Broad and Root bury feeble Australia

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAlastair Cook had called for England to “etch their names in history” as they sought a victory in the fourth Investec Test that would regain the Ashes and ease the memory of their whitewash in Australia 20 months earlier. But even Cook, an England captain brimming with expectation, would not have anticipated the rout that came to pass as Stuart Broad carved through Australia’s batting at will in one of the most startling opening sessions in Ashes history.Australia, utterly bereft, were dismissed for 60 in only 18.3 overs, with cricket statisticians wading through damning numbers either achieved or narrowly avoided. Broad, carrying an onerous responsibility in the absence of James Anderson, returned his best Test figures of 8 for 15 in 9.3 new-ball overs amid scenes of general delirium. Only Jim Laker, twice in the same match, has bettered that for an England bowler in the Ashes.Then order was mightily restored. England came out, so did the sun, and the lead at their lead at the close was 214 with six wickets remaining: the Ashes surely as good as won after a single day. After Broad’s feeding frenzy came Joe Root’s serene imposition of reality – an unbeaten 124, sagacious where Australia had been so disorientated, his mind crisply attired for the task as he sparkled with a succession of drives and late cuts and a beaming sun taunted Australia for their inability to bat long enough to benefit from easing conditions.Broad loves Trent Bridge, his home ground, and he must have sensed it making eyes at him on an overcast morning carrying great significance. The occasion stirred him, his competitive zeal allied to faultless execution. Long before the first drinks session of the day, he was brandishing the ball, a rudely red one only 6.1 overs old, to the crowd to mark a five-wicket haul.Five wickets in record time: the curdled cream of Australian batting secured by the first delivery of his fourth over. Australia’s batsmen were awash with paranoia. He bowled a perfect, inviting length on a good old-fashioned English seamer, finding just enough movement and leaving a systematic close-catching cordon to do the rest.Stuart Broad saluted a turbo-charged five-wicket haul before the drinks break on the first morning•Getty Images

“Lack of batting technique leading to collapses,” was the considered opinion of Geoffrey Boycott, prominently placed on ESPNcricinfo as the Test began. Australia can’t say they weren’t warned. Within 35 minutes, they were 29 for 6 and the batsman walking off was Michael Clarke, who had tried to stare down his lack of form with jaw-jutting defiance and who had just had an almighty swipe at a wide one.Australia did not play and miss all that much, but they went hard at the ball, nicked often and when they did, England’s catching was exemplary, nine of the 10 wickets falling in the cordon.Broad’s first wicket, that of Chris Rogers, made him the fifth England bowler to reach 300 in Tests. When Clarke departed, Broad’s run of five wickets in 19 balls became the most prolific start to an innings in Test history.Australia’s inability to adapt to English conditions had never been more striking. An era where so much Test cricket is attritional on sedate pitches, and where T20 holds sway, has eaten into defensive techniques. From the first ball, as Broad scratched the crease, the brown earth revealed some residual dampness. But the movement was not excessive, not as extravagant as Edgbaston where England had won within three days.England, for all that, won a good toss to have first bowl on an overcast Nottingham morning, aware that the Trent Bridge groundsman, pilloried for a stultifying surface officially marked as “poor” 12 months earlier against India, would feel obliged to provide something a little spicier. The Test pitch had been dug up and its replacement thought it was housing a county match in April.Rogers has been one of the staunchest members of this Australia batting line-up but, as the series has progressed, Broad has found his measure, hounding the left-hander from around the wicket. When he found a little movement to expose a furtive push at the third ball of the morning, the tone was set.By the time the first over was completed, one of cricket’s prettiest scoreboards was looking uglier: 10 for 2. Steven Smith square drove Broad to the boundary boards – one of only seven boundaries in the innings – but then he edged to third slip. Broad had squared up left and right-hander in turn.England preferred Mark Wood to Steven Finn with the new ball, aware of his excellent Trent Bridge record, and his insistent line was enough to draw an inside edge from David Warner to a ball that came back. Clarke, demoted to No. 5 in an attempt at protection, must have been scurrying around the dressing room for bat and thigh pad, feeling no protection at all.Shaun Marsh, preferred to his brother Mitchell to give Australia six specialist batsmen, became the third duck in the top four, Root the latest sharp knife in the England slip box, standing at third. Adam Voges knows Trent Bridge from county cricket, but Broad knows Voges and knows he is a theory that has not come off. Resistance was beyond him as Ben Stokes flung himself rapidly to his right to hold a spectacular one-handed catch that will join Ashes folklore.Broad ran down the pitch holding his hands to his face like a blushing deb who had just received an entirely unexpected present. England’s wicketkeeper and four of the slips had all held catches in the first 4.1 overs.Clarke’s mind must have been swirling. A wideish delivery from Broad was tempting to a desperate man. Clarke was a desperate man. The ball flew to his rival captain, Cook, holding the catch above his head. It was a rash attempt to remedy matters with a single statement and it brought him only further misery. He might have fallen earlier, too, a statuesque flip-pull against Wood that fell short of Finn at deep square.And so it went on, a collapse that was impossible to arrest. Finn joined the fun, bringing one back to strike Peter Nevill’s off stump. Then three more to Broad. Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson – his 25-ball 13 the height of Australia’s resistance – giving two more slip catches to Root and the final one to Stokes as Nathan Lyon became the ninth batsman to fall in the close-catching cordon.Broad had begun the morning hoping for 300 Test wickets. He finished level with Fred Trueman’s 307. And as Fred would have said, pipe a puffing, it was hard to know what was going on out there.Consolidation for England did not come automatically. By tea, Starc had taken three wickets in return: Adam Lyth undone by late swing; Ian Bell falling into a big inswinger; and Cook, who apart from one flirtation with the slips had looked intent on batting long, so exposing Australia’s four-strong attack, unaccountably falling lbw to a floaty, full one. But Australia had opted for only four specialist bowlers to stiffen their batting (so much for that theory) and two of them, Starc and Johnson, are not exactly designed for long spells.Only a dicky back, not for the first time in this series, disturbed Root in an assertive fourth-wicket stand of 173 in 34 overs with Jonny Bairstow, his Yorkshire confrere, whose 74 was less precise but a punchy innings designed nevertheless to establish him in England’s middle order before he chipped Josh Hazlewood to square leg. Root saw out the day, but as adroitly as he batted, it was a day that belonged to Broad, a day when he looked a pugnacious and quarrelsome Ashes record in the eye and pronounced himself a winner.

Conditions to favour spin again

Mohammad Ashraful will be looking to end his losing streak as Bangladesh’s ODI captain © AFP
 

Bangladesh will once again employ three spinners as they head to Mirpur for the second ODI against South Africa. Conditions in Mirpur, the venue for both the second and third ODIs, are expected to be similar to those of the first match in Chittagong, which South Africa won comfortably by nine wickets.For the hosts, Mashrafe Mortaza makes a return to the playing XI and will spearhead the attack in place of Shahadat Hossain. Mortaza, the vice-captain, was overlooked for the first ODI, in which Bangladesh opted for three left-arm spinners in Abdur Razzak, Shakib Al Hasan, and Mosharraf Hossain.The other change for Bangladesh has Junaid Siddique making way for Nazimuddin, who will become the sixth ODI debutant in the series. “We rested Mortaza in Chittagong and hopefully he will be fresh and energized for tomorrow’s match. We need him to be in his best form with the ball. His big-hitting in the closing overs will also an added bonus,” Mohammad Ashraful, the Bangladesh captain, said. “Junaid we feel is a little low on confidence after not getting the runs in ODIs. He has featured in partnerships but has not made the scores he is capable of. He has been given a break.”Bangladesh’s persistence with spin means the pitch is again likely to be low and slow, also acknowledged by Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach. “We will have our work cut out once again for the second and third matches as the conditions will be virtually the same,” Arthur told the . “There’s nothing in the pitch that indicates that the quick bowlers will have any juice in it for them. They will need to put their backs into it and stick rigidly with their disciplines.”South Africa restricted Bangladesh to 178 in Chittagong on Sunday, and all their frontline bowlers were among the wickets. Andre Nel was the most impressive of the lot – with 3 for 24 off his ten overs. The visitors played two spinners in Johan Botha and Paul Harris, and Arthur indicated the two would feature in Wednesday’s match.”It certainly looks that way,” Arthur said. “But a final decision will be made after a practice session later today. We don’t know what the curator is going to be up to this morning as he was still working on the track late yesterday [Monday]. These issues change by the hour in this part of the world and until their job is complete you cannot cast anything in stone.”Graeme Smith and Herschelle Gibbs led the chase in Chittagong, but an inexperienced middle-order – with Jacques Kallis rested for the series – is a vulnerability Bangladesh could exploit if they can make early inroads.Wins in both matches will see South Africa jump to the top spot in the ICC rankings for ODI teams, and would be the ideal way to head to the tougher test that awaits them in India.Team:
Bangladesh: 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Nazimuddin, 3 Shahriar Nafees, 4 Mohammad Ashraful (capt), 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Raqibul Hasan, 7 Dhiman Ghosh (wk), 8 Mashrafe Mortaza, 9 Mosharraf Hossain, 10 Abdur Razzak, 11 Syed RaselSouth Africa (probable): 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Herschelle Gibbs, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 JP Duminy, 5 AB de Villiers (wk), 6 Alviro Peterson, 7 Albie Morkel, 8 Johan Botha, 9 Paul Harris, 10 Andre Nel, 11 Charl Langeveldt

Key hundred drives Kent reply

Andrew Flintoff was unbeaten on 15 in Lancashire’s match at The Rose Bowl © Getty Images

Division One

Robert Key struck a fine 169 for Kent who fought back on the second day against Durham at at Chester-le-Street. Key brought up his hundred from 177 balls, stroking 15 fours, and together with Matthew Walker put on 173 for the third wicket. But Liam Plunkett took 3 for 82 to destabilise Kent’s middle-order, although the visitors trail by just 46 – importantly, with Andrew Hall unbeaten on 37 going into the third day.Andrew Flintoff finally made it into the middle after the first day washout at The Rose Bowl but Lancashire were in deep trouble on 31 for 4 once Hampshire‘s new ball attack made the most of overcast conditions. James Bruce and Stuart Clark took two each as the top order struggled. Mark Chilton’s pull was perhaps not the wisest shot given the conditions then Mal Loye slashed to point. Clark won the battle of the Australia World Cup stars when Brad Hodge edged to first slip. A sign of the bowler-friendly environment was Stuart Law’s 75-minute 6 although Flintoff did manage two boundaries before the rain arrived once again with just 18 overs bowled.Surrey made the most of the limited play available at at The Oval removing Warwickshire’s last six wickets for 108. Matthew Nicholson led the way, starting with Alex Loudon’s wicket with the first ball of the day. He quickly followed this by ending Darren Maddy’s fine century (134), caught at extra cover, and later bowled Heath Streak for a useful 21. However, Surrey were stopped in their tracks by a rapid fifty from Dale Steyn who launched into the bowlers in his 46-ball 51. Chris Schofield eventually had Steyn caught at long-on, while Surrey only had time to face three overs before the rain closed in.Yorkshire continued to pile the pressure on Worcestershire at Headingley with Joe Sayers and Jacques Rudolph registering hundreds which powered Yorkshire to 521 for 7. Sayers, unbeaten on 86 overnight, moved to his second hundreds in consecutive matches at the ground before he fell to Dewald Nel, ending more than 20 hours at the crease on his home ground. Rudolph ensured Yorkshire built on their fine start with a 150-ball century adding 104 for the fifth wicket with Gerard Brophy. It was Rudolph’s second hundred in the Championship, following his Kolpak move from South Africa. Tim Bresnan and Darren Gough added useful runs and Nel could be highly satisfied with his 4 for 74 on Championship debut. Gough’s declaration left his side enough time to cement their advantage with Matthew Hoggard and Jason Gillespie taking advantage of the new ball.

Division Two

Just 34 overs were possible on the third day at Northampton, with the home side struggling to 130 for 3 in reply to Somerset’s vast 641 for 6. Andy Caddick took all three wickets to fall, removing Stephen Peters, Davey Jacobs and Riki Wessels, though David Sales remained unbeaten on 42.Derbyshire made short work of Leicestershire’s tail on the second day at Derby, before Steve Stubbings led their response with a solid fifty. Paul Nixon could only add a further 10 to his overnight 40 with Leicestershire’s final four wickets falling for 57. Derbyshire lost Phil Weston for just 5 and Chris Taylor for 4 but Stubbings and his captain, Simon Katich, led the fightback with an unbroken stand of 84 as the hosts ended the day on 111 for 2, trailing by 98.A quick-fire 92 from Paul Franks heaved Nottinghamshire to a once unlikely 336 against Middlesex on the second day at Trent Bridge, with the visitors stumbling to 60 for 3 in reply. Tim Murtagh was disciplined and economical, recording the excellent figures of 6 for 87, but Franks took the initiative away from Middlesex in his rollicking 117-ball innings. In reply, Middlesex lost Andrew Strauss for just 4, Billy Godleman for 6 and Owais Shah for a blistering 29. They trail by 276.

Mushtaq and Read in confrontation

Mushtaq Ahmed and Chris Read were involved in a confrontation off the field at Hove during the current Championship clash between Sussex and Nottinghamshire.The incident happened after Read was trapped lbw by Mushtaq for a duck, and he appeared to be angry at a string of appeals. Mushtaq had four lbws on his way to 6 for 72Read returned the pavilion but then reappeared on the boundary edge where Mushtaq was fielding and the two exchanged angry words. Chris Adams, the Sussex captain, left the field to speak to Read.At the close of play the umpires, Rob Bailey and Graham Burgess, met with the two players and their captains, following which Read issued a brief apology. “I wish to apologise for my involvement in the incident with Mushtaq Ahmed earlier today,” he said. “It was totally out of character and will not happen again.”The ECB could take action depending on the report from the umpires.Read, whose disappointment at getting out was increased by the fact that he was being watched by England selectors David Graveney and Geoff Miller, was out of order, but some eyewitnesses did endorse his view that Mushtaq’s appealing was excessive. “Although there were too many appeals that were fatuous,” observed the Daily Telegraph, “his bowling enlivened a slow day.”

MacGill closes on domestic record

Stuart MacGill is poised to gain some small consolation at being overlooked for the Test tour of India tomorrow by becoming Australia’s leading domestic one-day bowler.MacGill, the New South Wales legspinner, needs only two Queensland scalps in the season-opening ING Cup match at the Gabba to surpass the Western Australian quick Jo Angel’s 94 victims.The new Blues skipper Brad Haddin foreshadowed an intriguing battle and backed MacGill to grab the record on a good Gabba batting wicket. “He’s our leading one-day bowler and he’s tough work in the one-day game,” Haddin said. “He always enjoys bowling up here. The Gabba is one of his favourite places to bowl.”Leading the side in Simon Katich’s absence, Haddin has been listed to bat at No. 4 behind Phil Jaques, Greg Mail and Matthew Phelps. “They may not be big names but we’ve been in the situation for the last few years, with the Waughs, Slaters and Bevans around, where they haven’t had a game consistently,” Haddin said. “But now their chance has come and they are good players.”The Blues have shown strong pre-season form in scoring convincing practice wins over Victoria and Tasmania this week on the Sunshine Coast.Queensland have flagged using the powerful Andy Bichel as a pinch-hitting No. 3 and Aaron Nye, the middle-order batsman, will make his one-day debut.Queensland Jimmy Maher (c), Martin Love, Clinton Perren, Andrew Symonds, Aaron Nye, James Hopes, Chris Simpson, Wade Seccombe, Andy Bichel, Ashley Noffke, Shane Jurgensen, Craig Philipson (likely 12th man).New South Wales Brad Haddin (c), Phil Jaques, Greg Mail, Matthew Phelps, Dominic Thornely, Aaron O’Brien, Shawn Bradstreet, Matthew Nicholson, Stuart Clark, Nathan Bracken, Stuart MacGill, Don Nash (likely 12th man).

Wisden Almanack review – Canada

Canada’s development has again been compromised by financial shortfallscomplicated by debts left over from the ICC Trophy in 2001, the abject failureof local fundraising efforts and the difficulty in bringing sponsors on board.The loss of the Sahara Cup fixtures between India and Pakistan has disruptedour plans. Canada’s wonderful and historic victory over Bangladesh in the2003 World Cup was a remarkable accomplishment and the culmination ofwonderful performances in Sri Lanka, against West Indies A and in the RedStripe Bowl. But the World Cup manager, Karam Gopaulsingh, reported thatthe team was held back by “the lack of self-discipline, a professional attitude,commitment to excellence and dedication to the cause”. Gopaulsingh added: “We had the personnel: players, coach, physiotherapist who could haveimpressed the ICC to move us far forward on the road to one-day internationals,but the opportunity was lost at the `altar of self.'”

Andy Flower – Test career averages

Test (result) No. How out Runs Ct/St No. O M R W(* = not out; + = highest scorer in innings)1992/93, v INDIA IN ZIMBABWE1 Only Test (D) (7) b M Prabhakar 59 1/0(Harare SC) (6) not out 1* -1992/93, v NEW ZEALAND IN ZIMBABWE2 First Test (D) (7) c M J Haslam b M L Su’a 81 + -(Bulawayo AC) did not bat – 1/03 Second Test (L) (6) c D N Patel b D J Nash 14 4/0(Harare SC) (6) c +A C Parore b D N Patel 9 0/11992/93, v INDIA IN INDIA4 Only Test (L) (5) st V Yadav b Maninder Singh 115 + 1/1(Delhi) (5) not out 62*+ -1993/94, v PAKISTAN IN PAKISTAN5 First Test (L) (5) lbw b Ata-ur-Rehman 63 + 4/0(Karachi) (5) c Inzamam-ul-Haq b Mushtaq Ahmed 21 -6 Second Test (L) (5) c Wasim Akram b Waqar Younis 12 1/0(Rawalpindi) (5) c +Rashid Latif b Waqar Younis 0 2/07 Third Test (D) (5) not out 62*+ -(Lahore) did not bat – – (8) 0.1 0 0 01994/95, v SRI LANKA IN ZIMBABWE8 First Test (D) (5) c +P B Dassanayake b W P U J C Vaas 26 1(Harare SC) did not bat – -9 Second Test (D) (5) c M Muralitharan b HDPK Dharmasena 50 -(Queens SC) did not bat – 110 Third Test (D) (5) c +HP Tillakaratne b W P U J C Vaas 10 3(Harare SC) did not bat – -1994/95, v PAKISTAN IN ZIMBABWE11 First Test (W) (5) c Wasim Akram b Kabir Khan 156 1/0(Harare SC) did not bat – 2/012 Second Test (L) (5) c Ijaz Ahmed b Kabir Khan 14 2/0(Queens SC) (5) lbw b Wasim Akram 8 -13 Third Test (L) (5) c Aaqib Javed b Manzoor Elahi 37 + 1/0(Harare SC) (4) c Aamir Nazir b Manzoor Elahi 35 + 4/01995/96, v SOUTH AFRICA IN ZIMBABWE14 Only Test (L) (3) b B N Schultz 7 1/0(Harare SC) (5) c +D J Richardson b A A Donald 63 + 1/01995/96, v NEW ZEALAND IN NEW ZEALAND15 First Test (D) (5) c C M Spearman b R J Kennedy 6 3/0(Hamilton) (5) not out 58* 1/016 Second Test (D) (5) lbw b G I Allott 35 3/0(Auckland) (4) not out 45* 1/01996/97, v SRI LANKA IN SRI LANKA17 First Test (L) (4) c A Ranatunga b H D P K Dharmasena 2 1/0(Colombo Pre) (5) c R S Mahanama b M Muralitharan 0 -18 Second Test (L) (5) run out (?) 3 2/1(Colombo SSC) (5) c A P Gurusinha b M Muralitharan 31 -1996/97, v PAKISTAN IN PAKISTAN19 First Test (D) (5) lbw b Shahid Nazir 11 1/1(Sheikhapura) (5) b Shahid Nazir 18 -20 Second Test (L) (6) c Mohammad Hussain b Shahid Nazir 61 + 4/0(Faisalabad) (6) c Saeed Anwar b Waqar Younis 23 -1996/97, v ENGLAND IN ZIMBABWE21 First Test (D) (5) c +A J Stewart b P C R Tufnell 112 + 1/0(Queens SC) (5) c J P Crawley b P C R Tufnell 14 -22 Second Test (D) (5) lbw b D Gough 6 2/0(Harare SC) did not bat – -1997/98, v NEW ZEALAND IN ZIMBABWE23 First Test (D) (3) c C M Spearman b C L Cairns 8 2/0(Harare SC) (3) c +A C Parore b S B O’Connor 20 2/024 Second Test (D) (3) c C Z Harris b D L Vettori 39 0/0(Queens SC) (3) c and b C Z Harris 7 -1997/98, v SRI LANKA IN SRI LANKA25 First Test (L) (4) lbw b W P U J C Vaas 8 0/0(Kandy) (5) c R S Mahanama b M Muralitharan 67 -26 Second Test (L) (5) c and b S D Anurasiri 8 3/0(Colombo SSC) (6) not out 105*+ 2/01997/98, v NEW ZEALAND IN NEW ZEALAND27 First Test (L) (5) c +A C Parore b S B O’Connor 2 3/0(Wellington) (6) c S B O’Connor b D L Vettori 6 -28 Second Test (L) (5) c C D McMillan b D J Nash 65 + 2/0(Auckland) (5) c +A C Parore b C L Cairns 83 + -1997/98, v PAKISTAN IN ZIMBABWE29 First Test (D) (5) c +Rashid Latif b Shoaib Akhtar 44 2/0(Queens SC) (6) not out 100* 2/030 Second Test (L) (5) lbw b Waqar Younis 1 2/0(Harare SC) (5) c Inzamam-ul-Haq b Mushtaq Ahmed 49 1/11998/99, v INDIA IN ZIMBABWE31 Only Test (W) (5) c R R Singh b J Srinath 30 2/0(Harare SC) (6) not out 41* 2/01998/99, v PAKISTAN IN PAKISTAN32 First Test (W) (5) b Waqar Younis 0 2/0(Peshawar) (5) not out 17* 2/033 Second Test (D) (5) not out 60*+ 1/0(Lahore) did not bat – -1999/2000, v AUSTRALIA IN ZIMBABWE34 Only Test (L) (5) c M E Waugh b G D McGrath 28 3/0(Harare SC) (6) c +I A Healy b G D McGrath 0 -1999/2000, v SOUTH AFRICA IN SOUTH AFRICA35 Only Test (L) (5) lbw b S M Pollock 13 1/0(Bloemfontein) (5) lbw b J H Kallis 39 -1999/2000, v SOUTH AFRICA IN ZIMBABWE36 Only Test (L) (5) c +M V Boucher b S M Pollock 8 2/0(Harare SC) (5) b A A Donald 14 -1999/2000, v SRI LANKA IN ZIMBABWE37 First Test (D) (5) cM Muralitharan b GP Wickremasinghe 86 + 4/0(Queens SC) (5) not out 15* -38 Second Test (L) (5) lbw b W P U J C Vaas 74 + 3/0(Harare SC) (6) c M S Atapattu b S T Jayasuriya 129 + 1/039 Third Test (D) (5) c R P Arnold b W P U J C Vaas 14 4/0(Harare SC) (5) not out 70*+ 1/01999/2000, v WEST INDIES IN WEST INDIES40 First Test (L) (5) not out 113*+ 2/0(Port-of-Spain) (5) c +R D Jacobs b F A Rose 5 2/041 Second Test (L) (5) b F A Rose 66 4/0(Kingston) (5) b R D King 10 -2000, v ENGLAND IN ENGLAND42 First Test (L) (5) c M A Atherton b E S H Giddins 24 + 1/0(Lord’s) (6) lbw b D Gough 2 -43 Second Test (D) (5) b D Gough 42 0/0(Nottingham) did not bat – 5/02000/01, v NEW ZEALAND IN ZIMBABWE44 First Test (L) (5) c N J Astle b C L Cairns 29 2/0(Queens SC) (5) lbw b N J Astle 22 0/045 Second Test (L) (5) lbw b C D McMillan 48 2/1(Harare SC) (5) c M S Sinclair b S B O’Connor 65 0/02000/01, v INDIA IN INDIA46 First Test (L) (5) not out 183*+ 1/0(Delhi) (5) lbw b A B Agarkar 70 + 0/047 Second Test (D) (5) c +V Dahiya b A B Agarkar 55 1/0(Nagpur) (5) not out 232*+ -2000/01, v NEW ZEALAND IN NEW ZEALAND48 Only Test (D) (5) c +A C Parore b C S Martin 79 1/0(Wellington) did not bat – 2/02000/01, v BANGLADESH IN ZIMBABWE49 First Test (W) (5) c Naimur Rahman b Monjurul Islam 73 2/0(Queens SC) did not bat – -50 Second Test (W) (5) run out (Javed Omer) 23 1/1(Harare SC) did not bat – 3/02000/01, v INDIA IN ZIMBABWE51 First Test (L) (5) c S S Das b A D Nehra 51 3/0(Queens SC) (6) c S Ramesh b A D Nehra 83 -52 Second Test (W) (5) c S S Das b Harbhajan Singh 45 1/0(Harare SC) (8) not out 8* 4/02001/02, v SOUTH AFRICA IN ZIMBABWE53 First Test (L) (5) lbw b S M Pollock 142 + 1/0(Harare SC) (5) not out 199*+ -54 Second Test (D) (5) c N D McKenzie b C W Henderson 67 1/1(Queens SC) (5) not out 14*2001/02, v BANGLADESH IN BANGLADESH55 First Test (D) (5) b Enamul Hoque 28 2/0(Dhaka) did not bat – -56 Second Test (W) (5) not out 114* 1/0(Chittagong) did not bat – 0/12001/02, v SRI LANKA IN SRI LANKA57 First Test (L) (5) b T T Samaraweera 42 3/0(Colombo SSC) (6) lbw b D N T Zoysa 10 -58 Second Test (L) (5) c +K Sangakkara b M Muralitharan 8 1/0(Kandy) (5) lbw b T C B Fernando 11 -59 Third Test (L) (5) c H P Tillakaratne b M Muralitharan 6 2/0(Galle) (5) c DPMD Jayawardene b S T Jayasuriya 3 -2001/02, v INDIA IN INDIA60 First Test (L) (4) b Z Khan 3 1(Nagpur) (4) c R S Dravid b A R Kumble 861 Second Test (L) (4) c S S Das b Harbhajan Singh 92 -(Delhi) (4) c S S Das b Harbhajan Singh 0 12002/03, v PAKISTAN IN PAKISTAN62 First Test (L) (5) c +Kamran Akmal b Mohammad Sami 29 2(Harare SC) (5) c and b Shoaib Akhtar 67 -63 Second Test (L) (5) c Inzamam-ul-Haq b Shoaib Akhtar 30 – (6) 0.2 0 4 0(Queens SC) (5) lbw b Waqar Younis 13 -RESULTS OF TEST MATCHES PLAYED INPlayed 63 Won 7 Lost 34 Drawn 22(65 possible since debut)MOST CONSECUTIVE TESTS PLAYED52, from 1992/93 to 2000/01MOST CONSECUTIVE TESTS MISSED2 (injury) in 2000/01TEST CAREER RECORDNote: for statistical purposes, the English season of 2000 is included here under 1999/2000.RECORD IN EACH SERIESM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wI1992/93 v I (H) 1 2 1 60 59 60.00 – 1 1/0v NZ (H) 2 3 0 104 81 34.66 – 1 5/1v I (A) 1 2 1 177 115 177.00 1 1 1/11993/94 v P (A) 3 5 1 158 63 39.50 – 2 7/0 0.1 0 0 0 –1994/95 v SL (H) 3 3 0 86 50 28.66 – 1 5v P (H) 3 5 0 250 156 50.00 1 – 10/01995/96 v SA (H) 1 2 0 70 63 35.00 – 1 2/0v NZ (A) 2 4 2 144 58* 72.00 – 1 8/01996/97 v SL (A) 2 4 0 36 31 9.00 – – 3/1v P (A) 2 4 0 113 61 28.25 – 1 5/1v E (H) 2 3 0 132 112 44.00 1 – 3/01997/98 v NZ (H) 2 4 0 74 39 18.50 – – 4/0v SL (A) 2 4 1 188 105* 62.66 1 1 5/0v NZ (A) 2 4 0 156 83 39.00 – 2 5/0v P (H) 2 4 1 194 100* 64.66 1 – 7/11998/99 v I (H) 1 2 1 71 41* 71.00 – – 4/0v P (A) 2 3 2 77 60* 77.00 – 1 5/01999/00 v A (H) 1 2 0 28 28 14.00 – – 3/0v SA (A) 1 2 0 52 39 26.00 – – 1/0v SA (H) 1 2 0 22 14 11.00 – – 2/0v SL (H) 3 6 2 388 129 97.00 1 3 13/0v WI (A) 2 4 1 194 113* 64.66 1 1 8/02000 v E (A) 2 3 0 68 42 22.66 – – 6/02000/01 v NZ (H) 2 4 0 164 65 41.00 – 1 4/1v I (A) 2 4 2 540 232* 270.00 2 2 2/0v NZ (A) 1 1 0 79 79 79.00 – 1 3/0v B (H) 2 2 0 96 73 48.00 – 1 6/1v I (H) 2 4 1 187 83 62.33 – 2 8/02001/02 v SA (H) 2 4 2 422 199* 211.00 2 1 2/1v B (A) 2 2 1 142 114* 142.00 1 – 3/1v SL (A) 3 6 0 80 42 13.33 – – 6/0v I (A) 2 4 0 103 92 25.75 – 1 22002/03 v P (H) 2 4 0 139 67 34.75 – 1 2 0.2 0 4 0 –63 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –SEASON BY SEASON IN TEST CRICKETM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wI 10wM1992/93 4 7 2 341 115 68.20 1 3 7/21993/94 3 5 1 158 63 39.50 – 2 7/0 0.1 0 0 0 –1994/95 6 8 0 336 156 44.00 1 1 15/01995/96 3 6 2 214 63 53.50 – 2 10/01996/97 6 11 0 281 112 25.54 1 1 11/21997/98 8 16 2 612 105* 43.71 2 3 21/11998/99 3 5 3 148 60* 74.00 – 1 9/01999/2000 10 19 3 752 129 47.00 2 4 33/02000/01 9 15 3 1066 232* 88.83 2 7 23/22001/02 9 16 3 747 199* 57.46 3 2 13/22002/03+ 2 4 0 139 67 34.75 – 1 2 0.2 0 4 0 –63 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –(+ still in progress)200 RUNS IN A SERIESM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 502000/01 v India (Away) 2 4 2 540 232* 270.00 2 22001/02 v South Africa (Home) 2 4 2 422 199* 211.00 2 11999/00 v Sri Lanka (Home) 3 6 2 388 129 97.00 1 31994/95 v Pakistan (Home) 3 5 0 250 156 50.00 1 -RECORD AGAINST EACH COUNTRYM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wIv England 4 6 0 200 112 33.33 1 – 9/0v Australia 1 2 0 28 28 14.00 – – 3/0v South Africa 5 10 2 566 199* 70.75 2 2 7/1v West Indies 2 4 1 194 113* 64.66 1 1 8/0v New Zealand 11 20 2 721 83 40.05 – 6 29/2v India 9 18 6 1138 232* 94.83 3 7 18/1v Pakistan 14 25 4 931 156 44.33 2 5 36/2 0.3 0 4 0 –v Sri Lanka 13 23 3 778 129 38.90 2 5 32/1v Bangladesh 4 4 1 238 114* 79.33 1 1 9/263 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –RECORD IN EACH COUNTRYM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wIin Zimbabwe 32 56 8 2487 156 51.81 6 13 81/5 0.2 0 4 0 –in England 2 3 0 68 42 22.66 – – 6/0in Australia -in South Africa 1 2 0 52 39 26.00 – – 1/0in West Indies 2 4 1 194 113* 64.66 1 1 8/0in New Zealand 5 9 2 379 83 54.14 – 4 16/0in India 5 10 3 820 232* 117.42 3 4 5/1in Pakistan 7 12 3 348 63 38.66 – 4 17/1 0.1 0 0 0 –in Sri Lanka 7 14 1 304 105* 23.38 1 1 14/1in Bangladesh 2 2 1 142 114* 142.00 1 – 3/163 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –RECORD PER RESULTM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wI 10wMWins 7 10 4 507 156 84.50 2 1 22/2Defeats 34 68 5 2713 199* 43.06 7 15 79/5 0.2 0 4 0 –Draws 22 34 10 1574 232* 65.58 3 11 50/2 0.1 0 0 0 –63 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –RECORD IN EACH INNINGSI NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wI 10wM1st innings 63 5 2822 183* 48.65 7 17 107/6 0.2 0 4 0 –2nd innings 49 14 1972 232* 56.34 5 10 44/3 0.1 0 0 0 –112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –RECORD IN EACH POSITION IN THE BATTING ORDERI NO Runs HS Av. 100 50No 3 5 0 81 39 16.20 – -No 4 8 1 193 92 27.57 – 1No 5 82 13 3788 232* 54.89 9 22No 6 14 4 584 129 58.40 3 2No 7 2 0 140 81 70.00 – 2No 8 1 1 8 8* — – -112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27RECORD AS CAPTAIN/NON-CAPTAINM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wI 10wMCaptain 20 34 6 1380 156 49.28 3 9 61/0 0.1 0 0 0 –Non-capt 43 78 13 3414 232* 52.52 9 18 90/9 0.2 0 4 0 –63 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –RECORD AS WICKET-KEEPER/NON-KEEPERM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wI 10wMWicket-keeper 55 100 18 4404 232* 53.70 12 23 142/9Non-keeper 8 12 1 390 92 35.45 – 4 9 0.1 0 0 0 –63 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –RECORD ON DIFFERENT GROUNDSM I NO Runs HS Av. 100 50 Ct O M R W Av. BB 5wIIn Zimbabwe:Harare SC 20 35 5 1535 199* 51.16 4 6 60/4Bulawayo AC 1 1 0 81 81 81.00 – 1 1/0Queens SC 11 20 3 871 112 51.23 2 6 20/132 56 8 2487 156 51.81 6 13 81/5Outside Zimbabwe 31 56 11 2307 232* 51.26 6 14 70/4In England:Lord’s 1 2 0 26 24 13.00 – – 1/0Nottingham 1 1 0 42 42 42.00 – – 5/0In South Africa:Bloemfontein 1 2 0 52 39 26.00 – – 1/0In West Indies:Kingston 1 2 0 76 66 38.00 – 1 4/0Port-of-Spain 1 2 1 118 113* 118.00 1 – 4/0In New Zealand:Auckland 2 4 1 228 83 76.00 – 2 6/0Hamilton 1 2 1 64 58* 64.00 – 1 4/0Wellington 2 3 0 87 79 29.00 – 1 6/0In India:Delhi 3 6 2 522 183* 130.50 2 3 3/1Nagpur 2 4 1 298 232* 99.33 1 1 2/0In Pakistan:Faisalabad 1 2 0 84 61 42.00 – 1 4/0Karachi (Defence) 1 2 0 84 63 42.00 – 1 4/0Lahore 2 2 2 122 62* — – 2 1/0Peshawar 1 2 1 17 17* 17.00 – – 4/0Rawalpindi 1 2 0 12 12 6.00 – – 3/0Sheikhapura 1 2 0 29 18 14.50 – – 1/1In Sri Lanka:Colombo (Premadasa) 1 2 0 2 2 1.00 – – 1/0Colombo (SSC) 3 6 1 199 105* 39.80 1 – 10/1Galle 1 2 0 9 6 4.50 – – 2/0Kandy 2 4 0 94 67 23.50 – 1 1/0In Bangladesh:Chittagong 1 1 1 114 114* — 1 – 1/1Dhaka 1 1 0 28 28 28.00 – – 2/063 112 19 4794 232* 51.54 12 27 151/9 0.3 0 4 0 –The following bowlers have captured Andy Flower’s wicket (numbers in the brackets indicatenumber of innings during which they faced each other):6 – Waqar Younis (P-20)5 – M Muralitharan (SL-22), W P U J C Vaas (SL-16)3 – C L Cairns (NZ-16), D Gough (E-6), Harbhajan Singh (I-10), S B O’Connor (NZ-10),S M Pollock (SA-8), Shahid Nazir (P-4), Shoaib Akhtar (P-7)2 – A B Agarkar (I-6), H D P K Dharmasena (SL-4), A A Donald (SA-6),S T Jayasuriya (SL-18), Kabir Khan (P-3), G D McGrath (A-2), Manzoor Elahi (P-4),Mushtaq Ahmed (P-7), D J Nash (NZ-8), A D Nehra (I-4), F A Rose (WI-4),P C R Tufnell (E-3), D L Vettori (NZ-9)1 – G I Allott (NZ-4), S D Anurasiri (SL-2), N J Astle (NZ-11), Ata-ur-Rehman (P-5),Enamul Hoque (B-3), T C B Fernando (SL-6), C W Henderson (SA),E S H Giddins (E-3), C Z Harris (NZ-4), J H Kallis (SA-2), R J Kennedy (NZ-4),Z Khan (I-8), R D King (WI-4), A R Kumble (I-10), C D McMillan (NZ-5),Maninder Singh (I-2), Mohammad Sami (P-4), Monjurul Islam (B-2),M Prabhakar (I-4), D N Patel (NZ-7), T T Samaraweera (SL-5), B N Schultz (SA-2),J Srinath (I-6), M L Su’a (NZ-3), G P Wickremasinghe (SL-8), Wasim Akram (P-17),D N T Zoysa (SL-6)Particularly impressive is Andy’s record against Wasim Akram, who dismissed him only once inthe 17 innings in which they have faced each other. In addition Saqlain Mushtaq has yet todismiss him in 11 innings.Details of dismissals:bowled 11 11.83lbw 18 19.35caught 41 44.09caught by wicketkeeper 17 18.28caught and bowled 3 3.23stumped 1 1.07run out 2 2.15TOTAL 93 100.00%BREAKDOWN OF INNINGSScore Out Not out0 5 11-9 22 110-19 14 320-29 11 -30-39 8 -40-49 6 250-59 4 160-69 9 370-79 4 180-89 4 -90-99 1 -100-109 – 2110-119 2 2120-129 1 -130-139 – -140-149 1 -150-199 1 2200-250 – 1DOUBLE-CENTURY232* off 444 balls (200 – 392 balls) 30×4 2×6 v India (Nagpur) 2000/01CENTURIES1 115 off 236 balls (100 – ? balls) 15×4 v India (Delhi) 1992/932 156 off 245 balls (100 – 157 balls) 18×4 1×6 v Pakistan (Harare SC) 1994/953 112 off 330 balls (100 – 312 balls) 12×4 v England (Queens SC) 1996/974 105* off 238 balls (100 – 233 balls) 10×4 1×6 v Sri Lanka (Colombo SSC) 1997/985 100* off 217 balls (100 – 217 balls) 6×4 v Pakistan (Queens SC) 1997/986 129 off 304 balls (100 – 220 balls) 8×4 v Sri Lanka (Harare SC) 1999/007 113* off 290 balls (100 – 262 balls) 12×4 v West Indies (Pt-of-Spain) 1999/008 183* off 351 balls (100 – 201 balls) 24×4 2×6 v India (Delhi) 2000/019 232* off 444 balls (100 – 196 balls) 30×4 2×6 v India (Nagpur) 2000/0110 142 off 200 balls (100 – 149 balls) 21×4 1×6 (v South Africa (Harare SC) 2001/0211 199* off 470 balls (100 – 196 balls) 24×4 1×6 (12 114* off 150 balls (100 – ??? balls) 13×4 v Bangladesh (Chittagong) 2001/02HIGHEST SCORE AGAINST EACH COUNTRYv England 112 Queens Sports Club 1996/97v Australia 28 Harare Sports Club 1999/2000v South Africa 199* Harare Sports Club 2000/01v West Indies 113* Port-of-Spain 1999/2000v New Zealand 83 Auckland 1997/98v India 232* Nagpur 2000/01v Pakistan 156 Harare Sports Club 1994/95v Sri Lanka 129 Harare Sports Club 1999/2000v Bangladesh 114* Chittagong 2001/02TWO CENTURIES IN THE SAME MATCH142 and 199* v South Africa Harare Sports Club 2000/01CENTURY AND FIFTY IN THE SAME MATCH115 and 62* v India Delhi 1992/9374 and 129 v Sri Lanka Harare Sports Club 1999/2000183* and 70 v India Delhi 2000/0155 and 232* v India Nagpur 2000/01TWO FIFTIES IN THE SAME MATCH65 and 83 v New Zealand Auckland 1997/9851 and 83 v India Queens Sports Club 2000/01200 RUNS IN A MATCH341 (142 and 199*) v South Africa, at Harare Sports Club 2001/02287 (55 and 232*) v India, at Nagpur 2000/01253 (183* and 70) v India, at Delhi 2000/01203 (74 and 129) v Sri Lanka, at Harare Sports Club 1999/20007 SUCCESSIVE FIFTIES2000/01 65 v New Zealand Harare Sports Club183* and 70 v India Delhi55 and 232* v India Nagpur79 v New Zealand Wellington73 v Bangladesh Queens Sports ClubThis sequence of 7 successive fifties equals the record of E D Weekes (West Indies) in 1947.48 and1948/49. He scored 2 more fifties in the next three innings, making it 9 fifties in 10 inningsaltogether.TOP SCORER IN BOTH INNINGS OF A MATCH142 (286) and 199* (391) v South Africa Harare Sports Club 2000/01(In this match he scored more than half his team’s total runs)115 (322) and 62* (201) v India Delhi 1992/9337 (243) and 35 (139) v Pakistan Harare Sports Club 1994/9565 (170) and 83 (277) v New Zealand Auckland 1997/9874 (174) and 129 (292) v Sri Lanka Harare Sports Club 1999/2000183* (422/9d) and 70 (225) v India Delhi 2000/0151 (173) and 83 (328) v India Queens Sports Club 2000/01Andy Flower has been top scorer in 29 innings of a possible 112. The other instances are:81 (out of 219) v New Zealand Bulawayo Athletic Club 1992/9363 (out of 289) v Pakistan Karachi 1993/9462* (out of 230) v Pakistan Lahore 1993/9463 (out of 283) v South Africa Harare Sports Club 1995/9661 (out of 133) v Pakistan Faisalabad 1996/97112 (out of 376) v England Queens Sports Club 1996/97105* (out of 299) v Sri Lanka Colombo (SSC) 1997/9860* (out of 183) v Pakistan Lahore 1998/9986 (out of 286) v Sri Lanka Queens Sports Club 1999/200070* (out of 197/7d) v Sri Lanka Harare Sports Club 1999/2000113* (out of 236) v West Indies Port-of-Spain 1999/200024 (out of 83) v England Lord’s 2000232* (out of 503/6d) v India Nagpur 2000/01114 (equal – out of 542/7d) v Bangladesh Chittagong 2001/0242 (out of 184) v Sri Lanka Colombo (SSC) 2001/02CENTURY PARTNERSHIPS277* for 5th M W Goodwin (166*) and A Flower (100*) v Pakistan (Queens SC) 1997/98(This is the record stand for any wicket for Zimbabwe in Test cricket.)269 for 4th G W Flower (201*) and A Flower (156) v Pakistan (Harare SC) 1994/95(This is a record partnership for brothers in Test cricket.)209 for 4th A D R Campbell (102) and A Flower (232*) v India (Nagpur) 2000/01192 for 4th G W Flower (96) and A Flower (115) v India (Delhi) 1992/93186 for 4th H Masakadza (85) and A Flower (199*) v South Africa (Harare SC) 2001/02176 for 4th M W Goodwin (113) and A Flower (66) v West Indies (Port-of-Spain) 1999/00165 for 6th D L Houghton (121) and A Flower (59) v India (Harare Sports Club) 1992/93149 for 4th G J Whittall (119) and A Flower (73) v Bangladesh (Queens SC) 2000/01131 for 5th A Flower (65) and G J Whittall (188*) v New Zealand (Harare SC) 2000/01130 for 4th G J Rennie (93) and A Flower (79) v New Zealand (Wellington) 2000/01125 for 7th A Flower (129) and G J Whittall (53*) v Sri Lanka (Harare SC) 1999/00122 for 4th M W Goodwin (148*) and A Flower (42) v England (Nottingham) 2000121 for 4th D L Houghton (266) and A Flower (50) v Sri Lanka (Queens SC) 1994/95117 for 4th T R Gripper (41) and A Flower (113*) v West Indies (Port-of-Spain) 1999/00116 for 4th A Flower (92) and D D Ebrahim (94) v India (Delhi) 2001/02113 for 6th A Flower (232*) and D P Viljoen (38) v India (Nagpur) 2000/01101 for 5th M W Goodwin (48) and A Flower (129) v Sri Lanka (Harare SC) 1999/00101 for 6th A Flower (83) and G W Flower (71) v India (Queens SC) 2000/01He also shares in the record for the following partnership:97* for 10th A Flower (183*) and H K Olonga (11*) v India (Delhi) 2000/01WICKET-KEEPING DISMISSALS10 DISMISSALS IN A SERIES13 (all ct) v Sri Lanka (Home – 3 Tests) 1999/200010 (all ct) v Pakistan (Home – 3 Tests) 1994/95WICKET-KEEPING CATCHESAndy Flower has dismissed 142 batsmen to catches as a wicket-keeper in Test cricket. His victimsare as follows:5 – Saeed Anwar (P), A C Parore (NZ)4 – N J Astle (NZ), M S Atapattu (SL), R S Dravid (I), M J Horne (NZ), S T Jayasuriya (SL),R S Kaluwitharana (SL)3 – Inzamam-ul-Haq (P), C M Spearman (NZ), H P Tillakaratne (SL), G P Wickremasinghe (SL)2 – Aamer Sohail (P), A B Agarkar (I), Ali Naqvi (P), R P Arnold (SL), Azhar Mahmood (P),A R Caddick (E), S Chanderpaul (WI), S S Dighe (I), S P Fleming (NZ), S C Ganguly (I),Habibul Bashar (B), Ijaz Ahmed (P), G Kirsten (SA), Manzoor Elahi (P), C D McMillan (NZ),Rashid Latif (P), F A Rose (WI), Saleem Malik (P), Shakeel Ahmed (P), Shoaib Mohammad (P)1 – Aaqib Javed (P), C E L Ambrose (WI), Aminul Islam (B), R P Arnold (SL), Ashfaq Ahmed (P),Asif Mujtaba (P), A M Bacher (SA), Basit Ali (P), C L Cairns (NZ), J P Crawley (E),W J Cronje (SA), M D Crowe (NZ), D J Cullinan (SA), S S Das (I), S I de Saram (SL),T M Dilshan (SL), Enamul Hoque (B), A Flintoff (E), C H Gayle (WI), L K Germon (NZ),H H Gibbs (SA), M J Greatbatch (NZ), M J Haslam (NZ), G A Hick (E), N Hussain (E),I A Healy (A), R D Jacobs (WI), Javed Omer (B), D P M D Jayawardene (SL),Khaled Mashud (B), R D King (WI), N V Knight (E), A Kumble (I), R T Latham (NZ),R S Mahanama (SL), Mashrafe Mortaza (B), Moin Khan (P), Monjurul Islam (B),M Muralitharan (SL), Mushfiqur Rahman (B), Mushtaq Ahmed (P), M Prabhakar (I),M R Ramprakash (E), J N Rhodes (SA), K R Rutherford (NZ), T T Samaraweera (SL),Saqlain Mushtaq (P), N S Sidhu (I), M S Sinclair (NZ), M J Slater (A), J Srinath (I),A J Stewart (E), S R Tendulkar (I), R G Twose (NZ), S K Warne (A), Yousuf Youhana (P)Andy Flower’s catches have been made off the following bowlers:38 – H H Streak17 – B C Strang16 – H K Olonga9 – M Mbangwa, P A Strang, G J Whittall6 – D H Brain5 – A M Blignaut, E A Brandes, N C Johnson3 – A G Huckle2 – G B Brent, T J Friend, B T Watambwa1 – M G Burmester, G J Crocker, T R Gripper, D T Hondo, M P Jarvis, A C I Lock,D A Marillier, E Z Matambanadzo, B A Murphy, M L Nkala, S G Peall, R W Price,J A Rennie, A J TraicosSTUMPINGSAndy Flower’s nine stumpings in Test cricket have been at the expense of:1 – C L Cairns (NZ), Habibul Bashar (B), Inzamam-ul-Haq (P), A H Jones (NZ), Kapil Dev (I),G Kirsten (SA), Mashrafe Mortaza (B), Saeed Anwar (P), W P U J C Vaas (SL)His stumpings have been made off the following bowlers:3 – P A Strang2 – R W Price, A J Traicos1 – A G Huckle, D A MarillierCATCHES IN THE FIELDAndy Flower has dismissed the following 9 batsmen with catches in the field:2 – A P Gurusinha (SL)1 – H D P K Dharmasena (SL), R S Dravid (I), R S Mahanama (SL), K R Pushpakumara (SL),Saqlain Mushtaq (P), Taufeeq Umar (P), S R Tendulkar (I)The catches have been taken off the following bowlers:2 – R W Price, G J Whittall1 – A M Blignaut, D H Brain, M P Jarvis, P A Strang, H H Streak4 OR MORE DISMISSALS IN AN INNINGS5 (all ct) v England Nottingham 20004 (all ct) v New Zealand Harare Sports Club 1992/934 (all ct) v Pakistan Karachi 1993/944 (all ct) v Pakistan Harare Sports Club (3rd Test) 1994/954 (all ct) v Pakistan Faisalabad 1996/974 (all ct) v Sri Lanka Queens Sports Club 1999/20004 (all ct) v Sri Lanka Harare Sports Club (3rd Test) 1999/20004 (all ct) v West Indies Kingston 1999/20004 (all ct) v India Harare Sports Club 2000/015 OR MORE DISMISSALS IN A MATCH5 (4 ct, 1 st) v New Zealand Harare Sports Club 1992/935 (all ct) v Sri Lanka Colombo (Sinhalese Sports Club) 1997/985 (all ct) v Sri Lanka Harare Sports Club (3rd Test) 1999/20005 (all ct) v England Nottingham 20005 (all ct) v India Harare Sports Club 2000/01CAPTAINCYPlayed Won Lost Drawn Toss: Won Lostv England 2 – 1 1 1 1v Australia -v South Africa 2 – 2 – 1 1v West Indies 2 – 2 – 2 -v New Zealand 2 – – 2 1 1v India -v Pakistan 6 1 4 1 4 2v Sri Lanka 6 – 1 5 1 5v Bangladesh -TOTAL 20 1 10 9 10 10SERIES BY SERIESPlayed Won Lost Drawn Toss: Won Lost1993/94 v Pakistan (Away) 3 – 2 1 1 21994/95 v Sri Lanka (Home) 3 – – 3 1 2v Pakistan (Home) 3 1 2 – 3 -1995/96 v South Africa (Home) 1 – 1 – 1 -v New Zealand (Away) 2 – – 2 1 11999/2000 v South Africa (Home) 1 – 1 – – 1v Sri Lanka (Home) 3 – 1 2 – 3v West Indies (Away) 2 – 2 – 2 -v England (Away) 2 – 1 1 1 1TOTAL 20 1 10 9 10 10

Sadagoppan Ramesh: It was a good knock leading up to the Tests

Indian opener Sadagoppan Ramesh made a brilliant 63 in the practice match against a Sri Lanka Board XI leading up to the three Test matches, and at the end of the day’s play declared that it was a crucial innings.”It’s an important knock. Before going for the Test series it gives you a lot more confidence. It definitely helped me to get my confidence back for the Test series,” Ramesh said.The tall left-hander from Tamil Nadu was troubled by a back injury and missed the second Test against Zimbabwe, which India lost. Since then he hasn’t played any competitive cricket.But today he played well, and got some valuable match practice by staying in the middle for 165 minutes, facing 104 deliveries. He hit 11 classy boundaries.There were lots of complaints about the wicket at P. Sara Stadium. The game was delayed by 45 minutes today because of some patches in the wicket. It followed a 30-minute delay yesterday due to dampness.”It’s not a real batting track. It was a dicey track,” agreed Ramesh. “I am happy that I got stuck into it.”He was dismissed by a lifting Dinusha Fernando delivery. “It took me by surprise. I wanted to drive it to mid-off, but at the end the ball kicked up and I finished spooning a catch.”Ramesh was disappointed that he couldn’t go on to a big score. “I was seeing the ball well. I really wanted to go for a big one, but unfortunately that didn’t happen.”The 25-year old is eagerly awaiting the Test series which starts next week at Galle. “It’s going to be one of the best. Sri Lanka have become a very formidable side. After the victory in the one-day series they’ll be pumped up to do well in the Tests too. I am looking forward to the challenge against Muralitharan as well. He’s a great bowler. I haven’t faced a single ball off him, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”

Khadka positive despite Nepal's record batting rout

Making their World T20 debut last year in Bangladesh, in front of the whole world, Nepal put on a commendable performance with two wins over Hong Kong and Afghanistan as well as a gritty loss to Bangladesh. There was no sign of stage fright on the biggest platform they had encountered to date and their spin-heavy attack was right at home on subcontinental decks.In possibly their biggest match since then, in unfamiliar conditions against Ireland – the premier Associate nation of the last decade – stage fright against the opposition’s canny medium-pacers who thrived in the wet and cold conditions sent Nepal tumbling to their worst defeat in T20 cricket. The total of 53 was their lowest in T20 cricket and only the second lowest T20 international total by any team. Paras Khadka, the Nepal captain, said the team’s failures with the bat could not be blamed on losing the toss.”Today was a very bad day for us,” Khadka told ESPNcricinfo after the eight-wicket loss. “Getting bowled out for 53, I don’t think there’s much that you can talk about. All we can think is that we should just forget this game even happened. We would have loved to have had a better game today. If we had 130-140, which we were targeting, we thought we could have pushed them but we just couldn’t bat at all.”Nepal has not played in the British Isles since 2008 in the World Cricket League Division Five at Jersey but Khadka says the tour to the Netherlands and 10 days in Ireland before this match should have been adequate to get the team acclimatised for today’s encounter.”Playing in different conditions you have to prove yourself,” Khadka said. “If you want to have that aim of becoming an ODI nation, we’re in the World Cricket League [Championship] now so we expect to play against all these teams. We can’t make excuses about the conditions so we have to prepare accordingly. We want to play good cricket wherever we go.”Obviously the conditions are not similar to what we’re used to, but that’s what the beauty of cricket is, playing international cricket in different regions. That’s how you become a better cricketer, playing in different conditions and adapting to that and performing at that level. So we are looking forward to it. We’ll not put in excuses that the conditions are different. Of course conditions are different. They’re different for all teams except for the hosts. It’s very important we think positively.”Khadka defended the decision to drop vice-captain Gyanendra Malla down from No. 3 – where he had scored 52 in a win over USA – to No. 5 in the batting order, saying that it was a plan that didn’t come off.”We knew this would be an important game moving forward. Ireland is probably the strongest team in our group. We thought that we had to take the chance for us to get a good decent score early. Unfortunately it didn’t fire for us but it’s very important we come back to basics. We shouldn’t be stuck with numbers saying you need to bat at one, two, three or four. Whatever number, you should be ready to go out there especially in T20 cricket.”Despite the heavy margin of defeat, Khadka remained positive about the team’s prospects and hopes they can make up ground over the next few matches to close the gap in the net run rate tiebreaker.”We’ve seen more than any other team what it takes to get into a World Cup, how every match and every run, every wicket is so important when it comes down to run rate, having come through the World Cricket League from Division Five, Division Four and Division Three. We’ll go out there and play with whatever we have and give the best of what we have and the results will be there definitely.”The tournament is pretty wide open for all teams. It’s very important that we keep the focus going. The opportunities will be there so it’s about how hungry you are. The more hungry you are the more the results will come in our favor. We have the talent and the potential, now it’s about putting in the numbers and performances. With the kind unity and team spirit that we have, we hope to make it through.”

India ask match referee to speak to Australians

Another spat involving Andrew Symonds and the Indians © Getty Images
 

The Indian team management has written a letter to Jeff Crowe, the match referee, about Australia’s ‘provoking’ behaviour, which they feel triggered the latest spat involving Ishant Sharma in Sunday’s one-dayer in Sydney. Ishant was summoned by Crowe for a disciplinary hearing on Monday morning and was docked 15% of his match fee for pointing Andrew Symonds back to the dressing room after bowling him.Crowe booked Ishant for a Level 1.6 offence under the ICC Code of Conduct regulation. That section relates to “pointing or gesturing towards the pavilion in an aggressive manner by a bowler or other member of the fielding side upon the dismissal of a batsman.””The umpires, based on what they had seen in the middle, reported to the match referee about the incident,” Bimal Soni, the Indian team manager who was present along with Ishant at the hearing, told . “Our plea was Symonds provocated [sic] Ishant and that’s why he did what he did. He [Crowe] promised he would be speaking with the Australian captain about the matter.”There has a been a lot of bad blood throughout the summer between India and Australia and it was in Sydney that the Harbhajan Singh-Symonds racism row began. Even on that occasion, the Indians felt it was Symonds’ provocative language that triggered the incident. The situation reached boiling point with the Indians threatening to abandon the series if the three-match ban handed out to Harbhajan was not lifted.This time around the Indian team management didn’t want to escalate matters. But they have requested the match referee to haul up the Australians. “We could’ve filed another complaint but we didn’t want to prolong another hearing. Instead we made the match referee aware that the Australian have provoking our players in the last two matches and cited specific instances, which is not good for our players,” Soni said, as the Indian team was ready to board the flight to Hobart for their final league clash against Sri Lanka.

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