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Somerset’s Nick Compton scored 99 against his former county but Middlesex fought hard to stay in the game on day three

David Lloyd at Taunton07-Apr-2012
ScorecardIf winning the County Championship was easy then Somerset, presumably, would have managed it at least once in their long history. And if promotion from Division Two was followed, automatically, by relegation there would not have been much point in Middlesex turning up.Happily, nothing is automatic, especially in early season. But three days of this absorbing contest have produced enough evidence to suggest Somerset are prepared to graft their way into positions of strength when necessary and to indicate that Middlesex will be no one’s easy touch as they seek to re-establish themselves at the top table after five seasons of second-tier cricket.Somerset have enough stroke-players to dazzle any attack. In this match, though, it was the patience of Nick Compton (six-and a-half -hours and 312 balls for 99) that proved crucial in establishing what could still be a potentially decisive first-innings lead of 104. Dejected though Compton was at missing out on a century against his former county, he has played a vital role.True, if Marcus Trescothick, James Hildreth or Jos Buttler had hit their straps then the hosts would have roared ahead much earlier. But they did not and, thanks in no small part to the disciplined lines and lengths bowled by the visitors, even Craig Kieswetter had to be more circumspect than usual.England’s one-day wicketkeeper, who should have been run out cheaply on the second day, did threaten to break loose with some crunching straight drives. But the second new ball ended his innings on 83 when Corey Collymore found an outside edge that just carried to slip.Even before Kieswetter’s dismissal Somerset seemed to have shelved any thoughts of chasing a fourth, never mind fifth, batting bonus point. And following his exit, stretching the lead was the only thought in Compton’s mind.The fourth-wicket stand with Kieswetter was worth 152 – 144 more than would have been the case had Joe Denly’s run-out attempt on the second evening succeeded. But if that miss nagged away at Middlesex (and it must have done) they did not let it show. And nor did their heads drop when Compton was reprieved, first on 76 and then again at 81.Dawid Malan’s spill at slip, off Tim Murtagh, might be excused by the fact he had taken a blow on the fingers just a few balls earlier. And Neil Dexter’s inability to hit the stumps from mid-off when Compton went for a silly single was perhaps down to early season rust.Middlesex will need to take chances like the three spurned here more often than not if they are to prosper. The spirit is certainly willing, though. Compton, who left Lord’s in 2010, denied himself a century against his ex-employers by pulling a short ball from Toby Roland-Jones to midwicket but the visitors were quick to charge through the gap created by his exit – and 333 for 6 soon became 350 all out.The day still just about belonged to Somerset. But if home supporters thought the match would be in their pockets by close of play then more Middlesex resilience, plus early evening rain, scuppered that plan.Vernon Philander and Steve Kirby quickened pulses with wonderfully challenging new-ball spells that saw plenty of playing and missing. But only Denly succumbed during the 18 overs possible, pinned lbw by Kirby who also had Sam Robson dropped by Marcus Trescothick at second slip.Middlesex are still 66 behind but they have earned the right to fight another day.

Colin Graves, whose uncompromising approach to leadership was made abundantly clear this week when he told Ajmal Shahzad that his Yorkshire career was over, is strengthening his day-to-day involvement with Yorkshire.

David Hopps04-May-2012Colin Graves, whose uncompromising approach to leadership was made abundantly clear this week when he told Ajmal Shahzad that his Yorkshire career was over, is strengthening his day-to-day involvement with Yorkshire.Graves will take up the role of executive chairman, an amalgamation of his existing role as chairman and the vacant chief executive post which will now not be advertised as planned. A county that takes pride in its preference for straight talking will now get a lot more of it.Yorkshire’s financial survival has been largely dependent upon the generosity of Graves, who sold the last of his shares in Costcutter in November last year, a business he grew from scratch in 1986 into a national chain of supermarkets.He was offered the role of non-executive chairman at Costcutter, but has opted instead to become more hands on at Headingley. A more driven and demanding management style is now inevitable and Yorkshire, mired in debt and short off on-field success, needs as much energy and focus as it can get.Graves has been a board director at Yorkshire since 2002 when, as a member of the so-called Gang of Four, he assumed control of the club’s finances, which were in a dire position. Since then the ground has been upgraded, although in the case of the new pavilion controversially, and international cricket has been secured in a long-term deal.He will now work in a full-time capacity at Headingley in a salaried position and also retains his position on the ECB management board..Graves said: “I’m excited about taking on the joint role of chief executive and chairman at the Club. I’ve resigned as chairman of Costcutter and sold my shares and it was time to leave that business and look for pastures new. I’ve been more involved over the last few months and really enjoyed it.”There are ups and downs, as in any business, but we’ve now got a solid base and platform with international cricket at Headingley under our staging agreement with the ECB until 2019. Consequently we’ve got a robust business model to take forward, but there are some areas we can improve in and I’m looking forward to working hard to steer the club forward.”Under Graves, Yorkshire are unlikely to indulge in too much soft focus and his uncompromising management style will be depicted in some quarters as a throwback. But strong, day-to-day leadership in Yorkshire cricket has often been lacking as the county has repeatedly failed to punch its worth and will benefit from a clear sense of where the real authority lies.

With England leaving out three frontline bowlers for the final one-day international against West Indies the issue the issue of rotation has again been brought to the fore

Andrew McGlashan20-Jun-2012With England leaving out three frontline bowlers for the final one-day international against West Indies the issue of rotation has again been brought to the fore. It has ignited the debate about whether the game is being cheapened, especially for those who have paid considerable amounts for tickets to the match at Headingley.Stuart Broad, Tim Bresnan and Graeme Swann – the three players missing Friday’s ODI – are the only first-choice picks across all three formats for England following Kevin Pietersen’s limited-overs retirement and Ian Bell, who is now back in the 50-over side as Pietersen’s replacement, understands that some of the public will be disappointed at not seeing a number of the star names.”Of course, I have some sympathy,” said Bell. “It has slightly weakened our attack, but I still think it is a team that can go out and beat West Indies. There’s no doubt people want to come to see the Broads, Andersons and Bresnans. But they will be seeing young, exciting guys who will be big players for England over the next few years.”Andy Flower, the England coach, has been firm in his explanations of why he is taking such an approach which included resting Broad and James Anderson from the final Test against West Indies. With England facing another five ODIs against Australia, followed by a full series in all formats against South Africa, then another hectic away season he believes that key players cannot play every match.Bell agreed there was a balance to strike. “There’s a heavy schedule coming up,” he said. “We need to look after these guys. The key to our success in one-day cricket is having five out-and-out world-class bowlers. So if we want to beat the Australians, we want these guys fit and fresh and ready to go. For the three guys who play in all three forms of the game … it’s going to be crucial.”So far this season it has only been the bowlers or allrounders who have been rested although Andrew Strauss was among the first players given time off by Flower when he missed the Bangladesh tour in early 2010.Although Bell sees the merits of rotation for the bowlers he has no desire for any downtime himself, especially after hitting a rich run of form which has seen him return to ODI colours with scores of 126 and 53. One of the major reasons behind England’s defeat against Pakistan earlier this year was the rustiness of the batsmen after a two-month break, with Bell suffering particularly badly in the UAE, and he does not want to risk a repeat.”Going into the UAE series, we’d had two or three months off – and I felt I’d lost my rhythm completely,” he said. “So batting-wise, for me if I’m batting the better I play. It’s out of my control if Andy was to give me a game off. But personally, from a batting point of view, if I’m out in the middle scoring runs, I want to stay scoring runs – definitely.”

Surrey’s captain, Rory Hamilton-Brown has taken indefinite compassionate leave and stepped down temporarily as Surrey captain following the death of his team mate Tom Maynard last month in an accident on the London underground.

David Hopps03-Jul-2012Surrey’s captain, Rory Hamilton-Brown has taken indefinite compassionate leave and stepped down temporarily as Surrey captain following the death of his team mate Tom Maynard last month in an accident on the London underground.Hamilton-Brown has been deeply affected by the death of Maynard, who he shared a house with and who had been a close friend since their days at Millfield School. He tried to return for Surrey’s Friends Life t20 match against Hampshire at West End on Sunday but found the experience too much to bear.He said: “I have decided to take a break from cricket. I am grateful to the club for their support and understanding of my decision and I look forward to returning to the game where I will hope to contribute and take forward my form of recent seasons.”The death of Maynard, whose funeral is on Wednesday, has caused considerable grief as well as some reflection among the Surrey squad. He had been with some Surrey team mates shortly before he was stopped by police shortly before dawn in Wimbledon for “driving erratically” whereupon he fled the scene. He died from electrocution on he District Line less than an hour later.Richard Gould, Surrey’s chief executive, stated: “Tom’s death has affected many people, and he and Rory were great friends. Rory now needs some time out, and the club is keen to provide whatever support we can.”Rory has performed very well both as captain and as one of our leading players over the last three years, and we look forward to him returning when the time is right. The club would also like to express its appreciation for the support provided by the PCA over the last two weeks.”Hamilton-Brown will be replaced as captain by Gareth Batty, who has led the side in recent Friends Life t20 matches. Batty faces a challenging task in holding together the season for a young Surrey squad which, particularly in the case of Hamilton-Brown, has found a return to cricket hard to bear.

Sam Billings hit the highest ever one-day total by a Kent player at Canterbury and Darren Stevens snared five wickets

12-Aug-2012
ScorecardSam Billings hit the highest ever one-day total by a Kent player at Canterbury and Darren Stevens snared five wickets in 19 balls to ease the Spitfires to an emphatic 111-run win over Derbyshire.In front of their second best crowd of the summer, Kent wrapped up their 161st Canterbury Week with their fourth win of the Group C campaign secured with 56 balls to spare. Billings’ innings of 143 helped the hosts on their way to a score of 248 for 6, before Stevens took centre stage with the ball to help bowl out Derbyshire for 137.Batting first after losing the toss, Kent suffered two early blows on possibly the hottest day of the season at the St Lawrence ground. Home skipper Rob Key fell for a five-ball duck when he pushed tentatively at a Tim Groenewald leg-cutter to snick one low to Wes Durston at slip.Then, having faced only three balls, Sam Northeast also went without scoring when he departed leg before after playing across a full-length ball from Mark Turner that made it 16 for two.The situation might have worsened had keeper Tom Poynton held on to a diving, one-glove chance to his left from Steven’s first-ball glance, but Poynton could only parry the chance for four to allow the Kent right-hander to get off the mark.Stevens helped steady the Kentish ship with Billings in a third-wicket stand of 85 in 15.3 overs that ended when Stevens dragged one on to leg stump against Chesney Hughes to go for 40 and spark a secondary mini-collapse.Azhar Mahmood hit 8 before he holed out against Peter Burgoyne then Alex Blake, with three to his name, nicked a drive to the keeper off the same bowler to leave Kent in trouble at 123 for 5.That was the cue for 21-year-old Billings to move into top gear. He eased to his 50 from 46 balls then cut loose with an array of shots, the majority of which were orthodox, yet some were impish and improvised in the fashion of another wiry Kent gloveman, the legendary Alan Knott.Sweeping wristily, driving on the up and chipping the ball to all parts, Billings reached his first century for Kent, off a misfield to backward point, from 97 balls and with 11 fours.He really cut loose when in tandem with Geraint Jones as the two wicketkeepers added 117 in 14.1 overs. Billings was so dominant that his senior partner Jones contributed only 38 to their hundred stand.With 143 to his name come the final over of the innings, Billings went all guns blazing for his 150 but missed out with an attempted Dilscoop over fine leg to be bowled. He left to a standing ovation after 113 balls and with 17 fours and a six.Needing 6.22 an over for an unlikely win, Derbyshire were already up against it after a tight opening spell from Mark Davies of 3 for 25.Any lingering hopes were completely blown away when Darren Stevens replaced Davies at the Nackington Road End to bag 5 for 36 – including a 19-ball purple patch of 5 for 7 that eased Kent to victory.

Tim Southee, the New Zealand fast bowler, has said his team cannot be counted out of the Jamaica Test just yet

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Aug-2012Tim Southee, the New Zealand fast bowler, has said his team cannot be counted out of the Jamaica Test just yet. Following a dramatic collapse on day three, in which New Zealand slipped from 56 for 2 to 154 all out, West Indies were left chasing a target of 206. New Zealand did nip out four wickets by stumps but, by then, the hosts needed only 71 more with six wickets in hand to sweep the series 2-0.”Look at the last couple of mornings, [there have been] been wickets early; if we can grab [Shivnarine] Chanderpaul early, and a couple of others, we’ll be right back into it,” Southee said. “If we do manage to pull it off, it’ll be a very memorable win.”After two early losses in the chase, West Indies consolidated through a partnership of 74 between Assad Fudadin and Marlon Samuels. First-innings centurion Samuels had followed up with another half-century, but the pair was dismissed in the final session. Getting Samuels gave New Zealand a boost, Southee said. “Samuels is one of the best batsmen in the series, especially in this game anyway. To get Marlon, when he’s batting well and [after he] got a decent start, it was a great time to pick one up.”New Zealand’s meek collapse, Southee admitted, was a letdown. “Obviously, there [aren’t as] many runs as we’d like to play with. The batsmen knew that they’d sort of let that one slip.”West Indies, giving them credit, they came out and bowled extremely well in the morning and a few shots there, that our batters played, weren’t ideal.”New Zealand had looked to be ahead in the match, after bowling West Indies out for 209 in their first innings to secure a 51-run lead, that too without two of their most experience bowlers, Daniel Vettori and Chris Martin. Their four-pronged pace attack – Southee, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult and Doug Bracewell – clicked, sharing all ten wickets among them and again, on the third day, each of the four picked up a wicket apiece.Southee said it felt good working in tandem with the other bowlers. “You’d always like to get more wickets [but] if you’re not getting the wickets, somebody else’s going to get them. With the four bowlers there, I think we’ve all bowled pretty well at times and chipped in.”It’s just [about] doing your job and if it gets you a wicket at the other end, then you are just as happy as you are if you get a wicket.”

Tim Southee and Rob Nicol have been hit by gastro and will not be able to travel with the New Zealand team to Kandy for their opening match

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Sep-2012New Zealand’s World Twenty20 squad have been hit by some serious bouts of gastro, with the fast bowler Tim Southee and the batsman Rob Nicol too ill to travel with the team from Colombo to Kandy ahead of their opening match against Bangladesh, New Zealand Cricket has confirmed.Southee felt unwell on Monday morning, and was unable to take part in New Zealand’s warm-up loss to South Africa. Nicol was ill overnight and it was decided that neither he nor Southee should accompany the team on the journey to Kandy.Instead, both have remained in Colombo under the observation of the New Zealand team doctor. Southee has been taken to hospital to be treated for signs of dehydration.”Southee reported to medical staff that he felt unwell yesterday morning,” New Zealand cricket said in a statement. “He was not able to attend the warm-up match against South Africa and subsequently displayed symptoms associated with gastro-enteritis.”Nicol was sick over-night and could not travel comfortably this morning so also remain in Kandy under observation of the team doctor. Because Southee showed signs of dehydration it has been decided that he will receive re-hydration treatment at the local hospital.”If sufficient improvements are made today the pair will travel to Kandy this afternoon.””We’re pretty diligent in how we go about things but we can’t contain everything,” New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said. “I think they’ll be up either tonight or first thing in the morning, it’s just precautionary.”The spin bowler Daniel Vettori, meanwhile, has also suffered from stomach trouble but has recovered sufficiently to travel with the rest of the squad. “Dan’s still pretty low in terms of energy levels but getting back up,” Hesson added.Their match against Bangladesh will take place on Friday.

Marlon Samuels walked into the post-final press conference with the serious air of a man who had suffered and had come back to script an achievement so rare and so stunning that a jaunty expression might belittle his accomplishment

Abhishek Purohit in Colombo08-Oct-2012Marlon Samuels walked into the post-final press conference with the serious air of a man who had suffered and had come back to script an achievement so rare and so stunning that a jaunty expression might belittle his accomplishment. About the only time he broke into bit of a smile was when he spoke about taking on Lasith Malinga.Samuels has had a mercurial career, having also been banned for two years in 2008 for actions that could bring him or the game into disrepute. He spoke of how difficult a time it had been. “The career has been up and down,” Samuels said. “There have been a lot of tough times. I dealt with them in simple ways and tried to let them pass. Being under pressure on a cricket field is nothing compared to what I’ve been through off the field.”As my mentor always said to me, everything that happened to me in life is because I’m important. I’m not someone that will ever give up. I never say die. The person that I am deep down inside is the reason why I am still here playing cricket. I have a family that believes in me. If outsiders don’t, it doesn’t really matter to me.”Samuels said the World Twenty20 triumph had shown to the world that West Indies cricket was back, and hoped that would bring back a lot of fans to watch the team. “We haven’t been winning any major title for years now,” Samuels said. “This is a great achievement, for past cricketers and for these cricketers who have bonded together to form a strong unit.””In the past, we had some near misses but nevertheless, God willing, we came out on top. This is T20, but it can bring a lot of fans to watch us. Around the world, people still love to watch West Indies cricket. It is wonderful to bring back new people and people who have been watching cricket for a long time.”We will celebrate as long as possible and enjoy the moment. This is a moment to cherish, and cherish forever. The entire Caribbean embraces it [the trophy]. The sky is the limit and words can’t really explain it. It means the world to us.”Samuels was almost single-handedly responsible for West Indies getting to 137 for 6 after they had been 32 for 2 at the halfway mark. Half of his 78 runs came in just 11 deliveries against Lasith Malinga, who he hit for five sixes and a four. “I was waiting there for someone to come and build a partnership,” Samuels said. “Since that did not happen, I decided to take on Malinga. From last night, I was playing Malinga in my mind and I decided to take him on.”I only faced him one time [in the IPL] in the first game against Mumbai [Indians], and he got me out bowled,” Samuels said. “I was very upset. This was my time today to get back at him.”Once West Indies had got close to 140, Samuels was confident of their chances. “Having batted most of the overs on the pitch, my advice was that it was still a challenging total,” he said. “The pitch was a tough one. As long as we could get some quick wickets and put the pressure on Sri Lanka, it would work in our favour.”

Lions consolidated their position at the top of the table by beating Cobras. Warriors and Dolphins are still looking for points after their game was washed out

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2012
ScorecardLions increased the gap between them and the rest with a third consecutive win in the Momentum One Day Cup, beating Cape Cobras by 19 runs at Newlands. It was their hardest-fought win yet.After choosing to bat on a slightly difficult pitch, Lions made a positive start, reaching 65 for 0 and then 101 for 2 in the 23rd over. It was then that Gulam Bodi, whose 45 was eventually the innings’ top score, was run out by Justin Ontong. Lions lost two more wickets for 22 runs and their momentum was shot. Temba Bavuma and Zander de Bruyn made 30s but were dismissed before converting their starts into substantial scores. Johann Louw and Justin Kemp took two wickets each for Cobras as Lions were restricted to 248 for 9.The Cobras chase got off to a swift start, with Richard Levi leading the way. Andrew Puttick’s struggle – 13 off 32 balls – ended in the 10th over, and then Levi was dismissed in the next, leaving Cobras on 55 for 2. From 99 for 2 they slipped further to 158 for 6 in the 36th over, with none of the top and middle-order batsmen making significant contributions. However, the equation boiled down to 47 runs to get off 40 balls with four wickets in hand, and Cobras were in the game. Ethan O’Reilly then struck the telling blow, Kemp caught behind for 24, and Cobras were eventually dismissed for 229. O’Reilly finished with 3 for 61, but the Lions spinner Aaron Phangsio proved most economical, taking 1 for 31 in ten overs.Despite maintaining their 100% win record, Lions captain Stephen Cook asked for improvement from his side. “We probably didn’t play as well as we have the last few games,” he said. “Perhaps we were a tad lucky to get over the line at the end, but that keeps everyone honest and working hard at their game.”The Cobras captain Ontong was disappointed with his team’s batting. “I thought we didn’t get a partnership going and, although a couple of the guys got starts, we just couldn’t really kick on,” he said. “We’ve got to do some hard work now and get some wins under our belts.”Cobras are third in the points table with one win in three games.Match abandoned
ScorecardOnly 17 overs were possible at Kingsmead before rain washed out the game between Dolphins and Warriors. After getting sent in to bat, Dolphins had reached 67 for 2, with Makhaya Ntini and Wayne Parnell striking for Warriors.Neither team has won a match in the tournament so far and they are at the bottom of the points table.

Ricky Ponting reflects on his 17-year career after playing his final Test, against South Africa in Perth

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Dec-2012.Ricky Ponting: “Even out of today, just being at the crease for 20-odd balls, it’s a pretty special time, and anyone who’s retired has felt that as well.”•AFP

The finality sinking in: That it’s [career] over has sunk in. It’s been a pretty long, tough week I guess, I know I’ve been more nervous this game than any other game that I’ve played. Just for the reason how much it means for me to play for Australia and wanting to finish the right way. So it has been a hard week and we haven’t got the result we were after and I haven’t got the result I was after. Looking back it’s been a special week as well, having my whole family here’s been great, unbelievable support from them, and great support from the fans and from my team-mates, so it’s been a special week.Why it was time to finish: Excluding Brisbane and the start of Adelaide, when I got a pretty good ball, I just think I’ve put a lot of pressure on myself to perform knowing that I had to, or feeling within myself that I had to. Also knowing where the series was at, it’s always been about big games and big series for me, and getting off the start I did with those two innings just had me under pressure again, and I haven’t been able to deal with it as well of late as I’d have liked to. Normally for me when those big moments come around, I’ve been able to find something within and go out and score runs and make it all go away, but I haven’t been able to do that for a while now, and that was when the alarm bells started to ring.The guard of honour and the final ovation: I got my big ovation today, but Graeme’s gesture and the South African team’s gesture, that sort of stuff will remain with me forever, and I told him that on the field today. So that was special. I was pretty pumped up for the moment, I just felt there was one last big push from me, and the game and the day was set up for it, and it didn’t last long enough. Even out of today, just being at the crease for 20-odd balls, it’s a pretty special time, and anyone who’s retired has felt that as well. It just would’ve been nice to have a few next to my name coming off.On the supreme batsmen of his era: I felt Sachin was the best player I played against, and that’s coming from more of a captain’s point of view as well, knowing he had so much success against us in our conditions and their conditions. But the other way to look at it is, I probably lost more sleep on the eve of games against Lara, because I knew he could singlehandedly win games for his team. The way I judge players has always been on their ability to win games, and win games by themselves. Lara could certainly do that and he did it probably more than what Sachin’s done for India. It’s hard to separate the class of player – you’ve got to put Kallis in that bracket as well. You put his wickets on top of what he’s done with the bat. He came out the other day to bat and I looked at the board and he was averaging 57 in Test cricket. That’s remarkable considering the amount he’s had to bowl and all that sort of stuff. I’ve been pretty blessed to play in the era I’ve played with so many great batsmen, and if my name gets mentioned among them, then that’s great.On the best bowlers he faced: I think Curtly Ambrose and Wasim Akram were probably the two outstanding quicks that I faced, and for different reasons. Ambrose for his ability to just make you feel like you couldn’t score off him for long periods of time, never felt like he was going to bowl you a bad ball. Akram for the exact opposite, you could get a few runs off him, but you just knew there was an unplayable ball around the corner, be it with an old ball or with a new ball. And thankfully for me I probably got both of those guys towards the end of their careers as well. Those two, and Harbhajan’s probably the other one who caused me as much grief as anything. He got me out a lot of times, and caused me a lot of grief. Those guys through their careers can all put their hand up and say they had my measure.On what he’ll miss: I’ll miss the mateship, I’ll miss the dressing room. That’s the stuff that’s irreplaceable in your life I guess. There’s a lot of guys in there I’m very close to, and a lot of the guys I’ve been closest to over the years are no longer around the dressing room either. I guess that’s the upside, I’ll probably get to spend a bit more time with those guys who I’ve played most of my cricket with, but the get-up attitude and find a way to make yourself better and try to find a way to make your team-mates better is what I’ll miss.