ScorecardVictoria were well on the way to first-innings points at stumps on the first day after Shane Harwood led a fast-bowling demolition of Tasmania. Harwood collected 4 for 53 as the Tigers were bundled out for 168, justifying the decision by Victoria’s stand-in captain David Hussey to send Tasmania in.At the close the Bushrangers had eased to 1 for 111, trailing by 57 runs with Rob Quiney on 55 and Michael Klinger on 4. If Victoria overtake the Tigers’ score it will be the sixth time from as many games this season that Tasmania have been behind on the first innings.The competition’s leading wicket-taker Gerard Denton (ankle) was missing from Victoria’s line-up but Harwood and Peter Siddle proved just as dangerous. Harwood bowled Michael Di Venuto with the third ball of the innings and Siddle, who was returning from a shoulder injury, removed Michael Dighton and Travis Birt in his first spell.Tasmania were 6 for 85 shortly after lunch when Harwood picked up Luke Butterworth and Tim Paine in one over, and only George Bailey’s 40 and a late 27 from Chris Duval nudged the Tigers past the embarrassment level. Dirk Nannes took 2 for 45 and Siddle grabbed 3 for 33, meaning he has more wickets from his two games this summer than the Australian-contracted Ben Hilfenhaus has from five outings.Hilfenhaus was tidy with 0 for 26 from 13 overs, however Quiney and Nick Jewell were reliable for Victoria, adding 100 for the first wicket. Jewell was lbw to Jason Krejza late in the day for 42 but Tasmania need a dramatic turnaround on the second day to put their title defence back on track.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Technical Committee, headed by Sunil Gavaskar, will meet in Chennai on January 20 to discuss the ICC rules and regulations on the domestic Twenty20 tournament in April.”The Technical Committee meeting in Chennai will discuss the rules and regulations for Twenty20 format of the game that we have received from the ICC,” said Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI’s chief administrative officer. “We are planning to host the domestic Twenty20 event among all units in the first week of April.”The inaugural Twenty20 World Championship will be played in South Africa this September and the domestic tournament is being billed as a forerunner to the global event. The BCCI has not conducted any such tournament in the domestic circuit so far. India played their first Twenty20 International on their recent tour of South Africa and won it too.Shetty added that the committee will also review the Ranji Trophy points system and the recommendation of MP Pandove, the BCCI joint secretary, to play all the Super League group matches, semi-finals and final at neutral venues from next season. At present the matches are held on rotation on a home and away basis.
Pre-match press conferences should generally be taken with pinches of salt. In them the pitches are never poor, always sporting and with a little something for everyone. Team compositions are never announced, only inferred. No one player holds the key to anything, all players in the opposing camp are vital and unless a real minnow is involved, both teams start evenly. The toss is always important but never unhealthily so and first sessions are always crucial but not critical.The first question pitched to Inzamam-ul-Haq regarding the state of the pitch was banal enough but because it wasn’t about goodwill, hospitality and political ties, it told a story in itself. For the first time in three series, the cricket takes precedence and it hasn’t come soon enough because both teams are playing some decidedly competitive cricket. Inzamam’s press conferences are generally straightforward enough; straight answers come to straight questions but in recent times, they have become even more so. Primarily, it is because, in the Pakistan camp these days, relative stability is to be found.As has been hinted in the run-up to this series, little is likely to change or be surprising about the eleven Pakistanis who turn up tomorrow. Apart from finding openers, the major dilemma with Pakistan’s opening combination was that when they were found, they were lost almost immediately thereafter. Ten opening combinations in thirteen Tests says less about a lack of natural openers in the country than it does about the selectors’ willingness to give one pair an extended trial. Forget extended, even more than two Tests together few pairs got. For continuity’s sake more than anything else, Shoaib Malik, as Inzamam and Bob Woolmer have been keen to assert, is likely to retain his position as opener. Against a long and strong batting line-up, his bowling will provide one of two much-needed things – relief for the main bowlers and occasional partnership-breaking potential.The only other position over which hovered some doubt was at number six. With Asim Kamal’s exclusion from the squad, a question of three has become one of two: Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq. Inzamam was evasive obviously saying simply, “We have two good allrounders in our squad. One provides us with a spinning option and the other a fast bowling. They will help us with options in either scenario whether the pitch takes spin or whether it is helpful to faster bowlers. It is a good situation for us to have in the squad.” But it is likely, according to some in the team management that Afridi will play. His performances against India – in fact anyone – over the last year and that he scored 92 and took four wickets in his last Test appearance only add more credibility to that claim. The rest is self-explanatory.As for the rest outside team selection, who knows? Who is the stronger side, how will the pitch play, will the weather play a part, is it really as black and white as Pakistan’s bowlers against India’s batsmen, will the toss be crucial? Rumours of a green-top were, like Twain’s death, greatly exaggerated and the pitch looks remarkably similar to the one on which England crumpled in December. In between then and now, the weather took centre stage for a while but even that, as temperatures rise slowly and the sun sheds its shyness, is receding slightly. The weathermen, almost as perfunctory as cricket press conferences, say a cold spell is expected again, possibly during the course of the match but by then the game will have begun writing its story.Really, these are all side issues, only diverting attention from the morrow, when Shoaib charges in to Sehwag, or when Pathan skips in to Butt. Then we will await various, mouthwatering themes that will, fingers crossed, embed themselves underneath the very skin of this series. Will Shoaib be able to maintain his hostility through the series? How will Rana Naved-ul-Hasan acquit himself now that he is a frontline bowler? How will Danish Kaneria bowl against India, now with a reputation to uphold rather than make? And is Inzamam finally going to succumb to the law of averages that afflicts every great batsman, Bradman apart? From tomorrow, the real stories begin.Pakistan (probable) 1 Salman Butt 2 Shoaib Malik 3 Younis Khan 4 Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt) 5 Mohammad Yousuf 6 Shahid Afridi 7 Kamran Akmal (wk) 8 Rana Naved-ul-Hasan 9 Shoaib Akhtar 10 Mohammad Sami 11 Danish Kaneria.
Bangladesh A 309 for 9 (Mushfiqur Rahman 110*, Chibhabha 4-46) v Zimbabwe A ScorecardA career-best 5 for 63 from Shahadat Hossain put Bangladesh A in a strong position on the second day of the second Test against Zimbabwe A at Bulawayo. At the close, Bangladesh had reached 78 for 0 in their second innings, a lead of 188.Shahdat had caused Zimbabwe problems with the bat last night, helping Mushfiqur Rahim put on 47 for Bangladesh’s ninth wicket – Mushfiqur added just one to his overnight 110 this morning – but in a post-lunch spell today he ripped through Zimbabwe’s brittle middle order.Reply to Bangladesh’s 311, Zimbabwe had reached 90 for 0 when the dismissal of Vusi Sibanda for 42 triggered a remarkable collapse, all ten wickets falling for 101 runs in little over a session. Terrence Duffin made a solid 59, but thereafter only Tafadzwa Mufambisi with 31 offered any real resistance. And there was more gloom for the out-of-form Dion Ebrahim, who laboured for 27 balls making an unimpressive 5.Shahriar Nafees (35*) and Raqibul Hasan (40*) underlined the gulf between the sides as they extended Bangladesh’s lead at more than a run-a-ball in the final session, with few alarms.
The Pub Charity CCA Club Cricket Draw – November 1MENS CRICKET1st Grade Men:R3 – 1 & 8 Nov (2 Day)Ricc v St A Hag 3,HSOB v OC Hag 1,Syd v ES Syd 1,LPW v BWU Burn 1,Mar Bye.2nd Grade Men:R3 – 1 & 8 Nov (2 Day)Ricc v St A Hag 4,HSOB v OC Elm 1,Syd v ES `A’ Burw 1,LPW v BWU Gar 1,Mar v ES Budgies War 1.3rd Grade Gold Men:R3 – 1 & 8 Nov (2 Day)St A v OC HC 1,BWU Maroon v Ricc HC 2,HSOB Cavaliers v BWU Gold Hag 6,LPW v ES Gold Ensors 1,ES Blue v Syd Syd 2.3rd Grade Red:R2 – 25 Oct & 1 Nov (2-day)2nd day of 23rd Grade Black (Grade has been redrawn):R2 – 25 Oct & 1 Nov (2-day)2nd day of 24th Grade Men:St A A v Mar Ilam 3,BWU v Syd Muppets Burn 2,OC Cavs v St A B HC 3,LPW Yabbage v ES Hooters Burw 3.5th Grade Men:St A v Ricc Gold HC 9,BWU Blue v Mar Green Burn 3,BWU Maroon v OC Gold Elm 2,LPW Yaks v Ricc Hogs Ensors 2,BWU SNCC v BWU Gold Burn 4.6th Grade Men:Syd Blue v Mar Fozzie B’s Ilam 5,Mar Gold v St A Polo 4a,OC Tan v LPW Ensors 3,Parklands v OC SGC Polo 3a,BWU v Syd Red Syd 3.Presidents Men:St A Gold v HSOB Gold HC 8,St A Blue v Mar Ilam 1,BWU v Ricc+ Ilam 2,OC v Hospital Elm 4,LPW Gladiators v ES Gold Avondale 1,Syd v LPW Red Wool 1,Sum Misfits v ES Blue Bar 1.(+ Indicates G. Frampton Challenge Trophy holder)WOMENS CRICKET1st Grade Women:R3 – 1 Nov (1-day Cup)ES v LPW Burw 2,OC-Country v St A Elm 3.1st Reserve Grade Women:R1 – 1 Nov (1-day)St A v OC Country Malvern 1,BWU v ES Clare 1,Syd v Ricc HC 7.2nd Grade Women:St A v LPW Wool 2,Syd v Hare Malvern 2,OC Country Bye.3rd Grade:Ricc v Horn Horn HS,LPW v St A HSC,BWU v Syd Polo 2a.4th Grade Primary Girls:Senior Trad:St A Gold v LPW HC 8 ,ES v St A Grammar HC 9,OC Country v Horn HC 3.Junior Trad:St A v Nb HC 7.Junior Average:St A v LPW HC 4,HSOB v Syd HC 5,Syd Selwyn H v Cath G HC 6.
A combined team of girls from Wellington and Hutt Valley flew out from New Zealand yesterday to begin a four-match tour of the Argentine.The tour is the result of an invitation from the Argentine Cricket Association which has previously sent three youth teams to New Zealand on tours.Thirteen girls aged 13-16, all of whom have achieved representative cricket level, have taken up the invitation. The girls have raised $85,000 to make the trip from stocktaking and raffles while the New Zealand Community Trust, the Lion Foundation, Pub Charities and the Norwood Trust in Wellington have been very supportive of the tour.A cocktail evening was held in Wellington on October 29 to draw the name of the team sponsor, which went to McLaren Associates Management Consultants.The Minister of Sport and Recreation, and also Education, Trevor Mallard attended the evening along with the Argentine Ambassador and members of the boards for Cricket Wellington and New Zealand Cricket.Three of the team’s games will be played in Buenos Aires and one in Rosario.The girls will also take part in cricketing clinics and share their cricketing experiences with their hosts.Former New Zealand opening batsman Bruce Edgar is the coach of the team which is managed by Thelma Colquhoun.The team is being taken on a sightseeing tour of Buenos Aires today and this evening travels to Lomas de Zamora where they will play a hockey game tomorrow morning and a cricket game in the afternoon against Southern Districts at St Albans College grounds in Buenos Aires.On Monday the players will visit the Tigre Valley and on Tuesday they will play the Argentine Girls’ XI at St Georges College-Quilmes, Buenos Aires.Wednesday involves a bus trip to Rosario with sightseeing on the way and a cricket clinic on arrival before meeting their billets.On Thursday afternoon they will play a Rosario combined boys’ and girls’ team.That will be followed on Friday morning by a hockey game and in the afternoon a game of cricket against a combined Buenos Aires/Rosario side.The last game of the tour is next Sunday, against a North XI in Buenos Aires.The team leaves on the night after that game at 12.10am and arrives back in Auckland on December 18.Team members are: Chamindi Abeyratne, Melissa Burgess, Victoria Colquhoun, Lucy Doolan, Holly Edgar, Rosemary Froggatt, Lucy Goddard, Gaya Gnanalingam, Philippa Gueorgieff, Phillippa Gunn, Rachel Harris, Danella Pike, Gina Ropiana, Bruce Edgar (coach), Thelma Colquhoun (manager).
While central midfield is not exactly an area of Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic squad which is in desperate need of reinforcement, with the 56-year-old currently possessing nine senior options in the middle of the park, it would not be surprising to see some of these move onto pastures new this summer.
Indeed, the likes of Ismaila Soro, Nir Bitton and James McCarthy have not enjoyed a great deal of game-time under the Hoops coach so far this season, while the trio are also reportedly earning a combined £36.1k-p/w in wages.
Furthermore, while Callum McGregor and Yosuke Ideguchi are the two standout options in the more defensive role of Postecoglou’s three-man midfield following the departure of Scott Brown last summer, the Bhoys are somewhat lacking in a tough-tackling, play-disrupting option in that area of the pitch.
However, with the club having recently been linked with a move for Coventry City’s Gustavo Hamer in the summer transfer window, that could soon be about to change.
Celtic’s next Scott Brown
Making a £1.5m move to Coventry in 2020, Hamer arrived in England with a reputation of being something of a terrier in the middle of the park, with Dutch football expert and FootballOranje founder Michael Bell stating of the 24-year-old prior to his switch:
“He is a controlling midfielder. Has been through the Feyenoord academy, at Dordrecht and at PEC Zwolle too.
“He definitely loves a tackle and that’s why he has eight yellow cards this season in the Eredivisie, more than most in the league.
“However, he is so much more than a terrier and has a lot of technique and skill on the ball. He can spread passes around the pitch with ease and is an excellent set-piece taker. He is a strong player and fans will like his creativity and ability on the ball. He is still young too so has plenty of time to improve and grow as a player.”
These are all traits that the £2.25m-rated midfielder has demonstrated in abundance for the Sky Blues, with Hamer averaging 1.4 interceptions and 1.3 tackles and winning 2.9 duels per game over his 42 Championship appearances last season.
However, it was not only in a defensive capacity in which the former Netherlands under-20 international impressed. He also bagged five goals, registered three assists and created five big chances for his teammates, enjoying 57.7 touches of the ball, taking 1.8 shots and making 1.5 key passes per match.
These returns saw the player who Marko Marosi dubbed “unbelievable” earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.97, ranking him as Coventry’s best performer in the second tier of English football last term.
It has been a similar story over Hamer’s 29 Championship outings so far this season, with the £3.2k-per-week midfielder scoring three goals, providing six assists and creating nine big chances for his teammates. He has also averaged 1.5 key passes, 1.2 interceptions, 1.6 tackles and 1.6 shots and won three duels per game.
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These metrics have seen the Dutchman average an even more impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.15, ranking him as Mark Robins’ second-best player in the league.
As such, while the 24-year-old would undoubtedly replace Brown’s hardman presence in the Celtic midfield, it is clear to see that Hamer would also add an extra bow to the Bhoys’ creativity from the middle of the park. That leads us to believe that the Coventry City ace would make an exceptional addition to Postecoglou’s current options in the midfield engine room.
In other news: Celtic handed fresh injury boost as footage emerges, Postecoglou will be buzzing
The second ODI between Hong Kong and Scotland at Mission Road was abandoned without a ball bowled due to persistent rain across the city. The match had been pushed into a reserve day but that mattered little as wet weather continued from Thursday into Friday and with no chance of the field drying out, play was called off before the scheduled start time on Friday’s reserve day.The result meant each team got a point from the abandonment, which pushed Hong Kong above Netherlands into first place, though Netherlands has a chance to leapfrog Hong Kong when they play UAE on Friday in Abu Dhabi. Scotland is now in third place with seven points, one ahead of Kenya on the table.This was the third time in six scheduled WCL Championship matches during the current competition that Scotland has had to split points due to poor weather following a no result and a total abandonment in the Netherlands last September. Scotland also came close to missing out on maximum points in their opening two encounters at home in July against Nepal but managed to come away with two wins despite wet weather in Ayr.
Peter Moores, England’s coach, has backed Monty Panesar over Graeme Swann for a place in the Tests against Sri Lanka.”Certainly he is our No. 1 Test match spinner. You would expect him to do well over here,” Moores said. “Monty has proved he is an outstanding Test match bowler, and has been over the last couple of years.”Moores quashed speculation that Swann, the offspinner who was preferred to Panesar in the ODI series against Sri Lanka, might play ahead of Panesar as he is a better batsman and fielder.”Nothing against Graeme, because he has done well in the one-day games, but he still has stuff to do,” Moores said. “He has a great opportunity because he showed in one-day cricket what an aggressive spinner he can be and at times we might play two.”Monty has taken his wickets at 30 [runs] apiece, which is very good. He will be looking at this trip as a chance to keep that progression going. The one thing you can say about Monty is that he has grown a lot as a bowler in the last few Test matches.”Panesar, for his part, is not taking his place for granted and says he is ready for the challenge to his position as first-choice spinner.” I’m used to being in these positions where I don’t know if I’m going to play or not,” he told the Daily Mirror, “but I’ll just keep giving myself the best chance. I remember when I was out for two years, not playing first-class cricket. I could easily have given up … but you just keep persevering, keep staying patient, and you gradually think your chance will come if you keep doing that. That’s the way I try and do things.”England play two three-day warm-up games in Colombo before the first Test starts in Kandy on December 1.
Having starred at the Wanderers with match figures of 8 for 99, Sreesanthknew that an encore wouldn’t be easy. On a Kingsmead pitch that wascertainly more batsman-friendly, he finished the first innings withfigures of 4 for 109, including the eye-catching dismissal of Mark Boucher- stumps splayed all over the place.The man with a penchant for the eccentric was his colourful self at thepress conference on Wednesday evening, offering up candid answers on hisdevelopment as a cricketer and the state of the match. “It was hard workthere,” he said with a grin when asked if there was any disappointment atmissing out on a five-for. “You cannot expect five every game or everyinnings. I’m happy to keep working on the basics and not worry too muchabout wickets.”His assessment of the pitch would have encouraged India’s batsmen, thoughhe shied away from saying whether he intended another six-hittingcelebration when his turn came to bat. “It’s on the slower side and thebounce was a bit less than Jo’burg,” he said. “It will get better andfaster. It was a bit more skiddy this morning. But if the batsmen ‘get in’on this wicket, they can go on to get a big score. It’s hard work for thebowlers.”He admitted that the Johannesburg display had increased the pressure ofexpectation, but said that he was prepared to deal with it. “I was verylucky to be performing with people like Anil and Sachin ,” hesaid referring to India’s most experienced duo. “I also spoke to AllanDonald and Wasim Akram; the more you talk, the more you get to learn. Theyall asked me not to try too hard.”That said, he still resembles a coiled spring at times out in the middle,only ever a good ball away from a riotous celebration or a plaintiveappeal. “The pressure is good at the start of the match because it bringsthe best out of you,” he said, while adding that he had been working onreining things in a little. His reaction after dismissing Hashim Amla atthe Wanderers attracted a fine from the match referee, and Sreesanth said:”It all happens when I’m in that frame of mind, but I don’t want to miss agame.”Most of the experts here, right from the batsmen like Barry Richards tobowlers like Donald, have been raving about the seam position when theball leaves his hand, and Sreesanth spoke about how it was a legacy of thetime spent at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai. “I worked with DennisLillee and TA Sekar, on swing and seam position. The basic thing[stressed] was not pace, but to get the seam position and how you releasethe ball.”His own transformation from wannabe leggie to pace spearhead is aremarkable one, and Sreesanth attributed his swing-and-seam strengths tothe often-heartbreaking experience of bowling on pancake-flat pitches backhome. “Initially, I wanted to hit the batsman,” he said with a smile. “Butit’s not easy to hit the helmet on Indian pitches. I used to watch guyslike [Glenn] McGrath and [Shaun] Pollock on TV, and learnt a lot. I learntthat there are many other ways of getting a batsman out.”Playing his seventh Test, Sreesanth is too consumed with the present toworry too much about what lies in wait. He certainly won’t be losing sleepworrying about burnout and injuries. “I love playing cricket,” he said,having joked about how the Durban weather reminded him of being back homein Kochi. “When I’m home, I play four or five games of tennis-ball cricketmost days. I just keep playing, and I’m not worried about injuries. Ifsomething happens, it happens.”And whatever happens, he’ll always have the Wanderers, and a performancethat few Indian quick bowlers will ever match.