Warriors 137 for 6 (Henderson 52) beat Lions 136 for 5 (van Jaarsveld 55) by 4 wickets
Scorecard Tyron Henderson took the Warriors to their first PRO20 Series win of the season when they narrowly beat the log leaders, the Lions, by four wickets at Buffalo Port in Port Elizabeth.Sent in to bat the Lions innings never gained the momentum it required despite a quick 55 off 29 balls from Vaughn van Jaarsveld. Mfuneko Ngam and Robin Peterson, with two wickets each, were instrumental in keeping the pressure on the batsmen.Chasing a target of 137 nearly proved too much for the Warriors as they lost three wickets in the first five overs. Henderson’s 50 got them back on track while Pieter Strydom took them to the win in the 20th over.Eagles 132 for 2 (van Wyk 80*) beat Western Province Boland 129 for 8 (Tsolekile 52, Deacon 3-16) by 8 wickets
ScorecardAt Goodyear Park in Bloemfontein Morne van Wyk played a captains innings for the Eagles as Western Province Boland again failed to impress, losing by eight wickets.Thami Tsolekile was the only WPBOL batsmen to come to terms with the Eagles bowlers, as he scored 52 out of a total of 129. The top order had failed miserably having been 10 for 4 after four overs.With a relatively small target of 130 the Eagles paced their innings well to score the winning runs with two balls to spare. Van Wyk was in a class of his own as he batted through the innings for his 80 off 69 balls.

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A consistent batting performance, led by Graeme Hick, put Worcestershire in a promising position, although they were made to work by the Derbyshire attack who fought back well during the latter part of the day. A second wicket stand of 120 between Hick and Stephen Peters enable the visitors to reach 150 for 1 before three wickets fell for 25 runs during the afternoon session. That included Vikram Solanki, the new captain, who was bowled for a duck by Graeme Welch. But an aggressive 47 from Gareth Batty and obdurate 48 from Ben Smith meant the good start was not completely squandered. Welch was the pick of the attack, working his way through 22 overs for his 2 for 51. The oddest dismissal of the day was that of Stephen Moore who held his defensive pose during a shout for leg-before,, oblivious to Jon Moss who sneaked in behind him and ran him out.
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Will Jefferson put the Yorkshire attack to the sword to make them regret their decision to field first. Jefferson, who was unlucky not to get an Academy place over the winter after averaging 52 in 2004, hit 24 fours in his 219-ball innings, until succumbing to the part time medium-pace of Michael Lumb three balls before bad light stopped play. It was his third Championship hundred in a row, after finishing last season with two consecutive tons and marked him out as another young Essex batsman of great potential. He had two early let-offs – he should have been easily run out on 0 but Richard Dawson missed the stumps from ten feet with Jefferson stranded, and then he was dropped by Chris Silverwood when on 6. Grant Flower was much more restrained, but played a valuable supporting role with a battling 55 off 203 balls. Alastair Cook, after his superb performance for MCC, fell for just 11 this time when he was caught behind off Ian Harvey.
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After Muttiah Muralitharan failed a fitness test on his shoulder, Lancashire’s batsmen wasted a series of solid starts as Somerset showed it will be a hard fight to get of the second division and justified Marcus Trescothick’s decision to bowl first on a slow pitch which did a bit. The top five all played themselves in but could not convert into a really sizable score. Mal Loye struck nine fours in his 53 and Stuart Law reached 38 until he was undone by Andy Caddick. Loye’s dismissal triggered a slide in which four wickets fell 15 overs before Mark Chilton, the new captain, took the total past 200 before falling to Ian Blackwell late in the day but Dominic Cork played a useful innings to boost the Lancashire total.
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Mike Hussey showed that a change of county has done nothing to quell his thirst for runs. He put Durham into a strong position by hitting a century on his county debut – and the first Championship ton of the season – sharing stands of 93 with Jon Lewis and 166 with former England U-19 batsman Gordon Muchall. Paul Collingwood missed the chance to impress the England selectors when he was caught off Ottis Gibson. Leicestershire’s bowlers struggled to make an impression – their new-ball pair of Gibson (36) and Phil DeFreitas (39) are hardly an advertisement for youth cricket – although Gibson worked hard through 30 overs and Claude Henderson did his best to keep a lid on the scoring rate with his left-arm spin.

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Kevin Pietersen and John Crawley enlivened a truncated day at The Rose Bowl, as both men completed their centuries in the 45 overs available, to lift Hampshire into a promising position against Glamorgan. Resuming on 197 for 3, the pair took their fourth-wicket partnership along to 175, with Pietersen once again taking the aggressive approach. His second hundred in consecutive matches was another brisk affair – 126 from 116 balls, with 20 fours and a six, to match his 125 from 111 against Kent last week – as he served the selectors another timely reminder of his talents, having been omitted from the first Test squad. Crawley took a more sedate approach to his first century of the season – and 44th of his career. He had faced 247 balls for his 106, before falling shortly before the close to lift Glamorgan’s spirits.
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Simon Cook took 4 for 38 in 14 overs to put the skids under Nottinghamshire, and set Kent up for a useful first-innings lead at Trent Bridge. Replying to Kent’s 301, Notts were indebted to Darren Bicknell at the top of the order. His 63 from 124 balls was 39 more than the next highest scorer could manage, as Cook and his fellow seamers cut a swathe through the batting. His run-out at 134 for 4, however, shortly after Stephen Fleming’s dismissal, was costly as the middle-order fell away without a struggle. Cook accounted for Chris Read and Mark Ealham, both for ducks, and Andrew Hall picked up his maiden wicket for Kent when Samit Patel was dismissed for 12. Gareth Glough was clinging on on 12 not out at the close.

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Australia stood on the brink of a thoroughly deserved victory in the first Test after the old firm of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, bowling together against India for the first time since 2001, brought about a top-order collapse to leave India sinking in quicksand, ending the fourth day 352 behind with only four wickets in hand. Even rain, which is forecast for tomorrow, is unlikely to save them, because it rarely rains heavily enough here in Bangalore to wash out a whole day.India battled manfully during the early part of the day to restrict Australia to 228 – a total which neatly doubled their first-innings lead – at a lesser rate than they would have liked. Harbhajan Singh was magnificent, bowling with control and guile, and claiming wickets at regular intervals. But ever since India were bowled out for 246, it had been clear that their batsmen would have to dig them out of the hole in the second innings. It was a tall order, and the past was staring at India like an apparition. They needed a distant 457 to win on a ground where the highest successful run-chase is 195 … and within little more than an hour they were reduced to 24 for 4, through a mixture of accurate bowling, dodgy umpiring, and a shambolic piece of running between the wickets.India began their innings in the worst possible manner, when they lost Virender Sehwag to a terrible decision from Billy Bowden: a straight one from Glenn McGrath caught a thick edge on its way to Sehwag’s pad. The din must have drowned out the noise of the nick, but the deviation was visible to the naked eye from the stands behind the bowler’s arm. But Bowden raised his finger, and to add injury to insult, Sehwag might cop a fine for showing his displeasure (1 for 1). Minutes later it was 7 for 2, when Aakash Chopra fell to another contentious decision, this time by Steve Bucknor: Jason Gillespie rapped him on the pad with a incutter, and replays showed that the ball might have missed leg.McGrath’s deadly knack of varying his pace and the seam’s angle, while always hitting the corridor just outside off, made him a devilish proposition. He snapped up two wickets in two spells, but more importantly was instrumental in piling on the pressure with his parsimony, as he sent down eight maidens in his 12 overs, conceding only nine runs.It got even worse when a horrendous misunderstanding led to Sourav Ganguly being run out. He pushed one to short midwicket, and took off for a single immediately, only to see Rahul Dravid stop after a couple of strides. Ganguly was stranded halfway down the pitch, and didn’t even bother to look back as Adam Gilchrist uprooted the off stump with great glee.And the final blow came just before tea, when Shane Warne deceived VVS Laxman with his first ball. It came down flatter and quicker, Laxman played for more turn than there was, was hit in line, and fell to Warne for the second time in the match. The crowd roared its disapproval of the decision, but the ball was dead straight (19 for 4).Dravid waged a solitary battle as a crushing defeat loomed large, but two more setbacks at the other end all but lit the Indian funeral pyre. The weekend crowd – nearly a full house – cheered their local hero, after all else had gone awry. India had limped to 105 for 6 from 49 overs by the close, with Dravid undefeated on 47.The only silver lining for India was the form shown by Harbhajan, who teased the batsmen with his subtle variations of length and turn. Keeping it asstraight as possible, he forced the batsmen to defend after charging down the track, and no-one summoned the courage to loft him over the top. Damien Martyn was forced to curb his fluent style, and ensured that the first hour was negotiated without too many jitters. He blocked, shouldered arms and drove straight to the infielders, and survived a few close leg-before shouts. Just 20 runs came off the first 10 overs, as Martyn helped Australia into a near-impregnable position.He was eventually out for 45, pushing an uppish drive to short midwicket, but a flurry of runs followed his dismissal, with Warne’s energetic cameo providing the boost. Although there were two fielders positioned on the square boundary, Warne swept Harbhajan crisply and, along with Gilchrist, provided the final kick towards a lead of more than 450.Harbhajan mopped up the tail after lunch to finish with 11 for 224 in the match, the best return by any bowler on this ground, taking his tally in his last three home Tests against the Aussies to 39 – but by then the visitors’ middle order had already done enough … and more.Siddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Wisden Cricinfo in India.

The 13 striking players have been left out of the seven-man squad for next month’s Hong Kong International Sixes.The board chose to stick with the players who at the weekend secured the draw which put Kenya through to the Intercontinental Cup semi-finals.Kenya squad Hitesh Modi (capt), Ravindu Shah, Rageb Aga, Lameck Onyango, Rajesh Bhudia, Kalpesh Patel and Abeed Janmohamed.

The ongoing saga over the television rights for Indian cricket took another twist today with the Indian government terming the Board of Control for Cricket in India as “a state” within the definition of Article 12 of the Indian constitution.In his submission before the Supreme Court, which is hearing a petition from Zee TV challenging the cancellation of tender process for the telecast rights by the BCCI, Mohan Parasara, the additional solicitor-general, said that the union government was of the opinion that the BCCI fell within the purview of the definition of “state”.Under Article 12, “the State” includes the Government and Parliament of India and the Government and the Legislature of each of the States and all local or other authorities within the territory of India or under the control of the Government of India.The Board had earlier pleaded for the dismissal of the petition on the grounds that it was an autonomous body and was fully entitled to award the television rights in a manner it deemed fit.However, resuming the arguments before a five-judge constitution bench headed by N Santosh Hegde, Zee’s counsel Harish Salve said that the writ petition was maintainable as the BCCI performed a public duty in selecting the national team, the Press Trust of India reported.

Kenneth Gordon, the former media manager from Trinidad and Tobago, has been elected, as expected, as the president of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) at the sixth annual meeting held in St Maarten on Sunday. Gordon, who was the sole nominee for the post, replaces Teddy Griffith who had indicated last June that he would not accept nomination. Valentine Banks was elected the vice-president after defeating Clive Lloyd, the former West Indies captain.Gordon, 75, was in a one-horse race as two of his opponents, the former WICB president Pat Rousseau of Jamaica and the former WICB director Tony Marshall of Barbados, withdrew their nominations last month. He will now be at the helm of the regional association for at least the next two years and will oversee the West Indies’ staging of the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup, the first time the event will be hosted in this region.Gordon has had a long, distinguished career and a rather hefty resume: he has served as the chairman of Neal and Massy Holdings, a major Caribbean conglomerate, and was managing director of the and chief executive officer and chairman of Caribbean Communications Network (CCN). He was also instrumental in the establishment of a number of regional media houses in Guyana, Jamaica and Barbados. Apart from that, Gordon was also as a senator in parliament and a government minister in Trinidad and Tobago.Banks, 55, is presently serving as vice-president of the WICB. A banker by profession, Banks, who is from Anguilla, was previously the president of the Leeward Islands Cricket Association.

Western Province completely dominated the opening day of their SuperSport Series match against Boland at the picturesque PP Smit Stadium in Bellville, ending the day in a commanding position at 347 for 3.The bulk of the day’s play was taken up by a huge 2nd wicket partnership between the left-handed pair of Gary Kirsten and Ashwell Prince, both challenging for places in the Test team. Their stand was worth 253, a new Western Province record.WP won the toss and took first use of a slowish pitch. The batting was equally slow, before Lloyd Ferreira fell to a good catch by wicket-keeper Steve Palframan. The Bolander’s joy turned to despair as the two diminutive WP batsmen then took the game away from them. Prince batted attractively, while Kirsten was at his gritty best.Kirsten reached his 38th First Class hundred in just short of 5 hours, off 217 balls; and Prince recorded his 6th FC century in 4 hours off 184 balls.Fittingly, their centuries were recorded off successive deliveries. Kirsten’s innings of 5 and a quarter hours came to a tame end when he holed out to Vinod Kambli’s tame off spin, and Prince followed shortly afterwards hooking Jacques van Wyk’s first delivery with the new ball straight to fine leg, having equalled his highest FC score.Captain HD Ackerman and Zimbabwean Neil Johnson raised another fifty partnership before close of play. The Boland attack was workmanlike without ever really threatening the talented home batsmen. Andrew Cyster impressed with his fielding on what was a demoralising day for the bowlers. Their overstepping was another headache, conceding no fewer than 26 no-balls during the day.WP scored 4.82 batting points, and Boland a single bowling point.

Alan Mullally, the former England left-arm seamer, has announced his retirement from first-class cricket. He played 19 Tests between 1996 and 2001, while having stints at Leicestershire and Hampshire, after beginning his professional career in Australia with Western Australia in 1987.Mullally, 36, has suffered a series of injuries this summer which have meant he has played only three National League matches. Paul Terry, the Hampshire coach, told : “A few little injuries have slowed Alan down and it’s probably the right time to retire.”Terry added: “He has been a great servant for Leicestershire, Hampshire and England and he’s been a really popular bloke in the dressing room. His humour will be missed.”Mullally made his England debut against India in June 1996, at Edgbaston, and took 58 wickets in Tests. He also claimed 63 scalps in 50 ODIs and, for a time, was a ranked as the fourth best limited overs bowler in the world. In his first-class career he finished with 708 wickets at 28 apiece, including a best innings haul of 9 for 93 against Derbyshire in 2000.

Zimbabwe Cricket hold their annual general meeting at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Monday, the first time the meeting has been held outside Harare.The Peter Chingoka led executive still has one more year to serve after the constitution was changed last year to give the board a two-year term. Lovemore Banda, the ZC spokesperson, told the local Sunday News that it is merely a routine meeting and there will be no elections for the board.Ozias Bvute ceased to be a board member when he assumed the post of managing director early this year and has to be replaced, together with former Midlands Cricket Association chairman Hemant Patel who stepped down from the board a few months after he had replaced Mike Moyo. But Banda said the board appointments are done in terms of the constitution and have got nothing to do with the AGM.Banda also made a surprising revelation that Clive Barnes, a former headmaster at Prince Edward in Harare now based in Mauritius, is still a Zimbabwe Cricket board member. Banda told the Sunday News that Barnes was kept on the board for his expertise and still attends all board meetings.The only election to take place at the meeting is that of the national team selectors. At the moment, the panel is made up of convener Macsood Ebrahim, former Rhodesian left-arm spinner Richard Kaschula, and former Matabeleland and Zimbabwe A medium-pace bowler Ethan Dube. Since Kaschula and Dube came on board in August last year, they have added some respect to the selection process that was over the years done on a regional basis.It is still not yet clear how many selectors will be elected. Initially there were four, but only three have been selecting the team of late after the fourth member of the panel, Stephen Mangongo, was suspended by Zimbabwe Cricket. He has, however, has since bounced back as national coach Kevin Curran’s assistant.