Two Ws and Imran unanimously voted in. Yousuf misses out

Cricinfo staff24-May-2010Three fast bowlers have been picked unanimously in Cricinfo’s all-time Pakistan Test XI. Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Imran Khan each received 10 votes from a jury that included Ramiz Raja and Intikhab Alam among others. The only other unanimous selection was Javed Miandad, in the middle order.No current Pakistani player makes it to the side – unlike in five of the six all-time XIs named by Cricinfo so far. The most recent retiree was Inzamam-ul-Haq, who is at No. 5 in the order, with nine votes. Mohammad Yousuf, who received four votes, and Shoaib Akhtar (one) were among those who didn’t make the cut.Historically fast bowling has been Pakistan’s strength, and it is a sign of how highly the fearsome and influential spearheads of the side’s 1990s attack were rated that both were picked unanimously. While the two Ws made the XI purely as bowlers, Imran also serves as the side’s allrounder. There was no consensus over the third quick bowler, though: Fazal Mahmood, who received three votes, edged out Sarfraz Nawaz and Shoaib Akhtar.Wasim Bari and Rashid Latif were tied with four votes each for the wicketkeeper’s place. Latif was picked for his superior batting.The jury opted for an opening combination that would provide a mix of strokeplay and stoic defence: Saeed Anwar (six votes), who attacked no matter what the format or situation, and Hanif Mohammad (nine), who gave up his naturally aggressive style and dug in for several marathon innings to complement the stroke-making of his team-mates.At one-down is Zaheer Abbas (six), the only Asian batsman to make over 100 first-class hundreds.Only two members of the jury did not pick Abdul Qadir, who revolutionised legspin in the 80s and paved the way for the likes of Shane Warne and Anil Kumble, as the team’s lone slow bowler.Qadir also made it to the readers’ XI, getting more than half the votes polled in the spin category, comfortably ahead of Saqlain Mushtaq. Latif narrowly missed getting the gloves in the readers’ XI, losing out to Bari. The readers preferred Shoaib as the third fast bowler over Fazal. All their other choices matched those of the jury.The jury included Salahuddin Mulla, who played Test cricket for Pakistan in the 1960s, cricket writers Qamar Ahmed (who also played first-class cricket and coached Netherlands) and Kamran Abbasi, and former administrators Shaharyar Khan, Arif Abbasi and Chishty Mujahid.The XI: Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Zaheer Abbas, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Javed Miandad, Imran Khan, Rashid Latif, Wasim Akram, Fazal Mahmood, Abdul Qadir, Waqar YounisMore on the XI hereThe readers’ XI: Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Zaheer Abbas, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Javed Miandad, Imran Khan, Wasim Bari, Wasim Akram, Shoaib Akhtar, Abdul Qadir, Waqar Younis.The nominees
Openers: Aamer Sohail, Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Majid Khan, Mudassar Nazar, Sadiq Mohammad, Mohsin Khan.Middle order: Zaheer Abbas, Javed Miandad, Mohammad Yousuf, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Saleem Malik, Mushtaq Mohammad, Younis Khan, Asif Iqbal, Saeed Ahmed.Allrounder: AH Kardar, Imran Khan, Intikhab Alam, Mushtaq Mohammad, Wasim Akram.Wicketkeepers: Wasim Bari, Imtiaz Ahmed, Rashid Latif, Moin Khan.Fast bowlers: Wasim Akram, Imran Khan, Waqar Younis, Fazal Mahmood, Sarfraz Nawaz, Shoaib Akhtar.Spinners: Abdul Qadir, Saqlain Mushtaq, Mushtaq Ahmed, Iqbal Qasim, Danish Kaneria.

Pakistan got a fair look at the four contenders drafted into the Test squad to fill the void for a couple of spots vacant in the batting order ahead of the first Test against Australia next Tuesday

The Bulletin by Nagraj Gollapudi at Grace Road09-Jul-2010
ScorecardPakistan got a fair look at the four contenders drafted into the Test squad to fill the void for a couple of spots vacant in the batting order ahead of the first Test against Australia next Tuesday. A history of unreliable openers in the few years and the absence of Younis Khan at No. 3 prompted the selectors to pick extra batsmen in the 17-man squad to insure against any top-order collapse over the next seven weeks where Pakistan will take part in six Tests.Imran Farhat, Yasir Hameed, Azhar Ali and Umar Amin are vying for the two positions, and the last three boosted their chance with impressive scores. Farhat, who opened with Salman Butt, the third player to cross the half-century mark on Friday, was the lone disappointment on an otherwise satisfactory outing for the visitors, who finished 16 runs adrift of Leicestershire’s first-innings total at Grace Road when the teams decided to abandon the match.Butt started in a composed fashion before playing a couple of punched drives off the new ball. He combined well with Hameed, who last featured for Pakistan in the Test series in India three years ago. Back then the pair had opened in the three Tests, including a century partnership in the second innings in Delhi, raising hopes that finally a stable opening combination had been found.Sadly, though, Hameed was lost to injury and then form issues kept him out of the team. Today, however, Butt, leading the side, took the onus upon himself and chased the Leicester bowling pack by farming the strike comfortably while dispatching the short balls with ease. He hit three successive boundaries off Duncan Masters, with the second one, a raging cut, taking him to his half-century, immediately after which he retired out at lunch.Hameed, whose last Test was in Bangalore in 2007, played some crisp shots and picked 10 off an over from the offspinner Jigar Naik to kickstart his innings. He continued to run the ball past the ropes with ease with some neat cover drives. At the other end, Azhar Ali, a favourite of both Waqar Younis and Shahid Afridi, was happy to just knock the ball around even if he scored at a very steady pace. But a worrying factor was his struggles against the fast bowlers which would definitely be a talking point when the think tank sits to choose the final XI for the Lord’s Test.There were no such worries for Umar Amin, who played some wristy drives on both sides of the wicket to race to the fastest fifty on the day – in 70 balls before retiring out. The 20-year-old has strengthened his chances after his 73 in Canterbury two weeks back.

A 98-run stand between Claire and Sarah Taylor and three wickets for Katherine Brunt in front of her home crowd sealed England the series against New Zealand

Cricinfo staff17-Jul-2010
ScorecardA 98-run stand between Claire and Sarah Taylor and three wickets for Katherine Brunt in front of her home crowd sealed England the series against New Zealand as they eased to a nine-wicket win in the 4th ODI at Barnsley.England came out on top in a more free-scoring encounter in the their last match to go 2-1 up in the five-match series but runs were harder to come by on this occasion. On a difficult track the home side cautiously chipped away at the modest total set by New Zealand, taking 46.1 overs to chase down 136.The tone was set by Sarah Taylor and Heather Knight, as they saw off the new-ball shine in a patient 41-run stand before Knight was bowled by Sophie Devine’s medium pace in the 18th over. It proved New Zealand’s last success in a forgettable day.Claire Taylor began slowly before regaining her old confidence to hit six boundaries and a six on her way to an unbeaten half-century. It was her second fifty of the series and is a good sign for England after she struggled for form earlier in the season. At the other end Sarah Taylor was happy to accumulate at her own pace, hitting just four fours and taking 130 deliveries to reach an undefeated 49.It meant England coasted to their target with 23 balls to spare. The hard work was done, however, in the first half of the game by England. Brunt enjoyed the familiar surroundings and burst through New Zealand’s top order, removing Lucy Doolan and the dangerous Suzie Bates.Isa Guha provided excellent support, dismissing Sara McGlashan and bowling four maidens in a miserly spell of 1 for 11 from her 10 overs. Having watched the opening pair do the damage, Jenny Gunn chipped in with two wickets as New Zealand crumbled to 78 for 6.Once again it was captain Aimee Watkins who provided the bulk of the resistance. She made 42 from 82 deliveries to carry the total over 100 but it was never going to be enough.”I never thought we would play here, it has been a dream come true for me,” Brunt said. “The conditions haven’t suited me in recent matches, but today it was a nice little seaming wicket. It meant the world to me to pick up a few wickets in front of my family.”

ECB Women’s Development XI cruised to a seven-wicket victory against Ireland to win the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier competition in Stirling

Cricinfo staff13-Aug-2010
Scorecard
ECB Women’s Development XI cruised to a seven-wicket victory against Ireland to win the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier competition in Stirling.Continuing their impressive form after defeating Scotland the game before, captain Jo Cook won the toss and put Ireland into bat on a surface looking helpful for the bowlers. A sensible decision soon seemed inspired when ECB Women’s Development XI ran through the Ireland top order to leave them floundering on 72 for 5. It was Deanna Cooper who made the initial breakthrough, trapping Eamer Richardson in front and thereafter it was a procession.Laura Delany tried her best to stand firm while wickets tumbled around her but when she fell for 36 to become the first of three wickets for Alex Hartley, there was not much left for Ireland. Only the top three reached double figures as Ireland were bundled out for 105.The ECB Development XI made the conditions look far more benign as they rattled off the total in just over 26 overs, losing three wickets along the way. Fran Wilson (35) led the way before before Kathryn Doherty (13) joined MacLeod at the crease to hit the winning runs.MacLeod was untroubled throughout and hit five boundaries in her unbeaten 42 to carry the side to the title. “We kept them down to a good run rate early, the pitch made it hard for them to get our spinners away,” she said after the match. “We started reasonably steady, but with our top order putting away the bad ball we managed to keep the run rate ticking over. I’m really happy with the win, it’s great how we have progressed as a team throughout the tournament.”Reflecting on the performance of the side throughout the competition Paul Shaw, the ECB performance manager, said: “This tournament has provided us with a number of great opportunities for our young players. It has been very pleasing to see the players progress both as individuals and cricketers, cumulating with a professional performance against Ireland today.I would like to thank Phil Hudson and the ICC for organising this tournament and giving the ECB this very importance development opportunity.”

Lions have four points, but a slightly poorer net run-rate than Royal Challengers Bangalore, their opponents and the other contenders for the remaining semi-final slot from Group B

The Preview by Sidharth Monga20-Sep-2010

Match facts

Tuesday, September 21
Start time 1730 (1530 GMT)
Anil Kumble will be desperate to make amends for a match-turning dropped catch against Mumbai Indians•Indian Premier League

Big Picture

This is as good as a quarter-final. Lions have four points, but a slightly poorer net run-rate than Royal Challengers Bangalore, their opponents and the other contenders for the remaining semi-final slot from Group B. Bangalore have two points, but they need not worry about net run-rate either. Bangalore have Virat Kohli and Rahul Dravid to thank, for they took their last game until the last ball, which ensured their net run-rate stayed higher.With all those net run-rate complications put aside, this straight knockout promises to be a knockout in the other sense too. There will be South African fast bowlers, and they have all been bowling fast. Dale Steyn for Bangalore, Ethan O’Reilly and Craig Alexander for the Lions. Sitting in the dugout, when he watches his team-mates bat, Steyn could be looking at future international team-mates bowling.

Teams

Bangalore seem to have a good combination going, except for B Akhil, who neither bowled nor batted in their defeat to Mumbai Indians. At any rate, he was slated to bat in at No. 7. They could look to go with either the better batsman, Manish Pandey, or the specialist spinner, Nayan Doshi.Royal Challengers Bangalore: (probable) 1 Jacques Kallis, 2 Rahul Dravid, 3 Robin Uthappa (wk), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Cameron White, 6 Virat Kohli, 7 B Akhil / Manish Pandey / Nayan Doshi, 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Anil Kumble (capt), 11 R Vinay KumarLions have a difficult choice to make after Alexander, brought in ahead of the experienced Shane Burger, impressed everybody with his pace. They will hope to have Neil McKenzie fit and playing.Lions (probable): 1 Alviro Petersen (capt), 2 Jonathan Vandiar, 3 Richard Cameron, 4 Vaughn van Jaarsveld, 5 Neil McKenzie / Jean Symes, 6 Robert Frylinck, 7 Zander de Bruyn, 8 Thami Tsolekile (wk), 9 Shane Burger / Craig Alexander, 10 Aaron Phangiso, 11 Ethan O’Reilly

Watch out for…

Those who have played under Anil Kumble know him to be a tough captain, severe on mistakes. He was just as severe on himself when his drop let Dwayne Bravo off the hook. That drop cost Bangalore the match. Watch out for a charged-up Kumble, looking to make up for that error.Besides being a livewire in the field, Aaron Phangiso is a pretty clever Twenty20 bowler, which shows in his economy-rate of 6.30, the fifth-best among bowlers who have bowled a minimum of 10 overs in the tournament. A supreme athlete, he is a good squash player too.

Key contest

Dale Steyn v Alviro Petersen Petersen, like other opener-captains in the tournament, has been Lions’ most consistent batsman and highest run-getter. Steyn has been Bangalore’s impact man. The tussle between these Test team-mates could decide the match.

Stats and Trivia

• Bangalore’s Ross Taylor has hit 148 sixes in Twenty20 cricket, five ahead of the second-paced David Hussey, who has played 36 more innings than Taylor.
• Jacques Kallis has registered 17 scores of 50 or more, which is joint-third on the all-time list, behind Brad Hodge’s 23 and Hussey’s 19.

Trinidad & Tobago’s team manager, Colin Borde, has said that he was confident that Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo remained committed to West Indies cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Sep-2010Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo, the Trinidad & Tobago allrounders, remain committed to West Indies cricket, their regional team manager Colin Borde has said. Borde’s comments came a day after it was reported that the two had turned down central contracts from the WICB.”I don’t think by not signing the central contracts that they are not interested in West Indies cricket,” Borde told . “It is just that, probably, they did not want to be contracted year round.”I am sure they have their reasons and will be having discussions in the next few days to let these be known. But I am quite confident that Dwayne and Kieron are both committed to West Indies cricket and will make themselves available for selection.”The contracts Pollard and Bravo refused to sign were worth US$80,000, and required the players to make themselves available for West Indies at all times. Pollard, however, had already shown a reluctance to do so when, in June, he turned down a place on the West Indies A-team tour to England in favour of his deal with Somerset for the Friends Provident t20.Both players have, however, been named in a Trinidad & Tobago squad for the WICB President’s Cup 50 Overs Tournament in Jamaica next month.WICB corporate communications officer, Imran Khan, told the board would make an announcement shortly on the players to replace Bravo and Pollard. The WICB had offered 25 players contracts on August 31 – ten of them were development contracts worth $25,000 – and gave the players until September 10 to accept them. If any player chose not to accept the contract, the board said it would make alternate offers.

NZC has not made any major changes after its meeting reviewing New Zealand’s disastrous tour of Bangladesh, where they lost all four ODIs

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Oct-2010The New Zealand board has put on hold any sweeping changes following the team’s disastrous tour of Bangladesh, where they lost all four ODIs. It has instead set up a specialised cricket committee and called on the players to redeem themselves on next month’s tour of India.The board met on Friday with captain Daniel Vettori, coach Mark Greatbatch and performance director Roger Mortimer, after nine-hour-long meetings on Thursday with NZC management and Martin Toomey, a high-ranking official of SPARC (Sport and Recreation New Zealand), a government sponsored body to promote sports in the country.Chris Moller, the NZC chairman, called Friday’s meeting with the team officials “comprehensive and robust”, and said that the New Zealand team needed to be given an opportunity to redeem themselves, on the tour of India next month.”We believe that the team needs to be given the chance to demonstrate that they can perform,” Moller said, “the players must take responsibility.”The cricket committee comprises Moller, former international cricketers Stephen Boock and Rob Hart, and High Court judge Sir John Hansen. Its remit will run “from the grassroots right through to the elite level, including the Black Caps.”Moller said that while the performance in Bangladesh was “very concerning”, they will be no major changes in team composition or in the team management immediately. Vettori is the team’s captain, part of the selection committee, their leading bowler and an important lower-order batsman, but NZC decided he didn’t have too much on his plate. “We asked that question, we had a good debate on the subject,” Moller said. “Dan commented that he feels the level of weight on his shoulders was far less than was the case 12 months ago.”Bangladesh’s emphatic victory was the first time they had defeated major opposition in a series. The tour was marred by poor weather and rain washed out New Zealand’s warm-up games, forcing the visitors to go into the ODI series with no match practice. Their batsmen struggled to adjust to the pace and turn of the pitches in Mirpur and failed to score more than 200 in three out of four innings.

Tim Paine, Australia’s backup wicketkeeper, faces some time on the sidelines after injuring his hand during the All-Stars Twenty20 match in Brisbane

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Nov-2010Tim Paine, Australia’s backup wicketkeeper, faces some time on the sidelines after breaking the index finger on his right hand during the All-Stars Twenty20 match in Brisbane. Paine was batting when he was struck on the hand by a 148.2kph rising delivery from Dirk Nannes, and he immediately retired hurt.Channel Nine had Paine miked up during his innings and as he left the field with his glove off, he said it felt “seriously no good”. When asked if he thought a bone was broken, he replied: “I think so.”Paine was sent to hospital and x-rays revealed what was described as “a clean crack” in the finger, although it was not clear on Sunday night how long he would be out of action.Paine firmly established himself as the second in line to Brad Haddin this year, playing four Tests in England and India while Haddin was injured. Paine performed well in his first Tests, collecting 17 dismissals and averaging 35.87 with the bat.However, Paine was not expected to play any part in the Ashes unless Haddin suffered another injury. Haddin will play the first Test at the Gabba starting on Thursday, and it will be his first Test appearance since the tour of New Zealand in March.

Robi Nicol’s half-century anchored Canterbury to a six-wicket win over Otago at Village Green

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Dec-2010The return of Brendon and Nathan McCullum from national duty could not halt Otago’s losing streak and they now have virtually no chance of reaching the finals after Rob Nicol’s half-century anchored Canterbury to a six-wicket win at Village Green in Christchurch. Canterbury won the toss and chose to field, but it looked like Peter Fulton’s decision had backfired after Otago openers Brendon McCullum and Aaron Redmond powered their way to 42 in the first five overs. After Brendon McCullum was out, Redmond continued fluently, to reach his half-century. Ian Butler, at No. 7, blasted five sixes in an unbeaten 46 off just 20 balls as Otago added 55 runs in the last five overs to reach 168 for 7.In reply, Canterbury got off to a rapid start as openers Nicol and Fulton added 50 in the first five overs. Fulton and No. 3 Carl Frauenstein fell in quick succession but Nicol and Dean Brownlie added 41 off 27 balls to steady the innings. Brownlie fell with the score on 92, with Canterbury still needing 77 off 51 balls. Nicol and Ryan ten Doeschate sealed the game for Canterbury, putting on 72 runs in 7.1 overs, and reaching the target with five balls to spare. They are now joint-second with Northern Districts on 12 points.

Cricket fans clashed with police in Dhaka in the rush to buy tickets for the 2011 World Cup to be held in the sub-continent next month

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jan-2011Cricket fans clashed with police in Dhaka in the rush to buy tickets for the 2011 World Cup to be held in the sub-continent next month. The tickets went on sale on Sunday at 80 branches of the private City Bank and the state-owned Agrani Bank after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) made 15,000 per-match available for the public. The fans, reportedly, were angered after being told that only 500 tickets would be sold per branch as a result of the strict scrutiny over buyers’ identification papers. A few fans and a photographer are known to have suffered minor injuries in the protests.”They raised slogans and held demonstrations. We dispersed the protesters and maintained calm,” police inspector Shah Alam told . Bangladesh will be hosting eight matches during the competition.