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It took Michael Klinger more than a decade to post a century at the MCG but when he did he made it a double as South Australia took control against Victoria

Cricinfo staff11-Dec-2009
ScorecardMichael Klinger’s unbeaten 207 kept South Australia on top at the MCG•Getty Images

It took Michael Klinger more than a decade to post a century at the MCG but when he did he made it a double as South Australia took control against Victoria. Klinger and Mark Cosgrove both registered hundreds before South Australia declared at 6 for 517 and things worsened for the Bushrangers when they lost Chris Rogers on the last ball of the day.Victoria reached 1 for 35 at the close with Nick Jewell on 13, having lost Rogers, who was caught in close off Aaron O’Brien for 21. It capped off a horror day for the hosts, who could do nothing to stop the charge of their former team-mate Klinger as he played his way to an unbeaten 207.Klinger made his debut for Victoria in 1999-00 but never managed to score a century at the MCG for the Busghrangers. He and Cosgrove combined for 152-run third-wicket stand that ground down Victoria, who were one bowler short on the second day as Darren Pattinson had a calf strain.Cosgrove made 103 from 146 deliveries before he was trapped lbw by John Hastings and despite another two quick wickets from Bryce McGain, Klinger then found support from Daniel Christian. They added 103 before Graham Manou declared in the final session, with Christian unbeaten on 52.

Chris Hollins has become the third first-class cricketer to win the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing

Cricinfo staff19-Dec-2009BBC presenter Chris Hollins has become the third first-class cricketer to win the channel’s Strictly Come Dancing, following Darren Gough in 2005 and Mark Ramprakash a year later. Although he did not win the judges’ vote, he got the public’s backing to beat actor and favourite Ricky Whittle.”I’m very lucky that people at home supported us and kept us in this competition,” Hollins said. “I haven’t got that much ability. But Ola [Jordan, his dance partner] really believed in me.”Hollins, 38, made eight appearances for Oxford University in 1994, scoring 131 in that year’s Varsity match. An offspinner he took four wickets on debut, but it was only when he hit 68 batting at No. 7 against Leicestershire in his fourth game that his ability with the bat became evident.He was born into a sporting family – his father, John, played football for England while his uncle, David, turned out for Wales – and he too was a good enough player to have spent brief periods with Charlton, Queens Park Rangers, and Aldershot Town.Although playing regularly in club and representative cricket, he became better known as a presenter, initially with Sky Sports before joining the BBC in 1999.

If Habib Bank Limited were down in the dumps at 95 for 7 in reply to Karachi Blues’ first-innings total of 215, Taufeeq Umar’s sparkling hundred on the second day provided the shot in the arm for their bowlers

Cricinfo staff22-Dec-2009
Scorecard
Perhaps the first day’s drama was just a trailer, as another amazing day’s action and a power shift followed at the National Stadium. If Habib Bank Limited (HBL) were down in the dumps at 95 for 7 in reply to Karachi Blues’ first-innings total of 215, Taufeeq Umar’s sparkling hundred on the second day provided the shot in the arm for their bowlers. Having conceded a meagre lead, a disciplined performance with the ball had Karachi in tatters with just the last pair at the crease – the lead of 195 similar to HBL’s first-innings score.Umar began the day unbeaten on 36 and his strokeplay gave the impression that the devils in the pitch on the first day had been exorcised. His fourth hundred in the tournament was laced with 11 boundaries and he teamed up well with the tail to give them hope of a lead. But Mohammad Sami’s twin strikes, meant Umar had carried his bat through as HBL finished short by 20.Buoyed by the opener’s fighting spirit, right-arm fast bowler Sarmad Anwar dealt two crucial blows at the top of the order, sending back openers Shahzaib Hasan and Khalid Latif. Younis Khan did no harm to his credentials as a bowler taking out Ali Asad, before Asad Shafiq and Asim Kamal combined for a fourth-wicket stand of 53 – the highest of the innings.But once Shafiq departed for 45, a slide followed with the next five wickets falling for just 45 runs. The wrecker-in-chief was left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman who finished with tidy figures of 10-2-14-3.Karachi’s hopes now solely lie with Kamal, who was unbeaten on 49, and any additional runs from here on will only make HBL’s chase to the title more daunting. With 12 wickets falling on the second day – 17 on the first – the pitch still looks to be a bowler’s paradise and the champions may well be decided tomorrow.

Shaun Tait, the Australian fast bowler, has been added to the squad as a standby for Sunday’s fifth ODI against Pakistan

Cricinfo staff30-Jan-2010Shaun Tait, the Australian fast bowler, has been added to the squad as a standby for Sunday’s fifth ODI against Pakistan. The last-minute call-up is due to Peter Siddle’s continuing back problem and gives Tait a chance to play his first international match in a year.”Peter Siddle is still being troubled the back pain which kept him out of the third match of the series in Adelaide,” Australia’s physiotherapist, Alex Kountouris, said. “As such he is in doubt for tomorrow’s fifth ODI and therefore another fast bowler has been included as a standby player.”Tait also had a series of injury problems, due to which he has focused only on limited-overs matches for South Australia so far this summer. During an eventful winter he was prevented from playing in the IPL by Cricket Australia, who didn’t originally offer him a contract but handed one out when Andrew Symonds’ deal was terminated.”Shaun Tait at his best is a destructive fast bowler in both limited-over and Twenty20 cricket,” Andrew Hilditch, the chairman of the national selection panel, said. “He has progressed well this season and performed well in both the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash and the recent Ford Ranger game against New South Wales in Wollongong and we are sure he will be ready should he be required for tomorrow’s match.”With Clint McKay and Ryan Harris adapting to international cricket well, and Mitchell Johnson waiting for his first one-dayer of the summer, Tait’s chances of getting a game are slim.

The UAE batsmen continued a day of upsets at the World Twenty20 Qualifiers, by setting up an unlikely victory against Kenya in Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi

Cricinfo staff09-Feb-2010
Scorecard
The UAE batsmen continued a day of upsets at the World Twenty20 Qualifiers, by setting up an unlikely victory against Kenya in Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.Following on from USA’s victory over Scotland and Ireland’s defeat to Afghanistan, the home captain Khurram Khan won the toss and chose to bat. On a flat pitch the openers made light work of the Kenyan bowlers, coasting to 35 inside four overs before Mohammad Iqbal was defeated by Lameck Onyango for 20. Wicketkeeper Abdul Rehman fell soon after to the medium-pace of youngster Nelson Odhiambo. It brought Saqib Ali to join Arfan Haider at the crease and the two calmly put on 61 in eight overs for the third wicket. Left-hander Haider flayed five fours and two sixes on his way to 59, his first Twenty20 International fifty before he was eventually dismissed by the impressive Nelson Odhiambo, caught by Hiren Varaiya.With the total at 103 for 2 off 13 overs, his dismissal could have sparked a Kenyan revival. Instead Khan came out and clubbed four boundaries from his 19 balls, sharing a 41-run stand in 25 balls with Ali. They fell in quick succession to leave UAE 144 for 5 with 11 balls to go. Naeemuddin Aslam and Shadeep Silva scampered 21 runs to leave UAE with a competitive 165.Given the form of their top-order in the recent matches, Kenya would have fancied their chances of chasing down the total against an inexperienced team but dangerous opener David Obuya couldn’t get away as he was caught by Qasim Zubair off Qadar Nawaz for 2 in the second over.Steve Tikilo, one of the most gifted and experienced batsmen in Associate cricket, then looked to arrest the momentum stroking four quick boundaries. Having raced to 25 from 18 balls he was trapped lbw to Silva’s left-arm spin. Silva struck again in his next over, removing Alex Obanda in the same fashion for 13, to leave Kenya facing a daunting 116 from 11.5 overs.Captain Maurice Ouma and Collins Obuya did their best in a 69-run partnership for the fourth wicket, but couldn’t score at the rate required. Given the situation they were strangely becalmed and by the time Ouma was dismissed for 39 by Ahmed Raza in the 18th over 47 runs were still needed. Jimmy Kamande and Collins Obuya upped the scoring rate but it wasn’t to be. Kenya finished 15 runs short to give hosts UAE a chance of causing a major upset in the tournament and progressing to their first global tournament since the 1996 World Cup..Speaking after the game Khurram Khan said that the Twenty20 format is one that suits his side. “Everything went right for us today. Batting first, we set ourselves a good target and then bowled and fielded well to restrict Kenya. We’re very good at Twenty20 cricket and it’s something we do well at. It’s really a game where two overs can change everything, whether you’re batting or bowling.”

Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, has been fine 10 percent of his match fee after his angry response to the umpiring during the third day of the second Test against England at Dhaka

Cricinfo staff23-Mar-2010Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, has been fine 10 percent of his match fee after his angry response to the umpiring during the third day of the second Test against England at Dhaka.On a day where a number of decisions went against Bangladesh, Siddons’ frustrations became apparent after Ian Bell had been given not out to an lbw appeal. He marched to the front of the dressing room and signalled onto the field that he thought it was out. He also went and spoke to the match referee, Jeff Crowe, but it’s the public show of his emotions that has caused the problem.”There were probably three or four decisions I was unhappy with,” Siddons told the BBC after the third day. “Hindsight makes it easy for me to be critical but that’s the game. Umpires do make mistakes, but it made it hard for us today but we’re still in the game, it’s still pretty even.”He has been charged with a Level 1 one offence of “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision during an international match” and immediately pleaded guilty during a hearing with Crowe on Tuesday.”Jamie became increasingly frustrated and let his emotions out during the second session of day three which was obvious for all to see,” said Crowe. “Clearly he behaved inappropriately and he agrees that such actions and gestures must be kept behind closed doors. He is disappointed with himself that he was so public and he did not hesitate in pleading guilty and accepting the proposed sanction.”The Umpire Decision Review System hasn’t been in place for the series due to the cost of implementing the system and Shakib Al Hasan felt the match would have gone differently if the reviews had been available.”We would have been in a very good position if [UDRS] was in use here,” he said. “I think we would have asked for a referral four times with full confidence, and three of them would have come to our way for sure. It’s really bad for us that we did not use the referral system, which we could have done.”

Durham pair Michael Di Venuto and Kyle Coetzer both scored centuries as bat dominated pink ball on an experimental first day of the season-opening fixture against MCC

29-Mar-2010
ScorecardMichael Di Venuto hit the first century of the English season…in the desert•PA Photos

Durham pair Michael Di Venuto and Kyle Coetzer both scored centuries as bat dominated pink ball on an experimental first day of the season-opening fixture against MCC. The traditional county curtain-raiser has a new look this year, with the game transplanted from Lord’s to Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Zayed Stadium, while pink Kookaburra’s and floodlights are also in use.Those developments are part of a wider plan to usher in the era of day/night Test cricket, an agenda which is unlikely to have been either derailed or dramatically advanced by events on day one of this high-profile trial. Di Venuto hit a sprightly 131 and Coetzer, who batted all day, a more stately 123 not out as the champions made mostly serene progress to 329 for 3 after winning the toss.The flat wicket and serene batting conditions, rather than the colour of the
ball, can take much of the credit for that, though. Gloucestershire seamer Jon Lewis was handed first use of the ball, with Middlesex’s Tim Murtagh starting at the other end.Lewis beat the bat with the fourth delivery of the match but there was little
else to worry the champion county’s opening pair in the first session. Di Venuto began positively, finding the boundary three times in the first four overs and helping himself to two more in the sixth over as Murtagh strayed.Alex Gidman turned quickly to the spin of James Middlebrook but he was soon despatched for six over long-on as Di Venuto hurtled towards the first fifty of the first-class season, a feat he reached after 89 balls. Coetzer was struggling for the strike at the other end but looked in little trouble when he did face.Lewis and Gidman found hints of swing as the ball aged but not enough to
contain Durham as they eased to 89 for nought at lunch. The lights came on just after the break, perhaps a little early with the natural light still more than adequate.The change certainly made little difference to Di Venuto and Coetzer, the former continuing to take the lion’s share of the bowling and peppering the boundary accordingly. A pair of singles brought him his hundred from 145 balls with 20 fours and a six along the way.MCC looked understandably downcast in the field, with a lively Steve Kirby appeal against Di Venuto the closest anyone got to animation before the batsman was stumped by James Foster going down the track to Middlebrook.At the point of his departure, Di Venuto had 131 of his side’s 181. Coetzer eventually passed fifty, while captain Will Smith came and went for 13 before chipping Middlebrook to Scott Newman, who juggled the catch.Coetzer began to go on the attack as tea loomed, advancing down the wicket a
handful of times to the spinners, once to loft Middlebrook for a straight six. New batsman Dale Benkenstein was busy at the crease, working his way to 41 before being bowled by Dean Cosker.By that time Coetzer, who scored just one first-class century last season, had finally nudged his way to a hundred, a feat which required 194 deliveries. At the close of play he had extended his score to 123, while Ian Blackwell was on 13.

Glamorgan have had a pitch penalty from 2009 halved after an appeal, but will still begin this season’s Clydesdale Bank 40 competition on minus one

Cricinfo staff23-Apr-2010Glamorgan have had a pitch penalty from 2009 halved following an appeal, but will still begin this season’s Clydesdale Bank 40 competition on minus one.The original sanction stemmed from a Friends Provident Trophy match against Essex last May when the pitch was rated as “poor”. Glamorgan were bowled out for 124 and lost by seven wickets.Under the regulations the penalty is carried forward to the following season, but because the CB40 competition is a different structure and fewer teams qualify for the knockout stages it was decided that the loss of points should be given a new weighting to reflect this.”In the light of the fact that in comparison with the 2009 Friends Provident Trophy only half the teams in the 2010 Clydesdale Bank 40 will qualify for the knockout stages of the competition, it is confirmed today that having reviewed an appeal by Glamorgan Cricket, to maintain a penalty of equivalent weight the ECB has confirmed the penalty as a one point deduction,” said an ECB statement.

Paul Harris continued to torment Bangladesh A as he took six wickets to give South Africa A a massive first-innings lead of 267

Cricinfo staff01-May-2010
ScorecardPaul Harris continued to torment Bangladesh A as he took six wickets to give South Africa A a massive first-innings lead of 267. The visitors batted nearly 34 overs to set Bangladesh a target of 411 but the hosts didn’t get off to the best of starts, losing four wickets in the third evening.The overnight pair of Shamsur Rehman and Faisal Hossain added 54 for the fourth wicket before Harris had Faisal caught. The last five Bangladesh wickets added only 40 runs as they were wrapped up for 215. Shamsur kept running out of partners and was eventually out for 89, caught and bowled by Lonwabo Tsotsobe, who took two wickets. Harris wrapped up the tail to finish with 6 for 90.South Africa strengthened their position with a 60-run stand for the second wicket between Riley Rossouw and Alviro Peterson. Rossouw made a quick 68 off 91 balls and his dismissal marked the declaration.Bangladesh’s second innings performance mirrored the way they started the first. A strong second-wicket stand between Shamsur and Mehrab Hossain jnr was followed by another spurt of wickets. Harris took two of those wickets, while Vernon Philander claimed Shamsur for 57. Bangladesh have six wickets in hand and face a tough ask on the final day.

Surrey produced a dominant display at Old Trafford to all but end Lancashire’s chances of progression in the Clydesdale Bank 40

Cricinfo staff23-May-2010
Scorecard
Surrey produced a dominant display at Old Trafford to all but end Lancashire’s chances of progression in the Clydesdale Bank 40. Rory Hamilton-Brown’s side won by eight wickets with 97 balls to spare in their pursuit of 166, consigning Lancashire to their fourth defeat in six and second against Surrey. Surrey’s position in Group A is much healthier, having won three out of four.Lancashire, reduced to 39 for 5, recovered to 165 thanks to stand-in skipper Mark Chilton’s 68 off 78 balls and Luke Sutton’s 47 off 68. But identical spells of three for 29 from eight overs for Andre Nel and Jade Dernbach had put the visitors on top after Chilton elected to bat.Hamilton-Brown and Steven Davies shared 113 inside 15 overs for the first wicket and Davies top scored with an entertaining 82 not out off 69 balls, including eight fours and three sixes. A sixth-wicket partnership of 108 between Chilton and Sutton had earlier got the hosts up to 147 for 5 in the 35th over before the former was bowled by Nel.It was the first of four wickets to fall in the four overs of batting Powerplay with Dernbach getting Kyle Hogg caught behind by Davies. Stephen Parry was involved in the run out of Sutton before he was caught behind off Nel in the same over.And Daren Powell holed out to long-on off the bowling of Chris Tremlett (2 for 31) to complete Lancashire’s innings with three balls to spare. Tremlett sparked the Lancashire’s early collapse when he trapped Tom Smith lbw in the second over. Paul Horton was then caught behind off Nel before Dernbach grabbed his first fortuitously in the 10th.Ashwell Prince was caught at third man by Usman Afzaal with the ball coming off the back of the bat as the left-hander tried to play through midwicket. When Steven Croft was run out in the next, Lancashire were 33 for 4. Stephen Moore then dragged a Dernbach slower ball onto his stumps to leave them five down in the 12th.Chilton and Sutton had united to add 108 in 23 overs but it was evident early on in the Surrey chase that their efforts would be in vain. Hamilton-Brown, who hit 10 fours and a six in 65 off 46 balls, and Davies negated the threat of Jimmy Anderson, who went wicketless in his eight overs. Their dominance was highlighted when they took the batting powerplay with the score at 91 without loss after 12.The 22-year-old skipper immediately reached the second one-day fifty of his career off 35 balls – his first was against Lancashire earlier in the competition – with a straight six off the left-arm spin of Parry. Davies had already hit three maximums – one off Smith and two off Powell – and he reached his 50 off 47 balls.Lancashire’s only successes with the ball were when Smith bowled Hamilton-Brown off his pads and Croft’s off-spin forced Laurie Evans to sweep to Anderson at short fine leg.