Wakely misses ton but keeps Northants level

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Alex Wakely came within a whisker of a century on the second day of Northamptonshire’s finely-poised County Championship match against Leicestershire at Wantage Road

25-May-2011
Scorecard
Alex Wakely came within a whisker of a century on the second day of Northamptonshire’s finely-poised County Championship match against Leicestershire at Wantage Road. After the league leaders slumped to 70 for 5, Wakely made 98 off 165 balls as his side were bowled out for 312 – one run short of their opponents’ first innings total.Wayne White and Australia international Andrew McDonald took three wickets each before Leicestershire closed on 52 for 0 with the match very much in the balance.Northants began the day 281 runs behind their opponents, with their openers, Stephen Peters and Ben Howgego, resuming on 26 and 6 respectively. But Peters was to last just two balls before he was well caught at third slip by Matthew Boyce off the bowling of Leicestershire captain Matthew Hoggard.And Howgego was removed on 10 when he edged White (3 for 92) to wicketkeeper Paul Dixey and Rob White soon followed when he nudged Nadeem Malik to the same player. McDonald (3 for 51) then took the wicket of David Sales (15) with his first over of the day when he was slashed to Will Jefferson at second slip.Northants captain Andrew Hall made just five before going cheaply by nudging McDonald’s wide delivery to Dixey to leave the hosts reeling. James Middlebrook survived a huge scare when he was dropped at mid-off by Malik off White, but went two balls later after cracking 42 off 48 balls by edging the same bowler to Dixey.But Wakely stuck around to complete his half-century off 92 balls as he and Chaminda Vaas stabilised their side’s innings with a seventh-wicket stand of 96. Wakely was to agonisingly fall two runs short of a deserved century when McDonald’s delivery went through his defences and took out his leg stump in the third over before tea.Hoggard took the second new ball as soon as it became available and with the second delivery, he forced Northants wicketkeeper David Murphy (22) to edge to Jefferson at second slip. Vaas was to depart on 46 in the next over when he launched White to Hoggard at midwicket before Malik ended the innings by taking out David Lucas’ (24) off stump.Leicestershire managed to get off to a better start in their second innings than they did with their first, where they were reduced to 15 for 3. Their openers, Jefferson and Boyce, comfortably survived 18 overs and will resume on 15 and 36 respectively.

PCB to support DRS, oppose end to rotation policy

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The PCB will support the recommendation to implement the Decision Review System (DRS) in international matches at the ICC annual conference in Hong Kong, its chairman Ijaz Butt has said

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jun-2011The PCB will support the recommendation to implement the Decision Review System (DRS) in international matches at the ICC’s annual conference in Hong Kong, its chairman Ijaz Butt has said. However, the board will oppose the proposal to end the rotational system for ICC presidents and the planned amendment to the ICC’s constitution which will allow the governing body to suspend a member in the event of governmental interference in the running of a national cricket board.Those two issues, along with the Associate participation in the 2015 World Cup, form the crux of the conference but they were not debated on the opening day. The meetings began on June 26 with discussions on playing conditions and the rankings system. The headline issues were kept for the upcoming days.One board that has vehemently opposed the DRS is the BCCI, but the PCB was satisfied with the system. “We really don’t know why India is opposing the DRS,” Butt had said prior to his departure for Hong Kong. “They must have their reasons but as far as we are concerned, we are satisfied with the impact it has had so far in Test and ODI cricket, and we felt the World Cup was a good example of this system working and getting better in future.”We support India where we agree with their viewpoint. But generally we have our own independent views on decisions. I think the fact that we are not in favor of ending the rotation system of electing the ICC chairman, or having amendments in the ICC constitution to prevent complete government interference in member board affairs, is testimony to this.”With regards to the proposed amendment to prevent government interference, the PCB issued a legal notice to the ICC. It is among the boards that could, in the event of any interference from the government, be directly affected by the amendment, since the patron-in-chief of the PCB is the president of Pakistan.Pakistan and Bangladesh are next in line to nominate the ICC president and vice-president as per the rotational system. The Bangladesh Cricket Board said it is not against the proposed change in the process for the nomination and election of the ICC president, but wants the amendment to come into effect only after the completion of a full cycle of the current rotational system.”The board, in principle, agrees on the proposed amendment of ICC Article of Association regarding abolishing the present rotation system for the post of president of the ICC,” the Bangladesh board said. “However, the BCB feels that an equal and fair opportunity should be given to all existing Full Member countries to avail the privileges of the current rotation system.”The ICC annual conference begins with a meeting of the chief executives committee on June 26 and 27, followed by the executive board meeting – June 28 and 29 – and the full council meeting on June 30.

KP does the double, Dhoni does it all

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Plays of the Day from the second day of the first Test between England and India at Lord’s

Andrew McGlashan at Lord's22-Jul-2011Not-out of the day
There has been a huge amount of debate about whether the various pieces of technology are good enough for the DRS, but it has long been clear TV replays are no good for judging whether a catch has carried. The latest example came when Kevin Pietersen flicked Praveen Kumar towards Rahul Dravid (who has been followed by the ball in this Test) at leg slip. Dravid didn’t appear to claim the catch initially, but the two umpires went to the third official and from there the decision was always set to be not-out even though Dravid could well have got his fingers under the ball.Graft of the day

Pietersen had to work extremely hard, but was duly rewarded. Overnight he was on 22 off 73 balls and he’d barely middled a shot, but the signs were much better today as he played two early on-drives. Still, his fifty took 134 deliveries which made it the slowest of his career. As the saying goes, though, good things come to those who wait and Pietersen’s diligence paid off with a hundred from 216 deliveries which again was his slowest landmark. It was his first ton on home soil since South Africa, at The Oval, in 2008, in his first game as captain, and just the second in his last 37 Test innings. He wasn’t finished. His fourth fifty, to bring up his third Test double hundred, took just 25 balls.Bowling change of the day

India needed someone to help fill in Zaheer Khan’s missing overs so who do they turn to but none other than the captain, MS Dhoni. As the players came out after lunch Dravid was wearing the wicketkeeping equipment and Dhoni marked out his run at the Pavilion End. Right on cue he had an lbw appeal first ball, but the real excitement came in his second over when Pietersen needed to use the DRS to save himself from being given out caught behind.Non-review of the day

Despite being shorn of their main bowler India kept themselves in the contest with two quick wickets during the afternoon session. The second of those was Eoin Morgan who was given caught behind third ball and left the crease without hesitation. However, when replays didn’t appear to show an edge there was confusion as to why Morgan hadn’t reviewed it. Did he think he was lbw? Had he forgotten the DRS was allowed for edges? In the end a more prosaic explanation emerged. He thought he’d hit it.Duck of the day

Stuart Broad is under pressure having been given a vote of confidence for this match ahead of Tim Bresnan. His main job is to take wickets, but the first chance he had to take part in the contest didn’t go very well. Facing up to Praveen he played right across an inswinger and was quickly given lbw. Broad often likes to use the DRS but, of course, couldn’t here. He’ll hope that by the end of the third day he still hasn’t got a zero by his name. For Praveen, though, it was a moment to savour as he secured a place on the honours board.Exercise of the day
A murmur went through the crowd as Zaheer made his way around the boundary with a couple of backroom staff. He went to the indoor school by the Nursery Ground where he was spotted testing his injured hamstring with a stint on an exercise bike. Whether he takes any further part in this match with the ball remains to be seen, but he should be the first to give Praveen a pat on the back after his day’s work carrying the India attack.

EPT experience will benefit players – Bradburn

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The New Zealand A team has greatly benefited from being part of the recently-concluded Emerging Players Tournament in Queensland, according to A-team manager Grant Bradburn

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Aug-2011New Zealand A have greatly benefited from being part of the Emerging Players Tournament in Queensland, according to team manager Grant Bradburn. New Zealand failed to win a game in the Twenty20 format of the tournament, and won only one three-day match, but Bradburn said the experience would help the players once the home domestic season started.”Playing competitive international cricket at this time of year in those conditions is just absolute gold for their preparation leading into our summer,” Bradburn, who also coaches Northern Districts, told .”All those guys that got experience there will be that much better off for our domestic season.”The EPT also featured teams from Australia, India and South Africa. New Zealand won one of the three T20 games played and finished last on run-rate. They fared better in the three-day format, as they lost one game and drew two, finishing third in the standings. “There were different challenges for us,” Bradburn said. “It was a three-day concept with no first-innings points, so it really created some urgency in terms of thinking about where we wanted to be positioned in the game.”The whole concept gets a big plus in terms of the opportunities players were presented with,” Bradburn said. “There’s clearly opportunities at the Black Caps level and some guys have advanced their standing and taken the chance to put themselves further forward towards that recognition.”Allrounder Doug Bracewell was the standout performer for New Zealand in the T20 format with 91 runs and five wickets from three games. In the three-day format, Dean Brownlie was the second highest run-scorer of the tournament, making 413 runs from three games at an average of 103.25, with one century and two half-centuries.”His technique was impressive, he was very consistent on tour,” Bradburn said of Brownlie. “He’s well equipped to score runs at a higher level.”

Ashes autopsy report close at hand

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Australian cricket’s reckoning for a disastrous Ashes series, and the decline from greatness to mediocrity that preceded it, is belatedly at hand

Daniel Brettig17-Aug-2011Australian cricket’s reckoning for a disastrous Ashes series, and the decline from greatness to mediocrity that preceded it, is belatedly at hand. The findings of the Australian team performance review will, as ESPNcricinfo reported in July, be tabled and discussed by the directors at the Cricket Australia board meeting to take place in Melbourne on Thursday and Friday, nearly eight months after the Ashes were lost in an innings defeat at the MCG.Upon the conclusion of the meeting CA’s chairman Jack Clarke will face the cameras and microphones to run over whatever findings the board chooses to make public. Based on the submissions of a litany of players, coaches, administrators and other well-placed observers, they are expected to be blunt and wide-ranging.The review panel, chaired by Don Argus and including the former captains Allan Border, Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh plus the former CA chief executive Malcolm Speed, is likely to direct its harshest critiques towards the selection policies of the out of contract chairman, Andrew Hilditch, whose term lapsed at the end of the World Cup.Hilditch’s tenure began in 2006, and after enjoying a 5-0 Ashes sweep on England in the following summer he was fated to negotiate the retirements of a succession of great players, including Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer and Damien Martyn.He and his panel have been heavily criticised for numerous decisions across that time, most pointedly the revolving door for spin bowlers since the selectors’ planning was thrown out of balance by the sudden retirement of Stuart MacGill in 2008.More recently the removal of Simon Katich from the list of CA contracted players provided a window into the players’ discontent about the ways of the panel, something also highlighted by a formal submission to the review regarding selection by the Australian Cricketers Association.Rod Marsh, the former Australian wicketkeeper and highly-respected academy coach, has expressed his interest in becoming chairman of selectors, discussing the possibility with CA’s head of cricket operations, Michael Brown.Other matters at issue for the review panel include the shape of the Australian team’s support staff, with the place of the head coach Tim Nielsen in some question. Since the World Cup Nielsen’s support staff has been bolstered by the additions of Craig McDermott (bowling coach) and Steve Rixon (fielding coach), as the players desired greater guidance from mentors with international experience.Rixon’s arrival in particular has been met with great enthusiasm, and as the former coach of New Zealand and NSW his credentials far outweigh those of Nielsen, who was a distinguished assistant for South Australia and Australia but had never been a head coach until he replaced John Buchanan in 2007, like Hilditch at the outset of a difficult period of transition.Australia’s players and support staff currently on tour in Sri Lanka are expected to be briefed about the review findings on Friday morning in Colombo, before Clarke presents a summary of the findings to the public.The Australian team’s contract system, scheduling and preparation have also been matters for discussion, with the former chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns noting that a sleeker and more flexible contract system should be devised.It has also been pointed out that Test cricket in Australia would benefit from being the clear financial pinnacle of the game, with sufficient incentives for young players to devote themselves to its pursuit.The evolving role of the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane is considered a sore point in the development of players, as CA has sought to make it more of a finishing school for internationals rather than a bridge between junior cricket and the first-class arena.Further down the pathway, the standard of domestic cricket has been openly questioned by the likes of Ricky Ponting, who fervently believes that young cricketers need to be held to the same rigorous standards he had to reach before he was selected to play for Australia.Twenty20’s onset, and its attendant impact on the techniques and priorities of domestic players, is another factor, but CA are torn on this matter by competing desires to have the Test team successful while also growing the game’s revenue.There is little the review panel can do about the onset of the T20 Big Bash League and its heavy impact on the domestic schedule, meaning there will be plenty of hurdles ahead for the Australian team, whatever Argus and company recommend at the board meeting.

Sangakkara guides solid Sri Lanka

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There are few things Kumar Sangakkara has failed to achieve in Test cricket. As he walked off the SSC ground on the second afternoon of his 100th Test, he knew that one of those unfulfilled goals – playing in a win over Australia – was one step closer

The Report by Brydon Coverdale17-Sep-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMichael Hussey made his fourth Test hundred against Sri Lanka•AFP

Smart stats

  • Michael Hussey’s 118 is his fourth century in the subcontinent and brings him level third on the list of Australia batsmen with the most centuries in Asia. However, Hussey’s average of 61.38 is the highest among Australia batsmen with 1000-plus runs in the subcontinent.

  • Hussey became the 17th Australia batsman to score over 5000 runs in Tests. His average of 52.84 is fourth on the list of Australia batsmen with 5000-plus runs.

  • Hussey now has four centuries against Sri Lanka, the highest for an Australia batsman. His average of 111.50 is the highest among batsmen with 500-plus runs against Sri Lanka.

  • Shaminda Eranga’s 4 for 65 is the fifth-best bowling performance by a Sri Lanka bowler on debut. Upul Chandana’s six-wicket haul against Pakistan in 1999 remains the best debut bowling performance by a Sri Lanka.

  • Kumar Sangakkara is 39 runs away from becoming the seventh batsman to score a century in his 100th Test. No Sri Lanka player has achieved this feat so far.

  • Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene average 123.61 runs per partnership at the SSC, with five century stands in 14 innings, including their record stand of 624 against South Africa in 2006.

There are few things Kumar Sangakkara has failed to achieve in Test cricket. As he walked off the SSC ground on the second afternoon of his 100th Test, he would have felt that one of those unfulfilled goals – playing in a win over Australia – was one step closer. Sangakkara has tasted victory against every other Test nation, and while plenty of work remains in this match, it could be his best chance to complete the set.On a day that started with Michael Hussey’s 15th Test century and a four-wicket haul from the debutant Shaminda Eranga, Sri Lanka finished at a comfortable 166 for 2. They still trailed Australia by 150 runs, but with Sangakkara looking composed on 61 and Mahela Jayawardene on 31, Sri Lanka could certainly dream of building a first-innings lead.The pair had put on 68, but on a surface offering little for the bowlers, there was no reason that figure couldn’t expand significantly on the third day. Sangakkara brought up his half-century from his 86th delivery, with a slashing cut to the boundary off Mitchell Johnson, one ball after he sent a similarly short and wide ball to the rope.He and Jayawardene had come together after the loss of Tharanga Paranavitana, who on 46 drove Johnson off the meat of the bat, only to see Ricky Ponting at short cover take a terrific catch. Paranavitana had already survived one of the closest lbw reviews seen under the DRS, when on 14 he was given not out by Aleem Dar.Australia wanted the decision checked, and while Trent Copeland’s delivery had pitched in line and was striking off stump, a fraction less than half the ball was hitting the middle of the stump, saving the batsman. The only early breakthrough came when Peter Siddle, playing his first Test of the tour, sneaked through the defence of Lahiru Thirimanne.On 28, Thirimanne was beaten by a good fullish delivery that straightened off the pitch and rattled the stumps. It was a reward for consistently good bowling from Siddle, although the visitors had missed the injured Ryan Harris with the new ball.Australia wanted early wickets after they reached a competitive but far from imposing total of 316 in the first session, when Hussey continued his remarkable series by bringing up his second hundred of the series. Sri Lanka’s new fast bowler Eranga removed Hussey shortly before lunch to finish with four wickets on debut.Australia added 81 to their overnight score for the loss of their final five wickets, as Eranga and Chanaka Welegedara bowled well and found some swing. But the star of the session was Hussey, who at 36 is in the kind of form he displayed at the start of his Test career. The Man of the Match in the first two Tests, he also gave himself a strong chance of complete a clean-sweep.Hussey brought up his hundred with a single clipped off his pads off Rangana Herath from his 157th delivery, and it continued an incredible streak against Sri Lanka. In the five Tests he has played against the Sri Lankans, the only match in which Hussey has failed to post a century was the first Test of this series in Galle, where he made 95.He also became the fifth-fastest Australian to reach 5000 Test runs, getting there in his 107th innings, slower only than Don Bradman, Matthew Hayden, Neil Harvey and Greg Chappell. He reached that milestone with a pair of boundaries cut through point off Welegedara, but for a while it looked like Hussey was in danger of being stranded on 99.While Hussey waited for his hundred, he watched on as Johnson pushed tamely to point off Welegedara and Siddle edged to slip from the next ball. Fortunately for Hussey, Copeland survived the hat-trick ball and provided adequate support, at least, until Welegedara’s next over, when he was taken at slip by Mahela Jayawardene.But by then, Hussey had reached his century, and the goal was simply to push the total as high as possible with the final partnership with Nathan Lyon. Hussey lofted a six over long-on off Herath, before on 118 he was tricked by a slower ball and played on, completing a fine debut performance from Eranga, who finished with 4 for 65.Eranga had picked up the first wicket of the day when a very good outswinger was adjudged to have caught the edge of Brad Haddin’s bat when he was on 35. Haddin looked surprised by the decision and asked for a review, but there was a slight noise as the ball passed the bat and there was certainly no evidence to reprieve him.Haddin had struck six boundaries in his innings, but mixed in several plays and misses with his successes. In the end, he was simply outclassed by a fine delivery from Eranga. And if Australia’s bowlers are outclassed by Sangakkara and Jayawardene, a drawn series is a distinct possibility.

You don't always want a friendly series – Dhoni

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MS Dhoni reckons England might need to change their strategy of verbal intimidation considering it has not actually worked in their favour in the ongoing series

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Oct-2011MS Dhoni reckons England might need to change their strategy of verbal intimidation considering it has not actually worked in their favour in the ongoing series in which India have taken an unassailable 3-0 lead.On the eve of the Mohali one-dayer the England pair of Tim Bresnan and Samit Patel had stressed on the importance of unsettling their opponents with “a little bit of a word or a look or a stare”. The planned aggression cost Bresnan 7.5% of his Mohali match fee, after he was found guilty of breaching the ICC’s code of conduct by snatching his cap from umpire Sudhir Asnani at the end of the 18th over of the chase. Players from both teams have been involved in a few verbal confrontations and Dhoni said he did not mind a little bit of “chit-chat” as long as long as his players did not step over the line or make personal remarks.”A bit of chit-chat is fine because it makes things interesting. You don’t always want a friendly series. But I think they should change their strategy for the next two games,” Dhoni said after the five-wicket victory in Mohali.Dhoni also did not want to get carried away and term this series victory as “revenge” for the disastrous summer India had endured in England, where they lost the Test and one-day series and the solitary Twenty20 match. “I don’t think the word revenge should be used. On the one hand we talk about the spirit of cricket, and on the other hand there’s this talk of revenge, which I don’t think is right.”In Mohali, India were cruising in the chase before a few quick wickets left Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja 64 to get off 50 balls. Dhoni said he just wanted to bat till the end because he knew the bowlers would eventually feel the pressure. “You always want to stay till the end because you reach a stage where the bowlers and batsmen are under pressure, and then whoever executes better wins. We knew that if Jadeja and I are there in the end then even if we needed 20-25 runs off the last two overs, Twenty20 cricket has taught us that is possible.”Dhoni also pointed out that he would not like to disturb the winning combination and instead would persist with playing their young batsmen at the top of the order because they needed time in the middle. “The youngsters need to be batting 20-25 overs. Once they are more experienced, then we can experiment with batting them lower in the order. Nos. 6 and 7 are difficult places to bat because there’s only one or two batsmen behind you so it’s better players are only tried there when they have a few games under their belt.”After having been thumped in the first two matches, England gave a better account of themselves in Mohali, but their captain Alastair Cook said that did not make the loss any easier to bear. The match once again threw the spotlight on Jonathan Trott’s position in the one-day side. Though Trott scored 98 not out, he took 116 balls to get there and struggled to hit boundaries in the end overs. Cook, though, insisted Trott played his role perfectly.”Trott played the anchor role and did it nicely,” Cook said. “Fifty overs is quite a long time to bat and you need people to bat around him. Three hundred was a decent score and was defendable. Trott’s instructions are the same as everyone else’s: to play positively and try to get 300. Today we did that and he got 98 at a strike rate of 80-odd, so he did his role.”Cook again highlighted his side’s fielding as the most disappointing part of their performance but said the team would still battle in the last two games. “One of the toughest challenges in sport is to lift yourselves when you’ve already lost a series. But there’s still desperation to win.”

Hampshire give contracts to Terry, Rouse and Ravenscroft

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Hampshire has awarded development contracts to three players for 2012, including Sean Terry, Adam Rouse and Tim Ravenscroft

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Nov-2011Hampshire has awarded development contracts to three players for 2012, including Sean Terry, son of Hampshire stalwart Paul Terry. The other two are Adam Rouse and Tim Ravenscroft, who’ve had their contracts renewed from last summer.Terry, an opening batsman, had represented MCC Young Cricketers, scoring 313 runs in nine matches in the 2011 Second XI Championship. He also had a stint with the Hampshire Second XI. He was brought up in Perth, Australia, where he played for Western Australia junior teams. His father played two Tests for England, in 1984. He served Hampshire from 1978-1996, scoring over 16,000 runs and also coached the county.”Hampshire has been a big part of my life, particularly because my Dad had such a long career here, and to be given the chance to start my professional career at Hampshire means a lot,” Terry said. “I can’t wait to get started next season and be part of a young squad pushing to be back in the first division.”Ravenscroft, a batsman and occasional seamer, has also come through the Second XI ranks. He scored over 500 runs in the Second XI across all competitions.Rouse, the wicketkeeper, has an aggregate of 489 runs in the Second XI. He also took a catch as a substitute during the Rose Bowl Test between England and Sri Lanka earlier this year.

Ponting half-century steers Australia

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After nearly two years without a Test hundred, Ricky Ponting gave himself every chance of completing one on home soil with an assured half-century that provided a solid platform for Australia at the Gabba

The Report by Brydon Coverdale02-Dec-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Ricky Ponting was unbeaten on 67 at stumps•Getty Images

After nearly two years without a Test hundred, Ricky Ponting gave himself every chance of completing one on home soil with an assured half-century that provided a solid platform for Australia at the Gabba. On an eventful day on which Daniel Vettori ran himself out on 96 and Michael Clarke was bowled off a no-ball, Australia finished in a reasonable position at 3 for 154, but New Zealand knew a couple of early wickets on the third morning would put them on top.New Zealand had done well to post a competitive 295, thanks largely to Vettori and Dean Brownlie, who in his second Test remained unbeaten on 77. But after Australia lost both their openers cheaply, including the debutant David Warner in the second over of the innings, their recovery was encouraging for the home fans, though it was not without its nervy moments.Ponting was nearly run out before he had scored when he was called through and then sent back by Usman Khawaja, who himself was caught short due in the first over after tea. Kane Williamson’s direct hit had Khawaja on his way for 38, a disappointing end to a promising innings, and it was hard to avoid thinking that Ponting’s call for the tight single was to blame, although a split-second hesitation from Khawaja also played a part.When the umpires called play off due to bad light at 4.40pm, a decision that in itself added to the drama of the day as conditions appeared fair, Ponting was on 67 and had played some fine strokes, 44 of his runs having come through boundaries. There was a lovely pull off Doug Bracewell and a confident drive through the off side against Tim Southee, and his fifty came up with a four driven through extra cover off Chris Martin.Ponting had survived a close lbw appeal against the part-time medium pace of Brownlie on 63, the not-out decision of the umpire upheld when New Zealand’s review showed “umpire’s call” for the impact on off stump and the ball clipping the top of the bails. Clarke, who went to stumps on 28, had also had a let-off, having played on to Bracewell on 23 only to have Asad Rauf check on a suspected no-ball, which was confirmed by the third official.Little mistakes like Bracewell’s overstep threatened to undo New Zealand’s strong start in the field. The Australians had to face two overs before lunch and in the second, Warner was cramped by a well-directed shorter delivery from Tim Southee that brushed the gloves on the way through to the wicketkeeper as the batsman tried to evade the ball.

Smart stats

  • Daniel Vettori became the fifth New Zealand batsman to be dismissed in the nineties in a Test against Australia. Jeremy Coney is the only New Zealand batsman to be dismissed twice in the nineties against Australia.

  • Vettori’s dismissal was the 40th instance of a batsman being run out in the nineties. Ken Barrington, Rohan Kanhai and Craig Wishart have all been dismissed in this fashion twice in the nineties.

  • The 158-run stand between Dean Brownlie and Vettori is the best sixth-wicket stand for New Zealand against Australia. Vettori was also involved in the previous highest of 126 in Wellington in 2010.

  • Vettori’s half-century is his 23rd in Tests and takes him to joint-third position on the list of New Zealand batsmen with the most half-centuries. Stephen Fleming (46) and Nathan Astle (24) are above Vettori on the list.

  • Nathan Lyon’s 4 for 69 is fifth on the list of best bowling performances by a spinner in the match first innings in Brisbane

  • Ricky Ponting went past 1000 runs in Tests against New Zealand. Of the six Australian batsmen who have crossed 1000 runs against New Zealand, his average of 61.41 is second only to Justin Langer’s 62.94.

Soon after the resumption, the other opener Phillip Hughes was squared up by Martin and edged to gully, where Martin Guptill took a fine catch low in front of him, and Australia were in trouble at 2 for 25. At that point, New Zealand’s 295 looked a long way off for the Australians, who had been frustrated by the Vettori-Brownlie partnership for much of the morning.Vettori and Brownlie added 158, a stand that ended when Vettori suffered a brain-fade approaching what looked like becoming his seventh Test century and his first against Australia. On 96, Vettori took off for a suicidal single to mid-off and even his full-stretch dive wasn’t enough to beat the direct hit of Michael Hussey.Vettori pulled well against the fast men and brought up his half-century from his 70th delivery, while Brownlie remained solid and made Australia pay for the chances he gave on the first day. He brought up his fifty from his 121st ball with an impressive on-drive for four off James Pattinson. Brownlie tried to lift his tempo once he began running out of partners, but had to settle for a solid half-century, his second in two Tests, instead of his maiden hundred.Nathan Lyon picked up four wickets and was the most consistently threatening of Australia’s bowlers, spinning the ball sharply and using flight and guile in his first match of any kind at the Gabba. He wrapped things up shortly before the scheduled lunch break when he turned a ball through the gate and bowled Martin for 1.Australia began to chip away at the lower order after Vettori ran himself out. The wicketkeeper Reece Young was caught at slip for 2 off Peter Siddle, Bracewell edged a Lyon topsinner to slip for a duck, and Southee, having slogged Mitchell Starc over the fence, was caught at long-on for 17 trying for another six off Lyon.Southee and Vettori joined the long list of New Zealand batsmen who contributed heavily to their own dismissals. Whether such lapses cost them remains to be seen.

Kaushik rips through Maharashtra

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A round-up of the second day’s play from the quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophy Elite League

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jan-2012Dishant Yagnik scored his maiden first-class century to help Rajasthan reach 421 at Uppal•Sakshi Telugu Daily

J Kaushik ran through the Maharashtra middle and lower order on the second morning at Chepauk, and Tamil Nadu‘s top order then put their team in control by stumps. Kaushik, a 26-year-old medium-pacer in his debut season, had received praise from his captain L Balaji before the game, and showed why with a five-wicket haul that sent Maharashtra crashing from 204 for 4 overnight to 232 all out. Kaushik struck with the first ball of the morning, dismissing SD Atitkar caught-behind. His third over of the morning brought three wickets: Kedar Jadhav and Ajinkya Joshi were caught in the slips off consecutive balls, and then Akshay Darekar was dismissed in similar fashion off the last ball of the over.A few overs later, Kaushik completed his maiden five-wicket haul in first-class cricket by bowling No. 11 Samad Fallah. After having set a base on the first day, Maharashtra had collapsed. Tamil Nadu’s batsmen took advantage. Abhinav Mukund, the second-highest run-getter in the Elite division this season, and M Vijay put together an opening stand of 173 to flatten the visitors. There was some respite as the two were dismissed in quick succession but S Badrinath settled in and finished the day on 35 not out with Tamil Nadu 259 for 3.Abhinav fell short of what would have been his third hundred of the season, getting trapped lbw by Ajinkya Joshi on 95, and Vijay fell to Akshay Darekar for 79. Despite those two wickets Maharashtra are staring at a big first-innings deficit unless they can affect a collapse on the third morning similar to the one Kaushik affected today.

Aakash Chopra and Dishant Yagnik completed centuries on the second day at Uppal to build an imposing total of 421 for Rajasthan. By the end of the day Hyderabad had slipped to 35 for 2. Chopra and Yagnik had begun a recovery act on the first day, rescuing their team from 129 for 5 to finish the day 220 for 5. On the second day, they seized control, extending the sixth-wicket stand to 185 runs. Chopra completed his second century of the tournament, and went on to get 142, an innings that took 450 balls and included just 42 runs from fours and sixes.Yagnik, Rajasthan’s wicketkeeper, got his maiden first-class century, also taking his time on the way to 101. Contributions from Vivek Yadav and Pankaj Singh down the order further frustrated Hyderabad, who were kept in the field for 167.1 overs. Debutant left-arm spinner Mehdi Hasan finished with 5 for 62 but the rest of the bowlers struggled to pick up wickets.Hyderabad’s batsmen then had to negotiate an awkward ten-over spell at the end of the day, and each of Rajasthan’s new-ball bowlers, Pankaj Singh and Sumit Mathur, found success. Akshath Reddy was dismissed by Pankaj for 12 and T Suman was bowled by Mathur for a nine-ball duck. Hyderabad now face an uphill climb on the final two days.

On another eventful day in Bangalore, which saw fifteen wickets fall, Karnataka won the first session, then gave away the middle one to Haryana, and just when it seemed like they had bounced back after tea lost their top order, giving the visitors a slight edge at the halfway stage of the quarter-final contest. Click here for the full report of the day’s action.

Kaustubh Pawar rescued Mumbai from a precarious position with a fiercely-determined century and along with the lower order, all but batted Madhya Pradesh out of the Ranji Trophy. Mumbai had begun the day 122 runs behind MP with only five wickets remaining, but Pawar showed tremendous character in grinding out his second hundred in his debut season at a time Mumbai desperately needed someone to bail them out. Click here for the full report of the day’s action.