An extraordinary barrage of declaration slogging from Shuvo Chowdhury and Dollar Mahmud enlivened the final day of England’s warm-up match against Bangladesh A

Andrew Miller in Chittagong09-Mar-2010Bangladesh A 202 (Raqibul 107* Tredwell 6-95) and 362 for 5 dec (Shuvo 91*, Dollar 66*) drew with England XI 281 for 7 dec (Trott 101) and 185 for 5 (Cook 43) by 158 runs

ScorecardAn extraordinary barrage of declaration slogging from Shuvo Chowdhury and Dollar Mahmud enlivened the final day of England’s warm-up match against Bangladesh A, but it was the ongoing poor form of the two highest-profile players on either team that captured the headlines as the contest drifted to a draw at Chittagong.By the time the players shook hands at 3.30pm, England had reached 185 for 5 in their final innings, having given time in the middle to some of their likely Test starters, but the focus had shifted firmly from the present to the first Test in three days’ time. Bangladesh will go into that contest without the services of their most-capped player, Mohammad Ashraful, whose omission from the squad was confirmed soon after he had been bowled by Ajmal Shahzad for 30 in his final innings this morning.England, meanwhile, will be relying on Kevin Pietersen recapturing his big-game mentality after yet another failure that takes his tally in all matches in Bangladesh to 69 runs in seven innings. True to current form, he was greeted with his nemesis style of bowling, left-arm spin, the very moment he came to the crease at the fall of Michael Carberry for 35, and though he showed glimpses of form with a brace of fours and a big six down the ground, he had made only 20 when he missed a sweep against the right-arm spinner, Ashraful.Pietersen’s place for the Chittagong Test is not in any real doubt, but the same cannot be said of Carberry, who had his chance to push for the opener’s berth vacated by Andrew Strauss, but left the jury hanging with 35 from 28 balls, an innings containing six classy fours, but numerous chancy leaves. He too was dismissed by Ashraful, as he propped forward to a good-length delivery, and squirted a regulation chance to short leg.Tim Bresnan’s appearance at No. 4 was a significant hint as to England’s likely planning for the Test series, and after impressing with the ball, he did his prospects no harm by batting calmly for 36, largely in partnership with his captain, Alastair Cook, who retired at tea with 43 to his name.And with James Tredwell likely to partner Graeme Swann as the second spinner, he too was given a chance to put bat on ball, reaching 11 from 28 balls before being bowled by a big legbreak from Noor Hossain, as Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott batted through to the close with no alarms.One of the most intriguing performances of the day was that of Steven Finn. Having picked up two wickets in a lively first spell in England colours on Sunday, he was given the ball first-up this morning, in tandem with Bresnan, and produced a superb spell to end the resistance of the outstanding batsman over the three days, Raqibul Hasan. With a century from the first innings and 50 not out overnight, Raqibul was beaten twice in an over on 51, before Finn tightened his line to detonate the off stump.Ashraful’s subsequent failure, bowled by a scuttler from Shahzad, effectively ended the competitive interest in the Bangladesh innings, but what followed was extraordinary. With Cook seeking to coax a declaration out of his opponents, he brought himself and Carberry on for a nine-over spell of buffet bowling that yielded an incredible 189 runs, with Cook conceding 111 of those himself.By lunch, the policy had enabled Sagir Hossain to race to 51 from 45 balls before retiring (presumably in disgust), while Shuvo (who happened to be batting with a runner) thwacked away with impunity for 91 from 30 balls, alongside Dollar, whose 17-ball 66 contained six sixes and just two dot-balls.It was the final confirmation, if any were needed, that the first-class status with which this match had begun had long since vanished, although by conceding a lead so sizeable that the scorers could not keep up, England did at least give themselves a nominal target to keep things interesting in the final session.

A round-up of the round-robin matches from the Interprovincial Twenty20 tournament

Sa'adi Thawfeeq04-Mar-2010Jeevantha Kulatunga scored the first century of the Inter-provincial Twenty20 tournament to power two-time winners Wayamba to the semi-finals with a 27-run win over Kandurata in the final round-robin match played at the Galle International Stadium.Kulatunga’s 62-ball century helped the defending champions run up an impressive 181 and maintain their 100 percent record in the qualifying round. It was
their fifth win in as many matches and it ensured they finished top of the standings with a nine-point advantage over their nearest rivals Ruhuna, who had 12 points.The previous highest score in the competition was 94, scored off 43 balls, by
Indika de Saram for Ruhuna against Basnahira North in 2008-09.Despite the absence of their captain Kumar Sangakkara, who opted out of
this match, Kandurata put up a brave display, replying with 154 and forcing
Wayamba captain Jehan Mubarak to use as many as nine bowlers to contain the
batting.In the other matches Basnahira South scraped through to the last four with a
thrilling seven-run win over Ruhuna, while Basnahira North beat SLC Combined XI in a game which eventually had no bearing on the final round-robin standings.Basnahira South were lucky to qualify for a place in the semi-finals after
being awarded two points in their match against Kandurata played on February
25 in Pallakelle which ended in bizarre circumstances.Basnahira South, chasing Kandurata’s score of 163-9, replied with 166-7 and claimed victory by three wickets. However, Kandurata lodged a protest that an additional four runs had been credited to Basnahira South by the official scorers during the 17th over and claimed they were the winners by two runs.With both teams claiming victory, the result of the match was suspended. A video recording of the match showed there were no additional four runs scored during the 17th over and that the scorers had blundered. An inquiry was held by the tournament committee and, based on their findings, the Interim Committee decided to split the points and award it to the two teams as both had an opportunity to win the match.The semi-final line-up for Saturday (March 6) is Wayamba v Basnahira South
and Ruhuna v Kandurata. Both matches will be played at De Soysa Stadium,
Moratuwa, with the final scheduled for Sunday (March 7).

West Indies A were on top of Zimbabwe, racing to 51 for 0 in 10 overs after restricting the visitors to 183 on the opening day of their four-day first class match at Queen’s Park Stadium on Friday

Cricinfo staff17-Apr-2010West Indies A 51 for 0 trail Zimbabwe 183 (Taibu 86, Shillingford 4-48, Pascal 3-28) by 132 runs
ScorecardTatenda Taibu stood tall amid the ruins with an unbeaten 86•AFP

West Indies A were on top of Zimbabwe, racing to 51 for 0 in 10 overs after restricting the visitors to 183 on the opening day of their four-day first-class match at Queen’s Park Stadium.Zimbabwe owed their score to an unbeaten 86 from Tatenda Taibu, who waged a lone battle as his team-mates fell by the wayside. Shane Shillingford, with 4 for 48, and Nelon Pascal, with a three-wicket haul, led the charge for the hosts, as only three batsmen managed to enter double digits.After two early losses, Zimbabwe’s innings was partially restored by 50-plus stands for the third and fourth wickets. Chamu Chibhabha and Craig Ervine contributed 40 and 22, but after their dismissals Zimbabwe collapsed in a heap, with Shillingford running through the lower order, the last seven wickets falling for 61 runs. Taibu stood tall through it all, hammering 10 fours from 129 balls to give the bowlers something to work with.Openers Kraigg Brathwaite and Justin Guillen then took the hosts off the block in a hurry. Brathwaite was unbeaten on 26 with five fours, while Guillen struck two fours and a towering six over midwicket in his 21.

Afghanistan’s fairytale has gone truly global. After narrowly missing out on qualification for the World Cup they carried all before them to secure a place in the Caribbean

Andrew McGlashan30-Apr-2010

Overview

Afghanistan have taken the cricket world by storm and captured the imagination•Associated Press

Afghanistan’s fairytale has gone truly global. After narrowly missing out on qualification for the World Cup they carried all before them to secure a place in the Caribbean. In the space of a few years they have become one of the most talked-about sporting teams in the world and the tales of the players who have emerged from refugee camps are already the stuff of legend.The traditional leading Associates have admitted to being surprised by the skills of Afghanistan and Kabir Khan, the former Pakistan quick who is now their coach, has moulded a team with some highly skilful and flamboyant players. Mohammad Nabi, an offspinning allrounder, and Hamid Hassan have benefited from time with MCC Young Cricketers while Mohammad Shahzad wrote his name in the record books with an unbeaten double hundred as Afghanistan chased an incredible 494 in a recent Intercontinental Cup match against Canada.So far during their stunning rise from Division Five of the World Cricket League to a place at a global event they continually managed to lift themselves to a new level, but now they need to retain realistic objectives.”People love the game in Afghanistan. We’re not afraid of anyone because we have nothing to lose, and nobody knows Afghanistan,” said Hassan. “This will be the first time we’re playing on the big screen, the first time people will see us, so we hope we can show them how good we are.”

Twenty20 pedigree

They earned a place in this tournament by winning the qualifying event in UAE where they overcame defeat against Netherlands to beat the hosts and book a place in the final alongside Ireland. Both teams knew they were heading to West Indies, but Afghanistan bagged the silverware with an eight-wicket victory.

Strengths and weaknesses

They are a tightly-bonded team who don’t take a backward step regardless of the opposition. At the lower-levels of the WCL it raised a few eyebrows, but that competitiveness has carried them a long way, often when few gave them a chance. However, they find themselves in a tough group alongside India and South Africa and it will be the first time the batsmen will have faced genuine pace in the likes of Zaheer Khan and Dale Steyn. There will also be the pressure of appearing in front of a global TV audience who have heard plenty about Afghanistan’s exploits.

Key men

Hamid Hassan is a vital member of Afghanistan’s attack in all forms of the game, but in Twenty20 he is held back until the closing overs and, at Associate level, has often been able to stop the opposition racing away.Mohammad Nabi was spotted by Mike Gatting with a hundred against an MCC touring side in India and was invited to join the Young Cricketers. He has since become a major force in the Afghanistan side and was the leading wicket-taker during the qualifying tournament with 13 scalps at 10.53

X-factor

The shock factor can’t be underestimated. International teams spend hours doing their homework on opposition, but there won’t be much footage knocking around of Afghanistan which means they can retain an element of surprise.

Vital stats

Shahid Afridi has said one of his immediate priorities as Pakistan’s new captain is to ensure his players aren’t guilty of any unruly behaviour while on tour

Cricinfo staff10-Jun-2010Shahid Afridi has said one of his immediate priorities as Pakistan’s new captain is to ensure his players aren’t guilty of any unruly behaviour while on tour. Pakistan cricket has had its reputation in tatters of late with a history of infighting within the team and Afridi sent out a warning to his team-mates before departing for the Asia Cup that any indiscipline will not be tolerated.The squad for the tournament in Sri Lanka includes two controversial players in Shoaib Malik and Shoaib Akhtar, who have been accused of either flouting team rules or creating rifts within the team. Afridi said he had a word with both in particular and expected them to set a better example going forward.”In the training camp I spoke to Shoaib and also Malik and explained the new set of rules that we expect them to follow in the team,” Afridi told reporters in Lahore.” I explained that being senior players I require their support to introduce a new culture in the team.”The board has also made it clear that the captain and manager have full authority to take action against any player they feel is getting out of line.”Pakistan’s turbulent tour of Australia earlier this year resulted in several senior players, including Afridi, being fined or banned indefinitely for various offenses. After the players appealed, the PCB reduced and wrote off the punishments of five players. The indefinite ban on former captain Younis Khan was lifted, Malik’s one-year ban was removed, the Rs 3 million fine on captain Afridi, for ball-tampering, was revoked entirely, while the fines on the Akmal brothers for acts of indiscipline were reduced.Following the retirement of Mohammad Yousuf, who was also banned indefinitely, Afridi was appointed captain in all formats for the Asia Cup and the tour of England. Aiming to make a fresh start, Afridi called on his players to put the past behind them and perform.”We have enormous talent and we have some exciting new players coming up. I am confident that if we play as a unit we can beat any team in the world.”

Tyron Henderson, the South African allrounder, has rejoined Middlesex for the remainder of the Friends Provident t20 campaign

Cricinfo staff25-Jun-2010Tyron Henderson, the South African allrounder, has rejoined Middlesex for the remainder of the Friends Provident t20 campaign. Henderson, who had a previous spell with the club in 2008 and 2009, will help cover for an injury-hit bowling attack.Having arrived in London earlier this week, Henderson proved his fitness we two outings for the Middlesex second team which included hitting 80 off 31 balls against Surrey at Beckenham. Henderson was the final-over hero for Middlesex when they won the 2008 Twenty20 Cup against Kent at The Rose Bowl, although he had a limited impact for Rajasthan Royals at IPL3 having been brought for $650,000.”Injury to Iain O’Brien and Shaun Udal, and the ECB’s decision to withdraw Steven Finn from all cricket has given Middlesex’s bowling an inexperienced look,” said Angus Fraser, the managing director of cricket. “The predicament also places a heavy workload on a couple of bowlers who have already bowled a lot of overs this summer.”With this in mind it seemed sensible to bolster our bowling resources, and there are few more experienced and skilful t20 bowlers than Tyron. In 2009 it was reassuring to watch Tyron bowl at crucial stages of matches and we all know how hard and far he can hit a cricket ball. On his day he is a high quality limited over cricketer.”Meanwhile Neil Dexter, the recently appointed captain, and allrounder Gareth Berg have been given new three-year deals by the club. Dexter will take over the leadership following Shaun Udal’s resignation now that Adam Gilchrist’s spell with the county has come to an end.Berg, meanwhile, has been rewarded for some impressive all-round results after averaging 51.18 with the bat in the first half of the Championship season and taking 24 wickets at 34.75 to go with a batting average of 44.66 in the CB40.”That Neil has been appointed captain for the second half of the season highlights how highly he is regarded by everyone at Middlesex,” said Fraser. “He has been in excellent form with the bat and is one of the most elegant and classy players in the country. His bowling in one-day cricket is becoming highly effective too.”When I returned to Middlesex in many people’s eyes the jury was out on Gareth. But over the past season and a half he has become one of the country’s leading all-rounders. He holds a pivotal role in our side and when Gareth plays well we tend to. The most encouraging thing is that Gareth is getting better all the time and there is still plenty more to come.”

Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf is aiming to return to the international fray during Pakistan’s tour of UAE where they will play South Africa

Cricinfo staff26-Jun-2010Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf is aiming to return to the international fray during the tour of UAE in October and November, where Pakistan will face South Africa for two Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20. Yousuf has kept a low profile since his sudden retirement from international cricket in March, but he’s now taking his first steps back in to some form of cricketing action by appearing in the Lahore Premier League, a local club tournament.”I plan to play domestic cricket this season but right now international cricket is not on my mind. If I do plan to return I will target the Test and one-day series against South Africa later this year in the UAE,” Yousuf told .Yousuf was the captain during Pakistan’s win-less tour of Australia, where the team came under fire for their performances. The PCB responded by penalising seven players it believed were responsible for the defeats, Yousuf among them. He and Younis Khan were banned indefinitely, and as a mark of protest, Yousuf announced he was quitting the game “for now”, hinting at a possible return later on. He was the only one among the seven players not to appeal against the punishment, despite the PCB leaving the door open for him to return. However, Yousuf hadn’t responded to those messages from the board so the national selectors could not consider him for the tour of England.Though the domestic season won’t start for a few more months, Yousuf is looking forward to the club tournament to get back in to the groove.”Cricket is in my blood and I still enjoy playing the sport. It will be a challenge to play again and specially in a club level tournament,” Yousuf said.

Chris Rogers, the Australian batsman, will not return to Derbyshire in 2011 after accepting an offer from Middlesex

Cricinfo staff31-Aug-2010Chris Rogers, the Australian batsman, will not return to Derbyshire in 2011 after accepting an offer from Middlesex. After a short stint with the county in 2004, Rogers came back in 2008 and became one of the club’s most prolific scorers, making more than 4,000 first-class runs – including 14 centuries – since his return.Rogers, a left-handed opener, was the side’s Player of the Year in 2009 and captained the team for more than two years after taking over the reins from Rikki Clarke midway through the 2008 season. Rogers stepped down in August, relinquishing the role to Greg Smith.”Chris has been a great player, captain and ambassador for the past three years and I would like to thank him for all he has done during his time with us,” John Morris, Derbyshire’s head of cricket, said. “He has been a great professional and a consistent scorer of big runs. He leaves the club with our very best wishes.”Rogers said he had enjoyed the past three years with Derbyshire. “I am sad to leave as I feel I have become a part of the side here and have forged some great relationships,” he said. “I wish Derbyshire all the best and I believe that under John Morris they have the squad and support to become a successful side.”

Graeme Swann, the England offspinner, has jumped 15 places to a career-best third spot in the ICC one-day rankings after his successful series against Pakistan

Cricinfo staff23-Sep-2010Graeme Swann, the England offspinner, has jumped 15 places to a career-best third spot in the ICC one-day bowling rankings after his successful series against Pakistan in which he bagged 11 wickets. The other big gainer in the rankings was Pakistan fast bowler Umar Gul, who climbed 18 places to the 23rd spot after topping the series bowling charts with 12 wickets in the five ODIs.There was also a further sign of Eoin Morgan’s increasing importance to England’s limited-overs sides as his match-winning 107 in the deciding ODI helped him become the highest-ranked England batsman at 14th. His captain, Andrew Strauss, who was Man of the Series after making a hundred and two half-centuries against Pakistan is one spot behind him, having gained 10 places.England’s hard-fought 3-2 victory in the one-day series has not affected their fifth place but they have lost one ranking point to be three behind India, Sri Lanka and South Africa, all of whom are tied on 112 points. Australia remain runaway leaders, maintaining a 17-point gap over their nearest challengers.Click here for full ranking lists.

Peter Chingoka, Zimbabwe Cricket’s long-standing and controversial chairman, has been appointed by the ICC as one of its Pakistan Task Team

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Oct-2010Peter Chingoka, Zimbabwe Cricket’s long-standing and controversial chairman, has been appointed by the ICC as one of its Pakistan Task Team, originally constituted to assist with the country’s return to staging home Tests and now expanded to “help the Pakistan Cricket Board to carry out any reforms which may be deemed necessary to restore confidence in the administration of the game in Pakistan”.His appointment at a time his own position at the helm of Cricket Zimbabwe is under increasing pressure comes despite his own board having been the subject of a major ICC investigation a few years ago. In 2008 an independent audit commissioned by the ICC highlighted “serious financial irregularities” within the board of which Chingoka was head.While Zimbabwe are taking major strides on their own rehabilitation into the international community, much of the credit for that is given to Ozias Bvute, official the board’s chief executive but increasingly the face of the board.”He is not exactly a shining example of how to run an administration,” said one former colleague and Zimbabwe board member. “Given all that’s happened on his watch it would be hard to find someone less likely to advise another board on how best to run their affairs.”Chingoka remains banned from entering the European Community because of what the authorities claim to be his links to the Mugabe regime, and he was recently identified by the new British government as being the major obstacle to a return of cricketing relations with Zimbabwe.