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* India’s top pacemen to train under LilleeThe fast bowlers in the Indian team for the upcoming one-day triseries have all been told by Indian coach John Wright to undergo aspecial training stint with legendary fast bowler Dennis Lillee at theChennai-based MRF Pace foundation. Senior quick Javagal Srinath hasthough been allowed to stay back at Bangalore.”Venkatesh Prasad, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Reetinder Singh Sodhiand Harvinder Singh will undergo a special stint under the watchfuleyes of (Australian pace guru) Dennis Lillee at Chennai from September14-17,” BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele told cricketnext.com.”Wright had advised us on this matter at the selection committeemeeting (to pick the squad at Mumbai on September 7), but at that timeLillee’s scheduled arrival had not been finalised,” he added.Prasad, Khan, Nehra and Sodhi have all been named in the 15-man squadfor South Africa. Harvinder is reportedly one among the five stand-byswho could get a call-up if one of the main players is found to beunfit.It must be remembered that a column on appeared on CricInfo, dated 4September 2001, that advocated this very move.* Mumbai HC dismisses claim challenging clothing sponsorship contractThe Mumbai High Court on Tuesday dismissed the appeal filed by GayatriArts, a city-based company, challenging the BCCI’s decision to awardclothing sponsorship for international matches for the next threeyears to the International Management Group (IMG). Gayathri Arts hadcontended that the contract be scrapped as they had made the highestbid of Rs 90 crore. But Justices Ajit Shah and Sharad Bobde dismissedthe appeal as they found that no contract was concluded between BCCIand the company.* BCCI name manager for SA tourDr MK Bhargawa of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association has beennamed the manager of the India team for South Africa, according to areport in cricketnext.com. “The president has decided that Dr Bhargawawill be the manager,” BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele told the site. DrBhargawa had managed the team when India visited Australia in1999-2000.”Yes, there was some talk that Shivlal Yadav (former Test off spinnerand national selector and current secretary of the Hyderabad CricketAssociation) may be sent as manager, but finally the president haschosen Dr Bhargawa”, Lele added.* Young bowler in hospital after being hit on the eyeK Kaushik, a 19-year-old medium pacer, playing in the Moin-Ud-Dowlahtournament lost an eye after being hit by a full-blooded drive onTuesday.Kaushik, appearing for Districts XI on Tuesday, was bowling to SudhirWankhede of the Railways when the latter stepped out and smashed adrive straight back at him. It hit Kaushik on his left eye after hefailed to get out of harm’s way. He was immediately shifted to ahospital where doctors operated upon him. They could not howeverconfirm whether the youngster would regain his vision.

Spurs have been handed a major boost in their quest to sign Nottingham Forest full-back Djed Spence in the summer transfer window.

What’s the story?

Writing on Twitter, journalist Jacque Talbot said: “Understand Djed Spence is a target for a number of Premier League clubs – Tottenham included. Their MD, Fabio Paratici, watched the youngster at City Ground during Nottingham’s 4-1 FA Cup win over Leicester in February.”

That was then followed up by news from Goal.com, who claimed that ahead of a number of other clubs, it’s Spurs who are leading the race to sign Spence come the summer transfer window and that they are considered the full-back’s most likely landing spot.

Fans will be buzzing

With him currently playing for a side sitting ninth in the Championship, it’s fair to say Spence may not have been a real household name earlier this season.

However, his superb performance against Arsenal in the FA Cup saw him catch the national eye, and it left former Gunners icon Ian Wright raving about him after.

He said: “But let me say, that was one of the best right-back performances I have seen for a very long time. A very long time. I have not seen a combative, technical, swashbuckling performance like that for a very long time.”

It’s no surprise then that clubs like Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund are both said to be keeping an eye on him, while Spurs’ north London rivals Arsenal have also been following him.

Goal’s update that it’s the Lilywhites who are at the head of the queue, especially in front of those Bundesliga juggernauts, is a very encouraging boost for Antonio Conte and his plans to rebuild this squad in his own image in the summer.

The north Londoners of course were linked with a move for Wolves flier Adama Traore amid suggestions they wanted to see him as a right wing-back, so making a move for Spence carries a lot of weight.

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The 6 foot star’s arrival at Spurs would be a superb signing for Conte, and it’s news that will have fans buzzing.

Meanwhile, a Dane Scarlett claim has been dropped…

Sunil Narine, the West Indies offspinner, has been reported for bowling with a suspect action during the third ODI against Sri Lanka in Pallekele.Narine finished with figures of 0 for 24 in the Pallekele ODI, which Sri Lanka won by 19 runs based on the Duckworth-Lewis method. The match officials’ report, handed to the West Indies team management after the game, cited concerns about the legality of Narine’s deliveries.Narine will need to undergo testing on his action within 14 days, and will be permitted to continue bowling until the results of his testing are known.This is the first time Narine has been reported in an international game, though he has undergone scrutiny of his action during the IPL and the Champions League T20. He was reported twice in two matches during the 2014 edition of the CLT20, forcing him to miss Kolkata Knight Riders’ final against Chennai Super Kings.Though he was free to bowl in international cricket, West Indies withdrew Narine from their tour of India to allow him “the opportunity to have his action assessed and plan his return to cricket”. West Indies left him out of all their subsequent international assignments until they picked him for the 2015 World Cup. Though he had remodeled his action in the interim, Narine pulled out of the tournament, saying the return would be “a little too much too soon”.Narine endured further trouble with his action during the 2015 IPL – he was first cleared to bowl in the tournament, reported and sent for a re-test, banned from bowling his offbreaks, and then cleared again, with a “final warning”.The Sri Lanka tour was Narine’s first international tournament since August 2014. He picked up four wickets at an average of 18.00 in the three ODIs, while conceding 3.34 runs per over.

Chris Adams’s 193 has helped Sussex to a very strong position © Getty Images

Division One

Sussex are closing in on a crushing victory at Horsham, after piling on the runs in the first innings and then reducing Durham in their second innings to 108 for 6. Durham now trail by a significant 200, with four wickets in hand. Four wickets apiece for Liam Plunkett and Paul Wiseman were scant consolation as Sussex, led by Chris Adams’ 193, racked up 517. Sussex now have two more days to close out the match, but they will be confident of doing so on the third.Anthony McGrath’s 24th first-class century helped Yorkshire to a solid position against Warwickshire at Edgbaston, after losing the first day to rain. McGrath was unbeaten on 142 at stumps, and he was well supported by Younis Khan’s 49 – together they put on 87 for the third wicket – and particularly so by Jacques Rudolph. The pair added 177 for the fourth wicket.

Division Two

Weighty contributions from Somerset‘s top order, including Marcus Trescothick’s 146, consolidated a promising position at Taunton. Neil Edwards missed out on a fourth first-class hundred, when he fell for 96, while Justin Langer added 83 as Somerset battered their way past Northamptonshire‘s 221, to take a first-innings lead of 238. When Northants batted again, they lost Chris Rogers and Stephen Peters almost immediately, courtesy of the inevitable Andrew Caddick and Charl Willoughby, but Usman Afzaal (46) and David Sales (12*) began to repair some of the damage. Nevertheless, Somerset are very much in the box seat.David Hussey’s century gave Nottinghamshire a steady platform against Gloucestershire after play finally got underway at Trent Bridge following a first-day washout. Notts eased to 259 for 4, with Hussey unbeaten on 114. The early loss of Stephen Fleming for 1 did not hamper the home side, Jason Gallian making 45 and then Mark Wagh easing to 74.

‘Percy Sonn was a a pioneer of the struggle against apartheid, as well as a pioneer of the unification of South African cricket’ © Getty Images

Percy Sonn, former president of the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA) and now president of the International Cricket Council, has been made an honorary life member of Cricket South Africa.”Percy Sonn has been made an honorary life member because he has devoted more than 30 years to the administration of cricket in South Africa,” Ray Mali, president of Cricket South Africa said after the general body meeting on August 3 at which the UCBSA changed its name to Cricket South Africa.”He was a pioneer of the struggle against apartheid, as well as a pioneer of the unification of South African cricket that led to its current membership of the ICC,” Mali added. “It is a great feather in the cap of South Africa that he now holds the highest office in world cricket”.President Thabo Mbeki led the tributes to Sonn when he was sworn in as ICC President on 7 July 2006. “The president, government and the people of South Africa congratulate advocate Sonn on his appointment as ICC president.”

Ken Gordon: ‘Our first task is to resolve the WICB and WIPA conflict’ © Trinidad & Tobago Express

In a bid to end the impasse between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA), Ken Gordon, the new WICB president, disclosed the board’s intentions to introduce central contracts by the end of the year.Currently, the players are given contracts for every tour, whereas most players in other countries are contracted throughout the year, providing additional stability with the sole responsibility of training for, and playing, cricket.”In recent times, we’ve had discussions from people in places like Australia and England,” Gordon was quoted as saying in , “but what was responsible, particularly in the English team, for transforming the team from the relatively indifferent performances you had five or six years ago to the hard, professional unit they have become – and in every case we were told – [was] that it was putting the players under contract, so the players had contracts where they worked full time at cricket.”Our first task is to resolve the WICB and WIPA conflict,” he continued. “We’ve set that as a clear and distinct objective to be achieved before the end of December, and hopefully well before that. Second is to finalise arrangements to place on contract a minimum of 10 players for the West Indies team.”Moving in the same direction, the players association has called on Tim May, the chief executive officer of the Federation of International Cricket Associations, to help resolve the contract dispute, which has kept several top players like Brian Lara, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Chris Gayle out of the game, and resulted in a second string squad being sent to Sri Lanka.”Mr May will be meeting with us to give his experience of dealing with similar situations that have arisen in the Caribbean recently and pass on some of his knowledge of dealing with such a situation,” Ramnarine told the . May is also expected to meet with Gordon.May, who recently resigned as the chief executive officer of Australian Players Association, is vastly experienced in players’ issues, and is also responsible for negotiating with the ICC on behalf of all players who participate in the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean.

West Indies Cricket Board XI 82 for 2 (Joseph 42*, Bravo 23*) v BangladeshisScorecardWith the start of the Test series only days away, the Bangladeshis once again displayed the competitive streak that had taken them close to success during the one-day series. Though more than half of the first day’s play against a West Indies Cricket Board XI was washed out, Bangladesh bowled with discipline and purpose to restrict them to 82 for 2 from 40 overs.Tapash Baisya broke through for his team first thing in the morning. He bowled Wavell Hinds before the WICB XI had put a run on the board. Not long after, Tareq Aziz dismissed Darren Smith for 11 (25 for 2). But there were no further rewards for the bowlers. Though they kept things very tight, the batsmen hung on. Sylvester Joseph, captaining the side, led the recovery, finishing the day 42 not out. Dwayne Bravo was keeping him company on 23.While a result is unlikely over the next two days, the Bangladeshis will be hoping to give their morale a further boost ahead of the two-Test series.

Tasmanian allrounder Shane Watson will return to Australia’s Cricket Academyover the winter especially to work with Dennis Lillee in rehabilitation fromthe back injury which forced him out of the World Cup.Watson, 21, was among 25 players announced today by the Australian CricketBoard and the Australian Institute of Sport as the intake for the 2003Commonwealth Bank Cricket Academy. He was at the Academy in 2000.They will participate in the Academy’s residential program for two six-weekblocks between May and August.The players are:

PLAYER	STATE	CLUB	PLAYER TYPE	AGE
Luke Butterworth	TAS	Glenorchy	RMF, LHB	19
Daniel Christian	NSW	University	RHB, RMF	19
Mark Cleary	SA	Kensington	RMF, RHB	22
Adam Crosthwaite	VIC	Richmond	WKT, RHB	18
Chris Duval	SA	Northern Districts	RMF	19
Callum Ferguson	SA	Prospect	RHB	18
Matthew Gale	VIC	Ringwood	RMF, RHB	19
Stewart Heaney	ACT	Tuggeranong Valley	RHB, OB	22
Ben Hilfenhaus	TAS	Ulverstone	RHB, RM	20
Matthew Innes	VIC	Footscray-Victoria University	LHB	18
Shane Jones	VIC	Footscray-Victoria University	RHB, OB	19
Trent Kelly	SA	West Torrens	RMF, RHB	19
Jason Krezja	NSW	Fairfield-Liverpool	RHB, OB	20
Nick Kruger	QLD	Valley	LHB, RM	19
Rhett Lockyear	NSW	St George	RHB	20
Steven Magoffin	QLD	Western Suburbs	RMF, LHB	23
Scott Meuleman	WA	Melville	RHB	21
Aaron Nye	QLD	Western Suburbs	RHB	24
Tim Paine	TAS	University	RHB, WKT	18
Luke Ronchi	WA	Perth	RHB, WKT	22
Shaun Tait	SA	Sturt	RMF, RHB	20
Callum Thorp	WA	Wanneroo	RM, RHB	28
Shane Watson	TAS	Lindisfarne	RHB, RMF	21
Simon Williams	NSW	Penrith	LHB	22
Peter Worthington	WA	Midland-Guildford	RHB, RM	23

As well as Watson seven other players have already played first-classcricket. They are: Western Warriors players Scott Meuleman, Luke Ronchi,Callum Thorp and Peter Worthington and Southern Redbacks pace bowling duoMark Cleary and Shaun Tait and Queensland batsman Nick Kruger.Cleary also made his Australia A debut at the WACA Ground in Perth in April,in the final one-day international match of Australia A’s series againstSouth Africa A.Four other members of this year’s CBCA intake have played in Australia’sdomestic one-day competition, the ING Cup. Victorian wicket-keeper AdamCrosthwaite, Kruger, and Southern Redbacks pair Callum Ferguson and TrentKelly all made their ING Cup debuts in season 2002-03.Crosthwaite and Kelly are also two of five CBCA scholars who were part ofthe 2003 Australian Under-19 team that contested a series of four-day andlimited-overs matches against the England Under-19 side this season.Butterworth, Christian and Gale were the other members of that team.ACB general manager, game development, Ross Turner said the Academy haddeveloped a strong record of success since it was established in 1987.”Over the past 15 years, the Commonwealth Bank Cricket Academy has built animpressive reputation for developing and refining the skills of Australia’selite young cricketers,” Turner said.”Since 1987, the CBCA has produced 139 first-class cricketers, 32 of whomhave gone on to represent Australia at either the Test or one-dayinternational level.”In Australia’s recent World Cup victory, 13 members of the 17-man squadgraduated from the academy, and that is indicative of the strength andquality of the program.”This year’s intake again features some promising players, many of whom havealready started to exhibit their skills in Australia’s domestic first-classand one-day competitions, and many others who have reached under-age staterepresentation.”With the experienced coaching staff and the continued support from ourprincipal sponsor, the Commonwealth Bank, and the Australian SportsCommission, the academy is well placed to maintain its record as a qualityfinishing school for young cricketers.”AIS Director Michael Scott said the significance of the Commonwealth BankCricket Academy should not be underestimated.”The achievements of the CBCA and the Australian Test, one-day internationaland domestic cricket stars it produces, is testimony to the Academy’sphilosophy, facilities and coaching,” Scott said.”The coaching staff, headed by Bennett King, has taken the CBCA to a newlevel of professionalism in the preparation of Australia’s next generationof elite cricketers.”The CBCA is a successful model that cricket authorities and other sportsaround the worldstrive to replicate.”Commonwealth Bank executive general manager of brand marketing andinformation management Graham Ford said the Commonwealth Bank was delightedto play a supporting role in the development of Australia’s most talentedyoung cricketers.”The Bank is extremely pleased to continue its long term support of theCommonwealth Bank Cricket Academy, which has proved to be a vital part ofensuring that the nation’s leading young cricketers have the opportunity toreach their full potential,” he said.The 25 scholars involved in the main program will live at the AIS trainingbase at Henley Beach in South Australia for two six-week blocks between Mayand August.The players work with the CBCA coaching staff, led by head coach BennettKing and senior coaches Wayne Phillips, David Moore and the newly-appointedJohn Harmer, to refine and develop their skills.The 25-player squad was selected by CBCA head coach Bennett King, inconsultation with the head coach of each state and territory cricketassociation, the chairman of the national selection panel, Trevor Hohns, andthe AIS.This year, 30 other young cricketers from around Australia will attend theAcademy as camps-based scholarship holders.They will travel to Adelaide for a series of camps during the year to workon their specialised skill in fast-bowling, batting, spin bowling orwicketkeeping, before returning to their state squads.The Academy also offers an overseas program for international scholars andteams to visit and train at the Academy.

Indian pace spearhead Javagal Srinath should be fit in three weeks,noted orthopaedic surgeon Dr HPC Khincha indicated in Bangalore onMonday.Dr Khincha ruled out the speedster’s injury was “serious.””He may not be able to bat or field for three weeks,” said Khincha,whom Srinath consulted on Sunday, immediately after he flew back homefrom Sri Lanka where he suffered a fracture in the little finger ofhis left hand in the Galle Test.”That he has bowled in a match after getting injured is a good sign.Srinath has a fracture of the left fifth metacarpal bone joining thelittle finger and the wrist,” he said.The Indian speedster had suffered the injury after being struck by aDilharo Fernando delivery in the first innings in last week’s GalleTest in Sri Lanka. Srinath did not bat again in the match but grabbedfive wickets in the first innings.That Srinath should be fit in three weeks’ will come as a relief tothe Indian team dogged by injury woes. Apart from the speedster, otherkey players missing from the side due to injuries are SachinTendulkar, VVS Laxman, Ashish Nehra and Anil Kumble.

Match facts

November 13-17, 2015
Start time 1030 local (0230 GMT)3:27

Brettig: How much can New Zealand improve in a week?

Big Picture

One day was all it took for Australia to play New Zealand out of the first Test at the Gabba. At stumps on the first day of this three-Test series Australia were 2 for 389, New Zealand’s bowlers were broken of spirit and, in a couple of cases, of body as well. This Trans-Tasman Trophy series promised so much, with a rebuilding Australia apparently ripe to be threatened by a more experienced New Zealand outfit. The more optimistic of New Zealanders say their team often starts slowly in a series; they must be thankful, then, that this one will be played over three Tests. Their chance for redemption arrives this week at the WACA.New Zealand’s one enormous positive to come out of the Brisbane Test was the apparent ease with which Kane Williamson handled Australia’s bowlers. In scoring 140 and 59 he appeared mostly untroubled, and will again be key at the WACA. Williamson’s efforts prompted exceptionally high praise from former Australia captain Allan Border. “Of all the gun batsmen going around, he would be the one I’d choose to bat for my life,” Border told Fox Sports. “Technically, he’s probably as equipped as any of them because I think he can take that technique to all different types of pitches … He does everything correctly technically. He’s very still at the crease, plays all the shots. I think he’s equally as comfortable against the spin and pace bowling.”But he needs support, with both bat and ball. New Zealand’s bowlers took only eight wickets at the Gabba, and each one cost on average 102 runs. You don’t have to be a statistician to realise that is not the formula required for a successful Test performance. For Australia, most things went right as they continued their 27-year unbeaten run at the Gabba. Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja made maiden Test hundreds, David Warner picked up a century in each innings, and the bowlers created ample chances for 20 wickets despite a few dropped catches. On the pacy, bouncy WACA pitch, Mitchells Starc and Johnson will again be a threat, along with Josh Hazlewood.

Form guide

Australia: WWLLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)

New Zealand: LWLWW

In the spotlight

The stage could be set for something special from David Warner this week. At the Gabba he became the third batsman in Test history to have scored a century in each innings of a Test on three separate occasions, and the ease with which he handled New Zealand’s attack must concern them. Add to that the fact that he loves batting at the WACA, where in three Tests he has to his name 180 from 159 balls against India and 112 against England, and New Zealand could have a problem on their hands. No batsman in the world has more Test runs in the past two years than Warner’s 2527, and no batsman has more hundreds than Warner’s 11 in that same period.The other left-handed opener in the match is unlikely to score quite as quickly as Warner, but might still cause some frustration for his opponents. At the Gabba, Tom Latham showed signs of getting under the skin of the Australian bowlers, through nothing more than leaving the ball judiciously and scoring in his trusted areas. In both innings he did the job of taking the shine off the new ball but was unable to go on and reach a half-century. Williamson can’t do it alone for New Zealand at the top of the batting order and Latham might be the man with the temperament to provide him the strongest support.

Team news

Australia’s captain Steven Smith has named an unchanged team, which means more drinks and Sheffield Shield duty for Peter Siddle while ensuring stability in the team that enjoyed a strong win over Brendon McCullum’s men in Brisbane. “Same team,” Smith said on Thursday. “Conditions are going to be pretty similar to the Gabba, the groundsman thinks there’s going to be a fair bit of pace and bounce.”Australia: 1 Joe Burns, 2 David Warner, 3 Usman Khawaja, 4 Steven Smith (capt), 5 Adam Voges, 6 Mitchell Marsh, 7 Peter Nevill (wk), 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Josh Hazlewood, 11 Nathan LyonNew Zealand will be forced to make at least one change, with allrounder Jimmy Neesham having flown home due to a back injury. Tim Southee was unable to bowl in the second innings in Brisbane due to a back problem but remains a chance of playing at the WACA. Mark Craig is expected to move up to No.7, which would allow a four-man pace attack. The make-up of that bowling group remains to be seen, but as an original member of the squad Matt Henry might have the front-running to replace Neesham.New Zealand (possible): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Tom Latham, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Brendon McCullum (capt), 6 BJ Watling (wk), 7 Mark Craig, 8 Doug Bracewell, 9 Tim Southee/Neil Wagner, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Trent Boult

Pitch and conditions

The WACA lost its famous pace and bounce for a few years but has in recent summers returned to the characteristics for which it was known in its heyday. Expect plenty for the fast bowlers in this surface. The forecast is hot and sunny, with a top temperature of 36C on the first two days.

Stats and trivia

• Mitchell Johnson needs just one wicket to move ahead of Brett Lee and into outright fourth on Australia’s all-time Test wicket tally
• David Warner needs 72 runs to reach 4000 in Tests; if he gets there at some point in his next three innings he will become the fourth-fastest Australian to the milestone, after Don Bradman, Matthew Hayden and Neil Harvey
• Kane Williamson has the highest Test average of any New Zealander with at least 1000 Test runs: 47.19

Quotes