Allister de Winter is the bolter in the contest to become Australia’s new bowling coach

Brydon Coverdale11-May-2011Allan Donald. Craig McDermott. Allister de Winter? Between them, the first two men have taken 621 Test wickets. A former fringe allrounder with Tasmania, de Winter scraped together 35 first-class victims at an unflattering average. And yet, all three are in the mix to become Australia’s new bowling coach.de Winter might seem out of place in the company of such champions, but he has already outlasted former internationals like Jason Gillespie and Andy Bichel to reach the final round of interviews. It is a vote of confidence in de Winter’s post-playing career, during which time he has worked as a zone coaching manager in Western Australia, and as head of Bangladesh’s National Cricket Academy.As the assistant to Tasmania’s head coach Tim Coyle since 2007, de Winter has had a strong focus on helping the state’s fast bowlers. He helped guide the Tigers to the Sheffield Shield last summer, and Coyle believes de Winter would be a valuable addition to Cricket Australia’s staff if he gets the job that has been vacated by Troy Cooley, another former fringe fast bowler from Tasmania.”The other guys have had outstanding careers at Test level and one-day level,” Coyle said. “Ali obviously doesn’t have that, but he’s been coaching for ten years. It depends how you weigh it all up, and what Australian cricket needs.”He’s got a similar background to Troy Cooley. They’ve had a similar growth as coaches. Ali has done his time at domestic cricket level more than Troy did. Troy went through the academy, whereas Ali has been to two states and he’s been overseas and worked in Bangladesh. He’s got experience with the Australian team in the elite coaching program.”He’s very hands-on. That’s where he’s based his coaching philosophy, with being hands-on with his players. He’s a practical kind of guy. He’s got a good grasp on the technical side of pace bowling, through all the experience that he’s had. He also has a very good idea of how to implement those things into a game situation.”Should de Winter get the job as Australia’s bowling coach, he will be very familiar with at least one of his new charges, the Tasmanian Ben Hilfenhaus. But de Winter has also played a key role in the development of newer faces on the fast-bowling scene in Tasmania, several of whom had breakthrough seasons in 2010-11.”If you look at the guys who have really put their hand up this year, Adam Maher, James Faulkner and Luke Butterworth are all in the top five wicket-takers in the country, domestically,” Coyle said. “Ali has had a hands-on role with all those three.”At this level, it’s about getting sound technique and being efficient and then being able to apply that to the game. He’s also worked with developing bowlers over the years, so he has a good understanding of the development of a bowler and the phases they go through.”All the same, de Winter, 43, faces a tough ask to be offered the job ahead of former champions such as McDermott and Donald. The new bowling coach is expected to be announced in the next few days.

Upul Tharanga, the Sri Lanka opener, has been ruled out of the limited-overs leg of the England tour as he prepares to face a disciplinary committee for failing a drugs test during the World Cup.

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jun-2011Upul Tharanga, the Sri Lanka opener, has been ruled out of the limited-overs leg of the England tour as he prepares to face a disciplinary committee for failing a drugs test during the World Cup.Tharanga, 26, tested positive after the semi-final against New Zealand, in Colombo, and Sri Lanka Cricket confirmed he won’t be selected for any representative cricket in the short term.”Since there is an ongoing inquiry to verify this charge, Upul Tharanga will not be making himself available for selection until the conclusion of the inquiry and therefore will not be available for the ODI and T20 matches in England and the Sri Lanka A Team tour of England,” a statement said.Tharanga’s absence means Sri Lanka could be without their two first-choice one-day openers against England with the captain Tillakaratne Dilshan also a doubt having suffered a hairline fracture of his thumb in the second Test at Lord’s. However, Dilshan is still hopeful of being available for the one Twenty20 international and five ODIs.The pair had recent success against England, having guided Sri Lanka to a 10-wicket victory in the World Cup quarter-final when they added an unbeaten 231. Tharanga also enjoyed an impressive one-day series on the 2006 tour of England where he hit two hundreds – 120 at Lord’s and 109 at Headingley in a record 286-run stand with Sanath Jayasuriya – during Sri Lanka’s 5-0 whitewash of the hosts.There are reports in Sri Lanka that Tharanga’s absence could open the door for a surprise return for Jayasuriya who turns 42 in June and played his last ODI in December 2009. “If my services are required, I would be glad as always to give my best,” he told the Sri Lankan .

Chris Gayle is prepared to apologise if he can’t substantiate some of the charges he made in his controversial radio interview in April, according to Wavell Hinds

Sriram Veera22-Jun-2011Chris Gayle is prepared to apologise if he can’t substantiate some of the charges he made in his controversial radio interview in April, according to Wavell Hinds, the vice-president of the West Indies Players Association (WIPA).”He is prepared to answer the charges as honestly as he can and if there is a need to say sorry, I think he will say sorry,” Hinds told ESPNcricinfo. “Where he [Gayle] feels firm and has strong substance to back up his claims he will stand by them. If there are claims he has made where he has been a little excessive he is prepared to put his hand up and say sorry. In no shape or form does Chris think he is above West Indies cricket and he has stated that quite clearly to me … Where there are claims that he can substantiate totally, he can put to the board that he has been unfairly done or been disrespected, he will stand by them.””I have known Chris for many years, I know him like a brother and as a friend. He is a very humble guy and he is prepared to do what is necessary to play.”The WICB has expressed their displeasure with Gayle’s statements on that radio show in which he alleged the board had mismanaged his injury, West Indies coach Gibson had damaged Ramnaresh Sarwan’s confidence, and the board mishandled his contract talks in October 2010. It is feared that if the stalemate continues West Indies cricket might lose Gayle.Hinds, however, believes the issue will be resolved. “In my capacity as a director of the Jamaican board I had the opportunity to meet the executive of the West Indies board and we are trying to get some more answers from them on how they plan to tackle the Gayle issue. I am pretty confident we will have further discussions between the boards and also between the board and WIPA.”I am confident that Gayle will get justice. I support WIPA’s position to help players’ causes. Having said that I have to make sure I am fair and balanced. I will ensure that whatever decisions we make as WIPA impacts West Indies cricket in a positive way.”Chris Gayle was not included in the team for the first Test against India•AFP

Hinds said the WICB needed to be calm while resolving the issue. “They are the parent body and Chris is one of their charges. They have to have the father figure kind of approach. If Chris has stepped out of line in their eyes they can ask him to answer their charges but they should also be prepared to accept his side of the story. Once Gayle is prepared to accept his responsibilities as a player, they should have some form of rehabilitation that will bring Chris to where he should be given his status as a cricketing icon in West Indies cricket. We are prepared to have discussions which are pretty cordial and thrash through the issues in an open and fair platform.”The WICB and WIPA had a heated meeting on June 14, with Gayle present, which ended inconclusively, and reportedly featured an argument between WIPA president Dinanath Ramnarine and WICB chief-executive Ernest Hilaire. The board have since said they will not deal with Ramnarine, which has drawn a strong response from WIPA, who said in a release, “WICB cannot tell us who should represent the players at meetings with the WICB.” WIPA also said Ramnarine may sue Hilaire for defamation after Hilaire said Ramnarine had threatened him during the June 14 meeting.Hinds too backed Ramnarine but added that both parties should be prepared to alter their positions so that they serve cricket in the best way. “I respect Ramnarine for his position and what he has done. He is pretty knowledgeable about the issues at hand and has the skills to carry his office in the most efficient manner. He has had a few difficulties with the officers of the board; we will try to quell those differences and we can co-exist.”Of course none of us are bigger than the game of cricket. If there are any alterations to be made by any individual, be it Ramnarine or from the board, that individual should be prepared to make the necessary steps to make sure they are serving cricket in the best way.”

Graeme Swann has become the world’s No. 1 one-day spinner after his eight wickets helped England to a 3-2 series win against Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jul-2011Graeme Swann has become the world’s No. 1 one-day spinner after his eight wickets helped England to a 3-2 series win against Sri Lanka.It is the first time he has reached the landmark in his career and he overtakes New Zealand’s left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori, who had held the spot since September 2009.Swann is also ranked No. 2 in Test cricket, behind Dale Steyn, but his No. 1 ranking is the first time an England bowler has achieved that feat in any form of the game since Steve Harmison briefly rose to the top of the Test rankings in August 2004.Swann’s England team-mate James Anderson put behind his disappointing World Cup to claim nine wickets at 21.77 and jumped 17 places to the 11th spot, but Stuart Broad, who only managed two wickets in the series, went in the other direction, falling eight places to 21st.In the batting ranks Sri Lanka’s captain Tillakaratne Dilshan has dropped six places, after a wretched series that brought 17 runs in five knocks, to sit joint-ninth with Australia captain Michael Clarke, while Kumar Sangakkara rose a spot to No. 4.Jonathan Trott remains England’s highest-ranked batsman at No. 7. Eoin Morgan gained one position to sit joint-23rd place with Ireland’s Paul Stirling. Alastair Cook was man of the series after his 298 runs at 74.50, which helped him break into the top 50 for the first time, but at 48th, he still has a long way to climb.Full ICC rankings.

A 112-run stand for the eight wicket dragged Durham over the line in a tight contest against Sri Lanka A at Chester-le-Street

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jul-2011
ScorecardA 112-run stand for the eight wicket dragged Durham over the line in a tight contest against Sri Lanka A at Chester-le-Street.Entering the day with Sri Lanka A 184 for 4, Durham did well to force a result but on a day when 14 wickets fell, they will be relieved it was the result they wanted. Some gutsy lower-order batting Sachithra Senanayake and Shaminda Eranga pulled the visitors up from 192 for 6 with a 75-run stand. Both batsmen were positive, striking at over a run a ball and Senanayake was unlucky not to reach a deserved half-century, being bowled by Scott Borthwick for 48. Eranga ran out of partners and was left high and dry on 45.That left Durham needing 220 for victory which looked plenty more when they lost their openers with just 30 on the board. A half-century for Ben Stokes, on his return from injury helped set the foundations and will be pleasing for Durham fans who have missed his hard-hitting in the middle order. He made 51 from 64 balls with five fours and a six.While he was progressing, though, Durham lost much of their middle order and looked in real trouble when Stokes departed leaving the score at 104 for 7. That’s when the eighth wicket pair of Liam Plunkett and Mark Wood took over and produced a matchwinning effort.Plunkett finished unbeaten on 65 from 79, stroking six fours and a six while Wood made a more patient 48 from 82 before being run out near the end. Plunkett and Chris Rushworth ensured no further slip ups as the home side edged a good tussle.

West Indies Women sneaked home by one run against Pakistan Women in the rain-hit first Twenty20 international in St Andrew’s

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Sep-2011West Indies Women sneaked home by one run against Pakistan Women in the rain-hit first Twenty20 international in St Andrew’s.The first of four Twenty20s, the game was reduced to 18 overs a side as Pakistan chose to field. West Indies’ line-up did not click, opener Stafanie Taylor the top scorer with 24 – she was one of only three batsmen to get into double figures as the hosts managed only 90 for 8. The Pakistan bowlers shared the wickets around. Fast bowler Qanita Jalil was the pick, claiming 2 for 14 in a three-over spell.In a rain-marred chase, none of the Pakistan batsmen could get going either. The visitors were 56 for 3 in 11 overs, falling one short of the Duckworth/Lewis target.The second Twenty20 will be played at the same venue on September 7.

Arun Karthik produced the six most important runs of his 15-match Twenty20 career off the last ball of the CLT20 league phase to propel Royal Challengers Bangalore past South Australia Redbacks in a game that had everything except for a Super Over finish

The Report by Nitin Sundar05-Oct-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsVirat Kohli, who played a key role in RCB’s chase, celebrates an extraordinary finish•Associated Press

Arun Karthik produced the six most important runs of his 15-match Twenty20 career off the last ball of the CLT20 league phase to propel Royal Challengers Bangalore past South Australia Redbacks in a game that had everything except for a Super-Over finish. It featured an astonishing century from Daniel Harris – only the third in Champions League history. It had a five-for from Shaun Tait, in a game where 429 runs came off 40 overs. It also featured sublime stroke play from Virat Kohli, who played his best T20 innings. It had strong helping hands from Callum Ferguson and Tillakaratne Dilshan.It all boiled down to the last ball, off which six were needed, and Karthik stepped up to smash Daniel Christian into the stands beyond midwicket. The crowd went up as one, the RCB dug-out exploded in joy, and even the usually laidback Chris Gayle walked out shirtless with a broad smile.In a game that unfolded like a Hitchcock whodunit, it was fitting that the winning blow came off the bat of someone who was playing only because AB de Villiers was injured. At the other end was S Aravind, the worst bowler of the day, who got close to redemption with a boundary off the third ball of that electric final over. Christian bowled a slower ball on the fourth, which Aravind slogged for two, making it seven needed off the last two. Aravind couldn’t connect with the fifth, but the batsmen scrambled through for a bye. Six needed off one, and Christian delivered a slower ball as hittable as Chetan Sharma’s infamous full toss to Javed Miandad in Sharjah. Karthik coolly stayed in his crease and heaved with all his might over midwicket to become a hero.It was heartbreak for the Redbacks, who had somehow regrouped after a virtually unstoppable 100-run stand between Kohli and Dilshan off 8.5 overs. By the time Kohli fell, he had reduced the equation to 50 off the last five overs, but RCB’s light-weight middle order gave the Redbacks a chance. Nathan Lyon piled on the pressure with a four-run 16th over, but Tait ceded the advantage with two sixes in the 17th, though he managed to dismiss Saurabh Tiwary. The next over from Aaron O’Brien also produced two sixes and a wicket, making it 18 required off 12 balls. Tait then lasered Dilshan’s stumps with a stunning yorker and got Daniel Vettori to miscue, before completing his five-for with Raju Bhatkal’s wicket. That set up the last-over climax, Christian blinked after five balls, and Karthik held his nerve to complete the first win for an IPL side against an Australian team.The performances from Tait and Karthik dominated the ending, but the contest got its substance from Harris and Kohli. Both produced innings that had no business featuring in an unabashed exhibition for T20 batting. Harris’ effort stood out for the shots he didn’t play – he went almost 18 overs without trying to hit a six, and yet coasted to a century with time to spare. Kohli’s was elevated by the shots he chose to play. Faced with an asking-rate nearing 11, and with Gayle dismissed, Kohli unfurled a series of astonishingly correct strokes.Equally telling were the chalk-and-cheese support acts from Ferguson and Dilshan. With the spinners pulling things back after Harris’ Powerplay boundary blitz, Ferguson took his time settling in before opening up in style. Dilshan, on the other hand, ignited RCB’s chase with a series of outrageous strokes, which included a couple of trademark scoops.Gayle was more subdued at the start, but he gradually found his range to muscle three sixes, before Michael Klinger caught him in the deep even as he collided grievously with Tom Cooper. Kohli walked in like he belonged in the cauldron, and opened his account with a pulled six through wide long-on. The slowness of the pitch and the variations of the Redbacks attack could not stop him from hitting through the line, and repeatedly in front of the wicket. He charged out to O’Brien and launched him with the turn over long-off, before carving Richardson for the shot of the day – an inside-out six into the stands behind extra-cover. He then gave Harris a taste of his own medicine, taking him for two sixes and three fours in the 13th over to put RCB on course for a heist.The script was completely different in the first half of the match as, for the second night on the trot, an IPL side took a hiding from an Australian batsman. Aravind’s pathetic lengths made this considerably easy – he finished with figures of 4-0-69-0, the second worst in T20 history – but that could not take any credit away from Harris.The floodgates opened in the second over, when Aravind sent down a series of slow freebies angled into the hitting zone. Harris gratefully opened up his stance and carved boundaries straight, square and fine through the off side to set the Redbacks on their way. Kohli missed a run-out in the next over, and Harris celebrated by smashing seven of his next eight balls for fours. Vettori daringly persisted with Aravind for the fourth over, only to see him repeat his predictable lengths from either side of the stumps. Harris indulged himself to move to 43 off 19 balls by the fourth over, and Vettori was left playing catch-up for the remaining 16.With the spinners coming on, Harris settled into cruise-mode, while Ferguson assuredly got his eye in. Just when the momentum seemed to be flagging a touch Aravind returned, and the Redbacks resumed their run-glut. Having taken two fours and a six off Aravind’s 16th over, Ferguson thumped Nannes emphatically for a six off the first ball off the 17th. He holed out in the 18th over, prompting Harris to finally attempt a big hit. He pounded Bhatkal over midwicket for his first six, before dumping Nannes behind square-leg to bring up the century. Incredibly, Aravind got the 20th over, and Christian duly bludgeoned five more fours to take the Redbacks to 214.Twenty overs later, Christian and Aravind had their roles reversed. And how.

South Australia’s last pair, Cullen Bailey and Peter George, survived for 22 overs to avoid defeat at Adelaide Oval, where rain and that final stand thwarted Western Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Oct-2011
ScorecardCullen Bailey helped rescue South Australia from what looked like certain defeat•Getty Images

South Australia’s last pair, Cullen Bailey and Peter George, survived for 22 overs to avoid defeat at Adelaide Oval, where rain and that final stand thwarted Western Australia. The Warriors began the day with victory theirs for the taking: they led by 329 runs and the Redbacks were wobbling at 3 for 23.However, wet weather washed out 35 overs, which proved to be costly for the visitors. Nathan Coulter-Nile collected 4 for 46, while Michael Beer and Michael Hogan each picked up two wickets in an over to leave South Australia in major trouble at 9 for 106.At that point, the Redbacks had lost 5 for 28 in 12 overs, which left George and Bailey with a major task to see out the rest of the afternoon. In the final 22 overs they scored only 13 runs – the last 10 overs were maidens – and Bailey finished unbeaten on 19 from 109 balls with George on 5 from 60 deliveries as Marcus North rotated his bowlers to no avail.The Warriors took first-innings points from the match and sit second on the Sheffield Shield table, having won their opening game. The Redbacks are still searching for their first win.