Western Province weathered a 140-run assault for the fourth wicket by Easterns’ Mike Rindel and Derek Crookes to take the upper hand by the close of day two of this Supersport Series game at Newlands on Saturday.After seeing his bowlers disappear to all parts of the ground for much of the day, Province captain HD Ackerman turned again to his deputy Allan Dawson who promptly wrapped up the innings as Easterns lost their last seven wickets for just 31 runs.A beautifully controlled spell of swing bowling began when Dawson had Rindel adjudged leg-before for 91, and he was well backed up by left-arm spinner Paul Adams who chimed in with three wickets of his own as the pitch again showed it was offering a substantial amount of turn.Before the intervention of Dawson, it looked every inch as though Easterns were going to have little difficulty in mounting a respectable reply to the Western Province first innings total. But after the man who runs a gardening business had sheared off the Easterns tail with his five wickets, the home side went into their second innings with a 104 run lead.Province’s day was slightly soured towards the close when opener Graeme Smith was well caught at forward short-leg by Ernest Mokoenenyane off the bowling of Andre Nel. At stumps Province had reached 14 for one in their second innings, a lead of 118 runs.19 year-old Andrew Puttick proved just as obdurate in his resistance on day two as he had been for almost the entire first day of the match.Resuming on 120 – his maiden first-class century in just his third match – the young left-hander finished unbeaten on a flawless 153 when captain HD Ackerman declared the innings closed on 332 for eight. Puttick might just have been a little disappointed – so well was he playing that a score in excess of 200 was by no means out of the question.The meagre crowd was also entertained by another virtuoso innings by Adams, the spinner reaching 24 with his customary concoction of some of cricket’s more curious shots.

Warwickshire are poised for their second Championship win of the season after Sussex ended the third day at Hove with a lead of just ten runs and six second innings wickets down.Only Richard Montgomerie, a former captain of Warwickshire’s under-19s, held up their bid for a fifth successive win over Sussex at Hove. The opener batted for over four and a half hours and he will resume tomorrow four short of a first century of the season after facing 225 balls and hitting 12 boundaries in his unbeaten 96.Sussex followed on 187 in arrears and were quickly reduced to 24-2 when Mel Betts trapped Murray Goodwin lbw and Michael Yardy was caught behind off Vasbert Drakes.Montgomerie and Bas Zuiderent put on 83 in 30 overs for the third wicket before the Dutchman drove Neil Smith’s off spin straight to mid on. Smith had Chris Adams leg before on the back foot after tea while fellow off-spinner Mark Wagh removed Robin Martin-Jenkins in his first over to a catch at the wicket.Drakes was officially warned for running onto the wicket after he had Umer Rashid caught off the top of the bat when he ducked into a bouncer, but Montgomerie and Matt Prior dug in and at least ensured Sussex took the battle into a fourth day.Earlier they had lost their last four first innings wickets for 57 with Drakes and Smith claiming two victims apiece.Drakes removed nightwatchman James Kirtley and Prior in the space of three deliveries before Smith induced Mark Davis and Jason Lewry into mis-timing drives to mid off and mid on respectively. Sussex were all out for 208 and they effectively ended the third day at 10-6 and facing their first Championship defeat of the season.

Brett Lee returned to international cricket for Australia against Pakistan at Sophia Gardens today in a secretive operation that would have made the CIA proud.Australian captain Steve Waugh handed Pakistan’s Waqar Younis the official team sheet as they walked out for the toss and Younis’s eyes would have widened when he saw the name listed at No.10 – B Lee.Setting up an all-pace showdown, Pakistan had already selected the Rawalpindi Express, Shoaib Akhtar, to replace injured former captain Wasim Akram (shoulder).The ground was abuzz when the teams were announced over the loud speaker, and even the blowing of trumpets by the many Pakistanis in the crowd stopped, albeit briefly.Lee had not played since undergoing an elbow reconstruction in February following a limited overs match against Zimbabwe in Perth, and he was in England as a Test-squad member only.The plan was for the fastest bowler in the world to train with the Australians for the next few weeks, gradually building pace and fitness leading into the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston on July 5.But injuries to Jason Gillespie (hamstring), Damien Fleming (calf) and Nathan Bracken (shoulder) forced the Australian selectors – Waugh and vice-captain Adam Gilchrist – to give Lee a run.They had given no hint, guarding their decision until only 15 minutes before play began.”Ladies and gentlemen, Brett Lee,” said the ground announcer before Lee ambled in with a loosener, timed at 75.3mph.His second ball hit 80.6 and his third, pitched short at the same pace, was pulled to the mid-wicket fence by Shahid Afridi.He was above 80mph for the rest of the over – with another boundary flying over slips – about 20mph shy of what he hopes will be top pace during the Ashes.He eventually took a wicket in his second over, dismissing Afridi, caught brilliantly by Mark Waugh.

• It was the 1726th ODI in cricket history.
• It was Australia’s 486th and England’s 331st match.
• It was the 70th match between these two sides. The record now reads :Australia 37,England 31,tied one and abandoned one.
• Umpires David Constant and George Sharp were officiating in their 33rdand 24th match respectively.
• Robert Croft and Alan Mullally were playing their 50th match. Theybecame 21st and 22nd Englishman to reach this milestone. A total of232 players have now made 50 or more appearances in shorter version ofthe game.
• Glenn McGrath has now taken 28 wickets in 17 matches in England whichequals the Shane Warne’s record for Australia. Incidentally WestIndian Andy Roberts with 26 wickets from 21 games holds the record ofmost wickets by a visiting player in England.
• Gilchrist’s innings (80) was the highest by an Australian wicketkeeperagainst England . This obliterated Richard Robinson’s 70 at this sameground on June 6,1977.It was also the third highest innings by awicketkeeper against England in all matches after Sri Lankan RomeshKaluwitharana’s 102* at Colombo SSC on March 27,2001 and West IndianJunior Murray’s 86 at this same ground on May 26,1995.
• Australia won the match with 119 balls to spare. This was theEngland’s third heaviest defeat in terms of balls spared by theopposing side while achieving the winning target. Interestingly allthe three instances have come against Australia. The accompanyingtable lists England’s worst such defeats :

  Balls	Winner	Total	Loser	Total	Venue	Date
  188	Aus	94-6	Eng	93	Headingley	18-06-1975
  147	Aus	95-4	Eng	94	Melbourne	07-02-1979
  119	Aus	177-2	Eng	176	The Oval	21-06-2001
  102	Pak	84-2	Eng	81-9	Edgbaston	03-09-1974
  97	SL	166-0	Eng	165-9	Colombo (SSC)	27-03-2001
  88	SL	183-2	Eng	180	Moratuwa	20-03-1993
  84	WI	207-4	Eng	202-8	Scarborough	26-08-1976
  76	WI	190-2	Eng	189-9	The Oval	07-09-1973

  • England has now suffered defeat in 11 consecutive matches. England’slast win in an ODI had come in the first match of three match seriesagainst Pakistan at Karachi on October 24,2000 while chasing a targetof 300 plus. England then lost the remaining two matches on thatseries, lost all three against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka and then six ina row in this NatWest Series.
  • Australia has now beaten England in seven matches in a row since theCarlton & United World Series Cup match at Adelaide on January26,1999. It is Australia’s best run against England. The previous bestwinning streak for Australia against England was of five matches fromJune 6,1981 to January 23,1983. However it is still not a record inAustralia-England matches. England had beaten Australia in eightconsecutive matches from December 8,1979 to June 4,1981.
  • England bowed out of the series without registering a win despiteplaying as many as six games. The only other similar instance ofEngland not winning a game in a competition comprising of at leastthree teams (excluding those played on knock out basis) had come in1984-85 World Championship of Cricket in Australia when England lostall its three matches.
  • Ricky Ponting was winning his 11th Man of the Match award – his secondagainst England.

Andy Caddick has been cleared to play for England in the First Test against Australia at Edgbaston a week on Thursday.Caddick had previously sustained a hairline fracture of the knuckle on the little finger of his left hand after being hit by a delivery from Brett Lee at The AMP Oval last week. Although the injury has not entirely healed it will not inconvenience his bowling and he will wear extra protection when batting.Caddick’s return will be a major boost to the England team after the disappointments of the NatWest Series. His new ball partnership with Darren Gough is predicted to be a crucial ingredient in England’s attempts to win back the Ashes.

A young Ugandan cricketer, 18-year-old Kenneth Kamyuka, has caught the eyeof World Cup tournament director Dr Ali Bacher at the ICC Trophy in Toronto,Canada.So much so that the executive director of the 2003 Cricket World Cup issuggesting that the youngster be given a trial in South Africa.Kamyuka is a member of the Uganda team that has had everyone talking inToronto. The African team came to the tournament ranked 21 out of the 23competing nations, and they finished in a commendable 10th position overallat an event contested by the amateur teams of world cricket, the so-calledassociate members of the International Cricket Council (ICC).Dr Bacher described Kamyuka as a “very lively young fast bowler” whocaptured seven wickets in the 41 overs he bowled during the tournament. Inaddition, he showed himself to be swashbuckling lower-order batsman, hittingan undefeated century off just 54 balls to take Uganda from 90/8 againstMalaysia to a highly respectable total of 220/8.”Knowledgeable people I have spoken to in Toronto agree that Kamyuka is aplayer of immense potential. I will speak to the United Cricket Board (UCB)when I return home to suggest that we bring him to South Africa and give hima trial, like they do in soccer, to test that potential.”Dr Bacher heaped praise on the whole Ugandan team for their exemplaryshowing in Toronto. “They are a 100 percent indigenous team and were truly thespark of the tournament. They ended in 10th place and just missed out onhigher honours by losing a playoff with the United Arab Emirates.”Dr Bacher said a lot of the credit for Uganda’s improvement should go toHoosain Ayob, a South African who, as the ICC’s development manager forAfrica, had done fine work in driving the game on the continent.

Trevor Ward proved the thorn in his former county Kent’s side as he struck his fourth CricInfo Championship century of the season to put Leicestershire in a commanding position at the end of the third day at Grace Road.The home side finished on 305 for six, giving them a lead of 340 on a still batsmen-friendly pitch. Darren Maddy is still there on 98 not out while the most exciting knock of the day came from Shahid Afridi.The 21-year-old Pakistan star who has already become a cult hero at Grace Road with his phenomenal hitting, did it again with a 22-ball blitz which brought him 42 runs.He smashed five fours and three huge sixes in stand of 53 with Maddy before holing out to Andrew Symonds off debutant spinner James Tredwell.His brief stay in the middle certainly accelerated the Leicestershire innings and opened the way for a definite result to the game. On this pitch Kent won’t feel they are out of it yet if they can take some early wickets.But it was Ward who was at the heart of Leicestershire’s effort as he continued the excellent form he has shown this season. He made 110 off 192 balls with 17 fours and a six, and clearly enjoyed doing it against the county with whom he had spent 13 years before joining Leicestershire last season.To add to his delight he was awarded his County Cap in the tea interval.Ward and Maddy shared a stand of 129 for the fourth wicket after Leicestershire had slipped to 54 for three having gained a first innings lead of 35.Ward finally fell to a catch at long on as he mistimed a hook against Martin Saggers. But Maddy went on to make his best score of the season and will now hope to complete his first century of the summer on the final day.Matthew Walker finished with an unbeaten 120 in Kent’s first innings of 390.

He caught the attention of Bangladesh as a little batsman smashing the ball all around the ground, with batsmen like Akram Khan on the other side. The one-day match was against Commonwealth Bank Academy of Cricket (CBCA) and Ashraful ended up with an unbeaten century.Bangladesh already has good openers, and Ashraful faces tough competition. His international career initially showed a lot of promise. In Asian U-17, he won loud applause for his display. Though Bangladesh had to be content with the runners-up trophy, Ashraful’s 69 against India in the final was action-packed.Surprisingly, he began his career as a specialist leg-spinner who could bat a bit, focussing on his batting later on. His leg-spin does not look hostile at a glance but it is effective nevertheless. So this prodigy is now labelled as an all-rounder who will lead from the front in the future.In Zimbabwe, Ashraful played a single ODI, dispatching the fearsome Andy Flower with his leg-breaks. With the bat he showed courage after a shaky start. He smashed Bryan Strang twice over the fences but got out for nine attempting the third. He had to handle the hostile Zimbabwean pacemen at number four after two wickets had fallen early.His innate quality to go for his shots brings him quick runs, but at times costs his wicket too. In the nets Ashraful looks a bit impatient when he tends to play lofty shots at almost every ball.Javed Omar’s position is consolidated after his stunning performance in Zimbabwe. Mehrab Hossain bats well enough at the other end. So the openers for the Tests are almost certain. If one of them plays poorly or suffers an injury, Al-Sahariar is ready to replace him. Ashraful will only get the option to bat at number 1 or 2 when these are out of the team, which is improbable. So he has little chance of appearing in the Tests. As he is branded a one-day specialist, he will be considered for the ODI and he has to prove himself there.

The Somerset Seconds one day final against Surrey at The County Ground on Monday will be the last match that coach Julian Wyatt will take charge of.Shortly after the end of the season Julian, who played for Somerset between 1983 and 1989, and who has been in charge of the Second Eleven since 1999, will set off on his travels.Initially he will spend sometime in Ireland, before going round the world, with a stop scheduled for New Zealand after Christmas where he plans to link up with former players Ricky Bartlett and Richard Harden, and England players Andy Caddick and Marcus Trescothick during the Test series.Meanwhile Julian Wyatt has named the following team to face Surrey at Taunton in the final of the Second Eleven One Day Competition:- Keith Parsons, captain, Matthew Wood, Pete Trego, Jason Kerr, Matt Bulbeck, Wes Durston, Arul Suppiah, Joe Tucker, Jamie Grove, Ian Jones and Tim Burt.Speaking earlier in the day the coach told me,” We are going into the match with the intention of winning. We have done well to get to the final and hope that we can take confidence from the example set by the first team at Lord’s on Saturday. We’ve got a lot of young players who can hopefully take inspiration from that victory.”Chief Executive Peter Anderson said, “This is a big occasion for the club, and the first time that this final has been played at The County Ground. We are expecting a large crowd to turn up, and catering facilities will be available all day. The match gets underway at 10.30am, with entry being free to Somerset and Surrey members, and £3 to non members.”

New CricInfo County Champions Yorkshire received the Lord’s Taverners Trophy from CricInfo managing director Peter Griffiths during the lunch interval on the first day of their last match of the season against Essex at Scarborough today.Yorkshire fans swarmed round the presentation area in front of the pavilion to watch skipper David Byas be handed the trophy by Mr Griffiths.Also attending the ceremony were CricInfo’s head of marketing, Andrew Hall; Yorkshire president, Robin Smith; Yorkshire chairman, Keith Moss: England and Wales director of cricket operations John Carr, and the Mayor of Scarborough, Councillor Lucy Haycock.Mr Carr congratulated Yorkshire on behalf of the ECB and said that their winning the title was all the more remarkable because they had been supplying so many players to the England set-up.He also thanked CricInfo for their generous support of the competition.Mr Griffiths said it gave him great pleasure to hand over the trophy to David Byas following Yorkshire’s first Championship win in 33 years.The presentation was watched from the club balcony by Yorkshire’s last two Championship-winning captains, Vic Wilson and Brian Close.After the trophy had been handed over, Yorkshire batsman Matthew Wood received his first team cap from Byas and second team caps were awarded to Chris Taylor and Steven Kirby.It started to rain during the ceremony and Essex were unable to resume on their lunchtime score of 99 for three after winning the toss, two of the wickets going down to off-spinner Richard Dawson.Flags flew at half mast at North Marine Road as a mark of respect for events in America and the teams lined up on the field for a minute’s silence before play began.There was an early breakthrough for Yorkshire as their former all-rounder Paul Grayson was bowled by Matthew Hoggard in the fourth over but Darren Robinson and Richard Clinton revived Essex with a 61 stand for the second wicket.Robinson was dropped by Matthew Wood at second slip off Hoggard with the score on 75, but two runs later the opener attempted to sweep Dawson and was caught at silly point by Chris Taylor.Mark Pettini, who was making his first-class debut for Essex along with Joe Grant and Zoheb Sharif, had made just a single when he pushed forward at Dawson and was caught at slip by David Byas.Ronnie Irani joined the left-handed Clinton and the pair were still together at lunch, Clinton having been in 32 overs for his 33.