Among the more intent listeners to Darren Lehmann and Rodf Marsh on the outfield at Wantage Road was the young allrounder Mitchell Marsh, left out of the team for Trent Bridge but determined to draw triumph out of the chaos of this trip

Daniel Brettig13-Aug-2015On the Wantage Road outfield, the selection chairman Rod Marsh and the coach Darren Lehmann exchanged frank words with Australia’s 2015 Ashes tourists. For around 15 minutes the two old salts spoke passionately, in the sort of team discussion that invariably follows the kinds of defeats endured at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge. The only response could be seen coming from Mitchell Johnson, now very much the senior man in the Test XI.The retiring captain Michael Clarke is in London, Ryan Harris and Brad Haddin have gone home. They leave a gulf in experience and knowledge, but also confidence arising from their long-time ability to get the job done for Australia.Marsh and Lehmann want Clarke to be suitably farewelled from international cricket at the Kia Oval, but they also want this team to take something from the series. They want this latest Ashes defeat in England to be the last for some time.Of those present, none of Johnson, Chris Rogers, Shane Watson, Peter Siddle, Adam Voges, Fawad Ahmed or Shaun Marsh can reasonably expect to take part in another Ashes series on these shores. Lehmann and Marsh are unlikely to be around either. But among the more intent listeners was the young allrounder Mitchell Marsh, who was left out of the team for Trent Bridge but is determined to draw triumph out of the chaos of this trip.”As an Australian team you go out to win every Test match, and even though the series is over we’ve got a lot to play for in this match as everyone knows,” Marsh said. “To send our skipper out on a winning note is a big emphasis for us, so we’ll be doing everything we can. We’ve been working extremely hard off the field to try and get it right on the field and it just hasn’t happened for us. So we’ll be doing everything we can.”Marsh, who can expect to be recalled at the Oval, has always been a confident character, backing his ability against anyone. But his exposure to the harshest light of Ashes pressure gave him pause to consider his readiness for it, and by his own admission both his dismissals at Edgbaston were illustrative of a young player not quite knowing how to respond to a seaming pitch, a baying crowd and a tense match scenario.Asked whether the pressure of the occasion had weighed down on his batting, Marsh offered the following. “Missing straight ones is not what you want to do, and chasing one a foot outside off third ball is not what you want to do,” he said.” Read into that what you want.”It certainly was an eye-opener. When I first got picked in the Test team Justin Langer said from Australian first-class cricket the step up is not that much bigger. It’s more just the outside pressure and the pressure of being in a Test match. Edgbaston was certainly the first time I really felt the pressure of a whole Test match … but I enjoyed it and I loved it, not that I was out there for too long.”That’s what you play for, that’s what you work hard for, to try and combat those times. It was certainly a great experience and hopefully I’ll be better for that in big moments in future.”The future stretches out ahead of Marsh, with the calendar offering non-stop international cricket for those good enough to handle those aforementioned pressures. But there is also a question of priorities – the fame and cash presented by the IPL, or the more modest surrounds of English County competition and a rounded education in how to bat and bowl here. Marsh is eager to take the latter path. Six Tests over the past 12 months will afford him the visa qualification to do so.”That’s something I’ve wanted to do over the past few years,” he said. “Now that I do qualify over the next few years hopefully it gives me an opportunity to come over here and play as much cricket as I can to prepare for coming years. Hopefully over the next few years I’ll be playing for Australia and won’t get too much time, but when the time does come hopefully I’ll be able to get over here.”To be able to learn my trade in these conditions would be awesome. Everyone that comes over here says that it’s awesome for your cricket. Hopefully that’s the case for me. I’ve probably put IPL on the back stall for the past few years and I’ve seen the gains in my cricket from that. It will be a case of judging it when it comes and seeing what happens in the future.”Rod Marsh and Darren Lehmann certainly had the future on their minds as they addressed the team at Wantage Road. The content of the exchange will remain between players and selectors for now. Only the years will measure whether this moment will be of great significance for Mitchell Marsh and other young players, or simply a show of passion too late to change the course of the summer of 2015.

Fawad Alam could end a five-year hiatus from Test cricket after being named in the 15-man Pakistan squad to face England in the UAE

Umar Farooq16-Sep-20154:18

Bazid Khan: ‘Fawad finally selected for format he’s good at’

Fawad Alam could end a five-year hiatus from Test cricket after being named in the 15-man Pakistan squad to face England in the UAE from October. His last Test was against New Zealand in November 2009 but he has been a heavy scorer in first-class cricket. Over the last 12 months, he had made two centuries – 201 and 164 – and five fifties in 14 innings.The man making way is 20-year old Babar Azam. Alam had almost made it to the squad for the Sri Lanka tour recently but his name was pulled out due to logistical reasons and Azam replaced him.

Changes in Pakistan’s squads

For Tests v England
In: Fawad Alam
Out: Ehsan Adil, Babar Azam
For ODIs v Zimbabwe
In: Sohaib Maqsood, Wahab Riaz
Out: Bilal Asif, Ehsan Adil, Mukhtar Ahmed
For T20s v Zimbabwe
In: Sohaib Maqsood, Aamer Yamin, Bilal Asif, Imran Khan jnr
Out: Sarfraz Ahmed, Zia-ul-Haq, Nauman Anwar, Anwar Ali

“Our Test team has been an established team for years now and it is hard to make room for any new player,” Haroon Rasheed, Pakistan chief selector, told ESPNcricinfo. “Fawad Alam was in our plan for months now after his performance and we know he had been knocking at the selectors’ door for years in fact. We have added him to the squad in a bid to get ourselves ready for the transition after Misbah as we obviously need to have guys like him when our seasoned players fade away.”Pakistan received a boost in the fast bowling department as well. Wahab Riaz has recovered from the hand injury he sustained in Sri Lanka and replaced Ehsan Adil. Left-arm quick Junaid Khan has kept his place in the Test squad as well despite seeming off-colour in Sri Lanka. Junaid did not play Pakistan’s last Test in Pallekele, but kept himself busy playing for English county Middlesex over the summer.According to Rasheed, Wahab and Junaid might be suffering a dip in form but are among Pakistan’s major investments during the ongoing transition. “They are our investment and we would like to persist with them,” Rasheed said. “Both might have been low in confidence for some time now but we aren’t judging them on the basis of T20 performance. At the top level they will definitely come hard and with a different state of mind. We have named Junaid in the A team so that he can get ample time to get himself ready for the Test series.”Pakistan decided that Yasir Shah, the top-ranked spinner in the world, and Zulfiqar Babar were enough as far as slow-bowling resources were concerned. The two are vital replacements for Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, who had been Pakistan’s major assets for years in the UAE.Haris Sohail, another long-term investment Pakistan have made since 2013, missed out due to his patellar tendinitis injury. He had been undergoing rehabilitation for the injury for over a month at the NCA but failed to get himself cleared by doctors. “He is definitely one of the players who makes an automatic selection but he has not recovered ahead of the Zimbabwe series,” Rasheed said.The PCB also announced the limited-overs squads for the Zimbabwe series from September 27. Batsman Sohaib Maqsood found a place in both the ODI and T20 squads after recovering from injury. Uncapped fast bowler Imran Khan jnr and allrounder Aamer Yamin received their maiden Pakistan call-ups, with Anwar Ali rested for the T20s to help him recover from a minor groin strain. Bilal Asif was another uncapped allrounder chosen for the shortest format, but he had already toured Sri Lanka with the Pakistan ODI side.Among the more familiar names, batsman Umar Akmal and left-arm quick Sohail Tanvir were for only the T20s. Sarfraz Ahmed will miss the T20s to perform Hajj, allowing Mohammad Rizwan to keep wicket.”We have rested Anwar to give another talented allrounder Yamin a chance as part of our rebuilding,” Rasheed said. “He played a couple of outstanding innings to show his ability and we would like to take him ahead with our plan.”We meant to reward the outstanding performers from the recently concluded T20 Cup. But at the same time we are (keeping) continuity in the rebuilding phase of the Pakistan team by retaining majority of players who were part of the successful last tour of Sri Lanka.”Test squad Ahmed Shehzad, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Mohammad Hafeez, Fawad Alam, Asad Shafiq, Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Younis Khan, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Yasir Shah, Zulfiqar Babar, Wahab Riaz, Imran Khan, Rahat Ali, Junaid KhanODI squad Azhar Ali (capt), Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Sohaib Maqsood, Shoaib Malik, Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Mohammad Rizwan, Imad Wasim, Anwar Ali, Wahab Raiz, Yasir Shah, Rahat Ali, Mohammad IrfanT20 squad Ahmed Shehzad, Mukhtar Ahmed, Umar Akmal, Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi (capt), Sohaib Maqsood, Shoaib Malik, Aamer Yamin, Mohammad Irfan, Bilal Asif, Wahab Riaz, Imad Wasim, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Imran Khan jnr

Kusal Perera struck a 99 lit up by flashes of aggression, but tempered by maturity, while Lahiru Thirimanne stroked a serene 81 not out, as Sri Lanka made light work of a revised target of 225 in the second ODI against West Indies

Andrew Fidel Fernando04-Nov-20150:52

Sangakkara surprised at ‘one-sided’ series

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsKusal Perera struck a 99 lit up by flashes of aggression, but tempered by maturity, while Lahiru Thirimanne stroked a serene 81 not out, as the second-wicket pair’s 156-run stand made light work of a revised target of 225 in the second ODI against West Indies. The match had been shortened to 38 overs a side, after rain forced an interruption of more than three hours 26.4 overs into West Indies’ innings. Johnson Charles’ searing 83 and Marlon Samuels’ measured 63 formed the guts of the visitors’ score.The match marked a bonafide return to form for three Sri Lanka cricketers, playing in their favoured format. Thirimanne had been poor enough in Tests to warrant his exclusion last month, but was chanceless on Wednesday, prospering square of the wicket as fluidity appeared to have returned to his game. Kusal had had a bleak Test series against West Indies with the bat, but here delivered Sri Lanka to the doorstep of victory before miscuing a short ball one run short of his third hundred. A trimmer Lasith Malinga also appeared back to near his best, both with the ball and in the field, effecting two direct-hit run-outs off his own bowling. He collected figures of 2 for 43 from 7.4 overs, first claiming a wicket with his second ball of the game, then thwarting West Indies’ final sprint with his variation.The victory hands Sri Lanka the series, with the third ODI to be played in Pallekele on Saturday.Kusal crashed two fours and a six from his first 11 balls, while the new-ball bowlers were in operation, but soon scaled down his ambition when the spinners came early to the crease. He found plenty of singles in the cover region, and was content to progress at less than a run-a-ball until he neared his fifty. He slog-swept seamer Carlos Brathwaite over deep midwicket to reach the milestone, then larruped two more sixes and a four off his next six deliveries. He was lucky to make one of those sixes – the ball was parried over the deep midwicket rope by Jermaine Blackwood – and that reprieve on 62 was enough to coax him back into a sager state of mind.Thirimanne began his innings with a late cut for four off Sunil Narine, and struck a high, straight six off Samuels soon after but, like Kusal, quickly established a pattern of singles and twos against spin. The cut was his most productive stroke; each of his five fours came in the arc between the keeper and sweeper-cover. Perhaps importantly, Thirimanne was not tested early in his innings by seam bowling, which has recently been a weakness for him.Kusal fell with 29 runs still to get. The scoring slowed considerably after his departure, but Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal nursed the chase home with nine balls to spare.West Indies appeared poised to push Sri Lanka’s target up closer to 240 when a well-set Samuels and Brathwaite were at the crease at the death. They struck 16 off Suranga Lakmal in the 36th over, but West Indies mustered only six runs from the last two overs, during the course of which their four remaining wickets were all surrendered via run-outs. They made 214 in the end, and this figure was scaled up via the Duckworth-Lewis method.Earlier, Charles had collected his first boundary via an outside edge that flew over second slip, but he quickly slipped into a more effective attacking rhythm. Charles was particularly severe on the spinners, who were introduced as early as the fifth over. Jermaine Blackwood had holed out trying to put Sachithra Senanayake’s first ball into the sightscreen, but Charles succeeded where Blackwood had failed. Two overs later, Charles ran at Senanayake to put him several metres beyond the sightscreen, registering the first six of the match.He continued to run at the spinners and hit them straight, but he also found the paddle-sweep productive. He slinked from leg to off to manoeuvre an Ajantha Mendis delivery to the long-leg boundary in the 11th over, then reached his fifty off the next ball, when Mendis went full and Charles launched him over long-on. The half-century was Charles’ fourth in ODIs, and came in 32 deliveries.Sri Lanka had claimed three wickets at the other end while Charles attacked. In addition to Blackwood, who perished for 9 on his ODI debut, opener Andre Fletcher had also fallen cheaply, nicking Malinga behind first ball. Darren Bravo appeared secure during his 33-ball stay, but was out lobbing Milinda Siriwardana to short midwicket for 21, ending a 70-run stand with Charles.Samuels had just begun to free his arms, hitting consecutive square boundaries off Ajantha Mendis, before Charles was out lbw to Siriwardana. The rains soon arrived to force the long interruption, when West Indies had reached 149 for 4 after 26.4 overs.Samuels continued to play his shots after resumption, but lost two partners in quick succession. He could have been out himself for 38 had Shehan Jayasuriya held the chance off Malinga’s bowling at deep cover. Instead, Samuels survived to wallop a straight six during Malinga’s next over, shortly before he completed his 50th run off the 51st delivery he faced.Samuels was at the centre of a minor controversy in this match, after he was cleared to bowl by the ICC despite the 14-day grace period afforded to reported bowlers having elapsed. West Indies had been wrongly told by the ICC that he was eligible to bowl in this match, and had picked their team on that basis, so the governing body made an exception in this case. He delivered 5.3 overs but did not make a major impact on the match.

Olly Stone and Lewis Gregory have withdrawn from the England Performance Programme this winter because of back injuries

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Nov-2015Olly Stone and Lewis Gregory have withdrawn from the England Performance Programme this winter because of back injuries.Stone bowled some of the fastest spells in county cricket last season, but he also suffered back trouble earlier in his career and England will be desperate to protect a player who has shown signs of developing into one of the most hostile pace bowlers in the country.He had been selected in the group of EPP fast bowlers who will travel to South Africa for a ten-day training camp on November 11, before the fast bowlers link up with the rest of the EPP squad in Dubai towards the end of the month.The fast bowlers camp in Potchefstroom has now been slimmed down to five players: Tymal Mills, of Sussex, who has expressed fears that injury may limit him to a future in T20 cricket, Jake Ball (Nottinghamshire), Craig Miles (Gloucestershire) and the Somerset brothers Jamie and Craig Overton.It was a five-wicket spell against Kent in June that told of Stone’s progress, with the Northants skipper Alex Wakely observing that he could not remember the wicketkeeper and slips ever standing so far back at their Northampton HQ.Gregory had been due to attend the EPP batting and spin camp in Dubai from mid-November followed by playing for England Lions in the Twenty20 series against Pakistan A in the UAE in December.Both players will now undergo rehabilitation programmes, working towards regaining full fitness for the start of the 2016 domestic season. No replacements have been named.

Ross Taylor felt the decision to not give Nathan Lyon out even as HotSpot clearly indicated a faint nick, was a big moment in the match

Daniel Brettig in Adelaide28-Nov-20155:08

Chappell: Lyon decision unsettled New Zealand

Sometimes a strategic silence can say more than any number of words. New Zealand’s senior batsman Ross Taylor had almost got through the entirety of his post-play press conference when one final reference to the day’s pivotal DRS episode arose. Taylor had already quipped, “I’ve still got my match fee at the moment, so thank you.”But this question, from the AAP reporter Rob Forsaith, was pointed. “What did Brendon say after it happened,” he asked. “Was it hard for him to hide his frustration?”

From ESPNcricinfo’s commentary

Santner to Lyon, no run, sweeps and it’s taken at slip… did he top edge it on to his shoulder? We’re going to have a review, think from NZ. It was a full delivery, straightening off the surface, the ball passed over the bat and then ricocheted off Lyon’s upper arm. We’re seeing a faint mark on Hot Spot, which might suggest he kissed the top edge, but Real Time Snicko does not flicker in the slightest… It’s very hard to tell, the camera angles are pretty inconclusive and after Llong deliberations from Nigel Llong, he decides that there is no conclusive evidence of the edge. They also want to check the lbw, for when the ball hit the arm – but, bizarrely, the replay shows Lyon playing a different shot. So that doesn’t really help! But after all that, the decision stays not out

Taylor’s eyes widened. He looked out at the sea of reporters and cameras, then over to the team media manager, then back to Forsaith. “He didn’t really say much afterwards,” Taylor deadpanned, to widespread laughter. “That was a good thing about it, once the decision was there, he was the first one to say come on boys, let’s get on with it. But yeah my Facebook’s going off the hook at the moment back home in New Zealand. I’ve still got my match fee though, haven’t I? Thank you.”The interlude summed up New Zealand’s thinly veiled frustration at the decision, which followed extensive examination of the DRS by the MCC World Cricket Committee in the lead-up to this Test. Nigel Llong, the third umpire in question, was unable to discern a visible deflection when the ball passed a sweeping Nathan Lyon’s bat. Nor could he conclude that a HotSpot mark visible on two replays had come from the ball. All this as Lyon walked to the boundary’s edge in resignation.”The players were pretty confident it was out, the HotSpot showed up, Lyon walking off and getting to the boundary – I think it’s had a big bearing on the match,” Taylor said. “But it is what it is, we’ve just got to get on with it, hopefully we can bat for as long as possible tomorrow.”When quizzed on how frustrating it was for a system designed to prevent “howlers” to still somehow throw up one, Taylor replied: “You’ve got to ask Nigel that.”That was one of the discussions the boys did talk about in the change room, we can understand when umpires make the wrong decision on the field, but once you’ve got so many different angles and what not, you think that more often than not, 99 to 100% of the time you’re going to get the right answer. But I guess we didn’t today.”On the part of the Australians, Josh Hazlewood summed things up succinctly. “It’s one of those things,” he said. “All that technology there and they still couldn’t quite get a decision.”Taylor still has his match fee. But the DRS in its present form has undoubtedly fewer fans.

The issue of player payments in the Bangladesh Premier League was brought up at the end of the Comilla Victorians – Sylhet Super Stars game, with Mashrafe Mortaza and Shahid Afridi giving contrasting versions

Mohammad Isam10-Dec-2015The issue of player payments in the Bangladesh Premier League was brought up at the end of the Comilla Victorians – Sylhet Super Stars game, with Mashrafe Mortaza and Shahid Afridi giving contrasting versions. While Comilla’s Mashrafe indicated that all payments to his team-mates were made on time, Afridi, who plays for Sylhet, said that some players told him about their dues.The BPL’s policy, like the 2013 edition, is to clear 50% of all player payments before the tournament begins, 25% during the tournament, and the rest within one month of the tournament’s final, which in this case will be January 15, 2016.Mashrafe said that the Comilla franchise had made 75% of the player payments before the due date of December 11. “All members of our team were paid 75% of the money,” Mashrafe said. “They were supposed to pay us by December 11, they paid us last night. As far as I know, the foreign players have been paid in full though there might be one or two issues. We have no complaints about payment since we got it last night.”Afridi, however, said that some players, without mentioning their names, had told him that they had not received any payments. Nonetheless, he welcomed the BPL and said that if the payment issues were cleared, the tournament would attract more players.”At the moment some of the other players mentioned they didn’t get paid yet,” Afridi said. “The cricket board this time took a responsibility and I must give credit to the BPL and the Bangladesh Cricket Board. They organized this tournament well, and I personally enjoyed it. If they sorted out the problems with the guys, money-wise, hopefully each and every player will come from anywhere and enjoy the BPL.”

Friday will mark a major step in Mohammad Amir’s quest for redemption as he is set to play his first international since serving a five-year ban for spot-fixing

The preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando14-Jan-2016

Match facts

January 15, 2016
Start time 1900 local (0600 GMT)1:42

Pakistan’s well-rounded pace attack could pose New Zealand with a sterner test as both teams would look to fine-tune their preparations for the World T20

Big Picture

New Zealand have batsmen in a record-breaking mood. Pakistan are hoping reignite their T20 game after losses against England. There is a World T20 in two months. But none of this is as compelling as the return of one of cricket’s exiles. Friday will mark a major step in Mohammad Amir’s quest for redemption.Every no-ball he delivers over the next few years will probably bring to mind that infamous second day at Lord’s, in 2010. But he seems a little more mature now. In this recent interview, Amir spoke of having a fast bowler’s anger “in the blood”, yet of having accepted the fact that even his team-mates have a right to express displeasure at his inclusion. He spoke of “learning about life” during tough times, and of wanting to convince his critics, and win over fans.Most of all, he spoke of having changed, only, let us hope that does not extend to his bowling. He had been one of the world’s most absorbing talents during his brief pre-fixing career. Pakistan fans will remember sublime Test spells in England, in Leeds against Australia, and at The Oval against England. Or his superb use of the short ball in the first over of the 2009 World T20 final, where tournament top-scorer Tillakaratne Dilshan was first subdued, then overcome. In a brush with top-level T20 cricket at the Bangladesh Premier League in November, the skill in Amir’s wrist, and the rhythm in his legs seemed not to have deserted him. Unlike the many volcanoes in Auckland’s city limits, Amir’s dormant days are finally over.There are trials to come, beyond the fast bowler’s usual plight of having to stay fit and take wickets. A major tour of England in the middle of the year promises to be a media circus, and on that front at least, New Zealand has been a relatively relaxed place in which to begin his reintegration. Maybe when he starts to bowl again, if he bowls just like he used to, cricket may find it easier to forgive him.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)


New Zealand: WWWLW
Pakistan: LLLWW

In the spotlight

Corey Anderson is still playing as a specialist batsman as he continues to recover from back injury, but he has been handed a new role with the bat. Moved up to no. 4 in the order, he is now charged with batting freely, and maintaining the top order’s momentum, as Ross Taylor – when he plays – is expected to provide insurance at no. 5 . Anderson is an increasingly versatile player, but his progress in an unfamiliar role in this series may determine whether New Zealand stick with this top order combination for the World T20.With Umar Gul having had injury problems, and played only one T20 in the past year, Wahab Riaz appears the de-facto leader of the Pakistan attack. He had had a southern summer of resurgence last time he was in these climes, taking 16 wickets at 23 at the World Cup. One of his better spells had come at Eden Park, during Pakistan’s fervent defence of 232 against South Africa. It may be up to Wahab to set the example in bowling those slightly shorter lengths that are generally more successful at the venue.

Teams news

Legspinner Todd Astle would prefer to make his T20 debut in a larger ground, but he may play in the team over Mitchell Santner, whom New Zealand have already had a look at. Matt Henry, Adam Milne, Mitchell McClenaghan and Trent Boult are also playing for three spots between them. Tom Latham may play for the rested Ross Taylor.New Zealand (probable): 1 Kane Williamson (capt), 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Colin Munro 4 Corey Anderson, 5 Tom Latham, 6 Grant Elliott, 7 Luke Ronchi (wk), 8 Todd Astle, 9 Matt Henry, 10 Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Trent BoultAnwar Ali and Gul are likely competing for one place. If Pakistan prefer experience, there’s little doubt as to who they would choose. Sohaib Maqsood was hit in the neck at training, but is expected to be fit to play.Pakistan (probable): 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Mohammad Hafeez, 3 Sohaib Maqsood, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 7 Shahid Afridi (capt), 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Anwar Ali/Umar Gul, 10 Wahab Riaz, 11 Mohammad Amir

Pitch and conditions

The drop-in pitch at Eden Park is usually full of runs, but can turn, at times. The weather is expected to be dry, if a little cloudy, with temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius.

Stats and trivia

• Amir took 14 wickets at an average of 12.64 and an economy rate of 5.56 in the Bangladesh Premier League in November-December last year. He has 23 wickets in 18 T20 internationals.
• The first T20 at Mount Maunganui is the only occasion in which Corey Anderson has batted in the top four in 11 T20 innings.
• New Zealand have played 11 T20s at Eden Park, and won six of those games.

Quotes

“I would say you’d like 100-metre boundaries, but I guess that presents its own challenges. If you restrict you can create chances to take wickets. In this format you know anything is possible.”
“Before coming here we had a fitness camp as well, for a couple of weeks. Everybody worked really hard. If you have a hard fitness training camp, what it does is bring us all together. That’s important for any side. It helps to understand each other more. All the juniors and the seniors – it’s no different at the moment. We’re all pumped up and trying to give 100 per cent.”

Adam Voges was Australia’s last man to fall (finally), but not before he had added 614 runs from the last time he was dismissed in a Test

Brydon Coverdale in Wellington14-Feb-2016When Adam Voges drove a return catch to Mark Craig on the third day at the Basin Reserve, he was out for 239. In another way, he was out for 614, for that was the amount of runs Voges had scored in Test cricket between dismissals. In the dim, dark ages of day-night Test cricket at the Adelaide Oval, Voges had edged Trent Boult to second slip. From then on, it took another 815 balls and 1115 minutes of batting before Voges would again go out.Extend it to first-class cricket, and he scored 763 runs from 1422 balls between times when a bowler got him out – he was dismissed for 149 in the Sheffield Shield match in Lincoln this month, but it took a run-out to do it. They are extraordinary figures, and his Test success against West Indies and New Zealand pushed his average up over 100 during his double-century in Wellington, though it dropped down to the sub-Bradman figure of 97.46 when Craig got him.”I’m probably happy that I’m out now and it’s gone back under,” Voges said. “I can just get on with playing cricket, I guess. The boys had a bit of fun taking the mickey out of me in the change-rooms but it’s all good. It [the average] was never going to stay there, it won’t stay there, I know that. So it was always going to happen at some stage.”Of course that was true, but what is equally obvious is that Voges, at the age of 36, is in the form of his life. In the past two years, nobody in the world has come close to the 3687 runs and 14 centuries that Voges has scored in first-class cricket, and his promotion to Test ranks has done nothing to slow his progress.”I think that I’m giving myself every chance to get in each time I bat and then when I do get in I’m hungry to score runs and score big runs,” he said. “I try and keep it pretty simple. I really enjoyed my partnership with Usman [Khawaja] the other day, he’s batting brilliantly. He’s in complete control of his game so that made life a lot easier for me.”Life in this match was also made easier for Voges by the incorrect no-ball call from umpire Richard Illingworth that resulted in him being reprieved in the last over of the first day. On 7, Voges shouldered arms to a ball from Doug Bracewell and looked back to see his off stump knocked back, but when he realised that Illingworth had called no-ball he refocused for the next day.”I turned around, it was a bad leave, saw the stumps, went to walk off and then saw the arm out. A little bit of luck,” Voges said. “I approached the [next] day that I was going to go pretty hard, you don’t get second chances too often so I’m gonna try and take the game on a little bit here.”As it turned out, New Zealand bowled really well and I couldn’t do it. I had to bide my time and think I only scored 30 and had to be a little bit more patient. Once I did the hard yards it did become a little bit easier but the plan to go out and take the game on didn’t quite eventuate.”It took Voges 130 deliveries to register his half-century and 203 balls to bring up his hundred, as he ground down the New Zealand bowlers and attacked them when the chance arose. Voges said the ability to assess how bowlers were trying to dismiss him had come with age, and he conceded he would probably not have been capable of such an innings earlier in his career.”No doubt it comes with time,” Voges said. “It comes with a lot of hard work as well. And understanding your game. It comes with confidence as well, being able to trust your ability, trust your defence and then being able to attack when the opportunity presents.”Voges’ 239 and the 140 from Khawaja set up an enormous lead for Australia after they had dismissed New Zealand for 183 in the first innings, and by stumps on day three Australia’s control of the match had only strengthened. New Zealand were four down in their second innings and were still 201 runs from making Australia bat again.There was a concern for the Australians, though, with fast bowler Peter Siddle not bowling after tea and spending most of the final session off the field dealing with a back problem. Siddle also struggled with back spasms during the day-night Test against New Zealand in Adelaide in November, and was hampered by an ankle injury during the Boxing Day Test against West Indies.”It’s a bit of a back spasm and they’re never nice,” Voges said. “We’ve got some good medicos who will look after him tonight and we’re hopeful he’ll be out there tomorrow. He’s got very good skills with the reverse-swinging ball so hopefully we’ll see him out there tomorrow.”

Fast bowler Peter Siddle faces an uncertain future after being diagnosed with stress fractures in his back that will require “a significant amount of time away from the game”

Brydon Coverdale25-Feb-2016Fast bowler Peter Siddle faces an uncertain future after being diagnosed with stress fractures in his back that will require “a significant amount of time away from the game”. Siddle played the first Test against New Zealand in Wellington and was an important figure in the first innings, collecting 3 for 37, but he suffered back spasms in the second innings and was ruled out of the second Test in Christchurch.At the Basin Reserve, Siddle became the eighth man in Australia’s Test history to reach the double of 1000 runs and 200 wickets, testament to his consistency over his 61-Test career. However, at the age of 31 and with no shortage of fast-bowling depth in Australian cricket, regaining the fitness and form required to press for further international selection will be an enormous challenge for Siddle.”Peter returned to Melbourne on Monday and had scans following the bout of back pain he suffered during the first Test in Wellington,” David Beakley, the Cricket Australia physio, said. “Unfortunately those scans have indicated a stress fracture in his lower back. He will now require a significant amount of time away from the game with a lengthy rehabilitation process.”Whilst he is laid off with his current back injury, we will take the opportunity for Peter to have exploratory surgery on his left ankle to investigate and treat the cause of his ongoing ankle pain. Once that surgery is complete we will have a better idea of his prognosis and likely rehabilitation time frame.”In Siddle’s absence, James Pattinson returned to the Test team in Christchurch and collected six wickets in Australia’s victory, while Jackson Bird finished with seven victims for the match. Josh Hazlewood was the leading wicket taker among Australia’s fast bowlers this summer with 33 at 31.13, and when Mitchell Starc returns from injury, Australia will have plenty of options.Starc began the Test summer in fine form, with 13 wickets at 23.23 in what was effectively two and a half Tests against New Zealand, before suffering an ankle injury that required surgery and ruled him out of the rest of the season. Starc will miss Australia’s World Twenty20 campaign in India next month but Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann is hopeful of having him available for June’s one-day tri-series in the Caribbean.”We’re hoping he’ll be available in the West Indies, part of the one-day tour there, and then full tilt at Sri Lanka [in July-August]. That would be the goal for us and the medical team. He’s going pretty well at the moment.”The absence of Starc for more than half the summer, as well as the retirement of Mitchell Johnson during the home series against New Zealand, tested Australia’s bowling depth and Lehmann was especially pleased that others were able to stand up well enough to help the team regain the No.1 Test ranking. Allrounder Mitchell Marsh’s bowling developed strongly over the summer, and Nathan Lyon was the leading wicket taker with 33 victims at 26.84 in the eight Tests.”It’s certainly a reflection on the depth of bowling,” Lehmann said of the No.1 ranking, regained after the win over New Zealand at Hagley Oval. “We’ve picked a side with the conditions in mind here, and we’ve got a fair few guys injured at the moment. That’s a good sign for us going forward, when we start to get our full quality quicks to pick from. That will put pressure on them as well, coming back. They’ve got to perform to play. That’s a good thing for us going forward.”I think just the consistency from 1 to 11 has been really good for us. Lyon has been exceptional again throughout the tour. His Test match bowling is second to none. Really pleased for all the blokes who have worked hard. We’ve lost a big chunk of our side in one hit. But they changed around pretty quickly, we took a punt on a couple of players and they did well.”

The standard of the County Championship may be higher than ever, but Yorkshire’s captain Andrew Gale says the county will continue to back their own as they bid for a third successive title

George Dobell30-Mar-2016The standard of the County Championship may be higher than ever, but Yorkshire will continue to back their own as they bid for a third successive title.While Surrey and Somerset have recently signed experienced international players – Ravi Rampaul and Yasir Arafat respectively – on Kolpak registrations, Andrew Gale insists Yorkshire have no need for such “panic” despite facing “the hardest year we’ve had”.And Gale, the Yorkshire captain, believes the policy of backing homegrown players breeds confidence in the squad and helps build a team spirit that can prove crucial over the course of a draining season.Yorkshire were without six first-choice players at the start of the 2015 season – all were part of the England squad in the Caribbean – but, over recent seasons, they have made a habit of providing opportunities to young players. Matt Fisher, who made his first-class debut as a 17-year-old, is tipped by Gale to be the breakthrough player of the season, while Alex Lees, aged only 22, is now established as the club’s captain in white ball cricket.”It just says panic stations, really, at this time of the year to go out and sign players,” Gale told ESPNcricinfo.

Andrew Gale on…

David Willey: “His expectations were spelled out to him when he joined the club. He’s not going to be like he was at Northants, the guy we throw the ball to in red-ball cricket whenever we need a wicket. He’s going to have to work hard to get into the side to start with. You need seven, eight or nine front-line seamers to win the Championship. We struggled on flatter wickets last year but I think Willey will give us a different dimension on flatter wickets: he gets reverse swing and bowls the odd bouncer.”
Gary Ballance: “He looks a million dollars. He’s back to the old Gary. He’s got that selfish hunger for runs and that stubbornness about his batting. He was a little bit bruised after he was dropped by England. Any player that comes back to county cricket after being dropped is bruised for a certain amount of time. His movement looks good. He’s getting his weight back into the ball and hitting it back down the pitch and driving it through extra cover. You know when Gary’s doing that, he’s in a good place. He probably admits himself that he probably got pushed back a bit too far. He’s cleared that technical flaw up. You forget that he’s still pretty young in the scheme of being a Test cricket erand yet he averages close to 50. People wrote him off pretty quickly after that Ashes, but he’ll be back.”

“It’s not something we want to do at Yorkshire. We back our own players. We put a lot of time and effort into our academy and we have a history of bringing players right though from grassroots to Test cricket and that’s the route we will continue to go down.”We missed six players at the start of last season but we don’t see that as a negative. We embrace that. It creates an opportunity for someone else to come in to the side. Lads see that opportunity and want to grasp it.”We think the togetherness of the team and going out with as many Yorkshire men as we can gives us an edge. There is a massive togetherness in that dressing room when players see the likes of Matthew Fisher and Will Rhodes grasp that opportunity. It creates a confidence in the young players that they could be the next cab off the rank. We want to continue to do that.”Winning a third successive title – now named the Specsavers County Championship after a change of sponsor – will not prove easy. Not only is it inevitable that Yorkshire will continue to be hit by more England call-ups, but it appears the standard of the opposition may have improved.For the first time, there are eight Test-hosting grounds in the top division, meaning, as Gale reasons, that each of them has the financial resources to mount a sustained challenge on the title.”I believe it’s the strongest division that I’ve seen for a long time,” Gale said. “You usually get a team who has scraped up. No disrespect to Derbyshire or Worcester, but their aim coming into the season is probably to stay in the first division.”With Surrey and Lancashire coming up, they are probably aiming to win the County Championship. And there is no reason why not: they have the resources compared to a club that’s running on a shoestring.”We believe it’s going to be the hardest year that we’ve had. The division looks as strong as it’s ever been.”Warwickshire will be strong. They’ve as strong a squad as I’ve seen. They have always been strong with their bowling, but have struggled for runs at times. Now they have got Bell and Trott, possibly for most of the season, they will be a good side.”Andrew Gale reasserted Yorkshire’s commitment to player development as they chase a third straight title•Getty Images

But Gale remains positive. With most of their England players back for the opening weeks of the campaign – although Joe Root is likely to be rested for at least the first two rounds of games and Tim Bresnan has an Achilles injury that could keep him out for a month – and David Willey joining to add depth to the bowling, he knows his team have the chance to write themselves into Yorkshire folklore if they pull off a third successive triumph.”We’re confident and positive,” Gale said. “But we can take nothing for granted. We’ve won two championships, but that counts for nothing at the start of the season. But if we win three championships in a row, we’ll go down with the legends of Yorkshire cricket.”