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England have admitted that they are worried by an injury to key all-rounder Craig White prior to Thursday’s Lord’s Test against Pakistan.White was forced to sit out part of the England team’s training session with a stiff back.”We’ll be monitoring it overnight and see how he is in the morning,” confirmed physiotherapist Dean Conway. “It’s something that has bothered him for the last few days and he struggled a bit to get through his bowling.”Certainly the loss of White would be a big blow to the England team. His all-round skills provide crucial balance to the side and he is expected to play a prominent role throughout the summer.Alex Tudor is a possible replacement if White is deemed unfit tomorrow, though with Dominic Cork already included in the squad as an all-rounder, England may decide to play both new call-ups: Ian Ward and Ryan Sidebottom.

Shoaib Akhtar was ruled out of further participation in the first Test against New Zealand after twisting his ankle on Thursday evening while bowling at express pace. But he was cleared to play in the second Test starting at Karachi Wednesday.Shoaib bowled only eight balls Friday and took successive wickets of Brooke Walker and Chris Martin with trademark yorkers. But didn’t come out to field when New Zealand began their second innings after being forced to follow on.The pace bowler was taken to a local hospital for precautionary X-ray which were clear much to the delight of the player and the team.”I twisted my ankle when I fell on my follow through on Thursday evening. It is swollen and I am using ice,” Shoaib said. “But there is nothing serious to worry about and I will be available for the second Test,” he added. By failing to take the field in the second innings, Shoaib missed an opportunity to attempt his first Test hat trick.

Chasing targets is not really a forte of the Pakistanis. More often than not they are known to stumble even when the target is not all that daunting. The Black Caps batting in fine fettle on Thursday set up a significant 267 to make, at an asking rate of 5.34. But this new-look Pakistan team under a new skipper seemed quite determined to do it right this time round, with Shahid Afridi leading their charge with a blitz of 70 off only 43 deliveries, bludgeoning seven fours and six really huge sixes.This really was explosive stuff even by Afridi’s standards! His innings enthralled the very sizable crowd in this Sharjah Cricket Stadium, but more importantly for his side, his knock was followed by big unconquered displays by Saeed Anwar (81, 95 balls, 10 fours, two sixes) and Inzamam (71, 90 balls, 10 fours) helping maintain their unbeaten run in this three-nation ARY Gold Cup.Right when it seemed that he could coast past the hundred mark and put the issue beyond the Kiwis, all on his own, Afridi perished like he often does – essaying one big shot too many. In the course of this quite eventful innings, he did stroke his way to the fastest 50 of the tournament, off a mere 24 deliveries to be in line for the Shell Helix Fastest 50 Award.The Pakistanis went for the jugular right from the word go, as Saeed was held back and the two young openers sent in with instructions to go for the kill from the word go. The rest was done by Afridi, and such a clean striker of the ball that he is, the way he went about polishing off the target, a normally quicksilver Imran Nazir seemed to look like a ‘strokeless wonder’. And when these two were not striking boundaries, they were gathering singles and twos at such a quick pace that the normally very quick athletic Kiwi fielders too seemed to be slow in comparison.By the time Afridi went, and Nazir followed almost immediately, the result was a foregone conclusion especially because Inzamam seemed to be in his big-scoring mood, hitting boundaries at will to both sides of the ground to the joy of the partisan crowd.Soon Saeed Anwar was matching him stroke for stroke, to the extent that Inzamam and Anwar both reached their fifties one after the other, the latter, however, going for bigger strokes once he got set. The hapless Kiwi bowling had no answer to the stroke-making of these two seasoned campaigners and before long the issue was sealed, early in the 43rd over, with Anwar promptly dispatching a delivery to the extra cover boundary.The Kiwis must have felt desolate. They had not done too bad a job of setting a target, with Mathew Sinclair working his way to a magnificent hundred. But that in the end was not enough for his side. All said and done New Zealand did gain valuable experience for several of their young players have not been exposed to international cricket outside New Zealand.

EAST LONDON — The United Cricket Board of SA (UCBSA) has allocated an amount of R2 million to Border cricket for upgrading of Buffalo Park prior to the World Cup 2003 campaign.The CEO of the Border Cricket Board (BCB), Reunert Bauser confirmed yesterday the allocated money would be used to ensure alterations to Buffalo Park’s main pavilion and other upgrading to the UCB’s satisfaction.”We are hoping to extend the change rooms and make other alterations between now and World Cup 2003,” said a happy Bauser.”But we have to submit plans to the UCB for their approval,” Bauser added.

Match facts

October 16, 2012
Start time 1330 local (1130 GMT)First step for Yorkshire: stopping Shane Watson•Associated Press

Big Picture

Sydney Sixers underlined why they are among the bookies favourites to win the Champions League T20 during their opening victory over the most consistent IPL side, Chennai Super Kings. Their fast bowling is the best in the tournament, and can rival most international teams – it was their fifth-best quick bowler Moises Henriques who carved out the heart of Chennai’s middle order to turn the game decisively in Sixers’ favour.The batting is their weaker arm. They need early wins to ensure they aren’t sweating at the end of the league phase, when their most destructive batsman Shane Watson won’t be available, having been ordered back home to prepare for the upcoming home summer.The batting is the problem for their opponents, Yorkshire, as well. Against the fearsome Sixers line-up, Yorkshire will need plenty from the experienced pair of Phil Jaques and Andrew Gale, especially in the absence of Jonny Bairstow. The county side’s batsmen kept their cool in the chase in both qualifying games to earn a place in the main tournament, but the quality of the opposition they faced in the qualifiers aren’t in the same class as the Sixers.

Watch out for…

Gary Ballance has already shown what he is capable of in this tournament, demolishing Trinidad & Tobago’s chances by targetting their weaker bowlers. Can he pull off similar big hits against the pace of Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins?Steve Smith may not be the most popular cricketer in Australia, but he has been solid in T20 league performances this year. He led the Sixers to the BBL title at the start of 2012, then become one of the few bright lights of a dismal Pune Warriors IPL campaign. His bowling isn’t used very often, but even in the match against Chennai he showed two aspects through which he contributes: the composed catch of Suresh Raina in the deep was a game-changing moment, and he also provided some late fireworks with the bat to push Sixers to a big score.

Quotes

“Before this some of these guys hadn’t seen the Newlands in their lives; they just saw it on TV. Now they’re practising there and sitting in the change room there. All these little things are so exciting for them.”

“I’m hoping that I’ve learnt enough over the last few years for this to be happening more often.”

ScorecardJimmy Adams provided Hampshire supporters with memories of another left-hander to have played for the club•Getty Images

The Ageas Bowl was awash with emotion. Opening batsmen came and went, but staying for some while. They were besieged by middle-aged autograph hunters who were quite prepared to wait all day to snare the individuals whom they had admired for many a year. And that was just the action in the suite in the Shane Warne Stand.Hampshire’s 1973 Championship winning side, Barry Richards and Gordon Greenidge among them, were being feted at a Forty Years On reunion, caps, claret and all. It is the nature of such occasions that there is no time to observe what is going on in the middle, for techniques to be properly examined. There are simply too many old friends with whom to enjoy social intercourse.A pity in a way, because the two main innings were played by the Hampshire captain, another left-handed batsman of the same standing in the game as his predecessor of that era, Richard Gilliat, and a 21-year-old who is just starting out on his career, as all those familiar names once did themselves. Jimmy Adams made an unbeaten 71 and Robert Keogh, whose previous highest score was 44, 221.It would have been fascinating to hear what Richards would have made of Keogh. He would have admired the unwavering concentration, the correct strokeplay, the ability to make such a large score when Keogh had not remained at the crease hitherto for anything like so long as 473 minutes. Keogh and Matt Spriegel took their overnight unbeaten stand to 187 in 56 overs before the latter was well taken by Michael Bates in front of first slip off James Tomlinson. His 76 included eight fours.Keogh, dropped badly at cover on 169 off David Balcombe, reached his double century with a pulled four off the same bowler, his 29th, and was undeterred while wickets fell about him until he was last out, caught and bowled by Liam Dawson off a leading edge. The pitch, so helpful to the new ball bowlers on the first morning, was by now offering nothing in the way of lateral movement. A batsman of resolve and talent, which is clearly what Keogh is, can stay in for a long while.Bates brought off another fine catch, left handed down the leg side, to account for Trent Copeland, to hand a third wicket to Ruel Brathwaite, who has bowled well enough to have been given a contract next season. He will be a handy replacement for David Griffiths, who is leaving for Kent.Matt Coles, whose future is yet to be determined, accounted for Jon Batty, of whom much the same could be said, although at the stage of his cricket career that he has reached, that scarcely matters. Bates, keeping wicket on account of Adam Wheater playing as a specialist batsman, finished with six catches.Hampshire, then, had to contend with a total of 438. Michael Roberts was soon bowled by Steven Crook, but Adams remained for the remainder of the day, as steadfast as Keogh had been earlier. He worked the ball around the square in characteristic style, occasionally unfurling an off drive that split the cover ring. By the close, when the party in the Warne Stand was still going strong, Dawson had hoiked Spriegel to midwicket, the captain had struck 14 fours.

Match abandoned
ScorecardWith the match having already been reduced to 14 overs-a-side because of inclement weather, the fixture between National Bank of Pakistan and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited was called off after the completion of the first innings, on account of rain. SNGPL posted 145 for 2 in their allotted overs, with Azhar Ali top-scoring with 72 off 39 balls, and Ali Waqas (57*) supporting him in a 112-run stand for the second wicket.

Javagal Srinath, former India fast bowler, believes young cricketers should play for the love of the game, and not focus as much on getting selected in various age-group teams. Srinath was speaking, along with former India captain Rahul Dravid, at a discussion on club cricket as part of the Karnataka State Cricket Association’s (KSCA) platinum jubilee celebrations.Srinath, currently the KSCA secretary, spoke fondly of his time in club cricket, playing for Sunny Side Club in Mysore. “If I missed one session of practice, I was very hard on myself. I resolved to stick to the club. The loyalty factor was very high, and with that loyalty I gave a lot. I cherished every second and gained a lot in terms of dedication and commitment.”His resolve, however, was shaken when he couldn’t crack the Karnataka Under-15 squad. “I remember coming here to Bangalore in 1985 or so for an U-15 trial and not being picked in the side. I went back to Mysore and refused to bat or bowl. My coach told me not to come back for training again: ‘You are here to play this game and develop a sporting habit. That is more important to me.’ This changed my mindset towards selection and put less pressure on me to perform.”Srinath’s notion proved a recurring theme throughout the talk as Dravid weighed in. “What are the aspirations of the player?” Dravid said. “Is it only to get selected into the state U-19 team? Only fifteen boys get selected, so there will be a lot of young, disappointed kids, and people will start giving up the game. There is a huge amount of pressure from schools and parents. You have to play it for the enjoyment factor; making friends, getting physically fit, and learning about life through sport.”

The coup behind David Johnson’s selection

“I (Dravid) was captaining the U-19 Karnataka team, when David Johnson did not turn up for selection one day. We all knew he was a very good bowler at that level. I went up to Dr Krishnamurty (the Karnataka U-19s head selector), asking if he would select him. He said that I should bring him in during the next practice. I made a pact with the other batsmen that when Johnson bowled we all get out and look like we are struggling. But Dr Krishnamurthy saw that he was good, and picked him. It was a good selection as it showed he wanted the best players in his team.”

Dravid spoke of his experiences growing up. “One of my great memories was playing with the likes of Roger Binny, Carlton Saldhana and Sadanand Viswanath. To play against GR Viswanath, who was still playing for State Bank of India and Raghuram Bhatt on a matting wicket, you knew these were great cricketers. It was a great opportunity for a 16-year-old boy to learn and play with these great cricketers.”Dravid also mentioned that long train journeys with the likes of Viswanath and Binny contributed a lot to the development of him and Srinath as players, as it allowed them special insight and access to their wealth of knowledge. These journeys also helped forge a special bond between the players, he said, one which ultimately transcended into the Indian team, which at the time boasted a significant contingent of Karnataka players.One other point, which was touched upon by each member of the panel, which included N Doraiswamy, club secretary of Friends Union Cricket Club, and Dr S Krishnamurthy, former administrator, was the growing need for facilities and open spaces for cricket to continue to thrive in and around Bangalore. With the advent of urban sprawl and the coinciding population boom, commute times have lengthened and the competition for club spaces have increased. The KSCA has attempted to rectify this to an extent with the introduction of their summer coaching camps, which allow aspiring cricketers access to qualified coaches and a robust infrastructure. Private academies have also shot up, but the costs may prove a deterrent to impoverished players.

ScorecardDavid Hussey’s 28-ball 52 ensured Nottinghamshire chased down the hosts’ target•Getty Images

A blistering 52 off 28 balls from captain David Hussey helped Nottinghamshire end their Friends Life t20 hoodoo against Lancashire at Old Trafford. The Outlaws had lost the six previous meetings between the two sides at this venue but they chased down 156 with 14 balls to spare to win by four wickets thanks in the main to their Australian captain.The 35-year-old is only one of three men to have scored over 5000 Twenty20 runs and he shared a crucial fourth-wicket stand of 78 in just 7.3 overs with opener Alex Hales, who made 49 off 37, to take the visitors within sight of victory.Nottinghamshire even survived an historic performance from New Zealand fast bowler Mitchell McClenaghan, who claimed Lancashire’s first ever five-wicket haul in this format. McClenaghan struck with his first ball on his home debut and later had Hussey and Hales caught with successive legitimate deliveries at the start of the 15th over to give them a glimmer of hope.But it was too little too late as Nottinghamshire made it two from two in the early stages of their North Division campaign.Lancashire recovered from the early losses of Stephen Moore and Ashwell Prince as they slipped to 22 for 2 in the fourth over after losing the toss. Moore was run out following a mix-up after just six balls and Prince caught in the deep off Ajmal Shahzad in the fourth over.Steven Croft and Simon Katich, who added 52 and 48 respectively, then shared 93 in 11.2 overs for the third wicket to get their side back on track and up to 115 for two after 15 overs. But they lost four wickets in the last five overs to halt any momentum gained.Nottinghamshire fielded superbly with five catches in the deep, the best of which came from diving New Zealander Ian Butler at long-off to get rid of Tom Smith at the end of the 18th over off the excellent Harry Gurney, who finished with 1 for 18.Lancashire had their noses in front with the visitors at 50 for 3 in the seventh over of their chase but Hussey, in particular, and Hales took the game away from them. Having got Michael Lumb and Riki Wessels early, McClenaghan snared Hussey, Hales and Chris Read. The visitors weathered the storm, though.

ScorecardShiv Thakor took 3 for 39 as Leicestershire restricted their hosts•Getty Images

Matthew Fisher became the youngest post-war county cricketer at Scarborough and he was denied a fairytale win on debut as Yorkshire’s fledgling pace attack just failed to contain high-flying Leicestershire when the visitors reached their 259 target with five balls and three wickets to spare.Injuries resulted in Yorkshire playing four teenage fast bowlers, includingYork-born Fisher, who, at 15 years and 212 days, became the youngest post-warcricketer to play in a competitive county match. Also making his first-team debut was 17-year-old Ryan Gibson, from Whitby, while Ben Coad, 19, was playing in his second game and Will Rhodes, 19, his fifth.Fisher, cheered on by family, friends and fellow members of his Sheriff HuttonBridge team in the York and District League, came on for his first bowl at 56for 2 after nine overs and in a tight four-over spell gave away only 18 runs,maintaining a good line outside off stump.Leicestershire’s openers, Josh Cobb and Niall O’Brien, fell to the moreexperienced Liam Plunkett and Adil Rashid but when Rhodes came on to bowl heclaimed wickets in consecutive overs, having Greg Smith caught behind for 58from 51 balls, with seven fours and a six, and Ned Eckersley caught in the deepby Adam Lyth.Plunkett dismissed Matt Boyce and Gibson came on at 185 for 5 after 30 oversto take Yorkshire closer to victory as Thornely edged to Andy Hodd for 21. Fisher then returned for a second spell to trap Shiv Thakor lbw withoutscoring.The momentum had swung Yorkshire’s way at 189 for 7 in 32 overs but RobTaylor and Jigar Naik turned the tables again with some positive batting in anunbroken eighth-wicket stand of 71 in eight overs.Fisher came back once more with 14 needed from two overs and this time thepressure proved too much for him. He had Naik caught at midwicket but theumpire signalled a no-ball because of height. A leg-side wide soon followedbefore Taylor struck him for four as 11 came off the over.It had still been a great baptism for Fisher in front of an appreciative crowdof 3,400 and he was given the match ball by Yorkshire coach Jason Gillespie.Fisher also had time for a four ball innings in which he struck two fours before being run out for 10 from the final ball of the innings. It contributed to a late-order push that saw a whirlwind knock of 53 off 23 balls by Plunkett rush Yorkshire to a competitive 258 for 9, with 61 coming off the finalfive overs.Plunkett lashed four sixes including two in one over off Thakor, the second ofthem sailing over long-on and striking a spectator who had to receive medicalattention.The other sixes came off Nathan Buck and Robbie Williams as Plunkett hammered five fours, scoring all but one of the runs in a stand of 47 in 23balls for the seventh wicket with young Gibson.Attempting one big hit too many, Plunkett skied Williams to Buck atcover but there was further excitement in the final over when Fisher launchedhis career by finding the boundary at third man off consecutive balls fromTaylor with intended drives.Winning the toss, Yorkshire were given a good start when skipper Andrew Galeand Phil Jaques put on 61 in 10 overs before Jaques was bowled by Taylor for 19.Gale went on to make 44 before he aimed to cut Naik and was caught behind byO’Brien.Lyth was then joined by Joe Sayers, drafted into the side because of injuriesto Gary Ballance and Richard Pyrah, and the third-wicket pair featured in thebiggest stand of the innings which produced 65 in 12 overs.Lyth was then also caught behind attempting to cut Naik but Sayers continued toplay some fine strokes on his way to a chanceless half-century. He was fourthout at 186 in the 33rd over, taken above his head on the long-off boundary byTaylor off Thakor for 58, from 63 balls with six fours.A large crowd gathered in front of the pavilion during the interval for apresentation by the Yorkshire CC Supporters’ Association to Yorkshire president,Geoffrey Boycott, to mark his maiden century 50 years ago in the Roses match atBramall Lane when he scored 145 and Yorkshire went on to win by an innings and110 runs. He received a framed copy of the scorecard from the game.