England’s preparations for the series against West Indies will include a masseuse for the first time – but the players have had to pay a third of the cost of having Vickki Byrne accompany them after what one newspaper described as "a tense stand off with Lord’s".Michael Vaughan asked the England & Wales Cricket Board to pay Byrne’s £15,000 bill, but the board would only stump up a third, with a sponsor picking up another third. That left the players to make up the difference."At the start of every tour the ECB provide a sum that can go towards the cost of providing a local masseur, to be sourced locally," explained an ECB spokesman. "Vickki worked for the team throughout last summer, however, and the players wanted her on board for this tour as part of the management team. While we want to give the England players the best possible support, we have had to operate within certain financial constraints during the last year and we can’t throw money at the team.”Byrne, who owns the Reading-based Body Works International, has worked with the England team for the past two years. She travelled with the side to Jamaica last week – but while the players were in business class, she was stuck back in economy.
A CAPTAIN’S KNOCK is one of the most over-used clichés in cricket. It wouldn’t have been out of place, however, to rubber-stamp it at the North Stars Cultural and Social Club ground yesterday.With a sweet sense of timing in almost every aspect, Courtney Browne sped to a impressive century to rescue Barbados on the second day of their third-round Carib Beer Series match against Jamaica.As the Barbados captain walked out onto the middle of the packed, scenic Crab Hill, St Lucy ground 40 minutes after lunch, his team’s 141 for five, which soon became 161 for six with the loss of in-form Floyd Reifer, represented the potential of a modest total.By the time he returned to the pavilion and a standing ovation just after 5 p.m., it had been transformed to a more satisfying 325 mainly on the strength of his unbeaten 103 off 157 balls."It was good innings, but I wasn’t really worried about a hundred," Browne told SUNSPORT."We had a target in excess of 300. After we got 300, I realised I was about 12 or 14 away from a hundred and I decided I would take it."In eight overs before the close, Jamaica reached 19 without loss when bad light halted play just before 6 p.m. on a day in which the first hour-and-a-half was lost because of wet conditions.In the past, Browne has responded to potential crises by counter-attacking and yesterday was no different."I knew I had to bat. One of the things about our team is that the lower order always scores quickly. We always turn over the strike," he said.With the help of the typically busy Ryan Hurley, whose 36 came from 54 balls, he rebuilt Barbados’ position with an entertaining seventh-wicket partnership of 69 at better than a run-a-minute and then a solid eight-wicket stand of 51 with Ian Bradshaw.The 32-year-old Browne was even more electrifying when last man Sulieman Benn joined him at a stage when he was still 23 away from his fifth first-class century and third at the regional level.With Benn incapacitated by a troublesome knee, Browne dramatically raised a notch. In less than 20 minutes he moved from 77 to his first hundred as Barbados captain."When you are in the 70s, you have to pick up momentum a little more to get closer," Browne said. "A No. 11 or Benn seeing 23 runs is different than him seeing nine. If he sees nine runs on the board for his captain to get a hundred, he’ll bat with a lot more confidence than if he sees 23 or 30 runs."After one of Browne’s trademark slog-sweeps over mid-wicket against off-spinner Nehemiah Perry, he followed with the more traditional sweep in the direction of square-leg.Essayed off successive balls, both went for boundaries and there was another four off the other off-spinner Gareth Breese through extra-cover that took him to 95.When Jamaica wrapped up the innings, Browne was left high and dry in an effort that lasted three-and-a-half hours and included eight boundaries.This was a critical hundred for the hosts, but the captain still rates his maiden regional first-class century, which was made against a Leeward Islands attack that included Curtly Ambrose, as his best at this level."Three hundred and twenty-five is a very good total on this pitch. It will take a lot of effort in the field, but the way our guys are playing, they are very committed and I am sure they’ll come out and do very well for their country," he said."The pitch now is doing a bit for the spinners. We’ll try to plug Benn and Hurley in as quickly as possible and see what they can do."Before Browne entered, Reifer was the backbone of Barbados’ innings, his polished 61 following a century against India "A" last weekend.He was, however, one of three batsmen whose soft dismissals allowed Jamaica to send Barbados from the relative comfort of 129 for three to 161 for six.Both Kurt Wilkinson, who extended his overnight 32 to 45, and Dwayne Smith edged attempted cuts off left-arm spinner Ryan Cunningham, while Reifer gave a return catch to Breese to be dismissed for 61 off 154 balls.For the first three hours, Jamaica relied almost exclusively on spin to the surprise of many who felt there might have been some assistance in the surface following overnight rain that delayed the start.Franklyn Rose wasn’t given the ball until after tea and Darren Powell sent down only two overs up until the day’s second interval.ScoreboardBARBADOS 1st Innings (overnight 89-3)P. Wallace c wk Hibbert b Rose 6S. Campbell c Breese b Powell 0K. Wilkinson c wk Hibbert b Cunningham 45R. Hinds c wk Hibbert b Bernard 23F. Reifer c and b Breese 61D. Smith c Samuels b Cunningham 6*+C. Browne not out 103R. Hurley lbw b Perry 36I.Bradshaw c wk Hibbert b Perry 20T. Best c Parchment b Perry 1S. Benn c Samuels b Perry 10Extras (b4, lb1, w1, nb8) 14TOTAL (all out) 325Fall of wickets: 1-7 (Campbell), 2-7 (Wallace), 3-49 (Reifer), 4-129 (Wilkinson), 5-141 (Smith), 6-162 (Reifer), 7-231 (Hurley), 8-282 (Bradshaw), 9-286 (Best), 10-325 (Benn).Bowling: Rose 9-0-59-1 (nb6), Powell 8-2-44-1 (nb1), Bernard 12-3-44-1 (w1), Perry 30.2-6-80-2 (nb1), Breese 26-3-65-3, Cunningham 17-3-28-2.JAMAICA 1st InningsL. Garrick not out 19B. Parchment not out 8Extras (lb1, w1, nb2) 4TOTAL (no wkt – 8 overs) 31To bat: M. Ventura, D. Bernard, G. Breese, *R. Samuels, +K. Hibbert, N. Perry, F. Rose, D. Powell, R. Cunningham.Bowling: Best 2-1-2-0, Bradshaw 4-0-22-0 (nb2, w1), Hurley 2-0-6-0.Position: Jamaica need another 295 runs for first innings lead with all their wickets in hand ahead of today’s third day.Umpires: Clive Duncan (Guyana), Vincent Bullen (Barbados). Stand-by: Mervyn Jones (Barbados). Match referee: Carl Brome.
Six umpires will officiate in the Coca Cola Cup One-Day Tri series tobe contested by Sri Lanka, New Zealand and India in Colombo from July18 to August 5. They are Asoka de Silva, Peter Manuel, Gamini Silva,TH Wijewardene, LV Jayasundara and DN Pathirana.The following are the dates, fixtures and the umpires:July 18: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand at Premadasa stadium.Umpires. LV Jayasundara and DN Pathriana.TV Umpire: P. Manuel, Reserve: TH Wijewardene.July 20: India vs New Zealand at Premadasa stadium.Umpires. G Silva and DN Pathriana.TV Umpire A. Silva, Reserve: TH Wijewardene.July 22: Sri Lanka vs India at Premadasa stadium.Umpires: P. Manuel and TH Wijewardene.TV Umpire: G. Silva, Reserve: DN PathiranaJuly 25: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand at Dambulla.Umpires: Asoka Silva and LV Jayasundara.TV Umpire: P. Manuel, Reserve: Gamini Silva.July 26: India vs New Zealand at Dambulla.Umpires: P. Manuel and G. Silva.TV Umpire: LV Jayasundara, Reserve: A.SilvaJuly 28: Sri Lanka vs India at Dambulla.Umpires: A. Silva and P. Manuel.TV Umpire: G. Silva, Reserve: LV Jayasundara.July 31: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand at SSC.Umpires: TH Wijewardene and DN PathiranaTV Umpire: A. Silva, Reserve: LV JayasundaraAugust 1: Sri Lanka vs India at SSC.Umpires: A. Silva and G. SilvaTV Umpire: TH Wijewardene, Reserve: DN PathiranaAugust 2: India vs New Zealand at SSC.Umpires: TH Wijewardene and LV JayasundaraTV Umpire: DN Pathirana. Reserve: P. ManuelThe umpires for the final to be played on August 5 at Khettarama havenot yet been confirmed. The umpires for the Test series will bedecided on the performance in the Coca Cola Cup.
Aston Villa had a fairly miserable return to Premier League action on Saturday following on from the latest international break.
Having travelled to Molineux to take on their Midlands rivals Wolves, Steven Gerrard’s side ended up losing 2-1 after an Ollie Watkins penalty wasn’t enough to overturn their 2-0 deficit at the halftime point.
One other blow the Villans suffered in the clash was to left-back Lucas Digne, who had to be replaced by Ashley Young after just 13 minutes.
Now that a couple of days have gone by since this defeat, an update has emerged on the Frenchman’s fitness, which will surely be a big positive for Gerrard and a huge boost for the team.
What’s the news?
According to a Twitter post from Villa journalist Gregg Evans, Digne was taken off the pitch “after complaining of an upset stomach,” rather than being injured.
Since arriving at Villa Park back in the previous January transfer window from fellow Premier League side Everton in a deal worth £25m, the 28-year-old has made nine league appearances, quickly cementing himself as their first-choice left-back.
Great news for Gerrard
In those appearances, the defender has racked up an average of 1.2 key passes per game, the third-highest of any Villa player as well as an average of 1.1 crosses per game, the highest of any player in Gerrard’s squad.
This highlights just what he offers the side and why they may have weakened after his early exit against Wolves.
His overall performances have earned the former Toffees star a season rating of 6.79 from WhoScored, making him the seventh-highest Villa player above the likes of Tyrone Mings, Emi Buendia and Danny Ings among others.
This shows just how much of a solid signing he’s been for the Villans since his winter arrival.
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Moving forward, with confirmation that Digne didn’t suffer an injury at the weekend and was just an upset stomach that forced him off the pitch, this will surely be a relief for Gerrard given how much he’s relied on the Frenchman.
With Villa now having lost their three previous league games, having Digne and his attacking talents in the side on a consistent basis will surely be a big boost for the team and their hopes of turning their fortunes around.
In other news: Forget Young: “Stupid” Aston Villa dud who lost 71% duels was a liability v Wolves
Brett Lee is not surprised that Twenty20 looks set to expand beyond the existing tournaments and he has repeated calls for the ICC to do what it can to accommodate the format in its existing calendar. Lee is in Mohali preparing for his first match in the Indian Premier League (IPL), for the Kings XI Punjab against Chennai on Saturday.However, this year’s IPL could be just the beginning of the Twenty20 explosion with suggestions of two IPL tournaments to be held next year, while Allen Stanford is planning a US$20 million match. England are also considering developing their own domestic version of the IPL.”Twenty20 is now a proven form of the game and, as we have seen all over the world in the last few years, it is something the fans love,” Lee told the Sydney Morning Herald. “It’s not too hard to see other people wanting to get on board and competitions popping up around the place, especially if the IPL is successful.”But the last thing you want to see is players leaving their countries to sign up with Twenty20 competitions. My heart is always with the baggy green cap and that is where my loyalty will always lie, but I can’t see why there can’t be room for both types of cricket. I think the people who run the game need to allow a window of opportunity for players to play in the IPL to avoid problems in the future.”Lee believes the first IPL will be a success and he is confident that after the recent fractious Test series, tensions between Australia and India players have eased. His team-mates at Mohali include Irfan Pathan, Yuvraj Singh and Sreesanth, and Lee hopes playing together will help men from the two nations better understand each other.”Everyone knows there was an incident or two in Australia last summer, but that is water under the bridge,” he said. “It’s a competitive game and players can occasionally cross the line, and that can get blown out of proportion sometimes with the way the media portrays it.”From my experiences in India, I genuinely think people love the Australian team, despite everything that’s been said. I also think that with players from different countries now sharing the same dressing room, it is a great opportunity for all of us to learn more about each other, about our cricket and cultures, and improve the whole mood of the game.”
Super 4s cricket kicks off in England this weekend and Rosalie Birch has been named as the new Sapphires captain following Laura Newton’s retirement.The Twenty20 Challenge will be held on Monday 28 May, with Sapphires taking on the Emeralds, captained by Alexia Walker. Nicki Shaw’s Diamonds, last year’s winners, will take on the Rubies, who are led by Gill Richards.Shaw is taking over temporary charge of the Diamonds while Charlotte Edwards recovers from knee surgery. Edwards’s knee flared up after the quadrangular series in India, but she hopes to be back playing by mid-July ahead of the New Zealand series in mid-August.The winners from these two games will then face each other in the Final, while the remaining two teams will have a third place play-off. The first round of matches starts at 11.30am, followed by the third place play-off and the Final at 3pm. All games will be played at Loughborough University.The league competition begins on the weekend of June 2-3, with further matches taking place on June 16 and 23 and over the weekend of July 7-8.Ebony Rainford-Brent, representing the Diamonds had this to say about the Super 4s; “It’s a great platform for players to showcase their talent. It is also an excellent way of preparing for international level, by facing the best in the country on a regular basis and to push yourself either individually or as a team. For me this is my first Super 4s season and I look forward to having the opportunity of playing a key role and producing some good performances.”
Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka’s captain, expressed the fullest confidence that his team could overcome English conditions and England if they perform to their capabilities.”There are no fears out there. There’s nothing we can’t handle. It’s just how we prepare ourselves mentally and physically and what we want to do,” he said on the eve of Sri Lanka’s 80-day tour.”We have six or seven young guys going to England on a big tour and they will learn a lot. That will be an investment itself for the future.”Sizing up England, Jayawardene was well aware that it would be tough against a well balanced squad and clearly outlined his team’s immediate tasks in tackling the opposition.He said: “We shouldn’t worry about what they will do to us. What we should worry about is how we are going to handle them and control that. We know the players and should work on their strengths and weaknesses.”Jayawardene added the biggest limitation his team had was trying to worry about things ahead of time. “For instance, in England you will start talking about the ball moving and all that jazz. We shouldn’t worry about that. We haven’t even gone to England yet. In England you have some of the best batting wickets, which I have batted on, Lord’s for instance and Nottingham where the third test is scheduled to be played.”It’s all about how you go there and adjust and how you apply yourself. It is as simple as that. I think we did that very well in Australia and proved that we can handle pace, bounce and movement. It’s all in us, how you believe in your capabilities. It’s all up here.”Reflecting on his first tour to England in 1998, Jayawardene said, “My first tour of England taught me a lot. I had the opportunity to play in every game and learnt a lot in English conditions. Even though you are set when you are on 60 you can still get a good ball and get out. The first couple of matches were tough for me but luckily I had a lot of experienced guys to advice me. I learnt quickly and it helped me a lot especially to adjust myself for the next tour, which was in 2002.”Jayawardene said the English experience of Tom Moody, Sri Lanka’s Australian-born coach who played and coached Worcestershire for 15 years, and Trevor Penney, the Zimbabwean-born assistant coach who played 14 seasons for Warwickshire, would prove invaluable to his team. Both coaches went ahead of the team and are in England at the moment.He also revealed that Sri Lanka had not been practising ahead of the start of the tour. “There was no point, because the conditions are going to be totally different in England. So we used the time to give the players some rest. We have only undergone physical training to freshen ourselves after a hectic season.”Squad – Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Kumar Sangakkara (vice-capt), Upul Tharanga, Michael Vandort, Jehan Mubarak, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Kapugedera, Prasanna Jayawardene, Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Zoysa, Farveez Maharoof, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekera, Muttiah Muralitharan, Malinga Bandara.
MCC has announced that its next president will be Robin Marlar. He will take up the year-long position in October and will succeedTom Graveney.Marlar, 74, first played for Sussex in 1951, and captained them from 1955 to 1959. He played little after that, although he did appear occasionally until 1968. In 1955 he took 139 wickets with his offspin, including a career-best 9 for 46 against Lancashire. He took 970 first-class wickets at an average of 25, and grabbed ten wickets in a match on ten occasions. Later a trenchant cricket writer and a member of MCC’s influential cricket committee, Marlar is also a former chairman of Sussex.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced that it will invite Wasim Akram, Imran Khan and Aaqib Javed to coach Pakistan’s fast bowlers before India’s tour in March.Speaking to the Press Trust of India, a news agency, Rameez Raja, the PCB’s chief executive, said: “The PCB has decided to seek the expertise of former fast-bowling greats, Imran Khan, Wasim Akram and Aaqib Javed to hold special build-up sessions with the present pacers to prepare them for the series against India.”Raja played down the furore in Pakistan about Irfan Pathan’s coaching by Akram during India’s tour of Australia. “I don’t think it is such a big issue,” he said. “Wasim is a retired cricketer and highly respected as a quality fast bowler. It is natural that other bowlers like to take advice and tips from him. We just want him to be available for us when possible.” Raja added that the board would approach Akram on his return from Australia, asking him and Imran to assist Mohammad Sami, who struggled in New Zealand.”We want Imran and Wasim to work with him [Sami] and see where he is going wrong,” Raja said. Sami took six wickets at an average of 45 in the recent one-day series in New Zealand, but otherwise has 71 wickets in 45 internationals, at an average of 24.77.
The Warwickshire all-rounder, Graham Wagg, has been ruled out of theremainder of this winter’s ECB National Academy programme through injury.Wagg, 19, was named in the original ECB Academy squad back in September, butwas unable to take up his place due to a back injury.He has recently undergone a scan which has revealed signs of a stressresponse in his back but no fracture. Following discussions with the ECBChief Medical Officer, Dr Peter Gregory, it has been decided that Wagg willcontinue his rehabilitation in the UK and not fly to Australia with the restof the Academy Squad tonight (Friday).Wagg’s Warwickshire colleagues, Jim Troughton (shin splints) and Ian Bell(back injury) have both been passed fit and will join up with the NationalAcademy in Adelaide ahead of their forthcoming tour of Sri Lanka. Nodecision has yet been taken on a replacement for Wagg in the Academy Squad.