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Ajinkya Rahane purred his way to 98 off 66 deliveries and carried Rajasthan Royals to a comfortable win in their opening match of the season

The Report by Abhishek Purohit06-Apr-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAjinkya Rahane seemed to have the right stroke for almost every delivery•AFP

Ajinkya Rahane purred his way to 98 off 66 deliveries and carried Rajasthan Royals to a comfortable win in their opening match of the season. Faced with a stiff target of 192 after choosing to bowl, the fight went out of Kings XI Punjab as soon as they lost Adam Gilchrist in the fifth over. Trinidad & Tobago’s Kevon Cooper accounted for four wickets with his slow-mediums on IPL debut as Kings XI meandered along without threatening to challenge Royals.The damage had already been done at the start by Rahane who played an innings full of strokes that would not have been out of place in the longer formats of the game. He didn’t use power or swagger – he didn’t need to – but still hurt Kings XI. Their patchy attack could not bother Rahane at all, as he picked gaps at will with precision.An opening partnership of 77 inside ten overs set Royals on their way with their captain Rahul Dravid not having to do much apart from supporting Rahane. Rahane has a lower Twenty20 strike-rate than Dravid, not among the swiftest himself, but today, he batted with a serene assurance that eluded his senior partner and idol.While Dravid and Brad Hodge went too hard at the bowling and mistimed their shots, Rahane seemed to have the right stroke for almost every delivery. The orthodoxy of his batting was evident from the fact that he hit 16 fours, and only one six. There was no slog-sweep over midwicket, there was no scoop over short fine leg.There were punches on the up through cover, there were deft guides past point, and inside-out lofts over extra cover. Kings XI were put under pressure early on when James Faulkner’s first over went for 11. Rahane tore into Praveen Kumar in the third over, a drive, two flicks and a straight push bringing him four fours in five deliveries.The introduction of spin slowed the scoring a bit but Rahane soon found a way. He was beaten in the flight by a Piyush Chawla delivery, but quickly recovered to go back and punch it over the bowler’s head for four. He was soon stepping out repeatedly to negate the spinners.Gilchrist tried Paul Valthaty’s slow-mediums but Rahane took 16 more off that over, his third boundary of the over threading the gap between two point fielders.Royals lost Dravid and Ashok Menaria in consecutive overs, the 10th and the 11th, but that made no difference to the flow of the innings. Rahane raced towards a century with three consecutive fours off Chawla but was bowled on 98 by Faulker as he tried to make room outside leg, typically, not to slog, but to go through extra cover.Owais Shah and Cooper launched Royals past 190. Cooper, who caught attention with his performances in the Champions League Twenty20 last year, had an IPL debut to remember. He had a role to play in seven of the nine Kings XI wickets to fall.Gilchrist began with a series of pulls but was caught by Cooper at mid-on for 27. Paul Valthaty slashed Cooper to gully and Shaun Marsh and Abhishek Nayar succumbed to his lack of pace. The ball seemed to follow Cooper everywhere.He soon caught David Hussey at long-on off Siddharth Trivedi as Kings XI slipped to 86 for 5. There was to be another wicket, of Piyush Chawla, to give Cooper figures of 4-0-26-4. Not done yet, he ran out Praveen in the last over. Kings XI, though, had already run out of steam after Rahane’s elegant display.

Charl Willoughby took 4 for 8 as Essex made good use of winning the toss on a rain-affected first day against Kent

Charles Randall at Chelmsford09-May-2012
ScorecardCharl Willoughby ripped through Kent’s top order in the brief spell of play possible•Getty Images

Age does not weary them, not in these conditions anyway. Essex’s veteran opening attack of David Masters and Charl Willoughby had Kent stumbling to 17 for 5 on a drastically curtailed day.The start was a setback to Kent’s hopes of taking over the lead in Division Two. Whether a mortal blow has been landed might depend on how effectively Essex can rub in their first-day advantage. They have Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara to bat and can be fairly sure that the England men will not be as easy to dislodge as some of today’s victims in the 9.4 overs allowed by the rain.Masters, still very effective at the age of 34, struck with the day’s second delivery when Scott Newman thin-edged a seamer that he should have covered or left, rather than something in between. Willoughby, 37, followed up with some masterly left-arm swing, bursting through the Kent upper order with four wickets for one in nine balls. The England Under-19s left-armer Tymal Mills rocked Glamorgan last week with raw pace; this time Willoughby did the damage with raw subtlety. It is part of cricket’s appeal that there can be many ways of achieving the same outcome, through pace, swing or spin, though there is unlikely to be much of the latter in this game.If the signing of Willoughby from Somerset raised a few eyebrows at the time, they are not raised now, as the slogan might have had it. The South African continued to defy advancing years through fitness and a good, reliable action, quickly exploiting helpful conditions. In his second over he pinned Ben Harmison back on his stumps for an lbw. In his third, he beat Rob Key in front of off stump for another decision and two balls later Michael Powell reached for a drive and snicked a straightforward catch, perhaps expecting the ball to curve into him more than it did. Brendon Nash, the West Indies left-hander, retaliated with a succulent off-drive but when he had his off stump knocked out, Kent were reeling.Cook must have been quietly pleased that his captain, James Foster, won the toss, sparing him a possible ordeal in poor light and soggy conditions. Kent would have done themselves a favour if they had knocked the ball into the wet outfield more often, reducing the swing, but the bat seldom located the right line.Perhaps the key will be how well Charlie Shreck and Mark Davies, both useful seam performers, can follow the work of Willoughby and Masters. In support they have the tall Leeds-Bradford University seamer Ivan Thomas, 20, on his Championship debut. Thomas, from Blackheath, took 6 for 21 for the university in the victory over a callow Sussex side last week and bowled well in a favourable draw against Yorkshire in April. If Matt Coles is required by England Lions to play, Thomas, Kent’s nominated reserve, should have a good opportunity to make an early mark on the county circuit.

Sajid Mahmood had a night to forget as Lancashire lost to Derbyshire by 17 runs via the Duckworth/Lewis method in a Friends Life t20 game played in steady rain under the County Ground floodlights.

14-Jun-2012
ScorecardSajid Mahmood had a night to forget as Lancashire lost to Derbyshire by 17 runs via the Duckworth/Lewis method in a Friends Life t20 game played in steady rain under the County Ground floodlights.Mahmood went for 42 off 15 balls and 17 off his last three as Derbyshire reached 118 for 5 in the 12th over after Stephen Cross hit three sixes to top score with 46 out of Lancashire’s 168 for 6.Rana Naved-ul-Hasan helped Derbyshire get ahead of the rate with an unbeaten 19 before the rain became too heavy after his four overs had earlier cost 56, the second most expensive spell by a Derbyshire bowler in T20 cricket. In testing conditions, Rana’s reputation as one of the competition’s top bowlers was dented with his first over costing 21 as Stephen Moore pulled and drove him for two sixes. When he returned 10 overs later, Croft pulled him for two more.In between the assault on Naved, Derbyshire bowled well in the blustery, wet conditions with Tim Groenewald having Moore caught behind for 34 from 21 balls in the sixth over. Karl Brown made 27 off 25 balls after he was dropped twice before Chesney Hughes took a fierce return catch, and with David Wainwright also bowling his left-arm spin tightly, Lancashire could not break free.Gareth Cross pulled Mark Turner for six but was run out by a smart piece of fielding by Naved off his own bowling and Croft missed out on his 50 when he chipped Turner to mid off in the 19th over.With the rain falling, Derbyshire needed to keep up with Duckworth/Lewis and Wes Durston gave them just the start they needed with 31 from 16 balls before he sliced the expensive Mahmood to point. Lancashire were back in it when Derbyshire slipped from 74 for 2 to 82 for 5 in three overs, but the game was decided when Mahmood returned to the attack in the 12th over.Rana cut his first ball for four before the former England paceman conceded six wides and a no ball. 17 had come from three legitimate balls when the umpires took the players off with Derbyshire 17 ahead of the required rate.

Alan Isaac is only five days into his term as president of ICC but the New Zealander is already thinking of his legacy

Ger Siggins at Clontarf03-Jul-2012Alan Isaac is only five days into his term as president of ICC but the New Zealander is already thinking of his legacy.”I’d like to think that, at the end of my two years, that ICC is seen to have a bit more credibility about its governance and how it governs the game,” he said. “That it’s seen to be governing the sport on a global basis better than perhaps it’s seen at the moment.”Isaac was speaking to ESPNcricinfo before the scheduled World Cricket League ODI between Ireland and Afghanistan in Dublin – which was pushed into a reverse day by rain – and had much to say about the Associate and Affiliate side of the game, specifically the row about their exclusion from the 2015 World Cup.”That was a huge debate – is that the best way to develop the game or should it be just the best sides, and you do other things to develop the game? Or is Twenty20 the best format to do that? The facts stand for themselves that cricket in Ireland has developed dramatically since 2007 with the wins at the World Cup.”A ten-team World Cup actually provides a better format. It’s a more exciting competition and commercially it has a bit more value. And the matches arguably are better matches.””One of the reasons for the reduction was because the 1992 World Cup, with nine countries, was a fantastic success – there were 87,000 at the final between England and Pakistan. That format where everybody played everybody was very popular and, arguably, is ideal.”Another major issue for Associates such as Ireland is the plunder of its players by Full Members, much as how the All Blacks raid the Pacific islands. Isaac said the situation was always being monitored but the problem was not just below Test level.”The eligibility rules are continually being reviewed. But it’s an issue for the lesser-ranked full members as well. There are a lot of young cricketers in Australia who could qualify to play for New Zealand but obviously they would rather play for Australia if they could because the rewards are much greater.”I think if we’re going to have more competitive teams we need to have a little more flexibility around those eligibility rules so that the guy that doesn’t make the Australian team – even though he might have played for the Australian A side – can play for New Zealand after a period of time,” he added. “You can’t have them swopping countries all the time, but I think we could look at how some of the other sports are refreshing that eligibility rule, to get more competitive teams.”Isaac has decided to begin his stint as president with a visit to the two Associates – Ireland and Scotland – that received a $500,000 funding boost last week.”I was keen I come to the UK and some ICC staff suggested it was an opportunity to come to Ireland and, next week visit Scotland. Ireland have made huge progress so it was opportunity to see that first hand.”Obviously I haven’t seen any cricket, but when you meet people in Associate environments, it’s like the scene back home where you meet people who are passionate and enthusiastic about cricket. You don’t always get that when you’re watching England play Australia. It’s really good to get in touch with the people who are working at the grass roots level,” he said.”I was very involved with the TAPP application which tells a really good story about what’s happened here in the last ten years in terms of development and the increase in playing numbers.”One of the items on Ireland’s wish list is 12-15 ODIs a year, and Isaacs is encouraging on this count. “It was really disappointing for Ireland that last week’s game against Australia was rained off, but I see more of those games happening. I know Ireland are working closer with the ECB which should see more games with England and also as countries tour England.”However, he was less enthusiastic about Ireland’s stated aim of being a Test playing nation by 2020.”That raises the whole question of where the three formats of the game sit. But I think if you are serious about playing cricket you have to aspire to be the best test player and if you want to be serious about being a cricket nation then that’s a good aspiration to have.”

Angelo Mathews has said dropped catches have cost Sri Lanka the ongoing ODI series against India

Abhishek Purohit in Pallekele03-Aug-2012Angelo Mathews has said dropped catches have cost Sri Lanka the ongoing ODI series against India. Suresh Raina, who was involved in match-winning partnerships during the third and the fourth ODI in Colombo, was put down at crucial stages in both games. Virender Sehwag was dropped on zero in the opening game in Hambantota before he made 96 as India posted a winning 314. “Against the Indian batting line up, you can’t drop that many catches,” Mathews said. “If you take from number one to seven, they’re all are very good batters.”The series has been played on largely flat batting-friendly pitches so far. Mathews said he favoured “sporting” wickets, especially against a strong Indian batting line-up. “I’ve always fancied good sporting tracks, rather than playing on dead tracks. We all know that they [India] have a very strong batting line up. We need to come up with ideas, if we’re to win against them. Preparing certain wickets also will help.”Sri Lanka have not beaten India in a bilateral ODI series since 1997. Mathews said Sri Lanka had made more mistakes than India had, and cited the example of the current series. “It happened three times so far in this series. If we make more mistakes, we’re going to get more penalised. I’m sure the guys are aware of that and if we’re to win, we need to me more positive and aggressive.”Sri Lanka have had a heavy workload since the 2011 World Cup while India have had a two-month break. Mathews said that professional players could not cite fatigue as an excuse, but admitted that India’s break had helped them. “We’re all professionals and we play the game with busy schedules. It’s certainly not an excuse. It’s always better to have a few days off. We really haven’t had a long break in the last one and half years. Yes, I think it [the break] has helped them [India] to freshen up.”With tomorrow’s game of little consequence, Mathews said Sri Lanka might consider giving fringe players a chance. Batsman Chamara Kapugedara and offspinner Sachithra Senanayake are yet to play a game in the series.Mathews also backed young batsman Dinesh Chandimal, whose highest score in the series has been 28, to come good. “We don’t try to distract him with too much talking. He’s a player who can always come back and do his part. He’s shown lots of character. A player can fail in three four innings but a guy like Chandimal will always come back.”

Cameron White’s return to the Australian team can be likened to that of the ageless Brad Hogg – a nod to experience over youth and to suitability for a very specific task, the wresting of the World Twenty20 title in Sri Lanka in September

Daniel Brettig16-Aug-2012Cameron White’s return to the Australia team can be likened to that of the ageless Brad Hogg – a nod to experience over youth and to suitability for a very specific task, the wresting of the World Twenty20 title in Sri Lanka in September.Not given to euphemism or evasion when he speaks publicly about the composition of his teams, the national selector John Inverarity said candidly that White had beaten the young New South Wales allrounder Steve Smith for what was most likely the final place in the squad. He cited White’s greater experience – and recent strong touch – as the major reasons.”I’d say Steve Smith was on the cusp. In the end, Cameron White was preferred to Steve because of Cameron’s very good form in the IPL and then again he played for Northants in England and he had some very good innings there,” Inverarity said in Perth. “He’s in very good form. When he’s at his best, he’s a very destructive player. He’s in good nick at the moment and we’re really hoping he’ll perform.”I think Cameron came back into the squad because we thought in a pressure situation with his experience, he might be better than the younger ones. So that was a factor there but generally we’ve just looked for the best balanced side and the best cricketers.”It was only last summer that White lost his captaincy of the T20 team and his place in the squad altogether, towards the end of a prolonged run of poor batting form and scarcely any bowling. His role in Sri Lanka appears likely to be lower down the order than in the past, providing late innings fireworks and the occasional spell of his flat wrist-spin on the expected low, slow surfaces.”It’s up to George Bailey, the captain, to work out the batting order but I think it’s likely to be Matthew Wade probably at six, could well be Cameron White at seven and then either Glenn Maxwell or Dan Christian at eight,” Inverarity said. “So there’s a lot of depth and there’s three left-handers in the top seven so the left-right combination which makes it more difficult for the opposing bowlers.”There’s a lot of potential there. In any form of cricket whether it’s Test or T20, wickets in hand is always a good thing so you’ve just got to get that judgment right. Cameron in the games up in Darwin also bowled well and got some wickets up there. He’s just a little bit like [Shahid] Afridi with the spinners that don’t turn a lot but are often quite difficult to get away. He could be handy.”Inverarity made it patently clear in announcing his squad for the tournament that there was no real emphasis on the future in this squad. It is a 15-man group compiled entirely to claim the trophy, and to defy Australia’s lowly ninth ranking in T20 internationals. There will be a contrast, Inverarity noted, with the teams to be chosen for ODI cricket later on, as the panel continues to assess its options for that format’s 2015 World Cup.”This is a marquee series,” Inverarity said. “It is the World Cup, the ICC World T20, so we just picked the best players we could who we think are going to perform best. It will probably be during the ODI games during the Australian summer we’ll be looking more to the future, but in this squad we’re just looking at the next month.”Twenty20 cricket is very unpredictable. It really is. If you had a Wimbledon final and instead of the best of five sets, the best of three, I mean it’s just a reduced package. So yeah, I think we’ve got a very good squad, and a very versatile squad. A lot of bowling and a lot of batting, there’s a lot of strike power there. So we’ve got a good chance. Anything could happen, they’re prepared and certainly giving it their very best.”As for Hogg, Inverarity said he presented an irresistible case for selection during last summer’s BBL and had subsequently backed it up by training and testing very well in comparison to his younger fellow squad members.”Hogg’s done so well. I saw him in the Big Bash last year and he’s very fit, he’s in really good shape and full of enthusiasm as he always is,” Inverarity said. “So we’re hoping he does really well. He’s continued to do well since the Big Bash League in the IPL in the other T20 leagues around the world, he’s done very well.”He doesn’t [look like slowing down]. Not with his enthusiasm, he’s very fit. A lot of testing goes on and he comes out pretty well.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the first T20 international between England and South Africa at Chester-le-Street

The Preview by Alan Gardner07-Sep-2012

Match Facts

September 8, 2012
Start time 2.30pm (1330 GMT)Stuart Broad will be the latest England captain to try and succeed against South Africa•Getty Images

The Big Picture

We’ve been here before: England’s seemingly-quite-resistible force against South Africa’s immovable Hashim Amla. This time the tourists are the No. 1-ranked side going into the series, however, and England are merely the reigning World Twenty20 champions. Both have solid records from sporadic outings in the shortest form this year and both will be looking to nail down their plans for the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, which starts in less than two weeks’ time.For England, it means a change in captain and Stuart Broad will aim to become the first of the now-defunct triumvirate to hand South Africa a series defeat. Andrew Strauss retired from cricket after his side were steamrollered in the Tests, though Alastair Cook did marginally better, clinging on to the one-day top ranking and gaining a promotion into the bargain. Broad will probably settle for a trio of consistent performances from the squad, as well as the avoidance of injury.There is no respite for AB de Villiers, who had the wicketkeeping gloves thrust upon him at the start of the Test series and now continues to balance his own personal three-for in the T20s as captain, batsman and keeper. After two months away from home and with one eye on the subcontinent, he will need all his powers of multitasking and compartmentalisation to help drag his team towards the finish line.

Form guide

(Most recent first, completed matches)
England WWWLW
South Africa WWWLW

Watch out for

Alex Hales scored 99 in his only international outing of 2012 so far but walked off the pitch at Trent Bridge looking distraught to miss out on a hundred. Still, making the highest T20I score by an Englishman is as good a way as any to start life as Kevin Pietersen’s replacement. Hales’ coach at Nottingham, Mick Newell, recently suggested his first-class returns had been wanting this season but he is a talented young opener who could offer England options in all formats.Without Jacques Kallis, rested for the ODI series, South Africa looked an unbalanced side. They will welcome back the ursine allrounder with wide open arms ahead of the World Twenty20, even though his sole T20I appearance in the last two years came during a one-off tribute match against India in March. Experience can count for a lot in T20 cricket and Kallis, an IPL winner with Kolkata earlier this year, is smarter than your average bear

Team news

Barring one high-profile exception, England have played the same team in all four of their T20 internationals this year. Graeme Swann should return after being rested for the last three ODIs against South Africa, while Steven Finn and Tim Bresnan are both carrying niggles, which could mean a first T20I appearance in three years for James Anderson. Ravi Bopara has struggled with the bat recently but made fifty in his last 20-over outing against West Indies.England (possible) 1 Craig Kieswetter (wkt), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Ravi Bopara, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Jos Buttler, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Graeme Swann, 9 Stuart Broad (capt), 10 Steven Finn, 11 Jade DernbachSouth Africa have a similar squad to pick from as for the ODIs, with Kallis, Richard Levi and possibly Johan Botha likely to be the only different faces in the mix for a starting spot. Depending on his fitness, Albie Morkel could come back into the side, while South Africa have also experimented with batting Wayne Parnell up the order in de Villiers’ short reign as captain.South Africa (possible) 1 Richard Levi, 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Jacques Kallis, 4 AB de Villiers (capt & wk), 5 JP Duminy, 6 Justin Ontong, 7 Wayne Parnell, 8 Johan Botha, 9 Robin Peterson, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 Morne Morkel

Pitch and conditions

The pitch at Chester-le-Street has not been a friendly one to batsmen all season and Australia struggled to 200 for 9 in an ODI there in July. Durham twice made 300 or thereabouts in 40-over games last month, however, and the prospect of sunshine breaking through the fluffy white clouds at some point in the afternoon should boost the chances for a high-scoring affair.

Stats and trivia

• Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann are tied as England’s leading T20I wicket-takers, with 41 each.
• Richard Levi struck the fastest-ever T20 international hundred, from 45 balls, in only his second appearance.
• There have been six T20 meetings between the two sides – England have won two, South Africa three, with one abandonment…
• …which occurred when they were due to play each other at Chester-le-Street in 2008.

Quotes

“The planning started from Trent Bridge, when Kevin said he wasn’t available for the Twenty20 World Cup, and his replacement came in and got the highest score by an England batsman.”
“Twenty20s fly by. You can almost see the finish line now.”

Ajit Agarkar, the fast bowler, has been appointed captain of Mumbai for the first four rounds of the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Oct-2012Ajit Agarkar, the fast bowler, has been appointed captain of Mumbai for their first four matches of the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy. In February this year, he was, for the first time in his 16-year career, officially named Mumbai captain, for the limited-overs Vijay Hazare Trophy. Agarkar takes over the first-class side from Wasim Jaffer, who stepped down in February.Agarkar’s appointment as captain earlier in the year marked a turnaround in his relations between the Mumbai Cricket Association. In November 2011, Agarkar had left the team in Cuttack as he was disappointed at not being picked in the XI for a Ranji Trophy match against Orissa. He consequently withdrew from the squad for the entire Ranji season but reconciled his differences with the board in a meeting with Milind Rege, then Mumbai’s chairman of selectors, Ratnakar Shetty, the then MCA vice-president, and Nitin Dalal, the MCA secretary, in February 2012.

Left-arm spinner Robin Peterson is set for a return to Test cricket, four years since he last played for South Africa in whites

Firdose Moonda in Perth29-Nov-2012Left-arm spinner Robin Peterson is set for a return to Test cricket, four years since he last played for South Africa in whites. After legspinner Imran Tahir endured a torrid time in Adelaide, where he conceded the most runs in a Test without taking a wicket, Peterson should be in the staring XI after the captain Graeme Smith confirmed South Africa would “most likely go with a spinner.”On the eve of the match, Peterson was training with his Test cap on, and it looked brand new. He has played six Tests, the last against Bangladesh in 2008, but is best remembered for being hit for 28 runs in an over by Brian Lara in Johannesburg. Many years have passed since then and Peterson is likely to perform the holding role in an attack that will probably consist of four quicks to match Australia’s expected quartet.Though Nathan Lyon remained in the Australia’s final 12, the deciding Test could centred around a battle of pace. The WACA curator Cameron Sutherland said the venue’s reputation for having lost its bounce is a myth. “Go and look at some of the old photos. There is a photo of Dennis Lillee bowling and Rod Marsh taking the ball, and he’d be 16 metres back. We had a Twenty20 game two years ago where the keeper was on the 30-yard circle and the slip a metre behind him. How much quicker do you want it? I’m realistic that folklore is folklore and so it was always quicker in the old days.”We’ve had this discussion with Ed Cowan, who said he has played here the last three years and it’s been really quick, it comes on really well. The keepers stand further back, they like to take it on the down. Back in Rod Marsh’s era, they liked to take it hands up. It’s hard to judge but I’ve asked a lot of people about it and some of the honest feedback is that it’s as quick as it ever was.”Sutherland is not promising a green mamba, though. Two days of wind and wet have hampered preparations slightly. “Whether we get that in it tomorrow, I’m pretty confident. The one thing is that we just haven’t had the hot baking sun to set it really hard.”Still, he said a pace barrage would not be misplaced but had a word of advice about the inclusion of a spin option. “Australia have used four quicks before here and it hasn’t hurt them,” Sutherland said. “Last year, it was more obvious that India wouldn’t last the distance so the quicks could have a bite at the cherry.”How South Africa play on this, seeing as it’s familiar conditions to them, might be different. If it goes day four or day five, a spinner might become handy. It’s just whether you think the quicks will get more use out of the wicket before the spinner has an impact on the game. There are good quicks on both sides so it depends how the batters bat. Both sides have got batters that love the ball coming on and the horizontal shots. They are two evenly matched sides that love these conditions.”Michael Clarke said before the Test that recent Shield matches had ended well inside four days, with one lasting two-and-half-days, and that he would not like the toss to play too much of a role. Sutherland is certain that it won’t, though he suspected bowling first could be profitable.”I don’t think it will make or break the game,” Sutherland said. “I’d probably bowl given the conditions. We’ve had cool conditions and the wicket has got no signs of cracking, it should get better for batting as it goes on … and we don’t get the crumbling here.”For Australia, that could mean having two debutants in Josh Hazelwood and John Hastings take the field. For South Africa, it will be a good way to bring Vernon Philander, who has been declared fit, back in.One bowler who will definitely not make use of conditions is Jacques Kallis. While his fitness will be assessed in the morning, he has been ruled out of bowling. If he cannot play at all, South Africa may replace him with allrounder Ryan McLaren, who will bat lower in the order, or Dean Elgar. They will have to revert to a six-batsman strategy to accommodate all four quicks and Peterson, and Jacques Rudolph is the most likely candidate to be dropped.

Darren Sammy reiterated that West Indies are in Bangladesh to win the Test series 2-0 despite appearing more relaxed in Khulna than in Dhaka

Mohammad Isam20-Nov-2012Darren Sammy reiterated that West Indies are in Bangladesh to win the Test series 2-0 despite appearing more relaxed in Khulna than in Dhaka. West Indies held just one full training session on the eve of the second Test, after holding an optional session on Monday, the day after they arrived.”We had optional practice yesterday and most of the guys are little bit relaxed and well rested. We are here to do better than what we did in the last game,” Sammy said. “Last year we drew the first Test, this year we won it. We have one more Test to go and we’d do everything to win this Test match. We want to win the series 2-0.”West Indies are likely to play the same XI as in the first Test, but as Denesh Ramdin had hinted on Monday, Fidel Edwards could be drafted in from among the four reserve players. But it is unlikely Edwards would replace any of the spinners, despite Sunil Narine’s indifferent form in the first Test.Veerasammy Permaul too is likely to be given an extended run after taking three wickets in Bangladesh’s second innings, and showing maturity that has impressed the West Indies dressing room. The threat to Bangladesh, however, will come through the West Indies fast bowlers – Tino Best and Ravi Rampaul – who took seven second-innings wickets between them in Mirpur.Sammy also asked Bangladesh to remain patient and added that West Indies have been going through a similar phase of not being able to force a favourable result from tricky situations in Tests.”You see the No. 1 ranked team gets defeated by No. 4 ranked team. It is ultimately about how you go out and play on the pitch. A team must have patience, consistency and discipline in their approach.”On a last day pitch, chasing 250-plus is a difficult task. I think it is all in the experience for both teams. We have been in similar situations so it’s good that we are developing,” he said.Despite Bangladesh’s runs, West Indies did bowl out the home side twice in the first Test, a point Sammy made to remind the Bangladesh batsmen led by the aggressive Tamim Iqbal at the top of the order to be on alert. “I have always watched Tamim [Iqbal] score runs quickly. We have a lot of aggressive players in our line-up too. I expect them to come hard at us, but if we stick to our line and lengths, we believe we could get 20 wickets,” Sammy said.Tamim, whose injured elbow kept his participation in the second Test in doubt, has been declared fit to play.