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Cooper & ten Doeschate seal win

Tom Cooper’s first effort stood out for its maturity as he made an unbeaten 80 to guide Netherlands to a six-wicket win with three balls to spare over Scotland at Hazelaarweg in Rotterdam

Cricinfo staff15-Jun-2010
Scorecard
In a game in which five players made their one-day international debuts, Tom Cooper’s first effort stood out for its maturity as he made an unbeaten 80 to guide Netherlands to a six-wicket win with three balls to spare over Scotland at Hazelaarweg in Rotterdam. He put on 158 for the third wicket with Ryan ten Doeschate, who missed out on a fourth one-day international hundred but did enough in his 101-ball 90 to secure the win after Richie Berrington’s 84 had helped Scotland set 235 for 6.Cooper, who was born in Wollongong and represented Australia Under-19s, came to the crease as early as the sixth over when opener Eric Szwarczynski fell to Matthew Parker – another player making his ODI debut. ten Doeschate, who is regarded as one of the finest allrounders in Associate cricket, joined him in the 14th over with the match in the balance after Alexei Kervezee’s dismissal saw his side slip to 50 for 2. Both batsmen started their innings very cautiously before gradually beginning to play with more fluency and taking control of the game.While Cooper was content to anchor the innings, ten Doeschate opened up after reaching his half-century and struck five fours and two sixes before he was dismissed with the win, and his century, in sight in the 45th over. Netherlands still needed to score at a-run-a-ball when he left the crease, but they still had seven wickets in hand and despite Bas Zuiderent’s departure in the penultimate over they were always cruising. Cooper was named Man-of-the-Match for his innings.Richie Berrington’s well-paced innings appeared to have set a competitive total as he steadied Scotland’s middle order in a see-sawing first innings. Josh Davey and Preston Mommsen, also debutants, put on a steady 43 but then fell within three overs of each other as Scotland slipped to 55 for 2. Berrington and Gregor Maiden, who struck a breezy 31, seized back the initiative with a 47-run stand in under nine overs before offspinner Adeel Raja struck back with the wickets of Maiden and Qasim Sheikh in the midst of an economical five-over spell.With Sheikh’s dismissal, Scotland were 131 for 4 and struggled to build momentum before Neil McCallum was pinned in front of his stumps for 11 by Mudassar Bukhari to reduce the visitors to a shaky 155 for 5 in the 38th over.But Berrington found an able partner in Douglas Lockhart, putting together a 71-run stand – the highest of the innings – to stretch Scotland’s score past 200. Though Berrington fell to ten Doeschate in the closing overs, Lockhart remained unbeaten on 31 at the close and Parker found the boundary in the final over to boost the total. Raja and ten Doeschate were the pick of the Dutch bowling attack with two dismissals apiece, taking wickets at crucial times to finish with combined figures of 4 for 54 from 15 overs.

Bollinger aims for final flourish

Doug Bollinger has admitted that it would be “devastating” to concede a one-day series whitewash to England, but is confident Australia can regain some pride in the final two matches after their late surge at Old Trafford nearly pulled off a stunning come

Andrew McGlashan28-Jun-2010Doug Bollinger has admitted that it would be “devastating” to concede a one-day series whitewash to England, but is confident Australia can regain some pride in the final two matches after their late surge at Old Trafford nearly pulled off a stunning comeback.England lost six for 18 in 38 balls as a comfortable chase turned into a nerve-jangling conclusion before Tim Bresnan edged James Hopes to seal victory and give the hosts an unassailable lead in the series.
Bollinger had been a major factor in the late jitters as he removed Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad in his last over with reverse swing, while the recalled Shaun Tait and legspinner Steven Smith also made England sweat.However, for a large part of the match Australia had been a distant second best once the opening stand of 75 between Shane Watson and Tim Paine was broken, leaving the visitors in the almost unknown position of having to save face at The Oval and Lord’s this week.”We’d love to stop them, 5-0 would be devastating,” said Bollinger.
“But we’ve just got to go out there and do everything properly and hopefully win the next two; 3-2 would still be disappointing but it would be two good wins.”It isn’t the start we wanted being 3-0 down but there isn’t much we can do. Everyone went out and played their guts off and sometimes it just doesn’t work out. We can’t whinge about it, we just have to try and finish well in these two one-dayers before the T20s and Tests against Pakistan.”Bollinger, though, conceded that England have made huge strides with their one-day game since the 6-1 thrashing by Australia last year and will be a tough side to compete with after the confidence gained from recent limited-overs success.”They’ve come on massively, especially with winning the Twenty20 they are sky high at the moment,” he said. “Everyone in their team has got their game together. We have to lift 10-15 percent and we are capable of doing that. Nobody likes a winning team unless it’s your own but we’ll be alright.”Despite Australia’s problems in the series, Bollinger has continued his impressive form of the last nine months which as seen him become the team’s premier strike bowler. The partnership with Tait, who was limited to two-over spells by Ricky Ponting in his first ODI since February 2009, certainly gave the attack an added dimension after it had looked pedestrian in the opening two encounters.”It was good to drag them back a bit in those last 10 overs and that means everything is starting to come together,” said Bollinger.
“Hopefully we can build on that. We’ve been very successful in the last few years and a couple of losses probably isn’t that bad even though nobody likes to lose.”

Porterfield hundred end's Gloucestershire's wait

Will Porterfield finally ended Gloucestershire’s century jinx with a career-best 175 out of a total of 324 for 4 on the opening day against Worcestershire at Cheltenham

04-Aug-2010
ScorecardWilliam Porterfield celebrates Gloucestershire first Championship hundred of the season•PA Photos

Will Porterfield finally ended Gloucestershire’s century jinx with a career-best 175 out of a total of 324 for 4 on the opening day against Worcestershire at Cheltenham. It was the first ton by any of the county’s batsmen in County Championship Division Two this season after no fewer than six scores of 90-plus by team-mates.Porterfield received good support from Alex Gidman (40) and James Franklin (50 not out) as Gloucestershire recovered from the early loss of Jonathan Batty. Matt Mason was the pick of the Worcestershire bowlers with three for 68 off 23 overs.After Batty’s miserable season with the bat continued when he was lbw to Mason for a single, heavy rain threatened to wipe out the day’s play with the home side on 6 for 1. But an early lunch was taken and only nine overs had been lost when the match resumed at 1.10pm.Hamish Marshall helped Porterfield take the score to 52 before fending at a delivery from Mason that bounced more than he expected and was well taken at first slip by Vikram Solanki. Porterfield demonstrated his growing confidence by lifting Alan Richardson over mid-wicket for six but he had a life on 31 when Daryl Mitchell spilled a difficult chance above his head off Mason.The Ireland captain gathered momentum and moved to 99 with a third pulled six, this time off Shakib Al Hasan. The following delivery brought a sumptuous back-foot shot through the off side for a boundary and a century off 118 balls, which also featured 13 further fours.It was clear to see what the ton meant to Gloucestershire as a team. Batting partner Gidman raised both arms with clenched fists as if he had got the ton and then embraced Porterfield in mid pitch. Gidman contributed well as the hosts added 120 in 30 overs for the third wicket before he got a good one from Mason to give Solanki his second slip catch.That was 172 for 3 but Franklin soon joined Porterfield in putting on some of the most attractive batting of the day. The New Zealand allrounder hit a glorious straight six off Moeen Ali and looked in excellent form. That also applied to Porterfield, who reached 150 off 199 balls and then reverse swept Shakib for his 23rd four.On 39, Franklin benefited from a missed stumping as Ben Cox failed to gather the ball when he was beaten by Moeen. Porterfield then hit his fourth six to beat his previous best first-class score of 166, made for Ireland against Bermuda in a 2007 Inter-Continental Cup match.He looked on course for a double hundred when miscuing a ball from Shantry to mid-on where Mason took the catch. It was the 209th ball Porterfield had faced and his final boundary count was 26 fours and four sixes. Franklin’s fifty was brought up in 122 balls, with four fours and a six.

ICC World XI to tour Pakistan 'in due course' – Clarke

ECB chairman Giles Clarke has said an ICC World XI will tour Pakistan “in due course” since it is still not possible for national teams to visit the country

Cricinfo staff17-Aug-2010ECB chairman Giles Clarke has called for Pakistan’s return as a host of international matches and said an ICC World XI would tour the country “in due course” since it is still not possible for national teams to visit. Pakistan has not hosted international cricket since the March 2009 terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka team.”World cricket must keep giving Pakistan cricket the chance to fund itself and move forward, to do something for the spectator in Pakistan,” Clarke wrote in the September issue of magazine. The security challenges are enormous but we cannot allow the terrorists to win. They must lose by an innings – repeatedly.”So world cricket must go back and play in Pakistan. I do not think it will be possible for individual national teams to tour yet. But with determination and courage an ICC World XI in due course will go and play against Pakistan in her great cities and there will be a marvellous atmosphere.”He said the cricketing world could not afford to forsake a country with such fervent fans and a strong history in the game. “Cricket cannot abandon a nation with such a magnificent history in the game, such wonderful players and such enthusiastic and knowledgeable supporters. It will be an historic moment when international cricket resumes in Pakistan and the first ICC team walks out.”Clarke, who is also chairman of the ICC’s Pakistan Task Team, revealed that the inability to host international cricket has resulted in the PCB’s income falling from £27 million to £10 million, “a brutal impact that few enterprises could survive; terrorism does not care about its human consequences” he said.The ECB plans to host more neutral matches featuring Pakistan to help the PCB with its finances. “The ECB intends to assist in staging more Pakistan games here [England] in 2011 and 2012,” Clarke said. “The atmosphere, the passionate support and, of course, the tremendous cricket played by the Pakistan team made it a compelling experience. The PCB’s economic needs make it imperative.”Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman welcomed the announcement and expressed his gratitude for Clarke’s efforts. “It is indeed heartening to note that the cricket fraternity is working on revival of cricket in Pakistan. I am very grateful to Mr. Giles Clarke who is a dear friend of Pakistan, for pursuing our case and working tirelessly in bringing international cricket back to Pakistan,” he said.Ijaz Butt’s views were echoed by Pakistan captain Salman Butt, who said it would be a major boost for followers of cricket in his country. “It would be wonderful to have any kind of international cricket going on in Pakistan and if all the players can come and do this favour for Pakistan cricket it would be wonderful.”People of Pakistan are cricket lovers and they are their heroes not only from Pakistan but from around the world and they love watching them. hey are great admirers of people playing around th world so if that happens it would be great for Pakistan cricket,” he said.England captain Andrew Strauss said the initiative would benefit Pakistan’s young players who would needed exposure at the highest level. “The key for them is to get as much cricket as possible. They’ve been starved over the last couple of years. For some of their younger players, the more experience they get the better they’ll be. The international cricketing community has to help out teams like Pakistan who have difficulties at home,” he said.Strauss was open to the possibility of touring Pakistan with the World XI side, provided it were declared safe. England’s 2008 tour of India was jeopardised by the Mumbai terrorist attacks, forcing the squad to head back home midway through the ODI series. Strauss was part of the Test side that returned to India to play a rescheduled series. “In the wake of Mumbai bombings, I’ve always felt it was wrong not to go somewhere if security people said it was safe. They make that judgment with as much information as they can. If they said it was safe to go I’d certainly consider it.”Strauss said that while the cricketing world had a responsibility towards Pakistan due to their situation, it should not extend to the field of play. “With the natural disasters there, some of the difficulties they’ve had in terms of terrorism over the last couple of years it’s very difficult for their players to keep their minds on the job and play at their best. We can have sympathy for them in that sense, but it doesn’t come into it on the pitch. It’s like getting into a boxing ring: you can’t have sympathy for the guy you’re competing against,” he said.

Battered Pakistan fold on day one

Plays of the Day from the first day of the second Test between England and Pakistan at Edgbaston

Andrew Miller at Edgbaston06-Aug-2010Review of the day

Andrew Strauss laughed knowingly on the eve of the Test when asked if he was learning whose judgment he could trust in matters of UDRS referrals, and whose he could not. On the evidence of the day’s first over, Strauss had presumably bracketed James Anderson in the former category, seeing as he agreed to take a second view of a somewhat speculative lbw appeal from only the second ball of the day. In fairness, it pitched in line and only just skimmed over the top of middle stump, but given that the onfield decision would have stood in the event of a borderline verdict, it was still a bit of a waste.Review of the day Mk 2

Talking of which, Strauss himself had an unfortunate brush with the big screen when his own turn came to bat later in the day. He had moved along to 25, the highest score at the time on another crazy day, when Amir zipped a full-length delivery back towards his body and through to the keeper amid a blur of deflections. England’s captain stood his ground, albeit somewhat sheepishly, as Zulqarnain Haider – showing impressive judgment for a debutant with a first-ball duck to his name – insisted on using a review. Sure enough, the ball had clearly jagged off Strauss’s gloves on its way past his body, and he was sent on his way to a mild ripple of admonition.Debutant of the day

That moment aside, the most memorable day of Zulqarnain’s life soon ended up as one he’d prefer to forget. Shortly before lunch he snicked an off-stump delivery from Broad to become the 55th batsman to make a golden duck in their first Test innings, and in the evening session he dropped a leg-side catch off Kevin Pietersen that was the exact replica of the only thing that his predecessor behind the stumps, Kamran Akmal, had got right in the course of his shocking match at Trent Bridge. Then as now, the bowler was Umar Gul, who zipped one off the seam to find the inside edge. But where Kamran clung on, Haider made a hash.Comeuppance of the day

After a flawless performance from the cordon at Trent Bridge, Graeme Swann – aka Mr Second Slip – had a premonition of events to come. “It was the worst possible start we could have done,” he said during the build-up to the second Test, “because now everyone thinks were are going to catch everything!” Lo and behold, who should bring an end to their 100% series record than Swann, who was fooled by a Stuart Broad delivery that squared up Umar Amin and squirted off a leading edge straight into his midriff … and out again. One ball later, Amin edged once again, but this time for four as the ball looped clear over the cordon’s head.Clanger of the day

At least Swann could say that his let-off wasn’t costly, as Pakistan were already six-down at the time, and the reprieved Amin was dismissed four overs later. Imran Farhat, on the other hand, had fewer reasons to be exonerated. Not only were his bowlers busting a gut to keep their team in the game, having extracted both openers on 44, and created this next opportunity 10 runs later, but he had committed a near-identical sin at Trent Bridge last week, when he dropped England’s centurion, Eoin Morgan, early on the second day. This time the sinned-against bowler was Asif, who did well not to lamp his team-mate in his follow-through, as a regulation nick went to ground at first slip.Shot of the day

Umar Akmal does not believe in waiting for the ball. He believes there is no ball that is unplayable. Already he had picked off six runs including a clipped four off the first two balls he faced. So when Broad pitched full but on an unthreatening length slightly outside leg stump, Umar used his strong and supple wrists to flick it over deep square-leg for a surprising six, half an hour before the lunch break. It was an aberration in an otherwise perfect nose-dive of an innings, as he soon ended up as part of Pakistan’s lunchtime scoreline of 37 for 6.Run-rate of the day

Until Akmal arrived to apply a relative measure of humpty to the innings, Pakistan had limped along to 12 runs for three wickets in 14.2 overs. England, by contrast had no such agonies when their chance came soon after lunch. By the time Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook had picked off a boundary apiece in the first over of Mohammad Amir’s reply, they had scored more runs, 9, in four deliveries than Pakistan had managed in 10 overs. Their eventual total of 72 was their joint fourth-lowest total in Tests, and the second time in a week that they had improved on their worst effort against England.

Provident, Diamonds ease into semis

Round-up of the thirteenth day’s action in the Karnataka Premier League

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Sep-2010Bangalore Provident (Rural) eased to a seven-wicket win against Belagavi Panthers at the Chinnaswamy Stadium to book their place in the KPL semi-final. The Panthers, asked to bat, could only muster 113 as left-arm spinner Arjun Shetty grabbed four wickets to make Provident’s task easier. Wicketkeeper Vinayak Uthappa made a run-a-ball 27 and offspinner Akshay chipped in with 20 but their effort was inadequate. Provident, in their reply, lost a couple of early wickets but Amit Verma (34) and Sunil Kumar Jain (51*) steadied the ship in a 82-run stand and victory was achieved with 3.2 overs to spare.Bangalore Brigadiers (Urban) earned a consolation win against Bijapur Bulls at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, beating them by 49 runs. Openers Syed Ibrez and Deepak Chougule added 91 for the first wicket in just 10.3 overs, laying a strong platform. Nikhil Kashyap then stepped up at the death, smashing 34 off 14 balls to propel Brigadiers to 184. The Bulls faltered at the start of their chase, losing their openers early. Stuart Binny tried hard to keep them in the hunt with a quickfire 44 which included four fours and three sixes. But once he fell in the 13th over with the score on 120, the innings fell apart. The Bulls were bowled out for 135. Left-arm medium-pacer TK Ananth and left-arm spinner Narayanan Vinu Prasad grabbed three wickets each.Shamanoor Davangere Diamonds topped the KPL table with a six-wicket win over Mysore Maharajas at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Chethan William, the Mysore captain, top scored with 37 but was short of support from the rest. The Diamonds bowlers, in a collective effort, managed to restrict Mysore to 122. In their reply, the Diamonds were boosted by a strong start by the openers. Mayank Agarwal made 27 in a first-wicket stand of 49 and Pavan Deshpande anchored the chase with a run-a-bal 51 to see his team through with eight balls to spare.

PCB cautions Afridi for criticising selection

Shahid Afridi has been cautioned by the PCB after expressing his unhappiness with the selection of the squad he will lead against South Africa in Abu Dhabi and Dubai later this month

Osman Samiuddin12-Oct-2010Shahid Afridi has been cautioned by the PCB after expressing his unhappiness with the selection of the squad he will lead against South Africa in Abu Dhabi and Dubai later this month. The board announced a 15-man squad to play two Twenty20s and five ODIs last week, but didn’t initially name a captain. Afridi was named captain a day later, but not before fuelling speculation that he and the board were unhappy with each other.”The team was announced without my input and advice,” Afridi told . “I wanted 2-3 players other than Sohail Tanvir in the side.” Afridi, currently in Lahore leading the Karachi Dolphins in the domestic Twenty20 Cup, said he would speak to the chairman Ijaz Butt about the squad. Butt is, however, currently in Dubai for an ICC meeting.But the statements have earned him an official rebuke from the board. “He has been sent a letter today [Tuesday] telling him to avoid giving such interviews,” a board official told ESPNcricinfo. The official clarified, however, that the communication was not a show-cause notice.Afridi’s comments strengthen suspicions of Butt’s growing influence in selection matters and the shaping of squads. ESPNcricinfo has been told, by reliable sources, that coach Waqar Younis was also not consulted over the selection. Waqar arrived in Lahore early Monday from Sydney and the source said he was “quite upset” about it. Last Friday, when Misbah-ul-Haq was appointed Test captain, chief selector Mohsin Khan had distanced himself from the decision and said that Younis Khan was the preferred choice of his committee.Traditionally, the PCB chief has only signed off on final squads and appointed a captain, not involving himself to any extent in the composition of the squad itself. That has been left to the chief selector, captain and coach. Butt’s two years as chairman, however, have seen six different captains, five chief selectors and three coaches; the constant state of flux, according to one ex-selector, has concentrated power in the chairman’s hands.”This has gotten particularly worse since Mohsin Khan became chief selector,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “Until Iqbal Qasim [predecessor to Mohsin] was there the chairman would never attend selection meetings. Now Mohsin doesn’t consult with his own committee and only gets instructions from the chairman and essentially says yes to whatever the chairman has said.” Earlier this year, in June, the same criticism was levelled at Mohsin and Butt during the announcement of the squad for the series against Australia in England.

van Wyk, Bracewell star in Central Districts win

Central Districts took just over 30 overs on the fourth day to beat Wellington by 243 runs at Nelson Park in Napier

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Nov-2010Central Districts took just over 30 overs on the fourth day to beat Wellington by 243 runs at Nelson Park in Napier. But the margin of victory doesn’t tell the entire story. At one point Central Districts were in trouble at 66 for 6 in their second innings. It took a 187-run stand between wicketkeeper Kruger van Wyk and seamer Doug Bracewell to set Wellington a target of 405 in the fourth innings.Joshua Brodie and Cameron Merchant played confidently at the end of day three to set up an interesting last day with Wellington needing 344 more to win with nine wickets in hand. Central Districts’ opening bowlers Michael Mason and Ben Wheeler quickly made it a one-horse race, though. Wheeler dismissed Brodie and Neal Parlane off consecutive balls before Mason struck twice in two overs to reduce Wellington to 79 for 5. Wheeler and Mason both finished with three wickets apiece, as did left-arm fast bowler Mitchell McClenaghan, who wiped out Wellington’s tail.The win was set up by van Wyk and Bracewell in the third innings, after Central Districts had taken a 87-run lead in the first innings. Both fell in sight of well-deserved centuries. Andrew Lamb took both wickets to return with figures of 6 for 70 in the second innings.Wicketkeeper Joe Austin-Smellie took six catches in the first innings, while a steady 80 off 141 balls from Brad Patton helped Central District reach 293. Wheeler took 6 for 60 in Wellington’s first innings to give Central District the advantage, before Van Wyk and Bracewell set up the win.Otago and Northern Districts began the season with a draw as batting seemed to gradually become easier at the Queenstown Events Centre. Otago’s decision to bat ran into early trouble as seamer Graeme Aldridge prised out early wickets to leave them stuttering at 38 for 4 and later 84 for 5, before Sam Wells and Derek de Boorder began to resist. Wells struck 14 fours and a six in his 70 that came off 97 balls while de Boorder fell eight short of a maiden first-class ton after steering his side past 300. Aldridge finished with six wickets.Northern Districts’ reply featured several significant contributions, but none that was substantial enough for a huge lead. Six batsmen scored over 31, but the highest score was Joseph Yovich’s 61, after opener Brad Wilson made 60. Neil Wagner did the most damage, finishing with figures of 6 for 55 as Norther Districts finished 74 ahead. Otago’s second innings too began in shaky fashion and, at 33 for 4 early on the third morning, they were in a tight spot. The Broom brothers, Neil and Darren, however came together to steer them to safety. The pair added 252 runs for the fifth wicket before Darren fell for 112. Neil pressed on with the tail to reach a double-hundred that included 22 fours and a six before Otago declared, setting Northern Districts 365 to win in around half a day’s play. The visitors chose caution over valour, with openers Brad Wilson and Daniel Flynn scoring steady half-centuries, as the game petered into a draw.Canterbury and Auckland were involved in a game of fluctuating fortunes that eventually ended in a stalemate at Village Green in Christchurch. Canterbury chose to bat and began in determined fashion as Rob Nicol, supported by Michael Papps and Rob Nicol, laid the foundation for a big score. Nicol made 75 before No. 5 Dean Brownlie took charge of the innings with an assured 151 off 248 balls inclusive of 18 fours. Reece Young and Todd Astle chipped in with significant contributions to push the score to 435 for 9 when the hosts decided to declare.Auckland’s innings began in disastrous fashion, with Ryan McCone removing both openers for ducks. Things got progressively worse from there and, at 29 for 4, Canterbury would have nursed hopes of pushing for an innings win. Colin de Grandhomme began the resistance along with Anaru Kitchen, the pair adding 76 to weather the storm. Kyle Mills stepped up after de Grandhomme’s exit, contributing 69, while Kitchen reached his maiden first-class ton before Auckland were bowled out for 289, conceding a 146-run lead. Micahael Papps and Peter Fulton led Canterbury’s second innings with half-centuries, before offspinner Bhupinder Singh stalled them with four cheap wickets. The hosts declared at 187 for 7, setting Auckland a target of 334 with most of the final day’s play remaining. Auckland began with a draw in mind, but Bradley Cachopa and Andrew de Boorder scored fluent half-centuries that might have left Canterbury sweating. Mills joined in the fun again, scoring 45 off 52 balls, but it was not enough to force a result.

Khawaja hundred sets up New South Wales victory

Usman Khawaja’s maiden one-day century set up a dramatic three-run victory for New South Wales over South Australia at North Sydney Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Dec-2010
Scorecard
Usman Khawaja finished with 121, his first one-day century•Getty Images

Usman Khawaja’s maiden one-day century set up a dramatic three-run victory for New South Wales over South Australia at North Sydney Oval. Michael Klinger’s century and a late blitz from Daniel Christian looked set to ensure the Redbacks would pass their target of 318, but the Blues held on thanks to a terrific final over bowled by Brett Lee.South Australia needed eight from the last over, and it began with the key wicket of Aaron O’Brien, who was caught behind for 52. With the established man gone, Tim Ludeman and Gary Putland couldn’t manufacture a win for the visitors, who had also had to contend with Doug Bollinger (3 for 59), fired up by his axing from the Test team.The narrow victory almost mirrored the difference at the halfway mark, when the Redbacks at 3 for 105 fell just short of claiming one point, taken by New South Wales, who had made 1 for 110. The star was Khawaja, who missed out on a Test call-up on Friday but made sure he will remain in the selectors’ thoughts with 121 from 105 deliveries.It was only Khawaja’s eighth one-day match, as he has mainly been used in the longer formats by the Blues. He was ably supported by another young batting star on the rise, Nic Maddinson, who made 65 from 56 balls to help New South Wales to their strong total of 6 for 317.Klinger’s patient 103 set up South Australia’s chase, which was given a monstrous boost by the in-form Christian, who enjoyed the small dimensions of the ground and slammed 85 from 40 balls, including six sixes. But in the end it wasn’t enough, and New South Wales have jumped to the top of the Ryobi Cup table.

Resurgent Hussey gives Australia the edge

The Ashes contest lived up its billing of being too close to call on a fluctuating day at the Gabba

The Bulletin by Andrew McGlashan26-Nov-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMichael Clarke was given a torrid working over before falling to Steven Finn•AFP

The Ashes contest lived up to its billing of being too close to call on a fluctuating day at the Gabba. England’s bowlers staged a spirited fightback before being quelled by a resurgent Michael Hussey, whose unbeaten 81 gave Australia the edge when bad light ended play. The hosts lost four wickets during the afternoon session as James Anderson and Steven Finn produced fiery spells, but Hussey was joined by Brad Haddin and the sixth-wicket pair added 77 to leave Australia sensing a vital lead.We’ll never know what the Australia selectors would have done if Hussey had failed in the second innings of the Sheffield Shield match against Victoria last week, where he struck a hundred after an 18-ball duck in the first innings. His first ball today was inches short of reaching second slip but that was about his only alarm during an assured display, where his attacking approach against Graeme Swann laid down a marker for the series. Five fours and a six came against the offspinner, who, along with the quicks, regularly dropped short to feed Hussey’s pull.However, England’s attack showed enough to suggest they can more than hold their own in Australian conditions with Anderson the most impressive as he began correcting a poor record down under. Not only did he claim two vital wickets, but his economy of under two meant the hosts didn’t race away. As a whole, England maintained good control when wickets weren’t falling although Finn’s two successes came at a slightly high cost.England were denied the early breakthroughs they wanted during the morning session as Shane Watson and Simon Katich rode the occasional moment of good fortune. The first major alarm came when Katich, on 22, raced off for a single into the covers, which Watson declined. A direct hit from Alastair Cook would have had Katich well short but the throw missed, while Matt Prior couldn’t reach the stumps in time.The tussle between Watson and England’s quicks was engrossing. The bowlers targeted his pads and Watson responded with handsome straight drives, but he also got into a tangle against a well-directed short ball from Broad which struck him under the arm and lobbed just clear of the stumps.

Smart Stats

  • Michael Hussey’s half-century was only his third fifty-plus score after the 134 against Pakistan at the SCG in January 2010. Since January 4 2010, Hussey averages 32.81 in eight matches. He averages 62.69 against England with two hundreds and seven fifties.

  • Ricky Ponting fell for only his third score below fifty in matches at the Gabba since December 2003. He has three centuries and six fifties in twelve innings at an average of 80.60.

  • Marcus North fell below ten for the 15th time in 33 innings. He has been dismissed for a duck on five occasions. In the remaining innings, he has five centuries and four fifties, but is yet to score a single hundred at home.

  • Shane Watson and Simon Katich were involved in their ninth fifty partnership. Among Australian opening pairs who have aggregated more than 1200 runs, they have the second highest average.

  • Katich has made eight hundreds and 17 fifties in 32 matches since May 2008 at an average of 52.38. He has made a fifty-plus score in 22 out of 32 matches since May 2008. Prior to that, he averaged 36 with two hundreds and six fifties in 23 matches.

England thought they’d broken through when Katich was given lbw against Anderson but the decision was overturned on referral for height, then the visitors tried their luck with a review against Watson but it was only clipping leg stump and couldn’t be changed. By now, tensions were starting to mount – especially between Anderson and Watson – but to Anderson’s credit he kept his composure and his line as Watson edged a good-length delivery to first slip.Anderson then gave the team a perfect start after lunch when Ricky Ponting glanced an edge down the leg side. With his tail up, Anderson gave Clarke a working over and was well supported by Finn, who produced a fine spell having begun nervously on his Ashes debut.Katich had reached a nuggety half-century from 103 balls but hadn’t added to his score when he scooped a full delivery back towards Finn, who stooped low in his follow-through to hold a fine catch for such a tall bowler. Having made an impact, Finn then found Hussey’s edge first ball but the nick fell agonisingly short of Swann at second slip.England were convinced they had Clarke caught behind before he’d scored when Finn nipped one back to find the inside edge and they used up their final review after Aleem Dar said not out. However, Hotspot didn’t show an edge so the decision was upheld, although Snicko – which can’t be used as part of the UDRS – did suggest a feather from Clarke’s bat.England had a stranglehold over Australia but Hussey broke the shackles with two pulls off Finn. There was then a clear indicator for the series as Hussey took the attack to Swann – who had previously bowled two one-over spells – and used his feet to on-drive a six before cutting through the covers. When Swann continued to drop uncharacteristically short he was pulled twice through midwicket.Finn, though, returned for another spell and made an immediate impact when Clarke’s painful 50-ball innings ended with a top-edge pull. Clarke had already been struck on the helmet and the glove by Stuart Broad as he refused to attack the short ball, and his first attempt at something aggressive brought his downfall. Swann, whose first four overs cost 34, then produced his best delivery of the innings that spun to take the edge of North’s bat as he collected his latest failure which will reignite the debate over his position at No. 6.Haddin, who is playing his first Test since March following injury, immediately looked solid at the crease and after tea began to chip away at a tiring attack, while Hussey maintained his role of aggressor. Hussey’s fifty came from 85 balls and the midwicket fence continued to be his favoured location for boundaries. England were desperate to reach the second new ball, but the moment it became available the light closed in, followed shortly by rain, which meant the next key stage of this match had to wait. The morning should be compulsive viewing.