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A round-up of the fourth day’s action of the ICC World Cricket League Americas Region Division One in Bermuda

Cricinfo staff02-Jun-2010An all-round performance by Gary Savage helped Argentina beat Cayman Islands by 13 runs at the Sea Breeze Oval and secure their first win in the tournament. Batting first, Argentina were in trouble initially at 33 for 3 before Savage walked in and set about building important partnerships with the middle order. He added 81 with Grant Dugmore for the fourth wicket and 82 for the sixth with Alec Ferguson. Ferguson went ballistic, smashing five sixes and six fours in his unbeaten 62 off only 22 balls. Savage also made the same score, but he focused on dropping anchor and faced 123 balls. He was dismissed by Marlon Bryan, who took four wickets. Cayman Islands were off to a terrible start, losing four wickets for 21 as Lucas Parterlini and Savage made early inroads. The lower order started showing some resistance when Kevin Bazil and Ronald Ebanks added 60 for the seventh wicket. A last-ditch effort by Conroy Wright wasn’t enough as Argentina sneaked through by 13 runs. Wright scored 58 while Savage rounded off a good day with 3 for 28.Continuing with all-round performances, Bahamas had no answer to Hiral Patel and Rizwan Cheema, who starred for Canada at the St George’s Cricket Club. Hiral Patel took 3 for 15 to bundle out Bahamas for a paltry 98, and Cheema smashed a 43-ball 85 to seal the game in nine overs. Only three Bahamas batsmen went past double figures, with Narendra Ekanayake top scoring with 31. A combined effort helped Canada end the innings within 37 overs. The chase lasted just 47 minutes as Cheema pounded eight sixes and eight fours to seal the game by ten wickets.The hosts Bermuda suffered their first loss of the tournament, going down by six wickets to their neighbours United States of America at the National Stadium. Lennox Cush and captain Steve Massiah set up the victory, sharing six wickets between them to restrict Bermuda to 188. Bermuda had set the foundation for a bigger score when Steven Outerbridge and Jekon Edness added 76 for the second wicket but lost their way after that. Massiah started the collapse before Cush took four wickets to restrict them to a score under 200. Sushil Nadkarni led the chase with 57, which included four sixes, before Massiah took over. His 67 came off 103 balls with seven fours.

At least two boards are said to have given assurances to David Morgan, the outgoing ICC president in the last week, that they would support Howard only to change their minds eventually

Osman Samiuddin01-Jul-2010Support for John Howard’s appointment to the vice-presidency of the ICC fell away “significantly” in the last week with at least a couple of the boards, which eventually opposed the move, changing their stance in that time. What brought about the change, however, is not yet clear.Howard’s appointment was rejected on Wednesday by six of the ICC’s ten Full Members, thought to consist of the subcontinent boards of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh as well as South Africa and the West Indies. Zimbabwe is said to have provided the most vocal opposition privately and led the movement and, though they didn’t sign the letter that brought matters to such a head, they are believed to have played a prominent part in the decision.At least two boards are said to have given assurances to David Morgan, the outgoing ICC president in the last week, that they would support Howard only to change their minds eventually. “There had been a significant shift downwards in the level of support – that is a shift of support away from John Howard in the last week,” Morgan told Cricinfo, though he didn’t identify where the support fell away, or why it did.Ehsan Mani, the former ICC head who remains close to senior figures within the ICC, said the PCB and BCB – who had said they would seek government advice over the issue – had assured Morgan recently of their support, but backed down. “Both Bangladesh and Pakistan had assured David Morgan recently that they would support John Howard and I find it strange that they eventually opposed the move,” Mani told Cricinfo. “Were their arms twisted over the course of the last week? What made them change their stance?”None of the opposing members or the ICC has spoken publicly about the objections and under ICC rules they are not required to. Sri Lanka’s concern arose from Howard being a figure from outside cricket’s administrative fraternity. Others such as Zimbabwe and South Africa are believed to have based their disapproval on Howard’s past political leanings, particularly with the government of the former.The anger within the Australia and New Zealand boards, however, stems from not being given any concrete objections privately either. “There’s been no clear indication of what objections there were and that is disappointing in many ways to Australia and New Zealand,” said Morgan, who stepped down from his post on Thursday.”They went through a rigorous process to choose between two excellent candidates and I am disappointed that I was unable to push that nomination through. The new president [Sharad Pawar] and I had supported the nomination [the ICC press release of the time had expressed support to the rather than the nomination] but unfortunately I was unable to see it through,” Morgan said.The issue doesn’t show signs of being resolved any time soon. CA, it is understood, will continue backing Howard, though the ICC again urged the two boards to reconsider their nomination by August 31. Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, refused to be drawn into speculating what would happen if Howard’s name was put up again. “I think that’s speculative and we must wait for August 31 and see what comes forward,” he said at a press conference in Singapore.Morgan believes one casualty of this conflict may be the system of putting forward a candidate for the post, which has already been through a number of guises since the mid 1990s. Currently nominations are put forward by a pair of regionally-aligned countries on a rotational basis: Howard was Australia and New Zealand’s choice. Pakistan and Bangladesh are next in line to put forward a nomination; one candidate will emerge from India and Sri Lanka; England and West Indies, and South Africa and Zimbabwe are the remaining regional pairings. In the past more general systems have been used, as well as variants of a regional policy.”The rotational system was used for the first time this time,” Morgan said. “There is a commitment to retain it but I have my doubts that it will stand.”There are broader concerns from yesterday’s development, in particular the apparent realigning of loyalties along lines that were thought to have mattered less in the last decade, those of race. The power of the Asian bloc was said to have weakened as the BCCI and CA drew closer in recent years to benefit from a profitable and exciting rivalry.But CA chairman Jack Clarke said yesterday that his board would be “cautious” in their dealings with the BCCI in future. “I think the lessons to be learnt for CA would be big ones after this incident,” Mani said. “Australia threw all their eggs into one basket over the last few years and it’s come back to bite them because they lost support from other boards while pursuing the BCCI.”But I think it is important for cricket to do some serious soul-searching and for the administration to draw a line somewhere about how one board can effectively have so much strength to be able to run the entire game. There needs to be a counter-balance.”

England’s fast bowlers will start practising with the Kookaburra balls that will be used during the Ashes as soon as the Test campaign with Pakistan is over

Cricinfo staff01-Aug-2010England’s fast bowlers will start practising with the Kookaburra balls that will be used during the Ashes as soon as the Test campaign with Pakistan is over. David Saker, the England bowling coach, comes from Victoria and understands the differences between the countries and the conditions.”His knowledge not only about the Kookaburra ball but also about Australia and their venues and players is very important to us,” said England’s coach, Andy Flower, following the team’s first-Test victory over Pakistan. “We are not practising with Kookaburras at the moment because we are focussing on this series but we will have our preparation time in this country before we leave. The guys have quite a lot of experience with the Kookaburra ball and we will deal with one challenge at a time.”The Australians struggled with swing in the drawn series with Pakistan last month and Saker said his fast men would be working on shaping the Kookaburra balls before the trip Down Under. ”It definitely still swings,” Saker told the Sunday Age. “It obviously doesn’t swing as much as the Duke ball, but some of that’s got to do with the English conditions.”Saker believes swing is the best way to bring down a batting order and wants his bowlers to achieve the movement when they attempt to retain the Ashes they won at The Oval last year. ”We’ll be endeavouring to try to move the ball in the air for sure, but also we’ve got two pretty tall, strong pace bowlers [Stuart Broad and Steven Finn] who can get the ball through,” he said. “There’ll be different ways we’ll attack the Australians, for sure.”Finn, 21, was rested before the England-Pakistan series to build up his strength ahead of a busy period. ”We’ve done that with Stuart Broad and he’s come back bigger, stronger and bowling faster than he’s ever bowled,” Saker said.”There was a lot of criticism from a lot of people outside the English set-up, but the people that were involved in pulling him out of that and getting him stronger were all pretty adamant that he needed that. You mightn’t see the improvement straight up but there’s no doubt we, as a group, think it’s going to be beneficial down the track.”

Cricket Australia could be sorely disappointed if it hopes its new split-innings format will eliminate the slow-moving middle overs from one-dayers

Brydon Coverdale13-Aug-2010Cricket Australia could be sorely disappointed if it hopes its new split-innings format will eliminate the slow-moving middle overs from one-dayers. The concept was trialled in England’s county second XI competition this year and it often resulted in a cautious brand of “handbrake” batting at the end of the first innings and the start of the second.Cricket Australia’s format will give teams only 10 wickets across the entire match, so the first innings could be a grind as the top order builds a platform without losing too many batsmen. The Victoria legspinner Bryce McGain has been playing with Essex this month and said the feedback he received from the men involved in the county trial was that momentum was difficult to generate.”The tactics that they used here – and I spoke to quite a number of guys who experienced it – was that they really wound back those last four or five overs because they didn’t want to lose a wicket,” McGain told Cricinfo. “Then when you went back in, the batsmen had to get back in so it took four or five overs to get things started again.”The experience that the English players had was that when you’re building momentum it actually put a handbrake on. It will be interesting to see how it pans out. Maybe the Australians will do it tactically a little bit different, but it will certainly make it interesting.”The Australian board is adamant that moving to a split-innings 45-over format was prompted by feedback from the public, but the players remain unconvinced about the changes. The Australian Cricketers’ Association said 78% of its surveyed members were against the idea, and there have been mixed responses in the Twitter-sphere.Graham Manou, who took part in a split-innings practice match this week, wrote on his Twitter page: “Well I’m certainly going to need some convincing that the split 40 over games are good cricket and more importantly spectators.”One of Australia’s most successful one-day bowlers in recent history, Nathan Bracken, tweeted: “Not a massive fan of it. Could make some games very boring if a team gets a bad start.”But it was not all negative reaction from the players. Aaron Finch, the young Victorian batsman who established himself as a strong limited-overs cricketer last summer, wrote that the format was “Something new and exciting for both fans and players! Can’t wait”.One of the major sticking points for Australia’s ODI players is the decision to implement the new format a few months before a 50-over World Cup. Australia’s World Cup squad will be announced in December, before the seven-match one-day series against England, meaning that fringe players have virtually no chance to press their claims in the regular format.During the planning stages, Michael Hussey was a vocal critic of the move and last month he questioned Cricket Australia’s timing. After the Lord’s Test against Pakistan, the Australian squad was briefed by James Sutherland on some of the possible changes, which were at that stage unconfirmed.”We’ve got to be a little bit careful,” Hussey said in July after the briefing. “We’ve got to make sure we try and get as many players prepared for the 50-over World Cup as we can. I’m not sure the timing is great. There’s a lot of young guys out there that would see themselves as a chance of making the World Cup squad and they probably need as much exposure to 50-over cricket as possible.”

England will want to sharpen their skills in the second match ahead of the five ODIs, but such is the confidence in the team it is hard to see past another home victory

The Preview by Andrew McGlashan06-Sep-2010

Match facts

September 7, 2010, Cardiff
Start time 6.00pm (1700GMT)Spirits remain high in the England squad as they keep their focus on maintaining their Twenty20 winning streak•PA Photos

Big picture

A cricket match was completed at Cardiff on Sunday which, given what had happened over the last week, was something to be very grateful for. England, in their first Twenty20 outing since winning the world title in May, were impressive with the ball and in the way Eoin Morgan and Michael Yardy chased down the target, while familiar Pakistan failings came to the fore in the field.However, the hosts will know it wasn’t a perfect performance. Three catches went down and the batting subsided to 62 for 5 as Pakistan threatened to turn the game around. England will want to sharpen their skills in the second match ahead of the five ODIs, but such is the confidence in the team it is hard to see past another home victory.Pakistan need to rethink their strategy because it was a complete waste to leave Abdul Razzaq in the dug-out for 20 overs and Shahid Afridi needs more time in the middle. One of them has to bat in the top three. Shoaib Akhtar bowled quickly to rattle England’s top order, but his fielding was an embarrassment with the drop of Morgan the turning point in the game.

Form guide (last five completed matches; most recent first)

England WWWWW

Pakistan LLWLW

Watch out for…

Craig Kieswetter is facing his last international innings of the summer and, if Steve Davies takes his chance over the next two weeks, what could be his last international innings for quite a while. England’s next Twenty20 isn’t until January following the Ashes and Kieswetter’s form has been on the slide since the World Twenty20. He was undone by Shoaib’s pace in the opening game, but has the backing of Paul Collingwood to continue with his attacking mindset. However, he really needs a substantial innings to remain central to the team’s future plans.Shahid Afridi has returned to lead Pakistan in the midst of a crisis and has tried his best to move the talk away from spot-fixing allegations. He remains one of the finest Twenty20 cricketers in the world, but couldn’t have much impact with the bat on Sunday as England’s death bowling proved hard to get away. With the ball, though, he caused problems with two wickets and almost turned the game around. If anyone can change Pakistan’s fortunes it’s Afridi.

Team news

There is no reason for England to change a winning formula so James Anderson is likely to remain on the sidelines of the Twenty20 team. However, Luke Wright needs a much-improved display after dropping a catch and making a duck on Sunday while the captain could also do with a few runs.England (probable) 1 Craig Kieswetter, 2 Steve Davies (wk), 3 Ravi Bopara, 4 Paul Collingwood, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Luke Wright, 7 Tim Bresnan, 8 Michael Yardy, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 Stuart Broad, 11 Ryan SidebottomIt’s always a guessing game with Pakistan, but given the lack of options in a reduced squad the same XI is likely to take the field. However, it would be very strange if they didn’t alter the batting order to make better use of Afridi and Razzaq.Pakistan (probable) 1 Shahzaib Hasan, 2 Kamran Akmal (wk), 3 Fawad Alam, 4 Mohammad Yousuf, 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Shahid Afridi (capt), 7 Abdul Razzaq, 8 Umar Gul, 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Saeed Ajmal, 11 Shoaib Akhtar

Pitch and conditions

There was more turn than anyone expected in the first match and this game will be played on the same surface so the spinners are likely to be key again. The large boundaries cut down on the fours and sixes – there were none of the latter – and when even Afridi can’t clear the ropes you know it’s hard work. Heavy rain is forecast on Monday and showers on Tuesday, but the new outfield drains well.

Stats and Trivia

• Pakistan’s 126 for 4 on Sunday was the first time they hadn’t hit a six in a Twenty20 international.
• Graeme Swann, who took 2 for 14 in four overs, is now England’s second-most economical bowler in Twenty20s behind Andrew Flintoff for players with at least six caps.

Quotes

“I didn’t have to say anything. You just look at each other, and those smiles go on your faces. We’ve got great memories of that. But from a captain’s point of view you’ve got to try to tell the guys to restart … and we did it 100%.”
Paul Collingwood enjoyed having most of his World Twenty20 winners back together“We missed some opportunities, like catches and run-outs. So next time I hope we will avail these opportunities. In this kind of cricket, fielding is a main weapon if you want to win.”

A decision on the structure for county cricket in 2011 has been delayed after the ECB agreed to set up a working party to examine all the options

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Sep-2010A decision on the structure for county cricket in 2011 has been delayed after the ECB agreed to set up a working party to examine all the options.The ECB management board met on Wednesday to discuss the outcome of a meeting of 56 representatives from the first-class game in England at Lord’s last week, but no format was agreed for the domestic game. There appears to be a split forming between the large counties with international grounds who want a reduction in Twenty20 cricket and the small clubs who still managed healthy crowds despite an increase to 16 group matches in 2010.The Friends Provident T20 included 151 matches in the 2010 season which put enormous strain on the schedule despite a reduction from four to three tournaments across the summer. Overall, crowds for the tournament were down but some counties still pulled in good numbers because they had fewer seats to fill and are urging the ECB not to reduce the fixture list because it will hit their major income stream when counties are trying to become more self-sufficent.During the season five new structures for the County Championship were leaked – including conferences or a return to one league – but all the proposals were rejected and it appears the 16-match, two-division set-up will remain in place. The Clydesdale Bank 40 competition completes the structure and there has been no suggestion that the length will be altered despite the England set-up admitting, in an ideal world, they would like a 50-over event that would match the international version.The working party will be chaired by David Collier, the ECB chief executive, and will include representatives from the PCA and across the county game. It will report back at the next management board meeting on November 17 when the ECB hopes a decision will be made on which structure to adopt.

Kenya, playing without Steve Tikolo, proved too strong for UAE in the fourth and final one-dayer in Mombasa, beating them by 24 runs to sweep the series 4-0

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-2010
Scorecard
Tanmay Mishra hit one of three half-centuries for Kenya as they beat UAE by 24 runs to sweep the series 4-0•AFP

Kenya, playing without Steve Tikolo, proved too strong for UAE in the fourth and final one-dayer in Mombasa, beating them by 24 runs to sweep the series 4-0. Half-centuries from Tanmay Mishra, Alex Obanda and captain Jimmy Kamande ensured Kenya had enough runs. This, despite a late collapse in which five wickets fell for 18 runs, all of them to medium-pacer Amjad Javed, who took a career-best 6 for 50.UAE began promisingly, but sedately, and later slumped to 134 for 6, before the other Amjad, Ali, led a fightback with an aggressive fifty. But Kenya kept up the pressure, and UAE folded up for 214.The game had begun well for UAE when fast bowler Shoaib Sarwar had struck twice to leave Kenya in trouble at 25 for 2. But Mishra and Obanda steadied the innings with an 84-run partnership before Obanda was bowled by offspinner Mohammad Tauqir for 64 off 70 deliveries. Mishra then found an able ally in Kamande and the duo took the score past 150 until Mishra was stumped for 68 off 71. At 220 for 5, Kenya were eyeing a substantial score but Javed struck repeatedly as the lower order collapsed. Kamande made 56 off 62 but also fell to Javed as Kenya were dismissed for 238 with 14 balls left.UAE began solidly until Arfan Haider fell to Nelson Odhiambo for 20 off 43. Kenya were miserly and as the asking rate mounted, the pressure told on the UAE batsmen. Wicketkeeper Swapnil Patil was run out for 20 off 48 and offspinner James Ngoche trapped opener Arshad Ali leg before for 40. Amjad Ali resisted with a quick half-century but when he fell to Aga, it was all but over for UAE. Elijah Otieno snuffed out the last two wickets as UAE were bowled out with two overs to spare.

England held Sri Lanka to 187 for 9 to secure a tight, five-run win in the first one-day international of their limited-overs series at the Nondescripts Ground in Colombo

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Nov-2010
Scorecard
England held Sri Lanka to 187 for 9 to secure a tight, five-run win in the first one-day international of their limited-overs series at the Nondescripts Ground in Colombo. Claire Taylor’s half-century, her 22nd in ODIs, held England’s middle order together amid a four-wicket haul for seamer Deepika Rasangika as the visitors were bowled out for 192 after being put in to bat. A middle-order collapse hampered Sri Lanka’s chase, and a tight final over from seamer Jenny Gunn sealed the result for England.England made a stuttering start to their Sri Lankan tour, losing opener Heather Knight – bowled by left-arm seamer Rukshala Dharmasiri – without a run on the board. With captain Charlotte Edwards and left-hander Lydia Greenway also falling for single figures, it was left to Taylor and Gunn to repair England’s innings with an 86-run partnership for the 4th wicket.Rasangika then struck back for the hosts, picking up three wickets in two overs – including that of debutant Fran Wilson first ball – as England slipped to 143 for 6. Wickets fell regularly thereafter, with Laura Marsh and Anya Shrubsole providing the only resistance before the visitors were bowled out in the final over.Sri Lanka’s chase got off to a positive start, Chamari Polgampola and Chamari Atapattu putting together a 64-run opening stand. After they were parted, however, England’s spinners ran through the middle order. Edwards, Laura Marsh and Danielle Hazell combined to reduce Sri Lanka to 86 for 5 before Eshani Kaushalya and wicketkeeper Dilani Manodara’s 52-run partnership brought Sri Lanka back into the game.Sri Lanka needed just 55 in slightly over eight overs when Isa Guha returned to the attack and bowled Manodara for a watchful 26. The lower order managed to keep up the scoring rate, Sripali Weerakkody slamming a 16-ball 19 that included a four and a six, but at a cost of wickets. With six runs needed from the final two deliveries, Gunn had Rasangika caught by Shrubsole and then sealed a slim victory with a dot ball to close the innings.The teams meet for the second ODI at the P Sara Oval in Colombo on Wednesday before a series of three Twenty20 matches, starting on November 19 at the Nondescripts Ground.

If Australia needed any convincing about England’s resilience they were given a day-long example as Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook hit magnificent centuries

The Bulletin by Andrew McGlashan28-Nov-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAndrew Strauss roars after reaching his century as England put Australia to the sword•Getty Images

If Australia needed any convincing about England’s resilience they were given a day-long example as Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook hit magnificent centuries to give the visitors a golden chance to save the opening Test in Brisbane. The openers added 188 and when Strauss departed for 110, the challenge was taken up by Jonathan Trott, who helped Cook put on a further 121 for the second wicket. Cook ended unbeaten on 132 and England held a lead of 88 when bad light closed in.While few expected England to fold in a heap – they rarely do these days – even fewer would have expected a stumps score of 1 for 309. However, inspired by their captain the tourists set about showing they’d learnt the lessons from their poor first innings and gave Australia a day of toil in the field to match what England had suffered on Saturday. There is still time for the home side to force something on the final day, but nothing in their bowling in this innings has suggested they have the firepower to succeed.Strauss’s 19th Test hundred, and fourth against Australia, arrived from 184 balls when he late cut Xavier Doherty and his aggression against spin was a key part of the innings. He knew England couldn’t block their way to safety, and often used his feet to advance and loft down the ground. Strauss’s century celebration was unusually emotional; it hadn’t been the easiest start to the series after his first-morning failure and this was another example of England’s spirit. The stage was set for him to make it a massive hundred, following Hussey’s lead, but he was beaten in flight by Marcus North and couldn’t regain his ground, stumped by Brad Haddin.Cook reached his landmark with a rasping cut shortly after tea and this match has been an emphatic response from somebody who still had his fair share of doubters coming in to the tour. Shortly afterwards he gave a tough chance to Peter Siddle at fine leg off a top-edged pull, but Siddle couldn’t quite hold on as he dived forward. Trott was also given a reprieve, on 34, when Michael Clarke’s valiant attempt at point failed as the ball slipped out of his finger tips and this time Siddle was the bowler to suffer.England’s opening pair ticked off a few records along their way, including the visitors’ highest stand at the Gabba and the best opening effort by any touring team in Brisbane. They also became England’s most prolific first-wicket duo in Test cricket, although the record was diluted somewhat as they have played more than twice as many innings as the Jack Hobbs-Herbert Sutcliffe pairing they overtook. But that was a minor point in the bigger picture of England trying to claw their way back into the match, which they did with an impressively aggressive approach. The time-runs equation could be vital in the end.

Smart Stats

• The 188-run stand between Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook is the seventh-highest partnership by an England opening pair in Australia. It is also the second-highest after the 203-run stand between Michael Atherton and Graham Gooch at Adelaide in 1991.

• Cook and Strauss became the most prolific opening pair for England in Tests, surpassing the aggregate of Jack Hobbs and Herbert Sutcliffe.

• Strauss’s century was his first in Australia. He made 247 runs in 10 innings on the previous tour.

• Cook’s century was his second against Australia and 14th overall. His previous century came at Perth in 2006.

• Mitchell Johnson has picked up just 24 wickets in eight Tests since January 14, 2010 at an average of more than 41. At home, he has just one wicket in two Tests.

• The century stand between Cook and Jonathan Trott was the tenth for the second wicket for visiting teams in Australia since 2000. It was also the third century stand for the second wicket for England, the highest being 170 between Ian Bell and Cook at Perth in 2006.

Having survived a first-ball review yesterday evening, Strauss gave a commanding display, punctuated with his favourite cuts and drives. However, he was given a significant let-off on 69 when Mitchell Johnson, in the midst of a torrid match, spilled a relatively simple chance at mid-off when Strauss tried to loft Doherty down the ground. There was another moment of alarm when he misjudged a pull on 88 which looped over point then an edge flew between the slips to take him to 96, but Strauss will feel England were owed a little luck.The clearest sign that Strauss’s game was in top order came from his shots through cover, which were a hallmark of his dashing start to Test cricket back in 2004. He latched on to Ben Hilfenhaus and Shane Watson when they over-pitched, while waiting on the back foot for anything short. Though the ball was only 15 overs old when play resumed there was very little assistance for the quick bowlers and Johnson, who was the fourth option used by Ricky Ponting, resorted to trying a bouncer-attack at Strauss, but a slow pitch nullified the threat.Cook showed the same application as he had in the first innings after an early alarm when he sliced a cut between third slip and gully. Most of his other 10 boundaries came out of the middle and he even showed the cover drive, which is rarely seen from him these days. Initially, Cook outscored his captain but normal service was resumed as he dug in but he never became flustered and ticked the scoreboard over. He hacked Doherty through midwicket then cut him for three to move to 97 but had to spend the tea interval sat two short of his hundred, although didn’t have to wait long. It was the first time since 1938 that both England openers had hit Ashes hundreds in the same innings.After Strauss’s aggression towards spin brought his demise, Trott began in positive fashion, which meant the scoring didn’t seize up. He carried England into the lead with an elegant cover-drive off the struggling Johnson and he ensured two set batsmen were ready to face the second new ball when it came at the beginning of the final session.Once again a crucial period loomed but Cook and Trott were equal to the challenge. Hilfenhaus found some swing and there were the two tough chances, yet it wasn’t quite the threat everyone expected. In a sign of desperation Ponting used up his last review when Trott padded up to Hilfenhaus, but the ball was easily missing off stump and Trott’s fifty soon followed as he tucked into Johnson’s wayward offerings. This Test has had too many twists to think the final day will be plain sailing, but if England can hold their nerve it will be another in their recent history of incredible rearguards.

A round-up of the latest action from the Logan Cup, Zimbabwe’s domestic first-class competition

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jan-2011Former South Africa allrounder Andrew Hall sizzled with both bat and ball to lead a recovery for Mashonaland Eagles who ended with first-innings points against Mid West Rhinos in Harare. The Eagles’ top order collapsed in both innings, more dramatically in the second, but each time Hall was around to guide them to safety. He also led the bowling in the crucial first innings, picking up three wickets as Eagles took a narrow 33-run lead.The Eagles were rattled on the opening morning by Ian Nicolson, who removed the openers in his third and fourth overs. The wobble continued for Eagles, and they were struggling at 106 for 5 soon. Hall (70) started the rescue effort in the company of Ryan Butterworth (61), and then consolidated along with Mark Mbofana (68). The tail hung around long enough to see Eagles through to 319.Rhinos began promisingly despite the early loss of Brendan Taylor, and young Gary Ballance – nephew of former Zimbabwe captain Dave Houghton – anchored the innings with his third century in his ninth first-class game. At 261 for 5, they were on their way to taking the lead, but Hall brought Eagles back in the game, trapping Ballance leg-before for 125. Rhinos caved in after that to be dismissed for 286.They came back strongly at Eagles though, and the new-ball pair of Nicolson and Ed Rainsford scythed through the top order to leave Eagles tottering at 38 for 5, a lead of only 71. Hall rose to the occasion with an unbeaten hundred, carrying his side to safety along with Regis Chakabva (60) and Chad Keegan (45). Hall’s busy innings allowed Eagle to declare on 274 for 9, setting Rhinos a target of 308. Taylor made 67 as Rhinos replied with 137 for 3 before the match was called off.There were runs aplenty for both Matabeleland Tuskers and Southern Rocks, who played out a high-scoring draw at the Masvingo Sports Club. Neither side was bowled out in the match, with the Tuskers picking up the solitary point for gaining the first-innings lead, although that came courtesy of a declaration from bottom-of-the-table Rocks.Matabeleland piled up 583 for 7 declared in their first innings on the back of a mammoth 342-run partnershp between Paul Horton and Gavin Ewing for the second wicket. The pair came together after legspinner Tafadzwa Kamungozi had removed Terry Duffin for 27, and proceeded to bat out the remainder of the day. Horton eventually fell to the hard-working Kamungozi, but not before the Tuskers had gone past 400, and he had racked up his highest first-class score of 209. Kamungozi, who bowled 41 overs in the inning, then had Ewing caught nine short of his own double-century. Charles Covernty then chipped in with an entertaining 72 that included seven fours and six.Rocks began shakily, losing two wickets for 42 but Chamu Chibhabha and Craig Ervine steadied the ship with a century-partnership, before Chibhabha was bowled by Keegan Meth for 74. Ervine continued on untroubled, and finding a willing partner in Richmond Mutumbhani, took Rocks past the 300-mark.With the game already heading for draw, the Rocks declardedon 342 for 5, with Irvine on 167 and Mutumbhani on 54. The Tuskers then threw their bats around, racing to 76 for 2 from 13.3 overs before declaring, giving the Rocks 10 overs to bat, in which they made 36 for no loss.