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With its best efforts at emulating Lazarus receiving another emphatic expression in the process, Tasmania has today swept to an innings and 76 run crushing of Western Australia here at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.Two weeks ago, the Tigers looked down and out.But, after surging to their second successive innings win in a bare 29 minutes on the third day of this match, they had done the near-unthinkable and vaulted to second spot on the Pura Cup table. Their form – post the axing of three of the most experienced players in the state’s history – has suddenly become as warm as the weather in Hobart in recent days.”I think we’ve played better than our opposition in both games; we’ve fought harder with the bat in both games; and we’ve bowled better in both games,” said a delighted Tasmanian captain Jamie Cox of his side’s effort in backing a thumping win over competition pacesetter Queensland with an equally commanding success over the previously second-placed Western Australians.The Tasmanians had started the day needing three wickets to complete their win. On recent precedent – they had taken 17 wickets in a day to define the shape of this match yesterday, and 20 in the space of six hours last weekend – it didn’t look an exacting assignment.So it proved.Matthew Nicholson (13), who has saved games against Tasmania previously in his career, cut powerfully at a David Saker (3/21) delivery in just the second over of the day but hammered a sharp catch to Scott Kremerskothen at point.Jo Angel (27), who had resisted with a degree of defiance that put his teammates to shame, had his stumps powerfully disturbed as he tried to work a Shane Watson (4/35) delivery to leg shortly after.And Watson, characteristically breathing fire at the bowling crease, then ended the match symbolically as a swift ball of full length ripped out the off stump of Brad Oldroyd (7).With Western Australia thus dismissed for 134 – four runs short even of surpassing its paltry first innings total – Watson’s teammates proceeded to jubilantly wrap themselves around him like a human ball of velcro.Western Australian captain Justin Langer later apportioned some of the blame for his state’s first-ever outright defeat at Bellerive to a testing pitch. Though he also conceded that the Warriors had been thoroughly outwitted and outplayed.”It was a disappointing performance but I think a lot of it had to do with the surface we were playing on. The wicket was very up and down and it was two-paced,” said Langer after the game.”To their credit, though, they performed very well. They played very very good cricket.”They took a courageous move in leaving out some of their senior players and you can feel an energy back in Tasmanian cricket. They’re young, they’re enthusiastic. There’s real energy there and they’re all going in the same direction.”The Warriors’ mood wasn’t helped by Simon Katich’s appearance before Code of Conduct Commissioner Bruce Neill following an incident late yesterday. Upon his dismissal in the Western Australian second innings, Katich had appeared to attempt to elbow Saker – as the Tasmanian paceman rushed past him to join a behind-the-wicket celebration.The charge was ultimately dismissed but his team’s woes still continued to mount.Bellerive, traditionally a tranquil setting, has suddenly become a nightmare venue for visiting sides – with their inability to read a changing micro-climate at the ground being further tested by Tasmania’s new-found spirit and determination.The oval, which currently blends a construction site at the northern end with an impressive new grandstand at the other, is no longer breached by the southerly breezes that sweep off the nearby Derwent River. Under the more humid conditions that now prevail, the wicket square seems to have become blessed by a more consistent level of moisture.Though, that said, it’s the development of a high-class pace bowling quartet that seems the most important factor in Tasmania’s resurgence.Man of the match Damien Wright, who supplemented an invaluable innings of 63 with four wickets at negligible cost, has translated impeccable limited-overs form to first-class level. Shane Jurgensen, though still underrated, is as hard-working and consistent as any player in the side. Saker is producing his best and most consistent bowling for his adopted state. And the aggressive Watson, a key in the revival, has ensured that the prospect of playing Tasmania has become one that no state will relish.Scott Mason and Shannon Tubb have also added a sense of zest and zeal in the field that had previously been missing.The Tasmanians’ season was painfully slow to begin – and they were on the bottom rung of both domestic competition ladders as few as ten days ago. But they are anew, full of excitement and full of enthusiastic innocence. Almost like a side setting out on a great adventure.Only recently, they were struggling to detect a way of approaching games with any confidence at all. Now in with every chance of playing in just the third first-class final in the state’s history, they can’t wait for the next one.Their revival is fast becoming the story of all stories this season.

Graham Rose and Steffan Jones of Somerset humbled Hampshire’s batting intheir championship match at Taunton. With both bowlers taking four wickets thevisitors tumbled from 62-1 to 142 all out. Somerset were already batting when the sun shone at last in mid-afternoon and went on to score 208-4 by the close (66 runs ahead).Opener Giles White (44), himself formerly with the county, alone defiedSomerset with some support from Will Kendall (29). Swing bowling, effecting five successful l.b.w decisions, was more to blame for the poor batting than the state of the pitch. Shane Warne (29) hit out to raise the total from 104-7 at lunch, but it was not enough.Conditions improved almost immediately afterwards – but by then it was too late for Hampshire. Mark Lathwell, who had been out for the whole of last summer through injury, and Jamie Cox both were out to John Stephenson at 58. It was the 90 runs fourth-wicket stand between Keith Parsons (46) and Piran Holloway (53 n.o.) which put Somerset on top.

Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Hotspur side return to Premier League action this evening, with Spurs welcoming Frank Lampard’s Everton to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the 20:00 kick-off.

And, with the Italian’s outfit having crashed out of the FA Cup via a 1-0 AET defeat to Middlesbrough last Tuesday, as well as having lost three of their last five outings in the top flight, the 52-year-old will undoubtedly be hoping for a much-improved performance this time out against the Toffees.

However, with Oliver Skipp remaining sidelined due to injury, Conte will once again have to make do without the highly-rated 21-year-old in the middle of the park – something that will have come as a huge blow to the former Inter Milan manager.

Having said that, the impact of the young midfielder’s continued absence will certainly be eased by the impending return of Rodrigo Bentancur, who had sat out Tottenham’s last two fixtures as a result of an ankle injury.

Conte must unleash Bentancur

Over his four Premier League appearances since making his £21.5m move to North London in the January transfer window, the 24-year-old central midfielder has been in impressive form for Spurs, averaging 53.8 touches of the ball, completing 34.5 passes, making 0.8 interceptions, two tackles, 0.5 key passes and winning 4.8 duels per game.

These returns have seen the player who James Horncastle labelled “blue-collar” average a very respectable SofaScore match rating of 6.88, ranking him as Tottenham’s joint 12th-best performer in the top flight of English football.

However, it was undoubtedly in the 2-0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers in which – despite the result – the £41m-rated Uruguay international proved just how important a part of the Spurs side he could go on to become under Conte, with the 24-year-old enjoying 90 touches of the ball, completing 59 passes – two of which were key – winning nine duels, making one interception, winning three tackles and completing two dribbles over his 90 minutes on the pitch.

These returns saw the “aggressive” – in the words of Smarter Scout – midfielder earn a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.5, ranking him Tottenham’s third-best player on the day.

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As such, a repeat of this performance against Everton tonight would undoubtedly go a long way to helping Conte’s side secure a much-needed three points, while the presence of the tough-tackling Uruguayan would also petrify the Toffees’ own midfield options – one of whom could well be Tottenham’s former attacking sensation, Dele Alli.

In other news: AC can axe Paratici’s “terrible” £62k-p/w THFC dud with 19 y/o dubbed “one of the best”

	Clive Radley, still playing in his sixties, has become an MBE © Martin Williamson

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.

Steve Waugh, from whom Ricky Ponting took the baton of captain, has stated that Ricky Ponting will become an all-time great © Getty Images

Steve Waugh, the former Australian captain, has declared that Ricky Ponting is the batsman most likely to go past Brian Lara’s record of most Test runs.Ponting, with 1544 runs, ended the calendar year at the top of the International Cricket Council’s Test player rankings, and led his team to consecutive Test wins over a World XI and West Indies, before hitting a first-day hundred in Australia’s Boxing Day triumph over South Africa.However, when it comes to discussing Australia’s most prolific run-scorers, Ponting has rarely been mentioned alongside Allan Border and Waugh. Waugh has changed this, though, stating his thoughts on Ponting ahead of his 100th Test at the SCG tomorrow. “You can never know for sure how long you’re going to play for. Age and fitness come into it as well as form. There are a lot of variables but it’s hard to see him slowing down for a while yet,” Waugh said in . “There’s still a long way to go for him, but the way he’s going at the moment, if you were going to pick someone to take that record, I’d say it would have to be Ricky.”Ponting, with 7,990 Test runs, is still a long way behind Lara’s record of 11, 204. However, Lara is expected to retire after the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean, and Ponting has time on his side.Ponting’s most damning moment as captain and cricketer came when Australia lost the Ashes after 18 years to England last summer, but Waugh, who never lost an Ashes series as captain, maintained that such losses were a chapter of a cricketer’s journey. “That’s part of the job,” he said. “It just comes with the territory. When it’s all going well, there’s credit coming your way but when things are going badly, you start getting a lot of scrutiny,”Waugh faced much criticism after his first series as captain resulted in a disappointing 2-2 draw with West Indies, followed by a nightmare start to the 1999 World Cup. Ponting, on the other hand, was hailed as a masterful captain when he guided Australia to victory at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, and his first three Tests as captain resulted in a 3-0 clean sweep in Sri Lanka.The loss of the Ashes changed all that, with Ponting facing heightened animosity from the Australian press for a failure to marshall his men in the face of adversity. “You can’t get away from that. You just have to take the good with the bad,” Waugh said. “They’ve come back after the Ashes and done well. As a captain you just have to have confidence in your ability, which I think Ricky has.”Tomorrow’s third and final Test against South Africa will be Ponting’s 11th at the SCG, a venue at which he has made 918 runs at 70.61, including his maiden hundred as Test captain – a fine 207 against Pakistan last summer. “He’s easily in the top two or three Test batsmen in the world, but what he’s doing is dominating in both forms of the game,” Waugh said. “No one else is really doing that, so you’d have to say he’s the most valuable batsman going around at the moment.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary

Yuvraj Singh made sure that the good start wasn’t wasted with a hurricane half-century© AFP

Stung by a shock defeat last night, a full-strength Indian steam steamrolledBangladesh in the decider at the Bangabandhu Stadium, winning by 91 runs.The match as a contest was finished by the half-way mark when India, poweredby lusty hitting at both ends of their innings, from Virender Sehwag andYuvraj Singh, racked up 348 for 5. There was simply no way Bangladesh weregoing to overhaul that target.The determination was writ large on the faces of Sachin Tendulkar and Sehwagwhen they came out to open. Mashrafe Mortaza troubled both early on, beatingthe outside edge. But that was merely the calm before the storm. Even asthey played themselves in, Sehwag and Tendulkar picked off the loose ballsraised India’s 50 in 9.1 overs. Then, Hasibul Hossain and Musfiqur Rahman -in the team in place of Tapash Baisya and Nazmul Hossain, both out withinjury – got the pasting of their lives.Tendulkar led the early charge, with two cover-drives. He then played theflick, the pull, the cut and the lofted shot over midwicket, peppering theadvertising hoardings with foreceful strokes. Sehwag then showed that he wasno less keen to get going, and lofted Hasibul for a majestic six over long-off. A flurry of strokes powered India to 100 off just 12.5 overs, with thesecond 50 coming in 22 balls.Then, completely against the run of play, Tendulkar attempted to cutKhaled Mahmud, who had been brought into the attack after Hasibul wassummarily dismissed with figures of none for 53 from 8 overs. Khaled Mashudtook a good catch standing up and Tendulkar fell on 47 from just 42 balls (106 for 1).Sehwag, refused to be perturbed by the loss of Tendulkar, and continued toplay big shots even after the 15-over field restrictions were lifted, butperished in the process. He tried to thrash Mahmud for a big six overmidwicket, but could not go all the way, and Mohammad Ashraful tip-toedaround the ropes to to take a stunning catch (125 for 2). Sehwag, who waswell on course to a century, fell in the 20th over, on 70 from just 52 balls.

Rajin Saleh made a fighting 82 but Bangladesh were never in the hunt while chasing such a mammoth total© AFP

Sourav Ganguly (55) and Rahul Dravid (60) then ensured that the barnstormingstart they were given was not wasted. They dabbed, nudged, stroked andoccasionally biffed their way to a 98-run partnership off 116 balls beforeboth were out in the space of 3.1 overs. If Bangladesh thought the fall ofthese two wickets, Ganguly’s with the score on 223, and Dravid’s on 247,would give them respite, they hadn’t reckoned with Yuvraj, who hadn’t done anything noteworthy in the first two matches.Yuvraj signalled his murderous intent early on, sweeping two boundariesbefore the bowlers could properly train their sights on him. MohammadRafique, who had done well with his left-arm spin to send down seven overs for just 23, was taken to the cleaners. Yuvraj played booming strokes somewhere between sweeps and drives in the arc from midwicket to square leg. Rafique’s last 3 overs cost him 40, and before you knew it, Yuvraj had reached his half-century ­off a mere 22 balls. One ball less, and he would have drawn level with Ajit Agarkar’s Indian record, 50 off 21 balls versus Zimbabwe at Rajkot four years ago. But Yuvraj was not finished; he blasted on till the very last over, and scored 69 from just 32 balls, with eight fours and three sixes, and in the company of a sensible and composed Kaif (29) took India to 348 for 5.Bangladesh’s response, barring a industrious 82 from Rajin Saleh, and a few rousing hits from Ashraful (32), and Mortaza (39 from 20 balls) at the death, was tame. Mahendra Dhoni, with five dismissals, did his cause in the Indian wicketkeeping race no harm at all. In the end 349 was simply too big a target for Bangladesh – a good 100 runs more than their previous best against India, 249 in the Asia Cup in 2000. They bettered it by eight runs thanks to some friendly bowling at the end of their innings, but it wasn’t good enough for a capacity crowd who emptied out of the stadium, disappointed, but not completely deflated. Even a crushing defeat couldn’t have erased from their minds the thrilling triumph achieved a day before.

South Africa 221 for 6 in 45 overs (Kallis 62, Smith 51) beat Pakistan 243 for 8 in 50 overs (Hameed 72, Razzaq 46*; Ntini 3-45) by 13 runs (D-L method)
Scorecard

Yasir Hameed en route to his 72 © AFP

South Africa kept the one-day series alive by beating Pakistan on the Duckworth/Lewis method at Faisalabad, when bad light forced play to be called off five overs early, with 23 runs still needed, and only four wickets in hand. The win made it 2-1 to Pakistan with two matches to go – the next in Rawalpindi on Friday (Oct 10).Shoaib Akhtar had set up an enthralling finale with some stunning fast bowling, but the deteriorating light forced the umpires to call the players off with South Africa well ahead of their 45-over D/L target of 208. South Africa’s run chase was inspired by Jacques Kallis and Graeme Smith, who added an even 100, while Jacques Rudolph held it together when things threatened to fall apart. Pakistan owed their total to Yasir Hameed’s 72, and to a late flurry from Abdul Razzaq.Akhtar had bowled a fiery four-over spell first up, during the course of which he sent back Herschelle Gibbs. A ball after he had eased one through the covers for four, Gibbs couldn’t resist poking at one that pitched on off stump. The thin edge was easily held by Rashid Latif (10 for 1).Three balls later, Akhtar should have been celebrating a second wicket, as Kallis got an inner edge while attempting an off-drive. But his subdued reaction – in sharp contrast to his excited team-mates’ – seemed to convince Darrell Hair that there had been no nick.Kallis made full use of the life, playing some superb drives off Umar Gul, whose figures were further ruined by some fortuitous edged fours. When Saqlain Mushtaq came on, Smith greeted him with three superb fours. To make matters worse for Yousuf Youhana, Pakistan’s stand-in captain, Saqlain had all sorts of problems with his run-up, bowling six no-balls.Kallis, who had earlier spanked Gul for a six and a four through the leg side, rotated the strike cleverly once the fielding restrictions were removed, and South Africa were well on top when Smith departed in tame fashion. Shortly after reaching 50, he attempted to dab Razzaq past point, but only managed a thick edge through to Latif (110 for 2).The two Jacques then cobbled together a useful partnership before Akhtar turned the match on its head. After Kallis had struck a superb off-drive, he hit him on the hip with a full-toss, which ran away for four. The next ball was the perfect yorker, and Kallis’s off stump went for a hike (146 for 3).Boeta Dippenaar played a ridiculous shot to be bowled off his pads by Mohammad Hafeez (157 for 4), before Rudolph and Mark Boucher got the run-chase back on track. Boucher played a couple of stunning sweeps off Shoaib Malik on his way to 24, before Akhtar castled him with another screeching yorker (206 for 5).When Rudolph, assured and elegant en route to 46, skyed one from Malik to Razzaq in the deep two balls later, Pakistan had a sniff of victory. But a meaty six from Andrew Hall off Saqlain tilted the equation in South Africa’s favour before gloom descended on the Pakistani camp.Earlier, Hameed provided the stability and mid-innings impetus, while Razzaq added some late urgency as Pakistan set up a challenging total. South Africa’s bowlers kept their discipline, and their nerve, knowing that defeat would end any real interest in the series.Pollock was at his Scrooge-like best in the opening stages, troubling both batsmen with his probing line and length. At the other end, Andre Nel was hostile without being quite as controlled. On another belter of a pitch, both Hameed and Hafeez struggled to get any sort of batting rhythm going, taking 15 overs to bring up the 50.Hafeez departed soon after that, when an ugly hoick off Hall looped off the outside edge to Dippenaar at extra cover (52 for 1). Youhana came in, and promptly struck two magnificent cover-drives off Makhaya Ntini. When Ntini strayed onto leg stump, he was deftly flicked down to the fine-leg fence. With Kallis brought into the attack to join Hall, Hameed also joined in the fun, with two meaty drives over midwicket, and a fine stroke through cover.South Africa’s frustration was increased by a run-out that wasn’t given. With Youhana (9) at the bowler’s end, Hall deflected a Hameed drive onto the stumps. The South Africans appealed, with Youhana out of his ground, but Hair didn’t even see fit to consult the third umpire.Ntini ensured that it wouldn’t be too costly, when he came back for his second spell. Youhana lunged at one that pitched on off stump, and the faint tickle was well taken by Boucher (95 for 2).Hameed played some more clunking strokes through midwicket as he motored past his half-century, before he was undone by Robin Peterson. He made room to slam a flighted delivery over cover, but Gibbs jumped up smartly to pluck the ball out of the air (128 for 3). Moments later, Peterson had more cause to celebrate as Younis Khan slammed one straight to Ntini at deep midwicket (139 for 4).Malik and Faisal Iqbal then took the score to 169 in decent time, before Nel came back to nail Iqbal, who had made 22. A clever yorker took the edge of the bat, and Boucher dived smartly to his right to snaffle the chance. Malik, so influential with the bat in the first two games, played two lovely shots down to third man in his 18, but then sliced one from Ntini to Gibbs at point (181 for 6).Latif hit out for 14, before miscuing one from Pollock to Kallis at deep point (200 for 7). But Razzaq then played some cracking shots down the ground and over midwicket to ensure that the South African batsmen would have to be at the top of their game to prevent Pakistan from running away with the series. When they threatened to falter, the forces of darkness stepped in to help.

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming is predicting “a very exciting batting day” for his side in their second National Bank Test with Bangladesh at the Basin Reserve in Wellington tomorrow.New Zealand start the second day 60 runs behind Bangladesh’s 132 runs with all wickets intact.Fleming said he is looking for the side to score at around three and a half runs to four runs tomorrow and the way Mark Richardson and Matt Horne played after getting in tonight, they should be setting the pace.The side’s efforts in winning so much positive praise for their efforts on the recent tour of Australia were rewarded when 6097 Wellingtonians turned out for what was never going to be the most exciting spectacle given the ease with which New Zealand won the first Test.”It was fantastic. We weren’t too sure how many we would get along but it was great. We enjoy playing a Boxing Day Test here.””It’s becoming an occasion,” he said.Fleming said it was great to see cricket getting its share of space in the newspapers after having to share it with other sports so often.”It’s our time of the year,” he said.Fleming also praised the efforts of ground staff, both in Wellington and Hamilton, who have had to cope with dreadful weather in preparing for the two Test matches.”It had more pace than what I thought it would,” he said of the Basin Reserve pitch.The effort of Daniel Vettori in bowling 22 overs unchanged into the wind was praised by Fleming for him allowing one end to be tied up while he alternated Chris Cairns, Shane Bond and Chris Drum at the other.”There’s no-one who comes near him for doing that and he did the job required,” he said.The New Zealanders had noted a definite change in the Bangladesh tactics but it would be up to them to find their own tempo and manner of scoring in the future. They would find it and be a competitive unit in years to come, but they were still learning.

Uttar Pradesh were in a position of considerable strength at stumps onthe penultimate day of their three day Vijay Merchant Trophy finalagainst Mumbai at the Medical college ground in Thiruvananthapuram onThursday. They scored 297 in their first innings and had taken eightMumbai wickets for 145 by stumps.UP, resuming at 240 for six, added another 57 runs in the morning.The overnight not out batsmen R Elahi and SK Upadhayay made theirseventh wicket partnership worth 102 runs off 3 overs. While Elahiscored 63, Upadhayay got 54. SG Pandey took three of the four wicketsto fall today and finished with four for 59.Mumbai lost wickets steadily and there were only two briefpartnerships that provided some substance. SS Thakur (39) and PValthaty (10) added 49 runs for the second wicket off 19 overs andthen VA Indulkar and skipper H Ravle who each got 35, put on 42 runsfor the sixth wicket off 17.2 overs. But generally N Chaudhery (3 for53) and R Jaiswal (2 for 40) kept the Mumbai batsmen in check.