Pakistan to play four Tests in England next year

Pakistan are scheduled to play four Tests and a triangular one-day series (also involving Sri Lanka) when they tour England next year. Pakistan last played a series of more than three Tests in 1992, which was incidentally against England, under the captaincy of Javed Miandad.They will also play a Twenty20 international against England on the long tour, according to a report in . The itinerary includes as many as eight side-matches against different counties. England will play seven Tests against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, a triangular one-day series and two Twenty20 Internationals.A Pakistan board official is also quoted as saying that Pakistan were keen to play five Tests, but since the itinerary was already fixed under the ICC’s Future Tours Programme (FTP), they would play four. Pakistan have a break at the moment, and then return to the action with a bang in October, with a home series against England from October 22, followed by an Indian tour in January and the Asia Cup in February. Before heading to England in May, Pakistan tour Sri Lanka for three Tests and three one-day internationals.The official said that Pakistan had asked the ICC to clear the dates for the Asia Cup as it was not included in the FTP cycle, and the final schedule is expected to be decided at the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) meeting in London later this month. Pakistan will be hosting the Asia Cup for the first time since the tournament was conceived in 1984. India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, UAE and Oman have confirmed their participation.

Five for Mahmood as England A toil

Scorecard


Sajid Mahmood: five-wicket haul
© Getty Images

England A were set a daunting target of 367 on the third day of their Duleep Trophy match against East Zone in Amritsar, after a day of hard toil for their bowlers. East Zone resumed in the morning on 65 for 3, and though they soon slipped to 132 for 5, the tail showed impressive resilience to hoist the total to a daunting 308.England’s bowling honours were shared by Sajid Mahmood, leading the attack since the departure of Simon Jones, and the captain James Tredwell, who added four more wickets to his first-innings 5 for 101, but conceded his runs at exactly five an over.East Zone, who had secured a first-innings lead of 58, took control once again in a sixth-wicket partnership of 106 between Laxmi Shukla (60) and Devang Gandhi (59). Tredwell eventually broke through, but England A’s prospects were dented by the sight of Shiv Sunder Das striding out at No. 9. Das, who has already played 23 Tests, made a century in the first innings and had decided to put his feet up in the second, but he eventually used his feet well to make 55, before Mahmood dismissed him to bring an end to the innings.England, who learned a thing or two about approaching tricky targets in their humiliating defeat against South Zone last week, made the worst possible start to their chase when Scott Newman was bowled by Shib Paul before for a fourth-ball duck. Michael Lumb then followed, lbw for 13 (25 for 2) and that victory seemed rather a distant prospect. But Ed Smith (33) and Kevin Pietersen (29) carried England safely through to the close without any further alarms, leaving them needing a further 288 on the final day for victory.

Knight shines again in Adelaide heat

Another weighty contribution from Nick Knight set up a total of 279 for seven for England against Sri Lanka at the Adelaide Oval. Knight made 88 and featured in successive half-century partnerships with Marcus Trescothick and Michael Vaughan, while Alec Stewart completed a half century.Knight kept his position as Trescothick’s opening partner despite the return of Michael Vaughan, who batted at number three on his return to the side at the expense of Owais Shah. For Sri Lanka Chamila Gamage replaced the injured Muttiah Muralitharan.It was Gamage who made the first breakthrough after Nasser Hussain chose to bat first in extreme afternoon heat. Trescothick (39), who produced a booming cover drive to post England’s 50, lost his off stump looking for a leg-side boundary.Vaughan was missed on one by wicket-keeper Kumar Sangakkara, who couldn’t hold on to what would have been a fine one-handed catch to his right off Gamage. Vaughan looked to pick up from where he left off in the Ashes series, with boundaries off Aravinda de Silva and Dilhara Fernando, but when he had reached 28 he skied a pull at Fernando to Chaminda Vaas at mid-wicket.Much as they had done in Sydney, Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva kept the run rate within reasonable bounds before Hussain (18) was bowled via inside edge and pad by Jayasuriya.Knight soldiered on, providing some relief with a swept six off de Silva, but on 88 he played loosely at Vaas for Sangakkara to hold on to the resultant edge. Knight has made 440 funs in his last seven one-day innings for England. Ian Blackwell was then lbw first ball to leave England teetering at 206 for five.As he has so often done before, Alec Stewart recharged the innings. He and Paul Collingwood added 54 in eight overs to revitalise England, taking 16 off one over from Fernando, including a Collingwood six over square-leg.By the time Stewart (51) and Collingwood (18) were dismissed, England were in sight of respectability.

Australia coast to victory over England

An awesome display by Australia’s batsmen condemned England to their 11th successive defeat in limited-overs cricket in a match that was totally dominated by Australia as they coasted to victory by eight wickets.Their powerful all-round ability was much in evidence throughout as they made this last match before the NatWest Series final on Saturday look like a practice game in preparation for the showdown with Pakistan. They appeared unconcerned and at ease in facing the victory target of 177 set by England.England did claim an early wicket when Matthew Hayden mistimed his pull to be caught for eight off Andy Caddick with the total on 39. Thereafter, it all went Australia’s way with Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist quickly getting the measure of the England attack.The fifty partnership came from 45 balls as they kept pace with each other. Gilchrist reached his half-century first from 54 balls, 40 of those runs coming from boundaries.Ponting raced to his fifty from 45 balls which included six fours and two sixes off Caddick. The first was an effortless lift over mid-wicket and the second over fine leg which also brought up Australia’s hundred.The England bowling made little impression on the two Australians as they comfortably piled on the runs. Only half-way through their innings, Australia were already 157 for one needing just 20 for victory. Five overs later it was all over with man-of-match Ponting unbeaten on 70 from 71 balls.England did get a consolation wicket in the 27th over when Robert Croft took a return catch from Gilchrist. His was another brilliant knock with 80 coming from 90 balls, 14 of which were hit to the boundary.Earlier in the day, a timely flourish from the England lower order batsmen propped up the innings which was on the verge of disintegrating. Caddick with 36 not out from 44 balls led the hard-hitting spree along with Croft who showed his usefulness with the bat with 20 valuable runs when they were so needed by England.Of the frontline batsmen only Nick Knight, who missed his half-century by two runs, seemed to settle against the early onslaught of Australia’s fast bowlers. Apart from him, the innings of Ben Hollioake would have raised England’s hopes. He opened his account with two boundaries to extra cover off Glenn McGrath, but was unlucky to be run out later on 22, from a deflection off the bowler as he backed up for a run.Australia’s bowlers had struck just when England seemed to have made a recovery after the the loss of Marcus Trescothick’s wicket in the first over of the match – without a run on the board – when he played on to McGrath. Australia struck three times in quick succession to take early control of the England innings.On 51 for one, Alec Stewart, 22 from 46 balls, was caught, pushing to point in Brett Lee’s second over after he had replaced McGrath and then in the next over, the 16th of the morning, Ian Harvey had Owais Shah caught behind for one.England were 53 for three and to push them deeper into trouble, Lee claimed his second wicket. Alastair Brown failed to keep down a lifting ball which was not much short of a length, and was caught at gully off his gloves.England, having decided to make first use of The Oval pitch which is usually full of runs, had lost their last three wickets within four overs and in a space of eight runs to be reduced to 59 for four.McGrath was back in the attack for the 23rd over and with his fourth ball he had Paul Collingwood taken at first slip off the outside edge from a push. It left England struggling on 81-5.When England had been dismissed for 176, Lee had captured three wickets for 63 while McGrath and Harvey had two each.

Liverpool: Journalist drops Gomez update

Speaking to Anfield Watch, reliable reporter David Lynch has shared what he believes on defender Joe Gomez’ future at Liverpool amid links with a move away.

The Lowdown: Clubs queuing…

As per recent reports, Gomez could be a man in demand this summer as many clubs keep tabs on the England international’s situation at Liverpool.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/liverpool-newest-updates/” title=”Liverpool newest updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

90min recently claimed that ‘half the Premier League’ are keen on signing the centre-back with West Ham, Tottenham, Leicester City and Newcastle United all credited with interest.

Gomez’ lack of game time has thrown his future at Anfield into disrepute ahead of England’s World Cup quest with Lynch now sharing what he knows on the situation.

The Latest: Lynch shares Gomez update…

Speaking to AW, the journalist fully expects Gomez to push for an Anfield exit this summer to enhance his chances of making Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Qatar later this year.

When asked what the future holds for Liverpool’s 24-year-old, he explained:

“Joe Gomez’s lack of football this season isn’t a reflection on his quality, as Jurgen Klopp put it, he has simply been unfortunate that his slightly slower return to full speed following injury has coincided with Joel Matip enjoying a perhaps unexpected run of fitness and Ibrahima Konate hitting the ground running.

“But that doesn’t mean things are going to get any better for him next season at Liverpool and so, if he truly harbours World Cup hopes, I expect Gomez to push for a move this summer.”

The Verdict: Blow for Klopp?

Liverpool’s head coach, branding Gomez ‘world class’ earlier this season, clearly rates the defender and it could be a blow not to have him as an option for 2022/2023, especially considering the damage a lack of depth at centre-back did at Anfield last season.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.


By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

That being said, if the Three Lions contender is to make Southgate’s cut in time, he could be better served moving on to pastures new for guaranteed game time rather than having to compete with the likes of Matip and Konate.

In other news: ‘Told…’ – Journalist leaks major Salah update from the Liverpool ‘dressing room’, find out more here.

Simmons stands down as Lancashire chairman

Jack Simmons has stood down as chairman of Lancashire after 11 years in the position. Michael Cairns has been elected as his successor.Simmons announced he would not stand for re-election during his chairman’s speech at the club’s AGM on Thursday evening. He said: “It is something I’ve been thinking about for a couple of years and my decision not to stand for re-election was made in the best interests of Lancashire.”Michael [Cairns] is the top man, and has a huge amount of experience in business and development. Lancashire is embarking on a very integrated redevelopment and I think it’s better for someone like him to be leading the club forward.”What I didn’t want people to think is that I’ve finished here because I have a new position at the ECB – that has nothing to do it.”Simmons will continue to sit on the club’s cricket committee, which also includes former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd.

Mortaza replaces Akhtar in Asia squad

Mortaza is now part of both Asian squads © AFP

Mashrafe Mortaza, the Bangladesh fast bowler, has replaced Shoaib Akhtar in the Asian squad for the Afro-Asia Cup beginning next month in India. Shoaib had pulled out two days earlier as he failed to recover sufficiently from a knee injury.”We have picked up Mortaza to replace (Shoaib) Akhtar in the Asian squad,” ASM Faruque, member of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) selection committee told Reuters.Mortaza is the second Bangladesh player to make it to the one-day squad after the inclusion of Mohammad Rafique, left-arm spinner. Mortaza is also a part of the Asian Twenty20 international squad for the one-off match on June 5 in Bangalore. He recently won the Man-of-the-Match award in the first Test against India in Chittagong for his first-innings 79.The three-match ODI series gets underway on June 6 in Bangalore, followed by the next two games in Chennai on June 9 and 10 respectively.

Kent's attitude leaves Warne frustrated

Shane Warne, Hampshire’s captain, made clear his frustration over Kent’s lack of co-operation on the final day of the Championship match at The Rose Bowl.Warne, who is one of the most adventurous county captains, tried to agree a fourth-innings target with Robert Key after rain affected the first two days of the game.”There was a little bit of haggling going on but Keysy didn’t want to know,” said Warne. “We got down to 240 off 65 overs, but they still weren’t interested at all. If I was offered that I’d take it everywhere in the world – no matter what the ground was like – and there was a kiddies’ boundary out there as well.”In the end, Kent were left a far-from-demanding 225 in 48 overs after Warne declared Hampshire’s second innings on 176 for 6. That target was not agreed between the captains. In the end, bad light brought an early end to the match.Warne, however, was clearly irked. “I was disappointed that Kent weren’t really interested in anything – they wanted 60 overs to get 200. I thought we were the only side that really wanted to win the game. Right from ball one I thought they came here with the mentality, their body language and everything, to be very negative about the whole thing. I think they just wanted to come here and basically not lose.”This is not the first time that Warne has been less than impressed with Kent. Last September, he accused David Fulton, Key’s predecessor, of effectively handing Nottinghamshire the Championship title by agreeing to chase 420 at more than six an over. Nottinghamshire won the game, and with it the title, whereas any other result would have set up a decider against Hampshire.

Bangladesh prosper before the rain

Northamptonshire 149 for 5 (Shafayat 76, Hossain 3-67) v Bangladesh
ScorecardAfter their two-and-a-half-day debacle against Sussex earlier in the week, Bangladesh enjoyed a much improved day in the field at Wantage Road, albeit against a significantly weaker opposition, as Northamptonshire were limited to 149 for 5 by the time the rains rolled in midway through the afternoon session.Bangladesh’s star performer was their seamer, Anwar Hossain Monir, who picked up 3 for 67 on his first outing of the tour. His efforts ensured that Northants would not be able to gallop away with the game in quite the same manner that Sussex – and Michael Yardy – had done at Hove.In fact, that mismatch had been so emphatic that Northants saw fit to rest the bulk of their first-team squad, with only Bilal Shafayat and Usman Afzaal, deputising for David Sales, retained among a team of rookies. One familiar face for the Bangladeshis was the South African student, Matt Friedlander, who had played against them for British Universities in their opening fixture at Fenner’s. He is not even on the Northants playing staff.Rain delayed the start by 75 minutes, but once Northants had won the toss and chosen to bat, Shafayat was quickly into his stride, striking 14 fours as he clattered along at nearly a run a ball. Wickets continued to fall at the other end, however, with Monir and Tapash Baisya both breaking through with the new ball.Monir grabbed his second when Tim Roberts was caught-behind for 16 (93 for 3), but it was the spinner, Enamul Haque jr, who struck the big blow in his second over, as Shafayat was caught by Nafees Iqbal for 76. One run later, Riki Wessels became Monir’s third victim but before they could make any further inroads, the rain came to Northants’ aid.Bangladesh were hampered by the continued absence of their captain and leading batsman, Habibul Bashar, who was felled by a Jason Lewry bouncer at Hove and did not take part in the remainder of that match. In his absence, the wicketkeeper Khaled Mashud took over as captain, with the 16-year-old Mushfiqur Rahim retained in the side after his brave half-century against Sussex.Northamptonshire 1 Thomas Huggins, 2 Bilal Shafayat, 3 Robert White, 4 Tim Roberts, 5 Usman Afzaal (capt), 6 Riki Wessels (wk), 7 Matt Friedlander, 8 Andrew White, 9 Charl Pietersen, 10 Richard King, 11 John Wolstenholme.Bangladesh 1 Javed Omar, 2 Nafees Iqbal, 3 Rajin Saleh, 4 Mohammad Ashraful, 5 Khaled Mashud (capt, wk), 6 Aftab Ahmed, 7 Mushfiqur Rahim, 8 Mohammad Rafique, 9 Enamul Haque jnr, 10 Anwar Hossain, 11 Tapash Baisya.

Australia clinch a thriller at the SCG

Australia 225 for 8 (Gilchrist 95, Ponting 42) beat India 296 for 4 (Yuvraj 139, Laxman 106*) by 2 wickets with a ball to spare (D/L method)
Scorecard


Adam Gilchrist took no prisoners in his explosive innings of 95
©Getty Images

Even losing 16 overs to a lightning-illuminated thunder shower did not dampen a cracker of a game at the SCG. Yuvraj Singh (139) and VVS Laxman (106 not out) lifted India to a commanding 296 for 4, only to watch in shock as Adam Gilchrist made a mockery of the target. He blasted 95 from just 72 balls and set up a platform from which the supporting cast merely had to hold their nerve to go past the finish line. They did so, but not before several twists and turns, with just one ball to spare.When he began his innings Gilchrist was still looking at a long, hard climb, with Australia needing to score at nearly six an over for 50 overs. But Gilchrist knows no plodding. He slapped the second ball he faced to the cover-point fence, and proceeded to hit every bowler off his line and length. Ajit Agarkar, returning to the team, kept the ball up in quest of swing, and was duly thrashed. Lakshmipathy Balaji began promisingly, but soon discovered that there was no room for error when bowling to Gilchrist outside the off stump. Irfan Pathan was promising, and had Simon Katich out in just the second over, pulling awkwardly to mid-on (1 for 1).From then on, however, Gilchrist took over. He went after anything that was loose, unafraid to slash hard even if he was not to the pitch of the ball, and threaded gaps in the off side with ease. Any width outside the off was mercilessly exploited. Soon the bowlers were forced to keep it straighter, and began to stray onto leg. That, of course, was simply playing into Gilchrist’s hands. His nonchalant flick over midwicket for six was a case in point.But when play was stopped with 9.2 overs bowled and Australia on 73 for 1, India still held the edge. Scoring close to 300 would never be easy, no matter how deep a team bats. When over an hour of play was lost and the players returned, Gilchrist was a bit more circumspect. Ricky Ponting, nowhere near his fluent best, had made 13 before the interruption. The break had obviously done him good. He grew in confidence, dispatched Sourav Ganguly for a six over square leg, and now appeared to be in control.Completely against the run of play, Pathan snaffled two wickets in as many balls. Ponting and Damien Martyn went in identical fashion, feathering nicks to Parthiv Patel (150 for 3). Just four runs later, Gilchrist (95, 72 balls, 14 fours, 1 six) presented Murali Kartik with a return catch (154 for 4), and India were back in the hunt.Andy Symonds (16) creamed one delicious six over cover off Ganguly, but then hit the very next ball down Agarkar’s throat at square leg (176 for 5). The situation was tailormade for Michael Bevan. Unfortunately for Australia, though, he was edgy at the crease, and made just 12 from 20 balls before playing down the wrong line and losing his off stump to Ganguly (195 for 6). The pressure was on, and Michael Clarke jumped down the wicket off the first ball he faced. He was comprehensively beaten, but then so was Patel, who fumbled the stumping.Clarke clattered 21 from just 20 balls, but fell with the score on 210, holing out to Hemang Badani at long-on. Andy Bichel and Brett Lee were charged with the task of making 15 runs in 12 balls. The penultimate over, bowled by Agarkar, went for four runs, and now 11 were needed off the final over, bowled by Balaji. He fired the first three balls into the blockhole, and only four runs were conceded. Going for the yorker once more, Balaji dropped the fourth ball in the slot. Lee lined up and teed off. The ball sailed into the stands over long-off and that settled the matter. With one ball left, Australia were home.The Indians, deflated, walked off the field a dejected lot. After all, they had done everything right when they won the toss and chose to bat first. On a true wicket, Yuvraj played an innings he will remember for a long time to come. He hit the ball with amazing power and precision, never more so than in the penultimate over, when he belted Ian Harvey for 22 runs, and powered India to 296 for 4. While Yuvraj (139, 122 balls) battered the bowling to the tune of 16 fours and two sixes with his long blade, Laxman caressed and coaxed his way to an unbeaten 106, his fourth ODI century. With a little help from Patel (28), who was once again promoted to the opening slot, and Rahul Dravid (12), who stroked three gorgeous boundaries in his short stay at the crease, India finished just four runs short of the 300 mark. In the end, though, the total was inadequate.

Game
Register
Service
Bonus