England are attempting to replicate the intensity of a match situation during training to eradicate the no-balls which have proved costly for them this year, but Alastair Cook is convinced the issue stems from fewer on-field calls being made.In the first Test, Stuart Broad had Shoaib Malik caught at slip on 40 only for replays to show he had overstepped. Earlier in the same day Broad had overstepped by a distance but not been called. It was the sixth time this year that England had been denied a wicket in such a fashion, following two apiece by Mark Wood and Steven Finn during the summer, and one by Ben Stokes in the West Indies.At training, bowling coach Ottis Gibson is trying to ensure bowlers come off their full runs and take the same care in marking their delivery stride as they would in a match situation. At a net session on Tuesday, Gibson could be heard calling no-balls and during the first Test Broad pondered whether it would be possible to have umpires at net sessions.”It’s incredibly frustrating,” Cook said of the transgressions. “One of the frustrating bits is there has been less and less no-balls called in games and you always know as a bowler if you’re never getting called you don’t really do too much about it.”In the nets, Gibbo is onto the guys making sure it’s their full run-up and they’re not bowling no-balls. It is incredibly frustrating not only for the ten other guys but the one bloke who must feel terrible. No one means to do it but we are working hard to make sure we don’t do it again.”The question of calling no-balls on-field was raised at an ICC briefing to the media in Dubai on Monday. Geoff Allardice, the ICC’s general manager of cricket, said that umpires still confer with bowlers to warn them when they are getting tight to the line, but confirmed that the instruction was only to call them if they are sure, because once a no-ball is called the subsequent actions cannot be overturned.Stuart Broad comes in off his long run in training•Getty Images

He said there were no plans in the near future to take the process out of the hands of the on-field umpires, largely because the officials themselves have said they want to retain the authority in the middle. Umpires, partly for safety, now stand further back from the stumps than they used to while there are some bowlers, such as Finn, who have an action which blocks off the view of the front foot.Cook, himself, fell victim to a missed no-ball when his dismissal against Shoaib Malik was not referred to the third umpire, only for replays to show that Malik’s foot had landed over the line before dragging back, which made it an illegal delivery.Although frustrating for Cook, who was eyeing a maiden Test triple hundred having previously fallen for 294 against India in 2011, he did have the compensation of setting a vital tone for England’s series with his 14-hour 263. His performance, which helped England pile up 598 for 9, ensured there were no early reminders of the batting woes which struck their previous visit here in 2012 when they passed 300 only once and where 94 by Cook was the highest individual score.Cook said he did not envisage any problem in refocusing his energies in a bid for a repeat performance this week, but was aware that Pakistan’s attack will be strengthened by the return of Yasir Shah on a surface expected to have more life.”It’s always a nice place to be as a batter, to score runs early in a series. I know my game is working well. I don’t think it’s any more or less daunting. For me it’s about rhythm – I had a hit yesterday and felt in good touch. You need a little bit of luck to get in and then it’s a question of whether you can get into that rhythm and go big again. If you get in here, you have to go big.”Pakistan missed [Yasir] last game, he’s done well but we were prepared to play him in Abu Dhabi. He will strengthen their bowling.”It will turn more and a bit quicker – last time there was more for the seamers. It’s a unique stadium, the shadow is still there at 10am and that allows for dampness in the wicket and movement. It should be a better cricket wicket.”

ScorecardNikita Miller’s match haul of 9 for 113 and an important knock of 39 in the second innings led Jamaica to a 30-run win over Windward Islands at Sabina Park. Miller, who took five wickets in the second innings, bowled Windward out for 145 in a chase of 176 and added to his first-innings returns of 4 for 67.With the bat, Miller rescued Jamaica from a score of 25 for 7, sharing a 76-run partnership with Damion Jacobs for the seventh wicket after Shane Shillingford and Mervin Matthew had cut through the batting. Both Shillingford and Matthew finished with five-fors. The partnership between Miller and Jacobs helped stretch Jamaica’s first-innings lead of 47 to 175, which proved too much for Windward.Jamaica posted 259 in their first innings, building around Andre McCarthy’s 92, while John Campbell and David Bernard chipped in with 43. Liam Sebastien was the pick of Windward bowlers with figures of 7 for 58. Windward managed 212 in response, the only noteable score being Sunil Ambris’ 89. Apart from Miller, Jacobs was also among the wickets in the first innings, taking 3 for 76.

Leicestershire are unlikely to suffer the fate of Middlesex and have pointsdeducted for the state of their pitch after their Division One championshipmatch with Durham ended with a day to spare.With the visitors managing only 93 Leicestershire won by 217 runs. Phil Sharpe, a ECB liason officer, watched the game over the first two days as there had been concern over the pitch for two days before the game got underway. Vince Wells and Jack Birkenshaw, captain and manager of Leicestershire respectively,admitted that all was well with the pitch.Birkenshaw stated: “We don’t want pitches like this, but it was caused by circumstances.” The ball kept low throughout. Ben Smith’s fine first innings was exceptional in the circumstances and determined the outcome.After recent disappointments Leicestershire were encouraged by theirsuccess.

The KSCA Diamond Jubilee Tournament saw yet another strong side from Chennai advance as Chemplast beat ONGC by 4 wickets at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. When ONGC won the toss, skipper Vadhera opted to bat first. His decision looked like the right one when openers Gagan Khoda and Manoj Mudgal put together a 50 run opening partnership. Mudgal (31) was castled by Balajee and soon after the wickets began to fall at regular intervals.Left arm spinner Diwakar Vasu got his act together, trapping his opposition captain LBW with the score on 76. Rizwan Shamshad and Virendra Sehwag both failed to make significant contributions. With the score on 143, Khoda, who was holding one end up was dismissed one run short of his half century. Vasu then scalped three quick wickets, getting rid of the tail. He ended with 4/36 off his 10 overs. 202 was all ONGC could muster before they were all out in the last of their allotted 50 overs.In response, Chemplast began badly, losing Badrinath before he could open his account. Punjab cricketer Dinesh Mongia played a solid knock, making 59 in the middle order. Batting around him, Jacob Martin (27), Vasant Saravanan (32) and Ajay Kudua (36) took Chemplast to a four wicket victory with a little more than an over to spare.

Persistent rain in Sydney has ensured that the Pura Cup match between New South Wales and South Australia has been abandoned without a ball being bowled. Any last hope of scheduling play in the match was scrapped this morning when the same drenching rain that has fallen on the Bankstown Oval to wash out the previous two days of this game continued into a third.It has been nearly twenty-eight years since the last occasion (the Queensland-Victoria match in Brisbane in 1972-73) on which the entirety of an Australian domestic first-class match was surrendered to poor weather. But there was never really any chance of avoiding this unpleasant fate once Sydney’s weather became the hostage of a series of low pressure systems early on Monday morning.The two sides accordingly leave the ground with no points to show from a contest that had offered plenty in the way of excitement. The outcome will represent a particularly significant blow to the Blues, who would have been hoping to capitalise on the last state appearances for the season of a number of their international representatives. Similarly, though, the South Australians would have been optimistic about their chances in the match in view of their excellent recent record against the Blues when the two teams have been at full strength.New South Wales remains in second position on the Pura Cup table (with eight points from three matches), while the South Australians continue to occupy fifth place (with no points from two matches).

Looking through the categories of membership, Hampshire County Cricket Club offers a wide range of choices, depending on individual circumstances. From a single Junior Membership at £20 to Company Membership (10 transferable tickets) at £720 we can provide a broad spectrum of opportunities to suit anybody interested in becoming a member of the Club.Hampshire’s most popular membership category is the Full Membership at £95, used by those people wishing to take advantage of the full playing programme.Please note that formal nomination is not necessary.

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calculated at2000 rates if purchased BEFORE 31st March 2001at 2001 rates if purchased AFTER 1st April 2001If you wish to purchase further years subscription and your category is due to change because of a birthday the appropriate rates will be used to calculate your extended membership. So, whatever catagory of membership you are, you cannot lose.For members with a category change or any queries regarding membership, please contact Jill Smithers, the Membership Secretary to confirm the exact subscription payable. Telephone: 023 8047 2002.For further Information please contact:The Membership Secretary,Hampshire County Cricket ClubThe Hampshire Rose Bowl,Botley Road, West End,SOUTHAMPTON, SO30 3XHE-MAIL: [email protected]METHOD OF PAYMENTDIRECT DEBIT, Subscriptions automatically paid every year at precisely the right time. No need to write and post cheques. Most importantly – you remain in control and can cancel the instructions whenever you you wish. Only mandates received by 1st December 2001 become operative for the new season. Thereafter, the instruction is put back one year and the 2001 subscription to be paid by cash, cheque or credit/debit card. Direct Debit Mandates are available from the Membership Office. No action required by members who already pay by direct debit.Payments can also be made by cheque, credit or debit card (excluding American Express)

One of the world’s greatest fast bowlers has confirmed that he will be playing in Darren Gough’s benefit match at Don Valley Stadium.Pakistan legend Wasim Akram will line up alongside a host of other household names on Thursday August 30 for the Rest of the World XI against Gough’s All Stars in the 40-over Costcutter International Challenge, sponsored by Costcutter Supermarkets UK.The two have been best of friends as well as best of enemies for nearly a decade since Gough made his international debut in 1994. Wasim has been around a lot longer since beginning his Test career as a teenager in 1984.Barnsley-born Gough, aged 30, is England’s seventh-highest wicket-taker in Test Matches. He is delighted that Wasim has accepted his invitation to play in his benefit game.’Dazzler’ said: “I’ve known Wasim a long time, playing against him regularly. Over the years we have built up a strong friendship and we both respect what the other can do on the cricket pitch.”Wasim has never given me an easy time, either batting against me or bowling at me, and I’m sure he’ll be just as competitive when he is playing at Don Valley for the Rest of the World XI.”Wasim is widely regarded as the best left-hand bowler to have played the game. Alongside new ball partner Waqar Younis Pakistan stormed to victory in the 1992 World Cup and he is the only player to have taken more than 400 wickets in both Test Match cricket and One-Day Internationals.Ian Townsend, chief executive of The Medical House plc and a member of Darren Gough’s Benefit Committee, said: “This is great news. Wasim is one of the legends of the modern game. We’re delighted that he has agreed to play in the match.”The day/night game at Don Valley is the highlight to a year of activities to mark an outstanding ten-year career in professional cricket for Darren Gough at both national and county level for the England team and Yorkshire County Cricket Club.The quality of the two teams means the game will rival any first-class match the season’s fixture list can offer. Umpiring the game are Dickie Bird, who has agreed to come out of retirement, and current international umpire John Hampshire.Tickets are available for the match now from the box office on 0114 2565657. Price Pre event sales – Grandstand £14 Adult, £7 U16, Other Areas £10 Adult, £5 U16On the day of the game at the gate – Grandstand £17 Adult, £8.50 U16, Other Areas £12 Adult, £6 U16.

• It was the 1724th ODI in cricket history.
• It was England’s 330th and Pakistan’s 498th ODI.
• It was the 49th match between these two sides. The record now reads :Pakistan 20, England 28, abandoned one.
• John Holder and Mervyn Kitchen were officiating in their 18th and 28thmatch respectively.
• Darren Gough was playing his 50th consecutive match since the matchagainst Australia at Brisbane on 10-01-1999.He became fourthEnglishman to do so after Ian Botham (67), Graeme Hick (55) and DavidGower (50).
• Marcus Trescothick became third Englishman to be dismissed off thefirst ball of a match. Others to achieve this dubiuos distinction forEngland are Barry Roberts (b.Roberts) versus West Indies atScarborough on 26-08-1976 and Derek Randall (c.Lloyd b.Roberts) versusWest Indies at Brisbane on 23-12-1979. In addition, Graham Gooch wasalso dismissed off the first ball in England’s innings (lbw Brandes)at Albury on 18-03-1992,but that was in the second innings of thematch.
• The eighth wicket partnership of 67 runs between Ben Hollioake andDarren Gough was England’s best for this wicket against all countriesobliterating the 62 run-partnership between Darren Gough and DermotReeve against Sri Lanka at Faisalabad on 09-03-1996. This alsoequalled the record partnership for eighth wicket by any side againstPakistan. Kenya’s Deepak Chudasama and Thomas Odoyo had also added 67runs at Nairobi (Aga) on 02-10-1996. Incidentally the previous highestpartnership for England for eighth wicket against Pakistan was apaltry 29 runs between Ronnie Erani and Robert Croft at Edgbaston on31-08-1996. Just for the record,the previous highest for England foreighth wicket in England was 55 runs between John Lever and Chris Oldagainst Australia at 04-06-1977.
• Gough’s innings of 40* is the highest by an English batsman at numbernine. This obliterated Martin Bicknell’s 31* against Australia atPerth on 09-12-1990.Incidentally West Indian Michael Holding holds therecord of playing the highest innings at this position with 64 againstAustralia at Perth on 05-02-1984.
• Gough now has an aggregate of 189 runs (ave.15.75) in 18 innings whilebatting at number nine – maximum for England. He surpassed Phil deFreitas’ tally of 151 runs (ave.15.10) from 20 innings. Just for therecord, Australia’s Shane Warne has scored maximum runs at thisbatting position – 421 runs (ave 14.03) from 47 innings.
• Waqar Younis (7-36) achieved the second best bowling performance inODIs. Only Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan with 7 for 30 againstIndia at Sharjah last year has better figures in shorter form of thegame. Waqar also bettered Aaqib Javed’s Pakistani record of bestbowling in one day internationals. Javed took seven wickets for 37runs against India at Sharjah on October 25,1991. Waqar also putWinston Davis’ seven for 51 in to shade – the previous best figures bya bowler on English soil. He also eclipsed Australia’s Garry Gilmour’ssix for 14 – the previous best figures against England. Theaccompanying table lists the best bowling figures in a one-dayinternational :

• Waqar’s figures are now the best by a captain in ODIs. The previousrecord was on the name of West Indian Viv Richards who took six for41 against India at Delhi on 23-10-1989. The following table liststhe best bowling figures by a captain in a ODI match :

• Alec Stewart, by holding four catches in Pakistani innings, created anew record of most dismissals by an English keeper against Pakistan.The previous record was of three dismissals made on seven occasions(thrice by Stewart himself).
• The two wickets in this match has taken Darren Gough’s tally ofwickets to 147 from 94 matches making him the most successful bowlerfor England. Gough eclipsed Ian Botham’s record of 145 wickets from116 matches.
• Alec Stewart conceded the match due to pitch invasion by crowd. It wasthe second instance of a side conceding the match. The only otherinstance took place more than 22 years ago when Indian captain BishanSingh Bedi called his batsmen from the field when 23 runs were neededfrom 14 balls with eight wickets in hand in protest against thepersistent short pitched bowling of Sarfraz Nawaz whose fourconsecutive bouncers were not called wide. Though the World Cup matchbetween India and Sri Lanka at Calcutta on 13-03-1996 had to beabandoned due to crowd disturbance when India was 120 for eight inreply to Sri Lanka’s 251 for eight , the match was awarded to SriLanka by default by match referee Clive Lloyd.
• The defeat in this match has extended England’s streak of consecutivelosses to 10. The defeat was also England’s fifth in consecutivematches at home soilits worst performance. England had lost fourmatches in a row from 18-06-1975 to 31-08-1976.
• Waqar Younis was winning his 14th Man of the Match awardfirstagainst England in 13 matches.

Shiv Sunder Das has been left out of the Indian one-day squad thatwill play in the triangular series with Zimbabwe and West Indies butthe diminutive opener is hardly complaining.With the best average and highest run aggregate in the Test seriesagainst Zimbabwe, the technically sound Das has certainly proved hismettle on fast and bouncy tracks too.And as he leaves for India today, Das has already identified the areashe needs to work upon ahead of the tours of Sri Lanka and SouthAfrica.”I need to improve upon my backlift. I will be practicing on cementwickets with plastic balls,” said the affable Das in an interview toPTI.Das realises the importance of hard work and extensive practice andbefore coming to Zimbabwe, he had practiced playing outgoingdeliveries and learnt from the experiences of his seniors.”I practiced a lot about the deliveries leaving outside the off-stump.I also practiced how not to play on the rise and I spoke a lot toseniors like Sourav (Ganguly) and Rahul (Dravid) in the Chennai camp(ahead of the tour),” he says.The preparations paid rich dividends as Das notched up 239 runs fromfour innings at an average of 79.67 with a highest score of 82 notout. The effort got him the man of the series award in just his thirdTest series.Success did not come easily to him, though. Das admitted he haddifficulty in putting all his preparations into practice straightawayand he struggled in the first few innings in the tour matches.”I really struggled in the first game of the tour at Mutare. I didn’tplay well. I realised I was not really moving my feet in line with theball. I corrected it and the hundred against CFX Academy (in the nextgame) really gave me confidence,” he said.Such constant reviews of his performance have helped Das in improvinghis already solid technique which many experts believe is similar tothe legendary Sunil Gavaskar. Das most certainly is the first genuineTest opener for India after Gavaskar left the scene in 1987.And he echoes the master batsman when he says, “As an opener, you mustwatch for balls outside the off-stump all the time. You must knowwhere your off-stump is.”He certainly knew where his off-stump was on this tour with homecaptain Heath Streak saying that only if the other Indian batsmen hademulated Das, India would have put up a much better fight in thesecond Test that the visitors lost by four wickets to see their dreamsof a series win being dashed.”Das was among the few Indian batsmen who showed the patience requiredon wickets with a little bit of extra bounce. He knew exactly wherehis off-stump was and he didn’t play unnecessary shots. And the rewardwas there for him,” Streak said.Das says he has acquired the correct technique while playing on unevensurfaces in Orissa. “Playing on matting wicket at home has reallyhelped. For one, it has helped me play bouncing deliveries well. Ithas also improved my backfoot play which is essential for an opener,”Das said.Das still had some problems against the rising deliveries during thehome series against Australia when he took a lot of body blows fromthe pace battery of Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Damien Fleming.”I was having a few problems against the Australians. When the ballwas bouncing, I was not watching the ball, but later I think I playedthem well. Getting runs against the likes of McGrath, Gillespie and(Shane) Warne was really encouraging,” he said.The patience which he has displayed in his batting is evident in hisoverall approach to the game and future plans too as he dismissessuggestions that he was prone to getting out just when he seemed to beset.”I may have missed out on hundreds, but they were not bad efforts. Thebig hundreds will come. After all I have played just seven Testmatches,” said Das, whose only Test hundred came in the second matchin the home series against Zimbabwe last year.Keen to contribute something more than the runs he scores, Das hastaken some brilliant catches at forward short leg, a position hespecialises in while fielding. “I just love fielding. I used to do alot of catching when I was a kid. I was inspired to stand in thisposition because of a few outstanding catches I have seen being takenin that position, I get hit sometimes but it doesn’t deter me,” hesaid.His captain Sourav Ganguly was all praise for him but said Das shouldnow be ready to handle the growing expectations of his fans. “Thepressure will now begin for him. People will start expecting runs fromhim, every time he goes in. It will altogether be a differentpressure,” Ganguly said.But physical and mental toughness is something Das has acquired rightfrom his childhood. “It’s because things don’t happen easily inOrissa. You don’t get things easy out there. It makes you very tough,physically and mentally,” he said.

Kent Spitfires remain in second place in the NUL Div One after defeating the Notts Outlaws by just one run at Trent Bridge.Having set the home side a victory target of 197 it was nail-biting time for the Spitfires as Darren Bicknell with 64 and then Kevin Pietersen, with 48, threatened to condemn them to their first NCL defeat of the season. With two needed from the final ball though, Andrew Symonds throw from the long on boundary ran out Pietersen.Replying to the visitors’ all-out total of 196 Darren Bicknell’s first four scoring strokes all raced to the boundary boards as Notts began in confident fashion. His only moment of real concern in the early stages was an unintentional beamer from Ben Trott which narrowly avoided his head.Trott caused problems of a different sort in his next over when he found the outside edge of Greg Blewett’s bat but ‘keeper Paul Nixon dropped a straightforward offering moving to his right.Blewett had again looked out of touch and made only 13 when he tried to hit across the line to Trott and was bowled.Usman Afzaal, keen to celebrate his call-up for the Second Test, made only eight before being stumped advancing down the track to try to slog Min Patel over mid-wicket.Bicknell moved to his fifth league half-century of the season (81 mins 69 balls 9x4s) to cement his position as the leading run scorer in the NUL. Paul Johnson continued his fine recent form, combining deft touches with aggressive pulls.The pair had put on 47 runs in 12 overs when Johnson stepped back to give himself room against Patel but only succeeded in hitting the ball straight into the midriff of Andrew Symonds in the covers.Patel and Symonds dragged Kent back into the contest with miserly spells and the Outlaws needed more than a run a ball from the last ten overs. Mark Ealham’s return to the attack supplied the most important moment of the innings thus far, as his second ball induced Bicknell to chip straight to Fulton at mid-wicket.Ealham also bowled Bilal Shafayat and Chris Read but Kevin Pietersen upped the tempo and hit Saggers for a huge six as 21 were needed from the final three overs and then 12 from two. Richard Logan played his part to leave just six needed from the last over.A single took Pietersen to 48. Logan missed the next two but then got his partner back on strike. The canny Ealham then deceived everybody as Notts dashed through for a bye. 194-6 with one ball to go. Logan drove it straight but Pietersen couldn’t get back for two and was easily run out to leave the Spitfires victors by one run.Earlier Kent, who won the toss and elected to have first use of the wicket, were dismissed for 196 in the final over of their innings. They overcame the loss of James Hockley in the first over to reach 53-1 but then lost wickets steadily throughout with only David Fulton topping 30. Six different Outlaws bowlers shared the wickets, with Greg Smith carding the best figures with 3-37.