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Matt Prior’s role as wicketkeeper for the one-day series in Bangladesh could be under threat from the uncapped Craig Kieswetter, after England’s coach, Andy Flower, hinted that they intended to use the games as direct preparation for the World Twenty20 that gets underway in the Caribbean at the end of April.The hard-hitting Kieswetter, who only completed his England qualification last week, was not chosen to play in either of the recent Twenty20 matches against Pakistan in Dubai, despite making an immediate case for selection with a matchwinning 81 for the England Lions against the senior side in Abu Dhabi.On Tuesday in Fatullah, however, he made up for lost time by cracking an impressive 143 from 123 balls against a Bangladesh Cricket Board XI, his first appearance in full England colours. He was then handed the gloves for the second match 48 hours later, and picked up two catches in a comfortable seven-wicket win. Prior, who was asked to play as a specialist batsman, responded with a timely 64 from 57 balls, to seal the contest with 11.4 overs to spare.However, when asked after the match whether Prior was still England’s No. 1, Flower declined the opportunity to give him his unequivocal backing. “I can’t tell you that because we have a match on Sunday and that would be telling you our side,” he said. “[Kieswetter] is in the squad as a wicketkeeping batsman, so it is an option.”It was a nice gentle introduction for him in terms of keeping wicket for England, in a low-pressure environment,” Flower added. “It was also an opportunity to look at him with the gloves on, [because] I don’t know much about his cricket. And it was also an opportunity for him to get used to the side, and for the side to get used to him with the gloves on.”The situation is unfortunate for Prior, who has done little wrong since reclaiming his place as England’s limited-overs wicketkeeper, particularly with the gloves, and yet has found it hard to replicate the counterattacking approach that he has made his trademark in Tests. In 30 matches since 2008, and from a variety of positions up and down the order, he has picked up 525 runs at 27.63, with an unspectacular strike-rate of 76.41.”Today was an opportunity for him to get up front and get some time in the middle,” said Flower of Prior’s promotion to No. 3 in Fatullah. “Batting at 6 or 7 is a specialist area and he’s shown glimpses of good skill and it’s not easy to bat in that area to put in performances that consistently catch the eye and make a difference. It’s a tricky area to bat.”If Prior’s future lies in the middle order, then Kieswetter – with or without the gloves – is sure to open the batting in Bangladesh alongside the stand-in captain, Alastair Cook, and at the expense of Jonathan Trott, whose standing as a limited-overs opener has plummeted since the tour of South Africa.Last week, Flower expressed his disappointment in the starts that Trott and Joe Denly had offered England in Dubai, and he clearly hopes that Kieswetter will gather sufficient momentum in the coming weeks to take straight into the Caribbean – where he can expect to form part of the 16th opening combination that England will have used in 26 Twenty20 matches.”We don’t know about selection for the Twenty20 World Cup, but if we’re to go with him, if he had a great series against Bangladesh, it’s a gentle introduction,” said Flower. “I thought he kept nicely. He looks a natural catcher of the ball.”

Tasmania 5 for 264 (Bailey 112*, Cowan 53) beat Queensland 245 (Reardon 79, Doherty 4-28) by 19 runs
ScorecardGeorge Bailey’s century set up Tasmania’s win•Getty Images

The captain George Bailey’s maiden one-day century and his astute use of the spinner Xavier Doherty kept Tasmania’s FR Cup season alive with a 19-run win over Queensland. Bailey scored 112 as the hosts reached 5 for 264 and then opened with Doherty, the left-arm orthodox, who finished with 4 for 28 off 10 overs.Nathan Reardon’s 79, which included three sixes and took 84 balls, and 36 to Craig Philipson gave the Bulls hope, but Doherty proved too much of an obstacle and they were dismissed for 245. The result left a jammed table, with the leaders Queensland on 21 points with Victoria, Tasmania one behind in third, and the bottom-placed South Australia on 17. All the sides have one match remaining to determine who progresses to the final on February 28.With 66 needed off the last 10 overs, Queensland took the Powerplay and soon lost the crucial wicket of Reardon to a fine run-out from Bailey, who hit the stumps from cover. In the next over Chris Simpson fell without scoring when he found deep square leg off Doherty.Calling the spinner for the PowerPlay was as brave as opening with him, and Doherty was soon celebrating again when he bowled Ben Cutting. The game was effectively over when Philipson was caught by a diving Michael Dighton at backward point in the 48th over.Doherty started the second innings and the ploy worked after four balls when he had Ryan Broad lbw. Chris Hartley was also undone by a spinner, falling to Jason Krejza on 41, and the Bulls were in more difficulty at 4 for 141 when Chris Lynn became Doherty’s second victim.Tasmania’s innings began cautiously but picked up after Bailey joined Ed Cowan when the hosts were 2 for 43. Cowan left with a measured 53 and Bailey really picked up the tempo late in the innings when joined by Dan Marsh (24 off 25) and Krejza (32 off 22).Bailey’s hundred came up with a six flicked off his toes from Cutting, who was unfortunate to give up 17 in his last over, while he also gained eight fours during his 108-ball innings. His use of Doherty and a vital run-out added to the captain’s fine day.

Samit Patel has underlined his desire to force himself back into England contention as a fitter, trimmer player by signing a new three-year contract with Nottinghamshire, which will commit him to the club until the end of the 2012 season. As a sign of his new focus, Patel will also spend the next two months at the Darren Lehmann Cricket Academy in Adelaide on a trip he has part-fundedPatel impressed many with some strong performances against South Africa early in his international career before being dumped from the England one-day squad for the West Indies tour due to fitness problems. He was then also dropped from England’s squad before the World Twenty20 tournament in June last year. He admitted that while his ejection from the England set-up hurt, he had perhaps dwelt upon it too much at a time when his county career provides him with the surest path back to top-level cricket.”I’ve made a significant change in my approach because I spent too much time obsessing about England when really I should be focussed on doing well for Notts”, said Patel. “I know that I didn’t show enough last year but this is a line in the sand and I’ll come back from Australia fitter and better prepared for the new season.”After modest returns in the County Championship over the past two seasons, Patel has also conceded that he must produce consistent performances for Notts before he targets a return to the England fold. “I’ve always wanted to play my cricket for Nottinghamshire and I want to remain loyal to the club and win trophies here,” he said. “I’m at the stage now where I need to play a senior role in the team and that means scoring runs consistently, taking regular wickets and making match-winning contributions.Crucially, Patel has the backing of Nottinghamshire Director of Cricket Mick Newell, who expects him to play a central role during the next three years. “Lots has been said about Samit’s fitness but his ability has never been in any doubt and he’s a valued member of our squad,” said Newell. “There is a lot of responsibility on his shoulders now that Graeme Swann is established in the England set-up and Samit can use that to demonstrate that he’s on top of his game.”Patel will also be hoping for the support of David Hussey and Dirk Nannes, who have also agreed to contracts with Notts. “I think that we should be winning trophies and that’s a belief that is shared throughout the squad and the management,” said Patel. “The new players have settled in very well and we know what to expect from Nannes and Hussey. We’ve got a great environment here which everyone enjoys and I can’t wait to get started.”

More than nine months after the fateful terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore, Ijaz Butt, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, has said the board had wanted to host that Test in Karachi instead. Butt said he had requested the Pakistan government to shift the game to Karachi because of concerns over the security situation in the province of Punjab, where Lahore is located.Karachi had hosted the first Test of that series which was drawn. The Sri Lankans were making their way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore for the third day’s play on March 3 when terrorists opened fire on the team bus, injuring five players and their assistant coach Paul Farbrace. The tour was immediately cancelled and the repercussions were enormous as Pakistan was stripped of its share of matches for the 2011 World Cup. Teams have since refused to tour Pakistan.”A top government official rejected our suggestion and said the Test would be held in Lahore,” Butt told a television channel. “The implementation of the security arrangements for the visiting team was also that of the government, the board could do nothing about it.”He added that the Lahore High Court had identified the people responsible for the lax security arrangements in its inquiry report. “I can’t name anyone but the inquiry report is there for everyone to see,” Butt said.Shortly after the attacks, Butt had said the security arrangements was the government’s responsibility and not the PCB’s and that the level of security for the Sri Lankans was the same provided to all visiting teams. He had reacted angrily to match referee Chris Broad’s claims that the security cover was insufficient despite assurances from the PCB. He had said Broad’s reaction was “obnoxious”, and that a commando was actually responsible for saving Broad’s life.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has not given up hopes of trying to have their players appearing in next year’s IPL, even though the league has ruled out their participation for the second season running after the players failed to get visas by the December 7 deadline.”We haven’t left the situation for now,” Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, told Cricinfo. “We are hopeful that the visas will come through in a day or two and are very hopeful that Pakistan’s players will be in the next IPL.”Butt has already striven hard to ensure a Pakistani presence in the lucrative league, meeting chairman Lalit Modi in October to discuss a way back in after the Pakistan government prevented their own players from taking part in the second IPL. Modi then twice extended the deadline at Butt’s request for Pakistan’s players – five in all – to get the necessary clearance and paperwork in order for them to take part but eventually said another delay would handicap franchise planning and team-building for the next season, due to begin in March.There are indications that Butt might be willing to take the case further – a senior PCB official told Cricinfo that the chairman had sought help from “higher-ups in government” to resolve the situation and find a way for players to take part. Butt refused to confirm or deny it, insisting only that he was “very hopeful” of a breakthrough.The PCB will also be heartened by a statement issued by the Indian High Commission in Islamabad on Wednesday which said it had not denied the Pakistan players the visas and that their applications were being processed. “The High Commission was approached by the PCB for issuance of visa to only one player [Sohail Tanvir], while three other players submitted visa applications to the High Commission of India in Wellington [ where the team is currently playing]. These visa applications are being processed,” the statement said.The statement also said the High Commission had not been informed of any deadline for issuing the visas, either by the Pakistan board or the IPL.Pakistan are the reigning World Twenty20 champions, and several franchises had expressed interest in signing the country’s cricketers. Five Pakistan players – Kamran Akmal, Misbah ul-Haq, Abdul Razzaq, Umar Gul and Sohail Tanvir – are already on contract with IPL teams.Pakistan’s players were absent from IPL’s second season, held earlier this year in South Africa, after their government did not allow them to travel to India – where the tournament was originally to be held – for security reasons. The decision came in the wake of the Mumbai attacks last year, after which relations between India and Pakistan deteriorated considerably. Eleven players from Pakistan had taken part in the first IPL, though after the Mumbai attacks, only four were retained by their franchises, though their contracts were suspended until further resolution. Razzaq was signed recently by Kolkata Knight Riders.

An inexperienced South African Invitational XI will take on England in two two-day fixtures at East London ahead of the Test series next month. Wendell Bossenger, the Griqualand West and Eagles wicketkeeper-batsman who was named one of South Africa’s five cricketers of the year, will lead the squad that includes seven Under-19 players.”Cricket South Africa (CSA) once again presents an ideal opportunity to aspiring young talented players to experience some of the intensity of cricket at the highest level,” Max Jordaan, CSA’s senior amateur cricket manager, said. “The chance to play against England on the crest of their cricket after their recent success in the Ashes series, should be a dream occasion for any young player. Chances are that some of them could impress favourably on this occasion.””This is a young inexperienced but talented team, most of them fresh from the academy and U-19 talent acceleration programme. The very nature of cricket is its unpredictability. The talent of the eager young men and youthful exuberance could present some excitement in East London.”With two separate matches being played it means England will be able to give all their squad a run-out before the Test series begins at Centurion on December 16. Ian Bell, Ryan Sidebottom and Steven Davies have recently flown out to South Africa and will join up with the squad after the one-day series. The two fixtures at East London will be especially important for Bell and Sidebottom as they push for a Test place.SA Invitational Squad Wendell Bossenger (capt), Andrea Agathagelou, Roy Adams, Temba Bavuma, Keegan Eccles, Pumelela Matshikwe, Mangaliso Mosehle, Ayavuya Myoli, Siyamthanda Ntshona, Blake Snijman, Yaseen Vallie, Piet van Niekerk, Divan van Wyk, David Wiese

MTN40

Another weekend, another record. Morne van Wyk smashed the record for the highest individual score in limited-overs history in South Africa. He scored a blistering 168 for the Eagles against the Lions in the third match of the MTN40. His knock took just 125 balls and included 25 fours and a solitary six. Van Wyk batted for the full 40 overs to surpass Martin Venter’s 166 for North West.Although van Wyk’s record dominated the first week of limited-overs action, it wasn’t the only action on offer. The competition began in Johannesburg last Wednesday where the Lions would have thought they’d scored enough runs against the Cobras to notch up a win. Neil McKenzie hit 70, Vaughn van Jaarsveld bludgeoned 67 off 55 balls and Zander de Bruyn weighed in with 54 off 34 as the Lions totaled 286 for 6.Andre Nel dismissed Graeme Smith for a third ball duck but from there, the Cobras controlled proceedings. Andrew Puttick and JP Duminy scored centuries as the Cobras won by seven wickets with an over to spare. Duminy’s hundred was the first of his limited-overs’ career.The Lions were on the losing side again on Friday. Morne van Wyk’s record-breaking innings took the Eagles to 286 for 5. Ironically, it was the same score the Lions failed to defend in their first match. The Eagles had no problems defending the total though. Johan van der Wath’s 3 for 36 contributed to the Lions collapse. They were bowled out for 182, losing by 104 runs.In Durban, the Warriors beat the Dolphins by 13 runs. Only Craig Thyssen, batting at No. 8, reached a half-century for the Warriors as they totaled 213. It was the bowlers who did the job for them. Lonwabo Tsotsobe took 4 for 27 as the Dolphins finished on 200 for 9. In Centurion, Jacques Rudolph scored 93 off 87 balls as the Titans reached 249 for 8. Rain had the final say there, as the Cobras innings couldn’t even get underway.By Sunday, it was dry in Centurion, and Rudolph was among the runs again. He scored his second half-century in two matches. AB de Villiers also notched up a half-century as the Titans reached 254 for 8. The Eagles stayed on track in their response. Reeza Hendricks and Rilee Rossouw shared a century stand for the second wicket, with both reaching their fifties before Dale Steyn removed them. He took 4 for 36 as the Eagles fell 14 runs short of the target.The Warriors surged to the top of the table with a comprehensive 59-run win over the Cobras. There were encouraging signs for the national selectors as Monde Zondeki took 3 for 37 and Tsotsobe took 3 for 36. Herschelle Gibbs scored 60 batting at No. 5 for the Cobras, but the rest of their line-up was blown away by the Warriors. They totaled 155 in search of 215.

CSA Provincial Three-Day Challenge

Vernon Philander took eight wickets for Western Province (WP) as they beat Border by four wickets and stormed to the top of the log. Border were bowled out for 258 in their first innings. WP responded with 359, with Alistair Gray top-scoring with 85. Kevin Bennet was the centurion of the Border second innings, as they set WP a target of 179 to win. WP looked wobbly at 83 for 4 but Ryan Canning’s unbeaten half-century saw them comfortably home.In Port Elizabeth, Eastern Province thumped the Free State by 188 runs. JJ Smuts scored 134 as Eastern Province declared on 345 for 2. Free State were bowled out for 206, with Warren Bell taking 4 for 38. Michael Smith scored 100 as Eastern Province set Free State a target of 363 to win. Free State were never within sight and Lyall Meyer’s 5 for 33 helped put them out of their misery. Eastern Province are second on the log, 18 points behind WP.Boland lie third on the log after beating Namibia by 10 wickets in Windhoek. Carl Raubenheimer took 6 for 65 as Namibia were bowled out for 215. Boland were solid in their response, notching up 324. The real sparks flew in Namibia’s second innings. Daniel Childs and Hilroy Paulse shared seven wickets as they ripped through the hosts and left them reeling on 47 for 7. Tony Palladino’s half-century saved Nambia from an innings defeat. Border needed just 26 to seal victory.A good all-round performance saw Easterns beat South Western Districts (SWD) by 216 runs in Oudtshoorn. Kobus Pienaar’s century allowed Easterns to declare on 321 for 7. Pienaar and Imran Tahir combined to take seven wickets and bowl SWD out for 172. Pienaar scored his second hundred of the match and together with Jaco Booysen put on 196 for the third wicket as Easterns declared on 293 for 4. SWD had a massive 443 to chase for victory. Tahir wove his magic again with 5 for 79 and SWD were dismissed for 226. SWD were left languishing at the bottom of the table.The only drawn encounter of the weekend was between North West and KwaZulu Natal Inland in Potchefstroom. North West totaled 376 for 6 declared in their first innings. Johan Mostert scored the bulk of their runs with 161. KZN Inland only fell 38 runs short and were forced to declare on 337 for 5. Mario Olivier scored a century. The Inland team bowled fiercely to reduce North West to 76 for 5 in their second innings but Brett Pelser’s hundred took the hosts to 297 for 7. They declared, setting KZN Inland 335 to win. North West would have been disappointed with their sporting declaration, since KZN finished on 129 for 7.

CSA Provincial One-Day Challenge

Divan van Wyk scored 75 for Free State as they were bowled out for 176 against Eastern Province. Patrick Botha contributed a half-century but nobody else got past 20. Corbyn Dolley and Sivive Gidana shared six wickets. In response, Eastern Province made light work of the target. JJ Smuts scored 75 as they won in the 29th over. The victory was Eastern Province’s first in the competition.Nambia recovered from 37 for 3 to reach 184 for 9 against Boland. Sarel Burger top scored with 47. Boland lost Henry Davids for just 8 but 79 from Omphile Ramela took them to a three-wicket win. Boland won the match off the second last ball.Eastern continued their dominance of SWD with a 21-run win. Rushdi Jappie scored a century and Kobus Pienaar a half-century. Easterns put on an imposing 295 for 5. SWD were staring down the barrel of defeat on 46 for 4. Burton de Wett’s 88 and William Hanton’s 97 took them within sight of victory but it was not to be.KZN Inland could muster only 201 for 5 against the North West. Doug Watson scored an unbeaten 51 and Morne van Vuuren scored 52. Christiaan Jonker led the North West’s response, scoring an unbeaten 96. He was helped by Riyaadh Bhayat’s 43 as North West won by six wickets.Batsman of the week:
Van Wyk is the forgotten wicketkeeper-batsman of South African cricket and he seems to be one of those players who, despite excelling in the domestic leagues, just can’t seem to cut it in international cricket. His record this week only adds to his achievements in the one-day competition. He was the highest scorer in the limited-overs competition in 2006 and was named domestic one-day player of the year in 2007.Bowler of the week:
Tsotsobe has shown good form in the longer version of the game, but really came to the fore this weekend with seven wickets in two matches. His average of just 9.00 and economy of 3.93 make those figures even more impressive. Against the Dolphins, Tsotsobe dismantled the top and middle order, capturing the wickets of both Amla brothers, HD Ackerman and Andrew Hall.

Paul Collingwood has been ruled out of the Champions League Twenty20 with the buttock strain he picked up during the Champions Trophy semi-final against Australia, but the ECB are confident he will be fit for the tour of South Africa which starts in November.”The scan revealed a grade two tear and Paul has been withdrawn from the forthcoming Champions League in India in which he was due to play for Delhi Daredevils,” said an ECB statement. “It is anticipated that with rest and rehabilitation Paul will be available for the tour of South Africa which starts in early November.Collingwood didn’t make any appearances for Delhi Daredevils during this year’s IPL but his contract said he had to attend the Champions League. He admitted that his body could do with a rest, although the ECB were quick to reinforce that the injury was genuine rather than a way for him to opt out of the tournament.”We have a contract with the IPL about making our players available, however Collingwood has picked up a little niggle in his buttock,” Andy Flower, the England coach, said last week. “It is a genuine injury. He definitely did something when he played one of his first pull shots on Friday against Australia. He actually struggled through the game with that problem. It is not in any way trying to get him rest.”The Champions League will begin on October 8 and ends on October 23. England’s next assignment is a Test and ODI tour of South Africa with the first Twenty20 international on November 13.Collingwood’s injury is the same as the one which ruled out England allrounder Stuart Broad from the Champions Trophy semi-final.

Murali Kartik, the Indian left-arm spinner, has signed up with Somerset as their overseas player for the 2010 season. Currently playing for Middlesex, whom he joined them 2007, Kartik has signed a one-year contract with Somerset.Kartik, 33, said it was a fantastic opportunity for him. “It’s a new challenge for a player like me who has been playing first class cricket in England for the last five seasons,” Kartik told the Somerset website. “I know it is not an Old Trafford or Lord’s wicket, because I’ve played here before and it is a different challenge to me. As an international spinner when you have been playing for a long time you like to challenge yourself on wickets like that.””Somerset have been vying for honours for the last two years [and] I think I probably add a new dimension to their attack. I love the challenge of playing county cricket and coming out and playing on different sorts of wickets.”Brian Rose, Somerset’s director of cricket, said Kartik’s inclusion would bolster their bid to win the Championship. “The key for me has been looking at the way our cricket has gone over the last two to three years,” he said. “We have come up from the second division into the first and been very competitive but in terms of winning the Championship we need to have really good all-round bowlers.”We have got two bowlers who can potentially get 50 wickets each and with Kartik we have got another who can get 50-60 plus, and to win championships you have to have the depth of bowling. Particularly bowling at Taunton you must have variety and several times over the last couple of years we have reached the end game in two and a half days and spent the rest of the time trying to bowl sides out purely with seam.”Kartik has picked up 475 first-class wickets at 26.16, including 33 this season. He also has 24 wickets at 34.16 in eight Tests and 37 wickets at 43.56 in 37 ODIs.

HD Ackerman has decided to end his county career with Leicestershire, making way for the club’s younger players.Ackerman, the 36-year-old South African, was left out of the current Championship side playing Gloucestershire, allowing Josh Cobb, 19, to take his place.”He has been an outstanding batsman and role model to our younger players,” David Smith, Leicestershire’s chief executive told the . “He will leave a strong legacy when he returns to South Africa and we would like to take this opportunity to wish both HD and his wife Kerryn every success in the future.”Ackerman moved to Grace Road in 2005, and since then has been Leicestershire’s leading batsman, accumulating over 5,000 first-class runs. His top score was 309 not out against Glamorgan in 2006.