Cricket World Cup Fixtures released

In concurrent press conferences yesterday, the 2015 Cricket World Cup was launched. The details of the fixtures and venues were all revealed. ICC officials were present at both the events which were held in Australia and New Zealand at the same time. Plenty of news to comment on here, so I'll start by summarising the information.

• Pool A: England, Australia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, New Zealand, Qualifier 2, Qualifier 3
• Pool B: India, South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Ireland, Qualifier 4
• Same format as 2011  - 42 matches in group stages, followed by 4 quarter finals, 2 semi finals and the final
• Equal split of group games between Australia and New Zealand
• Australia host three quarter finals, one semi final and the final
• New Zealand host one quarter final and one semi final
• Final to be played at the MCG (Melbourne)
• Semi Finals to be played at Eden Park (Auckland) and SCG (Sydney)
• Quarter Finals to be played at SCG (Sydney), MCG (Melbourne), Adelaide Oval (Adelaide) and Wellington Regional Stadium (Wellington)
• Opening matches to be held on February 14 in Christchurch (New Zealand v Sri Lanka) and Melbourne (Australia v England)
• India to play Pakistan at the Adelaide Oval

I think ultimately the announcement didn't outline any major shocks. The MCG deserves to to host the final and it would have been incredibly disappointing if it didn't. In fact the semi-final and final line-up is identical to the 1992 World Cup. I wasn't expecting the MCG to get a quarter final as well, as I thought the Gabba might have gotten it. In fact Brisbane cricket fans are probably the most disappointed with them receiving some low drawing matches including Australia v Bangladesh and Pakistan v Zimbabwe.

Interestingly both host nations were placed in the same pool which means New Zealand will host Australia at Eden Park in a blockbuster match. This was apparently a concession for the fact that Australia got the final. There are some other blockbuster matches including Australia v England at the MCG, India v Pakistan at the Adelaide Oval, England v New Zealand in Wellington, South Africa v India at the MCG and South Africa v Pakistan at Eden Park.

For a lot of the lesser teams, they will get to play their first matches at some of world cricket's best venues. Bangladesh will play their first matches at major Australian venues including a massive clash against Sri Lanka at the MCG in Melbourne. They will also play Australia at the Gabba. Zimbabwe will feature in a big game against India at Eden Park in Auckland. Ireland meanwhile will play in Brisbane and Adelaide. Qualifier 2 who could be the Netherlands will play at the SCG.

I will post team and ground specific details and analysis soon.

Cricket World Cup 2015 launch tomorrow

The Cricket World Cup 2015 is set to be launched tomorrow at functions in Australia and New Zealand. According to the Cricket World Cup Twitter Account, the launch will include details of pools, fixtures and venues. You can catch the launch live via this link http://www.icc-cricket.com/cricket-world-cup at 1:00am GMT (10:00am AEST).

It should be interesting to see how the games split ended up. Originally it was thought to be a 50-50 arrangement, however there were thoughts a couple of months ago that the this may have changed (http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/6864023/New-deal-for-NZs-Cricket-World-Cup-hosting)

I'm hoping that the MCG gets the final as let's be honest, it's the premier cricket ground in the region. ANZ Stadium in Sydney is a possibility but its not even close to a 'cricket' ground and it will be a real shame for the final to be hosted there.

The pools are also due to be announced tomorrow. I'm not sure how they will have done this, and whether from rankings, or just commercial interests. Whatever happens, tomorrow is the beginning of the journey to the 2015 Cricket World Cup.

World Cricket Live Update

India lead Zimbabwe 3-0 in ODI Series
India have been able to beat Zimbabwe in the first three matches without much fuss. The home side have battled hard but some poor patches of play have cost them dearly. They have lost a few wickets in patches which has left them struggling, and the poor form of captain Brendan Taylor isn't helping. For India Virat Kohli and Shitikar Dhawan have both hit centuries.

Results:
1st ODI: India 230/4 (44.5 overs) defeated Zimbabwe 228/7 (50.0 overs) by 6 wickets
2nd ODI: India 294/8 (50.0 overs) defeated Zimbabwe 236/9 (50.0 overs) by 58 runs
3rd ODI: India 187/3 (35.3 overs) defeated Zimbabwe 183 (46.0 overs) by 7 wickets


Pakistan won ODI series 3-1 and T20I series 2-0
After the ODI series being tantalisingly poised at 1-1 after the tied third match, the home fans had belief that a series win could be possible. Unfortunately for them, Pakistan were able to string some consistent performances together to win the last two games. This included a thriller in the last match where they Saeed Ajmal hit the winning run with only 1 ball remaining. Pakistan have also carried over this form in the T20I series winning both matches.

Results:
4th ODI: Pakistan 189/4 (30.0 overs) defeated West Indies 261/7 (49.0 overs) by 6 wickets (D/L Method)
5th ODI: Pakistan 243/6 (49.5 overs) defeated West Indies 242/7 (50.0 overs) by 4 wickets

1st T20I: Pakistan 158/8 (20.0 overs) defeated West Indies 152/7 (20.0 overs) by 2 wickets
2nd T20I: Pakistan 135/7 (20.0 overs) defeated West Indies 124/9 (20.0 overs) by 11 runs


Sri Lanka lead ODI series 3-1 against South Africa with one match to play
Sri Lanka have simply been too good for South Africa in this series with some pretty convincing wins. This included yesterday's match where Sri Lanka bowled out South Africa for 236 and then preceded to chase it down only losing two wickets. Dilshan and Sangakkara were the heroes scoring 115* and 91 respectively. There was an interesting moment in the 3rd ODI when Sri Lanka's Thisara Perera hit Robin Peterson for 35 runs off one over. It went 6wd66646. The over was the second biggest in ODI history, just falling behind Herschelle Gibbs' six sixes of Daan van Bunge at the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

Results:
1st ODI: Sri Lanka 320/5 (50.0 overs) defeated South Africa 140 (31.5 overs) by 180 runs
2nd ODI: Sri Lanka 223/9 (49.2 overs) defeated South Africa 104/5 (21.0 overs) by 17 runs (D/L Method)
3rd ODI: South Africa 223/7 (50.0 overs) defeated Sri Lanka 167 (43.2 overs) by 56 runs
4th ODI: Sri Lanka 239/2 (44.0 overs) defeated South Africa 238 (48.4 overs) by 8 wickets

Ashes Tour Update

England have announced their squad for the third test match with Steven Finn and Graham Onions dropped from the side. Chris Tremlett and Monty Panesar have been added to the squad, while batsman James Taylor, who just scored a century for Sussex against the Australians, is an injury back-up for Kevin Pietersen.

Meanwhile the make-up of the Australian side is still yet to be decided after some indifferent performances in the tour match. Phillip Hughes made 84 and 38, Steven Smith 102*, Ed Cowan 66 and 77*, and Usman Khawaja 40 and 1. Also as well all know David Warner hit 193 against South Africa A earlier in the week, and the prevailing thought is that he is almost certain to come into the side. With Smith's century, the last spot in the batting order is probably come down to either Khawaja or Hughes. Despite Hughes being the leading run-scorer for the tour, he is thought to be the most likely to be left out.

The next test gets underway on Thursday.

The Ashes: 2nd Test Day 4

England 361 and 349/7dec (114.1 overs)
Australia 128 and 235 (90.3 overs)
England won by 347 runs

 Image courtesy of Getty Images

Published on Cricinfo - http://www.espncricinfo.com/the-ashes-2013/content/image/653943.html?object=566933;page=1

Despite a brief period where Usman Khawaja and Michael Clarke looked comfortable at the crease, it was all too familiar with Australia collapsing once again to be all out for 235. This handed England a massive 347 run win to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the series.

Unfortunately Joe Root could not get to his double century early on Day 4 with him falling to an adventurous ramp shot. He was finally dismissed for an excellent 180. Watson started in typical fashion with some good shots however his innings ended in all too predictable fashion with an lbw while trying to hit across the line to a straight delivery. This time he didn't refer it though, which if he did probably would have caused riots in Australia. Rogers again failed this time leaving an elementary straight ball from Swann which bowled him. Rogers is one of the most capable batsman in this side with his experience in English conditions, but his series to date has been disappointing. Hughes was out lbw to give him 2 a grand total of 2 runs for the test match. Clarke joined Khawaja at the crease and despite an early missed stumping chance off Clarke, the two played quite smoothly. They put on 98 for the fourth wicket before no other than Joe Root came into bowl and dismissed both of them within minutes of each other. It continued a golden test match for the young man who's bowling has proved quite handy in the series so far.

Australia's tail wagged again with the bottom four combining for 85 runs. Siddle and Pattinson impressed in particular with them facing 62 and 91 balls respectively. There was some controversy (of course) surrounding Agar's dismissal with the not out decision being overturned despite no mark apparent on Hot Spot. I presume the third umpire thought that the audio was convincing enough, but it was certainly a strange decision.

Australia were completely outplayed in this test and their batting was so insipid that it's hard to imagine Zimbabwe doing much worse. They have players with batting ability but the lack of determination to build a long innings is seriously letting them down. You only need to compare Phil Hughes who made 2 runs in this test to Joe Root who scored 180 in one innings alone to understand the difference in the two teams. With England 2-0 up, there is no longer any doubt about who is going to win the series. The only doubt now is whether it's going to be 5-0 or not.

The Ashes: 2nd Test Day 3

England 361 and 333/5 (110.0 overs)
Australia 128
England lead by 566 runs

Well it has certainly gone from bad to worse for Australia with England piling on 302 runs on Day 3 for the loss of only two wickets to bat the visitors out of the match. Joe Root dominated to bat through the whole day and ended up on an unbeaten 178. He smacked the Australian bowlers all round Lord's for a well deserved century - his first after the promotion to opener. Him and Bresnan put on a 99 run partnership for the fourth wicket and it took Australia until the 42nd over of the day to get a wicket. Bresnan was out to a pull shot, while there was contoversy early on in Ian Bell's innings. It seems we can't get a day's play without some umpiring controversy. Bell edged a ball to Steven Smith who appeared to catch it. The umpires went upstairs to check whether the ball carried or not, and the third umpire incredibly decided upon a not out verdict. I'm not sure what quality screens the third umpire has access to, but that ball to Smith definitely carried.

Bell made the most of his close call by making another significant contribution this time with 74. He missed out on another hundred was involved in a 153 run partnership with Root which demoralised the Australians. He was out before the close of play which led Root and Bairstow to lead England to stumps at 333/5.

For Australia the past two days has been atrocious cricket from them. Their batting was horrible and their bowling yesterday lacked penetration for the most part. I guess the only good news is that I don't think they can play any worse. (I feel this statement may come back to bite me)

Hero of the Day: Joe Root
Remained at the crease for the whole day while amassing 160 runs on the way to his highest test score. A brilliant innings from the young man which has vindicated the selectors' decision to play him at the top of the order ahead of Compton.

Villain of the Day: Australia's bowlers
I could list the third umpire as the villain, but even with early wicket of Bell, I don't think Australia would have been able to make the most of it. Their bowling was poor for large parts of the day. Pattinson is struggling, and apparently Agar is suffering from a hip injury of some sort.

Who won the day? England
England's second convincing winning day in a row has put them in a commanding position in this test with a massive 566 run lead so far. Anything other than rain for the next two days will result in England taking a 2-0 lead to Old Trafford.

World Cricket Live Update

With plenty of cricket on as well as the Ashes I've decided to combine my analysis all in this post instead of single posts.

Ashes: 2nd Test Day 2
England 361 (100.1 overs) and 31/3 (20.0 overs)
Australia 128 (53.3 overs)
England lead by 264 runs

It's a pretty simple analysis of today's play in the Ashes, and that is that Australia were horrible. Their top-order batting once again failed with some horrendous shots and some even worse uses of the DRS. This all came after Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad put on a 48 run stand for the last wicket. Mind you although they played some good shots, Australia's persistence with a bouncer strategy certainly helped.

After finally dismissing England for 361, the Australian openers started relatively well with Shane Watson playing some nice drives. All went haywire though just before lunch when Shane Watson was struck on the pads and given out. He was deadset plumb but decided to review which has certainly not helped his perception by the Australian fans. Chris Rogers I think has to be partly to blame though as Watson did initially look unwilling to review, but I'm guessing Rogers might have said something to encourage him to do so. This certainly came to haunt Rogers as he was dismissed in ridiculous circumstances after lunch. Swann let go of a wild full toss which slipped out of his hands which Rogers preceded to miss completely while attempting a pull shot. Erasmus gave it out and Rogers decided not to refer with the thought that an incorrect referral would leave Australia with none left. Consequently Rogers was out in spite of HawkEye replays later on showing the ball would have missed leg stump by a fair margin.

The collapse continued as Phil Hughes played an absolute shocking shot to be caught behind, and despite an adamant referral he was sent packing. Usman Khawaja was caught after hitting one straight up in the air, while Michael Clarke was gone lbw to an inswinging Broad delivery. Smith was caught in close off the bowling of Swann and Agar was run out in a mix-up with Haddin just before tea. It didn't change much after tea for Australia with Haddin and Siddle following suit. Pattinson and Harris put on the second highest partnership of the innings which is an indication of just how poor Australia were.

Peter Siddle ensured some sort of respectability for the aussies taking three quick wickets before stumps after Alistair Cook decided to not enforce the follow-on. I've got to say despite all the hype about the pitches being played on, the top-order batting all round has been pretty ordinary so far in the series.

Hero of the day: Graeme Swann
5 wickets - an easy choice here.

Villain of the day: Shane Watson
Watson was the highest scorer of the Australian innings which might then  leave people surprised about my choice here. He again failed to go on with a start, but also decided to review his plumb lbw which ultimately dudded Rogers later on as well. Some people may feel it's too harsh to have him as the 'villain' but talk to any Australian supporter, and they will be struggling to disagree with Mickey Arthur that he is a 'cancer' in the team.

Who won the day? England
No point even really answering this as England are well in the box seat. Despite being three wickets down for not many, with Australia's batting line-up even the current lead will probably be way more than enough.

3rd ODI: West Indies v Pakistan
Pakistan 229/6 (50.0 overs)
West Indies 229/9 (50.0 overs)
Match tied

In another incredible close match of ODI cricket (who the hell said ODI's aren't exciting) the West Indies have managed to tie with Pakistan. This is amazingly the fourth tie in ODI's in the past two months and Pakistan's second having tied with Ireland in May. The West Indies needed 39 runs off the last three overs at eight down. Enter no.11 Jason Holder who hit 19 off only 9 balls including a six and a four off the last over bowled by Wahab Riaz.

Earlier Misbah-ul-Haq steered the Pakistani innings with 75 while keeper Umar Akmal chipped in with a valuable 40. Lendl Simmons scored 75 for the West Indies in what was a slugglish run chase until the fireworks at the end from Sunil Narine (14 off 5 balls) and Jason Holder (19* off 9 balls).

The series is delicately poised at 1-1 with two matches to play.

ODI Series Preview: Sri Lanka v South Africa 
5 ODI Matches

Sri Lanka and South Africa are about to kick-off a 5 match series, which again has disappointingly left no room for the test series which has been postponed until 2015. This is even more telling now that the Sri Lanka Premier League which was one of the major reasons for this postponment has now been cancelled. Nonetheless its still an important series in the ODI scheme of things with the Cricket World Cup only a year and a half away. 

I read an interesting stat on Cricinfo which was that South Africa haven't played a bilateral ODI series in Sri Lanka since 2004 which is quite incredible really in the current international cricket climate. Therefore South Africa will be wanting to play well in their first ODI series encounter in the country in nearly a decade. The teams are neck and neck in the ODI Rankings with South Africa narrowly holding onto a top four spot with a rating of 110, while Sri Lanka are 5th on 108. Therefore this series will be crucial for rankings points especially for Sri Lanka who will be looking to break into even the top three possibly with a strong series. 

Sri Lanka have just come off the tri-series in the West Indies where they made the final, and before that the semi-finals in the Champions Trophy. South Africa also made the semi's in the Champions Trophy which further consolidates just how close these two sides are. South Africa will be without spearhead Dale Steyn which will certainly help Sri Lanka. South Africa have numerous inexperienced players in their squad, and with home conditions, I reckon Sri Lanka may be have a huge shot of taking this series.

Squads
Sri Lanka (1st and 2nd ODI's): D.Chandimal (c), T.Dilshan, S.Eranga, R.Herath, M.Jayawardene, S.Lakmal, L.Malinga, A.Mendis, J.Mubarak, A.Perera, T.Perera, K.Sangakkara, S.Senanayake, U.Tharanga, L.Thirmanne

South Africa: AB de Villiers (c), H.Amla, F.Behardien, Q. de Kock, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, C.Ingram, R.Kleinveldt, R.McLaren, D.Miller, M.Morkel, C.Morris, A.Petersen, R.Peterson, A.Phangiso, L.Tsotsobe

Fixtures
20th July: 1st ODI @ R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
23rd July: 2nd ODI @ R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
26th July: 3rd ODI @ Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy
28th July: 4th ODI @ Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy
31st July: 5th ODI @ R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

First Class Match: Zimbabwe Select XI v Australia A

Australia A 226 and 156
Zimbabwe Select XI 142 and 160

This match received some increased publicity due to David Warner being sent from England to play in it. Well, that certainly backfired with Warner being dismissed cheaply in both innings for only 6 and 11. The Australian selectors certainly have a conundrum on their hands with Warner's poor form and limited match practice along with Australia's poor batting form so far in the tests.

Meanwhile Fawad Ahmed bowled well to take 8 wickets for the match to further boost his chances of mid-series call-up to the Ashes. Pat Cummins made a reasonable comback, while for Zimbabwe Kyle Jarvis and Elton Chigumbura impressed with the ball. Zimbabwe next take on India in a 5 match ODI series which they will be hoping to spring an upset or two in.

__________________________________

It certainly is a jam-packed international calender at the moment with lots of cricket on. Obviously the Ashes is taking the majority of the spotlight, but the other nations have some important cricket to play, unfortunately in ODI's only, and not in tests.

The Ashes: 2nd Test Day 1

England 289/7 (89.0 overs)
Day 1 Stumps

The second test match at Lord's got underway after all the players were greeted by the Queen before play. Ryan Harris must have been inspired the most as he came out all guns blazing, and with Shane Watson chipping in as well England were on the backfoot early. After a terrible start from James Pattinson, Michael Clarke swung a surprise by putting Shane Watson on to bowl. Perhaps he was sick of standing next to him at slip, but Clarke's move payed off when Watson had Cook dismissed lbw. Erasmus coming out of the video box to join the action in this test had a long hard look before raising his finger. Cook didn't review, which he was right to do as he HawkEye had the ball hitting into the stumps quite easily.

Harris then joined in the act by getting rid of both Root and Pietersen in the next over. Root was given out lbw by umpire Dharmasena, yet Root decided to review. It was incredibly close with extreme slow-motion images seeming to indicate that the ball either just hit pad before bat, or at least at the same time. As the umpire's call was out, I think it was fair enough that the decision stayed this way as there was certainly not substantial evidence present to overturn the original decision. There was no problems with Pietersen four balls later though with a regulation edge to the keeper.

At 28/3, the Queen had enough and decided to leave, which must have released a pressure valve for England as Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell went about repairing England's innings. They made it to lunch unscathed and things were going well after lunch until Trott was inexplicably out to a poorly timed pull shot. It came out of the blue as the Australian bowlers had started to waver a bit with Siddle and Pattinson struggling. Bairstow came in and looked okay without dominating before drama struck when was on 21. He was comprehensively beaten by a Siddle ball which sent the stumps flying and started to walk off before the almost inevitable no-ball check. Despite all the others in the series being okay, this one wasn't as Siddle has narrowly failed to land any of his foot behind the line. Some Australian fans are complaining about that it is only the Australian bowlers having the no-ball checked, and while that is true, I think there may be some precedent behind it. The umpires are probably aware of Australia's history of overstepping on wicket-taking deliveries and are therefore more likely to ask for a review, than to the England bowlers. Nonetheless the fact is that you have to stay behind the line, to not do so, like Siddle, is undisciplined. Seriously, how hard is it to keep behind a line!

Meanwhile Bairstow and Bell kept going along nicely with some nice strokes being played. Pattinson struggled all day as he offered off way too many bad balls. Bell though kept putting them away and brought up his century half-way through the last session. It was another incredible knock from him and he has now only the fourth Englishman to score three consecutive hundreds in Ashes tests matches, with his first coming at the SCG in 2011.

Just when us cricket fans thought England were going to go to stumps with the momentum, another twist took place in the form of Steven Smith. After not bowling at all at Trent Bridge he was thrown the ball by Michael Clarke before the new ball was due late on Day 1. Smith certainly repaid the favour as he preceded to take three wickets to turn the day on its head. First he dismissed Bell with a perfect leg break to get a catch at slip. Bairstow played a terrible shot minutes later to gift his wicket to Smith. A full toss by Smith was patted back to him for a caught and bowled. To complete the trifecta, Prior was out caught behind by a delivery which seemed to skid on a bit quicker. Jimmy Anderson was sent in next as a nightwatchman of sorts. A nightwatchman at no.9 to protect fellow tailenders is an interesting one, but Stuart Broad does have the ability to score big runs.

Hero of the Day: Ian Bell (England)
Ryan Harris and Steve Smith campaigned hard for Australia, however it  was Bell who stole the day for England with another superb century. He is now only the fourth Englishman to score three consecutive centuries in Ashes test matches.

Villain of the Day: James Pattinson (Australia)
It was a poor showing from the Australian quick with way too many balls being hit to the boundary.  He went at 4.38 at an over and definitely struggled with the unusual slope at Lord's which has claimed many a fast bowler over time.

Who won the day? Australia (just)
An excellent start and three late wickets pushed them just in front, however Ian Bell ensured that England can still post a decent total. It is a good batting pitch so England will want at least another 70-80 runs, however with Australia's fragile batting line-up, they might not need it. It was another good day of test cricket on Day 1, continuing what has been a ripping Ashes contest so far.

Australia A's African Safari begins

Australia A's tour has begun today with the visitors playing a Zimbabwe Select XI in Harare for a three-day match. David Warner has flown straight from England to take part in this match in order for some much needed match practice. The Zimbabweans have selected a relatively strong side ahead of their 5 match ODI series with India a couple of weeks away. National captain Brendan Taylor is playing and the hosts will be relying very much on him to score runs. Meanwhile for Australia A along with Warner, Fawad Ahmed is playing who is hoping for a late call-up to the Ashes. Pat Cummins will also play in a bid to resurrect his international career after a couple of injury plagued years recently.

Lunch Update
Australia A 108/4 (28.0 overs)
M.Henriques 39*
G.Maxwell 4*
A.Doolan 35
A.Finch 11
N.Maddinson 8
D.Warner 6

K.Jarvis 3/28
E.Chigumbura 1/22
T.Chatara 0/26
M.Chinouya 0/19
N.Mushangwe 0/10

Cowan and Starc axed, while Finn pays the price for his Day 5 troubles

Australia have made two changes for the second test against England beginning at Lord's today. Ed Cowan has been dropped after poor form in the first test, while Ryan Harris has been preferred to the often wayward Mitchell Starc. Harris is probably the most skilled bowler in the Australian team and if he can stay fit for the whole test he will be a major threat to England. Usman Khawaja has come in for Cowan and will bat at 3. Khawaja has a great opportunity in this test to really stamp himself on the no.3 position.

Meanwhile England have also made a change to their change with Tim Bresnan coming in to replace Steven Finn. There is no doubt Finn struggled in the first test, however Bresnan has question marks over his form as well. England will be hoping Anderson is capable of backing up for this test match, as he was the one who troubled Australia the most at Trent Bridge.

XI's
England: A.Cook (c), J.Root, J.Trott, K.Pietersen, I.Bell, J.Bairstow, M.Prior, T.Bresnan, S.Broad, G.Swann, J.Anderson
Australia: S.Watson, C.Rogers, U.Khawaja, P.Hughes, M.Clarke (c), S.Smith, B.Haddin, A.Agar, P.Siddle, J.Pattinson, R.Harris

Awesome Afridi dominates in comeback match

Pakistan 224/9 (50.0 overs)
West Indies 98 (41.0 overs)
Pakistan won by 126 runs

After an absence in the Pakistani team until their tour to South Africa earlier this year, Shahid Afridi returned to dominate against the West Indies. He scored a quickfire 76 with the bat including 54 runs in boundaries which steered Pakistan to a score of 224/9. The West Indies would have been confident of chasing the moderate target, however Afridi snuffed their hopes with an incredible 7/12 - which is in fact the second best bowling figures in ODI history. With 3 maidens and an economy rate of 1.33, Afridi's bowling was simply remarkable. The West Indies were flattened for 98 and were forced to linger away for 41 overs.

Amazingly it was the first time Afridi took a wicket in ODI's since playing Australia in the UAE last year. It was also his first five wicket haul in 21 matches going back around 18 months to the ODI against Afghanistan. I'm sure all Pakistan fans will be hoping for this to be the beginning of some consistent form from Afridi. He is an incredibly dangerous player when he's on but he's gone through some long patches of poor form in his career, and at 33, he wouldn't want to be having too many of those stretches again.

Nonetheless his performance in the 1st ODI was amazing, and probably one of the best all-round performance in an ODI ever. Hopefully he will be able to back it up in the next ODI starting tonight which if so will put Pakistan in a strong position to take a 2-0 lead in this 5 match series.

The Ashes: 1st Test Day 5

 Image courtesy of Getty Images

Article on Metro website

http://metro.co.uk/2013/07/14/the-ashes-2013-england-snatch-nail-biting-first-test-victory-over-australia-3881984/

England 215 and 375
Australia 280 and 296 
England defeated Australia by 14 runs

What a stunning end to one of the best test matches in recent memory. The test has had many ebbs and flows and the final day was no exception. I think it was safe to say nearly everyone thought the match was over when Australia had slipped to 231/9 on the back of a unbelievable spell of bowling from James Anderson. What followed though was a display of tenacity and grit by Brad Haddin and the demoted no.11 James Pattinson. They slowly clawed their way closer with Pattinson playing some textbook shots not known for a no.11. Haddin started the day off very defensively and watchful however started to open his arms in the last wicket partnership. He smacked Steven Finn including three consecutive boundaries in one particular over. It wasn't a good day for Finn at all as he only bowled two overs and conceded 24 runs. He also was involved in a comical fielding effort where he didn't pick up the flight of the ball on the boundary and was stationery as the ball went straight past him for a four. Later on he dropped a tough chance off a Haddin sweep shot which could have ended the game earlier.

Lunch was delayed by half an hour because Australia were nine wickets down, but Haddin and Pattinson managed to stay until the break. Coming out after the lunch interval they needed 20 runs to win a historic win for Australia. After taking five off the first over, Anderson was brought on from the other end. On the fifth ball of the over Haddin swung at a ball just outside off stump and an appeal went up from behind the wicket. Aleem Dar wasn't convinced but with two reviews remaining Alistair Cook referred it to the third umpire.

Now there has been plenty of discussion especially in Australia about the third umpire decision however after much reflection I believe they did get it right. Hot Spot showed a faint edge on the bat which couldn't have come from anywhere else. On the audio used by Marais Erasmus there was a clear sound. The bat was no where near the ground or pad so I think it was conclusive enough to be given out. Snicko later proved this to be right as there was a definite sound.

  Courtesy of Sky Sports

Article on DailyMail website

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/cricket/article-2363471/Ashes-2013-Australia-lose-England-Hot-Spot-decision--Martin-Samuel.html

Aleem Dar overturned the original decision and the England team preceded to run around in delirious joy. Now I know it was a close test match, but I have to say their was a complete contrast to the reactions in this match compared to Edgbaston in 2005 where Andrew Flintoff famously went up and consoled Brett Lee after their 2 run victory. Perhaps I'm looking too much into it but I'm not sure England were too gracious in their victory.

Hero of the Day: James Anderson
No doubt with this decision as without James Anderson it is safe to say England would not have won the test match. His herculean effort in his first spell was incredible. 13 consecutive overs resulting in 3/29 along with 6 maidens. Cook brought him back after lunch and with his 11th ball in his second over he secured the wicket of Haddin which left him with figures of 5/73 off 31.5 overs. This left him with 10 wickets for the match and a well deserved Player of the Match Award.

Villain of the Day: Steven Finn
Finn was left in the outfield all morning watching Anderson, Swann and Broad trying to win England the match. He was left flat-footed when he couldn't pick up a sweep shot from Haddin which went for four. He was smacked when brought into the attack for 24 runs off two overs and then dropped Haddin in the deep (albeit a tough chance) which could have cost England the test. Fair to say it wasn't a good day for Finn.

Series: England lead 1-0
Many  pundits reckon that Australia needed to take this first test to have a legitimate chance of securing the Ashes. It is certainly going to be tough to win it outright from here as they would probably have to ensure that England didn't win another match. Australia should still have some belief though as if they can get their batting sorted out, then they know they can beat England. The home side however will be relieved to get the win here. Their bowling though, apart from Anderson, didn't perform up to expectations at Trent Bridge, so there is plenty of room of improvement in that regard.

Ultimately it was an amazing test match and one of the best in recent times. If we can get more test matches like this then it is fair to say we have some ripping test cricket to watch.

Chris Gayle to play his 250th ODI

Chris Gayle is set to play his 250th ODI in the match against Pakistan tonight. An incredible achievement for arguably one of the best ODI batsmen in the last decade. He has scored 8682 runs at an average of 38.24 with a strike rate at an amazing 84.51. He's scored 21 centuries as well as 45 fifties in what has been a great career so far. Congratulations to Chris Gayle on notching this milestone!

West Indies v Pakistan ODI Series set to begin

In the midst of the Ashes, this limited overs series is likely to be overlooked quite easily, and considering the series was originally supposed to include test matches, I can understand its neglect in the cricketing world. Nonetheless the Cricket World Cup is only 19 months away and ODI matches are going to become key for that preparation.

West Indies will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing end to their tri-series with Sri Lanka and winners India. They won their first two matches before losing the next two to miss the final. Before that they missed out on the semi-finals for the Champions Trophy, despite some close matches. The West Indies defeated Zimbabwe earlier in the year but a 5-0 smashing to Australia in February, and a 3-2 series loss to Bangladesh late last year has meant they have had a disappointing time of it in ODI cricket. All of this is on the back of their World Twenty20 which led many people to believe a resurgence in West Indies cricket was happening.

Pakistan meanwhile have just finished a disappointing European tour where they were comprehensively outplayed in the Champions Trophy. Before that they only just beat a determined Irish side 1-0 (including a tied match) as well as beating Scotland 1-0. Before that though they just loss against South Africa 3-2, and beat India 2-1 late last year. They will be hoping to bring some back some of that form against the West Indies in this series.

These sides are ranked 6 and 7, although there is an 11 disparity with Pakistan on 101 and West Indies on 90. Pakistan will be looking to gain some ground on Sri Lanka who are 5th on 108, while the West Indies will want to give themselves some breathing space from New Zealand who are only one point adrift in 8th.

The West Indies did defeat Pakistan in the Champions Trophy by 2 wickets so they will take some confidence from that going into the series. They've only played one bilateral series against each other in the last four years and that was after the Cricket World Cup in 2011. Despite West Indies being the hosts Pakistan prevailed 3-2, which they will hoping to do again this time.

I think this will be a closely fought series as both sides are evenly matched. They are also both severely inconsistent as evident by their recent results I mentioned above, and therefore I think it will be the team to show the most consistency both in matches and over the whole series who will win.

Squads
West Indies (ODI #1 and #2): Dwayne Bravo (c), T.Best, Darren Bravo, J.Charles, C.Gayle, J.Holder, S.Narine, K.Pollard, K.Roach, D.Sammy, M.Samuels, L.Simmons, D.Smith
Pakistan: M.ul-Haq (c), A.Rehman, A.Shehzad, A.Ali, A.Shafiq, H.Sohail, J.Khan, M.Hafeez, M.Irfan, M.Rizwan, N.Jamshed, S.Ajmal, S.Afridi, U.Akmal, U.Amin, W.Riaz

Fixtures
ODI #1: 14th July @ Providence Stadium, Guyana

ODI #2: 16th July @ Providence Stadium, Guyana

ODI #3: 19th July @ Beausejour Stadium, St Lucia

ODI #4: 21st July @ Beausejour Stadium, St Lucia

ODI #5: 24th July @ Beausejour Stadium, St Lucia

Ashes: 1st Test Day 4

England 215 and 375 (149.5 overs) 

Australia 280 and 174/6 (71.0 overs)

Australia require another 137 runs with four wickets in hand to win

It was another closely fought day at Trent Bridge in the first but it was again England who gained the momentum in the final session. Australia were going along quite nicely firstly after an 84 run opening stand, and then at 161/4 with their captain Michael Clarke at the crease. They preceded to lose three wickets in as many overs to lose any real chance of winning the match on Day 5. Michael Clarke was dismissed caught behind although not without more drama involving DRS. The umpires went to the video to check whether the ball carried, which it did, but then Clarke decided to refer it as he thought he didn't hit it. Hot Spot showed a very fine edge so Clarke was on his way. Smith was gone next by Swann and then Hughes followed after England overturned a not out lbw decision.

The Hughes dismissal was interesting as Dharmasena gave it not out but seemed to indicate that the ball pitched outside leg. Now I'm not sure whether I'm reading too much into this but I'm pretty sure umpires should just give their decision and that's it. Sometimes the umpire may tell the bowler why he didn't give it out when he is walking back to his mark, but I've never really seen a reason given during the appeal like what Dharmasena did. 

Earlier Bell reached a fantastic century which has fairly been described as one of his best for England. Without his partnership with Broad (who was finally out for 65) the match could be in a very different position right now. Australia led by Peter Siddle took the last three wickets for just four runs to set up an intriguing chase of 311.

Hero of the Day: Stuart Broad

Tough one here but I've given it to Broad. He continued on from the day before and reached an important half century before ending up making 65. He picked up the wicket of Watson who was looking dangerous and also the huge wicket of Michael Clarke for 23, who was Australia's best hope for a win.

Villain of the Day: Ed Cowan

Not a villain of such, however Cowan's dismissal for just 14 has put him in extreme doubt to retain his place in the side for te next test match. Apparently he has been quite sick, but nothing should really excuse his waft outside off stump (yet again) to part-timer Root in the last over before tea.

Who won the day? England

Australia were in front when they were on 161/4 however the last three wickets especially the wicket of Michael Clarke swung he match heavily in England's favour. Australia require another 137 runs to win with Brad Haddin and first innings hero Ashton Agar at the crease. It will be incredibly tough and England are certainly favourites, however Australia still have a small chance of pulling it off. Who can forget at Edgbaston in 2005 where Australia required 106 runs with two wickets in hand heading into what would be the final day of that historic test match.

Day 4 Evening Session Highlights

Courtesy of ecbcricket

https://www.youtube.com/user/ecbcricket?feature=watch 

By the way I post during play on various cricket forums using the user-name "Cricket Brain." Refer to the contact tab for more details. 

Ashes: 1st Test Day 3

England 215 and 326/6 (133.0 overs) lead
Australia 280 by 261 runs with four wickets remaining
 
Another intriguing day of test cricket however the biggest talking point is the huge umpiring blunder made by Aleem Dar late in the last session. When Stuart Broad was on 37 and the lead stood at 232 he edged a ball off Ashton Agar which deflected off Haddin's gloves and was caught by Michael Clarke at first slip. The Australians obviously celebrated, however Stuart Broad stood his ground and Aleem Dar did not raise his finger. The aussies were fuming, and probably fair enough too as I think everyone in the ground including Broad knew it was out apart from Dar.

The incident occures at 2:51 in the below video

 

Courtesy of Youtube user "RoostersRepresent" 

https://www.youtube.com/user/xtremevangeli00pana

Now there are a few issues here which I would like to point out. One is the fact that it was an absolute stinker from Dar. Even with the introduction of technology in place, umpires should still be expected to make correct calls most of the time. The fact this edge was obvious; it beggars belief how Dar missed it. Second of all, Australia couldn't challenge this because they had used up all their reviews. One was used earlier in the day when the ball was so far down leg it wouldn't have hit a fourth stump. I think this is a major lesson for Michael Clarke. Peter Siddle said after the day's play that you use the DRS "because you think you're going to get a result early on and you don't. You can't just hold them and put them in the back pocket and say 'I'm going to get one in the afternoon' and save it for that. You use them when you think there's a chance of getting a wicket and that's what they're there for." [Quote from Cricinfo - http://www.espncricinfo.com/the-ashes-2013/content/story/650817.html] I disagree with Siddle here, as DRS is there for the potential howler, and captains need to start realising this. If they decide to use it on a 50-50 decision or even one where the odds are less, then they run the risk of not being able to use it for a howler. Michael Clarke has always been adventurous but will hopefully realise that its not the right approach to use for the DRS.

Anyway back on to the day's play where England wrestled back the momentum from Australia. They scored 246 runs for the loss of just 4 wickets, so it was definitely their day. Pietersen and Cook pushed on to their fifties, however two quick wickets in succession brought Australia right back in the hunt. Bairstow and Prior hung around a bit but were eventually dismissed by Agar and Siddle respectively. Bell played fluently throughout the day and ended up on 95*. Meanwhile Broad despite the controversy made 47*. Starc and Agar have two wickets each, while Pattinson and Siddle have on each. Watson's bowled 15 overs for only 11 runs including a remarkable 11 maidens, dismissing fears of his lower leg injury.

Hero of the Day: Ian Bell
England were tottering at 131/4 but his partnerships in the middle order, especially the unbeaten one with Broad of 108 have put England on the brink of winning the test match

Villain of the Day: Aleem Dar
Yesterday, it was the third umpire Erasmus for the England fans, however today it's Aleem Dar for his horrendous decision to not give Broad out for a regulation edge to slip off Ashton Agar.

Who won the day? England
246 runs for the loss of just four wickets - definitely England's day. They scored slowly but surely, and now have a lead of 261 runs. Anything over 200 would be a tough chase for this Australian batting line-up in the last innings, and if the lead gets up around 320-330, England should be heading to Lord's with a 1-0 lead. I would say England hold the advantage around 70-30.

*By the way I try and post during play on various cricket forums using the user-name 'Cricket Brain'. Refer to the Contact tab for more details

Dhoni returns to hit India to Tri-Series victory

India 203/9 (49.4 overs) defeated
Sri Lanka 201 (48.5 overs) by 1 wicket

MS Dhoni made his return to the tri-series in blistering fashion by hitting two sixes and a four in the final over to win the final for India. At 182/9 chasing 201 with three and a half overs to go things were looking dire for India. Even at the beginning of the final over Sri Lanka were in the box seat as India needed 15 to win. Dhoni though hit the second ball off Eranga for six, the next for four, and then sealed a fabulous win with another six.

Dhoni proved again just how good a finisher he is. If you read up on an article on Cricinfo, he is compared with Michael Bevan as one the great finishers in ODI history. Bevan averaged 53.58 with six hundreds in 232 matches. He scored them at a strike rate of 74.16. Dhoni is averaging 51.45 with eight hundreds in 226 matches. He's scored them at 88.17. Dhoni has proven he is the man for big moments, including in the final of the World Cup, and he is a major reason why India are first on the ODI Rankings and have now won their second final in as many months.

The Ashes: 1st Test Day 2

England 215 and 80/2 (43.0 overs)
Australia 280 (64.5 overs)

An amazing day of test cricket. If what has transpired so far is anything to go by than this Ashes Series is going to be full of twists and turns and drama aplenty. Day 2 of the First Test at Trent Bridge belonged to one man, Ashton Agar. The 19 year old debutant came to the crease at 117/9 after Anderson and Swann ripped through Australia's middle and lower order. What happened next blew away the cricketing world with Agar and Phil Hughes putting on a world record last wicket stand of 163. Agar made 98 before tragically being caught in the deep by Graeme Swann off a short ball bowled by Stuart Broad. It was as a majestic innings as you'll see from anyone. Straight sixes off the right arm spin from Swann and then classy on drives down the ground for four were some of the incredible shots played from him. As an Australian, the support he was getting throughout his innings on the internet was incredible with various forums and the Twittersphere riding his innings with him. Hughes the forgotten man in all of this, played a great steering role with an 81*. He was the man at the other end in a morning where Jimmy Anderson and Graeme Swann were catastrophic. Steve Smith made his 50 before being caught behind, while Swann bowled Haddin with a beauty of a delivery. Siddle, Starc and Pattinson all fell for only three runs between them, and after what the no.11 did, they will likely be demoted down the order. The major records broken were:

• Highest score by a no.11 batsman in test cricket
• Highest 10th wicket partnership in test cricket

There was controversy though with Agar being given Not Out by the Third Umpire from a stumping when he was on 6. Admittedly it did look out however it was incredibly close. Third umpire Erasmus obviously decided to give the benefit of the doubt to the batsman, and luckily he did, as otherwise we wouldn't have witnessed an innings which will go down in Ashes folklore.

More controversy reigned in the beginning of England's innings when Joe Root was caught down the leg side by Mitchell Starc. Aleem Dar gave it out, and despite getting his captain's view on it, Root left without reviewing it. The controversy happened next ball though when Jonathan Trott was struck first ball on the pads by an inswinging delivery from Starc. Dar gave it not out but Michael Clarke opted for the review. The ball hit him in line and was easily going on to hit the stumps, however there was some doubt over whether Trott nicked it or not. Hot Spot didn't show anything, however the side-on Hot Spot camera angle which would've proved more decisive was unavaiable. Turns out it was being used to replay the Root decision the ball before, and HotSpot is apparently like an old VCR in that it can't play and record at the same time. So the third umpire overturned the decision which left Trott and the whole of England fuming.

Cook and Pietersen recovered and brought England to stumps without the loss of another wicket to end an amazing day of test cricket.

Hero of the Day: Ashton Agar
Simply stunning from the young man. His innings has galvanised Australia, even so that Kevin Rudd has agreed (unofficially on Twitter) for today to be 'Ashton Agar' Day.

Villain of the Day: Marais Erasmus
Erasmus as the third umpire was definitely the villain from an English perspective. His controversial rulings on two key moments have left the England fans fuming, as well as their team management.

Who won the day? Australia (just)
England's rout of Australia gave the momentum, however Agar and Hughes preceded to rip that back from England. Cook and Pietersen's partnership before stumps steadied England, but I think Australia just won the day. In regards to the overall test though, England are just ahead, with a small lead, and a pitch which should cause some trouble for Australia in the fourth innings.

*By the way I try and post during play on various cricket forums using the user-name 'Cricket Brain'. Refer to the Contact tab for more details

The Ashes: 1st Test Day 1

England 215 (59.0 overs)
Australia 75/4 (21.0 overs)
Stumps Day 1

What an action packed day of test cricket to kick off the Ashes! 14 wickets and only 290 runs scored. There was drama aplenty even before the first ball was bowled with 19 year old Ashton Agar selected to make his debut ahead of frontline spinner Nathan Lyon. Australian coach Darren Lehmann said that this was because he's a left armer and there are eight right handed English batsmen. I'm not sure this is the right mindset to take as Xavier Doherty was picked for the same reason (mainly to try and trouble Pietersen) at the start of the 2010/11 Ashes and look what happened there.

Anyway England won the toss and batted but captain Alistair Cook was removed early after edging a ball from the fired up James Pattinson. There was some rather wayward bowling early especially from Peter Siddle, but oh boy did Siddle turn it around. After going for 27 off his first four overs, Clarke swung him around to the other other end with the immediate wicket of Joe Root. He collected Pietersen after lunch and also got Trott soon after. Bell was caught in the slips, while Prior played a terrible shot to hit one straight to Phil Hughes at cover. The middle session was Australia's by virtue of Peter Siddle who with five wickets had left England reeling at 185/6.

There was not much respite after tea although Bairstow and Broad shared in a 33 run partnership. Mitchell Starc helped clean up the tail as England lost their last four wicket for 2 runs. Siddle was the chief destroyer with 5/50, while Pattinson got 3/69 and Starc 2/54. Agar bowled a tidy 7 overs for 24. There was more bad news for Shane Watson though as he injured himself while bowling. Apparently it is a lower leg injury which could mean Australia are down a bowler for the rest of the match. Meanwhile Broad was hit while batting and did not bowl, however it is believed he will bowl in the match.

Australia's innings didn't start well with Watson falling to Steven Finn, and Ed Cowan playing a horrible waft outside off stump to go next ball for a golden duck. Captain Michael Clarke was bowled by an absolute ripper by James Anderson, while Chris Rogers was out lbw for 16 despite a referral. Steve Smith played well for his 38 while Phil Hughes also remains unbeaten on 7. Interstingly Smith actually came in at 5 ahead of Hughes. Not sure if this shows confidence in Smith or no confidence in Hughes with the swinging ball. Finn and Anderson were the wicket-takers with 2 wickets apiece.

Hero of the Day: Peter Siddle
Terrible first spell, but Clarke's decision to bowl him from the other end did wonders as he tore through the England middle order and finished with figures of 5/50. Amazingly there were questions on Siddle's place in the team before  the match but he continued to prove the doubters wrong.

Villain of the Day: Ed Cowan
This was a toss up between Prior and Cowan as they both played horrible shots, but I have given Cowan the nod. He was lucky to keep his place in the side for the match, and I can't see him staying too much longer is he is going to continue to swing outside off-stump on the first ball he faces.

Who won the day? England
Although Australia's bowling performance was great, England returned fire to edge themselves in front at the moment. Probably 55-45 at the moment I think.

*By the way I try and post during play on various cricket forums using the user-name 'Cricket Brain'. Refer to the Contact tab for more details

Bring on the Ashes!

The countdown is over. The Ashes are here. After months - even years of build-up and hype the 10 test consecutive Ashes series is upon us.

England are undoubtedly coming into the series as favourites however there is some resurgence in confidence of the Australians on the back of Darren Lehmann replacing Mickey Arthur as coach. England's major strength over Australia will lie in their batting. Cook, Trott, Pietersen and Bell will form a formidable batting line-up for the home side and the Australian bowlers will have their work cut out. England also have an advantage in the spin bowling department with premier spinner Graeme Swann. Australia have Nathan Lyon, although is steady, will not strike fear into the England batsmen. (Edit - Just as I'm typing this, word is coming through that Ashton Agar is going to make his debut in the first test, ahead of Nathan Lyon. Wow, massive call there from the new coach.) One element that Australia will be hoping to have the edge on England will be in the fast bowling sector. With Siddle, Pattinson, Starc, Harris, Bird and Faulkner, Australia certainly have the firepower to be able to strike some fear into England. The fast bowling cartel will need to stay patient though as it will take a lot of work to remove England's batsmen. Their skills will be put to the test as well, as England will be led by Anderson who is an expert at swinging the ball.

After the recent update to the ICC Test Rankings, England have dropped to third behind India. This means that it will be the third and fourth placed sides doing battle for the Ashes. An England win will push them back up to no.2 behind South Africa, while a cleansweep or close to it will send Australia tumbling down to no.5 or even no.6. England's form has been generally pretty good of late with a 2-0 series win over New Zealand just a couple of months ago. However they did draw the series in New Zealand 0-0 at the beginning of the year. Meanwhile Australia have been through a horror few months with plenty of on-field disappointment and off-field drama. After losing a closely fought series to South Africa at home, a cleansweep of Sri Lanka was soon forgotten after a smashing in India 4-0. Although the conditions are different here in England, the English will be looking to take advantage of some possible dented confidence of the Australians.

I think Michael Clarke and James Anderson will be the keys for this series. Clarke is the obvious one for Australia as without him, their batting will suffer. He will need to stand up and produce a lot of runs for Australia to be competitive in this series. For Australia's sake I hope his back will not cause him too much trouble throughout the series. Anderson will prove decisive in knocking over Australia quickly. His swing will cause plenty of headaches for the Australian top order and if he is firing then it is hard to see Australia being able to combat him that well.

This series is the start of a 10 test match Ashes extravaganza. So the winner of this series will not necessarily hold the urn for long. However because of the short turn-around they will have great confidence heading into the "second leg" later this year. England have won the past two series 2-1 and 3-1 respectively. Although I think Australia will put up a huge fight I'm going to predict a 3-1 win to England.

Squads

England Ashes Squad (1^st Test)

Alistair Cook (c), Matt Prior (vc), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Ian Bell, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Steven Finn, Graham Onions, Kevin Pietersen, Joe Root, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott

Australia Ashes Squad

Michael Clarke (c), Brad Haddin (vc), Ashton Agar, Jackson Bird, Ed Cowan, James Faulkner, Ryan Harris, Phillip Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, James Pattinson, Chris Rogers, Peter Siddle, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Shane Watson

 

Fixtures 

10th July - 14th July: 1st Test @ Trent Bridge, Nottingham 

18th July - 22nd July: 2nd Test @ Lord's, London

1st August - 5th August: 3rd Test @ Old Trafford, Manchester

9th August - 13th August: 4th Test @ Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street

21st August - 25th August: 5th Test @ Kennington Oval, London

*I will be aiming to post updates on a daily basis during the Ashes series