The Federation of International Cricketers Association (FICA) has expressed surprise and disappointment with the ICC executive’s decision to endorse the Future Tours Programme.Tim May, FICA’s chief executive, told reporters that the move “not only conflicts with volume and scheduling restraints that the ICC adopted as principles in the construction of the new six-year cycle, but appears to fly in the face of concerns expressed previously by the ICC’s president and CEO”.He warned of the increasing dangers of player burnout. “More than ever we are seeing the games’ top players being forced to retire from the demands of one or the other form of the game as a result of the constant and unrelenting schedule. On top of this, injuries and forced absences to the world’s blue-ribbon fast bowlers are becoming more pronounced, and some teams are forced to apply rotational systems to ensure players are not flattened by these congested playing schedules. There needs to be a healthy balance between the commercial needs of the game and the needs of the players”.May’s unease stems from the volume of cricket being played, and there are so many series that there are often no periods between them to allow players to rest. Recently, Sri Lanka returned home from a punishing VB Series in Australia and flew straight to Bangladesh for another series there. Next month, Australia finish their Test and ODI campaign in South Africa and within three days of the end of the Johannesburg Test they are due to play an ODI in Bangladesh.In 2004, Malcolm Speed, the ICC’s chief executive, warned that “we have come very close to saturation point in terms of the volume of cricket, not only in a commercial sense, but also in respect of the demands it is placing on international cricketers.” Ehsan Mani, the ICC president, also stated when he took office that there were issues regarding the amount of cricket being played.May said that although the ICC had introduced principles around which the FTP would be built, “these have been largely ignored in the final program”.
It is clear that very important decisions are being made by ICC committees which have no international cricket playing experience and appear to have no appreciation of the demands and pressures of the game today from a players perspective
He continued: “Instead of easing player workloads, the ICC program commits more matches to be played at the Champions Trophy, more Full Member matches against Associate Countries , a further international [Twenty20] competition, regular Twenty20 matches on a bilateral basis and allows countries to fill in any other downtime that players may enjoy with series loosely tagged as ‘icon series’.”In addition, the program allows member countries to add further fixtures to the agreed program without any limitation. It will result in more cricket for a number of teams over the next six years than we have ever seen before.””The program appears to continue to demonstrate the ICC’s growing lack of respect for players’ needs. When coupled with growing concerns from players and their representatives with player terms for the 2006 Champions Trophy and beyond, it will almost certainly produce a prolonged and unsettled industrial landscape.”This program does not achieve the required healthy balance and will only act as a catalyst for further player retirements, absences and on going dissatisfaction with the international calendar. It is clear that very important decisions are being made by ICC committees which have no international cricket playing experience and appear to have no appreciation of the demands and pressures of the game today from a players perspective.”It is likely that FICA will now consult its members before deciding on its next course of action.
Ryan Hinds, who struck a patient 48 in the first innings of the opening Test against South Africa, has been ruled out of the second game due to a viral illness. His bowling, though largely unincisive – his only wicket came late in the game – was economical.The selectors called up Donovan Pagon, who played the first Test and was released from the side when Ramnaresh Sarwan, Chris Gayle and Brian Lara chose to return.The second Test begins on April 8.
Stephen Fleming said that New Zealand had come to India eminently prepared to meet every challenge thrown at them, but he added that executing tactical plans in Indian conditions would prove to be the real challenge. “We have a lot of plans,” he said in Visakhapatnam, where New Zealand start their first three-day game tomorrow. “A lot of things in mind for a number of players. But the most important part in India is executing those plans.”According to Fleming, the Indian tour would be even more arduous than tours of the West Indies and Sri Lanka. “India have three or four of the top batsmen in the world. They also have a very good spin attack. That’s where the challenge lies.”New Zealand beat India 2-0 late last year, on green wickets that came in for a fair bit of stick. Fleming reckoned that the wickets prepared for the upcoming series would also have a similar influence on the outcome. “Generally, spin bowlers get assistance from Indian tracks while the pacers have to do it the hard way. I’m not saying that we’re not talented, but we have to play extremely well to put it across India in the coming series. Also, spots are up for grabs in the side.”His hopes of at least attaining parity rested largely on the two slow bowlers, Daniel Vettori and Paul Wiseman. “Daniel is the more experienced bowler, while Paul has developed his skills and is also now turning the ball well. They have got different roles to play and we will make full use of their skills,” he said. Vettori and Wiseman bowled well in Sri Lanka, where New Zealand managed to end Sri Lanka’s triumphant nine-match run in Test matches.The first challenge for New Zealand starts tomorrow when they take on a Board President’s XI captained by Virender Sehwag.
After rumours and speculation, it has finally been confirmed that Nasser Hussain will not necessarily stand down from the England captaincy at the end of the 2003 World Cup in South Africa. If he can justify his place as a player, there is every reason to suggest he will continue with the captaincy.It was reported in a national newspaper that he had expressed the view that the tournament would mark the end of a four-year cycle and it would therefore be a good time to stand down. That elicited a response from ECB chief executive Tim Lamb in which he hoped that Hussain would at least listen to pleas to continue.Now Hussain has said that his original comments were misinterpreted. All he was trying to say was that he would review the situation once the World Cup campaign had ended. Chairman of selectors, David Graveney has put the record straight.”Like a lot of people of his age, they will look at their careers after theWorld Cup because it is likely to be the last one he plays in. He was both surprised and embarrassed about how the story was presented and in my last conversation with him he was very much playing down his retirement.”Nasser’s done a fantastic job for England since he took over as captain, and long may it continue. When he was first appointed he may not have been the most popular choice but he has more than justified his selection since.”Anyone who knows him will tell you that Nasser is not the type of person todrag it out,” added Graveney. “He will look at his contribution to the team, and if he is not justifying his place then I’m sure he will move on.”
Not the greatest of seasons this one for Durham opening batsman Jon Lewis.Or at least that seemed the case until today, when his sparkling centuryguided Durham out of early trouble and into a position of respectability onday one of the County Championship clash with Somerset at Chester-le-Street.On an afternoon ravaged by rain, Lewis (113*) registered his first centuryin just over twelve months to guide his team to the mark of 215/5 after ithad won the toss. His only two half-centuries this season had both comeagainst Yorkshire, and at no stage this summer had he previously compiledanything exceeding 66. Notwithstanding such a run of outs, though, he wassolid off both the front and back foot today, and offered only onesemblance of a chance – that coming on 81 as he edged a Paul Jarvisdelivery between first and second slips.For Somerset, the home team’s early woes had been inspired by some finebowling from Graham Rose (2/28). It had been the right arm paceman indeedwho had lured Michael Gough (9) to edge a comfortable catch to second slipwith the total at 17 and then attracted an inside edge on to the stumpsfrom Simon Katich (0) with the very next ball.Following the intervention of rain (over a period in mid-afternoonsufficiently lengthy to wash away thirty-one overs of action), and in thewake of a cracking burst which had seen sixty-one runs smoked from eightwayward overs from Jarvis (1/66) and Jamie Grove (1/39), Rose then put histeammates’ horror spell into even greater perspective. He beat the bats ofboth Paul Collingwood (34) and Nick Speak (7) repeatedly before KeithParsons (1/21) and then Jarvis respectively claimed those wickets to reviveSomerset’s fortunes.There followed another period of Lewis-led consolidation for Durham beforeMuazam Ali, who had reached the giddy heights of 18 after totalling sevenruns from four previous first-class innings, irrationally launched a wildhook straight to Jarvis (playing in his first Championship match of theseason) at long leg in the final over of the day.
Alfie Devine was among the substitutes as Tottenham Hotspur embarrassingly crashed out of the FA Cup on Tuesday evening.
A strong Spurs starting XI were beaten in extra time by Championship outfit Middlesbrough, meaning their long wait for silverware goes on.
Antonio Conte’s side were completely devoid of ideas at the Riverside Stadium as the second-tier side registered more possession (51%) and shots (16) than the north Londoners.
And for all of their defensive issues this season, the Italian has still suffered from a lack of creativity in the final third, so perhaps it’s a surprise that he did not turn to the 17-year-old gem in this competition.
Devine recently took his tally for the U23s this season to nine goals and three assists from 15 appearances in the Premier League 2 and the FA Youth Cup, via Transfermarkt.
His form for the youth squads at Hotspur Way has seen him earn international recognition at U19 level for England, whilst he earned his professional debut in this tournament under Jose Mourinho last season, featuring for 45 minutes in the 5-0 whitewash of Marine.
According to The Athletic, the Portuguese believed there were similarities between the teenager and Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes.
”Mourinho, though, was a big fan and told Devine that he saw shades of Bruno Fernandes in him. Others have compared him stylistically to Chelsea’s Billy Gilmour, and Tim Cahill for his ability to arrive late into the box. The name Steven Gerrard has even been whispered, but we should be wary of getting ahead of ourselves,’ they revealed.
In the public eye, he did talk up his ability, particularly in the final third.
“He’s a kid with good potential. He’s basically a midfield player but with an instinct to appear in finishing zones and to score goals. We like him and of course, for him, it was a special day,” he said (via Goal.com).
It’s this sort of player that Spurs have lacked ever since the departure of Christian Eriksen, whose goals, assists and phenomenal dead-ball ability puts him amongst the best the Premier League has seen over the last decade.
Capable of playing as a no.8 and a no.10, Devine is clearly an attack-minded and playmaking gem capable of filling the Dane’s great void in the long term.
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It’s no wonder he has been dubbed the “whole package” by his former coach Harry Brooks, who also told The Athletic:
“The talent, the attitude, the ability to always turn it on. The tenacity, the aggression. When it comes to looking at that whole picture, he’s the best player in the academy. He could play for England one day.”
If Conte wants to find another Eriksen, then he ought to take a bold risk and unleash the 17-year-old prospect into his first-team squad more often. A place on the bench is a good start, that’s for sure.
AND in other news, Conte could unearth Spurs’ next Kane in 17 y/o “diamond” who can save Levy millions…
Scorecard Saurashtra moved closer to a spot in the final four on a meandering third day at the Wankhede Stadium as Mumbai, who have all but missed out on a semi-final spot, crawled along without any risks to close 297 behind their opposition.In the morning, Mun Munegala didn’t take long to remove Sandeep Maniar for his fifth wicket of the innings and terminate Saurashtra’s marathon effort at 484. Shitanshu Kotak was left unbeaten after 796 minutes at the crease and entered an elite list: only five men – Rajiv Nayyar (1015), Hanif Mohammad (970), Gary Kirsten (878), Sanath Jayasuriya (799) and Leonard Hutton (797) have played more minutes in a first-class innings. But Kotak is unique in that he is the only player in that group who has not been dismissed.In their reply, Mumbai proceeded serenely, courtesy an unbroken 148-run partnership between Ajinkya Rahane and Amol Muzumdar after being in a spot of bother at 39 for 2. Sahil Kukreja was given out lbw after a Kanaiya Vaghela delivery appeared to have struck him high while Vinit Indulkar nicked one from Sandeep Jobanputra. But Rahane and Muzumdar ensured there would be no more casualties.Mumbai had had their share of problems against left-arm seamers this season – Delhi’s Pradeep Sangwan and Maharashtra’s Samad Fallah in particular, were successful earlier in the competition – as Jobanputra, Saurashtra’s leading bowler with 27 wickets at the start of the game, got the ball to bend in a touch to trouble the batsmen. However, he was guilty of being a tad short in his second spell and slowly, things eased out in the middle.Vaghela, the right-arm medium-pacer, bowled a parsimonious opening spell of 11-7-8-1, with his first seven overs being maidens but the runs started to come slowly. Rahane cover drove repeatedly to set the tone and Muzumdar worked the ball around to rotate the strike.Muzumdar, playing in his 100th Ranji game, settled to play some forceful punches through the off side. He was reprieved once on 42 when he jumped out and edged a drive against Rakesh Dhurv but wicketkeeper Sagar Jogiyani failed to hold on or complete the stumping chance. Rahane’s was a chanceless innings and he used his feet well against the spinners to push the score along.However, with their position all but secured and the pitch flat, Saurashtra played well within their strengths. Delhi’s securing a first-innings lead against Tamil Nadu – and thus having a higher quotient – means Mumbai can sneak in to the semi-finals only if Tamil Nadu pull off a minor miracle in Chennai tomorrow. Mumbai faithfuls will cling on to the fact that Delhi, chasing 105, were shot out for under 100 once in this season against Himachal Pradesh.
Inzamam-ul-Haq leads Pakistan into a St Patrick’s Day showdown withIreland knowing that there’s no margin for error with a place in the SuperEights at stake. The 54-run loss to West Indies has pushed Pakistan backagainst the wall, and Inzamam and his side will need to use the adversecircumstances to inspire them in front of a large crowd that will mainlybe roaring on the underdog that the Jamaicans have taken to their heartsafter Ireland’s thrilling tie against Zimbabwe.Inzamam called Thursday’s game the “most interesting of the World Cup sofar”, adding that “it reminded the big teams that no team can be takenlightly”. Defeat in the tournament opener was a setback, and a few changesare in the offing. Inzamam said that they wouldn’t decide on an XI untilafter the team meeting on Friday evening, but suggested that either he orMohammad Yousuf could be batting higher up the order.”The batting order will probably change,” he said. “In the previous much,the top order was under pressure and it was the experienced middle orderof myself, Younis Khan and Yousuf that had to try their best tohandle it.”Ireland’s best hopes of an upset lie there, in winning the toss and usingthe moisture in the pitch to make rapid inroads. Trent Johnston, thecaptain, admitted as much, though he added that it would need a Herculeaneffort to get past one of the fancied teams in the competition. “We’llhave to bring our A game in all three departments to even come close, andthey’ll need to have a poor day,” he said. “It would be fantastic to stayon for a few more weeks after the 24th [of March].”After the tie against Zimbabwe, Johnston had said that his team weren’ttoo intimidated by Pakistan’s bowling line-up, even though it was clearlytheir stronger suit against West Indies. Apart from the final five oversthat went for 57, the bowling was disciplined and tidy, and Inzamamindicated that there would be no tinkering even though some would like tosee the out-of-form and out-of-luck Rana Naved-ul-Hasan replaced byMohammad Sami.Inzamam focussed instead on Umar Gul, who took the new ball in the openinggame in the absence of Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif. “Gul is our strikebowler as of now,” said Inzamam. “The team depends on him forbreakthroughs. He has the potential to be a world-class bowler, but heneeds to play two years of good cricket.”He also rubbished talk of a rift within the team, saying that suchinnuendo was par for the course when it came to Pakistan cricket. “If suchtalk had not come up after a loss, it would have been better,” he saidbluntly. “In a way, it’s not a surprise and I’m used to this after playingfor 17 years.”
Shahid Afridi made a few appearances for Ireland last year as a guest player and even thoughsuspension rules him out of this game, Inzamam said that his inputs hadbeen useful. “Ireland has some county players,” he said when asked toassess the opposition. “It was good to see them fight till the last ball.”The county player he was referring to was Eoin Morgan of Middlesex, and hesaid that his experience might come in handy against a side that would beexpected to easily outclass the Irish. “I’ve played against AzharMahmood,” Morgan said. “They have a lot of great players, but hopefullythey’ll have their second bad day of the tournament tomorrow.”Adrian Birrell, the coach, accepted that Thursday’s eye-catching resulthad taken away the element of surprise, though he was fairly certain thatPakistan wouldn’t have underestimated his team anyway. “Azhar playedagainst us when we beat Surrey and Afridi played for us in the C>rophy,” he said. “They won’t be taking us lightly, and their coach willensure that they come out hard.”While depending on their new-ball bowlers to spring a surprise, Irelandwill also need to put runs on the board themselves. Morgan is tipped asthe star of the future, but once again much will depend on the broadshoulders of Jeremy Bray, the opening bat who made a 137-ball 115 onThursday. “Jeremy’s 33 years young,” said Johnston with a smile. “He’s abit stiff and sore, but we had a light run and there’s a [swimming] poolsession later, so he’ll be fine.”Close to 8,000 tickets have already been sold for the game – only 2011came through the turnstiles for the Zimbabwe match – and Johnston wasexpecting a carnival atmosphere. “It’s something tolook forward to,” he said. “St. Patrick’s Day is a special one forIreland, and we have the opportunity to quality for the next round. Butwe’ve been emphasising that it’s just another game. We can’t put too muchpressure on ourselves.”The result against Zimbabwe was greeted with a six-column front-pagephotograph in the , but according to Birrell, the suddenspurt in interest wouldn’t increase the pressure on the side. “We’rethrilled that we’re getting publicity,” he said. “It’s been a long haul,and it makes us all the more determined.”For Birrell, the secret weapon could be the chats he’s had with his oldfriend, Mickey Arthur, the South African coach. “Mickey and I go back a long way,” said Birrell, who played his first-class cricket in South Africa. “Pakistan toured SouthAfrica recently, and I did pick his brain.”No matter what happens out on the field, most of the Irish will spendSaturday night with their families. Morgan, though, did admit that anothersuccessful outing might just result in “one or two more” Guinness beingdrunk. If they pull off the mother of all World Cup heists, they’ll mostlikely get free Guinness for life. Now, there’s a thought.
Fine innings from Umar Abrahams (91) and Riaan Jeggels led Eastern Province to declare at 336 for 6 on the second day of their match against Boland. In reply, Boland lost Warren Hayward for nought and stumbled to 10 for 3 when Dawid Malan was trapped lbw by Lonwabo Tsotsobe. They hold a slender lead of 51 with six wickets remaining going into day three.Gauteng ended day two on top against North West after bowling out their opponents for 252. Johnson Mafa took 4 for 56 but only Thando Bula (68) reached fifty for North West. Gauteng raced to 184 without loss in reply, and lead by 129 runs; William Motaung (77*) and Jean Symes (93*) crashed 22 boundaries in their positive response.
Perhaps because we’re not used to seeing it, we don’toften acknowledge it anymore. Pakistani teams, especiallyduring the 1990s, were many things; freakishly butfitfully brilliant, electric now, flat then. The linebetween success and failure was often thin enough tobe impoverished, delicately balanced on feats ofstupendous individual skill; a spell from Wasim here,one from Waqar there, a virtuoso from Saeed Anwar’swrists or an Inzamam special. Performances wereethereal and success came from an explosion of anindividual or two, while failure from an implosion ofthe collective. If a win often resulted in a streak ofthem, so too did a loss. Not often was there anythingtangible – solidity or resilience – in between.The loss of the two Ws and Saeed has been muchmourned in Pakistan – it still is. But since the WorldCup, and especially over the last year, a squad ofplayers has emerged within Pakistan with a spinesteely enough to cope with positions and situations ofdespair, often made worse through makeshift resources.Mohali last week was an exceptional and spectacularaddition to a growing body of evidence. The wins inLahore against the Indians, after the Multan massacre,and at Karachi against Sri Lanka after SanathJayasuriya had mauled them at Faisalabad wereadmirable demonstrations. Even within the 3-0whitewash in Australia, there were glimpses afterPerth that this Pakistan is not as ready to roll overas previous sides.Tellingly, they have found this spirit collectivelyand through a variety of sources, players such as AsimKamal, the leader Inzamam, Danish Kaneria, YounisKhan, Yousuf Youhana and recently Kamran Akmal andAbdul Razzaq. Calcutta, over two days, has highlightedthis trait most emphatically. They were written offafter the first two sessions had yielded 225 runs andtwo wickets; a big total on the cards, Harbhajan Singhin tow and a heavy defeat to follow. But the responsewas communal, conceived by Shahid Afridi’s dismissalof Tendulkar, continued by Abdul Razzaq’s two wicketsin two balls and concluded yesterday by DanishKaneria’s extraction of Rahul Dravid. Not a starryindividual performance in sight, it was fitting thateach of the three picked up a wicket today to end theIndian innings.Maybe because they are not as extravagantly gifted astheir predecessors, they succeed occasionally byconcentrating on the basics. They chased leather muchof yesterday but they did it with commitment,discipline and passion. Afridi’s bullish presence atthe faltering top of the order today was crucial, butmore so was the recognition by Younis Khan and YousufYouhana of the most underappreciated of cricketingbasics; the art of running as a weapon.Zaheer Abbas, in a recent interview with WAC, recalledhow Asif Iqbal and Javed Miandad had run the Indiansragged when chasing 164 during the memorable chasein Karachi in 1978-79. They had, he said, run singlesthat should never have been run, they converted twosinto threes. It was, reckons Abbas, the invention ofmodern day one-day running as we know it. The Australians,of course, have reclaimed the aggressive, cheeky runof an ODI and refashioned it for the Test game.Today, Youhana and Younis stole, created, nurdled,Deflected and angled runs, cheeky in nature but decisivein spirit. With three in the covers, a slip and shortleg, they relentlessly pursued an internationalversion of tip and run, interspersed freely withboundaries. Each run chipped away at a sizeable totaland at India’s patience. In an innings of 66 overs,there were seven maidens. Not since Miandad himself,and usually against India, had there been such anexhibition.There is, of course, a proviso – there still is withPakistan – and the threat of disintegration alwaysloiters. It has happened also in the last year and theprospect of chasing runs on this pitch remains anuneasy one, but what you cannot do is write them offeven after that. They might go down here, but theywill not, you suspect, be out. What must now beacknowledged, after Mohali, after Calcutta, afterKarachi and Lahore, is that this vintage ofPakistanis, while not possessing the sparkle ofbefore, is made of sterner stuff.