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ScorecardSreekumar Nair’s stroke-filled 132 helped Kerala out of a difficult situation and gave them control of the game against Jammu & Kashmir at Palakkad. At the day’s end, J&K were 23 for 1, still 296 behind Kerala’s 319. Nair came in when the score was 20 for 2, and proceeded to play largely a lone hand as batsmen came and went frequently. At one point Kerala were 142 for 7, but Suresh Kumar assisted Nair with a quick 52. They added 101, then Nair and Sony Cheruvathur put on 62 for the ninth wicket. Nair faced 200 balls for his 132 and hit 22 fours, while Abid Nabi was the most succesful bowler for J&K, taking 4 for 83 off 18.1 overs.
ScorecardManinder Bisla turned the heat on Jharkhand with 135 at Jamshedpur. But the bowlers did well to dismiss the others for low scores, and limit Himachal Pradesh to 275. Sumit Panda ended with 4 for 55, and caught Bisla off his own bowling. Bisla struck 13 fours and two sixes, and scored his runs off only 160 balls. He made 99 more than the next-highest scorer, Ashok Thakur, who remained unbeaten on 36. Jharkhand finished the day at 4 for no loss.
ScorecardThe action at Agartala bordered on inaction. Goa played out 89.4 overs to reach 192 for 4, with neither the batsmen nor Tripura’s bowlers able to make much headway. However, Shami Asnodkar remained unbeaten on 87, off 251 balls, and the effort took him over six hours. The most successful bowler for Tripura was Sujit Roy, who ended with 3 for 51.
ScorecardRajasthan recovered from a poor start to reach a respectable total by the close at Udaipur. Their total of 269 for 8 was built on efforts by Gagan Khoda, Nikhil Doru and Naresh Gehlot. Khoda faced 214 balls for his 74, while Doru and Gehlot both made 47. Having got through the middle order, Haryana came up against more resistance in the form of Rohit Jhalani at No. 8, who remained unbeaten on 30.
ScorecardFazil Mohammad rocked Vidarbha early in the day at New Delhi to have them reeling at 12 for 2, but Services could not press on from there. When play ended, after only 40.1 overs, Vidarbha had recovered to 85 for 3, chiefly due to a 64-run stand between Pravin Londase (41) and Alind Naidu (29 not out).

Hampshire’s woefull Frizzell Championship season continued at The Riverside ground of Durham on the third day, being forced to follow on 304 runs behind the home side. They then lost a further five wickets before the close.Resuming at 88 for 4 overnight, John Francis and Nic Pothas belied what had gone on the previous evening by surviving untill just before the lunch interval, when Pothas, back after injury continued his good form, reached a half century before being caught in bizaare fashion off his own foot to Nicky Peng at forward short-leg.Having batted soundly for 285 minutes, Francis pulled the ball to square leg and was superbly caught by Peng diving to his right for 65, it was his highest first-class score of the season.Hampshire’s last three wickets fell without any addition to the score and the follow on was enforced.Hampshire’s second attempt fell immediatly into disarray with Simon Katich and John Crawley both back in the pavilion for a joint return of 6 runs. James Adams and Robin Smith then batted stoically but the perservering Neil Killeen accounted for Adams caught behind, then Smith one short of a half century fell lbw.Nic Pothas continued to show why he has been missed during his injury spell by battling out to close, but the fourth day would need a miracle that only the nearby “Angel of the North” could perform.

The question of the captaincy of the Barbados cricket teamfor next year’s Busta Cup seems to be a big talking pointbut it makes you wonder why there’s a debate in the firstplace.The incumbent Sherwin Campbell was only appointed thisseason and Barbados won the Cup even though it is a factthat Ian Bradshaw who deputised while Campbell was on tourwith the West Indies also played his part in the overalltriumph.Why in heaven’s name would there be any suggestion that theselection panel might recommend his removal?The only logical reason would be that they feel it would bebetter to relieve him of the pressure that goes with beingcaptain so that he can concentrate primarily on his battingnow with renewed vigour in his quest to regain his place atthe top of the West Indies batting order.Even so, I believe that if these were Campbell’s ownthoughts he would have been keen to give up the captaincyvoluntarily.That there has been no indication of this from him meansthat he is still very interested in doing the job. And if heis, he should retain the reins.Leadership is nothing new to Campbell and as a youth playerhe was a prolific scorer while at the helm of both theBarbados and West Indies teams.Responsibility has helped him rather than burdened himtherefore I see no reason why this outlook should change.Besides, like everyone else, Campbell would have recognisedthat events in Sri Lanka recently may have made it possiblefor him or any other aspirant to open the innings soonerthan they had imagined.A renewed focus could reap great rewards and if Campbellscores big in the Busta Cup he could be back in business bythe time the Indians reach the Caribbean.Of course, at this stage, too, it is clear that he needs toregain lost confidence.To relieve him of the captaincy now could only dent his selfesteem and embroil him in more self doubt than he currentlyneeds. The selectors must by all means keep Campbellcaptain.

Chris Adams struck a captain’s innings of 100 runs off 95 balls to powerSussex Sharks to a 43 runs win at Wantage for only their second National League success this summer.Chris Adams hammered a quickfire century as Sussex Sharks overcameNorthamptonshire Steelbacks by 43 runs at Wantage Road — only their secondNational League success of the season.Adams put on 98 with Tony Cottey (47) following the departure of openerRichard Montgomerie. Then Michael Bevan and Will House hit 58 runs in the last 24 balls to shatter the opposition. The Australian’s whirlwind 54 from 29 balls included two sixes and six fours: House was even more devasting in hammering 26 runs from ten deliveries.For a while Northamptonshire countered effectively thanks to Matthew Hayden(45) and Graeme Swann (30) putting on 47 runs at fractionally under two runs a ball. At 132-2 with 15 overs remaining the game was not lost. then David Sales, who had smashed 35 runs from forty balls, Matthew Hayden and Jeff Cook were out in the space of 14 balls. When Kirtley knocked back Adrian Rollins’ middle-stump after his 51 runs stand with David Ripley the match was as good as over.

South Africa 131 for 7 (de Villiers 52*, Patel 2-17) beat New Zealand 129 for 7 (Mills 33*, Pollock 3-29) by three wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

The last time South Africa played a Twenty20 they choked in memorable style against India in the ICC World Twenty20 and nearly imploded again this time before coming through by three wickets with a ball to spare against New Zealand at the Wanderers. AB de Villiers, with an unbeaten 52, kept his cool as the home side did their best to hand New Zealand a morale-boosting win, but it was left to Johan Botha to strike the penultimate ball for four.For three quarters of the match South Africa had everything under control following an impressive performance with the ball. But Jeetan Patel brought New Zealand back into the contest by removing Mark Boucher and Shaun Pollock as de Villiers struggled to find anyone to partner him to the end. With three overs to go they needed 14 but just seven came from the next 12 balls and South Africa started having nervous flashbacks.To add to the tension Vernon Philander was run out on the second ball of the final over and de Villiers, who’d reached his first Twenty20 fifty off 43 balls, couldn’t get the strike. In the end it was down to Botha and he flicked Kyle Mills through midwicket to send the crowd into raptures. Disappointingly it wasn’t a full house, a stark contrast to the ICC World Twenty20 final staged on this ground two months ago, but those present witnessed another match which showed how much fortunes can change during 40 overs.South Africa rested Makhaya Ntini and Andre Nel, and the strength of their reserves was indicated with Pollock collecting three wickets on his return. The home side caught well, although they couldn’t hit a barn door with their attempted run-outs, as New Zealand threatened to fall inside the 20 overs before Mills flayed a defiant 33 at the death.Chasing 130 shouldn’t have proved as testing as it turned out. Jacques Kallis, who was controversially omitted from the ICC World Twenty20, looked intent on showing his aggressive side but picked out fine leg after being rushed by Mark Gillespie’s bouncer, and Graeme Smith’s poor run was extended when he edged Mills.JP Duminy kept the innings on track with a punchy innings at No. 3. He showed a panache for the pull shot and was shaping to take South Africa home on his own when he slog-swept Daniel Vettori over deep midwicket. But the New Zealand captain had his revenge three balls later with a clever piece of bowling to draw Duminy out of his crease.Normally secure in the field, New Zealand’s catching then began to let them down. de Villiers launched Vettori high into the night sky and Mills couldn’t steady himself under the chance at long-off, but that was nothing compared to Gillespie’s howler at midwicket to reprieve Boucher. Patel then made his double incision, trapping Boucher lbw – although there was a doubt – and removing Pollock thanks to a fine catch at deep midwicket by Ross Taylor.The equation reached a run-a-ball as Patel proved difficult to score off, but a meaty six over midwicket from Albie Morkel appeared to seal the result. Not so. Morkel slapped Scott Styris’ second ball to cover before Taylor and Lou Vincent combined to run out Philander in the final-over panic. Although New Zealand ultimately couldn’t pull off the heist, their fightback should have at least boosted spirits ahead of the one-day series.Their earlier efforts had been depressingly familiar as the batting slumped to 98 for 7. Brendon McCullum slapped a wide delivery straight to point and Jamie How picked out cover after a promising start in his first outing of the tour. Pollock was the beneficiary on both occasions, making the most of an outing in international colours after missing the recent Tests. Smith was confident enough in his bowlers – or dismissive enough of New Zealand’s chances – to keep a slip, or sometimes two, throughout much of the innings.Morkel bowled a nippy spell to keep the pressure on as Taylor fell in familiar fashion, pushing away from his body and sending an edge to slip, and collected Gareth Hopkins in his final over when the reserve wicketkeeper limply guided a wide ball to point. Vincent scratched around for 20 balls before trying to reverse sweep a low full toss from Botha, whose impressive economy was helped by batsmen tied to their crease.Styris played an almost lone hand with his 30, but it wasn’t until Mills opened up in the closing overs that New Zealand showed real intent. It is no coincidence that Mills wasn’t involved in the Test hammerings. He cleared long-off against Dale Steyn and in the final over creamed Charl Langeveldt straight down the ground with a little help from the altitude. In the final reckoning it hadn’t quite given New Zealand enough to play with, but if they show the same spirit the one-day series could be a worthwhile contest.

When Australia were 5 for 84 on day two at the MCG, it was tempting to believe England were finally fully switched on. Australia’s danger men from the first three Tests, Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey, were back in the pavilion and England had the chance to take a first-innings lead despite their own modest total of 159.What happened next can be looked at in two ways. Did Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden rip the game out of the visitors’ hands with their initially careful and composed 279-run partnership? Or did England throw away their strong position with defensive field placements and strange bowling changes?John Buchanan said it was another example of England’s inconsistency. He said they had shown “glimpses” in each of the four Tests, but failed to capitalise each time. In the Adelaide Test, where Australia made a remarkable comeback to win after England declared at 551 in the first innings, he felt the visitors made their biggest mistake.”England lost that Test in the first innings, not in the second innings,” Buchanan said. “They laboured over 550 – played very cautiously. They had the opportunity there with players like Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff to impact on the game much earlier and if they were going to make 550 they could have made it much quicker than what they did.”When the series opened at Brisbane, Buchanan was impressed by England’s performance in the fourth innings, although the match was virtually decided after their shambolic first innings of 157. “They made 370 in 100 overs, which I’m sure everyone thought was pretty encouraging,” he said.By the time the third Test at Perth came around, England could still not reach their best despite the impressive Ashes debut of Monty Panesar, who took eight wickets. Again, there were signs England could threaten Australia, but once more their efforts were not enough. “They managed to put together 350 in the second innings, which again was no mean feat,” Buchanan said.Buchanan’s opposite number Duncan Fletcher admitted England had made mistakes but preferred to push the line that Australia had been simply too good. At 5 for 84 on Wednesday he felt Australia would be “very nervous”, but Symonds and Hayden then played superbly. While they compiled the match-winning partnership Flintoff held back on his own potential match-winner, using Panesar only in short spells.”He was probably trying to protect Panesar to a degree,” Fletcher said. “He had two batters who love to hit it over the top. You’ve got to give credit – they [Symonds and Hayden] changed their plan and thought on their feet when they were out there.”He said his team had been devastated by the losses after admirable performances for parts of all four games. But Fletcher would not accept that his side lacked fight at Melbourne, even though they lost in three days and managed totals of 159 and 161.”There’s no way that side didn’t put up a fight, they tried to the best of their ability,” he said. “I think it was a very difficult wicket to bat on … two guys arrive there and bat exceptionally well and take the game away from us.”

England’s reserve wicketkeeper, Matt Prior, believes he has what it takes to open the batting for his country on a regular basis, after cracking 72 from 84 balls in England’s warm-up match against Pakistan A at Bagh-e-Jinnah. His efforts were not enough to prevent England slumping to a one-wicket defeat, but in his first outing since the Test series began, it was enough to drop a subtle reminder to the team management.”I’ll be happy playing in any position for England but if I was opening the batting I would absolutely love it,” he told reporters at the Gadaffi Stadium. “That’s where I enjoy playing the most, especially in one-day cricket. I have done it for Sussex for the last two seasons and I feel I play my most natural game there. The new ball does a bit but if you can get through that bit, it’s okay.”It’s more suited to the way I play,” he added. “I enjoy taking bowlers on and being positive against them. That freedom works for me. The one thing I have got better at over the last few years is trying to eliminate how many risks I now take. I used to take too many when I started in my first season. I was trying to get 200 runs off 100 balls whereas a strike-rate of 90 is also fine.”Prior, 23, has been Geraint Jones’s understudy on this trip, where opportunities for the non-Test players have been hard to come by. But he was philosophical about spending so much time on the sidelines. “I knew I was the No. 2 and that’s what you expect. You work hard and try and give yourself the best chance, but if the guy above you is doing well then there is not a lot you can do. It’s pretty much out of your hands. You just carry on working hard and give it your best when you get the opportunity.”After the defeat in the Test series, Duncan Fletcher admitted that too much time in hotel-rooms had blunted England’s competitive edge. For Prior, the tedium could have been even more debilitating. “It was a little weird actually, finding myself back out in the middle and asking for a guard,” he said of his innings at Bagh-e-Jinnah. “I have managed to stay in some sort of form through the tour , but when you haven’t played in a match for a while, you hope that your natural ability takes over until you get used to the match situation.”I wouldn’t say it’s frustrating but you’re just itching to get out there,” he added. “You do all the training, get motivated, sit in at the team meetings and you’re almost getting wound up for the big day and when it comes, you just sit and watch. But that’s what I expected and there isn’t much you can do about it. When the chance comes, I absolutely love just being out there. Even fielding, just running around was brilliant.”Prior’s potential role in the one-day series is complicated by the new ICC regulations that permit a Supersub to be brought in at any stage of the match. Last summer, Vikram Solanki was the nominated man, although Michael Vaughan’s knee injury might mean he now steps up to the starting XI.”I don’t know where or how I will be involved,” said Prior. “Some people say Supersub, others the top of the order. I don’t really know, it’s out of my hands and when I get the opportunity all I can do is take advantage of it. There was a lot of media speculation last summer about me being the first Supersub but it never materialised. Vikram was used and he did really well so there’s not much you can do about that.”Prior’s style has been likened to an old-fashioned pinch-hitter, a batsman who can be relied upon to take a few risks and smack a brisk 20 or 30. “I don’t see it as an insult because different people perceive it differently,” he said. “It’s just a term to describe someone who plays positively at the top of the order. Some people might call Gilchrist a pinch-hitter. It’s not something I worry about.”

Close England 139 and 30 for 0 (Trescothick 7*, Strauss 21*) trail South Africa 332 (Kallis 162, Pollock 43) by 163 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball

A masterful century from Jacques Kallis put South Africa firmly in control of the second Test on the second day at Durban as they took a first-innings lead of 193 runs. England’s batsmen chipped away in reply as the lights came on, but they head into the third day under the kosh, trailing by 163.England’s tiring pace attack threw everything at the classy Kallis throughout the day but he never wavered. When he finally fell for 162 – pulling Matthew Hoggard to the waiting substitute Paul Collingwood on the leg-side boundary – South Africa were in the box seat and they were odds-on favourites to level the series.It was a remarkable rescue act by Kallis, who dragged South Africa from 118 for 6 to 332, with some capable assistance from a reinforced lower order. Shaun Pollock contributed 43 in a stand of 87 which took the home side ahead. Then Makhaya Ntini upped the ante, striking 22 and scoring only in boundaries as his four fours and a six formed part of another vital partnership with Kallis. Between them, they struck 50 in 58 balls.But the day belonged to Kallis, who was patient at first, grinding down the bowlers in the heat and leaving anything outside off stump before he cut loose after tea. His chanceless century was the embodiment of exemplary concentration as he peppered shots to all parts, and a glorious straight drive back past Matthew Hoggard brought up his fifth century of 2004, and the 18th of his career. From then on, he stroked boundary after boundary as he found his groove.

England’s pace bowlers were up against it from the off as Ashley Giles was off the field all day with back spasms. Michael Vaughan sent down ten overs of his occasional offspin to allow the pace attack some respite – but they had no answer to the majestic innings of Kallis and the tailenders.Pollock eventually fell to Vaughan, as he chased one down the leg side and edged to Geraint Jones, but not before he had worked hard to gain the home side an important advantage. And there was no let up after Pollock’s departure, as the handy Nicky Boje joined Kallis in punishing the bad balls and keeping the score ticking over. Hoggard removed Boje for 15 as Paul Collingwood tumbled forward at point to take a good, low catch (243 for 8).Yet if England thought they could finish it off quickly they were wrong and, in fact, worse was to come as South Africa piled up 89 for the last two wickets. Ntini’s intent immediately showed as he launched a towering six off Hoggard to get off the mark, before Kallis added another off Andrew Flintoff for good measure. Ntini’s typical tailender’s swish was then matched by Dale Steyn who swung the bat with abandon.At the start of the day, Graeme Smith said he would be happy with an advantage of 200 runs. This looked nothing more than a fanciful late addition to his Christmas list, after his team were wobbling on 90 for 5 as England’s bowlers worked tirelessly and Kallis stayed in his shell, albeit defiantly.

South Africa had started the day on 70 for 3, but after a loosener which Kallis drove through mid-on for three, Flintoff struck. Martin van Jaarsveld, whose footwork is not one of his strengths, was caught leaden footed and his half-hearted defensive jab crashed into his middle stump via an inside edge (80 for 4). England had the breakthrough – but it was hardly deserved after some loose bowling early on.Hashim Amla made just 1 amid a painful battering in his baptism into Test cricket when he received a brute from Harmison which he failed to evade and a gloved edge arced to Geraint Jones (90 for 5). AB de Villiers (14) smacked two delightful fours and, for the first time, South Africa were taking the attack to England. But he came unstuck when Jones surprised him with bounce and extra pace and a checked pull looped gently to Graham Thorpe at midwicket.But in came Pollock to join Kallis as Smith’s lower order rallied, duly delivering just seven short of his desired 200-run lead. England made a decent fist of chipping away at their reply before the close, as Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss steered them to 30 without loss. And another chink of light for England’s batsmen: the pitch could get flatter. But they now really have their work cut out to overcome this total and get back in the game.

Virender Sehwag is likely to find out later today if his back injury is serious enough to cut short his first season in county cricket. According to a report in The Times of India, the Leicestershire county officials are awaiting the results of a medical scan, which will be available today, before deciding if a replacement is required.The report mentioned Matthew Nicholson, a fast bowler from Australia, and West Indian batsmen Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan as possible replacements for Sehwag. An official stated: “We’re contemplating a few options but would ideally want Sehwag to continue playing for us.”Meanwhile, Kevin Hills, Leicestershire’s general manager, dismissed reports that county officials were unhappy with Sehwag’s endorsement commitments, which required him to go off on media assignments. “We’re very happy with Sehwag. His performance has been fine, if not great, but that’s OK with us. As far as these [photograph] shoots are concerned we were aware of them and never minded Sehwag’s involvement.” Sehwag was in India over the weekend for a shoot.Though Sehwag has had a mixed county season so far, his presence attracted the Asian community to Leicestershire’s matches. He averages nearly 48 in the four-day Frizzell County Championship, inclusive of two centuries, but his performances in the limited-overs matches have been rather more ordinary: an average of 24.66 in the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy, and 33.28 in the National League. Sehwag was omitted from the Leicestershire line-up for the four-day match against Sussex last week, apparently so that he could be fresh for the Twenty20 semi-final. The move didn’t pay off, though: Sehwag lasted all of three balls in the semis, scoring 5 before being nailed by Waqar Younis. Leicestershire lost the match by seven wickets.

Immediately following the 10-wicket victory at Mohali, the Indian selectors announced the squad for the second Test, which is to begin at Ahmedabad on Dec. 11.Only two changes were made to the Mohali squad. Javagal Srinath, who missed the first match because of a broken finger, is back in the squad after regaining fitness. He replaces Sanjay Bangar; Bangar, having sustained a hamstring injury in the first innings at Mohali, cannot play for three weeks, effectively excluding him from the third Test also.Suspended for the first Test, Virender Sehwag makes an expected comeback to the side. Having scored a century in his debut Test in South Africa, Sehwag was dropped when he was obviously in a good run of form. With the Board of Control for Cricket in India supporting him strongly throughout the match-referee controversy and the subsequent row with the International Cricket Council, there was never any doubt that Sehwag would return immediately after serving his sentence.The squad:Sourav Ganguly (captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Deep Dasgupta (wicket-keeper), Shiv Sunder Das, Virender Sehwag, Iqbal Siddiqui, Tinu Yohannan, Harbhajan Singh, Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble, Connor Williams, Sarandeep Singh