Shane Warne has dismissed rumours of an impending ODI comeback for Australia. Warne, back in England for the start of a county season with Hampshire, was reported by AFP saying he had no intention of coming out of his self-imposed one-day international retirement.Warne was mystified by comments made by John Buchanan, Australia’s coach, hinting he might be ready to change his mind in time for the World Cup next year in the West Indies. “I must have said it 14,000 times. I have retired and I have no aspirations to return,” Warne reiterated after skippering Hampshire to victory in their C&G Ttrophy match against Essex at the Rose Bowl.This contradicts statements made by Buchanan, published by Australian papers, which said there had been discussions with Warne about the possibility of a return. “Ricky [Ponting], myself and Andrew Hilditch [chairman of selectors] have all had discussions with Shane about the World Cup,” Buchanan told . “There needs to be commitment or otherwise from him. Either he makes himself available in terms of the team moving forward with its plans, or not. And then the selectors will have some decisions on their plate from there. Shane spoke to us in South Africa, and then again in Bangladesh.”But Warne insisted, “I have to be fair to the squad. There is a lot of cricket ahead in the next year with the ICC Trophy, the VB Series and the World Cup and they have to prepare. I have been out of the limited-overs team for three years and I have absolutely no desire to come back.”I have taken 200 wickets in the last two years in Test matches and that is no coincidence. I have been playing better than ever. John Buchanan must have misunderstood what I was saying and I know people have been saying that I have been talking to Ricky Ponting but in Bangladesh there was not much else to do but talk.”Warne, who missed Australia’s victorious World Cup campaign in 2003 after failing a drugs test which saw him banned from professional cricket for a year, added, “If Ricky said to me at some stage ‘look we really need you’, then I would think about it, but I don’t think it would ever come to that. The team has done really well without me and I will be barracking for them in the World Cup, but not playing for them.”Warne, who has 293 wickets from 194 one-day internationals, subsequently went into voluntary retirement from ODIs. His only appearance since came in last year’s tsunami charity match between Asia and the Rest of the World in front of his home crowd at the MCG, a fixture controversially awarded full limited-overs international status.
After losing their fourth consecutive series to South Africa, West Indies’ coach, Bennett King, has said that their approach will be as positive in the fourth Test – which begins in Antigua tomorrow – as it has been through the series.”People have noticed an improvement in the way the players have been approaching the cricket on the field, but it has not turned into results just yet,” King was quoted by AFP. “Coming into this role, I was not expecting to all of a sudden see West Indies become the No. 1 side in the world. Things take time. It cannot be fixed in a matter of months, but over a period of time.”What the period of time is, I do not know, but if they are not improving from match to match, then I’ll start asking myself questions about if I am doing the job I am supposed to be doing,” he continued. “While the players are still in the process of improving, and they are giving me that feedback, I’ll continue going down the same path for the time-being.”There were two changes to the squad, with Tino Best replacing Reon King, while Ryan Hinds made way for Narsingh Deonarine.Best, who has not played competitive cricket since the England tour last August due to a back injury, said he was raring to go in the fourth Test without feeling the pressures that are part of a comeback. “It is always a good opportunity to play for the West Indies. I relish the opportunity,” Best was quoted in the Jamaica Observer. “I think I’m fit. I’m 100%. I’ve been working hard. The physical trainer is doing a great job so far.”I don’t feel under any pressure. That’s the number one thing you get out of your mind, any pressure on your mind. You just want to go and relax and feel confident. As long as you put on that maroon cap you always feel confident. Just work hard.”However, South Africa are looking to continue piling the misery on their distraught opponents. Graeme Smith indicated that his side would not take things lightly despite winning the series. “One thing we learnt from the eight or nine months of tough times is that we cannot afford to take a Test match win, Test match form or personal form for granted, so we will be looking to perform well out there every single day of the match.”Some people may look back at our victories in Trinidad and in Barbados and may consider them easy, but there were far from being easy wins,” he said. “We have worked very hard for our two victories under some trying conditions. We should never be satisfied with our position, and we should look to take our game up a level or two each time.”
The Indian squad currently touring Australia have impressed many critics with their work ethic and team spirit, and the latest to join their fan club was Bruce Reid, the team’s current bowling coach. Speaking to the Press Trust of India, Reid gushed about the manner in which the Indians approached this tour, right from planning against opposition players to their positive attitude throughout the series. “I was so impressed with their mindset,” he said. “There is much to learn from the Indians for the other Test nations.”Reid continued: “They were just not worried about individual reputations. They just played as they saw it. At team meetings they barely mentioned the names of the Australian bowlers. They played each ball as they saw it, but it was irrelevant who bowled it. I know they rated Jason Gillespie very highly, but they felt the more they talked the bowlers up the more of an issue they would become, so they hardly spoke of them.”Reid also raved about the manner in which the Indian batsmen dismantled Stuart MacGill. MacGill took 14 wickets in the series, but they came at the high cost of 50.79 apiece. “When coach John Wright tried to teach his players how to play spin, they laugh at him. They just don’t rate it. You should use your bat all the time against spin and it seems to get them in far less trouble. All of them play that way. They just try to avoid pad-play.”The Indians’ tendency to back their instincts came in for praise as well. “For all their technical mastery, the Indian batsmen backed their instincts and were not overly obsessed about making technical adjustments to cope with conditions and pitches,” Reid observed. “They never got technical about things at all. In the nets, you would never hear them talking about their backlift or where their top hand was. They just played.”Past Indian teams have often worried about the grass on the pitch, but Reid remarked that this squad wasn’t too bothered, and believed in playing their natural game. “They just didn’t worry at all whether the wickets were fast or slow or whatever. It was the same with practice wickets,” he said. “I’ve played in teams who have whinged about practice wickets but it never worried the Indians. They’d just go in and have a bash.”There was special mention of Akash Chopra, who finished with a modest average of 23, but spent plenty of time at the crease, ensuring that the middle order would not have to face the new ball. “He never made a 50 in the Tests but you cannot underestimate the role he played in sticking around to protect Rahul Dravid from the new ball. It just made a huge difference and it’s been a long time since any openers have done as well in Australia. He is so gutsy.”The team spirit shown by the entire squad didn’t go unnoticed either. “In the past, if they were coming out for warm-ups, some of the older guys and the big individual stars might have come ten minutes after the rest of them. This time they would all come out together. They did everything together.”
PERTH, Dec 21 AAP – Darren Lehmann will open with fellow left-handed batsman Matthew Hayden in Australia’s day-night cricket match against Sri Lanka on Sunday in Perth.Australian one-day captain Ricky Ponting said he had left it up to Damien Martyn and Lehmann to decide who would walk out to the crease with the big Queenslander at the WACA Ground.”He’s done it before for us as had Damien Martyn, but I just left it up to those two guys to see who wanted it the most and Darren was the one,” Ponting said.Lehmann, 32, will also shoulder the vice captaincy in the absence of Adam Gilchrist who is sitting out the match with niggling injuries.It will be just the fourth time the South Australian has opened the innings for Australia in 84 internationals.Ponting said the match against the struggling Sri Lankans would be a good test for the home team without injured spin king Shane Warne and Gilchrist.He said it would be a good opportunity to grab a psychological edge over the tourists before next year’s World Cup in Africa.The last time the two sides met Sri Lanka defeated Australia in the semi-finals at the ICC Champions Trophy in Colombo in September.They meet this time with contrasting form with the men from the subcontinent being thrashed in South Africa and losing their opening two matches of the tri-series in Australia to England.Meanwhile, Australia has been untouchable this summer.”Not having Gilly and Warney around, two of the more senior members, will be a little different for me,” Ponting said.”But saying that, we still have a lot of very experienced guys in the team like McGrath and Bevan and Lehmann – it will be a test for all of us tomorrow,” he said.The tourists have been disappointing in their opening two one-day matches with batsman struggling on bouncy wickets at the WACA and the Gabba, and fieldsmen missing eight regulation catches in two matches.Classy left-arm paceman Chaminda Vaas and young right-arm quick Dilhara Fernando were excellent in their side’s 95-run loss to England last night but were badly let down in the field.Sri Lankan coach Dav Whatmore bemoaned his team’s dropped catches which included a straightforward opportunity to dismiss century maker Paul Collingwood on 11.He said the team’s lack of confidence in the field was spreading like cancer while captain Sanath Jayasuriya looked totally devastated after last night’s loss.”We are just not playing well at the moment, the confidence is down obviously,” Whatmore said.”It is almost like a cancer isn’t it, it just runs through a team and we’ve all experienced it before.”Jayasuriya said his team had no excuses for not adapting to the lively WACA pitch despite being used to the much flatter tracks of their homeland.”We have played well here before, we have won matches here before and I think there are no excuses that we can’t play well here at the moment,” he said.England lead the tri-series competition by a single point but have played two more games than both Australia and Sri Lanka.
I had thought leaving Saqlain Mushtaq out of the first test was a bad mistake. Little did I realise that worse was to follow. How can you drop arguably the fastest bowler in the world from your team? This decision can be nothing short of a calamity. The Old Trafford pitch has a bit of grass on it and the ball is bound to reverse swing, provided the weather stays dry for the entire duration of the game. Alas! We will be without our fastest bowler who must dream of such conditions. I am sure Shoaib must be disappointed and fuming in the dressing room. I just cannot understand the wisdom behind his omission, especially after we played him at Lord’s when only half fit.Waqar elected to bat first and Pakistan raced to 86 before lunch, but they committed the cardinal sin of losing three wickets in that period. Darren Gough did not look at his best today and bowled far too many loose balls.Saeed Anwar looked to attack and smashed a couple of early boundaries. The makeshift opener Razzaq seemed extremely apprehensive. He offered a simple catch to Atherton on the very first ball he faced, who surprisingly spilled it. There was nothing positive about Razzaq today. Perhaps the extra burden of opening the innings had played tricks in his mind. He half-heartedly prodded at a ball from Caddick and deflected it onto his stumps.Young Faisal looked determined and played a couple of nice shots. His exit came as a shock to me. It was a soft dismissal. Gough, having been wayward and expensive, tried him with a short ball and instead of playing it close to his body with soft hands, he pushed hard at it and gave a simple catch to short leg.
Inzamam played some magnificent strokes. The straight drive, which brought him his 5000 test runs, was a beauty. While Inzamam was in prime form, Saeed started to look very fidgety. He was extremely uneasy against Mathew Hoggard, but it was Caddick who finally dismissed him. In Saeed’s defence I would say that it was a good ball. It bounced and left him, and most batsmen would have struggled against it anyway.In an adverse situation you need lady luck smiling at you. Inzamam nicked the first ball after lunch to Stewart but fortunately was a no-ball. And player’s like Inzamam do not need a second chance. His innings was the best I’ve seen him play. He was simply in prime form. From the first ball he faced, he was swashbuckling, aggressive and tormenting the bowlers. Even though he lost Youhana straight after lunch, he never lost his grip on the game. Youhana chased a stock delivery from Caddick and was caught in the slips. Youhana is a key figure in our team and his poor form in this series is quite worrying.
What can I say about Younis Khan! This young man is destined to be one of the great players for Pakistan. I could never understand why Pakistani selectors were ignoring him in the home series against England. He has a good technique, is brilliant in the field and above all, scores his runs at a rapid rate, which gives your bowlers more time to bowl out the opposition. If we work hard on his approach to the game, we might convert him into one of the best number-three players in the game. He was immensely unlucky to get out just before tea. Padding up to an innocuous delivery from Hoggard, he was adjudged leg before wicket. Cricket is glorious, but can be unforgiving and cruel. Younis deserved a century in this game. I am sure he is going to score plenty of centuries for his country in future.Inzamam finally played a tired looking stroke and was caught at cover point off Hoggard. I shall treasure his innings for the rest of my life. He has had a golden year and long it may continue.Pakistan players have looked focussed and rejuvenated in this innings. So far in this game there has been a sense of purpose in their every stride. Sigh, if only they’d start playing every game with this very spirit!England bowlers conceded a lot of boundaries but their spirit never flagged. Pakistan batsmen scored at a rapid rate but the bowlers never gave up and kept picking up wickets at important intervals.Azhar Mahmood played a significant innings under the circumstances but, like all his predecessors, perished when he looked in complete command of the situation.Because of the time lost in the morning, the post-lunch session was extended. England bowlers looked tired and devoid of direction in the evening, a mistake for which coach Duncan Fletcher will not let them go scot-free. There will be a postmortem to why Inzamam was allowed to score 82% of his runs on the leg side. Rashid also capitalized on their flagging spirit and played a gem of an innings later in the day.Wasim Akram did not learn from the last test. His body weight remained on his back foot, resulting in his own downfall. The Pakistan batsmen scored their runs at a furious pace, giving themselves a chance to win this match. I don’t think Nasser Hussain would have permitted Pakistan such freedom.On an excellent batting pitch, Pakistan has posted an imposing score on the first day. Waqar Younis was totally vindicated in electing to bat first. Rashid Latif was nearly as good as Inzamam and Younis but perhaps not as imperious. Pitch has behaved in favour of the batsmen, yet the omission of Shoaib Akhtar might cost them the final glory.
Ed:Mudassar Nazar is a veteran of 76 tests and 122 ODIs. He is currently the chief coach of Pakistan’s National and Regional Cricket Academies. In view of the overwhelming interest of users in CricInfo’s articles, we have invited him to write for us.
Eddie Howe would have been left equally frustrated and delighted with his Newcastle United troops after their 2-2 Premier League draw with Chelsea on Saturday lunchtime.
On one hand, it was definitely an improvement from the lifeless showing served up against Sunderland in the Tyne-Wear Derby, as the Magpies raced into a two-goal lead in the first half.
Unfortunately, though, Howe’s hosts would have to settle for just a share of the points come the final whistle, as Joao Pedro – who was once on Newcastle’s transfer radar – scored the equalising strike for Enzo Maresca’s comeback kings late on.
Still, Nick Woltemade would have been overjoyed with his own personal efforts, as his own goal in that tense showdown at the Stadium of Light has now been quickly shoved to one side, with the electric brace he managed to pick up against the Blues.
Woltemade's redemption arc vs Chelsea
The towering German would steal the show with his first-half double, with the ex-Stuttgart goal machine presumably overjoyed at the final whistle, after he was public enemy number one against the Black Cats.
The Bremen-born menace will hope he can recapture his best form at St James’ Park now, with just one weak goal next to his name from his previous eight Premier League clashes, heading into his inspired showing against the West Londoners.
Still, despite falling victim to barren patches of form, Woltemade has a bumper nine goals to shout about from 23 Newcastle appearances and counting, with his £69m price tag more than justified when he’s at top form for Howe and Co.
Woltemade will just hope he can be more consistently clinical, with one of his attacking teammates against Chelsea, arguably reinforcing his tag as being a better signing than the expensive German, despite also being prone to hit-and-miss displays on Tyneside.
The Newcastle star who has been a better signing than Woltemade
For how much he cost – which was a record fee for the Toon – Newcastle will just want Woltemade to be capable of hitting his lethal heights on a more regular basis.
Yet, he is only human, with Anthony Gordon, who has partnered the 6-foot-6 marksman an awful lot this season, also letting his performance levels worryingly drop at stages this campaign.
Indeed, the former Everton winger was even accused of entering “Gabriel Obertan territory” by one analyst when he was deep in a poor patch of form, who notably flopped on Tyneside after a major move from Manchester United, with a concerning zero goals or assists heading his way across his first seven Premier League outings of the season.
He was also heavily criticised after the sobering Sunderland loss when failing to register a single shot at Robin Roefs’ goal from a forgettable 22 touches. But, he more than redeemed himself against Chelsea by reminding everyone at St James’ Park why he once cost a whopping £45m to obtain from the Toffees, when looking lively throughout, to stick out as a better purchase than Woltemade.
Gordon’s performance in numbers vs Chelsea
Stat
Gordon
Minutes played
72
Goals scored
0
Assists
1
Touches
37
Accurate passes
13/16 (81%)
Key passes
2
Big chances created
2
Accurate crosses
2/5
Total duels won
5/6
Stats by Sofascore
After all, for £24m less than the former Bundesliga star, Newcastle have managed to win themselves a talent who has a stunning 55 goal contributions for the club, with his assist for Woltemade’s second of the day an inch-perfect cross for the lofty German to tap home.
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Sky Sports’ Andy Sixsmith also declared Gordon as being “well and truly back” to his best against the Blues, with his “tireless” work ethic clear for all to see when winning five duels.
Moreover, it isn’t out of the question that Gordon could be sold on for some mega bucks down the line if he can keep up his blistering return to form, with the Liverpool-born attacker once on the shopping list of the Reds, allegedly, for a mammoth £100m.
On the flip side, while Woltemade is a beloved individual already with the Toon, with the aforementioned Sixsmith boldly labelling his link-up play as “mesmerising”, it could still be argued that Newcastle overpaid somewhat for his services, as his Transfermarkt valuation sits more around the £61m range.
Gordon will pray that he’s out the other side of his dreadful performances for this season, with the gung-ho winger – on his day – Newcastle’s “best player” according to Howe, and he could be viewed as an even better pick-up than the much-talked about Woltemade, for what he’s been able to gift the Toon, ever since walking out of Goodison Park.
Move over Woltemade: 9/10 Newcastle star is looking like another Shearer
Eddie Howe is nurturing a truly special up-and-coming talent at Newcastle
Sachin Tendulkar said he was happy to have notched up his first hundred at the Adelaide Oval, one where he hadn’t made much of an impact earlier. Returning to the city where he met Don Bradman in 1998, he brought up his sixth hundred in Australia and second of the series.”I knew that Adelaide hasn’t been a great ground for me,” he said after his unbeaten hundred at the end of the first day. “In 1999 I scored 65 runs here and that was my best, so I was determined to get a big one here. It also happens to be Sir Don’s home ground. I wasn’t thinking about that while batting out there but am very pleased to have got a hundred at this venue.”Tendulkar admitted that this was one of his most complete innings, talking about how certain balls went exactly where he intended. “The first straight drive off [Brett] Lee gave me a lot of confidence,” he said. “I middled it and the shot went exactly where I wanted it to go. In the next over I repeated it [against Mitchell Johnson]. So I took it from there.”There are days when you are moving well, days when you’re not. There are also days when you middle the ball and days when you don’t. You need to wait for that moment. I’ve felt those moments off and on in my career. Any hundred is special but when the team really needs one, it means more. Today there were big shots in between and defensive ones too. It was important we [Laxman and him] just stayed there and played according to the merit of the ball. We needed to play out the good spells properly.”Tendulkar has received an overwhelming reception in Australia, entering to standing ovations and being cheered throughout. No other Indian batsman has been accorded such a warm applause. “It’s truly special,” he said, “and sometimes I need to look at the scoreboard to figure out whether I’m 100-plus or zero. It means a lot to me and would like to thank each and every person for treating me like this. It makes every trip of mine very special.”Like in the first two Tests, Tendulkar was particularly severe on Brad Hogg but denied having “targeted” him for punishment. “Any bowler can get you out, you don’t want to take anyone for granted,” he said. “It all depends on the flow of my innings. If I pick the ball early enough, I will put it away. There were patches when he bowled well and patches when I felt I could put the ball away. Whenever I got the opportunity I made it count. That was my strategy.”Tendulkar went from 86 to 100 in a sequence that read 4,2,6,2, smashing the part-time spin of Michael Clarke. “I thought the wind was behind me and wanted to use it,” he said. “I knew if I middled the ball, it would clear the field. Even if I don’t middle it the wind would work.”I was very positive at that stage and if the ball was there to put away, I was prepared to do that again,” he said off the six that took him to 98. “When I played that off-drive [to get to 100], I played inside out, though it was not a half-volley. I had that chance to force the ball. I got the time to force it a little bit.”He was pleased to have weathered the old-ball burst from Lee – “he has been their stand-out bowler” – and thought India would need to bat as long as possible to increase their chances of leveling the series. “I think to put up a big total in the first innings would be the key. Later on I think the wicket might have some big cracks. Ideally we would like to score as many runs tomorrow. The first session will be very important.”
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMatch package Bulletin – Hayden sets up thumping victory Verdict – A rebuilt opener Quotes – ‘Australia didn’t permit themselves to be tested’ – Lara Plays of the day – Lara smashes, Samuels swishes Audio – Ian Chappell: Australia win comprehensively Stats – Driving it straight and hard Plays of the Day – The big hits and misses Gallery – Powerful Aussies take control Preview package Preview – Underdongs don’t need to fear Australia Stats – Ponting and McGrath have point to prove Quotes – Lara upbeat ahead of Australia clash News – A guide to the Super Eights
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) made short work of Karachi Harbour, through a convincing nine-wicket victory, with over two days to spare in their Pentangular Cup match at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Thursday.PIA had gained a first innings lead of 77 in the opening day, after having made 172 in their first innings following Karachi Harbour’s crash to 95 all out. PIA’s Fazl-e-Akbar ran through the latter’s second innings with figures of five for 23 in 13 overs as Karachi were bowled out for 151 in their second innings. PIA needed just 75 runs to win and they attained the target with the loss of one wicket.Fazl-e-Akbar was ably supported by fellow pacemen Najaf Shah and Jannisar Khan, who picked up two wickets each while Kamran Sajid, the medium pacer, eliminated teenaged left-hander Fawad Alam (24), who had started to look dangerous for a while.PIA thus made amends for a similar nine-wicket defeat at the hands of Faisalabad in their first-round match at Lahore last week. While PIA will get to rest in the third round of the tournament, Karachi Harbour will be playing against Sialkot in their next match starting at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore from Tuesday April 11.Faisalabad continued to dominate their second-round Pentangular Cup match against national champions Sialkot, as they finished the second day at the Gaddafi Stadium on Thursday, 200 runs ahead in the first innings.Faisalabad resumed at their overnight score of 354 for 5 and were all out for 408. Sialkot in reply had slumped to 208 for seven by the day’s close. They still require another 51 to avert the follow-on.Shahid Nazir (3 for 60), Asad Ali (3 for 58) and Ahmed Hayat struck crucial blows as none of Sialkot’s first six batsmen managed to reach even the 30s. Tahir Mughal, the captain, crossed the barrier and was unbeaten on 37 at stumps, having batted for a little over an hour and a quarter, facing 59 balls and hitting four boundaries.There were useful contributions by most Sialkot batsmen but none really got going. Earlier, Asim Butt, the fast-medium bowler, hastened the end of Faisalabad’s knock by capturing six wickets for 85 runs.The overnight unbeaten pair of Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Salman took their sixth-wicket partnership to 138 runs, after which the last four wickets added only 14 more. Misbah missed his century by just seven runs, having made his 93 off 160 balls with 11 fours while Salman scored 52.
It was the 100th Test match for Inzamam-ul-Haq, and he marked that occasion in style, becoming only the fifth batsman to celebrate the landmark with a century. However, Inzamam became the first to achieve the feat overseas: Colin Cowdrey played his 100th Test at Edgbaston, Gordon Greenidge in Antigua, Javed Miandad at Lahore and Alec Stewart at Old Trafford. Like Inzamam, Miandad had also achieved the landmark against India, in 1989-90.
The 312-run stand between Inzamam and Younis Khan is Pakistan’s best partnership in India. However, it still isn’t the best for the third wicket for Pakistan – that honour is taken by Miandad and Mudassar Nazar, who put together a mammoth 451 against India at Hyderabad (Sind) in 1982-83. (Click here for Pakistan’s highest stands for each wicket in Tests.)
Inzamam’s century also lifted his average against India, which was an ordinary 38.30 before this game, to 52.46. Even if he gets out at the overnight score tomorrow, his average will still be 48.71.
If he scores 16 more, Inzamam will become the first double-centurion in a Test at Bangalore. Before this innings, the highest score in Bangalore was Sachin Tendulkar’s 177 against Australia in 1997-98.