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Sport
County cricket playing a major part in England success: Vikarm Solanki Vikram Solanki, the former England batsman, has hailed the role of County cricket in England’s outstanding international success. Writing in his exclusive column for The Cricketer magazine website at www.thecricketer.com, Solanki says: “By increasing competitiveness since two divisions were introduced in 2000, the County championship has played an important part in improving the fortunes of the England test side. “Central contracts have also been a factor but players serve their apprenticeship and learn their skills in County cricket before they find themselves at a stage in their careers when they might earn a central contract.” Solanki, who is also chairman of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, continues: “County cricket can be proud of the part it has played in helping to produce a successful England test team. This year we have also seen a number of talented young players who have made their mark in County cricket being blooded in England’s one-day team. “The England management has developed a strategy of resting senior players – Kevin Pietersen for the recent one-day series for example – to manage the amount of cricket they play. “That ensures that players are in the best possible shape but it has also created opportunities for the likes of Jonathan Bairstow, Ben Stokes, James Taylor, Alex Hales and Scott Borthwick to come in and sample international cricket for the first time. The fact that those players have stepped up and made an impression so quickly is another indication of the health of English cricket and the part that County cricket is playing in England’s continued success,” he writes. Solanki also confirms that the ECB has ended the experiment with Tiflex balls in Division Two of the County Championship for 2012. Instead the Dukes ball will be used in both divisions. “This is something that the majority of players, in a survey conducted by the PCA, called for,” he confirms. www.thecricketer.com will continue to provide exclusive columns and extensive county cricket news coverage throughout the winter, together with extensive coverage of England's tours to India, the UAE and Sri Lanka.
Hussey makes way for Warner in Australian squad All-rounder David Hussey made way for big-hitting David Warner in the Australia limited-overs squad announced for next month's tour of South Africa. Chief selector Andrew Hilditch said as the Twenty20 and ODI squads were released that Hussey did not make the most of his inclusion in the recent series in Sri Lanka. "We did not think that David (Hussey) quite took his opportunity in Sri Lanka and his place has been taken by David Warner," Hilditch said in a statement. "David (Warner's) form has been irresistible recently and he deserves this opportunity in the one-day squad." Wicketkeeper batsman Matthew Wade will replace Brad Haddin in the T20 squad, while Mitchell Marsh - brother of new Test batsman Shaun and son of former opener Geoff - was also included. Haddin and Michael Clarke have opted out of T20 cricket, and paceman Mitchell Johnson wasn't selected for the shortest form of the game. "The retirement of Brad Haddin from international Twenty20 and the injury to Tim Paine, has given a well-deserved opportunity to Matthew Wade," Hilditch said. Patrick Cummins replaces injured all-rounder John Hastings in the one-day squad, while Doug Bollinger comes in for Johnson in the T20 squad. "It is an extremely exciting time in Australian cricket to see such young talent forcing its way into the Australian squads," Hilditch said. Australia will play two tests, three onedayers and two T20 matches on its tour of South Africa starting Oct. 13. The Tests squad is yet to be named.
Asian Voice - Saturday 8th October 2011
KP returns, Anderson dropped for India tour Batsman Kevin Pietersen was recalled for England's limited-overs trip to India but bowler James Anderson was left out the squad. Pietersen was rested for the one-day series against India at home that England won 3-0 earlier this month. England have five one-day matches against world champion India followed by one Twenty20 match. The tour begins with the first of two warm-up fixtures on October 8. "A number of injuries and a decision to omit James Anderson in line with our policy of sensibly managing player workloads give opportunities for other very talented players to continue to develop as international cricketers," national selector Geoff Miller said. "We had a promising One-Day series win
over India earlier this month and this squad will be looking forward to the challenge of continuing that success in
the subcontinent over the next four weeks." Miller said Stuart Broad will join the squad if he recovers from a shoulder injury ahead of schedule. Graeme Swann will captain the Twenty20 side if Broad does not make it to India. The 15-man squad also includes uncapped pace bowler Stuart Meaker, while all-rounders Chris Woakes and Scott Borthwick have been called up despite not featuring in the ODI series win over India. Squad: Alastair Cook (captain), Jonathan Bairstow, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Scott Borthwick, Tim Bresnan, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Craig Kieswetter, Stuart Meaker, Samit Patel, Kevin Pietersen, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott, Chris Woakes.
Salim Malik dropped from Pak Lewis Hamilton burns rubber Veterans team for Lanka series on tarmac, plays to the gallery Former Pakistan captain Salim Malik, who was banned for life in 2000 from playing cricket, has been barred from representing the country's veterans team in Sri Lanka at the eleventh hour in order to avoid creating 'unnecessary furore'. Malik was initially included in the Pakistan Veterans squad for a fourmatch one-day series against Sri Lanka. However, the Pakistan Veterans Cricket Association (PVCA), which was adamant to include the former skipper in the team, was forced to reverse its decision following instructions from cricket authorities. PVCA Chairman Fawad Ijaz Khan said that his association had no hesitation in having Malik in its team, but had to reconsider the decision on the instructions of a senior Pakistan Cricket
Board (PCB) official. "Our body does not come under the PCB or the ICC. We had no issues having Malik play for us. It was only after Intikhab Alam, who is also the chairman of the Punjab Veterans Cricket Association, asked us to drop him to avoid any controversy that we reversed our decision," media quoted Khan, as telling reporters prior to his team's departure to Colombo. "Alam told us that the ICC has not cleared him and he had reservations over Malik's inclusion" he added.
The screech of the McLaren Mercedes MP4-23 engine is so sharp, it can pierce your head. The car, which touches a speed of 300 km/hour within seconds, zips past before you even realize it, but it's a sight you will remember for the rest of your life. Ace F1 driver Lewis Hamilton got many hearts thumping as he rolled out on Nice Road in Bangalore in the car which won him the title in 2008. It was the first F1 on an Indian road and Bangaloreans were there to witness it, and cheer lustily. Though the organizers expected 5,000, a mind-boggling 20,000-plus people turned up. The competition was between the sound of the engine and the cheer of the crowd. A 400-m stretch of Nice road was cordoned off for Lewis. On this short
stretch, he undertook multiple sorties, touching a speed of at least 150 km/hour. Lewis said he couldn't go beyond the second gear but the crowd went ecstatic even with that speed. The 26-year-old also drove 10 lucky Bangaloreans on hot laps in a Mercedes SL 63 AMG. Among them was Ashok Kheny, managing director, Nice, who referred to it as a "roller coaster ride". "When you are driving with the best in the world, it can't be anything less than perfect," he said.
Parthiv, Jadeja retain places in ODI squad Gujarat Ranji Trophy skipper Parthiv Patel and Saurasthra all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja have been retained their places in the Indian One-day squad named for the first two matches against England starting from October 14. This is the first Indian team selected after the newly-appointed secretary Sanjay Jagdale took over. The selectors also dropped an out-of form Harbhajan Singh for the first two ODIs, while giving maiden international call-ups to Karnataka medium-pacer Srenath Aravind and Punjab leg-spinner Rahul Sharma. For Parthiv, this is an apt reward for his performance in the last few series since his comeback last year. The wicketkeeper-batsman was down in the dumps for six years before he was called as a replacement in two backto-back series within a month against New Zealand and South Africa just before the World Cup. For the Saurashtra batsman/left-arm orthodox spinner Jadeja, the England series was his first tour with the Indian ODI team after almost 10 months in wilderness. He came back strongly to knock at the selectors’ door with powerful performances, with both bat and ball,
Parthiv & Jadeja
in IPL-IV. Harbhajan, Nehra, RP dropped: The message is loud and clear. From now on, it’s the selectors who will call the shots when it comes to Indian team selection, not the captain. Captain MS Dhoni’s favourites Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, RP Singh - have all been dropped for the first two One Dayers against England. And that too, at a time, when seniors like Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Rohit Sharma, Virender Sehwag are all out due to injuries. It has been made amply clear to Dhoni that if he has to recreate the success of the World Cup - he has to do it with a new team that has been given to him by the selectors.
The 8-0 rout (four Tests, one T20, three One Dayers) in England hasn’t helped Dhoni’s cause one bit and he has to work with pacemen like Varun Aaron - whom he didn’t even consider for one ODI in England. The pace attack that has been given to the skipper has simply no experience and the only player to have a Test cap is Praveen Kumar. Sources close to the selection committee indicated that the likes of Aaron and Umesh Yadav have been included to give the injection of pace that is sorely lacking in the Indian attack for a while. Karnataka’s S Arvind has been rewarded for his consistency and it has been made clear that Nehra won’t be considered in the near future. The Delhi pacer, in fact, is not there in any of the Challengers squads either. The biggest blow, of course, has come for Harbhajan. The man with more than 400 Test wickets has been unceremoniously removed and if the sources are to be believed, he won’t be back in the Indian team in a hurry. His comeback process starts with Challenger Trophy in Nagpur from October 10-13, where he will be captaining India Greens, but the general feel-
ing among the selectors is that R Ashwin is ready to take over as the No. 1 spinner in the country. Harbhajan has to perform well in the domestic season if he has to make a comeback for the Tour Down Under later this year. With Ravindra Jadeja being the second spinner, the surprise selection has been leggie Rahul Sharma. The selectors have insisted for a while now that no player will be selected in the Indian side just on the basis of IPL performances. But Punjab legspinner Sharma, with a firstclass average of 43.12 from nine games, has made the squad on the back of an impressive show for Pune Warriors in the last IPL. It’s understood that North Zone’s Mohinder Amarnath, in his first meeting as selector, showed a lot of faith in the leggie and Chika & Co couldn’t refuse. The batting side remains more or less the same to what it was in England. Squad: MS Dhoni (C), Gautam Gambhir, Parthiv Patel, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav, Vinay Kumar, S. Arvind, Rahul Sharma, Manoj Tiwary and Praveen Kumar.