Bears leave Trott out of Finals Day squad

Trott not involved on Finals Day

Warwickshire welcome back Ian Bell and Chris Woakes for NatWest Blast T20 Finals Day, but there is no place in their 15-man squad for Jonathan Trott.

While Trott set a T20 record aggregate for the most runs in a 10-match qualifying campaign in 2009, he has played very few games in the format since 2010. And while Warwickshire's director of cricket, Dougie Brown, feels that Trott's form is returning to somewhere near its best, he felt the shortest format of the game had moved on since the last time he played.

"Trotty hasn't played a lot of T20 cricket over the last five or six years," Brown said. "And when he did play it was a dramatically different game.

"His game is more suited to 50-over and four-day cricket, going towards ODI and Test cricket. Whether he would feature in a T20 side for England I would probably doubt, but clearly he has vast experience in all formats of the game but you can only pick XI and you've got to make that call."

Trott actually made his international debut in T20 cricket in 2007. But having played just one T20 match in 2011, he did not play again until June of this year when he was in the early days of his return from a stress-related illness. He struggled for fluency in the two matches he played - including a 38-ball innings of 39 against Worcestershire - and has since been restricted to List A and first-class cricket.

Trott has scored three centuries - two in the Royal London Cup and one in the County Championship - since July 21 but, despite Warwickshire lacking one of their overseas players - Shoaib Malik - and reflecting on the news that their club captain, Jim Troughton, has been forced to retire with a back injury, Trott still missed out to younger men such as Scotland's Freddie Coleman and 22-year-old Jonathon Webb.

"T20 is a very skilful game," Brown explained. "I'm not saying he's not an extremely skilful player. But if you're looking at having players who play 360 degrees - the likes of Laurie Evans and the new breed like Coleman and Webb, who can play all sorts of different, inventive shots - is that Trotty?

"I think he's happy playing four-day and 50-over cricket. He's a great player. A proper player. He's a world-class player when he's at his best and I reckon he's getting back to somewhere close to that."

Bell, meanwhile, has not represented Warwickshire in this format since 2010, and accepts he lacks match-practise in T20 cricket. But he is relishing the opportunity to represent the side he supported as a boy at Finals Day on his home ground.

"It's not always easy for us England players to come back and take the place of people who have been doing well for the club," Bell admitted. "But we're desperate to play as much as we can for Warwickshire.

"Days like this are great. They are the ones you remember when you finish playing and the ones you want to be part of.

"As an England player, you hardly get the chance to play T20. And if you don't get picked by England in T20, you don't play for anyone. I went through a period when I just didn't play any. You need to play T20 regularly to know where you are and your game-plan.

"At the start of the season, when it was announced the games would be on Friday nights, I thought I'd play more. But I've probably played less. It's been hard to do."

Warwickshire also welcome back fast bowler Boyd Rankin from a hamstring injury, but are without Keith Barker, who has an elbow injury but is expected to play the next Championship game, and Chris Wright, who has a stress fracture and will not play again this season.

Read More..

IS Bindra to retire from cricket administration

IS Bindra, one of the senior most cricket administrators in India, is set to retire from his official duties. After heading the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) for over three decades, Bindra is set to hand over the reins to DP Reddy.

"I am happy I am withdrawing from the day-to-day running of the PCA affairs when my colleagues still want me to stay on," Bindra told Indo-Asian News Service. "I have spent 37 years as PCA president and I will be leaving a satisfied man with absolutely no regrets. I don't think you can come across such a lovable team to work with, and every Test, ODI or IPL game played at the PCA Stadium in Mohali was conducted with the same zeal and enthusiasm."

Bindra's decision means the BCCI will be without one of the most vocal critics of the current regime. Bindra was at the forefront of the opposition to the manner in which the BCCI, headed by N Srinivasan, dealt with the IPL 2013 corruption scandal. However, his voice went virtually unheard as BCCI members felt he was opposing the measures due to his close association with former IPL chairman Lalit Modi, who was suspended by the BCCI following various allegations of misconduct.

Bindra, a former bureaucrat, also headed the BCCI for three years starting 1993-94. He played an instrumental role in India being awarded the 1987 and 1996 World Cups and was one of the leading faces of the BCCI in the 1990s. Bindra's last high-profile assignment was being appointed the principal advisor to the ICC president during Sharad Pawar's two-year stint in the role.

Bindra, along with Jagmohan Dalmiya, changed the face of Indian cricket by sensing the potential of revenue from television rights and roping in private broadcasters, thus sowing seeds of India's financial influence over world cricket.

Read More..

USACA T20 MVP stakes claim for national spot

'I'd love to be in national team ASAP - Nisarg Patel

Nisarg Patel, the Most Valuable Player at the USACA T20 National Championship in Florida, is hoping that his performances during the tournament were enough to catch the attention of the USA team management and get a possible call-up to the national team for ICC WCL Division Three in Uganda.

"I would love to be in the men's national team as soon as possible," Patel told ESPNcricinfo. "In order to do that, I have to put in performances. Without performances I'm not going to get anywhere."

Patel, 26, top-scored in two of the three matches played by South West Region and was never dismissed at the tournament. On the opening day, he hit an unbeaten 54 off 29 balls against Central West that included three fours and six sixes. He also took 2 for 14 bowling left-arm spin in an eight-wicket win over North East.

A former junior representative of the USA, Patel played for the country at the 2006 ICC U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka. He successfully completed bachelor's and masters degrees in pharmaceutical science and took up a job with a US multi-national pharmaceutical company's branch in the UK.

The left-arm spinning allrounder spent the 2011 season playing premier league cricket for Richmond in the Middlesex County Cricket League and then followed it up with two years playing for Chelmsford in the Essex Cricket League. At Chelmsford, he was the first XI's second highest scorer in 2012 and their leading wicket-taker in premier league matches for both 2012 and 2013. He took 31 wickets at an average of 12.96 in 2012 where he was fifth overall in the league and just three behind Buckhurst Hill's overseas pro, former New Zealand legspinner Todd Astle.

"Playing in England is always a good experience," Patel said. "Playing with good international players, county players consecutively for the last six or seven years has been a wonderful experience learning a lot from them. I've moved back this year to the States for good. Hopefully I can pass on that knowledge and experience to other players and teammates."

After accepting a job transfer that put him back in Los Angeles, Patel is aiming to become more involved in the US cricket scene. He feels he can be a meaningful contributor to the national team if given the opportunity.

"The good thing about my job right now is that it's a project management role so it gives you a lot of flexibility time management wise and job hours wise," Patel said. "Obviously it's difficult when you are doing such a high-prospect job and also trying to play professional cricket but I've done it in the past. I've done it in England for a few years and I don't see how there should be any problem doing it in the US as well."

"I've just come back. It's been a good eight months since coming back, scored a few runs and taken a few wickets. Hopefully I can carry on that momentum and hopefully I'll get a call."

Read More..

Clarke in doubt for ODI opener

Australia are likely to be without captain Michael Clarke for their first ODI against Zimbabwe after he suffered a hamstring injury at training in Harare on Friday.

Clarke experienced pain in his left hamstring while warming up for the team's first practice session ahead of the tri-series and after having treatment in the dressing room, he took no further part in training.

Australia's first match is against Zimbabwe on Monday, leaving Clarke little time to recover if he was to take his place in the side. Vice-captain George Bailey will lead the side if Clarke is ruled out.

"We will monitor his condition closely over the next 24 hours to see how he responds to further treatment before making a decision on his management," David Beakley, the team physiotherapist, said.

Australia's heavy schedule over the next few months means they would appear unlikely to take any risks with Clarke. It could also guarantee a place in the side for Phillip Hughes, who was a late inclusion in the squad as a replacement for the injured Shane Watson.

Hughes enters the series in remarkable form after scoring a pair of double-centuries against South Africa A, but coach Darren Lehmann said before the team departed that he was no certainty to be part of the XI for the first match.

However, if Clarke misses out, Australia's selectors would have to bring in Hughes due to the dearth of batsmen in the squad. Without Clarke, Australia's batting line-up in Zimbabwe comprises Hughes, Aaron Finch, Bailey, Steven Smith, wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin and allrounders Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh.

Read More..

Bracewells star in big NZ A win

New Zealand A 369 for 6 (M Bracewell 106, Elliott 103*, Rutherford 98, Taylor 3-69) beat Scotland 272 (Gardiner 82, Haq 54, Berrington 50, D Bracewell 4-50)
Scorecard

New Zealand A went on a run-spree against Scotland as they amassed 369 for 6 in Edinburgh with hundreds from Michael Bracewell and Grant Elliott plus Hamish Rutherford's 98.

The total was enough to secure a comprehensive 97-run victory but Scotland did not fold in reply despite being two down inside three overs as Hamish Gardiner top-scored with a combative 82.

New Zealand A were quickly out of the blocks and had 89 on the board when Rob Taylor broke the opening stand with his second delivery, bowling Tom Latham as he aimed a drive through mid-on.

Rutherford eased along at a run-a-ball but fell two short of his hundred when he picked out long-on and his frustrations were clear as he left the field. It ended a second-wicket stand of 106 with Bracewell who had reached fifty from 51 balls the delivery before Rutherford departed.

Bracewell was given a life on 68 when Majid Haq spilled a return chance and the final 10 overs produced some severe punishment for the Scotland attack. Bracewell's second fifty took 35 deliveries and he carried his sixes tally to four and when he became Taylor's third wicket, Elliott took over to power towards his hundred in the closing stages of the innings.

Elliott was on 83 when the last over began but collected a six followed by a four then reached three figures off the final ball of the innings.

Scotland's chase began poorly as both openers fell to Doug Bracewell for ducks; George Munsey was given lbw and captain Calum MacLeod bowled by one which seamed. Bracewell added a third in the ninth over when he bowled Craig Wallace to leave Scotland 53 for 3.

Gardiner and Richie Berrington then added 99 for the fourth wicket. Gardiner, who registered his highest one-day score, was closing in on a hundred when he was bowled by Hamish Bennett, who was unable to complete his spell as he limped off with an injury.

As the match drifted to a conclusion, Haq clubbed a spritely half-century before becoming the last-man out.

Read More..

Broad knee surgery confirmed

Giles: I would be very concerned as a coach

The ECB has confirmed that Stuart Broad will undergo surgery on his right knee on September 4 to try and overcome the persistent tendonitis which has been managed for much of the last year.

Broad had conceded during the Old Trafford Test against India that an operation would be required and was seen by a specialist from Sweden after the series had finished earlier this week.

As expected he was not named in the one-day squad for the series against India. The estimated recovery time is around three to four months which is likely to rule Broad out of the one-day series in Sri Lanka during November leaving the triangular series in Australia during January, ahead of the World Cup, as the target.

A brief ECB statement said: "The ECB medical team confirmed that England pace bowler Stuart Broad is to have surgery on his right knee on Thursday 4 September. A rehabilitation and recovery programme will be determined following the operation."

Broad's knee has been an ongoing issue but has flared up particularly badly at various stages, including on the tour of West Indies were he was forced to sit out games then again early in the recent Investec series against India which raised doubts as to whether he would be able to see out the five Tests.

In the end Broad was able to complete the series and played a key role in England's turnaround as they secured a 3-1 result. He took 6 for 25 at Old Trafford and finished the series with 19 wickets at 23.00.

During the Old Trafford Test he was also struck in the face by a bouncer from Varun Aaron which squeezed between the grille and the helmet leaving him with a fractured nose although specialists said surgery was not required.

Read More..

Notts hold nerve after Hales ton

Nottinghamshire 306 for 9 (Hales 104, Taylor 62) beat Warwickshire 302 for 7 (Trott 108, Ambrose 98, Fletcher 4-44) by one wicket
Scorecard

An Alex Hales century and a four from the final ball of the match from Luke Fletcher helped Nottinghamshire secure a one-wicket Royal London Cup victory over Warwickshire at Trent Bridge on Wednesday.

Warwickshire, thanks to Jonathan Trott's century and Tim Ambrose's 98, posted 302 for 7 from their 50 overs, and Nottinghamshire needed century knock from England new-boy Hales to wrap up victory at the death.

The outcome means that both sides now qualify for the quarter-finals, although the win means that Nottinghamshire will have home advantage in their last-eight match, whereas Warwickshire will have to travel.

Trott scored 108 from 121 balls with 11 fours, and Ambrose scored 12 fours as he fell just two runs short of a ton, as the pair added 176 for the third wicket for Warwickshire.

Fletcher, with career best one-day figures of 4 for 44, was the only member of the home attack to maintain a modicum of control and his final burst accounted for both members of the huge stand.

Nottinghamshire replied with a centurion of their own as Hales scored 104 from 90 balls with 12 fours and three sixes, sharing in a huge third-wicket stand as he and James Taylor, who made 62, added 138 together.

However, the match hinged on the final delivery of the evening. With the scores tied, Fletcher followed up his performance with the ball by driving Oliver Hannon-Dalby for the winning boundary, to the delight of the majority of the 4,000 crowd.

Trott and Ambrose had joined forces at 32 for 2 after Warwickshire had elected to bat first. Clipping his first ball away for a majestic four, Trott immediately looked in good touch as the partnership quickly gathered momentum.

Both players had reprieves though. On 12 Ambrose appeared to have nicked Ajmal Shahzad behind. Nottinghamshire celebrated collectively but the batsman remained rooted and umpire Neil Bainton awarded in his favour.

Trott's 'life' was more clear-cut. On 36 he clipped James Franklin to Samit Patel, in the short midwicket position but the chance went begging.

Ambrose fell during the batting Powerplay, yorked by Fletcher but Trott advanced to his 17th one-day century shortly afterwards, arriving at the landmark from 115 balls with 10 fours.

A catch at deep midwicket eventually accounted Trott and Fletcher grabbed his fourth wicket thanks to a smart piece of wicketkeeping as Chris Read stumped Rikki Clarke, standing up to the pace bowler.

Michael Lumb lit up the start of Nottinghamshire's reply, hitting a punishing 36 from just 21 balls before playing on to his stumps off Clarke. The same bowler then had Steven Mullaney caught behind, enabling Taylor to join Hales at the crease. Richard Jones replaced the opening bowlers and let a beamer slip towards Hales at the start of the 13th over, an over that eventually cost 16.

Taylor hit Recordo Gordon into the Fox Road Stand for the first six of the evening just before Hales reached his 50 and the opener celebrated by hitting both Richard Jones and Ateeq Javid for maximums of his own.

Hales purple patch of form took him to his third century of this season's tournament and his fourth in all competitions in the last two weeks. An unlucky deflection from his back pad onto the stumps saw off the opener, gifting Gordon a fortunate wicket but it gave the visitors a massive way back into the contest.

Taylor fell for 62 and Nottinghamshire then lost three further wickets in the batting Powerplay before the equation came down to 22 needed from the last two overs.

Gordon thought he had bowled Shahzad but replays showed that a no ball had been delivered and the resultant decision was costly as 18 came from the penultimate over. Once Shahzad had been run out it was left to Fletcher to score the winning runs to take Nottinghamshire through.

Read More..

Rudolph's record eclipses Wright

Glamorgan 330 for 3 (Rudolph 169*, Rees 60, Goodwin 59) beat Sussex 323 for 3 (Wright 127, Finch 92*) by seven wickets
Scorecard

Jacques Rudolph eclipsed a superb hundred by Sussex's Luke Wright with an even better one of his own to ease Glamorgan to victory in their final Royal London game at Hove.

Rudolph made a career best 169 to guide his side to a seven-wicket win as they chased down a Duckworth-Lewis adjusted target of 329 with eight balls to spare. Rudolph's innings was also the highest score in List A matches by a Glamorgan batsman, beating Sir Viv Richards' 162 against Oxfordshire in 1992.

Wright had earlier taken full toll of some wayward Welsh bowling to score 127 from 115 balls - his second century in four days - before Rudolph shredded the Sussex attack to score his third century in this season's competition.

Rudolph was on 131 when he made his only blemish, but Yasir Arafat dropped a difficult return catch in his follow-through as he tried to intercept a waist-high straight drive. Otherwise, Rudolph gave a masterclass in timing and placement as he followed earlier hundreds against Somerset and Nottinghamshire to take his competition aggregate to 575 runs.

On a superb pitch, a weakened Sussex attack, which included 18-year-old Academy product Fynn Hudson-Prentice on his debut, found there was no margin for error.

Rudolph lost opening partner Jim Allenby, who was caught and bowled by Lewis Hatchett, in the seventh over but he ticked over at a run a ball thereafter to ease to the 16th List A century of his career.

Gareth Rees helped him set up victory with a second-wicket stand of 173 in 26 overs before Rees was sent back by his partner looking for a single into the leg side and beaten by Ed Joyce's throw.

It gave the hosts a glimmer of hope but that was soon extinguished by former Sussex player Murray Goodwin, who took four boundaries off Hatchett in an over during the second power play as he raced to a 26-ball half-century.

Arafat had Goodwin lbw playing across the line for 59 in the 44th over after a partnership of 100 in 10.3 overs for the third wicket, but Glamorgan needed just 25 more at that stage and Rudolph fittingly hit the winning runs with his 17th boundary. He also struck three sixes in the 150 balls he faced.

Wright certainly did not deserve to be on the losing side after scoring his fifth hundred of the season in all cricket to take his aggregate in the one-day formats to 993, as Sussex piled up 323 for 3 from 48 overs. He also became the first Sussex batsman to score a hundred in all three formats in the same season. It was a chanceless ninth List A hundred of his career and also his highest one-day score for the county.

Wright added 71 for the first wicket with Chris Nash and 99 in 18 overs with Craig Cachopa but the acceleration came when Wright and Harry Finch, in only his second List A appearance, plundered 79 in nine overs. Wright was eventually caught off a big top edge aiming to drive down the ground, having faced 115 balls with 14 boundaries and four sixes.

Finch upped the tempo and his unbeaten 92 contained 12 fours and two sixes as he plundered 71 from 55 balls in an unbroken fourth-wicket stand with Machan. However, in the end Sussex's highest one-day score against Glamorgan was not enough to subdue the peerless Rudolph.

Read More..

Many questions for Pakistan's batting

Following yet another Pakistan batting collapse, it's time to take a good long look at team composition and strategy

The tale of the Pakistani batting slump is nothing new. A combination of poor shot selection, insecurity, lack of confidence and a fear of Rangana Herath led to a familiar story repeating itself at the SSC. Pakistan was given a target of 271 to chase down in four sessions but it took only one session for their batting to unravel to an extent where victory was only a remote possibility.

The famous victory in Sharjah this January is a one-off in recent years as Pakistan have rarely been strong chasers. It isn't a lack of ability, but more about losing it within their mind.

On day three, Grant Flower tried to make sense of Pakistan's problem, but Herath dominated his answers; several times he applauded Herath and put Pakistan's first-innings collapse down to his skills. Perhaps his responses reflect the sense prevailing in the dressing room, that the opposition can dictate their fate.

Flower was also confident Pakistan could do well the second time around. That did not happen; their top order did not look comfortable at all. Sarfraz Ahmed is the only positive Pakistan can take forward. The average opening partnership in their previous 13 Tests is 26.15, and the experiment with Ahmed Shehzad and Khurram Manzoor does not seem to be working. Both have been guilty of throwing their wickets away with poor shot selection. While Shehzad will be persisted with, Manzoor is not likely to get too many more chances.

Azhar Ali suffered a dip in form in 2013 and was replaced by Mohammad Hafeez, but his impactful hundred in Sharjah pushed him up the pecking order once again. Expectations of him grew as well, but he hasn't been able to meet them. He resisted hard while scoring 32 in the first innings, before falling to an inadvisable shot to Herath in the second.

Younis Khan, apart from his 177 in Galle, has scored just 34 in three innings. Being a senior player, the attempted sweep which led to his dismissal today, with the side already reeling, could be termed erratic. Captain Misbah-ul-Haq has scored 67 at 16.75. He is having a hard time as captain, too, with Pakistan not having won a Test series since beating England in the UAE in early 2012. A 2-0 defeat here could be decisive for him.

While the defeats must hurt, what could hurt Pakistan more is if they do not learn from them. It is vital that the team management gets the team selection right. The likes of Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq seem to be the future for Pakistan, but Umar Akmal and Fawad Alam could probably work well too. The captain and coaches have also rarely been critical of the batting in public.

Minutes after the stumps today, the team had packed up its stuff and left the ground. The media had requested that coach Waqar Younis attend the press conference, but they were told none of the Pakistan contingent would be taking questions. Even if they do not do so for the media, one hopes that Pakistan is answering the many questions that persist over their batting for themselves.

Read More..

Hales 'like nobody else we have' - Morgan

Eoin Morgan believes Alex Hales is a unique talent within the English game and has the potential to flourish in all three formats having witnessed at first hand one of his most destructive innings.

Hales, who has England's lone T20 international hundred, is expected to be named in England's one-day squad to face India on Monday, and is in line to make his ODI debut at Bristol on August 25, as they search for a top-order combination that can provide the firepower to challenge at the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. He had previously been set to come into the one-day side in West Indies earlier this year but picked up an injury and was then called in as cover against Sri Lanka but remained behind Michael Carberry in the pecking order.

He has been in prolific form of late, in the last month hitting two Royal London Cup hundreds, including a ferocious 141 off 96 balls against Middlesex at Lord's, and a century for England Lions against Sri Lanka A, a marked contrast to his fortunes earlier in the season when he was forced to briefly go on loan to Worcestershire having lost his place in Nottinghamshire's Championship side

It was the innings at Lord's that Morgan, Middlesex's limited-overs captain, was able to witness from close range having previously watched as Hales made 96 and 94 in the Championship clash between the two teams, and it reinforced his belief that he can have a successful international career in more than Twenty20.

"He's unbelievably destructive and stakes a huge claim to be selected in all three formats," Morgan told ESPNcricinfo. "His form at county level has been phenomenal and he's like nobody else we have around, with the combination of how hard he strikes the ball and the ability to take the game away from opposition.

"I've witnessed Championship form against him and he was very impressive. It was the first time I'd seen him in Championship cricket and to see where he has come from since the start of the season when he had to go to Worcestershire on loan is a huge credit to him. He has ridden the wave in recent weeks."

The make-up of England's top order is an often debated subject and the selectors have been reluctant to move away from the Alastair Cook-Ian Bell pairing which has become established over the last few years, believing they have the ability to move through the gears as needed even though the middle order, of which Morgan is part, are often left needing to up the ante whether chasing or setting a target.

If Morgan's comments are any judge, England are not about to rip up their play book - Hales splitting the Cook-Bell alliance could be as radical as it gets - although he did add that valuable lessons were learned during the one-day series in Australia at the start of this year which England lost 4-1.

"We are building for a World Cup in Australia and New Zealand were a par score will be 300-320 on the majority of grounds but before that we have the series against India, in English conditions, where going hell for leather up front just would not be helpful at all. You take a lot of risks with the conditions [in England] and two new balls.

"We've had a formula that has worked in England and now we need to find a balance between having success here and also winning in Australia."

Morgan also believes that the way England's calendar has been structured to allow them to focus solely on one-day cricket from now right through to the World Cup gives them an excellent chance of correcting a dire record in the tournament going back to 1992 - the last time it was held in Australia and New Zealand.

"It's fantastic, really. An ideal lead into the World Cup. It puts great emphasis onto one-day cricket and it gives a great opportunity to build a squad that is good enough to win a World Cup

"It's an opportunity we haven't had in quite a long time. With that, though, comes a lot of expectation and rightly so. We've a fantastic squad of players and the one-day series in Australia during the winter was a great learning curve and gave us a chance what we need squad-wise and attributes-wise for a side to be successful in those conditions.

"I think conditions will suit us. The batting wickets are some of the best in the world and I don't think the bounce is alien to us at all. During that one-day series we had chances to win but there were just areas of the game, and moments within them, that we lost at crucial moments. The fact we made the mistakes then gives us the chance to correct them."

It appears unlikely that England will perform a complete cull of the one-day squad that lost to Sri Lanka earlier this season. Moeen Ali's success with the ball may earn him a spot while Steven Finn, who has been in the squad for the last two Tests, is favoured for a recall.

Possible squad Alastair Cook, Alex Hales, Ian Bell, Gary Ballance, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Ravi Bopara, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Chris Jordan, James Tredwell, James Anderson, Steven Finn

Eoin Morgan was speaking at an ECB Club open day event at Maidenhead & Bray CC in partnership with Waitrose

Read More..

England emerge from the darkness

Having been in chaos three Tests ago, England can take credit, pride and encouragement from this result

#politeenquiries: Do India need more Test cricket?

Perhaps the darkest hour really is right before dawn. Exactly a month since England succumbed to one of the more depressing Test defeats of recent years at Lord's, they clinched the Investec series with a crushing victory at The Oval. It is their first series victory in a year.

Any celebration must be tempered by the knowledge that India offered painfully weak opposition. We knew before they arrived that their away record was poor, but to succumb to a second successive innings defeat - this victory was the fifth biggest, in terms of innings margins, England have achieved - to be bowled out within a session's worth of cricket, to fail to reach 200 in any of their last five innings, tells a sorry tale of a side ill-prepared for a Test series in these conditions and chronically lacking in confidence. England will face far tougher challenges.

Until they alter their priorities, until they start to value Test cricket more than the revenue they make from other formats, India are unlikely to provide healthy competition.

Such an impression is confirmed by the rankings. England are likely to be placed third when the new list is announced, a long way behind South Africa and Australia and only just ahead of Pakistan. They face all three teams in 2015, with the series against Pakistan and South Africa to be played away from home. By the end of next year, we will have a far clearer indication of England place in the new world order.

Nobody thinks this is the end of the journey. Nobody think England have arrived. Nobody think Michael Clarke and Mitchell Johnson are quaking in their boots.

But there is sometimes a temptation to downplay England's successes. To explain them away. To suggest that they are hopeless when they lose, but that their victories only come against hopeless teams.

That is a little unfair. This victory has come against an India team that played beautifully at Lord's; that harnessed English conditions better than England. An Indian team that is the best financed in world cricket; that represents the most populous cricket-playing nation. A team that contains several highly talented batsmen - the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli - who most expect to go on and enjoy wonderful careers. A team that contains two other technically excellent batsmen - Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane - and a seam attack - Varun Aaron, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma, in particular - who performed admirably without support from their awful slip fielders.

So, from where they were, at the end of the Lord's Test, England can take credit, pride and encouragement in this performance. After Lord's, England had lost seven of their previous nine Tests. They had won none of their last 10. There were doubts about the position of the captain, the wicketkeeper, the spinner and a couple of the seamers. There was growing clamour for the resignation of Alastair Cook and the recall of Kevin Pietersen. They were in chaos.

They have learned a great deal since then. They learned that their young batsmen - Joe Root, Gary Ballance and Jos Buttler - have what it takes to flourish at Test level. While they will face sterner tests, it would be no surprise if that trio spent a decade in this side. Their slip catching may also win a few games.

They were reminded of the value of continuity of selection. They found that Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes all began to perform more consistently once they felt a little more established within the side. They learned that Moeen has the skill and character to prosper, that Woakes and Jordan, excellent on the final day, can offer the support James Anderson and Stuart Broad require.

They were reminded, too, of the value of using home conditions. After the first three Tests of the summer were played on slow, low, lifeless surfaces, England squandered more benevolent conditions at Lord's. But from then they dominated in conditions offering movement and just enough bounce to test the opposition batsmen's technique and temperament.

While there may be a temptation to prepare more lifeless surfaces ahead of the Ashes next year - the sort of surfaces designed to negate Mitchell Johnson et al - it must be resisted. For their morale, if nothing else, England need to feel they can hurt opposition with the ball. If the ball swings or the pitches offer seam, they have a chance next summer.

And they learned, if there was any doubt, that their captain is a man of rare determination.

Some questions remain. Not least, the form of the opening batsmen. Cook has not made a Test century in 31 innings and, even after three half-centuries in four innings, the sense remains that it is his luck that has turned rather than his form. He and Sam Robson will have to contribute far more if England are to continue to climb back up the Test rankings.

There will be some bleak days in 2015. There will be days when Buttler drops chances that Matt Prior, at his best, might have caught. There will be days when Moeen struggles to retain control, when Woakes struggles for potency and when the middle order show their relative inexperience.

But England have shown in the last month that they are heading in the right direction. If they hold their course, if they stick to their plans and retain faith in one another, this need not be the high point on their journey.

Read More..

Spirit departs sorry India

The details of India's capitulation at The Oval did not bear repeating as even their Man of the Series, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, gave up the fight

'We never really competed' - Dhoni

Capital punishment is all but abolished in India. Since 1995 there have been only four official executions. It has, rightly, stopped being a spectacle. Yet, if you still want to see what people walking to the gallows look like, look no further than India's last day of the series. The Oval is infamous for its pigeons. On the first day, MS Dhoni tried to shoo them away with his bat, from close range, but they would not budge. Even they didn't come to watch on Sunday. They must have been bored by the mismatch. They wouldn't have had the heart to watch the final execution of India's spirit in all its gore.

On the final day, they conceded 101 runs in 11.3 overs and then got bowled out in 29.2 overs. There were players trying to prove their performances earlier in the series were no fluke. There were players fighting for their places in the side. There were players who had to prove their reputations had been well-earned. Yet, confusion, meekness and poor cricket reigned.

How they got out was merely details, but even the incredibly generous appraisers in the India team and the board will be aghast at Gautam Gambhir's dismissal. To get him back in the squad was a regressive move in the first place. To play him in the XI more so. To play him again was the sign of a side who couldn't be bothered to care. Gambhir was never the most talented batsman India have had, but it was his fight and gumption that made everyone root for him. He made a Test career out of punching above his weight. Here he got out trying to run away from the strike. With rain in the air. With lunch seven minutes away.

In fact the players didn't even wait for the third umpire to watch the replay. They went off immediately. Gambhir was the only man who waited. Last time he came to England he was accused of hiding behind an injury. He was now walking off with an average of 6.25 in the series, having lasted 19 excruciating deliveries, having tried a single that never was, and having not dived to make his ground. It is out of line to question anyone's courage when it comes to sport but it will be fair to say the attempt at the single showed he didn't fancy facing any more of James Anderson.

That brought together Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli to bat out of their station once again. One final time. With scrambled minds, exposed techniques and questionable support staff behind them. They are millionaires. They are in their mid-20s. They have scored centuries in South Africa and New Zealand. Kohli has won ODIs off their own bat. They have done nothing of note on this tour. They aren't even slip fielders. They will be hurting. Schedules created by their board give them no time to work on their techniques. It is out of the question to expect them to make time. Surely, even if they wanted to, they can't opt out of the BCCI's marquee events because they want to become better Test batsmen?

Pujara got out to a ball that he would normally have left alone even if it had a cake on it. Kohli tried to whip through midwicket an outswinger from off. This was resignation if ever there was any. It was him saying, "Nothing is working, what the hell, let me try my one-day game." There will be time for it, Virat. And it won't be easy. India haven't won an ODI on their last two overseas tours.

	Ramesh Mane stuck pictures of gods and religious chants on the dressing-room wall. He might as well have removed them after the first session of the Test. There is no god who could have helped this team

ODIs are what their captain was born for. Dhoni has gone from good to ordinary as a captain in this Test series. He has been awful as a wicketkeeper. Yet, as a batsman he has been brave and selfless. Having moved up to No. 6, he has played the game he knows, and let the balls hit his body when he has had no idea. The ball that got him in India's final innings might have cracked a rib but wouldn't have got him out last week.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar has bowled 172.5 overs in this series. His pace has dropped. He has looked tired. Yet the accuracy hasn't left him. Over after over he has been nibbling away. He has been one of India's four best batsmen too. No matter how tired he has been, no matter how dispirited, he has fought hard for every single run because it is him who has had to defend them. He has made England earn his wicket almost every time. He has been India's spirit of this tour. He has been their conscience. He was named India's Man of the Series by England coach Peter Moores.

India should have got a picture of Bhuvneshwar and stuck it up in the dressing room. When they didn't feel like putting up a fight - and how much can you blame them given their techniques and the state of mind they were in? - they should have looked at Bhuvneshwar's picture and reminded themselves they have to fight for him. He is human, too. He can be forgiven a stray thought, "Who am I doing this for?" He can be forgiven the stray wild drive that signals the leaving of the last bit of spirit.

The day before this Test, Ramesh Mane, the team masseur and the general good old man, stuck pictures of gods and religious chants on the dressing-room wall. He might as well have removed them after the first session of the Test. There is no god who could have helped this team.

Read More..

USACA T20 title split after final rained out

New York and South East were announced as co-champions of the USACA T20 National Championship after the final was stopped due to rain after six overs with South East 34 for 3. After waiting more than three hours during heavy rain showers, play was finally called off with both teams sharing the tournament title.

Adil Bhatti of the Atlantic Region was named Best Batsman of the tournament while Camilus Alexander of the South East Region was named the tournament's Best Bowler. Nisarg Patel of South West was named Tournament MVP.

The tournament was scheduled to have 19 games over three days. However only three games were able to be played to the full 20 overs. Six more matches were rescheduled as 10-over games and were completed on Saturday morning. Four others, including the final, ended up with no result. Four other matches were unable to be played due to rain while the tournament runner-up matches never got underway after a player walkout which took place after the semi-finals were scrapped to accommodate an earlier start to the final.

Read More..

Ishant front foot highlights big problem

Umpires are simply not watching for the no-ball closely enough and it is creating trouble for bowlers. When an umpire fails to call your foot faults, he is basically omitting to tell you all is not right

'India's bowlers stuck to their task'

In the tour game in Derby - it seems like an age ago for the hobbling Indian team now - Ishant Sharma bowled nine no-balls. Those sitting in the press box - dead square from where Ishant was delivering - spotted about as many no-balls not called.

In the 64th over today, he got a tickle down leg from Ian Bell, which MS Dhoni failed to catch. Had he caught this, it still wouldn't have brought Ishant a wicket, because he had overstepped marginally. A ball later, he produced the outside edge, which Dhoni accepted, but the umpire momentarily cut short his joy by asking for replays to check if this was a no-ball. It wasn't. By a long margin. As was the case with another wicket earlier.

Later in the day, Stuart Binny bowled a big no-ball, got an edge down the leg side, but the umpire missed it. Had this edge gone straight to Dhoni as opposed to the boundary, the umpires would have surely checked it with the third umpire.

All this sounds right on the surface, but hasn't Ishant been led into believing he is doing all right by an umpire who was only half alert to his no-balls? Had Binny taken a wicket next ball with a similar no-ball, wouldn't he have reason to feel aggrieved that he wasn't warned at his first indiscretion? When an umpire fails to call your foot faults, just because that ball has not produced a wicket, he is basically omitting to tell you all is not right. And he surely will go upstairs should you take a wicket. He will go upstairs even if you are not even close to overstepping.

On his debut, in Adelaide last December, Ben Stokes was denied his first wicket when the third umpire called it a no-ball but he had landed in the exact same spot a few times before without the umpire calling him. Had he been called earlier, he would have delivered from six inches further back.

The umpires have a big problem almost all over the world; hence there might be no point in naming Kumar Dharmasena as the main culprit here. Umpires are simply not watching the front foot closely enough. It can't be the case that they operated similarly earlier, and it is just now that the technology has exposed them. The technology has been around for years, but the umpires didn't miss the number of no-balls they do now. It just becomes all the more jarring when they go upstairs for wicket-taking deliveries even though half the foot might be behind the line.

There is a general trend of falling umpiring standards, which the ICC masks by releasing misleading stats on the percentage of decisions the umpires have been getting right. For the purposes of these calculation, moving your hand parallel to the ground and around waist high for a straightforward four is also counted as a correct decision.

Ishant, Varun Aaron and Binny - the three men involved in the no-ball dramas today - were not available for comment, but R Ashwin - a spinner, who is going to be involved in much fewer similar cases - took this quite sportingly. He basically said that while it might be unfair on the bowler who is going through this, you can't have the umpires check every ball. But this state of affairs has all the makings of becoming ugly when in a tight match a bowler lands in the same spot with two consecutive deliveries, and is called only for the second just because he got a wicket.

"This is one thing I have been conscious of," Ashwin said. "It is very nervous moment when the umpire checks the no-ball. It has taken away the real quick happiness of taking a wicket. Once you have celebrated and all that, it is like a pinch on your backside. But it's good, to use the technology to correct the errors. If we keep checking every tight one, we won't get 90 overs in in a day."

There is no external solution to this problem. Checking no-balls is a welcome addition, which has an offshoot that is not quite desirable. There is no way someone can sit outside and check no-balls before a spinner has collected a forward defensive and bowled the next ball. The umpires will have to get their act together. There is no reason for them to not look at the front foot as closely as they used to.

Read More..

Dainty says USA too busy to have domestic events

Gladstone Dainty, president of the USA Cricket Association, has said the reason USA was unable to hold a domestic national tournament for the last three years was because the organisation has "been busy participating in ICC events".

Prior to this weekend's USACA T20 National Championship, there had not been a national domestic championship at the men's level since June 2011 in New Jersey. USACA has also not been able to organise a women's national event since July 2011 while junior tournaments also experienced a three-year gap until an under-15 National Championship was held in California in June. An under-17 national tournament which was due to be held at the AAU Junior Olympics last month in Iowa was canceled by the Amateur Athletic Union after no players or teams registered.

Speaking at the final presentation of the USACA T20 National Championship, Dainty also commented on the rain that affected play over the course of the weekend, that allowed for only three full games. He said the tournament couldn't be held in Indianapolis because "a lot of things conspired against us". The City of Indianapolis sent USACA a termination letter in May to end their three-year hosting agreement for the national championship, claiming the board's failure to communicate with the city after the resignation by Darren Beazley as USACA chief executive.

The USACA president also commended the players for paying out of their pockets to attend the rain-marred tournament and stated that USACA was able to raise $35,000 to stage the tournament thanks to a pair of sponsors, including title sponsor FutureTech. The presentation was attended by ICC Americas Regional Development Manager Ben Kavanagh as well as West Indies Cricket Board vice-president Emmanuel Nathan and former West Indies Test player Lawrence Rowe.

The only teams present at the awards presentation were the two participants in the tournament final, South East and New York. The other six teams who traveled to the tournament were not present for the awards ceremony after half the teams left the ground in a player walkout following USACA's decision to wipe out the semi-finals over the threat of rain.

Read More..

USACA runner-up games scrapped after player walkout

'Very disappointing we didn't get a semi-final' - Dave

A pair of consolation matches between the second and third place teams from each group at the USACA T20 National Championship were cancelled after players from all four teams decided they did not want to play the games.

Originally the tournament schedule called for quarter-finals and semi-finals on the final day, but persistent rain in south Florida had caused a series of interruptions at Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill. USACA tournament officials decided to remove those games from the schedule and instead play a final immediately after group play due to the threat of imminent rain on the final day of the tournament.

"Based on what we have seen for the past two days, this scenario was discussed at the team managers meeting yesterday and all the managers agreed to it," Owen Grey, USACA T20 National Championship director, told ESPNcricinfo. "We were hoping to get in semi-finals and the teams would like to do it but, at the same time, we had an agreement that, based on the weather projection, we might only play a final."

The two consolation games would have featured South West against Atlantic and North West against North East. However, all four teams decided to opt out of the matches and instead sat to watch the tournament final or drove back to the team hotel. In particular, players from the two second place teams in each group, South West Region in Group A and North West Region in Group B, felt aggrieved that they were denied a chance to play in semi-finals for a chance to make the tournament final.

"In yesterday's meeting after most of the round-robin games were washed out, they wanted to look at the weather today and then after the first round decide if they want to have the semi-finals or not," said South West captain Mehul Dave. "It was pretty disappointing because personally I still thought it was a possibility to have semi-finals and then have finals. That way the top two teams in both the groups have a fair chance for the title again."

"We came a long way spending our own money to participate in this tournament and win the title. Of course there is a lot of talent in the South West Region which they wanted an opportunity to show. But with rain and 10-over games, we didn't get an opportunity to show. It's very disappointing that we didn't get a semi-final to play for."

Read More..