Cricket NSW Chief Executive David Gilbert has announced the SpeedBlitz Blues team to play the Queensland Bulls in an ING Cup Match in Brisbane on Friday January 30th, 2004.
Steve Waugh (c)12th man to be named on the day of the match.
Brad Haddin
Dominic Thornely
Simon Katich
Phil Jaques
Mark Waugh
Grant Lambert
Stuart Clark
Nathan Bracken
Matthew Nicholson
Stuart MacGill
Aaron O’Brien
England’s youngsters have done what they insisted they could do on departing for their tour of Australia – win.The Under-19s side triumphed in a thrilling finish to the first four-day youth Test at Adelaide after putting on an excellent display in the field.Set 284 to win, Australia fell just 14 runs short of their target. thanks mainly to a remarkable bowling effort from skipper Bilal Shafayat, who had already scored a century and a half century in his two innings. He added six for 54 in the final day to ensure that his batting efforts didn’t go to waste.England took just 44 overs to dismiss Australia, after Nick Thornicroft andTim Bresnan began the day with a priceless partnership of 72 for the last England wicket. Thornicroft was eventually stumped by wicketkeeper Adam Crosthwaite for 37.Australia’s batsmen began in their usual style, putting on 68 off 11 overs before Liam Davis became Shafayat’s first victim for 34. His opening partner Matthew Harrison followed two balls later, caught by Samit Patel off Bresnan for 32.When Greg Hunt went cheaply, caught by Liam Plunkett off Shafayat, Australia were in trouble at 76 for three.Keith Skewes and Theo Doropoulos took the score past the hundred mark before Skewes was lbw to Plunkett. Doropoulos fell lbw to Patel for 40, and despite an excellent 65 from Michael Bright, England were scenting victory.Bresnan accounted for Aaron Bird (30) before Shafayat had Crosthwaite caught by Ravinder Bopara. Darren Cullen was trapped lbw, but Luke Butterworth managed some last-ditch resistance with an unbeaten 24.When Shafayat had Matthew Gale caught behind by Andrew Hodd, England’s joy was unconfined. They are one up with two to play.
Hampshire Hawks have a couple of injury worries before their Norwich Union Division Two league match at West End on Sunday against Essex Eagles.Alan Mullally has a groin strain, which with his call up to the England one day squad next week, may mean him not risk aggrevating the problem. Zac Morris has a shoulder strain and will have a fitness test in the morning.With the injury problems, Hampshire keep their options open, and chose from 14.Derek Kenway again takes over the wicket-keeping duties, as Hampshire keep their policy of playing a younger side.The fourteen: Niel Johnson, Jason Laney, Derek Kenway (wicket-keeper), Giles White, Robin Smith (captain), Will Kendall, Lawrence Prittipaul, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Shaun Udal, Zac Morris, Alex Morris, Alan Mullally, James Hamblin, Chris Tremlett.
Everton’s financial situation has been stabilised by a cash injection of £100m from chairman Farhad Moshiri, meaning they will not be hit by FFP sanctions and that they are now “stable” again.
However, that doesn’t mean they are completely out of danger just yet, with the team dangling just above the relegating zone in the Premier League, while the new stadium costs could limit spending over the next few seasons – and sales will need to be made in order to facilitate a rebuild under new manager Frank Lampard.
This could see not just a number of the club’s fringe players depart, but also a number of their star men and fan-favourites, which could ensure that supporters will endure a nightmare summer.
What’s been said?
Speaking to Football FanCast, transfer insider Dean Jones has claimed that the club could sell star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin in order to raise much-needed funds.
Jones said: “I don’t think Everton want to sell Calvert-Lewin but I think they’re looking at their situation and realising like, what are our [the club’s] assets? Who would people be interested in?
“[Everton might be thinking] how could we change the direction of this club, and they might have to become open to offers for Calvert-Lewin and then deal with the fallout of it from there.”
According to The Daily Mail, West Ham are among the clubs wanting to take him off the Toffees’ hands, and a fee of around £60m will be enough to acquire his signature.
Lampard surely gutted
If Everton can attract such a hefty fee for the £37.8m-rated striker, it might not be such a bad scenario, as they would definitely be able to replace him with an equally clinical forward for less – with Luka Jovic, who scored an impressive 27 times for Bundesliga side Frankfurt in the 18/19 season, valued at just £16.2m.
Having scored just three goals and setting up one more in ten appearances for the Toffees, in what has been an injury-stricken season, he has at times been poor since his return, and his consistency has been something that has been highlighted in campaigns before.
Former manager Carlo Ancelotti also suggested criticism of the the Englishman was fair, while in charge last season, saying: “We tried to improve the situation, we have worked on this, but to be criticised is absolutely normal and sometimes it is also fair.
“After the game I said Dominic Calvert‑Lewin and Richarlison could do better in these situations and they know this, absolutely.”
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That said, if Everton does sell Calvert-Lewin, it will surely leave Lampard gutted. He is still a top striker in the Premier League, having bagged 21 times last term, and there is no guarantee that his replacement would do such a stellar job.
This is a tricky situation for the Merseyside club and on they’ll have to weigh up carefully.
In other news: Lampard can unearth Everton’s new DCL in “clinical” 16 y/o with 40 goals this season
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In a top-of-the-table clash in Islamabad, Khan Research Laboratories chased down a stiff target of 279 set by the Islamabad Leopards with three wickets to spare. Both innings followed a similar pattern: not much contribution from the openers, centuries for middle-order batsmen, big stands for the fourth-wicket, and vital runs from the lower order. What made the difference was that Bazid Khan, KRL’s centurion, stayed until the end to shepherd the side. KRL’s opening bowlers, both part of the national side, had contrasting days – Sohail Tanvir was smashed for 77 runs while Yasir Arafat had returns of 5 for 45.A solid batting display from Habib Bank Limited saw them defeat Peshawar Panthers by 46 runs in Peshawar and leapfrog the Leopards into second spot. After being put in, HBL piled on a massive 340; Sajid Shah (82) and Rafatullah Mohmand (93) set the platform before Fahad Masood and Younis Khan injected the acceleration. The Panthers’ chase was hurt by the fact that despite eight of their batsman reaching 20, only captain Akbar Badshah went on to make a half-century. Abdur Rehman followed up his brisk 25 with figures of 4 for 65.To round off a day of high-scoring encounters in the group, the Lahore Lions clinched their first win by hunting down the Quetta Bears’ 286 in Rawalpindi. The Lions looked in control of the match as a solid batting performance saw them reach 225 for 4, but then lost three wickets for three runs. Their No. 5 Usman Salahuddin, though, remained unbeaten and the target was reached with five balls to spare, assisted by crucial hands from Mohammad Shahzad and Mohammad Saeed.
The Multan Tigers are the only team without a win in the group after losing to the Sialkot Stallions by five wickets in Sialkot. After being reduced to 23 for 3, the Tigers’ recovery was started by Hammad Tariq’s measured 77 [which had only three fours] before Mohammad Hafeez and Zulfiqar Babar made some quick runs to boost the total to 259. Unlike the Tigers, the Stallions got off to an excellent start as Kamran Younis (103) and Naeemuddin (60) shared a 136-run stand. Despite offspinner Shoaib Masqood striking four blows, the Stallions overhauled the target with two overs to spare.The other game in Group B saw the Hyderabad Hawks make a hash of a similar target against Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited in Sheikhupura. Offspinner Mohammad Hafeez and part-timer Khurram Shehzad snared three apiece as the Hawks folded for 135, imploding from 117 for 4.
This was another group which saw the batsmen dominate. National Bank of Pakistanopened up an eight-point lead at the top as they eased to a 74-run victory over Karachi Zebras after racking up 373 in Faisalabad. Openers Kamran Akmal (133) and Nasir Jamshed (87) put on 175 before Naumanullah (72*) and Shahid Yousuf (62*) compounded the agony of the Zebras. For the daunting target to be overhauled, the top order had to make big runs. After a decent start, they lost three wickets for three runs and, despite No. 7 Daniyal Ahsan’s 96, ended up well short.A similar loss of three quick wickets, though, did not stop the Faisalabad Wolves from pulling off a 17-run win over the Lahore Eagles at the Gadaffi Stadium. The Wolves ran up 290, with the highest individual score being Ijaz Ahmed’s 67. The Eagles were well-placed for a victory when as they raced to 181 for 1 but slipped to 186 for 5 and with none of the lower-order contributing much, the Eagles slumped to their first loss.
At the National Stadium in Karachi, the Rawalpindi Rams completed an emphatic ten-wicket win over the Karachi Dolphins to go to the top of Group D. An unbroken 181-run stand between openers Umar Amin and Babar Naeem steered the Rams to their target after Yasir Ali’s four-wicket haul had restricted the Dolphins to 178.Put in by the Rams, the Dolphins were tottering at 17 for 4 before a 91-run stand between Akbar-ur-Rehman and Faraz Patel. Rehman was out for 56, but Patel went on to score 80, and was involved in a 49-run stand with No. 9 Azam Hussain to help the Dolphins to 178, a score that was chased down in just 28.1 overs.Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) also continued their unbeaten streak with a hard-fought win against the Abbottabad Rhinos in Sind. Batting first, the Rhinos managed to bat out only 47 of their alloted 50 overs, scoring 210. Opener Ghulam Mohammad top scored with 65, while the rest of the batsmen failed to cash on after making a start. Najaf Shah grabbed 3 for 30 in his ten overs.PIA’s reply was anchored by Yasir Hameed, who scored 128 off 148 balls. Hameed hit 14 fours and two sixes and remained not out till the end as PIA were made to work hard during the chase – victory was achieved with only eight balls to spare. Rahimbaz Khan and Riaz Kail took two wickets apiece, but Hameed steered his side to a five-wicket win.Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) were also made toil against Sui Southern Gas Corporation (SSGC) in Karachi. Zohaib Khan took 3 for 18 as the SSGC were bundled out for 202.Sohail Khan, the right-arm fast bowler, scalped 3 for 27 in his ten overs, but a patient 108-ball 69 from captain Wajahtullah Wasti helped ZTBL complete a win with 12 balls remaining.
| Team | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Pts | Net RR | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Khan RL | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +0.810 | 853/147.5 | 744/150.0 |
| Habib Bank | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +1.204 | 839/128.2 | 793/148.4 |
| Leopards | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.571 | 754/148.2 | 673/149.1 |
| P Panthers | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | +0.222 | 748/134.2 | 793/148.2 |
| Lahore Lions | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -1.204 | 608/149.1 | 792/150.0 |
| Quetta Bears | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.642 | 694/150.0 | 701/111.5 |
| Team | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Pts | Net RR | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S Stallions | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.372 | 689/135.4 | 684/145.2 |
| WAPDA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.315 | 460/95.2 | 451/100.0 |
| Sui Gas | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | +1.160 | 491/100.0 | 375/100.0 |
| Hyderabad Hawks | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -1.021 | 558/140.5 | 686/137.4 |
| Multan Tigers | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.621 | 476/100.0 | 478/88.5 |
| Team | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Pts | Net RR | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Bnk | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +1.048 | 958/149.3 | 804/150.0 |
| Pakistan Customs | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | +0.169 | 570/96.0 | 574/99.3 |
| Lahore Eagles | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | +0.045 | 565/96.3 | 581/100.0 |
| Wolves | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -0.580 | 524/100.0 | 582/100.0 |
| Karachi Zebras | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.845 | 888/150.0 | 964/142.3 |
| Team | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Pts | Net RR | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rawalpindi Rams | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +1.737 | 577/104.2 | 569/150.0 |
| PIA | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +0.672 | 750/145.0 | 675/150.0 |
| Zarai TBL | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.969 | 689/148.0 | 553/150.0 |
| Sui Sthn Gas | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -0.698 | 871/200.0 | 848/167.5 |
| Rhinos | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -1.090 | 525/170.5 | 732/175.5 |
| Karachi Dolphins | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.259 | 716/150.0 | 751/124.3 |
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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is interested in snapping up Dav Whatmore as the next coach for their national team and is involved in discussions with him.Nasim Ashraf, the PCB chairman, told reporters in Islamabad that the board had been in contact with Whatmore for the post but that nothing had been finalised as of now. “The PCB is in contact with Whatmore. Our negotiations are continuing and whenever something is finalised, it will promptly be made public.”Ashraf added that Whatmore had talked to Pakistan officials and expressed interest in the post. Whatmore, who is due to end his tenure with Bangladesh after the current series against India, also acknowledged recently that the PCB had been in touch, though he stressed that it was a very preliminary contact.Speaking to BBC, before the start of the India series, Whatmore said, “I have not been formally approached by the Pakistan Cricket Board. Somebody spoke to me on their behalf during the World Cup asking for my contact details but I have not heard from them since.”Pakistan have been looking for a new coach since the death of Bob Woolmer during the World Cup in March. They recently posted an ad on their site asking for applications for the coaching position to be sent in and are keen to have the new man in place by July 1st.Pakistan were in contact with John Wright, the former India coach, last year though that situation has not developed any further at this point. Among local candidates, Aaqib Javed, the former Test fast bowler, is seen as a serious contender.
National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) enhanced their chances considerably to win the final honours, as they defeated Faisalabad comprehensively by 10 wickets, inside two days in their Pentangular Cup match at Multan.NBP are now at the top of the points table as Faisalabad slipped a place below them. The latter now have 18 points from three appearances while NBP have the same number from two matches, with two still remaining.Yesterday, having resumed their overnight score of 192 for 7, NBP took their eventual score to 241 and gained a first innings lead of 144. Faisalabad crashed in their second outing too, as they were routed for 165 in 46 overs. The two NBP openers rattled up the 22 required for the win, in only 3.3 overs.Mohammad Sami excelled both as a bowler and batsman in the match, with figures of 5 for 31 and 3 for 28 and hammered a quick 33 not out off 43 balls with two fours and two sixes.Faisalabad’s Samiullah Niazi, the left-arm seamer, provided a late burst of wickets and ended the NBP innings with a haul of 4 for 67 in 24.3 overs.Faisalabad started their second innings disastrously, losing the in-form Mohammad Hafeez and Asif Hussain without scoring. Later, Misbah-ul-Haq too perished for a duck. The middle-order resisted for a while but the end was not too far away. Ijaz Ahmed Jnr top-scored with 45. NBP medium-pacer Imran Javed was the most effective bowler for NBP, taking four wickets for 34 runs in 11 overs.NBP’s fourth-round match, their third in the competition, is against Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) at the same venue in Multan, starting from Monday, April 17. Faisalabad only have one more match to play — against Karachi Harbour, starting at Lahore next Monday.Karachi Harbour virtually ended Sialkot’s chances of picking themselves up from the bottom of the table as took their overall lead to 258 they and still had six second innings wickets in hand, on the second day of their Pentangular Cup match at Lahore.Sialkot were dismissed for 227, with a 99-run deficit. By the close of play, Karachi made 159 for 4 in their second outing with Asim Kamal at the crease, unbeaten on 42. He shared a fourth-wicket stand of 86 with Afsar Nawaz. Afsar scored 65 off 115 balls with nine fours and lost his wicket in the last over of the day.Earlier, Sialkot resumed at their overnight score of 43 for 2, with the fourth-wicket pair of Ayub Dogar (77) Shahzad Malik (35) putting on 96. Although Haafiz Khalid Mahmood later hit a characteristic 47, off a mere 39 balls with six fours and a six, the last four wickets added only a further 68 runs. Mohammad Hasnain and off-spinner Atif Maqbool picked up three wickets each for Karachi.
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Craig McMillan will face an acid test in the forthcoming days as he struggles to keep his place in the New Zealand Test side. McMillan has had a lean trot in his last eight innings, which included the latest struggle against Australia in the first Test at Christchurch.While trying to analyse McMillan’s problems, Stephen Fleming, the New Zealand captain, suggested a method. “He’s in a situation where if he’s over aggressive it’s frowned upon, and if he’s too defensive it’s frowned upon,” Fleming told . “He’s trying to find a middle ground where it suits him and the team.”There’s a fine line between aggression and recklessness, and Craig’s working hard on the right options. He’s got to have a good defensive technique first, get in, then only he can be the judge of what’s risky and what’s not.”The second Test at Wellington, where the first day was abandoned due to rain, will be McMillan’s 55th and though he averages 38.70, just marginally less than Fleming’s 39.03, he has clearly been short on confidence in the last few months. Also, with James Marshall, Peter Fulton and Ross Taylor trying to force their way into the side, McMillan needed to get some big runs to retain his spot.However, McMillan didn’t think his career hinged on the next few games and added, “I’m 28 so I don’t think the next five years of my career is going to stand on the next month. I think I’ve still got a lot of cricket in me. I look back three knocks ago I scored 60 against them in Napier. For a lot of people that seems to be a long time ago. For Craig McMillan it’s three bats ago.”
Australia A 327 for 6 (North 115, Clarke 93) beat Zimbabweans 208 (Flower 67, Ervine 51) by 119 runs at Adelaide
Scorecard
Marcus North celebrates his century © Getty Images 2004 |
In an ominous premonition of what lies in store in the VB Series later this month, Zimbabwe were overwhelmed by 119 runs at Adelaide, as Marcus North’s century guided Australia A to an impregnable total of 327 for 6.To make matters worse for Zimbabwe, they lost the services of Stuart Carlisle, who sustained a hand injury while fielding and was unable to bat. With Craig Wishart already laid up with a knee injury, it was the last thing that an inexperienced squad needed.The toss was won by Michael Clarke, captaining Australia A for the day, although he is certain to feature in the senior squad, especially after lamping a whirlwind 93 from just 71 balls. His innings included 11 fours and a six, and put the icing on the cake after North, Brad Haddin and Shane Watson had carried Australia A to 177 for 2 by the 30th over.North’s innings hardly paled in comparison. He needed just 109 balls for his 115, and none of Zimbabwe’s bowlers escaped his wrath – none of them went for less than five an over.Mark Vermeulen and Vusi Sibanda launched an optimistic reply, but both fell in the space of two overs, whereupon Tatenda Taibu went for a duck. It was left to Grant Flower and Sean Ervine to patch the innings back together with a 122-run partnership for the fourth wicket, which ended with an untimely run-out. There was little resistance thereafter, especially with Carlisle on the sidelines, and Australia A wrapped up victory with six overs to spare.
As promised, I am going to review the one-day series that concluded in India with a thrilling win for England. As expected the speeches about character and spirit followed and most of the praise was well deserved. India is hard place to churn out results but New Zealand might be even trickier.The Indians are talented cricketers but appear to be one-dimensional. Once you become accustomed to their approach they appear to be easy to predict. The shape of the last series does not surprise me as I expected England to grow stronger as they worked out the Indians but, although the result was satisfactory in the end, I am still worried that we are not reacting quickly enough. As the games are all being billed and used as the warm up for the World Cup, our notorious slow starts in one-day series could be our Achilles heel. The format of the World Cup suggests that you need to `hit your straps’ early to get into the final stages. If we can do that, I can see us finishing the competition strongly as opposed to fading without a fight.This is why the New Zealand leg of this tour is so crucial. The Kiwis are canny and original and England will find them hard to break down. Here is an ideal situation where we can try to grab this series by the scruff of the neck from the very first ball and back our wits against theirs. Anything less than a series win will not be good enough and can effectively make or break our World Cup plans.I can sense disagreement as some people might think this is premature. There is a lot of cricket between now and the World Cup but my judgement is based on the fact that strategies should be well in place by the time we go to Australia with roles of players clearly defined so that they have the opportunity to master those roles. With the players in place and fairly assured, more detailed planning becomes easier as players are confident of responding to one-off strategies – if required.So are England’s hopes of winning the World Cup realistic? I say yes and I mean it. India showed we can finish and if we can prove that we can get it together from the start and be brave enough to react sharply then we can start practising our acceptance speeches. Not quite as straightforward as that I know but I hope everyone is dreaming of it like I am.So… that review of the Indian series I promised. Forgive me for drifting but I am sure you know what happened in India. Looking forward is far more exciting.