India seek to rebound on flat surface

Match facts January 15, 2016Start time 1320 local (0320 GMT) Play 04:06 Agarkar: India must play wicket-taking bowlers Big Picture Australia carry a 1-0 series lead to the second match in Brisbane, although there were several stages during the first ODI in Perth when India looked to be in control of the game. Batting first, they put on 1 for 149 in the first 30 overs and with so many…

January 14, 2016
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Threat of rain looms over the Gabba

January 14, 2016

Match facts January 15, 2016Start time 1320 local (0320 GMT) With David Warner on paternity leave, Shaun Marsh is set to play his first ODI in nearly a year © AFP Big Picture Australia carry a 1-0 series lead to the second match in Brisbane, although there were several stages during the first ODI in Perth when India looked to be in control of the game. Batting first, they put…

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Expect more high scoring – Faulkner

January 14, 2016

James Faulkner: “Everyone was quite surprised by the way the wicket played in Perth, it was very flat and we saw a lot of runs scored” © AFP James Faulkner predicts more feats of run scoring and further sobering times for bowlers in the second ODI between Australia and India at the Gabba, even though playing conditions have actually eased in favour of the fielding sides since last year’s World…

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Brathwaite fifty takes Barbados past ICC Americas

January 14, 2016

© WICB Media/Ashley Allen Kraigg Brathwaite scored an unbeaten 86 in his first match back from the West Indies tour of Australia as Barbados kept their Nagico Super50 semi-final hopes alive with a four-wicket win over ICC Americas at Queen’s Park Oval. Brathwaite’s innings came after Barbados were reduced to 0 for 2 in response to ICC Americas first innings total of 202. Timroy Allen bowled Dwayne Smith and had…

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NZ playing 'wonderful cricket' – Shehzad

January 14, 2016

Ahmed Shehzad has said batsmen will have to be careful with their shot selection and not get overly tempted by Eden Park’s short boundaries © AFP Pakistan have spoken about being aggressive with bat and ball on tour, but Ahmed Shehzad has conceded that New Zealand are currently playing cricket that is “awesome to see”. The hosts’ batsmen set New Zealand records during the 2-0 defeat of Sri Lanka last…

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Cook concentrating on series victory

January 13, 2016

Alastair Cook is excited by the prospect of securing a series victory in Johannesburg – although the England captain is waiting to see if opening partner Alex Hales will be fit for the third Test. Hales has been struck by the virus which laid Chris Jordan and Nick Compton low in Cape Town, and although he was well enough to practice on Wednesday, he did so away from the rest…

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De Villiers aims to turn up heat on England

January 13, 2016

Newly-installed South Africa Test captain AB de Villiers has declared that “losing is not an option” as he prepares to keep his side’s series hopes alive against England in Johannesburg this week. De Villiers will take over the Test reins at the Wanderers for the first time after Hashim Amla’s surprise resignation after last week’s drawn Cape Town Test. While De Villiers has admitted he might happily give up the…

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Roland-Jones relishing Lions chance

January 13, 2016

Toby Roland-Jones is maintaining the strong Middlesex representation for the England Lions against Pakistan A this winter – and if he can match the performances of his county team-mates Dawid Malan and Steven Finn before Christmas, he’ll be delighted. Roland-Jones is one of three newcomers to the Lions set-up this winter for the second five-match series against Pakistan A. Somerset’s Craig Overton has joined his twin brother Jamie, and Yorkshire’s…

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Napier targets Essex swan song

January 13, 2016

Graham Napier is keen to go out with a bang this season after announcing that he plans to retire from cricket at the end of the 2016 campaign . Napier will hang up his boots after what will be his 20th season representing Essex in order to become director of the Graham Napier Cricket Academy at Royal Hospital School in Suffolk. The 36-year-old already has plenty to look back on…

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Third Test preview: South Africa in Johannesburg

January 13, 2016

By Steven Jones Momentum is one of sport’s great intangibles; you can feel its surge both positively and negatively but it cannot be quantified. Which team has the unseen impetus at the half way stage of England’s Test series in South Africa is firmly up for debate. England are one-nil up after Moeen Ali inspired a 241-run First Test victory in Durban and looked imperious as record-breaking Ben Stokes and…

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