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Sanath Jayasuriya, Sri Lanka Cricket’s chief selector, has confirmed that fast bowler Lasith Malinga will miss the tour of Zimbabwe, which begins in the first week of October. Malinga had requested permission from SLC to skip the tour, stating that he wanted to be with his wife and family, as they expect their second child late in September. He has already made himself unavailable for the Champions League T20 tournament.”The selection committee has accepted Malinga’s request and we have given him permission to forego the tour,” Jayasuriya said on Thursday.Jayasuriya also elaborated on the selection policy for the Zimbabwe tour, saying the selectors would focus on a balanced side, especially for the Test series, because the conditions required the presence of seniors in the side.”We are thinking of bringing in youngsters whenever we can but the Test series is very important for us. We need the senior players in the team also,” Jayasuriya said. “We need to have a serious discussion on how we are going to approach the Test series especially. Just because it is Zimbabwe, we should not get carried away and select a very young side. The conditions are different in Zimbabwe and we will require the services of the senior players, especially for the Test series.”Jayasuriya also said that Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara have indicated to the selectors that they will be available for selection until the 2015 World Cup.”Our policy is to give as much exposure to youngsters but, in this regard, we must also be careful as to how we go about it,” Jayasuriya said. “In Tests and ODIs, we cannot experiment too much with youngsters, we need the three seniors around. As you may have noticed, it is the seniors who have won us matches in these two formats over the last couple of years.”We had a tough series against South Africa and, in the ODIs, we had the three senior cricketers and at least six youngsters. For the T20 series, we tried bringing in youngsters because we thought that is one format they can adjust to very quickly.”Jayasuriya also stressed that the team would face a few losses, while experimenting with youngsters in the playing XI.On the exclusion of allrounder Jeevan Mendis and opener Upul Tharanga from the 27-member squad named for the Zimbabwe tour, Jayasuriya said that Mendis. had been given enough opportunities and the selectors had decided to back another player. He shared a similar opinion about Tharanga”Upul has not performed to our expectations,” said Jayasuriya. “He scored a big hundred in one game but after that he never showed the consistency that we expected from him.”We have retained Kusal Perera because he is young and he has talent. He has shown what a destructive batsman he can be on his day.”Sri Lanka are scheduled to play two Tests, three ODIs and two T20s on their tour of Zimbabwe.

Nathan Lyon has the chance to press for a Test match recall against Sussex this week as Australia named a hodgepodge XI for the three-day match starting on Friday that includes the Hampshire Academy scholar Ashton Turner, one of three spinners in the team.The decision to rest the captain Michael Clarke, plus his deputy Brad Haddin, Shane Watson, Chris Rogers, Peter Siddle and Ryan Harris has bizarrely left a 16-man squad – minus the injured James Pattinson and the absent David Warner – two players short of the numbers required for the tour match, forcing the Western Australian Turner to be included while the young South Australia batsman Travis Head is 12th man. Ashton Agar is selected despite carrying a hip injury through the Lord’s Test.While the likes of Matthew Wade, Mitchell Starc and Jackson Bird will all be pushing for recalls and bowling allrounder James Faulkner straining for a Test debut, Lyon has the chance to regain his Test place after being treated rather brusquely by the selectors for the second tour in succession. In India Lyon was dropped following the first Test in Chennai despite claiming four wickets at some cost, and rebounded with career-best figures in the fourth Test of the series.Yet he again found himself surplus to requirements at the start of the Investec Ashes, as the left-arm spin of 19-year-old Agar was preferred. While Agar made himself an instant hero by stroking his way to a memorable 98 from No. 11 at Trent Bridge, his understandable struggles to make an impact as a fledgling spin bowler suggest that Lyon will again be called upon as the fall-back option.Lyon took his demotion for Agar with remarkable grace and was among the most excited figures on the Nottingham balcony when his spin rival played his incredible innings. But he admitted it had been hard to take, particularly as he had started the tour in fine wicket-taking form.”It’s not easy to cop when you’re playing Test match cricket,” Lyon said. “To be left out of the Australian team for an Ashes Test match is not that easy to take but that comes down to the personality of the person. I believe you still have to give for the team.”I’m just trying to put the ball into the same spot and trying to get some good drop and bounce. I’m really happy with the way they’re coming out, actually. Best I’ve bowled in a long time. I believe my best ball can get the best batters in the world out. The thing is that I have to keep doing that over and over and over.”At Lord’s, Lyon said he sat thinking about how he would bowl at England’s batsmen while mixing the drinks with his fellow reserve Starc, who would also prove a useful ally for the offspinner should both play at Old Trafford due to the footmarks he can create outside off stump.”I’ve been sitting there with Mitch Starc just mixing the hydrolyte just talking about it how we’d go about it if we were out there,” Lyon said. “I’m thinking about that every cricket game, definitely. I’m definitely ready. I’ll have to come out at Hove and bowl well and enjoy it firstly and really get this momentum swinging around for Australia.”Turner, who will make his first-class debut, has been playing for Chichester Priory Park as part of the development programme run by Cricket Australia and Hampshire. He has taken 18 wickets at an average of 40.78 for the Sussex Premier League club this season.Australians to play Sussex: Ed Cowan (capt), Phillip Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade (wkt), James Faulkner, Ashton Agar, Ashton Turner, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird. 12th man: Travis Head.

Match facts

June 27, The Oval
Start time 6.30pm (1730 GMT)Never mind Kevin Pietersen, what might sort of carnage might Hamish Rutherford unleash?•AFP

Big Picture

Kevin Pietersen was in the England dressing room on Tuesday evening and, all being well, he will return to don their flashy new red pyjamas and take to the field for the second T20 international against New Zealand on Thursday. In between he netted with his team-mates (and was excited enough to tweet about it) and although his contribution will be largely meaningless in the broader sweep of an Ashes summer, particularly after his strutting, unbeaten 177 for Surrey at the weekend, the sight of him in an England shirt for the first time since March will settle a few nerves.The question of who makes room for him was settled after Eoin Morgan was ruled out of the match with a minor hand injury. Before Morgan’s enforced absence, any of the batsmen would have been unfortunate to be dropped after all impressed as England narrowly failed to pull off their highest successful run chase in T20s.Morgan, who will now be replaced by James Tredwell as captain, joked after the first match that it would be Pietersen’s job to come in and win the second T20 and that would probably fit the bill for a partisan Surrey crowd, as well as England’s limited-overs coach, Ashley Giles. With Pietersen in the XI, England will also be able to rival New Zealand and Brendon McCullum for IPL glamour, in another sell-out match that comes a day after the launch of the domestic FLt20 in slightly more muted circumstances.For New Zealand, there is the opportunity for another series victory in England’s backyard after their ODI reverse. Over 15 contests in all three formats since early February, New Zealand have won five (three ODIs, two T20s) to England’s seven (two Tests, three ODIs, two T20s) and no neutral onlooker would begrudge McCullum’s team making it 6-7 after nearly five months of cricket in which the difference between the two countries has consistently belied the gap in the rankings.

Form guide (most recent first)

England LWLWW
New Zealand WLWLL

In the spotlight

From an England perspective, the spotlight is unlikely to stray from Pietersen for long but should a few photons be going spare they wouldn’t be wasted on Ben Stokes. The Durham allrounder made his first England appearance in two summers on Tuesday; his bowling stood up better than several of his more senior colleagues and although he couldn’t quite secure victory with the bat he showed his power with one towering six.Tom Latham was given an opportunity with bat and gloves and, one missed stumping apart, gave a good account of himself. His merry hitting helped sustain the momentum of New Zealand’s innings, he took a superb diving catch to dismiss Luke Wright, England’s top-scorer, and then managed to run out Jos Buttler at a crucial stage (possibly with the aid of a little luck). With BJ Watling’s injury and uncertainty surrounding Luke Ronchi, Latham has the chance to further his claims.

Team news

Chris Woakes’ evening ended after around ten minutes in the first T20 – his one over costing 19 runs – he might have made way for Pietersen’s return but may have earned a reprieve after Morgan’s hand injury.England 1 Michael Lumb, 2 Alex Hales, 3 Luke Wright, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Chris Woakes, 7 Jos Buttler (wk), 8 Ben Stokes, 9 James Tredwell (capt), 10 Jade Dernbach, 11 Boyd RankinMcCullum suggested that Guptill would struggle to be fit for the second game and if New Zealand decide against risking further damage to his hamstring, James Franklin will get another chance as a pinch-hitting opener. Kyle Mills and Doug Bracewell are the other fast-bowling options in the squad.New Zealand 1 Hamish Rutherford, 2 James Franklin, 3 Brendon McCullum (capt, wk), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Tom Latham, 6 Colin Munro, 7 Corey Anderson, 8 Nathan McCullum, 9 Ian Butler, 10 Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Ronnie Hira

Pitch and conditions

The pitch, situated towards the south-west side of the square, was exceptionally quick and bouncy, with one short boundary that both teams targeted to good effect. Morgan felt New Zealand’s 201 for 4 was ten runs below par, though a chance of rain on Thursday might dampen the prospects for a repeat.

Stats and trivia

• New Zealand’s win was only their third over England in ten T20s – and their first in this country.
• Since returning to England’s T20 side last year, Luke Wright has scored 346 runs at 31.45 and taken 10 wickets at 18.10. Before that, he averaged 15.43 with the bat and 36.50 with the ball.
• Hamish Rutherford’s 62 at The Oval was his first international half-century since making 171 on Test debut in March.

Quotes

“It’s very small margins especially in Twenty20 on a very good wicket. One blow and we would have won the game.”
“He got out first ball – that can happen.”
June 27, 11.45pm GMT – This article was updated with the news that Eoin Morgan had been ruled out of the match with a hand injury.

Overview

India hardly ever play big events without huge pressure of expectation on them. This Champions Trophy was to be different. The selectors had picked a young team, mostly based on performance and not past or promise. Surely this inexperienced team – picked with World Cup 2015 in mind – would go with less expectation, and thus less pressure? Surely, for once, India wouldn’t be the focus of everything? We had another think coming. India will once again be the center of attention, this time unwanted and unfortunate. Wherever they go they will be asked questions, and they will have to show up for press conferences because this is an ICC event.However, the cricket can’t come soon enough. If the fan is indeed waiting to be reassured by MS Dhoni and his team, Dhoni’s silence clearly says the reassurance will come the way they know best to give it: through playing cricket. It is difficult to imagine what state of mind the players are in, but it is fair to assume it is not easy. It is not going to be easy to play cricket, but the cricket field might be the place where they can possibly let go of the caginess, the unease, and whatever other emotions they have gone through, if at all.This is not an easy tournament at the best of times. There are no looseners in the eight-team, two-group Champions Trophy format. You have to be better than at least two teams in your group of four to make it to the semi-final. It’s a tricky format. And India have traditionally struggled to come terms with international cricket immediately after the IPL. It is a difficult time and a difficult tournament, but it is not unimaginable that the players are itching to go out and play.MS Dhoni is leading the team into the unknown•BCCI

Key player

If ever there was a time for a captain to make a statement on the field, this might be it for MS Dhoni. Off the field he has already shown helplessness when asked to speak about the controversies. The man under most pressure to quit his job, N Srinivasan, is also the man who saved Dhoni’s captaincy last year, and also the managing director of the company Dhoni is a vice-president of, which is also the company that owns the IPL team that Dhoni captains.It is possible that all this might not be a distraction for Dhoni at all. If it is a distraction, it is likely that Dhoni won’t be affected once on the field. Once he does manage to put these things behind, Dhoni will have to make important decisions. He will have to sort out the opening combination first: India have used three different combinations in their last eight matches, and have dropped two of those openers. Shikhar Dhawan and M Vijay are the specialists now, and Rohit Sharma and Dinesh Karthik have opened before.Then Dhoni has to decide between an allrounder and a specialist batsman for No. 7. And if he does pick the allrounder, he has to choose between Irfan Pathan, more suited to the conditions, and Ravindra Jadeja, the form man. And if he does pick Irfan, Dhoni will be left with two bowlers – Bhuvneshwar Kumar being the other – whom he will want to bowl out with the new ball. Then as a batsman, Dhoni will have to be the leader of the middle order in Yuvraj Singh’s absence.

Surprise package

Shikhar Dhawan surprised the daylights out of not only Australia but observers in India on Test debut when he waltzed his way to 187. He has had an injury since then, recovered, made a decent comeback in the IPL, and will be crucial to India’s plans. He is also one of the three left-hand batsmen in the squad.

Weakness

As always, the bowling. India’s most exciting bowling prospect on this tour, Umesh Yadav, is a man with 51 international wickets, who is coming back from a stress reaction of the back. That says all you need to know about India’s biggest weakness in international cricket.

Champions Trophy history

India’s Champions Trophy high came in 2002 in Sri Lanka, when they shared the trophy with the hosts after both attempts at having a completed final were washed out. India also made it to the final in 2000 in Kenya, but lost to New Zealand. There hasn’t been much to declare otherwise.The last Champions Trophy was played in South Africa, in 2009. India had panicked so much by then they recalled Rahul Dravid two years after he had last played an ODI. It didn’t help, though, and India lost the big first match to Pakistan. When their second match was washed out, their fate was left in the hands of other teams, and they didn’t give India any favours.

Recent form

India’s involvement in ODI cricket – keeping in with the trends worldwide – has gone down immensely. Since they finished third in the tri-series in Australia early last year, they have been involved in only four ODI events. The Asia Cup was a disaster, they then won against their bilateral punching bag Sri Lanka before losing to Pakistan and winning against England at home. Their three shoo-in openers are now not even part of the squad, the bowling has looked weak as ever, and they have entered the rebuilding phase, which they should have entered soon after the World Cup triumph in 2011.

This is a different kind of cricket. Not the soft artistry of VVS Laxman, notthe classical, streamlined beauty of Rahul Dravid, not the scientific art ofSachin Tendulkar’s genius. This isn’t the moody strokeplay of Sourav Ganguly, nor themuscular presence and timing of Yuvraj Singh. This is somehow a bit moreuninhibited. At times, it’s easier to define things by describing whatthey aren’t. When you think of Sehwag, you first think of unrestrained,unrehearsed, inscrutable. Everything seems instantly conceived.Everything is very definitely original.It is easy to get carried away by the seemingly spontaneous flow of Sehwag’sshotmaking. When hours of careful study of bowlers’ techniques align withan unerring ability to pick line and, more importantly, length early, you feela batsman is playing purely by instinct. It is an instinct that has been finelyhoned. Sehwag possesses a fine cricketing mind and he plays the ball verylate. Nearly always, he’s on tiptoe and, now and then, his feet are off theground. This is what allows him the freedom to improvise.Sehwag’s confidence in his abilities borders on cricketing swagger. It is adifferent brand of arrogance. It isn’t the restrained confidence of aTendulkar. It’s a bit like Richards. With bowlers bowling to Tendulkar,especially these days, it is an acknowledgement of mastery. With Sehwag,it’s almost a fear of flogging. There’s a crucial difference with Richardshowever. Viv was the master of machismo, of the exaggerated strut and theflourish of the follow-through. It was muscular masculinity expressedthrough sport. Where Richards’s arrogance was significant in itsexaggeration, Sehwag’s is apparent in its minimising.Sehwag doesn’t hold his pose after a flashing cover-drive, the bat is brought back down from the follow-through very quickly, as if it wasn’t such a big deal after all. Hemight take a couple of short steps about the crease, look down the handle ofhis bat held away from him at an angle, and then he’s ready again. His isalmost an oriental spunk. Viv’s cricket was also a statement of a people,Sehwag’s is simply the sporting expression of a free-spirited individual.To bowlers, both might appear the same.There are resemblances to Javed Miandad in his very streetsmart approach tocricket. But the jauntiness is at variance with Miandad’s. He may assume hisstance well outside leg as he did to Stuart MacGill in Sydney. He might splay hisleft leg and hit the first ball of a new spell for six over the bowler’shead. But, the jauntiness isn’t in your face like Miandad’s. He veryrarely provokes, he generally only reacts.From a batsman who modelled some of his early batsmanship on Tendulkar,Sehwag has blossomed quickly into a batsman with his very own range ofstrokes. Not many now will mistake him for Sachin. That flick off his toesthat resembles Sachin’s in body balance has a table-tennis-like flourish,you can feel the face of the bat turning on the ball. Sachin seems to use thepace of the ball, Sehwag looks to give it a real whip. His vast array ofoff-side shots are close to all his own. He might have initially borrowedthe upper cut from Sachin, but he plays it far more regularly than Sachinthese days. There is incredibly, at least one six over point every biginnings. There is a difference even in the way he ducks under the shortball. He doesn’t necessarily follow the ball into the keeper’s gloves, it’sas if he’s saying, the ball’s gone over my head, why bother looking.He has succeeded at opening because he has stuck to his game. Shrewdly, inTests, he gives the first hour to the bowler and then opens out. Thedefence has tightened and he leaves a lot more outside off. His camaraderiewith Akash Chopra reminds you sometimes of the relationship between Desmond Haynes and Gordon Greenidge. His acute cricketing alertness makes you feel he’s rarely rushed when taking those quick singles. Mostly, you see him ease to the striker’s end at a short,light canter.The same alertness is why he’s a very good fielder and anexcellent catcher. Ajit Agarkar and Dravid were the architects of that famousAdelaide win, but it was the brilliant, full-length diving tumble fromSehwag to catch Simon Katich at the end of an exhausting first day thatprovided the initial spark. Earlier in the year, he’d held a few very sharpones at slip to help Ashish Nehra run through England in the World Cup game atDurban. His first movement to the ball is so well-timed that the rest seemseasy in comparison. To top it all off, he’s a half-decent offie as well.Often it is flippantly claimed that there’s a method to his madness. I begto differ. This is no madness. We see so much of what’s conventional thatwe can’t seem to recognise celebration. It isn’t that he doesn’t respectcricket’s time-tested techniques, it’s just that he’s very alert to itsintricacies. He can conceive attack when so many would defend. It’s not asif he doesn’t understand the importance of footwork and getting behind theline. He appreciates these for what they are. They are means to an end.That of hitting a cricket ball consistently with the middle of the bat. Hedoes this by a wonderful combination of bat-speed and fine balance. This isa celebration of rare talent. Not someone having a waft in the wind.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Parthiv Patel’s first IPL fifty in three years gave Sunrisers a big win•BCCI

Sunrisers Hyderabad kept their bid for making the playoffs more than alive after their win over Kings XI Punjab took them level with Royal Challengers Bangalore, who are placed fourth on the table thanks to a superior net run rate. With 10 points from 13 matches, Kings XI were all but out of the reckoning.It was a scrappy match full of dropped catches, missed chances and bad shots, played on a patchy pitch. If the bowlers hit the two patches of green on the track, they derived seam movement and variable bounce. The match began with the weaker suits of both sides coming against each other as Adam Gilchrist inserted Sunrisers.The two youngsters who came into the match, Harmeet Singh and Sandeep Sharma, benefited from a mix of poor strokes and the capricious pitch, to reduce Sunrisers to 52 for 5 in the ninth over.Parthiv Patel stuck in, though, to score his first IPL half-century in three years. His previous fifty, too, came against Kings XI, but for Chennai Super Kings. The partnership between him and Karan Sharma wasn’t the prettiest thing going around, but they added 42 runs, and gave Thisara Perera some sort of platform to launch from.Perera and Parthiv, helped by a drop by Gilchrist and some ordinary death bowling, added 56 in the last 5.1 overs to take Sunrisers to what looked like an above-par total. It proved to be one, especially with Dale Steyn going for just two runs in the first over and removing Mandeep Singh for a duck.Shaun Marsh and Gilchrist kept the chase going with a 44-run second-wicket stand. Darren Sammy, however, came on and ended the chase for all practical purposes with three soft dismissals. Marsh and Gilchrist pulled at balls that were not short enough, and fell to the first two balls Sammy bowled.In Sammy’s next over, David Miller, Kings XI’s biggest hope, drove a length ball straight down cover’s throat. Game over. R Sathish and Sunrisers’ fielders tried their best to keep the chase interesting, but Luke Pomersbach’s slow innings of 33 off 40 put paid to that.

Match facts

Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Not a familiar sight for Mumbai fans•BCCI

Big Picture

The last time Ricky Ponting played at Wankhede Stadium, he was leading Australia in a one-dayer against India. There was no IPL yet. Ponting made a half-century, and one can imagine the kind of reception he must have got from the Mumbai crowd, which has a ready ability to heckle visiting teams and captains. More than five years later, when Ponting walks out to the toss on Tuesday night, you can be sure there’ll be nothing hostile about the crowd’s behaviour towards the Mumbai Indians captain. It’ll be the franchise’s first home game of the season, and Wankhede will know, and respect, what it is witnessing when Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar walk out together.Not only will Mumbai be backed by the screaming hordes, they will also be lifted by the presence of their key bowler, Lasith Malinga, who is likely to be fit for his first match this season. Malinga should come in for one of Mitchell Johnson or Dwayne Smith.Mumbai had a batting failure against Chennai Super Kings, and were hauled back from the edge of defeat by an acrobatic catch from Kieron Pollard, who had bailed them out with an unbeaten fifty earlier in the game.Till the penultimate over against Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Daredevils were winning the game easily, David Warner having guided the chase sensibly. Then Warner was run out, and the rest choked. Daredevils have lost both matches so far, and will be hoping Virender Sehwag has recovered enough from his back troubles to play. Daredevils will also welcome back last season’s highest wicket-taker, Morne Morkel, and the feisty Roelof van der Merwe, who will join the squad after playing in South Africa’s domestic T20 final.

Players to watch

Sachin Tendulkar has received many shocking lbw decisions over his career. The one he got against Chennai Super Kings wasn’t one of them, still, his reaction was about as livid as you’ll ever see Tendulkar on the field. It is surprising the match referee did not have anything to say. That is a different matter, but Tendulkar’s disgust showed his desperation to make runs. Has the presence of another legend at the other end made him even more determined?Morne Morkel had 25 wickets last IPL season at just over seven runs an over. Indications are he will play, and if he does, the tall fast bowler should enjoy the bounce the Wankhede generally offers. Mumbai have had batting stutters in both matches so far, and facing Morkel will be a testing prospect.

Stats and trivia

• Last year at Wankhede, Mumbai Indians were shot out for 92, with the Daredevils quick bowlers picking up seven wickets.
• Kieron Pollard is eight short of 3500 T20 runs

Quotes

“T20 is a game of improvisation but you have to strike a balance between improvising and sticking to your own style. I want to balance it out even more so that it does not get too much one-sided.”

The two King Edward VII (KES) schoolboys on either side of Graeme Smith had to pull the South African Test captain up from the crouch position during the institution’s war cry. Like most alumni, Smith seemed to have forgotten a few parts of the traditional song and dance that he had performed a decade and a half ago, so he was happy to be led. But in every other way, Smith was the one giving direction when he paid a visit to his alma mater on Wednesday morning.Smith’s trip was planned around visiting the nine members of the school’s first team, who had been struck by lightning last month while putting covers on the pitch. He made a special trip to visit the one boy, Mphetho Bidli, who is still recovering in hospital.Bidli, a 17-year old wicketkeeper, is the only one of the students who has not returned to school. He suffered cardiac arrest after being struck and was resuscitated by a paramedic, who was the father of the one of the other schoolboys.Bidli lost his speech and mobile functionality in the accident. Although doctors were impressed with his progress – he has started to walk again – they cautioned that his recovery period will be lengthy. He sleeps with his cricket cap and bat close by and hopes to be able to play again.Smith wished nothing but the same. “I hope my visit today can instill some fighting resilience into Bidli during this difficult period for him,” he said. “From what I hear he has been incredibly brave and has improved quite a lot in the last couple of weeks, so that is very encouraging. He seems like a very motivated young man with a bright future ahead of him. It’s humbling for me to see how positive and determined he is.”Smith addressed the school assembly and had a short question and answer session but admitted to feeling more nerves than at any of his previous “press conferences, functions and even when opening the batting.” His main message was one of encouragement.”I hope to inspire the boys after the traumatising ordeal last month, and more importantly bring the school closer together as they try to move forward positively.”For the 1000 children who attend the school, being in the presence of the Test captain left them star-struck. KES has produced many national sportsmen including Smith’s former opening partner Neil McKenzie and Springbok winger Bryan Habana, all of whom have remained involved with the school after leaving. Smith is no different and spoke of the importance of going back to the place that “moulded” him into the person he is today.”It’s always a gratifying and humbling experience when old boys visit the school. That is the foundation that this school’s culture is based on,” David Lovatt, the school principal said. “The victims of the lightning accident were all budding cricketers so it makes it extra special that the support is coming from one of South Africa’s greatest cricketers.”

Somerset gave their chances of a quick return to the top flight next season a further boost when they announced the signing of former Middlesex player Aaron Laraman on a three year contract.The twenty two year old all rounder certainly looked impressive when he bowled in the indoor nets during his first public appearance at the County Ground in Taunton earlier today.In 2002 Laraman enjoyed his best ever season, scoring over 500 championship runs at an average of 32 and taking 20 wickets at a cost of nearly 39 runs a piece since making his first class debut in 1998.Why had he chosen to make the journey along the M4 rather than signing a new contract at Middlesex I asked. He told me: ” I am looking to develop my playing career further. I like the set up and the close knit team spirit that there is here at Somerset so when the chance came along to join up with Kevin Shine I took it.”Had he played at Taunton before I asked. He told me: “I played a second eleven game here in 1997 against a Somerset team that included Andre Van Troost, and scored 90 odd not out, so I am hoping that this will be a happy return for me.”How did he feel about coming to live in the West Country. He told me: “Taunton seems to be a very nice small town and a pleasant place to live. Certainly it will save me doing so much travelling, I seem to be able to get everywhere I need to in about ten minutes which is different from North London.”What was he hoping for himself in 2003. He told me: “I shall be looking to compete and get a place in the first team right from the start. I see myself as a first or second change bowler because I bowl better with the old ball, and bat down the order.”What was he hoping for the county in 2003. Aaron told me: “Somerset have got a good team but underachieved in 2002 and were relegated. Next season they will be looking to play to their potential and get promotion.”Certainly the Somerset coach Kevin Shine rates the new signing very highly. He told me: “This is fantastic scoop for us. Aaron is emerging as a genuine all rounder. He is 6 ft 5 inches tall and will play as a fourth seamer, who hits the ball very hard as well.”Chief executive Peter Anderson told me: “This is an exciting young player who is one for the future. He bowls fast and bats as well.”After suffering a double relegation at the end of 2002 the Cidermen have wasted no time in strengthening their squad, having already recruited West Indian Test bowler Nixon McLean for 2003, and with at least one more new player in the pipeline competition for places in the Somerset team is hotting up.

Was this really the team bowled out for 45 two Tests ago? Was it really the team who sacked their captain in such a way that he took time away from the game? Was it really the team whose off-field exploits make as many headlines as those on it? Was this really the team whose management and executive structure do not appear to see eye-to-eye?What this was, without doubt, was one of New Zealand’s greatest days of Test cricket in recent times. This was not dominating against a lowly Zimbabwe or Bangladesh side. They outplayed one of the strongest Test teams in the world from start to finish. There was an air of disbelief from those who have followed New Zealand cricket’s recent woes.”We’re in the position that every team can dream of at the moment,” Neil Wagner said, and even that sounded like an understatement.It was Wagner who sparked New Zealand’s incredible day. In his first over, with his second and third deliveries, he removed England captain Alastair Cook and trapped Kevin Pietersen lbw first ball. England’s top order looked a little vulnerable coming into the match due to the lack of match practice and the home side made it count.Wagner had been bullish in Queenstown after roughing up England’s batsmen, including removing Pietersen, and highlighted keeping him short of runs. He said New Zealand would try to “hammer” on his confidence. He was as good as his word today and, when asked about England’s performance, did not produce a dead-bat answer.”They were under a bit of pressure and thought they might take lower-risk shots but at the end of the day, that’s the way they play,” he said. “There’s days when it doesn’t come off and days when it comes off and on those days you don’t want to be the opposition and they can hurt you badly. Other days it doesn’t come off and it was just one of those days when it didn’t work for them.”The standout feature of New Zealand’s day, of which there were many, was that the key individuals – Wagner, Bruce Martin and Hamish Rutherford – could, in slightly different circumstances, have been playing in the Ford Trophy one-day tournament rather than a Test match.Wagner was only included in the squad after impressing for the New Zealand XI in Queenstown. Initially, Mark Gillespie was tipped to be the likely option to bolster the pace resources, but Wagner’s six wickets last week tipped the balance back his way. He may still have missed the final cut, though, if Doug Bracewell had not decided to clean up his house, in the process stepping on a piece of glass. In this case, Wagner’s glass was certainly half full.However, his first three Tests had brought five wickets at 68.80 and it was already being suggested that he was another player unable to transfer dominant domestic form to the top level. One good day does not mean he has cracked it, but the relief from him was palpable. “I needed it and I was just glad to get it under the belt I guess,” he said.Wagner shared eight wickets with Martin, but the 32-year-old left-arm spinner was not a certain starter in this match just the day before. Four quicks were being seriously considered by Brendon McCullum and Mike Hesson. It’s difficult to say Martin bowled for his wickets (caught point, deep square-leg and short fine-leg) but his presence ensured England’s batsmen could not settle in against four medium-fast bowlers.Martin also made it clear before the series that he was not too interested in being a defensive bowler and “would look to take a few poles and bowl to some attacking fields” if he got his chance. McCullum, a captain out of the same aggressive mindset, supported him with men around the bat and also gave him the ball straight after lunch when logic might have suggested resuming with two seamers. When Matt Prior began to open his shoulders, McCullum did not withdraw Martin to the safety of the outfield and the following over he claimed the wicket.Then there is Rutherford, like Wagner, an Otago cricketer playing on his home ground. Of all the problem areas in the New Zealand team over recent times, the opening partnership has been one of most vexing.Rutherford did not look remotely out of place, resisting England’s attempts to disturb him with the short ball and driving more confidently than during the one-day series. His opening stand with Peter Fulton, currently worth 131, is New Zealand’s best since Mark Richardson and Stephen Fleming added 163 against England, at Trent Bridge, in 2004.A compact left-hander from the same school as McCullum, Rutherford was picked on the basis of strong domestic form but was not the most prolific option available.  There is also the likelihood that if Martin Guptill had not been injured during the one-day series, he would have been given another chance alongside Peter Fulton.  It was a day for a host of accidental heroes.