Martin van Jaarsveld gave away international cricket when he moved to Kent as a Kolpak player, so domestic triumphs are all the sweeter. He led the way as his South African side, the Titans, secured the Supersport title, racking up 828 runs in the series, with three centuries.”Having stopped playing international cricket, I made it my personal goal to collect as many domestic trophies this season as possible and this Series triumph is a major boost,” he said.”This win is made even sweeter by the fact that we had to wield in a lot of players from our amateur side following the national call ups of most of our top guns and to see the young guns blend in is extremely satisfying”.Three players who emphasised the mixture of youth and experience were Gulam Bodi, Alfonso Thomas and Albie Morkel. Bodi finished the series with the second highest batting average; in his eight matches, he amassed 672 runs at an average of 61.09 scoring two centuries and three fifties.Thomas led the bowling stocks becoming the leading wicket-taker with 37 victims and Morkel claimed 26 wickets in seven matches.
Rudi Koertzen, the South African umpire, who officiated the first two Tests between India and Pakistan, has supported a change in the rules regarding calling off Test matches on the final day, in case a result is not possible.”There is nothing wrong if the ICC considers a change in laws that allows such Test matches to be called off at tea with the consent of both captains when a last-day result is not possible,” Koertzen told , the Lahore-based daily.Koertzen confirmed that he along with Simon Taufel, the Australian umpire, had spoken to both Inzamam-ul-Haq and Rahul Dravid at tea time on the final day at Faisalabad and both agreed to call off the match at that point. However, Ranjan Madugalle, the match referee could not act on it as the rules did not support such a move. He, therefore, had asked the two teams to carry on until eight overs remained in the game, Koertzen revealed.
Steve Bucknor will become the first umpire to stand in 100 Tests when he steps out in the second Test between India and Pakistan at Kolkata on March 16. And, in recognition of his achievement, the ICC will award Bucknor, 58, the Golden Bails Award.Bucknor first stood in a Test match in 1989, aged 42, in the fourth game of the series between West Indies and India in Kingston, Jamaica and he has also officiated in four consecutive ICC Cricket World Cup finals. David Shepherd is the second-most experienced Test umpire: he has 86 to his name, while S Venkataraghavan has 73.
Frizzell County Championship Division One Table Sussex 537 v Middlesex 392 and 157 for 5 at Hove Scorecard Sussex edged towards their first-ever Championship title with another dominating day, against Middlesex. Resuming the day on a nervy 97 not out, Mark Davis went on to make 148, his second first-class century and career-best score as Sussex added 136 for the last two wickets. Last man Billy Taylor gave Davis good support with a patient 35 not out to give Sussex a 145-run lead. All five Sussex bowlers then chipped in with a wicket apiece. Ben Hutton, Owais Shah and Ed Joyce all made thirtysomethings, but Middlesex ended the day only 12 ahead with five wickets left.Kent 535 beat Surrey 125 and 255 by an innings and 155 runs at Canterbury Scorecard Kent required just 11 overs on the final morning to wrap up a thumping innings victory against Surrey at Canterbury – a result that has put Sussex within sniffing distance of the County Championship title. Overnight, Surrey were already dead in the water on 169 for 7, and it required some token resistance from James Ormond and Franklyn Rose to carry them to the relative respectability of 255. But Muttiah Muralitharan ended Ormond’s resistance, to complete innings figures of 4 for 90, as Kent consolidated their mid-table position in magnificent style.Lancashire 781 beat Warwickshire 449 and 187 by an innings and 145 at Edgbaston Scorecard Lancashire’s late bid for the Championship went into overdrive on the final day at Edgbaston, as Glen Chapple sealed the most improbable innings victory of the season with 5 for 86. Warwickshire could not have conceived of such a thumping when they rattled up 449 in their first innings, but Lancashire’s riposte of 781 destroyed their resolve. Both openers, Michael Powell and Nick Knight, fell in single figures to Chapple, and at 126 for 6, only divine intervention could have saved Warwickshire. And lo, the heavens opened, and Lancashire were forced to chew their fingernails in the dressing-room as the day’s allotted overs dribbled away. Eventually though, they re-emerged with 24 overs to go, and after some late defiance from Dougie Brown, they inched home. With Surrey’s challenge virtually over, Lancashire are now breathing down Sussex’s neck in third position.Frizzell County Championship Division Two Table Gloucestershire 401 and 209 for 8 dec beat Derbyshire 321 and 269 by 20 runs at Bristol Scorecard Gloucestershire reaped the benefits of a generous declaration, as Derbyshire fell 20 runs short in a gripping run-chase at Bristol. Needing 290 to boost their hopes of avoiding the wooden spoon, Derbyshire looked to have the game cracked while Michael di Venuto and Steve Stubbings were adding 109 for the third wicket. But Ian Fisher and Jon Lewis plugged away, and when di Venuto fell for 80, the rest of the team were caught between defence and attack. Luke Sutton chipped in with 41, but there were just 16 balls of the day remaining when he was bowled swinging across the line, when batting out for the draw might have been the sensible option. It was, nonetheless, a vital win for Gloucestershire, who still have their beady eyes on a third-place finish in the table.Worcestershire 364 and 313 for 9 dec beat Hampshire 265 and 311 by 101 runs at the Rose Bowl Scorecard John Crawley’s 88 led a bold pursuit of an unlikely total, but the spin of Gareth Batty proved too much for Hampshire to contend with as they slumped to a 101-run defeat at the Rose Bowl. Batty tweaked out the tail to finish with 4 for 94, and Worcestershire are closing in on the second division title.
Australian pace spearhead Glenn McGrath won’t change his hunting methods when he meets South Africa next week despite his poor haul against New Zealand.Australian cricket coach John Buchanan said McGrath would stick with the same strategies which had made him among the world’s best bowlers, even though theKiwis blunted his venom.McGrath suffered an uncharacteristic slump in the recent three Test series against New Zealand, notching only five wickets at an average of 65.4.The Kiwis claimed they beat the right-armer with patience, letting his probing deliveries outside off stump simply pass through to wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist.That took away McGrath’s most lethal trap – a wicketkeeper and slips cordon waiting for the likely nicks from uncertain batsmen.But Buchanan said McGrath wouldn’t change his ways against South Africa when the teams chased the title of Test cricket’s best team in their three-match series,starting at Adelaide on December 14.”Glenn’s approach won’t be significantly different,” Buchanan said today.”(New Zealand) did play well in their overall strategy against our two key bowlers – Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne.”But, by the end of the third Test, and even before that, (Glenn) was bowling very, very well.”When he was bowling we were able to exert pressure and work the bowling partnerships.”Buchanan said McGrath was a victim of his own standards, wearing the spotlight any time he was unable to maintain his hectic wicket-taking rate.The 31-year-old sits second on Australia’s all-time list with 363 wickets from 78 Tests, behind only Warne (413).McGrath’s strike rate is even better than that of the great Dennis Lillee, and he has a proven record for fighting back after mixed series.His returns in his most recent series have hardly been worrying.Before the New Zealand series, McGrath outwitted England (32 wickets at 16.94), India (17 at 15.35), West Indies (21 at 17.10) and India (18 at 13.78).His record against South Africa doesn’t match his overall rate, taking 23 wickets in eight Tests at 28.52, but Buchanan expected him to trouble the Proteas this summer.It’s been a frustrating summer for McGrath, who struggled to take wickets in two Pura Cup matches for NSW before the Tests.But Buchanan dismissed that as coincidental, recalling that McGrath had little preparation heading into the first-class summer.
Mumbai were in a position of considerable strength at stumps on thethird day of their Ranji Trophy Super League Group A match againstRajasthan at the Wankhede stadium on Monday. Ahead by 107 runs on thefirst innings, Mumbai declared their second innings at 285 forfive. Requiring 393 runs for victory, Rajasthan were 26 for one atclose.Rajasthan, 224 for nine overnight, were all out for the addition ofonly five runs. Mumbai then spent almost the rest of the dayconsolidating their position. Skipper Sameer Dighe (64) and AmitPagnis (19) put on 53 runs for the first wicket off 16.2 overs. ThenDighe and Jatin Paranjpe maintained the momentum by adding 91 runs forthe second wicket off 26 overs. While Dighe faced 116 balls and hitnine fours, Paranjpe faced 114 balls and hit eight of them to theropes. Finally, Amol Muzumdar (63 not out) and Sushant Manjrekar (61)added 117 runs for the fifth wicket off 22.2 overs. While Muzumdarfaced 95 balls and hit six fours, the more aggressive Manjrekar facedonly 77 balls and hit ten fours and a six.
An exciting Newcastle United transfer claim has been made regarding their plans for the summer window…
What’s the talk?
Journalist Pete O’Rourke has stated that the club will lean into deals similar to the one they attempted to complete with Hugo Ekitike in January.
The Magpies reportedly had a bid of £33m accepted by Reims in the last transfer window to sign the teenage striker, only for the player to reject the move at the last minute.
O’Rourke told GIVEMESPORT: “I think the way Newcastle are looking right now, Eddie Howe and his plans going forward, I think they’ll be looking to try and sign some of the best young talent in Europe, which they tried to do in January with Ekitike at Reims.”
Howe will love it
Toon boss Eddie Howe will surely love this approach for multiple reasons.
Firstly, it could save the club millions in two different ways. Firstly, signing a player at such a young age means that you are not buying them at their peak.
This means that you accept a risk that they may not fulfil their potential to avoid paying millions more for them when they are 25 and playing to the best of their abilities.
Take Jack Grealish as an example. Aston Villa reportedly wanted £30m for the midfielder in 2018 before selling him to Manchester City for a British record £100m in the summer of 2021. In theory, Pep Guardiola would have saved the club £70m by bringing him in earlier and developing him at the Etihad, rather than waiting for him to get to a point where he was deemed good enough.
This highlights one potential benefit to signing players at a young age. Another is that it gives them a longer shelf life at the club. Instead of having four or five years in their peak years to make an impact before being replaced, they could be at the club for eight or more years if they are signed in their teens or early 20’s as they are at an earlier point in their career and have more to offer in the long-term.
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Howe will also love the addition of young players as it will provide him with the chance to coach them on the training pitch.
He may take pleasure from being able to develop them into fulfilling their potential on the pitch at Newcastle and he will have the opportunity to do that if PIF splash the cash on bringing in talented young players in the upcoming windows, which is an exciting prospect heading into the summer for the reasons stated above.
AND in other news, Major boost: Newcastle now handed big injury lift that’ll leave Howe buzzing…
Arjuna Ranatunga, recently appointed chairman of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), has said one of his prime concerns is to improve the standard of junior cricket in the country and to prepare a team to win the 2011 World Cup, which will be hosted in Asia.The last time Asia hosted the World Cup was in 1996, and Sri Lanka won it under Ranatunga’s captaincy. “If we address the few problems that we have at present and pick the right team and create the right environment, winning another World Cup is within our reach,” Ranatunga said while addressing the media after taking over the chairmanship of SLC. “Today we can draw a lot of strength having the world’s greatest wicket-taker in the history of the game [Muttiah Muralitharan] and also the best batsman in the world [Kumar Sangakkara],” he said, “but for some reason our team is not occupying the place it should be at present.”I was lucky to win a World Cup, but the important thing is was from there onwards I don’t know whether we have gone on the right track,” he said. “I personally feel that we are second to none. We are one of the best sides in international cricket today, one of the most talented cricketing nations in the world. It’s very important to get it right.Ranatunga said he was keen on working for the betterment of the game and that the help of former cricketers would be a plus. “Something that I’ve always wanted to do to was to try and give something back from the administration side after retiring from cricket,” he said. “I am not really concerned about what people say. I came here to do a proper job and address the issues facing Sri Lanka cricket today. We have lot of past cricketers and captains who are keen and willing to help. It’s a huge advantage for me.”Ranatunga said he was confident of achieving his goals within a certain timeframe, just as he did when he led Sri Lanka to a World Cup win. “This position is not a new thing for me. I’ve worked in the cricket committee for a short period,” said Ranatunga, after being appointed chairman following the resignation of Jayantha Dharmadasa on Monday. “The important thing is that I am a straightforward person. I will do the right thing. I have got the blessings of the President of the country and the two Sports Ministers. It is very important for me to get the backing from the Sri Lanka Cricket staff, coaches and even the media.”In the past a lot of good things have taken place but we have to put right areas where we have gone wrong. Cricket is something that belongs to everyone in the country. I think I have a great responsibility and there were a lot of people who wanted me to take over this post. Now that I have accepted it, it is my responsibility to do the right thing for cricket.”Ranatunga said his parliamentary experience would be also aid him in improving the game. He expressed his desire to take cricket to the villages. “I think in the recent past it has not gone the way it should. Cricketers in the provinces and districts should be given the same facilities and employment as in Colombo so that the game develops in those areas,” he said. “What we have here today is that because of the lack of such facilities we have all of them coming down to Colombo which is not good for the game.”When my team won the World Cup there was about 60-70 percent cricketers from the outstations [places other than Colombo]. Even today the majority of our national team comprises outstation cricketers.Junior cricket is high on Ranatunga’s priority. “Something has gone wrong somewhere in our junior cricket and we have to address that immediately. School cricket is the foundation of our cricket,” he said. “I believe that if you can get the junior and Under-19 cricket going properly the problems that exist in the national team will cease and we’ll have quality cricketers coming through.”
Soon after the fall of the second wicket in the opening ODI match with Scotland at Mombasa, I passed Canadian coach Andy Pick on my way round the ground. “I know you’d be more interested in winning the game,” I told him, “but that stand was a new Canadian ODI second-wicket record.” We agreed it was another step, although a century stand would have looked better than 87 runs….and would have been a Canadian first for an ODI game. Canada’s best is a stand of 96 runs for the first wicket.John Davison’s innings had gone out with a blast, after Ashish Bagai had set the pace with shots blending power, technique and the all-important singles to keep the scoreboard moving. Three or four more big overs at that time and Canada would have been really surging…but that’s the nature of cricket, and sport in general.Davison had made 41, being deprived of two runs as one six hit a couple of leaves on the tree that is within the playing area. A ‘ground rule 4’, as they would say in baseball. The leaves fell in front of the media table, presumably dropping some 30 feet, if not more.The third wicket against Scotland added 122, but it included Ashish Bagai retiring hurt at 148 for 2. Qaiser Ali was then joined by Desmond Chumney. Bagai returned to the crease in the final over and ended on 64 not out. This was his third fifty in five ODI innings in Africa this Canadian winter and a new ODI personal best.Ali went on to record his best ODI score of 70, building on his innings of 174 against the Netherlands in the ICC Intercontinental Cup in December. Realistically, Ali needed a good score in ODI cricket, his previous best from four matches was just 12, set in South Africa after missing the opening matches due to an ankle injury.Chumney had gone to South Africa with a personal best of 28 in ODI cricket – not the kind of runs demanded from a specialist batsman. In Mombasa he matched that score, making it five innings in a row where he has matched or exceeded his ODI personal best. He reached 48 against the Dutch before his lack of acclimatisation took over in the opening match in South Africa.The naysayers, and there are several around the Canadian cricket scene, would no doubt like a balance to be struck. These records were not set against ICC Full Member countries. The first warm-up test in 2007 will be Bangladesh, who have been doing quite well, in late February in Antigua. The Canadian batting has failed during 2006-07. The major slump in the first innings against the Dutch in the Intercontinental Cup saw six wickets tumble in eight balls. A couple of the shots played in this phase lacked discipline but that type of incident is starting to become the exception.A couple of victims in that phase, Sunil Dhaniram and Ashif Mulla, batted well against Scotland. Dhaniram ended on his second ODI fifty. Mulla’s knock of 26 was probably better from a technical perspective than his 30 against Bermuda in Potchefstroom. Clearly he has been listening to the coach.The optimists, and those beyond that realm (Canadian cricket includes several of them, based on my experience), would delight in the January 14 headline from the Sunday Telegraph. “Pitiful line-up for World Cup” said Scyld Berry, in reference to England’s prospects. We can but dream, as the big showdown in St Lucia approaches on March 18.There is a gap in the playing levels of full-time players, especially those at elite levels, and most leading Associate country players. It has similarities to the way Rugby Union has moved since the introduction and rise of professionalism, or in a more traditional Canadian context, (ice) hockey.Both those sports face issues of player releases from club teams to the next layer of national team. Similar to the situation of Geoff Barnett being contracted to Central Districts, so he will not be in Nairobi for the World Cricket League Division 1; a major event from a Canadian perspective. Not to mention the potential $250,000 windfall for a top-two placing and a berth in the Twenty20 World Championships later in the year.Of course, another facet of Canadian cricket is that the selectors would have to pick Barnett: a “major league” topic in itself. There was talk at the CCA’s 2005 Annual General Meeting of having to sort out the selection processes. I think there is still some way to go until things get ironed out, but I digress.Either way, don’t expect a whole chain of surprise successes at the World Cup. People talk of Davison’s 111 versus West Indies in the last World Cup. it was a great achievement and a cup record, and there was also the win over Bangladesh. But on the down side, there was that 36 all out versus Sri Lanka, beating the previous low score in the World Cup that was set by Canada at the 1979 World Cup when out for 45 runs.This will be Canada’s third time in the World Cup. The way the batting is shaping up, there should be no disaster innings. Technique, application, the basics, shot selection. That, I believe, has been Andy Pick’s message to the National side and I am sure he would love to see that across Canadian cricket, particularly in the elite levels from youngsters upwards.In the meantime, on Saturday January 20, Canada face Kenya. A team Canada beat in an exciting ICC Intercontinental Cup match in the summer with batting application from different players in each innings, and solid efforts from the bowlers, especially Umar Bhatti.Bhatti will miss this week’s match with Kenya as his ankle recovers from a net practice injury sustained in Toronto. There is unlikely to be much help in the wicket for the bowlers, based on the two opening matches of this series. As Pick said on Thursday, “Kenya will be a difficult game. They are playing in their own conditions.” But if Canada can get among the runs, there is certainly hope.
An opening stand of 159 between Subhomoy Das and Sourav Ganguly guided Bengal to a nine-wicket win over Jharkhand at Dhanbad. Ganguly was dismissed for 72, but Das went on to score 126 not out off 139 balls. Jharkhand’s 245 for 9 was built around an unbeaten from Rajiv Kumar, with Ganguly, Shib Paul and Saurasish Lahiri each taking two wickets.Tripura clinched a low-scoring affair against Assam at Dhanbad by five wickets thanks to the steady hand of Manoj Singh (44). Winning the toss and electing to field, Tripura dismissed Assam for just 123 in 46.1 overs with Vinit Jain (3 for 33) and Timir Chandra (3 for 25) rocking the top order. Left reeling at 46 for 7, Assam recovered somewhat thanks to Anand Katti’s dour 29 from 89 deliveries, but in the end a total of 123 proved too little. S Tarafdar gave Tripura a run for their money initially, taking 4 for 41before they reached home in the 44th over.Hemang Badani’s 109 and tight bowling from Tamil Nadu’s bowlers saw them clinch a 66-run win over Hyderabad. Consuming just 77 deliveries in his thrilling innings – complete with seven sixes – Badani took TN to a commanding 264 before Ganapathi Vignesh and Sridharan Sriram picked up key wickets to rout Hyderabad for 198 in 45.3 overs. Badani also picked up the wicket of top-scorer D Vinay Kumar (58) as TN swept the hosts aside. The win, the third in-a-row for TN, gave them 14 points from three matches. It was Hyderabad’s third consecutive loss.Chandrashekar Raghu’s second hundred of the tournament and four wickets from Vinay Kumar powered Karnataka to a 66-run win over Andhra Pradesh and helped record their third straight win to pick 14 points from three matches. at Secunderabad. Batting first, Karnataka’s total of 273 was centered around Raghu’s 110 from 92 deliveries and Robin Uthappa’s 54 at the top of the innings. In response, Andhra never really got off the blocks as strikes from Kumar left them struggling at 28 for 3. Venugopal Rao, the Andhra captain, hit 72 to try and lead a fightback but was unable to sustain it due to a lack of partners at the other end.Vasudevan Jagadeesh’s unbeaten 52 and a breezy 41 not-out from Sreekumar Nair saw Kerala romp home by seven wickets against Goa at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. Dismissed for 175 – with only Swapnil Asnodkar (56) and Robin D’Souza (46*) offering any resistance – Goa struggled to contain Asnodkar, Nair and a rampaging PV Manikandan, who smashed 40 from 24, as Kerala claimed victory in the 37th over. Prasanth Chandran (2 for 34) and Nair (2 for 33) were the prime wicket-takers for Kerala.