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Nathan Lyon, who will be playing his 100th consecutive Test, is keen to use the slope at Lord’s to his advantage

Andrew McGlashan27-Jun-2023Stuart Broad looked cooked. James Anderson wasn’t given the second new ball and looked grumpy. The opening Test at Edgbaston was decided by very fine margins, but it felt as though England’s pace attack ran out of steam for the final push.There has been a reasonable break ahead of the second Test at Lord’s. But if England go unchanged, there’s an opportunity for Australia to put more miles in their legs and see how two ageing greats can manage, although it’s worth stating their superb records at a ground where Anderson has 117 wickets at 24.58 and Broad 108 at 27.42.Of the fast bowlers on show at Edgbaston, Broad, who had an outstanding match, bowled the most overs with 44, followed by Ollie Robinson on 40.4. Then came Anderson (38) before we reach the first Australian with Pat Cummins on 32.2. Scott Boland and Josh Hazlewood did not get out of their 20s. Cameron Green only bowled eight, while even Ben Stokes, with his bad knee, sent down 14.Related

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They are largely small differences at the moment, but could soon add up, especially with Lord’s and Headingley being back-to-back Tests separated by only a three-day break. That is where the respective pace-bowling depths, and endurance of those who play on through, will be on show.One byproduct of England’s rapid batting approach is their innings tend not to give the quick bowlers lengthy downtime – they bowled on each day at Edgbaston, albeit only briefly in the first after Stokes’ declaration. By contrast, Australia are happy to bat time, although it is worth noting that 386 runs in 116.1 overs is certainly not slow, even if it doesn’t match up to Bazball and led to Robinson questioning their approach.”Potentially, for sure,” Cummins said about the prospect of wearing down England’s attack. “I’ve played a lot of Tests back-to-back and you certainly feel much fresher when in the first Test match, you’ve had a big gap in between both innings or you only bowled 30 as opposed to 40, 50. Our number one goal when we go out there is to score runs and it doesn’t matter how long it takes.”Nathan Lyon will be playing his 100th consecutive Test at Lord’s•ICC/Getty Images

Australia may have a change to their attack at Lord’s with Mitchell Starc in the running to replace Boland. It would also be a surprise if Michael Neser did not remain with the squad for the rest of the series when the squad is reassessed after this Test.The other key figure Australia have is Nathan Lyon, who will be playing his 100th consecutive Test at Lord’s. Although he finished with an almost identical economy rate to Moeen Ali (4.32 to 4.34) at Edgbaston, Lyon was a regular wicket-taking threat and claimed eight in the game.”It’s a huge privilege captaining him, it’s so easy – just chuck him down one end and he basically just bowls all day,” Cummins said. “In all conditions, being one of the four bowlers that get picked is just hugely impressive. Just the way he’s a man for all conditions, keeps getting better, so reliable.”The Lord’s pitch may not offer him much. There have been 12 wickets to spin in 13 County Championship innings this season, while Jack Leach went at four-and-a-half an over in the second innings against Ireland when the surface flattened out. But it’s a place Lyon has enjoyed bowling on his previous visits in 2015 and 2019, having been omitted in 2013 – the last Test match he did not play – making use of the slope in both directions, even though his six wickets have cost 41.66.”I actually really enjoy bowling here using the slope to our advantage as bowlers,” he said. “I think you can bowl with it and hopefully spin [it] more or you can bowl up and use the angles and hopefully bring in both edges. I don’t think it’s one end got to be the spinners’ end or the fast bowlers’ end. You’ve got to have that ability to adjust and really enjoy that challenge of bowling with it or against type thing. So I think we can use it as a weapon up our sleeves.”[But] we’re not sure what the wicket is going to look like on day one, whether it’s going to be overcast or whatnot. So if the seamers do work and I don’t have to do much and that’s all well and good, but I’m happy to put my hand up in the tough situations and have a crack.”Steven Smith has a look at the Lord’s pitch•Getty Images

Lyon and Cummins were also central in the cat-and-mouse that went on with England’s batters at Edgbaston, particularly in the second innings when the lead was all-important, and they both bowled impressively. Meanwhile, on the opening day, Australia’s largely defensive fields were much scrutinised but Cummins indicated he would remain happy playing the long game even if it meant England could sometimes make the running.”You’ve got a problem solver out there, which is great fun as a captain and as a bowler,” Cummins said. “It’s just maybe a bit more like T20 and one-day game, where the problems that you try to solve are a bit more like that, as opposed to trying to create something from nothing, which sometimes you have to do in a Test match.”I thought we managed to tempos really well last week,” he added. “When we had to attack, we really went for it, but there’s other times where we just had to suck it up and wait.”One win does not mean they have got it all right, but another one at Lord’s this week and it will be hard to question their approach.

Durham left to rue rain earlier in match as Glamorgan recover from top-order wobble

ECB Reporters Network10-Apr-2022Despite a flurry of wickets in the morning session, the final day of the LV=Insurance County Championship match between Glamorgan and Durham in Cardiff finished in a draw after half centuries from Kiran Carlson and Chris Cooke took the home side to safety.The day started with seven Durham wickets falling for 32 runs as Andrew Salter claimed career-best figures. Durham had a first-innings lead of 149 with Alex Lees finishing undefeated on 182.Four early Glamorgan wickets gave Durham some hope of claiming victory but the stand between Cooke and Carlson took the home side to safety with the teams shaking hands with 16 overs un-bowled.Durham will be left ruing the bad weather that took so much time out of this game on the first two days as they were the team best placed to push for a positive result.Durham resumed their first innings 114 runs in front with seven wickets in hand. In a madcap first hour they went from 351 for three to 383 all out. The destroyer-in-chief was Salter who finished with 7 for 45, his first five-wicket haul in the format, as the Durham middle and lower order attempted to press home their advantage with quick runs.Salter dismissed David Bedingham in the second over of the day, well stumped by Cooke with a ball that appeared to swing away from the batter. What followed was a succession of Durham players giving away their wickets with attempted big shots.As his side collapsed around him Lees stood firm, carrying his bat for the second time in his career on his way to his highest first-class score for Durham. While a quick conclusion of the Durham innings may not have been their plan as they started out the final day of this match, it did give them more time to claim the ten Glamorgan wickets they needed for victory.In the 14 overs they bowled before lunch, Durham claimed three Glamorgan wickets with the home side still trailing by 116 at the break. It could have been four wickets before the interval but Paul Coughlin put down a relatively simple chance at third slip that would have dismissed Colin Ingram without scoring.While the morning session was hectic, things settled down after lunch. Durham had Glamorgan 66 for four when Ben Raine had Ingram bowled but a partnership of 90 between Carlson and Cooke took Glamorgan into the lead.It was a breakthrough year for Carlson in 2021 with the Welsh batter scoring 928 first-class runs at an average of 48.84 and he was playing exceptionally before edging one through to the wicket-keeper on 61 off the bowling of Matthew Potts. Glamorgan will be hoping for more eye-catching innings like this one in 2022.Cooke made 59 in the first innings and was 85 not out in the second, those runs combined with the 205 not out he made in the last match of the 2021 season it is an impressing run of scores for the Glamorgan wicket-keeper.Durham take 15 points away from this match while Glamorgan claim 11.

Gunathilaka’s half-century in vain as Galle slip to fourth straight defeat

Madushka Balasuriya03-Dec-2020Jaffna Stallions 174 for 5 (Avishka 84, Bhanuka 40, Asitha 2-30) beat Galle Gladiators 170 for 6 (Gunathilaka 56, Walton 31, Hasaranga 2-29) by five wickets
How the game played out
An all-round display from Wanindu Hasaranga capped off yet another fine display by the Jaffna Stallions, as they won their fourth game on the trot, and subjected the Galle Gladiators to a fourth straight defeat, with an ultimately comfortable five-wicket win.Despite a 44-ball 56 from Danushka Gunathilaka and cameos from Ahsan Ali, Azam Khan and Chadwick Walton, the Gladiators’ batting line-up exhibited familiar failings as they once more faltered in crucial periods of the game. The Stallions, in contrast, showcased their clutch mentality, on numerous occasions, reining in the Gladiators just as they would have been hoping to do some real damage.The chief culprit as far as the Gladiators were concerned would be Hasaranga, who was not only responsible for breaking a threatening 67-run opening stand between Ali and Gunathilaka – completing a extremely tough return catch – but returned later to dismiss Gunathilaka in the 15th over, just as he would have been looking to launch a late assault.That wicket completely snuffed the momentum from the Gladiators’ innings, though Walton’s 14-ball 31 did briefly threaten to reignite it – taking them from 127 for 4 at the end of the 16th over to 152 midway through the 17th. However, after Walton nicked one through to the keeper, the Gladiators just could not recover, taking just 17 runs off the final three overs to limp to a sub-par 170 for 6.In their chase, the Stallions were in control pretty much from the get-go – largely thanks to a mature innings from Avishka Fernando. After Tom Moores fell with the score on 26, Fernando and Minod Bhanuka put on 99 for the second wicket.With less than 50 runs to get, the Gladiators would make a game of it dismissing Thisara Perera, Avishka, and finally Shoaib Malik (in the final over), but Wanindu would prove to be the bane of the Gladiators one final time – his seven-ball 17, inclusive of four boundaries, ensuring there would be no late drama.Stars of the day
While Thisara has rightfully hogged the spotlight over the course of the Stallions’ unbeaten run, Wanindu has arguably been as, if not more, critical to his side’s success. Quietly going about his business with bat, ball, and in the field, Wanindu once again showed what an invaluable asset he his. His control and variations were a constant thorn in the side of the Gladiators on his way to figures of 2 for 29, before his late cameo extinguished any faint hopes the Gladiators might have had of stealing a win.There was something rather ominous about the way Avishka went about his innings; the period of play from the 11th to the 13th over highlighted this perfectly. At the end of the 10th over he was on 35 off 31 deliveries, but realising the scoring rate needed picking up, he took Dhananjaya Lakshan for a six and four. The next over was a tight one from Lakshan Sandakan, but Avishka didn’t panic, calmly turning over the strike – even playing out a dot ball. It was as if he he could up the rate whenever he so chose. Three consecutive sixes in the arc between long-on and midwicket later, these suspicions were confirmed. At 22, this new-found assurance bodes well for the Stallions and Sri Lankan cricket in general.Chadwick Walton smears one away•AFP via Getty Images

Turning point
It’s unusual that an over in which 26 runs were plundered could be a positive for the bowler, but that Usman Shinwari ended the 31-run cameo from Chadwick Walton – 24 of which came in this over – before he could do any more damage, was crucial in limiting the Gladiators’ late charge. Following Walton’s wicket, just 18 runs were conceded by the Stallions over the next three overs – any more and it could have been a much trickier chase.The big miss
In the 18th over of the chase, Avishka flat-batted one hard to long-off. The man in the deep, Shehan Jayasuriya, however, chose to peddle back and stop the boundary instead of coming in for the catch. To compound matters, a misfield would lead to a boundary as well. Two balls later, Avishka would nick one through to the keeper. The umpire had already raised his finger before realising Azam had dropped a sitter behind the stumps. Fortunately for the Gladiators, Avishka would give another opportunity off the final ball of the over, skying a catch to Jayasuriya.Where the teams stand
The Stallions have firmly installed themselves as the team to beat – four wins in four, bowlers performing, batsmen clicking, what more could you ask for? It would take an astounding drop-off in form for them not to make the semi-finals. As for the Gladiators, they don’t really have much margin for error. Though the format of the tournament – where the top four teams go through as opposed to a play-off system – means they can sneak through with a couple of wins, provided other results also go their way.

Shakib Al Hasan credits Afghanistan for the way “they kept us under pressure and under their nose” in the Chattogram Test

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Sep-2019Rashid Khan, not yet 21 and in his first Test as captain, spun Afghanistan to a memorable win, by 224 runs in Chattogram, and picked up the Man-of-the-Match award too, for his 11 wickets and half-century in the first innings. It was a time to celebrate, but also bid farewell to Mohammad Nabi from Test cricket, a job Rashid did in style by dedicating his match award to “the legend”.”He has totally helped me a lot and other spinners a lot as well, since I’ve been in the side, and still he is with us in the ODIs and T20s, but in the longer format that experience was always great,” Rashid said. “I wish him all the best and thanks for all your service for the country. I want to dedicate this Man of the Match to Nabi.”While Nabi played his part with the ball in the Test, the performance from seniors and newcomers alike was heartening for Afghanistan, who have now won two of their three Test matches since becoming a Test-playing country. Asghar Afghan, the former captain, hit twin half-centuries, while Ibrahim Zadran, on debut, scored 21 and 87, and Qais Ahmed and Zahir Khan, both debutant spinners, held their own.”Thanks to the almighty Allah for this performance, under my captaincy we won this game against a big side like Bangladesh. We are new in this format, so the credit goes to the coaching staff [and] the players the way they prepared for this game,” Rashid gushed. “Before coming here, we had a camp in Abu Dhabi, that was one of the hottest games I have ever had. After playing in 46-47 [degrees], when you come in this weather, it is very easy for you.”The plan which was given to the players, each and every one – batting, bowling, fielding – everyone just tried and applied himself. The only thing from my side was to keep going out, keep enjoying yourself, enjoy your batting, enjoy your bowling. Much credit goes to everyone in the batting, and the bowlers, the way we did the job. Especially the youngsters Qais and Zahir, and Yamin [Ahmadzai, the quick bowler], the way he bowled in the first innings. So it was a great team effort and we are really pleased with that.”Rashid credited the Afghanistan Cricket Board for putting in place a four-day system at home, which, he said, has helped the youngsters deal with the demands of the longest format well.”The youngsters who are coming, they are applying themselves really quickly. They are learning from their mistakes. Especially now, we have a good four-day structure back home, we play ten to 12 four-day matches. That is helping the youngsters get used to the longer format and not just the T20s or ODIs,” he said. “Everyone was focusing on his job and trying to give 100%. We are really famous with the shorter format but the challenge was for us, especially with the batsmen, to stay on the wicket and spend as much time as possible. They have done a terrific job.”While Rashid was celebrating, Shakib Al Hasan, the Bangladesh Test and T20I captain, wore a desolate look, after overseeing a below-par performance. They were behind the eight-ball for the longest part but, thanks to the weather, had a good shot at saving the Test on the last day, with four wickets in hand and a minimum of 18.3 overs to bat out, light permitting. They lasted just 15.1.”I think it’s a combination of both – application of our batsmen, and at the same time I think Afghanistan bowled really well, so the credit goes to them for the way they played throughout this Test match,” Shakib said, trying to explain the result. “So we need to do a lot of hard work to become a very good, consistent team. But credit goes to Afghanistan for the way they kept us under pressure and under their nose.”Asked if the build-up was wrong, or that Bangladesh’s lack of Test matches in recent times was a factor, Shakib disagreed: “Well, after playing for 20 years, we can’t say it’s a build-up or something like that. It might be [that] these guys are not playing Test match for a while. It has been a while since we played our last Test match (in March in New Zealand), so that might be the reason.”[But we should] just forget this match as soon as possible and we need to look forward to the T20 series, because Afghanistan is a very good T20 side, and we have to play our best cricket if we want to do well in that tournament. [The T20] World Cup [is] coming up next year and we need to focus on our T20 at this moment.”

Bangladesh also added four new faces – Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Hider and Abu Jayed – to their one-day squad for the three-match series

Mohammad Isam03-Jul-2018Bangladesh added four new faces – Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Hider and Abu Jayed – to their ODI squad for the three-match series against West Indies starting on July 22. Liton Das and Mosaddek Hossain also earned recalls as Mashrafe Mortaza prepares to lead a new-look side in his first assignment since January.

Bangladesh ODI squad

• Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Anamul Haque, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Nazmul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Hider, Abu Jayed

• IN: Liton Das, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Hider, Abu Jayed

• OUT: Nasir Hossain, Mohammad Mithun, Abul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Sunzamul Islam

Shanto, a left-handed top-order batsman, made his Test debut in New Zealand in 2017 and has been in prolific form in domestic one-day cricket this year while Nazmul, Hider and Jayed have found only limited opportunities in the senior side lately. Liton has also featured in Tests and T20Is in the recent past.The selectors dropped three batsmen – Imrul Kayes, Nasir Hossain, Mohammad Mithun – two allrounders – Abul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin – and a left-arm spinner – Sunzamul Islam – to bestow greater responsibility on senior batsmen Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim.Despite failing to put up convincing performances, Anamul Haque emerged the only regular with a middling form from Bangladesh’s previous ODI squad to survive the axe. Nasir Hossain, Mohammad Mithun, Abul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin and Sunzamul Islam were dropped.Anamul, however, has some recent runs behind him, and so does Sabbir Rahman who earlier lost his place in the Test side but soon bounced back with a 165-run knock against Sri Lanka A last week.

England Lions were put to the sword by an unbroken stand of 303 on another sweltering day in Dambulla

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2017Sri Lanka A 333 for 3 (Samarawickrama 177*, Karunaratne 140*) trail England Lions 353 (Livingstone 105, Westley 68, Pushpakumara 8-127) by 20 runs
ScorecardDimuth Karunaratne found form ahead of the Test series against Bangladesh•AFP

England Lions were put to the sword by an unbroken stand of 303 on the second day in Dambulla. Test opener Dimuth Karunaratne and 21-year-old Sadeera Samarawickrama gorged themselves during the latter two sessions to put Sri Lanka A in control.The Lions had extended their total to 353 and when Sri Lanka A stumbled to 30 for 3 it looked a formidable score. But that changed dramatically as the day wore on, and it was Samarawickrama who led the way to finish unbeaten on a career-best 177 from 219 deliveries.He was given one life, on 90, when Tom Curran could not hold a leading edge off Jack Leach but otherwise it was a dominant performance. It was an expensive day for Leach, who missed the opening game after feeling uncertain about his remodelled action, as he finished with 0 for 76 from 12 overs.For Karunaratne this series is a chance to find some form ahead of the Test series against Bangladesh. He chipped in against South Africa, with scores of 43, 24 and 50 alongside three single-figure innings, but he had not reached 20 in his previous six completed first-class innings which included two failures in the opening match against the Lions.This time he survived the new ball and began to prosper against a tiring Lions attack. By the end of the day he had struck 15 boundaries in his 216-ball stay.The picture looked very different during the morning session. Tom Curran struck in his second over to have Udara Jayasundera, who carried his bat in the second innings of the previous match, caught behind and Ron Chandraguptha went the same way against Toby Roland-Jones.When Ollie Rayner trapped Sandun Weerakkody lbw sweeping the Lions were buoyant, but that proved the last moment of success on what became a day of toil. They are not the first England side to feel that in Asia this season.

Stephen Cook has moved a step closer to making his Test debut against England at Centurion after Rilee Rossouw was released from South Africa’s squad

Firdose Moonda20-Jan-2016Stephen Cook has moved a step closer to making his Test debut against England in Centurion after Rilee Rossouw was released from South Africa’s squad to play for his franchise, Knights, in the fifth round of the Sunfoil series which starts on Thursday.Stiaan van Zyl, the incumbent opener alongside Dean Elgar, was let go from the squad yesterday after his struggles during the first three Tests where he had a top score of 33 in five innings. The one remaining stumbling block for Cook, a specialist opener who topped the first-class runs charts last season and has scored two centuries and a fifty from three games this summer, would be if South Africa deploy wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock in the opening berth in order to make room for JP Duminy in the middle order.De Kock missed the Wanderers Test with a knee injury picked up walking his dogs but passed a fitness Test on Wednesday afternoon to be available for selection*. South Africa were pondering moving de Kock into the top two in Johannesburg before the injury he suffered on the eve of the game.The desire to include Duminy in the middle-order is two-fold. Not only does he offer a part-time offspin but he is coming off the back of a career-best unbeaten 260 for Cape Cobras, scored the match after he was dropped from the Test XI in Cape Town. Room for Duminy can still be found without moving de Kock up the order if South Africa sacrifice Faf du Plessis, who has been among their misfiring men.Whichever route South Africa take, Elgar will have a new opening partner and is well aware of the qualities Cook would bring.”Cookie has been knocking on the door for a long time. With a lot of domestic performances he’s put in, you cant not notice what he has done in the last two or three seasons. He’s done very well for the Lions. He has put up his hand and put a lot of pressure on the openers,” Elgar said. “We’ve opened for the A side. It’s an exciting time for Stephen and I know he is looking forward to it. A lot has been written in the media about he never gave up hope of playing for South Africa.”Elgar remained supportive of the axed van Zyl, a regular No. 3 and still believes he has an international future. “It’s unfortunate that Stiaan is the guy thats been left out. I feel for him because he was asked to do a job that was foreign for him,” Elgar said. “I feel it was a position Stiaan was very capable of doing. I. I feel for him because I know what it’s like being in bad form. I don’t really have much to say on him opening him opening the batting, but I do sympathise with him.”Hardus Viljoen, the fast bowler who made his debut at the Wanderers and struck with his first ball in Test cricket when he had Alastair Cook caught down the leg side, has also been released from the squad. It now appears likely that the decision over the bowling combination is two from Chris Morris, Kyle Abbott and offspinner Dane Piedt. The inclusion of Piedt would aid in maintaining the four players of colour if Duminy was not recalled.*January 20, 3.10pmGMT: This story was updated with news of Quinton de Kock’s fitness test

England’s plans for the Champions Trophy could need a significant rethink following their two heavy defeats against New Zealand amid growing concerns over the fitness of Stuart Broad and Steven Finn

Andrew McGlashan at the Ageas Bowl03-Jun-2013England’s plans for the Champions Trophy could need a significant rethink over the next few days following their two heavy defeats against New Zealand amid growing concerns over the fitness of Stuart Broad and Steven Finn less than a week before their opening match of the tournament against Australia.Broad and Finn have missed the first two ODIs against New Zealand with knee and shin problems respectively. They are due to undergo fitness tests on Monday, although a clearer picture of their chances of making the Champions Trophy may not be available until Tuesday when the England squad reconvenes at Trent Bridge.Broad’s knee problem was picked up on the final day of the Headingley Test when he took a caught-and-bowled off Brendon McCullum. Finn’s shin soreness suggests a more stress-related problem after his early-season workload. It would be a major, and almost unworkable, gamble for England to enter the Champions Trophy with two of their strike bowlers under injury clouds. Teams can replace injured players, subject to ICC ratification, at any time but once a player is removed he can’t return to the 15-man squad.”They are both a concern,” admitted Alastair Cook, “but five or six days is still quite a long way away. They’ve missed two games and been out for a while, so we’ll see.”However, even in the worst-case scenario where England lose both bowlers, Cook did not believe it had to be terminal to their chances. “I think that would be doing a disservice to the other 13 guys in the squad,” he said. “If you take two premier bowlers out of any side it will hurt and you might have to change the way you play.”Cook gave a strong indication that England would consider moving away from the current balance of six batsmen and five frontline bowlers for the final ODI against New Zealand at Trent Bridge on Wednesday. When Broad and Finn are fit they make a strong bowling line-up alongside James Anderson, Tim Bresnan and Graeme Swann, but Jade Dernbach and Chris Woakes have struggled to fill the breach. Dernbach went for 87 in 10 overs in the second game and Woakes, albeit having suffered a dropped catch for the second match running, went wicketless again and was used for only seven overs.As far as options go, quick bowler Boyd Rankin is part of the squad for the New Zealand series. Ravi Bopara, who has been made available for Essex’s YB40 match against Surrey on Monday, would provide an all-round option and James Tredwell another spin choice.”It’s been a tough couple of games,” Cook said. “Clearly when you lose bowlers of the quality of Stuart and Finny it leaves a hole. It has the given the opportunity to guys to show us what they can do. We’ve learned a lot about these players and us as a side. It’s obviously a concern; the standards we’ve played to here haven’t been good enough.”You do tend to look, after a couple of defeats, at the balance and make-up of your side. We certainly have options to go both ways… at this point I’m sure we’ll look at different combinations because the ones we’ve used haven’t worked in these two games.”While conceding the series loss – and by such convincing margins – has dealt a blow to preparations going into the Champions Trophy, Cook remained upbeat that his team will be able to turn their form around.”It’s frustrating because you always want to build momentum and build confidence but as you look at the tournament from now you realise it’s two weeks of cricket and you have to play your best for two weeks,” he said. “Whoever does that will win the tournament. This will be of little relevance when we get there, but in an ideal world we’d have won these games. Sometimes when you lose good things can come of it.”

Stuart Meaker and Jack Brooks each took three wickets as England Lions dismissed the West Indians for 147, despite Darren Bravo’s half-century

Andrew McGlashan at Northampton10-May-2012
ScorecardJack Brooks took three wickets as the tourists struggled to cope with the moving ball•Getty Images

Given the start West Indies have had to their tour things could be said to be looking up. The full squad is finally available after Narsingh Deonarine arrived in the country and they managed the majority of a day’s play for the first time. However, in reality, that time on the field did not allay any of the concerns about their batting heading into the Test series as they stumbled to 147 all out – albeit in tricky conditions.Yet they are the sort of the conditions very likely to greet them at Lord’s next week and their audition against the Lions attack was from convincing. Only Darren Bravo, with a determined and increasingly fluent 51, offered significant resistance after the top order was blown away and the tail folded without much fight. From England’s point of view it was another display of the fine bowling resources on offer to them – Stuart Meaker was the best on show – but somehow the visitors need to find a way of putting 300 on the board. If they can do that their bowling attack is good enough to keep the contests even.Given all the recent poor weather, the fact that play was only delayed by an hour was unexpected but it was no surprise that James Taylor, the Lions captain, inserted the visitors and neither that they struggled to combat the moving ball, although in mitigation it was their first extended period in the middle. An inexperienced top order was always going to be up against it, as they will be during the Test series.Last week at Hove, where there were only 34 overs in three days, the West Indian top three did not flourish and it is a major weakness. On this occasion they were back in the pavilion with 16 on the board and when Shivnarine Chanderpaul departed cheaply even three figures appeared distant.But they cannot be relying on Chanderpaul all the time and Bravo gave the English audience their first glimpse of his ability with an increasingly positive display, especially considering the conditions. He battled at the start of his stay, reaching 6 off 44 deliveries before three boundaries in four balls kick-started his innings shortly before lunch. He continued to drive well after the break, reaching fifty from 86 balls, before top-edging a pull off Meaker, who bowled with impressive pace and troubled the batsmen throughout.Bravo had added 75 with Marlon Samuels, who was reacquainting himself with first-class cricket following a spell in the IPL, but two overs later Meaker added a further dent to the recovery when Samuels played slightly away from his body, although it was another good delivery. Meaker, who has taken 11 wickets in two Championship matches this season, soon added Shane Shillingford to his tally as the tall offspinner lost his off stump and gave Meaker three wickets in 15 balls.The earlier success had gone to the hometown boy. Jack Brooks, wearing his trademark head band (although in England red and white rather than Northamptonshire maroon), had to bowl into the wind and produced a strong opening spell. Adrian Barath, who had twice edged over and through the cordon, was the first to fall when he fended off the back foot to third slip. Brooks’ second came courtesy of a fine diving catch by Ian Bell at second slip to remove Kirk Edwards, who is captaining the tourists here after it was decided to rest Darren Sammy.Between Brooks’ successes Jade Dernbach also made his mark when he found the edge of Kieran Powell to give Jonny Bairstow a catch. Both Dernbach and Brooks were replaced after exacting six-over spells but the pressure was maintained by Meaker and Matt Coles. The former was particularly impressive, bowling with hostile pace and getting the ball to jag back at both Bravo and Chanderpaul.However, it was Coles who bagged the key wicket of Chanderpaul although not with one of the many good deliveries. Instead, Chanderpaul tried to bail out of a half-hearted pull stroke and lobbed a catch to mid-on. It was a notable first Lions scalp for Coles but rare for Chanderpaul to offer such a gift.Coles claimed his second when Denesh Ramdin drove to gully playing a loose drive without footwork when conditions demanded more circumspection and the equal share of the success continued with Brooks and Dernbach cleaning up the innings.The signs were not promising for a West Indian fightback when Fidel Edwards began the Lions reply in horrid fashion with three consecutive no-balls, the last of which took Michael Carberry’s inside edge into the stumps. Eventually, though, Edwards put his foot behind the line and trapped Joe Root lbw with one that scooted through low.Carberry opened his scoring with a pulled six off Ravi Rampaul but lived a charmed life, edging short of third slip off Edwards and being dropped in the gully on 9, off Kemar Roach. Nick Compton looked more assured as the West Indian bowlers struggled to locate a consistently full length. They have not got long to find their range.

Nottinghamshire wobbled, steadied themselves and wobbled again here, the consequence of which is that Worcestershire may begin their second innings with a lead they probably did not expect

Jon Culley at Trent Bridge27-Apr-2011
ScorecardAlan Richardson made important breakthroughs for Worcestershire to ensure Nottinghamshire couldn’t take control•Getty Images

Nottinghamshire wobbled, steadied themselves and wobbled again here, the consequence of which is that Worcestershire may begin their second innings with a lead they probably did not expect after Samit Patel had appeared to be heading for a score with the kind of substance he needs to register repeatedly to keep England interested in his personal battle of the bulge.As the 26-year-old knows only too well, England coach Andy Flower is concerned with more than simply weight of runs in assessing where Patel sits now among potential candidates for a middle-order position. Only when he can guarantee his stamina until the last over in the field on a steamy day in the sub-continent will Patel end the doubts over his fitness for international cricket, and his failure to make the cut for England’s World Cup squad confirmed that he has not yet reached that point.After learning how to resist fast food and crisps more frequently than before, Patel claims now to be in measurably better shape to add to the 11 one-day international appearances he made in 2008. Nobody at Trent Bridge is saying how much better, in terms of tape measures and scales, but if he can supplement the century he made in Nottinghamshire’s opening match against Hampshire with a few more before the summer begins in earnest, Flower is likely to ask for evidence.Patel should have had a hundred here after playing almost without error for three and a half hours here, sensibly overcoming his often calamitous habit of trying to force the pace too early and settling into an innings rich in attractive strokeplay that was notable for shot selection as well as shot quality. He dutifully left alone most of the good balls that came his way but did not waste many opportunities to score.Given that Nottinghamshire had been three down for 64 before he got off the mark, and with a new partner at the other end, it was precisely what his team needed to avert an all-too-familiar top-order collapse, which made it all the more frustrating that he could not push it through to the conclusion it deserved.On 81, with 15 boundaries scored, he had the measure of all of the bowlers – with the exception, perhaps, of Daryl Mitchell, who bowled his medium pace on a tricky length and managed to hit him on the elbow – and clearly fancied his chances when Mitchell belatedly turned to the off spin of Moeen Ali. Yet it was Ali who had the last laugh when Patel advanced down the pitch, eyes wide, with the deep midwicket boundary in his sights. A moment later, the ball was safely in the hands of the midwicket fielder instead.In this way an innings notable for fulsome driving and wristy leg-side play ended rather tamely, with an error that might have drawn more sympathy for a batsman missing out had it not come immediately after two wickets in two balls from the medium pace of Gareth Andrew.Trapping Steven Mullany in front of the stumps and then drawing Chris Read into an edge to the wicketkeeper, Andrew had seriously undermined a strong Nottinghamshire recovery, putting the onus on Patel to take stock a moment and ensure that a good position was not wasted.Patel had shared a 102-run partnership with Adam Voges and another of 93 with Steven Mullaney but the departure of Andre Adams for a typically breezy 10 called time on the day with Worcestershire still 24 in front.Earlier, recovered from the groin injury that limited his participation against Yorkshire last week, Adams had completed his third five-wicket haul in as many innings at Trent Bridge so far this season, bowling last man Matt Mason off an inside edge.But Worcestershire’s innings had been carried forward by Matt Pardoe and Damien Wright, the former furthering the impression of a composed young batsman with a bright future by stretching his second half-century in only three matches to 74 before a mistimed clip to midwicket allowed Alex Hales to atone for his dropped catches on day one. Wright hit 10 fours in his 65 before Patel beat him in the flight.Nottinghamshire reverted to Neil Edwards at the top of their batting order, returning Paul Franks to No. 8. In tandem with Mark Wagh, Edwards contributed nicely to a 60-run partnership but after he was caught behind off Alan Richardson. Nottinghamshire quickly lost Mark Wagh, bowled by Mason with his eyes still watering from a painful blow below the belt, and Hales perished first ball to a fine late awayswinger from Richardson, who would later end a bright innings from Voges when the Australian failed to get forward to one that swung in.