“I thought about this in Sydney in 2004,” said Anil Kumble with a smile, “but I think this time it will be my last match in Australia for sure.” The final Test in Adelaide offers India a chance to draw level but also promises to be the last time the five members of the golden generation will play in a Test match in Australia.Kumble has had a roller-coaster ride through his three tours here. He was rendered ineffective in 1999 before reviving his career last time around, snapping up 24 wickets in three Tests. He’s been a big threat here too and needs just two more victims to snap up 50 wickets in Australia. Among Indians, only Kapil Dev (51) has managed more.”It’s been fantastic in Australia,” said Kumble the day before the game. “It’s my third trip here and I’ve enjoyed all my visits. In terms of results, the last one was fantastic and this one as well. We’re thoroughly enjoying this tour. We came with the purpose of winning a series in Australia but haven’t achieved that. But we can hold our heads high after this – hoping we level the series. Future Indian teams will come here and look at the past. I’m really proud of what this team has done.”It was in Adelaide that Kumble saw his Test career being revived. Harbhajan Singh injured his finger and Kumble was given a chance in the second Test last time around. He endured a hammering on the opening day but came back with an iron-willed performance. “Indeed a special venue,” he said. “It all started here in 2003-04. It was important we won the Test and the last four years have been fantastic for me personally and for Indian cricket. Here we are again, with the opportunity to level the series. Having done well in the past in Adelaide, gives us the added confidence.”Was he confident that this bunch of five players – Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and himself – could be replaced? “It’s difficult to replace anybody. You can see that in the current Australian team itself. Every team will undergo a transition. The key is how you handle it. There is definitely a lot of talent in India. It’s about ensuring they get the confidence and probably 4-5 years from now, you’ll have a good set of players to ensure India goes forward.”The most heartening aspect of this tour, according to Kumble, was the manner in which the young bowlers have exceeded expectations. RP Singh has grown into the leader of the pack, Irfan Pathan has shown the desire to come back and Ishant Sharma, just 19, has got tongues wagging with his seam movement. “I remember the first press conference here and I was asked about us picking up 20 wickets. We’ve shown we can do that. Although we don’t have the senior most bowler in terms of experience [Zaheer Khan] the young fast bowlers have stepped up.”
Scheduled at a time when all other international tours have come to an end – ahead of the World Cup in the West Indies – the women’s Quadrangular tournament has India, New Zealand, Australia and England competing for what could be a psychological edge in the run-up to the women’s World Cup in 2009.Admittedly the attention of most cricket lovers is diverted towards injury exits and possible replacements in the men’s World Cup squads, but if you are craving live cricket – rather than speculative – the Quadrangular in Chennai is something to look forward to.Below is an update on what the four teams have been doing since the previous World Cup in South Africa in March-April 2005 and the players to watch out for.India Of the four sides, the hosts have played the highest number of one-day matches in the period between April 2005 and January 2007. Apart from the 2005-06 Asia Cup in Pakistan, India toured Australia, New Zealand, England and Ireland, playing only ten matches at home and 20 away, including three at neutral venues. Nine wins out of 10 at home give them an obvious edge in the Quadrangular even though one-day cricket doesn’t always favour those familiar with the conditions. India come into the tournament having comprehensively won their second successive Asia Cup in Jaipur this December. They not only went unbeaten in the tournament but won by huge margins and restricted the opposition to a total below 175 in each of their five games. Nine out of the 14 picked for the Quadrangular were part of the World Cup squad two years ago in which India finished as runner-up.Players to watch Mithali Raj: India’s captain and star batsman, Raj has played in all 30 one-dayers that India have played since the World Cup final. She’s scored a hundred and six half-centuries during this period at an average of 43.61.Anjum Chopra: The left-handed batsman has played 100 ODIs – the highest by an Indian woman. In the period between the World Cup and the Asia Cup, Chopra played 10 matches at home, the same number as the captain, but averaged a lot higher with 59 compared to Raj’s 47.75. Also a reliable fielder, her place in the side is unquestionable.Jhulan Goswami: Despite her slight frame, Goswami is the fastest bowler in women’s cricket and apart from generating movement off the pitch she worries batsmen by getting the ball to bounce that extra bit. Her best ODI figures came against England at Silchar where India won by 10 wickets after Goswami had taken 5 for 16. Since the World Cup she has taken 34 wickets at 20.64, a figure that dips to 13.13 in her nine matches at home.Nooshin Al Khadeer: An offbreak bowler, Al Khadeer is ten short of reaching 100 wickets in one-day cricket.MD Kamini Picked for five Asia Cup games at home, 16-year old Kamini has got eight wickets at 10.87 with her legspinners.
New Zealand In the given period, New Zealand have played the least number of matches with five at home and five away and none in the subcontinent. Seven out of the 14 are touring India for the first time though nine of them were part of World Cup campaign. Their four wins since then have all been at home. With so many players unfamiliar with the conditions in India and their overall lack of match practice, New Zealand are unlikely to make it to the final on March 5. However, if the current performance and morale of their male counterparts rubs off on them, some hats and predictions will have to be swallowed whole.Players to watch:To get a better picture we take into account domestic performances of the New Zealand women in the State League this season.Maria Fahey Fahey topped the State League with 380 runs from 10 games for Canterbury at 42.22. Incidentally, Fahey began her ODI career in India where she scored three centuries in four games in December 2003.Rebecca Rolls: Rolls, a wicketkeeper, has played 98 matches and is 17 runs short of the 2000-run mark in ODIs. She is certain to reach the landmark during the Quadrangular – going by her 372 runs at 46.50 for Auckland this season – and will become the fourth New Zealand woman and 12th overall.
Australia Though Australia have only played two more matches than New Zealand and, like their neighbours, have seven players yet to play in India, the course that the two teams have taken since the World Cup is different. Australia have an impressive win-loss ratio of 12:2. The seven members of the squad who have toured India before were part of the victorious World Cup 2005 squad.Players to watch: Karen Rolton: Australia have won all seven matches in which she has led between 2001 and 2007. In February 2006 she replaced Belinda Clark as captain and took Australia to a 3-0 home series win against India. With her left-arm medium-pace bowling she has taken 85 wickets and is currently tied with Jhulan Goswami as the fifth highest wicket-taker. Rolton’s batting average of 56.66 for 11 matches since the World Cup is at par with her overall average and her second-highest score of 151 was also made during this period against Ireland at Dublin.Lisa Sthalekar: Australia’s Women’s Cricketer of the Year, Sthalekar was born in India in 1979 but emigrated to Australia in 1983. She was appointed vice-captain to Rolton in 2006 and the selectors should have no hesitation in handing over the reins to Sthalekar when the time comes. Appearing in all 14 matches that Australia have played since the World Cup, Sthalekar has scored a hundred and three half-centuries at 43.72 and taken 12 wickets with her part-time offspin.Leah Poulton: Leah Poulton, 22, has played only five one-day games – all in Australia – but with a domestic season average of 32.5 in 10 innings was impressive enough to win her a place in the Australian side. Though she began her one-day career with a duck, Poulton made sure the selectors did not regret picking her by scoring a hundred in her third match and helped Australia clinch the Rose Bowl series against New Zealand with two games to spare.
England: England are the only team in the Quadrangular to have toured India after the World Cup though they lost the series 4-1. And when India visited England in 2006, the scoreline was similar though 4-0 in England’s favour. In the 17 matches that they have played in the given period they have won nine and lost seven.Charlotte Edwards She had the highest aggregate in the World Cup with 280 runs at 46.66 and carried on her form in India where she scored two half-centuries in five matches. But between that she has a string of low scores and no centuries in 17 matches. Appointed captain just ahead of the tour to India, Edwards has led the side to seven wins from 12 matches.Claire Taylor: A poor performance in India – her highest score was 17 – does not reflect Taylor’s true talent, especially since she holds the record for the highest one-day score at Lord’s (156 not out).Sarah Taylor: Seventeen-year old Taylor will play her first international match outside England in the Quadrangular tournament. Out of the five matches she’s played, she kept wicket in two and scored 101 runs at 50.50. Taylor is being groomed as the next wicketkeeper in the England side and playing alongside Jane Smit, the regular keeper, at the Quadrangular will only help her reach that position faster.
Kent have reported a loss after tax for the year ended October 31, 2005 of £309,998. This compares with a small profit of £5,548 in the previous 12 months.”This is clearly an extremely disappointing outcome for the year,” admitted Carl Openshaw the county chairman. “There were two main contributing factors to the results: a seriously adverse outcome from our caterers, whose contract with us has now been terminated, and an increased investment in cricket which did not yield the hoped for additional return in gate receipts and commercial income.”Despite the enthusiasm generated by the Ashes, finances for most county clubs remain precarious,” he warned. “Only those counties which benefit from the substantial revenue derived from staging Tests can look forward to making profits on a consistent basis, and there is increasing concern amongst non-Test match counties about the widening gap in available resources.”We are, nevertheless, determined to try to remain competitive both on and off the field and we have plans for the St Lawrence Ground which are aimed at providing a sustainable future for the club.”Kent are currently working with commercial partners and the local council on plans to redevelop the ground with a view to producing vital non-cricket revenue from conference and leisure facilities.
Matthew Hayden will play his first game for Queensland in more than a year when he returns with Michael Kasprowicz for the ING Cup match against South Australia at the Gabba on Friday. After being replaced by Michael Clarke and Brett Lee for the VB Series finals, the pair asked Cricket Australia for permission to play in the lead-up to Australia’s tour of New Zealand.Hayden was dropped as Australia’s one-day opener after managing 42 runs in four VB Series innings and vowed to return to the side with a “platter” of domestic runs if required. Graham Dixon, the Queensland Cricket chief executive, said Hayden and Kasprowicz were due to be rested under Cricket Australia’s player management plan. "Players who are involved in both forms of the game had been penciled in to have a break this week ahead of the New Zealand tour," he said. "It will be great to welcome them back."However, Hayden and Kasprowicz were expected at the Gabba on Friday as part of the 10th anniversary celebrations of the state’s first Sheffield Shield winning team in 1994-95. The Bulls have already booked their place in the ING Cup final and will play either Victoria or Tasmania on February 20.Queensland will finalise their squad after Australia’s touring party is announced on Wednesday, but expect to miss the injured trio of Andrew Symonds (Achilles tendon), Shane Watson (side strain) and Martin Love (hand). Symonds was hurt while making 91 in the first final against Pakistan, Watson left the field after bowling 3.5 overs in the second match last night and Love split the webbing between his left index finger and thumb while fielding during yesterday’s 138-run loss to Victoria.
Lee Carseldine, the Queensland allrounder, is set to make his return from injury for the Queensland Academy of Sport side to take on India at the Allan Border Field this weekend.Carseldine has missed the past two weeks with a back injury, but will play as a batsman only against the Indians, who play their final match before the first Test next week. Carseldine has had an impressive run against international touring teams, scoring a double century against New Zealand two years ago, and 92 against Bangladesh earlier this year.He will be joined in the Academy team by his Queensland team-mates, Daniel Payne, Chris Simpson, Steve Farrell, Shane Jurgensen, Scott Brant and Joe Dawes. Aaron Nye, the Wests batsman who led the second XI to victory over Western Australia last week at Albion, will captain the side. The three-day game, which starts on Saturday, will not be a first-class match. Admission is free for the game, with play starting at 10.00am. Queensland Academy of Sport XI 1 Daniel Payne, 2 Chris Simpson, 3 Lee Carseldine, 4 Aaron Nye (capt), 5 Craig Philipson, 6 Steven Farrell, 7 Chris Hartley, 8 Ryan Leloux, 9 Shane Jurgensen, 10 Scott Brant, 11 Joe Dawes, Steven Magoffin (12th man).
Part of the desperate late fight for spots in the competition final, the Pura Cup clash between Victoria and Tasmania in Melbourne might have been expected to provide plenty of fireworks. But it was a damp squib for its first few hours, only exploding into life late on the opening day as paceman David Saker laid waste to a promising Victorian start to reduce his former team to 6/257 by stumps.Back at his alma mater – and the venue that was his home for six seasons – Saker (4/53) produced a pair of outstanding spells through the two closing sessions of the day. The first served up an outside edge from the bat of the stubborn Jon Moss (1). The second then delivered three wickets in the space of 13 balls as outswingers helped shatter the stumps of Brad Hodge (85) and Andrew McDonald (0) and a leg cutter lured Cameron White (3) into edging to second slip.In total, Saker’s last 15 overs produced figures of 4/25 as a combination of swing and accuracy confounded a series of batsmen on a generally placid MCG pitch.”It’s always nice to get wickets against the old team,” said Saker.”I’ve still got a lot of good friends here. It’s still strange to me even now – it hasn’t quite kicked in that I’m not playing for Victoria any more, especially when I come to the MCG.”I still really want them to go well, but not as well as Tasmania.”Much like in the last meeting between the two teams, Victoria weathered a spirited opening from the Tasmanian bowlers before losing its way later in the day as Saker intervened.Where it suffered an ignominious collapse on that occasion, though, the side’s three most dangerous batsmen – Hodge, Ian Harvey (65*) and Matthew Elliott (64) – had built the foundations of a much more substantial total by the time this slide started.Without playing quite at their fluent best, Hodge and Elliott each presented consistent problems for the bowlers, driving and cutting loose balls with aplomb. Harvey was even more assertive, arguably assembling the best individual hand of the day as he complemented an early attack on young left arm spinner Xavier Doherty (0/39) with patient, disciplined batting upon which the Bushrangers later came to depend heavily.Elliott would have been removed with his score at 13 if Scott Kremerskothen had intercepted a viciously hit cut shot low to his left at point. Hodge would also have been a Kremerskothen victim – with his total at only 3 – if a throw from cover had connected with the stumps as an urgent single was attempted in the final over before lunch.Kremerskothen’s revenge was only extracted much later in the piece when he snared a fine catch – this time low to his right – after Elliott had rocked back and failed to completely control a cut at Damien Wright (1/44).Around an excellent 100-run stand for the fourth wicket between Hodge and Harvey, the young all-rounder was therein part of a fightback that offered yet more evidence that Tasmania remains a serious finals aspirant this season. Earlier in the summer, the Tigers might have been inclined to lose their way after dropping a catch, missing a run out, and watching immaculate line and length bowling from Wright pass with little reward.But here they maintained concentration and their line continued to be unerring for the majority of a cloudless Melbourne day.The Victorians – who were forced to leave out paceman Mathew Inness because of ongoing problems with an injured toe and who surprised by making Michael Klinger twelfth man – meanwhile enjoyed some good early moments of their own. Though their eleven is stacked with all-rounders, they’ll be hoping that their small contingent of specialist bowlers is now able to match the productivity of their equally small group of specialist batsmen.
Completely contrasting finishes to the two teams’ innings have seen Sussexclaim a morale-boosting 26 run win (under the Duckworth/Lewis method) overLancashire in a tense National League match between the sides at Hove today.For large periods of this match, the hosts appeared to be in trouble. Uponwinning the toss, they almost immediately found themselves in difficulty;Ian Austin (1/32), Andy Flintoff (1/37) and Glen Chapple (2/62) allstriking quickly to reduce the score to 64/4. It was only, in fact, when aswashbuckling Will House (80*) and Dutchman Bastiaan Zuiderent (68), inonly his second appearance for Sussex’s first team this season, joined toadd a breathtaking 141 runs for the fifth wicket that there came arestoration.Even then, though, there was no guarantee that Sussex’s final tally of213/6 would prove large enough on what looked a good batting wicket. Thissuspicion received reinforcement when Andy Flintoff (41) and NeilFairbrother (41) took charge of the early stages of Lancashire’s reply,lifting the score to 92/2 in quick time. Two errant shots in quicksuccession temporarily changed the balance, however, and Sussex’s bowlerswere intermittently able to drop on to a more nagging line and length astheir opponents chased a revised target of 219 to win from 41 overs. Thematch again appeared headed in the visitors’ favour as Graham Lloyd (28)and Warren Hegg (20) lifted the score to 142/4 with a flurry of singlesbut, once Robin Martin-Jenkins (2/37) summoned the ability to find a waythrough Hegg’s gate, things began to unravel. Martin-Jenkins and BillyTaylor (2/30) quickly accounted for a further three victims before JamesKirtley (4/45) – having earlier claimed two at the start of the innings -returned to capture another two wickets and put the finishing touches on acollapse which had, by then, seen Lancashire surrender its final sixwickets for the addition of a miserable fifty runs.The loss, one it could ill afford, leaves Lancashire anchored to the footof the Division One table. Sussex, although still fighting its own battleto avoid relegation, has meanwhile gained for itself some much neededbreathing space ahead of both Kent and Lancashire in the same zone.
West Ham United manager David Moyes has dropped a worrying injury claim about Michail Antonio and Aaron Cresswell ahead of the Irons’ Europa League clash against Sevilla on Thursday.
The Lowdown: West Ham struck by injuries
The Hammers gained a valuable three points in their Premier League top-four pursuit as goals from Andriy Yarmolenko and Pablo Fornals ensured a 2-1 win over Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa on Sunday.
This result put West Ham within two points of Manchester United, who were fourth at the time. However, the picture was later changed by Arsenal, who eased to a 2-0 victory over Leicester, pushing themselves back into the Champions League places.
Unfortunately for the Irons, injuries to Antonio and Cresswell forced both players off before the hour mark, adding to Moyes’ injury concerns as his side prepare for their European clash against Sevilla.
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The Latest: Moyes’ injury update…
In his post-match press conference, Moyes was hesitant to answer any injury questions surrounding Antonio and Cresswell, wary of giving Sevilla any team information ahead of Thursday.
In reference to the duo, he claimed (as quoted by football.london): “I don’t really know yet but if I did I would not tell you because I am not going to let Sevilla know any idea whether they’re going to be fit or not.”
The Verdict: Huge blow if both are injured
Aside from Moyes’ cryptic response, if the injury news isn’t good and the two players are out for Thursday’s clash, it will come as a huge blow for the Hammers, who were already without Jarrod Bowen in the first leg.
Antonio is West Ham’s second-leading scorer this season with 10 goals, which speaks volumes for his attacking threat, while both players feature in the top four for the squad in terms of key passes per match, so their absences would deprive the Irons of considerable creativity on a night when they must win to remain in the Europa League.
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However, if the manager does know of the results and is just choosing to play dumb ahead of Sevilla, this may be a clever strategy from the 58-year-old as he seeks to keep his opponents guessing.
Therefore, let’s hope that it is the latter rather than the former, although it doesn’t look too positive as of yet, with Cresswell already reportedly a doubt for Thursday night.
In other news: Spanish source shares transfer update on this reported West Ham target
Two stalwarts of the English game have been honoured in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours list. Clive Radley and Rachael Heyhoe-Flint have been rewarded for their services to cricket both on and off the pitch. Radley earns the MBE while Heyhoe-Flint gets an upgrade to OBE after being awarded the MBE 25 years ago.Radley, 63, played for Middlesex, Auckland and England during a first-class career spanning three decades from the mid-1960s. He finally made his Test debut in New Zealand in 1977-78 aged almost 34, and played eight Tests. But it is off the pitch where he has excelled as coach and he is now head coach with the MCC.Heyhoe-Flint’s contributions to the game are manifold. As an England captain with a shrewd business brain she raised the profile of the sport massively, quick to spot a media opportunity, and later a commentator.She even thought of the first World Cup – the women played theirs two years before the men – when, along with Sir Jack Hayward, they cooked up the idea for the women, who played their first tournament two years before the men. She took England to that title in 1973, the crowning glory of her captaincy which, from 1966, saw her unbeaten in six series.She became an MBE in 1972, and was a shoo-in as one of the first ten female members of the MCC in 1999 and in 2004 she became the first woman elected to the full committee, aged 64. She also represented England at hockey, playing in goal, and was for many years a director of Wolverhampton Wanderers.”I am naturally thrilled to bits,” Heyhoe-Flint told Cricinfo, “particularly that it has been awarded for services to cricket.”My MBE was for services to women’s cricket – so it is really pleasing that I have received the recognition for my deep involvement with the MCC and the Lady Taverners charity -one of the fund raising arms of the Lord’s Taverners – the official charity for recreational cricket.”Nowadays the Lady Taverners are sponsors of junior women’s cricket indoor and outdoor, club and county events for Under-13s and Under-15s, and also cricket events for youngsters with disabilities.
ScorecardNeil McCallum’s excellent 109, his maiden first-class hundred, helped Scotland take a useful 25-run first-innings lead on the third day of their Intercontinental Cup match against UAE at Sharjah. The home side batted aggressively in response, however, and go into the fourth day leading by 132 runs.McCallum and Gavin Hamilton’s steady fourth-wicket partnership of 83 ended when Hamilton edged Ali Asad behind. And though Dougie Brown (30) and Craig Wright (31) helped form useful stands, the impetus was with McCallum. He didn’t disappoint, scampering well-placed singles and crashing three fours and a six in his 76-ball 109. He fell to Ahmed Nadeem, who ended with impressive figures of 5 for 84, but Scotland took a narrow lead.UAE soon put the scores level, though, with Mohammad Iqbal smashing a quickfire 43 from 36 balls, putting on 63 with his captain, Arshad Ali, who ended the day unbeaten on 61. Gayan Silva, the wicketkeeper, again batted with care in his second half-century of the match and Scotland will need early wickets tomorrow morning if they are to force a victory.