All posts by h716a5.icu

A round-up of the matches in the MiWAY T20 Challenge that took place on March 21

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Mar-2012An unbeaten 75-run partnership between David Miller and Daryn Smit helped Dolphins beat Cape Cobras at Kingsmead. Chasing 121, Dolphins had a blip just after the Powerplay as they tumbled from a comfortable 44 for 1 to 49 for 3 within the space of 13 balls. However, Smit and Miller saw through a period of seven boundary-less overs before cutting loose to complete the chase with seven balls to spare. In their innings, Cape Cobras lost wickets at regular intervals and struggled to build any momentum. It was only in the last over of the innings, when Alistair Gray hit two sixes and a boundary in a 21-run over off Kyle Abbot, to set-up a run-a-ball target.Titans claimed a bonus-point win to jump to the second spot in the points-table with their eight-wicket win (D/L method) over Warriors at SuperSport Park. In a rain-affected game, Warriors had a quick start to their innings. Wayne Parnell, who hit four boundaries and a six in his 23, was the first batsman to be out after 35 runs had been scored off 3.5 overs. A brace of wickets in Alfonso Thomas’ next over and a further two in Albie Morkel’s second over derailed Warriors charge as they were reduced to 64 for 6 after 13.1 overs when the rains intervened. Chasing a readjusted target of 60 in 11 overs, Titans achieved their target in the eighth over.Impi’s search for their first victory in the competition ended in disappointment as their game against table-toppers Lions was washed out at Willowmoore Park, Benoni. Luke Wright scored a 28-ball 45 as Impi raised 80 for the loss of four wickets in 11 overs but persistent rain led to a washout.Titans now host third-placed Knights for the qualifier on Sunday. The winner of the game will face Lions in the final on April 1.

Australia’s fast men obliterated India with bowling of sustained hostility and direction to deliver a handsome 122-run victory to the hosts, on day four of the first Test at the MCG

The Report by Daniel Brettig at the MCG29-Dec-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
James Pattinson and Peter Siddle took six wickets each in the Test•Getty ImagesAustralia’s fast men obliterated India with bowling of sustained hostility and direction to deliver a handsome 122-run victory to the hosts, on day four of the first Test at the MCG.James Pattinson, Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle made a fearful mess of India’s batting, sharing nine wickets between them to bring a swift conclusion to a match that had fluctuated often over the course of the previous three days. In doing so they finished with the ball what had started with the bat – Australia’s tail deflated India in the morning by stretching the target to 292.Pattinson’s contribution on his home ground was telling, first stroking an unbeaten 37 then firing out Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman while also softening up Sachin Tendulkar for Siddle, who claimed him with his first ball after relieving the younger Victorian. The end arrived 70 minutes after tea, Australia claiming a 1-0 series lead in their quest to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.The result was a vindication of Australia’s team selection and the full length pursued by the team’s pacemen under the guidance of the bowling coach Craig McDermott. The captain Michael Clarke and the coach Mickey Arthur will now focus their efforts on ensuring the heights reached on day four in Melbourne are not undone by a poor follow-up in Sydney, as has been the pattern in recent Tests.By contrast India’s surrender exhumed the batting shortcomings exposed by the unhappy tour of England earlier this year. The difference at the MCG was that Australia had to counter a far stronger visiting bowling attack, on a well-prepared pitch that remained lively throughout the Test. It was watched by a 189,347 spectators, the most for a Test between Australia and India in this country.In the morning, Michael Hussey had added only 10 to his overnight 79 before receiving a blistering delivery from Zaheer Khan, but Pattinson and Hilfenhaus frustrated India’s bowlers with a stand of 43 that took the total to 240. Pattinson’s unbeaten 37 was his highest first-class score, and there are sure to be better days with the bat if he retains the technique demonstrated here.Hilfenhaus proved a worthy ally, playing one or two sparkling strokes of his own. The visitors slipped all too easily into run-saving mode against the hosts’ last pair until Hilfenhaus edged Ishant Sharma into the slips. The last team to achieve a fourth-innings target of such dimensions was South Africa’s 4 for 297 to beat Australia in 1953.Resuming with a lead of 230, Hussey and Pattinson began soundly, finding gaps here and there, and occasionally stepping out to attack bowling of high calibre. Pattinson’s good-morning cover drive to Umesh Yadav was the equal of anything managed by a batsman in this match.Hussey was fortunate to go past 80, flicking at a Yadav delivery that swung down the legside and getting the merest of touches – as revealed by Hotspot. Zaheer persisted, however, and soon he found a dastardly delivery that pranced at Hussey and moved away, clipping the outside edge on the way to MS Dhoni. An outstanding ball to conclude an outstanding innings.Pattinson leant into another consummate cover drive from Yadav, but on 15 he did not control a hook and offered up a swirling chance. Running in from fine leg but never sure of himself, Zaheer dropped it. From there each run accrued was painful for the visitors, the partnership assuming unsavoury proportions for India and making it past the drinks break. R Ashwin was introduced as Dhoni searched for the wicket, but it was ultimately collected by Ishant.Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir began the chase carefully, Sehwag even offering a rare forward defensive blade to Hilfenhaus. But he could not contain himself totally, and Hussey was delighted to grasp a sharp chance from a sliced forcing stroke as the interval beckoned.Gambhir’s angled bat outside off stump remains a source of considerable encouragement for bowlers taking the ball across him, and Siddle completed an unhappy match for the opener soon after lunch when a snick was held neatly by Ricky Ponting.Dravid and Tendulkar had provided the greatest resistance in the first innings, and in the second wanted to assume similar roles as Dravid dug in while Tendulkar was busy, scoring with pleasing freedom. But their union was to be split by Pattinson, who found a ripping delivery to seam between Dravid’s bat and pad, and have middle stump leaning at a drunken angle. Victim of two princely deliveries, Dravid was bowled in each innings for only the fourth time in his long career.Laxman completed a Test that returned three runs in 36 balls when he flicked heedlessly at Pattinson and presented a catch forward of square leg, Ed Cowan’s first in Tests. Australians with long memories held their collective breath while the umpires checked for a possible no-ball, but Pattinson’s foot had seemingly landed millimetres within the legal zone. So rarely has Laxman been dismissed so softly against Australia.By now the Australians had inexorable momentum behind them, and Hilfenhaus pinned Virat Kohli lbw first ball. Bat, pad and ball were all in close proximity, and Kohli lingered at the wicket upon his dismissal. However replays offered precious little evidence of an edge, even if India deigned to employ the DRS that might have saved him.Aghast at the chaos all around him, Tendulkar had been stretched by Pattinson’s speed, hostility and movement. Siddle relieved his younger club and state team-mate, and first ball gained the wicket Pattinson had so strived for. As dictated by team planners, the ball was full and moving wider, Tendulkar’s square drive was airy, and Hussey’s hands safe. At 6 for 81, evening flights to Sydney were being booked en masse, but Dhoni and R Ashwin picked off a few runs before the interval.Ashwin’s 30 gave him a more respectable batting contribution for the match than many of the rest, but he failed to ride Siddle’s bouncer, which skimmed off the wicket to produce a skier and a simple catch for Cowan moving around from short leg. Pattinson returned to the attack and became embroiled in a brief sledging match with Zaheer, the bowler striking a boundary over point and a steepling six over long on before squeezing another catch to Cowan under the helmet.Dhoni’s will to frustrate Australia ebbed away, and an unbecoming heave at Pattinson resulted in a drag onto the stumps. Ishant and Umesh Yadav resisted briefly, but Clarke called Nathan Lyon into the attack and Yadav obliged by swinging into the deep. David Warner held a smart catch to begin rich and deserved celebrations.

Shaun Marsh has reflected on a horrific Test summer, admitting that by the time of the final match in Adelaide he was “almost a walking wicket”

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Feb-2012Shaun Marsh has reflected on a horrific Test summer as he begins his batting rehabilitation in the Sheffield Shield, admitting that by the time of the final match in Adelaide he was “almost a walking wicket”.Marsh is taking the field for Western Australia against Queensland at the Gabba this week, intent on regaining the form and confidence that drained so completely from his batting against India. He has acknowledged that the selectors’ call to send him back to his state, far from the madding crowd, was the right one.”I would love to be playing for Australia but it is going to be good for me to get out of the spotlight and train hard for WA,” Marsh told Brisbane’s . “I am not going to go hiding in this period. You can go two ways. You can take the easy option and go hide behind a brick wall or you can go about your business and go and get some runs again.”I am at the bottom of the barrel right now but other people have been in this position and come back and had nice careers for Australia. I know if I keep doing the right things it will change.”Having begun his Test career with so much poise in Sri Lanka and South Africa, Marsh battled to overcome a back complaint and was hurried back into the team for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, where he commenced a series that would reap a meagre 17 runs in six innings.Things were never worse than the first morning in Adelaide, when he missed a straight ball from R Ashwin to be bowled. Of that moment, Marsh said: “By the time of that dismissal I was just so tentative in the middle. I was almost like a walking wicket.”So much had changed from the first innings of the Cape Town Test against South Africa in November, when Marsh held his own against Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander on a treacherous pitch in the company of his captain Michael Clarke.”I was having the time of my life,” Marsh said. “I was just starting to feel at home in Test cricket. It was fantastic. It was tough but I was loving every minute of facing two of the best bowlers in the world in [Morne] Morkel and [Dale] Steyn on a very difficult wicket.”However a blow to the groin unbalanced Marsh, and soon after he began to feel growing pain and immobility in his back, losing his wicket soon after. He made a lame duck in the second innings, and has been unable to relocate his Test match touch since.”Two balls before lunch I got hit in the groin area,” Marsh said. “I felt myself seizing up in the lunch break. Just after lunch I felt a pop in my back. It got worse and worse and I got out shortly afterwards ([or 44].”

Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin has counselled the national selectors to be patient with fledgling spin bowler Nathan Lyon, and said that Lyon has plenty of development ahead before his talent can bloom fully

Daniel Brettig in Pallekele06-Sep-2011Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin has counselled the national selectors to be patient with fledgling spin bowler Nathan Lyon, and said that Lyon has plenty of development ahead before his talent can bloom fully.Lyon, 23, scooped 5 for 34 in his first Test innings but struggled a little in his second, when, according to Haddin, fatigue affected his work. Until this year’s Australian winter, Lyon had never put his body through the rigours of pre-season training, and his slight, wispy frame can only grow in strength and durability.”I think it’s important that we’re patient with him,” Haddin said. “We can’t expect all these spinners to come in and be world-beaters. We’ve just got to make sure we’re clear in what we expect from them and what he expects from himself.”He’s only five games into a first class career but [from] what we’ve seen, he has got good shape on the ball. He is a work in progress so he’s only going to get better and better as time goes on. We all know we’ve got to be patient with the spinners and give them an opportunity to develop.”Haddin said Lyon’s drift was comparable to that of the England offspinner Graeme Swann, but also felt he had some distance to go before he was a fully-formed cricketer.”I think Nathan has obviously got something pretty special in him but he’s obviously got a bit of work to do on his bowling and he knows that,” Haddin said. “It was good that he got the rewards in the first innings; get that first ball out of the way, get his wicket and get into a spell.”From keeping to him, he’s got similar drift to what Swann has. He’s got quite a nice little shape on it … I think he’s got something there that’s going to be pretty good for Australian cricket.”Most of Lyon’s spin bowling apprenticeship took place in the Futures League second XI competition with the ACT, in three-day matches with over restrictions. The questions asked of physical recovery were less taxing; something Lyon discovered when he made his first-class debut for South Australia towards the end of last summer.”He obviously got a bit tired and that could come from the fact he actually hasn’t played that much four-day cricket at all,” Haddin said. “He’s just got to make sure he’s doing what works for him. Whether that’s going outside off stump or going tight into the stumps, because he’s got that natural drift.”I think in the future he’s going to be someone that’s very handy to us but he’s got to develop. We’ve all got to be sure we’re patient with that and not pushing him too quick or expecting him to jump over mountains straight away.”By contrast, Lyon’s childhood friend Trent Copeland looked ready for the physical and mental rigours of Tests, bowling with tremendous consistency throughout the Galle Test without much reward in the wickets column.”With Trent I thought we got exactly what we would have expected over the last two years. Seeing him for New South Wales, he’s very consistent in what he bowls,” Haddin said. “He knows he’s not going to blast anyone out but what he can do is shut a scoreboard down and build pressure from one end so you can roll the other guys from the other end. He did a good job there.”Haddin enlarged upon the tactical battles between Copeland and Sri Lanka’s batsmen, who sought to decrease his effectiveness by batting well down the pitch.”They were batting out of the crease and starting to walk into his line,” Haddin said. “The one thing Trent’s very good at is building pressure and he knows exactly where he wants to put the ball. We wanted to make sure we blocked that end, so we thought the best way sometimes was for me to go up to the stumps to stop them walking into his line, working the ball on the legside to get some pace on the ball.”It seemed to work for the last Test, whether we do the same for this Test, I’m not too sure. Because, especially with the old ball, the wicket was so dead, it just took one of their scoring options out of play and allowed us to build some pressure from that end.”

Julian Hunte has been re-elected to the post of president of the West Indies Cricket Board for a third consecutive term

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Mar-2011Julian Hunte has been re-elected as president of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) for a third consecutive term. Hunte has been in the position since 2007, and will now stay at the helm till March 2013. Whycliffe Cameron will remain the WICB’s vice-president.”We are at a critical stage in West Indies cricket in terms of the setting up the infrastructure to take us forward,” Hunte said. The board, under Hunte, has initiated several projects, like the Cricket Foundation, the Sagicor High Performance Center and Digicel Grassroots programmes for the betterment of West Indies cricket.”We have commenced the process of the development of West Indies cricket at all levels and must see it through,” Hunte said. “Thus far, this board has had significant progress in revitalising West Indies A Team programmes, women’s cricket, Caribbean Twenty20 and the Scotiabank Kiddy Cricket to ensure that our cricket is strong again at all levels.”Referring to West Indies’ quarter-final exit at the World Cup, following a thumping defeat against Pakistan, Hunte said the team had a lot of work ahead of it. “We all share in the disappointment of the fans with the recent performance in the World Cup,” he said. “We are happy that the team made it to the quarter-finals, but we expected a better performance and greater fighting spirit from our players.”

The likelihood of three no-balls occurring at pre-determined times in a Test match had a “one in a 1.5 million chance” of happening, a court was told on Monday

Richard Sydenham at Southwark Crown Court10-Oct-2011The likelihood of three no-balls occurring at pre-determined times in a Test match had a “one in a 1.5 million chance” of happening, a court was told on Monday during the alleged spot-fixing trial of two Pakistan cricketers. journalist.”According to my calculations, there is a one in a million chance (of three no-balls being bowled at pre-determined times),” Bermange said, “but for these two bowlers that becomes a one in a 1.5 million chance,” presumably because of their expertise and usual accuracy at not overstepping.In Bermange’s statement he revealed that Pakistan bowl 23 percent more no-balls than any other country, but also said that Asif’s 58 career no-balls – or just under two per Test – was low in comparison to his contemporaries. That number included 24 in one match against South Africa.Asif’s legal representative Alexander Milne questioned Bermange on his results and agreed the rate for bowling pre-determined no-balls without corrupt intervention would be “far-fetched” but did also gain a valuable concession from Bermange as to his client.When Milne pointed to a printed graphic illustrating Asif’s front foot for his no-ball and suggested to Bermange it was a no-ball by just a fraction, the Sky Sports statistician replied: “Yes”.Although Bermange was revealed to have a science degree at Durham University, he did admit to having a maths ‘A’ level and had taken a statistics course. He also stated that by some quirk (maybe to do with the slope), Lord’s has a 20 percent higher no-ball rate than any other ground around the world.But that was of little consolation for the teenage Amir who, according to Bermange, overstepped by some distance.”I have attended 50 Test matches within my current position and these two (bowled by Amir) were the largest no-balls in terms of the front foot being over the crease that I have seen.” reporter Mazhar Mahmood will again appear in the witness stand on Tuesday and there will soon be an appearance from statistician David Kendix, who devised the world rankings for the ICC. The case continues.

The seesaw battle on the second day ensured the series lead would be decided by what is effectively a one-innings shootout

The Report by George Binoy18-Nov-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Angelo Mathews helped rescue Sri Lanka from the depths of 50 for 5•Associated PressThe Galle Test is shaping up to be a game of small margins. The seesaw battle on the second day reinforced as much, and ensured the series lead would be decided by what is effectively a one-innings shootout.During the first hour, New Zealand made inroads so deep into Sri Lanka’s line-up that they were well placed to press for a sizeable first-innings advantage. Over the next three, though, Sri Lanka’s captain and his deputy restored parity and then gained the ascendency. The good times did not last as long as the hosts would have liked, and the upshot of New Zealand’s resurgence post tea was a mere 26-run lead for the hosts. The visitors, however, could not erase the deficit without suffering damage.In response to New Zealand’s first-innings total of 221, Sri Lanka resumed on 9 for 1 on the second day, and their batsmen were subjected to a severe examination. Tim Southee and Trent Boult used the conditions, and a ball that was only five overs old, expertly, and made the batsmen play by moving the ball off straight lines and difficult lengths.Southee struck in the first over, slanting a full delivery across the left-hand opener Tharanga Paranavitana, who drove at one he could have left. The ball bent back into him and hit the stumps off the inside edge. In his second over, Southee sent down a volley of outswingers and drew edges from night-watchman Suraj Randiv off successive deliveries. Brendon McCullum dropped the first at third slip, but Martin Guptill held the next at second.At the other end, Boult beat Kumar Sangakkara by pitching around off stump from over the wicket, drawing the left-hand batsman forward, and seaming the ball away. He did this repeatedly, and eventually hit Sangakkara’s edge. This time McCullum caught it in the cordon. Three wickets had fallen in four overs and Sri Lanka were 20 for 4.Southee continued to test the right-handers. Another outswinger had Thilan Samaraweera cutting and edging past Ross Taylor at first slip, but it was the inswinger that dismissed him, after he offered no shot and was hit on the pad. Sri Lanka had lost four wickets in the first hour, and Angelo Mathews joined Mahela Jayawardene. The tide was about to turn.The pressure was beginning to ease: the ball was older, and Southee and Boult were being eased out of the attack after their opening spells. New Zealand’s support cast wasn’t as threatening.Doug Bracewell, the first-change seamer, immediately offered Jayawardene a short and wide ball that was cut for four, and after he changed ends, Mathews drove straight and through cover as well. Bracewell’s day did not get better and he went for 67 in 16 wicketless overs. Jeetan Patel was brought on just before the lunch break and Jayawardene attacked him, skipping out of his crease and lofting over the midwicket boundary. Sri Lanka ended the first session on 105 for 5.The second session was emphatically theirs – 85 runs and no wicket. There was almost no seam or swing movement in the afternoon and the batsmen progressed to their half-centuries. Jayawardene reached his off 76 balls, while Mathews slogged Patel for six and flicked Bracewell for four to get there off 70 deliveries. The 100-run stand came at more than four runs per over. So at ease was Mathews that he felt confident enough to reverse-swat Patel to the point boundary and eventually outscored his captain. At tea, the partnership was worth 140 and Sri Lanka were trailing by only 31.Sri Lanka had moved within 15 runs of drawing level with New Zealand when James Franklin broke through, drawing an edge from Mathews to earn his first Test wicket since 2009. The hosts also lost Prasanna Jayawardene before the lead was taken and Mahela eventually took his team ahead via a reverse-swept boundary off Patel.Patel, however, denied Mahela a hundred, when an attempted sweep resulted in the ball bobbing up off the glove and wicketkeeper Kruger van Wyk diving forward to take a sharp catch. Mahela walked before the umpire had revealed his decision. Sri Lanka were eventually dismissed for 247 and New Zealand were left with 12 overs to face in the fading light, 26 runs in arrears.McCullum did not survive; he heaved at a turning short ball from Rangana Herath and was caught on the move by Nuwan Kulasekara at deep midwicket. It was a loss New Zealand could have avoided. Kane Williamson and Martin Guptill wiped out the remainder of the deficit and took their team nine runs ahead before stumps.

Lahiru Thirimanne and Mahela Jayawardene helped Sri Lanka to a total of 294 when they were dismissed late on the first day in Sydney

The Report by Brydon Coverdale02-Jan-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJackson Bird picked up 4 for 41•AFPSix days ago, while the Sri Lankans were capitulating to lose the Boxing Day Test, Lahiru Thirimanne was back home in Sri Lanka enjoying a day off in between one-day commitments for Ragama. He must have been as surprised as anyone to find himself batting on the opening day of a Test match at the SCG less than a week later. Thirimanne acclimatised to his new role quickly and although he narrowly missed out on a maiden Test century, he ensured Sri Lanka were able to bat until stumps. Just.At the close of play, the Sri Lankans had just been dismissed for 294. It could have been better had Thirimanne or Mahela Jayawardene, who both made half-centuries, gone on to triple figures. But it could also have been much worse after the Sri Lankans were sent in by Michael Clarke, who had chosen four fast bowlers on a pitch tinged with green grass. Jackson Bird finished with 4 for 41 and Mitchell Starc bounced back from his rest over the Christmas period with 3 for 71, and while it took until nearly 6pm, Clarke would have been pleased to end the day with the Sri Lankans all out.For a while, that appeared unlikely as Thirimanne and Jayawardene steered Sri Lanka to 2 for 134, and later the score was 4 for 222. But once Australia’s bowlers found their way into the tail, the end came quickly. The final five wickets fell for 44 and a briefly entertaining last-wicket stand of 21 between Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep had the unexpected benefit for Australia of allowing Ed Cowan and David Warner to start their innings on the second morning instead of late on the first evening.Pradeep finished on 17 not out, his highest first-class score, and Lakmal was the last man out when he edged to slip for 5 off the bowling of Bird. It was the third catch of the day for the retiring Michael Hussey, who also put one down early in Jayawardene’s innings. Bird had also picked up the wicket of Rangana Herath, who skied a catch to mid-off for 5, shortly after the last of the recognised batsmen, Dinesh Chandimal, was superbly yorked by Starc for 24.Starc had been involved in the previous wicket as well, when he took a diving catch at mid-on to get rid of Dhammika Prasad, whose heaving pull off Peter Siddle was a shot deserving of a dismissal. Another fine catch had brought Prasad to the crease, when Thirimanne, on 91, was deceived by Nathan Lyon. Thirimanne drove hard at a ball that was wider than he expected, and his edge lobbed up towards point and was brilliantly taken by a diving David Warner.It was a disappointing end for Thirimanne, who was initially scratchy and struggled to rotate the strike, but found his touch as the innings wore on. Thirimanne would not have played this match but for Sri Lanka suffering two injuries to their top seven. Chandimal, the backup batsman in the squad, came in for Kumar Sangakkara and when Prasanna Jayawardene was also ruled out due to his broken thumb, it allowed Thirimanne to play his eighth Test.He was impressive in his 151-ball innings and scored 13 fours and one six. He drove with authority and used his feet to Lyon, also pulling strongly against the fast bowling. Thirimanne had been fortunate to make it that far; he was given out lbw for a golden duck when Bird bowled full and straight, but after some consideration Thirimanne asked for a review and was reprieved as replays indicated the ball had pitched a fraction outside leg stump.Jaywardene also had a lucky break early. On 4, he edged Siddle to second slip and Hussey was slow to react to a chance he should have taken, and managed only to get his left hand to the ball, which then ran away to the boundary. It was a very similar shot that brought Jayawardene his half-century, another edge that this time bounced just in front of Hussey before running to third man for four. It ended a three-year drought for Jayawardene, who had last made a Test fifty away from home in November 2009.He was fluent in his 110-ball innings, which featured 12 fours and a six. He was strong through point and when flicking through the leg side, and he also used his feet Lyon. However, on 72 Jayawardene was caught at slip driving hard at a Starc delivery angled across him and after the third umpire checked for a no-ball and found Starc’s heel had landed legally and then slid forward, it was the end of an encouraging 62-run stand for Sri Lanka.Thilan Samaraweera (12) and Angelo Mathews (15) both made starts but failed to go on; Samaraweera was plumb lbw to Siddle and Mathews edged Starc to Hussey at second slip. It was a busy day in the field for Hussey, who had brought about the first wicket of the day when Dimuth Karunaratne (5) went for a pull from just outside off stump and top-edged Bird high and over the slips cordon and was taken by Hussey, running back with the flight of the ball from second slip.Bird, the best of Australia’s bowlers, also got rid of Karunaratne’s opening partner, Tillakaratne Dilshan, who occupied the crease for 100 minutes before he was caught behind for 34. They were the only two wickets the Australians picked up in the first session, but by stumps the bowlers had done what Clarke wanted. Now, it’s up to Australia’s shortened batting line-up.

Transfer insider Dean Jones has now dropped a ‘big’ claim on Newcastle United’s summer plans, and also gave some injury news on Kieran Trippier.

The Lowdown: Trippier boost

Eddie Howe has confirmed that he is hopeful that Trippier will play again this season, after it was originally feared that he could be out for at least six weeks.

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Thankfully they have not needed him, as they look to have secured their safety in style, and the right-back will no doubt be looking forward to working with whoever they now bring in this summer.

They have been linked with exciting moves for the likes of Darwin Nunez and Philippe Coutinho, and are really starting to build a top squad.

The Latest: Jones update

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones has revealed that the St. James’ Park faithful are ‘optimistic’ that Trippier will be back ‘very soon’, and added that they will try and convince other ‘big names’ to join the former Tottenham Hotspur and Atletico Madrid star in the summer:

“I know with Trippier, they’re really optimistic that he’s back very soon. And they’re really keen that he does get a few games in before the end of the season, not just for himself in terms of fitness, but because for the last couple of games of the season, they want to have their strongest team out there.

“They want to end the season with the best team they possibly can, with the best results they possibly can, to go into the summer full of optimism, and then try and convince some big names to come and join them. So, they’re really optimistic that Trippier is going to be part of that.”

The Verdict: Exciting

With Trippier coming back to full fitness, safety in the top flight and a big summer ahead, these are no doubt exciting times for the Toon Army.

Adding to the win away at Norwich City this afternoon, Eddie Howe and his team will want to finish off the term strongly, and so gather momentum for a rebuild this summer.

They have the money to get some potentially huge deals done, but the real challenge will be to try and get those big names to buy into the long-term project.

In other news, find out what ‘frustrating’ NUFC injury blow has now emerged here!

Ravi Bopara, Jade Dernbach and Craig Kieswetter have been awarded increment contracts by the ECB

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2011Ravi Bopara, Jade Dernbach and Craig Kieswetter have been awarded increment contracts by the ECB following their performances during the English season, reinforcing the fact they are a key part of the team’s plans for the future.All three are currently in India ahead of the one-day series although Kieswetter is still with Somerset, who are in the semi-finals of the Champions League. Kieswetter regained his England place for the series against Sri Lanka earlier this year having been dropped during the 2010 summer which led to him missing the World Cup. He played all 11 one-day internationals against Sri Lanka, India and Ireland, scoring 354 runs at 35.40, and also appeared in four Twenty20s.Bopara, meanwhile, revived his international career with an impressive one-day series against India having also broken back into the Test side following Jonathan Trott’s shoulder injury. He was England’s leading scorer as they beat India 3-0 with 197 runs at 65.66, including a career-best 96 in the tied match at Lord’s.Dernbach, 25, made his England debut in the Twenty20 against Sri Lanka, at Bristol, and has quickly established himself as a key member of both limited-overs teams with some impressive displays. He helped seal the one-day series against Sri Lanka at Old Trafford and then took 4 for 22 in the T20 against India at the same venue. He also starred in the ODI against Ireland and in the two end-of-season T20s involving West Indies.Increment contracts come with far less financial reward than the full central contracts handed out each year by the ECB but are a good guide as to which players have made the most significant strides. Players can also be upgraded to increment deals during a 12-month period if they build up enough international appearances.