Out with the old, in with the new. Harmison makes way for Broad© Getty Images

England’s two most senior bowlers, Steve Harmison and Matthew Hoggard, have paid the price for their poor performances in last week’s 189-run defeat against New Zealand at Hamilton. Both men have both been dropped for Thursday’s second Test at Wellington, with Stuart Broad and James Anderson coming into the side at their expense.The decision marks the end of an era for England. With 460 wickets between them in 124 appearances, Harmison and Hoggard have formed the backbone of their Test attack for the best part of five years, including the seminal Ashes victory in 2005. But the pair were badly off the pace in Hamilton, where they took the combined figures of 2 for 278, and in the opinion of their captain, Michael Vaughan, the time is right for a revamping of the attack.”It was a very tough call,” said Vaughan, “but we had a gut feeling that we needed to make a change. The attack needed a bit of a shake-up and it’s a great opportunity for Jimmy and Broady to establish themselves at this level, and stamp their authority on Test cricket. I also hope that Matthew Hoggard and Steve Harmison really fight and try to take their places back because that will create a healthy environment.”Though Harmison’s axing had been on the cards ever since his lacklustre display in Hamilton, the decision on Hoggard was more of a surprise. He has had an unlucky year with injuries, in which he completed only two of England’s 11 Tests in 2007, but in his last-but-one outing in Galle in December, he claimed four first-morning wickets to give his side the brief ascendancy. This is the first time that he has been dropped since the corresponding tour to Sri Lanka in December 2003, and in that time he at one stage appeared in 40 consecutive matches.”He’s been and hopefully will be a tremendous bowler for England again,” said Vaughan. “He’s always been a dream to captain and I expect to captain Matthew Hoggard again in the not-too-distant future, because that’s the kind of character he is. I hope they both bounce back. It’s not a nice thing for me to do, to tell two players I’ve played basically all my Test cricket with that they are not in the team.”But we all know how both of them can bowl and at the minute not bowling to the standards they set themselves,” said Vaughan. “I really hope they react in a positive fashion. If they don’t play next week, I hope they go back to their counties, start the season well and fight back into the Test team.”In the meantime, it is all about the new incumbents. Anderson has been around the England Test team ever since 2003, but has failed to claim a regular berth, although at the age of 25, his best years should be ahead of him. Broad meanwhile played a solitary Test at Colombo in December, in which he performed admirably on a lifeless track, taking 1 for 95.Both men have cemented themselves as regulars in the one-day side, although New Zealand’s batsmen dented their confidence during the recent 3-1 series defeat, especially Anderson, who was dispatched for 86 runs in ten overs in the tied match in Napier. He has since found some form in a solitary outing for Auckland against Wellington, taking 2 for 95 from 38 overs in an innings defeat, and Vaughan was happy that the time had come for him to be unleashed.”We have seen Jimmy for a while now, and he’s got a hell of a lot of talent,” said Vaughan, who recalled his Man of the Series performance against India last summer, in which Anderson took 14 wickets in three Tests. “He then played one game in Sri Lanka and got dropped, so he deserves his chance. When you’re in positions like we are, you have to make that gut feeling. He’ll be looking to establish himself for the distant future, and that’s the opportunity for all the players.”England 1 Alastair Cook, 2 Michael Vaughan (capt), 3 Andrew Strauss, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ian Bell, 6 Paul Collingwood, 7 Tim Ambrose (wk), 8 Stuart Broad, 9 Ryan Sidebottom, 10 James Anderson, 11 Monty Panesar.

Scorecard

	Chris Harris powered the Hyderabad Heroes into the semi-finals © Cricinfo Ltd

An impressive all-round display helped the Hyderabad Heroes book their place in the semi-finals with a 33-run win over the Chandigarh Lions. Chris Harris, the Heroes captain, was the star of the show, top scoring with 38 off 26 balls and picking up two wickets in his three overs.The Lions, who were already out of the reckoning to progress further, won the toss and put the Heroes in. The had success early, with Jimmy Maher playing Ishan Malhotra straight into the hands of Lou Vincent of backward point in the first over, which was a maiden.Abdur Razzaq brought some momentum into the innings with five boundaries during his 29, but when he and Nicky Boje fell in quick succession, the Heroes were still off the pace at 54 for 4.Justin Kemp and Chris Harris then took charge with an unbroken 65-run stand to guide the Heroes to a challenging total of 148. Kemp hit three sixes in his 35, but Harris did more damage during his 38 off 26 deliveries. Harris’ former New Zealand team-mate Daryl Tuffey suffered the most; his four overs went for 42 runs.Matthew Elliott got the Lions off to a blazing start in response, before Alfred Absolem trapped him leg-before on 34. Ibrahim Khaleel then had a busy time behind the stumps, effecting three stumpings off three different bowlers, and the Lions were left struggling at 68 for 4.Dinesh Mongia chipped in with 37, but the Lions couldn’t make a fist of it as the Heroes sealed their spot in the semis.

	The TV cameras wanted Sanath Jayasuriya during the innings break, but they had to settle for Shaun Pollock © Cricinfo Ltd

A boost from the boss
Kolkata Knight Riders’ co-owner and Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan, who cheered and danced as his team got off to a victorious start, was missing when they came down crashing against the Chennai Super Kings in their third game. This time he didn’t miss the action, and came down to the dugout before the start of the game to personally greet each player.Duck, wait and hit
Runs were coming at a trickle for Kolkata – at least by Twenty20 standards – when Shaun Pollock brought himself on for his second spell in the 11th over. David Hussey had already smashed him over extra cover, and Pollock bowled a slower bouncer on the final delivery. Hussey did not pick it initially, and he looked set to let it go. But the ball took ages to arrive, by which time the batsman adjusted, and a last-minute dab, almost out of the wicketkeeper’s gloves, set the ball running to the boundary.A quick bite, Sanath
No doubt the television producer is under pressure to drag out the top performer and put the camera in his face for a mid-innings or post-match interview, but in the mad rush one still needs be logical. Sanath Jayasuriya was the star in the field for the Mumbai Indians, but he also opens the innings and was rushing back to the dressing room to change and pad up in the break. But the television guys cut short his progress requesting him for a quick chat. Obviously the Sri Lankan legend was annoyed. Mumbai coach Lalchand Rajput settled matters and Shaun Pollock, the second-best performer, faced the camera instead.Missing revenge
Chasing 138, Mumbai had been reduced to 25 for 3. Ashok Dinda had dismissed Manish Pandey for a duck and Robin Uthappa should have been his second victim. Uthappa slapped a short delivery to the left of backward point, where Debabrata Das reached out, but the ball didn’t stick. Das had fluffed the chance to avenge his dismissal – Uthappa took a catch to his left at point to end the debutant’s innings on 29.Come on Billy, raise that finger …
… would have been the refrain from the Kolkata crowd when Murali Kartik rapped the batsmen twice on the pads and led loud appeals from the home team. But umpire Billy Bowden didn’t budge. Perhaps Sourav Ganguly should have considered a change of ends for the spinner.Coincidences
Till today’s game, Sanath Jayasuriya’s quiet time in the IPL hadn’t helped the cause of the Mumbai Indians. But after his four-over spell, his figures read 3 for 14, uncannily similar to his 3 for 12 off seven overs against India in the 1996 World Cup semi-final at the same ground. He took two catches then, and the 38-year-old showed he was no slouch, pouching two, the first of Sourav Ganguly at wide slip ample proof the reflexes were still top-notch.

Johann Myburgh scored 88 off 58 balls to lead Hampshire to a competitive total against Windward Islands, after which Hamza Riazuddin’s four-wicket spell helped secure a narrow victory, and with it a spot in the Caribbean T20 final. Hampshire had a solid start to their innings, with Jimmy Adams and Myburgh adding 47 in 6 overs before Adams was run out. Myburgh provided the acceleration, striking six sixes during his half-century, while James Vince made 36 off 32 balls. Myburgh, who was eventually bowled by Mervin Matthew with the score on 160, was the only batsman dismissed by a Windward bowler. The other three wickets in the score of 166 for 4 were run out.Windward lost Johnson Charles early but Andre Fletcher and Devon Smith steadied the chase. They didn’t score at breakneck speed but they led Windward to 75 in the 10th over, when Riazuddin struck for the first time, getting Smith caught behind. Keddy Lesporis was run out for 6 but Windward were still in it, at 114 for 3, when the 16th over began. In that over, Riazuddin ripped out three wickets, reducing the innings to 116 for 6, and severely broke Windward’s momentum. Riazuddin finished with 4 for 15, and even though Matthew blasted 27 off 15, Windward fell four runs short.Trinidad & Tobago’s passage to the final was easier as they beat Jamaica by eight wickets with 13 balls to spare in the second semi-final. The result ensured T&T’s qualification to the Champions League later this year by virtue of being the best Caribbean side in the competition.Jamaica’s innings failed to take off as wickets fell regularly and the run-rate struggled to rise over six. The top four batsmen fell for less than 20 and strike-rates of less than 100. Wavell Hinds and Andre Russell provided some stability, scoring 23 and 36, but the tail folded after their departures. T&T legspinner Samuel Badree, who opened the bowling, finished with 1 for 15 in four overs, while Ravi Rampaul and Sunil Narine picked up two wickets each. T&T needed only 137 to set up a summit clash with Hampshire.The top order did the job, with Adrian Barath making 37 and Lendl Simmons contributing 51. Darren Bravo continued his impressive form, scoring 25 off 19 balls at No. 3, to lead T&T to 140 for 2 in the 18th over. Of the six bowlers Jamaica used, only Jerome Taylor took a wicket.

It may not have looked so at any stage of the seven days of Test cricket between India and South Africa so far, but the visiting batsmen did everything they could to prepare for their trial by spin.Led by Hashim Amla, who assistant coach Adrian Birrell has called “the most precise preparer for a match that I have ever met,” they conducted “very specific training,” to try and simulate the Indian spinners. Their specialist slow-bowing consultant Claude Henderson “threw,” in the words of Birrell, left-arm spin to get them used to facing Ravindra Jadeja. Birrell himself rolled back the years to his legspinning days to bowl like Amit Mishra although he was “not even close.” They brought in youngsters at every venue of the series to try and mimic R Ashwin’s threat. They batted on scuffed up pitches and put themselves under match pressure. Yet after all that, they have not been able to answer the challenge. Why?”Unfortunately, we are not quite as good as Ashwin,” a resigned Birrell said. In these conditions who is?”He is tighter than anyone else. He doesn’t give us any bad balls and maybe that’s been the difference,” Birrell said. “We dished up a few easy runs and yet we’ve had to fight for every run. He doesn’t give you those bad balls. He keeps the pressure on all the time, and he’s at the top of his game. He’s really in form and he’s an outstanding bowler. He can bowl on any surface.” And if South Africa can get the better of him, even in a dead rubber, they will leave India somewhat satisfied they achieved something.”We are here to fight,” Birrell said. “I like Hashim’s words – win or lose you need to put up an honourable fight. That was the case in this last Test and we’ll put up an honourable fight again in this Test. The guys are determined to put in a good performance.”South Africa may have conceded the series, but they have enough reason to regard the Delhi Test with as much importance as they would any other match. Another defeat would make it the first time since 2006, the same year they last lost a series away from home, that they have come second best thrice in a series. To win would require an effort in adaptability that seems beyond this South African line-up on although Birrell begs to differ.Like others in his camp, including Amla and du Plessis, Birrell expects turn again but unlike them, he was optimistic of an even contest. “We are playing in India so we expect the pitches to turn. This one looks like it will go more than three days. We are happy with what we see,” he said, referring to a strip which seems harder and less cracked than the one in Nagpur.Birrell also tried to distance the South African team from the criticism that clouded the Nagpur match, which seemed designed not to go full term. “We are not complaining. We are playing in India and we are playing in India’s conditions.”Instead, Birrell focused on the changing nature of Test cricket which has become more cut-throat and intense. “Look at it beyond India and more worldwide. There are a lot of Tests not going the full five days. There are very few draws,” he said. “The game is a lot faster. Runs per over are a lot quicker. I don’t think there are too many easy games. Every Test I have been involved in over the last two-and-a-half years has been very competitive and very tense. I think that’s good. It’s probably the way that Test cricket should be. It’s got to be tense and be competitive and there is a lot on the line.”With so much at stake, South Africa remain hopeful they will be able to use their premier pacemen Dale Steyn. who has not bowled since the first innings of the Mohali Test when he suffered a groin strain. Steyn will undergo another fitness test on Wednesday to determine his availability.The same wide berth may not be given to a few others. Stiaan van Zyl and Dane Vilas may be sweating over their sports, especially after Birrell hinted South Africa may make use of some their reserves. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there were one or two other faces in the XI.”

ScorecardFile photo: Mohammad Hafeez took three wickets before falling for a two-ball duck•Getty Images

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited’s pacers, along with Mohammad Hafeez, put themselves in a strong position by dismissing United Bank Limited for 208 on the first day of the Quaid-E-Azam Trophy final in Karachi. However, Hafeez could not follow his three wickets with any runs as he fell for a duck, and SNGPL finished the day on 35 for 2, with a trail of 173 runs.Opting to bat, United Bank saw a steady start from openers Shan Masood and Sharjeel Khan with a stand of 71, which was dominated by Sharjeel. Hafeez then struck in consecutive overs and Sharjeel also fell for a 77-ball 73 before the team score could reach 100. No other batsman could reach 50 after that. Pacer Azizullah trapped Younis Khan (16) and Sohaib Maqsood (18) lbw, leaving United Bank on a precarious 126 for 5.No. 6 Hammad Azam (39) helped the score towards 200 along with Gulraiz Sadaf, who stayed unbeaten on 27, as they lost their last five wickets for 24 runs. Bilawal Bhatti, who had also dismissed Sharjeel, took the last two wickets in the same over to finish with 3 for 39. Hafeez ended with 3 for 45.SNGPL lost Hafeez on the second ball of the innings and would have ended on 35 for 1, but also saw Hussain Talat fall for 10 in the last over of the day.

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.

A fractured left thumb has ruled Bhuvneshwar Kumar out of the T20 series against Australia. Rishi Dhawan, who is part of India’s ODI squad, will stay on in Australia as Bhuvneshwar’s replacement.Bhuvneshwar picked up the injury while trying to stop a David Warner straight drive off his own bowling during the fourth ODI in Canberra. The injury forced him out of the fifth ODI in Sydney, with India picking the debutant Jasprit Bumrah in his place.Ajinkya Rahane also sat out the Sydney ODI with an injury, having split his webbing while fielding in Canberra. Gurkeerat Singh has been named as cover for Rahane in the T20 squad.The three-match T20 series will begin on Tuesday in Adelaide.

West Indies women will tour Netherlands for four one-day internationals and two Twenty20 games between July 1 and 9. This series follows their tour of Ireland in June.They will open with a Twenty20 on July 1 and play two ODIs before breaking for another Twenty20 on July 6. The last two ODIs will be played on July 7 and 9. After that West Indies will travel to England for two ODIs on July 11 and 12.West Indies last toured Netherlands five years ago for the International Women’s Cricket Council Trophy and they won four out of their five matches there. Their last international outing was the World Cup 2005 in South Africa. Netherlands are better prepared for the series, having played the World Cup qualifiers in February.West Indies in Netherlands schedule
July 1 – 1st Twenty20
July 2 – 1st ODI
July 3 – 2nd ODI
July 6 – 2nd Twenty20
July 7 – 3rd ODI
July 9 – 4th ODI

England's World Cup squad numbers may have given a strong indication as to which players will start the first game against the United States in Rustenburg next week.

Fabio Capello and his 23-man squad touched down in South Africa on Thursday morning before travelling to their training base at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Campus.

The England contingent were greeted by local dignitaries and residents in a colourful welcome ceremony before the Football Association revealed the squad numbers for the players during the tournament.

David James has been given the number one jersey despite West Ham's Robert Green being widely tipped to start as England's first-choice goalkeeper.

The widely predicated back four of Glen Johnson, Ashley Cole, captain Rio Ferdinand and John Terry are numbers two, three, five and six respectively.

Peter Crouch may be given the nod to start alongside number ten Wayne Rooney in attack after being handed the number nine shirt.

Fellow strikers Jermain Defoe and Emile Heskey have been named as numbers 19 and 21 respectively.

Meanwhile, Aaron Lennon could be the set to start the tournament as the first-choice right-sided midfielder after taking the number seven jersey.

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Elsewhere in the first 11 numbers on the official list submitted to FIFA, Steven Gerrard is number four, Frank Lampard eight and Joe Cole number 11.

Following the curtain-raiser against the USA, England then play Algeria in Cape Town on June 18 before completing their Group C programme with a match against Slovenia in Port Elizabeth five days later.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email