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Four quick wickets from Andy Bichel saw Queensland fight their way into the match after being bowled out for just 169 by Victoria on the opening day of the Pura Cup match at Brisbane. Bichel (4 for 31), began the rot by forcing Michael Klinger to edge behind in the fifth over, and followed that up by claiming the key scalps of Nick Jewell, David Hussey, and Cameron White as Victoria failed to capitalise on its fine work in the morning session.Earlier, White, the Victoria captain, got it right when he inserted Queensland on a greenish wicket and saw Michael Lewis (4 for 35) and Gerard Denton (4 for 58) rip through the opposition. Together, both fast bowlers delivered Victoria a strong start, Denton trapping Jimmy Maher, the Queensland captain, leg before for just 1 in the fourth over. Lewis was more lethal, dismissing Martin Love, Clinton Perren, and Craig Philipson in a fiery burst of 3 for 9 off eight overs.Queensland had done well to recover from 6 for 69 thanks to a 46-run partnership between Bichel and Christ Hartley, the wicketkeeper, before Lewis returned to trap Hartley in front of the wicket for 24. Bichel continued the repair work in a 42-run eighth wicket stand with Chris Simpson (32), taking Queensland beyond the 150 mark before Denton and Allan Wise (2 for 37) returned to wipe up the tail.Jon Moss and Adam Crosthwaite will have a tough task ahead of them on the second day as Victoria try and build a lead over Queensland.

Cricket Australia is considering cancelling the annual one-day tri-series as part of a summer revamp to give spectators more certain schedules. The proposal could see limited overs games played before the Test matches, which would have set annual dates.”There has been quite a lot of discussion within Australian cricket over the last six months or so around the whole issue of the international program,” Peter Young, the Cricket Australia public affairs manager, told The Australian. “Building a program is a little bit like trying to play chess in three dimensions. It’s really hard and when you move one piece all the other pieces are impacted.”The six states will send in their suggestions to Cricket Australia by January and South Australia have already requested returning their Test to the Australia Day weekend. The Boxing Day and New Year Tests in Melbourne and Sydney are not expected to be moved but the VB Series could switch from a three-team tournament to Australia playing series against each touring side.Cricket Australia’s summer television and major sponsorship deals for internationals lapse at the conclusion of next season and have sparked the requests for change.

Rashid Latif has dismissed criticism of his captaincy style, amid demands that he resigns as Pakistan captain.Returning to Karachi after a month’s holiday with his family, Latif was adamant that he has no intention of quitting. “I have read the criticism aimed at my style of captaincy, my age and performance and demands for appointing a new captain,” he told the International News. “I just want to make it clear I have no intention of either stepping down as captain or quitting international cricket just now.”On one hand they are demanding the recall of some senior players. On the other hand they want the board to appoint a young and new captain for the future as they feel Rashid is old,” he continued. “Pakistan cricket will go nowhere if you have an inexperienced and young captain. One has to groom a captain for a long-term future.”I will continue to play as long as I feel I am fit and am contributing to the team. I have no injury problems. I am mentally stronger and ready to play Test cricket again. I can stand the rigours of both forms of cricket. Age is not really an issue with me but it is made an issue in Pakistan. But I think if you are holding onto your place in the team on merit and through performances, you deserve to play on.”Latif then dropped a hint that some of the discarded older players might be in line for a recall. “I have in mind roles for some of the senior players in the coming matches. But it is something that has to be discussed with the national selectors. There is no doubt some of the players who served us well in the one-day tournaments will find it difficult to get places in a Test squad.”Latif went on to warn against complacency in the forthcoming three-Test, five-ODI series against Bangladesh which starts on August 13. “Don’t write them off,” he said. “Their record until now is not exactly impressive. But after playing against Australia I think they will be a changed and improved side.”

The Pakistan Cricket Board says it has applied to the sport’s ruling body to use one of four neutral venues should the West Indies decide against touring there in February.The grounds are at Sharjah and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Rabat inMorocco, and Dhaka, where Test newcomer Bangladesh plays, according to PCBChairman General Tauqir Zia. Sharjah and Dhaka already meet InternationalCricket Council standards to host Test matches.At a meeting of Test-playing nations in Kuala Lumpur this month, the ICC agreed to let countries play on neutral grounds in light of events in Afghanistan. Pakistan and Afghanistan share a border for 2,430 kilometers (1,518 miles).”It’s safe to play cricket in Pakistan but if outside perception is that it is not then we have to find an alternative venue,” Zia said. “It would be a home fixture so we should have the usual benefits like preparing the pitch.”Following the September 11th attacks, New Zealand cancelled plans to play three Tests and three one-day matches in Pakistan in September and October. The PCB then tried and failed to bring Sri Lanka there for three one-day matches.Those cancellations, coupled with India’s decision not to tour in Januarybecause of the hostilities between the countries over the disputed state ofKashmir, cost the PCB about $25 million in lost television and advertisingrevenue, Zia said.India almost experienced similar problems with the England tour from November14th. The England and Wales Cricket Board considered not going but received assurances on safety from officials and will tour. England bowlers Andy Caddick and Robert Croft, however, refused to go.”Cricket in some countries, most notably Pakistan, is in the front line of world events,” ICC President Malcolm Gray said recently. “We need to adopt creative solutions to support those affected and to overcome these problems.”

Delhi have named first-class newbies Nitish Rana and Sarang Rawat in their squad to face Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy from October 8 to 11. Rana, a 21-year-old left-hand batsman, has played three List A and six Twenty20 matches, while Rawat, a 19-year-old medium-pacer, is yet to make an appearance at the senior level.They will replace batsman Yogesh Nagar and left-arm seamer Pawan Suyal from the team that played the opening game against Rajasthan. Ishant Sharma, who was first left out and then named in the initial squad despite saying he was only available for the second match, is back in the squad proper at the expense of Parvinder Awana, in a like-for-like pace-bowling switch.

Nathan Lyon suffered a right hamstring injury on the final day of the Adelaide Test and is in serious doubt for the remainder of the series.Lyon, 38, dived to save a ball at fine leg but got up gingerly and immediately signaled to the dressing room after grabbing his right hamstring. He stepped off the field of play at fine leg and hobbled to the changing rooms after exchanging a brief word with Marnus Labuschagne, who patted him on the back.He left Adelaide Oval on crutches before lunch to have a scan but had returned in time to join Australia’s celebrations after they wrapped up the Ashes 3-0.Related

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He had taken five key wickets in the match, including three in the second innings to swing the game Australia’s way and captain Pat Cummins said he would be hard to replace if he is ruled out for Melbourne.”It doesn’t look great,” captain Cummins said. “I don’t know yet, but seeing someone on crutches doesn’t really bode well for a Test match a week away. Gaz is pretty close to irreplaceable. The ability to take breakthroughs, but also control an innings is really important, so it’s going to be hard to replace.”Lyon suffered a series-ending right calf injury in the 2023 Ashes while running for a ball in the field at Lord’s in the second Test.If Lyon is unable to play in the fourth Test in Melbourne, it will create an interesting selection debate about who would play as Australia’s specialist spinner.”We’ve got some guys who have already had a taste of international cricket around the traps,” Cummins said. “Other guys have done really well in domestic cricket. I think it’s been one of the benefits, actually, of the Sri Lankan tour, even West Indies and a couple of these tours where we take a couple of spinners, there’s guys that can step in and you feel like it’s not going to be too overwhelming for them.”Left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann is on Australia’s contract list as Australia’s No. 2 Test spinner and toured West Indies with the team. But he has that role as a complementary second spinner to Lyon in spin-friendly conditions overseas having played all of his five Tests in India and Sri Lanka in 2023 and 2025.Left-arm orthodox has not been as successful as offspin in Australian conditions in recent years. Kuhnemann has only played two Sheffield Shield matches this summer due to Australia white-ball duty and injury, taking four wickets at 36.Victorian offspinner Todd Murphy, who has played seven Tests including two in the 2023 Ashes as Lyon’s replacement, has bowled well in Sheffield Shield cricket this summer and was Australia A’s specialist spinner in the recent game against England Lions in Brisbane, taking three wickets.Todd Murphy played two Tests in the 2023 Ashes when Lyon was injured•Tanuj Pandey/UPCA

Murphy also has an excellent record at the MCG. He has 10 Shield wickets at 23.70, striking at 55.80, but has not bowled a lot due to the dominance of Victoria’s seamers.Western Australian offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli has been the leading spinner in Shield cricket in recent years with his extra height and bounce proving a handful for Shield batters on his home ground at the WACA. He has 20 wickets at 28.20, striking at 53.30 after taking 38 at 27.71 last season. Murphy and Rocchiccioli were also spin partners on Australia A’s recent tour of India but Kuhnemann was absent because he was touring with Australia’s T20I team.Australia played an all-seam attack in the second Test at the Gabba in Brisbane but would be unlikely to do so in Melbourne.

I’m bringing Polly back
Although Shaun Pollock was dropped in favour of younger bowlers in the Tests, he remains integral to South Africa’s attack when it comes to ODIs. Two nights back, in a high-scoring game, he finished with figures of 10-2-30-0. And it was back to business as usual today: he might have been lucky with the bounce for Kamran Akmal’s wicket but it pitched in a faultless area. He finished with 10-1-29-1 and little wonder he feels happier in this format.Are you really a fast bowler?
Fast bowlers rarely make good fielders, hidden away at fine leg or third man. The likes of Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson and James Anderson are changing that notion, and on the basis of his catch today, the unlikely name of Charl Langeveldt could be added to that list, if only temporarily. With a figure not as lithe and lean as the aforementioned, Langeveldt raced after a skier from Shahid Afridi from short fine-leg. He approached the deep square-leg boundary where, over his shoulder, he latched on while also falling over. Catch of the day, hands down.The captain who wasn’t … but was
Younis Khan never satisfactorily explained why he turned down the Pakistan captaincy but when Shoaib Malik went off the field after the 10th over of the innings, Pakistan had a dilemma on their hands. Salman Butt is the official vice-captain provided he’s in the playing XI. Mohammad Yousuf was an option, as was Afridi. Pakistan eventually turned to Younis, so often the stand-in during the Inzamam-ul-Haq days. Such was the immediate burst of enthusiasm and energy from Younis into the side, and so much did he seem to enjoy it, you wondered why he turned it down in the first place? fingers
Pakistan surely isn’t the worst fielding side in the world. However, judging by tonight’s display, they should not have many contenders to the throne. While the ground fielding left much to be desired as the home side relaxed following the early breakthroughs, Gul, who was mysteriously placed in the covers, let a Smith aerial drive through his palms. Next over, an AB de Villiers mistimed flick and an Abdur Rehman mistimed dive made that two dropped chances. Afridi, normally one of the safest in the side, grassed a caught-and-bowled off Smith before Misbah-ul-Haq’s dive to his weaker hand not only resulted in yet another dropped catch, but four additional runs for the South African captain. And there was still time for Misbah to misjudge an Albie Morkel skier at square leg. With five dropped catches, a few going through the legs and a couple of run-out chances being missed, it was surprising to see Shoaib Malik take the winner’s cheque. And if you thought that was that for Smith’s luck …A start to remember
As Gul ran in to open the bowling for Pakistan, much rested on his shoulders to provide the early breakthrough. Gul duly obliged. As his swinging delivery crashed into the stumps off the inside edge of Smith’s bat, Pakistan thought they had the perfect start. Only for Asad Rauf, the umpire, to extend his left arm and signal a no-ball. As the free hit was delayed due to movement by the sight screen, Smith crouched and pondered. A single taken and Herschelle Gibbs, centurion in the last match, had his first ball miss the bat and crash into his pads after yet more sight-screen delays. Gul, dejected after the reprieve he offered Smith, was clearly ecstatic to see the back of Gibbs.

The international flavour in Indian domestic cricket is getting stronger and stronger with Vikram Solanki and Kabir Ali being the two latest imports. They will turn out for Rajasthan in the Elite Group of the Ranji Trophy as well as in the domestic one-day competition.Solanki, who was born in Udaipur in Rajasthan, plays for Worcestershire in the County Championship, and has been spoken about as being a strong candidate to lead Rajasthan in this year’s competition. He arrived in India on Wednesday along with Kabir and was received at the airport by Murali Kartik, the Indian left-arm spinner, who is an old friend of Solanki’s.This follows the news that Sarfaraz Nawaz, the former Pakistan fast bowler, is scheduled to conduct a seven-day coaching stint with Delhi’s fast bowlers. However, neither are firsts. Maharashtra have employed Darren Holder, the Australian, as coach for some time now, and Punjab used the services of Intikhab Alam, the former Pakistani captain. Technically, neither Solanki nor Kabir will be the first foreign players to compete in Indian domestic cricket.Nayan Doshi, who, like his father Dilip, also bowls left-arm spin, has turned out for Saurashtra, the state his family originally hails from. Nayan, who lives in England now and turns out for Surrey, is a British passport holder, so he would technically qualify as a foreign player. Jermaine Lawson, the West Indies fast bowler, has been recently linked with Maharashtra.The rules allow each state team to field up to three “professionals” – players from outside the state in the XI. Cricketers moving from state to another have to obtain a no-objection certificate from their home states, but, of course, no such thing exists for cricketers who come from outside the country.

Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand spinner, has said that the second ODI at Cape Town is crucial from the series point of view after South Africa grabbed the momentum with a win in the first game at Bloemfontein.”Both teams wanted to grab that first game and we were in with a chance all the way through – we both knew how important it was,” Vettori told the New Zealand Press Association. “The momentum is now with South Africa but if we can take two games this weekend, or even split the games, then we’re in with a chance. But the Cape Town game is really, really important.””We need to get the basics right. A couple of missed catches and a couple of run outs cost us in the first game,” added Vettori. “We need to smarten those things up against a side like South Africa who do get the basics right.”Both New Zealand and South Africa have several allrounders in the side giving them much flexibility with batting and bowling options but Vettori said that New Zealand weren’t going to spring big surprises. “Not for us. We’ve always liked to know what our roles are and we’ve usually got ourselves into trouble by mixing it up. I don’t see too many changes for us. South Africa like to spring a few changes and Nicky Boje has enjoyed batting against us so perhaps they’ll spring a surprise or two.”Jacob Oram, who is struggling with a back injury, might miss the second match of the series but Scott Styris, who missed the first match because of a strained hamstring, has passed a fitness test and is set to play at Cape Town.

England 313 for 5 (Flintoff 72*, Jones 22*) v West Indies
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

On a day of fluctuating fortunes for both teams, England took control of the fourth Test at The Oval, with half-centuries from Michael Vaughan (66), Andrew Flintoff (72 not out) and, on his Test debut, Ian Bell (70). Together, they extinguished West Indies’ hopes of a fightback after England had been reduced to a precarious 64 for 3 shortly after lunch.The rain and cloud cover that had been around in the morning gave way to sunshine and blue skies in the afternoon, and England’s batting brightened up accordingly: after Vaughan and Bell’s 146-run partnership had taken the fight out of West Indies, Flintoff took full advantage of the deflated attack when he came in to bat after tea, adding a further 77 with Geraint Jones to take England’s score to 313 for 5.In a stodgy morning session, Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss had added a steady 51 for the first wicket before Strauss top-edged a pull off Jermaine Lawson and Fidel Edwards took a good catch at midwicket. Trescothick looked in good form, hitting six fours in his 30, but he couldn’t capitalise on his good start either, and chipped a catch to Ramnaresh Sarwan at square leg off a leg-stump half volley from Edwards (64 for 2).The West Indian fightback really took off in the next over, as Robert Key bottom-edged a short ball from Dwayne Bravo through to Carlton Baugh behind the stumps and was out for 10 (64 for 3). But that wicket brought Vaughan and Bell together, and after battling through a testing spell from Edwards, they set about tilting the game back in England’s favour.Bell had a jittery start to Test cricket, and was given a torrid time by Edwards. He needed the attention of the physio after being struck painfully on the shoulder by a sharp bouncer, but after getting off the mark with a sliced cut over the slips for four, Bell calmed down and started to play more confidently.Vaughan, growing in confidence himself, smashed Dwayne Smith through the covers in classic style to take England’s score to 99, and scampered through for a leg bye to bring up the hundred next ball, and then the batsmen really started to increase the tempo. Lawson was removed from the attack after a wayward three-over spell, and Vaughan climbed into Smith, hitting him for three fours in an over as England slowly started to take the game away from West Indies. On a pitch that is becoming better and better for batting, even the normally economical Chris Gayle went for runs, being slashed behind point by Bell and then driven and cut by Vaughan as the runs continued to flow.

Bell came into his own after tea, effortlessly easing Edwards behind point for a boundary in the second over of the session. Vaughan, meanwhile, brought up his 10th Test half-century, in his 50th Test, with a glanced four to fine leg, also off Edwards. Bell wasn’t far behind him, driving Corey Collymore a little airily behind point, and then pulling him through midwicket for consecutive fours to move to 46. He rode his luck, with a top-edged pull off Edwards falling short of Collymore at fine leg, but then brought up a maiden Test half-century with a drive through mid-off for four.Bell kept up the momentum thereafter, cutting Collymore for another four in the same over, and smashing Lawson through midwicket to take his partnership with Vaughan to 132 – England’s highest fourth-wicket partnership against West Indies at The Oval. Further boundaries from both batsmen off Bravo and Lawson carried England’s score past 200, but shortly afterwards Bell’s fine debut innings came to an end when he edged a rising delivery from Lawson through to Baugh (210 for 4).Flintoff wasted no time setting about the West Indies attack, and his first shot, a pull off Bravo, went for four through Lawson’s legs on the boundary. Flintoff followed that up with an unusually delicate glanced boundary, and, two overs later, a strong on-drive, both off Lawson. Bravo, Brian Lara’s bowling trump card in this series, struck back with the vital wicket of Vaughan, caught by Lara himself at first slip for 66 (236 for 5), but Flintoff was unfazed, pulling and driving Lawson for three more fours in the very next over.In next to no time Flintoff had rushed to a half-century off just 51 balls – he has now scored at least 50 in each of his last eight Tests – and for once he totally outscored Geraint Jones in their partnership, scoring 40 of their first 50 runs. Flintoff slowed down a little after reaching his fifty, as Lara tried to slow the scoring rate by keeping the old ball, but England are, yet again, in the driving seat, and it will take a notable performance from one of the West Indians for them to claw their way back into this match.