Melissa Bulow has made it to Australia’s AIS-Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars squad for the 2012-13 contract period, following her fine Twenty20 season with the Queensland Fire

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Apr-2012Melissa Bulow has made it to Australia’s AIS-Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars squad for the 2012-13 contract period, following her fine domestic Twenty20 season with the Queensland Fire. Bulow, a batsman, is one of 18 players in the squad, which was selected by the women’s national selection panel [WNSP] on Tuesday. Shelley Nitschke, who retired from international cricket last July, and Annie-Rose Maloney, are the players to miss out from the previous squad.

The Southern Stars squad

Alex Blackwell, Melissa Bulow, Jess Cameron, Sarah Coyte, Lauren Ebsary, Sarah Elliott, Jodie Fields, Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy, Julie Hunter, Jessica Jonassen, Meg Lanning, Sharon Millanta, Erin Osborne, Ellyse Perry, Leah Poulton, Clea Smith, Lisa Sthalekar
In: Melissa Bulow
Out: Shelley Nitschke, Annie-Rose Maloney

The Southern Stars are supported by Australian Government, through the Australian Sports Commission Women in Sport Media Grant, which aims to extend the reach of women’s sport in the Australian media.”The forthcoming season includes two ICC ranking events – the ICC World Twenty20 to be held in Sri Lanka in September 2012 and the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup to be held in India in March 2013. It is pleasing to see minimal change in the squad, reflecting the good performances of the team over the past 12 months,” WNSP head, Julie Savage, said. “[The omitted] Annie-Rose Maloney had experienced a disappointing domestic season with the ball.”Melissa Bulow has been added to the squad following an outstanding Women’s Twenty20 season for the Queensland Fire, in which she was the leading run-scorer, scoring 505 runs at an average of 50.5 and a strike-rate of 119.39.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the IPL match between Rajasthan Royals and Pune Warriors in Jaipur

The Preview by Siddarth Ravindran12-May-2012

Match facts

Sunday, May 13, 2012
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Dravid have opened the innings in all 13 of Rajasthan Royals’ matches this season. No other pair has opened in more than seven games•AFP

Big Picture

The defeat to Chennai Super Kings on Thursday has left Rajasthan Royals almost certainly needing to win all three of their remaining matches to make the playoffs. They are buoyed by the fact that of their remaining games, two of them are against Pune Warriors and Deccan Chargers, teams who are already down and out.At the top of the order, Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Dravid have proved the most productive opening partnership of the tournament, and Brad Hodge lurks as an accomplished finisher in the middle order. But the two players Rajasthan need on top of their game will be Shane Watson and Shaun Tait. Watson showed how dangerous he can be in the match against Pune Warriors; on a slow track on which pretty much everyone else struggled, he slugged boundaries at will. Tait brings the cutting edge to an attack that had previously relied of medium-pacers specialising in taking pace off the ball.There’s plenty of confusion in the opposition camp. Warriors have had a disastrous campaign and have lost seven matches in a row, but a controversy over their captain Sourav Ganguly has kept them in the headlines. There were conflicting reports on whether he would play the remaining matches this season, and he sat out of the defeat to Royal Challengers Bangalore on Friday, though he insisted he would be back for Sunday’s encounter. Will he, or will Steven Smith continue to lead the side?

Form guide

(most recent first, completed games)
Rajasthan Royals: LWWLL
Pune Warriors: LLLLL

Players to watch

Michael Clarke was Warriors’ most high-profile signing this season, but the Australia captain hasn’t managed to translate his international form to the Twenty20 of the IPL. After five innings, he has only collected 85 runs at a pedestrian strike-rate of 111.84. Is that enough to justify a place in the starting XI for an overseas specialist batsman?Shaun Tait was outstanding when the two teams met earlier in the week, crushing Warriors with a spell of 3 for 13. He was solid in the first three overs of his next game as well, against Super Kings, but when given the penultimate over, the old worries over Tait resurfaced as he overstepped once and followed it up with five wides down the leg side to concede 12 runs off one delivery. Will Tait get his line and length right on Sunday?

Stats and trivia

• On Sunday, Siddharth Trivedi will become the most capped player for Royals. He is currently level with Shane Warne on 56 matches.
• Robin Uthappa is the only player to have been part of all 28 matches that Warriors have played. Rahul Sharma (24) and Jesse Ryder (22) are next on the list.

Quotes

“It was a bad loss against Chennai but we can still make it to playoffs if we win the three remaining matches.”

Wayne Madsen’s first century of the season and fifties from Wes Durston and Dan Redfern put Derbyshire in a strong position against Gloucestershire

02-May-2012
ScorecardDerbyshire captain, Wayne Madsen, scored his first century for nearly a year to put his team in a strong position against Gloucestershire. Madsen celebrated his 10th hundred for the county and, with Wes Durston and Dan Redfern also contributing half-centuries, the home side reached 362 for 9 at the end of the first day.Gloucestershire paid the price for dropped catches and poor bowling after their captain, Alex Gidman, was ruled out before the start of play with a back problem. Madsen was badly missed on 28 while Durston was given a life on 9, and those lapses allowed Derbyshire to recover from the loss of both openers with only 38 on the board.Paul Borrington went without scoring when he pushed at Will Gidman and was caught at first slip and after Martin Guptill had moved confidently to 30 he was caught behind off a bottom edge pulling at James Fuller.At that stage, Madsen’s decision to bat first after days of heavy rain in the Derby area looked questionable, but Gloucestershire’s failure to bowl a consistent line allowed him and Durston to rebuild the innings. Durston made the most of his reprieve by taking the attack to the seamers on a greenish pitch where the odd delivery lifted sharply at one end.When Madsen was put down at point shortly after lunch, it was the start of a dreadful session for the visitors, who conceded 165 runs in 33 overs. Durston scored 68 in a century stand with Madsen until he drove Ed Young’s left-arm spin to mid-on, but there was no respite for the bowlers as Redfern raced to 50 off only 58 balls.He shared a stand of 115 in 21 overs with Madsen but fell on the stroke of tea for 55 when he drove a full toss from Kane Williamson to cover.Madsen, who had scored only 64 in his previous five innings this season, faced 20 balls on 99 before a quickly taken single brought up his 11th first-class century. He went in the next over when he inside-edged a drive on to his leg stump, and although Derbyshire lost another four wickets before the close, it had still been the home side’s day.

Hundreds from Dean Elgar and Faf du Plessis led South Africa A to a commanding position against Sri Lanka A in the first unofficial Test in Durban

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jul-2012

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Hundreds from Dean Elgar and Faf du Plessis led South Africa A to a commanding position against Sri Lanka A in the first unofficial Test in Durban. Having resumed on 141 for 2, South Africa A asserted their authority through a 292-run stand for the third wicket. Despite losing wickets at the end of the day, they were on course to bat only once.Elgar, who has played sparsely since making his comeback from a knee injury, was on 78 overnight and added 93 runs to his total. He spent six hours and 52 minutes at the crease and struck 19 fours in his innings. Du Plessis, who is captaining the side, scored at a slightly faster rate and his 144 came off 225 balls. The pair put on a chanceless stand, characterised by patience as Sri Lanka’s bowlers showed discipline, although they lacked incisiveness.Sri Lanka A finally made a breakthrough when du Plessis was caught at first slip, 15 overs after the second new ball was taken. Two balls later, Elgar was dismissed in similar fashion, giving Kaushal Silva a catch off a thin outside edge.South Africa A lost their third wicket in four overs when Thami Tsolekile was trapped lbw by Kosala Kulasekara. Tsolekile has been widely tipped as the replacement to Mark Boucher and he had taken four catches in Sri Lanka’s A’s innings to boost his chances. He managed only four with the bat, though.Farhaan Berhardien, who had an unsuccessful tour of Zimbabwe with the Twenty20 side, rebuilt with Ryan McLaren. Their partnership was worth 58 when McLaren offered a catch to short leg to end the day. Sri Lanka’s bowlers have already been in the field for nearly 122 overs and still have two allrounders in Wayne Parnell and Rory Kleinveldt to dismiss before they can bat again.

James Taylor is “relishing” the prospect of facing South Africa’s bowling attack at Headingley having been called into the squad for the second Test but is not taking his debut for granted

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jul-2012James Taylor is “relishing” the prospect of facing South Africa’s bowling attack at Headingley having been called into the squad for the second Test but is not taking his debut for granted.Unless England change the balance of their side and play five bowlers, which is unlikely, Taylor will earn his first cap at No. 6 after Ravi Bopara became unavailable due to personal reasons shortly before the squad was named on Sunday morning.Taylor, who has been captain of England Lions over the last two years and averages 61.60 from ten first-class matches for them, has long been earmarked as a Test batsman in waiting. But he had seemingly fallen down the pecking order at the start of this season after failing to secure a place in the extended England performance squad and Jonny Bairstow was chosen to replace an injured Bopara against West Indies.However, Taylor led the Lions against the West Indians in May and scored an impressive century at Derby and this week hit his first Championship hundred for his new county, Nottinghamshire, against Sussex. It is actually Taylor’s one-day form that has been more consistent and he has made 345 runs at 69 in the CB40.”Facing South Africa’s bowling attack is always going to be a tough challenge but it’s something that I would relish because getting an England Test call has been my aim from the word go,” he said. “Test cricket is the pinnacle but there was a noticeable step up to division one of the Championship and wickets haven’t been easy to bat on this season”I’ve always backed myself to play at the highest level and even though I’m young I’ve played a lot of cricket and I’ve got a lot of runs behind me. The next goal is to get a place in the eleven and if I get that opportunity I have to take it with both hands. If I get in the team then I have to work hard to get runs and then work harder again to do that consistently.”I’ve always tried to keep my feet on the ground and strive to become a better player and that will always be my mantra.”Taylor’s move from Leicestershire to Nottinghamshire for this season was with the aim of boosting his Test ambitions after getting a brief taste of international cricket last season against Ireland. He has now jumped back ahead of Bairstow while fighting off the challenge of Eoin Morgan and Nick Compton.”I hoped that I would be next in line but I never took anything for granted although I have scored consistent runs in all forms of the game to earn this chance,” he said. “Playing at Headingley would be a very proud moment for me but nothing has happened yet, I’m just one step closer and waiting for the nod and the opportunity to help England to get back into the series.

Afghanistan captain Nawroz Mangal has termed Saturday’s one-day match against Australia a “big occasion” for the team

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Aug-2012Afghanistan captain Nawroz Mangal has termed Saturday’s one-day match against Australia a “big occasion” for the team. The match is Afghanistan’s only second against a Full Member country after becoming eligible for ODI cricket.”Definitely, it’s a big occasion for us and we want to make the best use of it,” Mangal said. “We have done well against Scotland and Ireland but given a chance against Australia is a big thing and we are excited about it.”Afghanistan have played 22 ODIs in the last three years, winning 12. But their only previous match against a Full Member side was when they played Pakistan in Sharjah in February this year. Australia, who are playing a limited-overs series against Pakistan in the UAE from August 28, agreed to play the match against Afghanistan in an effort to assist with their cricketing development.”We are thankful to Australia and to the ICC for making this possible,” Mangal said. “Australia are real champions and hopefully we can put up a good show. Definitely it’s our dream to play matches against top teams and if we get such chances regularly our players will improve.”Afghanistan have made good progress in the recent years. They played World Twenty20 in 2010 and will appear in this year’s event in Sri Lanka in September. However, the chief executive of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, Hamid Shinwari, said that the team would need continued support from the cricketing world to develop the game in the country.”The support of the ACC and the ICC is very helpful in developing the game in Afghanistan but we expect more from the world because cricket is more than a game in Afghanistan,” Shinwari said. “Cricket gives hope to millions of people in our country and we want to improve in this game.”

A little calmer when it mattered most, Australia completed a victory more testing than the scoreboard ultimately showed to defeat Pakistan in Sharjah and claim the overnight ODI series 2-1

The Report by Daniel Brettig03-Sep-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMohammad Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed added 129 at the top•Associated Press

A little calmer when it mattered most, Australia completed a victory more testing than the scoreboard ultimately showed to defeat Pakistan in Sharjah and claim the overnight ODI series 2-1. It was a result achieved as much by perspiration as inspiration, Michael Hussey and the nerveless tyro Glenn Maxwell forming the critical union to rescue their team from the uncertainty of 159 for 5 when Matthew Wade fell to Abdur Rehman.Michael Hussey could so easily have been out lbw to Saeed Ajmal before he had scored, amid a mesmerising spell in which the offspinner claimed what appeared a pivotal 3 for 11. But Misbah-ul-Haq made a pair of judgements that were to prove too timid – failing to refer the umpire Billy Bowden’s decision, and then taking Ajmal off after five overs when another wicket or two might have sealed Australia’s fate.Pakistan’s hesitation could perhaps be attributed to the weight of history, having not defeated Australia in an ODI series since 2002. There was to be little such trepidation about the way Michael Hussey and Maxwell closed in on the target, which had been reined in to manageable proportions by Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc after Pakistan’s openers made their team’s best start against Australia since 1985.Mohammad Hafeez’s stand of 129 with Nasir Jamshed should have allowed Pakistan to soar well past 250, but Australia’s bowlers stuck admirably to their task to limit the rest. It was Johnson who started the salvage operation, claiming two wickets while keeping his economy-rate down, and thus allowing Starc to strike four times to continue his decent form.As had been flagged as a possibility by the assistant coach Steve Rixon earlier in the series, Wade’s exertions during 50 overs in the field were deemed too much for him to back up immediately as an opener.His replacement at the top of the order was unexpected – David Hussey opening for the first time in his ODI career – but provided a useful left-right contrast with David Warner in a stand that showed plenty of brio if not total safety.Warner and David Hussey both smote huge sixes, causing the umpires to twice call for a replacement ball, and denting the previously tidy series figures of Hafeez. Rehman hurried a Warner pull shot and claimed his wicket to break the partnership at 44, but Michael Clarke was typically fluent and with David Hussey he kept Australia ahead of the asking-rate.However Ajmal’s introduction brought a marked change to proceedings, as he found spin despite the moist night air and yet again confused the Australians with his variations. Clarke had struck one significant blow in drawing blood from the left hand of Shahid Afridi with a fierce drive, but he advanced too early to Ajmal and was well stumped down the leg side by Kamran Akmal.Michael Hussey seemed palpably lbw, but Pakistan chose conservatively not to refer Billy Bowden’s not-out verdict. David Hussey perished in pursuit of another six, and George Bailey gloved an attempted paddle-sweep. Ajmal’s spin had turned the innings, but he was then withdrawn to allow Wade and Michael Hussey some desperately needed breathing room.They steadied things until Wade’s exit, bowled between bat and pad, whereupon Maxwell made another free-spirited contribution to a series in which his batting comfortably outshone his bowling as he ransacked Afridi for 16 runs in the 43rd over. Michael Hussey was out to a tired slog and Dan Christian did not endure, but Maxwell kept his cool and his timing to guide the weary Australians home.They had been grateful to win the toss and avoid the worst excesses of the evening moisture. Bolstered by happy memories of game one when they had topped and tailed the Pakistan innings, Pattinson and Starc took the new ball with some intent. Starc looked initially short of rhythm and comfort having shrugged off a side/chest complaint to take part, but Australia’s opening duo made Jamshed and Hafeez work hard to survive the early overs.Both batsmen top-edged attempted hook shots and were fortunate to see their respective strokes fall safely. Nonetheless, the shots signalled their ambition, even as a sluggish pitch, slow outfield and tidy Australian fielding made scoring difficult.Gradually, Hafeez and Jamshed wrested the initiative, seeing off a useful spell by Johnson and profiting more from the others. The allrounder Christian shelled a difficult return catch when Hafeez was on 26, but it was the only hint of a chance offered by the openers as they strode to Pakistan’s first century opening stand against Australia in ODIs since 1985.Jamshed’s innings was a worthy follow-up to his match-shaping innings in Abu Dhabi, while Hafeez was finally showing the Australians the worth of his batting after some years of underachievement. The six off Pattinson was a particularly compelling reminder.Australia were so desperate for a wicket that Clarke sacrificed his one referral to a speculative appeal for a leg-side catch off Jamshed. The stratagem was indirectly helpful in securing the breakthrough, distracting Jamshed enough for Johnson to have him touching a bouncer behind in the same over.Afridi was promoted in the order to make a flash-in-the-pan seven, and Hafeez’s innings was ended when Clarke struck him in front while attempting to sweep. Asad Shafiq, Misbah-ul-Haq and Azhar Ali did not go beyond their starts, keeping the target within Australia’s reach.