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Mahela Jayawardene: back to form with a gutsy 86 not out © Getty Images 2003

Mahela Jayawardene guided Sri Lanka into a dominant position on the rain-affected fourth day at Galle with a patient 86 not out, including a last-wicket stand of 46 with Muttiah Muralitharan. England were set 323 to win, and with Murali all ready to flex his rubbery wrist on a wearing pitch, the rain which brought an early finish was a welcome sight for England – but a frustrating one for Sri Lanka.After a heartening final session last night, the onus was on England to take quick wickets in the morning and limit the lead to manageable proportions. But that didn’t happen. Their first breakthrough eventually came after the morning drinks break, and even that was in controversial circumstances.Chaminda Vaas, who had batted with typical resolve for his 19, was caught at short-leg by Paul Collingwood to give Ashley Giles his seventh wicket of the match. There was some doubt, however, as to whether Vaas had actually touched the ball, as it ballooned off his pads into Collingwood’s hands. And though umpire Venkat had no hesitation, Vaas’s reaction spoke volumes as he stalked off the pitch. He flung his gloves and helmet to one side as he reached the boundary rope, much as Sanath Jayasuriya had done in similar circumstances at Kandy in 2000-01.For most of the morning, England laboured for little reward, as Vaas and Jayawardene fended off the best efforts of Andrew Flintoff and the spinners, Giles and Gareth Batty. With a lead of 195 in the bag already, there was no need for risks, and the batsmen limited themselves to singles and the odd extravagance, such as the lofted four that Vaas smacked back over Batty’s head.It was slow going, and even after a two-hour rain break, Sri Lanka continued to show little urgency and crawled along at two runs-an-over. Chandana soon paid the price for his negativity when he padded up to a straight one from Giles, and was given lbw by Venkat (163 for 7). Jayawardene then eventually reached his half-century off 192 balls – and just under four hours – but still they were in no hurry to extend the lead, which was trickling towards 300.Matthew Hoggard took the new ball and immediately grabbed his first wicket of the match – and the tour – when he trapped Kumar Dharmasena lbw stone dead in front of middle (179 for 8). Flintoff was then rewarded for his tireless efforts when Dinusha Fernando edged him to Marcus Trescothick, who again showed off his party trick of juggling the ball a few times before clasping it (180 for 9).

Lucky break: Ashley Giles celebrates the wicket of Chaminda Vaas © Getty Images 2003

But whether it be with bat or ball, Murali always livens things up, and today was no exception. He strode out with his ever-present grin, and then smeared Flintoff over cover and slashed Hoggard past point, both for four. Jayawardene suddenly came to life as well. He thumped Johnson for two successive boundaries over midwicket to take the lead past 300, and smacked Giles back over his head for another four.Again the bowlers could not finish off the job quickly. For a No. 11, Murali was surprisingly comfortable, and his partnership with Jayawardene sapped England’s morale even further. After Murali eventually edged Batty to Collingwood at short leg for a handy 13, England were left pondering their almost impossible bid to save this game.If only rain can rescue England now, then it came to their aid after just one over in to their second innings. Trescothick and Michael Vaughan walked out in spitting rain, and then hurried off five minutes later as the downpour started. Play was inevitably called off at 5.30pm local time, and England will need more bad weather tomorrow if they are going to escape with a draw.

The Mashonaland team to play Matabeleland at Bulawayo Athletic Club this weekend is as follows:Ryan Butterworth, Lance Malloch-Brown, Kudzai Taibu, Barney Rogers, Craig Evans, Blessing Mahwire, Darlington Matambanadzo, +Donald Campbell, Patrick Gada, *Gus Mackay, Simon Seager. 12th man: Andre Neethling.The match between Midlands and Mashonaland A, at Kwekwe Sports Club, has been postponed until next weekend. The squad for the season is as follows (the international players being unavailable For the Midlands match as they will be touring India):Andy Flower, Grant Flower, Stuart Carlisle, Dion Ebrahim, Gavin Rennie, Paul Strang, Brighton Watambwa, Mark Vermeulen, Trevor Gripper, David Mutendera, Henry Olonga, Alester Maregwede, Andy Blignaut, Norbert Manyande.In addition Blignaut will be unavailable for the Midlands match; he has offered no reason for his absence.

The Bihar-Orissa under 14 match played at the Keenan Stadium in Jamshedpursaw Bihar win the toss and lose first day honours. After electing to batfirst, Bihar skipper Rajdeep Roy saw things go badly wrong for his side asthey were skittled out for a mere 145.After starting poorly, when Bihar lost their first three wickets with justnineteen runs on the board, they were furthered hampered by the loss ofwickets at regular intervals. Th wickets were shared all around with SumitSagar Hembram, Amitav Naik, Tukuna Sahu and Dhiraj Singh scalping twowickets apiece. At the end of 35 overs Bihar were staring down the barrelat 69/7. However, a gritty innings of 38 from number eight batsman S Nadeemsaved Bihar the blushes. Santosh Kumar and Madan Kumar, who followed Nadeemmade 18 each and Bihar managed to scrape through to 145 all out.In response, the Orissa side fared much better than its counterparts.Despite losing a couple of wickets, Orissa put 55 runs on the board whenstumps was called. With eight wickets in hand, Orissa have a good chance ofoverhauling Bihar’s first innings total.

Heading into Tottenham Hotspur’s clash with Liverpool in the Premier League, Thomas Frank would have been hoping for a response from his hot-and-cold troops.

Indeed, off the back of a demoralising 3-0 loss away at Nottingham Forest, the Dane remained under intense pressure to succeed in North London, and he hasn’t helped his precarious job position by following up that humiliation at the hands of the Tricky Trees with a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Liverpool.

Spurs’ mission to pick up a much-needed three points was not boosted by Xavi Simons’ reckless dismissal in the first half, as the number seven’s bumpy start to life in England continued against the resurgent Reds.

How Xavi Simons let Spurs down

Simons’ arrival in North London for £52m attracted a lot of fanfare in the summer, with the expectation that the former RB Leipzig man would instantly settle into life swimmingly in his new surroundings.

Having scored two goals against Brentford and Slavia Prague earlier in the month, the hope would have been that Simons could now kick on, having found the initial transition hard.

Unfortunately, though, he would only last 33 minutes against the Merseyside giants, with zero efforts attempted on Alisson’s goal, before being given his marching orders for this mistimed challenge on Virgil Van Dijk.

Coming out after the 2-1 defeat with a public apology, Simons will pray, when he does return, that he can finally find some consistent red-hot form for Spurs, or he will surely fear that he’s already been dismissed as an expensive flop.

He isn’t the only flop in the attacking areas that will be frustrating the Spurs masses at the moment, though, as this other high-profile summer acquisition constantly spurned chances up against the reigning Premier League champions.

Frank must drop this other Spurs flop

Frank will know if he doesn’t steer the sinking Spurs ship back on course soon that he could face the sack already, as the board will not want consistently poor results.

He does have plenty of time now on the training pitch, as his side’s next Premier League test isn’t until the 28th, but he will be hesitant to start Randal Kolo Muani up front against Crystal Palace in the immediate aftermath of the 2-1 defeat, after his wasteful showing against Liverpool.

Muani’s performance in numbers

Stat

Muani

Minutes played

80

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Shots

4

Big chances missed

1

Touches

17

Accurate passes

6/7 (86%)

Stats by Sofascore

In total, the France international would see four shots pass him by, with one header very close to beating Alisson, before Simons’ red card dominated the narrative.

Away from looking lively in spurts when through on goal, Muani would – unfortunately – become isolated during large spells of the game, with only six accurate passes tallied up by the 27-year-old in total.

Moreover, come the end of his 80 minutes on the pitch, the hot-and-cold number 39 would amass fewer touches of the ball than Guglielmo Vicario in between the sticks, with the Italian’s tally standing at 38 touches, next to Kolo Muani’s paltry 17.

To make matters even worse for the Spurs loanee, who is breaking the bank with his £150k-per-week salary, Richarlison would only be on the pitch for a matter of moments as his replacement when he buried home this opportunity, leading to Spurs content creator Jonny Blain hailing his cameo as “superb”.

Subscribe for sharper Tottenham match insights Get deeper Tottenham player and match analysis by subscribing to the newsletter. Expect clear breakdowns of performances, transfer value debates, and lineup calls so you can follow Spurs’ story with confidence. Subscribe Subscribe for sharper Tottenham match insights Get deeper Tottenham player and match analysis by subscribing to the newsletter. Expect clear breakdowns of performances, transfer value debates, and lineup calls so you can follow Spurs’ story with confidence.

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Could Frank now be tempted to start the ex-Everton attacker over the 27-year-old for the short trip over to Selhurst Park?

With Richarlison boasting another six Premier League goals for the season, it does feel like an easy swap to make, with Muani still yet to break his league duck for Frank’s men, ten games into his journey in the English top-flight.

His inaccurate display in front of goal against the Reds does make for a convincing argument to suggest he was as bad as Simons was, even with the Dutchman barely lasting only half an hour on the pitch, as Muani had far more time to leave his mark on the game, and he didn’t.

Frank will just hope, whatever lineup he decides to field against the Eagles, that another Premier League win comes his team’s way soon, with Muani likely to be cast aside from his starting XI plans if he continues to fire blanks.

Related A better signing than Simons: Spurs hold talks to sign big-money PL star

Tottenham’s attacking additions from the summer have left something to be desired.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair

New South Wales 281 & 5 for 352 (Hughes 116, Katich 92, Clarke 64) lead Victoria 216 by 417 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

	Phillip Hughes scored his maiden first-class century to put New South Wales well on top © Getty Images

Phillip Hughes and Simon Katich both entered the record-books as they guided New South Wales to an almost unbeatable position on the third day of the Pura Cup final in Sydney. Hughes underlined his potential as a future Test player with 116 before Katich and Michael Clarke combined to all but bat Victoria out of the match.The Bushrangers began the day hoping to dismiss the Blues and pursue a target of under 300; they finished facing a 400-plus chase on a pitch that will assist Stuart MacGill. New South Wales ended the day at 5 for 352 with Dominic Thornely on 19 and Beau Casson on 12. As has been the case all summer, one of the key architects of their success was Katich, who made 92 and became the all-time highest run scorer in a Pura Cup season.Katich passed Michael Bevan’s record of 1464 set at Tasmania in 2004-05 and he received a standing ovation from the SCG crowd when he achieved the milestone with a single turned behind square leg off Bryce McGain. Katich ended up with 1506 runs at 94.12, although he was denied a sixth century when he was run out attempting a quick single at the call of his partner Clarke.The other important contribution came from Hughes, the most inexperienced man in a New South Wales side overflowing with international expertise. At 19, Hughes became the youngest player to score a century in a Pura Cup final, beating the previous most junior centurion, Martin Love, who was nearly 21 when he achieved the feat in 1994-95.Although Victoria picked up a few late wickets with the new ball – they grabbed 3 for 22 in four overs – they looked destined to finish the season with only a Twenty20 title having reached the deciders in all three competitions. Their problem was a lack of wickets in the first session. McGain and the part-time offspinner Brad Hodge both looked dangerous and McGain was extracting big turn out of the footmarks but despite some nervy moments Hughes survived, first with Phil Jaques and then with Katich.Runs came quickly in the morning as Victoria strained for wickets and Hughes was lucky to escape when he edged Dirk Nannes just over the slips for a boundary when he was on 14. The stroke was sandwiched between two poor Nannes full tosses that Hughes also put away for fours, and that gave the batsman confidence. He drove Peter Siddle’s half-volleys effectively and brought up his half-century from only 39 deliveries with a cover-driven four off McGain.

	Simon Katich made 92 and finished with a record 1506 runs for the Pura Cup season © Getty Images

The rate slowed after Jaques departed lbw for 23 to a vicious McGain legbreak that zipped out of the rough and stayed so low it struck the batsman’s ankle. Their 75-run opening stand had already frustrated Victoria, and the 145-run partnership between Hughes and Katich that followed was even more irritating for the visitors.Hughes eased his rate but not his concentration, reaching triple-figures for the first time in only seven first-class games. His hundred came from 153 deliveries and he fought off McGain, who finished with 1 for 72 and was disappointed not to make more of the SCG pitch. It was Victoria’s secondary legspinner, Cameron White, who finally removed Hughes for 116. An attempted slog-sweep was top-edged to point, where McGain took the chance but must have been annoyed after Hughes struck him for six with a similar stroke two overs earlier.Katich was typically obdurate and only hit five fours, instead working the ball to all parts of the ground. He said before the match he had not even thought about breaking Bevan’s record and was solely focused on securing the title for his state; there might turn out to be a strong correlation in the two aims. His century did not eventuate as Andrew McDonald at cover threw down the stumps at the striker’s end to find Katich well short.Clarke, seemingly reacting to his costly call, vented his frustration in the next over with three boundaries off Siddle, including a perfectly clean aerial drive over the bowler’s head. Siddle’s revenge came quickly, however, when Clarke was caught behind for 64 backing away and attempting a cut. Brad Haddin followed when he too tried to slog Siddle and played on, but the lead was already approaching 400.Victoria believed they had a chance to win if they could dismiss New South Wales before the close of the third day, which they failed to achieve. Over the past few years they have been better than most teams at chasing huge targets, however with two days to play on a wearing SCG pitch against a Test-quality attack, it will take a miraculous effort for the Bushrangers to stop the Blues securing the last Pura Cup before the competition changes its name.

Geoff Barnett fetches a boundary during his knock of 40. He also represents Central Districts © Getty Images

Andy Pick, the Canada coach, said he was in awe of the commitment shown by his mainly amateur side after they bowed out of the World Cup with a 114-run defeat to New Zealand.Although they lost all three of their matches, Canada scored over 200 in all and improved their record World Cup total, saving their best for last with 249 against New Zealand, beating their previous highest of 228 for 7 against England on Sunday.For a team featuring a salesman, an investment banker, a telephone technician and a forklift truck-driver and just one current first-class player in opening batsman Geoff Barnett, these were notable achievements. Barnett plays for Central Districts in the New Zealand domestic circuit.Pick, the former Nottinghamshire pace bowler, who has been on a one-year sabbatical from his post as coach of the England Under-19 team, praised the huge sacrifices the Canada players had made just to be at the World Cup.”I’m absolutely amazed,” Pick said. “I’m in awe of the commitment of the Canadian players. This winter we’ve been to Pretoria for two-and-a-half-weeks, to Kenya for a month and we’ve been here for a month.”For players to take that sort of time off work, some without pay, some guys lose jobs or some guys give up their family holidays for the next two years or whatever it might be, for very little recompense if any.””They deserve days like today,” Pick added after Thursday’s match against New Zealand. “They deserve all the credit for that because some of these guys go to work at 5am in the morning, finish at 5pm, drive for an hour-and-half, do three hours practice, go home, have something to eat, go to bed and do the same next day. And that’s when it’s minus 30. For the guys based in Canada it is a phenomenal effort.”Looking ahead, Pick said Canada could hold its own with the best of the associate or junior nations – the team play Ireland in the final of the four-day ICC Intercontinental Cup tournament in May.”I see Canadian cricket competing with the other associates who have professional frameworks in place and structures that develop youth talent. At the moment, Canada hasn’t got that simply because of a lack of money. If and when we get some money into Canadian cricket, there’s potential for growth that there isn’t in other countries.”He added that the talk of ‘minnow’ nations devaluing the World Cup was wide of the mark. “If the ICC are looking to expand the top group of teams, as they’ve done in the past with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, it’s essential we play in these competitions. That’s what they want to do and all credit to them.”

In East London the Warriors held on admirably against the Dolphins, who lead the table, as Arno Jacobs batted through the day to end on 135 not out. With only 68 overs possible in the day the Warriors were 287 for 8, still 225 behindon the first innings, when bad light again brought an end to the day.Starting the day at 84 for 3 the Warriors progressed to 223 for 6 andwere well on their way to avoid the follow-on, but two quick wicketsreduced them 223 for 8. Mario Olivier and Jacobs steadied the sinkingship with an unbroken stand of 64 coming off the final 20 overs of theday. The Warriors still have a bit to do on the final day to salvage adraw.In Bloemfontein the Lions and the Eagles are heading for a draw unlesssome inspired captaincy comes to the fore. Nicky Boje, taking 4 for 106,could not stop the Lions from taking a slender first innings lead of 34thanks to Justin Ontong, leading from the front, scoring 102 as theLions totalled 375. At 40 for 3 the Eagles looked to be in trouble butDavey Jacobs, unbeaten on 56, and Morne van Wyk (28*) willcontinue tomorrow from 135 for 3.In Benoni the Cape Cobras have their backs up against the wall as theTitans took control of the match. At the close the Cobras had struggledto 95 for 5, still 61 runs behind after the Titans had finished on 327.A fifty from Goolam Bodi and thirties from Godfrey Toyana and Dale Steyngave the Titans a 156-run lead. The in-form Rory Kleinveldt was againthe Cobras’ leading wicket taker with 4 for 66. With Derrin Bassageundefeated on 50 the Cobras will be looking for a miracle to avoid aheavy defeat as they head into the final day.

Railways 355 and 362 for 8 (Yadav 97, Bangar 77, Goud 96*) lead Punjab 309 by 408 runs
ScorecardWith an indomitable display of attritional batting, Railways all but wrapped up their second Ranji Trophy title as Punjab were ground out of the contest on a corpse-like pitch. Sanjay Bangar’s austere innings set the tone, before Yere Goud and the tail blocked their way to an impregnable position.Goud entered at a time when Punjab were threatening yet another of their umpteen fightbacks. Raja Ali, who top-scored in the first innings, had nicked one to the wicketkeeper and Railways were 251 runs ahead with two off-colour batsmen and the tail to follow. Teams have consistently chased 300-plus totals this season and on a pitch devoid of all life Punjab were still clinging on. Goud’s six matches this season had produced just 145 runs (avg 24.16) and he was soon joined by Tejinder Pal Singh, who had averaged 28.In the next four hours, though, Goud’s slumber-inducing doggedness brought the Railways dressing-room back to life. Every assured leave was followed by raucous cheers and with a series of prods, pushes and composed pad-play, he nibbled away at time, and inched Railways towards the title. Goud’s former team-mate at Karnataka, Rahul Dravid, might have applauded every step and after tea he even unfurled some expansive cover-drives, exaggerated follow-through and all. Right at the end of the day, a pendulum-smooth swing over long-off took him from 90 to 96, and Punjab were experiencing death by torture – slow, hopeless and inevitable.What Goud can do, Bangar can do better. In Bangar’s world the cricket field is a battleground, opponents will be blunted, trench warfare will rule. Why glide when you can struggle? And he turns into a blur if someone like Jai Prakash Yadav is bubbling at the other end. He was reprieved twice – both times by Sandeep Sawal at first slip – but with an emotionless method he consolidated a dominant position.Unlike the other two, though, Yadav prefers a rapid extermination. He continued his violent methods, including effortless swipes for six, and sped past the 70s and 80s. His aggressive intentions probably deprived him of his first hundred of the season, getting a top edge while trying to cut fiercely, as he was dismissed for 97 off VRV Singh. But it was an innings that turned the game within the space of a few overs, with an explosive effort that put an end to all thoughts of fightbacks.Bangar and Goud then put an end to the contest.How they were outJP Yadav c Dharmani b VRV Singh 97 (179 for 3) Attempted to cut at one that was short and wide but nicked it straight to the wicketkeeper.Bangar b Rajesh Sharma 77 (205 for 4) Pushed at one that turned sharply and played on.Ali c Dharmani b Gagandeep 14 (205 for 5) Wafted outside off.Tejinder Pal Singh lbw Rajesh Sharma 12 (236 for 6) Beaten by a good-length ball that spun sharply and struck in front.Wankhede c Dharmani b Sodhi 24 (302 for 7) Edged trying to drive through the covers.Parida lbw b Kakkar 6 (333 for 8) Missed a faster ball and was rapped on the pads.Siddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Cricinfo.

Zimbabwe have named their A team for the three-day match against West Indies next week at Takashinga, Henry Olonga’s former club.Dion Ebrahim will lead the side in which seven players have international experience. This is the only warm-up match for West Indies ahead of two Tests, the first of which begins on November 4 at Harare.Zimbabwe A
Dion Ebrahim (capt), Travis Friend, Craig Evans, Stuart Matsikenyeri,Barney Rogers, Elton Chigumbura, Gavin Ewing, Alester Maregwede (wkt), Jordane Nicolle, Blessing Mahwire, Vusimuzi Sibanda, 12th man: Conan Brewer.

The convincing victory at the Green Park Oval in Kanpur is really whatis expected of the Indian side considering its potential. It was a muchbetter performance coming on the heels of their hara-kiri at Chennai,even though they managed to win there. The consistency of the visitorsin throwing away good starts through some ordinary batting in the middleovers helped India to keep the game well under control. I hasten to addthat this is no attempt to discredit the bowlers, but the English middleorder has made it a habit to allow the opposing side to get back intothe game.Nick Knight and Marcus Trescothick got off to a flyer, with Knightfinally coming good on a low and slow track at the Green Park. The pitchat this venue has been the same for too long, and no attempt has beenmade to improve the surface. The Green Park is one of the oldest andmost-used centres in the country, and it is a shame that the authoritiesdo not pay attention to the most important aspect of a cricket ground.Inasmuch as the officials grumble if a match is not allocated to aparticular venue, they do not seem to be concerned about the playingconditions that they provide. It is not that the associations lack fundsor resources, but the indifferent attitudes still prevail with gayabandon.Coming back to the game, the weather gods decreed a truncated match and,in such a situation, it is imperative to alter the game plan. Knight,who was due for some runs, hit his way back into form and in doing thatshowed why he has such a good record. Knight’s career took a dip afterthe 1999 World Cup, and that was due to some indifferent treatment fromthe English team management. His was severe against Ajit Agarkar inparticular, hitting him on the up, and he also used the different modesof sweep against the spinners productively. Javagal Srinath was onceagain on target; in the last six months, he has shown a lot ofadaptability in his bowling. He has been criticised for lackingvariation over the years, but of late he has been varying his pace wellenough to outwit the batsmen.

© CricInfo

© AFP

Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar, who have similar mannerisms andend up confusing the onlookers, reduced Nasser Hussain to a merespectator with a scintillating partnership. Sehwag outscored Tendulkar -a rare occurrence – and their second consecutive century stand came upin the blink of an eye. The Delhi batsman matched Tendulkar shot forshot, and Tendulkar just played second fiddle without any complaints.Sehwag’s timing was outstanding, but the remarkable aspect was the wayhe brought common sense to his batting. There were several occasionswhere he had to change his shots at the last moment, bearing in mindthat the ball kept low. His innings came to an end when a century wasthere for the taking. and he has to realise that opportunities forscoring hundreds at the highest level do not come every second day.Tendulkar was visibly stunned by Mark Mascarenhas premature death, butsuch is the character of the man that he played brilliantly anyway. Heremained unbeaten, and one could not have expected him to repeat themistake of throwing his wicket away as he did at Chennai. The masterblaster also tried to egg on his skipper to keep him company, but SouravGanguly perished in an ungainly manner just when he appeared to behitting the ball like his old self. These are opportunities that abatsman struggling to regain form should latch on to, but the Indianskipper played one shot too many and paid the penalty. The heave was afair indication that Ganguly is still to get his thinking processes backon track, and he has little time to waste with just two one-dayers leftin the series.