All posts by csb10.top

More women are playing cricket in organised competitions in Australia, research by Cricket Australia has revealed.But the figures also highlight that cricket needs to do more to attract more girls and women into the game, according to Cricket Australia chief executive officer James Sutherland.Census figures illustrate that more than 7,000 women have taken up cricket over the past year, as female participation in cricket has grown from 40,445 participants nationally (8.7%) in 2002-03, to 47,780 (10.1%).”We are delighted with the results from the census,” said Mr Sutherland. “In particular, it is fantastic to see that female participation in the game is growing at a healthy rate. This is an especially pleasing result as Cricket Australia became fully integrated with women’s cricket in July 2003.””The female cricket market in Australia has a lot of potential to grow, and this year’s results help indicate to us that we’re heading in the right direction with the women’s game. It is a result we’re very pleased to see and a trend that we, the state cricket associations and clubs need to keep working on.”For the purpose of the census, the definition of a cricket `participant’ is one who plays in an organised cricket competition or program of more than four games per season.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board has been rocked by the resignation of Reazuddin Al Mamun, its joint secretary and chairman of the media committee, following reports that Ali Asghar, the board’s president, struck a deal over television rights without advising Mamun.Asghar is said to have agreed a TV and sponsorship deal with Aston Moore, who were also appointed as the board’s marketing agents, and the situation was further complicated when he refused to accept Mamun’s resignation.Asghar denies any such arrangement. “I did not make any secret deal with Aston Moore as BCB marketing agent, I just gave them a letter to determine the value of BCB,” he said. “I asked them assess current marketing value of the Bangladesh and the team and other rights, but Aston Moore failed to submit the assessment report within the stipulated period.”But a report in the Daily Star quotes a board insider as saying: “One thing is now sure that the BCB president had a deal with that agency. No doubt everybody was kept in the dark about it. Now an attempt is on to make both parties keep mum to avoid further complications.”Actually there have been a lot of disputes over certain issues during the last six months and it became exposed after the elections of the board in August. It is not unexpected for Mamun to resign because he was not happy with certain things.”The report added that more resignations might follow. The source concluded: “I will not be surprised if the board president himself steps down citing his political commitments ahead of the next general elections.”

Zimbabweans 206 and 233 (Williams 82*, Morkel 6-66) drew with Combined Easterns/Northerns XI 275
ScorecardRain rescued the Zimbabweans as play was brought to an early close on the fourth and final day against the Easterns/Northerns XI at Willowmoore Park.Easterns/Northerns would have needed only 165 for victory after Morne Morkel took six for 66 to wreck Zimbabwe’s second innings – but, instead, the rain wrecked any chance of a result.After most of the third day had been washed out – only 21.1 overs were bowled -the Zimbabweans resumed the final day in a precarious position on 193 for 8: a lead of 82 with just two wickets remaining. In what little play they could muster between the showers on the final day, they managed to double that lead by adding 82 for the last two wickets. Their spearhead was again the indomitable Sean Williams who took his overnight total of 53 not out to an unbeaten 82. But then the rains came, leaving the match high and dry and out of the reach of the Easterns/Northerns.

The Sir Vivian Richards Foundation was launched in Viv’s native Antigua on Saturday night (April 10), with a gala dinner at the Crystal Palace Ballroom at the Royal Antiguan Hotel.More than 300 guests attended the launch, with the proceeds going to theFoundation. There was also a raffle and a memorabilia auction – with a bat signed by the West Indian and England players from the current series – which helped ensure that the Foundation got off to a healthy start.The Foundation, which is licensed in Antigua & Barbuda, will promote self-awareness among the youth and will help young people, particularly among theunder-privileged, achieve their goals. Sir Vivian said that assistance would not be limited to the youth of Antigua& Barbuda.Sir Vivian, one of cricket’s all-time greats and now the chairman of the West Indies selectors, was on hand at the function, which was billed as "An Evening with Sir Vivian Richards and Other Cricketing Greats". One of the highlights was a question-and-answer session involving Viv and his great friend and former Somerset team-mate Ian Botham.

Polly Umrigar, the former Indian captain who played 59 Tests between 1948 and 1962, has died in Mumbai. He was suffering from lymph cancer and lost the battle at 8:30 this evening at his residence.Umrigar, who will be remembered as one of the heroic figures in Indian cricket, was an early pillar of India’s middle order in the ’50s and ’60s. He scored 3,631 runs at an average of 42.22 with 12 centuries and led India in eight Tests, winning two and losing two with four draws. Having learnt his trade in the competitive in Mumbai, where the emphasis was on technique and application, he went on to break several Indian records, including the most Tests, highest batting aggregate and most hundreds. A burly six-footer, Umrigar was a domineering figure at the crease – whether batting, bowling, or leading the side. He was renowned for his full-blooded drives but, as he showed in the memorable summer in the Caribbean in 1961-62, he could also hook and pull powerfully.More significant, perhaps, than his achievements at the crease was the fact that he helped shape the few Indian triumphs in his time. His vital 130, coming in at No. 7, helped India achieve their first-ever Test win, against England at Madras in 1952. His hundreds also paved the way for two more Test wins, against Pakistan at Mumbai in 1952 and New Zealand at Madras in 1956.He was the first Indian to hit a Test double-century, a feat he achieved against New Zealand at Hyderabad in 1955. He led India in eight Tests, winning two and losing two before he resigned the captaincy at Madras against West Indies in 1959 following a misunderstanding with the selectors. He is only one of two Indian cricketers (Vinoo Mankad being the other) to score a century and take five wickets in an innings – a feat he achieved against West Indies at Port of Spain in 1962. After retirement, he continued to serve Indian cricket as chairman of the selection committee, tour manager and BCCI executive secretary.After retiring from the game, Umrigar served in various administrative roles, including chairman of the selection committee, manager of the Indian side, executive secretary of the Indian board and chief curator of the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai.He is survived by two sons and a daughter.

Essex have emerged as serious contenders in the race to sign Darren Gough, with a local businessman offering to fly him to and from matches in a helicopter if it helps secure the deal.Gough made it clear one of the reasons for him quitting Yorkshire was a desire to cut down on the amount of traveling he was doing from his Milton Keynes home. “Everyone else goes home after a day’s play and sees their families,” he told Sky Sports. “But unfortunately for me my children live down south and I can’t just pop home for three hours and then nip back again for the next day.”Now Bob Weston, an Essex-based millionaire, has said that he will fly Gough around in his own helicopter. “I will make sure he gets there and back again, to help him cut down on journey times,” Weston, who owns the Battersea Heliport, told the Mirror newspaper.Graham Gooch, Essex’s head coach, added that he wanted to speak to Gough. “We are always looking for top players,” he said. “I think we would be keen to discuss something with him.”Warwickshire were the first county to be identified as being definitely interested in signing Gough, and Middlesex and Gloucestershire have also been mentioned as potential candidates.”We are all trying to make contact with him at the moment,” admitted John Emburey, Middlesex’s coach. “In our position we would be interested, but I need to speak to the chairman of the cricket committee as well.”

In the wake of Sunil Gavaskar’s statement that sportsmanship has gone out of the modern game, James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive, today revealed that they were deluged with 15 days of complaints from the public, along with a backlash from sponsors, after Glenn McGrath’s verbal tirade in the West Indies.Speaking at a business lunch, Sutherland said that CA were inundated with phone calls and e-mails following McGrath’s vein-popping rant at Ramnaresh Sarwan during the fourth Test in Antigua. McGrath later apologised to Sarwan and publicly expressed regret at his behaviour, but it has left significant ramifications for the game in Australia.Sutherland continued: “The damage that that caused Australian cricket and arguably our brand could never be measured, but judging by the reaction we got from the media and the public there was no doubt there was a diminution as a result of that unfortunate incident.”People were saying that the Australian team were poor role models anddon’t want (their) kids playing cricket and the captain needs to take controlof the team.”Sutherland, who at the time demanded Steve Waugh curb in his team’sbehaviour, also said sponsors had contacted him to say their brands weresuffering because of the backlash.However, he insisted Cricket Australia had learned much from the incident. While not condoning McGrath’s actions, he also believed that the Australian team had in some ways been a victim of their own success: “When you are successful in this day and age people do like to pick out the bad things and look for things that aren’t that great.”No action was taken by either the umpires or match referee, Mike Procter,against McGrath over the incident, but he was rebuked by Sutherland,who believed it was up to the umpires to clamp down and enforcecricket’s code of conduct to make sure such incidents were promptly dealt with.Sutherland said: "What we need to see is the umpires having the strength of their convictions to act and report players when they cross that line. We need to clarify it and the umpires need to back it up and perhaps stop trying to be everyone’s mate and actually take the hard line and nail players who cross the line.”

<James Hamblin and Shaun Udal held the Yorkshire bowlers at bay for over 20 overs to hold out for a draw. Being set 307 in a minimum of 66 overs on a slow and increasingly turning wicket proved a bridge too far for Hampshire on the last day of the Frizzell Championship match at Scarborough.Having lost the whole of the third day to rain, Yorkshire set about increasing their lead, which they did with venom, Steven Fleming and Michael Lumb in particular were fierce on the Hampshire attack, cutting and pulling at anything short. James Bruce came in for punishment, but was rewarded with a wicket when the New Zealander pulled him to deep mid-wicket. Udal and Hamblin stemmed the tide, but the home side added 188 runs to set up a declaration just before the scheduled lunch interval.Losing Derek Kenway and Simon Katich early put a damper on the idea of a run chase. Kenway was again unfortunate when he was lbw to a ball that barely left the ground. Katich the hero of the first innings left Victor Craven's first ball as he misread the inswinger.James Adams and John Crawley then steaded the innings, but the pace was slow, and when both were dismissed, quickly followed by two more wickets, Hampshire were in serious danger of defeat.A cold wind streatched in from the North Sea as Hamblin and Udal then set about their defence, the pair stayed together for 80 minutes, surviving regular appeals and near misses as the Yorkshire bowlers tried in vain to dislodge them.

Worcestershire have signed Nadeem Malik, the former England Under-19 bowler. He has signed a two-year deal after requesting to leave Nottinghamshire due to a lack of opportunity.Malik nearly moved to Worcestershire last season, but chose to stay on at Notts in the hope of playing in the first team. However, after making just two appearances last year, he decided to make the switch second time around.”The signing of Nadeem is a real coup for Worcestershire,” Tom Moody, Worcestershire’s coach, said. “There were a number of counties after him and we are delighted he is joining us at New Road. He has already demonstrated his enormous potential in first-class cricket and I am confident we can help him build on that and become a top-class performer.”Malik was equally as pleased himself. He said: “My opportunities were limited at Notts and this move gives me a chance to break into the Worcestershire team and, if all goes well, stay there. I want to go all the way to the top and play for England. There’s a lot of work to do before I get there, but I think this move will give me a chance to do that.He continued: “Something’s working right here at New Road. You only have to look the transformation off Gareth Batty — he’s out in Sri Lanka with England. You look at the progress Kabir Ali and Vikram Solanki have made and you know that Tom Moody is making a massive difference. He’s a big reason why I came here and hopefully I can go along the same lines as those players.”Malik, 21, has toured India and New Zealand with the England Under 19s, and has played 14 first-class matches for Notts, taking 35 wickets.

At the end of a day when 38 overs were lost to rain, Glamorgan were 128-2 in reply to Hampshire`s mammoth first innings total of 531-7 declared.Rain prevented any play in the morning session, but the Hampshire batsmen morethan made up for lost time when the match eventually resumed at 2.05pm. The visitors added a brisk 148 in just 17.5 overs with Dimitri Mascarenhas clubbing 100 from only 78 balls with 13 fours and 4 huge sixes. Two of Mascarenhas` sixes cleared the Cardiff pavilion as the Hampshire batsman raced from 50 to 100 in just 20 balls.Needing 382 to avoid the follow-on, Glamorgan`s openers survived a few early scares, as Hampshire`s slip cordon of Kenway, Kendall and Morris each dropped chances, before Dale snicked a ball from Chris Tremlett to the wicket-keeper.Ian Thomas remained resolute, and with his new partner David Hemp unfurlingsome classical drives after tea, the pair had added 69 for the second wicket when Will Kendall made amends for his earlier fumble in the slips by holding onto a blinder of a catch in the gully off a full blooded cut by Ian Thomas, who appeared on course to register his first half-century of the season.Hemp was unbeaten on 41 when play ended with Glamorgan still 403 runs behindwith eight first innings wickets in hand.