Report

Brown, Swann pilot Northants to division two lead

Northamptonshire has moved back to the top of Division Two of the County Championship after completing a resounding home victory over Worcestershire today with more than two sessions still remaining

Staff and agencies
08-Aug-2000
PPP Healthcare County Championship
Northamptonshire has moved back to the top of Division Two of the County Championship after completing a resounding home victory over Worcestershire today with more than two sessions still remaining.
For the second week in a row, it was off spinners Jason Brown (5/55) and Graeme Swann (4/88) who proved the matchwinners. After taking seventeen wickets together in the last round, the tandem slow bowling combination added another sixteen to their rapidly swelling collective tally with another superb exhibition.
Worcestershire had entered the final day at a score of 102/6 in its second innings - and still facing a massive overall deficit of 168 runs. Matters soon became even worse as Brown tempted Steve Rhodes (4) into driving extravagantly at, but alas over the top of, a conventional off break. Stuart Lampitt (56*) and, to a lesser extent, Paul Pollard (9), summoned enough defiance to see out eighteen overs together before the latter's wicket fell but, from there, the end came quickly.
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The dreaded mancunian weather ruins a possible epic

Overnight, it was all set up so nicely

Colin Croft
08-Aug-2000
Overnight, it was all set up so nicely. The West Indies had led by 235 overnight on the 4th day, at 381-6, and all expected that a declaration would be forthcoming after the first hour of Day 5, with perhaps an additional 30-40 runs. In effect, the eventual West Indian declaration did not come until about 75 minutes had elapsed, before the luncheon interval, by which time Franklyn Rose had been LBW to Craig White for 10. In the meantime, Ridley Jacobs and Curtly Ambrose had bludgeoned a further 54 after the fall of Rose's wicket before the end of the innings, at 438-6, with Jacobs getting a good 42 not out, while Ambrose got a useful 36 not out.
Even before the declaration, it was very evident that the rains would make an appearance some time sooner rather than later, and that did happen. Set a whopping 293 to win in a possible 71 overs, England might have struggled even on a normal day, as that was a tough ask. As it was, the rains put paid to any plans that either team would have had, and even though Courtney Walsh did get his 472nd Test wicket, that of Mike Atherton, again, this time nibbling to the wicket-keeper Jacobs, a result was impossible. Atherton made 28, but that, as the saying goes, was that. By the time the rains came, England had made 80-1, with the impressive Marcus Trescothick managing 38 not out to add to his 66 in the 1st innings. Not a bad start for a Test career.
Both captains should have been very pleased with the efforts of their players, as both teams showed great fighting spirits when situations looked marginal, while some consistency was achieved by both teams; the West Indies in batting more than bowling, with Brian Lara and the other batsmen showing some great improvement from Lords; England bowling more than batting, even with the excellence of Marcus Trescothick and Alec Stewart. In the end, it was a toss up as to whom would get the "Man of the Match" award, as there were only two real contenders, Brian Lara with his first Test century for 16 months, or Alec Stewart, with a Test century on his 100th Test. Sentiment and form, too, won out, with Stewart getting the nod.
Afterwards, Jimmy Adams, the West Indies captain, Nasser Hussain, the English captain, and Alec Stewart, the M-o-M award winner, spoke:
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Sussex finds the way to finish things off

Completely contrasting finishes to the two teams' innings have seen Sussex claim a morale-boosting 26 run win (under the Duckworth/Lewis method) over Lancashire in a tense National League match between the sides at Hove today

Staff and agencies
08-Aug-2000
Norwich Union National Cricket League
Completely contrasting finishes to the two teams' innings have seen Sussex claim a morale-boosting 26 run win (under the Duckworth/Lewis method) over Lancashire in a tense National League match between the sides at Hove today.
For large periods of this match, the hosts appeared to be in trouble. Upon winning the toss, they almost immediately found themselves in difficulty; Ian Austin (1/32), Andy Flintoff (1/37) and Glen Chapple (2/62) all striking quickly to reduce the score to 64/4. It was only, in fact, when a swashbuckling Will House (80*) and Dutchman Bastiaan Zuiderent (68), in only his second appearance for Sussex's first team this season, joined to add a breathtaking 141 runs for the fifth wicket that there came a restoration.
Even then, though, there was no guarantee that Sussex's final tally of 213/6 would prove large enough on what looked a good batting wicket. This suspicion received reinforcement when Andy Flintoff (41) and Neil Fairbrother (41) took charge of the early stages of Lancashire's reply, lifting the score to 92/2 in quick time. Two errant shots in quick succession temporarily changed the balance, however, and Sussex's bowlers were intermittently able to drop on to a more nagging line and length as their opponents chased a revised target of 219 to win from 41 overs. The match again appeared headed in the visitors' favour as Graham Lloyd (28) and Warren Hegg (20) lifted the score to 142/4 with a flurry of singles but, once Robin Martin-Jenkins (2/37) summoned the ability to find a way through Hegg's gate, things began to unravel. Martin-Jenkins and Billy Taylor (2/30) quickly accounted for a further three victims before James Kirtley (4/45) - having earlier claimed two at the start of the innings - returned to capture another two wickets and put the finishing touches on a collapse which had, by then, seen Lancashire surrender its final six wickets for the addition of a miserable fifty runs.
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Heavens open up to guide Indian Airlines into semis

MRF suffered a heartbreaking seven wicket defeat to Indian Airlines in the quarter finals of the KSCA Diamond Jubilee Tournament for the Coromandel Cement Trophy at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Tuesday despite piling up an imposing 321/3

Sankhya Krishnan
08-Aug-2000
MRF suffered a heartbreaking seven wicket defeat to Indian Airlines in the quarter finals of the KSCA Diamond Jubilee Tournament for the Coromandel Cement Trophy at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Tuesday despite piling up an imposing 321/3. Their calculations were upset by a rain interruption which revised their opponents' target to 167 from 26 overs. Hemang Badani (man of the match) and Rajat Bhatia had put Airlines to the sword in the morning session but the latter had the last laugh, cantering home with nine balls to spare on the back of a classy knock from VVS Laxman.
After MRF were put in to bat by Airlines skipper Vijay Dahiya, opener Aashish Kapoor stroked a rapid 25 from 23 balls before he fell to Javagal Srinath. Vineet Jain then sent back Venugopala Rao and Hrishikesh Kanitkar to leave MRF at 82/3 in the 17th over. Tamil Nadu team mates Badani and Bhatia then blasted an unbroken 239-run stand from 270 balls in two and a quarter hours. Badani helped himself to 143 (112 balls, 8 fours, 5 sixes) while Bhatia galloped to 107 (113 balls, 6 fours, 4 sixes).
Chasing 322, Airlines began disastrously as Sriram Kannan castled Munish Sharma for a first ball duck. Arun Kumar and Ravneet Ricky also flattered to deceive and IA found themselves in a pickle at 29/3 in the seventh over. However just over an hour into the chase, the heavens opened up leading to a stoppage for an hour and a quarter. When play resumed at 4.05 pm, Airlines were presented with a more comfortable equation. Laxman and Dahiya extended their association to an unbroken 138 and the victory was posted in the penultimate over. Laxman remained undefeated on 95 (75 balls, 4 fours, 6 sixes). Indian Airlines will square off against India Pistons in a three day semifinal at the Chinnaswamy Stadium beginning August 11.
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Draw seems inevitable after further rain

England began the final day knowing that a quick breakthrough by their bowlers might just give them an outside chance of victory in the Third Test against the West Indies

John Ward
07-Aug-2000
Cornhill Insurance
England began the final day knowing that a quick breakthrough by their bowlers might just give them an outside chance of victory in the Third Test against the West Indies. Although they took one quick wickets, this was not to be, but at lunch they looked well on their way to securing the draw that is now their only realistic option.
The day began with West Indies 381 for six, 235 runs ahead, in their second innings. Three runs were added before Franklyn Rose (10) moved across his stumps to be trapped lbw by Craig White. Curtly Ambrose (36 not out) played some lusty strokes, including a six into the sightscreen off Robert Croft, as he and Ridley Jacobs (42 not out) ran up a brisk unbroken partnership of 54 before Jimmy Adams declared at 12.05. The West Indian total was 438 for seven.
England needed, in theory, 293 to win in a minimum of 71 overs, a task that was never on. Their aim now could only be an honourable draw. The highest winning fourth-innings total at Old Trafford in more than 100 years of Test cricket is only 145 for seven, in 1955 when South Africa beat England.
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England set 293 to win

England began the final day knowing that a quick breakthrough by their bowlers might just give them an outside chance of victory in the Third Test against the West Indies

John Ward
07-Aug-2000
Cornhill Insurance
England began the final day knowing that a quick breakthrough by their bowlers might just give them an outside chance of victory in the Third Test against the West Indies. Although they took one quick wickets, this was not to be, but at lunch they looked well on their way to securing the draw that is now their only realistic option.
The day began with West Indies 381 for six, 235 runs ahead, in their second innings. Three runs were added before Franklyn Rose (10) moved across his stumps to be trapped lbw by Craig White. Curtly Ambrose (36 not out) played some lusty strokes, including a six into the sightscreen off Robert Croft, as he and Ridley Jacobs (42 not out) ran up a brisk unbroken partnership of 54 before Jimmy Adams declared at 12.05. The West Indian total was 438 for seven.
England needed, in theory, 293 to win in a minimum of 71 overs, a task that was never on. Their aim now could only be an honourable draw. The highest winning fourth-innings total at Old Trafford in more than 100 years of Test cricket is only 145 for seven, in 1955 when South Africa beat England.
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