Mark Waugh will be pushed as a possible national selector as New South Wales attempt to end 12 years without representation on the panel. The Sydney Morning Herald reported Allan Border was expected to stand down in April and David Gilbert, the New South Wales chief executive, would ask Waugh to nominate for the vacancy.”Mark is a very good judge of a cricketer, and his ability to read cricket very well is well known,” Gilbert said. “Australian cricket can’t let blokes like him disappear from the game.”Australia’s current panel has no representation from New South Wales or Victoria, and includes Trevor Hohns and Border from Queensland, David Boon, the former Tasmania batsman, and Andrew Hilditch, the hook-happy South Australia player. The positions of Border and Boon will be reviewed in April and the newspaper said Border was considering standing down to focus on media and other interests.”I wouldn’t completely rule out nominating if a spot became available,” Waugh said. “There could be good sides to it, like identifying talent, but it would be a big commitment, with a lot of time away. I can’t say watching cricket all day appeals to me.”While Border and Hilditch played for the Blues before moving interstate, John Benaud, who retired in 1993, was their last selector. “People are going to say we’re after someone who will push our players but that’s not the case," Gilbert said. "No selector is ever going to compromise himself by being biased towards his own state. New South Wales are a formidable influence on Australian cricket. It stands to reason we should be represented.” Ray Bright, the former Victoria spinner and current state selector, said he would be interested in applying if there was a vacancy.
It took less than a month in charge for Michael Vaughan to blame county cricket for all the ills of the England team. But, when he feels brave enough to examine the latest dispatch from Lord’s, perhaps he might concede that the problem lies rather closer to home. For the schedule for England’s 2004 season was released today, and it is every bit as terrifying as expected.Never mind the daily grind of the County Championship. It will be a miracle if the core members of England’s Test and one-day teams are still in one piece by September 25 next year – the uncommonly late finish to an exhausting seven months of non-stop internationals. That seven Tests and 28 one-day internationals have been scheduled for England’s domestic season is knackering enough. For these matches to follow hot on the heels of a gruelling 11-international tour of the Caribbean, however, is masochistic in the extreme.Midway through the 2002 season, England appeared to boast a stable of fast bowlers that would keep them in wickets for the next ten years. Fourteen months later, however, many of these thoroughbreds are only fit for glue. No fewer than eight first-choice seamers, from Andrew Caddick to Alex Tudor, via Matthew Hoggard and Simon Jones, have been ruled out this summer with injuries of one sort or another – and the body count is sure to rise this winter, in the thankless conditions of Bangladesh and Sri LankaIt is a measure of the intensity of next season that a player in both the Test and the one-day teams, such as Andrew Flintoff, will be available for his county for a maximum of two matches in 2004. That means no opportunity to tinker with a damaged technique or rediscover some lost confidence in quieter surrounds. James Anderson, the Truman Burbank of English cricket, has already discovered this only too well.Anderson has been compared to David Beckham several times already in his short career. But even Beckham, the greatest attention-grabber of our age, spends less of his life in the direct gaze of the public than cricketers. Ninety minutes of a football match, half-an-hour of press conferences, a couple of shopping sprees and a film premiere is not the same as spending six hours in the blazing sun, remembering not to pick your nose in case the world is watching.The off-camera life isn’t particularly compelling, either. Time spent away from loved ones is felt far more acutely in your hotel room than on the field. And then there’s all that travelling – whether it’s island-hopping, long-haul flights, or traffic jams on the M6. And what other sport tangles quite so messily with politics? It’s a sure bet that when the players attempt to embark on a month’s R and R at the end of next season, they’ll find their peace ruined by the inevitable row that awaits them before their scheduled tour of Zimbabwe.It is hardly original to make the plea that there is too much cricket being played. But the longer the objections of players and media alike are ignored, the more agitated the appeals become. It was the overkill of 2002-03, as intense a winter as any cricket team can have faced, that broke Nasser Hussain’s spirit and drove Graham Thorpe into a late withdrawal for the sake of his family. What lies ahead will be every bit as strength-sapping.It also has the makings of a typically farcical finale. Never before has a major tournament (if the ICC Champions’ Trophy warrants that tag) been scheduled so late in the English season. The last time the ICC held their jamboree, in Sri Lanka’s rainy season in September 2002, a two-day downpour wiped out the final (and the replay).What price a repeat performance?
*Vidyut stars for Haryana at GurgaonS Vidyut scored an unbeaten century to help Haryana to a draw againstPunjab in their Ranji Trophy league match at Gurgaon on Tuesday.Unbeaten on 23 overnight, Vidyut made 105 off 143 balls with littlesupport from other batsmen, spurring his side to an unforseen secondinnings total of 309. For Punjab, Sandeep Sanwal picked 3-67.Set a target of 196 runs to win, Punjab lost quick wickets in themiddle to put all thoughts of an outright win right out of theirminds. Although Ravneet Ricky made unbeaten 41 off 62 and Yuvraj Singhslammed 24 off 27, three wickets fell within the space of 12 runs,forcing the batsmen to opt for a draw. 108/5 at the close of play,Punjab picked up five points from this encounter, while Haryana pickedup three.*Delhi notch up massive victoryDelhi won their Ranji Trophy league match against Jammu & Kashmir by amargin of 200 runs, picking up eight points at the Feroze Shah Kotlagrounds in Delhi on Tuesday.Set a target of 469, Jammu & Kashmir never looked to go after it andcould only hope for a draw. When their in-form batsman, KavaljitSingh, fell after making 90 with the score on 193, having spent 310minutes at the crease, Delhi sniffed a chance to bowl their rivalsout.They did not mess it up. Sarandeep Singh (4-60) and Amit Bhandari(3-76) combined to destroy Jammu & Kashmir’s lower order, bowling themout for 268. Some resisting efforts from the lower middle-ordernotwithstanding, Delhi finally won in a canter.*Himachal Pradesh pull off shock winLittle-rated Himachal Pradesh pulled off a shock victory over giantsServices in their Ranji Trophy league match at Una on Tuesday.Shakti Singh (5-80) and Vishal Bhatia (4-40) rudely unseated Servicesfrom its comfortable overnight position of 25/0 to bowl them out for179. Brushing aside scores of 44 and 42 from K Chawda and YashpalSingh respectively, Himachal Pradesh’s bowling attack took only 54.3overs to work its magic.Set a target of 46 to win, Himachal Pradesh were never going to betroubled too much. They reached the score with only one wicket lost in11.3 overs, with Sandeep Sharma making 27 off 25 balls.*Goa tail wags furiouslyGoa’s tailenders batted resolutely to deny Tamil Nadu a shot atvictory in their Ranji Trophy league match at Chennai on Tuesday.Despite a five-wicket haul from L Balaji, Tamil Nadu could not bowlGoa out for less than 158 to notch up an innings victory. Batsmen likeKiran Powar (57) and skipper Amitabh Velaskar (23) used up valuableminutes in their knock.Further down the order, Avadoot Amonkar used 50 minutes and 40 ballsto score one run, while Avinash Aware spent an unbeaten 57 minutes and48 balls without getting off the mark.Tamil Nadu, by virtue of a first-innings lead, pick up five pointsfrom this drawn match, while Goa pick up three.*Andhra Pradesh draw with KeralaSet a target of 177 to win the match, Andhra Pradesh hung on to drawtheir Ranji Trophy league match against Kerala at Cochin.Kerala, reeling overnight at 131/7, miraculously made it to 259, withKN Ananthapadmanabhan making a sterling unbeaten 74, coming in atnumber 10. Sreekumar Nair, the other overnight batsman, made 83 off390 minutes and 279 balls. For Andhra Pradesh, Mohamad Faiq picked uphis second five-wicket haul of the match.Andhra Pradesh never looked to go after the target, preferring insteadto pick up their five points by virtue of a first-innings lead. At theclose of play, Andhra Pradesh were 78/2, with skipper MSK Prasadunbeaten on nine off 102 minutes and 66 balls.
Former India captain Anil Kumble believes that adjusting to different leadership styles in the split-captaincy format is not difficult for players in current times. Taking questions after delivering the seventh Dilip Sardesai Memorial Lecture at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai, Kumble was of the opinion that constant adjustment to different formats and teams helps players get accustomed to various captaincy styles.India went with a split-captaincy format in December 2014, when MS Dhoni announced his retirement from Test cricket after the Melbourne Test against Australia and Virat Kohli was handed the Test captaincy. Dhoni, however, continues to lead India in the limited-overs formats.”I don’t think it’s difficult for players to adjust from one captain’s temperament to another. Perhaps in my case it was already forced because I had already decided to give up playing one-day cricket and Dhoni was the captain of the one-day formats, “Kumble said. “And now that Dhoni has retired, Virat is the captain in Test cricket.”I don’t think for players, it’s a difficult job. Players are constantly adjusting from one team to the other and from one format to the other. In an IPL format, the same team-mates become opposition players and sometimes the opposition players become team-mates.”So there’s constant adjustment, but once you have played with the two captains, obviously the two should have played quite a number of matches to become captain, so you know their personalities and getting adjusted to their way of thinking or doing things, I don’t see it an issue. And South Africa have gone an additional way with a captain for each format, so perhaps that’s the way things may happen. You may, at some point of time, have an exclusive specialist T20 team which will be very different from a Test team or a one-day team.”Kumble also said that the difference in personalities between Dhoni and Kohli and the varying degrees of aggression between the two captains was not a major factor for the side.”The bottom line is you need to be attacking. That’s the word I would like to use. Aggression, I think, is a bit of a misplaced word and the way it comes across… as long as you are aggressive, as long as the intent is to win games, whether it’s 20 overs, 50 overs, four-day, five-day, I think the personality comes across,” he said. “Yes, individually, emotionally each one is perhaps different from the other but overall as a team I don’t see that as a major factor because Dhoni was leading India in the last 5-6 years, so in that sense, it shouldn’t be a problem in changing to a Virat style of captaincy.”In his lecture, Kumble, who took over as Test captain in November 2007, said that he believed modern captains face more challenges than their predecessors. He felt that they need to have a statesman-like approach to the game in the face of issues that can suddenly arise, particularly when a team is on tour.Drawing on his experience as captain of the Indian Test team on the controversial Australia tour of 2007-08, Kumble said he found himself playing the role of “diplomat, a bridge between the players and the cricket board and the face of Indian opposition in Australia” following the Monkeygate scandal during the Sydney Test.”During my tenure, I realised that in addition to the job description mentioned earlier, a captain also had to be prepared for the unexpected. The second-most important job could suddenly become the most important as I discovered in Australia during the incident called as Monkeygate,” Kumble said.”This was an aspect of a captain’s job that didn’t exist when I began my career. In fact, as a player for 17 years, I hadn’t been called by any match referee but perhaps visited the referee after every match as captain.”As the controversy raged, I received a message from Bishen Singh Bedi. As a captain, he wrote, ‘take a decision you will be proud of when you look back on this’. That is a uniquely Indian take on the job and Bedi’s simple words were inspiring. In Fact, it’s a motto that should be pasted on to the kit bags of all international captains. The modern captain faces more challenges than his predecessor did. Issues arise, specially when a team is on tour, that require a statesman-like approach and captains must keep the bigger picture in mind. It’s important to carry the team on such occasions.”When asked about the controversy later, Kumble said that the suggestions of the senior players – Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Virender Sehwag – were helpful, but felt the matter could possibly have been resolved by a chat between him and Australia captain Ricky Ponting.”I was blessed to have players around me who were all greats and their suggestions were valuable,” he said. “As a captain, it’s my duty and my responsibility to protect my player and my team and that’s all I did. There were times when I think it could have been resolved with, perhaps, just the two captains sitting and sorting it out.”
Manchester United midfielder Darron Gibson looks set for a move to Everton according to reports in the British press.
Gibson is a fringe player at Old Trafford, has not been part of Sir Alex Ferguson’s plans this campaign and has been forced to watch the action from the sidelines.
Mirror Football have reported that the Republic of Ireland international is set to sign for the Goodison Park club in a £2 million deal, with the signing expected to be announced on Friday.
Gibson is ready to put pen-to-paper on a four-year contract, reportedly worth £40,000 a week.
Meanwhile, Sky Sports have stated that United have rejected a transfer bid from Newcastle for youngster Ravel Morrison.
The young winger has starred for the youth teams and reserves at the Premier League champions, but due to his contract expiring in the summer has been linked with a move to another club.
The 18-year-old will be available on a free transfer come June, but Alan Pardew’s men are thought to want to steal a march on their rivals by paying a small transfer fee and securing the starlet’s signature immediately; United have rejected this proposal.
Morrison has stated that he is keen to find regular first-team football, and has been reluctant to put pen-to-paper on a new deal at United.
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Another weekend of Premiership action and it’s a slight understatement to say that the temperature is rising. The fight for Champions League spots has at least five teams in it and arguably the battle to avoid the drop into the Championship has twice as many teams dicing with death.
Manchester United vs Everton
This will a fiercely competitive game and I tell you this, Everton are going to give United a genuine run for their money here. The Toffees’ is superb of late. They haven’t lost in six and only drawn two, which at this end of the season is a credible achievement. Hernandez as an anytime goalscorer has to be worth a punt as does a 2.5+ goal line. I predict a 2-2 thriller which is 18/1.
The Cup specialists travel to Villa Park with the scent of victory still in their nostrils then, eh? We’ll have to wait and see. The Villans are obviously with Gerard Houllier, but perhaps this will simply serve to rally the troops. Stoke’s away form (Wembley aside) has been abysmal. Prediction a conservative 2-1 home win for me is 15/2.
Blackpool vs Newcastle
Oh Blackpool, you came and you gave without taking…. It’s looking like what you gave us were a few one liners from a village idiot and the services of Charlie Adam. Like ropey old seaside rides of yesteryear the wheels have fallen off. Toon distinguished themselves against United and in their post apocalyptic post Carroll sweat they are looking remarkably good. Prediction any price on an away win.
Liverpool vs Birmingham
Hardly ‘season defining’ but if Liverpool want to emphasise that they are back on track whacking Brum out of Anfield, over the Kop and into the car park for a six is the order of the day. Birmingham are probably looking for a point here to keep them just out of that relegation scrap. Liverpool must be like Ming. Merciless. Prediction of a home win has got to half attractive to lump on at 4/9.
Sunderland vs Wigan
Eeeeesch. Here’s one for hardened fan. A pair of past their sell by date pasties battling it out for pole position on the reduced to clear shelf. I hope Barclays bring us this game with a health warning. The sad thing is Sunderland are probably better than this. Or at least they were. I think Wigan may well do ’em and 11/4 seems value in my eyes.
Tottingham vs West Brom
Spurs were back to their lightening attack mode against Arsenal and I just wonder if they will now ‘do the usual’ and stroll into this game against a supposedly lesser side and get stung. It happens frequently. The Baggies have won their last two away games… Look out Lilywhites. I’ll take the draw at 3/1.
The last nail in West Ham coffin was hammered home by none other than Sir Geoff Hurst yesterday. He told Keys & Gray on talkSPORT that his beloved team were certain for the drop. Chelsea could get a hockey score here. 4-0 is only 9/1. This game ought to come with an 18 certificate.
Bolton vs Arsenal
Oh dear. I can see Mr Wenger spontaneously combusting at the Reebok here. Bolton were taken to the front of the class and rather uncharacteristically had their pants pulled down against Stoke. They will be wanting to remind their fans and indeed themselves they can still play football. A draw is no good for the Gunners. But 1-1 is an inviting enough 6/1.
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Aston Villa caretaker Kevin MacDonald insisted the buck stopped with him following Sunday's 6-0 thrashing at the hands of Newcastle United.
MacDonald, who was unbeaten in his two games at the helm following Martin O'Neill's departure on the eve of the new season, saw John Carew miss an early penalty at St James' Park before the floodgates opened.
Villa were playing their second game in four days and afterwards the interim manager claimed he made a mistake with his team selection.
"One or two of the young lads who have played three games in a week, maybe it was too much for them, so I will accept responsibility. It was me who chose the team," he said.
Meanwhile, MacDonald has admitted he still doesn't know whether he wants the Villa Park job on a full-time basis.
He added:"My views are that maybe by the end of next week when we have finished all those games, I will be able to sit down and think is it what I want to do or is it not what I want to do?
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Tottenham Hotspur are on fire right now and there are few players in the Premier League in as good form as Spurs midfielder Gareth Bale.
The Welsh winger has been tearing up defences across the country and was at it again at Carrow Road during the week, as Bale scored twice in Tottenham’s 2-0 win against Norwich.
That victory leaves Spurs 3rd in the Premier League table, ready to mount an assault on the two Manchester’s at the top.
Strictly Come Dancing might have finished, but here are Bale and Emmanuel Adebayor dancing in celebration on Tuesday night.
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Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini admits the absence of Carlos Tevez for Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final with Manchester United has come as a huge blow for his side.Mancini confirmed on Thursday that Tevez could miss the next four weeks with a hamstring injury – at a time when City are not only fighting for their first trophy in 35 years, but also to finish in the top four in the English Premier League.
The club’s hopes of finishing in the Champions League places were dented on Monday night after being thumped 3-0 by Liverpool – and Tevez limped off in that match with an injury that now rules him out of Saturday’s derby.
“Tevez is not available for Saturday. I think he will recover in three or four weeks. It is a big problem but we can’t take any risks,” Mancini said.
“We have six games left and hopefully we can get Carlos back for the last two or three games.”
The Argentina striker, City’s top scorer, could be fit in time for the FA Cup final if Manchester City get there, with either Stoke or Bolton the opponents at Wembley.
Mancini will have to rely on either Edin Dzeko or Mario Balotelli to shoulder the goalscoring burden in Tevez’s absence.
“I still have to decide what to do. But both players know this is an important chance for them,” Mancini said.
“Every player knows this is an important moment for the club. If we will we can go to a final, so every player will give 100 percent.”
Mancini has had to fight off speculation regarding his job at Eastlands and there have been reports that he could be sacked if City fail to finish in the top four.
But he insists everyone at the club should be content as he looks towards the Wembley showdown with rivals United.
“We should be happy at the moment as it’s the first time in a long time are in the semi-final. We have a good chance of this and the Champions League,” Mancini said.
“The fans should be happy for this situation and for this game. We need to focus on this game and we need to understand it is very important. If we play well, we can get to the final.”
“United are in good form. They are very strong but I am not worried about this game – I am sure we will play well.”
There are a few positions Arsene Wenger may want to strengthen before the transfer window shuts, but left-back will certainly not be one of them. The first choice going into the new season will probably be Gael Clichy, but his understudy Kieran Gibbs has the ability to challenge him for the position in this campaign and give Arsene Wenger a selection dilemma of who he is going to play. Gibbs impressed for England on Wednesday night, he had a big impact when he came on and showed some good attacking flourishes. Although he is a undoubtedly a good left-back, Clichy does not always inspire absolute confidence in his defensive abilities, and he can be guilty of making mistakes that can lead to chances for the opposition. At 20 years of age Gibbs will want to be playing regular football and if he performs to his potential, he should have a good amount of playing opportunities this season.
Since Ashley Cole’s acrimonious departure to rivals Chelsea in 2006, Gael Clichy has firmly established himself as Arsenal’s first choice left-back. Clichy has abundant qualities; he is quick, athletic, good on the ball, and poses a buccaneering threat down the left flank, something that is so important in modern day football. However, he can occassionally be found wanting defensively and looks shaky at times; this often appears to be due to a drop in concentration. The fact is that although Clichy is an excellent player, he has not reached the same level as Arsenal’s previous left-back Ashley Cole. This would of course be a tough ask, Cole has been one of the world’s best in his position for years and is one of very few to play for England who has not disappointed. Arsenal though, may well have the natural successor to Ashley Cole already in their ranks.
Arsenal fans have been optimistic about the future of Kieran Gibbs for a couple of years now. Since making his Premier League debut against Tottenham Hotspur in February 2009, Gibbs has displayed immense potential. One thing that has been so impressive about the youngster is his absolute calmness. He has never looked phased by the big games, even when he slipped at a crucial moment in a Champions League semi-final leg against Manchester United, allowing them to score, he quickly recovered his composure and although Arsenal were well beaten, he did not disgrace himself. Many players might have had their confidence destroyed by this costly error, but Gibbs came back stronger and has never looked short of the confidence one needs to play for a top side. His international career has also just begun, and he performed well in his first England appearance on Wednesday night. It is my personal view that Gibbs has the potential to be a better player than Gael Clichy, but at the moment Clichy is more experienced and is still Arsenal’s best left-back, and it will be the correct call for him to start the season as first choice.
Arsene Wenger has never shied away from fielding young players, and if he thinks Kieran Gibbs will be a more effective player for Arsenal than Gael Clichy, he will play him. A full league season and a European campaign may be a little too much to ask from Gibbs at the moment, but he should be given a good amount of opportunities to play in these competitions in order to aid his development. Clichy will probably be the main left-back at Arsenal this season, but Kieran Gibbs should have a decent amount of games on which he can build. With Armand Traore also in the squad, one thing is for sure; Arsenal will not want for a left-back this season.
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