Rob Key and Andrew Hall laid the foundations for Kent’s victory in what was the first match of the Pro40, following last night’s washout.The pair put on an opening stand of 62 which proved the turning point at Grace Road after they had dismissed Leicestershire for 175.Hall made 31, while Key reached 63. It was then left to Darren Stevens to knock off the runs; he made an unbeaten 42 as Kent cruised home with 37 balls to spare.
Scorecard
|
Nick Jewell and Brad Hodge continued their outstanding form and gave Victoria a healthy first-innings lead against New South Wales. The pair built a 181-run second-wicket partnership and pushed past the Blues’ total of 249, helping Victoria reach 4 for 316 at stumps.Jewell’s 112 was his second century in three matches, while Hodge’s 88 moved him past 500 runs in the Pura Cup season and he now trails only Western Australia’s Chris Rogers in 2006-07. Hodge joined Jewell at 1 for 84 after Nathan Bracken enticed an edge behind from Lloyd Mash on 52.Jewell’s innings took nearly six hours and ended in the final session when he was bowled by Bracken having hit 13 fours and one six. Hodge recorded the same boundary tally before he was caught behind off Matthew Nicholson.Cameron White made 8 and gave the debutant fast bowler Scott Coyte his first Pura Cup wicket but David Hussey (22 not out) and Andrew McDonald (19 not out) extended the home team’s lead to 67 runs. The game is a crucial one for both the Blues and the Bushrangers, who sit third and fourth on the competition table.
Griqualand West won a tense top-of-the-table clash over Northerns in Pool A by just two wickets at Kimberley. Nineteen-year-old Donovan Donaldson and Nathan Arthur shared four wickets apiece for Griqualand as they ran through Northerns after winning the toss, dismissing them for 135. Griqualand didn’t fare much better in reply, and will be grateful to a patient 41 from J Coetzee that pushed them towards the winning line.Boland picked up their third win in three with a five wicket win over Western Province at Paarl in Pool B. Paceman Bardo Fransman picked up his best one-day figures of 6 for 40 to restrict WP to 200. Bolands had looked in complete control until their top scorer C Prinsloo was out for 88 with just eight runs from five overs needed for victory. They eventually scrambled home with just two balls to spare.Border and Zimbabwe Under-23s were denied the opportunity to fight for their first victories in Pool B after heavy rain prevented any play.Only five balls were possible at Port Elizabeth for the clash between Easten Province and KwaZalu Natal as rain brought a halt to proeedings in Pool B.
The Indian Premier League may have eased several restrictions on media coverage for the forthcoming event but the Editors Guild of India has condemned the clause that prevents news agencies from supplying pictures to cricket-specific websites.The Guild has also come down hard on the limitations imposed on television news channels, one that has prompted all the outlets to put their coverage on hold.”[The Guild] regrets that the news agencies have been barred from supplying pictures to one set of subscribers, namely standalone specialised websites, as the news agencies should have the total freedom to supply news and pictures to all their subscribers,” KS Sachidananda Murthy, the Guild secretary-general, said in a release. “The Guild notes that the news agencies are in negotiation with the IPL organisers to remove this clause also from the terms and conditions.”Similarly the sole telecast rights license has put new conditions on giving feed to news television channels. These are not acceptable, and the Guild fully supports the stand taken by the News Broadcasters Association.”Meanwhile the News Media Corporation, which reacted to the fresh guidelines on Tuesday, is set to discuss the issue on Wednesday evening. As of now, though, they feel the restrictions are unacceptable. “As the Guild has said, the terms remain unacceptable,” Barry Parker, the South Asia bureau chief of Agence France-Presse (AFP), said.
|
Troy Cooley, who earlier this week was appointed bowling coach to Australia, has spoken of his disappointment of the ECB’s decision not to offer him a two-year extension to his contract. Cooley requested the deal in May but, he claims, the ECB would only offer a one-year appointment.”I would have been happy to stay with England – but May was really the time to have settled it,” Cooley told The Guardian. “By the time I got around to negotiating with them [the ECB] again, towards the end of the Ashes, other people were talking to me.”Cooley is widely acknowledged as the man responsible for turning England’s bowlers into a world-beating force; in joining the England coaching set-up in 2003, with fellow Australian Rod Marsh at the helm, England’s status as a world-class side regained prominence, culminating in winning the Ashes this summer.Both Marsh and Cooley have now returned to their homeland, but Cooley was quick to state that salaries weren’t part of his decision to leave: “The money was not a huge factor, though I do believe in a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work. I am an Australian, though, and at some stage, I suppose, I was always going to return,” he said. “It’s happened sooner than I expected, but it’s a great opportunity.”It’s been a fantastic journey and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it, not only helping the bowlers to perform as a unit but also playing a part in the setting up of what is now a very impressive fast-bowling programme.”
Scorecard
Chris Rogers was 16 runs short of a double-hundred as Western Australia made a fine start to their Pura Cup match against Victoria, ending the day at 359 for the loss of two wickets. Opening the batting, Rogers put on 60 with Justin Langer, the captain who passed 8000 Pura Cup runs before he was caught for 25 off the fast bowling of Andrew McDonald.After lunch Shane Warne turned the pressure on Shaun Marsh and he joined Langer after contributing 37 to the 68-run partnership for the second wicket. However, it was Warne’s only breakthrough as Rogers and Marcus North destroyed the Victoria attack.Rogers, who survived a dropped catch from David Hussey on 72, shared a fine stand of 231 with North and the pair both raised centuries. North, the vice-captain, finished unbeaten on 103 as the Warriors controlled the opening day.
|
Middlesex’s close-season recruitment drive continued with the announcement that they have signed Scott Styris and re-signed Nantie Hayward for next summer.”We needed to add depth to our batting and Scott gives us that,” John Emburey, Middlesex’s coach, told the BBC. “Added to that, he’s a more than useful bowler. He’s very strong in one-day cricket and will make a very good third of fourth seamer. As for Nantie, we believe he will become a match-winning bowler.”Hayward disappointed in 2004 with 31 wickets at 29.61 but Emburey said that he was a quality player. “He will become a match-winning bowler. The pitches didn’t help his style of bowling, and Lord’s is particularly flat. But we saw enough to snap him up for next season.”It will be Styris’s first crack at English domestic cricket and he replaces the South African Lance Klusener.Last week, Middlesex confirmed that they had signed Ed Smith on a two-year deal.
|
Following The Oval row, the Indian board has decided to support moves to dilute the powers of the umpires. Niranjan Shah, the BCCI secretary, affirmed that the power of international umpires should be curtailed following the forfeited Test.”For the sake of spectators, television viewers and the game’s sponsors, no match should be called off and certainly not by the umpires,” Shah told reporters. “Any decision to forfeit a Test should be made by the match referee or the International Cricket Council (ICC).”Shah was of the opinion that any umpire or team refusing to play without “sufficient reason” should be penalised heavily. “An umpire who abandons play without sufficient reason should be sacked,” he said. “Similarly, teams walking off and forfeiting matches should be penalised and made to pay heavy damages. Unless there are unforeseen circumstances like bad weather or riots, it is the right of spectators and sponsors to see the match go on.”The Indian board will await a ruling on Darrell Hair, the Australian umpire at the centre of the controversy, by Ranjan Madugalle, the Sri Lankan match referee, before taking a stand over Hair’s future. The Pakistan and Sri Lankan board have called for Hair’s removal from the ICC’s Elite Panel.Hair, meanwhile, received support from Dennis Lillee, the Australian legend, who felt players must respect the umpire’s decision. “Whether you like it or not, you have to abide by the umpire’s ruling,” he said.”I was always taught to accept the umpire’s verdict. The authorities should back the umpires.”
The Quaid Trophy match between Sheikhupura and Lahore Blues ended in a draw after no play was possible on the fourth and final day due to fog at the Sheikhupura Stadium on Thursday, according to a message received here.Umpires Salim Badar and Kamal Merchant waited until an hour after the scheduled tea interval before finally calling off the match.Sheikhupura, who earned a vital one-run lead on the firstinnings, claimed three points.
Rajasthan’s stars consider returning home
Darren Berry, the Rajasthan Royals’ team manager, says there is a “real option” three of the team’s highest profile players – Shane Warne, Shane Watson, and Graeme Smith – will not return to Jaipur following a series of bombs that killed about 80 people in the city on Tuesday. Berry is on a four-day break in Goa along with the three players, and said the group had considered “getting on the plane and getting out of here”.Carry-bags banned from IPL matches
According to a report in , the IPL organisers have banned spectators from bringing carry-bags to their venues in the wake of the Jaipur blasts. The organisers reportedly decided to take the measure following an advisory from various security and intelligence agencies.Kolkata taken to court for alleged copyright violation
The Kolkata Knight Riders franchise have been taken to court by the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS) on grounds of copyright violation for playing 14 popular Hindi songs without its permission during the IPL matches at the Eden Gardens. However, Justice Sanjib Mukherjee of the Calcutta High Court refused to grant an injunction against the use of the songs, and directed the parties concerned to file affidavits stating their position. Appearing before the judge, Kolkata’s counsels said that the franchise already had permission to play nine of those songs from Super Cassettes, whom they said had the copyright. Kolkata will now have to file their affidavit within two weeks, after which the IPRS will be given a week to submit its reply. The matter will then come up for hearing in July, by which time the inaugural edition of the IPL will be over.