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Doug Bollinger is going to take it upon himself to target England captain Andrew Strauss in the upcoming one-dayers

Andrew McGlashan18-Jun-2010Doug Bollinger is going to take it upon himself to target England captain Andrew Strauss in the forthcoming one-day series because Australia know how important he will be to the Ashes campaign which starts in November. Bollinger has enjoyed considerable success since reclaiming his Test spot last December with 37 wickets in seven matches and is eager to make an important mark on this tour.Glenn McGrath used to make it one of his prime roles to home in on the opposition captain – and he had a vice-like grip on Mike Atherton who he dismissed a world-record 19 times – with Australia believing that if you can make the leader struggle the rest of the team will soon follow.In the 2009 series that was meant to be Mitchell Johnson’s role, but the plans went array when the left-armer dramatically lost his form and Strauss cashed in with a dominant 161 at Lord’s which set up England’s 115-run victory. Even though the first Ashes Test is still five months away, Bollinger feels there is no time like the present to make a few statements.”Obviously you have to start well against the openers and he’s the type of player that can get you down if you are bowling badly to him,” he said. “I think if I get him out that’s a pretty solid way to show that we are here to go well and knock the captain over.”In the absence of the injured Johnson – along with Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle from the previous Ashes series – Bollinger, who couldn’t make Australia’s World Twenty20 squad despite taking 12 wickets for Chennai Super Kings with an economy rate of 6.67 in the IPL, has now been elevated to the team’s No. 1 strike bowler in an inexperienced attack.”It’s a good name to have, but doesn’t really bother me,” he said. “I just enjoy playing for Australia and if I get called the spearhead that’s probably a bonus for me but I just go out and do my things and get as many wickets as I can.”There’s no extra pressure, it’s enjoyment really at having the extra responsibility while playing for my country. We’d love to have Mitch here but it means an opportunity for some else like Clint McKay or Josh Hazelwood.”One factor in Bollinger’s favour going into the one-day series is that England have yet to face him at international level. Although all teams spend hours watching footage of opposition attacks it can never quite match facing the real thing and Bollinger may just be able to catch a few batsmen off guard.”I’d like to think so,” he said, “but you can’t worry about things like that. We are just going to worry about our own games and concentrate on their batsmen, just as their bowlers will study our bowlers. We are just going to be as fresh as we can and keep it simple because if we complicate things we just end up sideways.”Simplicity is one of the main ingredients to Bollinger’s game. “If I worry about too many things I end up not doing as well,” he said. “I just try to figure out the conditions I’m in and adjust my game to it. Patience is the key because eventually things will figure themselves out.”The Bollinger now on show in Australian colours is a different vintage to the one who represented Worcestershire during the 2007 season and finished with an unflattering 16 first-class wickets at 44.56. However, it’s an experience he looks back on as having played a vital role in his development.”It was good but it seemed to rain non-stop while I was here,” he said. “It did help with the different conditions it certainly made me a better bowler.”

Stokes backed for return to form in New Zealand with short turnaround between tours

Matt Roller27-Oct-2024Brendon McCullum, England’s coach, said that Ben Stokes is “hurting” after struggling to make an impact in their 2-1 series defeat in Pakistan, but has backed his “tough bugger” captain to return to his best in New Zealand next month.Stokes returned from two months on the sidelines with a torn hamstring ahead of England’s second Test in Multan last week but failed to contribute as Pakistan staged their comeback. He apologised to his players for losing his temper following a string of fielding lapses in the second Test, bowled 10 wicketless overs in the series, and made 53 runs in four innings, with two slapstick dismissals.After England’s nine-wicket defeat in Rawalpindi, Stokes said that the last three weeks had “felt like a very long tour” due to his intense rehabilitation, which McCullum suggested had inhibited his performance both as a batter and as a captain.Related

• 'No excuses' says McCullum as England succumb to Pakistan's spin cycle

• Captain Stokes loses his sheen as Rawalpindi return ends in flat defeat

• Stokes bullish after defeat: 'We've got the best top six in England'

“That injury was quite a significant injury,” McCullum said. “He had to work incredibly hard to get back. As the driven athlete he is, he’s all in when he does something. He had to put in a lot of graft there, and subconsciously, it can… not cloud things, but maybe you’re not quite as screwed down as you can be in terms of decision-making.”That’s natural, as long as you learn from that and make sure next time you’re presented with that situation you’re able to block out the noise and stay crystal clear in the moment. He’s disappointed, but he’s our skipper and we know he’s a tough bugger. He’ll make sure he’ll come back and it’s our job to make sure we wrap our arms around him and help him along the way.”The series defeat was only England’s second since Stokes took over from Joe Root as captain two-and-a-half years ago, but both have come in the subcontinent this year. The first, a 4-1 loss in India, prompted McCullum to call for “refinement” ahead of England’s home summer, but this time there is only a short turnaround before their three-match series in New Zealand.Ben Stokes could not exert his usual influence, despite winning the toss in Rawalpindi•Getty Images

McCullum said it would be his own responsibility to ensure that England’s management are consistent in their messaging. “We all know how competitive and driven the skipper is,” he said. “He’ll be hurting right now, with how the series has unfolded. It’s my job to make sure I’m there to support him, and make sure we still remain on-task with what we are trying to do as a collective, and our messaging to the group about how we want to keep playing cricket moving forward.”Sometimes as leaders, if you do suffer a little bit of disappointment yourself, it can be very easy to allow that to permeate through in your messaging to the group. But since Stokesy came on board as captain, he’s been very clear and precise about how he wants his team to play.”What’s really important is to never flinch with that and stay true to it, even if you’re struggling yourself. You’ve still got to keep using the same messaging. He’ll be better for the run, no doubt: a couple of weeks off, freshen up and back to conditions which are a bit more similar to back in England. It’s another opportunity for us.”England have lost six of their eight Tests in Asia this year, and are not due to return to the subcontinent until a two-match series in Bangladesh in February 2027. McCullum said the team would look back with “disappointment” and this tour and that their method in spin-friendly conditions needed to be “a little bit better” than it has been”If we’re being honest with ourselves, we’ve had opportunities to put up a better record than that, so it’s disappointing,” McCullum said. “You don’t get too many opportunities to nail down big series in the subcontinent. We’ve had those chances, and we weren’t quite good enough.”I know we don’t come back to the subcontinent for a couple of years, but there’s still times even in other countries when we’re presented with spinning wickets, and we’ve got to make sure our approach is a little bit more screwed down, a little bit better than it is. That will be some of the conversations we have.”It’s a matter of trying to get that environment to a place where it’s confident, it’s clear and the messaging is very simple. With failure, sometimes it brings about a little bit of deeper thought and that’s something we’ll have to do over the next little while.”We’ve also got a very quick turnaround for the New Zealand series, but we have to make sure we’ve learned some lessons from this and be better when we get the chance. That’s the nice thing: we do get an opportunity, and it would be nice to bounce back in New Zealand.”

Luke Wood three-for puts seal on comfortable victory at Wantage Road

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jun-2023Steven Croft smashed his maiden T20 century to power Lancashire Lightning to an imposing 204 for seven and set up a 35-run victory over Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Wantage Road.Croft took the attack to the Steelbacks attack, blasting seven sixes and five fours in his 101 and shared a 146-run partnership in 12 overs with Daryl Mitchell (48). The pair had led a belligerent fightback after Ben Sanderson (2 for 29) had raised home fans’ hopes by removing England power hitters Jos Buttler (0) and Phil Salt (12) in his first two overs.With Luke Wood (3 for 39) taking three wickets in an over in the powerplay, the hosts’ hopes rested once more on Australian big hitter Chris Lynn but when he fell for 21, it was left to all-rounders Tom Taylor (40) and AJ Tye (35) to entertain the crowds in a lively stand of 58 in five overs as the Steelbacks fell to their sixth defeat of the campaign. Lightning now have five wins from nine games, keeping them firmly in contention for a playoff spot.The Steelbacks’ evening had started promisingly when they restricted Lightning to just 39 for three off the powerplay. Sanderson trapped Buttler leg before in his first over and removed Salt in his second thanks to keeper Lewis McManus who took a diving legside catch. Wells became the third wicket to fall when he holed out off Taylor with Willey taking a well-judged catch.That though brought Mitchell and Croft together who were quick to go on the attack. Mitchell hit his first delivery for four and later dispatched Tye high over extra cover.Croft hit the first six of the game over long on off Sanderson and greeted Freddie Heldreich by sweeping him over square leg for two sixes and a four in his first over. He pulled Taylor over deep square for six and then hit the next two balls he faced, both from Heldreich, for two further maximums.Mitchell was also clearing the ropes, smashing two sixes down the ground off Zaib’s only over. He offered the bowler a sharp return chance though, but the bowler could not hold on.Justin Broad, playing his maiden first-team game for Northamptonshire finally made the breakthrough in his only over, accounting for Mitchell who was caught by Lynn off an attempted scoop.Croft fell soon after reaching his century thanks to Zaib who held onto a steepling chance at deep backward square off Tye, who also removed Tom Hartley in the final over.Liam Livingstone (25) played some big shots, clubbing England teammate Willey down the ground for six before he was run out off the final ball of the innings.Northamptonshire’s new opening pair Ricardo Vasconelos (15) and Emilio Gay (13) took 22 off the first two overs. Gay hit three consecutive boundaries off Jack Blatherwick before he was caught off the leading edge off the first ball of a highly eventful over from Wood.Vasconcelos pulled a free hit from Wood for six but departed to the next delivery when the bowler took a sharp low return catch. Wood then accounted for Willey next ball, caught by Salt, before Zaib safely survived the hattrick ball.Zaib hit Blatherwick into the top of the Turner Stand but was caught behind by Buttler off the next delivery to leave the Steelbacks in real trouble on 47 for four.Broad (14) looked unfazed on the big occasion, reverse sweeping Hartley for four and crunching Wells through extra cover before he was put down at long-on. Wells soon had his man though when Broad was caught by Mitchell at long-off.Lynn needed to play another powerhouse innings for the Steelbacks and had a stroke of luck when he was put down on the boundary off Hartley with the ball running away for four. But Hartley struck soon afterwards when he had Lynn caught off a top edge attempting to hook. Three overs later Wells picked up his second wicket when he bowled Lewis McManus (11).Tye and Taylor were determined to go down all guns blazing and took on the bowlers to give the home fans something to cheer. Tye dispatched Livingstone over the ropes and hit Blatherwick for an even bigger six over deep square leg. The fun ended when the Australian tried to uppercut Mitchell over the infield on one leg and was caught by Blatherwick for 35 (two sixes, three fours). Mitchell then had Sanderson caught and bowled two balls later.Taylor continued to blaze away, ending the game with an enormous six over deep midwicket to finish unbeaten on 40 (one six, two fours).

After a century opening stand, Bangladesh hit back in the middle session by taking 3 for 33

Firdose Moonda31-Mar-2022Stumps Temba Bavuma scored his 18th Test half-century in his 50th Test and held South Africa’s middle order together after a strong start and a small wobble on the opening day against Bangladesh. South Africa’s opening pair of Dean Elgar and Sarel Erwee took advantage of an indifferent Bangladesh new-ball performance to post their second successive century stand before they were dismissed within six balls of each other as Bangladesh found a way back. Then, Bavuma and Kyle Verreynne shared an unbroken 53-run fifth-wicket stand to leave South Africa in a position they will be fairly comfortable with despite the run-rate slowing as the day progressed.On a differently coloured pitch to what is usually presented at Kingsmead, Mominul Haque chose to bowl first but Bangladesh would have wanted more wickets to justify his decision. Their seamers did not find much assistance up front, though there was some evidence of extra bounce later on, and South Africa seem to be anticipating turn later on. They included two specialist spinners in their XI for the first time in a home Test since 1970, with Simon Harmer returning from his Kolpak exodus after last playing for South Africa in 2015, to partner Keshav Maharaj.After a 35-minute delay to sort out malfunctioning sightscreens, Elgar got South Africa off the blocks quickly and breached the boundary nine times in the first 12 overs as he took advantage of anything overpitched or wide. He brought up his fifty off 60 balls but not before Bangladesh had shown their first signs of bite. Taskin Ahmed beat Erwee, who spent most of the morning leaving well, twice and Mehidy Hasan could have dismissed him on the stroke of lunch when Erwee tried to slash him through the off side, top-edged, and was dropped by Litton Das.South Africa went to the break on 95 without loss and Bangladesh with many questions but they surged back in the first hour of the afternoon session and took 3 for 33 thanks to a more disciplined approach. As Bangladesh adjusted to tighter lines, Elgar could add only seven to his score off 24 balls in the second session before he got a good ball from Khaled Ahmed, who found extra bounce. Elgar was late in trying to pull out of the shot and the ball took the edge to end the opening stand on 113. Five balls later, Erwee tried to cut Mehidy and under-edged onto his stumps.Dean Elgar brought up his fifty off just 60 balls•AFP/Getty Images

With two new batters at the crease, Bangladesh would have been looking to squeeze South Africa but Keegan Petersen and Temba Bavuma were picture-perfect at first. Bavuma clipped Mehidy Hasan through midwicket for his first boundary and Petersen pulled Khaled in front of midwicket. With two compact techniques and quick runners at the crease, South Africa would have banked on their third-wicket stand to produce big runs, and Petersen was fortunate Bangladesh didn’t review a chance for caught-behind when he was on 18 and Taskin Ahmed lured him into the drive. But he was then unfortunate to be run-out when Bavuma called for a run after dabbing the ball to point, where Mehidy dived, picked up and threw with one stump to aim at and Petersen was found out of his ground.Debutant Ryan Rickelton scored his first runs in Test cricket off a reverse-sweep and showed aggressive intent after tea. He sent a wide Ebadot Hossain delivery through cover, then tried again but got an outside edge that sped through third man, and eventually fell on his sword when he tried to pull Ebadot in front of square but top-edged to mid-on. Bavuma was on 27 off 66 balls at the time and he upped the ante, scoring his next 23 runs off 38 balls including two cover drives and a top-edge off Taskin that went between first and second slip for four, to bring up 50 off 104 balls.With Verreynne at the other end, Bavuma took South Africa to the close, 47 runs away from a much-anticipated, much-talked-about second Test century after scoring his first more than six years ago, in 2016.

Batsman will spend whole season in Cardiff and is unlikely to play IPL or CPL

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Dec-2020Glamorgan have announced that Colin Ingram has signed a two-year contract extension with the club as an overseas player after the cancellation of his Kolpak registration.Ingram has spent five seasons in Cardiff to date, playing as a local player throughout on a Kolpak deal. He did not play in 2020 due to international travel restrictions, and will return on an overseas deal next year with the end of the UK’s transition period with the European Union bringing an halt to the Kolpak era.Ingram has signed for the T20 Blast first and foremost, having dominated Glamorgan’s run-scoring charts in the competition since his debut in 2015. He fills the club’s second overseas spot in the Blast, after Marnus Labuschagne signed for all formats.ALSO READ: County ins and outs, 2020-21Glamorgan have also signed Labuschagne’s Queensland team-mate Michael Neser as their second overseas player for the County Championship and Royal London Cup, but Ingram will be available in those competitions should either Australian be called up for international duty.A Glamorgan press release said that Ingram, 35, would spend the full summer in Cardiff, and that he would become a mentor for academy batsmen and a pathway coach when not playing or training. As a result, it seems unlikely that he will take part in the IPL or the CPL next year.”Cardiff is where I want to be,” Ingram said. “I love playing here and my family love the city and being in Wales. I love playing T20 cricket, but I also want to challenge myself again in the longer formats of the game and I’m excited to have the opportunity to do that at the club I love.”I’ve always been passionate about helping the next generation of cricketers and it’s really exciting for me to work with these young Welsh players, help them improve and share some knowledge I’ve gained at the international and franchise level.”Mark Wallace, Glamorgan’s director of cricket, said: “He’s played around the world and brings invaluable experience to our players and now we are able to fully utilise these experiences across the pathway.”Colin’s got plenty of experience in all three formats and has excelled for Glamorgan across the last five years, and he’ll be a fantastic reserve option should he be needed in the longer formats of the game.”

Moody and Jayawardene stress on importance of consistency in rules for image of the league

Mohammad Isam08-Aug-2019Mahela Jayawardene and Tom Moody, head coaches of Khulna Titans and Rangpur Riders, have slammed the constant changes to the Bangladesh Premier League’s rules and regulations. Their criticisms follow the BPL governing council’s announcement of August 4, which said that existing teams require a fresh franchise agreement to be part of the next four-year cycle as BPL franchise owners. One of the key issues affected by this announcement is also the transfer of players, like Shakib Al Hasan’s recent move to Rangpur Riders from Dhaka Dynamites.BCB director Mahbubul Anam, at a press conference on August 4, stated that player deals will become null and void because the franchises haven’t signed the new deal with the BCB yet. “Since we have not yet made a new agreement for the new cycle, we cannot endorse whatever deals that have been struck by the franchises for the seventh edition,” he said.But according to a May 11, 2019, letter sent to the franchises, the BCB told them to “take necessary preparation” for the upcoming edition. According to multiple franchise officials, the renewal of their franchisee agreement is a mere formality, which they would have done in the background, while preparing for tournament.Moody, who coaches Riders stated that “the consistency of the playing conditions and the rules set out for the franchises” was one of the most important elements in a T20 league, while Jayawardene said that changing the rules every year was “not healthy” for franchise cricket.The timing of the governing council’s announcement has irked most teams, who signed up local and foreign players for their four direct signings, and were planning to speak to existing and prospective sponsors. It has also brought into question the manner of functioning of the BPL governing council. Their press conference on August 4, which was attended by BCB director Mahbubul Anam, governing council chairman Sheikh Sohel and BPL secretary Ismail Haider Mallick, was called four days after Shakib Al Hasan left Dhaka Dynamites to join Rangpur Riders.The Dynamites team also expressed its disappointment at not having been informed of the transfer by the player. The Dynamites franchise is owned by Beximco, where BCB president Namzul Hassan and Mallick are both employed. Their current coach is Khaled Mahmud, the BCB director. Shakib has played for the Dynamites since 2016, coincidentally, after having moved there from the Riders.BPL’s current rules suggest that Shakib, one of the league’s “icon” players, is free to move. This rule was changed to reflect this a few seasons ago, and previously Mashrafe Mortaza and Mushfiqur Rahim also moved to move to the Riders and Rajshahi Kings, respectively, in 2016. Under the same rule, Khulna Titans and Comilla Victorians have reportedly roped in Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur for the 2019-20 edition.Moody, who guided the Riders to their maiden title in 2017, said that constant rule changes could bring the integrity of a tournament into question, locally and internationally.”Having been involved in many T20 leagues over the past 12 years it has become very clear that one of the most important elements is the consistency of the playing conditions and the rules set out for the franchises,” Moody said. “It is not important only for the franchises or the management, it is crucial for the fan base to have an understanding of what playing group not only local but international they are following. It gives them a loyal fan base. If we see things constantly changing on a whim the integrity of the tournament can be questioned both locally and internationally.”Jayawardene, who has been the Titan coach since 2017, said the constant changes were not fair on teams.”Having long-term planning is important because what I felt when you keep changing rules every year and even while the tournament is on it is not healthy for any franchise cricket. If you see all the other tournaments around the world they always have consistent set of rules which guides all franchises and it is quite fair for everyone,” he said.Moody and Jayawardene are not the first to question the procedures and the fairness of rules in the BPL. The tournament has seen several modifications of rules and regulations, and playing conditions, and has faced issues of conflict of interest since its inception. Board officials either directly owning or indirectly connected with franchises is one of the issues. Apart from Hassan and Mallick’s links with Dynamites, the Titans managing director Kazi Inam Ahmed is a BCB director, while chief selector Minhajul Abedin ran the Chittagong Vikings franchise last season.

Zimbabwe fans at Harare Sports Club were seen cheering on Aaron Finch after expressing their dissatisfaction with the home team

Liam Brickhill03-Jul-2018Zimbabwe are in the doldrums. They had lost five frontline players before this tri-series began, lost their senior seamer to injury in their opening game, and now it seems they might have lost the backing of their long-suffering fans. The Zimbabwe players fielding in front of the boisterous Castle Corner stands at Harare Sports Club copped some flak during Aaron Finch’s record-breaking knock, with allrounder Solomon Mire getting an earful when he was in that position.”It’s a tough one,” Mire said. “The fans are a little bit angry [at what has been happening]. But that’s something that’s out of our control at the moment. The only thing we can do is concentrate on trying to perform, and hopefully that will win back the fans. Unfortunately, nothing went to plan in the first innings. The wicket didn’t behave like we thought it would and we didn’t get any early wickets.”Performance would seem to be key, as the disgruntled fans eventually started cheering every boundary Finch hit. “That was nice,” Finch said. “This is my fifth time here to Harare, and down in that far pocket at long-off there’s always a good crowd and some really good support for whoever plays well on the day, whether it’s a Zimbabwean batter or Australian bowler, whatever it might be. It’s nice to get them on side.”Some of the loudest cheers for Zimbabwe were delivered ironically, the game long since gone, when Nos. 10 and 11 were clinging stubbornly to the crease and solid forward defensive strokes were applauded.It wasn’t just the team that bore the brunt of supporters’ disenchantment. A group of fans organising themselves as the Zimbabwe Cricket Supporters Union also directed their anger at the ZC board, holding up banners and placards including statements such as: “No to victimization”, “ZC board must go” and “enough of mismanagement of funds”. The group compiled their grievances in a letter seen by ESPNcricinfo intended to be handed to ZC board chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani, listing, among other things, alleged maladministration, a “shambolic domestic league”, and hurdles to the formation of a players’ union. This group eventually left the ground after negotiating with security, leaving their banners on an empty stand.”It’s disappointing,” Mire said. “It’s been the trend in the last two games that we’re scrambling to get over the line and finish our 20 overs at the end. That’s testament to the fact that we’re continuing to go hard and we’re not really working those middle overs very well. If we go hard early, we’ve got to consolidate if we lose early wickets. Which also comes down to maybe me or one of the top order guys have to bat through.”With the current set-up that we have, it’s important that the guys who get in cash in. That’s probably the big difference. We’re probably a little bit light in that regard.”Mire suggested that Zimbabwe had a lot to learn from how the Australian openers built their record-breaking partnership. “You can learn from how the opposition went about it. The guy that was in definitely cashed in, and they didn’t both try to go. D’Arcy [Short] did well to give Finchy a lot of the strike, and he was the guy who was in and he cashed in. We have to do that. If a guy gets a good start, he’s got to continue.”

Peter Trego smote 135 against his former county as Somerset made it three wins from as many Royal London Cup South Group games with a four-wicket win over Kent at Taunton

ECB Reporters Network02-May-2017Somerset 354 for 6 (Trego 135, Hildreth 64, Elgar 55, Tredwell 3-65) beat Kent 352 for 6 (Blake 116, Bell-Drummond 106, Northeast 51, Overton 3-66) by four wickets
ScorecardPeter Trego provided the major contribution in Somerset’s huge chase•Getty Images

Peter Trego smote 135 against his former county as Somerset made it three wins from as many Royal London Cup South Group games with a four-wicket win over Kent at Taunton.The 35-year-old allrounder hit six sixes and six fours in his 119-ball innings, receiving good support from Dean Elgar (55) and James Hildreth (64) as the hosts reached an imposing target of 353 with 15 balls to spare. James Tredwell returned 3 for 65.Earlier, a scintillating 46-ball hundred from Alex Blake and 113 from Daniel Bell-Drummond had led Kent to 352 for 6. Blake smashed seven sixes and 10 fours in his 116, while Sam Northeast made 51 and Craig Overton claimed 3 for 66.But Somerset paced their innings better from the outset and were able to secure victory without the sort of savage onslaught Blake produced in the latter stages of the Kent innings.After winning the toss, the visitors lost Joe Denly to the third ball of the match from Josh Davey. Bell-Drummond and Northeast then put together a century stand before Northeast drove left-arm spinner Roelof van der Merwe straight to Max Waller at cover.After 30 overs Kent were becalmed on 136 for 2. That became 146 for 3 when Darren Stevens hung his bat out to a wide ball from Overton and presented a simple slip catch.In came Blake to alter the momentum with some glorious shots. The 28-year-old left-hander showed no mercy, particularly when offered width, and produced some wonderfully clean hitting all around the wicket.Bell-Drummond’s hundred was more circumspect, occupying 113 balls, but allied to Blake’s big-hitting looked to have put Kent in a strong position.That looked even more the case when Somerset openers Steve Davies and Jim Allenby fell with only 19 runs on the board. In Davies’ case it was his third successive duck in the competition.But Trego and Elgar eased any nerves in the home dressing room, taking few risks in a stand of 108 in 18.1 overs before Elgar lost patience against Tredwell and skied a catch to deep midwicket.The South African had looked in no trouble and that also applied to Hildreth as he and the now swashbuckling Trego put Somerset on top by adding 131 for the fourth wicket.Hildreth’s 39-ball half-century was pleasing on the eye, but when he perished to a reverse sweep and Trego’s majestic knock ended with 59 still needed, Kent looked to be in with a chance.Adam Hose snuffed it out with an impressive 39 and a crowd of nearly 3,000 enjoyed a tremendous day of high-scoring cricket.

Australia’s team doctor Peter Brukner believes cricket will eventually follow Australia’s football codes and introduce a system in which players leave the field for concussion assessment after blows to the head

Brydon Coverdale in Christchurch23-Feb-2016Australia’s team doctor Peter Brukner believes cricket will eventually follow Australia’s football codes and introduce a system in which players leave the field for concussion assessment after blows to the head. The assessment process was the subject of attention on day two in Christchurch, when Steven Smith was struck on the helmet by a bouncer from New Zealand fast bowler Neil Wagner.Smith fell to the ground before getting to his feet again, and Brukner and Australia’s physio David Beakley ran onto the field to assess whether he needed any treatment. After spending roughly five minutes on the field, Brukner saw no signs of concussion and decided that Smith could continue his innings, but he said further testing had been undertaken later that day and the next morning.”There are things we look for, how well orientated they are, how alert they are, and there’s standard questions that you always ask automatically,” Brukner said after day four at Hagley Oval. “We took him through those. He answered all those questions perfectly. He seemed quite alert. We kept talking to him in that five minutes and by the end of that five minutes I was comfortable that there was nothing too serious going on.”The incident occurred in the last over before tea and Brukner also spent time with Smith during the tea break, as well as using a computerised concussion test called Cogstate after stumps that day. A test of cognitive function that assesses a wide range of areas including reaction times, Cogstate was again used to assess Smith before play on the third morning.”We have baseline measures for all the players in the Australian squad. We did that again on that night, and we were able to compare that with his baseline. And there was no difference between what he did on Sunday night and the baseline. And he was feeling okay. I repeated that test on Monday morning, just because sometimes they have a delayed response and deteriorate overnight. Once again he felt okay and the test was okay.”Smith was also assessed at other breaks in play, and showed no signs of concussion. Brukner said that while there were “grey areas” in determining concussion, if he had any doubts he would not hesitate to rule a player out, as he did when Chris Rogers missed two Tests in the West Indies last year following a blow to the helmet at training, and he also took Rogers from the field following a blow during the Lord’s Test.”There are some very clear-cut concussions, they’re knocked out and talking gibberish and so on, there are others who are absolutely fine. And there’s a grey area,” Brukner said. “I accept it’s a difficult … we would love a test to say yes that’s a concussion, that’s not a concussion. But we’ve got our symptoms, we’ve got our questions, we’ve got our computer tests, that’s our package at the moment. That’s what we go on.”Unlike cricketers, AFL and NRL footballers who suffer blows to the head are taken from the field for a 20-minute period to be assessed and reduce the risk of further blows in case of a delayed concussion reaction. Brukner said he expected that cricket would eventually follow the football codes and introduce such a system.”There’s a lot of things on the table at the moment about concussion subs and all that sort of stuff,” he said. “It’s complicated. I think the football codes feel that 20 minutes is about right. It would be nice to take someone off for 20 minutes. I think ultimately something will come in on those lines. I think it’s got to, these days.”The climate is out there and cricket will do it … After that five minutes out there, if I’d had doubts, I’d have said come off – you can have a replacement, it’s not as if you can’t bat again – come off and we’ll do a more thorough assessment. There was no indication to me out there that that was required. The next stage is to take them off and fully assess them. But he seemed fine to me, so I felt comfortable to keep him out there.”

Australian pace bowler Michael Hogan took two late wickets to enable Glamorgan to finish on equal terms with Hampshire at the end of the first day at the Ageas Bowl.

02-Aug-2013
ScorecardMichael Hogan’s proved the most effective bowler for Glamorgan•Getty Images

Australian pace bowler Michael Hogan took two late wickets to enable Glamorgan to finish on equal terms with Hampshire at the end of the first day at the Ageas Bowl. Hampshire, recovering from a poor start after being put in, finished on 261 for 6 from 85.1 overs when bad light brought a premature end to proceedings.Hogan dismissed Sean Ervine and nightwatchman Danny Briggs after Hampshire had threatened a recovery. Former Western Australian Hogan finished the day with creditable figures of 4 for 66 and his victims also included the day’s top scorer, the in-form Michael Carberry.After the first hour had been lost to rain, Glamorgan captain Mark Wallace gambled on fielding first and with the wicket as troublesome early on as it often is, Hampshire were reduced to 4 for 2. The lively Hogan broke through at the end of the third over when Hampshire captain Jimmy Adams, struggling for runs lately, edged to Wallace behind the stumps for a single.Next man Liam Dawson made the same before being trapped by John Glover in the sixth but Glamorgan’s successes then became much rarer as the wicket eased.England candidate Carberry, particularly powerful in the Twenty20 competition but with a Championship century in his last match against Kent, fell six short of another. This was after he and Neil McKenzie had taken the game away from Glamorgan a little in a stand of 130 for the third wicket in 45 overs, each batsman taking advantage of Hogan’s rest periods by punishing those that followed him.Left-arm spinner Dean Cosker removed McKenzie to a catch at the wicket at 134 before Hogan returned to the attack to have Carberry edging behind in sight of his 29th first-class century. Carberry hit 16 fours and always looked in control after a circumspect start but his departure only heralded another major partnership.James Vince and Ervine added another 90 in 20 overs for the fifth wicket, taking the score to 246. Ervine, as belligerent as ever, hit Hogan for three fours in an over but at the start of the next, Hogan got his revenge thanks to a slip catch by Marcus North.Briggs followed at 260 to Wallace’s fourth catch of the day but Vince was in imperious form, reaching his half-century just before the close, ending 51 not out from 98 balls.