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Middlesex’s youngsters proved too strong for Surrey who were beaten by two wickets with three balls to spare in Sunday’s Pro Arch Trophy clash in Sharjah

Mark Pennell22-Mar-2009
ScorecardMiddlesex’s youngsters proved too strong for Surrey who were beaten by two wickets with three balls to spare in Sunday’s Pro Arch Trophy clash in Sharjah.After two wins from as many starts, Middlesex rested their captain andfront-line spinner, Shaun Udal, along with allrounder Tyron Henderson and batsman Dawid Malan for their third Group S game, but their superiortactics, team spirit and execution of their skills saw them reachWednesday’s Abu Dhabi final with an unblemished record despite a latebatting collapse.Responding to Surrey’s below-par total of 184 for 9, Middlesex got off to a solidstart under lights as young openers Billy Godleman and the well-organised Sam Robson both dug in responsibly. Robson, a wiry 19-year-old Australian-born right-hander, was spotted while playing for Perth-based club side Eastern Suburbs. With an English mother and a UK passport to his name, he looks to be a decent find.Godleman unfurled the occasional classy shot, including a clipped four off Stewart Walters over midwicket and a six into the seats over long on , but both batsmen were prepared to rotate the strike and sprint for their singles like whippets. The pair posted 101 for the first wicket before Robson, playing back to a shooting Schofield top-spinner, was bowled for a dogged 37 from 92 balls. Godleman sailed on sublimely to a 77-ball half century and looked untroubled in reaching 68 from 101 balls until a rush of blood, and a cross-batted slog against Murtaza Hussein, sent him packing.A further five Middlesex wickets fell to spin, as Usman Afzaal picked up 3 for 21, but his Middlesex counterpart Murtagh came in to hit the winning run.Surrey’s innings proved something of a stop-start affair a little likethe sandstorm that swept the ground for the first hour of thematch, only to end as suddenly as it started. It made conditions out in the middle uncomfortable for all involved. “I can still taste the sand in my mouth,” said Chris Silverwood. “It feels like I’ve been licking a camel’s foot!”Despite the sweeping sand, the Middlesex attack maintained theirfocus on the job in hand and produced the best combined bowling displayof this tournament to date. Silverwood, Alan Richardson, Steve Finn and acting captain Murtagh were all prepared to run in hard and hit the pitch just short of a goodlength. As a result, all four were hard to get away and, every time aSurrey batsman’s patience evaporated, Middlesex struck.In their opening spells Murtagh and Finn set the tone, bowling a tightline and length to tie down Surrey’s expansive right-hander JamesBenning whose patience ran thin when he clipped a return-catch to Murtagh.That was pretty much the trend for Surrey; only Scott Newman, with 56 from 83 balls and with five fours, showed the patience necessary to score on this firm pitch of unusually lowbounce.Even Usman Afzaal, captain for the day, was unable to hold his attackingintent in check and paid the price for an ill advised lofted drive whenhe holed out to mid-on off the excellent Richardson.”We’ve a nice bowling attack, of that there’s no doubt, there’s nothing flash to it; they run in and hit the wicket hard. That’s what they do,” said Angus Fraser, Middlesex’s director of cricket. “I spoke to Graham Gooch after the first game in Sharjah last Tuesday and he advised it was no good floating the ball up here, the seamershad to hit the pitch at the back of a length and attack it and me andthe backroom staff are delighted how they did that.”It’s a very pleasant start for March 22 and we’re a month away fromour first Championship match, but I’d rather be playing the cricket wehave here than scratching around not knowing where our nextwicket is coming from.”After Newman’s departure only Stewart Walters showed much desire tobattle it out for Surrey, the 25-year-old Australian-born right-handernurdled his way to 33 from 58 balls before the red mist got to him andhe lost his leg stump to Gareth Berg as a result. It was a day Surreywill quickly want to forget.

Andrew Symonds may have cut his Rastafarian beads, but he showed tonight there had been no cutback on his competitive spirit or his aptitude, as Australia levelled the series 1-1

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga24-Apr-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Andrew Symonds was easily the best allrounder on display•Associated PressAndrew Symonds may have cut his Rastafarian beads, but he showed tonight there had been no cutback on his competitive spirit or his aptitude as Australia levelled the series 1-1. His two-wicket over, in the face of a marauding Shoaib Akhtar, had kept Pakistan down to a par total, but his bigger contribution came with the bat when Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal threatened to run through Australia for the second time in a row.Afridi and Ajmal had undone James Hopes’ good work at the top, bringing the game right back into the balance, when Symonds came in to bat. Hopes, filling in for the injured Shaun Marsh at the top of the order, had put Australia on their way to a chase of a tricky 207, before Ajmal and Afridi struck in back-to-back overs.The contest was always going to come to life when the spinners came on. Before that Hopes had weathered the storm from hostile and accurate Shoaib and Umar Gul. That initial spell resulted in the early wicket of Brad Haddin, but Hopes counter-attacked and brought the run-rate within manageable proportions.From 19 for 1 in six overs, Hopes cut and drove Gul and Shoaib for three boundaries and a six in the next three overs. Australia reached 70 for 1 in 14 overs, when spin was first introduced.Australia tried to play the mind game, going for the batting Powerplay immediately, and trying to delay the introduction of the dangerous spinners. Pakistan played ball, and went on with Afridi and Ajmal anyway. From 70 in 14 they moved to 91 in 20 in a tense period of play.In the 21st, Ajmal got Watson with a doosra, the batsman looking to pull without reading the spin. In the end Watson tried unsuccessfully to pull out of the pull, and top-edged. In the next over, Afridi beat a Hopes sweep with a straight and full delivery.Batting was not easy then, what with Test fields in place and the ball turning big, and Australia coming off a monumental collapse in the previous game. Ajmal and Afridi attacked, but Symonds tackled them superbly. Even early on in the innings, he picked Ajmal’s doosra. For good measure he let Ajmal know every time he saw the away-spinner. His 58 comprised only four boundaries and a six, the first of which was the team’s first boundary in 17 overs.The value of Symonds’ knock grew when put in comparison with his partner Michael Clarke’s effort. Clarke struggled to pick the spin, and was patchy all the way through. At one point, out of a 58-run stand Clarke had scored only eight.Symonds’ sensible batting also coincided with Pakistan gradually running out of the spinners’ quota, and with a small total to defend they had to bring back the pace bowlers on. Once that happened it was a cruise for Australia, with close to four an over required.Even that small target was thanks to Symonds’ effective over at the death. Shoaib’s 14-ball 25 had lifted Pakistan from 176 for 7, but just when it looked he would take Pakistan to a more competitive total, Symonds struck with two in the 46th over to not even allow them a full quota of 50 overs.That was not the last twist of a slow yet dramatic first innings of the game. A disciplined Australia had done well to pull Pakistan back after they had threatened twice to move out of their grasp.First it was Younis Khan who recovered from a sluggish start to get into fluent mode only to be dismissed for 28. Then Shahid Afridi played an uncharacteristically responsible innings, but when he looked set to launch Pakistan into the safe zone, Hopes got him with seven overs to go.Following the early run-out of 17-year-old debutant Ahmed Shehzad, Pakistan made an edgy start. Salman Butt and Younis were literally edgy against Nathan Bracken and ODI debutant Doug Bollinger, both left-arm seamers. They troubled both the batsmen with their angle and movement both ways. By the end of the ninth over Pakistan had crawled to 28 for 1, having faced a maiden each from both the bowlers.With Hopes came the change of angle, and Younis helped himself to three boundaries in his first two overs. In the next seven overs Pakistan doubled their score, mainly via Younis who scored 20 off 14 during that period. The sight of Ben Laughlin lit his eyes up, a short loosener first up widened them further, and an edge resulted as he went to cut the leather off the ball.Two more wickets, punctuated by an especially asphyxiating spell by Bollinger, meant Pakistan were struggling in the middle overs, five down for 122. Bollinger went for 26 in his 10 overs, including a middle spell of four overs for five runs.But then Afridi lifted them, not looking to hit the ball out of the ground every time he faced up. The main feature of his innings was his late-cuts, and placement for quick runs. He actually faced 40 balls, the most he has since his 52-ball 85 against Zimbabwe last January. Afridi also read the game well, picking a slower ball early during the Powerplay, when Australia had both third man and fine leg up in the circle. That was his only six. Afridi, along with Ajmal, provided Australia with a tough examination, but he was not the best allrounder on the night.

AB de Villiers has predicted a tough time for batsmen from both sides in the Test series that begins in Johannesburg on Thursday

Brydon Coverdale in Johannesburg24-Feb-2009
AB de Villiers is set to play his 50th consecutive Test since his debut in December 2004 © Getty Images
AB de Villiers has predicted a tough time for batsmen from both sides in the Test series that begins in Johannesburg on Thursday, with plenty of swing expected to give the fast bowlers a boost. That could mean an advantage for South Africa, who boast one of the world’s strongest pace attacks, while Australia will field a vastly inexperienced group led by Mitchell Johnson.”There’ll be a bit more swing over here in South Africa,” de Villiers said on Tuesday. “It will definitely favour the bowlers a bit more than what we saw in Australia. There wasn’t a lot of swing there. So Dale Steyn and the boys are going to have a good advantage I think but they’ve also got a good bowling attack.”Despite the Wanderers’ reputation as a pace-friendly venue, South Africa are planning to play left-arm spinner Paul Harris and a three-man fast-bowling unit. Australia have not decided whether to include a specialist slow bowler – Bryce McGain and Nathan Hauritz are both in the squad – but de Villiers expected there would be some turn later in the match.”The Wanderers is always a good Test wicket,” he said. “It will definitely move around the first day, the first two days even. I’m sure that it will get a bit more pace day three and four and maybe a bit of turn day four going into day five.”de Villiers will be lining up for his 50th consecutive Test match since his debut and he said he was keen to take a more senior role in the batting line-up. He is eyeing the No. 4 position that was occupied by Jacques Kallis during the series in Australia, although coach Mickey Arthur said on Monday Kallis was not in danger of losing his place.”I’m definitely not a youngster any more,” de Villiers said. “Definitely more responsibility on my shoulders with the bat. I think I’m in pretty good form at the moment. I’ve gone through some patches before and I’ve learnt from the mistakes. I think it’s going much better now. I really enjoy taking more responsibility at the wicket, batting under pressure and pushing myself to new limits.”The South African squad got together on Saturday to start preparing for the three-Test series, which will hand them the No. 1 Test ranking if they win. The players have enjoyed a break since returning homefrom Australia but unlike his crocodile-wrestling team-mate Dale Steyn, the time off has not been all fun and games for de Villiers.”I had my wisdom teeth taken out so that was pretty painful,” he said.”I was at home for about ten days, under mum’s wing, so pretty happy and refreshed and energised for what is ahead.”The players will need to be refreshed and in the right frame of mind.Unlike during the series in Australia, the South Africans are thefavourites and de Villiers said they would need to ensure they remained focused on the game rather than the hype surrounding the series.”We’ve got all the momentum behind us now and we’ve got a bit of pressure, all the expectations of the public,” de Villiers said.”We’re just going to have to go out there and do the basics right onThursday and play the cricket we know we can play.”

The Faithwear Cup, Zimbabwe’s main limited-overs tournament, starts this weekend with the third and final round of matches the following Saturday

Cricinfo staff25-Feb-2009The Faithwear Cup, Zimbabwe’s main limited-overs tournament, starts this weekend with the third and final round of matches the following Saturday.All of the country’s international players will be available to play, a boost to a competition which has been accused of being of low quality in recent seasons.The most surprising name on the team lists is that of Brendan Taylor, who opted to spend the last few months playing club cricket in Australia after spending the northern summer in Europe. However, within hours of him being named, his Australian club side indicated he would be playing for them this weekend, raising doubts over his participation in the Faithwear Cup.Mark Vermeulen also returns after showing good form at club level.The ongoing restrictions on currency withdrawals allied to fuel and other shortages means the competition will be held entirely in Harare.Easterns Hamilton Masakadza (capt), Stuart Matsikenyeri, Foster Mutizwa (wk), Johnson Maruma, Timycen Maruma, Prosper Utseya, Shingi Masakadza, Silent Mujaji, Steady Musoso, Philimon Kadzitye Natsai Mushongwe, Douglas Hondo, Steven Nyamuzinga, Tendai Chatara, Bezer Sanyika, Donald TiripanoNortherns Tatenda Taibu, Brandon Taylor, Regis Chakabva (wk), Cephas Zhuwawo, Benard Mlambo, Sam Mwakayeni, Elton Chigumbura (capt), Raymond Price, Admire Manyumwa,Trevor Garwe, Graeme Cremer, Tinabel Chimbambo, Patient Charumbira, Pete Moore, Clement Rizibhowa, Mohammad Bala, Tinotenda MutombodziCentrals Chamu Chibhabha (capt), Eric Chauluka, Richmond Mutumbami, Robert Chinyengetere, Bothwell Chapungu, Malcom Waller, Tafadzwa Kamungozi, Tendai Chisoro, Mike Chinouya, Rememberence Nyathi, Solomon Mire, Tendai Chitongo, Simbarashe Gupo, Nathan Waller, Vusimuzi Sibanda, Friday Kasteni, Alester Maregwede (wk), Roger KahiyaWesterns Mark Vermeulen, Tafadzwa Ngulube (wk), Sean Williams, Charles Coventry, Keith Dabengwa (capt), Mbekezeli Mabuza, Freedom Takarusenga, Romeo Kasawaya, Tawanda Mupariwa, Christopher Mpofu, John Nyumbu, Njabulo Ncube, Titus Chipare, Kendrick Moyo, Thabo Mboyi February 2009 Sat 28 Centrals v Easterns (Zimbabwe)
Country Club, Harare
Sat 28 Northerns (Zimbabwe) v Westerns
Harare Sports Club
March 2009 Sun 1 Centrals v Westerns
Harare Sports Club
Sun 1 Easterns (Zimbabwe) v Northerns (Zimbabwe)
Country Club, Harare
Tue 3 Centrals v Northerns (Zimbabwe)
Takashinga Sports Club, Highfield, Harare
Tue 3 Easterns (Zimbabwe) v Westerns
Country Club, Harare
Wed 4 Centrals v Westerns
Country Club, Harare
Wed 4 Easterns (Zimbabwe) v Northerns (Zimbabwe)
Takashinga Sports Club, Highfield, Harare
Fri 6 Centrals v Easterns (Zimbabwe)
Takashinga Sports Club, Highfield, Harare
Fri 6 Northerns (Zimbabwe) v Westerns
Country Club, Harare
Sat 7 Centrals v Northerns (Zimbabwe)
Country Club, Harare
Sat 7 Easterns (Zimbabwe) v Westerns
Takashinga Sports Club, Highfield, Harare

After falling to a dismal opening day defeat to Watford last weekend, Aston Villa will be hoping to bounce back to winning ways when they take on Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon.

Dean Smith’s side will welcome back their home fans for their first full capacity game at Villa Park for a long time, and should be confident of picking up their first points of the new Premier League season against the Magpies.

One man who the Villa boss must surely consider starting against the Tyneside club is summer signing Leon Bailey.

Speaking before Villa officially confirmed that they had reached an agreement with Leverkusen over his transfer, the club’s former defender Alan Hutton threw his backing behind a move for the Jamaican speedster.

He said: “I’m so excited to see this one. I’ve heard a lot about him over the past two or three seasons. He’s obviously still very young but he’s electric, he gets people off their seats. That’s what you want in a player.

“But what’s more impressive, 15 goals and 11 assists from wide areas in the German league. That’s unbelievable. It’s the kind of consistency you want from your wingers.”

That speed and directness could give Buendia the perfect player to try and find with his intricate passing, as well as offering Villa an added threat in behind to supplement Danny Ings’ movement off the ball.

The £31.5m-rated star came off the bench to great effect against Watford last weekend, marking his Premier League debut for the club by setting up John McGinn’s goal and almost sparking a late comeback.

This time around, in front of the Villa Park faithful, Bailey will be hoping to put on a show and lead his team to victory, and Smith must surely let him off the leash from the start.

He could well be the team’s game-changer against Newcastle today.

Meanwhile, Aston Villa have been handed a major transfer boost over this star…

Celtic, along with the likes of Crystal Palace and Leicester City, are monitoring Dundee United defender Kerr Smith, according to The Scottish Sun.

The Lowdown: Smith profiled

Smith is just 16 years of age and is under contract with his current employers for a further two years.

He’s made seven senior appearances for The Tangerines, two of which have come this season – he has been described as ‘fantastic’ by teammate Mark Connolly.

The Scot actually spent a week with Manchester United last year on trial, and it seems as if he could be on the move for good before the end of the month.

The Latest: Monday report

The Scottish Sun shared a story regarding Kerr on Monday lunchtime.

Within their report, they labelled Southampton as the frontrunners for the Scot and claimed that Celtic, Palace, Leeds and Leicester are all tracking the defender.

It seems as if the Hoops are weighing up a potential late swoop for Smith, even though they are also closing in on Shamrock Rovers defender Liam Scales in a deal worth £500,000.

The Scottish Sun are expecting the Dundee United board to move Smith on over the next six days.

The Verdict: Hjelde replacement?

Celtic look set to lose a young centre-back to Leeds in Leo Hjelde, so perhaps Smith could come in to replace the Norwegian going forward.

Smith is regarded as one of Scotland’s best young talents, so down the line, winning the race for the 16-year-old could turn out to be a real coup.

It seems as if Celtic will have to beat a number of Premier League clubs to his services, though, so it could be a big ask in the final days of the window.

In other news: ‘Great chance’ – 34 y/o feels £988k-p/y ace will be a Celtic player on Sep 1 after Romano claim. 

The opener Phil Jaques is hopeful of being fit for Australia’s tour of South Africa in February

Cricinfo staff03-Dec-2008
Phil Jaques carried the injury since 2006 and is looking forward to regaining his full range of strokes © Getty Images
The opener Phil Jaques is hopeful of being fit for Australia’s tour of South Africa in February and winning a spot as the reserve batsman after undergoing back surgery in October. Jaques left the trip to India early after being dropped for Simon Katich, but he has revealed he was suffering with the injury for years.At its worst, the bulging disc meant Jaques had to get up at 5am to prepare for warm-ups and could not sit in a chair for more than 10 seconds. “It got to the point where I couldn’t get up until about lunchtime with my back,” he told the . “It stopped me from everything I like doing, all the hobbies.”Jaques is not a chance of being considered for any of Australia’s home Tests over the next two months, but he is looking to play two Sheffield Shield games to push for a spot in the South Africa tour party. “I want to try and get some cricket in before then and prove I’m right to go and then hopefully the selectors’ policies on injured players will count for me as well and I’ll come back into that side as a reserve batter,” he said.”There’s still a really big slab of cricket coming up and I’m only going to miss two series really and I’ll be back in the fray for South Africa. I’m seeing it as a half-time break in my career and I’m looking to come back stronger and better than ever.”Jaques became Justin Langer’s permanent replacement in 2007 but the injury affected him during a run of nine Tests against Sri Lanka, India and West Indies. “It was something that I was able to live with but not perform as well I could have or would have,” he said. “I wasn’t able to hit through the covers as well as I had in the past.”Jaques, who scored a century in the last of his 11 Tests, was forced to cut out some of his attacking shots. “I was pretty well resigned to playing off my pads or down the ground and playing off the back foot,” he said. “I was struggling with my stride. I wasn’t able to get the ground that I wanted to. It’s going to be great to go back and be able to be attacking and aggressive like I’d built a reputation for being in the past.”He said he was suffering from the same problem in 2006, when Trevor Hohns, the then chairman of selectors, told him to improve his fielding. “It goes back that far and I think I definitely had an issue and I’m sure I’m going to move a whole lot better when I come back,” he said. “There were times during that time when I would have liked to have put my hand up and say I’ve got a bad back and can’t quite move as well as I would like.”

Steve Bruce is reportedly now pushing for Newcastle United to sign Hamza Choudhury before the summer transfer window shuts.

The Lowdown: Choudhury linked

Choudhury has been linked with a potential move to St. James’ Park from Leicester City throughout this window, as North East football journalist Liam Kennedy claimed last week that he expects them to up their interest in the central midfield player after the signing of Joe Willock on a permanent deal from Arsenal.

However, with less than two weeks remaining of the window to go, the Tyneside club may have to step up their pursuit over the next few days.

The Latest: Bruce pushing

As per The Daily Mail, Bruce is now pushing to try and sign Choudhury, who is open to a move in order to try and get more regular game time.

The former Aston Villa and Sunderland manager believes that he would make a ‘huge difference’ to his team because of his ‘industry’ and ‘combative nature’.

The Verdict: Sign

The Magpies could do with bolstering up the squad before the window closes, and Choudhury would give Bruce another viable option in the middle of the park.

The Englishman has plenty of experience of playing in the Premier League and at 23 years of age, still has a lot of potential to fulfil.

His £61,000-per-week wages may have to be negotiated down in order to make the move to the Toon, but nonetheless he would be a smart buy – if he can offer the combative presence Bruce believes he can, it would allow the likes of Joe Willock to flourish higher up the pitch.

In other news, find out which ‘very talented’ ace NUFC are now weighing up a move for here!

The spoils were shared in Cardiff where the match was abandoned after 17.2 overs of Glamorgan’s innings

ECB Reporters Network15-Jul-2017
ScorecardJacques Rudolph was leading Glamorgan to a hefty total•Getty ImagesThe spoils were shared in Cardiff where the match was abandoned after 17.2 overs of Glamorgan’s innings which was set to leave a demanding target with Jacques Rudolph unbeaten on 65 off 37 balls.Despite a 35-minute delay because of rain before the start there was no reduction in overs and, after winning the toss, Somerset, who had lost their previous nine games in the competition, elected to bowl first.They quickly gained success when Lewis Gregory, with the second ball of his first over, had David Lloyd caught behind. Aneurin Donald, however, was soon into his stride, pulling Craig Overton for four, before sweeping him over the wicketkeeper for six.Colin Ingram, who scored a 46-ball century against Sussex last week, then struck Tim Groenewald for fourteen runs in an over, which included a huge six fourteen rows back into the members enclosure.Somerset took their second wicket when Donald skied Gregory to mid-on after scoring 24 from 13 balls, but Ingram kept attacking, hitting Allenby for another six, before he was caught on the midwicket boundary for 39 from 21 balls.Glamorgan were 92 for 3 at the halfway stage, but then lost their fourth wicket when Andrew Salter was well held by Max Waller off his own bowling.Rudolph and Chris Cooke maintained the momentum with a rapid partnership of 52 in 4.2 overs, which ended when Cooke struck a full toss from Groenewald to mid-off.Rudolph then reached his fifty from only 28 balls, which included four fours and two sixes, with Glamorgan reaching 158 for 5 after 16 overs but after eight deliveries the rain returned.

The U.S. international expressed gratitude to the club's fans following Watford's important victory

Wiley provides match-winning assist in 1-0 triumphU.S. international delivers standout performanceMidfielder acknowledges fan support in tight playoff raceGetty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED

Watford were pushed to the wire by Hull City, but Caleb Wiley played a pivotal role as the Hornets managed to secure a 1-0 home win on Tuesday. The U.S. national delivered the assist for Moussa Sissoko's 55th-minute goal, which eventually turned out to be the only goal in the game.

Following his impressive performance, Wiley took to social media to acknowledge the unwavering support of the Hornets faithful.

“What’s up guys, it’s Caleb Wiley here. What a performance tonight, great win and we appreciate all the fans coming out and supporting, and we go again this weekend. See you guys later!” Wiley said in a video posted on Watford’s social accounts.

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Watford's win, orchestrated in part by Wiley's assist, moves the team closer to the promotion playoff spots. The Hornets are in 10th place on the league table but are only four points behind sixth-place Middlesbrough, who sit in the last promotion playoff place with five games left in the regular season.

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Getty Images SportWHAT’S NEXT?

Thanks to their 1-0 win over Hull City, Watford continue their run in a tight fight for a playoff spot, and the Hornets face eighth place West Bromwich Albion next on April 11. Following that, Tom Cleverley’s side battles second place side Burnley at Vicarage Road on April 17.