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Australia warmed up for the fourth Test by dismissing Northamtonshire for just 169, on day two of their tour match, before allowing Simon Katich to make some useful runs ahead of the fourth Test on Thursday. Shaun Tait, who replaced Jason Gillespie and who is fighting for a Test place with Mike Kasprowicz, bowled with menace and took the first two wickets of the day, to improve his hopes of inclusion at Trent Bridge.Tait was expensive, conceding 52 runs from his 14 overs, but his pace was too much for Tim Roberts. He struck the opener on the head with a brutal ball, which drew blood and caused Roberts to retire hurt for 18. Tait then removed Usman Afzaal, shortly followed by Northants’ captain David Sales for a duck, perishing to a yorker. Kasprowicz, meanwhile, only picked up a single wicket, that of Riki Wessels. Wickets continued to tumble, with Glenn McGrath back to his metonomic best, taking three for 24 from 11 overs, and Northants were grateful for a battling innings by Ben Phillips, who remained unbeaten on 37.Phillips, like Roberts, was struck on the head – this time by McGrath – and he too retired hurt, albeit briefly. He struck a clutch of boundaries on his return to the crease but, despite his brave innings, he ran out of partners and his side were bundled out in just 50 overs for 169. The encouraging display of Tait was tempered, however, when he was forced off the field after being struck just below the knee in his follow-through, by Phillips.Australia promoted Simon Katich to open the innings, and they cruised to their hundred at 4 runs per over. Katich’s top score, in his last four Test innings, is 17, so his knock of 63 today was a welcome relief to the left-hander. He fell to Jason Brown, but Justin Langer continued his good form with an undefeated 86, in a partnership worth 114 runs with Damien Martyn, as Australia ended on 226 for two.

Salman Butt, the young left-handed batsman, and Shahid Afridi, the mercurial allrounder, have been included in Pakistan’s squad for the Videocon Cup and the ICC Champions Trophy. Afridi replaces Danish Kaneria, the legspinner, while Butt comes in for the out-of-sorts Imran Nazir.”Basically these 14 players will play in both tournaments because we want to give continuity to the captain and coach. The squad has been finalized after consulting both of them,” Wasim Bari, the chairman of selectors, is reported as saying in The News.Both Afridi and Butt are making comebacks to the Pakistan team. Afridi was dropped after playing in four of the five one-day internationals against India in March, while Butt last year played for Pakistan against Bangladesh in Multan but has since been in the Pakistan A team.Squad Yasir Hameed, Imran Farhat, Salman Butt, Yousuf Youhana, Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), Younis Khan, Moin Khan (wk), Shoaib Malik, Abdur Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami, Shabbir Ahmed, Naved-ul-Hasan.

Channel 4 have successfully arranged for an early start to the semi-finals of the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy. Both matches will now start at 10.15am, in an attempt to avoid a repeat of the situation in the first Test against Zimbabwe at Lord’s, when live transmission was cut on the dot of 6 o’clock.Gloucestershire’s match against Derbyshire will be broadcast live from Bristol on Thursday, August 7, with Worcestershire’s home tie against Lancashire following two days later. Reserve days have been allocated for both matches to avoid, if possible, the use of the Duckworth/Lewis system to engineer a result.Speaking after the Lord’s Test, Tim Lamb, the chief executive of the ECB, had expressed his disappointment at Channel 4’s failure to provide full coverage, and had raised the possibility of an earlier start to England Test matches, which have already been brought forward to 10.45am this year.”We are seriously considering [Channel 4’s] requirements and we will be discussing a 10.30am start as of from next year,” said Lamb. “It is very disappointing when we don’t see the end of play live on TV, but we are talking to Channel 4 in an atmosphere of cooperation and consultation. We understand the constraints they are working under in terms of scheduling, particularly when they are trying to attract that important early evening 18 to 34-year-old audience.”Thursday, August 7 Gloucestershire v Derbyshire at Bristol
Saturday, August 9 Worcestershire v Lancashire at WorcesterBoth matches begin at 10.15am

South Africa plodded through the fourth day of the Bulawayo Test againstZimbabwe to finish with 300 on the board for the loss of just two wickets.A toothless attack on a placid pitch was met by ponderous batting, andalthough South Africa’s first four batsmen all scored fifties, they stillfinished the day 119 runs behind Zimbabwe in a match almost certainly doomedto be the dullest of draws.It was a day without pressure for either side: Zimbabwe’s bowlers wereunable to exert any real pressure on the South African batsmen, who in turnwere content to take things as they came rather than attempt to pressurizethe home side.Heath Streak’s tactics at the start of play were open to question, as hechose to begin with the seamers of himself and Travis Friend. Streak oncurrent form is no longer a great bowler, and on this benign pitch both werepredictably innocuous.Herschelle Gibbs and Gary Kirsten appearedcompletely at ease and had certainly played themselves in well by the timeStreak finally resorted to left-arm spinner Raymond Price at one end. Withthe ball often turning sharply, many felt there should have been spin fromat least one end from the start.Gibbs ran to his fifty, off 91 balls, with three boundaries in an over offthe wayward Friend, together with four leg-byes. This finally persuadedStreak to resort to Paul Strang, whom many had considered to be his trumpcard, for the 20th over of the day.With his second ball Strang made agallant effort to catch a ferocious straight drive by Gibbs and damaged afinger so badly that he had to leave the field, unable to grip the ball.Fortunately it was no more than badly bruised and he returned to the fieldjust before lunch.Gibbs brought up the hundred for South Africa with a drive for six offPrice; he was scoring at about twice the rate of his partner. The pairadded 117 before Gibbs (74) played forward to a turning ball from Price andedged a catch to the keeper. To his credit, he walked without waiting forthe umpire’s decision.Kirsten batted with such skill and apparent ease that it came as a surprisewhen he was dismissed for 65 after lunch. He moved down the pitch to Pricewho, perhaps seeing him coming, tossed the ball wider and Andy Flower easilystumped him. South Africa were 162 for two.The scoring rate slowed to about two an over as Neil McKenzie joined Kallis.Strang was unable to bowl much with his sore finger, and Price kept thebatsmen wary with the occasional dangerous ball. Throughout the match itwas clear that the older the ball became, the harder it was for the batsmento score.Kallis reached a rather laborious fifty off 158 balls shortly after tea,immediately after the token target to save the follow-on had been reached.McKenzie was a little faster, but there appeared to be no effort to win thematch, which was still possible for South Africa had they scored quickly andput Zimbabwe in again in the hope that they would collapse – as Australiawould probably have done.Long dull spells were broken by occasional quality strokes, and both batsmenwere unbeaten by the close, Kallis with 81 and McKenzie 74. Perhaps a tokenattempt will be made to liven up the match on the final day, but it seemsthat everybody has by now understandably lost interest.

Match facts

Sunday, August 16, 2015
Start time 1400 local (1200 GMT)South Africa will make a late call on the availability of regular captain Faf du Plessis, who is suffering from a knee injury•AFP

Big Picture

The takeaways from this series, for both South Africa and New Zealand, are not what they planned, but they can’t do much when even the best laid plans go awry. However, that may not be a bad thing in the lead to the World T20, as adaptability and spontaneity will be the key on the big stage.South Africa planned on using AB de Villiers in a new role as opener and keeper, with Hashim Amla as his partner. They could not do that because de Villiers had to captain thanks to an injury to Faf du Plessis. If du Plessis does not recover in time, de Villiers will still not be able to do that, and Morne van Wyk will get another chance to stake a claim for the World T20 spot.New Zealand banked on their youngsters to steal the show after having rested senior players. Instead, it was their old hands, Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson, that produced the most authoritative performances in the first match with the rest barely pulling their weight. That could change more easily than South Africa’s situation, especially as the likes of Colin Munro and Tom Latham were reminded that they need to do more if New Zealand are to compete the way they wanted to.In the end, this series may not be about putting plans in place but learning what to do when they fall apart.

Form guide

(last five completed games, most recent first)South Africa WWWWL
New Zealand LWLWL

In the spotlight

Rilee Rossouw seems to be stealing David Miller’s thunder as a finisher in the batting line-up with Miller finding limited opportunities to score big runs in recent times. He last scored an international half-century nine ODI innings ago in South Africa’s World Cup opening game against Zimbabwe in February and has never scored a T20 fifty for South Africa. Miller will want an opportunity to prove he still comands a place in the shortest format.Grant Elliott did not prove to be the same nemesis for South Africa in the first T20 as he was during the World Cup semi-final but that won’t be the only reason he will want to perform better in the second game. New Zealand need some muscle from their middle order and Elliott has been known to provide that in the past. As one of the senior players in a young squad, Elliot will want to assume some responsibility as New Zealand seek to level the series.

Team news

South Africa will make a late call on the availability of regular captain du Plessis, who is suffering from a knee tendon injury. De Villiers was optimistic du Plessis will be fit for the match, which will then see a shuffling of the batting order with de Villiers moving up to open and taking the gloves while van Wyk sits out. South Africa are unlikely to make any other changes unless they want to give legspinner Eddie Leie an opportunity ahead of Aaron Phangiso, who took 2 for 29 in the first T20I.South Africa: 1 Morne van Wyk (wk)/AB de Villiers (wk), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 AB de Villiers (capt)/Faf du Plessis (capt), 4 Rilee Rossouw, 5 David Miller, 6 Farhaan Behardien, 7 David Wiese, 8 Kyle Abbott, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Aaron Phangiso/Eddie LeieNew Zealand are looking for more from their middle order which could mean a place for James Neesham in the starting XI, perhaps at the expense of Munro or Latham. Their attack performed well in Durban so Matt Henry and Ben Wheeler could remain confined to the bench.New Zealand: 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Kane Williamson (capt), 3 George Worker, 4 Colin Munro, 5 Grant Elliot, 6 Luke Ronchi (wk), 7 Tom Latham, 8 Nathan McCullum, 9 Doug Bracewell, 10 Adam Milne, 11 Mitchell McClenaghan

Pitch and conditions

The effects of winter are expected to be more noticeable in Centurion than they were in Durban, with the grass likely to show the most signs of the season. The Highveld grass generally dries up over winter which could mean a less lush outfield than normal and a pitch that could lack some life. A warm afternoon is expected under cloudless skies, with temperatures set to touch 28 degrees.

Stats and trivia

• South Africa scored their highest T20 total in Centurion six years ago when they posted 241 for 6 against England in November 2009. AB de Villiers is the only member of the current squad who played in that game.
• The last time New Zealand lost a two-match T20 series was in June 2012, when they were beaten in West Indies. They have since played four two match T20 series, winning two and drawing two.

Quotes

“It was a great month off at home. I was a little bit worried going into the first game, having not hit a ball for a month but I prepared really well for this series in training.”I was happy with the energy in the field. The boys stuck at it and tried really hard.”

The refusal of Rod Marsh, the former Australia wicketkeeper, to sign a cricket bat which already carried Chris Cairns’ autograph was an early sign that players had been “warned off” him by the ICC, the jury at Southwark Crown Court heard today.The crown prosecutor, Sasha Wass, QC, cited that incident during her cross-examination of Andrew Fitch-Holland, Cairns’ former attorney and co-defendant, who is the final witness to be called in the four-week trial.”Rod Marsh said I’m not having anything to do with Mr Cairns, he wouldn’t sign a cricket bat,” Wass said to Fitch-Holland.Rumours about Cairns’ involvement in match-fixing had circulated ever since he was removed from the Indian Cricket League in October 2008, under the pretext of an injury.Following Marsh’s action, Fitch-Holland had asked the ICC whether it had any evidence that Cairns was a match-fixer. It turned out that the governing body was not investigating him as the ICL was an unsanctioned tournament.”It seemed that someone was saying something, because of the Rod Marsh incident, and we just thought ‘this can’t be allowed to continue’,” Fitch-Holland told the court.”I took that to be confirmation from the ICC that they weren’t sniffing around Chris,” he added.Marsh’s snub had occurred in 2009, one year before Lalit Modi, the founder of the Indian Premier League, had tweeted about Cairns’ alleged activities, an event which formed the basis of Cairns’ successful libel action against Modi in 2012.Cairns, who denies two counts of perjury and perverting the course of justice, stands accused of having lied under oath to secure that court victory. Fitch-Holland denies one count of perverting the course of justice, after allegedly persuading Lou Vincent, Cairns’ former team-mate, to provide a false witness statement.Wass wanted to know if Fitch-Holland knew any reason why Modi would make a false accusation against Cairns.”I assumed at the time he had misspoken, and he would correct it,” Fitch-Holland said.At the libel trial in 2012, Cairns confirmed that he had “had it out” with Marsh over a drink at his house following the bat-signing incident.Fitch-Holland, whom Ms Wass tried to paint as a “cricket groupie”, admitted to having been “very pissed off” with Cairns in an email exchange in April 2013 following a lengthy delay in payment for his role as “lead adviser” during the legal action.During a heated cross-examination, which involved an intervention from the judge, Fitch-Holland was also asked about an incident in which he had told a group, including Chris Harris: “Oh, he’s guilty, Cairnsy’s guilty”.”I’m not for one second suggesting that Chris Harris is lying, and you know perfectly well that I’m not,” Fitch-Holland told Ms Wass.”It cannot have been about match-fixing, because quite simply that was not in my mind.”Fitch-Holland is expected to continue giving evidence on Tuesday.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has said that it would adopt the same stance as the ICC with regard to the Indian Cricket League (ICL) which is threatening to sign up some of the top cricketers in the game. The board arrived at this decision at their monthly meeting held at its headquarters in Colombo on Monday.Kangadaran Mathivanan, the board secretary, said the ICC was due to meet in October where a decision is expected. “We will follow the lead given by the ICC,” he said.Mathivanan also stated that no Sri Lankan player had approached the board with regard to joining the ICL, with the exception of former captain Marvan Atapattu who had requested to be released from his contract. The board accepted his request and Atapattu will be released from his contract from October 1.When asked about Atapattu’s future as a Test player, Mathivanan said that it depended on his availability and also whether the national selectors are in favour of him. Atapattu has not been in good terms with the selection committee headed by Ashantha de Mel, the former Sri Lankan fast bowler. Although a part of the World Cup squad, Atapattu was cold shouldered and not selected to play in any of Sri Lanka’s 11 matches. He was left out of the one-day series against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi, and when the selectors finally picked him for the home series against Bangladesh, he snubbed them by saying he was unavailable due to family commitments. He proceeded to England where he is currently playing for Lashings in the English league. He is one of the Sri Lankan players whose name has been strongly linked with ICL.Mathivanan further stated that all national players, who are currently on a month’s break from cricket after the Bangladesh series, will have to report to Colombo by August 20, with the exception of those playing county cricket. Sri Lanka are due to leave for South Africa for the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship on September 5.”There is no point getting them down here at this stage because they are already at training and playing matches for the counties,” said Mathivanan. “They can come at a later date.”Mathivanan said that Sri Lanka would announce the final 15-member squad for the championship soon, before the ICC’s deadline of August 15. Sri Lanka’s new coaching staff are due to arrive by mid August and commence training and practice from August 18. Trevor Bayliss has replaced Tom Moody as coach, Paul Farbrace from Trevor Penney as assistant coach and Jade Roberts from CJ Clarke as the team’s trainer.

A Western Australia squad will trade the bounce of Perth for the spin of India during a 12-day pre-season tour next month. Wayne Clark, the Western Australia coach, hoped the trip, which includes stops in Bangalore and Mysore, would help the Warriors avoid the slow starts of recent summers.”This is a great opportunity for the boys to get some really good match practice against high quality opposition,” Clark said. “We’ve been pretty slow out of the blocks for the last couple of seasons so hopefully this will help us to turn that around and get us set for a good start to the season.” The 15-man squad will play three one-day fixtures and a three-day match against the first-class side Karnataka, which is the home state of Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble.Western Australia also announced their captain for the summer, with Justin Langer appointed for the fourth season in a row. Michael Hussey has relinquished his role as the state’s deputy due to his expanded international commitments and been replaced by Marcus North. “We will be looking not only for success this season,” Langer said, “but also to build the foundations in our young, talented squad for sustained success in the next five to ten years.”Tour schedule
September 23-25, Western Australia v Karnataka
September 27, Western Australia v Karnataka
September 29, Western Australia v Karnataka
September 30, Western Australia v Karnataka

Zimbabwe’s strike bowler Heath Streak will be able to bowl on the third day of their second Test match against New Zealand at Queens Sports Club after missing much of the second day because of a groin injury.Streak was on and off the field throughout the New Zealand innings, and Andy Blignaut fielded for him on all occasions he was off. Streak’s injury, which did not prevent him from taking 2 for 62 off 16 overs, although he would have undoubtedly bowled more had he been fit.His absence prompted Tatenda Taibu not to take the new ball before the close, keeping the old one, which had been used for 100 overs, with spinners Keith Dabengwa and Graeme Cremer doing most of the bowling. If Streak resumes at the start then Taibu will almost certainly take the new ball straight away.

Lunch Scotland 314 for 7 and 250 for 8 lead Netherlands 257 (Zuiderent 78, Watson 5-74) by 307 runs
Scorecard
Day 2 Bulletin
Holland’s bowlers kept Scotland in check on the third and final day at Aberdeen, with Scotland going to lunch at 250 for 8, a lead of 307 with 61 overs left in the game. Half-centuries from Fraser Watts and Bruce Patterson gave Scotland the advantage yesterday, but some accurate bowling by Holland and four wickets to Sebastiaan Gokke means that they are still very much in the game.Scotland lost Steve Knox early in their second innings yesterday, bowled by Schiferli in the first over for a fifth-ball duck (1 for 1), but Patterson and Watts added 115 for the second wicket to cement Scotland’s advantage. Patterson fell just before the close for a patient 51 (116 for 2) with Watts unbeaten on 60 and Ryan Watson on 9 not out. Watson was first to fall this morning, lofting a catch to Daan van Bunge at extra cover off the bowling of Schiferli (164 for 3). His wicket triggered something of a collapse, with Colin Smith out second ball for 1, caught by Luuk van Troost off Sebastiaan Gokke (168 for 4), and Watts trapped lbw by the same bowler for 79 (174 for 5).Cedric English failed to match his first-innings form, unluckily stumped off an inside-edge by Jeroen Smits for 17 to give Gokke his third wicket of the morning (209 for 6). Almost immediately after, Craig Wright was run out attempting a suicidal second run (210 for 7). Holland’s bowling was economical, and with a very defensive field runs were hard to come by. Greig Williamson was caught at long on for 21, trying to increase the run rate (234 for 8), but Ian Stanger (27*) and Majid Haq (5*) took the score to 250 at lunch without further loss.