After the verbal jousts that spiced up the contest in Chittagong, the teams arrived in Dhaka having proved their points in different ways

The Preview by Dileep Premachandran23-Jan-2010

Match facts

January 24-28, 2010
Start time 0930 (0330 GMT)

The big picture

Bangladesh need Shakib Al Hasan the batsman to do something in Dhaka•AFP

After the verbal jousts that spiced up the contest in Chittagong, the teams arrived in Dhaka having proved their points in different ways. Virender Sehwag had called Bangladesh “ordinary”, but for the first half of the match they were more than a match for the Indians. Sehwag himself would have felt vindicated by the fact that India won by 113 runs, though Bangladesh did come close to taking the 20 wickets that he thought them incapable of.But for a magnificent century from Sachin Tendulkar, Bangladesh could have embarrassed India even further in helpful conditions on the opening day, but that inability to close out games brought back memories of Fatullah (2006) and Multan (2003), when both Australia and Pakistan were allowed to escape from losing positions. What is clear though is that the new generation of Bangladeshi cricketers, exemplified by Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim, isn’t cowed down by the opposition’s reputation. Having tasted victory over some of the big boys at the Under-19 level, they certainly aren’t intimidated.The next logical step is to take that confidence and translate it into runs. It was poor batting that cost them the opening game, with Mushfiqur’s dashing century coming far too late in the piece to be of anything more than nuisance value. When you bowl a team out for 243, you need to do far better than respond with 242.India, for their part, are unlikely to be as sloppy as they were in Chittagong, and they will certainly be boosted by the return of MS Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh. However, VVS Laxman’s absence through injury – he has been ruled out – means the batting is a bit weaker. With Sreesanth having gone home with a hamstring strain, it wouldn’t be surprising if Amit Mishra was retained after a decent showing in the first Test. It’s been years since India won four Tests on the bounce, and success in Dhaka will set them up nicely for a two-match series against South Africa that will almost certainly decide which team is ranked No.1 in the world.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh LWWLL
India WWWDD

Watch out for…

Rahul Dravid missed out in the first Test, but has been in tremendous form over the past year, scoring two centuries against Sri Lanka and leading Karnataka into the Ranji Trophy final. In sunny conditions at the Shere Bangla Stadium, he could well book in for the sort of marathon innings that has epitomised his career.Shakib Al Hasan shone with the ball in the opening Test, but will feel that he could have done so much more with the bat. His temperament under pressure was a huge factor in Bangladesh’s triumph in the Caribbean, and he’ll need to be on top of his batting game if India are to be upset in Dhaka.

Team news

Bangladesh have included the off-spinner allrounder Naeem Islam in their squad but are unlikely to tinker much after having given India a scare in Chittagong. Shahriar Nafees won’t be dumped after just one failure, and an absence of quality replacements means that even the hit-and-miss Mohammad Ashraful is safe for now.Bangladesh: (probable) 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Shahriar Nafees, 4 Mohammad Ashraful, 5 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 6 Raqibul Hasan, 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 9 Shafiul Islam, 10 Shahadat Hossain, 11 Rubel Hossain.Dhoni will return in place of Dinesh Karthik. M Vijay has been the first-choice replacement for India of late but there is only a middle-order spot available now that Laxman will not play. Plenty of eyes will be on Yuvraj Singh who looked completely out of sorts in Chittagong. With Harbhajan returning and Sreesanth dropping out, Mishra will keep his place.India: (probable) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Gautam Gambhir, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 M Vijay, 6 Yuvraj Singh, 7 MS Dhoni (capt, wk), 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Amit Mishra, 11 Ishant Sharma.

Pitch and conditions

After India piled up 610 for 3 in the first Test to be played here, the venue has seen only two totals in excess of 400. There were plenty of runs on offer during the recent tri-series and with sunshine predicted over the next five days, it should certainly be a win-toss-bat-first pitch. The seamers are unlikely to enjoy the conditions as much as they did in Chittagong.

Stats and trivia

• Gautam Gambhir has now scored centuries in each of his last five Tests. Only Sir Donald Bradman has scored six on the trot.
• India have won all three of their previous Tests in Dhaka, two of them by an innings.
• Since Aminul Islam’s century took them to 400 in their inaugural Test in November 2000, Bangladesh have not managed more than 333 in an innings against India.

Quotes

“We made some mistakes at Chittagong and we’ll try not to repeat those again. We are not there just to take part. We are here to compete and fight.”
“Our openers complement each other. Gautam waits for the ball to come in his areas, Sehwag goes right from the start. Both rotate the strike really well and understand each other. In fact they can be compared with the great opening pairs.”

Paul Collingwood has been named England’s vice-captain for the tour of Bangladesh

Andrew Miller22-Feb-2010England’s newest recruit, Craig Kieswetter, will play his first match for his adopted nation on Tuesday, exactly a week after completing his residency qualification, when he takes on a BCB XI at Fatullah in England’s first warm-up match of their tour of Bangladesh.Kieswetter, 22, was not originally selected for the Bangladesh tour, but earned a late call-up to the one-day party after impressing for the England Lions during their recent series in the UAE, not least with a hardhitting 81 that secured a five-wicket win over the senior side in Abu Dhabi.”The call-up definitely came out of the blue for me, I wasn’t expecting it at all,” Kieswetter told reporters at the team hotel in Dhaka. “I found out on the bus on the way back from training and felt really ecstatic about it, and chuffed, but there are butterflies and nerves going around. But I’ll be trying to do the best that I can in training and hopefully in the matches too.”Andy Flower, England’s head coach, confirmed that Kieswetter had been chosen with a view to playing in the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean at the end of April, and he is likely to open the batting in the first warm-up, alongside the new captain, Alastair Cook, with Matt Prior retaining his role behind the stumps.”It’s obviously a nice challenge opening with only two men out and a new pill,” said Kieswetter. “On these wickets it’s probably the best time to bat, so I’m chuffed about that. I’ll maybe bring a new dynamic to opening up, a hard-hitting, aggressive role, and hopefully be able to adapt in the middle period and manipulate the ball about. It’s been a bit meteoric, but for me it’s really exciting.”Although Kieswetter’s inclusion is a concern for the current wicketkeeper Prior, who has yet to cement a role in one-day cricket in the same way that he has done in Tests, the new man claims he is not looking to undermine his team-mate’s position in the side.”I think Matt Prior is doing a great job at the moment, he’s really taking England keeping up a level,” said Kieswetter.”But we’re just trying to raise the intensity and raise the bar to a new level so that other international teams don’t know what has hit them. Competition can be seen as a positive thing for English cricket. Maybe it’s a good thing for a younger player to be coming through and putting pressure on the guys. That helps English cricket.”Kieswetter’s primary talent, however, is as a hard-hitting batsman, a trait that has been honed with guidance from his Somerset opening partner, Marcus Trescothick, who is arguably England’s finest one-day batsman of the past decade. He has yet to be adequately replaced since his last appearance in 2006, but if his elevation goes to plan, Kieswetter could yet prove to be a natural fit at the top of the order.”Tres hits the ball pretty hard, I can tell you that,” said Kieswetter. “He’s pretty keen on keeping things simple, by always backing your ability and taking the attack to the bowler, and keeping the pressure on them. He had his era when he was a ferocious batsmen and I see this as an opportunity, of course.”I will be in contact with him to find out some bits and bobs,” he added. “He’s always helpful. He loves the game of cricket, and loves to see youngsters coming through and performing. He’s been a massive influence and a massive help, and I’ve been in contact regularly while I’ve been out here. He’s saying to enjoy it, to have fun and he’s looking forward to seeing me back at Taunton.”Trescothick will be one source of invaluable guidance, but another will be Kevin Pietersen, whose own elevation to the England team followed a remarkably similar path. Having completed his qualification in the summer of 2004, Pietersen was belatedly added to the one-day party for the tour of South Africa in January 2005, and went on to score three centuries in five innings. He can offer plenty first-hand experience of coping with the brickbats that come with being a South African “import”.”I had a nice chat with KP over breakfast, about what he did, what I’ve done,” said Kieswetter. “It was quite a nice chilled-out chat. But [the South African connection] is something I’ll have to be prepared for, for probably my whole career. Everyone’s entitled to their opinions, rightly so, and I’ll take them on board, but I’m proud to be an English person and here as part of the England side.”With a Scottish mother and an Edinburgh childhood providing him with a stronger British link than either Pietersen or Jonathan Trott could lay claim to, Kieswetter is unfazed about the step-up he’s about to take. “Being born with both passports put me in a fortunate position,” he said. “I lived a couple of months every year in Britain with my mother’s side of the family, and I’ve always loved the country, the culture, the people.”It also, he added, turned South Africa’s half-hearted attempts to lure him back during the recent England series into a bit of a non-starter. “They didn’t get very far at all,” he said. “It’s never been a concern for me at all. I moved over four years ago and it’s never been a concern of mine to move back.”It’s never been a political thing or a quota thing for me. It’s about the fact that I lived for a couple of months in the UK every year, I loved the place growing up and when I became 18 – a legal adult in the world – I decided this is where I want to live, to make my career. I wanted to make my future in the country, and I have.”Kieswetter’s first opponents in full England colours will include the allrounder Naeem Islam and the batsman Roqibul Hassan, after the BCB XI’s Alok Kopali pulled himself out from the match due to medical reasons. The match starts at 9am Bangladesh Standard Time.”Touring anywhere is a challenge and I think it would be silly for us to take Bangladesh as an easy game or an easy series,” he said. “They are preparing well and they’re coming back from a pretty good tour of New Zealand. At the end of the day it’s a cricket ball, and we’ve got to hit it no matter who is bowling it.”BCB XI Shahriar Nafees (capt), Imtiaz Hossain, Nasir Uddin Faruque, Roqibul Hassan, Shahin Hossain (Wicketkeeper), Naeem Islam, Mahmudul Hasan, Shafaq Al Zabir, Tanvir Haider, Ariful Hoque, Alauddin Babu, Tapash Baishya, Shamsur Rahman, Md. Sharifullah.

The Champions League Twenty20 has not ruled out the participation of teams from England but will stick to its schedule of September 10-26, Lalit Modi, the tournament commissioner has said

Nagraj Gollapudi and Osman Samiuddin20-Feb-2010The Champions League Twenty20 has not ruled out the participation of teams from England but will stick to its schedule of September 10-26, Lalit Modi, the tournament commissioner has said. Modi told Cricinfo that English teams were still in the fray and that N Srinivasan, a member of the league’s governing council and BCCI secretary, was in talks with the ECB on the issue.The participation of teams from England had been put in doubt after it emerged that the schedule, announced last week, would clash with crucial fixtures at the end of the English season. England will be playing Pakistan in an ODI series at the time, the final two rounds of the County Championship will be on as well as the semi-finals and final of the ECB40 competition.Sussex and Somerset took part in the inaugural tournament last year in India, but further English participation this season was already in doubt after Lalit Modi, the league commissioner, said only days ago on his Twitter feed that two invites had been sent to the ECB, though the board maintained the offer wasn’t official. Cricinfo now understands that the ECB has failed to accept the invitation within the stipulated deadline, though Modi’s statement implies this will not be an issue. The final decision could be taken at the body’s governing council meeting in March.The ECB has so far declined to comment on this.Though the dates for this season’s edition have been announced the number and identity of participating teams has yet to be finalised, despite press releases from Cricket South Africa (CSA) and the Champions League itself stating that, like last season, 12 teams will take part from seven full member countries, including England; CSA also announced that they would be hosting the tournament this year, a statement immediately refuted by Modi.Modi and other league officials insist that the final number of teams and their identity has yet to be confirmed. There might be more than 12 teams – one Champions League official told Cricinfo “at least 12 teams will play.” There could also be a slight change to the schedule, depending on the teams and the shape of the tournament, though this will be announced in March.The uncertainty over English participation keeps the door open for a Pakistani team to feature in the lucrative league, an issue that might become less complicated should the tournament be held outside India. Pakistan and Bangladesh are the only two Test-playing countries with no presence in the tournament. The PCB had a representative – the Sialkot Stallions – in the very first edition of the tournament, which was cancelled in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008.As ties worsened between India and Pakistan and their cricket boards in the aftermath, the PCB wasn’t eventually extended an invitation to the first tournament.

New Zealand have gone back to a familiar but inconsistent batsman in Mathew Sinclair as they attempt to challenge Australia

Peter English14-Mar-2010New Zealand have gone back to a familiar but inconsistent batsman in Mathew Sinclair as they attempt to challenge Australia in Friday’s opening Test in Wellington. Sinclair, 34, is a chance for his sixth return to the XI after coming into the 13-man squad for Neil Broom on the back of a strong domestic season for Central Districts.Sinclair has been elevated to cover for the top order and is a strange choice given the assignment is against the world’s No. 3-ranked side. Sinclair scored two double-hundreds at the start of his career, but he played the last of his 32 Tests in March 2008. In eight matches against Australia he has managed only one half-century and an average of 14.13.”We felt we needed a cover top-order batter, rather than cover for our middle order, so Neil is a little unlucky in that respect,” the coach Mark Greatbatch said. “[Neil’s] form is not quite as good as it was in February.”Sinclair’s best chance is if the selectors lose faith in his Central Districts team-mate Peter Ingram, the No.3, who was dropped during the one-day series after limited-overs returns of 2, 0, 40, 14 and 5. Sinclair, who has 638 Plunket Shield runs at 58.00 this season, appears more likely to come into serious consideration for the second game if there are problems at the top at the Basin Reserve.The doubts over New Zealand’s limited batting options mean Daniel Vettori will enter at six after doing the job in the past two Tests. Vettori, who is usually a No.8, posted 134, his fifth century, against Pakistan in Napier and added 10 and 13 against Bangladesh.”It gives a very good balance to our side,” Greatbatch said of Vettori’s promotion. “It enables us to play the five bowlers we are looking for, whether that is four seamers and one spinner, or three seamers and two spinners. We have the ability to be flexible.”New Zealand have a developing side and Greatbatch’s initial aim for both Tests is to take them into a fifth day. “It’s a great challenge for some of them to go up against the best side in the world,” he said. “We need to compete every day and fight hard, and smart. If we can take Australia to five days we are a chance.”Both Greatbatch and Vettori are hoping the side can build on its dead-rubber one-day win on Saturday during the Test series. “Anytime you beat Australia it’s a great feeling,” Vettori said. “It gives us a bit of confidence going into the Tests and proceeding towards a World Cup.”New Zealand squad Tim McIntosh, B.J. Watling, Peter Ingram, Ross Taylor, Martin Guptill, Daniel Vettori (capt), Mathew Sinclair, Brendon McCullum (wk), Daryl Tuffey, Jeetan Patel, Tim Southee, Chris Martin, Brent Arnel.

Harbhajan Singh has been fined $15,000 for his outburst directed at batsman T Suman after dismissing him

Cricinfo staff29-Mar-2010Harbhajan Singh, who starred with bat and ball in Mumbai Indians’ victory over Deccan Chargers in the IPL fixture in Mumbai, has been fined $15,000 by match referee Gundappa Viswanath for his outburst directed at batsman T Suman after dismissing him.The sanction was confirmed by IPL chief executive Sundar Raman, through his twitter update shortly after the match. “Harbhajan fined USD 15K by the referee. Found guilty – level one offence. During Suman’s dismissal,” Raman’s twitter-feed read.Harbhajan was in his element in the match, smashing an 18-ball 49 to lift Mumbai to a good score, and then snaring three wickets to help them defend 172. Suman was dismissed caught and bowled by Harbhajan, after which the bowler gave him an invective-ridden send-off.Harbhajan later pleaded guilty to a Level 1 offence (Article 2.1.4), which relates to “excessively audible or repetitious swearing”, and Viswanath imposed the fine on him. For Level 1 breaches of the IPL Code of Conduct, the IPL match referee’s decision is final and binding.Harbhajan’s fine is the first disciplinary action taken on a player during this IPL. During the course of the tournament, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Kumar Sangakkara have been slapped with fines for the failure of their sides to complete their overs on time. Kings XI Punjab emerged as a repeat offender, as a result of which their captain Sangakkara was handed a one-match ban.

Shane Warne has said that total transparency and no favouritism to any franchises is the best way to take the IPL into a fourth season

Cricinfo staff30-Apr-2010Shane Warne, the Rajasthan Royals captain, has put forward his suggestions to take the IPL into its fourth season and beyond, with total transparency and the absence of any favouritism to any franchises the main principles. Two radical ideas – expressed in an article on his website – are a mid-tournament player transfer window and franchises being allowed three ‘super rounds’, where they can field an extra international player.The current three-year player contracts will expire before the 2011 season, in which two new franchises will be included, and Warne’s own participation is in doubt.There is much speculation, and concern on the part of some players such as Sachin Tendulkar, over whether franchises will retain the core of their current teams. If this happened, Warne felt, it would be a disadvantage to the new franchises; instead, he suggested all players be put up for auction and the original franchises be allowed to buy them back for a premium.”No retention of players is a must for to achieve total transparency in regards to the salary cap. It will increase the creditability of the IPL as the players’ final price will be established at the auction, whatever that may be,” wrote Warne on his website. “However, the player can then be offered back to his original franchise for an extra $50,000.”If the player is important to the franchise, the extra $50,000 will be paid to the player to keep him at the franchise; if not, he plays for his new franchise. All players bought at the auction should continue to receive three-year contract for the auction value per year.”He called for a raise in the salary cap from the proposed $7million to $9 million; he explained that around $5 million would be spent on half a dozen key players alone.He also stressed that all franchises appoint their captains well before the auction and not include them in the salary cap.”If a franchise wants a particular captain, either their existing captain or a new one, they need to negotiate and agree to a deal,” wrote Warne. “If current captains cannot agree to a deal, he can potentially move to a new franchise as their captain or enter the auction. This will allow for owners, coaches and the captain to make their plans and strategies well before auction time.”As for the way the tournament panned out, Warne said franchises should be allowed three ‘super rounds’, to be used at their discretion, where they could play five overseas players instead of four.Warne also advocated a trade period be put into place during the mid-point of the tournament to allow franchises swap one player if they felt the need. This would not be compulsory, he said. “If they did choose to trade a player, it would be on a loan basis for a set amount of games, perhaps three This could be a great option to recruit an international player who is not being used by another franchise.”

A century partnership between Ian Westwood and Rikki Clarke restored Warwickshire’s resolve at Edgbaston after they had registered their lowest total in 11 years

31-May-2010
ScorecardA century partnership between Ian Westwood and Rikki Clarke restored Warwickshire’s resolve at Edgbaston after they had registered their lowest total in 11 years. Dismissed for 100 by Durham, they were in danger of a rapid slide to a third successive defeat in the County Championship when forced to follow on 279 behind.Deep in trouble at 62 for 3 when legspinner Scott Borthwick took two wickets in his first seven balls, they managed to halt Durham’s charge by reaching 229 for 4 at the end of the third day. The fourth-wicket stand of 114 helped to trim the deficit to 50 and, although Durham are still favourites to chalk up a third win in defence of last season’s title, Westwood and Clarke gave their team a much-needed shot of confidence.The durable Westwood was ideally suited to the captain’s role, batting through 72 overs for an unbeaten 86 and Clarke found some form for his first half-century of the season. He hit a dozen fours before he was lbw to Ian Blackwell for 66.The morning session had been a nightmare for Warwickshire. With nine wickets falling for just 82 runs, it became their least productive batting performance since they collapsed for 86 against Essex at Chelmsford in April 1999.The absence of England duo Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott was only a partial excuse for their failure to reach 150 in the first innings for the third match in succession. The pitch was neither spiteful nor an absolute turner and there was only a hint of swing to assist a Durham attack missing four front-line seamers in Steve Harmison, Graham Onions, Mark Davies and Callum Thorp.It was an indictment of the top order that Andrew Miller, the nightwatchman, was the highest scorer with 35 from 81 balls. The former Lancashire paceman came into this match with a career record of 19 runs from 10 first-class innings and yet he was able to outshine everyone in terms of application and good sense.Having defended quite comfortably for 90 minutes, he only lost his wicket in a sudden rush of blood. Not content with a six and four from successive balls, he was bowled by Blackwell when lining up another big hit.New-ball pair Mitchell Claydon and Chris Rushworth shared Warwickshire’s first five wickets. With Darren Maddy dismissed overnight, Claydon had figures of 3 for 5 when late movement accounted for left-handers Westwood and Jim Troughton.When Durham switched to Blackwell’s spin, the allrounder had Richard Johnson caught at slip from his second delivery and, at the other end, Liam Plunkett cleaned up the tail with 3 for 16.

Makhaya Ntini, the South Africa fast bowler, has said the existing structure to identify black cricketers in the country’s rural areas is not yielding the desired results

Cricinfo staff06-Jun-2010Makhaya Ntini, the South Africa fast bowler, believes the existing structure to identify black cricketers in the country’s rural areas is not yielding the desired results. Ntini, among his country’s most renowned sporting personalities and himself a product of that structure, is raising funds to build an academy in the Eastern Cape and hopes it will help in the development of more black cricketers.”We do have a structure in South Africa where they are looking for black cricketers outside the usual areas, the cities. They go to the rural areas to try and find promising youngsters,” Ntini told . “But when you are talking about whether it’s developing, or it’s still going down a bit, it’s a very rare person who will answer in the first way. I would say cricket from the point of view of the black community is not the same as when Khaya Majola or Dr Ali Bacher were around, when it was booming, we had all the schools getting together to play some games.”Then it was easier to see who was a very good cricketer, who could go to the high schools and develop their cricket. Now it’s not so easy. I would like that to change.”Ntini is South Africa’s ambassador for the FIFA World Cup which begins in the country in less than a week. For a cricketer to represent his country in that capacity at a global event, Ntini said, was very special. “As a cricketer for me to be there, and part and parcel of what’s going on in our country, it’s a huge thing, something I’m proud of as a country, as a person and as an individual.”Ntini acknowledged cricket in South Africa was still a sport dominated by whites, and for black cricketers to compete and succeed, they had to work that much harder. “Cricket in South Africa is not exclusively white, but it is more white-dominant. The football is more black-dominant, so they are two different ball games in every respect,” Ntini said. “For those of us who don’t play football, we have to make sure we are 10% ahead of anything else, regarding fitness, regarding preparation, everything, for us to compete with the other players. In a white-dominant sport, to stay there for longer, those kind of things we have to go through.”Earlier in the year, in the Test series against England, Ntini became the fifth South African cricketer to play 100 Tests. His performance, however, had been on a decline and he was dropped after his 101st. He is currently representing Kent in the English domestic season but remains hopeful of a return to international cricket. “I have enjoyed my time [with Kent] and I would definitely love to come back, but first I must sort out my cricket life back home and see if I am still involved with the national team. If not, playing county cricket will be my second option,” he said.”I only need 10 [Test] wickets to get to 400, and I am crossing my fingers I will be given that opportunity. If it was not me, if it was anyone else, only 32 and still needing 10 wickets for 400, he would definitely [get the chance]. You know, ‘We’ll try and get him those wickets’.” Ntini had expressed his disappointment at not having heard from the selectors since being dropped. Andrew Hudson, Cricket South Africa’s chief selector, responded saying Ntini will be considered for selection for the national side’s upcoming series, following his encouraging stint with Kent.

Hampshire moved off the foot of the County Championship Division One table with their second win of the season, crushing injury-hit Kent by an innings and 111 runs at the Rose Bowl despite late defiance from South African Martin Van Jaarsveld

07-Jul-2010

ScorecardDominic Cork removed James Hockley as Kent collapsed•PA Photos

Hampshire moved off the foot of the County Championship Division One table with their second win of the season, crushing injury-hit Kent by an innings and 111 runs at the Rose Bowl despite late defiance from South African Martin Van Jaarsveld.Kent captain Robert Key broke a finger trying to fend off a delivery from Dominic Cork and last man Amjad Khan was nursing a hamstring problem when he batted with defeat looking inevitable. Hampshire had started the third day on 408 for 5 in their first innings and went on to 553 for 7 before Cork declared for a huge lead of 302.James Vince shared in a stand of 101 with Nic Pothas for the sixth wicket as Kent struggled to cope without Amjad who was only able to bowl eight overs in the Hampshire innings. Alex Blake had Vince (57) lbw to claim his first wicket in first-class cricket and Pothas went on to make 78 before he gave Malinga Bandara his first wicket.Bandara’s success came at a heavy price, his solitary wicket costing 167 runs as the most successful of a disjointed attack. Kent showed no stomach for a fight when they began their second innings so far adrift.Key had made only four when he was forced to leave the crease and he could be out for three weeks with his broken finger. Without their captain Kent showed little spirit with Joe Denly and Geraint Jones both departing with the total on 14.Sam Northeast fell with the total on 59 and James Hockley to a diving catch by Michael Carberry at backward point 19 runs later. Blake edged James Tomlinson to the wicketkeeper with the total on 114 and Bandara was the next to depart at 145, leg before to spinner Danny Briggs the ball after hitting the same bowler for six.As the wickets tumbled around him Van Jaarsveld held firm, putting on 27 with Cook as defeat loomed. Sean Ervine came into the Hampshire attack and swiftly claimed Cook to a catch at the wicket and then removed Robbie Joseph’s off stump.Amjad at least delayed Hampshire’s celebrations by unexpectedly coming out to join Van Jaarsveld in his determined attempt to take the match into a fourth day. But with the total on 191 David Balcombe bowled Amjad to leave Van Jaarsveld stranded on 82 not out, with his 11 fours coming from 158 balls faced.Cork claimed two wickets to give him seven for the match and there were two each also for Balcombe, Tomlinson and Ervine.

A three-wicket haul by Timycen Maruma ensured Zimbabwe XI comfortably beat Netherlands on the final day, despite Pieter Seelaar resisting with 81

Cricinfo staff28-Jul-2010
Scorecard
A three-wicket haul by Timycen Maruma ensured Zimbabwe XI comfortably beat Netherlands on the final day, despite Pieter Seelaar resisting with 81. Resuming at 134 for 4, Eric Szwarczynski and Seelaar extended their partnership to 51 before Szwarczynski was bowled by Natsai Mushangwe for 72. Peter Borren then joined Seelaar and the pair tried to get Netherlands back on track with a patient half-century stand.Maruma, the legspinner, then made decisive strikes to turn the match firmly in the visitors’ favour. He had Borren caught for 38, and a short while later, he dismissed Maurits Jonkman for 9. Seelaar was gradually running out of partners and when Maruma trapped Berend Westdijk lbw, it was game over for Netherlands as Ruud Nijman was absent hurt. Seelaar remained unbeaten on 81, hitting nine fours.Zimbabwe now head to King City to take on Canada from August 2 while Netherlands travel to Dublin to take on Ireland from August 11.