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Australia have spun a major selection surprise by including the 19-year-old Ashton Agar, a Western Australian left-arm spinner, in their XI for the first Ashes Test

Daniel Brettig at Trent Bridge10-Jul-2013Australia have spun a major selection surprise by including the 19-year-old Ashton Agar, a Western Australian left-arm spinner, in their XI for the first Test against England at Trent Bridge.Glenn McGrath’s presence in the Australian team huddle a little less than an hour before the toss suggested a change to the team, and Agar emerged wearing his baggy green cap, presented on the strength of only ten first-class matches. His selection appears geared towards exploiting England’s phalanx of right-handers, while also opening up a familiar wound for Kevin Pietersen.However, it is a major blow to the career of the offspinner Nathan Lyon, who took nine wickets in his last Test match against India in Delhi. The selection also recalled events of the last Ashes series in Australia, when the previous selection panel dropped Nathan Hauritz on the eve of the series for Xavier Doherty, a move made with Pietersen in mind.Unlike Doherty, Agar is a capable batsman and also a fine fielder. His inclusion leaves the tourists with a team that can be said to bat all the way down to No. 11.”The main reason for the selection is taking the ball away from all their right-handers and we think this is a really important weapon in particular for this Test match on that particular wicket,” the coach Darren Lehmann said. “In the tour match Michael [Clarke] felt he had good drift and straightened the ball nicely so that’s just the way we have gone with the selectors in this Test match and we’re looking forward to him playing really well.”Agar was not included in the initial Ashes squad, but after Lehmann’s naming as coach he was upgraded to a place on tour, much like Steve Smith, the other notable inclusion in the team.Smith’s selection reflects a desire to have another right-hander and capable player of spin in the middle order, while also forcing David Warner to earn his spot back after poor form and a suspension for punching Joe Root during the Champions Trophy.In one of the more convoluted paths to keeping a place in the team, Smith was initially left out of the Ashes squad but named vice-captain of the Australia A tour that served as a prelude. He was also on standby should an extra Ashes batsmen be required, an event that came to pass due to Warner’s suspension and Michael Clarke’s back trouble early in the tour.Having battled gamely during his two India Tests, Smith went on to impress Rod Marsh and Lehmann – before he was appointed coach – on the Australia A tour, notably making a century against Ireland on a difficult first-day wicket in Belfast. He was then included for the final tour match against Worcestershire and played a pair of sprightly innings.Smith is being groomed for leadership roles in the future by Cricket Australia, and was set to lead the A team to South Africa later this month before his Ashes tickets were upgraded. He will now have the opportunity to demonstrate how much he has developed since being a figure of some ridicule during the 2010-11 series, when his technique did not appear that of a top six batsman.The rest of Australia’s batting order was more or less as expected, Clarke moving to No. 4 having batted there in every innings so far on tour, Ed Cowan moving down to No. 3 and the pace attack comprising James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc and Peter Siddle.Australia: 1 Shane Watson, 2 Chris Rogers, 3 Ed Cowan, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 Phillip Hughes, 6 Steve Smith, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Peter Siddle, 10 James Pattinson, 11 Ashton Agar.

Queensland joined Victoria on 22 points at the top of the Sheffield Shield table on a day when 15 wickets fell at the Gabba

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Feb-2013
ScorecardQueensland joined Victoria on 22 points at the top of the Sheffield Shield table on a day when 15 wickets fell at the Gabba. Ten of those were in Western Australia’s first innings, which concluded for a mere 111 after the visitors had been sent in.Conditions in Brisbane were helpful to seam bowlers but not exactly unplayable, yet the Warriors were rounded up in only 51.5 overs, Adam Voges the only man to threaten a score of substance in making 38 while wickets fell around him.The Bulls shared the wickets, Cameron Gannon nipping out four and James Hopes three, Matthew Gale accounting for the in-form Shaun Marsh. Michael Hussey was a victim of Gannon, edging behind for five.Setting off in pursuit of a meagre total, Greg Moller and Luke Pomersbach guided Queensland to 83 without loss, before WA’s bowlers struck in the final session. Newly announced as a developmental tourist to India, the left-arm spinner Ashton Agar claimed another two wickets as the Bulls slipped to 5 for 100.However Hopes and Chris Hartley, captain and deputy, guided their side into the lead and an imposing position by the close.

Rangpur Riders captain Abdur Razzak has said his team’s players have been playing “free of cost” in the Bangladesh Premier League because they haven’t been paid yet

Mohammad Isam31-Jan-2013Rangpur Riders captain Abdur Razzak has said his team’s players have been playing “free of cost” in this season of the Bangladesh Premier League because they haven’t been paid yet. Razzak’s comments come a day after Owais Shah, the Dhaka Gladiators batsman, complained he had not been paid the first installment (25%) of his $75,000 paycheck.The Riders are third in the tournament with three wins, after they went down to Sylhet Royals by five wickets on Thursday.”Our focus is bound to be hampered,” Razzak said. “The foreign players in my team are feeling insecure. Our owner has told us the payments will be cleared before the second round. It would be great if it happens because we are all professional cricketers. We have played free of cost so far, so there have been discussions among the players.”Razzak said he hoped the owners understood that cricket was the only source of income for most of the players, but wasn’t certain he would see all the money. “I am not saying that I will be playing free of cost but if I had to, it wouldn’t be a good situation. What will be my livelihood? I have spent my life in cricket.”Truth be told, I am not confident about payment. If I say I am confident, I might not get paid, and if I say I won’t get paid, they may clear the payment.”Shah had said that he received the remittance slip from the Bangladesh board but the amount had not been credited into his account. ESPNcricinfo was also told that Shah was just one of many players not to have been paid.Tim May, the the chief executive of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), said that players’ patience with the organisers had worn thin and there was possibility of a boycott if the payments were not made.

Michael Vaughan, the former England captain, believes Alastair Cook’s wealth of experience at international level gives him a head start to the Test captaincy

Nagraj Gollapudi30-Aug-2012Michael Vaughan, the former England captain, believes Alastair Cook’s wealth of experience at international level gives him a head start after taking over the Test captaincy from Andrew Strauss who retired from professional cricket on Wednesday.Cook, who has been England’s one-day captain since last year, will take charge for the first time on the tour of India which starts in October and already has 83 Tests to his name.”He is unquestionably England’s most experienced leader to have got the job,” Vaughan told ESPNcricinfo . “He has played 83 Test matches for England. When I got the job I had played 31, Straussy had got the job when he played 50, Nasser Hussain got the job when he had played 47. Even if Cook is still a young boy he is the most experienced guy to ever have taken the role. So he should be in a great position to lead the team.”Strauss’ retirement was the latest instalment of a difficult year for England who are also having to deal with the ongoing Kevin Pietersen stand-off. The Test side has lost six of 11 matches this year to concede the No. 1 ranking to South Africa cumulating in the recent 2-0 series loss to them. However, Vaughan said the basis of English cricket remained solid and there was no need for Cook to press the panic button.According to Vaughan, who was handed the captaincy in 2003, after Nasser Hussain called time on the role after the first Test against South Africa at Edgbaston, most captains assume the captaincy job in equally “tricky” situations. Vaughan led England for five years, starting with the onerous task of phasing out some of his senior team-mates to allow the “new generation” help him reach his goal.”Whenever you get the job you never get in a great circumstance,” he said while promoting the Extreme Sailing Series in Cardiff. “I got the role when there were a lot of senior players around and clearly that transition of bringing in new players has to happen.”So I had to kind of oversee how we were going to rid of the legendary or senior guys who had performed well for England for a number of years and bring a new generation and change the mentality of the team. We had lost to Australia for many, many series. I had to change the mentality of beating the great Australian side. That was my role.”Who is the right partner for Cook?

The right man to occupy the vacant opening slot left behind by Strauss should be a specialist opener according to Michael Vaughan instead of a middle-order player being moved up.

There has been discussion that one of Jonathan Trott, the current No. 3, or Ian Bell should go alongside Cook. Such a move, Vaughan cautioned, could be counter-productive. “I have heard rumours about Trott or even Bell to move up and open the batting,” he said. “I would advise them to pick an opening batsman, who has done it from an early age. The best openers in the game historically come from people who have done all their lives. Cook and Strauss did that as little boys.”

Another reason Vaughan felt the move could backfire was because an opening batsman generally was more adept at moving down order whereas a middle-order batsman can struggle to settle against the new ball.

“You can go from opening to No.3, but, I am not so sure you can move in time from middle order to open. It is a very specialist position so I would advise them to pick who they feel is the best opening batsman to go with Cook and leave the experience in the middle order. So Trott and Bell, we need those kind of players in the middle of the innings particularly in the parts of the world like India.”

Similarly, it was a difficult time when Strauss took over in the midst of the Pietersen-Peter Moores dispute in 2009. Despite such incidents, Vaughan stressed, England have always held the advantage of having a ready back-up in place. “When Straussy got the role there was a fall-out between Pietersen and Peter Moores, but there was a still a good element of players around. There has been a system for a while now, what I describe as a conveyor belt where England would keep producing players.”And now Cook gets the role again in a tricky circumstance: England have lost six in their last eleven Tests, the Pietersen situation, how does he manage that, only he knows best how to manage that. It is actually good because you can start from afresh and move forward.”Paying tribute to Strauss, Vaughan called him a “good captain,” someone who would always fall in the bracket of the best men to lead England this generation. Equally impressive for Vaughan was the timing of Strauss’ retirement.”The respect side was always there,” Vaughan said. “The way he dealt with people was outstanding. The way he dealt with media was outstanding. And he has won games for England and managed to score runs as a captain. He is right up there with the captains of last 20 years. Andrew Strauss would be in that group that got mentioned quite often. He has done a good job and he has gone out at the right time.”It was Vaughan the captain who handed Strauss his Test cap on debut against New Zealand at Lord’s. A decade later Strauss finished an illustrious career standing next to Vaughan among the most successful Test captains for England. Vaughan had 26 wins alongside 11 losses during his 51-match tenure while Strauss had 24 wins and 11 losses in the 50 Tests at the helm. Yet, according to Vaughan, neither man was destined to be a leader.”I certainly did not think on my debut I would captain England, never mind going on to lead England 51 times and win 26 of those Tests,” Vaughan said. ” I never even expected that. And I never expected Andrew Strauss to have 50 Tests as captain when I gave him the Test cap. When I retired in 2008 Kevin Pietersen got the role and I did not see an opportunity for Strauss to get the job. But it came out of circumstance.”Vaughan called Strauss selfless, a modern leader. “He is very self-deprecating, always looked out for others and the team before himself. That is what makes a good leader in this era, someone who really looks at the rest before he looks at himself. That is really good.”On the August 30, Michael Vaughan is making his way down to Cardiff for the Extreme Sailing Series, Extreme 40 Catamaran race weekend. Raced by many of the world’s best sailors, including Ian Williams the skipper of the GAC Pindar team and three tims World Match Racing Tour champion, the race will take place on Cardiff bay over four days with the event open to the public.

Two potential future stars announced themselves in Paarl as the South African Invitational XI made the New Zealanders’ bowlers work hard

The Report by Firdose Moonda in Paarl29-Dec-2012
Scorecard File photo: There was belated success for Trent Boult on a flat pitch•Getty ImagesTwo potential future stars announced themselves in Paarl as the South African Invitational XI made the New Zealanders work hard on the second day of their warm-up match. Rassie van der Dussen and Matthew Kleinveldt scored seventies before Trent Boult ensured the day was not a complete waste with two wickets in an aggressive spell in the final session.The New Zealanders declared overnight to give their bowlers a decent run but soon found the going tough on a pitch that only got flatter under sunny skies. Van der Dussen, who has played for the North West amateur team and Kleinveldt, cousin of Rory, were untroubled by all three seamers who bowled within themselves and in short spells throughout the morning.Both batsmen were strong off the front foot with Kleinveldt showing slightly more intent. They wore down the New Zealanders, who eventually had the spinners, Jeetan Patel and Bruce Martin operating from either end. The hosts went to lunch at 81 without loss before Kleinveldt brought out his more flamboyant side in the afternoon session.His half-century came in the second over after lunch while van der Dussen continued to play conservatively, although he also reached his milestone. With both set to record hundreds the New Zealanders appeared to be on a futile mission but Martin tempted Kleinveldt with flight, drew him forward and BJ Watling completed the stumping.The tourists’ most profitable period came after tea. Colin Ackermann was caught by Martin Guptill at slip off Neil Wagner. The umpires had to confer about the legitimacy of the catch after Shaun George, who was at the bowler’s end, thought it was taken off a bump ball.Boult got his first wicket when van der Dussen played an aerial shot into the covers and Dean Brownlie took the catch. Brownlie was on the field substituting for Peter Fulton, who will take no part in the Tests after injuring tendons in his knee while batting.Having suffered a severe stomach bug, Brownlie appeared to have returned to health and may even ask for special permission for bat on the third day. He was not named in the original 12 because of his illness but has progressed well since then and because the match does not have first-class status his request may be granted.In his next over, Boult produced a beauty that swung into Pite van Biljoen and upset the stumps. The New Zealanders caused a mini-collapse when Uwe Birkenstock was given what could have been seen as a harsh lbw dismissal against Martin. The ball looked to be missing leg but Birkenstock left without complaint.All the New Zealanders’ quick men returned for a final burst in the last hour and Chris Martin was the only one to have some reward. He picked up the scalp of promising wicketkeeper-batsman Bradley Barnes to an lbw that few could have argued with.The inability to bowl out an inexperienced, composite side made up of players from the amateur and under-19 competitions may see the New Zealanders cop some criticism but they should not be vilified just yet. The attack on display is unlikely to be their Test arsenal with Doug Bracewell sitting out and the pitch at Newlands should offer a little more bounce and carry than the unresponsive Boland Park strip.Luckily, it was the only lifeless part of the ground. A healthy crowd sat under the oaks to watch the match and a sponsored event, which involved some cricket and much music, took place on the lawns at the back of the stadium. In attendance were acting CSA chief executive Jacques Faul, former national assistant coach Vincent Barnes, who now works on the High Performance Programme, current bowling coach Allan Donald and many former players from the area including Henry Williams and Johnny Kleinveldt, Matthew’s father.

Arran Brindle struck an unbeaten 40 to help England Women win the third ODI against India Women

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jul-2012
ScorecardTammy Beaumont made 44, her highest ODI score, as England chased 174 to win•Getty ImagesArran Brindle struck an unbeaten 40 to help England Women win the third ODI against India Women and maintain their hopes of victory in the five-match series. Danielle Wyatt struck the winning runs with 16 balls remaining as England succeeded where they had failed 24 hours earlier, cutting India’s lead to 2-1 ahead of the fourth ODI in Truro on Sunday.England went into the series on a seven-match winning streak in one-day cricket but failed to defend 229 in a tight finish at Lord’s and then came up short attempting to chase down 130 on a slow Taunton pitch. After reaching 100 for 2 in the 27th over of the third ODI, England made hard work of reaching their target of 174. Tammy Beaumont top-scored with 44 but the hosts lost four wickets for 28 in a late stumble, as Brindle battled stoically to get them over the line.After another poor start that saw India slip to 47 for 4, captain Mithali Raj hit her second unbeaten ninety of the series to rescue the innings. She was the only India batsman to pass 24, combining with Reema Malhotra for a 71-run partnership, then adding adding 55 with wicketkeeper Sulakshana Naik in 8.2 overs at the end. However, despite economical and penetrative spells from Gouher Sultana, Nagarajan Niranjana and Archana Das, it wasn’t quite enough.

Ross Taylor said it hurt to lose but he was happy with the fight his side had shown to remain in the contest after the heavy defeat in Hyderabad

Siddarth Ravindran in Bangalore03-Sep-2012New Zealand came into this series after a miserable time in the Caribbean and were expected to be pummelled by an Indian side that has built up an enviable home record over the past decade. The feeble capitulation in Hyderabad seemed to confirm the fears about a one-sided series, though every New Zealand player routinely talked about scrapping hard and showing fight. It seemed idle talk a week ago but at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, New Zealand pushed India all the way before going down by five wickets.Even after Ross Taylor’s power-packed century on the first day, the expectation was that New Zealand’s challenge would fade away. However, Tim Southee’s career-best effort gained them a first-innings lead and right till the final session of the Test, New Zealand were in with a chance of a first Test win in India since 1988.”If we’re brutally honest, we would have liked to score a few more runs in that first innings to put pressure on India,” Ross Taylor said, when asked where the match was lost. “We’d like to have restricted them to a few less. I wouldn’t put it down to just one little moment. It was just, we lost the Test match over time.”With India five down, and nearly 100 away from victory, New Zealand had a real chance but Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, two batsmen renowned for their ability in one-day chases, successful shepherded India’s pursuit. “The bowlers tried their heart out,” Taylor said. “They bowled a lot of overs in a short period of time. You have to give credit to Kohli and Dhoni, they batted very well.”The result means New Zealand have lost four successive Tests over the past six weeks, two of them after being ahead halfway through the game. “The last match was a heavy loss. In Jamaica they had to score a record chase to win, so I wouldn’t say that wasn’t a hard win. We had a good sniff – we just lost it in one session in Jamaica and Antigua. And here, India had to get, I think, their fourth or fifth highest run chase ever. We tried our best, it still hurts but hopefully we can improve from this.”Despite the 2-0 series defeat, New Zealand had several things to be happy about, with the performance of their young trio of quick bowlers in the unfamiliar conditions of the subcontinent top of the list. Trent Boult belied his boyish looks by bowling with pace and hostility without getting the reward for his efforts, Southee hasn’t played more than four Tests at a stretch since his debut in 2008 but made his case for a permanent place in Bangalore, while Doug Bracewell showed his ability to bowl the outswinger and contribute with the bat in the lower order. All of them are in their early 20s, and could form a potent attack over the years.”It’s exciting for new Zealand cricket,” Taylor said. “We’ve got a young bowler in Adam Milne who is turning up as well. We play half our games away – they won’t be as bouncy. But on bouncier wickets back home, I’m sure they’ll thrive.”With other fast bowlers like Neil Wagner and Mark Gillespie also queuing up for a Test place, the future of 37-year-old Chris Martin, who led the attack for several years, looks bleak. “Who’s that at No.11, we want Chris Martin,” read a poster at the Chinnaswamy Stadium after he was left out for the Bangalore Test, though Taylor stressed that it wasn’t the end of the road for Martin.”I think with young fast bowlers, they need someone to learn off. There’s going to be times in the next few months that Chris will play and there’ll be times when he might not play at all,” he said. “We have a tour to Sri Lanka coming up but also a tour to South Africa and in New Zealand where we could go in with four quicks. So he’s still got a part to play with New Zealand cricket.”

The fifth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), comprising nine teams and 76 matches, will begin on April 4 and conclude on May 27

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jan-2012The fifth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), comprising nine teams and 76 matches, will begin and end in Chennai, with the opening match on April 4 and the final on May 27. The teams will play each other at home and away during a league phase consisting of 72 games at 12, possibly 13, venues, beginning with the defending champions Chennai Super Kings playing Champions League T20 winners Mumbai Indians.There won’t, however, be any matches in Sri Lanka, the BCCI apparently turning down a suggestion by Sri Lanka Cricket to stage a few games there.The Pune Warriors franchise will host eight games at the new stadium in Pune, subject to its completion. In 2011, Pune had to stage their ‘home’ games at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai. Dharamsala and Visakhapatman will also host two games each, and Cuttack is listed as an alternate venue to Hyderabad for two matches.The first Qualifier, which will be contested by the top two teams in the league, and the Eliminator, contested by Nos. 3 and 4, will be held in Bangalore. Chennai will host the second Qualifier, which will be played between the winner of the Eliminator and the loser of the first Qualifier, and the tournament final.The tournament is scheduled to begin 12 days after the Asia Cup final and a week after the end of South Africa’s tour of New Zealand. At present there are three international series that will clash with the 2012 IPL and could affect player availability for both the franchises and the countries. Sri Lanka are hosting England in April, while West Indies host Australia and then travel to England in May.The next player auction for the IPL is scheduled for February 4.

Duronto Rajshahi continued an impressive revival with their third victory on the trot, to move up to joint-second on the points table

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Feb-2012
ScorecardFile photo: Marlon Samuels held the Rajshahi innings together, before bowling a tight spell•BPL T20Duronto Rajshahi continued an impressive revival with their third victory on the trot, to move up to joint-second on the points table. A tight penultimate over from Abdul Razzaq and a final-over hat-trick from Mohammad Sami helped them end Dhaka Gladiators’ three-game winning streak.After Rajshahi were sent in to bat, their openers Shahzaib Hasan and Junaid Siddique raced to 45 in five overs before the innings lost momentum. Both openers and new recruit Khalid Latif, the Pakistan batsman playing his first match in the league, were dismissed in the space of 10 runs. Marlon Samuels then steered the innings, top scoring with a 38-ball 36. While it wasn’t the most frenetic of innings, it was one Rajshahi needed as none of Samuels’ partners lasted long, so much so that the team was bowled out for 144.It might have seemed a straightforward target for Dhaka’s array of big-hitters, but even though Imran Nazir batted through the innings they ended up short. The chase began smoothly with a solid opening stand, before being interrupted due to a power failure at the stadium. The asking-rate began to climb after that, but Dhaka were still in with a chance, especially when Kieron Pollard and Nazir were in the middle.Latif contributed with a smart catch of Pollard at the boundary in the 17th over but Dhaka stayed alive by taking 14 off Sami’s next over. Sami will get plenty of headlines for getting the first hat-trick of the league, but the game-changing over was the penultimate one from Razzaq. Coming on to bowl when 26 was needed off two overs, Razzaq gave away only five runs leaving Dhaka an almost impossible 21 to get off the final over. Sami knocked over the stumps off three successive deliveries to confirm the victory for Rajshahi.

S Badrinath, the injured India middle-order batsman, has said he hopes to return to first-class cricket in two weeks

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Nov-2011S Badrinath, the injured India middle-order batsman, has said he hopes to return to first-class cricket in two weeks. He has been sidelined since mid-October, after hurting his shoulder during the Challenger Trophy in Nagpur.”I’m making good progress. I have started batting from this week,” he said in Delhi. “I am aiming to play the upcoming Ranji match from December 6 [against Bengal]. I’ll get to know on Monday whether I would be able to take the field.”Badrinath is set to receive the Madhavrao Scindia award for the highest run-getter in last year’s Ranji season, where he amassed 922 runs at 131.71. “It was something I wanted to achieve. Last year I went into the season with an aim to do something phenomenal and make a statement with what I do on the field. So, I am happy I am able to achieve it and I hope it doesn’t go unnoticed.”He has missed the first three rounds of the Ranji Trophy, a tournament where he has been a heavy scorer over the past few seasons. Despite the early season set back, he has set his sights high this year as well. “I think I will come back and do whatever I can in the rest of the games. My aim is to make an impact. I have not got a triple century yet in a first-class game and that is what I want to do.”Badrinath, 31, last played for India during the tour of the West Indies earlier this year, and though there are several younger candidates for a spot in the middle-order, he remained optimistic of making a comeback. “I have been in the national team for a while, but didn’t get a chance to play [much]. In the back of my mind, I know I haven’t really lost. Maybe the [national] spots would open up soon and I feel I am the best guy to do the job.”