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Hampshire are well set to push for a victory against unbeaten Leicestershire that, if achieved, would take them back to the top of the County Championship Second Division

Press Association20-May-2014
ScorecardMatt Coles scored useful runs for Hampshire (file picture)•Getty ImagesHampshire will look to return to the top of DivisionTwo on Wednesday after Matt Coles’ unbeaten half-century put them in controlagainst Leicestershire at Grace Road.Worcestershire’s three-day win over Essex saw Hampshire drop to second in thetable, but victory at Grace Road would see them move back above their promotion rivals.On a day of fluctuating fortunes, the visitors several times appeared to beheading for a sizeable second-innings total only to lose wickets in quicksuccession.But an unbroken stand of 46 for the ninth wicket between Coles and Danny Briggsbefore bad light brought play to an early halt could prove decisive, asHampshire finished on 306 for 8 – a lead of 342.That looks likely to leave the Foxes with a difficult chase on an increasinglyslow pitch, with visiting captain Jimmy Adams left to weigh up whether todeclare overnight or press on in the morning.Adams’ side enjoyed a perfect start to the day as Charlie Shreck held out forjust two balls before an attempted heave off James Tomlinson produced an edge towicketkeeper Michael Bates, with Leicestershire failing to add to theirovernight first-innings score of 296.That left the Foxes 36 behind, but Shreck swiftly struck with ball in hand tooust Adams lbw for 8.Adams’ fellow opener Will Smith made brisk progress to 46, but the returningAnthony Ireland had him snared by Jigar Naik at first slip with the sixth ballof his second spell.Joe Gatting had made just 87 runs in seven Championship innings this season,and survived a big leg-before shout from Shreck as he took 22 balls to get offthe mark.But the former Sussex man settled down and thrashed a couple of drives throughthe covers as Hampshire reached 89 for 2 at lunch – a lead of 125.Shreck conceded 16 runs in the first over after the interval as the in-formJames Vince stroked a series of well-timed shots either side of the wicket.Vince dominated a stand of 90 with Gatting, passing fifty for the seventh timein ten Championship innings, only to fall lbw to Nathan Buck a short time laterfor 56.Gatting progressed steadily to 44 before inexplicably pulling Buck straight toAngus Robson at deep square leg, and Adam Wheater was also guilty of throwinghis wicket away when well set as he made 44 before driving Shreck’s first ballafter tea to Robson at extra cover.Sean Ervine fell in the same over, edging to Naik at first slip, but Bates andColes dug in to add 41 for the seventh wicket before the former edged spinnerNaik to wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien attempting to cut.Once again one wicket was swiftly followed by another – Kyle Abbott run outwithout scoring in the next over when bowler Rob Taylor deflected Coles’straight drive onto the stumps at the non-striker’s end.Coles thumped nine boundaries in an unbeaten 53, and found a willing ally inBriggs, who made 26 not out before darkness set in.Shreck was the pick of the home side’s bowlers, finishing the day with figuresof 3 for 78.

Paul Grayson, the Essex head coach, said English umpires should have called Saeed Ajmal for chucking this season

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Oct-2014Paul Grayson, the Essex head coach, said English umpires should have called Saeed Ajmal for chucking this season.Ajmal played a key role in helping Worcestershire to promotion in the County Championship but Grayson said his Essex side would have won promotion instead if umpires had been brave enough to report Ajmal.In nine Championship matches this season, Ajmal’s action was not officially questioned and he helped Worcestershire to five victories and four draws with key performances that saw his side top the Division Two table for most of the season, much to the surprise of most observers.But on international duty for Pakistan, Ajmal’s action was reported almost immediately on their tour of Sri Lanka and he was subsequently banned from bowling by the ICC.”I wish one of our English umpires had the bravery to call him early season,” Grayson said, having seen his side fall eight points short of second-placed Worcestershire. “He’s been called for chucking; it’s illegal.”Speaking to a lot of umpires on the circuit, they all talk about him chucking it, but whether they had that support from the ECB; I’m not sure why they weren’t prepared to call him.”It was thought Ajmal would merely prop up Worcestershire who were largely expected to struggle in the Championship last season. But instead his 63 wickets 16.47 saw Worcestershire only miss out on the Division Two title during the final round of the season.”I’ve no doubt that if Worcestershire didn’t have Ajmal, we would have gone up this year,” Grayson told BBC Essex. “They’ve struggled in the second half of the season when he was supposed to be away with Pakistan.”I don’t want to sound like we’re being bitter, but I do believe we should have gone up this year.”2014 was the second year in succession Essex have finished third in the table having entered the final round of matches with a chance of promotion. It consigned them to a fifth year in Division Two having been relegated in 2010.Worcestershire director of cricket Steve Rhodes subsequently said the club would welcome back Ajmal to New Road next season if he is cleared to bowl again by the ICC.

While champions Manchester City ran away with the league title in 2020-21, there were plenty of individuals from other clubs who shone this season

Manchester City claimed the Premier League title ahead of Manchester United, while Liverpool and Chelsea ended up in the Champions League places at the expense of Leicester City. But which players stood out enough to guarantee a place in Alex Keble's Premier League team of the season? Getty ImagesGK: Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)

Aston Villa’s goalkeeper was probably the signing of the summer. Martinez equalled Brad Friedel’s record of 16 clean sheets for Villa in a single top-flight season, helping transform Dean Smith’s side from one of the leakiest in the division to one of the strongest.

Martinez ranks third in the Premier League for shots saved (15) and second for ‘prevented goals’ (9.71), a statistic that measures a goalkeeper’s saves against the expected goals (xG) of the opposition shots.

But Martinez’s influence goes far beyond shot-stopping. His unrivalled skill in catching shots and crosses – where others would parry or punch – has completely reshaped Villa’s tactical organisation.

Martinez’s sticky gloves allow Villa to reset and get back up the pitch, hence their strength on the counterattack.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesRB: Joao Cancelo (Manchester City)

Nobody typifies Manchester City’s season like Cancelo, an intelligent and versatile footballer who nominally played as a left-back or right-back throughout 2020-21, but in reality popped up all over the pitch.

His influence as an inverted full-back has been startling and progressively courageous; at times this season he has advanced in the right half-space like Kevin De Bruyne.

The key to City’s title win was their tactical unpredictability, created by Pep Guardiola through the rotation of full-backs. Depending on the configuration he chose, City could line up with three at the back, dual overlapping full-backs, two extra bodies in midfield, or an extra playmaker in the number 10 position.

Cancelo is the only City player who could perform any of these roles, and from either side too.

Getty ImagesCB: Wesley Fofana (Leicester City)

Leicester City’s 20-year-old centre-back has been a revelation.

Brendan Rodgers probably did not expect to be able to rely on Fofana in his debut campaign quite like he has, but his aggression and anticipatory skills have already made him one of the most revered centre-backs in the Premier League.

Tellingly, Fofana ranks fourth in the division for interceptions (2.2 per game), a stat normally dominated by defensive midfielders. This speaks to Fofana’s tendency to step out from the back and boldly shut down the opposition play, an eye-catching feature that works particularly well in a back three.

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Getty ImagesCB: Ruben Dias (Manchester City)

Almost every player who joined the Premier League from abroad last summer has endured a difficult debut campaign in England, which is perfectly understandable given the country has been in lockdown for so much of the last year.

It is even more remarkable, then, that Ruben Dias has been rock solid for Manchester City.

Dias started the most Premier League games (32) of any City outfield player, his power and athleticism not only keeping Aymeric Laporte out of the side but also drastically improving John Stones.

After the fallow year without Vincent Kompany, City have found their defensive leader for the next decade.

IPL newsfile on May 10, 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff10-May-20143:44

We have improved after leaving UAE – Rohit

Pollard cautioned – RohitRohit Sharma, the Mumbai Indians, captain is hopeful there won’t be a repeat of the incident that saw Kieron Pollard fined 75% of his match fee. In Mumbai’s last match, Pollard was involved in an onfield spat with Royal Challengers Bangalore’s Mitchell Starc during which he hurled the bat at the bowler.”We have spoken to him. Whatever happened happened in the heat of the game,” Rohit said. “Nobody wants to ruin the spirit of the game. Pollard is an aggressive player and he didn’t do anything purposely. As a captain it was my responsibility to tell him what sort of behaviour is expected on the field. We have had a word him and he is ok with that. Hopefully, he won’t repeat such mistakes.”What’s ailing Delhi bowlersEric Simons, the Delhi Daredevils bowling coach, has been using mats to help his bowlers focus on the exact lines and lengths he would want them to bowl. The desired results haven’t followed yet – Daredevils’ bowlers have struggled to take wickets – but Simons has said it is not easy to get the bowlers to bowl one line these days.”We use a mat for practising length delivery, wide delivery, yorker,” Simons told . “Unless you have a specific objective, you don’t learn and you just bowl. The ball goes where it goes from a specific muscle memory. Let me tell you that there aren’t too many bowlers in the world today who can just run up and bowl six deliveries line and length.”Simply because, we don’t do it regularly. If that was taught at a young age, I wouldn’t have to do it at this age. That’s the problem. There aren’t many who can bowl six proper deliveries.””You know what dendrites are? Dendrites are mental habits. Identifying problems is very easy, fixing it is difficult part. That’s what coaching is. It’s easy to sit there in the commentary box and say what bowlers should and shouldn’t do.”Shivam’s impressive debutThe way Shivam Sharma, Kings XI Punjab’s offspinner and IPL’s latest find, bowled against Royal Challengers Bangalore, it would have been hard to believe he was playing his first match. In fact, apart from being part of Delhi Under-19s, the 20-year old has not played any other top-flight cricket. How did he prepare the challenge of bowling to Yuvraj Singh, who is in the middle of a wretched run but still an imposing name?”I had decided that instead of trying too much at the risk of getting it wrong, I will let him make a mistake,” Shivam told . “Fortunately, he did and I got him out. Viru and (George) Bailey, both told me that he has a problem when spinners bowl the middle and off-stump line to him, and I did just that.”Bowling to Royal Challengers’ batsmen proved to be slightly easier than bowling to his own team’s line-up, that includes Glenn Maxwell, in the nets.”When it comes to Maxwell, it is a nightmare to bowl to him. I don’t ever understand where to bowl to him. He will hit you anywhere, anyhow with the reverse-sweep and all other kind of shots. (He is a crazy guy). But there are many advantages of bowling to him because it makes me think of new tricks to get the better of him and it helps me improvise on my own bowling.”Gambhir pins hopes on Narine, Shakib
With batting not being their reliable suit at the moment, Kolkata Knight Riders are hoping to get inspiration from two of their consistent performers. Shakib Al Hasan and Sunil Narine have been economical and have accounted for 18 wickets between them and Gautam Gambhir has said they are likely to be the gamechangers during the Indian leg.”They both are exceptional bowlers and have performed brilliantly,” Gambhir told . “The next few matches are crucial for us, especially now that we are back in Indian conditions, and we are confident that the two potent spinners will get us back into the reckoning by giving us the results we are looking for.”

Time has almost run out for Matt Prior to make a return to the Test side against Sri Lanka. With England’s Test squad set to be announced late next week he has just one Championship match remaining to prove his fitness.

Andrew McGlashan29-May-2014Time has almost run out for Matt Prior to make a return to the England Test side against Sri Lanka. With the Test squad set to be announced late next week he has just one Championship match remaining to prove his fitness.Even if Prior played and kept wicket in the match against Nottinghamshire, and in the NatWest T20 Blast on Friday, it would still be a huge risk to select him.An Achilles problem – which Prior has managed for considerable time – has limited him to just one Championship appearance this season, the opening match against Middlesex, where he scored a hundred but did not have the gloves.He was withdrawn from Sussex’s rain-ruined return fixture against Middlesex at Merchant Taylor’s School so he could undertake intense work with Bruce French, the England wicketkeeping coach, to further assess the state of his injury but there is still no guarantee he will keep in the T20 against Glamorgan.A fit Prior was all-but assured of reclaiming the place he lost after the third Test against Australia in Perth. Alastair Cook has been having regular conversations with Prior, who was also the Test vice-captain when he was dropped, but knows that rushing back from such an injury could have long term consequences.”It is a big concern,” Cook said. “I’ve been speaking to him every week and he’s been doing everything he can. He’s incredibly frustrated because Achilles injuries are hard to heal.”He’s a big part of our plans, but we can’t rush a guy back, that wouldn’t be fair on him or to the England team. There’s time, about two weeks to the first Test match and we’ll be in constant communication throughout.”He knows he is a big part of things and we want him to be there, but if he’s not there it will give someone else an opportunity.”The identity of that someone else remains the subject of much debate. Jonny Bairstow is the man in possession having played in Melbourne and Sydney but did not convince in the role with either bat or gloves, although the coaching staff at Yorkshire are convinced that is partly due to the way he has been handled by England.Jos Buttler has been in the limited-overs role for more than a year now and put in a tidy performance in the Old Trafford ODI with four catches but his performances behind the stumps remain inconsistent.”Like a lot of guys he is a really talented keeper and a really talented cricketer,” Cook said of Buttler. “He’s nowhere near the finished article with his keeping but just watch him practise and you will see him put the hard yards in and that progress will keep going in the right way no doubt.”Mick Newell, one of the England selectors, admitted this week that the keeping debate split people into two camps and appeared to suggest that the option of returning to a more pure gloveman, in the James Foster or Chris Read bracket, was not being discounted.”There are two camps of keeper,” Newell said. “There is the Kieswetter, Buttler, Bairstow group and there is the Foster, Read group, more the old-school wicketkeeper. I watched Foster last week and he was terrific. There will be an interesting debate there.”What has come out of the winter is a complete rethink with five, six, seven spots up for grabs, which is a bit scary but exciting at the same time.”

Jesse Ryder’s latest indiscretion has given Tom Latham a spot in the New Zealand Test squad. And if Ross Taylor’s second child does not arrive by tomorrow, Latham will make his Test debut in Wellington against India

Abhishek Purohit in Wellington12-Feb-2014Jesse Ryder’s latest indiscretion has given Tom Latham a spot in the New Zealand Test squad. And if Ross Taylor’s second child does not arrive by tomorrow, Latham will make his Test debut in Wellington against India. It is a “tricky” scenario, Latham admitted, but it will also fulfil his dream to play Test cricket for his nation, and the 21-year old is gearing up for it.”I suppose it is a tricky one but I have to prepare myself to play and if I do get the nod, then I am ready to go and if not, then Ross will slot back in,” Latham said. “It will be very exciting. I have always wanted to play Test cricket, to play Test cricket for New Zealand is a dream and it will be very rewarding.”There could be pressure playing your first Test, but Latham said it helped coming into a side that was yet to lose a game to the visitors. “It’s probably the best way to come into a team, when the team is doing well. There will be pressure on me but the boys will be squarely behind me if I do get the nod.”Latham has caught some of the Indian bowling on television during this series and feels they are a decent attack, especially on a Wellington pitch which wore a green look two days before the match starts. “I remember playing [Mohammed] Shami out here a few years back when he came out with the India A team and he was a good bowler,” Latham said. “They are all good bowlers in probably tricky conditions which should be out there. If I do get the nod, then fingers crossed I will do well.”He got the call-up on the back of his 687 runs at an average of 68.70 in the ongoing domestic first-class Plunket Shield. He made five half-centuries and an unbeaten double-hundred for Canterbury, and was glad to have turned in consistent scores.”That’s what I was asked to do,” he said. “I went back and played for Canterbury and it’s nice that I have been putting those numbers on the board and I think that consistency is probably the most pleasing thing. It is nice that the selectors have rewarded me for that consistency. I have done a lot of work with Bob [Carter] in the Black Caps setup. He has been really good and he was my coach a few years ago at Canterbury.”Those first-class runs came at the top of the order but if he plays in Wellington, Latham will have to slot into the middle order, something he said he should have “no problems” doing. “I have batted in the middle order before. It’s my first season sort of opening for Canterbury. Last season I was in the middle order so it’s not a position that is unfamiliar to me, so hopefully I can carry on from where I have left off with Canterbury.”Latham said even opening in first-class cricket had not posed too many issues, as he had done the job through age-group cricket. If the Test debut happened, he said he would look to continue what had worked for him at Canterbury, which was to play his natural game.He was part of the New Zealand side that toured Sri Lanka in November last year, and made a match-winning 86 off 68 in the second ODI in Hambantota. Before that, he had fifties in unofficial Tests in Sri Lanka and India for New Zealand A. Latham said those scores had boosted his self-belief.”It was obviously nice to score runs and let yourself know that you can do it. In the games after that, I have certainly felt more confident batting out there. Putting those numbers on the board builds that confidence.”

Ashley Giles has insisted that he cannot conduct England’s limited-overs tour of the West Indies like a glorified job interview for the vacant role of England coach

George Dobell01-Mar-20140:00

#Politeenquiries: Should Ashley Giles be judged on results?

Ashley Giles has insisted he will not take his eyes off the long-term goals of the England team to aid his own short-term ambitions by treating the tour of the West Indies like a glorified job interview.Giles has made no secret of his desire to be appointed England coach in all formats of the game. But he knows that the team’s recent record – they slipped to their seventh defeat in nine ODIs in Antigua on Friday – is doing his case few favours.He hopes, however, that the ECB management and England supporters understand that the team is in a “development phase” and that the plans being put in place at present will bring long-term benefits.Giles has not been helped, in the short-term at least, by England’s decision to go into the ODI series against West Indies with their T20 team. A lack of experience and composure were obvious in the first match, with England dominating for the first 35 overs of each innings, before squandering their position with poor late-order batting and wretched death bowling.But Giles hopes the experience of such matches will aid his side going into the World T20 in Bangladesh in a couple of weeks and feels it is essential England focus on the process of improvement rather than chasing results.”I can’t coach and manage this side right now with the view of it being a job interview,” Giles said. “I’m here to create the right environment and of course to win games of cricket for England. That’s going to be a process as well. We are in a rebuilding and development phase.”If I was that concerned about results and this being my job interview, why wouldn’t Anderson, Cook and Bell be here during this one-day series? This is about preparing this side as best we can for Bangladesh and the World T20.”But Giles did admit that he was concerned that he might be judged harshly on results in Australia, in particular. An England side missing a host of senior players was beaten 4-1 in the ODIs and then 3-0 in the T20s leading Giles to remind supporters that, the last he had anything close from a full squad from which to select a side, England came within an ace of winning the Champions Trophy.”Being judged on results without having the best side available is a factor, yes,” Giles said. “Of course I’m going to be judged.”But I have to try and concentrate on the job I’m doing here and I think I’m doing that pretty well.Ashley Giles chats in Antigua with England’s MD, Paul Downton, but says the job interview comes later•Getty Images”I’m not going to change the way I go about things because of what people think. My job here is to create a culture, to create an environment, where these guys can learn and they can flourish, but at the same time is really challenging as well, because we are in the business of winning games of cricket.”We’re always judged on those results, but as I’ve always done as a coach, it’s about working from bottom-up. If you get the other stuff right first – environment and culture – then the outcome will take care of itself.”At the moment, I am the only England coach. I’m doing that job to the best of my abilities. Everyone will have a view about how good a coach I am or I am not. I just have to get on with my job, look after these guys and my management team and together we go forward and try and win games for England. Whether I get the job or not is in other peoples’ hands.”The England camp remain confident that both Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan – referred to by Giles as “one of the best one-day players in the world” – will have recovered ahead of the T20 games in Barbados, with Giles accepting that is was not their absence so much was some poor death bowling that cost England in the first ODI. He also hinted that, while Stuart Broad had done a fine job as captain in ODI cricket for the first time, that the decision not to bowl Ravi Bopara was a mistake.”For 35 overs with the ball, that was as good as I’ve seen us in my time,” Giles said. “We probably played the best cricket for 70 or 80 overs of the game. It’s disappointing to lose a game from there, but there’s obvious areas where we need to improve. We got it wrong at various times with the bat and the ball. We can learn from the ways the West Indies did things at the back end of their innings and our innings.”I thought Broady captained the side really well. It’s always easy in hindsight to think of a couple of things you’d like to do differently and bowling Ravi might have been one of them. It might be different tomorrow.”But I think our bowlers would be honest and admit that at the end of the innings, we didn’t get our skills quite right. If you execute really well all the time, it’s really difficult to score that amount of runs in the last 10 overs. If you don’t then against good players you risk going out of the park.”

The preliminary hearing into the alleged match-fixing and spot-fixing scandal in the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League began in Dhaka on Sunday

Mohammad Isam24-Nov-2013The preliminary hearing into the alleged match-fixing and spot-fixing scandal in the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League began in Dhaka on Sunday. Legal representatives of eight of the nine people charged participated in the proceedings; the next hearing is scheduled for January 19, 2014.Noorus Sadik, the legal representative of Mosharraf Hossain and Mahbubul Alam, said he had put forward a statement on the players’ behalf and pleaded not guilty. Dhaka Gladiators’ legal advisor Aminuddin said the team had asked the tribunal to stop its proceedings because it had already filed a case in the civil court. “We asked them to stop the proceedings as they failed to form the tribunal in 40 days and we had filed a case in the civil court,” Aminuddin said. “As the case is pending in the court, we want it to end before the tribunal starts its proceeding.”ICC legal head Ian Higgins, Shelly Clarke and Jonathan Taylor were present at the hearing that was convened by Justice Khademul Islam along with panel members Azmalul Haque and Shakil Kashem.According to the BCB’s anti-corruption code, the purpose of the preliminary hearing was to “allow the convenor of the anti-corruption tribunal to address any issues that need to be resolved prior to the hearing date”.

Four slots will be up for grabs when the national selection panel sits down to pick India’s squad for World Cup 2015 on Tuesday in Mumbai

Amol Karhadkar05-Jan-20155:59

Agarkar: Vijay offers genuine opening option

Four slots will be up for grabs when the national selection panel sits down to pick India’s squad for the 2015 World Cup. The selectors will also name a squad for the tri-series in Australia, that will serve as a curtain raiser to the marquee event, when they meet at the BCCI headquarters on Tuesday afternoon.The 15-member squad for the World Cup is likely to comprise eight batsmen – including MS Dhoni and a reserve wicketkeeper – and seven bowlers. Of the 15, Dhoni, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav are set to be picked.This leaves two batsmen and as many bowlers to be selected for completing the quorum. The contenders for the two batting slots are Ambati Rayudu, Robin Uthappa and M Vijay. Rayudu’s century against Sri Lanka in India’s last ODI series has strengthened his chances of a place and he can fill the spot of a back-up wicketkeeper.Both Vijay and Uthappa can step in as openers if Rohit or Dhawan’s patchy Test form extends into ODIs. Vijay was roped in as Rohit’s replacement in the ODI series in England. His solid batting in the ongoing Test series in Australia will also make it difficult for him to be sidelined.Likely World Cup squad

MS Dhoni (capt, wk), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, [two from] Ambati Rayudu/Robin Uthappa/M Vijay, [two from] Ravindra Jadeja/Akshar Patel/Varun Aaron/Karn Sharma/ Stuart Binny/Mohit Sharma

Uthappa, on the other hand, offers more options to the team management. He is a more reliable wicketkeeper than Rayudu, and had stepped in to keep wicket during the last two ODIs against Sri Lanka. Uthappa can also play in any of the top seven batting positions.The selectors will also have to take a call on Ravindra Jadeja’s place in the team based on the fitness assessment provided by the board physio Nitin Patel. Jadeja would have been a certainty in the squad had he not broken down with a shoulder injury that forced him to return home last month from the Test series in Australia. With Jadeja’s rehabilitation still going on, however, the selectors will have to decide if they want to risk selecting a player who is returning from an injury layoff just in time for the tournament.If Jadeja is ruled out, then Akshar Patel can be a like-for-like replacement. The Gujarat youngster has impressed in his limited opportunities in ODIs so far and has replaced Jadeja in the Test squad in Australia. If Jadeja’s rehabilitation is going according to plan, the most likely option selectors could explore will be to include him in the squad and then replace him on medical grounds if his return is delayed.The selectors will also have to decide whether to go in with an additional seamer or a back-up spinner to complete the squad. The pacer-friendly conditions in Australia and New Zealand may make it tempting to include an additional pacer. India have breaks between all their league games, which gives the bowlers a recovery period.Varun Aaron was disappointing in the first two Tests in Australia, but is still a favourite should the team management opt for a fifth specialist pace bowler. Similarly, despite having a forgettable Test debut in Brisbane, Karn Sharma still remains the prime contender, besides Patel, if required.Either Stuart Binny or Mohit Sharma could emerge as a dark horse, though. Binny is the lone option if the team management prefers a seam-bowling allrounder and Dhoni has often cited his preference for a pace-bowling allrounder. Binny had registered the best ODI figures by an Indian bowler in Bangladesh last year and was also handed the new ball towards the end of the Sri Lanka series. Mohit, on the other hand, can be a handful with accuracy to pitch the ball in the right channel.It is unlikely that the selectors will consider anyone outside the 30 probables. Should they do so, Yuvraj Singh presents an option. The Player of the Tournament in the 2011 World Cup has scored three centuries in as many Ranji Trophy matches this season.

Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, has called for green pitches when India tours New Zealand in January-February 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Dec-2013Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, has called for green pitches when India tour New Zealand in January-February 2014. Hesson said New Zealand don’t get “any favours” in terms of pitches when they travel to India, and he would be “disappointed” if the curators do not dish out green seaming tracks for the two Tests in Auckland and Wellington.”We’ll back our seamers over anyone’s at the moment,” Hesson said, while emphasising New Zealand’s pitch preferences following a Test in Hamilton against West Indies where the surface was rather dry and spin-friendly. “We know these conditions as a batting group. Our batsmen bat on conditions that nip around in first-class cricket so they’re used to it and it can expose your technique if you’re not.”I think everyone’s aware of the type of surface that we’d like. We’ve been in India before and they’ve changed the pitch the day before a game because it wasn’t quite as dry as they would like. We certainly don’t get any favours when we travel, so I’d be disappointed if we provide any at home.”India play New Zealand in two Tests at Eden Park and Basin Reserve between February 6 and 18, following a five-match ODI series in January.On their last tour of New Zealand, in 2009, India won the three-Test series 1-0, registering victory in Hamilton with offspinner Harbhajan Singh taking a second-innings six-for. However, the previous time they visited New Zealand, in 2002, they were presented with tracks that were hardly distinguishable from the lush outfields in Wellington and Hamilton, and failed to score more than 161 in four innings.The Eden Park track, a drop-in pitch, generally offers good carry but isn’t a green seamer. Hesson said he was hopeful the ground’s new curator, Blair Christiansen, could deliver such a track though. “They’re a pretty skilful group up there, they know exactly what needs to be done,” he said.