Tuesday 11 January 2011
Lee, Tait and David Hussey in ODI squad
Michael Clarke, who last week announced his retirement from Twenty20s, will capta
in the side with Ricky Ponting still sidelined by his finger injury. Brad Haddin was picked and will be Australia's first-choice gloveman at the World Cup, despite the selectors giving Tim Paine the vice-captaincy for the two Twenty20s against England this week.
in the side with Ricky Ponting still sidelined by his finger injury. Brad Haddin was picked and will be Australia's first-choice gloveman at the World Cup, despite the selectors giving Tim Paine the vice-captaincy for the two Twenty20s against England this week. Brett Lee, Shaun Tait and David Hussey have all been given the chance to press for World Cup selection after being named in Australia's squad for the first ODI against England. The match in Melbourne on Sunday will be the only one-day game Australia will play before their 15-man World Cup group needs to be finalised, so there is plenty at stake for several fringe men.
Nathan Hauritz was also chosen, having not been part of Australia's team in any format since he was axed before the first Ashes Test. Hauritz, Xavier Doherty and Steven Smith are all in the 14-man squad, and with the World Cup to be played on spin-friendly subcontinental surfaces, they will all be keen to impress in the 50-over format.
Lee will be aiming to play his first ODI since October 2009, after a severely injury-disrupted 2010, and he has already made clear his ambition to be part of Australia's World Cup defence. He will form part of a quick attack with Tait, Doug Bollinger and Peter Siddle forming the rest of the fast-bowling group.
One of the most interesting selections was that of David Hussey, who hasn't played an ODI since a one-off match against Scotland in August 2009, and has been considered a Twenty20 specialist by the national selectors since then. Despite having scored only 143 runs at 23.83 in the split-innings Ryobi Cup this summer, Hussey has been give a chance ahead of his Victorian team-mate Brad Hodge, who is the competition's leading run scorer.
There was no room for Callum Ferguson, although that might be because he is already considered a lock-in for the World Cup, while Shaun Marsh was also overlooked. A new squad will be chosen for the remaining six ODIs against England, and that is likely to comprise the 15-man World Cup group, as it will be their final hit-out before flying to India.
"We've given David Hussey the opportunity to push for inclusion in the World Cup squad as we think he will be well suited for the sub-continent conditions which will be faced in the World Cup," the chairman of selectors, Andrew Hilditch, said. "Ricky Ponting is recovering from a finger injury sustained during the Ashes, which gives Michael Clarke another chance to lead the one-day side.
"His vice-captain will be Cameron White, who has had a real impact on this form of the game in the last year and Cameron will be coming off leading Australia in the two Twenty20 internationals this week. We have some explosive fast bowling with Shaun Tait, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Doug Bollinger and Peter Siddle all selected in this squad. Shaun and Brett will therefore have an opportunity to impress in this form of the game before World Cup squad selection.
"We've included Nathan Hauritz, who has been a key part of our one-day side for some time now and Xavier Doherty in this squad, who played well against Sri Lanka at the start of the summer. This gives us a chance to look at both of them prior to the World Cup."
Squad Shane Watson, Brad Haddin (wk), Michael Clarke (capt), Cameron White, David Hussey, Michael Hussey, Steven Smith, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Brett Lee, Xavier Doherty, Peter Siddle, Shaun Tait, Doug Bollinger.
England chasing wins not records - Yardy
Michael Yardy took three wickets against Prime Minister's XI in Canberra © Getty Images
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The last time the two sides met in a Twenty20 international was in Barbados when England won by seven wickets to secure the World Twenty20 title. England have now strung together seven victories on the bounce and one more will give them a new world record although the team have not been concentrating too hard on the landmark.
"It's been discussed but I don't think it is something that has always been spoken about," Yardy said. "Obviously, you want to achieve world records and it is an opportunity to achieve that, but it is not the main focus. It is very much about continuing the tour in a successful mode."
Yardy is one of the new faces to join the tour for the limited-overs matches. He had been playing Twenty20 cricket in New Zealand for Central Districts prior to his international duty and prepared with 3 for 33 against the Prime Minister's XI in Canberra. And even though the Ashes are finished he can feel the positive after-effects.
"The boys are buzzing, obviously. After winning a series like that they are going to be," he said. "It's nice to be a part of it. You fit in very well, it's a good environment to come into. There is a lot of love in the group at the moment and whether that brings results or it's the results that bring the team closer together I am not too sure. But certainly everyone is happy."
Meanwhile, Cameron White believes he is ideally suited to the Australia Twenty20 captaincy as he prepares to lead his country for the first time against England in Adelaide. White has taken over from Michael Clarke who announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket after the fifth Ashes Test in a bid to improve his Test and one-day form.
White has an impressive Twenty20 record as a player and averages 36.64 from 23 matches with a strike-rate of 144.50. In all Twenty20 cricket, which includes playing for Somerset and Royal Challengers Bangalore, he has managed two hundreds with a best of 141. Now, though, it is about more than just the runs he scores but how he leads his team and White has no doubt he's capable of meeting the challenge.
"I think I have a really good understanding of how Twenty20 cricket works on the field for a start; tactically I hope I'm as good as there is, and I guess that is what the selectors have seen," he said. "I hope I'm successful as a captain but I can't control where that takes me."
For the time being, White doesn't have any designs on making a push for further captaincy honours in Australian cricket. There is extensive debate about the future of Ricky Ponting and whether Clarke, who has been earmarked for the Test and one-day captaincy for much of his career, is the right man to take over.
White, though, isn't near the Test side at the moment and hasn't been since playing four Tests in India in 2008. "I don't think that I need to worry about or think about being captain of those other formats because it's probably not something that is going to happen in the near future,'' he said.
But the tone from the Australian camp, understandably, is very much to move on from what has happened over the last six weeks and start afresh in coloured clothes. There are a number of players, including express quicks Brett Lee and Shaun Tait, in the side who weren't part of the Tests and White is looking forward rather than back.
"Twenty20 and Test cricket couldn't be further apart. I think there are only three or four guys that have been involved in the Test matches,'' he said. "So it's really a fresh start for this team. Hopefully a change of format will bring a change of luck."
Australia was late to embrace Twenty20 cricket and now is looking towards the shortest format for salvation.
Spot-fixing verdict deferred until February 5
Three Pakistani players will have to wait until February 5 to discover their fate on spot-fixing charges the ICC has placed on them. A six-day hearing in Doha, Qatar failed to come up with a verdict on various corruption charges Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were facing over incidents in two Tests last summer against England.
The very fact that the Oval Test was also under investigation as well as the Lord's Test provided a late twist to a final day of an ultimately anti-climactic hearing. The players will remain provisionally suspended until they reconvene in Doha to discover their final fate.
Michael Beloff QC, the head of the tribunal and ICC code of conduct commissioner, finally made a statement alongside fellow tribunal members Albie Sachs and Sharad Rao on day of fevered speculation.
"The tribunal has been constituted to hear charges against Butt, Amir and Asif brought under the ICC's anti-corruption code in relation to two Tests played during August 2010 between Pakistan and England, the Oval Test and the Lord's Test," Beloff said.
"Representations have been made to it to reserve any decision on the charges still before it until it has had sufficient time to give the issues careful consideration and until it is able, at the same time as handing down its decision, to provide written reasons. This would not be feasible in the timeframe agreed for this hearing in Doha.
"The tribunal has therefore determined to continue its deliberations and hold a further hearing in Doha on the fifth of February of this year, at which its decisions will be handed down to the parties and any consequential matters will be dealt with. Until that date, all three players will remain suspended from all cricketing activities."
Until today a definitive decision had been expected. In fact, it is believed that the ICC's legal team was keen on having a verdict out today. But the gravity of the possible sanctions, which range from five years to a lifetime ban, the desire of the players' lawyers to defer a verdict and the sheer weight of a six-day, 45-hour proceeding made a quick verdict impossible.
Though the ICC's lawyers expressed "happiness with the way hearings have gone", it is understood that in a bid to press for a verdict they withdrew all charges relating to the Oval Test, bar one against Butt.
The hearings began last Thursday and were held behind the firmest of closed doors. No official statements were made throughout, though it became clear as proceedings continued that differences between the defences of Butt and Asif had emerged, possibly hampering the cases of both.
An apparent contradiction, however, emerged soon after the tribunal's statement. Though Beloff said that "all charges relating to the Lord's Test remain under consideration", Asif's London-based legal firm said that on one charge relating to that match, he had been acquitted.
Asif is "delighted to have been acquitted of the charges brought against him under article 2.4.1 in relation to the Lord's Test Match, also played in August 2010," the statement read. "Mohammad Asif has co-operated fully with the ICC investigations, and is now looking forward to a timely and satisfactory outcome in relation to the outstanding matters brought against him under the ICC's Anti-Corruption Code for Players and Players Support Personnel."
The particular charge states that the code "prohibits providing or receiving any gift, payment or other benefit (whether of a monetary value or otherwise) in circumstances that the player or player support personnel might reasonably have expected could bring him/her or the sport of cricket into disrepute."
The charge appears a minor one compared to the other charges Asif is facing, carrying a punishment of a six-month ban. But the acquittal is thought to stem from the fact that no money was found in Asif's hotel room in London during police investigations.
The very fact that the Oval Test was also under investigation as well as the Lord's Test provided a late twist to a final day of an ultimately anti-climactic hearing. The players will remain provisionally suspended until they reconvene in Doha to discover their final fate.
Michael Beloff QC, the head of the tribunal and ICC code of conduct commissioner, finally made a statement alongside fellow tribunal members Albie Sachs and Sharad Rao on day of fevered speculation.
"The tribunal has been constituted to hear charges against Butt, Amir and Asif brought under the ICC's anti-corruption code in relation to two Tests played during August 2010 between Pakistan and England, the Oval Test and the Lord's Test," Beloff said.
"Representations have been made to it to reserve any decision on the charges still before it until it has had sufficient time to give the issues careful consideration and until it is able, at the same time as handing down its decision, to provide written reasons. This would not be feasible in the timeframe agreed for this hearing in Doha.
"The tribunal has therefore determined to continue its deliberations and hold a further hearing in Doha on the fifth of February of this year, at which its decisions will be handed down to the parties and any consequential matters will be dealt with. Until that date, all three players will remain suspended from all cricketing activities."
Until today a definitive decision had been expected. In fact, it is believed that the ICC's legal team was keen on having a verdict out today. But the gravity of the possible sanctions, which range from five years to a lifetime ban, the desire of the players' lawyers to defer a verdict and the sheer weight of a six-day, 45-hour proceeding made a quick verdict impossible.
Though the ICC's lawyers expressed "happiness with the way hearings have gone", it is understood that in a bid to press for a verdict they withdrew all charges relating to the Oval Test, bar one against Butt.
The hearings began last Thursday and were held behind the firmest of closed doors. No official statements were made throughout, though it became clear as proceedings continued that differences between the defences of Butt and Asif had emerged, possibly hampering the cases of both.
An apparent contradiction, however, emerged soon after the tribunal's statement. Though Beloff said that "all charges relating to the Lord's Test remain under consideration", Asif's London-based legal firm said that on one charge relating to that match, he had been acquitted.
Asif is "delighted to have been acquitted of the charges brought against him under article 2.4.1 in relation to the Lord's Test Match, also played in August 2010," the statement read. "Mohammad Asif has co-operated fully with the ICC investigations, and is now looking forward to a timely and satisfactory outcome in relation to the outstanding matters brought against him under the ICC's Anti-Corruption Code for Players and Players Support Personnel."
The particular charge states that the code "prohibits providing or receiving any gift, payment or other benefit (whether of a monetary value or otherwise) in circumstances that the player or player support personnel might reasonably have expected could bring him/her or the sport of cricket into disrepute."
The charge appears a minor one compared to the other charges Asif is facing, carrying a punishment of a six-month ban. But the acquittal is thought to stem from the fact that no money was found in Asif's hotel room in London during police investigations.
Bell hundred drives England to convincing win
England 3 for 225 (Bell 124*, Trott 48) beat Prime Minister's XI 9 for 254 (Christian 53, Paine 50, Yardy 3-33, Shahzad 3-61) by 7 wickets (D/L method)
Scorecard
Scorecard
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Ian Bell carried his sparkling Test form into the one-day arena with an elegant, unbeaten 102-ball 124 to guide England to a comfortable seven-wicket victory against the Prime Minister's XI at Manuka Oval. Bell's innings made light work of an adjusted target as he added 82 with Steven Davies and 98 with Jonathan Trott before the team made a hasty trip to the airport for their flight to Adelaide.
The Prime Minister's XI total was built around brisk fifties from the captain Tim Paine and Daniel Christian before a late flourish from Brett Lee. Michael Yardy was the pick of England's bowlers with 3 for 33, but while the visitors had rested their frontline quicks after the Test series they played a strong batting line-up and even needing more than a run-a-ball didn't stretch them.
Bell hasn't been part of England's Twenty20 set-up since 2008, but in his current form could push Michael Lumb for an opening berth against Australia in the absence of Craig Kieswetter. He is also trying to ensure he retains his place in the 50-over line-up with competition for places in England's top order. Bell reached his hundred from 89 balls with ten boundaries and cleared the ropes with a straight drive as victory approached.
However, as good as he was, he was fed some filth by the PM XI's attack. Trent Copeland and James Pattinson, two young bowlers tipped for Test honours, struggled to tie the batsmen down while Christian, bought for US$900,000 at the IPL auction, was taken for ten-an-over. The fielding was also poor with Davies offered two lives during his 23 - on 2 and 20 - and Bell was put down at midwicket on 71 by Callum Ferguson.
England scored at more than seven-an-over early in the chase as Copeland repeatedly dropped short and Lee also failed to make an impression despite showing decent pace. Xavier Doherty eventually broke the opening stand when Davies drove to cover but the early charge had put England well ahead of the rate when rain arrived to cut the chase from 44 to 35 overs. It made things a little tougher, at least on paper, but Bell was in serene touch and did as he pleased.
Trott, who could be in a straight fight with Bell for a one-day berth, was equally comfortable as he switch from Test to one-day mode. Shortly after the rain break he collected consecutive boundaries off Pattinson to get his innings going. Christian bowled consecutive no-balls as the PM XI's showed poor discipline. Doherty had Trott caught behind and Kevin Pietersen (13) missed a straight ball from Lee with four, but they were minor blips.
The PM XI's innings was a mixed affair with some attractive strokeplay but England managed to pull them back after a swift opening stand following a delayed start. Having playing little cricket in recent weeks, Ajmal Shahzad and Chris Woakes were rusty with the new ball as Paine and Usman Khawaja (22) added 75 with Paine taking 14 off one Woakes over.
Spin was introduced for the 11th over in the shape of James Tredwell and he provided the breakthrough in his second over when he held a sharp caught-and-bowled from a thumping Khawaja drive. Paine went to a 55-ball half century but fell three balls later when he played back to Yardy's left-arm darts and was lbw.
Yardy proved especially difficult to score off as he went for just eight in his first four overs and collected a second wicket when Alex Keath, the Victoria batsman who turned down an AFL contract in favour of cricket, was also trapped on the back foot. The innings was steadied as Ferguson and Christian added 59 for the fourth, but a short shower interrupted their momentum and on the resumption Ferguson lost his leg stump when he backed away against Shahzad.
Yardy then claimed his third when Tom Thornton, an ACT batsman, popped a regulation leading edge back to the bowler and Woakes took his first wicket in England colours courtesy of a fine catch at midwicket by Paul Collingwood to remove Sam Miller. Christian went to a 51-ball half-century with a thumping straight drive off Shahzad but couldn't remain to finish off the innings when he tried a scoop over short fine-leg and was taken by Pietersen.
Lee and Doherty added 35 to give the innings a late boost, but with a view to gaining some meaningful practice ahead of the one-day matches England probably didn't mind a tougher run chase and they made it look so easy.
Tribunal defers verdict till February 5
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Three Pakistani players will have to wait until February 5 to discover the eventual outcome of the spot-fixing charges laid on them by the ICC. A six-day hearing in Doha, Qatar failed to come up with a verdict on the various corruption charges that Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir face over incidents in two Tests last summer against England.
The very fact that the Oval Test was also under investigation, in addition to the Lord's Test, provided a late twist to the final day of an ultimately anti-climactic six-day hearing. The players will remain provisionally suspended until they reconvene in Doha to hear the judgement of the ICC tribunal formed to deal with the spot-fixing case.
At the end of a day of fevered speculation that concluded the hearing, Michael Beloff QC, the head of the tribunal and ICC code of conduct commissioner, finally made a statement alongside fellow tribunal members Albie Sachs and Sharad Rao.
"The tribunal has been constituted to hear charges against Butt, Amir and Asif brought under the ICC's anti-corruption code in relation to two Tests played during August 2010 between Pakistan and England, the Oval Test and the Lord's Test," Beloff said.
The tribunal had not arrived at a verdict because, Beloff said, there had been representations made to the tribunal, "to reserve any decision on the charges... until it (the tribunal) has had sufficient time to give the issues careful consideration and until it is able, at the same time as handing down its decision, to provide written reasons." The task of studying the issues at hand, arriving at a decision and issuing an in-depth hand-written reason for its decision, said Beloff, "would not be feasible in the timeframe agreed for this hearing in Doha.
"The tribunal has therefore determined to continue its deliberations and hold a further hearing in Doha on the fifth of February of this year, at which its decisions will be handed down to the parties and any consequential matters will be dealt with. Until that date, all three players will remain suspended from all cricketing activities."
Until today a definitive decision had been expected from the lengthy tribunal hearings. In fact, it is believed that the ICC's legal team was keen on having a verdict out today. But the gravity of the possible sanctions - which range from five years to a lifetime ban - the desire of the players' lawyers to defer a verdict and the sheer weight of a six-day, 45-hour proceeding which featured oral and written testimonies and tapes, video recordings as well as forensic submissions, made a quick verdict impossible.
The ICC's lawyers, though, expressed "happiness with the way hearings have gone," It is understood that in a bid to press for a verdict on Tuesday they withdrew all charges relating to the Oval Test, bar one against Butt.
The hearings began last Thursday and were held behind the firmest of closed doors. There were no official statements were made at all during the hearings, though as proceedings continued, it became clear that differences between the defences of Butt and Asif had emerged, possibly hampering the cases of both players.
An apparent contradiction, however, materialised soon after the tribunal's statement. Though Beloff said that "all charges relating to the Lord's Test remain under consideration," Asif's London-based legal firm said that on one charge relating to that match, Asif had, in fact, been acquitted.
A statement from their office said that Asif was, "delighted to have been acquitted of the charges brought against him under article 2.4.1 in relation to the Lords Test Match, also played in August 2010."
"Mohammad Asif has co-operated fully with the ICC investigations, and is now looking forward to a timely and satisfactory outcome in relation to the outstanding matters brought against him under the ICC's Anti-Corruption Code for Players and Players Support Personnel."
The particular charge against Asif states that the code "prohibits providing or receiving any gift, payment or other benefit (whether of a monetary value or otherwise) in circumstances that the Player or Player Support Personnel might reasonably have expected could bring him/her or the sport of cricket into disrepute."
The charge, carrying a punishment of a six-month ban, appears a minor one compared to the other charges that Asif is facing. But the acquittal is thought to stem from the fact that no money was found in Asif's hotel room in London during police investigations.
Amir's lawyer, Shahid Karim, who had earlier pushed for the deferment, indicated that the extra time would help his client prepare better to deal with the verdict. "The request we made to the tribunal has been accepted," Karim said. "On February 5th if the punishment is harsh then we will discuss it with them so we will prepare for that. It is a hearing.
"I am happy with the procedure of the hearing. The ICC code of conduct has a clause which points to looking at the player's age and past disciplinary record and Amir is young, so we hope the tribunal will keep this in mind."
England target Twenty20 record
Match Facts
January 12, AdelaideStart time 19.05 (08.35 GMT)
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The Big Picture
It's coloured clothes and white balls that will dominate the game for the next few months. But before Australia and England can concentrate fully on their World Cup planning they have two Twenty20 internationals. It's a rematch of the World Twenty20 final in Barbados last year when England came out on top to secure their first global silverware.
They can rightly claim to be the premier T20 side the world, but fortunes change very quickly in the shortest format and it doesn't take much to alter standings. England blew away their Ashes celebration cobwebs with a comfortable win against the Prime Minister's XI in Canberra and will be aiming to keep their momentum going ahead of the one-day series.
For Australia it's time to start the rebuilding process. A new era has been signalled by the retirement of Michael Clarke from T20 and Cameron White has been handed the leadership with Tim Paine his deputy, while some new of young faces are being given a chance. Given the form in the other formats, success here can earn them further honours.
However, despite all their recent problems Australia have an exciting Twenty20 side, especially their fast-bowling attack which includes Shaun Tait and Brett Lee. With the likes of David Hussey and David Warner in the batting line-up there is enough power to knock England out of their stride. Can Australia turn their summer around?
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