Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Makhaya Ntini recorded his best Test figures of 7 for 37, to complete a sensational 13-wicket match haul and set South Africa for an emphatic eight-wicket victory on the final day in Trinidad. AB de Villiers and Graeme Smith then rubbed salt into the open wounds by rattling along to a 117-run opening stand in the second innings, and though both then fell before tea to massage the margin of defeat, Jacques Kallis and Jacques Rudolph sealed the win 15 minutes into the final session.It was, from start to finish, an utterly depressing day for West Indies. They had resumed with an overnight lead of 119 and a faint hope of saving the match, but squandered their position with a collapse of five wickets for 24 runs in just 59 balls of the new ball, four of them to the unplayable Ntini. Then, with a meagre target of 144 to defend, their hopes were utterly deflated in a ten-minute spell either side of tea, when Reon King twice committed the ultimate – and in West Indies’ case, the long-overdue – crime of taking a wicket with a no-ball.On an increasingly devious track, de Villiers had decided that a swift denouement was in order, and beat Daren Powell out of the attack with three classy overs in his opening over. He continued in similar vein until, in the penultimate over before lunch, King removed his off stump with a beauty. David Shepherd, however, had already signalled the no-ball, and as a grinning de Villiers led the teams off for lunch, King remained out in the middle, scratching the popping crease like a disconsolate rooster.He measured and re-measured his run-up, but it was all to no avail. In the third over after the resumption, Smith flinched a dolly to short midwicket, but once again King had overstepped, and Brian Lara was already grimacing as he stooped to complete the catch. From that moment on, the fight went out of the West Indian performance, and though they salvaged some pride with two late wickets, the sight of Ramnaresh Sarwan dropping Rudolph at gully with two runs needed for victory was a more apt commentary on the day’s events.In fact, West Indies’ solitary bright spot came in the third over of the morning, as Sarwan, 93 not out overnight, brought up his seventh Test century with a firm push for four down the ground. Thereafter, Ntini entered the attack to share the new ball, and the end of the innings was swift and dramatic.Ntini made the big incision with his third ball of the morning, as Dwayne Bravo flashed hard at a wide one and feathered an edge through to Mark Boucher behind the stumps. He was gone for 33, and Ntini had completed his second haul of ten wickets in a match. One over later he surpassed his previous-best performance, against England at Lord’s in 2003, when Courtney Browne was trapped on the move to become a very rare lbw victim (188 for 7) – it was just Ntini’s 13th such dismissal in 57 Tests and 217 wickets.

Andre Nel then got in on the act as well, as Powell deflected a thick edge towards second slip, where Jacques Kallis, quick as a flash, reached to his right to pluck a lightning chance. Sarwan could do nothing but look on and hope for the best. Pedro Collins played down the wrong line and lost his off stump to Ntini, and after an emphatic four through point from Sarwan, King was beaten for sheer pace as Ntini completed his share of the rout.Ntini’s match figures of 13 for 132 were the best by a South African in Test history, surpassing a record that had stood for 53 years – Hugh Tayfield’s 13 for 165 against Australia at Melbourne in 1952-53. It was a performance made all the more memorable by the absence of Shaun Pollock, who has been South Africa’s premier strike bowler since the retirement of Allan Donald, and showed that the succession is in safe hands.How they were outWest IndiesDwayne Bravo c Boucher b Ntini 33 (180 for 6)
Lapse in concentration, swished at a wide oneCourtney Browne lbw b Ntini 2 (188 for 7)
Caught on the move, hit just inside the lineDaren Powell c Kallis b Nel 1 (189 for 8)
Flying edge, plucked at second slipPedro Collins b Ntini 0 (190 for 9)
Played down wrong line, lost off stumpReon King b Ntini 0 (194 for 10)
Beaten for pace, stumps splatteredSouth AfricaGraeme Smith c Gayle b Bravo 41 (117 for 1)
Loose drive to first slip
AB de Villiers b Powell 62 (119 for 2)
Squared up by one that kept fractionally low

Graeme Smith has called a truce to his ongoing dispute with Dwayne Bravo and says he will not take any further action. Smith had demanded an apology after being cleared of racially abusing Bravo, during the fourth Test in Antigua, as he approached his first Test century.”I believe it would be sensible that the matter be laid to rest,” said Smith. “Bravo is young and inexperienced, and with time he will learn and mature into a better person.”Last week West Indies team manager Tony Howard had indicated that Smith should not expect an apology from Bravo. The alleged incident led to Wavell Hinds throwing a ball at Smith while bowling towards the end of the Antigua Test and being fined his entire match fee.

Bob Woolmer has promised a better performance by Pakistan in the second Test after they were hammered by 276 runs in the first Test in Barbados. “We will be coming back with full force in the second Test to draw the series,” Woolmer was quoted as saying by APP. “We have to be more consistent and play better cricket.”Looking back at the debacle of the first match, Woolmer said: “We were simply outplayed by West Indies. We didn’t play Test cricket well enough. Since I have been involved with the team we have not played well in Test cricket apart from couple of occasions. It was very disappointing performance.”Woolmer was particularly scathing in his criticism of the batsmen, who had a shocker in the first innings when Pakistan were bundled out for just 144. “I thought we were spineless on that particular day with our batting,” he said. “It’s something we’ll address in the next few days. It’s not like the guys are out of form. They have been playing well. It’s just that they got themselves out very stupidly. Our batsmen played too many shots square of the wicket off the new ball. There seemed [to be] no spirit, no fight at the crease which is surprising really. It is not that boys are not trying hard. It’s just [lack of] application in certain situation.”Woolmer also played down an alleged incident in the dressing-room involving Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi and Inzamam-ul-Haq. The Pakistan media had widely reported that Afridi was apparently upset at being asked to open the batting by Younis, but Woolmer said that the entire incident had been blown out of proportion. “There was a minor misunderstanding and it caused a concern for a while, but it did not affect the team in the middle. It was all over the Pakistan press, who made a mountain out of a molehill,” Woolmer added. “That might have affected them psychologically, but there is no excuse really to go out there and play the way they played.”

Scorecard

Australia’s beleaguered captain Ricky Ponting may have dismissed Twenty20 as a bit of fun just a week ago, but the latest offering at The Oval was a seriously successful venture. On a balmy evening, a sell-out crowd arrived in south London to witness world cricket at its innovative best as Asia and an international XI were brought together to offer up hit-and-giggle delights to raise money for tsunami relief.The thrills – a hat-trick from Adam Hollioake and a crashing 91 not out by Greg Blewett – outweighed the spills – several dropped catches blemishing an otherwise outstanding fielding performance. And every boundary or wicket was matched by hard cash, all ofwhich went to charity. In all £1.1million was raised, which included a bonus £100,000 for the hat-trick, £2,000 for every four and £5,000 for every six.The Internationals – stuffed full of players familiar with the format – dismissed Asia, full of players who weren’t, for 157 which was never enough as Blewett blazed away to take his team to victory. Rahul Dravid, in his first Twenty20 match, struck a composed 62 from 47balls, but Asia’s innings never really got going.Blewett has so far spent his summer playing for the showmen of Lashings CC, but maybe the Australian one-day side could find a use for him: lest we forget, they are currently languishing at the bottom of the NatWest Series table. He has not played international cricket since 1999, but there were lashings and lashings of super shots in the 61 ballsit took him to take apart such world-class bowlers as Irfan Pathan, Chaminda Vaas and Harbhajan Singh. He ended up nine short of his century, and his knock included seven fours and five sixes – worth a cool £29,000.Scott Styris cashed in too, quite literally – picking off boundaries through and over midwicket at will. Asia were clinging on, just, when Sanath Jayasuriya came on to bowl with four overs to go and 30 runs required – but Blewett casually dispatched a towering six back over his head off the last ball of the over. Next ball, Styris hooked Pathan for another six and, when he flatbatted Vaas over midwicket for another £5,000, the game went from being in thebalance to being in the bag.Blewett’s Lashings team-mate Hollioake – who played twice for the side in March, the only matches he has played since retiring – went one better. His hat-trick earned £100,000, although things didn’t start so auspiciously. He must have wished he hadn’t hopped back specially from Australia for this match when Vaas launched his first ball for six – the only one of Asia’s innings. But Hollioake has twinkled in Twenty20 before and tonight’s effort was no less dazzling as Dravid, Vaas and Kumble Kumble holed out from successive deliveries.”For me it’s an honour,” he told reporters after the match. “I can’t believe I was playing alongside the best cricketers in the world. I came early just for this game – I wouldn’t do that for just a normal game. It does mean a lot. But it’s not a special effort – anybody would do that.”Dravid chose to bat first, and his side were soon in trouble as they lost Virender Sehwag for 1. Jayasuriya (27) and Kumar Sangakkara (15) both fell on 45 and Asia were starting to wobble. But Dravid and Mahela Jayawardene added some stability on an evening whichheld a few surprises. Jayawardene brought up their fifty partnership with an improvised slap for four past fine-leg, then even the members proved that they knew this evening was about going with the flow. As the inevitable Mexican Wave started to ripple towards the members’ enclosure, there were boos from some of the public who were expecting the usual stony silence from the pavilion. But this was an evening to stand up and be counted – and the members duly stood. Cue cheering.In fact, all of the crowd enjoyed their evening, with people in shirts from all nations dancing together to the beat of one Sri Lankan fan’s drum and the horns of many. And although the game petered out towards the inevitable, it didn’t really matter. Vijay, from India who lives in England, was supporting both sides. “It’s for charity, isn’t it?” he asked simply.He was wearing a West Indies shirt (for Brian Lara), he had a Kenya headband (he was born there) and he would normally be rooting for India (that’s where his parents are from). But this time he was cheering both sides: it was all about the cricket, and the charity.Five-hundred thousand people are still homeless following the events of six months ago, but this evening’s effort will go a long way towards helping.

Ricky Ponting, whose team have stumbled at the start of the Ashes tour, has expressed the wish that Shane Warne will be able to concentrate on the forthcoming Test series despite the distractions engendered by the separation from his wife, Simone. In a joint statement earlier on Saturday, the Warnes had announced that there were parting ways after 10 years of marriage.Warne retired from one-day international cricket two years ago, and after his team’s emphatic 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh on Saturday, Ponting was moved to comment on the man who Australia still expects to be a matchwinner in the Ashes series. “That’s awful news for anybody, to be separated from your wife,” he said. “There’s no doubt that everyone in our squad will be in touch with Shane at some stage.”As far as it being a distraction when the Tests come around, hopefully it’s not. It’s obviously going to be a tough thing for Shane to deal with and cope with but hopefully he can do that as well as he can leading into the Test matches.”The Warne marriage had not been helped by relentless intrusion from the tabloids. As recently as last weekend, the Sunday Mirror carried lurid details of Warne’s alleged affair with a 25-year-old Englishwoman. Past indiscretions involving mobile phones and text messages had also been extensively documented.The statement issued by the couple said: “It is with regret that we inform you that we have decided to separate. We remain the best of friends and we will continue to be there for our three beautiful children. Please respect our privacy at this difficult and tough time.”It was on an Ashes tour, back in 1993, that Warne first proposed to his wife. They were married two years later, and have three children.

Daryll Cullinan may come out of retirement at the age of 37 and play for South Africa on their tour of India next month.Ray Jennings, South Africa’s newly appointed coach, has asked the former Test player Cullinan to make himself available for the two-Test series. Jennings has asked the captain Graeme Smith – who Cullinan had criticised for failing to lead South Africa to a Test win against England in 2003 – to speak to the player about a possible return to the national side.Cullinan, a middle-order batsman, said he would relish a comeback on the international stage: “It would be wonderful if it came to pass. I’d do it for nothing, but at this point I think that it would be inappropriate to comment.”He announced his retirement from international cricket in 2001 following an argument with the South African board over his contract. He pulled out of the match against Australia just hours before the game, although he later apologised.Cullinan made his international debut against India in 1992, and has an outstanding record against them. He has scored 688 runs in eight matches at an impressive average of 52.92, which far exceeds his career average of 44.21.

Tradition may have been a big deal for the Fiddler on the Roof but for Steve Waugh and his Australian side it doesn’t mean much. Many of the game’s old habits have gone by the wayside in their relentless pursuit of excellence.Nightwatchman. Gone. Although Andy Bichel came out to bat against England in Sydney recently with 18 overs left in the day.Six batsmen, one wicket-keeper and four bowlers. Gone. The key is Adam Gilchrist who allows the side the luxury of picking him as a batsman. This allows the team a fifth bowler. The psychology of it should suit the Australians fine. If their six batsmen don’t score enough runs, the quintet of bowlers will look after it.If the bowlers allow the opposition batsmen off the leash, the Australian batsmen will make up for it. If that doesn’t work, Steve Waugh will throw the ball to someone unlikely such as Darren Lehmann or Ricky Ponting and they will take a wicket. In the case of an Australian collapse, the Australian tail will invariably wag.But the biggest change the Australian side has brought to the game is the pace of play. With them, Test matches are frenetic and so much seems to happen in a short period of time. One is convinced that it must be the fourth day and it turns out it’s only the third.Notwithstanding poor weather, it’s now a rarity that the Australian side plays on the fifth day. In days gone by, around three days were needed for both sides to have their first innings. From there it was up to the side batting third whether or not there was going to be a result.For the most part, unless there were collapses, at least some part of the fifth was needed. More often than not, the fifth day would meander into a dull and meaningless draw.Not with Steve Waugh and his team. In the 46 Tests he has captained, only 16 have gone into the fifth day on their own accord (as opposed to the presence of inclement weather). That is a staggering statistic.It also places incredible heat on the opposition side to be able to last the distance. The option to hold out for a draw due to lack of time is removed from them. There are now only two possible results – victory or defeat.Steve Waugh has captained Australia to only five draws and all of them were due to the Test being affected by rain.This is the way cricket should be played. Positive and entertaining for the spectators and most of all the players. What is the point of playing for five days for no result? Now Waugh and his side are illustrating the folly of it because there is no reason whatsoever why five days should be insufficient time.No matter what the sport, whether it’s the Dutch soccer side of the 1970s and their total football, Australia II and their winged keel, the Chicago Bulls of the early 1990s and their triangle offense or the current Australian cricket side, the hallmark of a great team is one which first revolutionises and then evolutionises the way it’s sport is played and leaves it the better for it.

Life is never dull when Daryll Cullinan is concerned, and he is again in trouble after a well-publicised confrontation with HD Ackerman at the weekend. Following a private hearing on Monday with Michael Kuper, the South African board’s disciplinary commissioner, he was banned for one match after being found guilty of contravening two clauses of the board’s Code of Conduct.Cullinan, who captains Titans, was summoned along with Ackerman, skipper of Lions, after the pair clashed during a match between the two sides at Potchefstroom last week. Witnesses said the trouble started when Cullinan spoke to Ackerman as he came out to bat. Ackerman was clearly upset by the comments and got involved in a heated confrontation, later making a formal complaint to the umpires.Cullinan, who will not appeal, will miss the match against Eastern Cape Warriors starting on January 6. Ackerman was “severely reprimanded” for his part in the incident.The exact details of the face-off are not known, but it left Lions’ officials deeply unhappy. Shukri Conrad, the coach, was reported in some newspapers as saying it was time Cullinan retired, and he slammed the player for not speaking to any of the Lions team after the match. “If he can’t take time out to thank us, then that just sums up the man.”It is understood that Titans officials have fully accepted the punishment and also that Cullinan has apologised to them for his conduct.

The Pakistan Cricket Board are looking to appoint a fielding coach as part of its preparations for the home series against England and India. Shaharyar Khan, the chairman of the PCB, told that the board was on the lookout for a physiotherapist and a fitness trainer on a temporary basis to boost the team’s preparation this season.”We want someone who can come and give a demonstration to our players on the mechanisms of a good fielder in modern day sports,” said Shaharyar. “Ideally, we would like to have someone like the former South Africa player Jonty Rhodes to work with our players but apparently he is not available. We are also looking into the possibility of going for a professional baseball player, as they generally tend to be very good fielders.”Shaharyar also pointed out that other teams like Australia and England had benefited from hiring a baseball pro to show them the fielding drills. Although the team has improved considerably under the coaching of Bob Woolmer, there is still a long way to go for them to be called a top fielding side. “Fielding is a very important part of modern day cricket specially with the influx of one-day international cricket,” Shaharyar continued, “and we are keen to sign up someone as soon as possible so that he can start to work with our players.”The idea of having a baseball pro or coach has impressed us all and I think it is something we are looking at very seriously.”A formal training camp is scheduled for next month and the Board has also arranged for three four-day practice games as part of the preparation for the England series in November-December.

Football heartthrob David Beckham and rugby hunk Jonny Wilkinson have been caught out this summer by England’s cricket team whose skill against Australia and good looks have won a bevy of female fans. The whole country has gone cricket mad over the past few weeks as England battles to beat Australia in an Ashes series for the first time in nearly 20 years, with a nail biting climax set for the final Test.For a sport that is traditionally worshipped by men, cricket is also attracting more women thanks to the success of the England team and the appeal of certain members, such as charming allrounder Andrew Flintoff, chiselled fast bowler Simon Jones and cheeky blue-haired batsman Kevin Pietersen. “The players look good and they are charismatic, which is partly why the game is spreading to new audiences,” said Clare Connor, captain of the England women’s cricket team, which won its own Ashes against Australia last month. “Everyone male or female gets interested as soon as the team starts doing really well against the top side which is Australia,” she told AFP.England will go into the final Test 2-1 up and needing just a draw to win the overall contest – a feat that will turn the squad into national heroes. “Everyone is talking about cricket,” said a spokesman for the England and Wales Cricket Board. “The fact that the team is potentially in line for an Ashes victory is something that has swept the country.” Asked how the players were handling their heightened fame and adoring throng of female fans, the spokesman said: “They are coping very well. Essentially they don’t have time to do much else other than concentrate on the job at hand – and that is trying to win the Ashes.”Despite their gruelling training regime, some of the team have found time to pose for photo-shoots and give interviews. Their pictures dominate the sports sections of newspapers and also appear increasingly in glossy men’s magazines. They even feature as pin-ups inside women’s monthly magazines. Cosmopolitan magazine sent female hearts racing when it published a naked, smouldering photograph of 26-year-old Jones, who will miss the last Test with an ankle injury, in its August edition. “We were the first people to identify the sexual appeal of the England cricket players,” said a spokeswoman for the magazine. “Suddenly cricket is sexy for young women,” she told AFP, noting that the picture of Jones – which is part of a monthly feature to raise awareness about male cancer – triggered a flood of emails and phone calls from readers wanting a poster-size copy of the tanned, muscle-bound cricketer.The Barmy Army, a colourful group of cricket fans who typically wear fancy dress and sing funny songs at matches, said they welcomed the influx of women who were travelling to the games or watching them on television. “I think the girls like coming along now that there are a few sex symbols on the pitch,” said Paul Burnham, one of the founders of the fan club. “The more girls who get into it the better for cricket,” he said, adding: “The more girls who like cricket, the more times their husbands and boyfriends will be allowed to play or go and watch it.”Highlighting the sport’s popularity, Channel 4, which broadcasts live coverage of cricket in Britain, enjoyed a 21% share of the country’s television audience on August 28 when England clinched the fourth Test at Trent Bridge. The figure was more than double its normal rating and higher than the other stations – ironically it comes in the last season that terrestrial television broadcasts home test matches after the ECB judged it better to move it to BSkyB who offered a lot more money.In addition, one supermarket chain is selling more replica England cricket shirts than football shirts, according to the series sponsor. England captain Michael Vaughan said last month: “We can’t go anywhere without people wishing us luck. It’s great to know that the nation will be right behind us when we take on the Aussies.”With the football and rugby seasons up and running, however, the sponsor’s spokeswoman Sue Newton said it would be naive to think cricket’s new-found popularity will last throughout the winter months when the sport is not played in Britain. At the same time, she hoped enough momentum had been generated to see cricket once more in the headlines when the new season starts next year. As for the female fans, their passion for the game – and in particular the players – shows no sign of fading. “I like the appeal of the characters and personalities who are playing, and the fact that they are doing well,” said Hannah Mervis, 25, a policewoman who lives in a flat overlooking The Oval.