England tour of West Indies

[sheem]

Fixture

[sheem]

Strauss hits 169 as England reach 301-3 at close

ST. JOHN''S: Captain Andrew Strauss hit a superb 169 on Sunday to lift England to a dominant 301-3 at close on the first day of the third test against the West Indies at the Antigua Recreation Ground.

Strauss cracked 24 fours and one six in notching his 15th Test century. The left-hander faced 278 balls in five hours, 50 minutes.

He shared successive century stands with Alastair Cook (52) and Owais Shah (57) that anchored the visitors after they were sent in.

Captain Chris Gayle (1-35) and fast bowler Fidel Edwards (1-41) led the hosts on a pitch which defied pre-match predictions that it would be good for bowling.

Kevin Pietersen was unbeaten on eight at stumps with night watchman James Anderson was on three not out.

[sheem]

Century-maker Strauss puts England in charge

ST JOHN''S: Andrew Strauss raced to his 15th Test hundred to help England make a strong start to the third Test against West Indies before tea at the Antigua Recreation Ground on Sunday.

Strauss was undefeated on 116 and Owais Shah was not out on 33, as England, sent in to bat, reached 206 for one in their first innings on the opening day of the Test which was hastily arranged, following the aborted second Test at the nearby Vivian Richards Cricket Ground on Friday.

Strauss, the England captain, turned his over-pitched 169th delivery from Daren Powell through backward square leg for two to reach the milestone. Strauss had put on 123 for the first wicket with Alastair Cook to give England a firm foundation before Shah joined him and they added 83 - unbroken - for the second wicket before the break.

Strauss had reached his 50 when he steered Jerome Taylor to third man for two, but he was fortunate that on 47, West Indies captain Chris Gayle dropped him at slip off Sulieman Benn.

Strauss, on 71, then edged Ryan Hinds between wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin and slip fielder Gayle for the 10th of his 16 fours. But England lost Cook when he was caught at slip off Gayle for 52.

The England vice-captain had brought up his 50 when he turned left-arm spin bowler Hinds into backward square leg for a single, but he tried to cut Gayle and Devon Smith held a low catch.

At the lunch interval, England were 58 without loss, and many of the doubts about the pitch and the outfield were quickly put to rest.

Strauss was the more fluent with seven boundaries including a couple of well-timed straight drives, and Cook too, found his range with a searing cut off Chris Gayle''s uncomplicated off-spin.

West Indies made no changes to their 11 that took the field for the aborted second Test, which lasted just 10 balls, but England brought Steve Harmison and Graeme Swann in to replace Ryan Sidebottom and Monty Panesar.

West Indies lead the series, which now comprises five Tests, 1-0, following an innings and 23-run victory in the opening match at Kingston.

The other two Tests in the series take place at Kensington Oval in Barbados from February 26 to March 2, and Queen''s Park Oval in Trinidad from March 2 to 6.

[sheem]

Strauss puts England in charge in third test against West Indies

ANTIGUA: Andrew Strauss crafted a superb 15th Test century as England dominated day one of the third Test against West Indies in Antigua.

Despite being put in to bat, he and Alistair Cook dominated the home attack before Cook (52) fell to Chris Gayle.

Owais Shah (57) was run out and Strauss finally departed for 169 but England reached an imposing 301-3 at the close.

Kevin Pietersen and night-watchman James Anderson will return to the middle on day two with the aim of helping their side, 1-0 down in the series following a humliating defeat in Jamaica, to a substantial total before they have a bowl at West Indies.

England reached 206-1 at tea and the final session started with Shah clubbing Benn back over his head for a maximum and driving him down the ground for four.

With England scoring slowly, Gayle delayed taking the new ball but when he did it paid off with the wicket of Strauss, who attempted to pull a short ball by Edwards but this time mis-timed the stroke and lobbed a simple return catch.

[sheem]

West Indies reach 55-1 at close, England 566-9 dec

ST JOHN''S: A century from Paul Collingwood led England to an imposing 566 for nine declared on the second day of the third test against West Indies in Antigua, as the tourists made their first test mauling a distant memory.

Just nine days after being bowled out for 51 at Sabina Park and suffering an innings defeat, England amassed over 10 times that total with five batsmen scoring half centuries or more.

Collingwood was the constant presence throughout a sun-blessed day at the Antigua Recreation Ground, as his 113,his eighth test century, provided a perfect complement to skipper Andrew Strauss''s 169 on Sunday.

A great day for England ended with the added bonus of the wicket of West Indies captain and batting threat Chris Gayle, who drove Steve Harmison to James Anderson at mid-off to depart on 30.

West Indies ended the day on 55 for one trailing by 511runs.

[sheem]

England need 7 runs to win Antigua Test

ANTIGUA: England were eyeing a series-leveling victory, after setting West Indies 503 to win the third Test and at stumps on the fourth day needed seven wickets on the final day to secure the win.

England declared their second innings on 221 for eight about an hour after the scheduled tea break, and then restricted West Indies to 143 for three in their second innings when stumps were drawn.

Alastair Cook hit the top score of 51 in the England second innings, Paul Collingwood made 34, Kevin Pietersen got 33 as England batted themselves into an impregnable position.

For West Indies, Daren Powell collected two wickets for 33 runs from seven overs, Ryan Hinds took two for 45 from 11 overs, and Sulieman Benn two for 58 from 13 overs.

England then had to wait an hour and 15 minutes either side of tea before they claimed their first wicket, and then took two more to leave West Indies wobbly on 96 for three.

But the visitors then met stern resistance from Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul, two of the West Indies'' most recognised batsmen, in the final hour.

Sarwan, not out on 47, and Chanderpaul, not out on 19, added 47 unbroken for the fourth wicket and will carry the burden of responsibility of saving the test.

[sheem]

Antigua Test ends in draw

ANTIGUA: An impressive batting display from the tail-enders helped West Indies claim a draw to deny England a series-levelling victory in Antigua.

The home side looked set for defeat at 322-8, but resilient batting from Daren Powell, assisted by Sulieman Benn and Fidel Edwards, rescued the match.

Stuart Broad (3-51) took the vital wickets of Ramnaresh Sarwan (106) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (55).

The pair put on 148 runs to give their side the chance to earn a famous draw.

With the light rapidly diminishing as evening set in over the Antigua Recreational Ground, Powell and Edwards gratefully accepted the umpires'' offer to go off with just four overs remaining in the match.

With men surrounding the bat in the final few overs, England''s bowlers could not penetrate the obdurate resistance of the tail-enders, who ensured the West Indies maintain a 1-0 series lead going into the fourth Test in Barbados, which begins next Thursday.

England had looked set for victory when Denesh Ramdin played on to his stumps off James Anderson in the 111th over with the score at 322-8.

However, Powell, who finished 22 not out from 55 time-sapping deliveries, combined brilliantly with Benn and Edwards as England pressed for the final two wickets.

England had spent long periods of the final day searching for a breakthrough attempting to dislodge Sarwan and Chanderpaul, who had seen the West Indies to 143-3 on day four chasing an improbable 503 for victory.

[sheem]

West Indies named squad for fourth test

BARBADOS: The West Indies cricket selectors chose an unchanged squad of 13 players for the fourth test against England beginning at Kensington Oval next Thursday.

The home team leads the five-match series 1-0 following victory in the opening test in Jamaica and draws in the second and third tests in Antigua.

The second match was abandoned after 10 balls because of a dangerous outfield, while the hastily arranged third test went down to the wire with the West Indies'' last pair Daren Powell and Fidel Edwards keeping England''s bowlers at bay to earn a thrilling draw.

The two players that did not play in the Antigua matches, batsman Lendl Simmons and fast bowler Lionel Baker, are retained in the party.

The squad: Chris Gayle (captain), Denesh Ramdin (vice-captain), Devon Smith, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Ryan Hinds, Shivnarine Chanderpaul,Brendan Nash, Jerome Taylor, Sulieman Benn, Daren Powell.

[Sadaf Gondal]

The West Indies Cricket Board was responsible for the shambles of the abandoned Test at the Sir Viv Richards Stadium, according to the ICC chief executives' committee. The announcement came after the second day of their meeting in Johannesburg.
The executive committee reconfirmed that the responsibility for ensuring the delivery of a venue fit for the purpose of international cricket rested with the host member board. Until now, the WICB has been reluctant to accept that it and not the local board was at fault for not ensuring the venue was up to standard.
The committee recommended that from now on all boards would be required to notify the ICC in February of each year the identity of all venues they intended to use for international matches in the following 12 months. This would need to be accompanied by a declaration that the grounds were up to standards already agreed by the ICC.
With regards to the outfield in Antigua, this is currently the subject of an ICC investigation and the WICB has been asked to submit its own report. The ICC has the power to impose a sanction ranging from a warning or a fine up to a suspension of international status for the venue.

[sheem]

Cricket: England 301 for 3 against West Indies in fourth test

BRIDGETOWN: An opening stand of 229 featuring a century from captain Andrew Strauss lifted England to a commanding 301 for three on the first day of the fourth test against West Indies in Barbados on Thursday.

Strauss made an excellent 142 after winning the toss and was well assisted by Alastair Cook, who struck 94, in a record English first-wicket partnership against West Indies.

The hosts will have gained some encouragement, however, from their performance in the final session when they removed both openers and Owais Shah (7) to peg back England''s run rate.

But Chris Gayle''s side will be rueing Jerome Taylor''s drop of Kevin Pietersen off Fidel Edwards just before stumps, one of three spilled catches during the day.

Pietersen was unbeaten on 32 at the close with Paul Collingwood on 11.

West Indies lead the five-match series 1-0.

[Sadaf Gondal]

Andrew Flintoff will return home from the tour of West Indies later on Friday to continue his rehabilitation from the hip injury that forced him to miss the fourth Test in Barbados. The decision rules him out of the final Test in Trinidad but it is hoped he will return on March 10, ahead of the one-off Twenty20 international and one-day series.
The injury to his right hip has also been upgraded to a tear after it was initially diagnosed as a strain. He will now work alongside his long-term fitness advisor David Roberts as well as the ECB's chief medical officer Nick Pierce. "It's desperately frustrating. It's one thing after another but there's not a great deal I can do about it. Just got to get fit and come back," Flintoff said.
He picked up his latest problem in Antigua and bowled through the pain on the final day, sending down 12 overs as England pushed for a series-levelling victory that was denied by West Indies' final pair.
"I was in discomfort all the way through," he said. "Whether it made it worse or not I'm not quite sure. I felt a bit of a niggle in Jamaica, more tightness than anything, then in Antigua it started to get worse during the game."

Flintoff will spend time back at Lancashire where he will work with the Old Trafford medical staff and Peter Moores, who is now coach. "We feel as though his rehabilitation would be best served by him going back home," said Hugh Morris, managing director England cricket. "It is something we have done with Andrew before when he was recovering from his ankle injury.
"Being around the England team environment can be something of a goldfish bowl and by returning home he can concentrate on receiving some intensive treatment," he added. "Clearly getting him fit for the one-day internationals is our priority and focus. A muscle tear is a muscle tear and time is a key ingredient in this."
This is the second injury he has suffered on the tour. He picked up a side strain in the opening week and was pulled out of the first warm-up match but recovered in time to take his place in the first Test in Kingston.
The issue of Flintoff's fitness isn't restricted to his England position but also his participation in the Indian Premier League, where he is due to have a three-week spell with the Chennai Super Kings in April. The ECB, and specifically Morris, could be faced with a tough decision if Flintoff's recovery is slower than expected, especially with the Ashes looming.
"Everyone is going about the IPL and it's a hot topic at the moment, but I want to play for England in the one-day series," Flintoff said. "The IPL is still a few weeks away and will take care of itself. Playing for England is the ultimate. It's [the Ashes] something I desperately want to be involved in and I'm not going to do anything that will jeopardise that."
Morris added that the ECB are hoping to retain a certain level of control over the fitness of players in the IPL. "We have contracts with the 18 counties whereby we set up minimum provisions for our centrally contracted players. We would like that kind of relationship with the IPL franchises who have our players so that we will make the right level in place," he said.
England have already added cover to their squad after calling Ravi Bopara and Amjad Khan from the Lions tour of New Zealand with Bopara was named in the XI for Barbados