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Ireland have announced a squad of 13 for their opening fixture in the Friends Provident Trophy against Nottinghamshire at Clontarf this Sunday (April 27).As expected, William Porterfield has been confirmed as captain for the game, taking over from Trent Johnston. Nineteen-year-old James Hall makes his first appearance in the squad, while 17-year-old opener Paul Stirling retains his place, giving the line up a youthful look.Ireland haven’t named an overseas player for the match, and coach Phil Simmons explained: “It’s been difficult to get the right player because of the IPL. I hope however to be in a position to confirm a signing on Tuesday, and he will be available for the seven other games in the competition.”It’s hard when you lose players of the calibre of Trent Johnston and Dave Langford-Smith, but it does give some of the other players a chance to make a name for themselves, and cement a place in the team. It’s a new era, and captain, William Porterfield will be able to assert his style on the team.”Ireland squad William Porterfield (capt), Andre Botha, Alex Cusack, Phil Eaglestone, Thinus Fourie, James Hall, Gary Kidd, Kyle McCallan, Kevin O’Brien, Paul Stirling, Reinhardt Strydom, Andrew White, Gary Wilson.

In a well contested game, Gujarat defeated Saurashtra by 24 runs inthe West Zone Ranji Trophy one day match at the GSFC ground in Barodaon Friday.Put in to bat, Gujarat thanks to valuable knocks by opener AmrishKotecha (42), Kiran Damani (45) and Bhavin Mehta (38) scored 218before being all out in 49.4 overs. Wickets fell at regular intervalsthanks in the main to some good bowling by Niraj Odedra who took fourfor 50 off ten overs.Saurashtra started well and were 55 for one in the 14th over. ButLalit Patel and Tejas Varsani caused a collapse and Saurashtra were107 for six. A seventh wicket partnership of 64 runs off 11.4 oversbetween Hitesh Parsana (39) and Sudip Mehta (42) revived Saurashtra’shopes but the late order succumbed meekly and Saurashtra were all outfor 194 in 47 overs. Lalit Patel (3 for 35 off ten overs) and Varsani(2 for 26 off nine overs) caused the main damage.

Two days after Sourav Ganguly said that Yuvraj Singh would most likely replace Aakash Chopra as a Test opener, Virender Sehwag has suggested that he would prefer to open with a more defensive-minded partner.According to a report, Sehwag said that a defensive opener could stay at the wicket for longer periods, especially in testing conditions. “In my opinion, one opener should be defensive,” he said. “I need it and India need it. A player whose technique is correct and who can play 15 to 20 overs without any hassle and see off the shine. If the other opener is also a strokemaker like me, then nobody is sure if he’ll last one over or 20 overs.”But before the media could blow things out of proportion, Sehwag added that he didn’t mind opening with Yuvraj, as they understood each other. But he reasoned that it was easier for him to go for his strokes secure in the knowledge that the batsman at the other end was adopting a defensive approach. “I think my combination with Sanjay Bangar and Aakash Chopra is good,” he said, “because both of them are very defensive and play the new ball easily. That gives me the option to go for my strokes.”Changing opening partnerships out of choice, rather than compulsion, appears to be a new phenomenon in Indian cricket. For the best part of the last decade, India’s search for good openers was a fruitless one. More than 15 openers were experimented with, until Sehwag was uprooted from his middle-order position and asked to open. The move came off instantly, and he formed a reasonable partnership with Bangar.It provided India one of its most memorable victories in 2002, at Headingly. But Bangar then made way for Chopra, whose understanding with Sehwag was reflected in their running between the wickets, and consistently large partnerships. They were most successful in Australia in 2003-04, in stark contrast to the disastrous opening gambits that had characterised the debacle in 1999-2000.

Scorecard
A spirited performance from England Lions’ gave them the edge going into the final day of their match against Central Zone. Chasing a stiff 296 for victory, they reached a confident 146 for 1 by stumps in Vadodara.Joe Denly was the only Lions’ wicket to fall, trapped in front by left-arm spinner Praveen Gupta for 15. Michael Carberry and captain Michael Yardy then forged an unbroken 116-run stand for the second wicket to lead the Lions’ pursuit. Needing to score the highest total of the match to win, Carberry and Yardy both played patient knocks to ensure there was no repeat of the second day’s batting collapse. Carberry, who made 35 in the first innings, didn’t throw away his start this time, finishing on an unbeaten 71, including 12 fours and a six. The experienced Yardy had reached 57 by stumps.Central had started the day in control after gaining a 115-run first-innings lead but were kept down to a moderate 180 in their second. With a top-order collapse seeing them at a parlous 39 for 4, Mohammad Kaif, the captain, tried to salvage the situation, top scoring with 42. The tail also resisted with a 60-run partnership for the seventh wicket between Jalaj Saxena (27) and Sanjib Sanyal (37).All the Lions’ bowlers chipped in, with Graham Onions being the most successful, taking three wickets. Monty Panesar was expensive but got the big wicket of the in-form Kaif while legspinner Adil Rashid made short work of the last two wickets.

Former Test batsman Martin Love has been left out of Queensland’s one-day cricket side after struggling to return from a finger injury. Love returned to the Bulls outfit in the Pura Cup loss to Victoria this week but failed in both innings and the selectors want to see him have more match practice to get back into form.Wade Seccombe, the wicketkeeper, and allrounder James Hopes have both been named in the team to play Tasmania on January 2 but must first pass fitness tests. Seccombe has been sidelined with a broken foot while Hopes has a severely bruised hand that restricted him during the 156-run loss to Victoria at the Gabba.Queensland squad
Jimmy Maher (capt), James Hopes, Shane Watson, Andrew Symonds, Clinton Perren, Craig Philipson, Brendan Nash, Wade Seccombe, Andy Bichel, Ashley Noffke, Nathan Hauritz, Shane Jurgensen.

One of the most common remarks made whenever a New Zealand cricketer gets injured is that misfortune never seems to hit other countries in the way it hits New Zealanders.While it might seem that the fates have conspired against New Zealand in these matters the truth is, of course, a little different.New Zealand’s lack of playing numbers, by comparison to most other countries, leaves it vulnerable to the loss of its key players to injury.But when considering the effects on other countries, ponder the plight of Australia’s Jason Gillespie.This man has to be a case of a walking medical textbook on sports-related injuries if ever there was.His latest mishap occurred during the just-completed Test match in Colombo against Pakistan.He tore a calf muscle and now faces the prospect of missing the first Test in the Ashes series at Brisbane starting on November 7.Gillespie, you will recall from last summer, was the one bowler capable of getting right in among the Kiwi batsmen during that result-less series.Fortunately for the Australians, they have a production line of bowlers well capable of ensuring the English have no respite whoever they face in Brisbane.But try this for a list of injury complaints, three foot injuries, stress fractures in the back, a shoulder injury, a groin injury, a side injury, another back injury, a crook hamstring and never to be forgotten, the broken leg he suffered during his horrific collision with Steve Waugh in Sri Lanka in 1999.All of these have afflicted Gillespie since 1997.Yet in that time, he has still managed to play 34 Tests and take 126 wickets at the healthy average of 26.36.While New Zealand bowlers might have suffered more debilitating and career-ending injuries, most notably Geoff Allott and Dion Nash, the fact remains they are not alone in the wear and tear they suffer, and nor is New Zealand alone with the problems of fast bowler breakdown syndrome.

Zimbabwe 201(Higgins 74, Khadka 4-28) beat Nepal 199 for 9 (Chaugai 78, Cremer 3-36) by two runs
Scorecard

Zimbabwe held on by their fingernails to put themselves on the verge of a Super League quarter-final berth, but they came close to becoming the competition’s first significant casualty. Nepal should have won after reaching 150 for 2 in the 38th over chasing 202, but a series of rash shots meant Kanishka Chaugai’s fine 78 went to waste as seven runs from the final over proved out of reach.It was Zimbabwe’s legspin duo of Ryan Higgins – following a vital 74 to resurrect their innings from 90 for 6 – and Graeme Cremer who pulled the match out of the fire. Cremer brought them back onto contention with two wickets in two balls, breaking the partnership between Chaugai and Paras Khadka which was steering Nepal towards their target. Khadka played a huge fresh air shot and was stumped by miles, then Prem Chaudhary edged a cut first ball.Higgins, though, claimed the vital scalp, bowling Chaugai attempting an ambitious sweep. The Nepal captain could hardly tear himself from the crease and it is easy to understand why. He had done more than anyone else to put his country within touching distance of taking a memorable victory with a calm and assured innings.”My form is good but it means nothing if we lose,” he said following the presentation. Under-19 teams will make mistakes, but if they learn from them the process is working. Today, it appeared that Nepal had heeded the lessons of the England match and Chaugai epitomised this.After launching the innings with his customary flourish of searing cuts and drives, he switched into accumulation mode. As his second-wicket stand with Sharad Vesawkar passed fifty Chaugai was content to pick up the singles when Sean Williams set his field back to protect the boundary. All it needed was the batsmen to keep the cool, but as Chaugai admitted, “We got out trying to play some big shots, including me, and we couldn’t quite get there in the last over.”In the end it was the extra experience of the Zimbabwean team that counted. Cremer has played six Tests for Zimbabwe and finished with figures of 9-0-86-3 against South Africa at Cape Town, so is used to dealing with pressure situations. However, even Cremer, with his international experience, was affected by the tension and was not best pleased that a team-mate almost collided with him when he held the caught and bowled off Gyanendra Malla.As the margin grew narrower the arm waving became more furious and there were one or two rumbles of discontent from the boundary fielders as runs were scampered. Following the match Williams was a mightily relieved captain. “I wasn’t too confident at all to be honest, I thought the pitch would have been a little bit lower than it did. It was the wrong toss to lose and our boys did well to come back and win.”Williams was one of the early casualties with the bat, as Nepal held sway after choosing to field first. There was swing with the new ball and at 56 for 5 a humiliating total was looming. Higgins, though, set about the task of building respectability with a level head and straight, adding 96 with Glen Querl. Higgins used the long handle to good effect, showing the benefits of playing out a one-day innings however dire a position may seem.If it had appeared a bleak day for Zimbabwe with the bat, it had nearly got to the point of no return in the field. They dominated less than half the match but, at the vital times it was they who held their nerve.

Shane Watson, the Queensland allrounder, has been confirmed as Hampshire’s overseas player for the Twenty20 Cup. It will be Watson’s second spell with the club and during his previous stint he helped them win the 2005 Friends Provident Trophy.Watson is one of the players up for the second Indian Premier League auction on Tuesday, but that won’t impact on his Hampshire stay which will commence after the tournament in India has finished in early June.”[Shane] was an instant hit with members and fans of Hampshire when he was here in 2004 and I, for one, am very excited at the prospect of seeing him here again this summer,” Rod Bransgrove, the Hampshire chairman, said. “It is fair to say that we have under-performed in the Twenty20 Cup so far, and we have been saying for a while that 2008 will see us focusing more and more on this exciting competition.”Our signing of such a fantastic talent as Watson shows our clear intent to compete hard to be in the finals day that we are so proudly hosting in July.”Watson has been through another injury-hit domestic season in Australia as he continued to struggle with hamstring problems and he hasn’t played international cricket since the ICC World Twenty20. In seven Pura Cup matches he finished with 439 runs at 33.76 and a top score of 190, although he managed just nine wickets.He is currently one of three overseas players on Hampshire’s books although Shane Warne, their captain, won’t be available until the latter part of the season due to his IPL and poker commitments.Shane Bond was signed for the first two months of the season but his participation is now in major doubt after he joined the Indian Cricket League. He is unlikely to gain the required No Obligation Certificate which will allow him to play.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out

Australia will have to chase at least 284 for a 3-0 cleansweep after South Africa spent most of the day building a hugely competitive lead in an absorbing contest. The home side was cruising at 100 for 2 as Herschelle Gibbs breezed to an attractive half-century, but they were pegged back and the advantage would have been much greater if Stuart Clark and Shane Warne had not kept Australia in touch.The pitch is offering disconcerting pace and movement, especially with the new ball, and the target will be a severely challenging one as both teams attempt to end a one-sided series on a high. Each time South Africa threatened to run away with the match Australia dragged themselves back, although the hosts finished extremely strongly in the last 30 minutes with Mark Boucher and Andre Nel taking them to 250 for 8 when bad light ended play early again.Clark used the conditions superbly to deliver a consistent line that challenged the batsmen and upset their rhythm. He finished with 4 for 64 while Warne struck three blows – two with full tosses – as the side performed without Michael Kasprowicz for the final two sessions as he struggled with a back problem. They were already missing Justin Langer, who was recovering from the hit he copped from Makhaya Ntini yesterday, and he is still waiting to make a decision about whether he will bat in the second innings.South Africa realised every run was valuable and promoted Shaun Pollock to No. 6 in a bid to increase the score quickly, and he re-floated them with an entertaining 40 as they coped with the loss of their two rocks, Jacques Kallis and Ashwell Prince, in quick succession. Clark collected Kallis for 27 when he won an lbw decision from Tony Hill and Warne knocked over Prince to a catch that was so doubtful Andrew Symonds didn’t seem to appeal for his take at leg slip. Steve Bucknor sensed an edge and South Africa stuttered as they lost 3 for 20.

When Kallis was dismissed South Africa were 130 for 5 and battling to maintain their momentum, and it wasn’t until Pollock combined with Boucher in a 46-run stand that the lead pushed past 200. Boucher made sure it went even further during another crucial performance with the tail, picking up an unbeaten 55 with Nel chipping into the target setting by adding 18.Australia’s second innings will not be easy as few batsmen have felt comfortable on this surface. Nobody has been as dominant as Gibbs during his 53 that contained six fours and a six to drive his team’s charge. His upbeat display ended with a soft dismissal when he planted Warne’s full toss to Damien Martyn at mid-on and South Africa slowly slipped until Pollock and Boucher intervened.Warne’s entrance had been delayed until after lunch and he bowled throughout the rest of the day to finish with 3 for 83 from 25 overs. His victims will not be memorable ones at the end of his career, including his addition of Nicky Boje to a full toss from a wrong’un gone badly wrong, but they were necessary in a difficult situation.South Africa lost the early wicket of AB de Villiers at 9 when he left a Clark delivery that tipped the top of off stump in the same over he was struck on the gloves by one that jumped. Boeta Dippenaar joined Gibbs in a bright second-wicket stand of 46 at almost six an over before Matthew Hayden dived to intercept a stinging Dippenaar drive at gully that gave Clark his second victim. Clark returned for a long and impressive spell before tea to take care of Kallis and then forced an edge from Jacques Rudolph to continue Australia’s fightback.Ntini finished off the tourists this morning with 6 for 100 as South Africa gained a 33-run buffer after the first innings. Australia added 24 and Brett Lee posted his highest Test score with 64 from 68 balls in a controversial and powerful installment. He escaped an lbw appeal from Pollock on 45 and next ball cut to Dippenaar at first slip, standing his ground until the umpires surprisingly gave him not out.There were a handful of confusing decisions but Australia’s batting on a surface offering regular assistance to the bowlers will determine the result. Langer stayed in the hotel as Australia’s innings concluded, but he might be required to make a tough decision as a fascinating Test heads towards its conclusion.

South Africa
AB de Villiers b Clark 4 (9 for 1)
Boeta Dippenaar c Hayden b Clark 20 (55 for 2)
Herschelle Gibbs c Martyn b Warne 53 (100 for 3)
Ashwell Prince c Symonds b Warne 9 (120 for 4)
Jacques Rudolph c Gilchrist b Clark 0 (140 for 6)
Shaun Pollock c Gilchrist b Lee 44 (186 for 7)
Nicky Boje c Symonds b Warne 4 (194 for 8)
Australia
Michael Kasprowicz c Gibbs b Pollock 2 (260 for 8)
Brett Lee c Boje b Ntini 64 (270 for 9)

Amit Varma and S Rajesh discuss the fifth day of the Antigua Test
Download MP3 (right click and select “save target as”)
Streaming Audio: Real :: WMAWest Indies averted defeat by just one wicket in the Antigua Test, and India felt the absence of Harbhajan Singh. S Rajesh, who wrote the bulletin for this game, told Amit Varma that not only would Harbhajan’s presence have meant more penetration, it would also have given the Indians more overs, because Harbhajan would have gone through his overs much quicker than VRV Singh and Munaf Patel, who dawdled on the field.They also discuss how this Test would have given both teams the confidence to be aggressive, and has set up the rest of the series beautifully. Listen in.Download MP3 (right click and select “save target as”)
Streaming Audio: Real :: WMA