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Division One

Ryan ten Doeschate completed an extraordinary personnel game as he guided Essex to a thrilling one-wicket win against Middlesex at Lord’s. ten Doeschate made 51 from 41 balls as Essex squeezed home with two balls to spare. Darren Gough helped him secure the win, adding 26 for the last wicket. Irfan Pathan, who had earlier bowled well to take three wickets, could not seal the game for Middlesex in the final over. ten Doeschate’s innings made up for his bowling performance when his only over cost 25 runs. Scott Styris boosted Middlesex’s total with a rapid 71 from 43 balls with seven sixes, four of them coming off Doeschate.Hampshire completed a comfortable 79-run win over Lancashire after a solid all round performance. Chris Tremlett rocked Lancashire’s top-order as they chased 201 and once they were 16 for 3 Hampshire never slackened their grip. Billy Taylor removed Mark Chilton (47), the top-scorer, and Shaun Udal wrapped up the tail. Hampshire’s total was built around 65 from Derek Kenway, although they failed to fully capitalise when they fell from 173 for 5 to 200 all out, as Andrew Crook took 3 for 32.The match between Glamorgan and Nottinghamshire at Swansea was abandoned before 4pm as rain swept in, with both sides taking two points.

Division Two

Somerset collapsed from 101 for 2 to 146 all out as they slumped to a 71-run defeat against Leicestershire. While Graeme Smith was compiling 61 from 84 balls Somerset were on course to reach their target of 218. But when he fell to Dinesh Mongia they subsided, as Mongia claimed 4 for 12 from seven overs. Mongia earlier top-scored for Leicestershire, with 75 from 72 balls, as they overcame a sluggish start to post a decent total.Derbyshire overwhelmed Kent by 90 runs at Maidstone after a thrilling century from Michael di Venuto powered the visitors to 304 for 3. di Venuto scored 116 from 90 balls and added 155 for the first wicket with Steve Stubbings, who played a rare attacking innings. James Bryant and Jonathan Moss boosted the score with rapid innings as all Kent’s attack suffered. Andrew Hall gave Kent a glimmer of hope with 61 from 56 balls, but once he fell they subsided with Ant Botha claiming 3 for 25Neil Carter produced a superb all round performance was Warwickshire beat Surrey by 49 runs at Whitgift School. Carter launched Warwickshire’s innings in dramatic style as he smashed 58 from 36 balls, including four sixes. Jim Troughton top-scored with 69 and Alex Loudon made 54 as Warwickshire amassed 309 for 8. Carter then starred with the ball, taking 3-37 including Dominic Thornely, Surrey’s latest overseas signing. Mark Ramprakash made a defiant 89 but Surrey were always well behind the rate.

Darren Holder, an Australian coach, has been appointed as the coach of the Maharashtra side and also made the Director of Cricket by the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA). A bachelor of health science from Griffith University, 30-year-old Darren Holder, who had worked as assistant coach and performance analyst to John Buchanan, Australia’s current coach, would begin his assignment from July onwards, Ajay Shirke, the MCA president, told PTI.About the tenure for which Holder has been appointed, Shirke said that it was for eight months, the full cricket season. Besides coaching the senior team, as Director ofCricket, Holder is expected to run a high-performance cricket training programme throughout Maharashtra for all age groups of cricket players, he said.It was the second time that a foreigner has been appointed as a coach of an Indian state cricket team. Earlier, Punjab had taken the services of Intikab Alam, the former Pakistan captain. After Greg Chappell, who has formally taken over as the coach of national cricket team, Holder becomes the second Australian to coach a team in the country in quick succession.

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Scorecard

Australia’s march to victory over Zimbabwe wasn’t derailed, but it was moved onto a siding during the last session of the third day when both Jason Gillespie and Stuart MacGill went off the field – and later to hospital for scans – with injuries. It was a situation Mark Vermeulen and Stuart Carlisle turned to their advantage as Zimbabwe went to stumps on 87 for 2 in the follow-on, still 409 runs behind Australia.Vermeulen, playing his fifth Test, scored his second half-century, off 79 balls, in an innings where he accumulated runs against the lesser bowling of Darren Lehmann and Damien Martyn. Carlisle was 26 not out at stumps.MacGill left the field after bowling four balls of his fourth over in the second innings, feeling a twinge behind his right knee. He had taken 2 for 54 in the first innings. With the 12th man Brad Williams already on the field, for Gillespie who had a slight side strain, Tim Neilsen, the Australian assistant coach and former South Australia wicketkeeper, took MacGill’s place.After the heady events of the second day, when Matthew Hayden scaled Test-match batting’s highest peak, there was a much more realistic atmosphere about the play as the Zimbabweans struggled to extend the game beyond four days. Until Gillespie and MacGill left the field, that hope appeared misplaced.Zimbabwe’s hopes of a solid performance in their first innings were undone early in the day when Trevor Gripper was hit on the ear by Brett Lee. Two balls later, he was unable to keep down a sharp, rising ball which took the splice of and flew to Darren Lehmann at gully. Gripper had just posted his half-century.Vermeulen had shaped promisingly, but fell to a splendid legspinner’s delivery from MacGill which spun across him, took the edge of the bat and was clasped at first slip by Matthew Hayden. It was a copy of the dismissal a little earlier of Carlisle. There was some resistance from the batsman of Zimbabwe’s tour so far, Craig Wishart. He played some lovely shots straight and square on the off, especially against MacGill, but was undone by one of the better balls of the day from Andy Bichel. It moved a fraction to the off from the pitch and Wishart, attempting to play it off the back foot with his bat away from his body, edged through to Adam Gilchrist. He left for 46, and Zimbabwe were 199 for 5.Once Gillespie removed Tatenda Taibu, trapping him leg-before for 15, the end came quickly. Brett Lee seized the chance to scythe through the lower order, dismissing Heath Streak and Andy Blignaut off successive fast, swinging deliveries, while Gillespie bowled Sean Ervine to end the innings at 239.The Australians were not at their most penetrative. Lee rarely bowled at his most express, and Gillespie was clearly affected by his injury. They were, however, consistently accurate and never under any pressure. Waugh was able to do without Lee’s pace to break up partnerships, which meant that when the final breakthrough came, Lee was still warmed up and able to start afresh in the second innings, which Zimbabwe started 496 runs adrift.It was Gillespie who made the initial breakthrough in the follow-on, dismissing Trevor Gripper with the first ball he faced – a poor defensive shot that went off the edge to Gilchrist. Dion Ebrahim made just 4 before playing Gillespie onto his stumps, leaving Zimbabwe 11 for 2. The Australian bowling was left enfeebled by the departure of both Gillespie and MacGill, enabling Vermeulen and Carlisle to add 76 without being parted, and take the fight to another day. But how long they extend that defiance is another matter altogether.

Mohammad Sami has suffered a groin strain that is likely to keep him out of Pakistan’s second Test against Sri Lanka, beginning on October 28. The injury prevented him from taking the field on the fourth day of play in the ongoing first Test.”Sami has badly strained his inner groin muscle and he needs at least seven to eight days to fully recover,” said Haroon Rashid, Pakistan’s team manager. “Any decision on calling up a replacement for Sami would be taken after the first Test finishes.”

They say the way a man plays cricket reveals character and if the Old Trafford press conference is anything to go by they are right. The performances of Shane Warne and Michael Vaughan in the pavilion library pretty well matched what we had seen on the field earlier.Warne came into the library and bewitched many of his audience. He began with the one that looked straightforward but kicked in an unexpected direction. Was taking his 600th Test wicket as good as he imagined? “Yeah. I think it’s hard to wrap your head round your achievements until you actually finish playing. Terry Jenner [Warne’s mentor] came out when I got 300 wickets and said I had a chance to get 600. I said: ‘Has he been drinking all day? He probably had been as well.'”Then the regulation legbreak. “It was a shame I couldn’t get 603 or 604. I thought England played extremely well. I don’t like using clichés. I like to make up my own but I’ll bowl worse and get four or five wickets. We dropped too many catches.”Next Warne was faced with a tricky proposition, Kevin Pietersen in fine form perhaps. What was with the wristband, the one he kissed on reaching 600? “Ermm. The wristband’s a pretty emotional one. When Simone and the three children went home Brooke my eldest daughter gave me it and said ‘you’ve got to be strong daddy’. It just says ‘Strength’ on it and she wears one and the other kids wear one. I spoke to the three kids this morning and Brooke said I like your white wristband daddy, and I said if it happens today then it’s for you. So that’s what that it’s about.”Next up a not-so-well-disguised swipe at Leeds. “I’ve got a special relationship with the Old Trafford crowd,” he enthused. “I bowled my first ball here against England and tried to work out what Ashes cricket really meant. I don’t know about them alternating the Tests between here and Leeds. The wicket here is a lot better than Leeds – that’s a dodgy wicket. You’ve got a fantastic flat pitch here that’s got something in it for everyone. I’m very surprised there’s not a Test match here every year.”But you don’t get to 600 Test wickets without being able to look after your own interests and Warne, having pleased his audience, ended with a plug. “As I’ve said in my columns for The Times, I think England have got match-winners for the first time.”Before Warne came the man who had spent most of the day padding him away, Michael Vaughan. Vaughan had got to his hundred without chancing his arm and he wasn’t about to get reckless in the press conference. “Obviously I’m very delighted with the first day’s play. I always talk of the first day against Australia as very important. You have to make sure you’re in the game and I think we are in the game.” So far so defensive.On Ian Bell: “He showed today he’s got the temperament to succeed at the top. To get 59 not out under that kind of gas, I think he was stuck on 18 for a number of balls against McGrath and Warne, two of the greats of the game, and for him to come through should do his confidence the world of good.”What were you saying to him? “Not a great deal,” said Vaughan with his trademark faraway smile. Next he opened out slightly about Warne: “He’s a true great. He can stop there now. He’s got his 600 and that’s about enough.”On his 166: “I can only control what I can do and that’s what I tried to do. Really play on instinct and go out and enjoy my batting. That’s what I tried all day and fortunately it paid off. I’ve said all along that the four innings I’ve had leading in to this game I felt three of them were good balls. I always believe a run of low scores has got to end somewhere. I tried to enjoy my batting and play on instinct.”But he certainly wasn’t speaking on instinct. “We’re delighted to be 341 for 5. Yes we lost two late wickets but if you look at the day it could have been a lot worse. With an Alec Stewart-like: “If we can get it reverse-swinging again then we can put their batsman under a lot of pressure,” he was off, smiling in that far-off way of his, and comprehensively outpointed by Warne. But matches are not won in press conferences, as Vaughan well knows.

India will host South Africa for five one-dayers in the middle of Sri Lanka’s tour in November. Reports by IANS said that the five games would be hosted by India’s five main cities: Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, New Delhi and Chennai. The two teams played a Test series late last year, which India won 1-0.However, an Indian board spokesperson said, “The dates of the one-day and Test series against Sri Lanka, the one-day series against South Africa and England’s tour of India have been finalised, but the venues are still to be determined.”Sri Lanka will play a one-day series from October 25 to November 12 and then return to play Tests after India’s last one-dayer against South Africa on November 29. The jarring arrangement comes in the middle of a packed season which includes a tour to Pakistan, the Asia Cup, a tour by England and a visit to the West Indies.One-day schedule
v Sri Lanka: October 25, 28, 31, November 3,6.
v South Africa: November 17 (Mumbai), 20 (New Delhi), 23 (Kolkata), 26 (Chennai), 29 (Bangalore).

The International Cricket Council (ICC) will tackle the substitute fielder rule following the furore created by the issue during the ongoing Ashes series.Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, told BBC Five Live that he will meet umpires and international captains in Sydney next month to debate the matter. “It’s something we want to talk to the captains about and the umpires. But it’s a delicate issue and a difficult issue.”Speed’s comments come after Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain, condemned England’s regular use of substitutes during the series. Although Ponting had spoken on the issue before the series began, matters came to a head during England’s three-wicket win in the fourth Test at Edgbaston. In the second innings, Ponting was run out attempting a sharp single by substitute Gary Pratt.The incident sparked a public outburst from Ponting and he was subsequently fined 75% of his match fee. He has since then called England’s repeated use of replacements a “disgrace”.England’s bowlers have left the field regularly after their spells for short periods; Duncan Fletcher, the England coach, insists the breaks are to answer calls of nature and within the laws of the game. Ponting argues England have manipulated ICC regulations and that their actions violate the spirit of the game.Speed, however, clarified England had done nothing illegal by using substitutes but added, “I think Ricky Ponting has a point there – we need to be careful that we keep it under control, define what’s acceptable and the captains buy into that.”In a statistical feature in The Numbers Game last week, Cricinfo found that England’s substitute fielders have effected more Test dismissals than any other team since September 2001. In 52 Tests in that period, they have dismissed 18 batsmen. Australia, on the other hand, were at the bottom of the table with only four such dismissals in 50 Tests.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Rain ruined the fourth one-day international in Durban, when the Kingsmead ground was saturated by heavy rain which arrived after 20 overs. Once the weather closed in their was no chance of any further action and the match was called off just before 8pm local time. The washout brings an end to South Africa’s run of 12 wins in a row.South Africa were handily placed when the rain, which had been threatening since the start of play, arrived. New Zealand took their obligatory early wickets, but could not make full use of helpful conditions. Jacques Kallis was showing ominous form on his return to the side after illness before the weather intervened.New Zealand’s new-ball bowling was its usual scattergun mix, but Shane Bond managed to remove AB de Villiers to prevent a flying start from South Africa. Graeme Smith has had a tendency in this series to appear in complete command at the crease, but failing to convert into a substantial score. His off-side play was in top working order and this time he can count himself unfortunate to have been given out against James Franklin.Kallis has struggled for his best form in recent weeks, he was far from his best during the Super Series (although he wasn’t the only one) and has been suffering from a mystery illness for the past few days. However, he showed no ill effects after replacing Herschelle Gibbs and located the middle of the bat from the moment to came to the crease. A trademark straight drive signalled his intent and, although he had to be watchful against a ball that was nipping around, he kept the scoreboard ticking over.A short-arm pull and a fierce square-cut followed as Kallis took advantage of Fleming’s decision to use both his Powerplays in succession and Ashwell Prince also threaded the ball through the infield. Franklin caused occasional moments of unease for both players and Scott Styris kept his end tight, but there was a feeling that the batsmen were about to push on when Durban’s infamous weather made a lasting impression on the match.

South AfricaAB de Villiers c McCullum b Bond 6 (14 for 1)
Graeme Smith lbw b Franklin 22 (52 for 2)

Scorecard

Michael Clarke posted his maiden first-class double century as he staged a dramatic push for a swift return to the national team at the SCG. Dropped a week ago, Clarke added a further 94 runs today against a Queensland attack including the internationals Andy Bichel and Michael Kasprowicz to give New South Wales an outside chance of victory in the rain-affected match.Despite giving up Lachlan Stevens and Martin Love to be 2 for 28 before tea, Queensland held on to reach 4 for 162 at stumps and secured a draw, although the Blues collected two first-innings points. However, the main talking point was again Clarke’s batting and whether it would gain him a spot in the middle order for Australia’s first Test against South Africa starting on December 16. He did not offer a chance in his 201 from 282 deliveries and celebrated the milestone in the final over before lunch, when the Blues declared at 7 for 488.Jimmy Maher had 60 when he found Clarke off Stuart Clark, who also removed Martin Love, but Craig Philipson and Ashley Noffke diffused the danger for Queensland and lasted until stumps. An outright result was an unlikely prospect once rain washed out the second day, but New South Wales stayed on top of the table with 20 points while the Bulls dropped to fourth.

Graeme Smith and Justin Ontong have had X-rays after picking up hand injuries during South Africa’s final ODI in India last night.Both players were examined by orthopaedic surgeons soon after their arrival back from India. According to Shane Jabaar, South Africa’s physiotherapist, Smith’s X-ray did not show a fracture, but his finger will need protection for the next 10 to 12 days. “The clinical examination revealed that he had sustained a partial tear of the volar plate over the DIP joint of his fourth left-finger.”Jabaar said that he will continue to treat and monitor his progress ahead of the first Test against Australia at Perth starting on December 16. Smith is likely to miss the opening three-day match between the South Africans and Western Australia the WACA which begins a week on Thursday.There was less good news for Ontong, who was also injured fielding in the same match. “An X-ray revealed a displaced fracture of the first metacarpal of his left hand,” Jabaar said. “He will undergo an operation today to reduce the fracture and he will then have to wear a plaster for 4 to 6 weeks.”