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Ireland secured the one-day series but they were made to work for their three-wicket win, firstly by a fine hundred from Richie Berrington and then a late push by Scotland in the field

Ryan Bailey at Malahide10-Sep-2014
ScorecardKevin O’Brien made it back-to-back fifties before Ireland suffered a wobble•ICC/GettyFor over a century the Scots have been voyaging across the Irish sea armed with whites and willow. On few occasions have they not made the return journey empty-handed and even the acclaimed hospitality will have done little to enrich their humbling visits to the Emerald Isle.Their record on Irish soil in ODIs now stands at played six, lost six as Ireland once more claimed the bragging rights, but this time Scotland made them work for their victory and at 186 for 7 the result was far from assured before John Mooney calmed Irish nerves. A tighter game, though, will have done Ireland no harm in this pre-World Cup workout.Scotland are a side resigned to the protracted nature of transition but even this, a week in which they have been outplayed and outmuscled, is an alarming reality check five months out from a third appearance on the sport’s most exalted stage. There has, however, been a glimpse of light, or two, not least a striking innings from Richie Berrington, the South-African born batsman, who recorded his maiden ODI century.It was a lone hand though. Much like on Monday, the Scottish top order wilted in the face of Ireland’s calculated blitz and while Berrington, along with Josh Davey and then Ali Evans, managed to thrust their side to a semblance of respectability, they were unable to apply the same stranglehold they had been put under when Ireland went about their chase of 222.As it was, a late rally ensured the scorecard would have a polished look to it from a Scottish perspective but they were always behind the eight ball. Kevin O’Brien scored his second fifty of the series – the first time he had reached the landmark in successive games for Ireland in seven years – to once again take the sting out of any potential Scottish retaliation with the ball.However, a fine diving catch away to his right from wicketkeeper Matthew Cross off Evans to remove O’Brien, for 67 from 65 balls, in the 35th over was the moment of inspiration his side needed. Stuart Poynter was brilliantly run out by Evans at midwicket a couple of overs later and when Stuart Thompson was trapped in front by Michael Leask, Ireland were wobbling.Just as he has done on countless occasions before, Mooney, in just his second game back from an extended break from the game due to a stress related illness, played the role of finisher to ease his side over the line with five overs remaining.In truth, Ireland made hard work of a chase that ought to have been a lot more straightforward. They will, however, be all the better for the workout but for much of the early part of the match it did not appear they would be pushed that far. That they did was solely down to a century of great tenacity and perseverance from Berrington; he could teach his team-mates a thing or two.An innings which started in survival mode gradually moved through the gears as he and Davey frustrated the hosts and halted their early onslaught. Max Sorensen had accounted for three of the top four, utilising the two-paced pitch and early-morning conditions, to reduce Scotland to 48 for 5. There was a distant possibility the visiting Scots would have a free afternoon to take in the sights of the Irish capital.Berrington, however, had other ideas. His 84-run stand for the sixth wicket with Davey included an array of shots around the wicket before the latter could only fend Craig Young to gully. Berrington was having no such issues with the Irish bowlers as he struck eight fours and a powerful six to reach three figures for the first time. It was the type of innings worthy of being match winning. Ultimately, it was in vain.

A total of 10 arenas will host matches during the summer showpiece event

Getty ImagesBerlin

The capital. Always proud of multiculturalism. Wasn't a host at the 1988 European Championships, but was the venue of the World Cup final in 1974 and 2006. Since the summer tournament twelve years ago, the area has served as a major football events pilgrimage for millions of fans after stopping at the Brandenburg Gate during the day. Plagued by the love-hate relationship of Hertha BSC supporters, the Olympiastadion is seldom sold out. Stadium: Olympiastadion (Total seat capacity: 74,461)

AdvertisementGetty ImagesMunich

The heart and home of Bavaria. At the 1974 World Cup and the European Championship in 1988, matches were still played in Munich's Olympic Stadium, and both times the stadium hosted the final. Forty-four years ago, Franz Beckenbauer and Co. won the World Cup (2-1) against the Netherlands, and 14 years later, the Oranje won its only title thanks to Marco van Basten's goal against the Soviet Union (2-0). The 2006 World Cup started in the Allianz Arena when the German team defeated Costa Rica 4-2 in the opening match. Stadium: Allianz Arena (70,076)

Getty ImagesDusseldorf

According to its own statement, has the "longest bar in the world" and welcomes guests from all over the world in the Old Town. Describes itself as a sports city, but failed in the effort to host the Olympic Games in 2012. Entertains a love-hate relationship with Cologne. During the promotion of Fortuna in 2012, was the scene of a peaceful pitch invasion, which then occupied the stadium. Stadium: Merku Spiel-Arena (51,031)

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GettyStuttgart

Swabian city. Stuttgart is a mixture between narrow-mindedness and thinking big, but the city has long since transformed the prejudices into pride. They can do anything except speak without their dialect. At the 1974 World Cup and the 1988 Euros, the Italian visitors gave the Neckarstadion southern flair. In 2006, the hosts were there in third-place match against Portugal (3-1). And when VfB plays in Cannstatt, more than 50,000 regularly come to the stadium. Stadium: Mercedes-Benz Arena (54.697)

A host of NFL stars credit soccer with helping them develop their skills, while others just fell in love with the game

Much of the sporting world and most of America will be keeping a close eye on the Super Bowl on Sunday, but more than a few NFL legends may spend the earlier hours of the day taking in Liverpool's clash with Tottenham or Barcelona's derby match against Espanyol.

There is a great deal of respect for the footballing world in the NFL, even if those involved do call it soccer. 

“There is really no other game like it,” former NFL quarterback and coach Jim Harbaugh told after his Michigan Wolverines practiced with the Italian Serie A club AS Roma back in August. “I always encourage youngsters in America to play soccer.”

And Harbaugh is not alone.

Numerous current and former NFL stars got their athletic starts on a football pitch, while others fell in love with the sport as spectators later in life. 

Here's a look at the top 10 NFLers who have a confirmed affinity for the football that isn't played with primarily with hands. 

Peter G. Aiken1Marcus Mariota

Add Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota to the list of players who credit soccer with helping in their development on the gridiron. 

"I think soccer is a great fundamental sport – I think it built a foundation for me as an athlete," Mariota told in 2015. "Whether that's my footwork now, or relative to just kind of seeing the field and instincts."

Mariota believes the ability to see the field is a crucial skill that soccer helps develop, but it certainly didn't hurt the quick feet of one of the best running quarterbacks in NFL history. 

AdvertisementMitchell Leff2Jay Ajayi

A noted Arsenal supporter, Philadelphia Eagles running back Jay Ajayi will be playing in the Super Bowl on Sunday. 

Having grown up in England before moving to Texas and taking up American football, Ajayi credits his time on the pitch with helping make him hard to tackle. 

"I definitely credit my quick feet and coordination to my soccer background," Ajayi told in 2016. "I think it's helped me to be agile and have good balance. Those are things you need to have playing the game of soccer. I definitely think it's translated well."

Even during Super Bowl week Ajayi couldn't keep the other football off his mind, taking time to welcome Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to his beloved Gunners. 

Thearon W. Henderson3Wes Welker

The former New England Patriot and Denver Broncos pass catcher claims soccer helped him grow as a player, with the footwork required to run precise routes boosted by his time on the pitch. 

"I really feel that (soccer has) helped with my footwork, getting in and out of breaks, and it seems like I can take a bunch of little steps in a very quick amount of time," Welker told  in 2009. "Your feet get put in some awkward positions in football, but I'm sort of used to that from playing soccer, from moving the ball around. I definitely think that's a big part of what has made me successful in the NFL."

Welker also made use of his skills with his feet in the NFL, having kicked extra points for both the Dolphins and Patriots in his time in the league. 

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Tim Warner4DeAndre Hopkins

Another Houston Texan, DeAndre Hopkins apparently has a good bit of love for soccer, claiming on social media that if he could make it big in any sport aside from American football it would be the beautiful game. 

And if that's not enough to make a believer out of you, he recently made a trip to Paris to take in a PSG match and snap a couple shots with superstar Neymar. 

Hopkins made the right call going to the NFL. His 13 touchdown catches lead the NFL during the 2017 season. 

Richard McInnes, the head of Bangladesh’s National Cricket Academy, will quit his post by the end of April

Mohammad Isam16-Apr-2014Richard McInnes, the head of Bangladesh’s National Cricket Academy, will quit his post by the end of April. McInnes, whose contract expires in July, was relieved by the BCB and will now join a sports software company in Brisbane.The exit will bring an end to McInnes’ second tenure in Bangladesh, after the Australian had enjoyed a successful stint as the Under-19s and A team coach between 2003 and 2005. At the time, he also helped set up a high-performance unit, a precursor to the National Cricket Academy, which helped develop Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim, among others. However, his work with the NCA this time left him frustrated as he could only help a few senior players and coach the Under-19s. The academy did not admit any players last year after the Dhaka Premier Division impasse lasted six months. The uncertainty over the league ate into the off season, which is usually the time for the NCA to train young players, and McInnes had little say in the matter.”It is very frustrating,” he said. “I like to work hard and make a difference. I am not angry, and I still think Bangladesh cricket will get better.”It [the second stint] was similar to what I had expected. I knew it would be challenging. I had hoped to have more influence on the system, not just the players. And 2013 was a tough time to work in Bangladesh. Not much was done due to the political situation, so it is no one’s fault. It was difficult to achieve what I wanted to. We haven’t been able to bring a lot of players here but we have had some success with players that we were able to get to the NCA.”When McInnes took over at the NCA in August 2012, he filled a post that had been lying vacant for 10 months after Ross Turner’s departure in October 2011. He admitted his first stint – with the Under-19s, the A team and the high-performance unit – was a more fruitful one.”I actually think we achieved more last time,” he said. “We were starting at a lower base but we achieved more. Maybe that’s because we worked in BKSP where we didn’t have to ask permission for everything.”Here [at the Academy in Mirpur], the facility and opportunity is fantastic but there are a lot more complications. It is understandable because lots of teams are training here, like the senior team, women’s team, age-group and club teams and international teams. In BKSP, it was just us. The programmes were run easily.”In spite of the disappointments, McInnes said he was pleased to have helped Robiul Islam, Taskin Ahmed and Mominul Haque progress at various stages. He also stressed that the system and structure of the game in the country would need to change to bring consistent success.”We had [Robiul Islam] Shiblu in for a block of time before he went to Zimbabwe. Taskin Ahmed was with us and he went on to play in the World T20 and it went well,” McInnes said. “Mominul Haque was also with us, but we haven’t had a full programme at any point. That has been frustrating, but it wasn’t lot different than what I had expected.”When I left last time, I thought if they continue to progress at that rate, they would be mid-table in 5-7 years in the different formats. There have been some good players coming through but, in terms of overall system and structure to sustain consistent success, there hasn’t been much progress.”McInnes was also made the Under-19 coach for a while last year and, although he enjoyed the role, he felt it kept him away from his real job of developing international-level cricketers out of the ones who come up from the age-group structure.”It was never part of my role. I didn’t mind doing it, as they are a good group of players,” he said. “It didn’t allow me to do things that I was supposed to be doing. We didn’t get the Academy programme running because the DPL went on for six months.”I think the youth pipeline is okay, but as soon as they come out of the Under-19 programme, there is a big hole. No one is there to put pressure on Shakib, or [Sohag] Gazi. Domestic cricket in every country is weaker than international cricket but our gap is bigger than most.”A few months after McInnes took over, Mashrafe Mortaza praised the manner in which the NCA and the rest of the foreign coaching staff were working. It was the right endorsement as McInnes was seen as someone with prior knowledge of the players and the system. But he will now leave Bangladesh without making the sort of mark he did in 2005, and this can be put down to a situation he couldn’t improve.

Vinay Kumar’s five-wicket haul reduced Punjab from 223 for 3 to 270 all out on a day when the rain and fog stayed away

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran19-Jan-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
File photo: Vinay Kumar returned from a shoulder injury in the morning session to run through Punjab’s batting•ESPNcricinfo LtdUnlike Saturday morning which was chilly and overcast, the sun and clear blue skies made an appearance in Mohali on Sunday allowing a full day’s play.For the first half of the day, nearly everything went Punjab’s way. Karnataka captain and senior bowler Vinay Kumar had to leave the field within 10 minutes of the start due to back spasms, leaving the visitors to rely on the dibbly-dobblies of Manish Pandey in the first hour itself. Jiwanjot Singh was caught dead in front while still on 0 but the umpire turned down the lbw appeal, and the in-form opener capitalised to make a brisk 74.Punjab’s most dangerous batsman, the out-of-form Yuvraj Singh, was cruising to his highest score of the season, taking the team along to 223 for 3. The early help for the seamers had vanished, Karnataka’s part-time spinners weren’t posing much of a threat and Punjab were zipping along at nearly four-and-a-half runs an over.That was when occasional legspinner Amit Verma tossed up a high full toss which Yuvraj could have smashed anywhere he liked. Yuvraj picked out the man at deep midwicket, to be dismissed for 42 and a little over an hour later, Punjab had rolled over 270 – losing their final seven wickets for 47.The collapse was masterminded by Vinay, who had returned to the field midway through the morning session after more than an hour out. Punjab’s other remaining senior batsman, Mandeep Singh, was the first to go, trapped by a superb incutter. Two balls later, a plan worked perfectly as Vinay bowled a full ball on leg stump, only for Gitansh Khera to clip it to short midwicket, prompting a jubilant reaction from the fielder posted there for the shot. Gurkeerat Singh then nicked one to the keeper, Harbhajan Singh steered a catch to gully, and after a couple of big hits, Jaskaran Singh chipped a catch back to Vinay to complete the innings and a five-wicket haul.In Vinay’s absence, the Karnataka attack struggled to support the impressive but wicketless Abhimanyu Mithun, who hardly bowled any loose deliveries and tested the batsmen with well-directed bouncers. Ronit More, playing only his fifth first-class match, was profligate, gifting a boundary-ball nearly every over, to waste the new ball. After 10.5 overs he had been taken for 66 runs. Allrounder Shreyas Gopal also couldn’t keep the runs down, bowling the regular hit-me delivery expected from every wristspinner bar the very best. His first 12 overs went for 75.That contributed to Punjab’s top order scoring freely, and Karnataka’s decision to bowl on a track which was not particularly friendly to seamers, though it looked nearly as green as the outfield, seemed the wrong one. Opener Manan Vohra, recently in the headlines for having been retained by Kings XI Punjab, hit boundaries at will reaching a half-century at better than a run-a-ball. His opening partner Jiwanjot was a bit more sedate, but he too picked up the pace as the innings progressed.Karnataka’s early breakthroughs came more due to casual strokeplay from Punjab than from unplayable bowling. Vohra feathered through to the keeper when attempting an on-the-up drive, Jiwanjot looked to cut when the ball wasn’t too far from the stumps and Taruwar Kohli punched a harmless delivery to short cover.If Punjab were demoralised by the haste with which the middle order collapsed after that, it wasn’t evident when they came out to bowl. Manpreet Gony, in particular, was hostile as Punjab’s three quicks had the ball curling around and the flamboyant batsmen in Karnataka’s top order were forced to be circumspect. The prolific KL Rahul fell in Gony’s first over, and the usually aggressive Mayank Agarwal couldn’t score for 22 deliveries before fatally flirting with a wide ball.Robin Uthappa and Pandey knuckled down to grind out the final hour, as Karnataka progressed at well under two an over. They will have to do more of the same on Monday morning, if they are to challenge Punjab’s first-innings total.

Iain Higgins, the ICC’s head of legal affairs, has responded to the objections raised by Sri Lanka Cricket president Jayantha Dharmadasa, and stated that the resolutions to be presented to the Full Member Board for a revamp of the ruling body are all lega

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-2014Iain Higgins, the ICC’s head of legal affairs, has responded to the objections raised by Sri Lanka Cricket president Jayantha Dharmadasa, and stated that the resolutions to be presented to the Full Member Board for a revamp of the ruling body are all legally sound.On February 5, Dharmadasa had written to Higgins immediately after a special meeting of the SLC stakeholders voted unanimously against the revised proposals presented to the ICC directors at the ICC Board meeting on January 28. Higgins’ response has suggested that if any member had any objections to the proposals, they had the right to vote against it, should it be brought to vote, during the ICC’s Board meeting in Singapore on Saturday. The proposals themselves, Higgins said, could be “considered” within the ICC’s “Memorandum and Articles of Association.”While the ICC media release from the last Board meeting at the end of January stated that all ten Full Members, along with the three Associates, had “unanimously” accepted the principles of the various resolutions, not everyone was completely in favour of the proposals. In the subsequent weeks, Cricket South Africa and the Pakistan Cricket Board, followed by SLC, have publicly expressed their opposition to the proposals.In his correspondence to Higgins, Dharmadasa had said the “purported proposals” were completely against the fundamental principles on which the ICC had been formed. He feared that the revised structure would put power in the hands of “just three Full Members” and make available to them a “disproportionately large share” of the ICC funding meant for all ten Full Members. That, he said, would only violate the equal revenue-share model that was part of the ICC constitution.Dharmadasa’s most significant reservation was against the proposed “contribution costs” which would erase the existing equal distribution of funds to all Full Members from the ICC surplus. The ICC, he said, needed to have its funds distributed “in furtherance of its objectives and not as a share of profits”. Dharmadasa said the “contribution cost” was: “not a true cost and accordingly cannot constitutionally be dealt with in this manner. It is our view that the purported resolution utilises the terminology of ‘cost’ in an attempt to circumvent provisions of the Memorandum of Association, which otherwise prevent this financial model from being implemented.”Although he disagreed with rest of the points raised by Dharmadasa, Higgins was in guarded agreement that the financial redistribution model might need further discussions. “Our preliminary view is that the payment of ‘Contribution Costs’ and ‘Test Cricket Fund’ are in furtherance of the ICC’s objectives and consistent with the prevailing provisions within the ICC’s constitution. We will consider that matter further, and will reflect on your comments in that respect,” Higgins wrote.Higgins said that the three boards – the BCCI, the ECB and Cricket Australia – who had tabled the resolutions did not go against any of the ICC’s founding principles when putting together the draft of “the position paper”. “[…]On the face of the resolutions themselves, they would appear to be correct,” Higgins wrote. “Any Member who disagrees with that analysis or any of the resolutions is, of course, free to vote against the resolutions, or take such other action as they see fit.”Contesting Dharmadasa’s point that the ICC’s Finance and Commercial Affairs (F&CA) committee – that had originally prepared the ‘position paper’ based on which the final proposals were drawn and revised – did not have the “scope of power”, Higgins said the board could not be stopped from “considering” the resolution since it was being tabled by three Full Members. According to Higgins, there was nothing in the ICC’s articles of association which stated that any resolution needed to first come through a sub-committee. Further, there was no mention of the fact that any resolution on a particular aspect of the game could only come through a “sub-committee with the mandate in that area”. Higgins stated that no committee had any exclusive rights to putting forward ideas only within their scope of operations.According to Higgins, it was not necessary to give the Members “three months” notice for the proposals to be studied, as argued by Dharmadasa. The period, he said, was necessary only if the resolutions were being tabled in front of the Full Council. The ICC’s Full Council meets in June every year.

Hot Spot could be set for a late entry into the upcoming Ashes series as part of a trial for an enhanced DRS, including Real Time Snicko technology

Andrew McGlashan03-Nov-2013Hot Spot could be set for a late entry into the upcoming Ashes series alongside a trial for an enhanced DRS, including Real Time Snicko technology, having previously been jettisoned after talks between its inventor, Warren Brennan, and Cricket Australia broke down over the cost of the system.Now, however, the two parties are reported by the to have reopened negotiations less than three weeks before the Ashes resumes with the introduction of Real Time Snicko, which is also part of Brennan’s company BBG Sports, being pushed forward for full-scale use. The enhancement was trialled behind the scenes during the previous Ashes in England, but was not part of the available DRS process which was the centre of much controversy during the series.Most of that stemmed from the reliability of Hot Spot which appeared to not detect a number of thin edges with the third umpires using evidence from the stump microphones instead. Under the current DRS protocols, Snicko cannot be used due to the time it takes to match up the audio with the pictures but the Real Time version makes this an almost instant process.Earlier this year Brennan said: “I am hopeful that it would improve fine-edge detection dramatically. On most occasions, you are going to have the Real Time Snicko and Hot Spot agreeing with another. So the third umpire will now have two points of reference. There can be more consistency that way.”Although confidence in the DRS was dented during the Ashes series in England – which also sparked the controversy over taped bat edges which angered the England team – both sides remain two of the strongest supporters of using the review system and the boards are understood to be open to the upgraded version.David Saker, England’s bowling coach, still believes more correct decisions are made. “Obviously over the English summer, a few things went a little wrong with it,” he said. “But the majority of the time, they’ve got more decisions right than wrong – so I’m a big supporter of it.'”I think if we can get as many correct decisions as possible, it’s better for the game – not just for England. The decision obviously will be made by Cricket Australia, but I’d definitely welcome it for sure.”Matt Prior, the England wicketkeeper, supports the DRS if the technology is reliable. “I’m a fan of the review system and technology. At the end of the day there is a huge amount on each decision and you have to get the right decision,” he said shortly before the tour started. “If Hotspot is inaccurate it cannot be used and we have to find another way of getting to the right decision. As long as the right decision is made, that is all the players want.”An enhanced DRS – which will require approval from the ICC – would bring the role of the third umpire back to the fore. It has been suggested that because of the key position third umpires now hold in the decision-making process, away from the traditional line decisions of run outs and stumpings, that extra training is required and potentially a panel of specialist TV officials to support on-field umpires.The back-to-back Ashes have put pressure on the ICC’s elite panel of umpires because the majority come from England and Australia which makes them ineligible to stand in the 10 Tests which began in July and run until early January in Sydney.Only four umpires – Marais Erasmus, Aleem Dar, Tony Hill and Kumar Dharmasena – are available for the Test matches and are rotated through the on-field and TV roles. There have been talks about selecting from the international panel of umpires, the level below the elite, to ease the burden and Billy Bowden, who was demoted earlier this year, has been the name mentioned.

Rangana Herath has been ruled out of the fifth ODI against England, and is unlikely to play a further part in the series. He will be replaced by Sachithra Senanayake

Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Dec-2014Rangana Herath has been ruled out of the fifth ODI against England, and is unlikely to play a further part in the series, after pulling a hamstring in his left thigh during Tuesday’s fielding practice. Offspinner Sachithra Senanayake – who was cleared to bowl again earlier in the day – will immediately take Herath’s place in the squad, and may even play against England on Wednesday.Herath’s injury has not yet been fully assessed, and as such, the full extent of damage will not be known until late tomorrow. However, team manager Michael de Zoysa said it was unlikely he would play again in the ongoing series. The injury also puts him in doubt for the first Test against New Zealand, which begins on December 26, but he was unsure of playing that game in any case, thanks to separate personal reasons.Senanayake had bowled 10 overs in a List-A match in Panagoda – near Colombo – on Tuesday, and will now travel to join the team in Kandy, in the evening. De Zoysa said Senanayake will be considered for a place in the XI for Wednesday’s match.The loss of Herath is a blow to Sri Lanka, who have relied on him during the middle overs. He has seven wickets at an average of 25 in the series. Senanayake also comes into the side in some bowling form, however, having taken five wickets in three List A matches over the past week.Sri Lanka lead the seven-match series 3-1, with two games at Pallekele and one in Colombo, to play.

Australia’s selectors have decided to take no chances with key members of the side for the first Ashes Test, with Michael Clarke, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle all set to rest from this week’s Sheffield Shield matches

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2013Australia’s selectors have decided to take no chances with key members of the side for the first Ashes Test, with Michael Clarke, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle all set to rest from this week’s Sheffield Shield matches. While England’s cricketers will be warming up for the Gabba Test with a four-day match in Sydney this week, several of Australia’s Test players will also be enjoying some match practice with a full round of Shield games scheduled.But Clarke, Harris and Siddle will not be among them, and instead will head to Cricket Australia’s new high-performance facility at Allan Border Field in Brisbane to work with the Test team’s coaching staff. Clarke has scored 88, 7 and 43 in his two Shield appearances so far this summer but given his ongoing back problem, the selectors and team management are loath to take any risks with his fitness, given the number of times his injury has flared up this year.”We’re very pleased with Michael’s preparation ahead of the first Test,” the coach Darren Lehmann said. “The plan for his Ashes build-up was to play two Sheffield Shield matches, which he has done successfully. He has spent valuable time in the middle batting and fielding. Importantly his back has coped well in both matches, but we will continue to take a sensible and cautious approach to managing him.”Harris and Siddle will be the spearheads of the Test attack and will be especially important given the long list of injured fast bowlers already this season, including James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood. Harris and Siddle have each collected five wickets in two Shield matches so far this summer and will be rested from this week’s games.”On the fast bowling front, Ryan and Peter are both in great condition,” Lehmann said. “As part of their management plan they will continue their preparation under the guidance national coaching staff in Brisbane over the coming days.”Harris and Siddle are likely to be joined by Mitchell Johnson in the pace attack for the Gabba Test, while the allrounder James Faulkner could also come into consideration if Shane Watson’s hamstring injury prevents him from bowling. Australia’s squad for the first Test will be announced on Tuesday, before the Shield matches begin.

Cameron White’s composure guided Australia to a fighting, if occasionally flawed, series victory over South Africa in the third and final Twenty20 at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium

The Report by Daniel Brettig09-Nov-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsCameron White’s composure guided Australia to a fighting, if occasionally flawed, series victory over South Africa in the third and final Twenty20 at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium.Another underwhelming crowd – this time 24,187 against a capacity of about 80,000 – confirmed that cricket is more readily appreciated on television than at the ground in early November, irrespective of the format, but Australia’s steady improvement after a heavy loss in the first match in Adelaide was a vindication of a somewhat experimental squad and their interim coach Trevor Bayliss.White is not yet a part of Australia’s ODI squad with the World Cup now a matter of months away, but Mark Waugh, the selector on duty, could file a glowing report of his cool head to seal this result when others, including Glenn Maxwell and Shane Watson, may have chosen wiser strokes in pursuit of a modest total.Handy stands with Maxwell and James Faulkner, who also bowled neatly in helping restrict South Africa to a mere 6 for 145, allowed White and Australia to creep within sight, though the late wickets of Pat Cummins and Sean Abbott left South Africa in with a chance of stealing a tie or even a win.In the end a pair of white-knuckle singles off the accurate bowling of Kyle Abbott took Australia home, with White now waiting eagerly to see if he will be considered for further limited-overs duty this summer.Australia had made one change to the team that won by a wide margin at the MCG on Friday, bringing in Nic Maddinson for Nathan Reardon. South Africa dropped Kagiso Rabada, Ryan McLaren and Imran Tahir following that defeat, calling up Marchant de Lange, Robin Peterson and David Wiese.Melbourne’s drop-in pitch had offered decent pace and bounce, but the more pudding-like countenance of the Stadium Australia equivalent was demonstrated within the space of Doug Bollinger’s first over. Hendricks and de Kock were neither hurried nor troubled, and used the pace of the ball handily in raising a stand of 75 by the ninth over.It was Cummins who broke the stand, with a short ball de Kock touched behind to Ben Dunk when trying to hook, and this delivery would prove Australia’s preferred method by which to slow the visitors’ momentum. Cummins, Bollinger and Faulkner all banged the ball in to good effect, often utilising the slower bouncer. Cameron Boyce also bowled usefully, coaxing Rilee Rossouw to slap to mid-on.Having been 0 for 75 in 8.3 overs, the final 11.3 overs reaped a mere 70 runs for the cost of six wickets. It was a decline that did not merit victory, and meant that Australia were permitted a few wobbles before White took them home.