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Injured India batsman Manoj Tiwary has been replaced in the India squad for the Twenty20s against England by Ambati Rayudu

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Dec-2012Injured India batsman Manoj Tiwary has been replaced in the India squad for the Twenty20s against England by Ambati Rayudu. Tiwary’s injury was diagnosed as a side strain. He had picked up the injury, which will keep him out of action for six weeks, during a Ranji Trophy game on Sunday, while batting in Bengal’s first innings against Saurashtra.Rayudu, who has played for Baroda in the Ranji Trophy since the 2010-11 season, has had a prolific run this year, with scores of 64, 85, 10, 54, 1, 131 and 58 in his previous five games. A bit-hitting middle-order batsman, Rayudu did not have too much success on his last Twenty20 assignment: October’s Champions League T20, where he played for Mumbai Indians. But in IPL 2012, he was Mumbai Indians second-highest scorer behind Rohit Sharma, with 333 runs from 15 innings at a strike-rate of 132.14. He is yet to debut for India across formats.For Tiwary, who captains Bengal in the Ranji Trophy, this is a second setback in quick succession – he had suffered a wrist problem earlier in the season. When fit, he had shown some good form, scoring 191 against Gujarat, and also making 93 against England for the Board President’s XI last month.India play two Twenty20s against England, on December 20 and 22, and that is followed up by limited-overs series’ against Pakistan running into the first week of January. Later in January, England return for a one-day series.

Sri Lanka Cricket’s executive committee has recommended that the national selection panel be increased to five selectors, including two full-time selectors, when the sports minister names a new panel

Andrew Fernando22-Jan-2013Sri Lanka Cricket’s executive committee has recommended that the national selection panel be increased to five selectors, including two full-time selectors, when the sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage names a new panel at the end of the month. Sri Lanka’s present panel consists of three part-time selectors, with at least one usually accompanying the team for each series.”We thought [we should] create a greater diversity of opinion, it would be better to increase the number of selectors to five,” SLC CEO Ajit Jayasekara said. “At the moment the selectors have their own source of income, and having two full-time selectors should improve the selection process as well.”The new panel will likely be appointed for a period of a year, and one of their initial tasks will be to choose a new captain for the ODI and Test teams, after Mahela Jayawardene’s resignation from the post.Aluthgamage has spoken out in favour of a split captaincy after Sri Lanka’s 3-0 loss to Australia in the Test series. Aluthgamage has also expressed desire to build a distinct team for each format, and he may appoint a panel that shares his vision for the team. Under the sports law, the minister must also approve each selection before the team is finalised.”Whether or not to have a split captaincy is ultimately the selectors decision,” SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga said.SLC has forwarded the names of 11 candidates to the minister, from among whom the new selection panel will be appointed. Sri Lanka’s sports law dictates that the sports minister must appoint the selection panel.Current selectors, Ashantha de Mel, Don Anurasiri and Hemantha Wickremeratne are all on the SLC’s list, which also includes former players Hashan Tillakaratne and Mahes Goonatilleke.

Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand left-arm spinner, is unlikely to be fit in time for New Zealand’s home Test series against England, which begins on March 6

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2013Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand left-arm spinner, is unlikely to be fit in time for the home Test series against England, which begins on March 6. Vettori is recovering from an Achilles tendon strain, and hopes to return to Test cricket on New Zealand’s tour to England in May.While he could be playing competitive cricket in a month’s time, Vettori said he would not be able to play the long format right away. He told that he was targeting a March return to List A cricket: “I’m hoping to be available for selection for Northern Districts’ one-day campaign [that begins on February 28], and then whatever happens from there happens. I won’t be able to play any four-day cricket, so the Test matches against England may be a stretch for me.”That [New Zealand’s tour of England] is probably a more realistic goal, but Achilles are funny things, they come and go with the pain and I need to prove to not only the selectors, but myself, that I can manage back-to-back days of cricket. That’s the plan, but I’ll just see how I go.”Vettori suffered the Achilles problem on and off over the last year, and also picked up a groin injury during the tour of the West Indies in July-August. That groin injury kept him out of the India Test series that followed, but he made a comeback in the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka in September, where the Achilles heel injury recurred at the end of the group stage of matches. He missed the rest of the tournament and tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa subsequently, and is currently undergoing a four-month rehabilitation programme.Vettori said he was about “three-quarters of the way through” that programme. A New Zealand Cricket spokesperson reportedly backed that up, saying Vettori was progressing well and his fitness would be reassessed in two to three weeks before a decision is taken on his intended return to domestic cricket in March.

Paul Collingwood, Durham’s captain, has undergone surgery on a ruptured tendon in his right thumb but is expected to be fit for the start of the Championship season in April

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Feb-2013Paul Collingwood, Durham’s captain, has undergone surgery on a ruptured tendon in his right thumb but is expected to be fit for the start of the Championship season in April.The injury was sustained over the winter, although it was not operated on immediately, to allow the swelling time to settle down. Collingwood broke the same hand last season, causing him to miss the entire Friends Life t20, but he returned to lead Durham to four successive Championship wins and steer the club away from relegation.A club statement said: “Paul will have 10 days of complete rest and spend three weeks in a protective splint before commencing a rehabilitation programme which should see him fit for the start of the 2013 season.”Durham begin their first four-day match of the 2013 season against Somerset on April 10, with Collingwood due to commence his first full season as captain after succeeding Phil Mustard last July.

Auckland will decide the Test series after the final day at the Basin Reserve was abandoned without a ball bowled

Andrew McGlashan18-Mar-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsIt was nice weather for ducks at the Basin Reserve on Monday•AFP

Auckland will decide the Test series after the final day at the Basin Reserve was abandoned without a ball bowled. The final decision, which had looked likely from early morning as steady rain fell, came shortly after 2pm.The tail-end of Cyclone Sandra had arrived on cue during the fourth day and the weather was worse on the final morning, with low cloud and rain meaning that players from both teams returned to their hotels when it was clear there would be no action before lunch. Although the skies brightened around midday, the outfield had taken a lot of water and there was never really a big effort to clear the area.The umpires, Asad Rauf and Rod Tucker, had a couple of inspections during the afternoon and some of the players prodded around on the outfield without anyone looked particularly keen to get out there. Further rain then made the decision easy.In a flip of the situation in Dunedin, this time England will be frustrated and New Zealand relieved. Alastair Cook had enforced the follow-on on the third evening but his bowlers only managed two wickets in the second innings on a docile surface. Even without the assistance of the weather, the home side could have saved the match – their top-order put in a stubborn display in their second innings, led by Kane Williamson’s unbeaten half-century.England’s bowlers were not at their best second time around, having worked hard to remove New Zealand for 254, and the fast men were feeling the effects of back-to-back innings in the field. Monty Panesar, while steady, did not provide the wicket-taking threat that will have been hoped for although did create some difficulties out of the rough.Both teams will now travel north with an eager eye in the pitch, a drop-in, that will be prepared at Eden Park. Bowlers from both sides have been forced to labour during lengthy stints in the field and it is not inconceivable that some fresh legs will be needed for the final match.

Michael Lumb has warned that the omission of England-based players from IPL will encourage more to go freelance

Jon Culley29-Mar-2013Michael Lumb, who was one of three England cricketers barred by Nottinghamshire from taking part in the 2013 Indian Premier League, has admitted he considered going freelance rather than miss out on the opportunity to play in the most lucrative event on the growing Twenty20 circuit.After careful thought, the 33-year-old batsman, part of England’s successful T20 side in India and New Zealand over the winter, rejected the idea because he wants to achieve success with Nottinghamshire. But he believes others on the county circuit will choose not to seek full-season contracts if it rules them out of the IPL.”I think you will see more and more of that with the money being thrown round these leagues, especially among players who don’t see themselves playing Test cricket, if the English clubs don’t allow their players to go because it clashes with county fixtures,” Lumb said.”I think there is a mood among the players to change things so we do get the opportunity to play. If the rules can be done in such a way that we can take part, we’d like to play. But at the minute that’s not going to happen.”Lumb’s warning provides a clue to the strong debate taking place in private between the ECB and players’ representatives, led by the Professional Cricketers Association, over the rights of England players to compete in IPL rather than be persistently excluded.Lumb has played in the IPL twice before, notably with Rajasthan Royals in 2010, but along with Alex Hales and Samit Patel, he was told he could not put himself forward for the 2013 player auction because of the fixture clash between IPL 2013, which starts on April 3, and the County Championship, which begins seven days later.Nottinghamshire encourage their players to play competitive cricket during the English close season but were not prepared to lose three players at the start of the domestic programme. They had a contractual right to insist that their players were available for the full county season.”Our players can play wherever they want to between October 1 and April 10,” Nottinghamshire director of cricket Mick Newell said. “I’ve got no issues with that. We encourage our players to play abroad — Riki (Wessels) went to Bangladesh, Hales and Lumb to the Big Bash and Samit’s now got a gig in South Africa. But there has to be a point at which you say ‘no, we need all of our best players together now’.”With the English county season continuing until the last week of September, clashing dates mean that no English teams will participate in the Champions League this year. Lumb regards that as another contentious issue, especially after his own success with Big Bash side Sydney Sixers in last year’s Champions League, when his unbeaten 82 was the match-winning innings in the final.”Having no teams in the Champions League is a huge blow for English counties,” Lumb said. “I was part of it last year and I know it is a fantastic competition.”Playing the final at the Wanderers in Johannesburg was great for me because it allowed me to play in my home town and in front of my mum and dad, who had not seen me play for a while. But for any player to play before a full house in a stadium like that is a fantastic buzz.”As for the IPL, it is disappointing that we can’t be involved this year. I can see it may cause a bit of trouble in the future and it something the management and coaches need to sort out.”I don’t know how it will work or if there is a solution. I have thought about going freelance but for me it is not the right thing at the moment. I’m enjoying my cricket right now and enjoying being at Notts, with this group, and I want this group to have success, so for me it is not really an option. But I can see other players looking at it.”Lumb’s comments follow Matt Prior’s admission that England players are becoming ‘frustrated’ that central contracts restrict them to being available for only half the IPL because of the clash with Test fixtures. Prior, championed in England at least as the finest wicketkeeper-batsman in the world, but not a part of England’s T20 side, was given a base price of $200,000 dollars at the IPL auction but failed to attract a bid, leaving Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan as the only centrally contracted England players in the 2013 tournament.The Professional Cricketers’ Association is pressing the ECB to allow England players to play a fuller part in the event when their central contracts are renegotiated in October, although the ECB is thought unlikely to yield given its commitment to broadcast partners to put on seven Tests every summer. One solution to ease the burden – a six-Test summer – is only debated in private.Meanwhile, Newell admits he is worried that the likes of Lumb, Hales and Patel, who accepted the county’s hard line this year, might not always see his point of view.”It does concern me,” he said. “It is going to come up again regularly and it is an issue the counties have to address.”Next year, because there is a World t20, the IPL is going to start later and push more into our season, which means it is going to cross over the start of our new t20 competition. Somebody is going to have to have a look at that aspect too.”I think Hales is a bit young yet to be selling himself around the world but players who are 34 or 35 such as Owais Shah and Ryan ten Doeschate will just do that. And down the line Michael Lumb might want to do it as well.”

T&T are through to the finals after securing a seven-wicket victory over Jamaica. They will face Barbados in the final on May 9

ESPNcricinfo staff06-May-2013
ScorecardJamaica’s run of 15 straight first-class wins was finally brought to an end•WICB

Trinidad & Tobago held on to a three-wicket victory over five-time defending champions Jamaica in their semi final, and will proceed to the final on May 9 where they will play Barbados. It was a huge upset as it ended a run of 15 consecutive wins for Jamaica in the Caribbean first-class domestic competition.Jamaica chose to bat, and were 87 for 6 at one stage as the T&T bowlers bowled incisive spells. Carlton Baugh played the lone hand with an unbeaten 88, with Tamar Lambert scoring a vital 38. Last man Sheldon Cotterrell scored 44 to help boost Jamaica’s innings to 246. Marlon Richards took 5 for 46, while Imran Khan took two wickets.T&T lost opener Jeremy Solozano early through a run out, but Lendl Simmons and Yannick Cariah shared a 64-run partnership to help steady the innings. However T&T’s innings was kept in check by Nikita Miller, who finished the innings with figures of 5 for 41 in 23 overs. Contributions from Simmons (79), Cariah (26) and Akeal Hosein (24) helped push the T&T score to 170 before they were dismissed.Although they began with a lead of 76, Jamaica did not fare any better in their second innings, as Richards and Rayad Emrit struck to pick up three wickets each. Apart from a 39-run partnership between David Bernard and Baugh, who once again top-scored with an unbeaten 38, the team was shot out for 102, leaving T&T 179 runs to chase.Jamaica’s chase looked as good as over with the score at 73 for 6 but Imran Khan and Emrit ensured the team would make it to the target, albeit seven wickets down. Bernard waged a lone war, taking six of the seven T&T wickets, and was not helped by two dropped catches.”It was a fantastic effort. It was a real fight,” T&T manager Omar Khan told the after the match. “Down to the end the guys rally showed a lot of character. In the batting department we continue to struggle, but Imran Khan and young Katwaroo gave us a partnership (of 57) and we really fought.”And then Imran and Rayad Emrit. We knew we had batting to the end, but at the end of the day the guys have to be commended.”

After the high-scoring opening match in Cardiff, there was a low-scoring nail-biter at The Oval with West Indies securing a priceless two-wicket victory

The Report by Andrew McGlashan07-Jun-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsKemar Roach’s new ball spell set West Indies up for a good afternoon at The Oval•International Cricket Council

Whatever your persuasion when it comes to one-day cricket the Champions Trophy looks set to offer something for everyone. After the high-scoring opening match in Cardiff, there was a low-scoring nail-biter at The Oval with West Indies surviving major problems against Pakistan’s pace and spin combination to secure a priceless two-wicket victory.Amid a passionate, excitable crowd dominated by Pakistan support – this is arguably the closest they will get to a home crowd given their current situation – West Indies, who themselves used to have a vast following at The Oval in the 1970s and 1980s, threatened to throw away their outstanding work in the field with a nervous batting display. They eventually limped over the line with Denesh Ramdin and Kemar Roach at the crease: a wicketkeeper and a pace bowler, as it was in the darkness for the triumph in 2004.Perhaps aware that pushing and prodding was dangerous, Ramdin and Sunil Narine did not try to eke their way to the target after Dwayne Bravo, in his first match as captain, was lbw to Saeed Ajmal with 28 still required. The bold, and occasionally reckless, approach quickly sunk the requirement down to six only for Narine to edge Mohammad Irfan behind. A few tense deliveries followed until Roach, in the spirit of Ian Bradshaw, scythed a boundary over the off side.Pakistan’s bowlers, as they have regularly in the past, so nearly rescued their batsmen. Irfan’s bounce was intimidating, Wahab Riaz’s pace unsettling and Saeed Ajmal’s variations beguiling. But, after just two of their batsmen reached double figures – Misbah-ul-Haq ended unbeaten on a career-best 96 – they were just short of runs.Despite losing two early wickets against the towering Irfan, a partnership of 63 between Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels had made significant inroads into the chase and brought the requirement down below 100. Then a well-flighted doosra from Ajmal flummoxed Gayle as he tried to launch it over the leg side and Pakistan sensed their opening.Wahab, on the ground where he took a five-wicket haul on his Test debut in 2010, bowled with pace and controlled aggression throughout – occasionally nudging 90mph – and produced a lifting delivery which brushed Ramnaresh Sarwan’s edge.Samuels had unfurled a couple of the sparkling off-drives which lit up the previous English season, but when he charged at Mohammad Hafeez and was beaten by the drift the game had edged back in Pakistan’s favour.Kieron Pollard, shelving almost all his natural instincts apart from one straight blow for six, produced probably his most cautious one-day innings – taking 18 balls to get off the mark – alongside Bravo which changed the balance of power again. But Pollard was another batsman undone by pace and bounce as Kamran Akmal completed the fourth of his five dismissals and West Indies’ lower-order depth was severely tested.It was a fantastic match for those who enjoy their cricket with the ball holding sway. Roach knocked over the top of Pakistan’s batting with three wickets in his first four overs, leaving them 15 for 3, and Narine sparked another collapse in the middle order with six wickets falling for 33.Either side of those wobbles, Nasir Jamshed and Misbah repaired a lot of the early damage with a fourth-wicket stand of 90, only for it to be wastefully given away amid rash shots and run outs from the lower order. Only Irfan, at No. 11, showed the common sense to try and stay with his captain but could not quite help him to a maiden one-day hundred.During the tense finish, the 32 runs added for the last wicket were shaping as vital, as was the let-off Misbah received before he had scored which did not cast Ramdin in a glowing light. It was not just a simple dropped chance; Ramdin initially gathered the inside edge which would have given Roach his fourth wicket but in falling to his left the ball escaped his gloves.Although it was clearly grounded, Ramdin then rolled the ball to the square-leg umpire and claimed the catch. Perhaps he was unaware of the Law that the fielder has to also be in control of the release – and not just the catch – but it did not look good for Ramdin on replays.If the chance had been cleanly taken, Pakistan would have been 17 for 4. Roach roughed up their top order with an outstanding six-over spell which had begun by removing Imran Farhat in the opening over. Hafeez was bowled by a full, straight delivery which he played around and then Asad Shafiq, suckered in by some extra bounce, cut to third man. By now, Bravo was responding with the “attacking” brand of cricket he promised by setting fields that included three slips, a short leg and a leg gully.Mishab took 14 balls to score – not that he gets flustered by such issues – and when he burst out of his shell with a straight six off Pollard, Pakistan were beginning to prosper for the first time. But it all began to unravel again when Jamshed, two balls after reaching a grafting fifty, picked out long-off. Three deliveries later Shoaib Malik – surrounded by close fielders – chipped to short midwicket and Akmal became Narine’s third when he edged a cut. Despite Misbah’s resilience, and the skills of his bowlers, it was a costly collapse.

Channel Nine will not be picking Australia’s teams nor dictating their schedule over the term of the network’s new $400 million broadcast deal, James Sutherland said

Daniel Brettig19-Jun-2013Channel Nine will not be picking Australia’s cricket teams nor dictating their schedule over the term of the network’s new $400 million broadcast rights deal, Cricket Australia’s chief executive James Sutherland has said.Having been pushed to the top of the market by a bold Network Ten bid for all cricket in Australia, Nine clearly expect value for money. Their managing director Jeff Browne told a business lunch in Sydney on Wednesday that there would be “a lot more discussion” of team selection and scheduling between CA and the broadcaster from next summer, particularly around the matter of player rotation.”I understand why sports want to do that but people at home want to see the best players playing and we urge Cricket Australia to pick the best players every time,” Browne said. “I think we’ve got a better understanding on that. Last year that balance was skewed too much in favour of resting some players so from now on there will be a lot more discussion between CA and the broadcaster about that.”The issue of senior Australian players being rested and rotated during the limited overs portion of the summer was a particular sore point with Nine last season. ESPNcricinfo reported in January that the CA team performance manager Pat Howard had two meetings with Nine’s director of sport Steve Crawley and members of the commentary team during the Sydney Test to explain why Michael Clarke, David Warner and Matthew Wade were to be rested and Michael Hussey dropped.Browne was clearly of the view that such discussions would become more consultative than merely explanatory in the future, but Sutherland was adamant that the national selectors would not be unduly influenced by the commercial demands of broadcasters, no matter how much they were paying to provide television coverage.”Cricket has a long-standing and successful relationship with the Nine Network but team selections and scheduling are matters for Cricket Australia,” Sutherland said. “The National Selection Panel selects the Australian teams. With the volume of international cricket being played, it will continue to be necessary for us to manage player workloads appropriately.”We’ll continue to consult with our broadcasters on scheduling issues. It’s something we have always done. We have a common goal with our broadcast partners to maximise the number of fans watching and enjoying cricket. We’ll consider all ideas and then make the appropriate decisions.”Following the Sydney meetings, Nine and CA were engaged in a public slanging match after the stand-in ODI captain George Bailey responded to suggestions he was leading a “B-team” by contending that it was in Nine’s interests to talk the game down somewhat as it entered broadcast negotiations. This drew a furious response from the network’s executive producer of cricket, Brad McNamara.”Nowhere has Channel Nine ever talked the one-day game down, nowhere have we ever said this is a ‘B team’,” McNamara told an Australian radio station. “It’s rubbish and George should stick to playing cricket and leave rights to the people who know what they’re talking about. I reckon he’s got his hands full as it is. He needs to concentrate on staying in the side.”And he needs to understand where his money’s coming from. Without the TV rights deal, George is probably working in a coal mine or flipping burgers at McDonald’s. All this talk about the death of one-day cricket, it’s not coming from us. Given we were lacking star quality, we were very happy [with the ratings].”At the announcement of the broadcast deal, Nine’s chief executive David Gyngell had rejected suggestions the network would seek assurances that rotations would be reduced. “No, I don’t have those political discussions with James,” he said. “I don’t agree with the rotation policy, but not enough to not buy the cricket. That’s up to James to sort out.”

Darren Maddy stole the show with a thunderous display to take Warwickshire home in a tough run chase

12-Jul-2013
ScorecardDarren Maddy needed just 42 balls for his unbeaten, matchwinning 84•Getty Images

Varun Chopra completed a match-winning double for the week as Warwickshire finally registered their first Friends Life t20 victory of the summer as they beat Worcestershire by seven wickets at New Road.Captaining the side in the absence of the injured Jim Troughton, Chopra made 65 from 52 balls in an impressive follow-up to his double century in overcoming Middlesex in the LV= County Championship at Uxbridge.Facing a Worcestershire total of 188 for 5 – built around by Moeen Ali’s 85 against his former county – Warwickshire got home with an over to spare as veteran Darren Maddy managed to outshine Chopra.The 39-year-old all-rounder, who retires at the end of the season, turned the clock back to his early career with Leicestershire in racing to an unbeaten 84 from 42 balls. He hit nine fours and three sixes, one of which hit a woman spectator on the head.Yet it could have been different but for a let-off when Chopra was on 10, wicketkeeper Ben Cox missing a clear opportunity to run him out when failing to knock off the bails. The cost mounted as the third pair put on 119 in 12 overs, a Warwickshire record for any wicket in the competition, before Chopra was caught at backward squad leg.The result was tough on Moeen after a superb knock, including nine fours and four sixes in front of a sell-out crowd of 4,200. He faced 42 balls in scooting to a competition-best score and was denied another six only when Laurie Evans pulled down an overhead chance at long-off.Even with Moeen gone, Worcestershire took 59 from the final five overs, largely the work of Andre Russell, the big-hitting West Indian dashing to an unbeaten 47 from 21 deliveries.Russell crashed five fours and three sixes in his best innings since joining the county for the tournament and in the field he gave his side an early boost when holding a superb running catch from William Porterfield.But Worcestershire could not contain the irrepressible Maddy and Chris Woakes finished the job with six fours in an unbeaten 28 from nine balls. The last 20 runs were cleared off in an over from Jack Shantry.