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Division One

2nd dayYasir Arafat’s three wickets gave Sussex the upper hand on the second day against Kent at Canterbury. Resuming on 355 for 8 Sussex’s tail bashed their way to 399 before James Lewry trapped David Fulton with the first ball of Kent’s reply. Kent soon stumbled to 34 for 3 before Matthew Walker (87) and Darren Stevens (118) rescued a sinking ship with a fine fourth-wicket partnership of 188. Arafat struck back, though, removing both batsmen and Dwayne Bravo, the West Indies allrounder, to leave Kent still trailing by 160 runs.1st dayEd Joyce struck a magnificent unbeaten 158 for Middlesex who dominated the first day against Warwickshire at Edgbaston. However, the visitors were in early trouble when they lost Ed Smith (30) and Owais Shah (10) to leave them in the tricky position of 56 for 2. Enter Nick Compton with whom Joyce put on 71 vital runs for the third wicket. Though Compton fell for 52, Joyce found good support from Jamie Dalrymple (43) and David Nash (35*) as Middlesex closed on 344 for 5.John Crawley and James Adams launched a firecracking assault on Nottinghamshire‘s bowlers at Trent Bridge, each striking unbeaten centuries to leave Hampshire on a majestic 303 for 1. Mike Carberry fell on Nelson, and was unlucky not to make his half-century. He was on 49 when Ryan Sidebottom induced his edge, but by that stage Hampshire were healthily set. Then Crawley joined Adams and together they put on 192 at just under three an over.Anthony McGrath struck is third and highest century of the season to steer Yorkshire out of trouble against Durham at Chester-le-Street. After choosing to bat, Ottis Gibson and Mick Lewis reduced them to 186 for 7 despite a stand of 97 between McGrath and Darren Lehmann. But McGrath found solid support from Jason Gillespie, then Mitchell Claydon contributed a positive 38 in a ninth-wicket stand of 80. McGrath’s ton came off 183 balls and Yorkshire’s day ended on a fine note as Gillespie and Deon Kruis struck with the new ball.

Division Two

Day TwoAndy Flower was Essex‘s mainstay as they closed on 265 for 4 in reply to Gloucestershire‘s 394 at Bristol. He reached his century with a clip for four to the long-leg boundary as he ended on 114 not out to make a fine return to action following a recent back injury. Gloucestershire had earlier added 39 to their overnight score of 355 for 8 with Ian Fisher (45) and Jon Lewis (38) dispatching a flurry of boundaries at the start of the day. The home side narrowly missed out on their final batting point, however, as Lewis was first stumped by James Foster after advancing down the track to James Middlebrook before Fisher edged low to Ravinder Bopara at second slip off Andy Bichel.Essex lost Varun Chopra early in their reply, caught nibbling behind. Mark Pettini (59) fared better but chipped to square leg after sharing a stand of 111 for the third wicket with Andy Flower. In-form captain Ronnie Irani laboured for 12 off 69 balls before giving a catch to short-leg as Fisher claimed his second wicket. Fisher, the slow left-armer, had less success against the Flower combination, however, as they took their side to the close with an unbeaten stand of 74 for the fifth-wicket with Grant Flower on 28 not out.1st dayAli Brown made another fine century to help Surrey make a solid 328 on the opening day against Northants at Northampton. Mark Ramprakash added yet more runs to a mighty first-class haul, with a half-century, and there were runs, too, for Rikki Clarke, who was out three short of his fifty. But Northants stuck to their task with Matthew Nicholson picking up 4 for 84 to dismiss them before the close. Bilal Shafayat fell for a duck early doors, bowled by Mohammad Akram (1 for 1), but that was the end of the drama for the day, with Northants closing on 27 for 1, still 301 runs behind.Marcus North’s exquisite century put Derbyshire in a strong position on the opening day at Taunton. They closed on 374 for 9 and were helped to that total by Chris Taylor; he added 145 runs with North for the third wicket to pick their team up from an early wobble at 30 for 2. Taylor eventually fell to Andrew Caddick, who bagged three wickets, while North was undone by Simon Francis, who also took three.HD Ackerman led the way for Leicestershire with an unbeaten 177 as they recovered from a wobble to take the opening day honours against Glamorgan at Cardiff. Leicestershire lost wickets in clusters to find themselves on 178 for 5 midway through the afternoon. Ackerman and Paul Nixon then combined in a sixth-wicket stand of 160 to turn the innings around. Ackerman took 168 balls over his century, while Nixon showed all his fighting qualities during a 123-ball 60.

Edgar Schiferli, the Netherlands medium-pacer, could miss the World Cup after he injured his left hamstring during a warm-up session ahead of the practice match against India at the Trelawny Stadium in Jamaica.Schiferli missed the practice match that Netherlands lost by 182 runs. “He is our experienced opening bowler and it doesn’t look good,” Hans Mulder, the Netherlands manager, told Reuters. Mulder was of the opinion that the injury was serious enough for Schiferli to be replaced in the squad.Schiferli’s injury is a big blow to Netherlands as he was the joint highest wicket-taker in the 2005 ICC Trophy held in Ireland. He took 17 wickets in seven matches at an average of 14.64 in the tournament. Netherlands are in Group A along with Australia, South Africa and Scotland.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Mohammad Shahzad struck two fours and three sixes in his 53-ball 56•ICC/Donald MacLeod

A fine all-round bowling performance and Mohammad Shahzad’s 53-ball 56 set up a thrilling five-wicket win for UAE – their first victory of the tournament – against Canada in Stirling. Requiring 25 runs off the last two overs, the sixth wicket pair of Swapnil Patil and Abdul Shakoor struck three sixes in the penultimate over as UAE reached the target with five balls to spare.UAE got off to the ideal start after putting Canada in – getting two wickets in the first eight balls. However, a 58-run counter-attacking partnership ensued between Hiral Patel and Nitish Kumar. Patel hit five fours and two sixes in his 27-ball 45. Again the momentum shifted as UAE picked up wickets in clumps as 63 for 2 turned to 109 for 9. Navneet Dhaliwal salvaged a competitive total for Canada with an unbeaten 39, lifting the score to 132. Four bowlers picked up two wickets each with only Mohammad Naveed not getting a wicket.UAE lost Faizan Asif in the third over but partnerships of 25, 40 and 19 kept them on course. Shahzad fell in the 16th over for 56 and another wicket was taken three balls later. An equation of 33 off three overs was brought down to 25 off 12 balls. Cecil Pervez, who had figures of 2 for 11 in three overs, was tasked with bowling the 19th over, where Shakoor and Patil took him for 21 – Shakoor hitting two sixes and Patil one, effectively killing the chase.

Shoaib Akhtar has protested his innocence, after it was revealed he had tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid Nandrolone, during an internal dope test carried out by the Pakistan Cricket Board.”I cannot say much at this time about what has happened but I just want to assure everyone that I am innocent of doing anything I shouldn’t have,” Shoaib told bigstarcricket.com. “The President of Pakistan has asked me not to comment in any detail at this stage and I want to respect his wishes, so I will keep my message short.”All I can say is that I have not knowingly taken any performance-enhancing drugs and would never cheat my team-mates or opponents in this way. I have always played the game fair and I give 100 percent and do not feel that I need to take drugs to help my bowling.”Shoaib, along with his team-mate, Mohammad Asif, has already been sent home from the Champions Trophy, leaving the Pakistan squad in further disarray, following the chaos that surrounded the appointment of Younis Khan as stand-in captain earlier in the month. “I am gutted to be missing the Champions Trophy,” added Shoaib,” and I will return to Pakistan to see what has happened and what needs to be done.”His pleas of innocence were backed up by a statement from his private doctor, Tauseef Razzaq, a reputed physiotherapist and sports medicine specialist, who told AFP that the positive test results probably stemmed from the medicines he had been taking to aid his recovery from injury.”Akhtar is definitely innocent and I can vouch for him,” said Tauseef. “He doesn’t know anything about medicines, and since he recently suffered ankle and knee injuries, he must have taken some medicines which are painkillers but come under the banned substances.”Dr Razzaq was hired by Shoaib in 2004, a move which attracted criticism from the PCB. He added that Shoaib had returned two negative tests, at the Champions Trophy in England two years ago and after the 2003 World Cup in South Africa.”Akhtar is so valuable a cricketer and is conscious of the fact,” said Razzaq, “so I don’t think he would take anything intentionally. Since he bowls at a venomous pace he also knew he would always be a target for a dope test.”

Steve Harmison’s hopes of playing in the first Test against Sri Lanka at Kandy next week were dealt a major blow when he limped off the field during England’s final warm-up match at the Nondescripts Cricket Club in Colombo.Harmison, who had earlier taken his first wicket of the tour in a much-improved performance, pulled up after bowling three balls of his 11th over. He paused for a while at the top of his mark, and appeared to clutch at the lower right-hand side of his back. After a brief consultation with Michael Vaughan, he left the field immediately and James Anderson completed the over.The initial fear among the England camp was that Harmison had suffered an aggravation of the muscular tear in his lower back that ruled him out of the end of the English season, but England’s coach, Peter Moores, said that the new problem was unrelated, and even held out hopes of Harmison featuring again before the end of the match.”It’s not something he’s had before,” said Moores. “It’s a bit of a twinge, a back spasm, and the physio doesn’t think it’s anything major. Hopefully it’s one of those things that settles down in the next 24 to 36 hours, and he’ll be able to play a part in the second innings.””It’s not exactly what you want,” said Moores. “Harmy’s disappointed because I think he found good rhythm. He started to really hit his straps a little bit and enjoy himself, and was looking forward to having another crack. But we’ve all had muscle spasms in the past – they hit you like an electric shock and if that goes away you can get right again as quick as it went.”However, with just six days to go until the Kandy Test, Harmison’s participation must be in severe doubt, not least because of the blow it will deal to his already fragile confidence. The injury occurred at the beginning of his fourth spell of the day, and though he was not sent for a scan, it came at a moment when he looked set to recapture some of his best form.”He was really happy,” said Moores. “When Harmy’s bowling well he attacks the crease and today he was doing it with confidence, with his foot half-and-half on the line. He was getting better all the time, and this has put a bit of a cloud on what was otherwise a really good effort.”In the aftermath of England’s first warm-up match at Colombo Cricket Club, Harmison had spoken of his determination to fight for his England place, but also rued the run of bad luck that had left him on the fringes of the squad. Prior to his back problem in August, he had undergone a hernia operation that had ruled him out of the Test series against India.”In the past we still had bowlers knocking on the door, but I went through a long period of not being injured,” said Harmison. “Now I can’t get rid of an injury without another one cropping up.”I need to spend some time on the park, and if I do that and bowl properly, I feel I’m as good as anyone in England. When I’m not bowling that well, and coming back [from injury] all the time, then there are better bowlers than me.”

Australia 228 and 191 beat England 169 and 139 by 111 runs
Scorecard1st day

As the Melbourne turf is frequently more suitable to fast howling than other Australian wickets, England’s eleven for the second Test was framed on the policy of ramming home the fast attack with four pace bowlers, so Bowes replaced Verity. This was a bold policy, as it meant that Jardine entered the field with Hammond as the only spin bowler of class. If the move had succeeded it would have been acclaimed, but, although England’s attack did well on a dead wicket, the pitch proved more suitable for Australia’s spin bowlers. Although 46, Ironmonger, the left-hand bowler, forced his way into Australia’s eleven. It seemed a mistake that Nagel should be the bowler omitted, and the dropping of Ponsford was a serious blunder. Bradman was fit enough to resume his place in the team. Lamentable batting displays were given by both sides. Notable work was done by the bowlers, but they profited because most of the batsmen were stodgy and neglected to employ the great influence of the drive. Winning the toss again, Australia scored a laborious 194 for 7 before stumps were drawn. Although none of the early wickets fell to Larwood, his influence was telling. Because of trouble with his boots, he left the field four times, and was off for an hour in all. Opening the innings, Fingleton hung on doggedly for four hours for 83. With Woodfull and O’Brien (who each defended for an hour) Fingleton took some of the sting from the attack, but there were not enough stroke players in the eleven for Australia to benefit. Bradman went first ball, when he tried to hook a short one from Bowes, and touched it on to his wicket. McCabe was not at his best, and made a weak stroke for a slip catch. Clutching twice, Hammond held a brilliant catch when Richardson turned Voce to leg. The day’s play was watched by 63,993 spectators, and the gate receipts amounted to £5,577.2nd day
England’s reply of 161 for 9 was all the batsmen deserved for their display. Again Sutcliffe headed the list, but his 52 was the most scratchy innings he has ever played in Australia. The only one of the first seven to play real cricket was Hammond, even if his stay was short. Attempting a cover stroke, Hammond found a ball from Wall faster than he estimated. In five overs after tea, Wall dismissed Sutcliffe, Jardine and Ames. He bowled a good pace, with his usual determination, but the outstanding bowler was O’Reilly, who mingled leg-breaks,wrong-uns and over-spinners. Varying his pace and making the ball come off at different heights, O’Reilly earned his wickets. In a batsmanlike contribution, Allen provided a contrast to the rest. Apart from him and Hammond, all the batsmen played almost entirely on the back foot. Those who had doubted whether Allen was quite up to Test standard were satisfied by his all-round cricket in this game in which he was the best of England’s fast bowlers.3rd day
The England bowlers fought back splendidly, and at the close of play appeared to have put their side in a favourable position. Australia’s only consolation in a second innings of 191 was an impressive comeback by Bradman, who scored 103 not out, in three hours, while eight wickets fell at the other end. This was a different Bradman not the dasher with audacious strokes, but a batsman fighting grimly to save his side from collapse, and to regain his own confidence and certainty. Viewed from every angle of batsmanship, this innings must be ranked for merit as probably the greatest Bradman has played. The only other things that counted in Australia’s innings were Woodfull’s safe opening and a bright three-quarter-hour by Richardson. Frequently the best bowler does not have the best figures, but Hammond’s ability to spin the ball made him the most difficult of the English attack. Set 251 to win, England made a good start when Leyland helped Sutcliffe to put up 43 before the end of the day. Sutcliffe batted in excellent form, being 33 not out, and Leyland 10 not out. The attendance was 68,188.4th day
England’s sudden collapse came as a shock. Sending the ball into a good breeze, O’Reilly gained in flight and turn by slackening his pace. The legbreak which beat Sutcliffe early broke almost the width of the stumps. The spin of some of Ironmonger’s deliveries was aided whenever the ball pitched on a part of the surface worn by fast bowlers’ feet. Apart from this wear, the bowlers were able to turn the ball a good deal. Whatever Jardine’s motive, changing the batting order did not help. Hammond, who came in at No. 4, went down fighting. Five leading batsmen had tumbled in less than an hour for 34 runs, so the Gloucestershire allrounder then staked all on desperate measures for a desperate situation. Hammond lifted several strokes, and when a mishit and a well-placed fieldsman brought his downfall, the match was lost, although Allen and Wyatt made a plucky stand of 50 for the seventh wicket. Although not much in the picture, because of the success of the other bowlers, Grimmett’s bowling was his best for two years, as he tossed the ball and turned it better. The tenseness of the struggle throughout was a gruelling test of the captaincy of the two leaders, who at one time had runs to play with. Their leadership pleased the critics, Woodfull revealing an unsuspected amount of strategy..The match was an enormous financial success, the attendance being 200,586 and the receipts £16,076.

Zimbabwe’s national side looks set for a major overhaul after the beleaguered board held a week-long bowling course last week to aid in a fresh selection process for a new-look team that officials say will stand competitively.The course, staged at the Zimbabwe Cricket Academy and at the Harare Sports Club, was held to aid in the selection of a team that will represent Zimbabwe in the forthcoming tours by the A sides of West Indies and South Africa at a time when the country’s cricket fortunes are at an all-time low.Sources within the national team revealed that Zimbabwe Cricket had hired an Australian cricket specialist to conduct a bowling course for players drawn from around the country. “We are attending a bowling course which is being conducted by an Australian coach and it has been very intense,” said one participant, adding that Zimbabwe was on the prowl for a fast bowler to enhance the team’s attack.Lovemore Banda, the ZC media and communications manager, confirmed that a course was held but would not confirm whether an Australian expert had been called in. “Kevin Curran [national team coach] conducted a course … during the first week of this month. The majority of the participants were those pacers who showed a lot of potential during the 2007 Logan Cup.”However, there are also concerns that players who participated at this year’s World Cup could still be owed their dues. Banda could neither deny nor confirm the issue of non-payment of players: “The issue of payment is a contractual matter,” he said. “Is it of public interest whether the players are paid or not?”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details5:13