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Division One

Michael Di Venuto again showed what he brings to Durham with a double century against Kent at Chester-le-Street as he carried his bat for the second time in the season. His unbeaten 204 pushed Durham to full batting points in less than 87 overs. After Yasir Arafat removed Will Smith and Paul Collingwood in the same over Durham’s innings was built around a third-wicket stand of 181 between Di Venuto and Kyle Coetzer (74). Kent fought back through James Tredwell and Ryan McLaren and at 296 for 7 had a chance to wrap up the innings. However, Liam Plunkett (35) gave another demonstration of his batting credentials, adding 63 with Di Venuto, as Durham regained the momentum. Steve Harmison offered supported in a final-wicket stand of 40, pushing Durham above 400, as Tredwell and McLaren took four wickets apiece.Darren Maddy continued to excel in the Warwickshire captaincy role with his second century in four days as they formed a solid platform against Surrey at The Oval. His unbeaten 133, a first Championship ton since 2004, was more than half Surrey’s total for the day but he was provided with useful support by Ian Westwood, Jonathan Trott, who was bowled off a no-ball first delivery, and Jim Troughton. However, Ian Bell missed out when he played round a straight one from Neil Saker for 9. Maddy, though, couldn’t be shifted as he reached his hundred off 113 balls and when rain brought an early end to the day before tea 106 of his runs had come in boundaries including 24 off one Rikki Clarke over. Surrey’s attack again struggled to make an impact despite Matthew Nicholson’s first Championship appearance of the season. Saker, who impressed against Lancashire last week, was the main wicket-taker although his three wickets did come at a cost.Craig White fell three runs short of a century but Yorkshire were in a strong position against Worcestershire when the rain arrived at Headingley. White and Joe Sayers, dropped early by Ben Smith at slip, batted through most of the first two sessions as Worcestershire’s patched-up attack, including Scotland seamer Dewald Nel, were made to toil. Roger Sillence eventually made the breakthrough when White was caught behind for 97, but Sayers was again showing his appetite for the long innings. In his last match on the ground he made an unbeaten 149 and has now batted for more than 14 hours on home turf without being dismissed.Rain prevented any play on the opening day between Hampshire and Lancashire at The Rose Bowl. The umpires had numerous inspections and made their decision during the afternoon. It meant England trio Andrew Flintoff, James Anderson and Sajid Mahmood were left kicking their heels, but Kevin Pietersen was already ruled out of the match after picking up a calf strain.

Division Two

In the one match which started on Tuesday, Marcus Trescothick converted his opening day century into a career-best 284, leading Somerset to an imposing 641 for 6 against Northamptonshire at Northampton. Unbeaten on 185 overnight, Trescothick soon reached his double seven overs into the day off 306 balls and passed his previous best of 219 – made against South Africa at The Oval in 2003 – as the home side struggled to make an impression. He was within sight of a triple hundred until falling to a catch in the covers off Lance Klusener shortly before lunch, but there was no let-up from Somerset. James Hildreth, who added 227 with Trescothick, moved his own century off 131 balls before Ian Blackwell tore into a tiring attack. Blackwell launched 11 fours and four sixes in a 47-ball assault, then the rain arrived to help Northamptonshire escape further punishment.Derbyshire’s seam attack rifled through the Leicestershire top order at Derby but Paul Nixon and Mansoor Amjad managed to stop the slide until rain arrived mid-way through the afternoon. Left-arm seamer Graham Wagg removed the top three under overcast skies including Darren Robinson who batted 25 overs for 19. Alongside Tom Lungley’s removal of HD Ackerman for 1 – edging one which climbed on him – the innings stumbled to 46 for 4. Jim Allenby played his shots but when he and John Sadler fell in quick succession a capitulation was on the cards. However, Nixon has twice bailed Leicestershire out in tight one-day situations over the weekend and brought his form into the four-day game. Alongside Amjad, who recently returned from Pakistan’s training camp, they added an unbeaten 69. Ireland seamer Boyd Rankin made the Derbyshire starting XI and extracted lift form the service although went wicketless.Middlesex shaded the opening proceedings against Nottinghamshire on a truncated day at Trent Bridge with Bilal Shafayat holding firm against some impressive bowling from Tim Murtagh. Richard Johnson bagged the first breakthrough, Jason Gallian edging behind shortly after being dropped by Murali Kartik, but Murtagh made the main inroads. He had Mark Wagh caught behind trying to leave the ball and then broke a threatening stand of 79 between Shafayat and David Hussey before removing the in-form Samit Patel second ball. Shafayat, normally a dashing strokemaker, was forced to play a much more watchful role and faced 176 balls, but it was a vital contribution for his team, as he and Chris Read negotiated the period before play was curtailed.

Queensland’s first real blemish of the match – a missed catch at slip in late afternoon – threatens to undo most of its good work over the first three days of the Pura Cup clash with Western Australia at the WACA ground in Perth. Martin Love’s uncharacteristic error has allowed Damien Martyn (70*) and Simon Katich (39*) to add an unbroken century stand and reduce the Warriors’ overall deficit in the match to ninety-nine runs (with seven second innings wickets in hand) by stumps.Prior to the advent of the grassed chance, the Queenslanders had continued to dominate until almost the point of tea on another fine, sunny day. Indeed, the tale of woe that could have been recounted on the back of Western Australia’s batting performance yesterday soon needed extra paragraphs added to it when play resumed this morning. Following the two best individual performances amid the wreckage of an innings of 195, Adam Gilchrist (59) and Mike Hussey (41) both lost concentration and forced away from their bodies at deliveries cutting off the pitch. Soon, Jo Angel (5) was driving uppishly at a reasonably full outswinger from the ever-accurate Adam Dale (5/41) and lofting a catch straight into the hands of Jimmy Maher at a shortish cover position. And then, on the other side of lunch, Dale continued to capitalise on a similarly excellent effort behind the stumps from Wade Seccombe (who held six catches for the innings) by attaining the opening five-wicket haul at first-class level for the season. The right arm paceman had snared the final two scalps, and allowed captain Stuart Law to enforce the follow-on, when he induced Matthew Nicholson (35) into a top edged cut and then trapped Gavin Swan (0) lbw with an inswinger from the very next delivery.A mere nineteen minutes into the new innings, Hussey (5) suffered the ignominy of being dismissed twice in the one day as he made the mistake of pulling to mid on a delivery far too full in length to encourage such a shot. As if that was not bad enough, Australian number three Justin Langer (0) then encountered the rare horror of being dismissed for a pair as he drove loosely at, and outside edged, a ball swinging away two deliveries into the next Andy Bichel (2/32) over. Ryan Campbell (25) fought bravely for a time but was the next to head back in the direction of the pavilion as he tried to cover drive an Ashley Noffke (1/34) outswinger, only to mistime the shot and watch as Maher completed a fine catch high to his left at backward point.In between some scorching strokes to the boundary from the former, matters were initially no easier for either Martyn or Katich. Both played and missed repeatedly at Noffke and the right hander dodged a large bullet at 12 when Umpire Woolridge ruled in the batsman’s favour upon being subjected to a beseeching lbw appeal from Dale (0/24).But this was all before Love, normally as reliable as slips fieldsmen come, snatched at the opportunity to bring Martyn’s hand to a close in the same general manner as in the first innings – with an interception at first slip following an ill-advised slash at a leg cutter. At the time, the Test aspirant had just 25 alongside his name and the Western Australians were deep in trouble at a mark of 3/61, a scoreline which still left them as many as 186 runs in arrears.Batting has never been the almost impossible task that the Warriors had made it look in their first innings and the early stages of a second that eventually billowed to an overnight mark of 3/148. And, offered the reprieve on the still placid pitch, Martyn joined with Katich to prove the point as they took the sort of toll of a tiring attack that should have been exacted far earlier. The former hit some delightful shots behind point and through the covers, while the latter – playing his first match since returning home from a productive season of county cricket with Durham – concentrated his energies on executing some magnificent drives through the arc between mid on and mid off. Having weathered the series of early scares and been forced to bat against attacking fields for much of the afternoon, both truly earned their runs.Difficulties still loom for the Western Australians tomorrow if they do not show an equivalent level of application. But the extent of the resolve displayed by both Martyn and Katich must surely have served up something in the way of a general morale-boost among their teammates in the dressing room. Together with the accompanying sight of some uncharacteristically wayward bowling and sloppy fielding from the Bulls – one piece of it in particular – the generation of the best Western Australian stand of the match would certainly imply that the connection between Queensland and a eleventh outright victory from its last fourteen first-class encounters is not necessarily automatic.

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.

Former Zimbabwe captain Tatenda Taibu is currently back in Zimbabwe on a brief stopover before proceeding to South Africa where he is set to sign up for a franchise side in the next few weeks.Taibu confirmed to Cricinfo on Friday that he has set his sights on a longer career in South Africa, and may only return to the United Kingdom, where he was playing for Pyford in Surrey, if he feels that it’s good for his career. Taibu said he was hopeful to seal a deal with either the Fidentia Warriors or the Nashua Cape Cobras if they agree to terms.Taibu once again poured cold water on a possible immediate resumption of his international career, saying forthrightly that his chances of playing for Zimbabwe in the near future are “zero percent”.Taibu’s resignation was precipitated by a clash with ZC over several policy issues at the height of a player dispute which saw some senior players leave the team in frustration.

Unbeaten half-centuries from Manprit Juneja and Rujul Bhatt steered defending champions and table-toppers Gujarat to 262 for 4 in a game they would like to win considering how tight things are in Group B. There is the possibility of a two-way tie, even a three-way tie. So to stay safe in such circumstances six points – or seven if they could manage it – could be vital.Jharkhand chose to bowl on home turf but ran into a very stubborn opening batsman in Samit Gohel, who faced 179 deliveries for his 64. Nevertheless, he struck eight fours and a six. His partner Priyank Panchal, who came into the game with back-to-back hundreds, fell for 33. Bhargav Merai (23) and Parthiv Patel (33) didn’t trouble the scorers too much either and when Gohel fell in the 61st over, Gujarat were 179 for 4. That’s when Juneja and Bhatt (who made 40 of his 51 runs in boundaries) came together to string a stand worth 83 runs in 22 overs.Their regular No. 3 was busy scoring a hundred for India so Avi Barot was left to play the innings Cheteshwar Pujara might have, batting almost the entire day to remain unbeaten on 128 as Saurashtra battled for qualification into the Ranji Trophy knockouts. He came to the crease in the 10th over and, with Robin Uthappa (59) and Sheldon Jackson (54*) for support, took the score to 286 for 3 against Rajasthan in Jaipur.With Saurashtra needing nothing short of a win – and even then they could find themselves out of the title – they could not afford a bad start. But the openers couldn’t get past 20 and it was down to the middle order to regain the upper hand. Uthappa struck 11 fours to bring up his third half-century in as many matches and when he fell, Jackson took over striking seven fours in a 93-ball innings. Left-arm seamer Tanvir-ul-Haq was Rajasthan’s most successful bowler, picking up 2 for 48 in 21 overs.Kerala‘s Sandeep Warrier and Vinod Kumar took six wickets between them to reduce Haryana to 207 for 9 in Lahli. The two medium-pacers have kept their team alive in the race towards the quarter-finals, bowling 37 overs between them for only 90 runs.But they had to wrench the upper hand back from Haryana, who at one point were 94 for 1. Then they became 158 for 6 and finally ended the day clinging on to their last wicket. None of the hosts’ batsmen could make a score higher than Rajat Paliwal’s 45. He was dismissed in the penultimate over before stumps, and Kerala received a bigger boost when Warrier picked up a wicket with what became the last ball of the day to push his tally to 4 for 50.

Martyn Ball has shocked Gloucestershire by announcing his retirement from professional cricket after 19 years with the club. Despite signing a new one-year deal last summer he as opted to take up a role with the US-based property development company Ginn Europe.Ball, 36, admits it was a huge decision to leave the sport behind but felt the time was right. “I’ve had 19 fantastic years playing first-class cricket and Gloucestershire has become a major part of my life,” he told .”But this marvellous opportunity has come along and I have had to make a decision. There has been a lot of soul searching but, in my mind, I know this is the right time for me to announce my retirement.”I’ve seen people stay too long and end their careers full of bitterness and resentment and I didn’t want that for myself. This way, I’m going out on my own terms and with my reputation intact.”Tom Richardson, the chief executive, praised Ball’s efforts with the club. “He has made a significant contribution, especially during the past eight seasons when our team has collected nine trophies.”His efforts in these one-day competitions cannot be underestimated although the statistics will not always show the depth of Martyn’s contribution.”Ball is also set to leave his position as Professional Cricketers’ Association chairman but still hopes to put something back into the game. “I want to be able to come back in the future and help out Gloucestershire in any way I can.”In a career spanning 193 first-class matches he took 389 wickets at 37.74 and scored 4633 runs at 19.22. However, it was in the one-day game where he really shone and his 288 wickets came at 30.47 while he was a brilliant slip fielder. He’d also adapted well to Twenty20, playing 29 matches and taking 27 scalps at 24.48.His highest honour came when he was called up to England’s tour of India in 2001-02 after Robert Croft’s withdrawal from the trip following the 9/11 attacks. He didn’t make the Test team, but did line-up in a warm-up fixture and came as a sub in the second Test, at Ahmedabad, catching Sourav Ganguly off Andrew Flintoff.

ScorecardChris Tremain claimed his second five-wicket haul in first-class cricket (file photo)•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

South Australia will aim to knock over Victoria’s lower order and set up a smallish chase on the third day at the MCG after they reduced the hosts to 6 for 123 at stumps on a rain-affected second day. Victoria’s lead was 104 at stumps in the low-scoring contest, with John Hastings at the crease on 15 alongside Dan Christian on 11.Daniel Worrall had continued his excellent match and had 3 for 34 in the second innings to add to his five-wicket haul in the first, enjoying the assistance provided by a pitch still boasting some grass. Joe Mennie had claimed two wickets and Chadd Sayers had one in the second innings, with opener Travis Dean’s 33 so far the best score for Victoria.The Redbacks had started the day at 6 for 156 in their first innings and they added 43 for the loss of their last four wickets. Chris Tremain was the most effective of Victoria’s bowlers and finished with a career-best 5 for 52, which was his second five-wicket haul in first-class cricket.