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Sophia Smale, Chloe Skelton share seven wickets to defend 165 for 3 in match reduced to 22 overs per side

ECB Reporters Network24-Jul-2023Fran Wilson scored a blistering 56 to propel Western Storm to a much-needed six-run victory over Sunrisers in a rain-shortened Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy contest at Cheltenham.Alex Griffiths made 46 and Niamh Holland a quickfire 28 as the home side ran up a useful total of 165 for 3 after being put into bat in a match reduced to 22 overs a side.Grace Scrivens and Dane van Niekerk did their best to make a game of it, scoring 39 and 26 respectively to give the chase early impetus. But off spinner Chloe Skelton removed both in the space of two overs to strike a double blow from which Sunrisers were unable to recover.Skelton finished with 3 for 36 and fellow spinner Sophia Smale took 4 for 34 as Sunrisers came up short on 159 for 8, Storm registering their first win in the 50-over format since May to move off the foot of the table.Storm openers Dani Gibson and Griffiths did their best to utilise a reduced four-over powerplay, adding 22 in 3.2 overs before the former was bowled playing across the line for 12 by Eva Gray.Momentum was maintained as new batter Wilson scored at a run-a-ball, driving Gray down the ground for four and then pulling spinner Mady Villiers for another boundary to keep the scoreboard moving.The former England World Cup winner greeted leg spinner Abtaha Maqsood with a swept four and then pulled her through midwicket as Storm passed 50 in the ninth over. Griffiths proved the perfect foil, finding the gaps and rotating the strike as the second-wicket alliance realised 50 from 45 balls.A slow outfield proved problematic for Storm and Amu Surenkumar bowled tidily to restrict scoring from the Chapel End, but Wilson swept Scrivens for four in the fourteenth over to regain the initiative for the hosts.Wilson’s aggressive approach paid dividends when she went to a 45-ball half-century in the grand manner, pulling Surenkumar for six over mid-wicket to register the first maximum of the innings.Surenkumar avenged herself in her next over, Wilson attempting to drive and edging a catch to short fine leg with the score on 113 for 2. Her forthright innings occupied 52 balls, included five fours and a six and served as a crucial mainstay in a progressive stand of 91 in 13.3 overs.In contrast, Griffiths found the boundary only once in compiling 46 from 47 balls before holing out to deep midwicket off the bowling of Surenkumar, who finished with 2 for 37 from five overs. Nevertheless, her innings proved every bit as important as that of Wilson in helping Storm achieve a competitive total.Promoted up the order, England Under-19 international Holland picked up the cudgels at the death, helping herself to four boundaries in a high-octane innings of 28 from 17 balls. Storm captain Sophie Luff weighed in with nine runs, playing her part in a lucrative unbroken stand of 32 for the third wicket.Needing to score at 7.50 an over, Sunrisers’ chase was undermined by the early loss of Cordelia Griffith, the opener smacking a short delivery from Gibson straight to backward point in the third over with the score on 10.Introduced at the Chapel End, slow left armer Smale struck with her first delivery, bowling Jodie Grewcock for one as the visitors slipped to 19-2 in the fifth. van Niekerk immediately demonstrated her attacking intent, hoisting Smale over midwicket for six and then hitting her for four through the same area, but the experienced Phoebe Graham sent down three overs with the new ball for just 10 runs to pile further pressure onto Sunrisers.Lauren Filer proved expensive, conceding 13 runs from the eighth over, to give the visitors encouragement, van Niekerk and Scrivens advancing the score to 66 for 2 at the halfway point of the innings.Chloe Skelton then struck a crucial blow, taking an instinctive return catch to dismiss the dangerous van Niekerk, at which point Sunrisers required a further 96 off 63 balls. Their task became still more difficult when Skelton had Scrivens caught at the wicket by Katie Jones in her next over.Storm missed an opportunity to further tighten the screw, Filer dropping Villers at mid-off on nine off the bowling of Skelton. Encouraged by that mishap, Gray went on the attack, raising 27 from 19 balls before hoisting Smale to deep midwicket. When Smale pinned Amara Carr lbw next ball, Sunrisers were 121 for 6 and needing to score at more than 11 an over.Villers scored 22 off 16 balls, only to hit Skelton to mid-on in the 20th over, after which Storm were able to relax.

An ECG test has “come out clear” and the doctors “suspect muscle spasms”, says SL team manager

Mohammad Isam and Andrew Fidel Fernando23-May-2022Kusal Mendis is still in a Dhaka hospital, after leaving the field holding his chest minutes before lunch on the first day of the second Test, but an ECG test has “come out clear”. The doctors “suspect muscle spasms” as the reason for his discomfort, Sri Lanka team manager Mahinda Halangoda said, adding that Mendis is “still under observation”.It was the 23rd over of the Test, with Bangladesh in their first innings, when Mendis appeared in discomfort and lay down on the field. He was immediately tended to by the Sri Lankan medical staff. He left the playing area holding his chest soon after.In the initial update, BCB doctor Manzur Hossain Chowdhury had said that Mendis had to be taken to the hospital for “proper diagnosis and better management”. According to Chowdhury, Mendis was suffering from dehydration leading into the match, which could be a reason behind his discomfort.It is unclear at this stage how long he will be in the hospital for, and on his participation in the Dhaka Test.Mendis scored a solid half-century in the first innings in the Chattogram Test, followed by a quick 48 in the second stint, helping Sri Lanka draw the game.The conditions in the first Test were extremely trying with the humidity getting to the players. Tamim Iqbal was forced to retire hurt due to severe cramps on day three, while on-field umpire Richard Kettleborough, too, had to leave the field during the fourth day because of the scorching heat. Players were often spotted having drinks breaks under giant umbrellas throughout the course of the Test.Sri Lanka also had to use a concussion substitute for fast bowler Vishwa Fernando after he was struck by a Shoriful Islam bouncer on the second day in Chattogram. Kasun Rajitha was his replacement. This is Sri Lanka’s last match on this Bangladesh tour.

Mullagh was the outstanding member of the Aboriginal team that toured England in 1868

Daniel Brettig28-Dec-2020No-one in the history of Australian cricket has waited longer for induction to the game’s hall of fame than the 152 years since Johnny Mullagh made his name as the outstanding member of the Aboriginal team that toured England in 1868.Mullagh’s belated induction to a hall of fame, that has until now been populated purely by white cricketers, takes Cricket Australia closer to righting the many wrongs of the game’s history in relation to Aboriginal Australia, along similar lines to the efforts being made among the current generation of elite male and female players.But it speaks volumes for how far the game’s custodians need to go to better acknowledge lesser-known pockets of the game’s history that Mullagh, from the Wimmera region of western Victoria, is not only the first Aboriginal cricket to enter the hall of fame, but also the first person of colour.Related

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• Cummins, Paine's 'huge shift' in understanding racism

• The Indigenous hole at Australian cricket's heart

Prior to Mullagh, whose image will also adorn the medal awarded to the winner of the individual match award for the Boxing Day Test this year, the list of the game’s inducted greats also served as a reminder of how monocultural Australian cricket’s corridors of achievement and power have commonly been. The 54 names previously inducted in order since 1996 are a roll call of not just whiteness but narrow western European origins:Fred Spofforth, John Blackham, Victor Trumper, Clarrie Grimmett, Bill Ponsford, Sir Donald Bradman, Bill O’Reilly, Keith Miller, Ray Lindwall, Dennis Lillee, Warwick Armstrong, Neil Harvey, Allan Border, Bill Woodfull, Arthur Morris, Stan McCabe, Greg Chappell, Lindsay Hassett, Ian Chappell, Hugh Trumble, Alan Davidson, Clem Hill, Rod Marsh, Monty Noble, Bob Simpson, Charles Macartney, Richie Benaud, George Giffen, Ian Healy, Steve Waugh, Bill Lawry, Graham McKenzie, Mark Taylor, Doug Walters, Shane Warne, Charlie Turner, Glenn McGrath, Mark Waugh, Belinda Clark, Adam Gilchrist, Jack Ryder, Jeff Thomson, Wally Grout, David Boon, Matthew Hayden, Betty Wilson, Norm O’Neill, Ricky Ponting, Karen Rolton, Cathryn Fitzpatrick, Dean Jones, Billy Murdoch, Sharon Tredrea and Craig McDermott.Criteria for inclusion has traditionally been based on the strict requirement of playing at least 20 Test matches, scoring at least 1000 runs or taking at least 100 wickets. Mullagh doesn’t fit that, but Ian Chappell had twice put his name forward to be added to the Hall of FameThe hall of fame’s chairman, Peter King, described Mullagh’s omission from this list for the first 24 years of inductees as an “oversight” by its judges. “This was probably a bit of an oversight in retrospect,” he said. “We have chosen Johnny as a representative of that era … The ongoing inductee criteria hasn’t changed beyond that. That record speaks for itself and really should have been acknowledged previously. He was a standout in that era.”In this case we wanted to acknowledge the impact Indigenous players have had on the game. That was a decision we made, which I think is a great decision. His record pretty much speaks for itself and it really should have been acknowledged previously, but he’s a stand out character in that era.”It’s a little bit difficult to get a lot of background on it, we’ve been searching for people related to Johnny but we’ve been unsuccessful in that pursuit at this point. He was born in 1841, he was about 50 when he died and he was about 27 when he went on the tour to England. There’s some patchy information around the rest of his career.”Among other notable Aboriginal figures in Australian cricket, Aunty Faith Thomas stands as the first ever Indigenous woman to represent Australia in sport, playing her one and only Test match against England in February 1958. In more contemporary times, Jason Gillespie played the last of his 71 Tests for Australia in 2006, claiming 259 wickets and also scoring a memorable double century against Bangladesh – he has been eligible for inclusion since 2011, five years after retirement. Both must be in contention to be inducted in coming years.”I think this is really opening the way to the future, and hopefully going to be engaging a lot more with Indigenous talent,” King said. “We’ve seen this in other sports and I think there’s opportunities for cricket to embrace that relationship with Indigenous people a lot more strongly. They were the first touring team to travel outside of Australia, so they did pave the way and hopefully this will open a bit more of an engagement opportunity with the rest of the talent that’s out there.”Australia’s captain Tim Paine and his deputy Pat Cummins, recently discussed their ignorance of the many private battles fought by cricketers of colour. “My learnings are how much it affects some of my teammates and me being unaware of that for probably 15 years as a professional cricketer,” Paine said. “So just the shift in that now.”

The duo added an unbeaten 104 for the fourth wicket to stretch India’s lead to 260 after West Indies were bowled out for 222 in their first innings

The Report by Hemant Brar24-Aug-20192:33

I have to take risks to unsettle spinners – Rahul

Unbeaten half-centuries from Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane helped India take firm control of the first Test against West Indies in North Sound. By the end of the third day, India were 185 for 3, Kohli batting on 51 and Rahane on 53 with the overall lead swelling to 260. The two had joined hands just before tea and continued their association till stumps, adding 104 for the fourth wicket.Earlier in the day, West Indies were bowled out for 222, 75 behind India’s first-innings total of 297. India had to negotiate a tricky seven-over period before lunch but KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal ensured they went into the break without any damage.When the teams returned, West Indies surprisingly resumed with Roston Chase and Miguel Cummins. While Cummins had to walk off the field temporarily – after bowling just two overs – with some discomfort in his thigh, Chase didn’t disappoint his captain and trapped Agarwal lbw for 16 as the batsman tried to paddle-sweep a fuller delivery. It looked plumb in real time and perhaps that was the reason Rahul suggested not to review it. However, replays showed the ball would have gone on to miss the leg stump.Rahul looked tentative at the other end, even top-edging a pull off Jason Holder towards fine leg but luckily for him, the ball fell short of the fielder. Cheteshwar Pujara, though, used his feet against Chase right from the start and didn’t let the spinner dictate the terms. Rahul too grew in confidence and played a near-perfect straight drive against Shannon Gabriel before playing a late cut off Chase for another boundary.The duo had added 43 for the second wicket before Chase struck once more. Having hit him for a four the previous ball, Rahul tried to sweep the next one fine but missed it completely and was bowled for 38.In the next over, Kemar Roach castled Pujara with a delivery that seamed back after pitching on a length and sneaked in through the bat-pad gap to hit the top of the off stump. India 81 for 3.Kohli and Rahane took the side to tea and soon it started to look like the two were batting without any trouble. But then Roach returned for another burst and produced some more magical deliveries albeit without adding any wickets to his tally. He almost had Rahane when the batsman was on 17. While trying to flick a ball, Rahane closed the face of the bat a bit early but John Campbell spilled the chance in covers.ALSO READ: West Indies need better conversion rates from their batsmenIn his next two overs, Roach beat the outside edge of both Kohli and Rahane but didn’t have luck on his side.After Roach’s spell, Rahane smashed Gabriel for back-to-back fours, an on-the-up cover drive followed by a ferocious cut. With India’s lead already in excess of 200, West Indies brought spin from both ends in the form of Kraigg Brathwaite and Chase. But with Kohli and Rahane now set, the move only made run-scoring easier.Holder turned to Roach again before stumps and the bowler almost had Rahane for once more, this time trapping him in front of the stumps but umpire Rod Tucker’s finger didn’t move. West Indies chose not to review the decision but replays showed the ball would have crashed into the middle stump. Rahane, who was on 48 at that time, brought up his second fifty of the match in the next over. Kohli soon followed him and reached the landmark with a pulled four off Cummins, just his second boundary of the innings.The last ball of the day, a fuller one down the leg side by Gabriel, which Shai Hope could only partially stop and conceded two byes, told the story of the Test. India were aware enough to take advantage when West Indies lowered their guard, with the Test having slipped away from the hosts’ hands.In the morning, West Indies resumed from 189 for 8, their overnight batsmen Holder and Cummins frustrating India with a 41-run stand for the ninth wicket in which the latter’s contribution was 0.Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli take a moment•Associated Press

But once Mohammed Shami dismissed Holder for 39, Cummins went for a big heave against Ravindra Jadeja, only to be bowled for a 45-ball duck.West Indies’ hopes of getting close to India’s first-innings total of 297 rested on Holder who farmed the strike as much as possible. With two fours in Jasprit Bumrah’s second over of the day, Holder took West Indies past 200. In the pacer’s next over, Holder chipped him wide of mid-on for another boundary.At the other end, Cummins stuck to his brief of just hanging in there. It wasn’t that India didn’t have a chance to bowl more than a couple of balls at a time at him; Ishant got two successive overs at Cummins. While the seamer kept beating Cummins’ bat, he couldn’t fetch an edge.Kohli turned to Jadeja in search of the breakthrough. Jadeja too beat Cummins three times in five balls in his first over of the day but the batsman just focused on protecting his stumps.Holder and Cummins saw out the first hour of the day with India seemingly growing frustrated. When it finally looked like Cummins had edged one behind the stumps, off Mohammed Shami, the decision was overturned on review as replays showed the bat had hit the turf and not the ball.But Shami wasn’t to be denied for long. On the first ball of his next over, he got Holder to nick one behind and this time there was no doubt about the edge.

Jos Buttler is a “devastating” batsman who ranks in the “top echelon” of players, according to the England coach

George Dobell25-Jun-20182:26

Social story: Buttler’s brilliance seals the whitewash

Jos Buttler is a “devastating” batsman who ranks in the “top echelon” of players, according to England coach, Trevor Bayliss.A day after Tim Paine, the Australia captain, said Buttler may be the best wicketkeeper batsman in the world in limited-overs cricket, Bayliss suggested “there can’t be too many better”. Praising his cool head and game awareness, Bayliss believes Buttler’s qualities can provide an example to other players in the squad.”How well is Jos playing? It’s unbelievable,” Bayliss said. “I can’t really describe how good it is. Red ball, white ball, T20 – there are not too many better in the world at the minute.”He’s right up there in the top echelon. He’s a bit different to some of the guys I’ve worked with before, but he’s devastating. He can play that role he did on Sunday, in smart fashion, but when he needs to, he can pull the power out and put the foot down.”And he’s a smart guy. One of those players who looks at the situation of the game. And he’s a winner. He doesn’t like losing, not even in the football matches before the start. He hates to lose. Hopefully that can rub off on some of the other guys higher up the order, who themselves have played some bloody good cricket this series.”Jos Buttler brought up his hundred as the target neared•Getty Images

Although Sunday’s century was Buttler’s slowest in ODI cricket – it was the first time he had faced more than 100 balls in an innings – it was also one of his best. Showing he was far more than the instinctive player who can improvise and thrash, he marshalled an unlikely run chase from a position of near impossibility at 114 for 8. But while Bayliss accepted England’s top-order had “stuffed up”, he felt Buttler’s contribution could provide them with an example of how to handle such situations in the future.”We obviously stuffed up in the beginning,” he said. “But I think for the first time one of the guys showed the rest how we should be doing it and how we should be approaching it in that situation.”If we are in that situation in the future, where we lose a few quick wickets, then hopefully that approach happens a bit earlier in the order so we are only a few down, not eight.”We still have work to do. If we didn’t have work to do, we wouldn’t have been 114 for 8. To me that’s a bit of a reminder that there are still some things to work on. In one way it’s a good reminder to the guys: don’t get too comfortable with where you are, because there will be other teams out there striving to get better, and it will be difficult to stay in the form we are in.”The good thing is we were able to win eventually from a poor position. Hopefully that sets a standard and an example to the rest of the team.”

Gujarat Lions and Royal Challengers Bangalore, placed seventh and eighth on the table, need a win to improve their chances of making the top four

The Preview by Rachna Shetty17-Apr-2017

Match facts

Gujarat Lions v Royal Challengers Bangalore
Tuesday, April 18, 2017
Start time 2000 IST3:33

Agarkar: Would pick Kulkarni over Praveen

Head to head

Overall Royal Challengers have a 2-1 lead against Lions, including a 144-run victory, the largest margin in the IPL. Royal Challengers lost their one meeting in Rajkot, though, where Lions chased down 181.

Recent form

• Gujarat Lions: (seventh) lost to Mumbai Indians by six wickets; beat Rising Pune Supergiant by seven wickets; lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad by nine wickets

• Royal Challengers Bangalore (eighth): lost to Rising Pune Supergiant by 27 runs; lost to Mumbai Indians by four wickets; lost to Kings XI Punjab by eight wickets

In the news

Four hours before the game, AB de Villiers said on Twitter that he would not be playing because of injury, which means an overseas spot opens up for either Chris Gayle or Travis Head in the RCB XI. De Villiers had missed RCB’s first two games of the season with an injury and made 89 not out, 19 and 29 in their next three.Aaron Finch will have been reunited with his kit bag by now and can be expected to take Jason Roy’s place in Lions’ XI, unless the franchise opts to persist with the England batsman. Dwayne Bravo had continued his rehabilitation in Rajkot while the team was on the road and he returned to full training with the squad on Monday. According to team sources, he is still a doubtful starter against RCB as he might need another couple of days to achieve full fitness.Five games into the season and at the bottom of the table, Royal Challengers’ problem of fitting in overseas players has led to considerable flux in their batting order. They have tried a different opening combination in each game so far and this, coach Daniel Vettori admitted, has not allowed their younger batsmen lower down the order to settle into roles, increasing the pressure on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. Chris Gayle and Shane Watson’s form has not helped either.

Likely XIs

Gujarat Lions 1 Brendon McCullum, 2 Dwayne Smith, 3 Suresh Raina (capt), 4 Aaron Finch/Jason Roy, 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 Ishan Kishan, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Praveen Kumar/Dhawal Kulkarni, 9 Basil Thampi, 10 AJ Tye, 11 Munaf Patel/Shadab JakatiRoyal Challengers Bangalore 1 Chris Gayle/Travis Head, 2 Virat Kohli (capt), 3 Shane Watson, 4 Mandeep Singh, 5 Kedar Jadhav (wk), 6 Vishnu Vinod (wk)/ Stuart Binny, 7 Pawan Negi, 8 Adam Milne/Billy Stanlake/Tymal Mills, 9 Samuel Badree, 10 S Aravind, 11 Yuzvendra Chahal

Key stats

• If Royal Challengers do recall Gayle, the match will pit two of the most prolific opening partnerships against each other. Virat Kohli and Gayle have aggregated 1064 runs, while Brendon McCullum and Smith have a tally of 1352. Only three other opening partnerships – Shikhar Dhawan-David Warner (1752), Gautam Gambhir-Robin Uthappa (1478), and Michael Hussey-M Vijay (1360) have aggregated more.
• Brendon McCullum could find himself facing Samuel Badree early in his innings. The legspinner has dismissed McCullum twice in six T20 innings overall, conceding 26 runs off 34 balls
• Badree is among the most economical spinners in the Powerplay in the IPL. Among spinners playing this season, Badree’s overall IPL economy rate of 5.82 ranks behind only Rashid Khan (4.75), and Sunil Narine (5.47)
• Lions’ weak spin attack has been a headache for them. Their spinners have the worst overall economy rate this season: 9.49. In Powerplays, this rises to 14.00. Overall, of the 15 wickets to have fallen at the SCA Stadium this IPL, nine have fallen to pace bowlers (with Andrew Tye’s five-for making up a large chunk), while spinners have taken six. The economy rates have been near identical: 9.55 for pace and 9.71 for spin.

April 18, 10.30 GMT – The article was updated after AB de Villiers was ruled out of the game

Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan has received an official reprimand for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct in his team’s five-wicket win against Pakistan in Mirpur

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Mar-2016Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan has received an official reprimand for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct in his team’s five-wicket win against Pakistan in Mirpur. Shakib turned around to hit the stumps after being bowled in the 18th over of the chase off Mohammad Amir, after which he immediately apologised to the on-field umpires.Shakib, who was found to have breached Article 2.1.8 relating to “abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings during an International Match”, admitted the offence and accepted the sanction imposed by match referee Jeff Crowe.A level 1 violation imposes a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and a maximum of 50% of the player’s match fees.Bangladesh will play the final of the Asia Cup against India on March 6.

The Dhaka Premier League match between Victoria Sporting Club and Kalabagan Cricket Academy was abandoned without a ball being bowled, forcing the teams to split points as a result

Mohammad Isam11-Sep-2013The Dhaka Premier League match between Victoria Sporting Club and Kalabagan Cricket Academy was abandoned without a ball being bowled, forcing the teams to split points as a result. Rain over the week in Savar, where the BKSP cricket ground is located, did the damage as the reserve day too couldn’t be utilised.Victoria, the defending champions, were left frustrated, with captain Nasir Hossain questioning the choice of the ground which was soaked in water in the days leading up to the match. “If the [players] can tell that there is no chance of playing a match here, why can’t the BCB know?” Nasir told the Dhaka-based on Tuesday, the scheduled match day.The Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis (CCDM), the tournament’s organisers, moved the BKSP ground’s next three matches. The Abahani-CCS match has moved to Fatullah Cricket Stadium on Thursday, which is located at the other end of Dhaka, a venue boasting a newly-installed drainage system.Two other matches on September 15 have also been shifted from BKSP to Bogra. But the new BKSP-3 venue nearby will be used for the next few rounds.

Surrey will be reminded of their outstanding finish to last season when Chris Adams, their director of cricket, provides the analysis on a humiliating defeat to Durham

Myles Hodgson at Chester-le-Street09-Aug-2012
ScorecardChris Rushworth broke through early on the third morning and victory came swiftly for Durham•Getty Images

Surrey will be reminded of their outstanding finish to last season when Chris Adams, their director of cricket, provides the analysis on a humiliating defeat to Durham. The heavy loss, completed before lunch on the third day, leaves them hovering above the relegation zone in Division One while Durham have leapfrogged over them and moved away from the bottom spot.Needing a miracle to avoid defeat after resuming on 69 for 5, still trailing by 112 runs, their fate was sealed in just 30.2 overs when they were dismissed for 143. To cap a desperate few days in the North East, they were also docked one of the three points they gained from the match for a slow over rate. “It’s been a difficult few days,” Adams admitted.Yet as one-sided a defeat as it became, Adams believes there are certain similarities between their situation now and last season. Twelve months ago a heavy defeat at Canterbury put their promotion hopes in doubt only for them to reel off successive victories over Leicestershire, Essex and Derbyshire and pip Northamptonshire by a point.”If you think back to last year we got an absolute drubbing at Kent in similar circumstances and we sat down and looked at the table and knew we had to win at least three of the last few games, to win promotion and we did,” Adams said. “Many players thrive with short term targets and that’s what we gave ourselves last year, win three out of four in the championship and keep winning every game in the 40-over competition and this is very similar.”Indeed Adams and Geoff Cook, his counterpart at Durham, are both of the same view that each side must win at least two of their last four matches to avoid relegation. Durham appear in the happier place having just secured successive wins from nowhere, which has moved them to fourth bottom, one place and eight points clear of Surrey.They can be forgiven, however, if they remain conservative in their celebrations. At the halfway stage of the summer they had lost four out of their eight matches, were rooted to the bottom of division one and Phil Mustard stood down as captain to be replaced by Paul Collingwood. Their resurgence has been dramatic, but the job is yet to be completed.”They suffered through the first half of the year through lots of reasons and it’s nice to see them enjoying each other’s success, but its early days yet,” Cook said. “We’ve had two positive results, but the signs were good before that. It’s good to see the team playing in a much more confident way, with some excellent direction.”Any unlikely hopes of Surrey avoiding defeat were all but ended by the loss of two wickets inside the first 10 overs of the day. Tim Linley fell lbw to the sixth ball of the day from Chris Rushworth and Rory Burns ended 191 minutes of defiance for his 39 by flashing at a lifting ball from Graham Onions and edging behind.Callum Thorp, irritated by having an appeal for a catch behind dismissed by umpire Jeff Evans from the previous delivery, ended another stubborn innings by removing Matt Spriegel with his next ball, a quicker bouncer that flew off the top of his bat over the slip cordon. He was unlucky in that Ben Stokes’ athleticism was enough to make the ground and take a diving catch.Scott Borthwick finished off the innings to claim the only two wickets with spin on the stroke of lunch and leave Adams with some confidence to rebuild before Surrey are next in Championship action, against Middlesex at The Oval next week. By then he is hopeful that Rory Hamilton-Brown, their captain, may be available for selection for his first Championship match since the tragic death of his team-mate and flat-mate, Tom Maynard, two months ago.”He wasn’t quite ready for this game because of match fitness, but he’s been away with the seconds and it’s another step forward for him,” Adams added. “He is close and it will be a big boost to the side having him back, but he has to be ready and right and I will take my lead a little bit from him.”

Western Australia have launched an off-season raid on the eastern states, having added Nathan Rimmington, Travis Birt and Mark Cameron to their squad for 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jun-2011Western Australia have launched an off-season raid on the eastern states, having added Nathan Rimmington, Travis Birt and Mark Cameron to their squad for 2011-12. The move is not about youth – the three men are aged 28, 29 and 30 respectively – but filling specific gaps that the Warriors coach Mickey Arthur outlined last month in an interview with ESPNcricinfo.Arthur wanted a fast bowler to boost the attack and settled on Cameron, from New South Wales, along with Rimmington, from Queensland. Cameron played for Australia A last summer but injuries have limited him to 16 first-class appearances in nine seasons, and with the younger Patrick Cummins and Mitchell Starc competing for positions, he faced a challenge to hold his spot with the Blues.Rimmington has been a solid performer for the Bulls, but was viewed as more of a limited-overs specialist and had managed only nine first-class games in six seasons at Queensland. Arthur said the two men would add plenty to a Western Australia attack that had lost the experience of Ashley Noffke and Brett Dorey during the previous summer.”Nathan brings the ability to bowl at the death in one-day cricket, which is an area where we have been deficient,” Arthur said. “He offers a great deal of experience and is a tough character, someone who brings a great deal to the squad.”Mark bowls with incredible pace, and we have lacked that quality in recent years. He is an outstanding strike bowler and a genuine match winner when he is on the field. It is a fact that Mark has battled injuries in recent seasons, but we will manage his program carefully to ensure we get maximum impact from him when he takes the field next summer.”Arthur also spoke last month of searching for a wicketkeeper-batsman, and while Birt is far from a full-time gloveman, he has stepped into the role at times for Tasmania in the past few seasons. He is another man whose first-class chances have been limited recently – he played five Sheffield Shield games last season – but he has also played three Twenty20s for Australia.”In Travis we have filled a position available for an experienced batsman,” Arthur said. “He is an exceptional one-day player and also has a good track record in first-class cricket. He will add depth to our batting and create healthy competition for spots in the top six.”Birt and Rimmington have each signed on for two years, while the older Cameron has settled for a one-year deal. Meanwhile, Tasmania have secured the fast bowler Jackson Bird, 24, a Sydney grade cricketer who couldn’t force his way into the New South Wales side. All six states are finalising their playing lists for 2011-12, with full squads expected to be released in the next few weeks.