Former Essex batsman Gordon Barker has died at the age of 74 after a long illness.Barker scored 21,895 first-class runs for the county in a career which stretched from 1954 to 1971. He passed 1000 runs 16 times, with a best of 1742 in 1960.He was born near Leeds and was playing in the Bradford League when he was spotted by Doug Insole, the Essex captain, in an army game. Insole persuaded Essex to sign him, and he went on to become the sixth-highest run-scorer in the county’s history.”Gordon was a wonderfully gritty opening batsman who in his early days formed a highly entertaining and slightly bizarre partnership with Dickie Dodds,” insole, now the county’s president, told the Essex website. “He went on to become one of county cricket’s best opening batsmen and one of its most engaging characters.”After retiring, Barker became cricket coach at Felsted where he produced players such as Nick Knight, Derek Pringle and John Stephenson.
Moin Khan We hadn’t made much of an impression on the batting till then – they were 150-odd for 2 and Dravid looked set and comfortable. Then, right after a drinks break, Shoaib produced this amazing yorker which took Dravid’s leg stump.I remember those two balls really well, particularly the second one, which got Sachin. When he walked in, the crowd had gone wild and given him a standing ovation.Shoaib was bowling really well at that period in the game, and he had found some good rhythm in that spell. For a brief while he looked as if he was going to get a wicket with almost every ball. The way he was charging in, his attitude, it was phenomenal. He just wanted to impose himself on the game and do something; you could really see it.The ball that got Sachin looked the better of the two to me – middle stump and fuller. Both the deliveries were quick obviously, but it was more the swing that did it, and the lateness of the swing. I had seen some Wasim and Waqar specials but these two weren’t far off. When Sachin was bowled, the crowd went completely quiet and you could only hear Shoaib and some of the other players going ballistic.Rahul Dravid I was batting with Sadagoppan Ramesh and we had been in for a while. Shoaib had come on to bowl and had completed a few overs when we had a drinks break.He was bowling sharp but not with much venom. I told Ramesh, “We’ve got a good partnership here. Let’s keep it going. Shoaib generally bowls three or four good overs and after that we can cash in.” The ball had just started to reverse swing a little bit.First ball after drinks, bang! I saw it clearly as it left his hand – it looked like it was going to be overpitched. It started from outside off stump and came back in a long way. The ball was too good for me on the day.I walked back to thunderous applause. Having scored only 24 runs, I found this a bit strange, till I realised it was for Sachin, who was coming out.I had hardly settled down in the dressing room when there was a roar and then pin-drop silence. I looked up at the television screen in the dressing room, but I needn’t have. You could sense what had happened. Because the television pictures are slightly delayed, I saw Sachin being bowled.It was too good a ball to receive first up. I was set for a while and yet he got me. Sachin had no chance. Those two balls turned the Test match around.
Sri Lanka’s selectors have included Dinusha and Dilhara Fernando in a 15-man squad for the opening Test against England, which starts next week.The two pace bowlers will be competing for one place as Sri Lanka are set to play only two quicks on a surface that is expected to offer bountiful assistance to the slow bowlers.Sri Lanka included three specialist spinners – Muttiah Muralitharan, Upul Chandana and Kumar Dharmasena – in the squad, as well as offspinning allrounder Thilan Samaraweera.Chandana is tipped to edge out Dharmasena and play his first Test for 16 months, although Sri Lanka also have the option of playing all three spinners and batting Romesh Kaluwitharana at number six.That appears unlikely though considering Sri Lanka’s recent vulnerability in the middle order so Tillakaratne Dilshan, Michael Vandort and Thilan Samaraweera are effectively competing for the final batting slot.Russel Arnold, who captains a Board President’s XI against England on Wednesday, misses out on a recall, as does Nuwan Zoysa, who was pushing for a return to the squad.Sri Lanka, now captained by Hashan Tillakaratne, have not won their last three series but have fond memories of Galle, where they trounced England by an innings when the two sides last met in 2001. They have won six out of the eight Tests played at the south coast venue, losing only to Pakistan in 2000.Squad Hashan Tillakaratne (capt), Marvan Atapattu, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Kumar Dharmasena, Upul Chandan, Chaminda Vaas, Dinusha Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Dilhara Fernando, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Romesh Kaluwitharana (wk), Michael Vandort
An unbeaten 96 from No. 3 Amay Khurasiya guided Central Zone to a comprehensive 91-run win over East Zone in the Deodhar Trophy tie played at Burlton Park, Jalandhar.Central Zone skipper Mohammad Kaif won the toss in the morning and had no hesitation in taking first strike. Jyoti P Yadav made a belligerent start which saw him make 23 off 26 balls with four fours. But fall of regular wickets prevented Central Zone from fully capitalising on it. Their run-rate would have fallen further had it not been for Khurasiya’s steady presence in the middle. The veteran Madhya Pradesh batsman shared useful partnerships with S Raza Ali (55 runs for the fifth wicket) and with D Bundela (67 for the sixth wicket) as Central Zone put up a useful 239 for nine in their 50 overs.When East Zone replied, none of their batsmen could play a similar hand. Skipper Rohan Gavaskar, who made 45, played the only meaningful innings but it was far too brief to be of any significance. Medium-pacer Harvinder Singh and left-arm spinner Murali Kartik, who claimed three wickets each, were the most successful bowlers for Central Zone who claimed five points from the match.
Bloomfield SC beat Antonians by 80 runs in a Duckworth Lewis affected match. However, the win was not enough to secure a place in the semi finals as both Tamil Union and SSC won their games.Antonians, initially chasing a victory target of 220, after the encounter was reduced to 42 overs due to delay start, had their target revised to 203 from 34 overs, after rain interrupted in the 8th over of their run chase.Pacemen Darshana Gamage(2/22) and Hemantha Alles(2/24) took early wickets before Duminda Perera(3/39) struck twice to leave them on 41 for six and squash any lingering hopes of victory. They eventually finished on 123 for 9 from 34 overs.Only Charles Silva (26) and Chandana Samarasighe(38)scored runs for Antonians.Bloomfield SC, who batted first, suffered an early shock when both their openers, Chaminda Ruwan(08) and Pubudu Dassanayake(11), were dismissed early on to leave Bloomfield on 36 for two.Thereafter, Sajeeka Abeynaike(73)and skipper, Kumara Dharmasena(34), rescued the innings with a 102 run partnership for the third wicket. With some quick runs from the tail and 27 extras they finished on 219.Reflecting on the tournament Kumar Dharmasena said: “We had a set back at the start of the tournament, but we managed to recover and improvee as the tournament progressed.”Bloomfield’s new coach, Oshadi Weerasinghe, was impressed with the performance of Dharmasena: “The leadership of Kumara Dharmasena has really encouraged the others in the team and I am surprised that his all round performances this season have not been rewarded.”
Aston Villa journalist Gregg Evans has voiced his delight for Ollie Watkins following the striker’s late call-up to the England squad.
The lowdown
The Athletic’s David Ornstein revealed on Monday that Gareth Southgate had added Watkins to his squad for the Three Lions’ March fixtures against Switzerland and the Ivory Coast in a pair of friendlies at Wembley over the coming days.
With only two more international windows left after this one before Southgate picks his squad for the World Cup in Qatar, this development bodes well for the 26-year-old, who was notified about his call-up following the 1-0 defeat against Arsenal on Saturday and is poised to join up with his England team-mates today.
Watkins has earned five caps for his country up to this point, the last of which came in October against Hungary.
The latest
The Athletic’s Villa correspondent Evans reacted to Ornstein’s update on Monday morning, sharing a link to the latter’s article from that publication.
Evans wrote on Twitter: “Great news for Ollie Watkins” in relation to the Villa striker’s call-up to the latest England squad.
The verdict
Watkins may be somewhat disappointed with his goal return so far this season. He has only netted seven times in 26 Premier League appearances, leaving him on course to finish up on around 10 goals.
That would be considerably lower than his tally of 14 in his debut top-flight season in 2020/21, whereas he would surely have been expecting to take a step forward this term.
Nonetheless, there are only two English centre-forwards – Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy – who have scored more non-penalty goals than Watkins in the top flight this season, and the latter has retired from international football.
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On that basis, you could argue that the £31.5m-rated Villa frontman is still worthy of selection for England.
In other news, Gabriel Agbonlahor has made a worrying claim about another Villa player
Dale Steyn might have a bad game one of these days, but don’t count on it. Having eviscerated the New Zealanders by taking 20 wickets in two Tests, Steyn’s next trick was to grab 14 scalps for the Titans against the Eagles at Bloemfontein. Granted, the pitch must have made the bowlers think the summer solstice celebrations had come early when 20 wickets fell on the first day. But Steyn’s haul of 14 for 110 – the sixth-best analysis in a senior South African domestic first-class match – remains a remarkable achievement and one that will have added a furrow to the brows of the approaching West Indians. The Titans were dismissed for 118 in their first innings, but Steyn’s career-best return of eight for 41 snuffed out the Eagles for a measly 89. Conditions eased on day two, and the Titans’ second innings endured into the third day before they were dismissed with a lead of 385. Re-enter Steyn to take six for 69, including the first hat-trick of his career, as the Titans surged to victory by 231 runs.Play was significantly more stoic at Paarl, where the Cobras and the Warriors circled each other like tranquilised sharks before settling for the draw. Johan Botha, who scored 91 not out and 69, and Robin Peterson, who made 55 and 48, twice steered the Warriors out of trouble. In the first innings the visitors were 187 for six before Botha and Peterson put on 103, and they had dwindled to 180 for six when the same pair added 62. Doughty efforts though those were, they also helped dull the contest. Andrew Puttick’s 104, JP Duminy’s 71 and half-centuries by Ashwell Prince and Vernon Philander, who also took seven wickets in the match, bolstered the Cobras’ first innings.Rain allowed just 29 overs on the first day at Durban, where the Lions were put in to bat by the Dolphins and reached 77 for three. Not a ball was bowled for the next two days while the rain lashed down, rendering Kingsmead sodden and the match irrelevant. The sun came out on Sunday and the Lions declared at lunch on 210 for nine. The Dolphins’ hearts weren’t in their reply, and they were dismissed for 147. Scorecard watchers might be interested to know that Doug Watson batted at No. 11 because of a stiff neck.Player of the week – Dale Steyn We try to shine the spotlight on lesser known players, but in this case that would be as silly as John Cleese trying not to be funny. So, take a bow Dale Steyn. It’s good to know that he doesn’t reserve his nastiness for foreigners. Then again, everyone’s a foreigner if you’re born to Zimbabwean parents in the mining dust of Phalaborwa.
Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach, has expressed surprise over the pitch at Newlands on which the fourth innings was being played at the end of day two.At stumps South Africa were at 36 for 2 needing 125 more to win. With day three certain to produce a result, Woolmer agreed South Africa were favourites but he insisted Pakistan would certainly be trying. “We would be stupid to come here tomorrow thinking we had lost the game.”On the first day Pakistan were bowled out for 157 with Makhaya Ntini and Jacques Kallis getting four wickets each. South Africa batted for the 39 overs remaining in the day and lost five wickets.On the second day 17 wickets fell as Pakistan wrapped up the South African first innings in 14 overs and then proceeded to be bowled out for 186 inside 52 overs themselves. Graeme Smith was at the other end when Paul Harris, the nightwatchman, was trapped leg before by Danish Kaneria off the last ball of the day.”With 32 wickets in two days, it’s either extremely bad batting, wonderful bowling or something slightly wrong with the pitch,” said Woolmer. The pitch was not reported to the ICC, Woolmer said, because it hadn’t turned dangerously. He also felt that though the pitch was difficult Pakistan had batted poorly in the second innings.”The odd ball is unplayable and then you get out trying to score runs off a ball that is pretty mediocre. You don’t often get these games. Specifically in Test cricket you shouldn’t get these games because in Test cricket you should be more disciplined in the way you bat.”Woolmer said that though he was an advocate of results in Test cricket he understood that financial implications were high when there was no cricket for two-and-a-half days.Dale Steyn, the South African fast bowler, was optimistic about South Africa’s chances of winning the series. “All we need tomorrow is one or two semi-partnerships and one decent partnerships and we should wrap it up soon after lunch.”
Pakistan’s captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has tipped India as favourites in the forthcoming Test series, claiming home advantage and Pakistan’s recent series win over England would count for little. India arrive on January 5 and start the tour with a three-day match against Pakistan A on January 7.”We will need to work extra hard. For me, India will be favourites in the series,” Inzamam said. “The win against England is a thing of the past now, and since there is not much difference in pitches and other things in India and Pakistan, there will be no home advantage. India has a strong batting line up and with Sourav Ganguly’s return it has further strengthened. Although Rahul Dravid does not have experience as a captain he is a wise batsman and will mature as captain,” he said.”We are not weak in the spin department because we have Danish Kaneria, Arshad Khan, Shoaib Malik and Shahid Afridi so we can match India who have Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh.”I am thankful to Wasim Akram for advising us to prepare hard pitches keeping in view the good form of our bowlers in the series against England,” said Inzamam, who will meet groundsmen on Monday to devise a strategy.He disagreed that Pakistan rely heavily on him in batting – he scored 431 runs against England in three Tests this winter – and Shoaib Akhtar in bowling. “Salman Butt, Mohammad Yousuf and Kamran Akmal have batted well in recent matches, so has Afridi and in bowling we also have Naved, Kaneria and others who have done well.”
Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag have been appointed as captains of the India Senior, India A and India B sides to contest in the Challenger Trophy one-day tournament to be held in Mumbai from February 7. All teams will play each other once before the best two contest in the final at the Wankhede Stadium on February 10.Barring Sachin Tendulkar, all the first-choice Indian players will feature in the tournament. Lakshmipathy Balaji will return to competitive cricket after a five-month layoff while Ashish Nehra will also be returning after a break.MS Dhoni, Dinesh Karthik and Parthiv Patel were picked as the three wicketkeepers and each team also includes youngsters who have shone this season. Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu and Rudra Pratap Singh – all of whom played in the Under-19 World Cup last year – will get a chance to make an impression.When India Senior take on India A, there is a good chance of Irfan Pathan bowling to his elder brother Yusuf, also an allrounder, who gets a chance after a string of impressive performances in the Ranji Trophy this year.India Senior 1 Sourav Ganguly (capt), 2 MS Dhoni (wk), 3 Yuvraj Singh, 4 Suresh Raina, 5 Venugopal Rao, 6 Niraj Patel, 7 Irfan Pathan, 8 Anil Kumble, 9 Lakshmipathy Balaji, 10 Gagandeep Singh, 11 Rajesh Pawar, 12 Shikhar Dhawan.India A 1 Rahul Dravid (capt), 2 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 3 Satyajit Parab, 4 Dheeraj Jadhav, 5 Mohammad Kaif, 6 Dinesh Mongia, 7 Murali Kartik, 8 Ajit Agarkar, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Rudra Pratap Singh, 11 Yusuf Pathan, 12 Robin Uthappa.India B 1 Virender Sehwag (capt), 2 Parthiv Patel (wk), 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 VVS Laxman, 5 Sridharan Sriram, 6 Rohan Gavaskar, 7 Ramesh Powar, 8 Joginder Sharma, 9 Ashish Nehra, 10 Shib Shankar Paul, 11 Amit Bhandari, 12 Ambati Rayudu.