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Northamptonshire’s Niall O’Brien and Chaminda Vaas both came within a whisker of making centuries on the third day of their County Championship Division Two match with Essex at Wantage Road

22-Apr-2011Stumps
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Northamptonshire’s Niall O’Brien and Chaminda Vaas both came within a whisker of making centuries on the third day of their County Championship Division Two match with Essex at Wantage Road. Ireland wicketkeeper O’Brien smashed 96 off 139 balls and former Sri Lanka seamer Vaas made the same total off 183 deliveries – including 12 fours and one six – as Northants declared on 538 for 9.South African debutant Lonwabo Tsotsobe bowled 15 no-balls as he took two for 154 runs off 27 overs before Essex reached 26 without loss at the close with a draw looking inevitable. Northants started the day on 256 for 4, 177 runs behind their opponents,with Alex Wakely resuming on 54 and captain Andrew Hall on 6.But Wakely added just four to his overnight total before he top-edged Ravi Bopara to England vice-captain Alastair Cook at slip in the allrounder’s first over of the day. Hall reached 17 before, in attempting to duck Tsotsobe’s delivery, he skewed the ball into the air and was easily caught by wicketkeeper and captain James Foster.O’Brien and Vaas then survived for the rest of the morning session, adding 72 between them as the hosts reached lunch on 345 for 6. O’Brien then completed a half-century off 94 balls by crashing David Masters for a straight four and Vaas then reached 50 off 97 deliveries.Masters finally got his reward for toiling away when O’Brien smashed him straight to Mark Pettini at extra cover. That broke a seventh-wicket stand of 155 and the hosts lost James Middlebrook, run out for 18, with the last ball before tea when Vaas slipped as they tried torun a single off Reece Topley. That left former Essex man Middlebrook stranded as Billy Godleman threw the ball back to Foster from midwicket for him to whip off the bails.The ninth-wicket pairing of Vaas and Lee Daggett then added 50 between them in the evening session before Vaas finally holed out when he launched Tim Phillips to Matt Walker at deep square-leg. Northants finally declared after batting for 154 overs in total, leaving Daggett and Jack Brooks unbeaten on 33 and 15 respectively with their team 105ahead.Essex openers Godleman and Cook then survived the remaining seven overs andwill resume tomorrow on 16 and 10 respectively.

Up to eight top Pakistan players are likely to be in the running to play in the first edition of the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL)

Osman Samiuddin09-May-2011Up to eight top Pakistan players are likely to be in the running to play in the first edition of the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL), allowing players from that country to finally benefit from some of the riches on offer in lucrative Twenty20 leagues around the world. The SLPL, likely to feature players from around the world, is scheduled to be held at the end of July and beginning of August this year, a window in the FTP where Pakistan has no commitments currently.Both Pakistan captains – Shahid Afridi from the limited overs side and Misbah-ul-Haq from the Test side – have been approached, as have Shoaib Akhtar, Shoaib Malik and Umar Gul.The players were first approached directly by the organisers of the tournament, the Singapore-based Somerset Entertainment, something that the PCB wasn’t pleased about. But eventually the organisers contacted the PCB asking for clearance for the players to participate and they have been given a positive response. “We told them, in theory, we have no issues with our players taking part in the tournament,” a senior board official told ESPNcricinfo. “The first priority of each player of course will be Pakistan’s international commitments and if there is something on in that window and the player concerned is picked for Pakistan, that commitment will take priority.”The participation of Malik will depend on whether he will be cleared by the PCB’s integrity committee, a condition which has kept him out of the national side since last summer.Players from Pakistan are currently the only ones from the Test-playing nations not to be taking part in the richest domestic Twenty20 league of all, the IPL. Though a number of players took part in the inaugural season of the tournament, in 2008, deteriorating political ties between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks later that year have led to them missing out since, much to the chagrin of the players themselves, some of whom can rightly claim to be among the best international players in the format. The players were even put into the auction for the third season of the IPL but no franchise was willing to buy them, given the potentially tricky diplomatic and logistical issues that could have emerged.For similar reasons, no Pakistan domestic side has taken part in the equally lucrative IPL spin-off, the Champions League, which brings together the best domestic Twenty20 sides from around the world. A few Pakistan players, including Afridi, Gul and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan have taken part in the Australian Big Bash but the timing of it generally tends to clash with international commitments and so curtails participation.There is also regular participation in Twenty20 competitions in England, as well as longer-term county contracts but by and large, Pakistan’s players have missed out on the bonanza of the last few years. “We are aware that our players have not benefitted as others around the world have done, though much of this is out of our hands,” the official said. “This will be a good opportunity, if things work out, for them to take part.”Though full financial details of the league are yet to emerge, one estimate suggests that there will be three salary tabs with the highest at US$ 30,000.

Justin Vaughan, the New Zealand Cricket chief executive, has defended the 2015 World Cup’s likely ten-team format while urging the ICC to reach a swift decision on the qualification process

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Apr-2011Justin Vaughan, the New Zealand Cricket chief executive, has defended the 2015 World Cup’s likely ten-team format while urging the ICC to reach a swift decision on the terms by which sides will qualify.Global outcry over the initial exclusion of Associate nations, particularly Ireland, in favour of the game’s ten Full Member countries prompted a re-think by the ICC executive board. The ICC president, Sharad Pawar, announced a renewed discussion of the qualification process at the governing body’s annual meeting, in Hong Kong in June.While sympathetic about Ireland’s difficulties, Vaughan was unhappy to have to place tournament planning on hold. “Look, I am sympathetic to Ireland, in particular, and the way they have performed at world events,” Vaughan told the . “I think the ideal ten-team competition would be one determined solely on merit but I understand there are challenges around that as well.”Jack Clarke, the Cricket Australia chairman, has previously outlined the fact that a ten-team round robin format offered far greater certainty to the public about where and how much their teams will be playing for the majority of the tournament, a sentiment Vaughan agreed with.”A ten-team competition works far better from a host perspective than a 12-team competition does,” Vaughan said. “A 12-team competition would necessitate the introduction of a Super Sixes stage in between two pools of six and an elimination round. The problem with the Super Six portion of a competition is that there’s no certainty around who is playing whom and where.”To sell tickets and organise international tour groups or international visitors becomes hugely problematic when you’ve got a section of the tournament where you don’t know who is playing where.”Vaughan also highlighted the fact that the 2015 World Cup is yet to appoint a tournament chief executive.”From an event host perspective, it’s very unhelpful to have uncertainty in regards to what the format of the competition is going to look like,” he said. “We are in the process of looking for a CEO but how do you set up an organisation if you don’t even know how many teams are going to participate in it?”Obviously it was a sensitive issue and I wasn’t involved in the discussions because that was part of the executive board, which only involves the chairmen, but I know there was some prolonged discussion and an eventual, I believe, unanimous agreement to move to a ten-team competition.”As the hosts of that competition, it is unhelpful to have renewed uncertainty over the format.”

Craig Kieswetter has warned Matt Prior he faces a fight to hang on to his gloves, declaring it is his ambition to become England’s first-choice wicketkeeper “in all forms of the game”

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jun-2011Craig Kieswetter has warned Matt Prior he faces a fight to hang on to his gloves, declaring it is his ambition to become England’s first-choice wicketkeeper “in all forms of the game”. Kieswetter showcased his ability at last year’s World Twenty20 in the West Indies, most notably smashing a match-winning 63 off 49 balls in a seven-wicket defeat of Australia in the final, but has since fallen out of contention for national honours.”In that World Twenty20 side most of us were probably in the best form of our careers, certainly I was,” he told . “In the final we just said, ‘We might as well try and win this properly.’ They [Australia] had four quicks so there was nowhere to hide. KP [Kevin Pietersen] and I thought, ‘We might as well have a crack.’ We were a bit lucky. But we played some rather good shots too.”Four months on from his swashbuckling efforts, Kieswetter found himself being dropped following a slump in form. And, although he backed the decision, he admits returning to county cricket with his tail between his legs was a hard pill to swallow.”It was really disappointing,” he said. “I was part of the side that won a World Cup. But realistically, when I look at the way I played back in England against Australia and Bangladesh, it was a warranted decision. International cricket is a cut-throat business. It was a tough year. Coming back to your county after being dropped is one of the hardest transitions a player has to go through. That showed in my performances for a while.”I’m lucky in that coming back to Somerset, they see the players as a family and if you’re struggling you don’t have to fight it yourself. Brian Rose, Andy Hurry and Marcus [Trescothick] were a massive help to me.”Naturally a very attacking batsman, Kieswetter has spent the last year rebuilding and, with seven first-class hundreds, an improving average and a hugely encouraging England Lions tour of the West Indies now behind him, he is ready to resume his challenge of becoming England’s main man behind the stumps.”It is my ambition to become England’s wicketkeeper in all forms of the game,” he said. “Obviously Matt Prior’s got the gloves at the moment but it’s my duty to push him as hard as possible.”Over the winter, I was fortunate enough to work really hard with Thorpey [former England batsman Graham Thorpe] at the ECB academy in Australia and then in the West Indies. I made a few improvements that seem to be paying off. There were a few technical points but it was more about being able to settle into the platform of four-day cricket; that mentality of being able to bat for a long time and make big scores.”Thorpe believes the youngster is a player with the brightest of futures, saying: “Craig is a genuinely talented player with lots of shots. You don’t want to kill that flair. But it’s about rounding out his game, being able to score all round the pitch. People remember him from the Twenty20, but I think there’s a lot more in him than that, as a player. He had a taste of it. I suppose he didn’t seem like a complete player – we never are – but for him it’s about converting those starts and really pushing on.”With England’s ODI and 20-over squads set to be announced this week, Kieswetter is eyeing a recall – though if he is selected it is likely to be as an opener.”Opening, you have to control yourself emotionally,” he said. “The adrenaline is pumping. All the great one-day opening batsman can rein that feeling in. I’ve spoken about it with Marcus, how you hit a boundary and there’s a massive cheer, and then another one and you just want more.”

Cricket Ireland chief executive Warren Deutrom has welcomed the about-turn on contentious plans to bar the Associate nations from the 2015 World Cup, but urged the ICC to give developing cricketing countries such as Ireland a fair chance to join cricket’s

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jun-2011Cricket Ireland chief executive Warren Deutrom has welcomed the about-turn on contentious plans to bar the Associate nations from the 2015 World Cup, but urged the ICC to give developing cricketing countries such as Ireland a fair chance to join cricket’s elite.”The one thing that we shouted out more loudly than anything else is ‘meritocracy’ – not ‘we want to be given this as a right’, but ‘we want the opportunity to be better’,” Deutrom told .Ireland have made a strong case for higher honours in recent years, having beaten Pakistan during their first World Cup appearance in 2007 and scored a remarkable win over England in India earlier this year. Though their inclusion in 2015 continues to give them something to aim for, there remains no official route or timetable for them to be awarded Test status.”All we’ve asked for from the very start is simply a road map to where we go next because what we’ve done, and what we’ve achieved, is everything that has been asked of us,” added Deutrom.”We’ve got a business and we are prepared to develop that business but the only way we can move that business on is to get that additional support, to be able to afford more ODIs and the opportunity to play those ODIs,” he said. “And then a pathway perhaps to Test cricket. That has to be the holy grail for us.”Amid a myriad of tweaks and amendments made at the meeting of the ICC’s Executive Board in Hong Kong, the format and composition of the next two World Cups and World Twenty20s and the implementation of the Decision Review System have attracted plenty of attention, but there remains another high-profile issue to be decided upon: whether or not to scrap the ICC’s two-year rotational presidency.Deutrom said he was in favour of doing away with automatic rotation, a policy which was put under review after Australia and New Zealand’s nominee for the position, ex-Australian prime minister John Howard, was rejected by other countries last year.”The principle is quite simply that it’s the best person for the job,” he said. “And the best person for the job might already reside within Pakistan or Bangladesh, but the idea is that as long as the best person for the job is found, we should support that.”

Zaheer Khan is likely to sit out the remainder of Lord’s Test and could even be a doubtful starter for second Test starting at Trent Bridge on July 29

Nagraj Gollapudi at Lord's22-Jul-2011Zaheer Khan is likely to sit out the remainder of Lord’s Test and could even be a doubtful starter for second Test starting at Trent Bridge on July 29. Though the Indian team management sent out a brief indicating that Zaheer could still play a part during the second innings of the Lord’s Test, it is understood that the bowler has expressed reservations in private with the team’s think tank.On Friday Zaheer remained positive after an hour-long strengthening session late afternoon on Friday. “I am feeling better. Let’s see how it goes,” Zaheer said as he walked back to the dressing room from the Nursery grounds, a fair distance, without any visible cramping.However, according to a team source, Zaheer does not want to risk and exacerbate the hamstring strain as it could be dodgy and force him to miss out on the entire series. Zaheer pulled out of the play midway into his second over of the third spell on the overcast Thursday afternoon, limping back to the dressing room holding his right hamstring. Till then Zaheer had dominated the England batsmen for the better part of the rain-affected first day, accounting for the English opening pair of Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook.Immediately Zaheer rushed to a nearby hospital to undergo an MRI scan and though no big damage was detected the bowler felt it was only better to play safe rather than rush back to the field. “It is a slight strain at the moment but if he played any further there is a real fear of it becoming a tear,” the source said.

Andre Adams, swinging the ball into the bat at a deceptively gentle pace that could best be described as the slower side of medium, and seemingly occasionally reversing it to boot, enabled Nottinghamshire to bowl out Somerset for 177 in this rain-affected

Jeremy James at Taunton19-Aug-2011
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Craig Kieswetter was bowled for 10 by Charlie Shreck•Getty ImagesAndre Adams, swinging the ball into the bat at a deceptively gentle pace that could best be described as the slower side of medium, and seemingly occasionally reversing it to boot, enabled Nottinghamshire to bowl out Somerset for 177 in this rain-affected match.He finished with an exceptional return of 6 for 33. An indication of the assistance he and Charlie Shreck obtained was that six of the eight wickets that fell came through a single stump being plucked out of the ground.Adams recently signed a new two-year contract with Nottinghamshire, and no wonder. He is a bowler to utilise the swing at Trent Bridge – and, clearly, elsewhere. Somerset, two down overnight, or rather on Wednesday night as there was no play on the second day, lost, in relatively quick succession to Adams, Nick Compton, whose off stump was removed, James Hildreth, likewise, although he did make the second highest score of 35, and Jos Buttler and Alfonso Thomas in identical manner.If techniques were suspect – Hildreth, for one, played an airy-fairy shot – then nothing should be taken away from the bowling. For there was no cloud cover and this, lest we forget, was Taunton, where many a batsman comes in the sure knowledge and confidence that a return to form will follow. Buttler, it should be added, looked the class batsman he so clearly already is, striking eight fours in 43, the majority attractive front foot drives, until he succumbed to the dreaded Adams.Shreck took his one wicket of the innings when Craig Kieswetter had his leg stump knocked out, the ball conceivably coming off the inside edge. George Dockrell, the Dubliner making his Championship debut, became Adams’ fifth victim, leg before, and Charl Willoughby, after a couple of characteristic swishes, nowhere near the line of the ball, also had his off stump removed. Not quite career-best figures for Adams, but he and his coach, Mick Newell, were not bothered about that.”There is more carry at Trent Bridge and so Andre has to adjust his line when we are away from there,” said Newell. “He is a similar bowler to Alfonso Thomas – his economy rate is good and he bowls hardly any rubbish. We don’t have a great record on this ground, but there are clearly more ‘result’ pitches being prepared here now. At Trent Bridge we roll the square a lot to try to improve the pace in the pitch. Here, the groundsman tries almost to under-prepare the surfaces.”Newell’s intention on the final day will be to try to bowl Somerset out, as opposed to setting up a declaration with opponents with whom his relations are strained following their trying t20 quarter-final earlier this month. When Nottinghamshire went in before tea, Alex Hales and the left handed Karl Turner put on 50 in eight overs before the former was athletically held by Kieswetter, diving to his right off Kirby.Turner, missed at second slip by Marcus Trescothick when on 28, had added eight more runs when he was nicely taken low at mid-on off Thomas. Kieswetter then held another acrobatic catch to remove Darren Bravo, this time to his left. Who said anything about iron gloves? This was Knottesque. And who said anything about Samit Patel not being trim? He looked the part both in terms of his figure and his batting. An unbeaten 70 with 11 fours was the best innings thus far, if hardly a match-winning one.

Abdul Razzaq, who will be the only Pakistan player participating in this year’s Champions League Twenty20 in India, has said he hopes cricketing relations between India and Pakistan improve

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Sep-2011Abdul Razzaq, who will be the only Pakistan player to participate in this year’s Champions League Twenty20 in India, has said he hopes cricketing relations between India and Pakistan improve, with matches between the two countries resuming and Pakistan players being included in the IPL. Razzaq will play for Leicestershire in the Champions League, and will be only the second Pakistan player to play in the tournament – Yasir Araft played for Sussex in the first tournament in 2009.”When we played in the ICL [Indian Cricket League] the whole charm of that league was Pakistan players playing in India, so I hope that after I go and play the Champions League, India also open the doors of the IPL to Pakistan players,” Razzaq said. “I have faced no problems playing in India and even in the worst of times people of India welcome Pakistan players with open hearts and I hope I am soon part of a Pakistan team playing against India.”Pakistan teams have not taken part in the Champions League, while Pakistan players have not played in the IPL since the tournament’s debut in 2008. Cricket relations between India and Pakistan were suspended after the Mumbai terror attacks of December 2008, with no bilateral series between the two countries since. Razzaq said he hoped that would change soon.”I hope the respective governments will negotiate to resume Indo-Pak cricket because without India and Pakistan playing each other, cricket is deprived of a high-profile, most-watched cricket series. Doors should always be open for sportsmen or else you change the name of cricket, because cricket is the binding force between these two countries, which we have seen in the past.”The ICC’s Future Tours Programme has scheduled a Test and ODI series between Pakistan and India for 2012, but while PCB chairman Ijaz Butt has said talks are progressing, there has been no official word from the BCCI on whether and where the series will go ahead.

Tim Kimber rescued Guernsey from 65 for 7 to help them beat Malaysia in the final of the ICC World Cricket League Division Six

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-2011After having won all their group matches it looked like Guernsey would be denied the ICC World Cricket League Division Six title by Malaysia but wicketkeeper Tim Kimber rescued them from 65 for 7 to help them reach the target of 209 in the final over of the match, at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur. Guernsey had beaten Malaysia at the same ground the day before the final by restricting them to 170. In the final, they allowed Malaysia to get 208 but would not have expected to lose so many wickets early on in their chase.Hammad Ullah Khan, who had top-scored for Malaysia with 53, picked up three early wickets with his seamers, and offspinner Nik Arifin got two. Kimber had only 11 runs to his name in the tournament up to the final but produced an unbeaten 82 off 92 balls to shock the hosts. He was assisted by David Hooper, who scored 45.”It feels simply brilliant to win today and to have been six or seven down and then see young Tom Kimber come out and guide us to victory with a fantastic knock of 82 not out,” Guernsey’s captain Stuart Le Prevost said after the win. Malaysia would not be too disappointed since by virtue of reaching the final they and Guernsey had already earned promotion to Division Five. “We need to work on our batting ahead of going to Singapore in February [for the Division Five tournament],” Malaysia captain Suhan Alagaratnam said. “We’ll take each game as it comes but I’d definitely like a chance to beat Guernsey next year in Division Five.

Kuwait and Jersey had both missed out on promotion because their net run-rate in the group stage was less than Malaysia’s. But they still had third-place to play for, and Kuwait beat Jersey by eight runs at the Selangor Turf Club. Jersey had looked on course to chase the target of 213 after Corey Bisson and Peter Gough had both reached half-centuries and put together 91 runs for the fourth wicket. But Gough’s dismissal sparked a collapse and Jersey went from 174 for 3 in the 45th over to being all out for 204. Seamer Mohammed Naseer ran through the tail and finished with 4 for 29.Kuwait’s innings had taken a different route: they had lost wickets early and were 63 for 6 before Mohammad Amin and Saad Khalid put together 70 for the seventh wicket with Khalid getting 50 off 38 balls. No. 10 Azmatullah Nazeer chipped in with 44 and though Kuwait were bowled out in 44.5 overs, their total of 212 proved enough.

Nigeria won their first match of the tournament, beating Fiji by 102 runs at the Bayuemas Oval to finish fifth. Nigeria’s spinners bowled Fiji out for 133 after their batsmen had managed a total of 235 through contributions from each of the top-order batsmen. Offspinner Varun Behani then picked up three wickets as just five Fiji batsmen made it to double figures.

The first one-day international was a rude awakening for a young England team and already the talk has begun of ‘here we go again’ when it comes to their one-day record in India

The Preview by Andrew McGlashan16-Oct-2011Match FactsOctober 17, Delhi
Start time 1430 (0900GMT)Alastair Cook was the one England batsman to shine in Hyderabad, while Jonathan Trott continues to provoke debate•AFPThe Big PictureThe first one-day international was a rude awakening for a young England team and already the talk has begun of ‘here we go again’ when it comes to their one-day record in India. The warning signs are certainly there – three years ago India won the first ODI in Rajkot by 158 runs to begin their march to a 5-0 scoreline before the series was curtailed – and it will be a major test of the Alastair Cook-Andy Flower combination to respond to the opening result. A five-match series gives the visitors time to fight back, but that recovery has to start in Delhi otherwise there will be too much daylight between the teams.Back on home soil, with time to move on from the defeats in England, India looked much more like the marauding force that took the World Cup. For Duncan Fletcher (and, to a lesser degree, MS Dhoni) the India team is a long-term project as a rebuilding phase begins and he’ll be heartened by some of the performances. Put coloured clothes on Suresh Raina and he’s a world-beater, R Ashwin is a promising spinner, Umesh Yadav has a bit of pace and the fielding is showing signs of improvement.Then there’s the captain himself. Dhoni is a phenomenal cricketer and not only because of that helicopter shot that keeps depositing balls into the stands. He just keeps on going. Straight after the England tour – which pushed him to the limit – he was leading Chennai Super Kings at the Champions Trophy and now there’s this series. Then West Indies arrive for a full tour before a trip to face Australia down under. He’s had one break this year, but after his struggles on the early part of the England tour, is back to delivering consistently with the bat.However, despite the positive signs for the hosts, this series isn’t yet beyond England. They have shown, time and again, their ability to bounce back from disappointment. This is a team made of stern stuff. But they need to play smart cricket and think on their feet. The fast bowlers didn’t react to Dhoni’s onslaught in Hyderabad, while the middle-order collapse against spin wasn’t a new phenomenon. The batting order continues to vex minds – for, example, where is Jonathan Trott’s best position and should Ian Bell play? – while Samit Patel hasn’t really done enough since his return to the team. Flower has made tough calls in the past, but he has also remained calm under pressure. This situation calls for both traits.Form guide (completed matches, most recent first)
India WLTLL
England LWTWWSpotlightIn the absence of Harbhajan Singh, R Ashwin has become India’s senior spinner in one-day cricket. Tall, able to extract bounce and with a well-disguised carrom ball, he caused England plenty of problems in the opening game. None of the batsmen appeared to be able to pick his variations and were often left waiting to play off the pitch which leaves precious little time to adjust. Harbhajan may well be back before too long, but Ashwin has more than earned an extended run.Kevin Pietersen has insisted he knows the secret to turning around his one-day form and England need him to prove it in Delhi. Shuffled back up to No.3 on Friday with a tough target to chase, he never settled while making 19 and appeared more troubled by the pitch than many. When the ball bounced, or kept low, Pietersen’s reactions made sure everyone knew the ball have done something alarming. Throw in his poor fielding display, where he let through three boundaries, and it was a performance to suggest all is not quite right.Team newsThere is little reason for India to tinker with their side after such a comprehensive performance. The initial squad was selected for the first two matches so it will be interesting to see if any changes are made for later in the series.India (probable): 1 Parthiv Patel, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Vinay Kumar, 11 Umesh YadavEngland tend not to rush into changes after one defeat so the odds favour them giving the same side a chance to make amends for the opening display. However, legspinner Scott Borthwick and seamer Chris Woakes showed form in the warm-ups and are options to strengthen the bowling attack possibly at the expense of Samit Patel.England (probable): 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Craig Kieswetter (wk), 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Jonny Bairstow, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 Steven Finn, 11 Jade DernbachPitch and conditionsThe Feroz Shah Kotla stadium regained its international status in time for the World Cup after the ICC suspended the venue following the abandonment of the India-Sri Lanka ODI in December, 2009. The old wicket was a flat track full of runs, and while the new strip is not as lifeless, it is unlikely to give the bowlers much joy.Stats and trivia England have played two ODIs in Delhi (it would have been three but the 2008 match was cancelled) and they have a 1-1 record. In 2006 they lost by 39 runs but in 2002 clung on for two-run victory which kept them alive in a series they would finish sharing. In his last four ODI innings, MS Dhoni has hit 284 runs for just once out which has lifted his average back over 50Quotes”We were outplayed by the Indians on this occasion. They out-fielded us – something that doesn’t often happen to us – and we didn’t deserve to win the game. But one down in a five-match series, we’re going to look to do something about that in Delhi.”
Andy Flower keeps a level head about England’s position”We always kept our heads high and that probably made the difference in this first game. We would like to continue with that attitude.”
Virat Kohli on the virtues of having the right mindset