Michael Carberry struck a second century of the season as Hampshire limped to 300 all out against Nottinghamshire on day one of their County Championship match

04-May-2010

ScorecardMichael Carberry struck a second century of the season as Hampshire limped to 300 all out against Nottinghamshire on day one of their County Championship match.On a good pitch, Carberry was the only batsmen to take full advantage as Hampshire’s early season struggles – which have so far seen them lose five consecutive games in all competitions – continued.Carberry and fellow opener Jimmy Adams appeared to be laying the foundations for a solid total after proceeding without major incident to 40 with loss. But after Adams departed, caught behind off the bowling of Paul Franks, Hants innings spluttered to a near standstill in the face of good bowling from Franks, Charlie Shreck and Darren Pattinson.Only the impressive hitting of Carberry, no doubt eager to remind the England selectors of his undoubted quality, kept the scoreboard ticking over as Shreck rushed out Chris Benham and Neil McKenzie in quick succession to leave Hants on 77 for 3.England under-19 star James Vince looked confident and played with great intent for a run-a-ball 39 as he and Carberry briefly threatened to steady the ship. But Vince’s dismissal to one-time England cap Pattinson – which was swiftly followed by Nic Pothas’ to the same bowler – tilted the initiative deservedly back in Nottinghamshire’s favour.Carberry, however, remained unmoved, playing with the sort of poise, controlled aggression and willingness to dominate which so characterised his performances last season and deservedly earned him winter international honours.But while Carberry demonstrated tangible top-level quality in the watery sunshine, so his team-mates continued to flounder. Lower order cameos from Sean Ervine and Dominic Cork were both cut short in the early 20s by the spin of Samit Patel, heaping yet more responsibility on Carberry’s shoulders.Shorn of able partners and with his side still short of par on a playable and fair surface, Carberry sought to press whatever slim advantage remained available to the home side, with some expansive shots.But with his on score on 132, Carberry finally let his vice-like grip on his innings slip, trudging off to generous applause with Hants on 276 for 8. The Hants tailed wag somewhat to drag the score to 300, but as the impressive Pattinson rounded off the innings with his third wicket, few could doubt Notts had enjoyed the better of an intriguing opening day.

Graeme Smith called correctly at the toss, which had been delayed for several hours by persistent rain and gloomy conditions on a damp first morning at the Queens Park Oval, and decided to bat

The Bulletin by Liam Brickhill10-Jun-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
On a severely shortened day, Shane Shillingford picked up two wickets on his Test debut, removing both openers•AFP

Never before has a Test match been played at the Queens Park Oval as late in the year as June, and after a day in which only 34 overs were bowled, it wasn’t hard to see why. When play was possible, a fascinating battle between South Africa’s batsmen and West Indies’ spinners – Sulieman Benn and Shane Shillingford – began to take shape. Graeme Smith and Alviro Petersen had negotiated a seam attack blunted by an unhelpful surface with aplomb to go to tea at 45 for 0. But the spinners came to the fore after the interval, with Shillingford removing both openers on his Test debut and Benn getting rid of the in-form Hashim Amla to leave South Africa struggling at 70 for 3 when bad light stopped play.Though Dwayne Bravo bustled in with characteristic enthusiasm, the quicker bowlers appeared unthreatening on a very dry wicket and it was no great surprise when Benn was brought into the attack early. He immediately found bounce and sharp turn off a tacky surface, although his length was slightly too short at first. He pushed the ball up in his second over and soon had Smith flapping awkwardly off the front foot and, coming round the wicket, he also had the right-handed Petersen poking nervously outside off stump.West Indies have suffered from a dysfunctional team environment in recent times, but good communication between Chris Gayle and his bowlers was evident today in some inventive field placements – a leg gully for Benn, and a close, straight mid off for Bravo. Indeed, Bravo could have had Smith for the sixth time on this tour when, shortly before tea, the South African captain drove in the air to that fielder as the ball plugged in the surface, but a leaping Narsingh Deonarine couldn’t quite get his hands underneath the chance.Denesh Ramdin couldn’t hold on to a clear edge off Petersen’s bat from Benn’s first ball after tea, but the assistance he was getting from the surface convinced Gayle to bring Shillingford on from the other end and he, too, found encouraging bounce and turn.With Shillingford operating from over the stumps, Smith was able to cover the turn and bounce with his body, the lbw shout totally negated by the line of delivery. The South African captain’s tactic was to play back and deep in his crease, and Shillingford responded by pushing his length forward. Smith, having made a habit of playing back, didn’t get a big stride down the wicket, the ball pitched, gripped and spun to take the edge and Bravo held on to the neck-high chance at slip.Where Petersen and Smith had attempted to counter the spin by, generally, staying deep in the crease, Hashim Amla responded by shuffling right across to the off side to Shillingford and was unafraid to use the sweep even at the start of his innings. But while that worked, briefly, to the offspinner, Amla had no answer to the ball spinning across him and edged his ninth ball – from Benn – to slip, where Bravo held on to a second chance, and South Africa were 60 for 2.With South Africa under pressure, men were positioned menacingly all round the bat, but they weren’t needed as Shillingford picked up his second wicket when Petersen’s attempted flick to leg was beaten by the turn and he was struck on the pad. With the UDRS referral system available for this match, Petersen consulted Jacques Kallis and asked for a referral. But, with insufficient evidence to overturn the umpire’s decision, he eventually had to go, and South Africa had lost three wickets for just 15 runs to be 70 for 3.Paul Harris was sent out as nightwatchman and was met with an ultra-attacking field, with slip, gully, silly mid-off, short leg and leg gully all in place, as well as Ramdin’s fidgety presence behind the stumps. He managed to survive until the light deteriorated once more, but with the flaky batting surface already showing signs of breaking up, both Benn and Shillingford – as well as Gayle himself – will surely have a very important role to play as West Indies try to lay a platform for their first win of the series. For their part, South Africa may well have missed a trick by omitting Johan Botha from their side, and even JP Duminy would have found some life in this track.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul, yet again, was left waging a lone battle for the home team following a sorry collapse of its top and the middle orders

The Bulletin by Siddhartha Talya28-Jun-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Hawk-eye
Sulieman Benn grabbed a career-best haul, but his effort was undermined by some hapless West Indian batting•AFP

Shivnarine Chanderpaul, yet again, was left waging a lone battle for the hosts following a sorry collapse of their top and the middle orders that has taken them perilously close to another series defeat. The capitulation was as much a consequence of South Africa’s superiority as of the recklessness shown by some of the West Indian batsmen.South Africa’s first innings lead of 115 was lower than what they had expected. But, as it turned out, it was a handful for a batting line-up that was undone by senseless shot-making in the early stages followed by some crafty spin. West Indies began their second innings on a confident note, with openers Dale Richards and Chris Gayle, finding the boundary by relying on timing rather than power. But the innings soon took a predictable turn, triggered by an aggressive intent that cast aside any determination to survive.Richards began his innings with a crunched four off Dale Steyn through cover, and followed it up with a back-foot punch two overs later. There was a play and a miss, and a streaky boundary through gully, with Gayle at the other end frequently walking up to his partner to remind him of the job at hand.West Indies, also playing with two spinners, would have hoped to cobble up enough runs to challenge a side batting fourth on a deteriorating pitch, and level the series. But that objective was lost on two batsmen in the top order. Richards spooned a catch off a mistimed pull off Steyn, and Narsingh Deonarine, inexplicably, tried an expansive drive first ball, only to be caught by Ashwell Prince, perfectly positioned at short extra cover. Though denied a hat-trick, Steyn returned to surprise Gayle with some inward movement and extra bounce, producing an edge to Mark Boucher.Chanderpaul and Brendan Nash, centurions from the previous Test, battled hard before tea but it was only a matter of time before the spinners began troubling them by targeting the widening cracks on the pitch. Chanderpaul was beaten on a few occasions when Johan Botha, picked in place of seamer Lonwabo Tsotsobe, got the ball to spit from the rough just outside the left-hander’s off stump. While Chanderpaul saw off moments of uncertainty with the occasional boundary, Nash found the bowling harder to combat. Botha, continuing on his success from the first innings, snared him when he pushed fatally to one that turned away sharply, nicking to slip.Like in the first innings, Paul Harris kept one end tight with his left-arm spin while bowling in tandem with Botha, and nipped out Dwayne Bravo. Bowling round the wicket, Harris got the ball to shoot away, squaring up Bravo who defended but failed to prevent the ball from bouncing back onto the stumps. When Denesh Ramdin, irresponsibly, slashed at a top-spinner from Botha the next over to be snapped by Boucher, it appeared West Indies were on their way to a three-day humiliation.Shane Shillingford was far from convincing against spin and a fiery spell that followed from the seamers, who began a short-ball barrage. He edged between the slips and almost gifted a catch to Steyn but, guided by Chanderpaul, gradually grew in confidence. Chanderpaul latched on to a couple of scoring opportunities, bringing up another half-century in a crisis with a dab through gully and helping West Indies erase their deficit. But a quicker delivery from Botha broke the stand, as Shillingford, playing for the spin, was struck on the back leg dead in front shortly before stumps.Sulieman Benn had earlier provided a glimpse of the kind of assistance on offer for the spinners, teasing the South African lower order with his variations to finish with his third haul of five or more wickets.Prince survived an early shout for a catch, after the ball lobbed off his glove, but remained firm thereafter to help extend his team’s lead towards the three-figure mark. Benn, though, ensured the frustration didn’t last long, seeing off Botha with serious turn and having Morne Morkel caught at slip with one that held its line.West Indies had been given an opening with the run-out of Boucher – on the second attempt, after the first had been missed by Ramdin – following a mid-pitch collision. Before Benn rounded things off, he was involved in an altercation with Dale Steyn, who, after being bowled by Kemar Roach, appeared to spit on the ground as he passed Benn.

Andrew Strauss played the hare and Ian Bell the tortoise, as England returned to winning ways by making light work of a decent but ultimately unchallenging target of 251 in the first ODI against Bangladesh at Trent Bridge

The Bulletin by Andrew Miller at Trent Bridge08-Jul-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAndrew Strauss got England’s chase off to brisk start with a 37-ball fifty•PA Photos

Andrew Strauss played the hare and Ian Bell the tortoise, as England returned to winning ways by making light work of a decent but ultimately unchallenging target of 251 in the first ODI against Bangladesh at Trent Bridge. Under the floodlights, and in front of a sparse 8,500 crowd, Strauss gave his side a flying start with 50 from 37 balls, before Bell ambled across the finish line with 29 balls to spare, having marked his first 50-over appearance since November 2008 with 84 not out from 101.The final result was in keeping with recent contests between these two teams. Bangladesh did not disgrace themselves – far from it – but neither were England required to reach top gear to maintain their 100% record. In Raqibul Hasan, last seen flouncing into “retirement” ahead of the Chittagong Test in March, Bangladesh showcased another young batsman with the technique and talent to add value to their often brittle middle-order, while Junaid Siddique showed sound judgment in his 70-ball 51. But England’s dominance was epitomised by James Anderson, who was smacked for 74 in ten overs, but was nevertheless able to weigh in with three wickets.With Mashrafe Mortaza returning to the captaincy that he relinquished through injury 12 months ago, Bangladesh won the toss and chose to play to their strengths by batting first. Sure enough, Tamim Iqbal picked up where he had left off in June by smacking consecutive fours from the first balls of both Anderson and Tim Bresnan’s new-ball spells, and at 40 for 0 after six overs, the stage was set for another of his whirlwind fifties.Stuart Broad, however, ended all such notions by pinning Tamim lbw for 28 as he attempted a glide to third man, and when Bangladesh were limited to seven runs from their next four overs, their hopes of racing to an impregnable total were dashed. When Imrul Kayes lobbed Anderson to Eoin Morgan at extra cover for 14, Bangladesh were 70 for 2 in the 14th over, but this time, the departure of the openers did not lead to the sort of surrender that had been witnessed during last month’s Test series.That was largely thanks to the earthy efforts of Siddique, who produced a handful of shots of real authority before being nailed lbw by Michael Yardy, and Raqibul, who would not have been playing had it not been for Jahurul Islam’s withdrawal through illness on the eve of the game. This was his first international since that Chittagong protest, but the headstrong naivety he had shown on that occasion was shelved for this performance.An arrow-straight drive off Paul Collingwood brought Raqibul an excellent fifty from 61 balls, and he might have expected more had it not been for a painful blow to the foot that brought about a somewhat farcical downfall. On 76, he was struck on the boot by an Anderson yorker, went down for lengthy treatment, and called for a runner. Before he had even faced another delivery, a three-man mix-up led to him being run out by the length of the pitch. It brought an unedifying end to his tour, after scans showed he’d sustained a broken toe, putting him out of action for two weeks.A late collapse of four wickets for 15 runs ensured a flaccid finish to Bangladesh’s innings, and that lack of oomph was put in context as soon as Strauss got into his stride in the run-chase. He cracked seven fours in first Powerplay to leave his team perfectly placed on 66 for 0 after 10 overs, but then, having brought up his half-century by dabbing Abdur Razzak through backward point for three, he answered Craig Kieswetter’s call for a sharp single in the same over, and was caught short of his crease by a pinpoint throw from Mahmudullah in the covers.Kieswetter at this stage had been trailing in his skipper’s wake on 19, much as he had done in each of the three innings of his debut series in Bangladesh back in March, when Alastair Cook had been the unlikely man to outscore him. He responded to the setback by flogging Razzak imperiously over long-off for an inside-out six, but before he could really hit his top gear, he sized up a slog-sweep against Shakib, and picked out Faisal Hossain on the midwicket boundary.At 93 for 2 in the 15th over, Collingwood came out to join Bell who was playing in his first ODI since November 2008, and the pair proceeded with utmost caution, picking off a solitary boundary between them in 13 overs. On 20, Bell was beaten by a beauty from Shakib that spat and turned, and flew away past batsman and keeper alike for four byes, but that was the full extent of England’s alarms.Of greater concern, however, was an incident at the end of the 26th over, when Bangladesh’s wicketkeeper, Mushfiqur Rahim, was struck on the cheekbone by a nasty lifting delivery from Faisal. His face swelled up almost immediately, and after a delay of several minutes, he was stretchered off the field and taken to hospital. He will now miss the final two matches against England but could return for Bangladesh’s fixtures against Ireland, Scotland and Netherlands at the end of the tour.His replacement behind the stumps, Junaid Siddique, was soon called upon, as Collingwood brought a dour partnership to an end by top-edging a mow across the line to give Shakib his second wicket, and Eoin Morgan made 23 from 26 balls before hoisting Razzak to deep midwicket. But for all the criticisms that have been levelled at Bell over the years, turning down a chance for easy runs is not one of them. He sealed the contest with a cut into the covers for his 84th run. It hardly amounted to a like-for-like replacement for Kevin Pietersen, but in the circumstances, it fitted England’s requirements precisely.

Lewis Hatchett boosted his hopes of landing a professional contract at Sussex
with the first five-wicket haul of his career on the opening day of the
County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road

29-Jul-2010

ScorecardLewis Hatchett boosted his hopes of landing a professional contract at Sussex
with the first five-wicket haul of his career on the opening day of the
County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road.The 20-year-old left-arm seamer took 5 for 47 as Leicestershire slumped to
204 all out after being put into bat. Only Australian all-rounder Andrew McDonald coped with the bowler-friendly conditions, top-scoring with a fluent 63 that included 13 boundaries.By the close Division Two leaders Sussex had reached 128 for 4 in their
reply, with Chris Nash hitting an unbeaten half-century off 67 balls. But the day belonged to Hatchett, playing in only the second Championship game of his career and still looking to earn himself a contract having progressed through the Sussex academy.The overcast conditions and stiff breeze blowing across the ground suited him
perfectly and he claimed the first wicket of the match with a swinging delivery
that trapped Will Jefferson lbw.There was then a lengthy wait before Hatchett struck again, but when he did it
was in spectacular fashion. He finished off the Leicestershire innings by taking
the last four wickets for six runs in 11 balls.Claude Henderson was bowled for 11, Nadeem Malik caught behind off the next
ball while Wayne White and Matthew Hoggard both had their stumps uprooted by two
more excellent deliveries.To complete his performance Hatchett also ran out Tom New with a superb throw
from square leg. McDonald was the only Leicestershire batsman who looked capable of coping with
the swinging ball and a series of powerfully struck drives took him to 50 from
61 balls with 40 of the runs coming in boundaries.Ironically he was the one batsman to fall to spin, trapped lbw by a quicker
delivery from Monty Panesar having scored 63 off 80 balls. Veteran Paul Nixon with 22 was the next highest scorer while 28 extras helped boost Leicestershire’s total.But Hoggard also revelled in the helpful conditions when Sussex batted, picking
up the wickets of Mike Yardy, Ed Joyce and Luke Wright in 10 overs at a cost of
42 runs.Nash held the Sussex innings together, reaching the close on 52 not out, with
the visitors still 76 runs behind.

A collapse of rare ineptitude sentenced Surrey to their sixth loss of the championship campaign as they slid to a 238-run loss at New Road

George Dobell at New Road19-Aug-2010
ScorecardIt wasn’t a happy return to New Road for Gareth Batty•PA Photos

A collapse of rare ineptitude sentenced Surrey to their sixth loss of the championship campaign as they slid to a 238-run loss at New Road.Surrey’s batsmen, displaying a recklessness that would have embarrassed schoolboys, squandered their last six wickets for the addition of 18 runs in just 27 balls on the final morning. It meant they had lost all ten second-innings wickets in the space of just 86 balls.The result was overshadowed, however, by an incident between Worcestershire supporters and Gareth Batty. Batty, who left Worcestershire at the end of last season, had been heckled throughout the match and, after his dismissal in Surrey’s second innings, stopped several times on his way off the pitch to exchange words with spectators.Following a brief visit to the dressing room to remove his pads, he reemerged, walked into seating area and sat down next to one of the more vocal critics. “What have I done to offend you,” Batty began. After several minutes of heated conversation, Ian Salisbury, who is on the Surrey coaching staff, led Batty away. Batty was later spotted in tears being consoled by his team-mates.Batty’s feelings, if not his actions, are understandable. He served Worcestershire with distinction for eight years and, as recently as July last year, captained the county. He could never be accused of giving anything less than his best and he was hardly the only man to leave the club last year. Indeed, his Surrey team-mate, Steve Davies, made the same move but was warmly received here. The antipathy towards Batty, therefore is illogical and mean spirited. I understand that his mother was also the victim of some pretty caustic comments. There’s no excuse for that.As a professional, however, Batty has to develop a thicker skin. He is 32 years old and a veteran of 18 internationals for England. However understandable his actions, he would have been better served turning the other cheek. The criticism he took here is nothing compared to that endured by professional footballers.Worcestershire’s chairman, ‘Percy’ Price subsequently apologised to Batty on behalf of the club. “We’re a friendly club,” Price said. “We don’t want to be known for this sort of thing. All our former players are welcome back and Gareth, who always gave his best, is a fine chap.””It’s quite sad,” Chris Adams said afterwards. “It’s quite sad that he wasn’t afforded respect by the supporters after putting in long service here. It shows a lack of respect.”He’s a feisty lad anyway. He plays with a lot of passion and he wears his heart on his sleeve. He outs everything into his cricket.”Exactly what was said, I don’t know. But I’m sure that when he reflects on it, he’ll be disappointed that he allowed himself to react.”He just really wanted to do well. He’s bowled fantastically at times this season but, Tremlett apart – he hasn’t been backed up by the other bowlers.”Surrey actually started the final day rather well. Davies and Rory Hamilton-Brown thrashed 46 in the first five overs of the morning, with Hamilton-Brown hitting Matt Mason for 14 in three deliveries: two beautifully driven fours followed by a flick over square leg for six.But if the aim was to be positive, it soon spilled over into recklessness. Davies, charging down the pitch and trying to hit Shakib Al Hasan over the top, succeeded only in lofting a catch to mid-off before, two balls later, Hamilton-Brown straight to the man on the long-off fence.It was remarkably gormless cricket. As Adams said later: “There’s no problem taking a positive approach. Hitting over the top to spread the field is fine. But, if you’ve spread the field and continue to play aerial shots, well, you’re mad, aren’t you?”We’ve seven youngsters [under 25] in this side and they’re learning what it means to be ‘positive.’ It doesn’t mean you go out there and play reckless cricket. You can be positive in defence, too.”But, I’ve been asked to do without an overseas player and, with a young side, you’re going to get these peaks and troughs. They’re going to make mistakes and they key is to learn from them. Those that learn the lessons will make it in the game; those that don’t, won’t. At the moment, if Ramprakash doesn’t bat for three sessions, we under achieve.”But the game wasn’t lost on the last morning. We had them 100 for 5 in their first innings, but they scored 300 and, in the second innings, we let them score 180 in a session. We’re far off where we want to be.”Shakib was the main beneficiary of Surrey’s poor batting. Maintaining a calm head despite the early assault, he lured the batsmen into rash strokes by varying his pace and flight. It was his second five-wicket haul in three games and the 11th of his career.Mason also bounced back to claim three wickets. If he was somewhat fortunate to win a leg-before decision against Stewart Walters – it looked far too high – he deserved the wickets of Matt Spriegel, back when he should have been forward, and Batty, who sliced a drive to point.This win revives Worcestershire’s promotion hopes. They are far from the finished article but, with players as young and talented as Alexei Kervezee and Moeen Ali in the side, they can look forward to the future with guarded optimism. It was also a fine start for new captain, Daryl Mitchell. He will not, however, have victory presented to him on a plate quite as easily as this very often.

Mohammad Amir will be removed from the list of nominees for the International Cricket Council’s emerging player of the year award

Cricinfo staff03-Sep-2010Mohammad Amir, the 18-year-old fast bowler who is one of three Pakistan players currently under investigation for spot-fixing, will be removed from the list of nominees for the ICC’s emerging player of the year award, ESPNcricinfo has learnt. Mohammad Asif has also been cut from the Test cricketer of the year category.The ICC statement issued late Thursday evening, which provisionally suspended the three players, also stated that “in accordance with the provisions of the code, this means they are immediately barred from participating in all cricket and related activities until the case has been concluded”. An ICC official said Amir’s removal from the list could be confirmed by “reading between the lines”. Amir was one of 16 players nominated, and a favourite to win the emerging player category.The decision, however, was criticised by Pakistan’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdon, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, who asked what had happened to the general principle of law – innocent until proven guilty? “After the shocking, arbitrary and high-handed suspension of the three Pakistani cricketers through the ICC’s uncalled for action, nothing is coming to me as a surprise,” Hasan said. “Rather, my apprehensions that there is a rat in the whole affair are being strengthened. It is emerging as a fishy situation where pieces have now started falling in place to convince me that there is more than meet the eye.”The nominations for the 2010 awards recognise cricketing achievement for the period between August 24, 2009 and August 10, 2010. During that span, Amir took 33 wickets at an average of 31.45 in nine Tests and 16 wickets in 10 ODIs. He became the youngest player to reach 50 Test wickets during the Lord’s Test, which is at the heart of the Scotland Yard and ICC’s ongoing investigations. The Test took place just after the nomination period ended.