Saturday, 5 May 2018

CSK bowl, de Villiers returns, Willey to make IPL debut

CSK bowl, de Villiers returns, Willey to make IPL debut
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Chennai Super Kings chose to bowl v Royal Challengers Bangalore

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7:54

Who's the more difficult batsman to bowl to? Who's better in chases? Sanjay Manjrekar and Shaun Tait discuss all that and more

One team needed extra bowling resources, the other its talisman, and both shortcomings were addressed to give a marquee clash additional sheen. AB de Villiers recovered from viral fever to regain his spot in the Royal Challengers Bangalore XI while Chennai Super Kings handed out a debut to David Willey, the left-arm fast bowling allrounder from England. With his inclusion, MS Dhoni has seven specialist bowling options.

Both captains said they wanted to chase even though the pitch started out dry and is likely to get drier as the sun beats down. Some green grass was left on it to perhaps slow down the deterioration. In any case, that suggests they are more than confident the batsmen in their line-ups can cope in case conditions become difficult, but not the bowlers. And there are stats to back that kind of thinking. CSK and RCB have given away the most runs in the death overs this season.

Willey's addition could help in that regard. He is a specialist T20 player for England, having recently opted out of a first-class contract with Yorkshire, and is noted for his ability to swing the new ball. He also has incredible hitting ability and has a highest score of 118. The IPL audience may want to get used to him. Faf du Plessis was forced to the bench.

By contrast, a player that's been around for a while - Parthiv Patel - will also be in action, playing his first game for RCB this season with Quinton de Kock having left for home to attend a wedding.

Batsman Dhruv Shorey found a place in the CSK XI as well at the expense of legspinner Karn Sharma

Chennai Super Kings: 1 Shane Watson, 2 Ambati Rayudu, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 5 Dhruv Shorey, 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Dwayne Bravo, 8 David Willey, 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Shardul Thakur

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1 Parthiv Patel (wk), 2 Brendon McCullum 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 AB de Villiers, 5 Mandeep Singh, 6 Colin de Grandhomme, 7 M Ashwin, 8 Tim Southee, 9 Umesh Yadav, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Mohammed Siraj




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Anju Jain to take over as Bangladesh women coach

Anju Jain to take over as Bangladesh women coach
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Former India women wicketkeeper Anju Jain is set to take over as head coach of the Bangladesh women team. She will replace former England allrounder David Capel, who has been in the job since October 2016.

Capel will step down after the ongoing South Africa tour consisting of five ODIs and three T20Is, that serve as preparation as Bangladesh seek to qualify for the Women's World T20 to be played in the West Indies in November.

While the finer details of Jain's deal are yet to be worked out, it is understood that she will join the national team on a six-month contract and take over as soon as they return from South Africa on May 21. She will be joined by her former India colleague Devika Palshikar and Anuja Dalvi, who are already onboard as assistant coach and physiotherapist respectively.

"An opportunity to coach a national team at this stage is quite exciting," Jain told ESPNcricinfo. "At this moment, the biggest challenge is to help the team qualify for the Women's World T20 in West Indies. There is talent, but you need to give them games. Our primary responsibility as a coaching group will be to ensure they develop the finer skill sets, and that will come with experience."

The BCB has penciled in a 10-day tour of Ireland in preparation for the eight-team Women's World T20 Qualifiers to be held in Netherlands in July. Bangladesh, who lost all their four matches at the previous edition in 2016, are the top-ranked side in the group that consists of Ireland, Papua New Guinea, Scotland, Netherlands, Uganda, Thailand and United Arab Emirates. Two teams from the qualifiers will join the top eight at the World T20.

Jain is a Level-B certified BCCI coach and has extensively taken part in exchange programmes with Cricket Australia. Her involvement with Bangladesh will mean she will step down as head coach of Vidarbha women's team. She previously coached India at the 2012 Women's World T20 and the 2013 World Cup.

Jain is the second India woman cricketer to land the Bangladesh job. Former captain Mamta Maben was previously in-charge of Bangladesh across two stints in 2011 and 2013.




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Rixon not to renew contract as Pakistan's fielding coach

Rixon not to renew contract as Pakistan's fielding coach
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Pakistan fielding coach Steve Rixon has decided not to renew his contract ahead of the 2019 World Cup. Rixon's contract expires in June, but he will complete his ongoing assignment with Pakistan on their tour to Ireland and England.

Rixon, 64, decided not to renew his contract due to personal reasons, which included spending more time with his family, according to a senior official in the PCB. The contracts of the rest of Pakistan's coaching staff run until the 2019 World Cup.

Rixon was brought into the Pakistan set-up in 2016 alongside head coach Mickey Arthur, replacing Grant Luden, who was relieved of his roles as trainer and fielding coach under former head coach Waqar Younis. Luden has since been working with Pakistan as a fitness trainer. Rixon was also part of Arthur's coaching staff with Australia between 2011 and 2014. During his tenure with Australia, Rixon had various positions, including fielding coach, spin-bowling coach and assistant coach.

The PCB haven't begun the process of finding a successor for their next assignment, against Zimbabwe in August. There is also a chance Luden could be tasked with replacing Rixon.

In the last few years, Pakistan's fielding has made considerable improvement under Rixon, particularly in the white-ball formats. Fielding has been a major part of Pakistan's increased focus on improving the level of players' fitness over the last three years.




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Friday, 4 May 2018

Warner has 'learned a valuable lesson'

Warner has 'learned a valuable lesson'
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Speaking for the first time since his emotional press conference in Sydney more than a month ago, Australia's former vice-captain David Warner said he has "learned a valuable lesson" after the ball-tampering scandal in South Africa in March. Warner was banned from playing international and domestic cricket for a year along with Steven Smith, for their respective roles in tampering with the ball during the Cape Town Test.

"Sometimes with our society, something has to happen for the worst for people to come out and show a lot of support and I think I've learned a valuable lesson in this myself for the support I have been given to be on the front foot to help others," Warner told NT News on the sidelines of a cricket clinic he attended with children in Darwin.

"I think the biggest thing for us has been when you are in a routine you can get caught in a bubble - cricket, hotels, packing your bags, coming home. I've missed that part until now where the kids run up to the gate saying, 'Mummy and daddy are here', and I am really enjoying and embracing that."

Warner and Smith were later axed from the IPL and had accepted the sanctions handed to them by Cricket Australia. Cameron Bancroft, who was banned for nine months, also chose to not challenge the ban imposed on him.

Smith also thanked people publicly for their support on Friday, saying "I now have a lot to do to earn back your trust."




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Four things we learnt from Bangladesh's season

Four things we learnt from Bangladesh's season
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Bangladesh's 2017-18 season ended with good news - the move up to No. 8 gave them their highest ranking in Test cricket. But their performance over the last eight months from August to March highlight four areas that need immediate attention.

A leadership void

Many would justifiably claim that Mashrafe Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan are well qualified as team leaders but the reality has been different. Former coach Chandika Hathurusingha was arguably the most powerful cricket figure in the country until his abrupt departure in November last year. BCB chief Nazmul Hassan backed him, and while there was a mourning period in the aftermath of his departure, Hassan had expected to replace Hathurusingha swiftly. But numerous rejections by coaches has left a leadership void, as foreign head coaches have tended to become the centre of power in the Bangladesh team. For now, Hassan has assumed the leadership position particularly after Bangladesh's debacle against Sri Lanka at home, and especially after the encouraging showing in the Nidahas Trophy. In the absence of a full-time coach, Hassan had taken charge, and as he usually does, he's been public with plenty of criticism and praise. This is not an ideal situation.

Home truths

This was another season when Bangladesh's main batting performers like Mushfiqur Rahim and Tamim Iqbal were the mainstays. They are the only ones who have scored 700-plus runs across all formats. Mahmudullah and Shakib have played match-winning hands but beyond the batsmen who make up Bangladesh's senior group, there has not been much. Mominul Haque's 466 runs in 10 innings is 26 more than what Sabbir Rahman has made in 25 innings during the same period. Sabbir has been one of the three disappointments among the young batsmen.

Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar have averaged below 20 after more than 15 innings while Anamul Haque and Mohammad Mithun, although not considered young anymore, have also struggled in limited opportunities. Mosaddek Hossain, who made an impressive Test debut in February last year, was kept away for much of the season due to an eye condition. Soumya and Sabbir have lost national contracts while Mosaddek has slipped down the pecking order; Liton is likely to be rewarded with a national contract in the next few weeks.

It is hoped that BCB's tough stance on stripping some players of their national contract will send the message they desire, but a batting coach is paramount over the next 12 months.

Bowling struggles

When Shakib was ruled out of the first Test against Sri Lanka last January, the selectors' hunt for spinners became a farce. They first called up legspinning allrounder Tanbir Hayder and rookie offspinner Nayeem Hasan who left the Under-19 World Cup to join the senior side. Both were curious call-ups, but what happened in the next 24 hours was equally befuddling. Abdur Razzak, the veteran left-arm spinner who had been overlooked for four years despite a bagful of domestic wickets, was picked as the sixth specialist spinner.

Not surprisingly, Razzak stood out with his consistent lengths and wicket-taking deliveries. His call-up was encouraging on many levels, for domestic performers and in terms of opportunities for older cricketers. But his call-up also underlined the lack of fresh spin talent.

Pace, too, has gone through a similar reality check. The narrow focus on only spin-friendly wickets at home has made pace bowling almost redundant. The lack of usage in home internationals and domestic matches leads to rustiness when they get to bowl in helpful conditions. Taskin Ahmed's fall in pace or Mustafizur Rahman blowing hot and cold has put a lot of pressure on Mashrafe, who provides as much as his body allows nowadays. Rubel Hossain has also stood out with his death-overs bowling (although the Nidahas Trophy final didn't go well for him).

As a whole, the bowling hasn't been as effective as it was in 2015 or 2016, and now they have three bowling coaches in Courtney Walsh (pace), Sunil Joshi (spin) and Champaka Ramanayake (the academy's pace bowling coach). The onus doesn't just fall on the specialist coaches' feet, but also on the willingness of the bowlers to improve.

Cricket remains the king

Despite the worries circling the senior team, cricket continues to be healthy in Bangladesh. It is the national pastime with stories emerging from all corners about efforts being made not just to reach the top but also the game's growth being used as a feel-good factor.

The women's game is progressing with heroic tales like those of Muslim Uddin, the coach who turned a toilet into the storage facility for his women's cricket camp. Rumana Ahmed and Khadiza Tul Kubra have also found some overseas experience after being invited to the WBBL in Australia earlier in the year. The story of Salauddin Sakil too, is inspiring, after he made his first-class debut in April, having spent four years of his youth in the Middle East as a migrant labourer.

These people and their stories tell us all how deep Bangladesh cricket goes, and the impact it makes on people's lives.




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Ducks for Root and Cook, 22 wickets fall - just part of a bizarre Chelmsford day | Cricket

Ducks for Root and Cook, 22 wickets fall - just part of a bizarre
Chelmsford day | Cricket
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Joe Root returns to the pavilion after a first-baller © Getty Images






Yorkshire 50 (Cook 5-28, Siddle 4-7) and 161 for 2 (Bairstow 50, Brook 57*) lead Essex 142 (Bresnan 3-26, Coad 3-27, Brooks 3-63, Lawrence 48, Harmer 36) by 69 runs
Scorecard



There's a scene in Where Eagles Dare in which Richard Burton with solid support from Clint Eastwood reveals the identity of the Nazi double agent contained within a notebook. The notebook, perplexingly, is empty. The agent is both revealed within its covers and yet simultaneously not there. Shroedinger's double-agent if you will. Burton delivers every line with mesmeric and gravelly perfection, but after watching that film at least a dozen times, I defy anyone to make sense of what the hell is going on.



For Burton and Eastwood read Sam Cook and Peter Siddle. Given the opportunity to bowl first on a brownish pitch under cloudless skies after Yorkshire elected for and won the toss, they delivered their lines and lengths with irreproachable professionalism and no little flair, but Yorkshire's batsmen were in no mood to match them.



To call the Yorkshire innings a procession would be to do a grave disservice to processions in modest churches up and down the land. It more resembled an unseemly stampede to the bar by smokers in a pub garden on hearing the bell for last orders.



Cook made the initial breakthrough in his first over when Harry Brook poked hesitantly at a ball just outside his off stump and guided the ball into Harmer's enormous mitts at second slip, but this merely brought Che Pujara to the wicket. Yorkshire had "strengthened" their batting with the inclusion of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow, granted leave by the ECB to get some much needed middle practice before the test series against Pakistan begins in three weeks time, so the visitors boasted five recent and current front line international batsmen in their top six.



None presented a problem for Cook. In his second over he induced a thin edge from Lyth through to the evergreen Foster which brought forth Joe Root, shuffling and sidewinding into the middle for his first innings since April 1st. A bumper crowd got to see the familiar guard, the couple of paces to square-leg, the look round the field and one firm push at a ball beautifully landed on an off-stump line that travelled gently into the gleeful hands of his former captain Alastair Cook at first slip.



Then 9-3 swiftly became 11-4 when Pujara was trapped lbw by Jamie Porter for 9. Pujara was less than gruntled at the decision, but he wouldn't be the last man to be undone by moderately low bounce from the Hayes Close End.



Cook was not yet done with wrecking England's test match preparations. Next to go was Bairstow, bowled by the ball of the day; a beauty that held its line and thudded into off-stump. By the time he had Bresnan trapped in front it truly was a Wonderful Life for Cook as he registered his third five wicket haul in just his sixth championship appearance.



His 5-28 was notable for great control. He was willing to pitch the ball up and make the most of what movement there was off a helpful but far from capricious pitch, was supported by superb close fielding and was aided by a truly abysmal display by Yorkshire with the bat.



By the time Siddle had wrapped up the tail with a spell of 4-7 in 22 balls, Yorkshire had been obliterated in just 18.4 overs before lunch for 50, coincidentally exactly the same length of time it took for Australia to be famously dismissed at Trent Bridge in 2015.



Sages shook their heads in bewilderment but resembled teenage headbangers by the time Alastair Cook wafted a catch to Bairstow - the second England captain to make a duck in a couple of hours - and Tom Westley played a shot uglier than a Communist-era Bucharest tower block, hurling an injudicious bat at an away swinger from Brooks and dragging back on to his middle stump to depart first ball.



The opening session had yielded 61 runs for the loss of 12 wickets. By this stage, four of England's regular top seven last summer had been dismissed for 7 runs between them and a recall for Gary Ballance was looking less far-fetched by the minute.



The afternoon session produced no let-up in the mayhem. Ben Coad and Tim Bresnan, showing due deference to the eternal verities of line of length but at no great pace, made the ball do "just enough", and Bresnan in particular exploited the tendency of the ball to keep slightly (but really only slightly) lower from the Hayes Close End and was rewarded with a couple of lbws for his troubles.



Dan Lawrence tried the novel tactic (up to this point) of going hell for leather and for a while looked to have cracked the code with a 77 ball 48, up to that point by far the most authoritative, if still somehow skittish innings of the day. But aside from a late flurry from Simon Harmer (36) who briefly cover drove with the elegance of Wally Hammond, left the ball with the acuity of Steve Smith and marshalled what was left of the tail better than Angelo Mathews, Essex's innings offered little more sense of permanence than the Mayfly effort that had preceded it.



Three wickets apiece for Bresnan, Coad and Brooks had done the damage and tea was taken with Essex bowled out and in possession of a more than handy 92 run lead.



Record books were dusted down. When was the last time a match was completed in one day (1960 Kent v Worcestershire since you ask)? Might Essex be in a position to take claim the extra half hour? Would this day ever end?



Yorkshire decided to counter attack themselves. Bairstow replaced Brook at the top of the order and went after the new ball. His 44-ball 50 was full of familiar punch drives and lofted shots over the infield. Siddle managed to get the ball changed, immediately bowled Bairstow and had Lyth nibbling to second slip. At 96-2 Yorkshire were just in front but a late flurry of wickets would send them back to square one.



Enter Brook. The press box in Chelmsford was full of the great and the good, all come to watch Root, Cook, Bairstow, Pujara, maybe Ballance and Lawrence. Instead it was the 19-year-old Brook who provided the innings of the day. Entirely untroubled, possessed of a sound technique and keen to rotate the strike, his was the only performance that will have excited the selectors.



Marshalling Yorkshire, in tandem with Pujara to 161-2 at the close, and a more than useful lead of 65, he has the opportunity tomorrow truly to overshadow his more illustrious colleagues. Root, however, may yet have a say in that.



The pitch did ease as the day went on. Wise locals will tell you that it's hardest to bat on day one, but I defy anyone to watch today's play 12 times and explain to me what the hell was going on.


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Patel's run out mishap ensures another day of highs and lows

Patel's run out mishap ensures another day of highs and lows
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Hampshire 70 for 3 trail Nottinghamshire 302 (Patel 73, Wessels 54, Edwards 4-84) by 232 runs
Scorecard

Cricket made a belated return to Trent Bridge, where ongoing building work forced Nottinghamshire to play their first three matches away, but it was not long before the first anguished cries of "Oh! Samit" were heard.

Samit Patel has entertained and exasperated in equal measure throughout a 16 year county career which was encapsulated in the skittish innings he played here.

Patel laid the foundations for a competitive total despite occasionally struggling for fluency but his application against Fidel Edwards' testing and skiddy pace was counter-balanced by two of those "Oh! Samit" moments that have often tested the patience and humour of Mick Newell, Nottinghamshire's director of cricket .

The first came just before lunch when Patel ran out Ross Taylor, who appeared to be easing towards his third half century in four innings. Patel clipped Liam Dawson mid-on and ambled halfway down the pitch before realising that the ball had not beaten Hashim Amla. Patel turned but it was too late for Taylor who was beaten by a short head by his partner as both batsmen arrived at the striker's end while Dawson removed the bails at the other.

"It was a misunderstanding. I can see the funny side of it now to be honest," Patel said."We know these things happen in cricket and Ross knows that. I actually thought the ball had beaten Hashim."

Patel stood mortified, then swished his bat in self-admonishment while Taylor trudged back to the pavilion. Patel apologised to Taylor over lunch but his own innings became more scratchy after he had reached a 51-ball half century.

He spent 41 balls over his next 23 runs and was dropped by Amla in the slips off Chris Wood before Hampshire set an obvious trap and Patel took the bait when Edwards switched to the Pavilion End. Edwards put two men back for the hook, dug one in and Patel, hoping to clear the longest boundary, succeeded only in picking out Brad Wheal at deep square.

"I don't think it was a very good shot, but it might have stuck in the wicket a little bit," Patel said. "There's always a man there either for the flick shot or the pull shot and it's something we should probably address going into the second innings."

Patel's soft dismissal left Nottinghamshire with plenty of work to do before they were able to justify Steven Mullaney's decision to bat first on a green-tinged pitch. It required a battling half century from Riki Wessels, contrasting cameos from Tom Moores and Stuart Broad and some unlikely resistance from Harry Gurney.

Moores progressed mainly through inside and inadvertent edges - he twice found the third man boundary trying to leave deliveries - while Broad gave a passable imitation of David Gower with some languid off drives.

Broad eventually perished when he shovelled Wheal to midwicket trying to clear the invitingly short boundary on the Bridgford Road side and Nottinghamshire were 25 short of a third batting point when Wessels was ninth out, also taken at deep square.

But Gurney, an old-fashioned number eleven, made his second important contribution as a batsman in a week. At Worcester on Monday he held up an end while Luke Fletcher scored the runs Nottinghamshire needed to reach 300 and a declaration. Here Gurney played more shots and helped Jake Ball to secure a valuable extra point.

Having contributed with the bat, Nottinghamshire's pace bowlers then got on with their normal work. Broad produced an accurate and brisk opening spell from the Pavilion End which had Jimmy Adams, with Chanderpaul-esque stance, caught behind and Joe Weatherley at third slip - and at the third attempt - by Taylor.

"Stuart is a world class bowler, he knows exactly what he needs to do to be ready for that first Test Match and he's raring to go for us," Patel said.

James Vince managed to see off Broad but not Luke Fletcher who followed two looseners with a full length delivery that pinned Vince lbw.

Despite the efforts of Patel and Broad a crowd of almost 2,200 reserved their warmest applause for Fletcher on his first appearance at Trent Bridge in 10 months following his recovery from severe concussion.




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Robinson's best can't sink Middlesex as seamers hit back

Robinson's best can't sink Middlesex as seamers hit back
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Sussex 60 for 4 trail Middlesex 230 (Holden 84*, Robinson 7-58) by 170 runs
Scorecard

Sussex seamer Ollie Robinson produced championship best figures of seven for 58 as Middlesex were bowled out for 230 at Hove.

It was the second time this season that Robinson had taken seven wickets in an innings - last month he enjoyed a career-best return of seven for 23 against Loughborough MCC University on the same ground.

But Middlesex hit back when Tim Murtagh took two wickets in successive overs to leave Sussex five for two in the fifth over. And then James Harris also struck twice to leave the match in the balance with Sussex 60 for 4 at the close.

"I trained hard in the winter, playing grade cricket in Sydney, and I feel I have come back fitter and stronger," Robinson said "And the lads say I'm hitting the gloves harder as well, so there might be a bit of extra pace there too. I was injured a lot last season. Now it feels good to have a proper bowling stint and not to have sore legs afterwards."

Middlesex had won the toss before this Specsavers County Championship Division Two match but their batsmen were made to work hard against a spirited attack on a lively pitch. At lunch they were 81 for five before a damage-limiting unbeaten 84 from former England Under-19 captain Max Holden gave their bowlers something to work with in a compelling day's cricket.

Robinson broke through in the fifth over when he removed Nick Gubbins' middle stump as the batsman played all round a straight one. Gubbins was playing his first match of the season after recovering from a hamstring injury.

Robinson dismissed the other opener, Sam Robson, in his next over, as the batsman nibbled at a fine delivery that moved away from him.

Sussex missed their first chance when Stevie Eskinazi, on 28, was dropped by Phil Salt at backward point off George Garton. Eskinazi had added ten runs before he was dropped again, this time in the slips off Robinson.

Sussex put down their third catch when Hilton Cartwright, on two, was dropped behind, a difficult diving attempt to the wicketkeeper's left off David Wiese.

But Eskinazi failed to make the most of his second escape. He had not added to his score when he was lbw to Robinson and the same bowler had Cartwright caught in the slips for four. Then, just before lunch, Robinson had Dawid Malan lbw for 13.

After the interval Holden and John Simpson added 56 in 18 overs for the sixth wicket before Simpson was caught on the deep midwicket boundary off Danny Briggs. It was soon 135 for seven when Harris was caught at point off the same bowler for a single. Ollie Rayner was then lbw, half-forward, to give Robinson his sixth wicket.

That left Middlesex in a very ordinary position at 169 for eight. But Holden, dropped on 28, found late order support from Murtagh and the pair put on 51 for the ninth wicket. Murtagh finally played a poor stroke and was caught by Luke Wright at mid-off. Robison completed his demolition work when he plucked out Tom Barber's off stump to leave Holden stranded.

But Middlesex fought back valiantly. Murtagh had Luke Wells and Salt well caught in the slips before Harris struck. First, he had Stiaan van Zyl caught by Eskinazi at third slip and then he bowled Luke Wright, shouldering arms, for nine.




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Trescothick completes century with broken foot

Trescothick completes century with broken foot
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Somerset 321 for 5 (Bartlett 110, Trescothick 100) vs Lancashire
Scorecard

Until just before three o'clock on the first day of this game one of England's best and best-loved cricketers was enjoying yet another lovely afternoon. Once again Marcus Trescothick was holding a Somerset innings together. He had batted with increasing assurance against a Lancashire attack including Jimmy Anderson and was only five runs short of his 96th century in all top-level cricket. Then Trescothick played defensively to a ball from Matt Parkinson and collapsed at the crease with what was later confirmed as a broken fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot.

Scarcely half a mile from the other Old Trafford he had sustained an injury made famous by one of English football's more famous sons. Though we didn't know it, Banger had become Becks.

After treatment on the field Trescothick carried on batting and managed to garner the runs he needed for his hundred. However, clearly tethered by pain, he was caught at the wicket off the very next ball and hobbled off Emirates Old Trafford accompanied by his runner, Matt Renshaw, and the good wishes of everyone in the game.

"Marcus will be out for the foreseeable future but it's too early to say whether he'll be back later in the season," said the Somerset coach Jason Kerr. "We need to get clarity on the extent of the fracture. If it's a clean break, it's just a few weeks' recovery and then we'll get him back on his feet. He's broken his metatarsal so we'll be calling him Beckham from now on."

Yet while this day will undoubtedly be seen as an unpleasant setback in the late career of one of Somerset's most steadfast servants, it might be scarcely less significant in the development of one of the county's youngest talents. Barely two hours after Trescothick had left the field George Bartlett was celebrating his maiden century in only his 11th first-class innings.

Having added 134 for the second wicket with his very senior colleague, Bartlett took on a more dominant role, first by lifting Matt Parkinson straight for six and then by accumulating the runs which took him to three figures in 189 balls. It was tempting to think that a mantle was being passed from one generation to the next.

The long-term consequences of Trescothick and Bartlett's experiences at Old Trafford this lovely Friday afternoon have yet to unfold. For the moment they have certainly put their team in a commanding position in this game. Although Bartlett was eventually brilliantly caught by second slip Liam Livingstone off Joe Mennie for 110, his team ended the day on 321 for five, their satisfaction only slightly impaired by the dismissal of Steve Davies, who was caught down the leg side off Jordan Clark's final ball of the day.

The loss of Matt Renshaw for 21 and James Hildreth for five could be viewed as acceptable damage. Only the persevering Mennie had taken more than one wicket. Anderson had dyed his hair some variety of blond and bowled from his own End but had really made no other impression on events. The Somerset skipper Tom Abell finished the day on 48 not out and his confident side clearly have power to add.

As the day ended it was testing to recall that it had begun with the news that Haseeb Hameed had been dropped for the first time in his Lancashire career. But while Hameed was adjusting to not appearing in what would have been his 47th first-class match, another England opener, Trescothick, was preparing for his 378th. You do not need to hail from Combe Florey or Stogumber to hope that there are still a few more to come.




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