Pakistan’s seamers punctuated spells of ordinariness with sparks of brilliance to dismantle New Zealand’s top order and put their side ahead at stumps

The Bulletin by Nitin Sundar14-Jan-2011Stumps
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsRoss Taylor’s innings was a heady mix of caution and enterprise•Getty Images

Pakistan’s seamers punctuated spells of ordinariness with sparks of brilliance to dismantle New Zealand’s top order and put their side ahead at stumps. Umar Gul and Tanvir Ahmed were lethal in the first hours of the first two sessions, and though Ross Taylor survived their bursts with a mix of caution and enterprise, the home batsmen suffered from a general lack of confidence that prevented them from counterattacking when the bowlers were on song, and from dominating when they weren’t.Gul began Pakistan’s dominance with a new-ball spell that oozed intent from the outset. Resisting the natural urge to crank up the pace when aided by a breeze, he relied on subtle sleight of hand and a high release to probe away at the top order. In the first over, he got a swerving inducker to strike Brendon McCullum – who was not offering a shot – above the knee roll. Umpire Daryl Harper ruled in Gul’s favour, though replays suggested the bounce was taking it over the stumps. Things were evened out in Gul’s next over, when Martin Guptill edged a legcutter on its way to Adnan Akmal, unnoticed by Harper.That delivery set the template for Gul, who relentlessly pinged uncomfortable lengths on and around off stump, serving up the odd legcutter to go with ones that held their line, carrying through at good height. In his seventh over, he nailed Kane Williamson with a carbon copy of the delivery that Guptill had edged.Gul also threatened to dislodge Taylor early, beating his outside edge and inducing an inside edge within the batsman’s first three deliveries. His opening burst was, however, coming to an end, and Taylor faced fewer challenges thereafter and approached the pre-lunch session with refreshing freedom. Every time Wahab Riaz offered width, Taylor attacked through the off side, driving square and through the covers, and cutting for boundaries.Consigned to the Scoreboard End, Abdur Rehman resorted to a quick arm and flat trajectory while bowling into a wind that stiffened to 70kmh by lunch. Taylor settled down after the initial flourish and, along with a cautious Guptill, promised to push New Zealand ahead in the second session. Tanvir, however, had plans of his own.Tanvir had an infuriatingly inconsistent day that was bookended by listless spells into the wind, with both new balls. In the middle session, though, he whistled in from the Vance End at the mid-130s, settling into a miserly rhythm that accentuated the threat of the occasional away-seamer. Guptill was gradually choked for runs and, after playing 12 successive dot balls, he flashed at one well outside off. Jesse Ryder came and went, nicking a ball that was dangled across him, bagging his second successive first-ball duck. James Franklin kept out the hat-trick ball, a scorching yorker that was aimed at the toes but, at 100 for 4, the force was with Pakistan.Taylor spent most of Tanvir’s rampant spell at the non-striker’s end, facing only five deliveries from the seamer in the hour following lunch. His battles were against Rehman’s teasing line of attack, straightening deliveries from leg stump without offering too much flight, while getting extra bounce. taylor attempted to disperse the crouching in-fielders with a lovely loft for six over wide long-on, and forced two men back on the leg side. However, with wickets falling at the other end, Rehman continued to attack with slip and short leg, and Taylor played within himself unless presented with a bad ball. When Rehman was marginally off-line, he glanced and cut for boundaries, and brought up his half-century by slapping Gul through point for three. As was the case with Tanvir, Gul too metamorphosed at the lunch break and posed no problems through the rest of the day.Franklin sealed an end with compact defence, camping on the back foot, and keeping out a barrage of searching length deliveries that were angled across him. Along with Taylor, he seemed to have taken the sting out of the Pakistan attack, and when he creamed Tanvir for two early boundaries post tea, New Zealand’s fightback seemed set to step up a gear.Adnan Akmal shifted the momentum back in Pakistan’s favour, though, with the best of his five catches in the day. He moved quickly to his right and showed admirable hand-eye coordination to grab a thin edge from Franklin. Riaz took the big wicket, after plodding through the day without courting the extremes like his seaming colleagues did. Returning to the attack for a final fling before the new ball became due, Riaz got Taylor to nick a harmless delivery angling across him and Adnan – scarcely reminiscent of his butter-fingered brother Kamran – pouched another one with elan, diving to his right.Wind interruptions, and a shocking lack of urgency, meant that Pakistan were well behind the over-rates, forcing Rehman to operate for longer than they would have desired. Thus ensued a period of attrition, with both sides too encumbered to challenge the status quo. Vettori used the opportunity to play himself in, cutting and pulling Rehman for easy boundaries. Young was solid in defence, blocking his way to 7 off 59 balls, before opening up against the second new ball that leaked 36 runs in eight overs. Tanvir was visibly out of steam by now, and was duly taken for 21 in two overs as New Zealand ended the day with a flourish. The fact that they still finished a distant second, underlined just how far they had allowed an average attack dictate proceedings.

The PCB believes the club match in which suspended fast bowler Mohammad Amir recently took part was not an official match, which would imply that the ICC’s anti-corruption code of conduct was not breached by his appearance

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jan-2011The PCB believes the club match in which suspended fast bowler Mohammad Amir recently took part was not an official match, which would imply that the ICC’s anti-corruption code of conduct was not breached by his appearance. But the board has stressed once again that all regional cricket bodies must remain in strict compliance of ICC directives.In a statement, the board said that the match, which took place on Monday, was “an unofficial match between two club sides that are not registered with the Rawalpindi Cricket Association. It was also found that no PCB official was present at the venue when the player took part in the game.”According to one official, Amir “bowled only a few overs” in the game and did not stay for the duration of the match. It was not, according to the PCB statement, a pre-planned move. “The team sheets prepared prior to the match did not contain Mohammad Amir’s name nor was his name listed with any team participating in the tournament. This game was not part of any official tournament. PCB has again advised all regional bodies to ensure strict compliance of the ICC directives regarding the status of the three suspended players.”Under article 6.5 of the ICC’s anti-corruption code, any player who has been suspended or banned cannot thereafter “participate or be involved in any capacity in any international match or any other match, function, event or activity (other than authorised anti-corruption education or rehabilitation programmes) that is authorised, organised, sanctioned, recognised or supported in any way by the ICC, a National Cricket Federation or any member of a National Cricket Federation.”The ICC had asked the PCB for an explanation when reports first emerged earlier this week that the fast bowler had played in a match in Rawalpindi. The board, said the statement, has sent a report of the incident to the ICC.Amir, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, who were provisionally suspended on charges of spot-fixing last year, are awaiting a verdict on their futures from an ICC tribunal, due February 5.

Muttiah Muralitharan has said he will retire from all international cricket after the 2011 World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jan-2011Muttiah Muralitharan has said he will retire from all international cricket after the 2011 World Cup. The 38-year-old offspinner, who had retired from Test cricket in July last year, will continue to play in domestic Twenty20 competitions.”This World Cup will be my last outing,” Muralitharan said. “My time is up. I have signed up to play for two years in the IPL. I am also looking at similar work in New Zealand and perhaps England.”Muralitharan, who holds the record for the highest number of wickets in both Test and one-day cricket was part of Sri Lanka’s World Cup winning side in 1996. He is one of three spinners in Sri Lanka’s squad for the 2011 tournament, the other two being left-arm spinner Ranagana Herath and Ajantha Mendis. “This is my fourth World Cup. We won in 1996 and came close in 2007 by reaching the final. This would be a memorable one for me and for Sri Lankan fans.”Since quitting Tests, Muralitharan has played only three international matches – two ODIs and a Twenty20 game during Sri Lanka’s tour of Australia in October-November 2010. He has been rested from the side for the first two ODIs of the three-match home series against West Indies which starts on January 31, Sri Lanka’s final commitment before the World Cup.He played for Chennai Super Kings in the first three seasons of the IPL, including their triumphs in the 2010 edition of the tournament and the Champions League in the same year. He was bought by the new Kochi franchise in the 2011 IPL auction for $1.1 million.In July, Muralitharan had said there were plans in the pipeline for him and former India legspinner Anil Kumble to open a spin-bowling academy in Bangalore. However, while announcing his retirement after the World Cup on Friday, he said he had no immediate plans to start coaching. “There are plenty of coaches and lots of talented people out there. I will take things as they come. For the moment, I am not looking at any coaching stints.”

It is difficult to believe both that, at 36, Misbah-ul-Haq hasn’t played a World Cup before and that he is playing this one at all

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Feb-2011Chamara Kapugedera wants Sri Lanka to win the World Cup as a tribute to Muttiah Muralitharan, who helped secure the trophy back in 1996, and who is set to retire from international cricket at the end of the tournament with a world-record haul of wickets in both Test and ODI formats.”He’s [Muralitharan] a special person, he’s a legend, it will be his last World Cup,” Kapugedera said. “Everyone wants to make him proud and give him a very good send off. Everybody is doing their best to take the World Cup back home for Murali
and Sri Lanka. It will be a great tribute to Murali.”Sri Lanka are one of the favourites for this year’s event, having finished as runners-up in 2007, and they launched their campaign in emphatic style on Sunday, with a 210-run victory over Canada in Hambantota. Saturday’s fixture against Pakistan in Colombo will be a much sterner test, but they go into the match full of confidence.”It’s always important to win the first match of the tournament, whoever the side is. It gives you the confidence to carry on,” said Kapugedera, “We had a very good game. We did what we talked about before the game. Everybody is happy with their performances. We have a good chance to have a shot from now.”Pakistan’s own opening match was scarcely less one-sided. They recovered from a dicey first ten overs to rout Kenya by 205 runs at the same venue, but Kapugedera is unfazed by their form. “They are a very good side,” he said. “Pakistan has good players and have done well in the past few months. We are not concerned about them, the major concern is about ourselves, what we do and how we prepare ourselves for the match. Hopefully we can come on the 26th and deliver the goods.”One thing that could be both a help and a hindrance for Sri Lanka is the fact that they will be playing at home. Familiarity with the conditions at the Premadasa Stadium could be offset by the pressure of expectation from their home supporters. However, Kapugedera does not believe that will be the case.”It’s not a pressure, it’s a big advantage,” he said. “The Sri Lankan crowd is very good. They support us even when we don’t do well. That’s what we need. We are playing a good side, we know that, we are prepared for it. They played a good game, yes. If we play to our true potential we have a very good chance to win the match.”This is one of the biggest opportunities I have got playing in a World
Cup. I want to win and the team wants to win… I am really up to it.”

A round-up of the action from the seventh round of the Regional Four-Day Competition

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Mar-2011Jamaica took an 18-run first innings lead against England Lions and then snagged three top-order wickets to set up an interesting last day at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica. The hosts stretched their overnight score of 259 for 4 to 376, courtesy 40-something cameos from Wavell Hinds and Chadwick Walton. Left-arm spinner Danny Briggs, was the middle order’s wrecker-in-chief, picking up a five-for, while Nathan Buck polished off the tail. After England Lions’ opener Adam Lyth was dismissed early on, Jimmy Adams and Andrew Gale steadied the innings with a 91-run stand, but Bevon Brown claimed both wickets prior to stumps to peg the visitors back. The match is a tussle for the top spot on the points table, with Jamaica in joint second place with Combined Campuses and Colleges, three points behind England Lions.Combined Campuses and Colleges ended day two requiring another 137 runs, with nine wickets in hand, to register a win against Barbados at the Three Ws Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados. After an action packed first day in which 22 wickets fell, the hosts resumed their innings on 17 for 2 and did slightly better the second time around, getting to 195 and setting CCC 173 for victory. The total was built around a steady 99 from left-hand batsman Jonathan Carter, while left-arm spinner Kavesh Kantasingh played hero with the ball again, claiming four wickets to take his match haul to 11. CCC lost a wicket early on in their chase, Fidel Edwards trapping Romel Currency lbw for one, but Omar Phillips and Shacaya Thomas were resolute, steering the visitors to 36 for 1 at the close. A win could take second-placed CCC to the top of the points table.Driven by an unbeaten 204 by Lendl Simmons, Trinidad & Tobago piled up a massive 434 for 5 declared against Guyana at Providence Stadium in Guyana, and then ran through the host’s top order, leaving them tottering on 137 for 5 at stumps. Simmons, resuming day two on 134, was kept company by Denesh Ramdin and Imran Khan, who scored 62 and 37 not out respectively. Guyana began solidly, with Rajindra Chandrika and Leon Johnson putting on a half-century stand. However, Johnson’s dismissal for 25 triggered a mini-collapse, as the hosts went from 52 for no loss to 90 for 5, with spinners Khan and Amit Jaggernauth doing the damage. Opener Rajindra Chandrika held his end up amid the carnage, remaining 77 not out at stumps.Windward Islands fast bowlers Nelon Pascal and Keon Peters finished with combined figures of 7 for 33, as Leeward Islands imploded for 72 at Beausejour Stadium in Gros Islet, St Lucia. Only Sherwin Peters and Moreland le Blanc managed to get into double figures – only just, scoring 15 and 11 respectively – in an innings in which the last 5 wickets fell for 9 runs. Windward were solid in their reply, ending day two on 285 for 6, driven by knocks of 70 and 86 by Andre Fletcher and Keddy Lesporis.

02-May-2011
ScorecardLonwabo Tsotsobe produced his best performance of the season so far to inspire Essex to a seven-wicket victory over Lancashire in their Clydesdale Bank 40 duel at Chelmsford.The South African paceman, after conceding 13 in his opening over, recovered to emerge with figures of four wickets for 43 runs from 7.4 overs as the visitors were bowled out for 190. It was never enough to test Essex who, after losing two early wickets, won with 35 deliveries to spare following half-centuries from skipper James Foster and Ravi Bopara.Following the brisk start given to them by Stephen Moore and Karl Brown, Lancashire will have been bitterly disappointed to have been bowled out in the 37th over. The openers looked completely at ease as they proceeded to 87 in the 14th over – but then left-arm spinner Tim Phillips struck to have Moore taken low down at backward point by Graham Napier for 45.Tsotsobe then claimed the first of his wickets when Brown drove to cover for 47, Jaik Mickleburgh holding on to a firmly struck drive. From then onwards, Lancashire completely lost their way as wickets fell at regular intervals. In between Tsotsobe inflicting further damage, Bopara struck twice in an over to get rid of Paul Horton and Farveez Maharoof.Once the openers were dismissed only Gareth Cross and Luke Procter, with 24 each, managed to reach double figures. Bopara finished with 3 for 49 from his eight overs, while Phillips collected 2 for 32 from his full allocation.Lancashire spirits were briefly lifted when they quickly got rid of the openers when Essex replied. Mark Pettini departed leg before to Sajid Mahmood for seven, while Alastair Cook, having made 17 of the 32 on the board, swung the same bowler into the hands of Procter at deep square-leg.But then Bopara and Foster, who scored half-centuries in the victory over Nottinghamshire by the same margin a day earlier, took charge. Without the need to take risks they put on 135 in 24 overs before Foster was stumped by Cross off Simon Kerrigan for 77 that arrived off 76 balls and contained nine fours.Bopara, who enjoyed a life on 17 when wicketkeeper Cross put down a catch, finished unbeaten on a 75 that spanned 76 deliveries and included just five boundaries.

Sussex openers Chris Nash and Ed Joyce took their four-day form into one-day cricket as their side crushed Derbyshire by eight wickets at Hove

15-May-2011
ScorecardSussex openers Chris Nash and Ed Joyce took their four-day form into one-day
cricket as their side crushed Derbyshire by eight wickets at Hove to go top of
Clydesdale Bank 40 Group A.The pair have already compiled four century stands in the County
Championship this season and they put on 161 in 26 overs as the Sharks made
light work of their target of 197 to make it three successive wins after they
had lost their opening game to today’s opponents a fortnight ago.Their partnership was a new county record against Derbyshire in one-day
matches, beating the 137 by Alan Wells and Martin Speight in 1990, and the
fourth highest stand for any Sussex wicket in List A cricket. Both scored freely against a toothless attack on a flat pitch and the only disappointment was that neither scored a century.Nash needed treatment after he was struck on the left hand by a bouncer from
Jon Clare and was on 78 when he mistimed a drive to mid-off off slow left-armer
Chesney Hughes. Joyce fell to Hughes for 90, which included 11 fours, when he holed out to deep midwicket but debutant Lou Vincent hit the next ball for six and Sussex wrapped
up victory with 9.5 overs to spare.Earlier, Derbyshire had collapsed badly after a fourth one-day half-century of
the season from Wes Durston appeared to have put them on course for an imposing
total. Left-armer Chris Liddle picked up openers Usman Khawaja and Hughes in
successive overs before Durston led the fightback by adding 48 in 11 overs with
Greg Smith.Naveed Arif was convinced he had run out Durston on five when he claimed to
have deflected Smith’s straight drive onto the stumps and on 28 he survived
another alarm when a pull dropped just short of the diving Nash at deep
midwicket.Smith, who was dropped by Vincent on 16, fell two balls later when he drove to
midwicket but Durston and Wayne Madsen played well in a punishing stand of 91
from 98 balls for the fourth wicket. The visitors took their batting powerplay in the 33rd over but then their innings started to unravel as five wickets fell for just six runs in 15 balls.Sussex skipper Mike Yardy had Madsen caught off a mistimed slog sweep and in
his next over Yardy struck with successive deliveries. Durston was deceived by a
change of pace and bowled for 85 off 103 balls, which included seven fours and a
straight six off Monty Panesar.Luke Sutton was leg before wicket to the next delivery and although Steffan
Jones blocked the hat-trick ball he holed out to long-on in the next over, the
second success for Rana Naved who had earlier yorked Jon Clare.Garry Park and Azeem Rafiq halted the collapse but on a true pitch a target of
197 was never going to seriously extend Sussex and so it proved.

Patrick Cummins has been ruled out of the Australia A tour of Zimbabwe due to a back injury

Daniel Brettig23-May-2011Patrick Cummins, the promising New South Wales pace bowler, has been ruled out of the Australia A tour of Zimbabwe due to a back injury. Though Cummins has avoided the more lasting problems of stress fractures, it is a further blow to Australian pace bowling stocks that have taken hit after hit over the past 18 months as a succession of young bowlers succumbed to ailments.The injury adds Cummins to a list that has included Josh Hazlewood, Ryan Harris, Ben Cutting, Ben Hilfenhaus, Peter Siddle, Burt Cockley, Doug Bollinger, Mitchell Starc and Clint McKay. Following a debut season for the Blues in which he startled many batsmen with his sustained speed, bounce and movement, 18-year-old Cummins complained of discomfort in his lower back, and examinations showed up a strain.Greg Chappell, the national selector, said Cummins was still “two or three” years away from maturity as a bowler and a man, but did not rule out Australian duty for him in the intervening years.”We know that young bowlers are vulnerable until their bones mature. We’ll have to be very careful with him,” Chappell told . “The advice we were given was that it would probably be too early for him to go to Zimbabwe and give it another couple of months it gives him a chance to recover from the soreness and also start building that body up.”He’s going to need two or three really good pre-seasons in him before we could expect him to be at his full strength and fitness, but we also see him as someone we could possibly use in that intervening period, so we’ve got to give him the best opportunity to be right for the critical moments. Zimbabwe it wasn’t important that we try to rush him to get him for that.”We know he’s right there, he’s performed in first-class cricket, he’s done well at that higher level so he has the potential to go the whole distance. But as with Hazlewood, [James] Pattinson, Starc, we’re just going to have to be really conscious of that management process, albeit wanting to get as much bowling into them as they can so they gain experience and gain knowledge to help get them there faster.”Players and observers had marvelled at Cummins’ ability at such a young age to keep hurling the ball down in lengthier spells than the brief bursts he was permitted in Twenty20 cricket, impressing particularly in the last two Sheffield Shield matches of the season.Against Western Australia at the SCG he delivered one spell from around the wicket that seriously threatened the health of the two Warriors batsmen at the crease, while in the Shield final against Tasmania his fiery bursts were maintained over the course of a marathon bowling stint. Cummins’ tally of overs for the match was a gargantuan 65, 48 of those in the first innings when he returned the figures of 3 for 118.Brett Lee, who fought a lengthy battle with an elbow problem to be fit in time for this year’s World Cup, has said that fast bowlers should expect to get injured in their early years as part of learning how to manage their body.”It is about making sure that guys are looked after and understand too that it is such an unnatural action, and not be put in a class where they think you’ve got to be rested and can only bowl a certain amount of balls,” Lee said during the Indian Premier League. “Because you’ve got to be hardened as well for a fast bowler, you can’t be put in the nets and be told you can only bowl 30 balls for that week and then see you next week type of thing.”Your body and your bones have got to get used to that stress going through it. The old saying goes that through all the impact of bowling you get bone on bone and it creates a stronger platform to leverage off. If you haven’t got that, your bones are soft and you haven’t done the work, you can’t expect to go bowling in the SCG nets at 130kph twice a week, then go into a Test match and try to bowl 150 clicks for five days straight – the jump is massive.”It’s a massive catch-22 [situation] because you’ve got to do the work but you’ve also got to be fresh somehow. I don’t really know what the answer is but I think it comes down to the individual. As bowlers get older they definitely got to know their body a lot better. I certainly know now the stiffness that might be my legs, might be my elbow, might be my back, I just know its stiffness because I haven’t bowled for a week or because I’ve bowled for 10 overs flat-out, it’s been hot, it’s been humid, you’re dehydrated.”Cummins is on a modified training program as he recovers from the strain and hopes to join other scholars at Cricket Australia’s Centre of Excellence in Brisbane later in the year. George Bailey, the Tasmania captain and leader of Australia A last winter, is also missing the tour due to his rehabilitation from surgery on his right shoulder

In a match studded with players returning to the international scene, it was Sri Lanka’s comeback stars who had, by far, the biggest influence on proceedings

Andrew McGlashan at Bristol25-Jun-2011For Sri Lanka the next three weeks is what their tour of England is really all about. They tried their best in the Tests, where the draws at Lord’s and the Rose Bowl were commendable results, but were never going to have a serious chance of winning with such a threadbare bowling attack. Limited-overs cricket, of both the 20- and 50-over variety, is a very different story and the performance at Bristol showed what makes them such a dangerous team in coloured clothes.In a match studded with players returning to the international scene, it was Sri Lanka’s comeback stars who had, by far, the biggest influence on proceedings. Lasith Malinga, no longer a Test cricketer due to his dodgy knees, led the way with a frugal four overs that cost 15 with few of England’s players able to lay a bat on him. Even those who could, such as the in-form Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan, only managed to take him for one boundary.Malinga has lost the highlights from his hair since last appearing for Sri Lanka at the World Cup, but none of the sparkle from his bowling. It’s a huge shame his body can’t withstand the longer format – especially having seen some of those who are trying to replace him in the Test team – but, in a factor often overlooked by those who curse the Test verses Twenty20 debate, the short game ensures he can still dazzle on the world stage.”With Lasith in your side it’s very easy because he is a world-class bowler,” Thilina Kandamby, the Sri Lanka captain, said. “I knew whenever he had a chance he would pick up wickets. He’s the best in the world in that role.”It wasn’t far off a perfect Twenty20 bowling display. Malinga’s first over, the last of the six-over Powerplay, cost just three runs to ensure England collected a disappointing 33 for 2 from the fielding restrictions. The last ball of that over was clocked at 90mph and with the ‘sling’ imparted by his action was comfortably the fastest England have faced this season.Stuart Broad knew Malinga’s four overs had played a major role in changing the game. “They have some very good death bowlers,” he said. “You only have to look at Malinga who is one of the best in the world and we didn’t find the boundaries we needed.”Malinga isn’t just about toe-crushing yorkers. He provided the key breakthrough by removing a rampant Morgan with a bouncer that was pulled to deep square-leg. Off his next 15 balls, a mixture of slower deliveries and others up at 90mph, just eight runs came from the bat and only one of those in the last over when Chris Woakes and Broad connected with nothing but fresh air. Nobody in the England side comes close to bowling yorkers so consistently.However, it wasn’t just Malinga who was important with the ball. Nuwan Kulasekara, not long ago the No. 1 bowler in one-day cricket, kept up early pressure and the subsequent stand of 83 in nine overs between Pietersen and Morgan was the only time Sri Lanka lost control. The man who helped restore their grip was their most controversial inclusion. Sanath Jayasuriya’s left-arm darts have not lost any effectiveness in his two years away from the international scene and as a farewell to Twenty20 internationals his 2 for 18 was a handy return.His skiddy angle defeated Pietersen’s cut and also bowled Ravi Bopara the ball after he’d hit the only boundary in the final eight overs. His effectiveness makes it even odder that he wasn’t willing to extend his international farewell for the duration of the one-day matches. As it is, the last England will see of Jayasuriya will be at The Oval on Tuesday. Malinga, though, will be around for longer and that is likely to give the home side more problems.

Billy Godleman hit a career-best 130 as Essex moved into a commanding position at the end of the third day of the County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road

12-Jul-2011
Scorecard
Billy Godleman hit a career-best 130 as Essex moved into a commanding position at the end of the third day of the County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road. Essex closed on 306 for 4 in their second innings to lead by 354 runs, leaving bottom of the table Leicestershire facing an uphill battle to save the game on the final day.Godleman and Tom Westley laid the foundations with an opening partnership of 104 and then Owais Shah hit an unbeaten 84, joining Godleman in another century stand for the second wicket.It completed a day totally dominated by Essex after seamer David Masters had claimed Leicestershire’s last three wickets in the morning session to finish with 5 for 67. The home side, who began the day on 245 for 7, were dismissed for 274 giving Essex a first-innings lead of 48.Masters made short work of the Leicestershire tail – having Claude Henderson caught at slip, trapping Tom New lbw and then dismissing last man Harry Gurney, who was caught behind by wicketkeeper James Foster.From that point on Essex took total charge as a lacklustre home attack failed to make any inroads into the visitors’ batting line-up. Godleman and Westley had cruised to a lunch score of 55 in the first 16 overs with very few alarms and soon after the interval Westley reached his half-century off 55 balls with nine boundaries.Westley was the dominant partner and when he and Godleman put on 100 it was the first century opening partnership for Essex for two years. But it was finally broken in the 34th over when Gurney breached Westley’s defences to bowl him as the batsman went onto the back foot. Westley was out for 67 off 95 balls having hit 11 fours.Shah then joined Godleman in another big stand with neither batsmen looking like being out against a toiling Leicestershire attack. Godleman reached his half-century off 139 balls and after the tea interval Essex looked to accelerate, with Nadeem Malik conceding 23 runs in his first three overs after the break.Shah, looking in confident form, went to his 50 off 76 balls and the next landmark was Godleman’s first century of the season, which arrived off 225 balls and contained 12 boundaries. He celebrated with a six off Jigar Naik but as Essex looked for quick runs in the closing overs the off-spinner claimed three quick wickets.He had Godleman lbw to end a stand of 177 off 43 overs, trapped Ravi Bopara lbw as he tried to sweep and then had Matt Walker caught at long on. But it was all too little, too late for Leicestershire, who now face a difficult final day as they try to save the game.