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Scorecard and ball-by-ball
How they were out

England wrapped up the second Test and series early on the third day, Matthew Hoggard taking the last two wickets to end with 5 for 73. It was another convincing win by a buoyant England side – their tenth in a row at home – who showed no mercy in either match. Bangladesh, who lost by an innings and 27 runs, have been totally outplayed, but they will take some consolation from their second innings effort in this match, with the 19-year-old Aftab Ahmed unbeaten on 82.After Michael Vaughan’s lunch-time declaration on the second day few expected that, come Sunday, England and Bangladesh would still be engaged in a contest. But Ahmed’s innings brought both teams back to Chester-le-Street, where he posted the highest score by a Bangladesh batsman against England, with Javed Omar’s 71 and Habibul Bashar’s 63 in the same innings the next best. Ahmed played with confidence again this morning, as Bangladesh edged past the 300-mark for only the ninth time in their short Test history. But he ran out of partners as Hoggard ran through the lower order to finish the game after just 17 minutes’ play.It wasn’t Hoggard’s best bowling overall, but two cracking awayswingers found the edge of Tapash Baisya – who had fought hard in a ninth-wicket stand of 60 with Ahmed – and then Mashrafe Mortaza. “I’m not quite in rhythm,” Hoggard admitted on Sky Sports afterwards, “but it’s nice to come out with a five-for. It’s nice to bowl badly and still take wickets.” And, as he collected the Man of the Match award, he promised to work hard on his no-balling in time for the Ashes.This has been a good allround performance for England, with Ian Bell in particular impressing throughout his maiden Test century and Steve Harmison bowling well. Bell has filled the No 4 spot well, while Vaughan batting at No 3 has paid off. Andrew Flintoff and Geraint Jones did not bat throughout the series, but Duncan Fletcher said that, with the Ashes firmly in mind, he did not want to disturb the batting order. England were rarely troubled throughout this series, but they know stiffer tests lie ahead.

How they were out

BangladeshTapash Baisya c G Jones b Hoggard 18 (311 for 9)
Nibbled at awayswingerMashrafe Mortaza c Trescothick b Hoggard 0 (316)
Thick edge juggled at first slip

Tamil Nadu 294 and 163 for 3 (Vidyut 70) trail Mumbai 613 (Muzumdar 146, Jaffer 133, Mane 106, Bahutule 92, Kambli 55) by 156 runs
Scorecard
The fourth day of the Ranji Trophy final at the Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai was all but dead as a contest from the off, but that didn’t stop Mumbai compounding Tamil Nadu’s misery by batting on for another session before finally being bowled out for 613. By the close Tamil Nadu had crawled to 163 for 3 off 59 overs, still 156 runs in arrears.Mumbai’s overnight pair of Amol Muzumdar and Sairaj Bahutule added another 50 in the first hour as Tamil Nadu, probably expecting a declaration, didn’t show much intensity on the field, allowing singles almost at will. Bahutule worked it around with ease, and when the opportunity arose, tonked a few over the top. He fell eight short of his hundred when he gave a return catch to Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut (563 for 6).Muzumdar, a model of patience throughout his innings, followed soon after when he slashed at a wide one from C Ganapathy and was caught by Dinesh Karthik (569 for 7). Muzumdar’s 146 included 20 fours and a six, and he later described the innings as a very satisfying one. “One really dreams of scoring a hundred in a Ranji Trophy final,” he said with a grin. “I wouldn’t say its one of my best knocks, but it’s special because of the occasion.”Mumbai’s tailenders weren’t going to give it away either. Munaf Patel and Avishkar Salvi carted a six apiece, Munaf’s crashing into the roof of the Royal Sundaram stand, and Mumbai eventually reached a daunting 613. Vidyut had the solace of taking three wickets at the death, extracting some good turn and bounce, but it was an effort that came a day too late.He had a good time with the bat as well. Opening the innings with Somasetty Suresh (36), Vidyut punched a few powerful drives into the covers. But a solid 80-run stand ended when Suresh gave a return catch to Bahutule (80 for 1), and then Sridharan Sriram (5) was stumped after being beaten behind his legs by Nilesh Kulkarni (94 for 2). Sadagoppan Ramesh, who was unable to open the innings after a bout of sickness, carved a patient 36 not out, but Mumbai had the last laugh when Vidyut was beaten in the flight by Kulkarni and stumped for 70 shortly before the close (135 for 3).An outright victory would make life sweeter for Mumbai, but whatever happens their 36th title is now all but assured. All that’s left for Tamil Nadu is salvaging some pride, and getting some runs under their belts.

HOBART, March 2 AAP – Last-placed Tasmania had little trouble ending South Australia’s slim final hopes in the Pura Cup with an eight wicket victory at Bellerive Oval today.Needing an outright win to stay in the chase for the title, the Redbacks had no answer to Tigers paceman Gerard Denton, who finished with match figures of 8-101 off 32 overs.”That’s it for us now unfortunately,” said Redbacks skipper Greg Blewett.”We had everything to play for this game, so to come away with a loss is disappointing. We have only got ourselves to blame.”The final day was almost a formality as South Australia resumed at 8-185, having been forced to follow on after a making just 122 in reply to the home team’s 285.Tasmania claimed the remaining two SA wickets to end the innings on 227, setting a target of 65.The Tigers achieved that goal before lunch for the loss of two wickets in 20.2 overs with Scott Mason unbeaten on 30 and Michael Dighton on 12.Tasmanian allrounder Dan Marsh was man-of-the-match for his 111 runs off 177 balls with 16 fours in the first innings.It was the 29-year-old’s fifth domestic first-class century.But he was rivalled by Denton, who took a career-best 5-40 off 15 overs to make a mess of SA’s first innings.The visitors improved in the second innings – thanks to Mark Higgs’ 96 not out – but were again battered by Denton, who has only recently returned to the side after an extended lay off through injury.Despite picking up six points, the Tigers remain on the bottom of the ladder.Their final match of the season is also against the Redbacks – this time in Adelaide, from March 6-9.”It’s just another cricket match we can win hopefully,” Tigers skipper Jamie Cox said.After their drubbing in Hobart, the Redbacks will no doubt be keen to redeem themselves.”We are sitting on 22 points, so we’d certainly like to finish with another outright on third or fourth (on the ladder),” Blewett said.

Even in pre-historic times the game of cricket was played in some form or the other. It’s said to originate with one player throwing a ball-like object at a stool or similar item, while another player, standing in front of it, tried to fend the ball off from hitting the target with his hand. Other players stood around waiting for their turns either to defend or attack the stool.At a later stage, players were divided into two groups or sides. While one side tried to defend the wicket, the other stood around to assist the bowler to recover the ball when struck away. In this way, fielding began and with it the practice of counting runs, when the striker hit the ball and ran to and from an appointed mark. The individual or side that scored greater number of runs was the winner, as it is today.A later development was the introduction of a piece of wood, the crooked form of a bat, instead of the hand to hit the ball with. So the essentials of the modern game, i.e. bat, ball and a wicket were all present. It became an accepted rule that if the ball hit the stool or wicket the striker was out, as he was if caught by a fieldsman before the ball touched the ground.The next change was the replacement of the stool by a single stick or stump placed behind a round hole. The hole played an important part because the batsman was obliged to put his bat into it each time he took a run. Similarly if the ball was placed into the hole when the batsman was out of his ground, he was declared ‘out’. The concept of hitting or uprooting the stump to claim a ‘run-out’ did not exist then.The further development was to enlarge the size of the target by pitching two stumps with a cross piece of wood placed on top but the hole in front of them was retained. The next move was to do away with the hole replacing it with a line in front of the wicket, the origin of the popping crease of today. Three sticks were then substituted for two and two cross pieces known as bails were placed on top of them, the whole apparatus forming the wicket.After some time the size of the wickets was standardised and remained unchanged until World War I. Then, in order to assist the bowlers who were finding it difficult to dismiss the batsmen, it was enlarged further. The principle of pitching the three stumps sufficiently close to prevent the ball going through was, however, maintained.It may be interesting to know that in the late 70s we discovered a Gandhara Art statue picture from Lord Buddha’s era in the archives of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) then BCCP. The statue depicts some boys hitting a ball with a crooked wooden stick. It indicates that the type of game discussed above, was also played in the region forming present-day Asia, long before it came to be known as ‘cricket’.Though such a pastime existed in many countries of the world before the year 1200, it is almost certain that the modern game originated in England. Cricket matches between the public schools, however, began towards the close of the 18th century. There was a good deal of wagering in these matches, which were usually played for money involving pretty high stakes.Worse than the gambling was a kind of the cheating that accompanied it. Men sat near the pavilion to give and take bets. It was normal for them to circulate a false rumour about a player, in order to influence betting. Umpires were intimidated and there is a case on record, when an umpire was dragged by the losing team to the village pond and summarily ducked.Taken up by the gentlemen of wealthy families, cricket became very popular in the 18th century. A blow from a cricket ball killed Frederick, the Prince of Wales and a devotee of the game, in 1751 but this incident did not affect the game’s popularity. Matches were played between two sides of eleven players each, although in the earlier days it was not uncommon for a strong XI agreeing to play against a team comprising of a larger number of weaker players.Similarly, there were four balls to an over but the number was increased in 1889 to five and in 1900 to six. This meant a considerable saving in time because after each over the fieldsmen were required to change their places to receive bowling from the other end. At one time the Australians even had eight balls an over, which were later reduced to six. The white coat that the umpires wear to distinguish them from the players was introduced in 1861.Cricket is perhaps the only game, which requires a player to learn so many skills, batting, bowling, fielding and wicket keeping. In the old days, the bowling was underhand. In 1794 round-arm bowling was tried in a match at Dartford but was disallowed. Sometime in the 19th century it was permitted but later changed to the over-arm style of today. Bowling can be fast, medium pace or slow. A fast bowler relies upon pace but the accuracy of line and length are highly desirable. It was the combination of these three, which made Tom Richardson, the Surrey professional, the greatest fast bowler of his times. In modern cricket, Jeff Thomson of Australia enjoyed a similar distinction.A history making controversy between authorities in England and Australia erupted when England’s fast bowler Harold Larwood, developed a theory known as ‘bodyline bowling’ and put it into action during England’s tour of Australia in 1932. Pitching his deliveries at the leg stump he devastated the Aussies by making the batsmen give away easy catches to a leg trap formed by close-in fielders. Considered as ‘negative bowling’ it was not repeated again.A googly ball attracted a great deal of attention when it was first introduced in about the year 1900. BJI Basanquet of England and the South African RO Schrwas are regarded as the inventors and perfectionists of this perplexing art of slow bowling.There were a host of great cricketers during the past centuries but their deeds were eclipsed soon after 1850, when the gigantic figure of Dr WG Grace appeared on the scene. Grace was the man who did more than any other player to make cricket a popular spectacle as well as a healthy pastime. This is proved by a well known incident, when early in an innings, Grace being probably out by an excellent stumping, was declared ‘not out’. After a loud appeal from the wicket-keeper, the umpire retorted, “These people have come to see Dr Grace bat and not to watch your monkey tricks.”A superb batsman, Dr Grace was a useful bowler and an excellent fielder too. Although no one has matched Sir Don Bradman in terms of his batting and there have been a galaxy of great cricketers since, but Dr WG Grace is regarded as the undisputed father of the game.

Northamptonshire Steelbacks kept themselves in touch with the National League Division One frontrunners as Matthew Hayden and David Sales guided them to an eight-wicket victory over Leicestershire Foxes in a rain-affected contest at Wantage Road.The third-wicket pair came to the rescue with Northants in trouble at 21-2 replying to the Foxes’ total of 220-7, and had carried the score to 103-2 from 25 overs when the weather intervened.Play was delayed for 65 minutes, and when the players made their way back on to the field the Steelbacks were left to make a further 19 in three overs to notch their third successive win.Hayden and Sales – who finished unbeaten on 69 and 43 respectively – made short work of the task, skipper Hayden settling the issue when he swept Amer Khan to the boundary with five balls remaining.Leicestershire’s batting honours belonged to opener Trevor Ward who stroked 61 from 79 deliveries including a six and six fours. He put on 82 in 15 overs with Aftab Habib (28) to make up for the early loss of Vince Wells.Ben Smith (34) and Darren Stevens (30 not out) also contributed usefully, and the Foxes were on top when Northants lost Jeff Cook and Mal Loye in the first seven overs of their reply.But the in-form Hayden, who faced 67 balls and struck 11 boundaries in his decisive knock, saw his side through to a win which leaves them just four points behind top-of-the-table Worcestershire Royals.

While the Indian Cricket League and ECB continue to spar, there is encouraging news for Mushtaq Ahmed, who has received a second No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).It comes as a surprise: earlier this month the PCB had said that they would withdraw Mushtaq’s first NOC, which would have prevented him from playing for Sussex due to his ICL involvement. But with this second certificate, it seems increasingly likely that Mushtaq’s county career should continue. For the time being, at least.”We’ve provided the ECB with a second certificate, which we received onMonday, and we are just waiting for everything to be formalised,” said Gus MacKay, the Sussex chief executive. “We don’t foresee a problem.”In Mushtaq’s favour – certainly in the eyes of the PCB – was his delay in playing for his ICL side, the Lahore Badshahs, which seems to have helped in his bid for a second NOC. Yorkshire, though, are still waiting on Rana Naved-ul-Hasan who has already played for Lahore.

The investigations into the murder of Bob Woolmer, the late Pakistan coach, are reported to have reached a significant breakthrough with a likely suspect being identified through footage from the hotel security camera. According to a report in the UK-based , detectives from Scotland Yard and a team of 30 officers studied the digitally-enhanced footage and the suspect was understood to be a male, though police were unable to confirm his identity.”The cleaned-up images from London show at least one individual of considerable interest to the inquiry,” a source close to the investigation told the paper. “The time of the footage and its location mean that this individual must be considered a suspect. Further work is being done on statements given by individuals to look at any inconsistencies. It is good progress.”Woolmer was found dead in his hotel room in Jamaica on March 18, a day after Pakistan’s loss to Ireland, and though the cause of death was determined, the authorities had struggled to develop lasting leads in the murder case. There was speculation that Woolmer may have been poisoned first before being strangled, as a toxicology report stated that samples taken from his blood, stomach and urine had shown the presence of a foreign substance.An inquest into the murder was scheduled for April 23 but had to be postponed owing to ‘significant developments’ into the case. Twenty witnesses were due to provide evidence but a statement from the Jamaican justice ministry on Thursday said the hearing would be postponed following advice from the coroner.

Distractions come in all shapes and sizes, as both England and Sri Lanka have been discovering on the eve of the first Test at Lord’s. While Sri Lanka’s preparations have been undermined first by some untimely criticism from the chairman of selectors, Ashantha de Mel, and latterly by the impending return of their veteran opener, Sanath Jayasuriya, England have a more intangible problem. They just can’t lay the Ashes to rest.Admittedly, it is the nicer problem to have. England’s first home Test after the summer before is set to take place almost eight months to the day after the Ashes triumph at The Oval last year, and for England’s stand-in captain, Andrew Flintoff, enough is enough. “There’s still an excitement about cricket and people are still talking about last year,” he told reporters on the eve of the game, “but at some point we’ve got to move on, and that’s going to be tomorrow morning.”Lord’s in the spring sunshine is a living, breathing metaphor for rebirth and renewal, with the smell of cut grass and the verdant greenery leaving you in no doubt that summer is round the corner. And when England take the field tomorrow, with a team comprising at least four men who’ve never played in a home Test before, they’ll have no option but to accept that the future is, in fact, the present.One of those new faces seems certain to be Sajid Mahmood, the Lancastrian paceman who endured a tough baptism in a one-day defeat against New Zealand two years ago, before re-emerging with mixed success against India this winter. “I’m sure he’ll have a few nerves jangling about,” said Flintoff, “but he’s a laid-back lad and he’ll get on with it. He’s quick, tall and gets bounce as well, so there’s definitely a good future for him.”England have delayed naming their team until they’ve taken one last look at a pitch that Flintoff imagined would be a good, flat batting deck, but with Alastair Cook already guaranteed his place at No. 3 ahead of Ian Bell, the final name seems a straight choice between the spinner Monty Panesar, and the extra seamer, Jon Lewis, who destroyed the Sri Lankans with nine wickets for England A at Worcester last week.

For all that England start as overwhelming favourites, to go into the match without a recognised spinner would be a huge gamble. As Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka’s captain, pointed out, visiting sides have a tendency to raise their game whenever they visit Lord’s. In three separate visits since 1984, five Sri Lankan batsmen have added their names to the dressing-room honours board, including Jayawardene himself, who led a Sri Lankan run-fest in 2002 with 107 out of a towering total of 555 for 8.Only three of England’s players were around to witness that performance, but seeing as they were the key triumvirate of Flintoff, Marcus Trescothick and Matthew Hoggard, it’s a safe bet that their team-mates will be guarded against complacency. Hoggard endured a particularly torrid time, disappearing for 160 runs in 39 overs. Four years later, however, he stands on the brink of becoming the ninth England cricketer to take 200 Test wickets.”It would be fantastic to join an elite group of Englishmen,” said Hoggard, whose own Test debut also came at Lord’s, a gripping two-wicket victory over West Indies in 2000. The identity of his new-ball partner has yet to be confirmed – but it won’t be Steve Harmison, whose return to competitive action for Durham against Middlesex has been postponed because his wife has gone into labour.”I don’t think you’ll find a like-for-like replacement for Steve Harmison,” added Flintoff, as if to underline both England’s loss in this match, as well as the burden on his and Hoggard’s shoulders. Between them they have taken 97% (364 out of 372) of the wickets shared by England’s anticipated attack.As ever, Flintoff was his cheery phlegmatic self as he fronted up for the cameras. “I don’t think you can put the England captaincy and burden in the same sentence,” he reiterated when asked about the workload that has been forced upon him in the absence of Michael Vaughan.And besides, he still seemed a little starstruck after performing a duet with Elton John at his benefit dinner in Battersea the night before. “It was fantastic, something special for everyone there – though not me singing!” he said of his duet to the strains of Rocket Man. “But now I’m getting back to what I know best, playing cricket.”If only it were so simple for Sri Lanka, however. A desperately destabilising week shows no sign of abating, and the arrival of Jayasuriya midway through the match will only complicate matters further. However, their coach Tom Moody denied that the off-field issues had been a distraction. “We’re at Lord’s, we’ve had a couple of very good days of preparation, and we’re blessed with good weather,” he shrugged. “We’ll just concentrate on our game, and if we perform consistently, we’re sure we’ll be where we want to be after the fifth day.”Any side with Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas in their bowling attack cannot afford to be taken lightly, however, and for Murali, who has 611 wickets to his name but none as yet at Lord’s, the urge for a command performance in what is likely to be his first and last Test at the ground will be overwhelming.”I’m not the best one to ask!” joked Flintoff when asked what tips he had passed on to England’s youngsters. “Murali’s tricky, but he’s a great bloke as well. I’ll pass on advice, but when you face him, you’ve got to figure it out for yourself. Against someone as good as him, you just have to think on your feet.”England (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick, 2 Andrew Strauss, 3 Alastair Cook, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Paul Collingwood, 6 Andrew Flintoff (capt), 7 Geraint Jones (wk), 8 Liam Plunkett, 9 Sajid Mahmood, 10 Matthew Hoggard, 11 Monty Panesar.Sri Lanka (probable) 1 Michael Vandort, 2 Upul Tharanga, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 5 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 6 Thilan Samaraweera, 7 Farvez Maharoof, 8 Chaminda Vaas, 9 Nuwan Zoysa, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Lasith Malinga.

Peter Moores, Sussex’s highly rated coach and former captain, was today unveiled as the new director of the ECB Academy. The appointment was confirmed at a press conference on a second rain-affected day of Sussex’s opening championship fixture at The Oval, and Moores, 42, promised to build on the solid foundations that have been laid by his predecessor, Rod Marsh, who steps down from the role in September.The England & Wales Cricket Board has long had its eye on Moores, who joined Sussex as a wicketkeeper in 1985, and went on to become their coach 12 years later. In 2000-01, he was asked to lead the England A squad on their winter tour of West Indies, but his county stint reached its zenith in 2003, when he steered the team to a maiden County Championship title after 164 years.”My whole philosophy on coaching is one of getting excellence out of players,” said Moores, “rather than putting it in.” As a wicketkeeper, his career overlapped with the era of Jack Russell and Alec Stewart, but he insisted his lack of international experience would have no bearing on his ability to do the job. “My ambition, like every county player, was to play international cricket, but I never quite got there. Even so, I loved the fact that every year you had that opportunity.”Since moving from playing to coaching, however, Moores’s international call-up has been looming large. Last winter he was on a shortlist of two to take over as West Indies’ coach, a role that eventually went to Bennett King, and now he has beaten off other likely contenders such as Tom Moody for the Academy role.”I didn’t have a burning desire to do the West Indies job,” admitted Moores. “They asked me to apply so I did. But the Academy is a fantastic job in its own right, so I’m going to get stuck in and give it the best I can. Coaches are no different to players. You play with a view to playing internationals, and as a coach, the thought of coaching the best players on the best stage available is very appealing.”It is a large pair of shoes that Moores is being asked to step into, however. In his four years in charge, Marsh has built the Academy from concept to fruition, and a steady flow of players is now beginning to graduate through the ranks, with Andrew Strauss and Kevin Pietersen the most prominent of England’s recent additions.”Rod has a reputation as a fantastic coach,” said Moores, “but I’ve got my style, he’s got his. I’ve never worked with him, so I’ll just being doing it in my way, which is to judge it as you see the player. The most important thing is whoever does the job does it well. Rod’s been there, put the groundwork in, established the standards that are needed, and started to produce players. My job is to build on what Rod’s done, and move it forward.”By 2007, the ECB have said they hope that at least 90% of the England team will have come through the ranks of the Academy, although Moores was wary of setting such targets. “For me, the challenge is to make people better. Getting into the England side depends on how well the team is doing, and the individuals in that team. The better they do, the harder it is for new players to come through, so it’s difficult to know if we can achieve those targets. All we can do is ensure that everyone who goes through the Academy can come out a better player and a more rounded person.”Moores refused to single out the Academy as the single most important aspect of England’s recent renaissance. “There have been so many different factors,” he said, “although the Academy is definitely a very positive move. It allows you to know the people, meet the standards and understand the way things are meant to be in an England set-up, before you actually get there. And it gives you a chance to work positively on your game in the winter months, when you might not otherwise have had the opportunity.”The new coach takes up the reins on October 1, which means he has plenty time in which to settle into his new role, and perhaps most importantly, forge a working relationship with Duncan Fletcher, something that was not always apparent about his predecessor, Marsh. “Obviously I’ve met Duncan before, but I’m looking forward to working closely. Until then, however, I’ve got a county season to run, and I’m going to make sure I leave Sussex in good shape, and maybe even with a trophy.”That might be easier said than done, however. The timing of this announcement will ensure that a visit to Hove will be at the top of every aspiring England candidate’s wishlist. Sussex may just find themselves becoming the team that everyone wants to beat.

The International Cricket Council will deliver its verdict on England’s proposed tour to Zimbabwe on Wednesday morning.The ICC, whose board is meeting in Auckland, has been debating a number of issues, with the Zimbabwe situation high on the agenda. Although the England and Wales Cricket Board is yet to formally make a decision on whether to tour in October, the signs are that it will opt to stay away.There has been talk that if England do follow this course of action, then the ICC Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held in England in September, could be moved elsewhere. On Monday, Ehsan Mani said that his view was that the tournament should not be affected by any bilateral issues between England and Zimbabwe – no matter how serious they were.The meeting will also discuss the possibility of the ICC moving its base from Lord’s to another cheaper location. Malcolm Speed, the ICC’s chief executive, revealed that it is looking at relocating to one of six other countries. He explained that the major factors will be tax benefits and cost of living.