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ScorecardClaire Taylor led the way for England in their healthy first-innings reply against South Africa with an unbeaten 89 on the second day of the first Test at Shenley. Taylor hit 13 fours and shared a 103-run partnership with Clare Connor to guide England to within 107 runs of South Africa.But England still had to wait a while as South Africa continued their careful progress in the morning. After 14-year-old Johmari Logtenberg added just four runs to her overnight 70, Cri-Zelda Brits (32) and Sune van Zyl (37) put on a useful 59 to keep England’s bowlers on the field, of who Lucy Pearson and Helen Wardlaw took three wickets apiece.In their reply, England faltered to 34 for 2 when openers Charlotte Edwards (18) and Laura Edwards (7) both fell early. However, Taylor and Connor, who scored 61, put England back on course and a first-innings lead is now in their sights.

Gallant Calmore Sports have missed ECB Southern Electric Premier League survival by just three runs.Two wickets off the last two balls of Roger Miller’s final over of the season left Calmore 164 all out – two runs adrift of Andover, whose batsmen had ground out 166-7 on a poor London Road surface."Another three runs and we’d have been safe," sighed Calmore skipper Tom Pegler, whose side had won only two of its previous 16 matches. "But we weren’t relegated on Saturday night – more like 15 weeks ago."Survival was firmly in Calmore’s hands as they approached their critical finale to the season in the knowledge that Havant had already beaten relegation rivals Portsmouth by five wickets.A win would have meant safety for Calmore – but it didn’t happen.The prospects looked good all the time James Hibberd (41) remained at the crease, but his dismissal at 119-6 proved crucial."All the time Hibbo was in, we fancied ourselves, but we still blew it in the end," Pegler groaned.Clive Surry (16) and Dave Rouse lifted Calmore to within nine runs of victory off the last ten balls of the match.They got four of the six runs they needed off Miller’s final over – only to have Surry trapped leg before and John Wall bowled off the last two balls of the season.It left Calmore 164 all out – and bottom of the Premier League.Andover battled hard to reach 166-7 after being put into bat on a damp surface clearly affected by the previous day’s heavy rain.Toby Radford top scored with 27 – but took almost 40 overs to do it – while Roger Miller (25) and Ian Langdown (23) made what proved vital contributions.Havant beat Portsmouth by five wickets with seven balls to spare at St Helen’s, Southsea, where Michael Barnes (43), Naqeeb Ali Mohammed (36) and Ben Thane (32) top scored in the hosts 203-9.But a splendid 86 from Andrew Perry, aided by Simon Barnard (38) and Chirs Wright (31), carried Havant to victory.

Pakistan 348 and 242 for 6 (Taufeeq Umar 71, Inzamam-ul-Haq 60) drew with South Africa 278 and 371
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The South Africans threw in everything they could, but they fell just short of achieving a series-levelling win, as Pakistan drew the second Test at Faisalabad and wrapped up the series 1-0. When Inzamam-ul-Haq and Abdul Razzaq were dismissed off successive balls with 14 overs still left, South Africa sniffed an improbable series-levelling win. But Shoaib Malik and Moin Khan hung on grimly under fading light, surviving with resolute defence and a generous slice of luck. In the end neither team could claim a distinct advantage: Pakistan were 60 runs short of their target, while South Africa were four wickets away from victory.Taufeeq Umar (71) and Inzamam (60) led the way for Pakistan, while the South Africans were let down by their spinners and – more surprisingly – their catching, usually the most reliable aspect of their game. Mark Boucher dropped Taufeeq and Herschelle Gibbs spilled Inzamam, but the drop which perhaps cost them the match was Gary Kirsten’s missed chance off Malik towards the end of the day.Pakistan saw off most of the first two sessions with scarcely any alarms, but the second new ball – taken after tea – paid immediate dividends for South Africa. Inzamam, who had motored along to a half-century after a tentative start, inexplicably shouldered arms to a Makhaya Ntini indipper which was heading towards middle and leg. Simon Taufel had little hesitation in ruling in favour of the bowler (209 for 5). That was the last ball of Ntini’s over. Off the first ball of Shaun Pollock’s next over, Razzaq (10) showed that he had learnt nothing from Inzamam’s shocking lack of judgment, shouldering arms to a Pollock delivery which nipped in slightly and took the off stump.From a position where they were fighting to save the Test, South Africa were suddenly pressing for a win. Then came the crucial dropped catch: a short ball from Ntini took the shoulder of Malik’s bat and, incredibly, went all the way to Kirsten at fine leg, who ran around to get to the ball, and then spilled a regulation chance. With that miss went South Africa’s hopes of victory.

In the first two sessions, there was little to suggest the drama that happened towards the end. Pakistan’s batsmen were intent on survival before lunch, an attitude which resulted in just 55 runs from 30 overs. Imran Farhat and Yasir Hameed fell during that period. Farhat made a painstaking 8 before he was adjudged lbw off Ntini, when replays suggested that the ball would have missed off (18 for 1).Hameed (17) started off in positive fashion, flicking Kallis for two fours, but the South Africans soon switched to short-pitched bowling, and Hameed fell for the bait, pulling Ntini straight to Boeta Dippenaar at square leg (46 for 2).Then came the best passage of play for Pakistan, as Inzamam and Taufeeq stitched together a 79-run partnership. Inzamam started tentatively, but grew in confidence, unleashing some powerful cover-drives off either foot. With Taufeeq playing some trademark drives down the ground, Pakistan scored 92 in the afternoon session. Though Taufeeq was dismissed in that session, caught by Graeme Smith at mid-on when he failed to time a lofted shot off Robin Peterson, Pakistan had laid the foundation to make a serious assault on the target. The South Africans had other ideas, though, and in the end, it needed some gritty batting from the lower order to ensure that Pakistan saved the Test.

The Pub Charity Youth Cricket draw on Saturday is:Please note:This is the final round of the competition before the Christmas break.The Christmas Club Competition will begin on Saturday, December 13.Youth Cricket will restart on Saturday, February 7 next year.**All matches are 1-day matches**U18 (1-day):STAC v St Bedes Black St Bedes 3,Midd G v CBHS Straven 2,PK v Sydenham Parklands Dom 1,Pap HS Bye.Colts (1-day match):Section 1:CC v Syd CC 1,STAC v CBHS STAC 1,St Bedes v SBHS SBHS 4.Section 2:St Thom Yellow (Win by default),Pap HS v St Thom Red St Thom 2.U-16A (1-day):CBHS v CC CC 2,SBHS v STAC STAC 2,Syd v St Bedes St Bedes 5a.U-16B (1-day):Ricc HS v NB Ricc HS 2,LPW v Hornby CC Hornby HS,Upr v CBHS Ricc Dom 1,OC Bye.U-15A (1-day):Burn HS v SBHS Burn HS 2,STAC White v STAC Blue STAC 3,CC v Sydenham Cash HS 1,CBHS Bye.U-15B (1-day):CBHS v PK Parklands Dom 2,CC v St Bedes CC 3,Pap HS v Burn HS Pap HS 1,Upr v STAC STAC 4a,CBHS Black Bye.U-14A (1-day):Linc/Elles v STAC Tai Tapu Domain,SBHS v CC CC 5,Burn HS v St Bedes Burn HS 3,Syd v CBHS Blue Straven 3,CBHS Black Bye.U-14B (1-day):CC v STAC STAC 5,LPW v SBHS Hansen Park,Ricc HS v CBHS Blue Ricc HS 3,Pap HS v CBHS Black Straven 6,Rang HS v Syd Rang HS 1,St Bedes v Nb South Brighton Domain.U-14C (1-day):CC v SBHS CC 6,BWU v CBHS Black Straven 7,St Thom Bye.

Craig Spearman, the former international opening batsman, has made himself available for the State Central Stags in their State Championship campaign. It was originally thought he would only be available for the State Shield limited overs season.His availability is a vital boost for the side as it contemplates building on its efforts in recent seasons. The only newcomer to the side announced today for the opening game of the season against Wellington at the Basin Reserve, starting on Monday, is Nelson fast-medium bowler Richard Sherlock.Sherlock, a member of the New Zealand Under-19 team at the Under-19 World Cup held in Christchurch in the summer of 2002, has been a member of the New Zealand Academy this year. He will take his place in the attack alongside two recalled players, Ewen Thompson, who is back after a one season absence, and Regan West, who returns to the side after five seasons.Unavailable for selection due to injury was Andrew Schwass while Mathew Sinclair, Jacob Oram and Michael Mason are with the Black Caps in Pakistan. The side announced by Mark Greatbatch (convener), Scott Briasco and David Hadfield is:Glen Sulzberger (capt), Bevan Griggs, Lance Hamilton, Brent Hefford, Jamie How, Peter Ingram, Jesse Ryder, Richard Sherlock, Craig Spearman, Ross Taylor, Ewen Thompson, Regan West.

The Western Australian Cricket Association is deeply saddened by the tragic death of Victorian Bushrangers Coach David Hookes.The WACA sends it deepest condolences to the Hookes family.WACA CEO Mrs Kath White said the senseless loss of Hookes is a tragedy that will be felt around the nation and the cricketing world."On behalf of the WACA can I say that our thoughts and prayers are with David’s family and all at Cricket Victoria and the SACA. David was one of the true characters of the game," Mrs White said."He earned the wide respect and admiration for his contributions to the game as a player, coach and commentator."David bought joy to millions of Australians with the way he played cricket. This was a senseless tragedy that has taken one of our sporting heroes."Retravision Warriors Coach Wayne Clark said that Hookes’ death was a tragic loss for Australian cricket."David was a tremendous person and I am deeply saddened by his untimely death," Clark said."I played and coached against Hookesy and he was a tough-as-nails character that was still the first person into the rooms for a beer after the game."He was respected by all who met him for the way he played the game. He gave so much to the sport as a player and then as a Coach, he will be sorely missed."The Warriors will wear black armbands during their ING Cup match against NSW on Wednesday as a sign of respect for Hookes.

John Howard, the Australian prime minister, has named Steve Waugh as the Australian of the Year for 2004.Currently playing for New South Wales in a Pura cup match against Western Australia, Waugh could not be at the awards, but expressed gratitude for the title.”Simply, thank you for the honour,” he said. “In accepting I hope the award will help the focus on me to be about more than just cricket. If it is meant as a recognition in some way of the other work I’ve done in the community in Australia and in India then I’m grateful indeed.”Waugh’s role in humanitarian causes was recognised, as well as the influence he exerted in Australian cricket, as the award was conferred to him. With this award, Waugh joins Allan Border and Mark Taylor as the only cricketers to be named Australian of the Year.Earlier this month, Waugh announced his retirement from international cricket, ending an eventful 18-year old career. With him in the one-day team, Australia won two World cups, and reached the finals of another. Under his captaincy, the Test side became a dominant force, and set the benchmarks in international cricket.

Pakistan 171 for 5 (Tariq 45*, Fawad 43*) beat India 169 (Uthappa 33, Qadir 2-27) by five wickets
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Fawad Alam held his nerve when Pakistan were in a precarious position and his decisive partnership with Tariq Mahmood propelled them into the final of the Under-19 World Cup in Dhaka. India had their batsmen to blame, who could muster only 169 in the face of some very disciplined bowling. Yet India’s bowlers did their bit by picking up early wickets, but the undefeated 88-run partnership between Fawad and Tariq was an ideal lesson in pacing a run-chase.Fawad and Tariq came together with the score on 83 for 5. Abhishek Sharma was fizzing his legbreaks and Rudra Pratap Singh was zeroing in on the corridor. Scurrying between the wickets, deftly gliding and nudging, they slowly uncorked the pressure valve. And when the target looked within striking range, they did just that. Out came the ballistics and the ball soared like a rocket in all directions.India needed an exceptional effort if they were to have any hope of defending 169. But Gaurav Dhiman and Rudra Pratap Singh provided them with an ideal start – Dhiman swung the ball both ways and generated some alarming seam movement. He struck in his second over, when Khalid Latif (1) missed a straight ball that pitched on leg stump, deviated towards middle and trapped him right in front (3 for 1). Jahangir Mirza (9) was undone by a swinging yorker, from Rudra Pratap, that crashed into his boots (20 for 2).But Adnan Zaheer made sure that the scoreboard kept ticking along with some confident shots and he wasn’t prepared to let any bowler settle into his rhythm. He added 28 with Usman Saeed, and while Zaheer was completely in control, the other looked very uncertain in his 63-ball stay. Ironically it was Zaheer who fell first, as a thick edge lobbed up to short third man (48 for 3). Zaheer made 18.Salman Qadir, although flummoxed by some zipping legbreaks from Sharma, cashed in on the loose deliveries and kept the asking-rate well in control. Usman (19) tried to break the shackles by cutting a straight ball from Sharma and predictably lost his off stump (68 for 4). Qadir (24) showed a few powerful shots, before he tamely prodded at one from Rudra Pratap. Dinesh Kartik, who was captaining the side in the absence of the suspended Ambati Rayudu, completed the simple chance and Pakistan were hobbling at 83 for 5. Over to Fawad and Tariq.Apart from the brief moment when Kartik called the coin right, India had a poor first session. The Pakistan’s bowlers showed exceptional skill and control and tightened the noose from the first ball. They were also helped by some poor shot selection and weak nerves.Shikhar Dhawan took strike with 497 runs to his name already at a Bradmanesque average of 99.4. But today he learnt that even Eric Hollies can have his day. Dhawan (8) miscued a pull off Ali Imran and found Latif at mid-on (23 for 1). Just one run later Praful Waghela was back in the hutch for a first-ball duck, trapped in front of the stumps by Riaz Afridi (24 for 2).Robin Uthappa didn’t take any undue risks and held his end up well, but Rakesh Solanki (21) soon became the next casualty, run out after he played the ball straight into the hands of short third-man and set off for a nonexistent single (73 for 3).Uthappa departed soon after when he flicked Qadir uppishly to square leg. He made 33 with 3 boundaries. Karthik got out in similar fashion and Suresh Raina was soon out in a freakish manner. He played an extravagant pull off Tariq only to inside-edge the ball towards the keeper. Zulqarnain Haider fumbled the ball, but it lodged in his pad and he was able to claim the catch (113 for 6). Qadir, who is the son of the legendary legspinner Abdul Qadir, ended with 2 for 27 from 10 overs of high quality offspin.But, the best passage of play came in the 39th over. Mansoor, bowling his legspin with phenomenal control, tempted Sunny Singh into a big drive. The third ball of the over was dispatched to the boundary – the first in 114 balls -and a hint of a smile spread across Sunny’s face. Two balls later, he had the look of a man who’d seen a ghost. A perfectly flighted delivery enticed him forward. The ball ducked in at the last moment, a googly, turned in just enough to beat the bat and clipped the top of the off stump. It’s hard to imagine how any legspinner could have bowled that ball better.The fast bowlers then cleaned up the tail with minimum fuss and India folded for a meagre total. India’s opening bowlers gave them a chance, but they were left as clueless as Sunny was, when the two unbeaten Pakistan batsmen began to turn it on.

Daryl Tuffey has pulled out of the third Test against South Africa, which starts at Wellington on Friday (March 26), because of a large bruise on his left upper thigh. Lindsay Crocker, New Zealand Cricket’s general manager, explained that the injury occurred while Tuffey was fielding on the first day of the ongoing second Test, at Auckland.”Daryl injured himself in the field when he was attempting to prevent a boundary,” said Crocker. “He dived and landed very awkwardly, and has been having ongoing difficulties with his leg since then. Unfortunately, the bruising has become quite severe and it has got to the point where it is unlikely he will participate further in this match.”The injury will require physiotherapy, and Tuffey will go into a rehabilitation programme under the direction of NZC’s medical panel. “Daryl will also receive treatment for the injury to his left knee which has been aggravating him for some time,” said Crocker. “The programme he will undertake is intended to enable him to be fit for consideration for selection for the team for the UK tour, which departs on April 27.”The team for the third Test will be named on Monday.

And the show moves on to the second destination where more column inches will be spent on security than cricket. The Arbab Niaz Stadium in Peshawar will decide which team takes the lead in this five-match series that is deadlocked at 1-1 after two close, high-scoring matches.Peshawar conjures up images of bazaars, carpets and of course Afghan connections. It’s a bustling, crowded mini-city, complete with Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken, four-wheel drive Landrovers and mobile phone towers. And it’s hot. At half past noon it was a touch under 40 degrees centigrade.India’s players had always planned to spend as little time here as possible and they flew in just before noon on the day before the match. One key difference in the security levels between Peshawar and the rest of Pakistan is that no-one here seems to bother with pistols – the smallest gun around seems to be a double-bore pump action shotgun, and AK 47s are the rule rather than the exception.In some ways, the complete lack of time and freedom to explore the place willhelp the Indian team concentrate on the task at hand. They need to tighten uptheir bowling in the face of some fine hitting on tracks that are such featherbeds, an insomniac would drop off to sleep. They need to make sure they are at the top of their fitness, so that they can hang on to every half-chance and chase down every ball even in trying conditions. As for the batting, they need to continue doing what they have done so far, just do it better.Ashish Nehra’s injury means that Lakshmipathy Balaji stays in the side despite going for 103 runs in 16 overs. Amit Bhandari, Nehra’s replacement, is expected to join the team before the last two games in Lahore and it is difficult to see the Indians going into the third one-dayer with two spinners for the simple reason that the ground is a small one. The longest boundaries are barely 65 yards and this means that batsmen will be able to clear the ropes even if they don’t hit the ball perfectly. Not that too many deliveries have missed the middle of the bat in this series. “There will be absolutely no margin of effort for the bowlers,” agreed Sourav Ganguly. “The wickets so far have been outstanding, and the trend in one-day internationals these days is to make them as bare as possible.”Pakistan’s team in the second one-dayer was bolstered by the return of ShahidAfridi, who contributed with the ball after slamming a 58-ball 80. For the thirdone-dayer, Taufeeq Umar, another attacking batsman, returns to the fold, but isunlikely to make the final cut. The Pakistan bowling line-up is as strong as ever. Shoaib Akhtar, Shabbir Ahmed and Mohammed Sami showed in the last game that they have the pace required to get away with bowling just short of a good length.It is this fast bowling strength that will pose a tantalising question to Inzamam-ul-Haq. The pitch, though flat, has a green hue to it. If the conditions are overcast and cool, there might be some benefit to be reaped in bowling first. That, however, is not an option Ganguly will be considering, after the manner in which his bowling attack has been battered in the first two matches. In short, expect a run-fest, but hope for something less brutal on the bowlers.Pakistan (likely) 1 Shahid Afridi, 2 Yasir Hameed, 3 Yousuf Youhana, 4Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Younis Khan, 6 Abdul Razzaq, 7 Moin Khan (wk), 8 ShoaibMalik, 9 Shoaib Akhtar, 10 Mohammed Sami, 11 Shabbir Ahmed.India (likely) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 VVS Laxman, 4Sourav Ganguly (capt), 5 Rahul Dravid (wk), 6 Yuvraj Singh, 7 Mohammed Kaif, 8Ramesh Powar, 9 Irfan Pathan, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Lakshmipathy Balaji.