England Women beat South Africa Women 130 and 229 by an innings and 96 runs
Scorecard

England completed an innings victory over South Africa in the second and final Test at Taunton with over a day and a half to spare. It was England’s first Test success in eight years, and wrapped up a 1-0 series win.The South Africans, who looked a tired side throughout the match, showed only brief glimpses that they were prepared to put up much of a fight after they started the day 248 runs adrift with seven wickets in hand. When Clare Taylor trapped Johmari Logtenberg leg-before inside the first half-hour their chances of making England bat almost disappeared.Taylor proved almost impossible to get away – she returned the remarkable figures of 13-10-5-3 – and when two quick wickets from Charlotte Edwards reduced South Africa to 133 for 6 the game looked done and dusted. But Cri-Zelda Brits staged a spirited fightback as she cracked 61 off 67 balls. Taylor ended the fun with the first ball of her third spell.The match ended in anti-climax when Nolababalu Ndzundzu retired hurt.England v South Africa, 2nd Test, Day 2 Bulletin

Viv Richards, the chairman of the West Indies selectors, has called on the West Indies Cricket Board to select different sides for Tests and one-dayers to try and prevent player burn-out as the international calendar becomes more and more demanding."We are probably cash-strapped and can’t afford to be transferring people back and forth," Richards told reporters, "but I’d like to think that if we are looking at cricketers’ development and moving forward in the future, we must implement certain things that we see. It has become necessary where we have players who have been assigned as Test-match players and others who are assigned as one-day cricketers. We are hoping we can have that put in place."Richards’ comments come as the West Indies start a grueling schedule in which they play Test and ODI series in Zimbabwe and South Africa, then host England before traveling to Bangladesh, from there move on to England for a return series and then finish off next September with the ICC Trophy, also in England."It is a serious period where we are looking to rebuild," Richards continued. "We have picked the individuals we believe are suited for the rebuilding process. We have alerted several reserves that they are on the shortlist and we want them to remain in programmes so that when called upon they would be ready to play a part."And Richards also warned several unnamed senior players to look long and hard at the way they behave both on and off the field. “It’s not probation, but we are looking very hard at some individuals, mannerisms, attitudes,” he said. “More than anything else, we would like them to commit themselves to scoring runs, all the runs necessary for us to be successful.”

It is a measure of the hold it has on the sporting psyche of the people of Melbourne that yesterday’s 150th anniversary of the Melbourne Cricket Ground evoked so many personal memories of Test cricket’s first venue. The ground at the centre of Melbourne’s two greatest sporting passions – cricket and Australian Rules football, not necessarily in that order – is not the Field of Dreams; rather it is the Place des Memories.

Few other sports grounds in the world can boast of being arenas for such contrasting pursuits. Lord’s may be the spiritual and administrative home of cricket, with all that that entails, but what do they play there in the winter? The same can be said of most other respectable Test cricket grounds. Certainly there may be the odd game of lower-grade sport, but in Melbourne they attract even bigger crowds in the winter than they do on Boxing Day in the summer.What could be more appropriate that, on the Saturday following September 23 – the date in 1853 marking Lt. Governor CH La Trobe’s permission for the Melbourne Cricket Club to occupy the “Police Paddock” – the 2003 version of the AFL grand final should be played? Although the MCG may have seen great feats in the peculiar Victorian game that has spread around, but little further than, Australia, the staging of the final to cricket fans is a reminder that gentler, warmer days are ahead as the cricket season opens.For it is with cricket that the populace of the Commonwealth associates the MCG. In a country that has made an art-form of ground and governing-body acronyms – the SCG, the SACA and the WACA grounds, to name a few – the MCG is probably the best-known and most revered of all sporting venues.The MCG is the only cricket ground in the world to have also been the main stadium for the Olympic Games – in 1956. That was made possible by the vast reaches of the original ground, which could easily accommodate an athletics track and all subsidiary requirements for field events. There is also something symbolic about the fact that its playing surface is big enough to test even the greatest throwing arms in the game. The open space of the ground is representative of the huge, dry hinterland that gives the country much of its wealth, history and folklore.The MCG’s place in cricket history is assured for any number of reasons – cricket’s first Test venue, Donald Bradman’s favourite ground, host of more Tests (95) in Australia than any other venue, and of more Australian Test wins (52) than anywhere else. A total of 155 Test centuries have been hit there, and Bob Cowper’s 307 against England in 1965-66 remains the only triple-century scored in a Test in Australia. The highest partnership on the ground is the 346 between Jack Fingleton and Bradman in 1936-37 against England. The best bowling figures belong to Wilfred Rhodes, who took 15 for 124 in the 1903-04 Test, while the best in an innings is Sarfraz Nawaz’s 9 for 86 in the 1978-79 series. No great surprise surrounds the fact that Bradman scored most Test runs on the ground – a total of 1671, at the considerable average of 128.53, including nine centuries. Dennis Lillee, no doubt responding to the chants of Bay 13, was far and away the ground’s most successful bowler, with 82 wickets at 21.92.In the more modern one-day internationals, there has not been quite the same amount of time to build up an aura, but that hasn’t diminished the quality of play. The best score achieved in 50 overs was 338 for 6 – against the West Indies in 2000-01 – while England hold dubious honour of recording the lowest score of 94 in 1978-79. Mark Waugh’s 173 in that earlier match against the West Indies is the highest one-day score, while the 225 between Adam Gilchrist and Ricky Ponting against England earlier this year is the best partnership. Curtly Ambrose, in a 1988-89 match against Australia, took 5 for 17 to achieve the best bowling figures.In first-class cricket, Bill Ponsford made the ground his own during a remarkable career. Of the five highest scores on the ground, he has four of them. He first scored 429 against Tasmania in 1922-23 and five years later scored 437 against Queensland and also 336 against South Australia in the same season. Eight years later, he was still at it, scoring 352 against New South Wales. Bradman was the other contributor to the top five, with 357 for South Australia in 1935-36. Meanwhile, the best bowling in an innings belongs to Peter Allan, the fast-medium bowler from Queensland, who took all 10 Victorian wickets for 61 runs in the 1965-66 match.Individual performances are all very well, but there have been other occasions of particular significance. The Centenary Test of 1976-77 was a magnificent event, which had as its crowning glory the repetition of the same score as in the first Test of them all. It was followed soon after by the underarm match of February 1, 1981, a controversial act directed by Greg Chappell that poured new life into the hitherto benign trans-Tasman cricket relationship. New Zealanders might also recall what some observers described as the greatest of all outfield catches, taken by the man who is now New Zealand Cricket’s chief executive, Martin Snedden, off Greg Chappell; the appeal for the catch was subsequently turned down by the umpires.Only a few days after, there was Sunil Gavaskar’s attempt to get his partner Chetan Chauhan to leave the field, after Gavaskar was doubtfully given out lbw. More recently, umpire Darrell Hair’s calling of Sri Lankan bowler Muttiah Muralitharan in the summer of 1995-96 added to the list of notorious events at the MCG.Perhaps the final irony in the MCG’s history of achievement is that arguably the best-ever innings played on the ground did not come in an official Test. Sir Gary Sobers’ 254 for the Rest of the World was rated by Bradman as the best he had ever seen. Bradman was entitled to his opinion, of course, and the MCG has certainly provided enough choices for the sports-mad Melbourne citizens to choose their own favourites.

Three new caps, Tama Canning, Matthew Walker and Craig Cumming, have been named in the New Zealand team to tour Pakistan. Hamish Marshall and Kerry Walmsley have also been recalled after long spells in the wilderness.Canning was the subject of a New Zealand query to the International Cricket Council for eligibility dispensation two summers ago when it appeared he was on the verge of making the one-day side. However, despite approval for the Australian-born Canning being given, he did not get the call-up. His parents are from New Zealand, of Maori origin, though he was brought up in Western Australia.Canning had an outstanding season for Auckland last year, taking 46 wickets, the most by any bowler in first-class play last year. He also scored 465 runs at 38.75, including one century. The second-highest wicket-taker, Matthew Walker with 45 wickets at 18, has also been included. Both players have been solid performers on the New Zealand scene for the last few summers and have also made their mark in the one-day game.The selectors, John Bracewell, Sir Richard Hadlee, Ross Dykes and Brian McKechnie have also included Cumming, the Otago captain, who scored 751 runs at 46.93 in domestic cricket last summer, including three centuries. The 28-year-old Cumming headed off the country’s highest domestic runscorer last year, Tim McIntosh, a 23-year-old who had been in good early season form for Auckland in matches with the New Zealand Academy this week.Marshall’s recall is probably the biggest selection surprise given that he is still without a century in first-class cricket, while his one-day average is only 23.56. He made his solitary Test appearance when called as a replacement on New Zealand’s 2000 tour of South Africa. While on the tour he impressed with his attitude but has so far been unable to convert that into consistent run scoring.Walmsley is another interesting choice. A big, strong fast-medium bowler, he showed some signs of regaining his form last summer for Otago when he took 37 wickets on the domestic circuit.Chris Cairns will captain the side and it may be that the unlucky Richard Jones, who has been on two Test tours with the New Zealand side, will get to make his first appearance on this tour. Michael Mason has also been included, as expected, while Mathew Sinclair has been recalled. Daniel Vettori has been named vice-captain of the side.The following players were not considered for selection: Stephen Fleming, Nathan Astle and Kyle Mills, who has a viral infection. Andre Adams and Matt Horne made themselves unavailable for selection.Hadlee, the selection manager, said: “The absence of several established players has paved the way for some others and they will now get their opportunity. For the selectors this is exciting, as we will now get to learn something about the new players’ capabilities at international level.”We are confident that several players will step up to the level required which will broaden our player base and create further competition for places in the Black Caps moving forward.”Hadlee said there was also an opportunity to look at specific areasthat had been difficult for the Black Caps in recent times. “It will be interesting to see how a new opening combination performs and how the new bowling combination performs, particularly at the end of the innings.”However, Hadlee was also realistic about the challenges in front of whatis a relatively inexperienced squad. “Playing Pakistan in Pakistan always presents unique pressures. However, this squad has the added challenges of having to come together at relatively short notice to then play five one-day internationals in nine days. It’s going to be a real test of their focus andprofessionalism.”The team: Chris Cairns (capt), Tama Canning, Craig Cumming, Chris Harris, Paul Hitchcock, Richard Jones, Hamish Marshall, Brendon McCullum (wk), Jacob Oram, Mathew Sinclair, Daryl Tuffey, Daniel Vettori, Matthew Walker, Kerry Walmsley.

In Australia a batsman needs to be patient. He also needs to rely mostly on shots square of the wicket rather than straight down the ground because of the extra bounce. Even a batsman like [Sachin] Tendulkar – who scores against all sorts of bowling across the globe – will be tested by the bounce: you have to be able to cut, pull and hook to score runs in Australia. You need to be a good player off the back foot. The advantage of batting in Australia is that the ball comes on to the bat so you can hit through the line of the ball.The range of strokes that Tendulkar and VVS Laxman possess makes them the main dangers to the Australian bowlers. These conditions are not good for Sourav Ganguly – he, and most of the others, will need to be prepared to cop a lot of short-pitched bowling. Even the great Sunil Gavaskar had problems dealing with the extra bounce. What tends to happen with visiting batsmen is that due to the extra bounce they tend to follow the ball outside off, with their hands pushing at it. But to succeed you have got to judge the line of the ball early. In India the ball comes slower off the pitch, so you can make last-minute adjustments and not get an edge, but in Australia if you misjudge the line of the ball you will end up getting an edge.Brisbane is the best pitch in Australia – and the world – as it has a beautiful covering of grass, and is always hard and even. The Gabba is notoriously live on the first day. It won’t be significantly fast, but it will have a lot of bounce, and a little bit of sideways movement, particularly in the first session. But if you can get through that period, then batting becomes easier. Conditions are best for both batsmen and bowlers on the second day: the wicket is at its fastest with maximum bounce, so there is something in it for bowlers. The ball comes on to the bat, so good batsmen can score runs and good bowlers can take wickets. Brisbane provides the best advantage to the Australians to break into the opposition batting order and stir them up quickly. A look at their recent record shows that Australia have often wrapped up matches inside four days here.Adelaide is the best batting wicket in the world, and it will favour the Indians because it will not bounce as much as the Gabba, and it will turn towards the end of the game. It is a beautiful track and the team winning the toss must bat.The wicket at the Melbourne Cricket Ground has changed over the recent years as it has been relaid. It is now a pretty bouncy pitch, not as fast as Brisbane and Adelaide, but it will provide assistance to the seamers on the first day due to its bounce, which will stay for about three days.Sydney is an ordinary pitch – it will spin a lot, and finger-spinners will find it especially helpful. Anil Kumble can prosper there as he is quick through the air, but [Stuart] MacGill and [Shane] Warne have had a lot of success, too, as they turn the ball prodigiously. There will be some life in the pitch on the first day but thereafter it will turn and the bounce will be lower.

A one-day triangular series involving Australia, India and Pakistan is likely to be held in Amstelveen, Holland, in August. According to a report in the Times of India, a spokesman for the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed that the VRA Ground in Amstelveen had been chosen as the venue, but also added the rider that the ICC would first inspect the facilities there.”The ICC inspection committee, in consultation with senior representatives of the Pakistan, Indian and Australian Boards, will clear the venue for the tournament,” the spokesman said. “The VRA Ground has already hosted a one-day international, when South Africa and Kenya played there in the 1999 World Cup.”The boards of Australia, India and Pakistan have already agreed to play a triangular tournament in Europe before the ICC Champions Trophy, which will be held in England in September 2004.

Sourav Ganguly has said the Indian team is worried about the security situation in Pakistan, a month before they are scheduled to tour. “We are not worried about the Pakistan tour, we are worried about the security there,” said Ganguly, after India had lost the second final of the VB Series at Sydney.”We are concerned because we have families at home and it is not going to be easy. We have to go back and talk to the BCCI and get a clearer picture,” said Ganguly. The BCCI’s three-man advance team left for Pakistan on the morning of February 9 to inspect Lahore, Multan, Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Karachi and Faisalabad, the various venues India is scheduled to play at. The team, comprising Ratnakar Shetty, the joint secretary of the BCCI, Amrit Mathur, director of communication and Yashvardhan Azad, a security expert.However, Ganguly clarified that the team had not made any decision yet about withdrawing from the tour. “I have heard some reports that players are not going to tour Pakistan, which is untrue. Our only worry is security. Any further comment won’t be fair at this stage.”

Wellington 210 for 2 (Fleming 120*) beat Northern Districts 209 for 9 by 8 wickets
ScorecardThe margin of victory says it all. Northern Districts, last summer’s State Shield champions, were completely outgunned again at the Basin Reserve today when Wellington, guided by another superb century from Stephen Fleming, had too much class for them. The way in which Northern Districts have fallen from grace this year has been stunning. The almost complete collapse of their top-order batting has let them down in nearly every match.It took another recovery operation by the middleand lower-order batsmen to help the team limp past 200 after Wellington opted to field. Grant Robinson top-scored for Northern Districts with 44, while Mark Gillespie (3 for 39) and Ash Turner (3 for 44) were the most successful bowlers for Wellington. On a good pitch, and with Fleming in the best form of his career, a target of 210 was never going to be much of a bother for Wellington. Fleming and Chris Nevin added 92 for the first wicket, before Nevin was dismissed for a 47-ball 49.Northern Districts tasted only one more success in the field, as Fleming ended up with an unbeaten 120 to take his team to victory. Wellington’s easy win meant that they picked up a bonus point as well, and improved their chances of making it to the semi-final.Auckland 251 for 6 (Barnes 86, Nicol 78) beat Otago 189 by 62 runs
ScorecardA 157-run fourth-wicket stand between Rob Nicol and Aaron Barnes was the highlight of Auckland’s easy win against Otago. Nicol and Barnes came together after Auckland had stuttered at the start, losing their first three wickets for just 27. Nicol contributed 78 while Barnes bludgeoned five sixes and six fours in his 86, which came off 95 balls. Kyle Mills then provided the final impetus, smashing 40 from 21 balls in the last few overs. Brad Scott (2 for 49) and Warren McSkimming (1 for 39) were the pick of the bowlers.Otago got off to a poor start, as Craig Cumming was out for a duck. Mohammad Wasim (21) and Chris Gaffaney (35) attempted to hit Otago back into the game but they were dismissed within one run of each other and with them went Otago’s chances of making a match of it. Brooke Walker’s legspin undid the batsmen – he took 3 for 29 off his 10 overs while Mills completed a good day with 2 for 23 off eight overs.Canterbury v Central Districts match abandoned
ScorecardThe top-of-the-table match between Canterbury and Central Districts never got started as the drought finally broke in Christchurch with rain forcing the early abandonment of the match.Points tally (one round remaining) Canterbury 28, Central Districts 25, Auckland 21, Wellington 19, Otago 16, Northern Districts 4.

Day 1 of 3 Central Districts 36 for 2 trail South Africans 286 for 5 (McKenzie 100*, Boucher 58) by 250 runs
ScorecardNeil McKenzie ran up an unbeaten 100 to provide the South Africans some solidity after a shaky start to their match against Central Districts at Napier. After McKenzie reached his hundred, Mark Boucher, the captain, declared the innings at 286 for 5 and gave his bowlers a dozen overs in which they reduced their opponents to 36 for 2. Andre Nel and David Terbrugge bowled with hostility and picked up a wicket each, and left Central Districts with a rebuilding job on their hands.McKenzie walked in with the South Africans tottering at 86 for 3, and struck 12 fours and four sixes in the kind of innings his team sorely needed after their failures in the one-day series. He found an ally in Boucher, who scored 58 in a 115-run partnership for the fifth wicket that rebuilt the innings. Then Nicky Boje tonked a quickfire 38 and added 81 runs with McKenzie before the innings came to a close.Jacques Rudolph struck 42 and put on 44 with Herschelle Gibbs, who was the first of Andrew Schwass’s three wickets. However, Rudolph could not convert his start into a more substantial innings, and when Schwass removed Gary Kirsten (4) and Martin van Jaarsveld (21) soon after, the score was 90 for 4. It was then that McKenzie made his case for selection.

Lancashire’s good start to their pre-season tour of South Africa continued with a win in their second match.An unbeaten 47 from Alec Swann was the outstanding performance of an 84-run win over Boland Academy in Cape Town over the weekend. “He played very well”, Mike Watkinson, Lancashire’s cricket manager, said. “But it was a good allround performance. Other batters made scores, our pace attack was too good for their lads and we took three top slip catches.”Half-centuries from Iain Sutcliffe and Mark Chilton contributed to a healthy final score of 242 for 4. Boland replied with 158, with Glen Chapple finishing with 3 for 14 and Dominic Cork 1 for 11 from 7 overs. Sajid Mahmood and John Wood also put in valuable performances.The tour kicked off with a win over Claremont last Friday.