James Harris, the most sought-after player of the winter in county cricket, is one of four uncapped players in England’s provisional 30-strong squad for the Champions Trophy.

David Hopps04-Apr-2013James Harris, the most sought-after player of the winter in county cricket, is one of four uncapped players in England’s provisional 30-strong squad for the Champions Trophy.But once again England remain determinedly opposed to Matt Prior’s return to one-day international cricket as the Sussex wicketkeeper batsman does not even make the 30 despite a series of attacking displays for England in the Test arena.His one-day record is mediocre, although arguably he is a much superior player these days. Measured against that was the desire of England’s selectors to follow a consistent path and, as much as they desire a first England win in a major ICC 50-over event, to leave Prior to concentrate on reaching the start of the Ashes series in perfect fettle.Prior made a bristling unbeaten hundred in the Auckland Test to give England a face-saving draw against New Zealand last month, and a share of the series, but it has not swayed the conviction of England’s selectors that Jos Buttler or Craig Kieswetter offer better options in the 50-over format.Harris will be one of the most eagerly-studied players in early season as he seeks to make a big impression with his new county, Middlesex, who won the battle for his transfer fought out by a dozen counties after he left struggling Glamorgan.Harris is joined in the squad by the Warwickshire opening batsman, Varun Chopra, Yorkshire’s belligerent middle-order batsman Gary Ballance, and the Warwickshire seam bowler, Chris Wright.Although none of the four have strong chances of making the cut when the final 15 is named by the May 5 deadline, the long list is nevertheless more intriguing than the conservative list of 30 players announced earlier this week in the England Performance squad.Geoff Miller, the national selector, said: “This is a balanced squad which will provide the selectors with strong options in all areas and reflects players’ performances for both the senior England teams and the England Lions and EPP squads over the winter period.”With this country hosting the tournament for the first time since 2004, there will be every incentive for England to perform well and we anticipate intense competition for places in our final squad which will be named early next month.”England have never won a 50-over trophy at a major ICC event. The Champions Trophy features the best eight ODI teams in 15 matches between June 6-23 at The Oval, Edgbaston and Cardiff.With just over two months until the opening game in Cardiff, additional tickets for all 15 matches will go on general sale at 10.30am on Monday 8 April, via icc-cricket.com or 0844 249 2013.England provisional squad for Champions trophy
Alastair Cook (Essex), James Anderson (Lancashire), Gary Ballance (Yorkshire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Ravi Bopara (Essex), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Danny Briggs (Hampshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jos Buttler (Somerset), Varun Chopra (Warwickshire), Rikki Clarke (Warwickshire), Jade Dernbach (Surrey), Steven Finn (Middlesex), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), James Harris (Middlesex), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), Stuart Meaker (Surrey), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Graham Onions (Durham), Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire), Kevin Pietersen (Surrey), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire), James Taylor (Nottinghamshire), James Tredwell (Kent), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire), Chris Wright (Warwickshire), Luke Wright (Sussex), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)

Australian newcomer George Bailey marked his debut by making 93 as Hampshire recovered to 286 for 4 after losing both opening batsmen without a run on the board.

10-Apr-2013
ScorecardAustralian newcomer George Bailey marked his debut by making 93 as Hampshire recovered to 286 for 4 after losing both opening batsmen without a run on the board.Leicestershire captain Ramnaresh Sarwan decided to field first under overcast skies and was rewarded with the wickets of Jimmy Adams and Michael Carberry in the first five overs. Adams was bowled fifth ball by Alex Wyatt and Carberry edged defensively to new wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien to give veteran former England bowler Matthew Hoggard an early breakthrough.But then Bailey, the Australian T20 captain, joined Liam Dawson in partnership of 141 for the third wicket in only 32 overs as Leicestershire struggled to make the best of their promising start. Sarwan used seven bowlers before lunch as Tasmanian Bailey dominated the stand, rapidly outscoring Dawson to help Hampshire seize the initiative.Dawson, the more circumspect of the two, reached 46 from 83 balls before he chased a wide delivery from medium-pacer Ollie Freckingham and gave Jigar Naik a catch in the gully. Dawson’s wicket was Freckingham’s first in first-class cricket and he followed it with another four runs later when Bailey was dismissed in sight of his century.Hampshire had reached 150 for 3 when Bailey, who led Tasmania to Sheffield Shield glory last month, was stumped as he attacked Freckingham. Bailey, fluent from the start despite only joining the squad recently, made light of the dank conditions by striking 14 fours in his 133-ball innings.His exit failed to give the frail Leicestershire attack any respite and James Vince and Sean Ervine – the hosts’ fifth-wicket pair – soon got on top every bit as commandingly as Bailey had done before them.Bad light and rain eventually intruded after 71.2 overs, by which time Vince and Ervine had added a further 136 runs without being troubled or in danger of being parted. At the premature close, Hampshire’s recovery was complete with Vince unbeaten with 77 and Ervine, who has just signed a new contract with the county, 57 not out.After their early successes, Leicestershire’s bowling fell away even though conditions were always helpful. Freckingham finished the day with figures of 2 for 71 from 14 overs but, like his team-mates, struggled to contain the free-scoring Bailey.

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, the former India legspinner, is set to join Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara as a players’ representative on the ICC cricket committee, replacing the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) chief executive Tim May

Nagraj Gollapudi05-May-2013Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, the former India legspinner, has joined Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara as a players’ representative on the ICC cricket committee, replacing the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) chief executive, Tim May*. Sivaramakrishnan, currently a commentator on Indian television, is learnt to have beaten May in a fiercely contested election that saw intense lobbying by both sides.The ICC confirmed Sivaramakrishnan’s appointment in a release on Monday, saying: “Sangakkara and Sivaramakrishnan were recently elected by a vote of the 10 Test captains, and will serve on the Cricket Committee for a three-year term from 2013-15.” Former England captain Andrew Strauss has replaced Ian Bishop as ‘Past Player representative’, the release said. “Strauss is one of the two Past Player representatives (replacing Ian Bishop), while Sivaramakrishnan is one of the two Current Player representatives (replacing Tim May). The other Current Player representative is former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara, who has been on the committee since 2007.”Based on nominations received by it, the ICC board had proposed three names – those of Sangakkara, May and Sivaramakrishnan – for the two players’ representative positions. Sangakkara, sole current player, is expected to be elected unanimously while Sivaramakrishnan is believed to have received six of the ten votes in the other slot, for former players. The representatives are elected by the captains of the ten Test-playing countries, who cast their votes in a secret online ballot.Sivaramakrishnan had been backed by the BCCI, which, ESPNcricinfo has confirmed, contacted at least one other member country “requesting” support. He is also believed to have been backed by one more country, independent of the BCCI. Incidentally, though he has been elected as a players’ representative, India has no recognised players’ association.May, the former Australia offspinner, has been the public voice of players’ concerns globally since establishing FICA in 1998. He was, however, handicapped by the fact that FICA is recognised by only five Full Members of the ICC: Australia, England, New Zealand, South Africa and West Indies, the first four of whom are understood to have supported his nomination.Apart from FICA’s limited global influence, one factor that is believed to have gone against May was his sustained criticism of the running of Twenty20 tournaments including the IPL, Sri Lankan Premier League and the Bangladesh Premier League. It is believed that this won him few friends on the Asian boards.Tony Irish, the chief executive of the South African players association, criticised the BCCI’s interventionist approach to the election process. “It’s a sad day for the governance of cricket when players aren’t allowed to freely elect their representatives,” Irish was quoted as saying. “Cricket is a global game and the decisions that are made should be global decisions for the benefit of the global game, not for the benefit of one country, whichever country that is.”However, a member of a board that voted for Sivaramakrishnan contested that view. “It is disingenuous for FICA or its supporters to protest because in an election, candidates canvas votes and FICA did the same thing on Tim May’s behalf. The fact is that May didn’t have the support of many captains and that showed in the votes. Suggestions that May had the support of nine captains to start with are completely baseless.”The ICC cricket committee is a leading decision-maker for the game’s governing body in on-field matters, including playing conditions such as the use of the DRS to review umpiring decisions. It is headed by Anil Kumble, the former Indian captain, and includes Andrew Strauss and Mark Taylor (past players), Gary Kirsten (Full Member team coach representative), David White (Member board representative), Steve Davis (umpires’ representative), Ranjan Madugalle (match referees’ representative), John Stephenson (MCC representative), David Kendix (statistician), Trent Johnston (Associate representative), Ravi Shastri (media representative) and Clare Connor (women’s representative).*06.10GMT, May 6: The article has been updated after the ICC confirmed the appointments

The IPL crisis has taken a new twist with Mumbai Police summoning the Chennai Super Kings chief executive, Gurunath Meiyappan, to its Crime Branch for questioning in connection with betting

ESPNcricinfo staff23-May-2013The IPL crisis has taken a new twist with Mumbai Police summoning a top Chennai Super Kings official, Gurunath Meiyappan, to its Crime Branch for questioning in connection with betting. He is expected to appear between 11 am and 5 pm on Friday after the police rejected his request for an extension until Monday.The news is embarrassing – and potentially damaging – for the IPL and its parent body the BCCI, given that Meiyappan is the son-in-law of BCCI president N Srinivasan, whose company India Cements owns the Super Kings franchise. Meiyappan’s exact designation is unclear at this point but his twitter handle says “team principal” and he has been a regular on the team dugout during matches and at the franchise table during the IPL auctions.Television visuals on Friday morning showed Meiyappan leaving Srinivasan’s house in Kodaikanal, a hill resort town where the BCCI chief has been spending the last few days.The summons was affixed to the door of Meiyappan’s Chennai residence and been served to, and accepted by, a manager at the Super Kings office.”We need to verify certain issues raised and claims made by Vindoo Dara Singh during his interrogation,” the joint commissioner of police Himanshu Roy said. “It may be necessary to confront Meiyappan with Vindoo to verify whether there is any truth in the latter’s claims. It is obvious that if Vindoo was merely socialising with him, we would not have summoned Meiyappan.”There was no official statement by the franchise.However, IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla did speak briefly on the issue. “The Mumbai and Delhi Police are competent authorities and let them finish the investigations before jumping to any conclusions,” he said, when asked whether Srinivasan should step down from the post of BCCI president accepting moral responsibility for the crisis. “How can you term anyone guilty before the investigations are completed? Let the police report be submitted and then we will be in a better position to talk further.”The development followed reports circulating in the media since Tuesday on the proximity of Virender “Vindoo” Dara Singh, who was arrested that day in Mumbai for links with bookies, to the Super Kings franchise. Those reports, which included pictures of Vindoo watching IPL matches in the company of Super Kings captain MS Dhoni’s wife, were not denied in the 48 hours since.Later in the evening Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI’s general manager (cricket development), met Mumbai Police’s joint commissioner Himanshu Roy. It was learnt that the meeting was primarily to seek Mumbai police’s cooperation in the BCCI’s internal investigation of the case against suspended cricketers. The Supreme Court had on Tuesday directed the BCCI to complete the internal inquiry within 15 days.The police crackdown on bookies continued in other parts of the country. In Kolkata, ten people, including one bookie, were arrested for being allegedly involved in cricket betting. “We have arrested 10 people, including a bookie last night. We are investigating thecase. They will be produced before a court today [Friday],” deputy commissioner Santosh Pandey told PTI.Initial investigations said they had bet on a match between Mumbai Indians and Super Kings.

On the evidence of Shane Watson and Chirs Rogers’ opening union at New Road, this might just become another triumph out of the chaos

The Report by Daniel Brettig at New Road02-Jul-2013
ScorecardShane Watson and Chris Rogers put on 170 opening the batting together for the first time•Getty Images

Australia’s last great opening pair of Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden were unearthed only when Michael Slater was dropped for a combination of poor form and wayward behaviour. Twelve years later, Shane Watson and Chris Rogers have been thrown together as the most visible on-field consequence of David Warner’s suspension and Darren Lehmann’s arrival as coach. On the evidence of their opening union at New Road, this might just become another triumph out of the chaos.Even if the modesty of Worcestershire’s attack is accounted for, Watson made batting look easy during his domineering century before lunch and Rogers provided an immediately reassuring sight at the other end. Their first stand tallied 170 in all, precisely half of the Australians’ 340 before rain brought an early conclusion to a chilly day. Fluency came less easily to Ed Cowan and the captain Michael Clarke, though both passed 50 before falling prey to run-outs.Having wrought similar destruction in his first match restored to the top of the batting order against Somerset, Watson crashed the Worcs bowlers to all parts of the ground without ever looking like he was taking undue risks. Tellingly, it was Watson’s first hundred at first-class level since his most recent Test century, against India at Mohali in October 2010. The confidence imbued by Lehmann’s decision to publicly announce him as an Ashes opener as early as last week in Taunton has returned Watson to something like his imperious best.Rogers played with far less extravagance, but appeared an ideal partner, rotating the strike and leaving the ball with precision. Their unbeaten stand meant that Cowan, made redundant as an opening batsman after 18 months in the job, remained padded up in the tourists’ viewing area for the whole of the morning.When he did appear following Watson’s exit, Cowan found the going altogether more difficult, confirming the impression that he will struggle to impose himself on a bowling attack, a skill usually expected of a No. 3. Any hard decisions about the shape of Australia’s batting line-up can be expected to be made this week. Along with Lehmann and Rod Marsh, the national selector John Inverarity is also in Worcester, ready to submit his casting vote if required.A correct call at the toss by Clarke had given the visitors first use of a friendly, even-paced surface. This allowed Rogers and Watson to commence the opening partnership identified by Clarke and Lehmann as Australia’s best means by which to blunt England’s new-ball battery next week at Nottingham and beyond.

World-leaders … in run-outs

Australia’s unwholesome penchant for run-outs was on display again against Worcestershire, maintaining perhaps the only trend in which they have been world leaders over the past four years.
Since the start of the 2009 Ashes series in England, Australia players have been run out in Tests no fewer than 25 times, the most in the world by a margin of five. While Ricky Ponting was the most frequent transgressor with five during the period, Shane Watson, Phillip Hughes and Ed Cowan have all been caught short twice.
At New Road the causes were variable, as ever. Michael Clarke was called through by Cowan for a tight single and found short by a direct hit. Cowan stumbled and fell in mid-pitch, leaving him no chance to beat a throw from cover.
Watson is no expert on successful running, but agreed such details would be critical to the outcome of the Ashes. “It’s certainly a tough enough job to bat for long periods of time let alone giving the opposition one or two wickets,” he said. “We can’t afford to have our better batsmen run out.”

Wearing the Australia coat of arms for the first time since his one Test match in 2008, Rogers began a little nervously. He was perilously close to falling lbw to Charles Morris, making his first-class debut for Worcs, and his first few runs were snicked rather than struck. But Australia have employed Rogers for his record of making consistent runs, not the manner in which they arrive, and he was soon finding his stride, scoring at a steady trot with the occasional edge here and there.Watson had not taken part in the Australians’ second innings against Somerset, following a brazen 90 on day two that expressed his joy at returning to the top of the order more succinctly than any interview could. He continued on his merry way, gliding the first ball of the match to the backward point boundary and thereafter playing his shots with complete conviction, bordering on disdain.Several of Watson’s drives scorched through fields that did not have time to move, while the left-armer Jack Shantry had one delivery deposited beyond the sight screen with rare crispness – his preference for around the wicket provided Watson with an amiable angle by which to flick through the leg side. It was with one such stroke that Watson reached three figures, drawing strong applause from a plentiful crowd and warm congratulations from his new batting partner.The afternoon did not quite find Watson in the same flowing form of the morning, and he added only another seven runs to his lunch tally before swinging an offbreak by Moeen Ali to deep-backward square leg. Rogers reached 50 and continued on with increasing certainty, making it a surprise when he popped an off-side catch from a leading edge off Shantry.Cowan clattered one six off Moeen but was otherwise circumspect, while Clarke negotiated his first ball with a thick inside edge and had trouble locating the middle of his bat for some time. Together they negotiated 38 balls without a run during the hour before tea. The sequence was broken by a fortunate Clarke boundary, edged wide of the slip cordon, but both batsmen would fall short of the substantial scores they desired.Clarke was short of his ground when the stumps were hit from square leg by Alexei Kervezee. It appeared Cowan’s call, and Clarke looked notably miffed to depart in such a manner. Cowan followed his captain to the pavilion a little more than five overs later, stumbling in mid-pitch to turn a tight-ish run into an ignominious exit.Steve Smith and Phillip Hughes did not have much time to get established before the showers arrived, but they were batting in such a comfortable scenario because Watson and Rogers had excelled in the morning. England will be taking note.

England secured a 2-0 lead in the Investec Ashes series as they completed an inevitable victory against Australia with draining efficiency at the fag-end of the fourth day at Lord’s

The Report by David Hopps21-Jul-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJoe Root struck twice before tea adding to his memorable Test after his 180•AFP

England secured a 2-0 lead in the Investec Ashes series as they completed an inevitable victory against Australia with relentless efficiency at the fag-end of the fourth day at Lord’s. Australia were four balls away from taking the match into a fifth day, with England forced to take a second new ball, the extra half-hour and finally resorting to silent prayer before completing a 347-run win in the final over.Before an impatient Lord’s crowd, eager to tick a box marked victory and head home, Australia’s last pair, James Pattinson and Ryan Harris, established Australia’s second highest stand of the innings – 43 runs awash with defiance – before the offspin of Graeme Swann trapped Pattinson lbw.At Trent Bridge, Ashton Agar and Phil Hughes registered the highest last-wicket partnership in Test history, and Australia’s highest of the match. If only the batsmen could bat, they might make a fist of this series.But Australia have lost six Tests in a row. England are vastly superior. It all feels like a reverse of 20 years ago. England are now the side in a golden era, able to relish high-class players and sound planning; Australia are a basket case.Returning on Monday morning might have been a suitable mini-punishment for England after they self-indulgently batted on for 18 minutes on the fourth morning in a failed attempt to present Joe Root with a double century. He fell attempting a ramp shot with nine men on the boundary, leaving Ryan Harris with praiseworthy match figures of 7 for 103. Aside from his wonderful innings, the manner of Root’s dismissal was unique for an Ashes Test and is perhaps worthy of an Honours Board on its own.England have four Ashes victories in a row, the strategy of dry pitches is working like a dream and Root’s 180 emphasised the gulf between the sides. The youngest English player to make a Test hundred at Lord’s, unsurprisingly he took the man-of-the-match award. “I’ve loved every minute of it,” he said.They made skilful use of a wearing Lord’s surface, with Swann predictably to the fore, and with Root also making a cheery guest appearance to break the back of the Australia innings just before tea. Australia will be particularly disturbed that they have completed back-to-back wins without major contributions from the likes of Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen.Australia have only straws to clutch at – Usman Khawaja acquitted himself responsibly at No. 3 to make his second Test half-century and their bowlers are displaying commendable spirit with both bat and ball – but only one side in Ashes history has ever won a series 3-2 after losing the first two Tests. England can surely assume the Ashes are as good as retained.Only one Test side, also, has ever survived for 173 overs or more in the fourth innings to draw a match. That was England against South Africa in Durban in 1939 when a Timeless Test was abandoned after nine days so England could catch a boat home. Australia’s task was to show they were not on a slow boat to nowhere, to transform a humiliation into a defeat respectable enough to keep body and soul together for the rest of the series.That task will be made more difficult while the air remains thick with corporate emails. As Australia’s players sought consolation in another defeat, Cricket Australia and their sacked coach, Micky Arthur, exchanged public statements and David Warner’s manager felt obliged to distance Warner from his own brother after he made venomous comments about Shane Watson. It cannot get much worse.Australia, bundled out for 128 first time around, were in disarray at 48 for 3 at lunch as they faced an entirely notional 583 to win. Swann led England’s victory push. Expectation of turn was enough to befuddle Rogers, who left a straight one, and Hughes, who reviewed his lbw decision, only to be reminded that, in these days of DRS, lbws are possible for offspinners operating around the wicket even if they do not straighten the ball.Before then, Watson fell in accustomed manner, lbw, this time hunted down by James Anderson. It was not the embarrassing exit of the first innings, when he planted his front pad and whipped across one and then compounded the error by wasting a review when stone dead. This time he was more respectably beaten by a ball that nipped back and, aware that there was no chance of a reprieve, shook his head mournfully at his batting partner, Rogers, and walked off.Clarke, coming in at No 5, faced a familiar story: 36 for 3. The cricketing argument for him to bat at No. 4 is offset by the statistical evidence that when he does so it halves his average. He might have departed before lunch, too, when he came down the pitch to Swann, was beaten on the outside edge by one that did not turn, only for Matt Prior, equally deceived, to miss the stumping.Root’s memorable Lord’s Test continued apace when he conjured up the wickets of Clarke and Khawaja shortly before tea, breaking their composed 98-run stand in a spell of 7-3-9-2. Clarke, Khawaja and Steve Smith all fell within the space of 21 deliveries.Root, encouraging hopes that he could develop into the fifth bowler England need on spin-friendly surfaces, found extravagant turn out of the rough to dismiss Clarke, but his dismissal was a soft one as he tickled a ball down the leg side to be caught by Alastair Cook at leg slip. Khawaja put up staunch resistance but followed in Root’s next over when he pushed at a ball that turned and edged gently to James Anderson at gully.Nevertheless, there was enough in Khawaja’s approach to suggest that he intends to battle for the right to become Australia’s long-term No. 3. He carried the fight against some short bowling from Stuart Broad immediately after lunch, in contrast to Clarke, who was struck on the shoulder and helmet in quick succession by the same bowler. He also blocked Swann out of the footholds with determination.Swann was a touch hampered by a lower-back injury, caused when Khawaja accidentally collided with him when dashing a single to the bowler’s end, and although he regularly found pronounced turn out of the footholds, with the ball travelling more than once straight to slip or gully, he required painkillers and after 17 overs eventually gave way to Root.Smith’s departure to the last ball before tea – the batsman unsuccessfully reviewing after he had been caught at the wicket off a thin inside nick against Tim Bresnan – completed a deflating end to the session after Australia’s top-order batsmen had shown as much application as at any time in the series.Australia’s frustrations were compounded by further issues over DRS after tea. Brad Haddin was adjudged lbw to Swann as he padded up to one that turned from around the wicket and then Agar’s brief cut and thrust through point – the area where he lives or dies – was silenced when England successfully turned to the review system to win a catch at the wicket off Bresnan.The TV umpire, Tony Hill, upheld it on noise (and Snicko supported him) but there was no mark on Hot Spot, inviting more grumbles from traditionalists wedded to a simpler time when an on-field umpire’s decision was law. Simpler times have gone for ever. And, in Australian cricket, there are more pressing things to carp about.

Matt Prior has suggested he would welcome England and Australian umpires officiating in Ashes Tests in an attempt to eradicate the errors that have marred the Investec Ashes series

George Dobell at Old Trafford04-Aug-2013Matt Prior has suggested he would welcome England and Australian umpires officiating in Ashes Tests in an attempt to eradicate the errors that have marred the Investec Ashes series.England have become increasingly frustrated by the unpredictability of the umpiring in the series. While they are sympathetic to the on-field officials, understanding that mistakes are inevitable in such circumstances, they are less phlegmatic about mistakes after the involvement of the DRS.The latest controversy concerned an appeal against David Warner, after England were convinced his attempted pull shot had resulted in an edge to wicketkeeper Prior. Hot Spot, which has looked an increasingly unreliable tool in this series, showed nothing, but audio replays suggested an edge. The TV umpire upheld the on-field umpire’s decision of not out. Snickometer, which is not part of the DRS, also backed up England’s case.It left England “frustrated” in Prior’s words, and while he remains supportive of the DRS in general, he did suggest the system may require some examination and expressed a willingness to abandon one of the founding principles of Test umpiring in recent years: that of neutrality.”I honestly don’t care where the umpires are from as long as the right decisions are made,” Prior said. “I think that is the most important thing. You need to make sure that decisions are correct.”It doesn’t matter if they are Aussies or English or anybody else; all you want is the right outcome at the end of the day.”There was disbelief [when Warner was given not out] because he hit it. That’s why we referred it and when you are that sure and it is still given not out it is quite frustrating. That’s why there was a bit of chat around.”There wasn’t any evidence [from Hot Spot] and that is frustrating. All you can go on from a referral point of view was how you see it. Alastair Cook and I were pretty adamant he had hit it. I think Snicko shows he did. We were right in referring it, but unfortunately it did not go our way.”It is pretty frustrating for everyone at the moment,” he said. “At no time will we ever be critical of an umpire making the wrong decision on the field. Everyone makes mistakes in a day. I know more than anyone: it all happens quickly. Everyone is looking at me for DRS decisions and it happens quickly.”I have always said I am a big fan of the DRS. It works and it is the way forward but once you use a review you have to then get a decision right. Once it goes up to the third umpire the decision that comes out has to be the correct decision. Whether the technology needs to be looked at or how they use it, I don’t know. But for the players at the moment that is the biggest frustration.”ESPNcricinfo understands that the possibility of utilising non-neutral umpires in the Ashes has been discussed, but that the Australian and English boards are reluctant to set a precedent that could result in non-neutral umpires around the world. Instead, the boards are considering inviting overseas umpires to officiate in their own domestic cricket with a view to helping them develop their skills.At present, only four umpires – Marais Erasmus, Tony Hill, Kumar Dharmasena and Aleem Dar – are eligible to stand in Ashes series as the rest on the ICC’s elite panel are from either England or Australia.

More than six weeks after Cricket South Africa chief executive Haroon Lorgat offered to “apologise” to anyone who he had offended in the BCCI, Jagmohan Dalmiya, the interim BCCI chief, has welcomed Lorgat’s offer

Amol Karhadkar04-Sep-2013More than six weeks after Cricket South Africa chief executive Haroon Lorgat offered to “apologise” to anyone who he had offended in the BCCI, Jagmohan Dalmiya, the interim BCCI chief, has welcomed Lorgat’s offer.”Lorgat is a nice gentleman but it would be nice of him if he apologises,” Dalmiya said in Kolkata, when asked about his reaction to Lorgat’s offer that was made immediately after he was appointed the CSA chief executive despite the BCCI raising its objections.While this may appear as softening of the BCCI’s stand with Lorgat, the deadlock over the BCCI going to trim what was till a few days ago a tour of three Tests, seven ODIs and two Twenty20s, prevailed for another day.While Dalmiya reiterated what the BCCI president N Srinivasan had said three days ago that “the tour is on”, there was no formal exchange between representatives of the two boards. Even though Srinivasan, board secretary Sanjay Patel and treasurer Ravi Savant were together for most of the day along with other key executives at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai, it was understood that the South Africa tour itinerary “wasn’t even mentioned” in their discussions.”The sole purpose of the meeting was to proof read and sign the annual report before it goes for printing ahead of the AGM,” said an insider who was a part of the proceedings.Across the continent, CSA indicated it would send out a release on Wednesday afternoon to reassure the fans and thank them for their support, but later said they would “try for tomorrow”. Officials contacted at various franchises said they had no knowledge of any progress on the BCCI-CSA issue and were awaiting further instructions, although many of them expressed concern over a curtailed tour.It appears that unless CSA accedes to the cricket bosses in India, the situation is unlikely to change. At least till the BCCI AGM on September 29.

By the time Neil Broom had walked off at the end of the Otago innings having scored an unbeaten 117, the Perth Scorchers were looking at a target of 243 – far beyond their reach

The Report by Mohammad Isam25-Sep-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsNeil Broom hit eight sixes in his unbeaten 117•BCCI

Exactly at which point Neil Broom had begun to take off is hard to tell. It could be when he struck Burt Cockley for three consecutive fours in the 14th over, or just the sight of Ryan ten Doeschate at the other end, upon which he hit the first of his eight sixes. One can be quite certain that Simon Katich had no idea, because by the time Broom had walked off at the end of the Otago innings having scored an unbeaten 117, the Perth Scorchers captain was looking at a total – 242 for four in 20 overs – far beyond the reaches of his young team.And it remained so, as they made 180 for 6, and Otago finishing with an emphatic 62-run win. With the win, the New Zealand side not only kick-started their Champions League campaign, they set a few records on the way.They have now completed a streak of 14 consecutive Twenty20 wins, second only to Sialkot Stallion’s 25-match winning streak. They had made the highest team score in the Champions League, as well as their best as a team, and Broom became only the fourth batsman to score a hundred in the competition, and the first in two years.Broom was the main man for Otago, hammering, swatting and cracking sixes and fours on his way to a 56-ball unbeaten 117. He smashed nine fours and eight sixes. He played out 14 dot balls, most of them at the start of his innings when he saw two wickets fall in consecutive balls in the third over. There were some nervy moments during his 67-run third wicket stand with Derek de Boorder but that was, as it was later understood by Otago’s continuous onslaught, a way to unnerve the Scorchers’ bowlers. There were some close calls, including a dropped catch at slip by Adam Voges when de Boorder’s slash only found the edge in the fourth over.After de Boorder fell to Voges after making 45 off 28 balls with five fours and two sixes, ten Doeschate weighed in. The Dutch allrounder straightaway went after the bowling, and increasingly, Broom too became aggressive.Broom saw ten Doeschate survive a catch at long-on, the ball trickling over the rope, and still go after the bowling. Both were now on the charge, hounding the younger bowlers with boundaries off the first ball of their overs. They brought up their 100-run stand in just 39 balls, and Otago reached the 200-run mark in the 18th over.Soon, Broom reached his maiden Twenty20 hundred with a swivel pull, one of many leg-side sixes during his marauding knock. He struck three consecutive sixes in the 19th over, the second of which brought up his century. His second fifty came in just 17 balls.The Scorchers’ torment worsened when Liam Davis holed out at third man off the first ball of their innings. Ashton Agar, the other opener, fell off the last ball of the over, top-edging to the keeper. And as it happens in such dire situations, there was a run-out, Katich becoming the victim of poor calling with Voges. From 11 for 3, a successful chase looked improbable, to put it mildly.Otago’s blitz from 9 for 2 to 242 for 4 should have inspired the Scorchers but they didn’t find a Broom among themselves. Only a 65-run fourth wicket stand between Hilton Cartwright and Voges took them out of the slide, before Cartwright added another 51 runs for the fifth wicket with Ashton Turner. Cartwright was unbeaten on 69 off 53 balls with six fours and a couple of sixes.But this will be the most memorable day in Broom’s Twenty20 career, having not played for New Zealand since 2010. Otago too have proved themselves as a strong domestic side, though they have a lot to prove in the rest of this tournament.

A round-up of all IPL related news on April 23, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Apr-2015Delhi Daredevils fast bowler Mohammed Shami has been ruled out of the remainder of the IPL season due to a knee injury. The IPL technical committee has approved a replacement for the team, though a player is yet to be named.Earlier this month, Daredevils had confirmed that Shami was unavailable for selection because he had “a minor knee injury” and was “consulting a specialist to chart a quick recovery process.”During the World Cup, Shami had missed the group game against UAE due to a left-knee injury, but recovered from that setback to finish as the fourth highest wicket-taker in the tournament, with 17 scalps from seven matches.Shami was one of 10 players retained by Daredevils last December when the franchise decided to overhaul the squad and released 13 players.Munro likely to replace Finch
Colin Munro, the left-hand New Zealand batsman, is likely to replace the injured Aaron Finch in the Mumbai Indians squad. Finch was ruled out for 12 weeks after undergoing surgery for a hamstring injury he suffered during Mumbai Indians’ match against Rajasthan Royals on April 14.Munro has played 14 T20 internationals for New Zealand. He has scored 1216 runs from 70 T20 games at a strike-rate of 140. He has been in prolific form of late, albeit in first-class cricket, with three centuries in his previous four matches, the latest being 281 off 167 balls for Auckland against Central Districts last month. He hit a record 23 sixes during that innings.Du Plessis ‘learning’ the finisher’s role
Faf du Plessis bats in the top order for South Africa. In previous IPLs, he’s opened the batting for Chennai Super Kings too. This season, however, he hasn’t batted higher than No. 4 for the franchise, and says he is getting used to the role of a finisher.”My role is more of gelling the rest of the batting unit together,” du Plessis told iplt20.com. “We have so many power-hitters and I am not necessarily one of them. I am a power-hitter when I am opening the batting but coming in at the latter stages and hitting is a different skill. I am not used to it but I am learning. My batting position is flexible in the team. If we lose wickets upfront, I go in at No. 4 and if we have a good opening partnership MS goes in ahead of me.”It is a role similar to what S Badrinath performed for Super Kings before he was let go. Du Plessis batted at No. 6 against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Wednesday, making 33 off 18 balls, and did not get a chance against Sunrisers Hyderabad despite Super Kings losing four wickets. MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo were promoted ahead of du Plessis in that game.”It is a new thing for me and something that I want to improve on. My whole life I have batted higher up the order and it is good for my game that I have been given an opportunity to learn how to finish games.”I wouldn’t mind going back up the order. But we have such an explosive opening pair now and they are doing a great job. I’ll just do whatever the captain and the coach tell me to do, but opening the batting is nice.”Enjoyed taking Dhoni ‘s wicket
One of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s best performers in their 27-run defeat to Chennai Super Kings was legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who took 3 for 40. His scalps were those of Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni, arguably three of the most dangerous opposition batsmen.”I enjoyed taking Dhoni’s wicket,” 24-year-old Chahal told iplt20.com. “To get a batsman like him in the slog overs is huge. We know what he is capable of doing in those last few overs.”Dhoni was dismissed for 13 off 13 balls in the 15th over, but Chahal’s challenge had begun in the second over of the game. “[Daniel] Vettori sir had told me beforehand that I would be bowling with the new ball,” he said. “It was our plan to stifle McCullum with spin early on. I was just trying to bowl accurately with a few subtle variations. I happened to bowl a slower wrong one and it got me McCullum’s wicket.”Chahal got hit for three sixes by Raina, but he was not too concerned. “Two of them went from the toe of the bat and this is a small ground. So, I wasn’t worried about those sixes.” He had Raina caught next ball.”Virat and Vettori sir have given me a lot of confidence in that regard,” Chahal said. “Vettori sir tells us not to think about the ball you’ve been hit. Forget about it and concentrate on the next ball. That really helps in a T20 game. Virat always tells me not to worry about being hit for sixes. He backs me to bowl whatever I want to bowl and keep a big heart.”