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Pakistan’s assistant coach Aaqib Javed has said bowlers will struggle to produce reverse-swing following the recent rule-change in ODIs mandating the usage of two new balls, one from each end.”Bowlers will now have to focus on conventional swing,” Aaqib said. “I think the overall advantage goes to the new-ball bowlers. In terms of reverse swing, [only] some pitches can alter the condition of the ball so as to aid bowlers at the death. That’s when they can take advantage and produce some reverse swing.”After its annual conference in June, the ICC had announced the usage of two balls in one-dayers, and also restricted batting and bowling Powerplays to the period between the 16th and the 40th over.Aaqib also said the ongoing training camp in Lahore for fast bowlers has helped identify potential talent for the national side.”There are various bowlers in our domestic circuit, who are taking wickets regularly. We are keeping an eye on their attitude, fitness, discipline and their approach [at the camp],” he said. “Through this method, we have realised that some of them are not fit to play international cricket.”

James Anderson has declared himself fit to return to England duty at the Rose Bowl although still needs to come through two days of training before rubber-stamping his place back in the pace line-up on Thursday.Anderson was due to prove his fitness during Lancashire’s Twenty20 match against Worcestershire at New Road on Sunday but the game was abandoned without a ball bowled due to persistent rain. Instead, he arrived at the Rose Bowl on Monday for a net session and will push himself hard ahead of the Test.”I came down yesterday and had a bit of a bowl and felt fine after that, but the next couple of days are pretty important to get through,” he said. “I’ve felt fine for a couple of weeks now – I felt fine before the Lord’s Test. It would have been a risk to play in that game and I’ve had plenty of time to recover, get stronger, do a lot of bowling, so I’m feeling pretty comfortable.”Anderson bowled 28 overs in the first innings of the first Test against Sri Lanka at Cardiff, removing the experienced trio of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera. He batted as nightwatchman in England’s first innings, but took no part in the England’s dramatic victory on the final day after picking up a grade one side strain, and missed the second Test at Lord’s.It meant Anderson missed out on bowling on another flat Lord’s pitch although he doesn’t expect much to come easily at the Rose Bowl either. “It’s going to be hard for us to get 20 wickets here, especially if the wicket is going to be as flat as it looks,” he said.”It’s going to be hard work for us but it’s something we’ve come up against in the past. I think the average first-innings score in Championship cricket has been 400. To be honest in Test cricket at the moment a lot of the pitches are flat and it’s something we’ve had to learn to deal with.”Anderson replaced Surrey’s Jade Dernbach in England’s squad for the third Test and appears set to resume his role as leader of the bowling attack at the expense of either Steven Finn or Stuart Broad. Both Finn and Broad played alongside Chris Tremlett in the second Test, but with three tall hit-the-deck bowlers the lack of variety in England’s attack was exposed and Tillakaratne Dilshan scored an excellent 193.”He [Anderson] bowled extremely well at Cardiff and is a fine, top-class bowler,” national selector Geoff Miller told . “You always miss quality bowlers. But it is not just about one individual, it’s about a squad of bowlers and people coming into the side for injuries.”When you start being a successful international side you do have to make these difficult decisions so we’ll wait and see what conditions are like down in Southampton and make the decision accordingly. That is what we are all about: strength in depth.”Jimmy can pitch it up and swing [the ball],” added Miller. “The others are tall, bouncing bowlers and you are always looking for options because conditions alter and change and sometimes you need that difference. Jimmy is an extremely good exponent of that art.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Saeed Ajmal finished with 11 wickets in the match•AFP

On a surface atoning for modern cricket’s batting sins, a compelling Test again went this way and that, before nestling, at the end of the third day at Providence, loosely in the hands of the West Indies. Saeed Ajmal took centrestage to keep Pakistan in the contest initially, but Shivnarine Chanderpaul prised open that grip, before West Indian pacemen tore it off in an adrenaline-pumped afternoon spell. At the end of another slow run-scoring but fast-moving day, Pakistan had recovered to 80 for 3, chasing 219.Commentators have sniped at this pitch’s uneven bounce and excessive turn but really, this is a miniscule righting of the massive wrongs of the modern-day batathons of Antigua, Lahore and countless others, where even if bowlers hurled hand grenades they might struggle to dislodge batsmen. Few batsmen here have looked set though admittedly these are two of the poorer batting sides going. But frankly it’s made a battle out of a contest that could easily have slipped into yawning obscurity.And no bowler will care much, not Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul, who reduced Pakistan to 2 for 3 in their chase, the wickets falling in eight balls across the second and third overs. The pair have bowled with greater purpose and energy than their Pakistan counterparts; at pace, both moved the ball in and away in a high-tempo burst that decapitated Pakistan. Rampaul sent back Taufeeq Umar and Azhar Ali before Roach dismissed Hafeez.That Pakistan weren’t swept away entirely was down to Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq, battling hard in a 78-stand – the highest of the Test incidentally – to close without further damage. The pair were unruffled, running well and taking advantage of anything loose. Both clipped through the legside well, Shafiq adding a pretty drive or two and cuts along the way.There were scares – Shafiq was dropped on zero and then ‘bowled’ by Darren Sammy only for the bails to not fall – but they remained unharmed.Ajmal will not care a jot either, after picking up a career-best six wickets and ending with match figures of 11-111, his first ten-wicket haul and the third-best by a Pakistani against West Indies. To his credit – there is more than a little of (Pakistani singer) Rahat Fateh Ali Khan in him – he has exploited the surface better than anyone.He began early, trapping nightwatchman Roach in the day’s first full over. Lendl Simmons fell soon after off Wahab Riaz and the real game began: Ajmal against Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan. Neither looked confident, Ajmal turning it this way and that, up and down, all over. But Sarwan was just beginning to figure something out when undone by one that spat up at him. Ajmal then got involved in the field, his throw completing a run-out of Brendan Nash which Chanderpaul began by selling him a dummy.Carlton Baugh didn’t hang around in giving Ajmal his fourth, by when runs had long become a lottery. Ajmal continued after lunch, tired, still smiling, a threat. Even though Abdur Rehman struck first after the break, three overs later as Rampaul fell, Ajmal became the fifth Pakistani to take ten in a Test against the West Indies.But all the while, Chanderpaul had quietly hung around, not doing much but surviving. It took 15 balls to get off the mark and he was missed in the slips early, but he played unequivocally, everything Ajmal came with. He got lucky again, almost run out after smart work by Umar Akmal. It looked out on replay, but after strangely sending back Sarwan on the first day, it is fair to assume Asoka de Silva is unable to umpire even with the aid of video replays.After tea came Chanderpaul the world knows and loves (WICB officials excluded), chiseling out a boundary-less little masterclass over nearly four hours. There wasn’t a single memorable stroke yet it was, in context, a memorable hand. He didn’t bother with farming strike, taking runs where he could, nudged, nurdled or dabbed.In Bishoo he found perfect, sensible support, the 48-run stand the highest of the innings and potentially the game-changing moment, for it came when West Indies were only 170 ahead. Bishoo’s composure, as much as anything, stands him out and it shone through again. He first set up his base, not attacking anything. Soon, he began to look increasingly solid, against spin and pace alike, so much so that it took Pakistan nearly 22 overs to end it, and fittingly it was Ajmal who got him.Not fittingly, he was held at slip; Pakistan missed at least another three chances today, including Bishoo and they hadn’t managed to stop a single ball at slip let alone catch any until then. How much it costs them will become apparent tomorrow.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Wayne Parnell took 2 for 12 to help restrict Punjab•AFP

Pune Warriors finally ended their horror run of seven defeats by limiting fellow stragglers Kings XI Punjab to 119 in Mohali, a target which didn’t tax their batting too much The defeat means Punjab are now putting together a losing streak to nearly match Pune’s – having gone five games without a win. Legspinner Rahul Sharma was once again the standout bowler for Pune, with South African fast bowler Wayne Parnell and Bhuvneshwar Kumar aiding him in shackling Punjab.Preity Zinta was back to cheer on her side, and the Mohali crowd had something to shout about early on as Paul Valthaty repeatedly crashed the ball through cover for boundaries. Adam Gilchrist came into this game on the back of two ducks, and he couldn’t find his timing today either, swinging Rahul to deep midwicket for 3 off 8 balls. Valthaty was cramped by the lack of room, and when he was given some, he cut at it but Rahul’s extra bounce meant it resulted in a top edge to backward point.Shaun Marsh has been Punjab’s best batsman this tournament, and he showed why with some lovely hits. Yuvraj Singh was dispatched over long-on, Rahul was eased through cover for four, and his younger brother Mitchell was pulled for a boundary. Dinesh Karthik wasn’t as fluent, but in the company of Shaun, the pair guided Punjab to a reasonable 71 for 2 in ten overs.That platform was wasted though as neither batsman went on to make a big score on a slightly sluggish track. A Bhuvneshwar Kumar slower ball accounted for Shaun, who dragged the ball onto the stumps, and a couple of overs later Punjab’s most expensive acquisition, David Hussey, nicked to the keeper. They were floundering at 94 for 4.Karthik couldn’t quite hit top gear and there was a wicket in almost each of the final six overs as the innings fell apart to a series of attempted big hits.Punjab’s bowlers needed to be accurate and incisive if they were to stand a chance, and they began well, with a maiden from Praveen Kumar. The next three overs, though, were plundered for 30 runs, and in a match where the fielding standards were shoddy, Jesse Ryder was given a let-off by Valthaty in the fourth over. There was more fortune for Pune as Manish Pandey survived a dead-on lbw shout in the fifth over, bowled by Bhargav Bhatt, two balls after Ryder was dismissed.Robin Uthappa came out swinging, and though they were several fresh-air swishes, he found the boundary three times to whittle down the target with a quick 22. Pandey was dismissed after a relatively quiet 28, which had two of his trademark forehand smashes down the ground. If the wickets of Pandey and Uthappa gave Punjab some hope, Yuvraj extinguished that by clubbing Bhatt for two sixes and two fours in an over.

Just in case Ross Taylor had any doubts about his role with Rajasthan Royals, Shane Warne made it very clear. Taylor was picked to be the team’s finisher, to provide that final, devastating kick that sets a winning total or ensures a successful run-chase. Anyone who watched Taylor’s assault on Pakistan in the World Cup league game knows he has the power to play that role. But while Taylor is enjoying the job, he said he is still learning to cope with its demands.”It is probably something that has been put upon me over the last three or four years,” Taylor told ESPNcricinfo. “It is different. It is not a role I do for my team back home in New Zealand, or for New Zealand at international level but it is something I do enjoy.”The position’s biggest challenge, according to Taylor, is the need to adapt rapidly to different situations, depending on the state of the game, and ensuring one preserves his wicket. This doesn’t mean simply smashing the ball from the word go. One still has to play himself in. The key, he says, is figuring out how much time one has before pulling out the big shots.”There are not many batsmen who can come out and smack the ball from ball one and do it consistently. So you still have to give yourself a chance. It depends on many runs you have to get and how many balls you have to go. Then you can decide how many balls you have to get in.”Taylor has been at the crease when Rajasthan went past the finish line in each of their three wins this season, all of which have come chasing, but he hasn’t had to really flex his hitting muscles yet; his top score in those games is 18. His highest score so far this season was an unbeaten 35 in the first game against Kolkata Knight Riders, a game Rajasthan lost by nine wickets. Should he crack into form soon, he may be able to give Rajasthan the final ‘kick’ going in the business end of the tournament.The franchise is currently fifth in the table with seven points from seven games, and Taylor reckons the one point gained from the rained-out game against Royal Challengers Bangalore might be crucial in the race to the semi-finals. “We have Mumbai and Chennai, home and away, over our next seven games and they are first and second in the table so it is going to be a tough road … but we have four games at home and we know how to play at home so hopefully we can show that.” He goes into the match against Mumbai Indians in Jaipur in the hope that it will do for his IPL presence what the match against Pakistan had done for his reputation on the world stage.Taylor said he had a smooth transition shifting franchises from Bangalore to Rajasthan. The opportunity to share a dressing room with some of the best players in the world, both Indian and international, as well as India’s younger bunch, is what he likes the most about the IPL. “You never get to do that, and seeing the way they prepare and the way they go about the business, I think I not only learn a lot for myself but it is good for world cricket as well.”On the flip side, Taylor says players having to choose between club and country is the biggest downside to the league. As more international players choose to play in the IPL, the problem is only going to get bigger, as will the clamour for creating a window in the international schedule for the tournament.”I think if you ask any international player, they will tell you there should be a window.”

Ashish Bagai is a brave man. Last week, ahead of the game against Zimbabwe, the Canada captain said it was an important match, one which his team were confident of winning. It was thrashed by 175 runs. Today, he replaced Zimbabwe with Kenya, and both the struggling teams backed themselves to open their account in the tournament. This only adds some weight to the contest, the battle of the minnows.Earlier in the day, Jimmy Kamande, Bagai’s counterpart, said that his team would play the Kenyan brand of cricket – bold and expressive. Bagai was equal to the challenge: “Good competitive cricket, a good brand of cricket will give us success,” he said.Canada’s biggest stumbling block has been the failure of the batsmen. Even John Davison, their most senior batsman , whom the rest of the team looks for direction, has been indecisive. He missed out on playing Pakistan in a thrilling contest where Canada held the upper-hand at the innings break, chasing 185. An impressive amount of grit kept them alive till the half-way stage. But the batsmen failed to accelerate to keep up with the asking rate, eventually panicked and lost the match. Davision was left to wonder if his participation would have made a difference, but with a tally of two runs in two matches he’d know his batting needs a lot of work.But he is not alone; the rest of the batsmen including Bagai have to own up to their responsibility. In all the three matches, the top order has failed to even raise 50 runs; 47 remains the highest score so far by a batsman; Canada has not been able to reach 150. “If we get our batting right we should be competitive. It has been a worry right from the warm-ups. Bowling has hitting the straps in the last few games but it is the batsmen still have to step up,” Bagai said.Nearly 50% of the wickets (13 out of 31) have been taken by spinners at the Ferozshah Kotla in the two matches played so far. That prompted Bagai to give an indication of Canada’s gameplan on Monday. “Looking at the last two games it is the spinners who have dominated on this wicket. Balaji Rao is going to be the key for us. We probably might play another spinner with Parth Desai slotted to open.”Rao, who played for Railways and Tamil Nadu on the Indian domestic circuit, before emigrating to Canada for studies in 2003, agreed with his captain on spin being a catalyst on the Kotla track. But he added a wicket-to-wicket line would be mandatory for a spinner. “The Delhi wicket initially keeps low and holds the line. It just starts turning midway into the second innings,” Rao, who has six wicket so far, said.Rao is now part of the team think-tank along with Bagai and Dyson and integral to the team’s success. In the previous match against Pakistan, he raised eyebrows and stirred emotions among the Indian fans by engaging in a verbal duel with the Pakistan pair of Umar Gul and Ahmed Shehzad. Rao had already posed difficult questions to the Pakistan batsmen earlier the afternoon by removing Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Akmal when the pair was leading the recovery in the middle overs.When Gul and Shehzad “abused” him, Rao, who now works in the insurance industry, took the risk of rising to their bait. “I just basically believe that if somebody gives you something you have to give it back to him. I had a few swipes against Umar Gul and he had a few things to say, so I said (Just go and bowl). But from point, Ahmed Shehzad abused me which was uncalled for. Then I got hit on the shoulder, and again Gul had something to say and I shooed him away,” Rao recollected.The incident has not distracted him much, as Rao had another good memory from the Pakistan match, one that he will take into Kenya game. Asked of his favourite dismissal, Rao said: “Akmal was the wicket I enjoyed because I was able to turn the ball square earlier. The one that got him was a flipper that went through. With the second new ball, it helped as the odd ball turns and the batsman is left guessing. So I had the midwicket back and I was pushing him back so that he could take a single. That ball held the line and hit him in line of the stump.”

Ricky Ponting has escaped with a reprimand from the ICC after the incident that resulted in a damaged television in Australia’s dressing room during the win over Zimbabwe in Ahmedabad on Monday. Ponting was not fined and there was no formal hearing, after he accepted a level one charge and the reprimand from the match referee Roshan Mahanama.Ponting was visibly frustrated as he left the field after being run out, and he threw his groin protector at his kit bag, only for it bounce up and hit the corner of the television. The Australian camp stressed that the damage to the TV was accidental and he immediately reported it, but the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) still filed a complaint with the BCCI.Ponting was found to have breached clause 2.1.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which relates to “abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings during an international match”. However, while the level one charge could have carried a fine of up to 50% of Ponting’s match fee, the ICC accepted that the incident was unintentional.”Ricky knows that his action was in breach of the code, involving a brief moment of frustration,” Mahanama said. “That said, it was clear that the damage he caused was purely accidental and without malice, he apologised shortly after the incident at the ground and immediately agreed to pay for the damage.”It was the second time in two months that Ponting found himself charged with a level one offence, after he was fined 40% of his match fee for the Boxing Day Test, over a prolonged debate with the umpire Aleem Dar over a decision review that went against the Australians. The latest incident has captured the attention of the local media, with several newspapers reporting on the morning after the game that Ponting had smashed the TV with his bat, which was not the case.

Faced with a reduced budget of $7.1m at the IPL player auction, the Rajasthan Royals were limited to buying just eight players (of which only two were Indian) and now face another problem – how do they fill out the rest of the squad? The solution, according to franchise officials, will be to use the star power and proven leadership qualities of players such as Rahul Dravid and Shane Warne, and the presence of two current national Twenty20 captains, to attract and mould younger, talented domestic players.Rajasthan were widely considered to have the weakest team on paper in 2008, but their combination of experience and young talent gelled under Shane Warne’s inspired leadership, and they confounded the pundits to lift the trophy in the tournament’s inaugural year. The same blueprint will be in place this time around, which is why Sean Morris, the Rajasthan chief executive, says they honed in on players who have captained their national Twenty20 sides, such as Johan Botha and Paul Collingwood.”We had to be focused and have specific targets,” Morris told ESPNcricinfo. “I think we’ve got the kind of dressing room you would build if you wanted a dream dressing room of leaders. We’ve surpassed our expectations. [There is] lots of talent that we can bring in to the dressing room that is full of international experience, creating a blend of incredible experience with the young, local players.””All these Indian boys can have Dravid as a mentor,” Raghu Iyer, spokesperson for Rajasthan, said. “The strategy is to have a blend of youth and experience. That is what delivered for us in season one. Yusuf [Pathan] was not the star he is now. [Ravindra] Jadeja was not the star he is now. They have all delivered for us and done extremely well.”There is a second incentive the team can offer talented, young players that other franchises might not be able to match – the opportunity to play regularly in the IPL. Over the first three years, a number of domestic players merely sat on the sidelines and watched while the more established players in the squad were picked for matches. They still benefitted from training with and being exposed to international players, but there is no substitute for competitive games.”Our players are going to be playing a lot of cricket for us,” Morris said. “The young Indian players will be looking at all the teams and players and thinking who am I going to compete with and when I am going to play? And they will look at Rajasthan and will be thinking I have a fantastic chance of playing.”The franchise plans to begin augmenting its squad with players from Rajasthan’s Ranji Trophy team, which has had an excellent domestic season, knocking off heavyweights Mumbai and Tamil Nadu on their way to the finals against Baroda. “The domestic players from Rajasthan are going to get a lot of focus,” Iyer, said. “They have done very well this season. There is a loyalty there and talent as well. We need to be riding that wave.”Among the players the franchise is looking at are 18-year-old Deepak Chahar, who made a huge splash on his first-class debut by taking 8 for 10 to dismiss Hyderabad for a Ranji record low-score of 21, and 20-year-old Ashok Menaria, who captained India in the Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand in 2010, after which he bagged an IPL contract with Royal Challengers Bangalore. Rajasthan’s wicketkeeper, Rohit Jhalani, is another player the franchise has its eye on as they failed to pick up a keeper in the auction. In addition, the team is hoping to re-sign players that were part of its development squad for the first three years.Naturally, the franchise is also attempting to sign some of the more prominent domestic players, such as the Mumbai pair of middle-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane and seamer Dhawal Kulkarni, by offering them the same carrot of regular cricket alongside established stars.”At the end of the day, the domestic players are going to make a lot of difference,” Iyer said. “It [the squad] is going to be lean and mean. Everybody has learnt that.”

ScorecardShane Watson played a stunning innings to secure Australia’s victory•Getty Images

Shane Watson produced one of Australia’s finest one-day hundreds to carry them to a record-breaking six-wicket win at the MCG with the highest successful chase on the ground. His unbeaten, career-best 161, Australia’s fifth highest individual effort, allowed them to hunt down 295 with five balls to spare and take an early lead in the seven-match series.After a summer that has become synonymous with Watson’s fifties this was a huge moment for the allrounder and both his hundred, and later the 150, were celebrated with arms aloft in front of an appreciative 34,000 fans. He kept his cool when the asking rate began to climb and fittingly was the man to finish it with a six over long-off.On a surface where scoring became hard work against spin and a soft ball this was a mammoth pursuit and for most of the time Australia had it under control. However, there was just a moment when England were giving themselves a chance, partly helped by a painful innings from Michael Clarke who eventually drove to mid-off.Steve Smith was then strangely promoted to No.4, clearly to take advantage of the Powerplay, above the likes of Cameron White and the Hussey brothers. He swung wildly before being caught at short third-man and although Australia had plenty of wickets left it gave England a timely boost. However, Mike Hussey provided the late spark with 21 off 15 balls and Cameron White, in front of his home supporters, had the muscle to ease the pressure.This, though, was Watson’s match. He was quickly out of the blocks with a second-ball clip to fine leg and collected boundaries in each of the first five overs against Tim Bresnan and Chris Tremlett. He and Brad Haddin knew how important it was to make the most of the hard ball before the spinners could start have a say on proceedings.Tremlett nearly provided the breakthrough when Watson top-edged a pull but Jonathan Trott couldn’t back-pedal far enough at mid-on. Andrew Strauss opted to hold back his bowling Powerplay to try and reign in the scoring with his slow bowlers, but after three overs called the restrictions which signalled another charge from the openers.Bresnan’s comeback over went for nine and Shahzad’s opening two deliveries were dispatched by Haddin who was starting to catch up with his partner. The breakthrough went to Graeme Swann as Haddin tried to clear the large leg-side boundary. Watson, though, continued towards his hundred with the occasional four to keep the required rate under control. When he reached three figures he had nearly two thirds of Australia’s runs.However, problems were starting to develop at the other end. Clarke, filling Ricky Ponting’s shoes at No.3, continued to be horribly out of form and his 57-ball 36 put increasing pressure on Watson. Clarke was even booed by home supporters when he played out dots and cheered when he got off strike. For his sake it was a good job Watson got them over the line.England will see this as a major missed opportunity because Australia were poor in the field, but they kept giving away wickets after an opening stand of 90 in 12 overs between Strauss and Steve Davies. The next best partnership was 50 for the sixth wicket between Kevin Pietersen, who top-scored with 78, and Michael Yardy, but Pietersen fell early in the batting Powerplay which hampered England’s chances of a late charge.This was Pietersen’s first fifty-plus score in one-dayers since he made an unbeaten 111 at Cuttack in November 2008, although due to injury and being dropped he has only had 17 innings in that period. Still, having been brought back at the expense of Paul Collingwood, who paid for his poor Ashes form, he needed to justify that faith and it went to plan until Mitchell Johnson’s superb soccer skills found him well short.Pietersen and Ian Bell were starting to form a useful stand when Smith chipped in with two important wickets. It was a good day for Australia’s part-time spinners because David Hussey also bagged a brace. Smith had Bell and Eoin Morgan caught in the covers to leave England 5 for 186 and needing a rebuilding job.However, Haddin had a shocking day behind the timber and the third of his misses reprieved Pietersen on 37 moments after the loss of Morgan. Instead, Pietersen responded with consecutive straight sixes off Hussey to move to his fifty and later added a third when he drilled Xavier Doherty into the sightscreen.Davies had been the earlier major beneficiary of Australia’s generosity in the field when he was given four lives; a missed run out, being caught off a no-ball against Brett Lee, Haddin’s first missed stumping and a sharp catch to cover. There was also some wayward bowling to feast on from Johnson and Doug Bollinger before Davies missed a big sweep at Hussey, who then claimed Trott.Strauss had also been given a life on 48, another error from Haddin, and looked set to make Australia pay until the lack of pace off the surface led to him spooning Lee to midwicket. In the end the lack of a batsman converting to three figures hurt England. Watson showed what a difference it can make.

Auckland 158 for 8 (J Adams 62, Mason 3-24) beat Central Districts 154 for 9 (Taylor 44, Bates 4-18) by 4 runs
ScorecardMichael Bates’ triple-wicket maiden set up a thrilling win for Auckland•Getty Images

Fast bowler Michael Bates’ triple-wicket maiden set up a thrilling four-run win for Auckland in the HRV Cup final against Central Districts at the Colin Maiden Park. Auckland were restricted to 158 for 8 in their 20 overs, but some tight bowling backed up by sharp fielding helped them wrest the title from the defending champions.Hosts Auckland, who won the toss, elected to bat. But Gareth Hopkins’ decision seemed to backfire after Auckland lost two wickets within the first four overs. Martin Guptill, who was in fine form in the recent Twenty20 series Pakistan, was the first to go in the second over for 4, edging Doug Bracewell to Ross Tayor in the slips. Bracewell struck again in his next over to have Lou Vincent caught at long-on.Jimmy Adams and Colin de Grandhomme then combined for a 66-run third-wicket partnership to calm the nerves. Grandhomme got the Auckland innings moving, striking consecutive boundaries. Adams too found his touch and soon brought up the partnership’s fifty with back-to-back boundaries. Grandhomme fell for 31 but Adams, who was dropped by Taylor, went on to reach his half-century before he was finally dismissed for 62 to leave Auckland at 125 for 4 with 4.1 overs still left. But Auckland failed to accelerate after that, and though Colin Munro hit 29 off 18 balls, Michael Mason struck to pick up three quick wickets, to keep Auckland down to an average total.CD, who had chased down 181 to beat Auckland in Pukekura Park last week to qualify for the final, didn’t bargain for the start they had. Peter Ingram was caught at third man off the first ball of the innings from Michael Bates. This was followed by back-to-back dismissals: Jamie How was caught in the slips of Bates’ third ball and Ian Blackwell was caught by a diving Roneel Hira off the fourth ball. CD were 0 for 3.”To be honest, that first ball was short and wide,” Bates said. “The second was good but the ball that got the third wicket was a half-volley on leg stump.”Michael Yardy and Taylor buckled down to add 51 runs for the fourth wicket to restore some normalcy. When Andre Adams struck to pick up the crucial wicket of Taylor who made a fluent 44, CD needed 87 from 39. At 85 for 7, things looked bleak for CD. Bracewell and Kruger van Wyk added 50 in 4.4 overs to swing the momentum in favour of CD. Bates, however, struck again to dismiss Bracewell and was involved in running out van Wyk in the last over. CD needed 13 runs off three balls but Auckland held their nerve.”We pride ourselves on our fielding,” Hopkins said. “We’ve done a lot of work to set a standard and we want to be the best fielding unit in the competition.”When you win things like this you need an extended squad. You can’t overlook the efforts of those who weren’t playing today. They’re here today and they’ll be celebrating with us.”The winners of the HRV Cup have qualified for the previous two editions of the Champions League and should the format remain the same for the next edition as well, Auckland will be the team to qualify.