Warwickshire’s response provided the measure of Middlesex’s first innings, which may not have been below par to the extent it was suspected after the Division One leaders made hard work of getting their noses in front

Jon Culley at Edgbaston22-Aug-2012
ScorecardIan Westwood scored his second century against Middlesex this season before Warwickshire’s lower order collapsed•Getty Images

Warwickshire’s response provided the measure of Middlesex’s first innings, which may not have been below par to the extent it was suspected after the Division One leaders made hard work of getting their noses in front. With Ian Blackwell, the former England allrounder, coming in at No. 8, Warwickshire’s batting line-up looked irresistibly strong, yet there were more failures than successes and they take a lead of only six runs into the third day, eight wickets down.Yet they had been 175 without loss as Ian Westwood and Varun Chopra again demonstrated their effectiveness as an opening partnership. The two have shared four three-figure stands this season, three of those in the last six innings. Until Chopra fell to a fine, diving catch by Sam Robson at gully off the first ball of Gareth Berg’s second spell, they seemed capable of establishing a lead all on their own.They had ridden their luck at times, in terms of streaky runs off the edge of the bat, but as on Tuesday nothing went to hand. And as the ball aged their authority grew. Chopra, unusually, was the more passive partner, allowing Westwood to take the lead. The left-hander’s first 51 runs spanned 85 balls, to which he added his next 41 at a run a ball, increasing his boundary count from seven to 16. Only in the 90s did he feel he should take stock, facing 22 balls while scoring only six before his 17th four took him to 102.Westwood gave up the Warwickshire captaincy two years ago after enduring a full season without a first-class century. This was his fifth since then and his second in the space of three weeks, both against Middlesex.It seemed to give Warwickshire a platform for a substantial total yet thereafter the innings somewhat lost its way. No subsequent combination was able to add more than 29 and if Chris Wright and Keith Barker are parted quickly on the third morning Warwickshire will have achieved scarcely better than parity.A hailstorm drove the players from the field with a dozen overs left of day two, leaving puddles on the outfield that had not drained more than an hour after the storm had passed, which illustrated the problems the groundstaff still face after such a wet summer.They were not helped in their attempts to protect the square by the umpires’ indecision about when to take the players off, even though dark clouds were looming ominously. Jim Troughton cannot have been impressed either, given that it was in pretty poor light that he was caught at second slip off Tim Murtagh, who is not exactly on the slower side of medium.Others had less obvious excuses. As on day one, anything bowled too short asked to be hit but fuller deliveries posed problems. There were some notable catches, with Steven Crook matching Robson for athleticism at gully when he held a stunner, diving to his right, to give Neil Dexter the wicket of Darren Maddy.It was Dexter’s medium pace, ultimately, that did for Westwood, inducing a chip to mid-off from a mistimed drive, after facing 183 balls for his 120. There was a maiden Championship wicket for the 21-year-old left-arm spinner Ravi Patel, who started nervously but found some confidence after William Porterfield edged to slip.The innings took a sharp downturn after the new ball became available, with Toby Roland-Jones inflicting the most damage and removing three of Warwickshire’s better bets for another substantial score. He had Rikki Clarke caught behind with a ball that found some extra bounce and followed up when Tim Ambrose edged one that cut away late. Blackwell was leg before to one that nipped back and stayed low.

Chris Tremlett has committed his short-term future to Surrey after a signing a one-year deal following the loss of the ECB central contract

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Sep-2012Chris Tremlett has committed his short-term future to Surrey after a signing a one-year deal following the loss of his ECB central contract.Tremlett had an injury-hit 2012 season, with back and knee problems, which restricted him to a single Championship appearance. He has since undergone knee surgery and is now targeting a full return for Surrey’s pre-season training.”I’ve signed the new contract at the end of the season and I’m absolutely delighted to stay at Surrey for another year,” he told Surrey TV. “We’ve got a big year ahead of us next year so I’m looking forward to that challenge. In the meantime it’s all about working hard and getting my body in the best shape ready so I can hit the ground running for the new season.”Tremlett last played for England in the first Test against Pakistan, in Dubai, in January before being forced out of that trip with his back injury. When the latest round of central contracts were announced earlier this month his name was absent meaning he now goes back on Surrey’s payroll. However, Tremlett does not see this as an end to his international career.”I’m very keen to get back out there and almost start a new chapter in my career,” he said. “I still feel as though I have a lot to offer at Surrey and hopefully again at England at some point.”

The Supreme Court on Friday rejected Deccan Chargers’ plea to put a stay on the Bombay High Court order which upheld the BCCI termination of the franchise from the IPL

Nagraj Gollapudi19-Oct-2012The Supreme Court on Friday rejected Deccan Chargers’ plea to put a stay on the Bombay High Court order which upheld the BCCI termination of the franchise from the IPL. The chief justice of India, Altamas Kabir, heard the case but refused to grant a stay to the franchise owners, who approached the apex court immediately after the Bombay High Court yesterday overruled the arbitrator’s order to put a stay on the expulsion.The development means the Chargers are now completely out of the IPL. There are only two ways the Chargers can now bounce back – if the Bombay High Court judge, who rejected the ad-interim order on Thursday, reverses his decision once he has heard in detail the arguments from both sides on October 29; or the court-appointed arbitrator, CK Thakkar, finds the grounds of the termination were not correct.On October 12, the Chargers approached Thakkar for rescue immediately after they had failed the deadline to provide the stipulated Rs 100 crore ($19 million) as directed by the Bombay High Court. The justice, SJ Kathawalla in his final judgement on October 1 had asked Chargers’ owners to provide the bank guarantee or risk the stay order he had imposed on the BCCI termination be revived. Thakkar issued a stay on the High Court order, but the BCCI responded by filing an ad-interim order (urgent relief) in the High Court, which was heard by Justice RD Dhanuka yesterday. He rejected Thakker’s order, saying the arbitrator had no “jurisdiction” to overrule the court order.The Chargers’ owners had also filed a special leave petition (SLP) under Section 9 in front of Dhanuka, against the order by the Bombay High Court to allow the BCCI appeal of lifting the termination. Dhanuka once again ruled in BCCI’s favour even without listening to the arguments of Raju Subramaniam, the board’s lawyer.As a last resort, the Chargers filed a petition in the Supreme Court requesting the SLP be stayed. “That SLP was dismissed today. That means the order of the Bombay High Court has been confirmed and the termination will now stand,” a BCCI official said. “I think they have played their last card. I do not think they have any further cards.”According to him the Supreme Court found that there was nothing wrong in the order passed by the Bombay High Court and therefore there was no reason for the apex court to interfere and hence it dismissed the SLP.According to the official, the BCCI is confident that neither the October 29 hearing nor the arbitration proceedings were likely to further stall the board’s plans to go ahead with installing a new franchise to fill the void left vacant by the Chargers.”There are so many more grounds for termination, so I don’t even know if the arbitration would go on. Because they were supposed to file their statement of claims today in front of the arbitrator, which they did not,” the official said. According to him, the Chargers’ counsel is likely to ask for an extension to file the statement of claims which could easily last more than the three-month time frame, which was suggested by the judge SJ Kathawalla in his final order on October 1.”It would be difficult for the court to reverse its order because it was a reasoned order given at the ad-interim stage without even the BCCI counsel’s response. The BCCI lawyers are yet to argue their case completely and that could further worsen the situation for the Chargers. And with this affirmation by the Supreme Court, we do not think the judge would change his view,” the official said.In a release, the BCCI also said that “all [Chargers] players’ dues for the last season have been met”.The BCCI has already moved forward by floating a tender inviting interested bidders for the new franchise. The deadline to file the final bid document expires noon on October 25.

Michael Clarke, after his unbeaten double-century in Adelaide, has said it’s his formula of “counter-attack, being positive, playing my natural game” that has helped him succeed

Daniel Brettig at Adelaide Oval22-Nov-2012As the 16,512 spectators at Adelaide Oval rose to honour Michael Clarke at the end of the day he became the first man in Test history to pass 200 four times in a year, one broadcast observer marvelled at the captain’s sense of timing, as records and milestones tumble to his bat at all the right moments. “It’s almost like he’s a news editor,” he gasped.This was indeed another note-perfect occasion for Clarke, a man and a cricketer growing in stature among the game’s greats with every day at the batting crease. He reached two major marks with the sort of timing once the exclusive preserve of his friend and mentor Shane Warne, smashing Morne Morkel for five boundaries in an over to go to 150, then reaching a double-hundred the ball before Michael Hussey passed his own century, cause for hugs and photos all round.But there is substance, thought and courage too behind a face at ease with the cameras. As in Brisbane, Clarke was rewarded for a tremendous attacking intent from a position of some uncertainty, this time 3 for 55, but here in Adelaide the innings had the added advantage of taking place on the first day to push Australia into a position in which they already appear the only side capable of victory.Clarke has not yet had the time or the inclination to ponder on the wider context of what he achieved on Thursday, or this year, but he is certain that the greatest source of his success is an aggressive attitude. In this he resembles the famed remark of the French General Ferdinand Foch who offered the following thought on his battlefield situation: “My centre is giving way, my right is retreating, situation excellent, I will attack.” Having twice had Australia three down for not many, South Africa have twice been turned back with impressive force.”Through my career that’s probably the only way I’ve had success, when you look at the innings I’ve made big scores, it’s exactly that – the counter-attack, being positive, playing my natural game,” Clarke said. “And there’s risk there. As Graeme [Smith] and AB [de Villiers] reminded me a lot of times today I had a lot of arse, there’s no doubt about that but you need it in this game. I remember playing England through the Australian summer a couple of years ago and I couldn’t make a run, so when you’re scoring runs you want to cash in.”It’s really nice to be making runs, and the down side to this great game is when you’re not, you find it really hard to find your next run, and that happens through your career. That’s happened a lot for me, and I’ve got dropped, and when I came back from getting dropped I said I want to make the most of the good days and that’s what I feel like I’m doing.”Apart from culture, intent is one of the buzz words for Australia’s cricketers these days. Clarke and David Warner resolved not to waste time trying to survive on an Adelaide pitch that offered true bounce and comfortable pace. Their bravery delighted the coach Mickey Arthur just as much as the assembled crowd. “The one thing Davey and I spoke about during the week was our intent, the way I tried to play in Brisbane and the way we were going to try to play today was exactly that, we wanted to be positive,” Clarke said. “We both took that approach today, we were going to see the ball and react and not worry too much about the result, if we get a good ball, we get a good ball.”Partnerships such as those with Warner and Hussey have been a critical element of Clarke’s success since he became captain. The one major innings in that time that was an entirely solo effort – the 151 against South Africa in Cape Town – was ultimately inconsequential because no one else was able to help Clarke, resulting in a middling team tally around a brilliant individual one.”A lot of credit needs to go to Huss and Davey as well, the way they played up the other end today made my life and my job a lot easier,” Clarke said. “If I didn’t score there was no stress. That gets forgotten a lot of the time: how important your partner is when you have success.”Another partnership that has helped Clarke is the one that he has established with his wife Kyly. They married in a lavish but secret ceremony during the winter, and the wry note made by Ed Cowan in Brisbane that Clarke does not have a Test batting average since becoming a husband remains true – he has now scored 483 runs for the series without being dismissed, and he gestured with passion in Mrs Clarke’s direction as he strode towards 200.”I know she’s supporting me, that’s the type of woman she is,” Clarke said. “She’s getting into her cricket and it’s great she can be here in Adelaide. It’s special for everybody [who] has thrown their support behind me, and the people that are close who’ve been there through good days and bad days, whether that’s on the field with cricket or off the field with my personal life and things that have happened through my life, especially with my family. I think when you perform well, my dedication is certainly to my team-mates first and foremost, but also through the people who’ve stood by me through good and bad days.”

Zaheer Khan had a fruitful first day as captain of a first-class side, as Mumbai bowled out Gujarat for 244 in what is a virtual pre-quarter-final

Amol Karhadkar29-Dec-2012
ScorecardFile photo: Parthiv Patel went to the top of this season’s run charts during the course of his century•K Sivaraman

Zaheer Khan had a fruitful first day as captain of a first-class side, as Mumbai bowled out Gujarat for 244 in what is a virtual pre-quarter-final. Had hosts Mumbai not lost opener Kaustubh Pawar in the last over of the day, the smile on Zaheer’s face at stumps would have been even wider.It didn’t come as a surprise when Zaheer, leading the team in the absence of regular captain Ajit Agarkar who was ruled out with a groin injury, opted to bowl on a sporting track with a sprinkling of live grass at the Dr DY Patil Sports Stadium. And when Zaheer trapped Smit Patel, one of the stars of India’s victorious Under-19 World Cup campaign, in front of wickets, Mumbai would have hoped to run through the Gujarat top order.However, rookies Samit Gohel and Bhargav Merai frustrated them for more than an hour. Not only did both the right-hand batsmen scored freely at the start of their innings, but they defended well, leaving balls outside off stump with relative ease. As a result, by the time Dhawal Kulkarni forced Gohel into a false shot, Mumbai had used as five bowlers.At 89 for 2, captain Parthiv Patel took guard. And by the time he was dismissed as the penultimate Gujarat wicket, the seasoned batsman had scored 101 off the 154 runs that Gujarat added since his arrival at the crease. Had Merai not attempted a risky single and fallen short of the crease at the non-striker’s end when Kulkarni’s direct hit shattered the woodwork in the last over before lunch, Gujarat would have had the advantage going into the break.However, once Mumbai had got an opening, they lived up to their tag of domestic powerhouse by breaking through at regular intervals. As a result, the 64-run association for the second wicket between Gohel and Merai turned out to be the only noteworthy partnership of the innings.While wickets were tumbling at the other end, Parthiv appeared to be playing a completely different match. En route his third century of the season, and the top of this season’s run charts, the left-hand batsman displayed his cutting and driving abilities in abundance. His standout stroke was a straight driven boundary off Kulkarni soon after his arrival at the crease.Once Mumbai had broken into the longish tail of Gujarat batting, Parthiv switched gears and targeted left-arm spinner Ankeet Chavan, who was flighting the ball on the opening day for the first time in the season. He first charged down the pitch to hit him for a boundary over mid-off, and in his next over, drove him through the covers for the same result.The only blemish during Parthiv’s knock came when he was on 64. Having surpassed Ravindra Jadeja’s tally of 794 runs to emerge as the leading run-getter, Parthiv nicked Kulkarni but Hiken Shah dropped a regulation catch at first slip. Nevertheless, with little support from the other end, it was a commendable effort from the Gujarat captain.”Obviously the additional motivation is to return to the Indian team, so I try and score big. Thankfully, it has been paying off all through the season,” Parthiv said after stumps. “It is a challenging wicket but I think we were about 100 runs short of what would have been an ideal first-innings score here.”