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Ravi Bopara scored his first half-century of the summer as Essex were made to battle for runs on the second day of their Championship match against Glamorgan at Chelmsford

27-Apr-2011
ScorecardRavi Bopara scored his first half-century of the summer as Essex were made to battle for runs on the second day of their Championship match against Glamorgan at Chelmsford. But despite his 61 and 53 from Mark Pettini, the home side still finished 24 short of Glamorgan’s first innings total after being bowled out for 258.By the close the Welsh county had moved to 50 for 1 in their second innings to establish an overall lead of 74. Before the game Bopara, who is desperate to win back his England Test place after gaining the last of his 10 caps in 2009, had scored only 92 runs from six trips to the middle.But after a scratchy start, he reached his 50 from 77 balls with the help of nine boundaries and added one more before he was beaten in the flight by left-arm spinner Dean Cosker and offered a simple return catch. Following Bopara’s departure, it was left to Pettini to add some much-needed steel to the Essex reply.Recently restored to the side, the former captain followed up his unbeaten 67 against Northamptonshire with another half century that consumed 125 deliveries and contained six boundaries.Pettini’s resistance was finally brought to an end when he was caught behind by Mark Wallace to provide Cosker with a further success. Tim Phillips ensured Essex collected their second batting point with a fighting 30 before he became the fourth victim of paceman James Harris, with those wickets coming at a cost of 68 from 22.3 overs.The impressive Cosker finished with 4 for 35 from 21 overs while the other two were claimed by Huw Waters. He removed Billy Godleman and night watchman Davis Masters in the morning during a six-over spell that cost 16. But then a back problem sidelined the medium pacer for the remainder of the innings.When Glamorgan went in again, Gareth Rees and Alviro Petersen moved to 36 without too much trouble before the latter was guilty of a gross error of judgement. He failed to offer a stroke to a Bopara delivery that nipped back and was trapped leg before.Rees should have followed two runs later, but Matt Walker failed to hold on at second slip after Lonwabo Tsotsobe found the edge. That let-off left Rees going into the third day on 25 and with Glamorgan holding the upper hand.

Ricky Ponting, the Australia batsman, has said that he encouraged India’s Rahul Dravid to keep going when their sides met in a two-Test series in India last October

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Aug-2011Ricky Ponting has said that he encouraged Rahul Dravid to fight through his struggles and continue playing when their sides met in the two-Test series in India last October. Dravid was going through a lean patch at the time – his only century in 2010 up till then had been against Bangladesh and he managed just one half-century during the series against Australia – but Ponting said he urged Dravid to ignore critics who wrote him off.”I remember after our last series in India there was a lot of talk and speculation about Dravid being finished,” Ponting told . “I actually went and found him at the end of the series and said ‘don’t you even think about retiring’ because I just saw some stuff in a few of his innings that suggested he was still a very, very good player. I just said ‘don’t let them wear you down, don’t let them get you down’. I received a similar text message before and after the Ashes from him as well.”After that home series against Australia, Dravid scored two centuries against New Zealand before a string of low scores in South Africa. Since then, he has been prolific in tough conditions, with four centuries in seven Tests spread across West Indies and England. In the second of those tours, where England humbled India to claim the No. 1 Test ranking, Dravid was easily India’s best batsman, with three centuries and 461 runs over the four Tests.Ponting, 36, has not scored a Test century since January 2010, said it was nice to see the 38-year-old Dravid doing well. He believed players like Dravid were as much an inspiration for senior players like himself, as for youngsters.”There are a few [who provide an inspiration for batsmen of advancing years]. Sachin [Tendulkar] and [Jacques] Kallis both had a great last year; Dravid is doing well now. It’s not only good for guys of my age to see guys doing that, it’s good for the younger blokes to see it as well; to know that if you keep doing the right things and working hard, and if you’ve got talent, then age is not a barrier in our game.”While young players have role models to look up to, Ponting said he worried that an excess of Twenty20 cricket played at youth level would hinder the development of Test batsmen.”The big worry I’ve had about Twenty20 cricket and even other shorter forms of the game being played at really developmental times in kids’ careers is that it won’t teach them the art of concentration. Cricket for me when I was growing up meant batting until someone got me out, and if that took them a week then that’s how long it took them.”Now, even Under-17s and Under-19s are playing T20 games in national championships, and at the detriment of two-day games. Good state players these days are averaging 35; if you were averaging 35 when I was playing your dad would go and buy you a basketball or a footy and tell you to play that. So there are areas of concern there; I don’t know how you change them.”Ponting is one of the few senior members left in what is a transitional Australia team that goes up against Sri Lanka in a three-Test series. He said India, who lost their No. 1 Test ranking in England, could also enter a similar phase once their experienced batsmen retired, but believed their barren bowling reserves were a bigger cause for concern.”India still haven’t reached that point that I thought they’d get to yet. They’ve still got that crux, those great batters in that side. Time will tell with India now. Dravid was probably one who was in the gun before the rest of them and he’s found a way to come through. They [Tendulkar, Dravid and VVS Laxman] are all about the same age and they won’t go on forever. They will be tested more than anything with their bowlers. I think we found even in the last few years that a lot of their spin bowling probably isn’t as strong as it used to be, and if you take Zaheer [Khan] out of their fast bowling stocks there’s not much left there either; so they’ve got an interesting couple of years ahead.”India’s whitewash in England has led to criticism that there is too much emphasis on the shorter formats of the game in the country, and Ponting, who has not played in the IPL since the end of its first season, said the tournament was affecting India’s cricket.”They’re probably prioritising Twenty20 cricket as much as anyone aren’t they, with the IPL being based there and the commitment some players have to certain franchises and tournaments going on around that. I reckon a good example of where their cricket is now is the fact they played RP Singh in that last Test match, when he hadn’t played a first-class game since January.”While India have got the great players they’ve had they’ll remain competitive, but once those guys move on it’ll be really interesting for them, and I think South Africa will be exactly the same. Once [Graeme] Smith and Kallis and [Dale] Steyn go out of that team it’ll be interesting to see how they rebuild as well.”

England and Australia complete easy wins over Pakistan and India in the Group A matches in Women’s World T20

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Sep-2012Left-arm spinner Holly Colvin picked four wickets as England beat Pakistan by 43 runs in the Women’s World Twenty20 Group A match in Galle. Colvin struck in her first over, followed it up with two wickets off consecutive balls in her second and a fourth one in the last over to return with figures of 3.4-0-9-4. Pakistan – chasing 134 – had crumbled to 50 for 4 by the eleventh over even before the introduction of Colvin. Offspinner Danielle Hazell prised out Pakistan captain Sana Mir and then broke a 26-run fourth-wicket stand with the scalp of Nain Abidi before the rest of the batting collapsed.Pakistan’s decision to bowl first backfired as England openers brought up a quick century partnership. Although Laura Marsh was run out after scoring 54 off 41 balls in the 14th over, England looked set for a strong total. But the fall of Charlotte Edwards (45) to another run out helped the Pakistan bowlers get a grip on the innings and they restricted England to 133 for 6.”We planned to attack the bowling in the Power Play overs,” Edwards said. “I think as the game progresses, we’ve seen spin play a major part, so before the pitch wore out, we wanted to get as much as possible.”Mir, who was the most successful bowler for Pakistan with 2 for 20, said: “We did really well to restrict them to 133. I thought we could have applied ourselves better with the bat. Once we lose too many wickets at the start, it just puts immense pressure on the middle-order. Hopefully we will rectify our mistakes and look to win the remaining two games, we can only go up from here.”Australia chased down the target set by India in the Group A match in Galle with eight wickets in hand to continue the trend of easy wins in the Women’s World T20.India chose to bat first and despite losing their openers in the fifth and the seventh overs, they were comfortably placed midway in their innings. But India’s captain Mithali Raj was run out on the first ball of the 11th over triggering a collapse. The score turned from 63 for 2 to 73 for 5 in a matter of four overs. Nagarajan Niranjana (15 off 14 balls) saved India some blushes with a quick 25-run partnership with Mona Meshram taking the team close to the century mark. In the end, India finished with 104, with Erin Osborne picking up three wickets for 13 runs. Jess Jonassen three-over spell in which she gave away only six runs and picked up a wicket was also key in slowing India down.In response, Australia made an aggressive start, putting up 43 runs in six overs by the time their first wicket – Alyssa Healy for 21 – fell. But Jess Cameron (36 off 32) joined Meg Lanning in a 49-run second-wicket stand in 8.3 overs to bring Australia to the brink of victory. When Lanning was out for 39 to Jhulan Goswami only 13 runs were required which Australia got without much trouble.A disappointed Raj later said: “Harman and I were batting really well, but we collapsed once again. One defeat doesn’t mean the end of the road, we have to keep believing in ourselves. We can’t sulk about this, surprises do happen.”Erin Osborne, who was declared Player of the Match, said: “I think I was just a beneficiary of some fantastic work done by the other bowlers.”

Injury expert Ben Dinnery has ruled Leeds United captain Liam Cooper out of this weekend’s meeting with Arsenal.

The Lowdown: Cooper’s late withdrawal

Cooper made a long-awaited return to action last month and helped the Whites concede just once in three games, with Jesse Marsch’s side picking up five points against Southampton, Watford and Crystal Palace.

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The 30-year-old was due to start against Manchester City last weekend but pulled out during the warm-up with a knee problem that required a scan.

Midfielder Mateusz Klich replaced Cooper at Elland Road, and it looks as if the centre-back may well miss the trip to the Emirates on Sunday too.

The Latest: Dinnery’s claim

Dinnery, a sports injuries expert and analyst who contributes for Sky Sports, has six injury concerns for Leeds on his Premier Injuries website.

One of those is Cooper, whose current status is listed ‘ruled out’ with a knee problem – the site doesn’t even name a hopeful return date.

Meanwhile, according to Dinnery, striker Patrick Bamford has a May 15 return date following his foot problem.

The Verdict: Wait and see…

Marsch will more than likely provide an injury update to start his pre-match press conference at Thorp Arch later today, with Cooper’s condition obviously a concern.

He helped the Whites stop the rot at the back following his return from a hamstring injury and has been the club’s best-rated defender this season, as per WhoScored.

Therefore, it would be a boost for Marsch and Leeds if Cooper were able to travel to London, so fingers crossed Marsch shares different news to Dinnery.

In other news: Leeds officials sent abroad as Radz plots move for 56-goal attacker. 

India’s Praveen Kumar underwent a fitness test at the National Cricket Academy to determine whether he can participate in the World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-2011Praveen Kumar, the India seamer, underwent a fitness test early on Monday morning at the National Cricket Academy, immediately after returning from England, where he had dashed last week to consult experts on his injured right elbow. Though there was no official word yet from the BCCI on Praveen, sources monitoring the developments have indicated that the fast bowler’ dreams of playing his maiden World Cup were virtually over because the injury had not healed as fast as was expected.Praveen had picked up the injury at the outset of the ODI series last month in South Africa and was sent back immediately as a precautionary measure to recuperate at the NCA. But the recovery did not go as planned and Praveen was rushed to meet Dr Andrew Wallace, a London-based surgeon, who has treated many Indian players including Sachin Tendulkar. The BCCI officials were tight-lipped about the development, but it is understood that the board wanted to first approach the tournament’s technical committee to report on Praveen’s injury and get the approval for his replacement.In all likelihood that man could be Sreesanth, who was present in Bangalore on Monday and took a fitness test in the afternoon. But the BCCI has not gone public yet announcing the replacement. According to the tournament rules, once the technical committee receives the request it is passed straightaway unless there are any exceptional circumstances.

Leeds United manager Jesse Marsch must turn to Pascal Struijk if skipper Liam Cooper misses the trip to Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.

What’s the latest?

The 30-year-old centre-back missed a large chunk of the season with a hamstring problem and was forced to withdraw from the starting lineup against Manchester City last weekend.

“So first, Liam had a weird feeling in his knee and warm up after making a pass. Nobody’s really sure exactly what it is and he will need a scan. We’re hopeful, hopeful that it’s not a major issue, but we will see,” Marsch revealed after the game (via LeedsLive).

Cooper is currently ruled out of this weekend’s encounter by the Premier League Injuries website, run by Sky Sports injury expert Ben Dinnery.

Pascal can strike

The Scotsman’s return to the side coincided with an upturn in form, prior to their 4-0 defeat to the defending champions. He earned SofaScore ratings of 7.1 (vs Southampton), 7.6 (vs Watford) and 7.6 (vs Crystal Palace) in the three games before upon his comeback.

This is something emphasised by ex-Whites goalkeeper Paul Robinson, who told MOT Leeds News:

“You only have to look at when Cooper’s come back into the team when he and Kalvin Phillips kept two clean sheets. It’s not just his performances that are good but his leadership qualities are as well both on and off the field.”

If Cooper is absent again, Marsch is left in a tricky spot against an in-form Gunners side fighting for a top-four finish. However, it could be the perfect opportunity for Pascal Struijk to stake a claim heading into next season.

The 22-year-old seems like the best of the available options and the Whites will need to be cautious knowing that they are merely two points above Everton, who hold a game in hand heading into this weekend.

The 6 foot 3 titan is seen as something of a future star in west Yorkshire.

“He’s going to become a supreme centre-back,” once claimed LeedsLive reporter Beren Cross.

“He’s [Bielsa] worked with so many players in world football, and for him to say the things he’s saying about Pascal, it’s very, very exciting. Defenders don’t always get a very exciting press. It’s all about Raphinha, it’s all about Joe Gelhardt. But Pascal is the future. 

“And the longer he stays under the radar, the better, because he’s got the lot, to be honest.”

In terms of passing output, there isn’t a clearer option than Struijk, who averages a squad-high 85.5% accuracy rate, whilst none of the other Leeds centre-backs have averaged more tackles per game either (2.2), as per WhoScored.

Also dubbed a “beast” by journalist Joe Urquhart, the Belgium-born colossus is now valued at £18m by CIES Football Observatory, so Leeds have made quite a steal in signing him on a free transfer.

As such, it’s time to give him a prolonged presence in the starting XI, and without the towering Cooper, Struijk can step up and prove his worth to Marsch and the Elland Road faithful.

AND in other news, Leeds eyeing “unbelievable” £20m sensation with 25 G/A, he’s way better than Dan James…

Zimbabwe have included allrounders Malcolm Waller and Greg Lamb in their 15-man squad for the lone Test against Pakistan which starts on Thursday

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Aug-2011Zimbabwe have included allrounders Malcolm Waller and Greg Lamb in their 15-man squad for the lone Test against Pakistan which starts on Thursday. Injured medium-pacer Keegan Meth and allrounder Elton Chigumbura, who picked up a knee injury on match eve, are the only absentees from the squad which memorably beat Bangladesh earlier this month in Zimbabwe’s return to Tests after six years. Chamu Chibhabha was drafted into the side in place of Chigumbura.Lamb, 30, has played 14 one-dayers for Zimbabwe since his debut last year. He makes it to the Test pool after taking three wickets, including that of the experienced pair of Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan, in the tour match against the Pakistanis and following that up with a solid 40.Waller also had a decent outing against the Pakistanis, taking two tail-end wickets before making a brisk 32. He returned to the Zimbabwe set-up for the one-dayers against Bangladesh, after being sidelined for more than 20 months. He was also the fourth-highest run-getter last season in the Castle Logan Cup, Zimbabwe’s domestic first-class competition.Squad: Brendan Taylor (capt), Regis Chakabva, Chamu Chibhabha, Craig Ervine, Kyle Jarvis, Hamilton Masakadza, Tino Mawoyo, Chris Mpofu, Ray Price, Vusi Sibanda, Tatenda Taibu (wk), Prosper Utseya, Brian Vitori, Malcolm Waller, Greg Lamb

Former West Indies fast bowler Curtly Ambrose has been inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2011Former West Indies fast bowler Curtly Ambrose has been inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Joining Ambrose in 2011’s Hall of Fame class was an Australian trio of former allrounder Alan Davidson, former women’s captain Belinda Clark and the late fast bowler Frederick Spofforth.One of the finest bowlers of all time, Ambrose picked up 405 Test wickets at an average of 20.99 in a career that had remarkable performances. He took 6 for 24 to skittle England for 46 in Trinidad in 1993, and 7 for 25 against Australia at the WACA in 1993 to win the series for his side. He also played 176 ODIs, taking 225 wickets at an average of 24.12.”It is a privilege and an honour to be inducted in the Hall of Fame,” Ambrose said. “In the history of cricket there have been many great cricketers and to be part of that elite group, I’m very happy and very humbled.”I never thought that this day would come. This only tells me that all the hard work I put in throughout my career did not go unnoticed. I see this also as a just reward for all the joy and happiness that I may have brought to cricket and cricketers alike.”Ambrose, Davidson and Clark will be inducted during the ICC annual awards in London, while Spofforth will be inducted later next year in a ceremony involving the former fast bowler’s family.

In pushing India hard in the drawn first Test, New Zealand restored some pride after their hammering by Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Nov-2010There’s a reason why series between India and New Zealand on the subcontinent have seldom set pulses racing. There was an excellent series in 1969, when only rain thwarted the tourists in their quest for victory, and the contest nearly two decades later saw results in each of the three Tests. Since then though, a combination of placid pitches and ordinary attacks has conspired to produce seven draws in the last nine Tests.As at Mohali in 1999 [Dion Nash] and 2003 [Daryl Tuffey], a New Zealand pace bowler gave India an almighty scare but there simply wasn’t enough support to complete the task. It didn’t help that the pitch was another lifeless Motera special. Between them, Daniel Vettori and Jeetan Patel bowled 61 overs in the second innings, and the two wickets that they had to show for it came from two obvious umpiring mistakes.”We want to reflect on the positives and where we’ve been in terms of the tour of Bangladesh,” said Vettori after the game. “We’re happy with that, and content, but not satisfied that we couldn’t finish the job. There were a lot of factors for that – the wicket, bowlers not being able to penetrate on the last day and the fact that we had very limited resources.Hopefully, people will take out of it the improvement that we’ve shown. The key for us is to now take the same performance to Hyderabad.”Chris Martin reduced India to a weak-kneed 15 for 5 on the fourth afternoon, but was a far less threatening proposition on the final day. “He said he couldn’t feel his legs in the second session,” said Vettori. “He was hanging in there. He still bowled pretty well. On that fifth day, you want a couple of guys to have short, sharp spells and just keep attacking. Unfortunately, the nature of that wicket and our limited resources didn’t allow us to.”I’d have loved to see us with five bowlers. Hamish Bennett in short sharp spells, and Jesse Ryder would have been a bit of a handful. It would have meant that Jeetan and I could have attacked more as opposed to just bowling and bowling. Whenever you come to India, your concern is taking 20 wickets. We’ve done it once and we’ve got to improve on that.”The biggest gains for New Zealand though were in the batting department. After being embarrassed by Bangladesh’s spinners in a one-day series last month, they defied scoreboard pressure to get within a whisker of India’s first-innings 487. “We knew we needed to show some improvement,” said Vettori. “This wicket was a good one for us to start on. The fact that it was so slow allowed our batsmen to settle in. They got a good understanding of what they need to do to succeed over here. It is everyone’s first Test in India, apart from mine, so it’s a big learning curve. Hopefully, the amount of time the guys batted means they’ll be better for it come Hyderabad.”Having lost two early wickets and then slipped to 137 for 4, New Zealand counter-attacked brilliantly to ensure that India couldn’t just throw the bats around in search of a declaration. For Vettori, that was the most heartening aspect of the performance. “The way the guys stood up, starting with Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor’s partnership,” he said. “Obviously, Ryder and Kane Williamson scoring hundreds. In India, you need to score hundreds. It’s the way you put teams under pressure.”The way those two batted for such an extended period of time and understood the conditions was probably the most satisfying thing. It gave Martin a rest. We’ve said a few times: look what he can do when we give him some rest. He doesn’t get it that often. It showed what you can do over here if you build big partnerships and big totals.”Ryder and Williamson defied India for 281 minutes on the third day and the game was taken away from New Zealand by a similar partnership between Harbhajan Singh and VVS Laxman. “I think that’s where tail-end batting has got to these days,” said Vettori ruefully when asked about Harbhajan’s first hundred. “There’s not too many easy wickets any more. He played exceptionally well. He’s a good attacking batsman and he knows his areas. Some of the shots he played were outstanding and put us back under pressure.”The key in those situations for batsmen like Harbhajan is not to become defensive. He played his natural game and that put pressure back on us. If he’d blocked it, we could have attacked more. But he played so well and so aggressive that he took the game away from us.”As for Laxman, he’s been a familiar tormentor. At Mohali in 2003 and again in Napier last year, he scored hundreds with India precariously placed and though he missed out on three figures this time, Vettori’s admiration was apparent. “Laxman just did what he always does,” he said. “He scores runs. The good players play the same way no matter what the situation. That’s half the battle when you walk out under pressure. He knows his game. He puts the bad balls away and defends good balls. Anyone with that sort of experience and talent, when they come to the middle, you know it’s going to be difficult.”This may go down in the annals of New Zealand cricket as one that got away, but after coming into the series as underdogs, Vettori’s team went a long way towards restoring the plucky reputation that the country’s cricketers have always had. They now need to keep it going at Hyderabad, though for the sake of the game and his bowling arm, Vettori might hope to find a pitch that isn’t such a cadaver.

West Bromwich Albion have conceded their chances of getting promoted back into the Premier League next season after failing to sustain their charge for automatic promotion and slipping out of the play-off spots – the Baggies now currently lie in 13th in the Championship.

As a result, Steve Bruce will be working hard over the summer and next season to ensure that the Baggies can challenge again and hopefully secure promotion back into the top flight in their second season following relegation in 2021.

The Baggies boss has given an in-depth interview with The Express & Star this month on his plans for his revival of the team at The Hawthorns, with one player, in particular, being singled out as a key player for the future of West Brom.

Bruce has been full of praise for Taylor Gardner-Hickman and his progress in the team saying;

“He has done very, very, well for us in midfield. He’s young. He’s desperately eager to succeed. He is one of our own and that always goes down well.

“He has had a decent start to his career. And we’re looking at big things for next season.”

The 6 foot 1 ace who was hailed “menacing” and “a cut above the rest” by journalist Joe Ellis, has been in fine form since becoming a more consistent starter for his boyhood club in the Albion senior team this season.

Gardner-Hickman has won the majority of his ground duels (55%), is successful in the majority of his dribbles (53%) and has made 2.2 tackles, 0.7 key passes and 0.6 interceptions on average per game in his 19 Championship appearances, proving that he clearly has the potential to offer a lot to his team next season as they push for promotion.

The 20-year-old secured his long term future with the club by signing a contract back in December that extends his stay at the club for another four-and-a-half years, so judging by Bruce’s comments the plan is to fully integrate him into the team with the youngster able to offer his services in both a full-back and right midfield position.

There is no doubt the future is bright for Gardner-Hickman but the West Brom manager will have his work cut out to improve and rebuild the team following a disappointing season to inspire better quality performances and positive results next season to compete for their opportunity to climb out of the Championship.

AND in other news: Talks ongoing: WBA must swoop for “talented” £25k-p/w target who’d be a “big asset”