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ScorecardPeter Trego got Somerset off to a flying start•Getty Images

Peter Trego lit up Somerset’s 50-run win over Hampshire with a big-hitting innings of 61 and then took two top-order wickets when the home side responded.Trego’s flamboyant battering of the Hampshire attack, which included nine fours and three sixes, overshadowed a valiant attempt by Hampshire opener James Vince to reverse the outcome.Vince was last out after making 95 in an increasingly hopeless cause as Somerset coasted to their fifth Clydesdale Bank 40 Group B victory to keep alive their hopes of qualifying for the later stages of the competition.Hampshire captain Jimmy Adams chose to field first and must have wondered if he had made the right decision as Trego took apart the bowling in a whirlwind of boundaries.Marcus Trescothick lost his wicket in the second over but then Trego was joined by Chris Jones in a partnership of 73 for the second wicket in only seven overs. Trego’s assault lasted only 31 balls before he hoisted spinner Danny Briggs into the deep, where Chris Wood held the catch.Somerset’s run blast halted after Trego’s departure and the rest of the innings was sedate by comparison with Briggs taking two wickets for 39 runs and Sean Ervine applying the brakes with figures of 3 for 35.Ervine bowled James Hildreth and then removed the potentially dangerous Arul Suppiah and Abdur Rehman. But Somerset were revived by Jos Buttler, who made 51 off 59 balls, and Gemaal Hussain who hit two sixes in his brief innings of 18 not out.When Hampshire replied they again found Trego in inspired form, having Adams caught at slip by Trescothick in his second over and finding a gap in Neil McKenzie’s defences in his third.With Rehman having Simon Katich caught behind without scoring, Hampshire were 15 for three and then 49 for 4 when Ervine was bowled by Steve Kirby. Then Vince was joined by Liam Dawson in a stand of 73 for the fifth wicket in 12 overs to begin the process of a Hampshire recovery.Even after Dawson had gone at 122, Michael Bates helped Vince add another 40 for the sixth – but Hampshire were always struggling to match the required run rate. Kirby came back to bowl Bates and later did the same to Briggs, marooning Vince short of his century.Vince lifted Hussain for six and added two more runs to take his score to 95 but in the same over was leg before wicket from the last ball of the 36th to confirm Somerset’s superiority.

New Zealand’s stand-in captain Kane Williamson hopes an improved performance with the ball and in the field during Wednesday’s victory in St Kitts will be the catalyst for a turnaround in the side’s fortunes for the rest of their Caribbean trip. But despite the 88-run win over West Indies, Williamson conceded New Zealand’s batting still needed to lift in order for them to escape with a series win, with West Indies ahead 2-1.Williamson said he was hopeful that captain Ross Taylor, who missed the start of the series due to a shoulder injury, could be considered for the fourth ODI on Saturday, which New Zealand must win to stay alive in the series. Even if Taylor is not passed fit, they should regain Brendon McCullum, who was originally to be rested for the one-day internationals but flew in to join the squad on Tuesday, although he didn’t play in the victory.Those potential inclusions will be tempered by the loss of BJ Watling, who suffered a leg injury during his innings of 40 and did not take the field during the West Indies innings. Watling was one of several men who made contributions for New Zealand, along with Rob Nicol (59) and Nathan McCullum (50), but Williamson said bigger scores would be needed in the remaining two games.”It is promising but I think the batting is an area we need to look at in terms of turning those fifties, which are really starts, into bigger scores to make the difference in an innings,” Williamson said. “That’s somewhere that we’re looking to improve on looking forward. It’s nice to have Brendon in the camp and hopefully Ross is looking good for the next one. It was a real shame to lose BJ, who has been our stronghold in the batting order down at six.”New Zealand posted 249 for 9, having been sent in by Darren Sammy, and a solid performance in the field, including three run-outs and some sharp catching, meant West Indies were bowled out for 161 in the chase. McCullum, Jacob Oram and the debutant Trent Boult took two wickets each, and Williamson said it was a much improved effort from the side.”It’s a great shift in momentum, hopefully,” he said. “Putting a few things into practice, lessons from the other games. It’s nice to get a win in such a crucial game. I think the bowling performance was a little bit better executed in terms of the plans and what we wanted to achieve. Things went our way and hopefully that’s the momentum shift we needed in the series.”Those sort of matches where you must win and we showed that fight today, which was really important. It was nice to step up and win this match and keep the series alive through a really strong fielding and bowling effort.”Sammy said that having sent New Zealand in, he was happy with a chase of 250 at the halfway mark of the match, and he credited New Zealand’s fielding as the key reason they claimed the win. However, West Indies can still wrap up the series if they win on Saturday, and Sammy said the players were already looking ahead to their next opportunity.”New Zealand played really well. It was an off day for us,” Sammy said. “We’ve already put it behind us and we’re looking forward to Saturday, to get back to our winning start in the series. We’ve been playing some good cricket. We won’t let one game dampen the spirit of the boys.”They outfielded us today and they were much more positive in their approach. The guys felt we could restrict them to a low total. Chasing down 250 here, we should have gotten it. But they seemed to execute their plans much better today and they were really good in the field.”

Sri Lanka’s chairman of selectors Ashantha de Mel has said the Sri Lanka batsmen should to be wary of the two Pakistan spinners, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, during the upcoming Twenty20, ODI and Test series.”It is the Pakistani spinners we need to be careful of. Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman are of a different class compared to our spinners. Only Rangana Herath comes anywhere close to them,” De Mel said.Offspinner Ajmal and left-arm spinner Rehman have been at the forefront of Pakistan’s recent successes. The pair took 43 wickets in Pakistan’s 3-0 win over No. 1 ranked England in their last Test series played in the UAE early this year. Ajmal was also the leading wicket-taker with 18 wickets during Sri Lanka’s three-Test series against Pakistan in the UAE last year.”The advantage the Pakistan team has is that it also has batsmen who can be useful bowlers, for instance opener Mohammad Hafeez, who can bowl offbreaks,” he said. “This adds a lot of variety to their attack and balances their team nicely.”Their fast bowlers are quite effective with the reverse swing. That’s another area our batsmen have got to be wary of. Pakistan have mastered the art of reverse swing from the era of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis. Umar Gul and left-arm fast bowler Junaid Khan are very good at using the old ball.”A former fast bowler himself, De Mel said Sri Lanka’s fast bowlers need to develop their skills to master reverse swing, an art that needs a lot of practice to be perfected.Recollecting Sri Lanka’s last Test series against England at home which ended in a 1-1 draw, De Mel said the batsmen needed to put up 400-plus totals in the first innings if Sri Lanka are to have any chance of winning. Sri Lanka’s highest total in that series was 318 in the Galle Test and they failed to go past the 300-run mark in the Colombo Test.”At least three of the top five batsmen need to get a big score if we are to come up with competitive totals. Off the middle-order, two of the three most experienced batsmen must score runs,” De Mel said, referring to the trio of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera who have a combined tally of 25,001 runs and 73 hundreds in Tests.De Mel admitted the middle order had been put under pressure due to the poor starts provided by the openers. Sri Lanka tried Tharanga Paranavitana and Lahiru Thirimanne as opening partners with Tillakaratne Dilshan in the series against South Africa and England, but none of them were able to settle into the role.”I don’t think Thirimanne is an opener. He is good in the middle order. We persisted with him because the previous selection committee had picked him as an opener and we wanted to give Thirimanne a fair chance to prove himself. We are thinking of bringing back Paranavitana to open with Dilshan.”Thirimanne, who has been named in Sri Lanka’s Twenty20 and ODI squads, bats in the middle order in the shorter versions, but is unlikely to be named in the Test squad. In seven Tests in which he has opened the batting, he has only gone past 50 once.When questioned why former Test opener Upul Tharanga is not being considered for the position, De Mel said, “Upul’s technique against the new ball is suspect. He is playing well away from his body and that is why we have decided to bring him down the order in the ODIs and play him in the middle where he has contributed.”There’s, at present, a paucity of quality opening batsmen in the country. We are looking at Dimuth Karunaratne as an opener for the Sri Lanka A tour to South Africa and also wicketkeeper Kushal Janith Perera, who bats at No. 3, as an opener in the limited-overs version.”The Sri Lanka A team is due to tour South Africa and Zimbabwe next month.Another youngster Dinesh Chandimal is likely to be named in the Test squad but will find it difficult to make it into a line-up that comprises Dilshan, Paranavitana, Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Samaraweera, Angelo Mathews and Prasanna Jayawardene. De Mel added Mathews would be picked purely as a batsman and may bowl occasionally.”Our bowlers are not penetrative enough. To win a Test you need to take 20 wickets. What I have observed about our quick bowlers is that they come at you initially around 135 [kph] but are about ten kilometers (per hour) slower when they return for their second spell. The four to five bowlers in the line-up should all contribute to take wickets.”Predicting a close contest during the Test series, De Mel said the pitches used would play a key role. “The side that performs on the day will hold the advantage. I hope we get some decent wickets with some bounce. We make slow and low wickets and end up losing. The P Sara Oval wicket (where Sri Lanka lost to England) was slow and low and lacked bounce.”Sri Lanka and Pakistan play two Twenty20 matches before the ODIs and Tests. De Mel said the selectors had picked the 14-member squad for the two Twenty20s in Hambantota with an eye on the forthcoming World Twenty20 (which will be hosted by Sri Lanka in September).”We have picked Isuru Udana who is a specialist Twenty20 bowler and legspinning all-rounder Kaushal Lokuarachchi whom we think can be useful in the shorter version.”De Mel said that apart from spinner Ajantha Mendis, who is still recuperating from a back injury and was not considered for selection, Farvez Maharoof and Suranga Lakmal were left out because Nuwan Pradeep and Dilhara Fernando were declared fit.

ScorecardAlan Richardson’s form shows no sign of abating after another five-wicket haul•Getty Images

In these days of central contracts and IPL deals it was a delight to hear Alan Richardson speaking earlier this month about the pride he felt in being named as one of Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year.The award may have no commercial value but it is confirmation from on high of a job performed with great distinction – and a job which, on the evidence of today’s limited action, the 36-year-old has every intention of doing at least as well this season.Richardson’s 73 Championship wickets last summer went a long way towards helping Worcestershire defy the odds by retaining their Division One status. Surprisingly, given the size of the haul, he took five or more wickets in an innings on only three occasions but there are already two entries in that much cherished column this campaign.Against Notts, in a match which Worcestershire eventually lost by 92 runs, it was 5 for 95. This time it is 5 for 42, from 16 overs, and with power to add.Winning the toss yesterday was a good start for the visitors. Thanks to the weather, though, they had to wait 24 hours in order to get cracking with the ball – and then show still more patience while Jason Roy and Steven Davies were putting together a stand of 48.Surrey are only three matches into this season but already on to their third opening pair. Davies missed the first game, through being with England in Sri Lanka, and now Jacques Rudolph is absent after returning home to South Africa for family reasonsRoy and Davies looked anything but a makeshift combination, however, as they survived for nearly an hour – and, in the case of Roy, prospered to the tune of 38 runs from 36 balls – despite seaming conditions which surely had Richardson licking his lips in anticipation.The breakthrough came when Richardson nipped one back to pin Roy lbw, and Worcestershire were soon on a roll. In all, Surrey lost five wickets for 21 runs in 10 overs, either side of a break for rain, but, to the home side’s credit, Worcestershire had to earn all but one of those successes. Davies nicked another good ball from Richardson, Mark Ramprakash and Rory Hamiliton-Brown both had to play at their deliveries from Richard Jones and only Zander De Bruyn could feel really cross with himself – poking tentatively outside off stump.Batting was never remotely easy. But when the floodlights came on and the sky was nearly as black as night, Tom Maynard and Chris Jordan did extremely well to add the thick end of 50 runs through some ferocious counter-attacking.At that stage, with Surrey 117 for 5, it was pretty much even-steven, given the conditions. But after a second lengthy hold up, the weather improved just long enough to allow another three and half overs, during which Richardson dismissed both Maynard and Jordan to complete his five-for and leave the hosts on 123 for 7.With only two days remaining, the odds are heavily on a draw. Then again, Worcestershire in general and Richardson in particular are rather good at making a nonsense of predictions.

Junaid Zia and Taufeeq Umar led Lahore Eagles to a comfortable 34-run win over Rawalpindi Rams in Rawalpindi. Zia scalped three wickets, two of which came in his first over, and made the chase even tougher for Rawalpindi by giving away only 14 runs in his spell. By the time Lahore had bowled ten overs, Rawalpindi had lost half of their side. Opener Awais Zia scored a half-century and was the eighth wicket to fall in an otherwise underwhelming batting performance, where the next highest score was 14. Rawalpindi were all out for 124 in 17.5 overs. Batting first, Lahore had set a strong platform with a 64 run partnership between Taufiq Umar and Imran Farhat in 6.4 overs. But Rawalpindi controlled the second half of the innings with regular wickets. In fact, except Umar and Farhat, no other batsman managed a double-digit score. Umar, who scored 76, was run out in a dramatic last over by Sohail Tanvir, where including Umar, four wickets (three run-outs) fell off the last three legal balls.Shoaib Malik’s five-wicket haul wrecked Karachi Dolphins‘ top-order as they lost to Sialkot Stallions by nine wickets in Rawalpindi. Karachi chose to bat and made steady progress in the first ten overs, losing only one wicket. In the twelfth over, however, Malik removed both Shahzaib Hasan and Asad Shafiq, the two set batsmen, in two balls to dent the scoring-rate. He sparked another collapse in the sixteenth over with two wickets, as Karachi lost six wickets for 20 runs to finish with 123. In reply, Sialkot only lost their opener, Shakeel Ansar, as they chased down the target in 16.1 overs. Imran Nazir was particularly aggressive as he smashed 76 runs off 47 balls with five sixes, while Haris Sohail held up the other end with a solid 43.

Ian Taylor, the founder of the ball-tracking system, Virtual Eye, has called upon technicians and umpires to “fess up” and overrule DRS technology if they conclude that the system might have become unreliable because of unavailable data.Taylor’s call for umpires to use their discretionary powers to overrule technology followed a malfunction of the ball-tracking technology during the Hamilton Test between New Zealand and South Africa when data was collected from only two of the four cameras used to determine DRS decisions.The failure by technicians and umpires to admit the shortcomings immediately will further embarrass the ICC, which continues to champion the system against resistance, particularly from India, and which has arranged for Cambridge University to run independent tests into its accuracy.The latest debate broke out following the dismissal of the New Zealand batsman, Ross Taylor, on the second day of the second Test.Taylor was given out lbw by umpire Billy Doctrove off the bowling of Dale Steyn late on the second day. The delivery was reverse-swinging and struck Taylor on the full. Ball-tracking predicted it would have hit middle and leg, which would have required a significant and unnatural angle change. In fact, after Virtual Eye was recalibrated, the ball would have only shaved leg stump. Doctrove’s decision would still have been upheld by the television umpire, Aleem Dar, but the difference was still striking.Ian Taylor, shaken by criticism of the system for the second successive Test, called a media conference in Hamilton at which he urged umpires to use the discretionary powers given to them to overrule DRS technology if they knew that complete data was not available or even if they felt strongly about a particular decision.Virtual Eye’s inventor said that the system had erred because after 6pm the ball-tracking cameras were not able to pick as much data up as they were earlier in the day when the light was brighter. In the case of Ross Taylor’s dismissal, of the four cameras at the ground, one was facing direct sunlight, so it did not get the image, and another lost the ball, meaning that the data calculated for the predictive path was only obtained from two cameras.In such a situation, Taylor simply wants his team to press the button that says “insufficient data available” and leave the umpire to take the final call on the dismissal. The implication was that they had not done this. “I said I would fess up if we got it wrong and we’ve got it wrong this time,” Taylor said.Ball-tracking technology came under the microscope during the first Test in Dunedin when both Jacques Kallis and Doug Bracewell said their respective camps questioned the legitimacy of the system. Kallis comment that “99% of cricketers” will probably agree that they don’t believe ball-tracking is as accurate as the makers say it stung Taylor particularly hard.He was close to pulling out of the series but was convinced to stay on after crisis talks with Sky Television, New Zealand Cricket and the ICC’s general manager of cricket, Dave Richardson. “I really wish we had pulled it from the series then the players would have to argue with their boards whether they want to have it or not,” Taylor said in Hamilton.Meanwhile, Ross Taylor said he had no qualms about the system at all. “It’s there for both teams and the umpire gave me out and the DRS gave me out as well,” he said. When asked if it made a difference that Ian Taylor revealed that ball-tracking got it wrong, Taylor was unfussed.”I’d rather you not have told me really,” he said. “It’s there. Umpires make the right decisions and umpires make a bad decision, I guess it’s the same as the DRS.”Edited by David Hopps

‘My approach to cricket has been reasonably simple: it was about giving everything to the team, it was about playing with dignity and it was about upholding the spirit of the game’•AFP

I would like to announce my retirement from international and domestic first-class cricket. It is 16 years since I played my first Test match for India and today I feel it is time to move on. Once I was like every other boy in India, with a dream of playing for my country. Yet I could never have imagined a journey so long and so fulfilling.No dream is ever chased alone. As I look back, I have many people to thank for teaching me and believing in me. My junior coaches in Bangalore and at various junior national camps inculcated in me a powerful love of the game, which has always stayed with me. My coaches at the international level have added to my craft and helped shape my personality. The physios and trainers worked hard to keep me fit – not an easy job – and allowed me to play late into my 30s.The selectors, who rarely receive any credit in India, occasionally had more confidence in me than I had in myself and I am grateful for that. The various captains I played under offered me guidance and inspired me.The media has been kind to me and I have respect for their craft.The KSCA and BCCI have provided me a platform and the facilities to play the game.Most of all I have to thank the teams I played with. I was lucky in my early years to play for a Karnataka team that was trying to forge itself into a strong side and they were years of fun and learning. In the Indian team, I was fortunate to be part of a wonderful era when India played some of its finest cricket at home and abroad. Many of my teammates have become legends, not just in India but in the wider cricketing world. I admired them, learnt from them and I leave the game with wonderful memories and strong friendships. It is a great gift to have.A career in sport is almost impossible to manage without the support, and guidance, and reassurance of family and friends. During tough times, and there always are, this is whom we go to. I found strength and encouragement from my parents and brother and they created around me a positive environment which was essential to my success.My wife, Vijeeta, has been a remarkable partner in my journey. She has made sacrifices in her own career and has almost been a single parent as she brought up our children alone as I travelled abroad to play. Whenever challenges appeared, she was always there, as sounding board, as ally and as guide. Being away from my family became harder and harder through the years and I look forward now to spending time at home and doing the simple things, like just taking my sons to school.Finally I would like to thank the Indian cricket fan, both here and across the world. The game is lucky to have you and I have been lucky to play before you. To represent India, and thus to represent you, has been a privilege and one which I have always taken seriously. My approach to cricket has been reasonably simple: it was about giving everything to the team, it was about playing with dignity and it was about upholding the spirit of the game. I hope I have done some of that. I have failed at times, but I have never stopped trying. It is why I leave with sadness but also with pride.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
A calf injury led to Ross Taylor having to retire hurt•AFP

Only 15.2 overs were bowled on the second day of the Test between New Zealand and Zimbabwe at McLean Park before light, but persistent, rain set in to make further play impossible. BJ Watling shone through the gloom of the curtailed morning session to consolidate his side’s dominance with a bright fifty, his second in Tests. Watling finished unbeaten on 52, having helped his side advance to 392 for 5, with a large first-innings score becoming ever more critical following the loss of two and a half sessions of play.New Zealand managed to waltz through unscathed on the scorecard, but sustained an injury to overnight centurion Ross Taylor, who retired hurt before being taken to hospital with a suspected calf tear. It may mean today’s modest gain of 61 runs proves a potentially pyrrhic victory for the hosts, with South Africa, the home summer’s main event, due in the country in two weeks.Watling passed his first Test as wicketkeeper-batsman by producing the kind of innings the selectors signed him on for in his first dig in the new role. Watling began the morning with a pair of liquid drives through the off side, and rarely allowed a half-volley to go unpunished. With an abnormally docile Ross Taylor’s sights seemingly set on long occupation on day two, it fell to Watling to provide the early impetus, and he responded with a brace of runs square of the wicket, even as his partner’s start starved him of the strike.As in the morning session on day one, Zimbabwe’s bowlers were guilty of straying too often, particularly on the pads, and despite the already-slow outfield becoming ever more sluggish as drizzle set in, Watling’s timing ensured wayward bowlers paid due penance.The visitors also lacked intensity on the field, again much as they had for in the opening day, with Brendan Taylor positioning a solitary slip instead of pressing for early breakthroughs under some cloud cover. Ross Taylor was happy to allow the bowlers come to him, dealing in languid singles instead of militant strokeplay, with his counterpart seemingly content to leave enough gaps to allow him his leisurely approach.Ross Taylor’s plan to build patiently struck an abrupt roadblock when he pulled a calf, setting off for his 122nd run. Unable to summon a runner under the new rules, the New Zealand captain was forced to leave the field.Zimbabwe’s woes were then both epitomised and compounded by perhaps the worst drop in Tests so far in 2012. Doug Bracewell toed a sitter to Forster Mutizwa at cover, handing the debutant a chance not even worthy of being called catching practice. Mutizwa shelled the opportunity, and a few overs later, Watling edged through vacant first slip to reach his fifty before the rains came down.

Where others saw records or dollar signs, Michael Clarke could only surmise Australia’s chances of victory. In declaring on 329 not out after a stand of 334 with Michael Hussey, Clarke gave his side half the match to round up India a second time, and had taken two choice wickets in the form of Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid before the close.Against a nation that has a well-entrenched fascination, even obsession, with individual run-scoring achievements, Clarke’s decision drew plenty of post-play questions about why he had not gone on in pursuit of Brian Lara’s 400, or even surpassed Don Bradman and Mark Taylor only five runs further on from his tally. But Clarke was adamant that the pursuit of the win came first.Michael Clarke: “It’s about respect, continuing to earn the public’s respect, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted.”•Getty Images

“I didn’t think about it at all, I didn’t have Don Bradman or Mark Taylor’s score in my head whatsoever,” Clarke said. “It was about trying to get the team to a number, a total I thought would be a good score to make a declaration, then have a crack this afternoon to get a couple of wickets.”I think it is about putting the team first, that’s why we play. What I love most about this game is seeing this team win. I’ve always been like that as a player and I’ll be no different as a captain. If it was best for the team to continue batting I would have continued to bat.”While he stopped short of such records, Clarke could be content with the highest Test score ever made at the SCG, surpassing RE Foster’s 287 for England more than a century ago. He said the magnitude of his innings would not sink in until the match ended, preferably in victory for his side.”I don’t think it’ll sink in properly until we win the Test match,” Clarke said. “That’s why we play, that was my goal walking out there today. Don’t get me wrong, I’m stoked that I’ve managed to make 300-odd runs in this Test match, but the most important thing for me now is we win the Test.”That was a big part of the reason for my declaration. I spoke to Huss just before we declared and I really wanted him to make 150, he deserved it, and once he got that I thought now we have a 450-run lead, it is a good time to pull up stumps and try to get a couple of wickets tonight.”I didn’t expect to score 300 in one innings, so the fact I’ve done that I’m stoked, and [as for] all the other records, I’m happy where I sit to be honest.”Clarke said the most testing aspect of his innings was simply to sustain his energy and concentration over nearly two days of batting. His previous first-class best of 201 not out for New South Wales had receded a long way into the distance by the time he had finished.”Batting the amount of time for me [was the toughest thing]. I’ve never batted that long in any form of the game in any team in my career,” he said. “Physically I felt pretty good, when I came to the ground I felt pretty fresh, and my body felt in a pretty good position. It’s just the mental application and concentration that you need to have.”Clarke’s application has if anything been enhanced by the captaincy, and he is now doing great things in the role to earn the respect of his team and the Australian public. The former captain Mark Taylor has said vice-captaincy can be difficult when the leader is a figure a legendary as Allan Border or Ricky Ponting, but Clarke said he had appreciated the apprenticeship, too.”I’ve said it a million times and I’ll say it again, it’s about respect, continuing to earn the public’s respect and that’s all I’ve ever wanted,” he said. “People are going to dislike me, that’s life, the way it is, but the most important thing for me, especially being the Australian captain now, you want your home fans to respect you, so that’s all I’ve ever asked for.”I enjoyed the vice-captaincy a lot. I thought it was fantastic to sit underneath Ricky and learn as much as I could from him, learn about leadership, learn about captaincy, learn about what it takes off the field to captain Australia. That probably opened my eyes to leadership more than anything else.”And I’ve enjoyed this challenge. It’s an honour and privilege to captain Australia, there’s a lot that goes with it, but I’m enjoying it at the moment. The team having some success obviously makes life a lot easier. We’ve got a lot of talent out there so that makes my job a lot easier as well.”Hussey’s own 150 was put in the shade by Clarke, much as anyone who batted any length of time with Don Bradman had been. But he said he had simply enjoyed the chance to bat alongside Clarke for 334 runs, and to witness the SCG’s highest individual tally from the other end.”I don’t really mind [being overshadowed]. I said to Pup out in the middle I was honoured and privileged to witness and be a part of that,” Hussey said. “It was a fantastic innings and one I’ll remember for a long time, I’m sure Pup will as well, and one that got our team into a very strong position in the Test match, that’s what I’ll remember about it.”

Match facts

Saturday, December 17
Start time 0930 (0330 GMT)Nazimuddin stood out among Bangladesh’s batsmen in the first Test•AFP

Big Picture

Bangladesh’s abject performance, their status as a Test-playing nation, the need for their players to play more first-class cricket at home as well as against Associate countries to compete better at the highest level, their excessive reliance on a couple of individuals and their reckless batting dominated talk during yet another capitulation in the first Test in Chittagong.On the same day a revitalised New Zealand pulled off one of their most famous wins, beating Australia by seven runs in a thrilling encounter in Hobart, Bangladesh plunged to another predictable defeat, another innings loss that took their horror run to 10 defeats in 11 Tests. While increasing criticism is something Bangladesh have been at the receiving end of for quite some time, a simultaneous decline in sympathy for their limitations, their results and quality of cricket will be tougher to bear.Their opponents, on the other hand, have achieved what they expected out of this tour so far. Leading up to a much-awaited series against England in ‘home conditions’ in the UAE, Pakistan have been dominating and clinical, sweeping the limited-overs games and being ruthless in a Test that had several notable individual achievements. Asad Shafiq notched up his first international century after promising to reach that landmark on more than a few occasions previously; Abdur Rehman settled in nicely in just his second game of the tour, picking up seven wickets; Younis Khan eased to another double-century and Mohammad Hafeez continued a stellar year.In their final game of 2011, a year of contrasting fortunes for both teams, one emerging strong on the field from the spot-fixing saga and disciplinary issues, and the other seemingly sinking to the abyss after the World Cup, expect another strong show for Pakistan, while Bangladesh will hoping to salvage some pride, if nothing else.

Form guide

Bangladesh: LLDLL
Pakistan: WDWDW

Players to watch out for…

Nazimuddin had a memorable Test debut, making 78 in the second innings. As his partners were failing to preserve their wickets, their impatience and lack of determination glaringly on display, Nazimuddin fought hard in conditions that favoured spinners. His resistance stood out, and offered plenty of promise for a team facing serious problems with its batting.Azhar Ali scored his maiden Test ton in his 28th innings, against Sri Lanka in the UAE, after a run of consistent performances in the top order. Pakistan have been grooming him as a Test specialist at No.3. He’s solid, has sound technique and has delivered against tougher bowling attacks. He’ll feel he missed out against Bangladesh in the opening Test, making 26 while the others cashed in, and ahead of the England series he’ll strive for a bigger score.

Team news

Mohammad Ashraful practiced with the team ahead of this Test, stayed in the same hotel and was, according to the coach Stuart Law, part of the squad before the BCB finally confirmed he was dropped. The late announcement, captain Mushfiqur Rahim said, is something his side had become used to. They’ve replaced him with Shafiul Islam, a seamer. He should take Rubel Hossain’s place; Rubel injured his right shoulder in Chittagong. Naeem Islam missed the first Test due to illness, but should take Ashraful’s place if fit.Bangladesh: 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Nazimuddin, 3 Shahriar Nafees, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt and wk), 5 Naeem Islam, 6 Shakib Al Hasan, 7 Nasir Hossain, 8 Mahmudullah, 9 Elias Sunny, 10 Shahadat Hossain, 11 Shafiul Islam.Pakistan have two reserve seamers in Mohammad Khalil and Mohammad Talha, but it remains to be seen if either of them is given a go.Pakistan: 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Taufeeq Umar, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 6 Asad Shafiq, 7 Adnan Akmal (wk), 8 Abdur Rehman, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Saeed Ajmal, Aizaz Cheema.

Pitch and conditions

The weather forecast is encouraging with sunny skies predicted for the next five days. The track in Mirpur has traditionally favoured turn and bounce, something the spin-strong attacks from either team won’t mind. Batting first has been the way to go for the most part here.

Stats and trivia

• Nazimuddin became the 10th Bangladesh batsman to score 50 or more in an innings in his debut Test.
• Misbah-ul-Haq is 83 short of 2000 runs in Tests.

Quotes

“We (Pakistan) have to be professional and keep this out of our minds and concentrate on what we are doing.”
“Our target will be to finish off well so that we can go into our next international commitment with the memory that yes, we did well in the last game.”