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Virender Sehwag, the India opener, has not ruled out shifting down to the middle order once some of the senior batsmen retire. Sehwag began his career as a middle-order batsman, scored his first Test century there, but had to naturalise to the opener’s position because the middle order was packed. He has come to be known as the man who revolutionised how Test innings are opened. However, even at the highest points of his career, Sehwag has maintained he would love to go back to the middle order, where he doesn’t always have to negotiate the moving new ball.Sehwag said such a move would not happen in the Adelaide Test, in which he is captaining India. “No, not in this team because, you know, we have a very good middle order so when they retire then I’ll think about it,” Sehwag said.When the fact that there will be vacancies over the next year or so was pointed out to him, Sehwag said: “It depends on the combination, and who’s the captain, and who’s going to retire.”There has been a lot of criticism of MS Dhoni’s captaincy – defensive or pragmatic, depending on how you see it – over the past two away series, and against that backdrop Sehwag was asked if he saw himself as a full-time Test captain. Sehwag played the rare leave outside off. “Right now, no,” he said. “Right now I’m just concentrating on this Test match. It’s not in my hands; it’s just the selectors’ job and BCCI’s job.”Sehwag’s press conference ahead of the Adelaide Test was as much about the past as about the future. He was asked if the century he scored the last time he played in Adelaide gave him confidence. “Tomorrow is a different day, different game, different tour,” he said. “Last time when we came here, I didn’t play the first two games, and I was out of the team for some time, and I was fighting for my place. But now it’s a different story, a different thing, so I think it’s good to play in Adelaide because when you score a hundred on the previous tour you look forward to going and playing on the same ground and trying to make another hundred.”Sehwag has had a poor run on the Australia tour, with just 128 runs from six innings. He gave credit to the Australia bowlers, saying it was probably the best Australia attack he had faced. “I think they are bowling good areas. They are not giving easy balls to hit boundaries, and they are playing with your patience, so I think this is the best bowling attack I’ve ever seen. Against Australia, generally when I played in the past, I’d get a couple of balls in the early overs to hit to the boundary; but from this attack I hardly get a ball to hit, so I think it’s one of the best bowling attacks.”In a test of patience, he said, you need patience to win. “I think I have to show some patience against the bowling attack because if I show some patience maybe I’ll get some balls to hit for boundaries, but it’s a challenge. It’s a great bowling attack, which everyone loves to play against so I’m looking forward to playing in this Test match and doing well because whenever you do well against Australia people will appreciate and people will praise your performances.”There has been concern during this tour that India’s minds are elsewhere, sparked by on-field comments from the India players, telling the Australia players they will see them when they come to India. Sehwag, though, said that was not the case. “We are focusing on this Test, and looking forward to it. Adelaide is one of the favourite grounds for everyone because the pitch is good to bat on. We have great memories of when we won the game here in 2003-2004. So I think the dressing-room atmosphere is positive, and we are looking forward to this Test match.”

Shane Warne dominated the build-up, David Warner dominated the match. Sydney Thunder’s captain courageous, Warner, spanked an unbeaten century after sparkling in the field to lead his team to a six-wicket victory over the Melbourne Stars in the Twenty20 Big Bash League encounter at the MCG.Combative but also imaginative, Warner marshalled his team intelligently to restrict the Stars to 7 for 153 on a pacey surface. He then crashed no fewer than six sixes in an innings of belligerence, peaking at the moment Warne entered the attack in front of a 23,496-strong Melbourne crowd that has adored him for nearly 20 years.Warner chose that over to launch into the most monstrous six over long-on, and heaved another in Warne’s second. He would bowl only two overs for 19 runs, no doubt restricted by the burns a cooking accident had inflicted on his bowling hand.The Thunder’s bowlers had given Warner a decidedly manageable target to aim at with a stolid ensemble, highlighted by the bowling of the unheralded Scott Coyte and Luke Doran. Doug Bollinger grabbed two wickets though he struggled for rhythm and speed.Chris Gayle accompanied Warner to the middle for the chase, an opening combination of awe-inspiring power. However Gayle’s stay was brief and painful – he was struck a blow on the gloves by the sharper-than-you-think James Faulkner, before being yorked by the left-armer’s slower ball before the first over was complete.Warner was thus left a free stage on which to perform, which he did with all the confidence of a man who must surely now be an integral part of the Australian Test team against India. Of the Stars’ bowlers only Faulkner escaped punishment, as Warner biffed them in a display that showed how far he had come as a batsman since his international Twenty20 debut against South Africa at the MCG in 2009. The England bowlers Luke Wright and Jade Dernbach went for a combined 71 from their eight overs.The only other talking point was the sight of wicketkeeper Matthew Wade wringing his hand after a painful blow on the gloves – his is a set of digits the national selectors would prefer not to be harmed while Tim Paine convalesces.A speedy, skiddy pitch had greeted the Stars batsmen after Warner sent them in upon winning the toss – a task performed by Elizabeth Hurley – and the pace offered value for strokes as well as possibilities for the bowlers. Bollinger struck first, causing Rob Quiney to miscue to mid-on, while Wade managed only 14 before top-edging a Doran delivery slanted across him to short fine leg.David Hussey and George Bailey added 41 and seemed to be setting the hosts on the path to a substantial tally, but Bollinger found a way past the flailing bat of the Tasmanian captain. Hussey’s striking was typically clean and powerful, including one Bollinger delivery swung many rows back into the Great Southern Stand.Coyte was delivering a fine spell, and his wickets either side of Hussey’s run-out kept the Stars in check. Hussey was clearly aggrieved at his own misjudgement, when he chanced a second run on the arm of Warner and lost conclusively.Wright added some useful late runs with a bevy of skimming blows, but the final total felt middling at best. Thanks to Warner, it was ultimately made to look considerably less than that.

George Worker, the New Zealand batsman, will be the professional player for Scotland for their Clydesdale Bank 40 League campaign in 2012.Worker, 22, featured in victories over Northamptonshire and Warwickshire last season and has scored 1,073 List A runs at 34.61. He will be coach and professional at Watsonian CC on Myerside alongside playing for Scotland.Having made his first-class debut in December 2007 for Central Districts, Worker represented New Zealand Under-19s in five youth Tests – two in England – and also played in the 2008 U19 World Cup, where New Zealand reached the semi-final.”I’m looking forward to seeing George back in a Scotland shirt for our 2012 Clydesdale Bank 40 campaign,” said Scotland head coach, Pete Steindl. “His attacking style of batting fits well at the top of the order, while his left arm spin will also prove a handy asset. He will be warmly welcomed back into the dressing room after his positive impact last season”.Scotland begin their 2012 CB40 campaign on May 6 against Surrey at the Grange.

The ECB remains fully committed to ensuring the Test Championship comes to fruition after initial hopes of staging an inaugural event in England during 2013 were scuppered by the ICC’s current broadcast deal.Earlier this month Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, confirmed that a Test Championship won’t take place until at least 2017 due to the commitment in the current TV rights package with ESPN STAR Sports for a Champions Trophy tournament in the 2013 season.”We are building towards the Test Championship in 2017,” David Collier, the ECB chief executive, said. “I’m very confident it will form part of the calendar in that year.”It is common knowledge that we were the main advocates for the Test Championship and we still believe that very strongly,” he added. “We recognise the challenges when you already have contracts in place for the 2013 season but remain fervent in our support for the Test Championship and we’ll be pushing very hard to make sure in happens in the future.”I don’t think the interest in Test cricket has ever been higher in this country. I realise there are challenges elsewhere in the world but in this country it is still the true test of a cricketer.”England are one of the few Test nations where the game is healthy both on the field and in the stands and Collier’s remarks came on the day that the ECB announced a 10-year title sponsorship for the Test game with Investec. Andrew Strauss, the England Test captain, has previously voiced his concerns about the future of the five-day game and again warned that it would be dangerous for the English game to become complacent because crowds remain strong on home soil.The recent series between South Africa and Australia produced thrilling cricket but was never played in front of a full stadium over the two Tests, while the current contests between India and West Indies have been greeted by poor attendances – although the Sachin Tendulkar effect is having an impact in Mumbai.”I’d hate to think that anyone is arrogant enough to assume that it will always be around. I don’t think that is the case,” Strauss said. “I’m buoyed by what great support there is for the game in this country but I’m quite aware that in other parts of the world it is less so. We are in a fortunate position here, but administrators all around the world need to keep working on the product.”It’s important to market the game as well as possible. In a lot of ways in the past we’ve just relied on Test cricket always being around. Now we’ve got to knock our heads together and work out what the best way is to get people watching Test cricket. There’s a fairly strong argument saying that using one-day and T20 cricket to feed through can work. But I also think that added context to Test cricket is important, not just through bilateral series but playing for something greater whether it be the World Test Championship or something similar.”Administrators are also coming under pressure to back up their talk of defending Test cricket with actions. The delay to the Test Championship, the two-match series between South Africa and Australia and next year’s three-match contest involving England and South Africa are cited as examples to show administrators aren’t seriousHowever, Collier insisted there is a balancing act to strike so that the ten Test nations all remain viable rather than it becoming a game for a few elite teams. “If you always played five Test series you’d end up not playing some countries at all and ending up with three or four Test nations wouldn’t be good for cricket as a whole. It’s good that we are able to protect a number of nations.”If we play five Tests against one side [in a summer] we play two against the other,” he added. “We aren’t playing Zimbabwe or Bangladesh at home in this FTP cycle, they are just away series, so it means the two-Test series will be against the likes of New Zealand and Sri Lanka. It’s very important when we got back there, for example to New Zealand, that they have three Test matches so we have to help those countries as well.”

Group A

Himachal Pradesh were the only team in the Plate League to register a win in the first round of matches, beating Tripura by an innings and 15 runs in Agartala. The win was set up by offspinner Gurvinder Singh, who picked up his maiden first-class five-for. Tripura began the final day on 31 for 1, still trailing by 196. Himachal struck two quick blows in the morning session, but were stalled by some stiff resistance from Kaushal Acharjee and Vinayak Samant.The pair hit fifties and put on a century stand before Gurvinder removed Samant. The spinner then knocked over the next three batsmen cheaply to complete his five-wicket haul and seal the win. Himachal Pradesh take a full quota of six points from the game, to take an early lead on the points table.Kerala, driven by a century by from Sony Cheruvathur, put in a solid batting performance on the last day to ensure their match against Vidarbha in Nagpur ended in a draw. Kerala resumed on 252 for 4 and were rocked early, as Sachin Baby was caught off the second ball of the day for a duck. However, the other overnight batsman, Cheruvathur, went on to register his maiden first-class ton that carried Kerala to 431 in reply to Vidarbha’s 572. Cheruvathur was supported by K Rakesh, who fell one short of what would have been his second first-class fifty.Legspiner Sairaj Bahutule was the pick of the Vidarbha bowlers with four wickets. Vidarbha batted just three overs in their second innings before play was called off. Vidarbha get three points for taking the first-innings lead, while Kerala get one point for the draw.Services put in a solid batting performance on the final day to secure a draw against Andhra in Delhi. They were faced with a nigh impossible victory target of 432 and, resuming on 14 for no loss, successfully batted out the day for the loss of just two wickets – that they were shot out for 95 in their first innings puts this performance in perspective. The innings was steered by opener Jasvir Singh, who made a career best 133. Jasvir put on 80 for the first wicket with Pratik Desai, before new-ball bowler DP Vijaykumar struck.Rajat Paliwal then came in and played the support role to Jasvir, adding 144 before the centurion was run out a couple of overs before the close. In their bid to force a victory, Andhra employed ten bowlers in the innings with hardly anything to show for it. Andhra pick up three points from this match, for securing the first-innings’ lead, while Services get a point for the draw.

Group B

Hyderabad sealed three points for the first-innings lead against Jharkhand at Uppal and then showed intent to go after the outright win too. Jharkhand started the fourth day on 199 for 5 in response to Hyderabad’s 416 and were bowled out for 280. Hyderabad then batted for 26 overs and scored quickly to reach 113 for 2 and gave themselves around a session to have a crack at Jharkhand in the second innings. Jharkhand managed to play out 20 overs for the loss of just one wicket but Hyderabad still had the first-innings lead points.Jharkhand started the day well, with Amir Hashmi going from 33 not out overnight to 68 and making sure Jharkhand did not lose a wicket for 25.5 overs on the fourth day. His dismissal, by seamer Pagadala Naidu, started a procession and the last five wickets fell for 32 runs in just over ten overs. Lalith Mohan, the 21-year-old left-arm spinner who had taken three top-order wickets on the third day, got the final two scalps of the innings to finish with 5 for 55, his maiden five-wicket haul in first-class cricket.Jharkhand had done enough to avoid the follow-on, but rather than have a bit of batting practice Hyderabad went hard with Ravi Teja hitting 64 off 73 balls. There was not quite enough time to bowl Jharkhand out a second time though.

After two days of rain at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar, Assam made a positive declaration in search of points for a first-innings lead but Jammu & Kashmir were equally positive, getting to 232 for 3 off 52.4 overs, 65 short of Assam’s 297 for 4. Both teams were awarded two points each since the match was affected by weather. Assam had reached that score on the first day itself and after the second and third days were washed out they decided not to continue batting on the fourth.J & K’s innings started with Adil Rishi, a 22-year-old debutant, smashing 47 runs off 40 balls. J & K were going along at five an over when Rishi was dismissed in the 12th over. Ian Dev Singh was largely a spectator in the opening partnership but then took charge and scored his second first-class century, getting 103 off 161. Captain Parvez Rassol played aggressively too, scoring 45 off 50 and J & K maintained a run-rate of 4.40 in their short innings.In a dramatic final day in Porvorim, Goa fell 38 runs short of Maharashtra‘s first-innings score, but then bowled them out for 91 in the second innings giving Goa a target of 130 for an outright win. However, Goa did not go for the target and agreed to call the game off 17.4 before it ended.The day started with Maharashtra favourites to get first-innings points; Goa were 328 for 7, still 115 runs behind Maharashtra’s first-innings score. But Goa had Vaibhav Naik batting on 137 and he found good company in No. 9 Robin D’Souza. The seamer D’souza had taken a five-for in the first innings and followed it up by scoring 64. He and Naik took their partnership to 118 runs and at 381 for 7 Goa had Maharashtra sweating. But left-arm seamer Samad Fallah dismissed D’souza and then got the final two wickets to finish with 4 for 100 and secure the first-innings lead. Naik was left stranded on 165 not out.That seemed like it would be the end of any interest in the match but 18-year-old debutant legspinner Ganeshraj Narvekar had other ideas. Narvekar is the son of the Goa Cricket Association president Dayanand Narvekar. In December last year, Dayanand Narvekar had a police case registered against him on charges of forging Ganeshraj’s birth certificate so that Ganeshraj could play in an Under-15 tournament. This time Ganeshraj hit the headlines for the right reasons and his 5 for 48 caused a collapse that saw Maharashtra fold for 91. Goa, though, batted only six overs before the captains agreed to end the game early.

Will Chris Gayle be adding Middlesex to his list of overseas teams?•Associated Press

Middlesex have eyes on GayleChris Gayle has been targeted by Middlesex as an overseas player ahead of the 2012 T20 season.”If you’re asking whether we would like Chris Gayle in our side then yes, of course we would,” said Middlesex’s director of cricket, Angus Fraser, “but whether we can afford him in another thing entirely.”In the past, however, Middlesex have benefited from a partnership with the MCC whereby the burden of playing the top overseas players’ wages has been shared between the two clubs. Adam Gilchrist was signed thanks to such a partnership.As things stand, however, Middlesex are likely to play only three of their five home games at Lord’s with international commitments and the Olympics limiting the ground’s availability. The club may even need to persuade the ECB to allow them to stage their first game a couple of weeks before the formal launch of next year’s event.Middlesex have already strengthened their top-order batting with the signing of Joe Denly from Kent. Fraser confirmed, however, that Andrew Strauss will not play any Twenty20 cricket in future.High-profile candidates for MCC roleSteve Elworthy, currently director of marketing and communications at the ECB, and Dave Richardson, currently the general manager of cricket at the ICC, are understood to be among the short-listed candidates for the vacant role of chief executive of the MCC. The previous CEO, Keith Bradshaw, resigned recently in order to spend more time with his family in Australia.Shanker for IPL?You might have thought we’d heard the last of Adrian Shankar. After the debacle of his brief stint at Worcestershire, most people would have slunk away and got on with their life far away from the world of cricket.But not our Adrian. He’s nothing if not determined. It now seems that Shankar has turned his attention to the IPL and has, somehow, aroused the interest of Rajasthan Royals.As a result, Royals management have made enquiries to players in England to learn more about Shankar’s background. The question they asked was: is Shankar a fantastic, untapped talent who has somehow escaped the notice of all English scouts; or is he just an audacious blagger?You can probably guess the answer they received.Moeen Ali’s England chanceIt might have been presumed that the likes of Monty Panesar, Samit Patel and Scott Borthwick were the men jostling for the second spinner spot in the England squad to the UAE (in January-February) and Sri Lanka (March-April).But Moeen Ali is also in contention. The 24-year-old Worcestershire allrounder took more wickets than any other off-spinner in Division One of the Championship in the 2011 season (albeit a modest 18 at 51 apiece) and also scored 930 runs at an average of 33.That allround ability subsequently won Moeen a place in England’s potential performance squad and, along with a few of the other batsmen and spinners in that squad, he will remain in Sri Lanka after the three-week training camp in Colombo. The players will be allocated first-class teams and benefit from playing for another seven weeks in Sri Lankan domestic cricket.The inference is that a role in the Test side – probably batting at six and fulfilling the role of second spinner – is just about within Moeen’s grasp. While there are several players ahead of him in the queue at present, most have question-marks against them; Panesar, for instance, has few pretensions as a batsman or a fielder, while Patel’s fitness remains an issue.Whatever happens, if England do need to call upon Moeen in Sri Lanka, it will surely prove beneficial that he has experience of the conditions. It’s another example of the planning and attention to detail that has characterised the England management in recent years.Financial issues for WarwickshireWarwickshire have left several clubs disgruntled by their approaches for players in recent seasons, but the boot could soon be on the other foot.The failure to land an Ashes Test in 2013 will have a large impact on the finances at Edgbaston and is likely to make recruiting – and retaining – top players increasingly difficult.In the short-term, it has done little to help them secure the signing of James Taylor. Taylor is also wanted by Nottinghamshire, who won the right to host Ashes Tests in 2013 and 2015 and, as a consequence, have the certainly of a high income for the foreseeable future.In the longer-term, attention will focus on retaining Warwickshire’s best players. Chris Woakes, for example, is out of contract at the end of the 2012 season and is certain to attract interest from a number of other counties. As a quality allrounder who might not quite make the Test team, Woakes might even be considered one of the most valuable players in the entire county game. If Warwickshire are going to keep him, they’re going to need to fund the mother of all pay rises.Kartik set for Oval moveSurrey are close to securing the singing of Murali Kartik, the left-arm spinner, as an overseas player for the 2012 season. He has previously enjoyed spells at Lancashire, Middlesex and Somerset. While it is understood that Surrey’s salary bill remains the largest in the county game, the club have not breached the salary cap of £1.8m.

Pakistan seamer Wahab Riaz has credited the series he played against Australia A two years back as being crucial in his development and believes he will become a complete bowler once he has perfected his inswinger.”The great thing about that tour was that we were playing against a talented side,” Riaz told . “As a result, we also had to ensure that we were performing at a higher level and giving it our best. The thing is, when you are competing against a good side, you have to be more disciplined and you also learn to experiment a little bit.”Personally, after playing against a strong opposition like Australia A in their conditions, I started to gain more confidence. I remember that in the very first innings I was able to grab five wickets against them. Consequently, the confidence I gained from that achievement, I never let go of it and have never looked back.”Riaz broke into the Test side in the 2010 tour of England that was eventually tainted by the spot-fixing scandal, but he made an impact right away, taking a five-for at The Oval on debut. His stock ball is the one that is angled away from the right-hander, but he is now developing the one that moves the other way. “I have been working very hard to develop the inswinging delivery and it is coming along. While it will take some time to perfect, I know that once it is perfected I will become a better all round bowler.”Riaz is confident he can develop the inswinger without ruining his natural ability to shape the ball away. “I have talked to Wasim Akram too and he has helped me a lot. I obviously can’t develop deliveries and skills in just one month because for so many years, I have been bowling to my strength and sticking to basics. I know that people want to see the inswinger more often and God willing, this will happen. They [the fans] will have to wait just a little while longer.”Riaz was rested for Pakistan’s ongoing tour of Zimbabwe and that gave him a chance to play country cricket for Kent, which he termed “a really good experience”.”After playing for Kent, with respect to the English conditions, you learn that one has to bowl differently every day, and you have to adjust relative to the wicket and match situation,” he said.Riaz currently averages 9.50 with the bat from seven Tests, but is confident that he can make a more substantial contribution. “At this point, I still need to focus a little bit more when batting and improve my concentration,” he said. “I have been working hard to improve. Also, concerning my batting, the coaches at Kent have helped me a lot so when I play for Pakistan next time around, I will be a different batsman.”Riaz is capable of hitting 90 mph on a regular basis, which he puts down to working hard on his strength and fitness levels. “I have built up my strength and have also developed myself in this regards,” he said. “While previously I was fast, now, in English County cricket this season, I have touched 93-94 mph quite regularly [in T20 games]. I always take care of my fitness and give it my full attention and that I believe is the main reason for the extra pace nowadays.”In an era when many bowlers have chosen to give up one or the other format, Riaz is confident he can manage to keep playing all three versions of the game. “It depends on your fitness level and your determination – what you want to do. Twenty20 and one-day cricket is basically entertainment cricket, for players who want to play less so they can play for a long time. But in my view, Test cricket is the real deal. I’m working hard on my fitness, and god-willing I will try my best to represent Pakistan in all formats for a long time.”

In cricket, a combination of opposites is usually the most pleasing one. Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel: the swinger and the bouncer; Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid: the aggressor and the grinder.But these differences are often best expressed when they come up against each other. In Bulawayo, the contrast wasn’t an obvious one but it was a fascinating one: the steadily dripping tap of Tino Mawoyo against Mohammad Hafeez’s gushing river.In the time it took Hafeez to reach his half-century, Mawoyo had only gathered nineteen runs. The number of boundaries Hafeez scored in his half-century – 10 – Mawoyo only managed when he had accumulated 80 runs. If Hafeez faces the 453 balls that Mawoyo did, he may well have a double century and more.Mawoyo was content to play the waiting game and frustrate the opposition bowlers more than they could frustrate him while Hafeez took the fight straight to the Zimbabwe bowlers, offering them no respite during an attractive and engaging innings. Mawoyo’s strength was in his supreme patience, Hafeez’s his strokeplay.Before the Test started, Mawoyo described himself as a person who enjoys watching the show, not being in it. After finishing day one on an undefeated and composed 82, he was in danger of becoming the star of the show, not just a supporting actor. This morning, when he scored the first runs with a classy cover drive, the credits of the movie started to roll, with Mawoyo’s name dominating. And they rolled, and rolled, and rolled, and rolled, and rolled. More than five hours later, they were still rolling. Mawoyo took his time delivering his soliloquy.For a 30-minute period early on, before he reached his hundred, he had scored just three runs. He spent the entire morning session negotiating Saeed Ajmal from the Matopos End. Even after facing him for more than a day, Mawoyo still could not pick the doosra. Ajmal continued to challenge him, almost dismissing him on 98, but Mawoyo continued to defy the offspinner. He faced 13 balls on 99 before bringing up his century in a typically understated fashion, with a run that might have been a leg-bye.An intriguing race to see if Mawoyo’s score could catch up to the number of overs ensued and it was only when he reached 121 in the 120th over that he could claim a small victory. With Pakistan realising they were faced with a wall, they decided to try and hammer it down and peppered Mawoyo with short balls. He only took the bait to pull when he was convinced that it would reach the boundary, blocking or ignoring those that he thought were going to trap him.His refusal to succumb was a sign of a strong mind, one that would not be distracted irrespective of time spent at the crease, heat, fatigue or the constant chatter by Adnan Akmal with involved many utterances of the word “yourself.” Mawoyo would not be disturbed, neither would be forced to change tack and he made that clear.Even after Mawoyo had reached the 150 mark, he did not consider it time to become more expansive, and went on to face eight dot balls before taking his next run. His celebrations were modest, perhaps because he never felt as though he had won, especially against Ajmal’s doosra. Mawoyo was beaten by it all way through, until the end of his innings, when he missed one in the 150th over of the day.By contrast, the experienced Hafeez was beaten by very little. The youth of Brian Vitori, the pace of Kyle Jarvis, the steadiness of Chris Mpofu and even the late turn from Ray Price couldn’t stop the Pakistan opener. His only wobble came in the third over. After he had played two sublime off drives off Vitori, he got an edge to a delivery that moved across him. Brendan Taylor, at second slip, put down the catch and that blunder only fuelled Hafeez’s fire, instead of inhibiting him.Vitori was taken aback by the early assault, the first he has had to deal with at international level and splayed “hit me” deliveries all over the place. Too straight, too short, too wide, too full but never too good. Although the attack Hafeez faced had more zip than the one Mawoyo had to contend with, they were also more wayward, bowling too short to Hafeez, allowing him to pull comfortably. Azhar Ali was playing a more Mawoyo-like innings on the other side, which gave Hafeez the freedom to put on a firework-like display of shots.There were many times when Mawoyo had that same freedom, but he chose not use it. It was another of those wonderful contrasts in cricket – the room to accommodate those who express themselves with the bat, like Hafeez, and the same space for those who decide that their best form of articulation is by doing things softly and carefully, like Mawoyo.

Paul Close and Chris Donaldson have been appointed physiotherapist and strength and conditioning coach for New Zealand.Close previously worked for the BCCI at India’s National Cricket Academy and had a stint with the Indian team. Prior to that he was physiotherapist for Bangladesh.Donaldson, a former New Zealand sprinter, was with Otago Cricket where he headed the strength and conditioning programme. He has also worked as a strength and conditioning consultant for the New Zealand Winter Olympic team, the New Zealand netball team (Silver Ferns), Otago Rowing and also travelled to Australia with the New Zealand Emerging Players cricket side.Donaldon takes over from Bryan Stronach who takes on a new role as coordinator of the national strength and conditioning programme while Close replaces Dayle Shackel who reverts back to his role of injury management and physiotherapy coordinator.”We are fortunate to have the expertise of Paul Close who returns to New Zealand after gaining valuable experience from his time with the Indian and Bangladesh national teams,” John Wright, the New Zealand coach, said.”Chris’ high performance background is well known to New Zealanders and he is a world class operator. His work with Bryan Stronach is important as we look to take our fitness to higher levels.”

Scorecard
Glamorgan paid a high price for a dropped catch as Jon Clare scored the second century of his career to rescue Derbyshire on the opening day of the Championship match at Derby.Clare hammered the bowling to score 130, his highest first-class score, after he had been badly missed on eight at second slip by Ben Wright with Derbyshire on the ropes at 147 for 7.It proved an expensive lapse as Clare shared an eighth-wicket stand of 125 with Dan Redfern, who was out for 99, and a last-wicket partnership of 104 with Mark Turner – the fourth highest in Derbyshire’s history – to carry the home side to 360.Clare then struck a big blow when he removed Glamorgan captain Alviro Petersen, lbw padding up to the third ball of the innings, and William Bragg fell to Tony Palladino to leave the visitors in trouble on 39 for 2 at the close.Derbyshire had been struggling to get to 150 when they collapsed on a green, damp pitch after Glamorgan had won the toss but Wright’s fumble proved a turning point. Clare could hardly lay bat on ball in the first part of his innings and played and missed countless times, but he was a different player after tea and made his second fifty from only 26 balls.Redfern looked destined to score a maiden first-class hundred, but the 21-year-old left-hander steered a delivery from Will Owen into the hands of former Derbyshire seamer Graham Wagg at gully. Clare and Turner then plundered two more batting points to put Derbyshire firmly in control of a game that had been in Glamorgan’s grasp earlier in the day.The ball had zoomed around for the seamers with Derbyshire losing openers Martin Guptill and Wayne Madsen in the first two overs of a warm, humid day. Madsen was lbw offering no shot to James Harris before Wagg slanted one across Guptill to have him caught behind for 1.Harris surprised Wes Durston with some extra bounce but Redfern and Chesney Hughes were starting to repair the damage until three wickets in three overs either side of lunch put the visitors on top.Hughes played a loose pull to be caught at mid-off for 38 and after Greg Smith played no shot to Dean Cosker’s arm ball, Wagg pinned Luke Sutton lbw for a duck. But Redfern was batting beautifully and with Clare riding his luck, the recovery gathered momentum as Glamorgan’s frustration mounted.Redfern hit 14 fours, most of them eased through the covers, before he tried to steer Owen for a single and Clare then tore into a wilting attack to score his first hundred in nearly three years.The 25-year-old all-rounder, who missed most of last season following shoulder surgery, hit two sixes and 18 fours before he holed out to deep cover. But the momentum was with Derbyshire who will fancy their chances of repeating last month’s Championship win in Cardiff.