All posts by csb10.top

Boeta Dippenaar will lead South Africa A on their tour of India beginning on September 13. Ashwell Prince and Hashim Amla, the other candidates, have indicated that they preferred to concentrate on their batting without the responsibility of captaincy.Lions offspinner Werner Coetsee, Cobras allrounder Rory Kleinveldt and Dolphins left-arm seamer Yusuf Abdullah were the new faces that have been picked for the tour.South Africa A are scheduled to play two four-day games and three limited-over games against India A. However, changes will be made to the squad after the four-day games because some of the players would be needed for the Test tour in Pakistan.South Africa A: Morne van Wyk, Alviro Petersen, Robin Peterson, Boeta Dippenaar (capt), Hashim Amla, Justin Ontong, Ashwell Prince, Werner Coetsee, Dale Steyn, Thami Tsolekile, Friedel de Wet, Yusuf Abdullah, Rory Kleinveldt, Charl Langeveldt.

Rahul Dravid has been sidelined for two to three weeks following a hair-line fracture to his right middle finger, an injury that forced him to retire on the morning of the final day in Adelaide. Dravid was struck on the glove by a Brett Lee bouncer and walked off after showing signs of discomfort.Dravid hasn’t been included in India’s one-day squad for the CB series and is expected to be fit for the home series against South Africa, starting in March. Dravid couldn’t grip his bat too well after the injury and, after receiving regular treatment from physio John Gloster, decided to leave the field in what will probably be his last appearance in Australia.He was taken for an X-ray soon after and spent the day using ice-cubes to heal the finger. A final report is awaited but he is unlikely to be ready for action before at least another couple of weeks.

At the end of day two, Sourav Ganguly had said that South Africa’s collapse in the first innings, during which they lost nine wickets for 113 runs, boosted India’s confidence in the second. Perhaps he knew the bowlers had got the measure of the Green Park pitch, something Mahendra Singh Dhoni, captaining in his first Test, reiterated today after the dramatic win.”In the second innings, everybody knew what lengths to bowl, and from what spots they would get variable bounce,” Dhoni said, “The fast bowlers especially deserve a lot of credit in the second innings.”A major change from the first innings was that India opened with Harbhajan Singh and Ishant Sharma, neither of whom gave anything away. They made sure there were no free runs on offer to let off the pressure that a 60-run deficit would have put on the South Africans. India applied what Dhoni termed as ‘mindgames’ with that lead in their bags, and delayed its erasing as much as possible, knowing the wickets would just be a matter of time if they could push South Africa into a shell. The approach was rewarded fully, as South Africa had lost four of their best batsmen by the time they were only 12 ahead. “Although this was the third day of the match, this was not a third-day pitch,” Dhoni said. “The way Harbhajan and Viru [Virender Sehwag] bowled, we knew it was going to be just a matter of time. There were no easy singles on offer, so we put a lot of pressure on them. We made sure they didn’t take a single and go off strike.”This is where the efforts of Ganguly and VVS Laxman provide a stark contrast to the South African batsmen, and also proved crucial in the final equation, as they controlled the innings, consciously looking to score more often than they usually would. “To play positively on this wicket is very important,” Dhoni said. “You can get out irrespective of whether you are playing your shots or not, the way it happened to Rahul Dravid. So you have to keep scoring on such tracks. It was very crucial the way Sourav batted on this track, and the 60-odd lead was very crucial, because it changes the whole mindset of the team that is batting next.”Almost all the bowling changes he made seemed to work. In the first innings, Piyush Chawla got wickets in his first over on two occasions. In the second, Sehwag got a wicket with his first ball and Ishant got two in the first over of his second spell. But Dhoni said it was easier to captain on this pitch, especially with the way the bowlers bowled.”Viru is much more than a part-timer on this kind of wicket. He continuously kept bowling the right areas, in the rough. It was a deliberate move, and we knew that with him and Yuvraj in the team we would not need an extra spinner.”He had a pretty difficult job of replacing Anil Kumble as captain, and also playing without Sachin Tendulkar and Kumble for the first time since the latter’s debut. “It’s pretty hard to replace a man like Kumble, and especially on such a wicket,” he said. “Had he been playing, I don’t think this would have lasted three days.”Well we did well, but it doesn’t mean we are better off without Sachin or Anil. Who is there to replace Sachin? Who is there to replace Kumble? It is better to have them in the side than not, but the credit goes to the boys who stood up in their absence.”It was also an extremely difficult match for Dhoni the keeper, and to his credit he did himself no shame during the last three days. “The wicket was turning square, and most of our spinners were bowling in the rough,” he said. “So you find yourself keeping to some balls that would spin and some that wouldn’t. I was quite happy with the way I kept, because some balls were kicking and some were keeping really low. The way our fast bowlers were bowling, it could hurt your fingers pretty badly. It was good fun though.”This series was part two of a potential rivalry that India had started in South Africa last year. India needed a tailor-made track to come back on level terms on a series that they were expected to win easily. Dhoni, though, agreed with the South African coach Mickey Arthur that there was nothing wrong in playing to your strengths. “If we go to Australia, we get bouncy tracks; when we go to England, we get swinging tracks. When you come to India, you expect turning and bouncing tracks, and that’s what this one was. It’s better to stick to the specialties of certain places.”India fighting South Africa on a greentop at Kingsmead should make for an equally gripping a battle, if India can fight as hard as South Africa did at Green Park.

Bangladesh looked like continuing their discouraging streak of failures since their inception into Test cricket in the second Test against Pakistan at the MA Aziz Stadium in Chittagong. The hosts found themselves blown away for 148 just before the tea break and, by stumps, Pakistan had steadily advanced to 99 for just the loss opener Shadab Kabir.Off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq, who bowled little and unsuccessfully in the first Test at Dhaka, was the chief architect of the Bangladeshi collapse, luring five Bangladeshi batsmen to their doom and conceding only 35 runs in the process. At the other end, continuing his strategy of torment against Bangladesh, was Danish Kaneria, who claimed 4-62.Bangladesh were most comfortable in the day only between Khaled Masud winning the toss and the openers taking strike against Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar. First strike on a flat, dry batting surface that promised to aid spin later in the match was an advantage that Bangladesh badly needed. It was also an advantage that was to be squandered.Javed Belim, the right-handed opener playing in place of Mohammad Ashraful, opened with an injured Al-Sahariar. The pair added 21 runs for the first wicketbefore Waqar induced a nick from Al-Sahariar and sent him back for 13, caught behind by Rashid Latif.Mehrab Hossain and Belim then proceeded to give their supporters a rare moment of cheer. Batting patiently and steadily, they saw off the opening pace salvo and then looked comfortable when spin was introduced into the attack. Just before lunch, however, Belim, then on 17, misread the bounce from a Saqlain delivery, offering a catch to silly point Shadab Kabir.One of Bangladesh’s more dependable bats disappointed on the day. Habibul Bashar’s dismissal mirrored Belim’s, with Shadab Kabir taking yet another catch at silly point off the bowling of Saqlain. Their best batsman gone for just 2, the remaining members of the batting line-up crumbled in the face of fine spin bowling from Saqlain and Kaneria.Aminul Islam and skipper Khaled Masud did offer some resistance further down the order, adding 27 runs for the seventh wicket. Aminul ground out 27 runs, while Masud top-scored in the innings with 28.Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis was in particularly attacking vein on the day, setting suffocating close-in fields to entice the batsmen into playing big shots. The plan worked brilliantly, with almost all the batsmen fell into that very trap. The home side’s innings lasted only 56.4 overs.Mohammad Sharif brought slight cheer with his early success, removing Shadab Kabir caught behind in the sixth over. Shadab appeared suspect outside the off-stump from the very start, prodding at deliveries that were meant to be left alone. His mode of dismissal, thus, came as little surprise.That was to be Bangladesh’s last success of the day. Younis Khan and Taufeeq Umar consolidated their side’s position to run up 99 runs by the close of the play. Both were unbeaten on 47, taking eight boundaries each off a Bangladeshi attack that appeared unlikely to set things up for a series-squaring win by bowling Pakistan out twice.

Close South Africa 412 for 2 (Smith 214*, Dippenaar 11*) lead England 173 by 239 runsScorecard BulletinGary Kirsten
On Graeme Smith:People need to take a look at this guy. He’s doing something special. I was around at Western Province with Graeme when he started his career and we all knew he was destined for greatness. He has put himself in the fire and has responded unbelievably well. There’s no doubt he can go the distance and really make a difference.

When he bats, Graeme is a lot like Jacques Kallis. They both have that hunger so that once they get their eye in they really cash in. That’s the mind-set that Smith brings to the game – he gets in the zone and he just wants to bat and bat and bat.On the wicket: To be fair to them (England) we have had the best of the wicket. The pitch settled down. There was some moisture early on, when they batted. But now there are some signs of uneven bounceGraeme Smith
On the Anderson incident: “I can’t remember what was said but it was a bit heated at the time. I didn’t think it was right what Anderson did. He said he was throwing at the stumps. But at the time I didn’t think he was near and I had a few words. A few of the England lads got on my back. It was heat-of-the-moment stuff.I was protecting Gary. I think it was wrong and I stuck up for him. I think each time something is said you really want to dig in and make him pay. At times it can work as an advantage to a batter. It made me more hungry. And I’m not finished yet.”Duncan Fletcher
On struggling in the field: “The players aren’t very happy after struggling over two days of cricket. But it’s our job to make sure they’re focused on playing some good cricket over the next three days. It’s been tough for everyone out there. Some of the bowlers are inexperienced, and the batsmen too.”On tackling Smith: We’ve been talking about where we want to bowl at Graeme Smith from before the first day of the first Test. But I thought we bowled better from about halfway through the second session today. But there are some youngsters who don’t really appreciate bowling six balls in a row in the same area on a pitch like this. They have been brought up on wickets where they just bowl and something will happen to the ball. We’ve got to make sure that their mindset changes.”

Lance Klusener’s hopes of being recalled to the South African side were dashed when he was not included in the squad for the first Test against West Indies at Johannesburg, which starts on Friday (Dec 12). There was also no room for Paul Adams and Boeta Dippenaar, both of whom played in the second Test against Pakistan in October.Omar Henry, the convener of selectors, explained that Adams had recovered from injury but it was not felt that the conditions at the Wanderers would suit him. He added that Dippenaar had “shown fantastic form in both international and domestic limited-overs cricket, but his form at Test level has been patchy. Having said that, Boeta is certainly not by any means completely out of our plans for the future.”Gary Kirsten, whose wife is expecting the couple’s first baby any day, will make a decision on Monday about his availability. Should he withdraw, Martin van Jaarsveld will play in his place.As for Klusener, he didn’t even come close according to insiders, despite turning in some good performances for KwaZulu-Natal this season. The general feeling was that he had not done enough to warrant his inclusion.Henry also said that Mfuneko Ngam would join the squad for the three days leading up to the Test before returning home at the start of the match. “Mfuneko has shown signs of returning to his best form this season,” Henry explained. “The selectors feel that he would benefit from being involved with the squad.”The one surprise was the inclusion of Garnett Kruger, a 26-year-old right-arm fast bowler from Gauteng, although his good performances for South Africa A helped his cause. “Garnett will benefit from being involved in the national team set-up,” said Henry. “We are continuing to broaden our search for quality fast bowlers, and we are giving ourselves every chance of finding the right mix.”South African squad: Graeme Smith (capt), Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Neil McKenzie, Gary Kirsten, Jacques Rudolph, Martin van Jaarsveld, Mark Boucher (wk), Shaun Pollock, Andrew Hall, Robin Peterson, Garnett Kruger, Makhaya Ntini, André Nel.

Sri Lanka’s coach, John Dyson, had his chin up as he spoke about the team’s performance in the first one-dayer. But he felt that the dismissals of Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana were a bad setback. “I thought we did a terrific job to restrict them to 262 after their start on what was a good wicket,” Dyson said. “It was a great tragedy though to lose both Sanath and Romesh like we did at the start. They’re the kind of players you want to hang around for a few overs. We’re not too disappointed, though. Mahela and Kumar batted well and so did Dilshan. It’s just a shame that the lower order couldn’t stay with him any longer.””We came back well after the initial assault and 250-odd on this track was very gettable,” Marvan Atapattu said, sharing Dyson’s views about the loss of the openers. “We had a shocking start though and never recovered from that loss. It was a tragedy because we know the firepower that they have. Australia played really well and are a very good side. They did very little wrong and bowled extremely well. We will have to consider our line-up for the next game and make sure we minimise our mistakes.”

The ease with which an in-form Australia swept aside a healthy New Zealand to set up a mouthwatering semi-final against England strike terror into Michael Vaughan and his side ahead of Tuesday’s semi-final at Edgbaston. But Australia – who, let’s face it, seem to be in fighting form – must slip up eventually, and in a one-off match, anything could happen.And why should it not be England who halt the Aussie juggernaut at Edgbaston on Tuesday? After all, they will enjoy home advantage, and if Vaughan were to win the toss (a crucial factor in late September) and choose to field, he would greatly increase England’s chances of winning.On the back of a successful Test year, England’s one-day team are coming into their own – they routed India in the NatWest Challenge in early September, and brushed aside their opposition in the pool stages of the Champions Trophy – and they may have timed their peak to perfection. But to end their miserable record of 14 consecutive losses against a buoyant Australia, a run which started way back in January 1999, Vaughan must look to his allrounders Andrew Flintoff and Paul Collingwood, in particular, to continue to produce the goods.Collingwood has been enjoying a good Champions Trophy with the bat. He struck an unbeaten 80 against Zimbabwe, and 39 in England’s washed-out game against Sri Lanka, following up his 79 against India in the NatWest Challenge.In Flintoff, England have a genuine matchwinner, as so brutally demonstrated against Sri Lanka, where he thumped a punishing century to turn the game. Flintoff is in form and confident, and Adam Gilchrist admitted that the Australians would look to attack him. He said: “You’ve got to focus on Flintoff but we have to get to him first.”We also don’t know that much about Vikram Solanki or Andrew Strauss, so we have to get down to Flintoff and once he comes in obviously try and do something to knock him over,” he added. “He’s just got so much momentum at the moment it’s going to be a real challenge.”

But England, who will probably be unchanged from the team which beat Sri Lanka, are reliant on two or three batsmen. Vaughan himself is having a shocking run of form, with the exception of a sparkling 74 against India in the NatWest Challenge. But a true captain’s innings in a crucial clash is well overdue. Strauss, who has 508 one-day runs at an average of just over 39, with one hundred and three fifties, is also due a score as he has failed to deliver a significant performance in this competition.Darren Gough embodied the current positive spirit coursing through the England side, and he was typically upbeat about their chances, saying: “We’re all looking forward to it. We’re not worried about it but we’re excited about it.”Gough did, however, concede that Australia were the favourites. “They’re the best side,” he said. “Everybody wants to play against them, and everybody wants to beat them and we’ll be trying.”But the sheer depth of quality in the Australian side means that the slightest slip-up will invite disaster. Andrew Symonds can match Flintoff blow for blow in the power-hitting stakes, while Michael Kasprowicz is in the form of his life, and like Andy Bichel in last year’s World Cup, he adds some blue-collar gravitas to a star-studded line-up.And in the middle of the pack, the little-and-large pairing of Darren Lehmann and Michael Clarke have yet to take centre stage in this tournament. Australia have been so dominant in their opening-round matches, against USA and New Zealand, that neither man, nor the budding allrounder Shane Watson, has been called upon to bat. England will recall with trepidation their experience last year, when Australia eased to a two-wicket victory after all had seemed lost. Theirs is a side that never knows when it is beatenAustralia’s allround game is exceptional, and their ground fielding is as well drilled as a Russian oilfield. But could tomorrow be the day when England’s numbers finally come up against Australia? Maybe, just maybe.England (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick, 2 Vikram Solanki, 3 Michael Vaughan (capt), 4 Andrew Strauss, 5 Andrew Flintoff, 6 Paul Collingwood, 7 Geraint Jones (wk), 8 Ashley Giles, 9 Alex Wharf, 10 Darren Gough, 11 Stephen Harmison.Australia (probable) 1 Adam Gilchrist (wk), 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Damien Martyn, 5 Andrew Symonds, 6 Darren Lehmann, 7 Michael Clarke, 8 Michael Kasprowicz, 9 Shane Watson, 10 Jason Gillespie, 11 Glenn McGrath.

Alok Kapali is back in favour with the Bangladesh selectors, after being named in a 14-man squad to face New Zealand in the first Test at Dhaka, beginning on Tuesday.Kapali, one of the more gifted players in the Bangladesh set-up, was dropped ahead of the Champions Trophy, although he was later reinstated following the finger injury to the captain, Habibul Bashar.Bashar, who underwent surgery to correct the problem, is back to lead the side, although he will undergo a late fitness test on Monday, to determine whether he is fit enough to play.The opening batsman, Hannan Sarkar, is also back in the squad, alongside the medium pacer, Alamgir Kabir. The former Under-19 captain, Nafis Iqbal, is another notable inclusion and could yet make his Test debut.Bangladesh Habibul Bashar (capt), Rajin Saleh, Khaled Mashud (wk), Javed Omar, Mohammad Ashraful, Manjurul Islam Rana, Tapash Baisya, Mushfiqur Rahman, Mohammad Rafique, Tareq Aziz, Nafis Iqbal, Hannan Sarkar, Alok Kapali, Alamgir Kabir.

Scorecard

Saqib Ali, the United Arab Emirates captain, rattled up 195 to boost his team’s second-innings total to 306, but a target of 61 proved all too easy for Ireland on day four of their ICC Intercontinental Cup clash in Abu Dhabi.Ireland duly knocked off the required runs with nine wickets in hand to gain 20 points from this game, which put them at second place in the tournament’s points table.Saqib, resuming the final morning on 98, brought up his fourth first-class hundred without fuss. Along with Zahid Shah, batting at No. 9, he continued to delay the inevitable. The two added a further 100 to UAE’s overnight score of 186 for 7 before Greg Thompson, the legspinner, ended Zahid’s 166-ball vigil. Zahid’s 28 included four fours and a six, and he put on 159 runs for the eighth wicket with his captain.Saqib, meanwhile, stood head and shoulders above his team-mates. He scored nearly 64% of UAE’s total, moving past his previous first-class best of 142, but was cut agonisingly short of a maiden double-hundred. He fell to allrounder Alex Cusack, who took his fifth wicket of the match. Saqib’s 195, compiled off 358 deliveries and with 24 fours and four sixes, won him the Man-of-the-Match award.UAE batted out 62.2 overs on the fourth day, but Ireland’s first-innings lead of 246 meant they needed only 61 to complete the win. William Porterfield made an unbeaten 40 as the defending champions sealed victory in 14.2 overs for the loss of one wicket.Ireland now have 49 points and remain 17 behind Kenya, with one game in hand. Ireland’s next match is not until July 9, against Netherlands at a to-be-announced venue. UAE’s disappointing campaign will end with a match against Netherlands in Sharjah starting April 3.