Suspicious starter of the Day By the time Matthew Hayden had faced 18 deliveries in his last matchagainst South Africa at St Kitts he had boshed his way to 32 not outwith three fours and two sixes. Today, on a virgin pitch at Antigua’sbrand-new stadium, it took him that many balls to dribble his firstrun, a cagey steer behind point. It was a deceptive beginning,however. By the time he’d gauged the pace and bounce of the pitch andclobbered the highest Australian score in World Cup history, few couldrecall its humble beginnings.Misjudgment of the Day Mark 1 Ricky Ponting was looking ominously set, as he pretty much alwaysdoes, when he poked one into the covers and set off for a tight,though not entirely suicidal, single. Waiting for him, however, wasnone other than Ramnaresh Sarwan, who picked up in an instant and pinged downthe stumps at the non-striker’s end. Ponting was gone for 35 from 36balls, and Australia’s momentum had been stunted at a crucialjuncture.Misjudgment of the Day Mark 2 But the next time Sarwan clearly felt that Antigua’s boundaries were quite bigenough. Standing ten yards in from the ropes at long-off, he wasnutmegged, David Seaman-style, by a rare miscued drive from Hayden on109. He leapt backwards but failed to get even a fingertip to the ball,and gestured that the ball had gone for six, perhaps to save face asmuch as anything else. In fact the shot had dipped late and bouncedsix inches inside the rope. Had he been right back to start with, whoknows what would have happened?Catch of the Day Nothing much could stem Hayden’s march, and in the final ten overs,he demonstrated that short boundaries were only a partial excuse forall the six-hitting that went on at St Kitts. His slap over long-onoff Jerome Taylor was a beauty – a shot that managed to be both high and flatat the same time. And yet … positioned in the deep, 15 rows back inthe top tier of the grandstand, an Aussie fan (it always is …) leaptout of his seat and back-flipped his way to a remarkable one-handedpluck. He didn’t even let go of the beer in his other hand (as it always is…).Let-off of the Day By the time the drizzle eased with just under two hours of play stillpossible, the word doing the rounds in the stadium was that we wereall set for a 20-over slog fest. Duckworth and Lewis had decided on atarget of 163, a figure which may have been justified by the old ruleof thumb that you take your score after 30 overs and double it, but inthis era of Twenty20 cricket it was generous in the extreme. In theend, the rain rolled in to leave Australia quite content with theirday’s work.
Mark Waugh has called for Trevor Hohns, Australia’s chairman of selectors, to be sacked following some questionable selections, notably the decision to drop Brad Hodge in favour of Damien Martyn.”I think the board need to have a very hard look at Hohns, that’s where the issue is,” Waugh said in the after speaking on radio. “He’s been there for a decade, which is a very long time to be in charge of picking our cricket teams.”There have been some funny selections lately. It stems back to New Zealand last year when Brett Lee didn’t play a Test. The [situation with] Hodge was also very unfair.”Hodge scored a magnificent double-hundred against South Africa – he toured India, New Zealand and England before getting his first Test cap – but was dropped in favour of Martyn for Australia’s tour to South Africa. Hohns described the decision as a “judgment call”.”It wouldn’t be hard to pick a good team, would it?” Waugh said. “But I think they have got a bit lost. When someone has been there for a long time sometimes you need … new thoughts.”
Stuart Carlisle has been named captain of Zimbabwe A for the visit of their Pakistan counterparts. The selectors have named a 15-man squad for the four-day matches and a 14-man squad of the one-day games that follow.The squads include a number of Zimbabwean Test players including Brendan Taylor and Stuart Matsikenyeri, who both struggled against South Africa, and are given an opportunity to hone their skills. Graeme Cremer, the legspinner who came in for some fierce punishment at the hands of Jacques Kallis, will also face the less daunting prospect of Pakistan’s second string.Taylor will share the wicketkeeping duties with Charles Coventry after Tatenda Taibu was not considered for selection to allow him a rest. Macsood Ebrahim, the convenor of selectors, said: “We are going to select the teams on a rotational basis because we want each player in either squad to play at least one game.”The tour runs from May 6-23 with two four-day games at the CFX Academy and Harare, followed by three one-day matches. Four-Day squad Stuart Carlisle (capt), Blessing Mahwire, Brendan Taylor, Mark Vermeulen, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Sean Williams, Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Tawanda Mupariwa, Graeme Cremer, Allan Mwayenga, Trevor Gripper, Neil Ferreira, Keith Dabengwa, Anthony Ireland, Charles Coventry.One-Day squad Stuart Carlisle (capt), Blessing Mahwire, Keith Dabengwa, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Brendan Taylor, Mark Vermeulen, Douglas Marillier, Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Sean Williams, Tawanda Mupariwa, Anthony Ireland, Ian Nicholson, Gavin Ewing, Charles Coventry.
Victoria 8 for 252 (Elliott 72, Moss 54, Hodge 52; Worthington 3-45) beat Western Australia 8 for 251 (Goodwin 64, North 54; Knowles 2-42) by two wickets, with 10 overs to spare Scorecard
Matthew Elliott: Victorian run-machine does it again
Victoria beat Western Australia by two wickets, and gained the bonus point that gave them an outside chance of making the ING Cup final against the same opponents later this month. They needed two runs off the last ball of the 40th over to clinch a bonus point, and Darren Berry, the captain, duly managed that thanks to a misfield in the deep from Paul Wilson.Western Australia started disastrously, slumping to 4 for 47, but Michael Hussey (28), Murray Goodwin (64) and Marcus North (54) came back strongly to take them to a competitive total of 8 for 251. Victoria, though, were always ahead of the asking rate, with Matthew Elliott (72) and Jonathan Moss (54) adding 141 for the first wicket at close to seven an over.Brad Hodge, who made 52, ensured that the momentum wouldn’t be lost, and though Victoria lost four wickets for seven in a shaky spell at the end, Berry saw the past the target. Victoria’s bowlers had set up the victory earlier, with Brad Knowles, a pace bowler making his debut, especially impressive (2-42). Shane Warne finished with 1-43.Western Australia were already assured of a place in the final, with 29 points. The bonus point they gained put Victoria on par with Queensland (28), and they must now hope for a convincing South Australia victory against Queensland at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday.
Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lanka’s spin magician and the world’s greatestbowler according to Wisden, is on the verge of afull recovery from a hernia operation and is expected re-enter theinternational fray on January 9 when Sri Lanka take on Australia at the SCG.He carries with him hopes of a Sri Lankan revival.Predictably, Murali has been sorely missed. Since flying to Australia forpre-emptive surgery Sanath Jayasuriya’s team have won a solitary ODI ineight attempts. Their wayward bowlers have been flogged mercilessly and youwould be being generous if you called the fielding butter-fingered. Thebatting, with the exception of Russel Arnold, has been woeful.
Confidence has not leaked away, it has flooded from the players, leavingcoach Dav Whatmore tearing out his hair in frustration, no doubt ponderingwhere it all started to go awry. Just nine months ago the side was ridingthe crest of a wave after notching up ten consecutive Test victories but nowthey are being openly mocked.Of course, the reasons are complex. Some cast their mind back to a teamrevolt against the selectors last January. Others point firmly at the darkhand of political interference in the cricket board, which intensifiedduring the year. A growing band blames the captain and the coach.There is no doubt that some off-field matters have adversely affectedperformance, especially a selection process that has tottered on theshambolic during the past year, but the single most important reason for SriLanka’s dip is the absence of Murali.Sri Lanka are not an exceptional side. Jayasuriya has at his disposal alimited pool of talent. There are no baby-faced Aravinda de Silva’s waitingin the wings. Fast bowlers of international pedigree remain scarce. However,there is a hardcore of quality and when that core is fully fit and playingtheir full potential Sri Lanka will be competitive against all sides. Butwhen form and confidence slides, or injuries intervene, there are problems.The absence of Murali has a particularly disastrous effect. The off-spinner’s importance to the side cannot easily be overstated. Despite claimsthat Sri Lanka are not overly reliant on him, the fact is that his uniquebrand of bowling has played a major hand in the vast majority of Sri Lanka’striumphs. Sri Lanka have won only a solitary Test without him since hisdebut 1992 and that was against lowly Bangladesh. His contribution in theone-day game is no less significant. During Jayasuriya’s reign in charge SriLanka have won 65% of the ODIs they have played with him in the side.Without him Jayasuriya’s win ratio slips to a lowly 22%.A groin injury knocked the side off course in South Africa two years ago.The same injury allowed England to win a controversial home series in 2001.A dislocated shoulder paved the way for Pakistan’s victory in last year’sSharjah final and let England off the hook at Lord’s shortly afterwards.Without Murali, Sri Lanka are average.
His value to the side is not measured in wickets alone. His persona provides inspiration. Whether gesticulating wildly in the covers,screaming encouragement from the boundary or tossing the ball between hisfingers as he prances in to bowl, he injects the side with positive energyand confidence.Thus, the news that his recover is on course should already be lifting theflagging spirits of his team-mates. He will sit out the Australia A match atAdelaide but, despite bowling only three gentle overs in a fundraising gameso far on the tour, will most probably play in Sri Lanka’s crucial game at theSCG on January 9. He may be rusty but it is a gamble worth taking.It will not be easy though. Once again, his resilience will be tested to thefull by Australian scrutiny of his bowling action. Indeed, the legality ofMurali’s action, an unusual mix of wrist rotation and locked elbow, hasconsumed the minds of Australian fans, umpires and journalists on both hisprevious tours down under in 1995-96 and 1998-99 when he was no-balledby local umpires. Although cleared to the satisfaction of the InternationalCricket Council (ICC) after high-tech scientific analysis, Sri Lankans fearfurther chucking controversies.Already the tabloids have seized upon comments made by former umpire RossEmerson, who called Murali in 1998-99, to re-ignite the debate. With DarrylHair, who called him in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG in 1995, due toofficiate in Sri Lanka’s second game at the SCG on January 13 there isclearly potential for trouble. But Murali claims to be unconcerned, lookingforward to the challenge of playing in Australia: “They can’t question meanymore, in my mind, because it’s gone. It’s all past. I never thought aboutnot coming to Australia. I always wanted to play here.”Sri Lanka’s New Year has already started well with a victory against astrong Australia A side at the MCG. The fielding has improved and theconfidence of the fast bowlers is growing steadily. With Murali returningSri Lankans can now look forward with real hope for the second part of theVB Series.
An unbroken stand of 251 in 49 overs between skipper Adam Gilchrist and Damien Martyn carried Australia to 405-5 declared against a toiling Essex attack.Gilchrist was the dominant partner after arriving at the crease with the tourists in a spot of bother at 154-5. Gilchrist is recognised as one of the game’s hardest hitters and further enhanced that reputation with a series of savage pulls and drives, treating both spin and pace alike.His reward was 21 fours and three sixes as he reached 150, having faced only 149 deliveries. Martyn was content to play the supporting role yet never looked in the slightest trouble as he hit 16 fours and a six in an unbeaten 114 spanning 182 deliveries.In contrast to Gilchrist’s powerful play, Martyn excelled in caressing the ball through the gaps as the Australians scored at about five an over to complete a superb recovery after an inauspicious start.Essex had enjoyed a successful opening hour when they claimed three wickets in the first 14 overs. Mark Ilott, the county’s left-arm seamer, struck twice with the total on 36.He had Michael Slater caught down the legside by James Foster and then the wicket-keeper took another straightforward catch two deliveries later as Justin Langer pushed forward at a wide delivery outside his off stump.Foster’s safe hands also accounted for Matthew Hayden, this time to give 19-year-old paceman Justin Bishop the first of his two successes. Bishop followed up when he had Mark Waugh caught at cover by Graham Napier for 25.Ricky Ponting, whose 63 arrived from as many deliveries, was the only batsman to show any real authority before lunch but he departed soon afterwards when he tried to cut a ball from off spinner Peter Such and was bowled.Left with nine overs before the close, Essex lost Paul Grayson without scoring but Nasser Hussain, opening the innings, survived a pace onslaught and got off the mark with a pull for six from Jason Gillespie as the home side closed on 16-1.
Newcastle United travel away to face Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League today as they look to bounce back from successive defeats.
The Magpies lost to Chelsea and Everton, both by a 1-0 scoreline, prior to the international break and now have the opportunity to get back to winning ways in the top-flight.
Eddie Howe may look to change up his team in order to avoid a third defeat in a row and one change he will be able to make is the return of Jonjo Shelvey, with the midfielder back in training after dealing with an illness.
Ahead of the match, the head coach spoke about his options in the middle of the park, saying: “Midfield has been a key area for us. We’ve had a really good mixture of technical & physical quality. If we decide to play with three, I need to pick which three & it’s a difficult choice but nice one to have.”
Unleash him
Howe must now unleash Shelvey in midfield against Tottenham as he is a crucial player for the Toon and will be key to their chances of picking up all three points.
The ex-Liverpool man was absent against Chelsea and Everton as both games ended in defeat for the Magpies. They missed his guile in the number eight role, with the club’s form before those losses highlighting his influence.
Prior to those games, he was one of only two outfield players – along with Fabian Schar – to play every single minute of the exceptional nine-game unbeaten run in the Premier League.
The £70k-per-week gem averaged an impressive SofaScore rating of 7.01 across those nine matches. This shows that he was consistently delivering quality performances to help the team on the pitch, as he played a key role in the unbeaten stretch.
Issac Hayden dubbed him a “Rolls Royce” of a player last month and Matt Ritchie once claimed that he “could play for Barcelona”, which illustrates how highly he is rated by his peers.
His displays on the pitch have been deserving of praise as he has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.91 in the top-flight this term – a score only Allan Saint-Maximin can better out of the players who have been at the club since the summer.
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His passing will be important to Howe’s side against Tottenham if Antonio Conte’s side look to dominate the match as he has the ability to hit long balls on the counter-attack.
He has completed 61% of his long passing this term, making 4.9 per game, and can use his quality on the ball to set the likes of Ryan Fraser and Saint-Maximin away in space if Spurs press up high and leave space in behind. This is why Howe must unleash him from the start today.
AND in other news, Howe must finally unleash “breathtaking” £93k-p/w Newcastle gem, he’s what they need…
Nottinghamshire will announce to members at the AGM on Monday that they have made a profit for the seventh successive year. The club made a pre-tax profit of £137,831 and are also on course to complete the £8.2 million Bridgford Road Stand and other improvements on budget in late April.Despite the results, finance chairman Richard Tennant still sounded a cautious note. “We cannot afford to stand still in what is a very dynamic competitive environment,” he said. “Since last year’s AGM, not only have Cardiff completed their re-development but the Rose Bowl, The Oval, Headingley and Old Trafford have all announced their own very ambitious plans.”We are fortunate to have a staging agreement with the ECB which guarantees international cricket at Trent Bridge until the end of the 2011 season,” he added. “But 2012 will be on us before we know it and we must ensure that our business is in the best possible financial shape as we are forced to bid with other venues for major matches – without any staging agreement certainty.”Barry Pailing, the club chairman, will announce at the meeting at that he will not be continuing in his role after four years, but he will remain on the general committee for a further year.
Adam Crosthwaite and the Victoria tail held on for a nail-biting draw after the Bushrangers’ knack for reining in big targets deserted them at Melbourne. Ben Edmondson led Western Australia’s charge for victory with three wickets but he could not break the final partnership in the last over.The Bushrangers hit big trouble early in their chase of 346, falling to 4 for 41 and steadily sinking further as the afternoon progressed. After their disappointing start, they abandoned all thoughts of a win and Crosthwaite looked set to salvage a draw with his three-hour 31.He was trapped lbw in the second-last over, leaving Peter Siddle and Darren Pattinson eight balls to survive. Siddle, in his Pura Cup debut, managed comfortably and finished his crucial 76-minute innings on 7.Edmondson’s 3 for 50 included the important victims David Hussey and Michael Klinger but he was wayward in the final over as the home side crawled to 9 for 182. The Warriors set Victoria the challenging target from 85 overs after declaring at 7 for 271.Western Australia and Victoria both retain a hope of playing Tasmania in the Pura Cup final, provided the Tigers do not lose to New South Wales next week. The Bushrangers face Queensland while the Warriors will fancy their chances against South Australia.
Netherlands have named a 14-man squad to represent them against Kenya in the Intercontinental Cup at the end of March.It had been hoped that the two countries would be able to play an ODI before the main match, but it now seems that this will depend on Kenya’s commitments in Bangladesh, and an official in Cricket Kenya said the game was unlikely to go ahead at the moment.Netherlands squad Luuk van Troost (capt), Daan van Bunge, Ryan ten Doeschete, Victor Grandia, Tom de Grooth, Muhammad Kashif, Alexei Kervezee, Tim de Leede, Darron Reekers, Edgar Schiferli, Pieter Seelaar, Jeroen Smits, Billy Stelling, Bas Zuiderant,