Mushtaq Ahmed, the former Pakistan legspinner, has been named as assistant coach of Pakistan for the Champions Trophy according to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).Abbas Zaidi, a PCB director, confirmed to Cricinfo that Mushtaq had been appointed. “Yes, we have hired him for the Champions Trophy as assistant coach. For the moment the appointment is only for that assignment.”Despite playing his last international for Pakistan nearly three years ago, Mushtaq’s high-profile successes with Sussex have ensured that he has never remained far from the Pakistan set-up, or the selectors’ thoughts. Last winter, he was recalled as one of five spinners for the squad against England; he wasn’t eventually used and by the end of the tour he was helping Pakistan out as an unofficial bowling coach. Eventually, Waqar Younis was hired as a full-time bowling coach later in the winter.And though Mushtaq wasn’t selected for the squad to tour England in the summer, speculation was rife that he would be picked once Pakistan arrived, especially after the spate of crippling injuries their bowlers suffered. To many people’s surprise, he wasn’t chosen for any of the Tests, even though Danish Kaneria struggled throughout the summer. Instead, Mushtaq continued in his attempts to land Sussex a second County Championship title.For now, Mushtaq is back in the set-up, if only for the solitary assignment. The PCB is not yet ruling out involvement beyond that and Zaidi added that the decision will be reviewed again after the tournament. “The appointment will be reviewed on a tour-by-tour basis after that.”
ScorecardAn accomplished bowling performance from Railways restricted Rest of India to a disappointing 223 on the opening day of the Irani Trophy match in Delhi. Kulamani Parida, with 4 for 61, ended with the best figures but the significant damage was done by Harvinder Singh and Murali Kartik.The game was very different during the opening exchanges after Rest of India had chosen to bat. Gautam Gambhir and Dheeraj Jadhav laid a solid platform with a stand of 82 before Parida made the first breakthrough.Once Railways had made an opening wickets fell at regular intervals as 117 for 1 became 179 for 7 at tea. Jadhav reached his half-century but fell shortly afterwards, trapped lbw by Harvinder. Kartik removed Suresh Raina and Venugopal Rao while Parthiv Patel also fell to Harvinder.Parida’s offspin wrapped up the tail during the evening session leaving Amit Pagnis and Sanjay Bangar with six overs to play out to end a highly satisfactory day for Railways.
In the latest round of Championship matches, a record-breaking 341 from Craig Spearman set up a 10-wicket win for Gloucestershire over Middlesex, while 13 wickets from Heath Streak for Warwickshire helped his side beat Northants at Edgbaston. Sussex beat Lancashire by eight wickets after making them follow on at Hove, and 103 from Andrew Symonds helped Kent draw at Worcester. In Division Two, Yorkshire wrapped up a comfortable victory against Durham thanks to a century from Darren Lehmann, and there were comfortable wins for Glamorgan and Hampshire. Notts beat Somerset by 7 wickets at Bath after five wickets to Greg Smith.
Frizzell County Championship Division One
Scorecard Day 1 report: Klusener blasts off after top guns self-destruct – The Guardian Day 2 report: Spearman punishes Middlesex – The Times Day 3 report: Spearman surpasses greats – The Telegraph Day 4 report: Unstoppable Spearman finishes off Middlesex – The Independent
Scorecard Day 1 report: Lancashire lacking leading lights as Adams steals show – The Independent Day 2 report: Mahmood thrashes as Lancs topple – The Guardian Day 3 report: Lancashire crumble before champions – The Times
Scorecard Day 1 report: Mean Streak gets record – The Daily Telegraph Day 2 report: Phillips checks march of leaders – The Times Day 3 report: Perfect Streak shows allround abilities – The Times Day 4 report: Streak revels in return to day job – The Independent
Scorecard Day 1 report: Peters hits century to set tone -The Daily Telegraph Day 2 report: Symonds gets stuck on record – The Guardian Day 3 report: Peters steals the show – The Times Day 4 report: Careful calculations required by Worcs – The Telegraph
Frizzell County Championship Division Two
Scorecard Day 1 report: Dawson delivers England hint – The Daily Telegraph Day 2 report: Dawson puts Yorkshire in dominant position – The Times Day 3 report: Yorkshire seal early win – The Telegraph
Scorecard Day 1 report: Kaneria cramps Hampshire’s style – Wisden Cricinfo Day 2 report: Warne turns the tide Hampshire’s way – Wisden Cricinfo Day 3 report: Rampant Hampshire race to victory – Wisden Cricinfo
Scorecard Day 1 report: Mighty Matt’s record glory – The Western Mail Day 2 report: Leicestershire lifted by Maddy – The Times Day 3 report: Hughes and Croft build victory platform – The Times Day 4 report: In-form Glam stroll to victory – The Western Mail
Scorecard Day 1 report: Heavy artillery from Blackwell – The Daily Telegraph Day 2 report: Patience is its own reward for Bicknell – The Independent Day 3 report: Somerset upstaged by Smith’s inspired swing – The Times Day 4 report: Caddick a lone star as Notts steam on – The Independent
An emphatic decision in support of New Zealand’s cancellation of its 2001 tour of Pakistan, and the withdrawal from its replacement tour in May last year, has been made by the International Cricket Council’s disputes committee.Pakistan had sought compensation under the provisions of the ICC’s future tours programme.The committee comprised: Justice Ahmed Ebrahim, Justice Albie Sachs and Steve Camacho.In a unanimous opionion the committee said:”In the light of the events of September 11, 2001 it was not unreasonable for NZC [New Zealand Cricket] to cancel its original tour of Pakistan. The situation in the world generally, and particularly in the region which includes Pakistan, was highly volatile and unpredictable. As itsubsequently emerged, Pakistan was directly involved in the war which saw the overthrow of the Taliban regime. In the circumstances NZC’s decision was acceptable.”Given the proximity of the Karachi bomb-blast and the deaths caused by it, we find that NZC’s cancellation of the re-scheduled tour in May 2002 was also acceptable.”In the circumstances, compensation is not payable,” they said.Because of the withdrawal on the day the second Test was due to start in Karachi last year, New Zealand and Pakistan have still to resolve when they can fit the match in.Pakistan won the first Test of the two-Test series by a massive innings and 324 runs, the heaviest loss suffered by New Zealand, when Inzamam-ul-Haq scored 329 runs for Pakistan.There has been some talk that the match may be played before New Zealand’s tour to India later this year, but nothing has been confirmed.NZC chief executive Martin Snedden said he was pleased with the decision which had reflected concern for player safety and security being warranted.Snedden said he was in consultation with the Pakistan Cricket Board to resolve the matter.
Warwickshire had to dig themselves out of a hole to achieve a victory targetof only 159 after Northants’ seamer Mike Strong scattered their upper battingwith a spell of three wickets without cost in only eight balls.Warwickshire, bidding to close in on the top three, were in urgent need ofretrenchment at 18-3 after five overs and it took 20 overs of restraint andselectivity from Nick Knight and Dominic Ostler, who shared a stand worth 76,to keep them on track against persevering Northants’ bowling.The dismissal of Knight, caught on the long-off boundary after scoring 47 off87 balls, with seven fours, raised Northants’ hopes again but Ostler foundanother resourceful partner in skipper Mike Powell in a fifth-wicket standwhich yielded 52 in 10 overs.Both men perished with only 13 runs needed for victory, Ostler hitting sixfours in his 49 off 83 balls, but Warwickshire still had 5.4 overs to sparein claiming the points needed to keep them in touch with the top three inDivision One.Northants, who won the toss and batted first on an awkward pitch which madestrokeplay difficult, were heavily reliant on a painstaking innings of 80 notout off 106 balls from Richard Warren and even he needed a fair bit of luck,three of his eight boundaries coming off mishits.Left-arm-seamer Neil Carter broke through with two early wickets and pacemanCharlie Dagnall tightened the screw by conceding only 19 runs in hisnine-over allocation but Warren held things together as Dougie Brown and MoSheikh kept wickets tumbling at the other end.The importance of Warren’s contribution could be judged by the fact that noother batsman scored more than 16 and there were only ten boundaries in thewhole innings.
The topsy-turvy nature of Chelsea’s season was on full display at the weekend.
Enzo Maresca’s side travelled to St James’ Park to play Newcastle United in their last Premier League game of the season, only to go 2-0 down in the first half.
Now, the team deserves some credit for fighting back in the second 45 to make it 2-2, but overall, it was a disappointing performance from the Blues, and the ninth time they’ve dropped points in the league alone this year.
There were underwhelming displays across the pitch for Chelsea, but one player was particularly frustrating and should probably lose his place in the team.
Chelsea's poor performers vs Newcastle
Unfortunately, when it comes to the first half, you could make a genuine argument for every Chelsea player to feature here.
However, some were more disappointing than others, such as Malo Gusto and Wesley Fofana.
Usually two of the club’s better defenders, the pair were partly at fault for the host’s opening goal, with the centre-back losing the ball and the right-back getting outmuscled for the cross.
Moving into the middle of the park, it was a game to forget for Cole Palmer.
The usually incredible Englishman was way off the pace against the Magpies, and his statistics make for some unpleasant reading.
Palmer v Newcastle
Minutes
79′
Expected Goals
0.03
Goals
0
Expected Assists
0.02
Key Passes
1
Crosses (Accurate)
2 (0)
Accurate Passes
25/32 (78%)
Shots on Target
0
Dribbles (Successful)
4 (0)
Lost Possession
15
Ground Duels (Won)
8 (3)
All Stats via Sofascore
For example, in his 79 minutes of action, he produced a combined expected goal plus assists figure of just 0.05, played a single key pass, completed just 78% of his passes, failed to take a shot on target, lost the ball 15 times, failed in 100% of his dribbles and lost five of his eight duels.
Finally, it wasn’t a great outing for Pedro Neto either.
The Portuguese international was clearly trying to make something happen, but ended the game failing to create even one big chance.
However, with all that said, there was one other starter who was comfortably Chelsea’s worst and, as a result, should be dropped ahead of next weekend.
The Chelsea star who needs to be dropped
Now, you could make the argument for several other Chelsea players to take this spot as well, from Trevoh Chalobah to Moises Caicedo.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
However, when it really comes down to it, the most frustrating and disappointing performance of the lot from a Blues perspective came from Alejandro Garnacho.
The former Manchester United star was fully deserving of his start following his brace against Cardiff City in the League Cup, but he looked nowhere near as dangerous against the Toon.
In fact, whenever he found himself in dangerous situations or with a chance to make something happen, he, in the words of content creator Frank Khalid, kept “making the wrong decision.”
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Football.london’s Bobby Vincent was also unimpressed with the Argentine, awarding him a 4/10 match rating at full-time.
Garnacho vs Newcastle
Minutes
95′
Expected Assists
0.07
Assists
0
Goals
0
Shots on Target
1
Crosses (Accurate)
4 (0)
Touches
52
Lost Possession
16
Dribbled Past
1
Duels (Won)
12 (6)
Fouls
1
All Stats via Sofascore
That might sound harsh, but the winger’s statistics more than justify the appraisal.
In his 95 minutes of action, he took five shots, but just one was on target, took 52 touches but lost the ball 16 times, lost 50% of his duels, failed in 100% of his crosses and produced an expected assists figure of just 0.07.
Ultimately, it was a really poor performance from Garnacho and one that should probably see him removed from the lineup for Chelsea’s next game.
Forget Palmer: Chelsea star who's "out of this world" is their best player
This Chelsea ace shone in their 2-2 draw away to Newcastle.
Saturday, January 2, 2015, Cape Town Start time 1030 local (0830 GMT)
Big Picture
When St George’s cathedral chimed midnight more than a few South Africa cricketers will have wished goodbye and good riddance to 2015. It was a year in which their ranking as the No. 1 Test side in the world looked increasingly hollow. If a horrific tour of India could be partially explained by reference to the brazenly turning surfaces, defeat to England in Durban emphasised that their malaise runs deeper.It is a time for strong men, and South Africa have called up the strongest of them all. Graeme Smith retired from international cricket in Cape Town at the end of the Test against Australia nearly two years ago and things have rarely felt the same since. He returns as a batting consultant for the rest of the series, but it is hard to imagine that he will be concentrating on batting technique. Smith’s presence can be expected to stiffen the resolve of everybody in the South Africa camp – to address, indeed, the very frailties of morale that he identified a couple of days ago in his role as a TV pundit. That commentary role will continue, putting him in an awkward position. Such dual roles are far from ideal, even for those of high integrity and reputation.England, by contrast, will anticipate 2016 with relish. If they succeed in South Africa – and the signs so far is that it is well within their capabilities – they have seven Tests in England next summer against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, two sides that they can expect to dominate in their own conditions, especially as Sri Lanka are debilitated by the international retirements of Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara and Pakistan are likely to face tensions arising from the reintegration of Mohammad Amir now that he has served his spot-fixing ban.For now, though, all thoughts are on Cape Town. Alex Hales’ task is to establish himself as a Test opener, James Anderson will want to dispel the creeping notion that with age he is becoming increasingly vulnerable to niggling injuries and if Joe Root made a cricket-based New Year’s resolution it was surely to turn all those fifties in a wonderfully consistent 2015 into something even more substantial.
Form guide
(last five completed matches, most recent first) South Africa LLLDL England WLLDL
In the spotlight
Until an England opening batsman other than Alastair Cook begins to make runs in Test cricket, the spotlight remains unwavering. It fell upon Alex Hales in Durban and, after two low scores, it is not about to move. Hales is extolled as a fine T20 batsman – although, as yet, not highly enough by the IPL franchises – and he is regarded by the majority as a one-day cricketer, but in Test cricket views vary from one extreme to the other. Those who suspect his attributes for Test cricket will not have been changed their outlook after his two dismissals in Durban – a drive at a wideish one from Dale Steyn and a hit down the ground against the offspin of Dane Piedt. His technique and tempo will again come under scrutiny.How best to bring about transformation is a perpetual discussion in South African cricket but, irrespective of quotas, Kagiso Rabada has the raw talent to forge an outstanding international career. With Steyn confirmed as unfit, and South Africa emerging from a horrendous 2015, the raw threat of a truly fast bowler playing his first Test in South Africa might be precisely what they need to dispel the despondency. Rabada took 6 for 16 on his ODI debut against Bangladesh in July and bowled a fine final over to still India – and MS Dhoni – in Kanpur. His pace has regularly gone top side of 90mph (145kph), he hits the pitch hard and he has shown excellent control for one so inexperienced. India’s pitches defused him in his first three Tests, but he now has a chance to enjoy home comforts and, if he fares well on the Cape, quicker pitches lie in wait as the series progresses. There is reason for excitement at his inclusion.
Team news
James Anderson built up his workload successfully in the nets in Durban as he began his recovery from a calf strain, but England will make a final assessment on the morning of the match as to whether he should return with Chris Woakes the likely omission. Anderson bowled the equivalent of a six-over spell on the square on Wednesday morning. “My thought is you’d probably go with him, so fingers crossed he comes to us and says his body’s feeling good,” was the assessment of England’s coach Trevor Bayliss although Alastair Cook said they would need to be careful.England (probable) 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Nick Compton, 4 Joe Root, 5 James Taylor, 6 Ben Stokes, 7 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 8 Moeen Ali, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Steven Finn, 11 James Anderson/Chris WoakesAfter their defeat in Durban and the loss of Steyn because of injury, South Africa replenished their squad with Quinton de Kock, Chris Morris and latterly Hardus Viljoen. De Kock is expected to keep wicket, such is the resistance of AB de Villiers to fulfilling the role once more, although the details were still under discussion the day before the match. Morris’ involvement is less certain – he would need to edge out Kyle Abbott, who has a niggly hamstring, for the last seam-bowling place. Rabada’s home Test debut has been confirmed and the recent heat in Cape Town makes the presence of a specialist seamer in Piedt certain.South Africa (probable) 1 Stiaan van Zyl, 2 Dean Elgar, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 AB de Villiers, 5 Faf du Plessis, 6 Temba Bavuma, 7 Quinton de Kock (wk), 8 Kyle Abbott/Chris Morris, 9 Dane Piedt, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Kagiso Rabada
Pitch and conditions
Excessive heat in Cape Town over the last few weeks has seen the groundsman call for extra watering of the pitch. Despite that there’s not much green and the locals have described it as pretty flat: Moeen Ali has cause to wonder if a second successive surface might eventually fall in his favour. Newlands is usually hard and fast on day one, good for batting on days two and three and will take some turn towards the end. Five rain-free days are expected with hot sun on the first two and some clouds coming in mid-way through the match.
Stats and trivia
South Africa have lost four Tests in 28 in Cape Town since readmission to Test cricket – all of them against Australia. They have beaten England in three out of four meetings
Aleem Dar will become only the third member of the ICC elite umpires panel to stand in 100 Tests, joining Steve Bucknor and Rudi Koertzen. He stood in his first Test in 2003 when Bangladesh hosted England in Dhaka.
Morne Morkel will provide 232 Test wickets for South Africa; the other three likely frontline bowlers – Abbott, Rabada and Piedt – total only 41 between them.
Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers, re-established at Nos. 3 and 4 respectively, both have approaching landmarks. De Villiers needs 50 runs for 8000, Amla 93 for 7000.
Quotes
“To get Graeme on board now, Graeme being the quality cricketer that he is, fits the role perfectly. Graeme has got a good know-how about Test cricket and that’s what Test cricket is about. It’s about know-how, having a feel for the game and we’ve got a lot of youngsters that can draw on that.” “The word consistency has already come up. Can we do it again? We have to be careful we don’t get carried away. There were times when we didn’t quite get it right in Durban and we managed to drag it back with absolute hunger and skill.”
It’s high time we had another caption competition and, fortunately for us (and you), Graeme Smith was spotted on the back of a Harley-Davidson. This presents a wonderful opportunity for you to be really very funny indeed (and give you a chance to win a prize). So what is Smith thinking?The best three will receive a copy of Harry Thompson’s and Lawrence Booth’s , both cracking reads.Entries should be sent in to [email protected] and must include your name, postal address, email address – oh, and your witty offering too of course. Bonus points for those who Photoshop their entries with speech bubbles to save us the bother…Get to it. Be witty.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) experts will review a new construction schedule before announcing a final decision in about two weeks as to whether the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba will be used for the World Cup next year.That was the statement coming from Don Lockerbie, the ICC venue development director, as he and his team of inspectors from the ICC and Global Cricket Corporation completed their sixth tour since 2004 of the local facilities to be used in the build-up and during the World Cup that starts in March.Plagued by inclement weather and delays in the delivery of steel, the Tarouba ground is in danger of losing its status as a pre-tournament venue that will host warm-up matches including Pakistan, South Africa, Canada and Scotland in January and February.On Wednesday, Anand Daniel, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) chief executive officer, claimed it would be “unlikely” that the “Lara”, part of the Government’s planned $850-million elite sports complex at Tarouba, would be ready to be handed over to the ICC by the deadline date of November 30.Lockerbie concurred with that assessment. “The Brian Lara Stadium is certainly behind schedule and Cricket World Cup (CWC) does have to make a decision about where we go,” he stated. “We were there today and received a positive report from the technical team on site that they re-arranged their schedule. But there is no doubt that a full and complete Brian Lara Stadium will not be finished 100 per cent for CWC.”Doubt was also cast on whether the first temporary plan-the use of France-based firm GL Events-would be able to get the job done with temporary seating, the kind which they have utilised in the past at the FIFA World Cup and IOC Olympic events. “What we have to do is determine whether or not enough of the stadium is going be finished so that we can come in with our temporary measures, which we have looked at as an option,” Lockerbie explained. “If GL events, which is supplying temporary overlay throughout the region for the World Cup, can do anything at the Lara Stadium to make it ready.”Lockerbie added that he would take the the revised schedule back to the ICC expert team to review and “determine if it is something we still feel that, construction-wise, we can get to a level of play.”Not only we have to build the stadium by temporary means or permanent, we also have to make sure that seven to ten thousand people can park and can use the services to be entertained in that space. We’re gonna make that decision probably in two weeks,” he continued. “We will look at whether or not the options we have been given in the new schedule about the stadium will allow it to keep the matches at ‘Brian Lara’ or if we need to look at another contingency plan.”Lockerbie believed that whether or not the Tarouba venue was ready for CWC, it would still be a “wonderful legacy” to the people and sportsmen of Trinidad and Tobago.
The Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) has finally put an end to the speculation surrounding transfer of players to their state by selecting Sairaj Bahutule, the former Indian legspinner, Nilesh Kulkarni, the former Indian left-arm spinner, and Munaf Patel, the Mumbai fast bowler, for the forthcoming season.Ajay Shirke, the president of the MCA, sanctioned the move while Pandurang Salgaonkar, the chairman of the selection committee, added that the rest of the team would be probably picked by the first week of September.The signing of these three players is part of Maharashtra’s revamp process as they gear up for the new season. Darren Holder, an Australian coach, was recently appointed as the Maharashtra Cricket Association’s (MCA) cricket director and Chandrakant Pandit, the former Indian wicketkeeper and Ranji Trophy-winning Mumbai coach, was named as the coach.The departure of these three players leaves a gaping void in the Mumbai bowling line-up, which was until recently the most varied attack in the country. Bahutule was a colossal presence both as their captain and strike bowler and led them to the Ranji Trophy in 2003-04, a season where he also finished as the highest wicket-taker in all first-class competetions. He also made valuable contributions with the bat lower down the order and his brand of captaincy, unassuming but efficient, helped galvanise the team. However friction with the establishment and a greater monetary allure probably prompted his decision to end a 15-year career with Mumbai and move on to neighbouring Maharashtra.Though not as beguiling as Bahutule, Kulkarni played a crucial role with his left-arm spin delivered from a considerable height. The bounce that he extracted often undid batsmen and he was an asset on batsmen-friendly pitches, when he bowled marathon spells without conceding too many runs.Munaf impressed in his 13 first-class matches so far, before he was blighted by injuries, and his extra pace was a huge boost to an already varied attack. But on his return from injury he will be bowling for a new team, which, considering the massive off-season revamp, might just turn out to be a dark horse in this year’s Ranji Trophy.