All posts by h716a5.icu

Martin Stovold, who played as a batsman for Gloucestershire between 1978 and 1982, has died after a lengthy illness

Martin Williamson26-Jun-2012Martin Stovold, who played as a batsman for Gloucestershire between 1978 and 1982, has died after a lengthy illness. He was 56.Stovold followed his better-known older brother Andy from Loughborough College to the county but failed to make the same impression. A left-hand batsman and very occasional offspinner, he made his county debut in 1978 and over the next five season played for the county without ever holding down a regular first-team place in the three-day game, although in 1980 and 1981 he was more in the one-day side than out of it.In 25 first-class matches he managed 518 runs at 16.70 and in 34 List A games he scored 325 runs at 13.00. He made only two fifties with his best 75 against Oxford University.He was released by the county in 1982, continuing to coach in South Africa, but returned to England in 1986 where he took up the role of cricket professional at Cheltenham College, becoming master-in-charge in 1993. He also taught geography and was a housemaster.”Martin was one of the most dedicated teachers in the College’s long history and inspiration to generations of young people as a housemaster, geography teacher and master in charge of cricket,” Dr Alex Peterken, Headmaster of Cheltenham College, told the PCA. “Just last week he emailed staff from his hospital bed to lament the effect the wet weather was having on the College’s cricket schedule. ‘The tide will turn and the sun will shine’ he said. These proved to be his last public words and the sun now shines on his memory.”

Andrew Hilditch’s time as Australia’s chairman of selectors is over after the Cricket Australia board decided to appoint a full-time chairman of selectors

Brydon Coverdale and Daniel Brettig19-Aug-2011Who is Don Argus?

Don Argus, or to use the nickname he earned during a 50-year business career, Don’t Argue, is one of Australia’s most-senior boardroom figures. For a decade until his retirement last year, Argus, now 73, was the chairman of BHP Billiton, the global mining giant; early in his tenure he oversaw the merger between BHP and the African-based Billiton. During those years he also served as the chairman of the logistics firm, Brambles.

Prior to that, he was chief executive of the National Australia Bank, having joined the bank’s staff in his native Bundaberg, in Queensland, as an 18-year-old. Argus has a reputation as a forceful businessman – hence the nickname – and hasn’t been without his critics, but he remains a well-respected figure and last year was made a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC), the highest honour given in Australia since knighthoods were effectively abolished in 1983.

And with a record like that, who’d argue?

Cricket Australia has effected sweeping changes in the running of the national game, from the top-most levels, while ratifying several key recommendations from the Argus review. It decided to appoint a full-time national selector, ending Andrew Hilditch’s tenure as Australia’s chairman of selectors, and also removed Greg Chappell from the selection panel, while asking the coach Tim Nielsen to re-apply for his job.The Argus review was set up to investigate Australia’s team performance following their Ashes debacle last summer and its wide-ranging investigation has pointed to problems at every level. At the top are the selectors, and the review has recommended a five-man selection panel with a full-time chairman and two independent selectors, while the captain and coach have also been given increased responsibility and will become selectors.The national talent manager, Chappell, won’t be part of the group. Jack Clarke, the CA chairman, said the newly-created position of national selector would be a full-time role and had therefore ruled out Hilditch, who also works as a solicitor in Adelaide, although Clarke was unsure whether Hilditch would apply to stay on the panel as one of the two part-time selectors.”The position is a full-time role,” Clarke said. “Andrew is not available to work full time. He has just started up a new legal practice so he is not available to apply for the role. I haven’t spoken to Andrew about [whether he wants to stay on the panel]. He’s certainly unavailable for the top job.”Hilditch said in a statement: “I fully support the recommendation of the review panel to appoint a full-time chairman of the national selection panel and the appointment of the captain and coach as members of the panel. It is a structure I supported as appropriate when interviewed by the review panel and I think it will serve Australian cricket well going into the future.”They were always going to be difficult years as chairman with the exodus of so many great players but I have given it my all and always acted to the best of my ability to achieve the best outcome for Australian cricket. Once the new head selector is appointed I look forward to spending a lot more time with family and friends and my growing legal practice. It has been a privilege and an honour to serve Australian cricket.”Nielsen and Australia’s captain, Michael Clarke, will immediately be made selectors for the ongoing tour of Sri Lanka, while Chappell, who is with the team as the selector on duty, will temporarily remain in the job while the new structure is finalised. However, Nielsen’s future is uncertain, with the coach’s position to be expanded to become a more senior role, leading the overall coaching strategy for Australian cricket, and he is not guaranteed of getting the job.”Coaching the Australian team is a tough job anyway with the travel and that sort of thing,” Jack Clarke said. “It’s going to take some additional time and skill sets to put a strategy for the whole of Australian coaching. We need to align the coaching so that there’s one philosophy which the head coach has got to be able to articulate and get that through to the state coaches and all other coaches in the system.”Tim can apply for the job and he may well get the job. But it’s a different role, and in a restructure, you don’t just give someone the job in a new role.”Another key change will be the appointment of a general manager of team performance, who will report to the CEO and oversee coaching, selection and the Centre of Excellence. The position is similar to the role Hugh Morris now fills for the England team, a job the ECB created after the Schofield Report into their disastrous Ashes series in 2006-07.In his opening remarks, Clarke conceded that Australian cricket’s custodians had more or less sat on their hands towards the end of an era of great success, and had not been proactive enough in dealing with the looming problems posed by the retirements of great players and the change in the Australian team’s profile.”It is clear with the wisdom of hindsight there are some issues that could’ve been addressed earlier. The right time for fundamental change to structures and processes is not always easy to pick, particularly with a system that has worked so well for so long,” Clarke said.”Sustained on-field success may well have masked some problems – in a sense we were victims of our own success, and if you won in a certain way you were probably less likely to change your ways. However it is quite clear the world has moved on, and a system that once worked is now in need of change. In doing this we have not taken a short-term approach, looking for scapegoats or applied band-aids to problems.”It might be argued we should’ve done more to replace the great players who retired recently, having said that it is not easy to replace players the calibre of Warne, McGrath, Gilchrist, Hayden and others of the era.”Paul Marsh, the chief executive of the Australian Cricketers Association, commended CA and the review panel for their thoroughness.”I commend Cricket Australia and the Argus review panel for their thoroughness and transparency,” Marsh told ESPNcricinfo. “The players want to see Australian cricket back at the top as much as anyone, and we are glad to see that desire shown so strongly in the review.”CA directors were handed an executive summary of the Argus review findings at the conclusion of the first day of Thursday’s board meeting, before Argus led a detailed presentation to the board on Friday morning. The recommendations stemmed from a most exhaustive review undertaken into the drastically waning fortunes of the Australian side, culminating in an Ashes defeat that included an unprecedented three innings hidings.Australia are fifth on the ICC’s Test rankings, and are in danger of missing out on a place in the inaugural Test match World Championship, to be held in 2013. The team is in the midst of a tour of Sri Lanka, the first Test assignment for the new captain Michael Clarke, and players and officials – including Chappell, the selector on duty – were briefed on the review findings before public discussions commenced.Chaired by Argus, the review panel included the former captains Allan Border, Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh, plus Malcolm Speed, formerly the chief executive of Cricket Australia and more recently the ICC. Speed’s CA successor, James Sutherland, sat in on the process as an ex-officio, non-voting member, but interviewees were allowed to request his absence if they felt uncomfortable discussing problems in front of their current boss.A total of 61 interviews were conducted, across a spectrum that included players, coaches, officials, media and other well-placed observers. Senior figures from other sports were also consulted, including the multiple-premiership winning Australian Rules football coach Mick Malthouse..

Tillakaratne Dilshan, the Sri Lanka captain, has said that his team can do well in South Africa if they can manage to put runs on the board

Firdose Moonda in Benoni07-Dec-2011Sri Lanka’s Test squad have arrived in South Africa with an obvious weakness – their bowling. Tillakaratne Dilshan, their captain, chose to say almost nothing about it.”Any fast bowler who comes to South Africa likes to bowl here,” Dilshan said in Benoni, where Sri Lanka are preparing to play a warm-up match against an Invitation XI starting on Friday. And that was that.He made no reference to their missing quintet of seamers that includes Suranga Lakmal, their carrying of the perennially under-performing Dilhara Fernando, the responsibility that will sit on the shoulders of Chanaka Welegedara or the adjustments Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath will have to make to be effective in South Africa. He made no comments about the need to take 20 wickets to win a Test – something Sri Lanka have never done in South Africa.Instead, Dilshan’s plans for success in a country with some of the most seamer-friendly, pacy and bouncy pitches in the world did not involve the ball at all. “If the batting unit can put some runs on the board, we will do well in South Africa,” he said.Except that even in the batting department, Sri Lanka have not been their usual powerful selves. Only Kumar Sangakkara scored a century in their recent three-Test series against Pakistan, which they lost 1-0. Sri Lanka were bowled out in five of the six innings, three times for less than 260. “We know in the last few series, batting didn’t click,” Dilshan admitted.Yet when asked to identify the area which could prove match winning for Sri Lanka, Dilshan was adamant that it would be batting. If the line-up could use Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara as their kingpins and perform around them, Dilshan predicted they would do well. “The batting unit is experienced; Mahela and Sanga have played a little bit in South Africa. Those are experienced guys. We can build around them. Thilan [Samaraweera] has come back into the side, he is experienced guy in the middle order. Myself and the youngsters, like Chandimal, have to put their hands up.”Jayawardene and Sangakkara are two of the three players (the other being Fernando) to have played a Test in South Africa before, Sri Lanka last toured the country nine ago, in 2002. Dilshan admitted that his team will have to make a speedy adjustment to the conditions that are foreign to them. “We have played on and off one-day series in South Africa and that has helped a little bit,” he said. “But, everyone should get ready for these conditions as soon as possible.”The warm-up match will be Sri Lanka’s only opportunity to acclimatise to conditions and the pitch in Benoni should provide them with a good introduction to South African surfaces.Although not a particularly spicy pitch, it has recently produced a match in which wickets fell heavily. The SuperSport Series contest between the Titans and the Cobras in October saw the Titans dismissed for 112 in their first innings and nine wickets fell on the second day.Dilshan did say that some of his batsmen, including him, are already comfortable with such pitches. “Sanga, Mahela and myself really like bouncy tracks,” he said. “If we get runs on the board as a batting group in this three-day match and everyone can come into form, that will be important for us. We have to play our brand of cricket. If we can play our brand of cricket we can beat South Africa.”At the same time, Dilshan recognised that Sri Lanka had no room for mistakes. “We can’t make any mistakes. We have to be at 100% commitment for this series. Everyone should put their hands up and take responsibility.” Hopefully, that includes the bowlers as well.

Aaron Finch and Andrew McDonald kept Victoria in with a chance on a day dominated by the bowlers in Hobart, where 13 wickets fell, and all to seamers

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Feb-2011
ScorecardAaron Finch, who made his Twenty20 debut for Australia this year, was in fine form•Getty ImagesAaron Finch and Andrew McDonald kept Victoria in with a chance on a day dominated by the bowlers in Hobart, where 13 wickets fell, and all to seamers. Tasmania were on top after they restricted the Bushrangers to 233 but by stumps, the Tigers were finding it tough going with the bat, and they were 3 for 74, with Ed Cowan on 25 and George Bailey on 2.Tasmania had lost their opener Nick Kruger, who was making his first Sheffield Shield appearance for his new state having moved from Queensland, for 11, before Alex Doolan (33) and Brady Jones also departed. Only three Victorians had reached double figures after they were sent in by Bailey, who was well supported by his new-ball bowlers.Ben Hilfenhaus picked up 4 for 44 and Luke Butterworth collected 4 for 62, and it was a real struggle for most of the Bushrangers. But 83 from Finch, who scored briskly, and 65 from the stand-in captain McDonald, ensured a vaguely respectable total, before James Pattinson chipped in with a late 31.Tasmania are in second place on the Sheffield Shield table and victory at home would give them an excellent buffer from the Bushrangers, who are third.

Ryan Harris has been alerted by the national selectors to be ready to return to the Australian Test attack against Sri Lanka in August.

Daniel Brettig02-Jun-2011Australia fast bowler Ryan Harris used the Indian Premier League as an elongated fitness test. Now he has been been alerted by the national selectors to be ready to return to the Australian Test attack against Sri Lanka in August.Given how well Harris combined with Mitchell Johnson to fire out England during the third Ashes Test in Perth, it is natural the selection chairman Andrew Hilditch wants to see more of him. A return of 20 wickets at 24.40 from his first five Tests showed Harris to be a valued member of an attack that now has a new bowling coach in Craig McDermott.”I’ve got an indication they’re still keen for me to play that longer form of the game, so now I’ve got six to eight weeks before Sri Lanka,” Harris told ESPNcricinfo. “Queensland are about to start in pre-season, so I’ll get into that, get into some serious gym work and fitness work. [I will] get myself fit and stronger, and by that time [in time for the Sri Lanka tour] I’ll have bowled a fair bit and hopefully I’ll be bowling well enough to get picked. I’m definitely aiming for that tour.”McDermott marked his promotion from the Centre of Excellence by indicating that he wanted his charges to be fitter and more capable of bowling consistently. Such a vision is in line with Harris’ own harsh assessments of himself.”I’ve seen some good reports about him and obviously the cricket that he’s played himself, he’s in a position where he can give good advice, and knows a bowling action,” Harris said. “It’s exciting; it’s going to be different but good. He’s worked with Troy Cooley as well so I guess he’s passed on some information, and it’s exciting to see him start.”My aim now is to get back to the level I was bowling. I’ve always got to try to improve, and to stay fit for the next two or three years before I finish my career. I just want to get back to feeling good, getting my pace back up and getting the shape of the ball back there.”I felt as though in the IPL I struggled with that and got a little frustrated with it. But that’s my goal in the next six to eight weeks, to get that really comfortable feeling; to run in and bowl fast and put the ball where I want to put it.”Harris, 31, posed the most consistent questions of any Australian bowler during the Ashes, before he was waylaid by an ankle fracture during the Melbourne Test. He is also constantly managing a battered knee that needs the addition of new cartilage. Harris has elected to avoid such a procedure due to the 18 months it would cost him in the latter days of a career that did not truly bloom until he was nearing 30.Playing for King’s XI Punjab, Harris plucked 16 wickets at 23.87 during the IPL, suffering the occasional collaring but overall doing enough to suggest he is capable of making an impression on the Sri Lankans in subcontinental climes. Any lingering discomfort in Harris’ ankle and knee dissipated as the tournament progressed.”Everything’s spot-on at the moment, which is good,” Harris said. “It took me probably four or five games to get into it again and get the body used to bowling. The ankle was a little bit tender from the surgery; not so much the break but just where the screws were inserted, so it probably took two or three weeks to get over that pain. Once I got over that everything was good.”The knee was a bit tender, but it never never really swelled up, and the pain or tenderness that was there, disappeared, the more I played. Everything on that front is going well, which is good because we weren’t sure how the knee was going to pull up after not playing for three or four months and then going into a tournament where you play games only two or three days apart.”I was a bit surprised myself to be honest how I went, but another test will come when I start playing the longer form again.”

Nottinghamshire secured top spot in the North Group of the Friends Life t20 with a 25-run victory over Worcestershire, denying the visitors a place in the quarter-finals

15-Jul-2011
Scorecard
Nottinghamshire secured top spot in the North Group of the Friends Life t20 with a 25-run victory over Worcestershire, denying the visitors a place in the quarter-finals.Overseas batsman Adam Voges hit 55 from 40 balls as the hosts posted 167 for 6, and quick bowlers Darren Pattinson (3 for 20) and Luke Fletcher (3 for 34) did the damage as Worcestershire were bowled out for 142.Voges held the Nottinghamshire batting together after the hosts stumbled to 35 for 3, putting on 63 with Riki Wessels (33), while Steven Mullaney made a sprightly 35 from 20 balls as the Outlaws hit 38 off the last four overs.Nottinghamshire were always in the box seat as Pattinson and Fletcher ripped out the top order in the opening powerplay and, despite 45 from skipper Daryl Mitchell, the Royals’ reply fell away in the final overs.Nottinghamshire’ record of 11 wins from their 16 group matches has been based on a formidable batting line-up, but Adam Shantry struck in each of his first three overs as Tamim Iqbal, Alex Hales and Samit Patel were all sent back to the pavilion to put the hosts on the back foot.Voges kept his cool and consecutive boundaries off Shakib Al Hasan saw the Australian bring up his third 50 in this year’s competition off 30 balls as he and Wessels consolidated through the middle overs.Mitchell’s medium pace brought the breakthrough as Voges got a leading edge to point, and Wessels followed in the next over as he holed out to deep midwicket off Shakib. Mullaney then thumped three fours and a six, with 17 coming off Shantry’s last over, as Nottinghamshire finished on a high, and Pattinson and Fletcher kept up the momentum with two wickets apiece inside the first five overs.Moeen Ali briefly threatened as the left-hander hit four fours and a six, but Pattinson was brought back to bowl his final over and duly removed Ali with a leading edge to point. That snuffed out Worcestershire’s hopes, with the last five wickets falling in the final four overs as the tail collapsed under the pressure.Nottinghamshire will now play their home quarter-final against Somerset, who finished fourth in the South Group, with the match to take place on August 6, 7 or 8.

ESPNcricinfo previews the first Test between West Indies and Pakistan at Providence

The Preview by George Binoy11-May-2011Match FactsMay 12-16, Providence, Guyana
Start time 1000 (1400 GMT)
Misbah-ul-Haq’s tenure as captain has been controversy-free, and he’ll be aiming to achieve what no Pakistan captain before him has done in the West Indies•Associated PressThe Big PictureWe’ve been starved of Test cricket for nearly four months now. Ever since Pakistan drew in Wellington, to win the series against New Zealand, there’s been a glut of limited-over matches – the World Cup, Australia in Bangladesh, the IPL and Pakistan in the West Indies. Re-adjusting attention spans to the pace of five-day cricket might take a while, for both players and us. It is in Guyana, at the other end of the cricket universe from where they last played, that Pakistan resume the Test calendar, in pursuit of a success they’ve never achieved before.Pakistan have never won a Test series in the West Indies. They’ve beaten them at home and at neutral venues (UAE in 2001-02), but in six trips to the Caribbean, Pakistan have lost four series and drawn two. The most memorable of those battles was in 1987-88, when Imran Khan’s team held its own against the champion side Viv Richards inherited from Clive Lloyd in three monumental Tests. One-all it finished. The last two were thrillers. Unfortunately, Pakistan and West Indies have regressed since that watershed tour, and it would be fanciful to expect Misbah-ul-Haq and Darren Sammy’s teams to produce entertainment of comparable quality.Whether Pakistan or West Indies are in greater disorder could make for protracted debate. About ten months ago, it would have been Pakistan. Their captain (Shahid Afridi) jumped ship and retired from Tests, while his successor (Salman Butt) and their two best fast bowlers (Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer) were embroiled in a spot-fixing scandal and then banned by the ICC. From the cold the selectors recalled Misbah and then made him captain. His chalice, however, hasn’t been poisoned and Pakistan have been uncontroversial under his leadership. They also drew against South Africa and won in New Zealand. Pakistan, incredibly, appear well settled.It is West Indies who appear to be in turmoil. Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard turned down board contracts, preferring to remain unshackled to pursue lucrative assignments. And ever since West Indies were eliminated from the World Cup, by Pakistan, there’s been a slanging match between the WICB on one side, and the WIPA and several players on the other, over how cricket is run in the region and how cricketers are treated by administrators. The upshot of the series of events is that West Indies will play the Test series against Pakistan without Gayle and Bravo, two players who would have walked into the starting XIs. Also missing is fast bowler Jerome Taylor, who’s playing in the IPL.West Indies have won only three series since Sri Lanka visited in 2003. Two of those were against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. Their only success against a top side was the 1-0 result against England in 2009, a victory that was due to a searing spell from the now-absent Taylor.Form guide (most recent first)
West Indies: DDDLD
Pakistan: DWDDL
Watch out for…Two local lads, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Devendra Bishoo. Chanderpaul was dropped from the ODI series against Pakistan, exchanged lengthy letters with the WICB, and is now back for the Tests. He had made unflattering claims about how the team management kept telling him how to bat, even during his innings, and then subjected him to an interrogation afterwards. He’s going to be playing in the same set up, so watch out for men with drinks running frequently to the middle while Chanderpaul is batting. His performances, however, will be critical in an inexperienced batting order.While Chanderpaul has played 129 Tests, Bishoo is yet to play one, and will most certainly make his debut at Providence. He was a refreshing revelation during the World Cup and his legbreaks and googlies were the only thing that brought West Indies wickets (apart from a run-out) in the first two ODIs against Pakistan. He will be the solitary spinner in the XI, so is shouldering a large responsibility for someone so raw.There have been questions over Darren Sammy’s place in the limited-overs team – he’s the third seam-bowling allrounder along with Bravo and Pollard – and whether he would win a spot by merit if he wasn’t captain. Bravo is playing the IPL, so Sammy is the only allrounder in the Test squad, but he will be under pressure to show he belongs in a format that demands greater skills than the shorter versions do. At present, Sammy averages 16.72 with the bat and 31 with the ball, which isn’t really good enough.Azhar Ali is an extremely different batsman compared to Umar Akmal, who has been Pakistan’s next big thing for a while now, but no less valuable in this series. While Akmal oozes aggression and indiscretion, Ali is patient. He’s made six half-centuries in 19 innings and is searching for his maiden hundred. In the absence of Younis Khan, Ali’s responsibility will be to provide stability in the middle order.Team newsThe absence of Gayle will give Lendl Simmons his first shot at Tests since May 2009 at the top of the order. The question, however, is whether West Indies will play six specialist batsman or four specialist bowlers. If they play six batsmen, with Carlton Baugh as wicketkeeper, then Sammy will have to be the fourth bowler, which leaves their attack light. If they play all three quicks – Roach, Rampaul and Edwards – and Bishoo, at the expense of a specialist batsman, then Baugh will have to bat at No. 6, which is a spot too high for him. A stronger bowling side will give them a better chance of winning the Test though.West Indies (probable): 1 Devon Smith, 2 Lendl Simmons, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 5 Brendan Nash, 6 Carlton Baugh (wk), 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Ravi Rampaul, 9 Fidel Edwards, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Devendra Bishoo.Pakistan’s line-up is more balanced than West Indies’ but they have to make up for the absence of Younis, who flew home because of the death of his brother. It gives Akmal another shot at securing a Test spot, after his tendency to self-destruct cost him his middle-order berth.Pakistan (probable): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Taufeeq Umar, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Asad Shafiq, 6 Umar Akmal, 7 Mohammad Salman (wk), 8 Tanvir Ahmed, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Wahab Riaz, 11 Saeed Ajmal.Pitch and conditionsThe Providence Stadium in Guyana has hosted just one Test before this, between West Indies and Sri Lanka in 2008. It finished in a win for the visitors after they batted first. In conditions that have traditionally aided spin, West Indies have gone in with a pace-heavy squad for the first Test, hinting there might be something extra for the seamers. The weather’s a bit of a worry, with scattered thunderstorms forecast.Stats and trivia Since 2007, West Indies have averaged 32 per wicket while batting at home, and taken wickets at 42 apiece while bowling. Pakistan have averaged 27 with the bat in away Tests and 35 with the ball.Chanderpaul has scored 2327 runs – the most of West Indies since 2007 – at an average of 68. Misbah has been Pakistan’s best, scoring 1339 at an average of 54.Umar Gul is Pakistan’s highest wicket-taker since 2007, with 64 at an average of 37. Edwards is West Indies’ best, with 59 wickets at an average of 34.Quotes”I have confidence in Shivnarine Chanderpaul. He has been around cricket for a long time, he has been a professional, and I think he’s gonna go back in there and he’s gonna play the game how he’s supposed to play it.”

Leeds employee Noel Whelan has been left extremely impressed by the durability of goalkeeper Illan Meslier, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Meslier’s recovery

Meslier has kept up his record of starting every Premier League game this season, despite suffering an injury against Wolves last month.

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The 22-year-old, who has made the most saves in the Premier League this season, has featured against Southampton and Watford following the international break.

He was going to miss the win at Vicarage Road due to his hip issue, however, Jesse Marsch revealed after the win that Meslier made a ‘miraculous’ recovery 24 hours before the game to start.

The Latest: Whelan’s comments

Former Leeds striker Whelan, who is now an employee of the club, labelled Meslier as ‘an important player’ and hailed his mentality regarding that miracle recovery.

“He’s a really young, talented player.

“It’s good to see him hungry to play, no matter what the circumstances – and that’s the mentality with the young players all through this squad.

“Everyone wants to be a part of this because they know that Jesse Marsch will be taking stock ahead of next season.

“He’s such an important player for us, and it’s good to see him out there after that injury worry and getting a clean sheet.”

The Verdict: Fine for Palace?

Leeds aren’t in action now until April 25 when they travel to Crystal Palace, so the enforced break appears to have come at a good time for Meslier and the Whites.

Adam Forshaw missed the win at Watford with a calf strain, while Junior Firpo and Jamie Shackleton appear to be close to making a return to training.

Liam Cooper and Kalvin Phillips will also get the chance to build up their fitness with no game this weekend, so it does look as if Marsch could benefit from having no fixture this weekend.

In other news: Fabrizio Romano reveals big transfer blow for Leeds as key 21 y/o target now set to move elsewhere

Former Sri Lanka seamer Chaminda Vaas took three wickets as Northamptonshireedged a thrilling first day of their County Championship Division Two clashwith Kent at Wantage Road

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Apr-2011
Scorecard
Former Sri Lanka seamer Chaminda Vaas took three wickets as Northamptonshireedged a thrilling first day of their County Championship Division Two clashwith Kent at Wantage Road.Kent captain Rob Key top-scored with 46 as Northamptonshire made the most ofthe gloomy skies in skittling out the visitors before tea for just 202 with Vaastaking three wickets for 70 runs. The hosts then had some awkward moments of their own in reply but veteran opener Mal Loye was unbeaten on 42 at the close with his team on 86 for 3.Kent won the toss and chose to bat in chilly conditions but they lost Joe Denlyfor 15 in the ninth over through a senseless run-out. Having already run two, Denly chose to go for a third but he failed to see Lee Daggett at mid-off hurling the ball back to the bowler, Vaas, who whipped offthe bails.Daggett then claimed the wicket of Sam Northeast, who faced six balls withoutscoring before slashing wildly to James Middlebrook in the gully. Vaas then trapped former South Africa international Martin van Jaarsveld (24) lbw with the last delivery before lunch to leave the visitors on 87 for 3.Key survived until the third over of the afternoon when he missed a full JackBrooks delivery and was trapped leg before wicket. Darren Stevens made a breezy 17 off nine balls before he became Vaas’ second victim, pinned lbw, despite appearing to get an inside edge.Former England wicketkeeper Geraint Jones battled well for 32 but he became thelatest batsman to be trapped lbw, this time off Northamptonshire captain AndrewHall.Brooks then claimed his second wicket when he sent Alex Blake’s middle stumptumbling after he had made just four – and Matt Coles (six) followed histeam-mate back to the pavilion when he edged Hall to wicketkeeper NiallO’Brien.James Tredwell made 10 before nicking Vaas to O’Brien and the innings closedwith Simon Cook (16) edging Daggett to Hall at first slip.Northamptonshire’s reply started slowly and they lost Stephen Peters for 13when his attempted drive off Cook went to Coles at point, who fumbled the ballinto the air before diving low to his right to take a good catch.They were then reduced to 38 for 2 when Rob White was trapped lbw by Stevensafter scoring just a single. Alex Wakely (11) was then caught behind by Jones off Coles before Loye and David Sales survived the final six overs with the latter unbeaten on 14.

Ken Ablack, who was a well-known cricket commentator in the 1950s, has died at his home in Glencoe in Trinidad at the age of 91

Martin Williamson16-Dec-2010Ken Ablack, who was a well-known cricket commentator in the 1950s, has died at his home in Glencoe in Trinidad at the age of 91.Born in Trinidad, Ablack came to England during the war where he played for various representative XIs as a slow left-armer, going on to make three appearances for Northamptonshire between 1946 and 1949.He worked for the BBC as a producer for its Caribbean section, and in 1950 and 1957 acted as a commentator during England’s Tests against West Indies. On the second trip he was one of the team when Test Match Special made its debut. He later returned to Trinidad where he became an influential figure at Queen’s Club.”I am sure he is not happy that once again the century eluded him,” his son Robert told ESPNcricinfo. “He was also looking forward to watching the Ashes test starting last night on local TV. He followed cricket to the end.”