All posts by csb10.top

Dave Gilbert has jumped from the position of Cricket New South Wales chief executive, denying recent instability at the association and calls for his sacking by Brett Lee had hastened his decision.Following a special board meeting at the association’s headquarters at the SCG, Gilbert handed in his resignation, stating he had been considering his position for some months.”After 11 successful years, I am now at the point where I am ready to take on a new challenge,” Gilbert said. “This is not a sudden decision – it is something I have been contemplating over the past 12 months. As far as recent commentary is concerned, it comes with the job – and I’ve never shied away from it.”The simple truth is that I’ve been in the role for much longer than most sports administrators could ever dream of. Now that the busiest period of the season has passed, I feel it is right to give the Board ample time and opportunity to search for my replacement.”I have enjoyed many memorable times in the role and it will be sad to leave behind a fantastic team of people who work for a great organisation. I wish them and the game of cricket in NSW the very best for the future.”Having held the role of CEO at Australian cricket’s largest state association since 2001 after being similarly employed with Surrey in England, Gilbert’s position was unsteadied by a series of missteps dating back to the decision to take on a new captain and coach simultaneously at the start of the 2011-12 season.Anthony Stuart was hired as NSW coach ahead of the more experienced Trevor Bayliss, who was keen on resuming the role he had filled before coaching Sri Lanka, while the Australian captain Michael Clarke replaced Simon Katich as state captain, with Steve O’Keefe as his deputy.The Blues struggled through a nightmarish summer, and Bayliss enjoyed great success as coach of the Sydney Sixers in the BBL. Results improved somewhat at the start of this season, but Stuart’s removal as coach in December had the unintended effect of casting harsher light on Gilbert.At this point Lee weighed in with heavy public criticism of Gilbert and the association, his words backed up privately by plenty of other former players. Lee was reported for detrimental public comment, but emerged from his hearing with a place on a NSW board subcommittee formed to allow ex-players to suggest how the state’s performance might be improved.This represented a major setback for Gilbert’s authority, particularly after Lee refused to indicate any support for the CEO following their compromise. A tenure that had been quietly successful for much of its 11-year journey was thus drawn to an end in some acrimony.The association chairman Harry Harinath spoke warmly of Gilbert’s contribution to the state. “David has overseen a period of tremendous growth and development for cricket throughout NSW,” he said. “During his time in charge, participation in the game has increased by 130% and revenue has trebled. The percentage of NSW- originated players in Australia’s male and female Test teams are higher than at any time in the past 30 years.”He is responsible for a number of important achievements that have benefited both those who play the game and those who watch. These include bringing international cricket to ANZ Stadium and extending our footprint throughout the key growth area of Western Sydney with the development of Blacktown International Sportspark.”

England’s policy of rotating their squad will continue in the T20 and ODI series against India either side of Christmas.Graeme Swann has been omitted from both squads while Steven Finn will only take part in the ODIs in January. Kevin Pietersen is back in England’s ODI squad but he will also miss the T20s.Stuart Meaker could be in line for a T20 debut, as the only player uncapped in T20s in the 13-man squad which doesn’t include a specialist wicketkeeper. Jonny Baristow, who kept in England’s World T20 defeat to Sri Lanka in Pallekele, will take the gloves again.Bairstow replaced Craig Kieswetter behind the stumps after a poor run of scores but Kieswetter retains his place in the 15-man ODI squad which shows further signs of England’s desire to protect the workload of their players ahead of back-to-back Ashes series.England took the opportunity to rest several players during the summer, with both James Anderson and Stuart Broad sitting out the third Test against West Indies and Swann being rested for the final three ODIs of series against both Australia and South Africa.The ECB had also been in discussions to manage Andy Flower’s workload, culminating in Ashley Giles’ appointment as limited-overs coach.”We are constantly looking to manage the workload of players as effectively as possible and this winter is no different,” national selector Geoff Miller said. “So there are number of players who are being rested for parts of the winter programme to enable them to take part in fitness and conditioning programmes in preparation for a busy 2013.”We know that playing limited overs cricket in India can be challenging but the T20 and ODI series provide an excellent opportunity for these players to show that they have learnt valuable lessons from the last ODI series against India and improved as players in subcontinent conditions.”England were whitewashed 5-0 on their ODI tour of India in October 2011 but showed improvement outside of the subcontinent with series victories over Pakistan in the UAE, a comprehensive defeat of Australia at home and a drawn series with South Africa.Of the side that lost the fifth ODI against South Africa at Trent Bridge, the most notable absentee is Ravi Bopara, who endured a horrendous series with scores of 16, 0, 6 and 0. His exclusion, and Pietersen’s return, could spell the end of his international career. The loss of form followed personal problems which saw him withdraw from England’s Test squad after 0 and 22 in the opening Test.Bopara’s place will be taken by Pietersen who was successful against Pakistan in the UAE in his new role as opener with Alastair Cook, striking two centuries in England’s 4-0 series win. But when Pietersen announced his one-day retirement, Ian Bell was installed at the top of the order and also found form with 370 runs at 41.11 against Australia and South Africa.The majority of Bell’s ODI career has been spent at No. 3, where he has scored 1,649 runs at 37.47. But Jonathan Trott has made No. 3 his own, suggesting Bell could move to No. 4, where he has only batted for 14 matches, allowing Eoin Morgan to move back to the No. 5 spot and best fulfil the finisher role he is tasked with.But outside of the top five, England have plenty to debate. Do they persist with Kieswetter as wicketkeeper in the middle order, despite his poor record – 203 runs in nine matches – or trust Bairstow with the gloves, allowing them to benefit from his undoubted talent with the bat.The makeup of the bowling attack will also vary with conditions. It will be led by Steven Finn, who announced himself on the world stage with his performances in England’s ODI tour in India last October. Finn went on to lead England’s attack with 13 wickets in the UAE and consistently ripped through the Australian top order last summer. Anderson and then Broad will compliment Finn as the second seamer, with Jade Dernbach in reserve.James Tredwell, who successfully deputised for Swann against Australia and South Africa, will be England’s leading spinner with Hampshire’s Danny Briggs, who made his international debut with 2 for 39 against Pakistan in Dubai, the option as a second specialist spinner and Samit Patel, the only other player to come out of the last Indian tour with credit, the allrounder at No. 7.Tim Bresnan could provide another seam option, and extend the batting order, if Briggs is not required.England T20 squad
Stuart Broad (c), Jonny Bairstow, Tim Bresnan, Danny Briggs, Jos Buttler, Jade Dernbach, Alex Hales, Michael Lumb, Stuart Meaker, Eoin Morgan, Samit Patel, James Tredwell, Luke WrightEngland ODI squad
Alastair Cook (c), Jonny Bairstow, Ian Bell, Tim Bresnan, Danny Briggs, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Craig Kieswetter, Stuart Meaker, Eoin Morgan, Samit Patel, Kevin Pietersen, James Tredwell, Jonathan Trott, James Anderson (first three matches), Stuart Broad (final two matches)

Lalit Modi, the former IPL chairman, has lost his appeal against the level of damages awarded in his libel case defeat against Chris Cairns. Modi was ordered to pay Cairns £90,000 ($142,000), as well as costs in excess of £1 million ($1.6m), in March over a defamatory tweet sent in January 2010, after a two-week hearing at the High Court.Modi was given leave to appeal the damages but not liability. However, the Lord Chief Justice on Wednesday announced that Modi’s case had been thrown out, saying the amount awarded to Cairns, the former New Zealand allrounder, was “proportionate to the seriousness of the allegation”.A Court of Appeal statement said: “We reject the criticisms of the judge’s reasoning or of the total award based on a starting point of £75,000 with the £15,000 uplift directly linked to the conduct of the hearing. In our judgment they were proportionate to the seriousness of the allegation and its direct impact on Mr Cairns himself and will serve to vindicate his reputation. The appeal is accordingly dismissed.”

The Videocon Group, an Indian conglomerate, has expressed interest in buying Deccan Chargers from its owners Deccan Chronicle, the first potential buyer to openly declare its position. The franchise had formally been put up for sale on Thursday with the owners in the middle of well-publicised financial issues.Videocon have wanted to own an IPL team for a few years now, having lost out to the Sahara group in bidding for the Pune franchise in 2010. “We are interested and will place our bids for buying out Deccan Chargers,” Venugopal Dhoot, the chairman of the electronics-to-energy Videocon Group, told the . “It’s a good fit for our brand and will be used to connect to our consumers.”Another report quoted Dhoot as saying he would bid around Rs 700 crore [approx $126mn]. Chargers was bought by Deccan Chronicle for $107mn in the first IPL team auction in 2008, which made it the third-most expensive franchise, after Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore, at the time.Bidding for Chargers, under the aegis of the BCCI, closes on September 13, with the winning bid to be announced on the same day. The notice inviting bids states that the franchise will continue to be based in Hyderabad. Dhoot, however, was quoted in the as saying that if Videocon make the winning bid, they would like Chargers to be shifted to Ahmedabad, if the BCCI allows it.Deccan Chronicle are facing pressure from their lenders, having also mortgaged Chargers to banks as security against debts, and have had to put the franchise up for sale to raise funds. They had been trying to sell the franchise, in whole or part, for some time now, with T Venkattram Reddy, the Deccan Chronicle chairman, telling the recently that they were in advanced talks with potential buyers. But the deal reportedly faced complications, with some investors in the franchise asking the board to get involved.

ScorecardOn a day of two declarations, Essex and Hampshire were locked in an intriguing struggle for victory in their Championship match at Chelmsford. Faced with a target of 360, Essex will go into the final day needing a further 258 for victory, with Billy Godleman seeking to add to his 37 that has so far spanned three hours.Following a complete wash-out on the second day, Hampshire lost their remaining wickets for 20 runs after resuming on 303 for 6. Neil McKenzie added just five more runs to his overnight 134 before he was caught behind pushing forward against David Masters.Graham Napier claimed two of the other wickets to finish with 4 for 62 and leave India spinner Harbhajan Singh to bring the Hampshire innings to an end by having Danny Briggs caught in the covers. It was Harbhajan’s first success for the county, coming in his 44th over since he joined them.Essex openers Godleman and Jaik Mickleburgh then crawled to 18 in as many overs before lunch, at which point the declaration came with the home side still 305 runs adrift. Obviously captains Mark Pettini and Jimmy Adams had agreed upon a target that Essex would be set and Hampshire declared their second innings after openers McKenzie and Adams had reached 54 in the 15th over.That left Essex four and a half sessions to try and claim only their second victory of the summer in the competition but they were to lose Mickleburgh with the total on 25 when he was bowled by James Tomlinson attempting to turn the ball to leg.While Godleman continued to drop anchor, Tom Westley struck an entertaining 26 before being removed lbw by David Balcombe with Essex still 300 runs short of their target but that was to prove Hampshire’s last success.The rock-like figure of Godleman has so far faced 141 deliveries and will resume his partnership with Pettini as Essex go in quest of a further 258 runs for victory. The pair have so far put on 42 in 24 overs and while the home side still face a huge task to achieve their objective, the placid nature of the pitch gives them hope of a victory which seemed remote at the start of the day.

Whatever the hype and hysteria over the next couple of weeks, there be will no World Cups or Ashes urns won as England and Australia resume hostilities in the NatWest ODI series. Instead, these five games represent not a destination, but a step on the journey for both teams.That does not render this series worthless. It will act as a barometer of each side’s true position and provide an idea of how they must improve. It might also provide a vague guide to next year’s ICC Champions Trophy. The fact that Lord’s is expecting a capacity crowd of 30,000 underlines not only the draw that encounters between these two sides still has, but the draw of a wonderful, well-run ground. To regularly fill a stadium of this size in the current economic climate is a fine effort.That England go into this series with an outside chance of becoming the No. 1-ranked ODI side – they will need to win 5-0 to do so – speaks volumes not just for their progress in recent times, but also for some anomalies within the ranking system. A team that has lost so comprehensively in both India (5-0 at the end of 2011) and Australia (6-1 after the 2010-11 Ashes series) will surely have to win a major global trophy to convince that they are more than a very good side in their own conditions.That remains a key aim of this England side. Indeed, this series has been scheduled very much with a view to the World Cup, to be played in Australia and New Zealand in 2015, and the Champions Trophy, to be played in England next year. In return for this five-match series, England will have the chance to acclimatise with a five-match ODI series in Australia ahead of the World Cup, while these games should help both sides prepare for the Champions Trophy.It was a point made by England captain, Alastair Cook, as he looked forward to the games. “The reason this series is in is because of the 2015 World Cup,” Cook said. “We really want to have some warm-ups in Australia to get used to those conditions just before that World Cup. That makes sense for our preparation then, so obviously as a reciprocal thing they have to come here. As players we don’t mind. It’s going to be a brilliant, hopefully, ten days.”We haven’t won an ICC [one-day] trophy and we have a good chance next summer in our home conditions. That would suit us well. Clearly in a four year cycle you build to the World Cup but on the way you have to win as many games as you can. The Champions Trophy next year is half way to the World Cup and a good stepping stone.”England have a dismal record in the last five World Cups and, despite the recent success in the UAE, they also have a modest ODI record away from home. But, in their own conditions, they are dangerous and recent performances suggest they are heading in the right direction.No other side is playing ODI cricket with the same methodology as England. While all other major sides have at least one explosive batsman at the top of the batting order, England have opted for batsmen of more solid, traditional style and a line-up that increasingly resembles their Test side. One of the few concessions they have made to ‘specialist’ limited-overs players comes with the selection of Craig Kieswetter as wicketkeeper. And it is his place that is, arguably, most at risk.But just because no-one else is doing it does not make England’s method wrong. Indeed, against two new white balls and a No. 1-rated ODI side boasting at least two high-quality fast bowlers, England may well be grateful for batsmen of the class of Ian Bell, Cook and Jonathan Trott at the top of the order.It is worth remembering that England, too, would be playing quite differently had Kevin Pietersen not departed. But, just as Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss only came to form the captain/coach partnership that revived England’s fortunes through the successful calamity that was the sacking of Pietersen and Peter Moores, so we may come to reflect in time that Pietersen’s retirement proved to be a blessing in disguise. Bell, in particular, has been given a fresh chance to fulfil his undoubted potential in this format.Cook said he was not surprised how quickly England had moved on from Pietersen. “It’s a great sign of strength,” he said. “It’s an encouraging sign as a captain that we have a good squad of players, that if someone is no longer here we have got people who can come in and perform straight away.”We are very much a developing one-day side and we’re desperate to keep going up the rankings,” Cook said. “I think we are progressing as a team. People are starting to feel comfortable in their roles in the set-up, but that doesn’t count for anything when you walk out on the pitch.”We’ve got a really good test of ourselves now. They’ve proven they are going to be a really tough and dangerous one-day side and a tough side to beat. We’re got to have to be at our absolute best.”Each international side has a couple of guys who can get it up to 90mph and these guys are now in a similar position to us in that they have eight or nine guys who can play in their fast bowling slots. They’re in a position of strength just like we are.”

Mohammad Hafeez, the Pakistan Twenty20 captain, said he was always confident his bowlers would be able to defend any target on a Hambantota pitch that tested batsmen for the second time in three days. Pakistan had managed only 122 after winning the toss but squared the two-match series by keeping Sri Lanka to 99. Mahela Jayawardene, who rested himself, said the defeat gave his batsmen a taste of what to expect in similar conditions when the World Twenty20 gets underway in Sri Lanka.The Pakistan batsmen battled similar problems from their defeat in the first game, playing out a high percentage of dot balls and losing early wickets. When Hafeez departed in the 11th over, Pakistan were limping at 41 for 4 but a fighting partnership of 68 between Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik proved to be the turning point. Afridi remained unbeaten on 52 and later took two wickets to give Pakistan the edge in the chase.”I don’t think the toss had decided the game. The innings Shahid Afridi played was the difference,” Hafeez said after his first victory as captain. “He took us to a fighting target. I was always confident of defending 123, especially with our bowling attack. It was a blessing for me having so many wicket-taking bowlers like Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal. Sohail Tanvir was in good form too coming into this game. I always knew that as long as we put in a good fielding effort, we could certainly defend this score.”Hafeez also praised the improvement in his team’s catching. “We took our chances. Sri Lanka also dropped a couple but we too made similar mistakes in the first game,” Hafeez said. “It was a complete team effort and everyone was keen to win the game.”Pakistan dropped Umar Gul – who was expensive in the first match – and brought in Yasir Arafat, who responded with 3 for 18. Mohammad Sami was retained despite a poor spell in his comeback match but compensated with 3 for 16, extracting good pace and bounce on a slow pitch.”Sami showed great character today to bounce back from a disappointing start in his comeback game,” Hafeez said. “I had mentioned earlier that this is part of a new outlook by the team where if some players are making a comeback, it’s crucial to give them confidence. The coach and myself gave him that confidence and he delivered.”Sri Lanka used the game to experiment with the batting line-up, and with Jayawardene resting, Angelo Mathews took over the captaincy. The batsmen couldn’t find a way out of the pressure created by the Pakistan bowlers and some perished due to poor shot selection. Jayawardene said it was healthy in the long run that the batsmen were challenged.”It was a good toss to lose in the sense that we got a chance to bat second and see how difficult it was. It was good match practice, we managed to give opportunities for a few players who have done well. It’s healthy for us knowing we have more options going into the World Cup.”Jayawardene also backed the decision to promote Nuwan Kulasekara to No. 3. “If you’re chasing a small total, it’s good to get 15-20 quick runs upfront, especially when the ball is moving a bit. It’s a tough ask for a bowler (Kulasekara) to do it. It’s a sacrifice you have to make, sending a bowler up (the order) than getting a batsman to do it. These are things we will try and see if it works going forward.”Jayawardene said there was room for improvement when playing Afridi. “We should have played him a bit more sensibly, rotated the strike more. Our shot selection wasn’t great at the end. I thought till the 13th over, we were pretty much in control, but played two overs for two runs and lost wickets after that.”