Michael Hussey’s phenomenal run of form has moved him to the top of the International Cricket Council rankings for one-day international batsmen for the first time following the DLF Cup in Kuala Lumpur. Meanwhile, India’s failure to reach the final of the tri-series has resulted in a two-place slip to No.5 in the ICC Championship table.Hussey, 31, went into the DLF Cup at seventh place, but an unbeaten century against West Indies and an average of 152 shot him into first place. Only 12 batsmen have reached higher ratings than Hussey’s mark of 805 points in the past 10 years. With the Champions Trophy beginning in India next month, Hussey will have an opportunity to better his tally. No international batsman has reached 900 rating points since South Africa’s Gary Kirsten in 1996.Incidentally, Hussey displaced Adam Gilchrist, who did not take part in the Malaysia tournament, from the top spot. Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain, has slipped from second to fourth place. Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s poor tournament – just 23 runs from four innings – slipped him down to eighth position.In the bowling category, Brett Lee’s 12 wickets from three matches moved him back into second place. Lee is still well behind South Africa’s Shaun Pollock who retains his status as the world’s top-ranked bowler and all-rounder in ODIs. Nathan Bracken has moved up to fourth in the bowling list, a career best placing, while Ian Bradshaw ends the tournament where he started, in sixth place.
ICC ratings for batsmen
Rank
Batsman
Points
Average
1
Michael Hussey
805
81.75
2
Adam Gilchrist
789
36.42
3
Ramnaresh Sarwan
769
45.98
4
Ricky Ponting
758
42.04
5
Andrew Symonds
752
38.75
India have the same number of points as Pakistan and New Zealand but now sit below both sides in a tightly packed section of that table when the ratings are re-calculated to three decimal places. The West Indies have taken the seventh position, three points ahead of England and five points behind Sri Lanka. Australia still occupy the first place, seven points ahead of South Africa at No.2.
Ozias Bvute, the managing director of Zimbabwe Cricket, has defended the controversial policy of issuing new contracts to their professional players based on performance in terms of runs, wickets and fielding.Senior players Heath Streak, Tatenda Taibu and Andy Blignaut have already met thecriteria but more than 20 others will be assessed by a panel including national team manager Babu Meman and coach Kevin Curran.”This is and will be a detailed assessment, on the basis of past, current andperceived future results and performance,” said Bvute. He said the 24 remaining “Level One” (lower rated) players had been offered basic salaries and expenses.This new policy lies at the root of the current dispute with the players. Bvute said that Stuart Carlisle, Barney Rogers and Neil Ferreira had demanded a minimum contractual income and had not been offered any contract at all. “If I wanted a 737 Boeing aircraft parked at Harare airport, that would be unreasonable, not a negotiating position,” he said, replying to a question abouttheir position perhaps being one for negotiation. “What I’m saying is that as far as those three are concerned there is no room for any negotiating position now.”But Bvute insisted: “We are not in a crisis.” Talks between Zimbabwe Cricket and players’ representative Clive Field are expected to resume later this week. Field warned that the dispute, which blew up last Thursday, “could become a major issue detrimental to Zimbabwe and indeed to international cricket”.”Some players have said it could become as destructive an issue as last year’s strike,” said Field, “which had been triggered by senior player accusations of national team selections based on race, and I think they could be right. This is a cause for real concern. The players have decided they will still be making themselves available for selection to matches remaining on the India tour (two Tests and a warm-up game) on the basis of them keeping the high moral ground.We have reached a situation where trust is paramount. We are told the contracts will now be re-presented on September 14 rather than the original date of September 30.”
It was another day of frustration for Zimbabwe’s bowlers as a PCB Patron’s XI rattled up 353 for 5 at the close of the first day of the tour match at Lahore. On Tuesday, the Zimbabweans were flayed by a Chairman’s XI, conceding 398 runs for two wickets. This is a four-day match, and tomorrow is likely to see the Patron’s pile on the agony.The day started promisingly when the Zimbabweans won the toss, and got better when Edward Rainsford removed Faisal Athar in the first half hour. But thereafter it was men against boys. Bazid Khan, son of Majid Khan, and Naumanullah both scored half-centuries, and former Test batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, the captain, made 130 before becoming Graeme Cremer’s third wicket of the tour. Misbah cracked 12 fours and seven sixes in his innings.
Chasing a target of 339 to beat Worcestershire at New Road, Jimmy Maher scored a pugnacious 84* asGlamorgan ended the third day`s play on 174/4. Much will depend on the steadfast Australian as Glamorganrequire a further 165 with 6 wickets in hand on the final day on a wicket where the bounceat times is still capricious.Jimmy Maher and Jonathan Hughes launched Glamorgan`s run chase with an opening stand of 51 in 15 overs.It was only the second time this season that the county`s openers had shared a stand in excessof 50, but it came at a most valuable time, as both Maher and Hughes adopted a positive approachagainst Worcestershire`s new ball attack. However, their purposeful partnership was ended whenKabir Ali got a ball to rear up from a good length, causing Hughes to spoon a catch into the gully.Four overs later, Matt Mason dismissed Ian Thomas, as the young Glamorgan batsman edged a driveinto Graeme Hick`s hands at second slip. Michael Powell and Maher took the score to 72-2 at tea,but with the first ball after the interval, Kabir Ali bowled Powell. However, Matthew Maynard was soon intohis stride, driving Mason to the cover boundary and then pulling Kabir over the ropes at deep square-leg.Maher reached his half-century with an off-driven four against Kabir – his tenth boundary – and theAustralian continued to play watchfully, adding 47 in 11 overs until Maynard hit a full toss fromNantie Hayward straight to cover. But this was the final wicket of the day, as Mark Wallace droppedanchor at the other end, and together with Maher, watchfully added a further 55 in 19 overs to setup the prospect of an enthralling final day.A steady innings of 87 by Worcestershire captain Ben Smith was the cornerstone of his team`ssecond innings total of 257, and without Smith`s patient efforts, Worcestershire mightnot have set Glamorgan such a challenging target. Smith enjoyed his share of good fortune, with edgesjust dropping short of fielders or in between the slips, but all credit to Smith for ruthlesslypunishing anything off line or over-pitched. However, there were not too many bad balls on offer as Glamorgan`s bowlersstuck to their task, with Robert Croft taking 4/69 and Alex Wharf 3/38.The day began with an accurate spell from Wharf at the New Road end, during which hebowled David Leatherdale for 15. When Wharf came off, Michael Kasprowicz switched fromthe Diglis End and soon trapped Gareth Batty l.b.w. Smith then added 53 in 20 overs for theseventh wicket with Stephen Rhodes either side of lunch, before David Harrison in another fine spellfrom the New Road end bowled Smith.Rhodes` defiant innings was ended by a good diving catch by Hughes at leg slip, as the Worcestershirewicket-keeper tried to sweep Croft. The Glamorgan captain claimed his fourth wicket as Mason holedout at long-on, but then some lusty slogs from Kabir took the total past 250, before Kasprowiczended the innings by uprooting Hayward`s off stump.
Sri Lanka may have put their faith in pace against India but their strategyhas changed for the West Indies Test series and the selectors have pickedthree spinners for the first Test starting next week in Galle.The 15-man squad, still to be confirmed by the Sports Ministry, but selectedon Tuesday night after the teams return from Sharjah, includes off-spinnerMuttiah Muralitharan, slow left-arm spinner Niroshan Bandaratillake andoff-spinning all-rounder Thilan Samaraweera. All are expected to play on apitch that traditionally favours spin.The decision forced hasty changes to the Sri Lanka A side to take on theWest Indies at Matara on Thursday. Clearly trying to reduce the tourist’sexposure to spin in their last warm-up game, they left out Bandaratillakeand picked four fast bowlers and just one specialist spinner.The 26-year-old Bandaratillake, who is also a useful late order batsman, hasplayed in four Tests, having made his debut against New Zealand in 1997. Hegrabbed 9-82 in his second game, but fell out of favour and has not playedsince the inaugural Asian Test Championship in 1999.The selectors have also recalled all-rounder Suresh Perera, whose bowlingaction has been reviewed and cleared after being by a Sri Lankan boardappointed panel of bowling experts. Their final report has been already beensent to the ICC.West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor had reported Perera’s bowling action to theICC during the first Test against India at Galle. He subsequently played inthe second Test, but was dropped for the third Test and was not selected forSharjah.With Sri Lanka apparently set to play three spinners, Perera is unlikely toplay though, especially as Thilan Samaraweera, his replacement in the SSCTest against India, scored a century on debut.With strike bowler Dilhara Fernando injured the selectors have pickedleft-arm fast bowler Ruchira Perera, Charitha Buddhika Fernando and recalledNuwan Zoysa, who has now fully recovered from ankle injury sustained beforethe Indian tour. With Chaminda Vaas certain to play this leaves four fastbowlers fighting for one place, with Ruchira Perera being the currentfront-runner.The seven batsmen remain unchanged from Sri Lanka’s last Test match againstBangladesh but, after his good form in Sharjah, Russel Arnold is set toreclaim his place after being dropped against Bangladesh in September.Left-hander Michael Vandort remains in the squad.Arnold was due to captain the Sri Lanka A side, but with runs under hisbelt, the selectors retained Hashan Tillakaratne, who gets a chance to spendsome time in the middle after bad weather prevented him from battingColombo.The first Test starts on 13 November.Full team:Sanath Jayasuriya (Capt), Marvan Atapattu, Mahela Jayawardene, RusselArnold, Kumar Sangakkara, Hashan Tillakaratne, Michael Vandort, ThilanSamaraweera, Suresh Perera, Muttiah Muralitharan, Niroshan Bandaratillake,Ruchira Perera, Chaminda Vaas, Charitha Buddhika Fernando, Nuwan Zoysa
Alex Lees has become Yorkshire’s youngest captain since Lord Hawke, the most formidable figure in the county’s history, upon being appointed to lead the side in one-day and Twenty20 cricket.At 22, Lees will become Yorkshire’s youngest-ever official limited-overs captain since the format was introduced in 1963. He is also the youngest-ever professional captain, Lord Hawke having no truck with anything as soiled as remuneration. Lees, as far as we know, will still draw his salary.Although Yorkshire have won the Championship twice in succession under Andrew Gale, and have supplied a steady stream of cricketers to England’s Test side in the process, their limited-overs cricket remains largely unproductive.There is even a suggestion – most regularly heard in the south – that the good folk of Yorkshire remain a little too sober-minded for the high-risk shenanigans of T20 cricket.At least Lees can be confident he takes over one of the most professional sides in English cricket. When Lord Hawke assumed control of Yorkshire in 1882, as their first amateur captain, it was said that he had taken over “a band of rogues and vagabonds”.ESPNcricinfo
Hawke soon put that right. He remains the most successful county captain ever, Yorkshire winning the County Championship a record eight times, and took an instructional view when it came to the lifestyles of those professionals under his command, instilling self-discipline and warning against the evils of alcohol. “Ye Gods, pray no professional should ever captain England,” he once said.Lees is not expected to offer lifestyle advice to his colleagues, especially as most of them are older than he is, although he does take to Twitter with a weekly recipe and to his shock has recently admitted he has become a fan of Justin Bieber. And Yorkshire’s head coach, Jason Gillespie, likes to reflect on the day’s play over a beer so an alcohol ban is unlikely.Yorkshire did reach the semi-finals of the Royal London Cup under Lees’ guidance after he took over from Gale as interim skipper in August, but their T20 cricket again disappointed large crowds at Headingley, leading the county to throw in youngster after youngster in their impatience to change the mould.Lees led Yorkshire eight times last season, but Yorkshire took time for further reflection before offering him the job full time. Gillespie said: “We thought he did a pretty good job. After considering a number of candidates, we feel Alex is the right fit for us as captain. He learnt a lot on the job last season and we think he can develop as a leader further. We are delighted to afford him this opportunity and believe that he will do a fantastic job for our club.”In 50-over cricket I thought we made some good strides last year, I thought we did a lot better than the previous year, but T20 cricket is something we still haven’t cracked. We are either very good or very ordinary.”Lees might have assumed control at a good time with the signing of David Willey, who has broken into England’s limited-overs sides, also expected to provide a catalyst when he is free from international commitments. Spin bowling, though, remains a weakness, especially when Adil Rashid is on England duty and Yorkshire’s signing of Australian batsmen Glen Maxwell and Aaron Finch did not bring the transformation envisaged.But he might regard Lord Hawke’s fate upon accepting the captaincy as a warning. He struggled for form in his first season. “I seemed to have shot my bolt – I just could not play myself in,” he recollected. Not that playing himself in is regarded as one of Lees’ priority to revive Yorkshire in T20. Quite the opposite.Lees said: “I’m really proud and it’s humbling that Yorkshire see me as the best option to take the club forward in one-day cricket irrespective of my age. With myself coming in, there’s a new direction and a new voice which will hopefully revitalise the team.””This is a big county with lots of potential and opportunity. I’m only 22, but I have a lot to offer as captain. I will be very open with my approach and will lean on the experienced players to drive us on and be successful. Everybody’s right to highlight that we have the squad to win one-day trophies now. We should seize that moment.”Yorkshire have not won a limited-overs trophy since 2002. They reached the T20 domestic final in 2012 but have disappointed since. Lord Hawke, a traditionalist to the core, would merely have sniffed and advised them to concentrate on the Championship.Lord Bradshaw, a potential new nickname, based upon the village near Halifax where Lees first took to the field as a four-year-old, may have a few things to say about that.
Leeds United once again fell to a heavy defeat, this time at Anfield as Jurgen Klopp’s men put six past the Whites on Wednesday night.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side were three goals down at the break, with the Reds not needing to get out of second gear to deal with Leeds ahead of their Carabao Cup final showdown with Chelsea on Sunday.
There were some pretty underwhelming performances from those in white, and The Transfer Tavern have used statistical experts SofaScore to analyse who Leeds’ three worst players (to have played at least 45 minutes) were on the night.
In total, these players lost the ball a whopping 36 times, were second best in 10 of their aerial and ground duels and averaged a 5.5/10 rating between them.
Stuart Dallas – 5.2/10
First up is Dallas, who started at right-back and ended the night in midfield. The ever-present figure lost the ball 15 times and conceded a penalty early on after handling the ball in the box.
He also lost six of his nine duels, was dribbled past twice and made two fouls, leaving him with a 5.2/10 rating.
Luke Ayling – 5.7/10
Next is Ayling, who turned out at centre-back with Diego Llorente absent from the squad.
Captaining the team in Liam Cooper’s continued absence, the 30-year-old – like the Northern Irishman – also conceded a penalty in the first half. The defender lost possession 11 times, lost three duels and was unsuccessful in five of his eight attempted long balls, giving him a 5.7/10 rating.
Pascal Struijk – 5.8/10
Struijk completes the list of Leeds’ three worst performers at Anfield, ending with a 5.8/10 rating.
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He lost one of his ground duels, gave the ball away 10 times and failed to make an interception all night. Struijk was also unsuccessful in five of his attempted long balls.
In other news: ‘Exciting’ Leeds attacker now set for March return after months out as reporter relays news
Bangladesh are toying with the idea of sending Mashrafe Mortaza up the batting order in the upcoming T20s against Zimbabwe. The idea is a first, at least for Bangladesh, for thinking out of the box has not always been high on their agenda in a format where they have been a few steps behind the times.It is understood that Mashrafe’s floating batting position is still in the discussion stage, and will only be used as a surprise option. While Mashrafe has been batting regularly in the nets, the idea gained momentum when he struck an unbeaten 32-ball 56 for Comilla Victorians during the recently-concluded Bangladesh Premier League. Given the emphasis is clearly on experimentation ahead of the World T20, Zimbabwe can expect the unexpected.Chandika Hathurusingha, the Bangladesh head coach, held his cards close to his chest, but is understood to be the man to have floated the idea. “Mashrafe has done good things for himself and he is telling me all the time that he can bat, so I asked him to prove it to me,” he said. “He is doing well in the nets.”Mashrafe underlined the challenge of trying out the new role, but was open to moving up the order if the situation demanded it. “It is hard to start something new at this stage of my career,” he told . “It was a different story when my batting was at its best. It is hard to adapt now. But I am trying for the sake of the team. I am confident and the rest depends on how much I can do.”In the build up to World T20 campaigns in the past, Bangladesh have promoted and tried out players with reputations of being big-hitters. However, apart from the 2007 tournament, where they famously beat West Indies, Bangladesh have failed to make an impact in each of the other four editions. This time, the thought process has not really bordered on the outlandish. But keeping Mashrafe as a batting option is forward thinking given how the captain has inspired the team.In any case, Bangladesh’s 14-man squad for the Zimbabwe series has been training on specific areas for the last five days at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna, in a bid to get the players used to the idea of playing T20s. Batsmen have been practicing their big-hitting skills, while the fielders have been made to work on the busy areas of the ground like the deep leg-side boundaries and the cover region.Along with the front-line batsmen, who have spent plenty of time on the centre-wickets in front of the bowling machine, Mashrafe getting a sizable amount of time with the bat has intrigued fans and media alike. The inclusion of Nurul Hasan, Shuvagata Hom and Abu Hider further states their intent of bringing the big-hitting flavour to an otherwise industrious batting unit.Mashrafe, who said that Bangladesh’s experimentation was focused on the forthcoming Asia Cup T20s and World T20s, was open about using the matches against Zimbabwe as a trial run leading into the bigger battles. “All of those in the squad will be getting a chance,” he said. “We will not try anything that will look odd. We are only thinking of doing things that will help us in the forthcoming tournaments. We have to try something different, test ourselves looking ahead.”It is hard to deny that BPL didn’t have an impact. But I think now they are hitting the ball well, especially in the nets in the last few days. It makes me positive. I think we can do well if they bat and bowl in this way. At the same time there’s the pressure of international cricket so it is important to implement with cool heads.”
ScorecardDurham came crashing back to earth after their Friends Provident success with a 31-run defeat against Somerset in the Pro40. Marcus Trescothick, Craig Kieswetter and Neil McKenzie all scored at better than a run-a-ball as Somerset piled up 289. Durham’s challenge faded once Phil Mustard’s blistering 84 had been ended by Andy Caddick, who claimed five-wickets in a match dominated by the bat.As usual, runs flowed from the start at Taunton as Trescothick and Kieswetter added 153 for the first wicket. All the Durham bowlers came in for heavy punishment before Gareth Breese broke through. Liam Plunkett took two quick wickets, but the runs kept flowing as McKenzie cracked four fours and three sixes in his 53-ball 69.But Durham didn’t go down without a fight as the impressive Mustard led the reply. Kyle Coetzer made 42 off 33 balls before being bowled by Ian Blackwell and the main stand came between Mustard and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (68) added 95. However, Caddick had Mustard caught by Justin Langer then removed the middle order and Blackwell claimed two more to end the match to keep Somerset’s promotion hopes alive.
Chris Schofield, the former England and Lancashire legspinner, has been registered by Surrey for the remainder of the season following injuries to Anil Kumble and Ian Salisbury – their two other legspinners.Schofield played in his first competitive match for over two years yesterday: a Pro40 game for Surrey against Yorkshire at The Oval. He had left Lancashire in acrimonious circumstances when the club released him in 2004. Unhappy with the decision, he successfully sued his former employers for unfair dismissal in April 2005. Since then, Schofield has played for his old club Littleborough, Minor County cricket for Suffolk and also turned out for Durham and Surrey second XIs.He made his Test debut in 2000 against Zimbabwe as England desperately scrabbled to find a world-class spinner. He showed greater promise with the bat than the ball by hitting 57 and was dropped after just two Tests. However, he remains adamant he has the quality and ability to play cricket at the highest level once more.”It’s a bit of a reality check, and frustrating, because I’ve played at a very high level, but I’m just relieved that counties are still giving me the opportunity to get a contract,” he told earlier this month. “Now I’m proving a couple of people wrong with all the overs I’m bowling.”Anyone who is playing cricket has to have the desire to play for England,” he said. “The first step at the moment is to try to get a county contract, bowl the way I have been doing the last couple of months, and take it from there.”