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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday May 31, 2014
Narine opts out of Windies Test squad
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – Off-spinner Sunil Narine has advised the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) that he has opted to remain in India to participate in the final of the Indian Premier League and consequently will not join the West Indies training camp in preparation for the Test Series against New Zealand by June 1, as is required by the WICB. Narine had been in discussion with the WICB and was required to ad-
… will be considered for T20s v New Zealand
Sunil Narine vise the Board by May 24 whether he will join the squad currently in training
in Barbados on June 1. Narine had indicated by the May 24 deadline that he will join the squad on June 1 as required. Narine subsequently advised the WICB on May 28 that he would not be able to meet the June 1 requirement. Narine’s decision not to join the camp by June 1 will result in his not being
considered for selection to the West Indies squad for the Test Series v New Zealand (June 8 to 30). Narine will be considered for selection to the squad for the two Twenty20 Internationals against New Zealand on July 5 and 6 in Dominica. WICB Director of Cricket Richard Pybus explained that the guiding principle
of the Windies First Policy which was recently approved by the Board of Directors requires players to make themselves available for team preparations. “The onus of the WICB is to protect the integrity of international cricket at all times. International cricket, and specifically Test cricket, is priority and requires dedicated prepa-
ration which is integral to team success. The WICB policy requires players to commit to sufficient preparation leading in to a series as part of a culture of excellence,” Pybus said. The WICB appreciates the discussion with Narine and his representative on his availability to West Indies cricket.
ECB forced to apologise to Pietersen THE ECB and its managing director, Paul Downton, have been forced to apologise to Kevin Pietersen for making comments in a radio interview last week about Pietersen’s attitude during the Sydney Test that were “in breach of the settlement agreement” between the two parties drawn up after his sacking. Speaking to the BBC’s Test Match Special programme during the first one-day international at The Oval, Downton said he had never seen anyone as “disinterested or distracted” as Pietersen was in Sydney, claimed there was not one person within the team that he spoke to who wanted Pietersen to stay and “the accusation made was that he had too many different agendas and was not 100% focused on playing for England.” Downton also said it was Pietersen who wanted his central contract ended, pinpointing the proximity of the IPL. “It was a week before the IPL auction,”
Downton said. “KP wanted the freedom to play where he wanted to play and he won a big contract because of it.” Pietersen reacted angrily to Downton’s comments through a statement on his website last week, calling them “wholly untrue”. The last line of his statement said: “I will continue to abide by the confidentiality provisions contained in my settlement agreement, which I believe applies to both the ECB and myself.” The ECB apology, issued late yesterday evening, did not state there was any issue with what Downton actually said. Downton previously, on the day Peter Moores was named coach, said he had never seen anyone as “disengaged” as Pietersen. “On May 22 during an interview on BBC Test Match Special, Paul Downton of the ECB made a series of comments about Kevin Pietersen with which Kevin takes issue including the
CRICKET QUIZ CORNER
(Saturday May 31, 2014) Compliments of THE TROPHY STALL-Bourda Market & The City Mall (Tel: 225-9230) & CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL CO. LTD-83 Garnette Street, Campbellville (Tel: 225-6158; 223-6055) Answers to yesterday’s quiz: Jacques Kallis-KKR 22 wickets Today’s Quiz: Who is the first player to make a hundred in an IPL game? How many games were scheduled for the last IPL? Answers in tomorrow’s issue
Paul Downton (centre) provokes an angry reaction from Kevin Pietersen by his radio interview.
comments he made regarding his perception of Kevin’s attitude during the Sydney Test on last winter’s Ashes tour. Some of those comments were made in breach of a settlement agreement between the ECB and Kevin Pietersen which was concluded at the time Kevin’s central contract was terminated earlier this year. “Paul Downton and the ECB both apologise to Kevin
Pietersen for those comments made that were in breach of the settlement agreement and have confirmed that they will abide by its terms moving forward.’’ Pietersen’s return to an English cricket pitch was delayed after a finger injury prevented him playing for Surrey in the NatWest T20 Blast against Middlesex but he is expected to appear for them next Friday. (ESPN Cricinfo)
England enjoy win over Peru in last home warm-up By Mike Collett LONDON, England (Reuters) - England overcame some stubborn resistance from a well-organised defensive Peru side before sealing a comfortable 3-0 win in their last home World Cup warm-up match at Wembley yesterday. England head off to their final training camp in Miami, boosted by an excellent opener from Daniel Sturridge after 32 minutes which lit up a lifeless first half. Two second-half goals from set-pieces by central defenders Gary Cahill and Phil Jagielka gave England a deserved win in the first match between the two countries since they last met 52 years ago just before the 1962 World Cup in Chile. Peru, who failed to reach this year’s finals in Brazil after a poor campaign in the South American qualifiers, defended well and Jean Deza stood out in midfield with a solid performance, forcing England goalkeeper Joe Hart into two good saves. He also had a 40-metre
shot that swirled and dipped and just went over the bar. “It was a wonderful send off to the World Cup by a quite incredible crowd,” England manager Roy Hodgson told ITV. “We had to be patient but we were dominant throughout. It is the perfect end to a perfect two weeks. I am delighted that 85 000 fans came here to wish us well on our way. “When you play against teams with 10 men behind the ball you have to be patient but I had no doubt we would win. “They would tire and 3-0 is the minimal acceptable achievement. It was also good for some of the young players to get out here at Wembley.” STURRIDGE CURLER England, playing the first of three warm-up games before opening their Group D campaign against Italy in Manaus on June 14, took time to find their rhythm. Sturridge, playing as the lone central front man, failed to make much impact until his goal when he cut in from the right just after the half-hour
mark and sent a perfectly struck left-foot curler wide of goalkeeper Raul Fernandez. It was an outstanding strike from the in-form Liverpool striker who was named man-of-the-match and told ITV: “It was difficult because Peru defended well, they were very compact. “We have worked very hard in the week and there wasn’t the match sharpness as we would have liked. It was a hard week in training.” Looking ahead to the World Cup, he added: “We don’t want to make the numbers up, we are winners. That doesn’t mean we will win the World Cup but we are winners and we will do our best.” England dominated possession without a great deal of pace or invention until the latter stages, although skipper Steven Gerrard, winning his 110th cap on his 34th birthday, continually found the front men from his deeper midfield role. NEAT FLICKS Wayne Rooney, playing behind Sturridge, also attempted some neat flicks and lay-
offs, and England finally added to their one-goal tally with later strikes from set-pieces. Both goals came from Leighton Baines corners, with Cahill powering in a header after 65 minutes and Jagielka firing home five minutes later after keeper Fernandez dropped the ball when he clattered into his own defender Alexander Callens. Most of the crowd entertained themselves by throwing paper aeroplanes on to the field, although the final quarter of the match was more lively than the rest of the game. The increase in tempo came after England coach Roy Hodgson introduced some of his younger substitutes like Raheem Sterling and Ross Barkley, plus teenage defender John Stones who came on to earn his first cap. England now fly to Miami where they continue their build-up with friendlies against Ecuador on Wednesday and Honduras next Saturday before their World Cup games against Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica.