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The Marrara Oval, Darwin

Test cricket came to Australia’s Top End today, when Steve Waugh won the toss and put Bangladesh in to bat on the drop-in pitch at the Marrara Oval, a cosy oasis of green in the dry old Northern Territory.It’s normally an Australian Rules football stadium, with cavernous dressing-rooms beneath the big concrete grandstand. Notices on the walls beseech players not to spit (or worse) on the floors.After a quiet start it was business as usual for Bangladesh, who lost wickets in clumps after being put in. Punters with money on at 14/1 that the match would be all over inside a day are going to be disappointed, but the local TV station, which is only broadcasting the fourth and fifth days live, must already be looking out a few more repeats of Neighbours or Home and Away.There were extra-loud cheers for Jason Gillespie, especially when he struck to remove Javed Omar and start a slide in which four wickets tumbled for 14 runs. Gillespie, you see, is part-Aboriginal, and up here in NT the indigenous Australian peoples make up 30% of the population, compared with around 2% in the country as a whole.Gillespie is proud of his Aboriginal heritage and has traced his forebears back to the Kamilaroi tribe. “I’m an interesting mix because I’ve got Aboriginal blood and on my Mum’s side it’s mainly Greek,” he said. “I was never really brought up as an indigenous person. But I’ve really started reading about it and where that my side of my family comes from.”In a country just coming to terms with the retirement of Olympic champion athlete Cathy Freeman, who was famous for brandishing the red-and-black Aboriginal flag on the track, does Gillespie see himself as a sporting ambassador? “I don’t know how comfortable I’d be, to be honest … technically I guess I’m the first [with Aboriginal blood], but I think there’d be a lot of former Test players with indigenous blood and just didn’t know about it.”The ground at Marrara, near Darwin’s airport, is in the town’s sporting park. Bowling greens and clay-pigeon galleries jostle for position. But the cricket holds sway today – the authorities were expecting a crowd pushing the capacity of 11,500 -­ and that includes provision for a “Small VIPs Car Park”. Next door, obviously catering for the more comfortably built, is the Large VIPs Car Park.Among the larger VIPs for Darwin’s big day was Clare Martin, the chief minister of the Northern Territory, who is a distant relative of Victor Trumper, one of Australia’s early greats. And John Ah Kit, NT’s minister for sport, was a genial presence in the grandstand, showing off one of the day’s brighter shirts.Over on Channel 9, one familiar face was missing. Richie Benaud, taking a break in France from commentating duties in England, was not there to don the off-white blazer for a home Test for the first time in most people’s memories. Instead Simon O’Donnell, another former Test allrounder, took over the hot seat. But his “Morning everyone” just wasn’t quite the same …Steven Lynch is editor of Wisden CricInfo.

A target of 273, constructed largely and painstakingly by Nayan Mongiaand Himanshu Jadhav, stared Rest of India in the face as they startedtheir run-chase. With one day to go and 213 runs still to get, DayFive of the Irani Trophy promises to be a humdinger.Mongia, unbeaten overnight, retained his mode of sedate play. Hittingseven fours in a restrained knock, his 52 off 165 balls ended whenBaroda still had considerable distance to traverse to a challengingtotal.Wickets fell at regular intervals; after Mongia was snapped up bySarandeep Singh, Rishikesh Parab was caught behind off HrishikeshKanitkar. Tushar Arothe and Umang Patel fell in quick succession,leaving Baroda reeling at 199 for six.It was then that Himanshu Jadhav started farming the strike, ensuringthat the lower middle order faced as few balls as possible. Thedeparture of Rakesh Patel and Valmik Buch immersed Baroda further inthe mire, but Irfan K Pathan provided Jadhav stout support.Jadhav left finally with the score on 269, making 42 off 109 balls.The Pathans added a few more to the tally before Irfan K Pathan wasbowled by Tinu Yohannan for 32 off 45 balls, ending Baroda’s inningsat 285.Rest of India started disastrously, losing both openers with the scoreon six. Kanitkar and VVS Laxman then built the score up steadily,rotating the strike frequently; Kanitkar, however, was caught behindoff Irfan K Pathan for 21 off 45 balls.At the close of play, skipper Laxman, hoping to revive his battingfortunes ahead of his departure for South Africa, and Dinesh Mongia,the first innings hero, were unbeaten on 26 and 6 respectively.Knowing Laxman’s penchant for long innings and Mongia’s form, it isentirely possible that Rest of India reach 273 with little fuss. ButBaroda’s bowlers, inspired by a pitch that is falling apart, will belooking to skittle Rest of India out for far less.

Journalist Dean Jones has been left confused with Bruno Lage’s decision to drop star striker Raul Jimenez, speaking in the build-up to Thursday’s clash against Watford.

The Lowdown: Jimenez’s omission

The Mexico international has been the talisman since arriving at the Molineux Stadium on loan in 2018, before joining the club in a permanent deal worth £30 million a year later.

The 30-year-old has netted an impressive 53 goals in 137 appearances, 39 of which have come in the Premier League.

However, Jimenez seemingly appears out of favour under Bruno Lage, who dropped the striker to the bench for their recent fixture against West Ham, bringing him on for the final nine minutes of action.

More surprisingly, he was dropped once again in Wolves following league clash against Crystal Palace. Again, he was brought on as a substitute, featuring for 27 minutes.

The Latest: Jones’ claim…

Jones has weighed in on the situation, having been left confused with Lage’s decision to drop his star man, who has scored five Premier League goals this season.

Speaking with GiveMeSport, he claimed:

“Even if Jimenez isn’t scoring goals, you have him in the team as an outlet if nothing else. You can’t play Podence through the middle.

“As a defender or even midfielder sometimes you want an out ball and a guy you can stick the ball up to hold the ball up, bring others into player and the next phase begins from there.

“Jimenez is one of the best at that, so it’s very strange [he has been dropped].”

The Verdict: Likely to start again soon?

Whilst Jimenez’s tally this season has not compared to either of his previous two double-figured seasons in the Premier League, the Mexican offers far more to the team than just goals.

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The striker has added defensive attributes to his game to add to Wolves’ style of play. According to FB Ref, over the course of the past year, Jimenez ranked in the 81st percentile for tackles, the 89th percentile for interceptions and the 85th percentile for blocks made for players in Europe’s top five leagues.

With Wolves failing to score in the previous two games that the 30-year-old didn’t start, it may be likely to see Jimenez lining up for his side’s upcoming fixture against Watford, as the Wanderers continue their push for European football.

In other news: Wolves: Journalist concerned about star duo’s contract situation

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFour specialist bowlers and one of them succumbing to injury. For Kagiso Rabada, an up-and-coming fast bowler acting as spearhead one moment, workhorse the next, it was an onerous burden. But Rabada was up to the task, producing the most redoubtable display of his fledgling career to leave South Africa anticipating victory in the final Test in Centurion.Radaba’s return of 7 for 112, his finest figures in a Test career only five matches old, presented South Africa with a first-innings lead of 133 which they extended to 175 for the loss of Dean Elgar by the time bad light fell upon the third day.With reason to expect that this surly surface will become more indifferent as the Test progresses, South Africa retain strong hopes of a consolation victory which would reduce the series margin to 2-1 and enable them to claim their first victory in 10 Tests.Rabada tore through England’s batting line-up with three quick wickets on the stroke of lunch, removing Joe Root, James Taylor and Jonny Bairstow in succession to turn the Test heavily in South Africa’s favour. With Kyle Abbott leaving the field as tea approached for intensive treatment on a tight hamstring, South Africa’s four-strong attack was under heavy strain and Rabada, at the tender age of 20, bore most of it.By the time he led South Africa from the field half an hour after tea, his figures were the third best ever recorded at Centurion, outdone only by two other outstanding displays of recent vintage – Abbott’s 7 for 29 against Pakistan in 2013 and Mitchell Johnson’s terrorising of South Africa to claim 7 for 65 a year later.The accolades were thoroughly deserved for a display of great control, nous and stamina. His best Test figures followed a return of 5 for 78 in the third Test in Johannesburg. His achievements so young are rarely achieved. An unrewarding Test introduction on spin-friendly surfaces in India has been well and truly put behind him.His progress this series has been swift, his speeds around 145kph until fatigue took a hold and he sensibly throttled back, and his control of line excellent. He caresses the pitch – the antithesis of Hardus Viljoen who in Johannesburg tried to deep mine it. At 20 years old, he is a prize asset but he is still physically developing and South Africa will have to nurture him with care as they prepare for a future – not too distant now – without Dale Steyn.Alastair Cook, the first wicket to fall on the third day, must wait for the potential accolade of the youngest player to reach 10,000 Test runs – and as he watches England flounder after losing an influential toss he must be ageing by the minute.Cook, 67 not out overnight, began fifty runs short of the record, but he added only nine runs in an hour before he was unpicked by Morne Morkel, an excellent delivery from around the wicket which bounced and seamed away to take the edge. The wicket stirred Morkel, whose signal has come and gone like a mobile in an iffy reception area.Cook has one more innings in South Africa to secure a record that looks inevitable, barring injury, as he still has a full English summer to achieve it. He has ticked off the record thousand by thousand since his Test career began to evolve, the youngest batsman at every measuring point.The removal of Root, the mainstay of England’s batting line-up, was a huge breakthrough for South Africa. Root had launched England’s challenge by taking three back-foot boundaries off him in an over, the first of them thick-edged wide of gully, but he became the first victim of the morning when Rabada produced one that shaped away a tad around off stump for Quinton de Kock to hold a simple catch.Rabada struck again when Taylor was too early on a pull shot that was both too wide and high for the shot, especially with wickets falling and lunch approaching, and cue ended the ball to the wicketkeeper. Taylor might have been defeated by the inconsistent bounce, but it was an unwise shot with a short leg and two men back for the shot.Three balls later – the last before the interval – Rabada added Bairstow for nought. It was a dismissal that emphasised he is already a bowler of craft, an offcutter bouncing back at Bairstow who failed to withdraw from the shot to catch the glove and give de Kock his fourth catch of the innings.South Africa had squandered two reviews in the morning session. Morkel’s belief that he can get Cook caught down the leg side is all very well, but not when South Africa review an appeal – as they did when Cook was 70 – that missed the bat by several inches. The noise must have been that made when a theory collides with reality.There was over-eagerness, too, in de Kock’s belief that he had held a leg-side tickle from Root off the offspinner, Dane Piedt. Such considerations were soon forgotten as Rabada made deep inroads into England’s order, reducing them to 211 for 6 – still 63 short of avoiding the follow-on.Rabada added the wicket of Ben Stokes, picked off at second slip with only the second delivery with the second new ball, a success Rabada greeted with nothing more aggressive than the gentlest of smiles.England would have sensed an unlikely escape route, especially with Moeen Ali fashioning resistance with his usual languid unpredictability, leaving South Africa eminently grateful for the charitable departure of Chris Woakes shortly before tea.JP Duminy, a notional fifth bowler, whose confidence impaired by an injury in India when he split the webbing of his bowling hand, looks in bad shape, bowling wise, and seems to have adopted a strange, whirly Harbhajan Singh impression.He did nothing more than slip a straight one across Woakes, who edged it into the pads of the wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock and from there to first slip where Dean Elgar held a simple chance. Woakes had also been dropped on 1 when de Kock failed to hold a one-handed catch above his head off Morkel.After tea, South Africa threw the ball to Rabada once more. By the time he added his seventh – Stuart Broad obligingly pulling to deep square leg – he was running on empty, about 10kph down on his speed at the start of the Test, unable to summon the energy to run and congratulate the fielder.Moeen’s departure to Morkel, for 61, driving on the up to extra cover, finally gave Rabada release. His 29 overs had revealed a few home truths about the arduous nature of Test cricket. In another 24 hours or so, perhaps even less, he would be doing it all again.

The road to the 2011 World Cup continues for six teams with the start of the ICC World Cricket League Division Two in Windhoek, Namibia this weekend. The hosts, as well as Argentina, Denmark, Oman, Uganda and United Arab Emirates will battle it out over a week of action at three venues around the city.And at stake are four places in the World Cup Qualifier (formerly the ICC Trophy) in the UAE in 2009, the tournament that will determine which of the leading ICC Associate and Affiliate teams will go to the World Cup in the Asian subcontinent two years later. For five of the teams in Windhoek, it is a road they have travelled down before as Denmark, Namibia, Oman, Uganda and the UAE all played in the ICC Trophy in 2005 but failed to reach this year’s competition.However, Namibia (2003 in Southern Africa) and the UAE (1996 in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) have both reached World Cup finals so they should know exactly what is at stake and what sort of rewards are on offer to the successful sides.The new kids on the block are Argentina, a country basking in the glory of its success in the recent rugby World Cup where they reached the semi-finals and finished third.The cricketers have done just as well in many senses because, as late replacements for the United States of America in the ICC WCL Div.3 event earlier this year in Darwin, they were not expected to make many headlines. On paper, at least, the likes of Fiji, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea and the Cayman Islands all looked likely finalists alongside the fancied Uganda, and there were also Italy and Tanzania to consider.But Argentina proceeded to rip up the formbook and won through to the final before losing out to Uganda, the other side to earn promotion from that event which gave both line-ups their tickets to Windhoek. It will be fascinating to see if Argentina can continue their journey or whether they will get stopped in their tracks by some of the more experienced sides on show.Explaining the significance of the World Cricket League and how the Windhoek tournament fits in, ICC global development manager Matthew Kennedy said: “The idea of the WCL is to give each of the ICC’s 91 Associate and Affiliate Members a clearly defined pathway to progress and develop in world cricket. Apart from Division 1, which involves the top six Associate sides, the next best teams from the ICC Trophy 2005 have been allocated to Division 2 and 3 events along with the top teams from each of five regional qualifying events.”It means that regular global one-day cricket opportunities are no longer confined to just the top sides in the LG ODI Championship table and this tournament in Windhoek is an example of that. Our belief is that by exposing these sides to different opponents and different conditions they will improve and take that improvement back into their own domestic structures thereby helping our strong sport grow even stronger by broadening its base to a significant degree.”With places up for grabs in the World Cup Qualifier, the incentives and rewards for teams to improve have never been greater and I wish all the sides in action in Namibia the best of luck in what should be a terrific tournament and a great advertisement for Associate and Affiliate cricket.”

Australia 1 for 28 (Ponting 11*, Hayden 12*) trail England 6 for 551d (Collingwood 206, Pietersen 158) by 523 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out – England
How they were out – Australia

‘Age is also telling for Glenn McGrath and his left heel. Hewas on and off the field in the opening session fortreatment and was belted for three fours by Pietersenin his first over of the morning’ © Getty Images

It has happened again. Down 1-0 after a first-Testthrashing, England have been revived for the secondAshes series in a row by batting first in the nextmatch. Through brilliant returns from Paul Collingwoodand Kevin Pietersen they grabbed the momentum fromAustralia, posted 6 for 551 and promptly declared infive-star luxury. The series gained further life whenJustin Langer edged Andrew Flintoff, who decided toopen the bowling, and the home side were 1 for 28 atstumps.Collingwood clipped a superb 206 and Pietersen backedhim up with a sensible 158 as England enjoyed anotherwildly successful day on a pitch offering nothingencouraging to the fast bowlers. Together they etchedthemselves into Ashes history with England’s highestfourth-wicket stand against Australia, passing the 288of Nasser Hussain and Graham Thorpe at Edgbaston in1997.Individually they coped well with Australia’spersistent tinkering in the field, the attempts atregular containment and Shane Warne and Stuart Clark,the biggest dangers in an ineffective attack.Collingwood closed a 70-year double-century droughtfor England Down Under when he became the first sinceWally Hammond to achieve the milestone. It was anoutstanding all-round innings that has sealed his spotat No. 4. Pietersen has been criticised for sitting aspot lower in the order but the move has workedspectacularly in this game.The top four blunted Australia and then Pietersen andCollingwood were allowed to capitalise, driving theirside into a position that was unthinkable for even themost positive England supporter over the past week.They narrowly avoided going three sessions withoutAustralia’s hyped attack taking a wicket and thechilly wind that blew between lunch and tea was morebiting than Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee.It took an edge from Clark, who was easily the leadingfast man with 3 for 75, to end Collingwood’s stay of392 balls and signal the tea break. India havepunished Australia at home like this recently, butonly occasionally do they allow themselves to betreated so badly in their own conditions.Adelaide is not Warne’s favourite ground and he hasnever given up as many runs against England as his 1for 167. Struck for centuries in consecutive inningsby opponents who usually shake whenever he flicks hiswrist, he has started to look like a 37-year-oldinstead of a vibrant 20-something. Spin has been greatbut slow and his first wicket didn’t come until his47th over. He barely acknowledged it.Age is also telling for McGrath and his left heel. Hewas on and off the field in the opening session for boot treatment and was belted for three fours by Pietersenin his first over of the morning. Clark was preferredto start proceedings and McGrath was only called for athree-over spell. He delivered 12 in the day, most ata speed in the mid-120s, and the decision to passhimself fit is in the process of back firing.

Pietersen and Collingwood etchedthemselves into Ashes history with England’s highestfourth-wicket stand against Australia, passing the 288of Nasser Hussain and Graham Thorpe at Edgbaston in1997. © Getty Images

England have no such concerns thanks to the 310-runpartnership between Collingwood and Pietersen thatrattled at 3.68 an over. Collingwood’s century arrivedfrom his second ball this morning and he was measuredin the first session before outscoring Pietersen by 27runs in the second.The most spectacular of his 16 fours were lofteddrives to bring up his 150 and 200 as he corrected hiserror on 96 in Brisbane. Warne was the first to watchthe ball sail over his head while Michael Clarke wasthe victim when Collingwood joined Hammond and REFoster as the only Englishmen to scoredouble-centuries in Australia.Until his dismissal Collingwood came closest to losinghis wicket on 109 when Michael Hussey had a chance ata direct hit and missed. As Collingwood walkedfollowing his edge 97 runs later Pietersen ran over tohis team-mate to join the loud applause and the BarmyArmy sang his name.Australia had shut down Pietersen by employing Warnearound the wicket, sometimes with five men on thelegside, but he was happy to let the ball thud intohis pads and occasionally used his feet to attackhalf-volleys. Lee was hammered by Pietersen on acouple of memorable occasions; one thumping straightdrive was just out of the bowler’s reach and a finehook shot sped to the short square boundary. However,Lee was convinced Pietersen nicked him on hisovernight score of 60, but Steve Bucknor ruled not outand was supported by the technology.A quick single from Clark brought up Pietersen’ssecond century against Australia and his double-armraise paid particular attention to his fiancée andLiberty X singer Jessica Taylor, who was standing andsmiling in the Sir Edwin Smith stand. A similarattempt at a run caused his downfall when Ponting under-armed sharply from midwicket. By then England’sgrip on the match was as secure as Pietersen’s bearhugs of Collingwood.

Short cuts

Shot of the day
Paul Collingwood’s lofted four over the head of ShaneWarne to bring up his 150. He tried a similar shot inBrisbane last week and failed, but stayed true to hisaggressive instincts and was rewarded.Highlight of the day
Collingwood again. His double-century was only thefifth by an Englishman in Australia. Wally Hammondscored three, the last in 1936-37, and RE Foster’s 287came in 1903-04.Partnership of the day
Collingwood and Pietersen gave Justin Langer andMatthew Hayden a target to aim for this summer for themost hugs in a liaison. There was a lot of love on theoval as they produced the highest fourth-wicketpartnership for England against Australia.Surprise of the day
Bored of Pietersen andWarne’s battle, the Boony Army tried to start aMexican Wave in the middle session, but the Barmy Armywere gripped by the action and refused to haveanything to do with it. How times change.Wave of the day
Glenn McGrath has never given up as many runs withouta wicket as his 107 in this innings, but theperformance did not steal all of his humour. When theBarmy Army cheered his century McGrath gave a thumbsup as he walked back to his mark.

Stuart Law says county cricket has ‘certainly become more and more professional.’ © Cricinfo Ltd

Stuart Law, who played one Test for Australia and who earlier this year became a British citizen, has praised the standard of county cricket in England, and believes the county system has been the fundamental reason for England’s success.County cricket has long been lamented; indeed, in the 1990s, it was said to be the primary cause of England’s poorly-performing Test side, contrasting starkly with Australia’s fiercely competitive domestic system. A decade later and things are changing, according to Law.Speaking to , he said: “The gap is definitely closing. It has certainly become more and more professional. I think a big move was sacking those guys who just wanted to pay off their mortgages and replacing them with players who want to improve themselves and, one day, play for England.”Law is in the unique position of having played in significant seasons in both Australia’s and England’s domestic game. He captained Queensland to their first Pura Cup title, spent time with Essex and, most recently, has continued his prolific run-scoring for Lancashire.”The standard of cricket in England has improved dramatically since I first came here. It’s that competitiveness that comes from the overseas influences and the hard grind of it all. You have to know how to fight, and that is being bred into the English system these days. It all adds up to hard-nosed cricket.””In England these days there’s so much cricket that it really plays on the body and the mind but there’s no chance to let up,” he added. “You might have just finished a game, driven across the country and woken up to be facing Shoaib Akhtar or Shane Warne the next day. You have to be on your game every day of the week. If you’re not, some of these guys will make fools of you.”As much as England’s domestic system has improved, Law concluded with a note of caution: “I wouldn’t say that England are on the verge of controlling world cricket for the next 10 years just yet. But there are some very promising guys in the county ranks that, in a couple of years from now, could be very good.”

Twelve countries have assembled in England to contest the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy. Wisden Cricinfo takes a look at the teams, their prospects, and some of the names to look out for:

Australia

Andrew Symonds and Ricky Ponting: just two reasons why Australia are the favourites© Getty Images

There’s nothing like a challenge to bring out the best in an Aussie. The Champions Trophy is the one major tournament that has so far eluded their grasp, and that fact alone will make them all the more determined this fortnight. They may not be quite the formidable unit that steamrolled all comers at the 2003 World Cup, but how could a side containing Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist and a resurgent Glenn McGrath be anything other than overwhelming favourites?One to watch
It’s the dawn of a new era of allrounders, and right up there with the best is Andrew Symonds. Like that other Andrew – Flintoff – Symonds has always had ability, but only lately has he developed the intense focus to deal with his immense power. He announced his arrival with a century against Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup, but when he repeated the feat at Lord’s last week, from an equally dicey situation, you couldn’t help noticing that he has morphed into a more violent version of Michael Bevan. His offspin’s pretty handy too, and he rockets returns in from the deep as if he’s got something against the keeper.New kid on the block
While we’re on the subject of allrounders, here’s another useful addition to the Aussie squad. Shane Watson isn’t new new – he first played as a 20-year-old in March 2002, but after being kept out of the World Cup with a stress fracture of the back, he’s back to form and fitness, with a remodelled bowling action and a lust for leather-whacking. Andrew Miller

New Zealand

New Zealand disappointed in the Tests in England earlier this summer, but there wasn’t much wrong with their one-day form, as they spoiled England’s party then blitzed West Indies in the final of the NatWest Series in what was, remarkably, their first one-dayer at Lord’s. And the good news is that most of the injury problems that beset them on that tour have been resolved. Daniel Vettori is back in action, and so is Daryl Tuffey. Brendon McCullum is back after paternity leave. Sadly, Shane Bond is still unable to strut his stuff, but Ian Butler, puzzlingly overlooked for the Tests in England, isn’t far behind him for pace. Their match against Australia could well be the clash of the first round.One to watch
Chris Cairns, no longer a Test player, but still a one-day legend. It was his responsible century that clinched the Champions Trophy for New Zealand – their first victory in a multi-nation tournament – in Kenya in 2000. Since then he’s blitzed his way to the top of the Test six-hitters’ list, and remains a ferocious competitor.New kid on the block
Michael Papps, 25, didn’t feature in the one-day series in England after breaking a finger during his only Test of the tour. But his five ODI appearances so far, all against South Africa last winter, includedmatchwinning innings of 67 at Wellington and 92 not out at Napier. He’sshort, but drives well, and acts as a handy foil to the big hitters down the order. Steven Lynch

United States of America

Their first appearance in the big time, and they couldn’t have landed amore brutal group if they tried. Australians have long had a penchant for annihilating teams with “America” in their title – in 2001, the “Socceroos” football team beat American Samoa 31-0 in a World Cup qualifier, while South Australia’s favourite Canadian, John Davison, recently grabbed 17 wickets in the ICC Intercontinental Cup fixture aganst the USA in Florida. So quite what vengeance the world champions en masse intend to wreak is anyone’s guess. Mind you, America can’t expect the Kiwis to go easy on them either – because if rain happens to wash out the third and decisive match between the big guns, it’ll all come down to net run rate …One to watch
Clayton Lambert may be a venerable 42-year-old, but in his days as a West Indian batsman, he played five Tests and 11 one-day internationals, with a century in each format. A left-hand batsman with a forthright, if crabby, style, he was never one to bother with the orthodox – as an exasperated Angus Fraser would readily testify – so if he can last long enough to get his eye in, we could yet see a reprise of his former glory days.New kid on the block
The entire team … this is a whole new ball game for Team America. They may have taken part in the original cricket international, against Canada in 1844, but it has been a struggle to get the game re-established since. A boardroom dispute has undermined the fledgling professional 20-overs league, and the side has been treading water ever since qualifying for this Champions Trophy at the Six Nations Tournament at Sharjah. Still, there’s nothing like exposure on the big stage for getting a country kick-started. Andrew Miller

Other Pool previews

Pool B – Down on their luck
Pool C – Pakistan in the ascendancy
Pool D – Clash of the resurgents

Glamorgan`s next National League game will take place on Sunday, 8th June againstWorcestershire at the St. Helen`s ground in Swansea. On that day, Swansea will also behosting the Great Wales Triathlon.There will therefore be a small impact as far as access to the Swansea ground is concerned,and in order to minimise the impact, the start time of this match has been put back half anhour to 1.30pm.Whilst the main routes to the cricket ground will be closed from 6 a.m. to 1.00 p.m., alternativeroutes will be available which will enable traffic to reach parking facilities near St. Helen’s.These detours will be signposted off the M4 at Junction 47 and will then lead spectators tothe Recreation Ground Car Park via Brynmill Lane and Bryn Road.There should be no problems after the match with Worcestershire is over because the main roadswill re-open again from approximately 1.00pm.

There was brilliant sunshine when India took on South Africa at theNew Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg on an October Friday afternoon.South Africa is a tough side to beat and to topple them at home isnever an easy task. The last time these two teams met in an ODI was inthe semi final of the ICC KnockOut Tournament at Nairobi; A masterly141 by Sourav Ganguly ensuring that the South Africans were thrashedby 95 runs.South Africans must have been smarting from the loss in Nairobi andIndia had a problem to deal with, finding a fit eleven. The Indianskipper is a key player and he made the right decision to playhimself, despite having injured himself in a warm up game. ShaunPollock’s decision to put Indians to bat first was a surprisingdecision. This was the first match of the tri-series and the SouthAfrican skipper must have decided to give his fast bowlers a chance tohave a go at the Indian batsmen first up.

Unfortunately, the Indian team has a habit of losing their way afteran excellent start. It was an appalling sight to see the Indiansunable to cash in on the good work done by the openers. I am surprisedby the so-called experienced Indian batting, which looks very brittlein the middle.

The first over was a pertinent indicator that Ganguly and SachinTendulkar meant business. The very first ball of the match wasdispatched for a four through cover point by Ganguly, the sheer timingand the lightning fast outfield suggesting that there were a lot ofruns to be scored by the end of the match. Ganguly’s all-round strokeplay and Tendulkar’s mastery must have put the doubts back in to themind of Pollock about his decision to bowl first on a wicket, whichwas a beauty made for batting. The two master batsmen dominated withtheir aggressive strokeplay and went on to show that the highly ratedSouth African fielding can also wilt under pressure.Tendulkar and Ganguly made most of the dropped catches and went on toreach their well deserved hundreds. Even though he has been out ofinternational cricket for the last three months due to an injured toe,Tendulkar once again proved that he is a genius and in a class of hisown.Ganguly’s aggressive batting and the supreme form he displayed shouldsilence his critics. I only hope that Ganguly continues in this richvein, as it will do a great deal of good for Indian cricket. In myopinion he is the best man to partner Tendulkar at the top of theIndian innings.Unfortunately, the Indian team has a habit of losing their way afteran excellent start. It was an appalling sight to see the Indiansunable to cash in on the good work done by the openers. I am surprisedby the so-called experienced Indian batting, which looks very brittlein the middle. The cricket lovers in India must be wondering whetherwe are only tigers against lesser opponents who turn tail when upagainst better teams.South Africans, for their part, played like thoroughbred professionalswith a clear game plan. They showed a lot of character anddetermination in chasing a big total. The remarkable thing is thatthere was only one player who got a hundred, Gary Kirsten. The SouthAfricans though were never in trouble and they exposed the limitationsof the Indian attack.Having said that, I have to comment on Anil Kumble who was making acomeback after a long lay off. Kumble was not in his elements, failingto find the right line and length. He must get his act together to bea strike bowler. After seeing him bowl at the Wanderers, I wonderwhether his long absence from the game has taken a toll on him. Onlygood performances in the following matches will set things right forKumble.The first ODI should be a good lesson for the Indian management, toreview their game plan and even deliberate on the team composition, ifthey have to give the South Africans a good fight during the rest ofthe tour.