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How they were out

	Salman Butt’s classy 73 lifted Kolkata Knight Riders to 149, but it wasn’t enough (file photo) © AFP

For the second successive day, the weather played spoilsport and forced Duckworth-Lewis to decide what was shaping into a fascinating contest. This time, Chennai Super Kings were on the right end of the result, as their total of 55 without loss after eight overs, chasing 150, was three runs ahead of the par score when a severe dust storm descended upon the Eden Gardens, and the rains that followed ensured there was no chance for the match to resume. The two points to Chennai moves them up to 14, while Kolkata Knight Riders are stuck on ten points from 11 games.The weather marred the contest, but through 28 overs the crowd witnessed a couple of fine performances. At the same ground where he had announced his arrival in international cricket, Salman Butt played another gem, scoring a classy 73 off 54 balls, to lift an otherwise subdued performance from Kolkata. Chennai had their own man for the moment, as Makhaya Ntini took the third hat-trick of the IPL, dismissing Sourav Ganguly in his third over, and then returning 11 overs later to bowl Debabrata Das – who had been involved in an 86-run stand with Butt – and David Hussey off successive balls.That stand gave Kolkata’s bowlers something to defend, but the most crucial moment of the match came three deliveries before the interruption. Their defence of the total had got off to a poor start as Shoaib Akhtar struggled with what seemed an injured ankle. Stephen Fleming, at last showing the form and fluency of old, and Parthiv Patel had eased to a half-century stand when Parthiv top-edged a pull, but Ashok Dinda put down the skier, and in the process allowed a single. Had that chance been taken, Chennai would have ended level with the par score, and with no further play possible, Kolkata would have gone away with one point.The only positive for Kolkata was that their batting put together a reasonable performance after their abysmal display against Mumbai Indians, when they had been bundled out for 67. Butt’s knock wasn’t the fastest by Twenty20 standards, but considering the context – a pitch lacking in pace, and a batting line-up lacking in confidence – it was just what Kolkata would have wanted.Their start was poor yet again, as Ntini struck twice in his first three overs – Mohammad Hafeez flicked to fine leg and Sourav Ganguly attempted an ungainly heave and found his middle stump knocked back.At 28 for 2 after five overs, Chennai had taken the early honours, before Butt found a partner who was ready to play the support act. Das, drafted into the side in place of Aakash Chopra, creamed a couple of audacious straight sixes off Muttiah Muralitharan – who had a day to forget – but for the most part he was content to play second fiddle to the classy Butt, who played an outstanding knock.As is his wont, Butt was all silken grace through the off side, either making room to cream drives through the covers, or getting behind the line to pepper the point and cover boundaries off the back foot. Manpreet Gony was crisply hit through the covers in his first over, while Ntini, who otherwise gave little away, leaked successive fours off two exceptional shots, as Butt moved away and lofted one through the covers, and then square-drove the next ball through point. Muralitharan was not spared either, as Butt slog-swept a six over midwicket, and then carved three successive fours through midwicket and third man in his last over, as Muralitharan finished with unflattering figures of none for 41.Apart from that partnership, there wasn’t much cheer for Kolkata. Ntini, bowling a full length and attacking the stumps, bowled both Das and Hussey to complete his hat-trick and ended with excellent figures of 4 for 21. Gony’s control was exceptional as well, landing the ball on a length and allowing the batsmen no room. The fielding wasn’t as impressive – S Vidyut was guilty of sloppy misfielding and a missed catch off Butt, while Gony dropped one late in the innings – as Kolkata managed to reach a competitive target. With Shoaib in the attack, there was plenty of hope for the home crowd, but his limp performance, followed by the rain, means Kolkata have plenty of catching up to do to win a semi-final berth.

Mickey Arthur: “I was really happy for Harry [Paul Harris] that the hard work paid off today” © AFP

If he’s not careful, there’s a danger that Paul Harris might become the kind of multi-skilled cog in the machine his country is so renowned for producing, rather than the uni-skilled square peg in a round hole everyone loves.What other conclusion can be reached on a day when he first helped South Africa add valuable, unexpected lower-order runs with a career-best 46 and then took two wickets to halt an impetuous Pakistan start?Harris’ innings was built on brave, if awkward, foundations. He was struck on the head early, but eventually recovered to play some suspiciously well-oiled sweep shots and one on-drive that lit up the day. Mickey Arthur was asked whether he was surprised by Harris’ innings, a laugh accompanying the query.Decorum allowed Arthur only a little snigger, but he said, “Look I have to be honest, he’s worked damn hard. With the team that we have gone with we have a pretty long tail and something we haven’t had for a bit. I’ve given those players responsibilities and asked them to take it. It worked out well and I was really happy for Harry that the hard work paid off today.”With Mark Boucher, Harris put on 88 runs, each one sapping Pakistan’s spirit a little more. It allowed South Africa to go past 350, when this morning 300 might have been wishful. “It was a fantastic partnership. We knew we needed one big partnership this morning. We needed someone to hang around with Mark as he was going to be the key for us. Harry did fantastic because not only did he hang around, he also scored.”But even Harris’ uniqueness has been accompanied by solid contributions from the rest and it has been that way through the tour so far. Andre Nel and Dale Steyn have worked well with Harris and dominant though Jacques Kallis has been, he’s gotten by with a little help from the other batsmen – Hashim Amla, Ashwell Prince, Boucher and even the openers. No changes in the script today and Nel, in particular, came in for some praise.”Nel is giving us exactly what we’ve known and come to expect from him. He gives us two options and we can attack with him and defend with him. He’s been fantastic for us through the series.”And that series is very nearly in the bag, though not quite, as Arthur was at pains to point out. “I certainly wouldn’t say the series is wrapped up. We’ve done the right things apart from our burst with the new ball where we probably over-attacked and tried to take a wicket every ball instead of trying to sit in a more defensive pattern. Other than that we’ve done the right things in this Test and put ourselves into a good position. There’s still a long way to go but we’re heading in the right direction.”That Inzamam-ul-Haq, after a rusty start, was still standing possibly prompted the caution. Appearing in his final Test, Inzamam was given a guard of honour by the South African team as he walked to the crease, something the team had briefly discussed but was essentially a spontaneous gesture. “I was very proud to see our team do that and it was the right thing to do.”Sending him back early tomorrow, he will be equally proud of, however. “He’s a quality player and will be hard to get out. We’re going to have to execute our game plans against him pretty well to remove him. We know what he can do, we know what he’s achieved.”Anything can happen in a session so there is still a long way to go. This series has fluctuated through sessions. We just need to do the right things tomorrow, sit down, plan it and strategise tonight, come out and execute it. If we do that, we’re heading in the right direction.”

While Gibbs toured India, Boje was left out of the side © Getty Images

Nicky Boje, the South African spinner, has said he did not have apprehensions about travelling to India for the Champions Trophy, insisting that his omission from the squad had nothing to do with the risk of being questioned by the Delhi police regarding match-fixing.”I don’t know what the Indian media is writing about me. I do not have to fear for anything,” Boje, captain of a South African side for the Hong Kong Sixes, told The Indian Express. “I was ready with the answers to the questionnaire sent by the Delhi Police and I had even readied my lawyer to accompany me. But I was dropped from the squad. That is the fact.”Boje and Herschelle Gibbs had avoided touring India since 2000, after supposedly failing to obtain any assurance from the police with regards to questioning on the match-fixing scandal. But Boje pointed out that if Gibbs could travel, so could he.”I really don’t know how the Indian media blew it up without getting their facts right. Where did I come into the picture?,” he said. “I was never indicted for match-fixing or any other suspicious activity. It was simply a case of police wanting to know certain things. They had sent me a questionnaire and I had all the answers ready.”Despite not being selected, Boje was confident of touring India in the future: “I have a proven record on your tracks as a bowler and I can be a handy batsman [as pinch-hitter] at the top of the order”. It was a view endorsed by Ray Jennings, the former South African coach who’s currently in charge of the Hong Kong Sixes side. “Boje is the best spinner available in the country, and it is still beyond my thinking how and why he was left out of the squad. He is a very handy batsman who can score quickly and can send down some nice tight overs.”

Considering that the Indian Board President’s XI lost their first two wickets in 8.1 overs, captain Mohammad Kaif will not be too displeased with the final total of 275 for eight declared on the first day of the three-day match against the touring West Indians at Bangalore.Winning the toss, Kaif opted to bat, but he must have had his heart in his mouth as Merv Dillon skittled out first Sanjay Bangar and then Gautam Gambhir. But the fall of the second wicket meant that Kaif himself had to walk out to the middle – which he did, going on to add 91 runs for the third wicket with Hemang Badani.Badani hit seven fours in his 67 off 129 balls, the knock coming in 200 minutes. The Tamil Nadu southpaw is still looking forward to make his way back into the Indian side, although the recent strong performances by the youngsters in both the Test and one-day teams will make it difficult for him to do so.One of those very youngsters, skipper Kaif made 40 off 95 balls with three fours, playing solidly with Badani to ensure that the Board President’s XI did not suffer any more hiccups after those early ones. Kaif fell with the score on 108, and Dinesh Mongia carried on nicely where Kaif left off, putting on 50 runs for the fourth wicket with Badani.With Badani being dismissed, bowled by left-arm paceman Pedro Collins, a slew of wickets followed. Parthiv Patel, Murali Kartik and Sarandeep Singh departed within the space of 21 runs, and at 186 for seven, the West Indies had a hold of the match for the second time in the day.And as before, they lost this one too. Mongia batted steadily with leg-spinner Amit Mishra to add 55 runs for the eighth wicket. Mishra contributed a vital 10, and after he was dismissed, Mongia then batted on with Tinu Yohannan, completing his century off 149 balls with 12 fours and three sixes.Kaif declared after Mongia reached three figures, and the West Indian openers Chris Gayle and Wavell Hinds had to play out five overs before close. Gayle ended on 14 off 17 balls, while West Indies reached 20 for no loss. But more than the batting, the West Indians will be worried about the fact that their bowling – especially the spin of Carl Hooper and Mahendra Nagamootoo in helpful conditions – made little impact on a cobbled-together domestic side.

Duncan Fletcher: honoured© Getty Images

Duncan Fletcher’s achievements as England coach have been recognised with his induction into Britain’s Coaching Hall of Fame.Fletcher, 56, was honoured on Thursday for his part over the last five years in lifting England off the bottom of the world rankings to second – just behind Australia.”I am very honoured,” he told the BBC Sport website. “It has been a great year for the England team and I would really like to thank all the players and the management team for their contributions.”Fletcher has overseen more Tests than any of his predecessors in the England set-up, and he is second only to Bob Simpson in the all-time list. Having followed up a stint as Western Province coach between 1993 and 1997, with a position at Glamorgan, he came into the job with trusted contacts around the county circuit, who helped him unearth Michael Vaughan, Craig White, Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Flintoff for the international side.

Damien Martyn, on the verge of making a comeback to the Australian team after a long injury lay-off, has said that he does not regret playing the World Cup final with a broken finger. Martyn’s injury was aggravated during that match, leading him to miss out on the tour of West Indies and the Tests against Bangladesh. On the flip side, his unbeaten 88 and his 224-run partnership with Ricky Ponting were instrumental in Australia winning the final.”Even if I’d known what was going to happen,” said Martyn, “I wouldn’t change it at all. The World Cup final was the biggest highlight of my life. The frustrating thing is that I didn’t think I’d be out for so long, I thought it would be two or three weeks, or a month.”Martyn’s finger got worse during that game and ended up looking like an eggshell, with five small fractures. It took him two months after the resultant operation before he could hold a bat, let alone actually play cricket.”It’s been a long slow process of rehab and waiting for the joint to mend,” said Martyn. “I’ll never have full movement in it and in old age it’ll be a bit arthritic. But at the moment I can catch and throw and bat without pain – that’s the main thing for me, that I can hold a bat and play. In that sense the finger’s good now, I’m just rusty cricket-wise.”Martyn may have missed the opportunity to play in the first Test at Darwin, his birthplace, but he is all set to play in the one-day international series against Bangladesh, which will move to Darwin after games this weekend at Cairns. “It was sad missing the Test match in Darwin,” he said “I hate missing Test matches but you have to take the expertise and act on that. I’ve just got to focus on getting picked this weekend and whatever happens down the track is what happens.”Martyn’s one-day slot is not as much of a worry, though, as his Test place. Darren Lehmann made two centuries against Bangladesh and Martin Love made one, which will make it difficult for Martyn to get back into the Test side. Australia next play a Test in October, against Zimbabwe, and Martyn will have hardly any cricket before that to make a case for selection. His decision to play in the World Cup final may have helped Australia win the tournament, but it could have come at a heavy personal cost.

Afghanistan were facing defeat against Nawshera at stumps onthe opening day of the two-day Quaid-i-Azam Trophy Grade-IImatch at Peshawar’s Arbab Niaz Stadium. Put into bat,Afghanistan were dismissed for 125 in 31.4 overs. Nawsherareplied with 224 for nine declared which left the debutantsto face nine overs for the day in which Afghanistan lostboth the openers to finish with 20 for two.They still require 79 runs to avoid follow on. Afghanistancricketers, according to information, attracted a largenumber of foreign media covering US-led air raids on thecountry in response to Sept 11 terrorist attacks on New Yorkand Washington.However, eye-witnesses said the day’s proceedings went onuntroubled. “In fact, it was a very peaceful day. There werearound 250 spectators and just four policemen. Though therewere no fences to stop spectators enter the field, they(spectators) glued to their seats and only appreciated if awicket fell or a boundary was struck,” eye-witnesses said.Afghanistan skipper Allah Dad Noori was not a media-shyperson when he answered the queries of the scribes indetail. “We are here to prove that we are not terrorists butpeace loving people. The international reputation we aregetting is incorrect,” he told reporters. However, themedium-pace bowler and middle-order batsman expressed hissurprise over New Zealand Cricket (NZC) and Board of Controlfor Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) decision to cancel the tourto Pakistan.”Their decision amazes me. Our country is being bombardedbut we are here playing cricket. There is no security threateven in Peshawar which is kilometres from Kabul border,” hesaid. However, when inquired how may of its players crossedthe border for the match, Noori said: “None. We all arerefugees and migrated to Peshawar during the time Russiainvaded Afghanistan in the 1980s.”Noori said his team assembled on Oct 5 at Peshawar and sincethen had been training at the Academy ground. Reverting tothe day’s play, in Afghanistan’s 125 in 31.4 overs, Nauroztop scored with 32 that included four boundaries. Abid Gul(26), Shafi-ur-Rehman (18 not out) were the other notablerun-getters.For Nawshera, Gohar Ali picked three wickets for 29 runs,Imran Durrani two for 39 and Rizwan 2-16. When Nawsherabatted, they declared at 224 for nine after being 212 forsix at one stage. Naveed Khan was the main scorer with 69that included nine boundaries. Akbar Khan struck seven foursin his 54 while Mohammad Asif (39) and Azam Khan (20) werethe other contributors.Afghanistan’s left-arm spinner Rahmat Wali was the pick ofbowlers with four for 22. Off-spinner Mohammad Alam (threefor 46), Abdullah (one for 46) and Allah Dad Noori (one for64) were the other wicket-takers.

Neil Harvey has remembered his fellow ‘Invincible’, Arthur Morris, as “a great team man” and one of the best players Australia has produced.Morris has died at the age of 93, leaving Harvey as the sole surviving member of Don Bradman’s touring party that went through the 1948 tour of England undefeated and earned the Invincibles nickname. Harvey was 19 at the time and he said it was a great learning curve to watch Morris, a fellow left-hander, dismantle England’s attack in that Ashes series during which he was the leading run-scorer.”I learnt a lot off Arthur over the years,” Harvey told ESPNcricinfo. “I was on four or five tours with him. We got to know each other pretty well. You wouldn’t find a nicer bloke in the world: a great sense of humour, a great team man. Just one of those great fellas that you can spend a lot of time with and enjoy his company. A better bloke you couldn’t find.”He’s been one of the best players this country has produced, a left-hander of great ability. He and Sid Barnes in my opinion formed the best opening pair this country has produced, in my time anyway.”During the 1948 series, Morris was a key part of one of Test cricket’s highest successful run chases, when he scored 182 and Bradman made 173 not out in pursuing a target of 404 in Leeds. The task was made harder by the fact that the pitch was six days old (including the Sunday rest day), it had been rained on early in the match, and was providing plenty of turn for Jim Laker.”That’s probably the best partnership I’ve ever seen, the Bradman-Morris one,” Harvey said. “To go out there on the last day – not even a full day’s play, because we lost the first 15 minutes when England batted on – to get all those runs.”They didn’t really set out to win when play started on the last day. As soon as Hassett got out and Morris and Bradman got in, they pushed the runs along at a pretty fair rate. All of a sudden we guys in the dressing room said ‘we could win this’. And that’s what happened.”Harvey, now 86, also remembered the sacrifice made by Morris while they were batting together against South Africa at the MCG in 1953. Morris was run out for 99 in a mix-up with Harvey, who went on to score his fourth century of the series and finished with 205.”He sacrificed his innings for me,” Harvey said. “We had a bit of a mix-up, we could’ve been both left in the middle of the pitch. He said ‘come on’, he called me through and he went through and got run out. It was another one of his great acts as a gentleman. It was an act I appreciated so much because he didn’t have to do it. And it was my fault. He was just one of those nice guys.”Harvey was present at the SCG during this week when the Arthur Morris Gates were unveiled, although Morris himself was too ill to attend. Also at the opening was Alan Davidson, the fast-bowling allrounder who first met Morris in 1949-50 when Davidson moved to Sydney from the country to try his luck in grade cricket.”I can remember playing against him at St George,” Davidson said. “I arrived late, thank goodness, because he’d scored a hundred before I got to the ground. I got lost on a train and by the time I got to the ground, St George were about 1 for 180, Arthur Morris had made a hundred, and he got out as I was changing into my boots.”You had to see the bloke and his artistry, his ability was phenomenal. It didn’t matter if it was a fast bowler or a spin bowler. He’d go down the wicket to a spinner and pick them off. He was a magnificent back-foot player. His judgement of the length of a ball was incredible.”It was not only on the field that Morris had fine timing. Although he was naturally a quiet man, he had a remarkable sense of wit.”He had a charm about him,” Davidson said. “Everybody was endeared by him. He was not a demonstrative person, he was a quiet sort of person. But he was always good company no matter what the situation. He had incredible wit. He was once asked what did cricket give him, and he said ‘poverty’. He had a tremendous sense of timing.”

With English football in a state of reflection after yet another unconvincing tournament, a lot has been said within the press that this country should perhaps look to the German set-up as a blueprint to go forward.

Dietmar Hamann believes that 2004 was the turning point for German football in giving youth the chance in the national team for the greater good in building a team for the future:

“I think they changed a lot with the youth development; they put centres of excellence in place where they observed the best players from every region and I believe it was a highly successful structure to have. As a result we produced a host of younger players over the coming years that are still playing today and are the spine of the team. I think this was definitely a change for the better which put German football back on the map.”

Hamann does wonder if there is enough experience in the squad in order to go all the way, but feels only time will tell:

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“Yes, I think so. There are only one or two players in the squad that are over 30 years old and they are forwards, such as Miroslav Klose and you need that mix in a team. Having said that a lot of players come from Bayern Munich and they’ve played in Champions League final, World Cup Semi final and European Championship finals so they are very experienced. Nevertheless you do wonder if it comes to the semi final/final whether they have enough experienced players to change the result from two and four years ago. There have been a few near misses in recent tournaments and psychologically that can play on your mind.”

“For more insight from Dietmar Hamann and other leading managers plus all the coverage of Euro 2012 go to yahoo.eurosport.com”

It’s been a good week for Tom Cleverley.

After an impressive performance off the bench in last Sunday’s Charity Shield comeback against City, a surprise England call-up on Monday, there is the chance that Cleverley could make his first start for United in the Premiership opener against West Brom on Sunday.

After an impressive performance against City, Cleverley has certainly earned himself many fans, including Fabio Capello, who named the 21 year old in his squad for the friendly against Holland this week, before it was postponed. While it was only a friendly and we shouldn’t get that carried away, it at least shows the midfielder is on Capello’s radar and with a few more good performances, Cleverley could soon be following in the footsteps of close friend Jack Wilshere and appear for the national team.

After a string of excellent performances in pre-season and on Sunday, Cleverley certainly has impressed several United players, with Patrice Evra saying:

“You saw [at Wembley] that he is not afraid. He has a lot of energy and Manchester United need a player like this.

“He’s a quiet lad – he’s a bit like Scholesy in that way. He never talks much, he just does his job on the pitch. Players like him are the future and, to win the league, the boss is not going to be afraid to give young players a chance. He knows they can help us to win more titles. That’s the United way. It’s always been that way.”

What does this season hold for Cleverley then? The youngster can certainly make an impact for United this season, and offers a more attacking option in central midfield compared to the likes of Anderson, Carrick and Fletcher. With Sir Alex always keen to give young players a chance, Cleverley should get his chance to shine this season, even if it is mostly off the bench.

The comparisons with Scholes are a bit early at the moment – we need to see how Cleverley performs on a regular basis against top competition before we even attempt to make those comparisons – but even if Cleverley can partially fill Scholes’ boots, then it’s a good thing.

And with the likes of De Gea, Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Cleverley and Welbeck to replace retired legends like Van Der Sar and Scholes this season, there is an emphasis on youth this season, with Sir Alex keen to get the youngsters playing together regularly to create a new legacy at United when the great man retires.

The only thing that could affect Cleverley’s progress this season would be whether Wesley Sneijder completes his on-off move to Old Trafford before the end of the month. With the club apparently ready to pull the plug on a move for Sneijder this would see Cleverley’s playing time increase and give the youngster a chance to try and fill the Scholes void at Old Trafford and earn his place in the United side.

What do you think – how much of an impact can Cleverley have at United this season?

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Read more of Tom Jinks’ articles at The Busby Way

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