A round-up of the first day’s play of the second-round matches of the Ranji Trophy Plate League 2009-10

Cricinfo staff10-Nov-2009The first day’s play of three games – between Goa and Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana, and Jharkhand and Vidarbha – was washed out without a ball being bowled.

Group A

Scorecard

A Wilkin Mota-inspired Tripura gained the upper hand against Rajasthan in Agartala. Mota grabbed a career-best 6 for 22 to help Tripura skittle out the opposition for 102; only three Rajasthan batsmen reached double-digits. Mota again stood out in the reply, making an unbeaten 38 to steer his team to 73 for 3 at stumps.

Group B

Scorecard
Only 30 overs were possible on the opening day of the fixture between Madhya Pradesh and Kerala in Indore. MP scored at a brisk pace, with Naman Ojha and Hrishikesh Kanitkar scoring half-centuries. Both were unbeaten after adding 120 for the second wicket, as MP finished the rain-affected day on 134 for 1.

The ECB has unveiled plans for an expansion of the ‘Merlyn by BOLA’ project, which will see the spin-bowling machine made available to all 18 first-class counties as well as the National Cricket Performance Centre at Loughborough

Andrew McGlashan in Pretoria14-Dec-2009In recent years England batsmen have become far more adept at playing spin and a large of part of that improvement is put down to a machine called ‘Merlyn’. Invented by Henry Pryor, it recreates spin bowling in a way no other device has been able to do and now the ECB are investing in providing one to each of the 18 first-class counties.The new enhanced Merlyn is a joint project between Pryor and a company called Stuart & Williams, the world’s leading manufacturer of BOLA bowling machines, and the result is a machine that is almost as good as facing Muttiah Muralitharan or Shane Warne in the flesh according to ECB coaching staff.”We can probably get the ball to spin more than a spinner so we can overload the training which means batsmen will face tougher conditions than they would face in a match,” David Parsons, the ECB’s performance director, told Cricinfo. “The only thing with a machine is you don’t get the cue that a bowler gives you in terms of watching it from the hand, which can actually make playing the machine more difficult which is no bad thing.”Fifteen of the first-class counties already have the machines with the roll-out due to be completed early in the New Year while two will be permanently based at the National Performance Centre (NPC) at Loughborough.”We’ve only had very limited use of it over the last few years because until recently there has only been one such machine,” Parsons said. “But those who have worked on it have found it beneficial so the ECB has invested to get one machine out to every county.”The feedback from both the wicketkeepers and the batsmen has been fantastic because it releases the ball with a high number of revolutions on it. Historically we haven’t been very good a playing the spinning ball and this gives them a chance to practice their skills in a training environment before facing the real thing.”Unlike the original model, the latest version is much more transportable – the ECB have flown one out to Pretoria for the Performance Programme’s training camp – while it is also possible to add data from any particular bowling spell which Merlyn will then replicate.”It’s very user-friendly as a coach and it’s very easy to programme what sort of delivery you want spat out,” Parsons added. “I’m pretty confident that we will see an improvement in the way batsmen play spin, especially if the last four or five weeks here in Pretoria are anything to go by.”

A round-up of the fourth day’s play of the second round of the RBS Pentangular Cup

Cricinfo staff10-Jan-2010
Scorecard
Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) completed an easy nine-wicket win over Karachi Blues at the National Bank of Pakistan Sports Complex. Karachi were battling at the end of the third day to save the match, at 172 for 6, but lost their last four wickets for 25 runs. Seamer Imran Ali took all four this morning to finish with 5 for 34. SNGPL then knocked off the remaining 70 runs within ten overs and were on top at the end of the points table.
Scorecard
The two Khans – Junaid and Tabish – shared seven wickets between them to bundle out Sialkot for 164 and bag a 207-run win on the final day at the National Stadium. The Rest had declared to set a target of 372 and needed less than 50 overs to bundle out Sialkot. The Rest resumed with their overnight lead of 302 and declared after the fall of the ninth wicket. Sialkot had progressed steadily to 84 for 2, with Majid Jahangir leading the way with 54, but then collapsed. Two wickets fell for no run and Junaid continued to make inroads to the top order. Zulfiqar Babar chipped in with two wickets while Tabish took three lower order wickets to finish off the game.

Having rekindled Ashes memories with their draw at Centurion, followed by Stuart Broad’s and Graeme Swann’s second-innings demolition of South Africa at Durban, England are now hoping to avoid a repeat of what happened against Australia

Andrew McGlashan in Cape Town02-Jan-2010Having rekindled Ashes memories with their draw at Centurion, followed by Stuart Broad’s and Graeme Swann’s second-innings demolition of South Africa in Durban, England are now hoping to avoid a repeat of what happened against Australia. Leading the series 1-0, with a chance to take an unassailable lead at Headingley, they imploded in little more than seven sessions.At Newlands a similar chance awaits and this time they want to make it count. As the Ashes showed, England are not at their most comfortable when ahead in a contest. Being favourites, as they now are in many people’s eyes for this series, doesn’t sit naturally with a team that prefer to be classed as underdogs. They need show that they can respond to the pressure of expectation and Andrew Strauss wants his team to prove they can stay ahead.”You want to be ruthless and just as desperate to win when you’re up,” said Strauss. “Sometimes there’s a thing in the back of your mind that you can pat yourselves on the back a little bit and think ‘we’ve got some breathing space’.”But as soon as you think like that, you’re going to get beaten pretty quickly. It’s important to learn how to win when you’re up and be just as clinical and not give the opposition a sniff. We hope we can do that this week”History doesn’t bode well for them, though, and not only because of the Headingley experience last year. Their three most recent visits to Cape Town have resulted in defeats by 10 wickets, an innings and 37 runs and 196 runs. There will also be the expectation from thousands of England fans – many arriving just for this Test – who will want a repeat of the performance at Kingsmead.”You don’t win a Test match on day one. But it’s very, very important that you start the Test match well – so that the opposition don’t get on top of you,” said Strauss. “It’s very much a case of keeping our feet on the ground. I’ve seen enough instances of teams losing one week and then coming back to win the next to know that nothing is guaranteed.”If we’re slightly off our game we’ll get a pretty rude surprise. In a lot of ways that is the kind of lesson we learned from Headingley in the Ashes when we started talking about ‘we could finish it this week; let’s realise our dreams’, and all that sort of stuff.”We should have been talking about just winning the first hour. That’s very much been the talk in the dressing room so far – right back to square one again, work hard to contest every over and hope, if we do that well enough, we’ll get into a position to win the game later on in the week.”It has been noticeable in the days since the victory in Durban how measured the noises from the England camp have been. Andy Flower, as is his style, was very restrained on Friday and kept reiterating that the series is only half-way through and Strauss is singing from the same hymn sheet.”There have been a lot of people telling us how great we were. It’s important we don’t read too much into that,” he said. “It’s very much a case of being desperate to win again and I like the feeling in the dressing room at the moment.”England’s trump card could again be Graeme Swann. He already has 14 wickets in the series and the Newlands pitch can assist spinners later in the game. Last year Paul Harris claimed six wickets in the second innings, and nine in the match against Australia, so South Africa are going to have to combat the spin threat.Strauss will hope he can name an unchanged side for the third match running and the chances of that increased with a positive report on Paul Collingwood’s dislocated finger. He had a lengthy net against pace bowling and also tested his injury with some slip catching, although he may have to be protected in the field.”At this stage, everything looks fine. He was batting without any real discomfort,” Strauss said. “We’re very hopeful, barring any last-minute incidents.” He’s obviously contributed a huge amount, both this series and previously and is an experienced player as well so it would have been a shame if he missed out.”

Hampshire have completed the signing of Kabir Ali, following Worcestershire’s decision to release him from the final season of his contract after a long-standing dispute

Cricinfo staff22-Jan-2010Hampshire have completed the signing of Kabir Ali, following Worcestershire’s decision to release him from the final season of his contract after a long-standing dispute.”Hampshire is a fantastic club with great ambition on and off the field and I am really excited about joining them,” said Kabir. “I have been working very hard on my fitness this winter and feel confident that I can play a major role for the Team this summer.’The decision brings to an end an acrimonious stand-off between Kabir and Worcestershire, whom he had asked for permission to move to Hampshire on a three-year deal following the club’s relegation from the first division of the County Championship. But, with his contract at New Road not yet fulfilled, Worcestershire asked for a £60,000 compensation to be paid by the club that signed him.As no county was prepared to do so, Kabir was due to remain at Worcestershire for the 2010 season, despite the departures of other big names such as Stephen Moore, Gareth Batty and Steven Davies. In October Mark Newton, Worcestershire’s chief executive, said “Kabir has already told us that if he remained with the club he would give 100% next season and we know that he will.”Yet as the season drew closer, the dispute had clearly not been resolved as Kabir failed to turn up to the pre-season training. Kabir defended his actions saying: “I was entitled to have 12 days annual leave and I took them. I never refused to train.” Yet, with no sign of resolution, Worcestershire decided to release him. “Kabir has been with the club for 10 years and we are very sorry to see him go,” said the club’s chief executive, Mark Newton.Hampshire, however, are delighted to have landed a bowler who has captured 429 first-class wickets at an impressive strike-rate of 44.8. ‘I am thrilled that Kabir has confirmed that he will be joining Hampshire,” said the first-team coach, Giles White. “His domestic record is superb and he will be a huge asset to the side. We hope that he will bring further success to the Club and in doing so reignite his international career.’Hampshire’s chairman, Rod Bransgrove, said: “Kabir is a dangerous and exciting cricketer and I am delighted that he has chosen to re-ignite his career here at Hampshire. Our squad is coming together nicely with a great blend of youth and experience and, with the new developments at The Rose Bowl well under way, this is a fantastic time to be a supporter of Hampshire Cricket.’The man himself tried to draw a line under the acrimonious end to his time at New Road saying: “I enjoyed my time at Worcestershire immensely and have made a lot of good friends. But the club were going through a difficult time with players leaving and I needed a fresh challenge.”

Thanks to Paul Harris, South Africa’s fast bowlers didn’t need to bust their gut in consigning India to their third innings defeat at home in the last 10 years

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga09-Feb-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
HawkeyeThe “Innocuous” Paul Harris took three key wickets to finish off India•AFP

Paul Harris is a character straight out of a Vegas gambling film. He says “perception is often reality” and batsmen perceive him to be an innocuous bowler, and that’s where he says he gets his wickets. He played around with his own perception to become the most successful spinner in the match, his “innocuous” outside-the-leg line from over the stumps getting him the wickets of Sachin Tendulkar and M Vijay, the only men who looked like they could deny South Africa. Thanks to Harris, the fast bowlers didn’t need to bust their gut in consigning India to their third innings defeat at home in the last 10 years – all three to the same opposition.Tendulkar’s 91st international century, just like Virender Sehwag’s 30th in the first innings, was a remarkable innings in isolation but inadequate given the thin middle order. Once he got out with India still 133 behind, it was always going to be a matter of when, not if. The when came at 4.27pm, with Dale Steyn completing his fourth career ten-wicket haul, taking out a resolute Wriddhiman Saha and Amit Mishra in quick succession.On a day that Graeme Smith went easy on his pace bowlers, Harris provided his captain with just what was required: control over the run flow, a lion’s share of the overs bowled and the big wickets. He came on to bowl as early as the fifth over of the day, and was the main bowler until tea, sending down 31 overs for 64 runs and three wickets, the third being MS Dhoni’s.Given how Dhoni got out to Harris in the first innings, padding up and gloving one that kicked from the rough, the leg-line wasn’t quite as defensive as it is perceived to be. Neither of the overnight batsmen, Tendulkar and Vijay, wanted to keep padding up to him for long. Tendulkar was more convincing in getting right to the pitch of the ball, and playing it out of the rough. The flick for four through midwicket early in the day stood out. Vijay kept Harris interested with the sweep, and finally one delivery found the top edge and then Morne Morkel at fine leg.Tendulkar had moved to 37 by then, having found balance between attack and defence. Against Harris he kicked away the deliveries outside leg, as opposed to waiting for them to hit his pads. When he made up his mind to play scoring shots, he made sure he was close to the pitch of the ball. From the other end, Smith rotated his fast bowlers, who gave Tendulkar nothing to drive.Tendulkar was up to the task, scoring through deft touches and glances against aggressive bowling. He hit ten boundaries in his 68 runs behind square alone. The innings did feature a drop when on 45. Wayne Parnell, bowling from round the stumps, got it to straighten and hit the edge, but Jaques Kallis missed a tough one low to his right.That was the only blotch on an innings that progressed at a fair pace. It didn’t quite become a threatening knock because no one at the other end looked nearly as convincing once Vijay got out. S Badrinath kept middling the ball, kept finding fielders, and got off the mark off the 17th ball he faced. Against Parnell, he could survive just three balls. The first one beat a defensive shot, and was angling down when it hit his pad. The second one straightened, took the edge, fell short, and went for four. The third carried.Along with Dhoni, Tendulkar negotiated 25.5 overs but neither man made an attempt to hit Harris off his line. Vijay’s wicket could have had that effect. Eventually one bounced slightly more than expected, hit Tendulkar on the pad, then onto the elbow, and onto the stumps.Dhoni, too, 25 off 112, eventually got the one accurate delivery from Harris that made him play, took the inside edge onto the pad, and his first defeat as captain would come soon. The unfortunate Saha, who unwittingly drew the ire of many by debuting as a specialist batsman, put in a fight with a 101-ball 36. Stands of 50 and 59 with Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan took them close to saving the innings defeat, but Kallis and Steyn took the last three wickets in one quick go. The messed-up stumps of Mishra at the hands of Steyn, bringing up the 10-for, was a fitting end.

Rajasthan Royals backed up a strong batting performance from Adam Voges and Faiz Fazal with a disciplined bowling effort that choked Kings XI Punjab after their top order had delivered a promising start

The Bulletin by Siddhartha Talya24-Mar-2010Rajasthan Royals 183 for 5 (Voges 45*, Fazal 45) beat Kings XI Punjab 152 (Bisla 35, Tait 3-22, Trivedi 2-25) by 31 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Adam Voges made another timely contribution at the end of the Rajasthan innings•Indian Premier League

Rajasthan Royals backed up a strong batting performance from Adam Voges and Faiz Fazal with a disciplined bowling effort that choked Kings XI Punjab after their top order had delivered a promising start. The 31-run win meant Rajasthan climbed to a joint-fourth position on the points table, leaving Punjab, who have lost four out of five games, at the bottom. A blistering cameo by Manvinder Bisla had raised Punjab’s hopes of scaling down a large target, but a combination of crafty bowling, agile fielding and some irresponsible batting crushed any possibility of a successful chase.Though the margin of defeat indicates a dominating show by Rajasthan, Punjab had their chances. Their bowlers managed to fight back after a strong start by the Rajasthan openers but faltered at the death in the wake of an assault from Voges and Fazal. Kumar Sangakkara and Bisla blazed away in their reply, racing to 76 in the first six overs, the highest score of the tournament after the Powerplay. But clever variations from seamers Siddharth Trivedi and Munaf Patel, and some uninspiring batting from the rest of the line-up, cut short what was gearing up to be a more exciting fixture.The conditions at the PCA Stadium in Mohali were conducive for fast bowling with the Punjab opening bowlers beating the outside edge on more than one occasion, and Shaun Tait doing the same during the chase. Tait, who had a poor start to the IPL, bowled a couple of excellent outswingers at Ravi Bopara but suffered an onslaught from Sangakkara, whose frequent hits to the boundary were as much a consequence of good fortune as the batsman’s conviction.A smattering of fours through cover was followed by an inside edge to fine leg before Tait, dropping one short, led the Punjab captain to upper-cut a catch straight to third man; but not before 41 had been scored in the first four overs.Bisla’s brazen aggression threatened to set Punjab on course, but also contributed to his downfall, a result of a well-executed strategy from Shane Warne. Bisla, who shot to limelight with a blazing 75 against Bangalore, tore into Munaf off just his second ball. Given the restrictions, he had figured out his scoring areas, and proceeded to take 18 off the fifth over, including two fours and six through the leg side. Warne, too, suffered a similar fate, smashed for 10 in two balls but Bisla’s ploy to strike against the turn cost him. Anticipating a slog, Warne had a deep midwicket in place, flighted the ball, Bisla obliged and holed out.Yuvraj Singh had returned to form in a thrilling chase against Chennai, and looked to continue that when he smacked a straight six off Warne. But his ill-executed shot off Trivedi, having been dropped two balls earlier, marked the beginning of a dismal collapse that squandered a healthy position of 107 for 2 in the 11th over.Both Munaf and Trivedi frequently took the pace off the ball which the Punjab batsmen, including Yuvraj and Bopara, failed to read. When Irfan Pathan was run-out brilliantly by Abhishek Jhunjhunwala in the 13th over, and Mohammad Kaif trapped in front by Yusuf Pathan 11 balls later, Punjab had lost four batsmen for 19 runs in 23 balls. Rajasthan had virtually sealed the game, and were met with little resistance when running through the rest of the batting.Just as in their batting, Punjab had slipped up with the ball when the game had been on even terms. They had the better of the conditions after choosing to field, but Sreesanth, Shalabh Srivastava and Irfan struggled for control with the ball moving around. Short balls were dispatched through point by the openers Michael Lumb and Naman Ojha, while full deliveries were picked up with ease over the leg-side field.Lumb had a woeful start to the tournament, but played with confidence, matching his aggressive partner Ojha stroke for stroke. However, Punjab struck to remove the openers within the first eight overs and earned the big scalp of Yusuf Pathan, caught off a slower one with seven overs still to go.But the stage was set for yet another turn in the game, as the Punjab bowlers failed to measure up to improvisations from Voges. He found the boundary with ease, piercing the gaps, following a well laid-out plan. Joining Fazal, Voges had marked his scoring areas. The spaces on either side, between long-on and deep midwicket and long-off and deep extra cover, were exploited, as Yuvraj, Piyush Chawla and Irfan were taken for two fours and a six in consecutive overs.Fazal, too, began fluently but ceded the floor to Yusuf and then Voges before opening up. He seized on length deliveries to dispatch four boundaries in successive overs off Irfan and Rusty Theron in the death overs; his 60-run stand with Voges, off 37 balls, gave Rajasthan a formidable total, one that thwarted Sangakkara’s plans at the toss to limit them to under 150 and handed their team another morale-boosting win.

The ECB chief executive, David Collier, says that the proliferation of non-England-educated cricketers in the national set-up is a consequence of the 1990s policy of non-competitive sports in schools

Andrew Miller at Lord's08-Apr-2010The ECB chief executive, David Collier, says that the proliferation of non-England-educated cricketers in the national set-up is a consequence of the 1990s policy of non-competitive sports in schools, but believes that homegrown talent can be nurtured through the use of performance-related pay and other incentives as set out in the ECB’s new strategic plan, “Grounds to Play”.Speaking at the launch of the initiative, which includes among its aims a commitment to producing 50 England-qualified cricketers under the age of 26 by 2013, Collier stated that there were legal implications in seeking an outright ban on cricketers from overseas who wish to apply for British citizenship, but believed that the problem could be overcome by improving standards among the players currently working their way through England’s age-group levels.Although Collier would not be drawn into an outright criticism of the South African-born players in the current national set-up, he tacitly admitted that their pre-eminence was a growing concern, with Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen already regular squad members, and Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb set for greater prominence at the coming World Twenty20.”You have to act within international and legal regulations. Once people are qualified, we have to accept that is okay,” said Collier. “The issue we have got is that we want to make sure that English-qualified players force their way into that side through the system.”We would love to see a whole host of young English players being the best in the world and pushing themselves forward for selection. That is why we are investing in academies, that is why we are investing in performance-related fee payments, that is why we want Under-26 players playing regular county cricket.”To hasten the process of preparing their youngsters for international cricket, the ECB are set to introduce a performance-related aspect to 44% of their annual payments to the counties, which equates to roughly £700,000, while also investing £3million in the development of 13 to 18-year-olds after studies showed that English teenagers, across all sports, are less mentally and physically mature than their contemporaries from other countries.”My personal view is we are paying the price for that period when we went through non-competitive sport in schools,” said Collier. “That was eight to 10 years ago, and so it’s the generation coming though because it takes time to correct into the next cycle. If you invest in an 8-10 year-old today, he’s unlikely to come through for another ten years. But if you don’t start now, you never will.”Among the on-field goals of the strategic plan are a successful defence of the Ashes in Australia this winter, and victory at an ICC tournament before 2013 – an achievement that no England team has managed since the World Cup was first staged in 1975. To that end, it was announced that investment in the national team would increase by 28%, assuming the Davies Review into Crown Jewel events (currently in hiatus pending the general election) is not carried through.Perhaps the most crucial aspect of the plan, however, is a commitment to funding new coaches and facilities to cope with the significant rise in participation among young players since 2007. In that time, the ratio between players and coaches has grown from 16.73 to 18.34, a rise that Collier said amounted to a “timebomb” if it was not matched by continued investment. The ECB is seeking an additional £10million of lottery funding on top of their £38million Sport England award.

There will be no rousing speech or chest-thumping patriotism from Paul Collingwood when England take the field for their semi-final against Sri Lanka because he doesn’t think his team needs it

Andrew McGlashan in St Lucia12-May-2010There will be no rousing speech or chest-thumping patriotism from Paul Collingwood when England take the field for their semi-final against Sri Lanka because he doesn’t think his team needs it. The prospect of securing a place in their first major final since 2004 is motivation enough.”The guys are ready; they are excited,” he said. “If there was a feeling around the camp that the guys are nervous or anything like that then maybe something would have to be said. But the guys are so focused in the jobs they’ve got to do, roles they’ve got to play. We’ll have a team meeting tonight, but let me tell you I’m not going to come out with any rip-roaring speech.”England have been the surprise package at this tournament (Australia were always going to get the hang of Twenty20 eventually) and there has been a supreme confidence about their play since a nerve-wracking evening in Guyana when they feared a short run chase would give Ireland a chance of piping them. That would have been a cruel exit and since then they have shown how far they have developed as a Twenty20 unit.From the power-packed top order led by the selfless styles of Michael Lumb and Craig Kieswetter to the in-form middle order of Kevin Pietersen (who is due back in the Carribbean on Wednesday afternoon after being at the birth of his first child) and Eoin Morgan right down to the allrounders in Luke Wright and Tim Bresnan who have contributed important innings England have their batting bases covered. With the ball the seamers have held their own while the spin duo of Graeme Swann and Michael Yardy have excelled. In the field they have been as sharp as anyone, barring perhaps the Australians.

Pietersen raring to go

Paul Collingwood is confident Kevin Pietersen can shake off the effects of an 8000-mile round trip back home to attend the birth of his child and be a major force in the semi-final against Sri Lanka. The biggest concern over his return to the Caribbean was the ash cloud that continues to linger over the Atlantic.
Pietersen left Barbados after England beat South Africa and missed the final Super Eight match against New Zealand and arrives back on Wednesday afternoon. He will slot back into the team at No. 3 with Ravi Bopara making way.
“Thankfully the ashes [from the volcano] stayed away, he is due in this afternoon so I am sure he’ll be a happy man and raring to go,” Collingwood said. “I don’t think with it being five hours ahead it should be an issue with tiredness and fatigue or anything like that, he’ll be a very happy man and as soon as he touches down, until then there will be doubts around, but he’s pretty much 100 percent playing tomorrow.”

They have also shown an adaptability and quickness-of-thinking that hasn’t always been an attribute of England’s one-day cricket. When the batting suffered mini wobbles against West Indies and New Zealand there was calm consolidation before the accelerator was pushed again – on both occasions by Morgan. With the ball there has been no one-dimensional game plan and the only aspect we have yet to see is how flexible the batting line-up can be and how the bowlers react of a sustained onslaught.”This is certainly the most powerful England side that I’ve played in, definitely,” Collingwood said. “When you look at all the guys going down to probably number ten, everyone can hit sixes, so also what the guys are doing with the ball, a lot of credit has to go to them as well because they are thinking for themselves a lot.”Whereas maybe in the past they were always kind of guided by the captains or whatever but they really are going out there and thinking for themselves and thinking what the oppositions strengths and weaknesses are and adjusting the fields accordingly, that’s been one of the crucial things in our development.”Collingwood has admitted he feared for England’s future in the tournament as Duckworth-Lewis played a major part in Guyana and all he wanted was a chance for his team to show their full potential.”It hasn’t surprised me at all, but we’ve got to take all that talent we’ve got on the team sheet out into the middle,” he said. “Thankfully, we’ve done that [so far]. There were times against Ireland, where we were close to going out of the tournament.”You were thinking ‘all this potential we’ve got, and we were nearly going out’. We had that little bit of an early scare, which wasn’t probably a bad thing – because it kickstarted us into something special.”This is England’s second semi-final in a row after they reached the same stage at the Champions Trophy in September. On that occasion they were hammered by nine wickets against Australia, but there is now a far more confident air about the side.”I think the belief is the key thing,” Collingwood said. “We have done a few different things in training, there have been a couple of different selections that have proved crucial as well and overall that has given the side a lot of belief in areas that we were probably a little bit weaker. Once you see these guys on the team sheet its kind of, oh, we can take the opposition on now.”

Matthew Hayden, the former Australia opener, has said Australia missed an opportunity to capitalise on the enormous potential of Twenty20 cricket when the format was still in its developing stages

Cricinfo staff13-Jun-2010Matthew Hayden, the former Australia opener, has said Australia missed an opportunity to capitalise on the enormous potential of Twenty20 cricket when the format was still in its developing stages. He claimed the desire to protect 50-over cricket – Australia’s own creation – and a primary focus on Tests and ODIs when the IPL was yet to materialise may have contributed to Australia’s delay in cashing in on Twenty20. Hayden also spoke of the need to make one-day cricket more meaningful and exciting for fans and players alike.”As a player, I think we in Australia were slow to react to T20,” Hayden, who is now part of Cricket Australia as board director, told the . ”We didn’t see much of it here for a start. It seemed to be something that was happening everywhere else. England created it and was holding competitions, but the IPL hadn’t started yet and our primary focus here was on winning every Test match and being one-day champions.”A conservative approach in trying to safeguard 50-over cricket, Hayden said, could have prompted the delay in realising the potential of Twenty20. ”There must have been some concern, being conservative as Australians tend to be, that we’ve got this great product, 50-over cricket, which KP [Kerry Packer] invented and which changed the cricketing landscape, and we didn’t want to leave it behind,” Hayden said. “We were all proud of 50-over cricket, we’d nurtured it and grew it and it was – and still is – good for the game.”But the little brother, Twenty20, isn’t little any more. He’s grown up, he’s now market leader and yelling from the mountain. Twenty20 is fuelling change.”The surging popularity of Twenty20 cricket, many believe, has threatened the viability of the 50-over format. Cricket Australia, in order to draw more people to the game, has decided to trial split-innings one-dayers next summer, with games divided into four innings of 20-25 overs each. Hayden said that, in addition to making one-day cricket more exciting, it was also important for administrators to ensure there wasn’t an overdose of the format.”I understand the fans more now than ever because, as a viewer, I want to see a game that’s exciting, innovative and entertaining,” Hayden said. “When I was in the Australian team, I could sense there was meaningless cricket going on. I always struggled to get myself up for matches against minnows. It’s not like Freddie Flintoff with his eyes wide open, bearing down on you for the Ashes. I could feel that in the team and now I can feel it from the outside, too. It needs to be dealt with.”With one-day cricket, people say they still love it, but it doesn’t have the excitement it used to, certainly not compared to T20. We have to work out when and how we play one-day cricket. It’s a pathway to the World Cup, which is still a valuable property, but it has to be programmed in a way that makes sense. Seven one-dayers at the end of a Test series isn’t [giving much] meaning.”Hayden has compiled his suggestions in a dossier, which he has submitted to the ICC. ”Greater minds than mine will act on this, but these things must be considered when discussing the game’s future,” he said. ”The intention of that dossier was to start conversations. I hope it leads to a more meaningful calendar.”The game’s gone beyond cigars and meetings in cloakrooms. The way it’s played and viewed has changed and now we need to streamline what’s important and what’s not. It brings great challenges. I think CA understands that. They know change is coming and needs to be embraced.”