the most of the opportunity. “Obviously it’s disappointing for Shane with that injury,” he told the . “But it always works in roundabouts like that and I’ve been on the receiving end of injuries and giving other guys chances. He’s a good mate of mine and I’m really disappointed for him.”If my name is read out, which is obviously looking more and more likely with Shane being out, I’m just looking forward to the opportunity.”Tuffey, like Bond a former ICL player who will have a chance to revive to his Test career, has taken 24 of his 66 Test wickets against Pakistan. He didn’t play the Sri Lanka Tests and suffered a hand injury which forced him to return home from South Africa during the Champions Trophy. “I never thought I would have been playing Test cricket again,” he said. “But it’s funny how things have panned out.””The good thing about Daryl is every Test team that’s been named, he’s been disappointed not to be in it,” said Daniel Vettori. “He’s been close and he’s been bowling well.”The fast bowler Iain O’Brien, who dislocated the middle finger of his bowling hand during a career-saving spell on day five in Dunedin, did not think the injury would prevent him from playing tomorrow. “I bowled a couple to feel the finger and see how it came out,” he said. “It’s just sore, there’s no fractures, no nothing really, just a bit of bruising. I’ve just got to hope I don’t get a bang on it when I’m bowling.”Having endured an ordinary Test and playing almost for his place, O’Brien had a crucial part in the turnaround on day five of the Dunedin Test. He followed up Umar Akmal’s wicket with those of Kamran Akmal, with a sharp in-ducker, and Umar Gul. He will protect his injured finger with a splint when fielding but will not, per cricket’s rules, be allowed to wear it while bowling.”I’ve got some toys to cover it with,” said O’Brien. “With the cricket laws it’ll be nude when I’m bowling then hopefully I can cover it up and keep some impact off it when I’m fielding. It’ll be okay, I guess I have to try and hide it as much as I can when I’m fielding.”

Robbie Joseph and Darren Stevens have both signed new contracts with Kent

Cricinfo staff16-Dec-2009Robbie Joseph and Darren Stevens have both signed new contracts with Kent.Joseph, a fast bowler, and Stevens, an allrounder, have extended their stay with the county until 2011.Paul Farbrace, Kent’s team director, said: “We are delighted that Darren and Robbie have extended their contracts with the club. Both are quality players and, with Rob Key, Martin van Jaarsveld and Geraint Jones recently extending their deals, the nucleus of the team is now taking shape.”As a club, it’s great for us to know that the players want to commit themselves moving forward. It’s also exciting from the team point of view because it puts us in a strong position, going into the 2010 season.”

Ijaz Butt has said the PCB had wanted to host the second Test of the Sri Lanka series in Karachi instead of Lahore

Cricinfo staff22-Dec-2009More than nine months after the fateful terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore, Ijaz Butt, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, has said the board had wanted to host that Test in Karachi instead. Butt said he had requested the Pakistan government to shift the game to Karachi because of concerns over the security situation in the province of Punjab, where Lahore is located.Karachi had hosted the first Test of that series which was drawn. The Sri Lankans were making their way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore for the third day’s play on March 3 when terrorists opened fire on the team bus, injuring five players and their assistant coach Paul Farbrace. The tour was immediately cancelled and the repercussions were enormous as Pakistan was stripped of its share of matches for the 2011 World Cup. Teams have since refused to tour Pakistan.”A top government official rejected our suggestion and said the Test would be held in Lahore,” Butt told a television channel. “The implementation of the security arrangements for the visiting team was also that of the government, the board could do nothing about it.”He added that the Lahore High Court had identified the people responsible for the lax security arrangements in its inquiry report. “I can’t name anyone but the inquiry report is there for everyone to see,” Butt said.Shortly after the attacks, Butt had said the security arrangements was the government’s responsibility and not the PCB’s and that the level of security for the Sri Lankans was the same provided to all visiting teams. He had reacted angrily to match referee Chris Broad’s claims that the security cover was insufficient despite assurances from the PCB. He had said Broad’s reaction was “obnoxious”, and that a commando was actually responsible for saving Broad’s life.

Tamim Iqbal has said doing well against India gives him extra satisfaction, for they are his favourite rivals

Sriram Veera in Chittagong15-Jan-2010Tamim Iqbal has said doing well against India gives him extra satisfaction, for they are his favourite rivals. He added he was aiming to develop more patience and play longer knocks, similar to his century against West Indies.Tamim’s violent six off Zaheer Khan after charging down the track was one of the best shots of the 2007 World Cup, and certainly one of the most famous strikes ever by a Bangladeshi batsman. Does he reserve his best for India?”They [India] are my idols,” he said. “I really admire the batting of Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh and, in fact, want to speak to Gambhir during this series about my batting. It’s a pleasure to play against India, as they are one of the big teams of the world and it gives you extra satisfaction. Winning against India is special because of you guys [media].The media attention, and I’m telling the truth, when I do well against India also matters.”When asked if there was a niggle between him and Zaheer, for both had an exchange of words, not for the first time, in the recently-concluded tri-nation ODI series, Tamim said: “No there is nothing like that. It was just a misunderstanding with him. That happens in cricket. I don’t know him that off the field but I am sure once we meet and chat, we will get along well.”It’s not as if I do anything extra against him. Hitting the bad ball for four is my target. If I get one I just punish it whether the bowler is Zaheer Khan or anyone else.”Aggression has been never been a problem with Tamim, but patience has. Tamim said he was aware of that and knew patience was the key to becoming a successful opener. He hit a breezy 84 against New Zealand on his Test debut, but rates his 248-ball 128 against West Indies as the possible turning-point in his career.”I batted almost 80 overs [and 311 minutes],” Tamim said. “It’s the only time I have batted for that long. The century wasn’t much, it wasn’t that great but the fact that I played so many balls was extra special. I don’t know what happened to me that day but I was enjoying it and I really want to bat like that again. I want to control my mind more and play like that in Test cricket.”Tamim said he has worked hard on his batting to correct the flaws and hopes he will rattle more big scores in the future. “There were some weak points in my batting,” he said. “I can’t tell you guys what, but there were some areas where I was weak. I have worked really hard with coach Mohammad Salahuddin, who really helped me a lot. Jamie Siddons, too, has helped me in becoming a better player now.”Tamim will get a chance to showcase his learning and batting in two days time on a flat track in Chittagong. His captain Shakib has already said Bangladesh will take draw as a good result. “A draw will be good for us,” Shakib said. “I am confident that we will have a good chance if we can score 700 runs in the two innings.” The captain’s task will be made easier if Tamim plays a long, patient innings.

India took the series lead with a convincing seven-wicket win in Visakhapatnam. Rumeli Dhar starred with a career-best 4 for 19 and Jhulan Goswami and the spinners assisted in keeping England down to 130

Cricinfo staff24-Feb-2010
Scorecard
Rumeli Dhar took career-best figures of 4 for 19•Getty Images

India took a 2-1 series lead with a convincing seven-wicket win in Visakhapatnam. Rumeli Dhar starred with a career-best 4 for 19 and Jhulan Goswami and the spinners assisted in keeping England down to 130. Anjum Chopra scored an unbeaten 61 as India chased the target with ease.India had lost the second match in Bangalore by three runs, with only Mithali Raj and Amita Sharma making significant contributions with the bat. But this time the target was much lower, owing to some incisive bowling.Dhar and Goswami triggered an early collapse which allowed the spinners to pressure the middle order and dry up the runs even further. Dhar returned in the final 10 overs and picked up two more wickets to give the Indian batsmen an easy target to chase.Ebony Rainford-Brent was the first to be dismissed when she edged Dhar to the keeper for a duck in the fourth over. Dhar then trapped Caroline Atkins leg before for 26 in the seventh over, before she held a catch to remove Jenny Gunn for 2 off Goswami. England captain Charlotte Edwards and Lydia Greenway dropped anchor, looking to score off loose balls, and added 33 at less than three an over. At the end of the 24th over, Edwards was stumped off left-arm spinner Preeti Dimri and England were tottering at 54 for 4. Dimri also picked up Greenway’s wicket and finished with figures of 2 for 20.India’s fielders didn’t always back up their bowlers’ efforts – fumbling in the outfield and fluffing run-out chances – but the early wickets ensured England couldn’t rebuild. Beth Morgan and Laura Marsh added 39 before Dhar struck off consecutive balls in the 43rd over. First she had Morgan caught in the deep and then trapped Katherine Brunt plumb in front.Marsh fell trying to clear the in-field and gave left-arm spinner Gouher Sultana her first wicket of the day. She took another wicket in the final over, catching Nicky Shaw for 9. Goswami also picked up a second wicket – Tamsin Beaumont – and finished with impressive figures of 2 for 17 from nine overs.India opened the batting with Poonam Raut, playing her second ODI, and Anjum Chopra, after two low scores by Anagha Deshpande. Brunt got some movement early in the innings and troubled both Raut and Chopra. But the openers stuck in and added 97 at over three an over. Raut hit nine fours in her 91-ball 44 before she was trapped leg before by Gunn in the 32nd over. Two balls later Gunn trapped Priyanka Roy for a duck. Brunt bowled Deshpande soon after for 1. Dhar joined Chopra at the crease and hit the winning runs with a four in the 41st over.

Lenert van Wyk, a 20-year-old Cape Cobras batsman, hit an unbeaten 156 to lead his team to victory against Sussex

Mark Pennell in Abu Dhabi23-Mar-2010
ScorecardWith a name like Lenert van Wyk he might be mistaken for a long-since departed Dutch master, in reality he is a strapping 20-year-old batsman that the bowlers of Sussex will hope never to see again after he cracked an unbeaten 156.Van Wyk made his domestic MTN40 debut for the Cape Cobras first string at Newlands last November in a six wicket win over the Dolphins. Sadly, the young right-hander with shoulders befitting a rugby union centre was not required to bat that night against Graham Ford’s franchise side as the likes of Herschelle Gibbs, Justin Ontong and Justin Kemp went in ahead of him. Sussex had no such luck.Chasing a respectable total of 271 for 9 at the Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, van Wyk produced a stunning innings to see his side home to a shock seven-wicket win with eight balls to spare. He enjoyed two let-offs before reaching 50, the second of which was a skier lost in the floodlights by mid-off fielder Will Beer, but after that van Wyk reigned supreme with a show of power hitting that left Sussex chasing shadows.He hit 16 fours and five sixes in his 129-ball innings, winning the game with an off-driven boundary off Ragheb Aga who, three balls earlier, had also conceded the six that took van Wyk to his 150.In tandem with diminutive third-wicket partner Yaseen Vallie (78) he helped add 189 and ensured their side recovered from a rocky start of 7 for 2 to record their second dramatic win of the tour against an English county.Earlier, the Sussex top order never really made the best of ideal bating conditions as Chris Nash (39), Andrew Hodd (24), Michael Yardy (29) and Ben Brown (20) all got themselves out after promising starts.Their blushes were saved, albeit temporarily, by a seventh-wicket stand worth 96 between Aga (58) and Ollie Rayner (56) but when both fell in quick succession the run rate dropped in the crucial closing overs leaving the door to victory ajar for the rookie Cobras.Thanks to van Wyk’s mastery of the lofted straight drive, the Emerging Cobras simply beat the door down to win with ease and send Sussex back to their team hotel to contemplate a second straight defeat on this 10-day pre-season tour.

Ryan Harris and Brent Arnel couldn’t have wished for better conditions to begin their Test careers than the green-top at the Basin Reserve

Brydon Coverdale in Wellington18-Mar-2010Ryan Harris and Brent Arnel couldn’t have wished for better conditions to begin their Test careers than the green-top at the Basin Reserve, where both men have a strong chance of making their debuts on Friday. Harris will become the 413th Australian Test cricketer, provided he has no problems recovering from a minor side injury, while the grassy surface has pushed Arnel in to strong contention to bump the spinner Jeetan Patel out of New Zealand’s line-up.Pace and bounce have been the features of warm-up sessions in Wellington and Ricky Ponting said facing up on the practice pitches was “like we were batting at the WACA”, compared to the slower one-day surfaces used recently. That will encourage Harris, whose excellent ODI form over the past two months – 28 wickets at 14.14 in 11 games – has pushed him ahead of Clint McKay in the Test reckoning.”He is a guy who can genuinely swing the ball at brisk pace,” Ponting said. “You are always looking for someone who can use the new ball really well. We unearthed a couple last year who could do that in Ben Hilfenhaus and Dougie Bollinger.”With Hilfenhaus not being here and Siddle not being here, someone who can use that new ball, I think Ryan fits all those things really well. In the one-day games, I think it was three or four games in a row back in Australia he got a wicket in the first over of the game swinging the new ball. So hopefully he can have the same sort of effect if he comes up for this Test match.”It is remarkable that Harris could be in line for a Test debut in a season when he has played only one Sheffield Shield match due to an injury at the start of the summer and his one-day commitments. But it now seems the only thing that can keep him out is the side problem that prompted Australia to fly the South Australian fast man Peter George in to join the squad as cover.Harris bowled in the indoor nets at Westpac Stadium on Wednesday while rain scuppered his chances of having a run outdoors. The Australians were being extra cautious by bringing in George, with the expectation that Harris would continue to recover well with a lengthy session at the Basin Reserve on match eve.”He bowled about five overs yesterday indoors which probably wasn’t ideal for us or for him,” Ponting said. “He’ll do a lot more bowling today for us to get a bit more of a feel on where he’s at. But everything he has done in the last couple of days with his bowling has been good. Things at the moment are pretty positive with him. Ryan will play if he gets through as well as we want him to today and we’ll wait and see how he wakes up in the morning.”New Zealand have seen plenty of Harris through the one-day series but Australia know little about Arnel, the Northern Districts bowler who is likely to play his first Test. Daniel Vettori would not commit to Arnel over Patel with a day’s preparation remaining, but he said the conditions made it more likely than not that Arnel would have the edge.At 31, he has enjoyed the first-class scene after being a late starter, not making his first appearance until 27. This summer Arnel has taken 29 Plunket Shield wickets at 19.58 and Vettori said he was confident that Arnel could make the step up to Test level.”He’s been waiting in the wings a little while and has been involved in a few squads,” Vettori said. “Hopefully if he does get the nod then he is ready. He’s been bowling really well and that’s the main thing. He’s pretty consistent, he puts it in the right areas the majority of the time and on a wicket that’s got a little bit of something in it, that’s pretty crucial.”

Ottis Gibson, the West Indies coach, has said paceman Jerome Taylor is still not ready for competitive cricket and will not be rushed back prematurely, with less than three weeks before West Indies are due to host the World Twenty20

Cricinfo staff13-Apr-2010Ottis Gibson, the West Indies coach, has said paceman Jerome Taylor is still not ready for competitive cricket and will not be rushed back prematurely, with less than three weeks before West Indies are due to host the World Twenty20.Taylor has not played since limping out of the first Test against Australia in Brisbane last November and is yet to feature in the Jamaica Cricket Association Festival, where West Indies are playing Jamaica, Ireland and Canada.”He has not played yet in the festival yet but the intention is to play him later this week, maybe Saturday or Sunday, but currently he is still doing all the strengthening and the ‘back to bowling programme’,” Gibson told .He was picked in the West Indies squad for the Festival and also in the official 15-man squad for the World Twenty20 and Gibson is confident that the rehab is going well.”Jerome is progressing nicely. He is doing all the things we asked him to do. He is doing some bowling and he is doing a lot of strengthening work, which he needed to do since he has his injury.West Indies will be without paceman Fidel Edwards, who is recovering with from back surgery, for the tournament but Gibson is hopeful that Taylor will be available.”He is a lot fitter than when I saw him two weeks ago in Barbados, so the signs are very good for him moving forward. He is getting closer and closer at all times and as I said to him, his main focus is to get fit for the first game [in the World Twenty20].”

Indian captain MS Dhoni has expressed confidence that his team will be fresh and ready to compete in the ICC World Twenty20 despite the tournament starting just days after the conclusion of the IPL

Cricinfo staff27-Apr-2010Indian captain MS Dhoni has expressed confidence that his team will be fresh and ready to compete in the ICC World Twenty20 despite the tournament starting just days after the conclusion of the IPL. The close proximity of the two major Twenty20 tournaments followed a similar pattern last year, when the then defending champions India failed to qualify for the semi-finals, but Dhoni said his players were experienced enough to manage the traveling and workload.”It’s not that we have not played games. Sometimes you have to just take the schedule, there’s no point complaining about it,” Dhoni said in Mumbai before the team’s departure for the West Indies.”The IPL was supposed to finish on the 25th. We had one and a half days’ rest after that, then one whole day of flying and after reaching we have 2-3 days which is more than enough. We play throughout the year. We are together for almost 250 to 300 days so I don’t think that should be a concern at all.”The coach Gary Kirsten backed Dhoni’s comments and said he was confident his team could go all the way. “We have got the schedule and can’t do anything about it now,” Kirsten said. “The Indian players may feel the heat of it more because all of them played in the IPL but our responsibility is to go out there and ensure that we are well prepared. We will do what we can in these circumstances.”It wasn’t the best of IPLs for Yuvraj Singh, who managed 255 runs in 14 games for Kings XI Punjab at 21.25. Yuvraj had just returned from injury and didn’t have enough time to work his way back to form once the tournament started, but his performance didn’t worry Dhoni, who backed him to bounce back in the West Indies.”Yuvraj is a great player, one of the best in T20 format, one of the biggest hitters of the ball and he can contribute with the ball at the same time,” Dhoni said. “He has not scored too many runs in the IPL but at the same time it’s not a big worrying factor.”In the T20 format you need just 5 to 10 deliveries to strike form. He is still hitting the ball well. So we aren’t too worried about it.”The only injury blow for India is opener Virender Sehwag, who was ruled out towards the end of the IPL due to a shoulder injury. M Vijay, the Tamil Nadu batsman who had a rewarding IPL, was named his replacement.Looking ahead to the tournament, Dhoni said the wickets would be on the slower side and he expected his spinners, including allrounders like Yusuf Pathan and Suresh Raina, to play a big role.”Both Yusuf and Harbhajan Singh did very well for their teams opening the bowling in the IPL. We also have very good part-timers in the team. Yusuf, Ravindra Jadeja and Harbhajan have done well in all formats of the game over the years to be called as specialist spinners,” Dhoni said. “I don’t think bowling should be a problem.”India’s problem of facing short deliveries – which was exposed last year in England – was also addressed but Kirsten said the players were prepared to face any challenge.”Every player is aware of what he plans to do and how he wants to set up his game plan. I’m sure the players themselves would know the bowlers they will be facing and would try to exploit the potential weaknesses of those individuals.”We will do as much work as we can in the limited time available to make sure we are as well prepared.”

While South Africa have clearly been a class apart from their opponents, it is in the batting that the disparity between the two sides has been the greatest

The Preview by Siddarth Ravindran29-May-2010

Match Facts

Sunday May 30, 2010

Start time 09.30 local, 13.30 GMT

The Big Picture

Morne Morkel has been in top form all series•AFP

An uncomplicated series victory is just what Graeme Smith wanted after a botched World Twenty20 campaign, which had prompted stinging criticism from the South African board. Less than three weeks on, the Cricket South Africa president, Gerald Majola, is lauding the “skill, steel and savvy” of the team and egging them on to complete yet another clean sweep of the West Indies.While South Africa have clearly been a class apart from their opponents, it is in the batting that the disparity between the two sides has been the greatest. The West Indies batsmen haven’t displayed the application and shot selection necessary to compile big scores, highlighted by the lack of half-centuries in two of the three ODIs in this series so far. Even when the visitors’ in-form batting unit flopped on Friday, West Indies’ batting proved even more underwhelming to fall short by 67 runs when chasing a moderate target.South Africa have also been smart with their bowling strategies. For example, the potentially explosive Kieron Pollard is usually tested early in his innings by the express pace of Dale Steyn, and after Darren Sammy’s carnage in the second one-dayer he was bombarded with bouncers two days ago, barely getting anything to drive.In a plain-spoken assessment of the ills of Caribbean cricket WICB’s chief executive, Ernest Hilaire, had said the region needs three more years for a turnaround in its cricketing fortunes. After a week of thoroughly dispiriting cricket from Chris Gayle’s side, it is hard to contest Hilaire’s appraisal.

Form guide (most recent first)

South Africa WWWWL
West Indies LLLWW

Watch out for…

Morne Morkel has been in top form all series, and it was his intervention that started the turnaround for South Africa in the third ODI after a lacklustre batting performance. His two wickets helped put the squeeze after a free-flowing start to the West Indies chase, and a couple of late wickets boosted his series tally to 10, twice as much as the next highest wicket-taker.West Indies’ bowlers pulled it back on Friday after South Africa’s top order had made yet another ominously solid start. Ravi Rampaul typified their resilience by returning strongly after being pasted for 21 runs in his first three overs. There were no boundaries in his other overs, and he used the short ball to good effect to choke the runs.

Team news

West Indies have added right-hand batsman Travis Dowlin to the squad for the fourth ODI. Dowlin recently returned from the West Indies A team tour of Bangladesh where he was captain.
The changes that could be made are bringing in either Narsingh Deonarine, who was dropped after the first two one-dayers, or David Bernard, who may edge out opener Dale Richards.West Indies (probable): Chris Gayle (capt), Dale Richards/Travis Dowlin, Darren Bravo, Dwayne Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kieron Pollard, Darren Sammy, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Jerome Taylor, Ravi Rampaul, Sulieman Benn
With the series already in the bag, South Africa will look to use the remaining matches to test their talent pool in international arena. The likes of JP Duminy and Mark Boucher could also be given a chance to regain form, though it remains to be seen what sort of changes the South African think-tank decide to opt for.South Africa (probable): Graeme Smith (capt), Hashim Amla, Loots Bosman, AB de Villiers (wk), Alviro Petersen, David Miller, Johan Botha, Ryan McLaren, Morne Morkel, Charl Landeveldt, Lonwabo Tsotsobe

Stats and trivia

• South Africa have lost only one ODI to West Indies in the previous five years, winning 14 of the previous 15 matches between the two teams
• AB de Villiers has four hundreds and a fifty in his past eight innings, a spell during which he averages 99.50
• West Indies have been defeated in all three matches held at Windsor Park so far
  

  Quotes

  “We still have two games to play, and all we can do is keep working hard at it.”
  Chris Gayle