England tour of West Indies

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Fixture

[Sadaf Gondal]

Andrew Flintoff has been sent to Jamaica for a scan on his left side after being withdrawn from England's warm-up match against a St Kitts Invitational XI. The team management said it was a precautionary move to have Flintoff assessed after he picked up the problem during an early-tour net session. He was named in the XI for the opening warm-up game, but only managed 11 before being caught in the deep. Following his brief innings he felt further discomfort and the decision was taken that he would take no further part in the three-day outing at Warner Park. St Kitts have agreed to allow Stuart Broad to take Flintoff's place for the remaining two days of the game after Andrew Strauss initially wanted a proper 11-a-side fixture. Flintoff is due back in St Kitts this evening with the results expected on Tuesday. Another side injury caused a delay in Flintoff's return to the England side last year, when he was being earmarked for a recall for the home series against New Zealand following ankle surgery. He picked up the problem in the County Championship against Durham in early May and was forced to sit out international cricket until the second Test against South Africa, at Headingley, in July. Since returning his bowling has been impressive and he has regularly hit the 90mph mark. During the India tour before Christmas he was used extensively by Kevin Pietersen and said his body felt as good as ever.

[Sadaf Gondal]

BASSETERRE, St Kitts: Kevin Pietersen buried the controversy over his decision to quit as England skipper with a blazing 90-ball century on Sunday on the opening day of the tour of the West Indies. In stark contrast, however, his successor as captain, Andrew Strauss, fell without scoring after facing just two balls. England kicked-off their tour with a three-day game against a St Kitts and Nevis Invitational side with Pietersen making 103 with 13 fours and three sixes, one of which came off the first ball he faced, before being stumped off leg spinner Akito Willett who went on to take five wickets. Pietersen put on 158 with Owais Shah for the fourth wicket, but opener Strauss lasted just two balls, falling victim to a catch by second slip Junie Mitchum off Calvin Williams. By stumps, England, having made the most of Warner Park's short boundaries, reached 424-8.Shah, competing with Ian Bell for a place in the side for the first Test starting in Jamaica on February 4, finished on 125 not out. Shah is hoping to win a third Test cap, almost three years after his debut against India in Mumbai.Pietersen said he had no regrets over his decision to relinquish the captaincy after just three Tests in charge.England's bright start was clouded, however, by news that star all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who made 11, had suffered a side strain and will sit out the rest of this match.Meanwhile, Alastair Cook, England's vice-captain for the Test series, hit 52, while fast bowler Steve Harmison smashed 58.

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St Kitts Invitational XI v England XI, St Kitts, 2nd day


Workmanlike England turn the screw


January 26, 2009


England XI 424 for 8 and 118 for 0 (Strauss 59*, Cook 50*) lead St Kitts Invitational XI 251 (Rogers 63, Panesar 4-53) by 291 runs

[Sadaf Gondal]

BASSETERRE, St Kitts: Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen, and Paul Collingwood all came close, but failed to cross over the hundred-run threshold as England's tour match against West Indies-A ended in a draw on Saturday.

Left-hander Strauss was dismissed for 97, Pietersen made 90, and Collingwood gathered 82, as England were bowled out for 414, replying to the A-Team's first innings total of 574 for eight declared on the third and final day of the match at Warner Park.

West Indies-A had reached 16 without loss in their second innings when the match was wrapped up about an hour before the scheduled close with no outright result possible.

The docile pitch and relatively inexperienced attack offered England's batsmen a chance for a meaningful warm-up prior to the first Test against West Indies, starting at Sabina Park on Wednesday.

Strauss, Pietersen, and Collingwood all made the most of the opportunity, but they all failed to cross the final hurdle, as the A-Team bowlers stuck to their task.

Fast bowler Kevin McClean was the pick of the A-Team bowlers with three wickets for 56 runs in 14.5 overs, and leg-spinner Gavin Wallace finished with three for 149 from 24 overs.

Off-spinner Amit Jaggernauth, who has been chosen in the West Indies 14-member squad for the first Test, claimed two for 100 from 27 overs.

England continued from 134 for two, and benefitted from a 132-run stand for the third wicket between Strauss and Pietersen.

Strauss hit 16 fours and one six from 135 balls in 3-1/4 hours before Wallace bowled him, and Pietersen struck 17 fours from 82 balls and fell in the same manner to Jaggernauth, who also trapped Owais Shah lbw for nine as England reached 295 for five at lunch.

But Collingwood, whose innings occupied 122 balls and included five fours and three sixes, added 80 for the sixth wicket with Matt Prior, who made 36, as England reached 407 for eight at tea before McClean and fellow fast bowler Brandon Bess swiftly wrapped things up after the break.

Brief scores:
West Indies-A 574 for eight declared (Lendl Simmons 282, Adrian Barath 132,
Devon Thomas 38, Sewnarine Chattergoon 37, Leon Johnson 26; Steve Harmison
4-101, James Anderson 2-92) and 13 without loss
England 414 (Andrew Strauss 97, Kevin Pietersen 90, Paul Collingwood 82, Ian Bell 52, Matt Prior 36; Kevin McClean 3-51, Gavin Wallace 3-149, Amit Jaggernauth 2-87).

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Windies 160-1 in reply to England’s 318 on 2nd day

KINGSTON, Jamaica: West Indies'' second wicket pair of Chris Gayle and his former deputy Ramnaresh Sarwan batted England into the ground with a hundred-run partnership in the opening Test at Sabina Park on Thursday.

England''s bowlers lacked penetration, as Sarwan, undefeated on 74, and Gayle, 71 not out, carried West Indies to 160 for one, replying to England''s first innings total of 318, when stumps were drawn on the second day.

Monty Panesar, whose left-arm spin was expected to trouble the West Indies batsmen, failed to make an impact, and Gayle slapped him through square cover for three to reach his 50 from 70 balls.

Steve Harmison, who has fond memories of the ground, following his best bowling in Tests of seven wickets for 12 runs, also looked way below his best, and Sarwan nursed him behind square for two to reach his 50 from 111 balls.

England''s only success came prior to tea, when they claimed the scalp of Devon Smith for six, when he was adjudged lbw, after he completely missed the flight path of a delivery from Flintoff, and was struck on his left boot.

The first of the two confirmed that Sarwan was clearly not-out, when Flintoff appealed for an lbw verdict for a delivery that was clearly heading down the leg-side.

The second saved Sarwan from being dismissed, when he was struck playing back to an off-cutter from Harmison, and Hill adjudged him lbw.

But England''s bowlers were not as consistent as they would have liked, and the two West Indies batsmen reeled off an array of exciting strokes.

England''s first innings was terminated about 20 minutes after lunch, when Harmison and Panesar fell lbw with both batsmen unsuccessfully challenging their dismissals.

Sulieman Benn was West Indies'' most successful bowler with four wickets for 77 runs from 44.2 overs, Jerome Taylor took three for 74 from 20 overs, and Daren Powell grabed two for 54 from 20 overs.

Before lunch, Matt Prior completed a purposeful half-century that helped England reach 311 for eight at the interval.

England suffered an early setback, after they continued from their overnight total of 236 for five, when Flintoff was caught at backward point for 43 off Powell chasing a short, wide, rising ball.

The visitors then stumbled to 256 for seven, when Broad was caught at gully for four slicing a drive off Taylor.

For the next 45 minutes, Prior and Ryan Sidebottom stemmed the fall of wickets with a stand of 32 for the eighth wicket.

Prior reached his 50, when he edged a big drive at a delivery from Powell and the ball flew just wide of the second slip fielder Smith on its way to the third man boundary for the fifth of his seven fours.

But Prior paid for his petulance, when he tried to launch an attack on beanpole left-arm spin bowler Benn and was caught and bowled about 45 minutes before the interval to fully expose the England tail.

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Windies take 34-run lead over England on 3rd day

KINGSTON, Jamaica: Skipper Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan hit centuries as West Indies edged into a 34-run lead, with three wickets remaining, at stumps on the third day of the first Test here on Friday.

Sarwan hit the top score of 107 and Gayle, 103, his first Test century on his home ground, to help their side reach 352 for seven, replying to England''s first innings total of 318, at close of play at Sabina Park.

England appeared to have control of the match, when they removed World Cricketer of the Year Shivnarine Chanderpaul about 15 minutes before tea to leave West Indies on 254 for five.

But they again met resistance in the form of a sixth-wicket stand of 66 between Brendan Nash and Denesh Ramdin.

Ramdin was one of two wickets England claimed in the final session, when he became Monty Panesar''s first wicket in the 37th of the left-arm spin bowler''s 45 overs, leaving Nash to shepherd the tail until the close with 47 not out.

Stuart Broad was England''s most successful bowler with three wickets for 61 runs from 24 overs, and Andrew Flintoff supported with two for 57 from 27 overs.

England failed to make early inroads into West Indies'' batting, after the home team continued from their overnight total of 160 for one.

But Broad struck twice in the penultimate over before lunch to bring England back into the contest, after Gayle and Sarwan reached their landmarks.

Broad snared Gayle and then fellow hometown boy Xavier Marshall for a second-ball duck in the space of three balls, as West Indies reached 224 for three at the interval.

England''s successes only came following a second wicket stand of 202 between Gayle and Sarwan.

Broad got a delivery to keep low to Gayle, and the West Indies captain played back, and was bowled when he inside-edged the ball into his stumps.

Gayle batted for a little over five and three-quarter hours, faced 193 balls, and struck five fours and five sixes.

Clearly energised, Broad sprinted in to deliver his next delivery which rushed into the front of new batsman Xavier Marshall, but his and England''s loud appeal for an lbw verdict was turned down by umpire Tony Hill.

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West Indies beat England by innings, 23 runs

KINGSTON: England slumped to a humiliating defeat by an innings and 23 runs after being skittled for 51 by West Indies on the fourth day of the first test on Saturday.

Jerome Taylor ripped the heart out of England, a superb spell of pace bowling earning figures of five for 11 at Sabina Park, while spinner Sulieman Benn took four for 31.

Andrew Flintoff was the only batsman to make double figures, hitting 24 as the visitors were routed for their third lowest total.

West Indies had not beaten England in their last 16 meetings going back to a victory at Edgbaston in 2000.

After the home team were bowled out for 392 in their first innings, securing a lead of 74 runs, England slid to 11 for two at lunch with Alastair Cook and Ian Bell the men out.

Taylor, watched by triple Olympic champion and 100 metres world record holder Usain Bolt of Jamaica, produced a ''Lightning Bolt'' of his own by removing Kevin Pietersen for one with a classic delivery.

The fast bowler produced late out swing to bowl Pietersen as he attempted to hit the ball through mid-wicket.

Next to go was England captain Andrew Strauss, who edged another excellent delivery from Taylor to keeper Denesh Ramdin.

With the crowd anticipating a famous victory, on-fire Taylor also bowled Paul Collingwood and Matt Prior to leave England reeling.

Slow left armer Benn, who had earlier dismissed Bell, took his second wicket when Broad was caught by Xavier Marshall at short leg.

Benn then trapped Ryan Sidebottom LBW before Flintoff, who had provided some sort of resistance, was clean bowled by Fidel Edwards.

Spinner Benn, who also took four wickets in the first innings, finished England off when he bowled Steve Harmison to prompt wild celebrations from the Jamaican crowd.

It was sweet revenge for West Indies, who were bowled out for 47 by England the last time the teams met at this venue and Strauss''s men have plenty to think about ahead of next week''s second test in Antigua.

[Sadaf Gondal]

ST JOHN'S, Antigua: Andrew Flintoff believes England have the character to rebound in the second Test against West Indies at the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, starting on Friday.

The England all-rounder also believes England can not only draw level in the four-Test series which West Indies lead following a sensational innings and 23-run victory in the opening Test at Kingston, but that the visitors can also take the series.

"The spirit's been good, but maybe we need to draw on each other a little bit more," Flintoff told reporters.

"Help your mates out, help each other to try and make the side successful.

"We have all the ingredients of a successful side and we have to put them all together.

"That's going to be the test for people, when you go through something like that you still have to back yourself and that's going to be the big test of character."

Flintoff hit the top score of 24, as England, trailing by 74 runs from the first innings, were dismissed for 51 in their second innings at Sabina Park.

It was their third lowest total in Tests following a spectacular new-ball spell from Jerome Taylor in which he claimed five wickets for 11 runs from nine overs that earned him the Man-of-the-Match award.

"You can talk about technique and work in the nets, but it is all about how people respond to what's happened," Flintoff said. "It's very important we come back strong on Friday.

"Sides who perform well and perform well for a time are the ones who people say have a good relationship between them and this is a true test of us now, a real challenge."

The reasons for England's capitulation have varied between inability to handle pressure to distractions caused by the Indian Premier League auction to the rift which led to the sacking of former coach Peter Moores and the resignation of Kevin Pietersen from the post of captain.

But Flintoff acknowledged the side had "an honest chat" on Monday night, their first official team meeting following the debacle, and he believes they will come out stronger for it.

"After the game, we were very flat, and probably a bit numb, but as bad as it was in Jamaica, we can still win the series, we have to believe that," he said.

"I can say this and that but on the cricket field we have to start scoring our runs and taking our wickets - I am confident we can do that."