Michael Clarke’s stunning success as Australia’s VB Series opener has been overlooked in favour of giving Simon Katich a chance alongside Adam Gilchrist. Clarke will stay at No. 6 for the third one-day game against New Zealand as Australia push to settle the series tomorrow with two matches remaining.A shoulder injury ruled Matthew Hayden out of the Auckland clash and Clarke, who has been frustrated by his small amount of batting time, was expected to be promoted. Katich has played 12 ODIs and opened the batting twice with scores of 2 against India last year and 38 against Pakistan in January. Clarke harvested 334 runs at the top of the order during the summer and ousted Hayden for the finals against Pakistan.”There’s no great science behind it,” Ricky Ponting said. “We just like to give Simon a go at the top. We probably feel he’s better suited there in that type of role as well, at the top of the order.”Clarke will continue to be Australia’s versatile batsman. “We see him as being one of those guys that are pretty flexible in any position in the order,” Ponting said. “After the VB series we know he can open and do it well and we know he can bat at five, six and seven and finish games off.” Ponting was hopeful Hayden would be available for Tuesday’s fourth game at Wellington’s Basin Reseve.Glenn McGrath has been rested after taking 4 for 16 at Wellington and 2 for 42 at Christchurch. He will be replaced by Michael Kasprowicz in a move that will please the New Zealand top order, which has struggled in the opening overs against McGrath and Brett Lee. Mike Hussey held his spot after making 32 from 20 balls in the second match.Australia 1 Adam Gilchrist, 2 Simon Katich, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Damien Martyn, 5 Andrew Symonds, 6 Michael Clarke, 7 Mike Hussey, 8 Brad Hogg, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Jason Gillespie, 11 Michael Kasprowicz.
Dhaka 302 for 7 (Halim 89*, Niamur 62) lead Barisal 193 (Hossain 55, Rafique 4-60) by 209 ScorecardKhaled Mahmud, fighting for his place in the national side, made a dought half-century in a rearguard action for for Dhaka. In reply to Barisal’s 193, Mahmud’s side were struggling at 54 for 4 when Mahmud and Halim Shah came together. They added 89 runs before Mahmud was out for 51, but Halim went on to remain not out on 89 at the close of the second day, as Dhaka finished on 302 for 7. Naimur Rashid hit a fiesty 62, while Fahim Muntasir made 34 not out.Khulna 160 and 129 for 8 (Parvez 48) lead Sylhet 80 (Razzaq 7-11) by 209 runs ScorecardKhulna were well on top in a low-scoring match, getting Sylhet out for 80 after making 160 in their first innings. The star of the match was Abdur Razzaq, a left-arm spinner, who took 7 for 11 in just 16.1 overs. Only Imtiaz Hossain, with a gritty 30, provided any resistance, as the Sylhet innings lasted 50 overs and one ball. In their second innings, Khulna extended their lead to 209, as Raju Parvez made 48 of the 129 runs they scored for the loss of eight wickets.Rajshahi 234 (Nuruzzaman 39, Arafat 7-62) lead Chittagong 191 for 7 (Hakim 53, Saifullah 4-54) by 43 runs ScorecardYasin Arafat’s 7 for 62 was largely responsible for Rajshahi being all out for 234, but Saifullah Khan’s 4 for 54 in 32 overs kept the game on a tight edge, as Chittagong were 43 runs behind at the end of the second day, with just three wickets in hand. Faisal Hossain, whose 21 not out occupied all of 76 balls, was Chittagong’s best hope.
Australia’s tour of South Africa squelched soggily to a halt in Potchefstroom on Monday with only 36 overs play possible on the second day of the three-day match against South Africa `A’. When play was abandoned for the day at 4.30pm, the tourists had lifted their overnight score from 218 for three to 351 for eight.The good news for Australia, though, was a century for Ricky Ponting and an unbeaten 91 for captain Steve Waugh. Given the conditions, this was probably about as much as the tourists could have hoped for ahead of the first Test match which starts at the Wanderers on Friday.There may be a chance for the Australian bowlers to have a run on Tuesday’s final day, provided the weather holds off. Ideally, Australia would have liked the chance for their attack to reacquaint themselves with the Highveld bounce, but in the circumstances it was obviously more important for their batsmen to spend time in the middle.Ponting spent most of it on Sunday, but he moved quickly to his hundred on Monday morning with a couple of cracking boundaries and then a single off Andre Nel, put on standby for Shaun Pollock in the Test squad.Ponting moved on to 120 before he fell, caught at the wicket cutting at left-arm wrist-spinner Gulam Bodi at 271 for four and Damien Martyn went soon afterwards for 1, top-edging a sweep against Claude Henderson.Adam Gilchrist could, perhaps, have done with runs ahead of the Test match, but he made only 16 before Andrew Hall had him caught at slip. Hall had taken the first two wickets to fall on Sunday and he proceeded to make it five for the innings by trapping Shane Warne leg before for a duck as he shouldered arms and then having Brett Lee caught at slip for 6.Lee’s wicket fell during a brief nine-over interlude after lunch and when the rain started falling again, the players disappeared for the rest of the afternoon.It has been a frustrating couple of days at one of South Africa’s best-equipped venues. There could still be time enough on the final day for the Australian bowlers to stretch themselves and, from a South African point of view, for the likes of Daryll Cullinan, Jacques Rudolph and Graeme Smith to make a point to the selectors. Any such point might be too late for the first Test, but it is a racing certainty that the 11 chosen by South Africa for first Test will not go unchanged throughout the series.
Orissa humiliated Tripura by an innings and 156 runs in their EastZone Ranji Trophy encounter at the Maharaja Bir Bikram College Stadiumin Agartala on Sunday. After being dismissed on the first day for 114,Tripura allowed Orissa to make 378 for four declared, powered mainlyby an innings of 178 from Shiv Sunder Das. At the end of the secondday, Tripura were 29/1 after 15 overs and in deep trouble.On Sunday, Orissa needed just 30.4 overs to take the remaining nineTripura wickets. C Sachdev at number four managed a brisk 56, but wastotally unsupported. With eight batsmen failing to make it to doubledigits, Tripura were all out for a paltry 108. Leg spinner JagannathDas was the most successful bowler and ended up with 4/28 off his 13.4overs. This gave visitors Orissa victory by the huge margin of aninnings and 156 runs with a day to spare, and eight points from thematch.
Aymeric Laporte is set to undertake a big role for Manchester City in Ruben Dias’ absence over the coming weeks, with Pep Guardiola expected to start the Spaniard in tonight’s clash against Crystal Palace.
The Lowdown: Dias struck by injury
Ahead of the recent derby against Manchester United, the City manager announced that the Portugal defender had suffered a hamstring injury against Peterborough in the FA Cup and would likely be sidelined for four to six weeks.
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This came as a huge blow for City, as it meant they were set to be without their star defender for the majority of their remaining league fixtures, with Liverpool currently just three points behind them in the Premier League table.
The Latest: Big role for Laporte
After Laporte was dropped last season following a disappointing performance against Tottenham, John Stones came in to form a dominant partnership with Dias, which proved formidable for the rest of the season.
This left the Spain international out of favour under Guardiola, but in the wake of a positive Euro 2020 campaign with La Roja, the 27-year-old has forced his way back into his manager’s plans at club level.
More recently, Dias’ injury has led to an increase in Laporte’s role in the squad, and as per Manchester Evening News reporter Simon Bajkowski, he is set to retain his role in the starting XI for tonight’s trip to Crystal Palace.
Guardiola said of the Spain defender: “He deserves his minutes. Nathan [Ake] is coming back but Ruben will be a long time so he is still weeks away from coming back. We need Ayme fresh and in the best condition possible.”
The Verdict: Laporte now needs to step up
This opportunity for Laporte hasn’t come without warning from Guardiola. Whilst claiming that the defender is the perfect age to improve, the 51-year-old has said that the centre-back must be willing to learn in the absence of the former Benfica man.
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Since his arrival at City, Dias has proven to be an integral part of Guardiola’s plans, being named the Football Writers’ Player of the Year for 2020/21. Consequently, the battle for a centre-back starting berth has been tough to secure, with Nathan Ake joining Stones and Laporte in the fight to partner the 24-year-old Portugal star.
The £120,000-per-week Spain defender has been a regular at the Etihad this season, starting 23 Premier League games, but the three aforementioned centre-backs have all posted higher WhoScored ratings over the campaign. Therefore, Laporte must seize this chance to prove to his manager that he can fill the void left by Dias’ absence.
In other news: Manchester City: Italian source says teams are ‘crazy’ about Bremer
Chandrakant Pandit, the former India wicketkeeper, has resigned as Maharashtra coach after three years in charge. Pandit sent a mail to Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) president Ajay Shirke conveying his decision.”His [Pandit’s] contract was to expire at the end of the season anyway,” Shirke told the . “By resigning, he has effectively told us his unavailability for renewal of contract.”However, Pandit has agreed to be in charge till the conclusion of the current season, but it remains unclear whether he will do so for the Ranji Trophy one-dayers.”This assignment warrants him to be away from home 10 months a year and that seems to be a major reason behind the decision,” Shirke said. Interestingly, Pandit’s request that he be allowed to perform his duties as India A coach after he went on their tours to Kenya and Zimbabwe earlier this year, had be rejected by the MCA as they wanted him to focus on the state team instead.Pandit had a successful stint as coach, presiding over the team’s shock away win against Mumbai in the 2005-06 season as well as their Ramakant Desai Trophy triumph in 2006-07. Under him, Maharastra Under-19 had clinched the Cooch Behar Trophy for the first time last season.Maharashtra, who lost their way after having led the Group A table of the Ranji Trophy Super League for a while still have a mathematical chance of qualifying for the Ranji Trophy semi-finals.
The manhandling of Greg Chappell at Bhubaneshwar airport and reports of a threat to the security of the Indian players could jeopardise the future of Cuttack’s Barabati Stadium as an international venue, the Indian board (BCCI) has said.Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president, feared that the stadium could be blacklisted as the ICC has strict guidelines on venues as far as security is concerned and has a zero-tolerance policy when such incidents take place.”This kind of incident should not have happened. I fear that such an incident at a venue may lead to that venue being banned under the ICC law,” Pawar told PTI. “Therefore this incident is unfortunate for Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. Fortunately the Chief Minister of the state and Sports Minister, whom I spoke to, have started taking corrective action.”Chappell, the India coach, was slapped on the back by an angry fan on Monday when the team arrived in Bhubaneshwar for the second one-day international in Cuttack. The attacker, a member of a fringe political outfit in Orissa known as the Kalinga Kamgar Sena, was protesting against the non-inclusion of any Orissa player in the Indian team and was immediately arrested, while 50 others were detained. The security at the airport seemed inadequate as police struggled to control the hundreds of fans who had gathered for the team’s arrival. The BCCI requested that the security for the teams be beefed up and the police announced that the players would be given Z-Category security.This is the second time in less than a year that the future of a staging venue has been questioned. Last April, crowd trouble erupted during a one-day international between India and England at the Nehru Stadium in Guwahati after the umpires abandoned the game without a ball being bowled. The police had to fire tear gas shells to break up the mob and the ICC demanded an inquiry into the incidents.
A captain’s knock of 102 by Aamer Bashir lifted Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) in their Patron’s Trophy Cricket Championship Quadrangular Stage round match against Habib Bank at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Monday. His knock was the only high point of an otherwise dispirited batting display by PTCL on the second day of the four-day encounter. Having been put in to bat on Sunday’s opening day, they were however helped to a decent total of 271.Batting at number five, Aamer struck 15 fours and a six after his team had started the second day at their overnight 58 for 2. While Aamer batted with authority and assurance, wickets tumbled around him at regular intervals. He dominated the fifth-wicket stand of 95 with Mohammad Hussain, the former Pakistan left-handed all-rounder, whose contribution was 34 off 90 balls with five fours.For Aamer, 33, who was playing on his home ground, the 155-ball knock in just over three and a half hours was his 16th hundred in 178 first-class matches. All five Habib Bank bowlers used by Hasan Raza, the Pakistan middle-order batsman, claimed wickets with Fahad Masood emerging as the best of the lot with 3 for 55.By the close of play, in yet another match disrupted by poor weather and fading light, the Habib Bank openers had negotiated just two deliveries without putting any runs on the board. Only 18 overs were bowled on the first day, on which PTCL lost their opening pair while reaching 58. Yesterday, a total of 62.1 overs’ play was possible.PTCL, who have yet to win a Patron’s Trophy title, are pitted against Habib Bank, record seven-time winners of the competition. The latter in addition also shared the trophy last season with Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) after the final was rained off. After a group-league round among 10 teams divided in two groups of five each, the top two teams from either pool have qualified for the tournament’s Quadrangular Stage round. The side finishing on top of the points table will be crowned the season’s Patron’s Trophy champion. The Quadrangular Stage round will see each of the four teams playing three matches. The other two outfits that have made it this far are PIA and five-time Patron’s Trophy champions National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).The other match between Pakistan International Airlines and National Bank of Pakistan, due to start at the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) Stadium in Rawalpindi, saw a completely blank day due to rain in the city.
Central Province 133 and 192 for 3 (Sangakkara 69) beat Western Province 43 and 278 (Tillakeratne 85) by seven wickets ScorecardKumar Sangakkara and Sajith Fernando added 110 for the third wicket to guard against any prospect of an upset, as Central Province eased to their anticipated victory over Western Province at the Sinhalese Sports Club.The result had hardly been in doubt since the first day, when WP were bundled out for 43, although thanks to Hashan Tillekaratne’s 85 in the second innings, they were at least set a challenging target of 189.Dilhara Fernando raised the brief prospect of an upset as he grabbed two early wickets to reduce CP to 51 for 2, but once Sangakkara and Fernando were into their stride, the result was a foregone conclusion. Fernando struck for a third time before the end, as Sangakkara fell for 69, but Thilan Samaraweera hung around to complete the proceedings. ScorecardNorth Central Province duly wrapped up victory by an innings and 157 runs over Southern Province at Dambulla, although they were made to wait rather longer than had been anticipated, thanks to some spirited resistance from a side that had been bloodied and beaten from the first day onwards.Southern began their second innings a whopping 416 runs adrift after North Central had declared on 502 for 8, but they at least made a better fist of things second-time around. Anushka Polonowita top-scored with 62, and Indika de Saram also made a half-century, as they recovered from a rocky 83 for 4 to add 95 for the fifth wicket.North Central shared the wickets around, with Upul Chandana’s 3 for 64 the pick of the bunch.
Mumbai v BarodaMumbai 278 for 6 (Kambli 108*, Morris 51*) lead Baroda 213 all out (Mongia 74, Salvi 5-42) by 65 runs Vinod Kambli (108 not out) scripted a memorable rescue act as Mumbai overcame some jittery moments to finish the second day 65 runs ahead of Baroda at the Wankhede stadium. At 142 for 6 Mumbai were in serious strife, but Robin Morris and Kambli added an priceless 136 runs together to wrest back the initiative. Vinayak Mane(50) was also among the runs with an elegant half-century. Shekar Joshi derailed the innings with three wickets as all the batsmen fell to irresponsible shots. But just when the scene looked bleak, Kambli stood up to be counted. ScorecardUttar Pradesh v DelhiDelhi 478 (Gambhir 147, Oberoi 80, Gupta 5-143) lead Uttar Pradesh 19 for 0 by 459 runs Slow left-arm spinner Praveen Gupta bowled a marathon spell to finish with a five-wicket haul, but Delhi finished the first innings on an imposing 478 at Kanpur. The much-hyped return of Ajay Jadeja had an abrupt end as he was bowled by Gynandra Pandey for just 13. After suffering a batting mauling yesterday, Pradeshhad done a great job to reduce Delhi to 416 for 8, but a fine 51 by Sarandeep Singh ensured that the visitors finished the second day on a high note. ScorecardGujarat v HyderabadHyderabad 27 for 1 and 245 (Lalit Patel 5-58) lead Gujarat 119 (NP Singh 6-33) by 153 runs After bowling Hyderabad out for 245 and sitting pretty at 113 for 3, Gujarat were tightening their grip on the match. That was when Narender Pal Singh decided to take matters into his own hands and along with Venkatapathy Raju triggered a batting fiasco. The last seven Gujarat batsmen made a grand total of 11 runs as the home team were reduced to their knees and effectively shut out of the contest. L. Pawar (40) top scored for Gujarat, an innings that may well be forgotten in the face of Singh’s six wicket effort. ScorecardKerala v PunjabPunjab 541 for 7 (Mongia 151, Ricky 125) Punjab continued to flog the hapless Kerala attack as they piled on 541 at the end of the second day at Palakkad. The highlights of the day were solid half centuries by Chandan Madan (67) and Reetinder Singh Sodhi (57*). Dinesh Mongia and Ravneet Ricky had stroked fine centuries yesterday and set up a perfect launching pad for the middle-order. Sreekumar Nair manfully toiled all day and was the most successful bowler with three wickets in the innings. The last session was washed out due to rain and Kerala were given some respite by the forces of nature. ScorecardRajasthan v BengalRajasthan 32 for 1 and 205 for 6 (Khoda 86, Paul 6-68) lead Bengal 118 (Sharma 6-18) by 119 runs Sanjeev Sharma demolished Bengal with a six-wicket haul and Rajasthan held all the aces at the end of the second day’s play at Jaipur. Shib Shankar Paul cleaned up the Rajasthan tail and finished with an impressive six-wicket haul. On a difficult pitch, Gagan Khoda’s 86 on the first day may prove priceless as Sharma ripped through the underbelly of the Bengal batting with devastating effect and conceded only 18 runs in his 16.5 overs. None of the batsmen had a clue against his seam movement as the visitors were bundled out for a paltry 118. Rajasthan were 32 for 1 in their second innings as Bengal tried to recover from the shock dealt by Sharma earlier in the day. ScorecardKarnataka v Tamil NaduKarnataka 23 for 1 and 208 all out (Balaji 4-51, Ramkumar 4-42) lead Tamil Nadu 184 (Prasad 6-51) by 47 runs Venkatesh Prasad`s inspired bowling ripped through the heart of the Tamil Nadu batting as they collapsed to 184 all out on the second day at Bangalore. Having seen his batsmen play irresponsibly yesterday, Prasad made a powerful statement by probing in the corridor and troubled arguably the best batting line-up in domestic cricket. The two Sridhiran’s, Sriram and Sharath, prevented a batting debacle and on a pitch offering assistance to the seamers, gave the visitors some sort of a chance. The home side will hope for a disciplined batting approach tomorrow and carry on the momentum that Prasad so effectively gained. ScorecardRailways v Andhra PradeshRailways 192 for 1 (Bangar 72*, Pagnis 58) trail Andhra 262 (MSK Prasad 61) by 70 runs Sanjay Bangar propelled the innings with an unbeaten 72 as Railways were comfortably placed at the end of the second day’s play in Delhi. The Andhra innings finished with a slight flourish as left handed Shankara Rao hit a valuable 53 to nudge the score past 250. But the Railways reply was the antithesis of the Andhra batting and had all the attributes of application and patience. Amit Pagnis was in fine fettle as he helped himself to 58 and Sanjay Bangar staked his claim for the Australian tour with a characteristically dour 72. He was ably supported by Tejindar Pal Singh, who finished with a strokefilled 52. None of the Andhra bowlers posed any sort of threat and that may well be the story tomorrow also. ScorecardSiddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Wisden Cricinfo.