Regional Group 11

Second Round Draw on 12th MayMatch A – Bashley (Rydal) v Waterlooville
Match B – Thatcham Town v Havant
Match C – Hungerford v Cove
Match D – Basingstoke & North Hants v Falkland
Match E – Portsmouth v Lymington
Match F – South Wilts v Gosport Borough
Match G – Burridge v Winchester K.S.
Match H – Ventnor v Andover
Third Round Draw – 26th MayMatch I – Thatcham Town or Havant v Bashley (Rydal) or Waterlooville
Match J – Basingstoke & NH or Falkland v Hungerford or Cove
Match K – South Wilts or Gosport Borough v Portsmouth or Lymington
Match L – Ventnor or Andover v Burridge or Winchester K.S.
Fourth Round Draw – 9th JuneMatch M – Winners Match I v Winners Match J
Match N – Winners Match K v Winners Match L
Fifth Round Draw – 20th JuneWinners Match N v Winners Match M

MELBOURNE, Jan 28 AAP – Acknowledging that 2002-03 had not been his best season, Adam Gilchrist was as surprised as anyone to win the Allan Border Medal tonight as Australia’s cricketer of the year.The wicketkeeper-batsman had indisputably been a key member of the dominant Australian Test and one-day teams.But it was his limited-overs opening partner Matthew Hayden, currently ranked the world’s No.1 Test and one-day batsman, who was the pre-event favourite.Gilchrist polled 88 votes, to edge Ricky Ponting (84), Shane Warne (79) and Hayden (76).”The award was a surprise, it’s amazing, I really didn’t expect it,” said Gilchrist, who also won the one-day international player of the year award.”So many guys had great years, Matty Hayden had a standout year, probably a better year even than last season when he won the award.”So I think all of us were banking that he was going to be the man.”When asked if it had been his best-ever season, Gilchrist replied: “To be honest no, seeing from my reaction tonight.”It started out well…. I was probably a fraction inconsistent in one-day cricket, in Test cricket I felt like I took some opportunities well and missed a few opportunities, although that’s the type of player I am.”Gilchrist nominated skipper Steve Waugh’s century in the fifth Ashes Test earlier this month as his highlight of the season.Personal high points would have included back to back unbeaten Test hundreds against South Africa.The Allan Border Medal is still in its infancy, but Gilchrist said it was already something coveted by the players.”It’s grown in tradition in four years, it’s grown legs,” he said.”It’s got a little bit of history now if you look at the names already on the winners board.”I guess the key ingredient with this one is that the players vote on it.”The previous winners were Hayden (2002), Steve Waugh (2001) and Glenn McGrath (2000).The voting began on the tour of South Africa from February-April last year and finished with the VB Series finals last weekend.Votes were cast by the players, umpires, match referees and media representatives on a 3-2-1 basis for each game, with an extra weighting given to the 11 Tests over the 27 one-day internationals.Test captain-in-waiting Ponting (13 votes) was a narrow winner of the Test Player of the Year ahead of Warne (12) and Gilchrist (10).Warne’s chances were hampered by missing the last two of the 11 Tests in the voting period with a dislocated shoulder.Gilchrist also won the One-Day International Player of the Year with 18 votes, one ahead of Hayden and Brett Lee.He made 751 runs with two centuries at an average of 32.65 and a strike rate of 95.79.Gilchrist also took 40 catches and made five stumpings.But Gilchrist’s Test average of 77.33 this season was the best in a team where Ponting and Hayden also averaged more than 60.Other award winners were Martin Love (State Player of the Year), Nathan Hauritz (Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year) and Karen Rolton (Women’s Cricketer of the Year).Former Test captains Lindsay Hassett and Ian Chappell were inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame.

CAPE TOWN-After its initial loss against Australia, each of its remaining four fixtures is a key game for Pakistan. They have to win them all to stay in the hunt for a spot in the next, Super Sixes round. For England, Pakistan’s opponents in Saturday’s day and night game, things are even tighter for comfort.Not in the best of spirits, with the Zimbabwe controversy and the resulting acrimony doing their cause no good, and carrying too many walking-wounded in their ranks, England have beaten both the minnows and forfeited their tie against Zimbabwe in this ‘Group of Death’. So, the Pakistan fixture is a moment of reckoning for them. Win and they live to fight another day; lose and their campaign is more or less over.Technically they would still have a slight chance, but with Pakistan, India and Zimbabwe in the equation for the two remaining Super Sixes slots with Australia in the lead, the challenge for England from a loss here would not just be steep, it would fall in the realm of impossible, for they would have to beat both Australia and India for a comeback.And with the margin of error being truly non-existent for both sides, it goes without saying that the tie is going to be an extremely well-contested one.Pakistan for its part, as Waqar Younis said in the pre-match briefing here at Newlands, is not just keen to survive, they were focused to win and gain points, as points are essential to carry them to the Super Sixes but “also come handy for qualification to the next knock-out round, the semis”.Pakistan has an edge over England in terms of record, as they have not lost a World Cup game to the latter since 1983 – winning five on the trot in the meanwhile, including the 1992 World Cup final. And in their last meeting in an event, the NatWest Trophy in England in 2001, Pakistan blanked them out in all three matches.”Yes, we know England well, and are aware of what it takes to beat them. We just want to play to our potential”, said Waqar, meaning thereby that if Pakistan just does that, it would be enough for them to prevail over their opponents.That said, both sides have their own fair share of problems. The England captain, Nasser Hussain, who sat out the unconvincing win over Namibia, is still not 100 per cent. Suffering from soft tissue damage around his neck, he ventured out for a spell at the nets but only to soon withdraw. Ian Blackwell and Ashley Giles too have been suffering from a twisted back and tonsillitis.All three, the England coach Duncan Fletcher said in the customary pre-match press conference, were better, but a final decision on whether they would take the field or not would be taken on the morning of the match.Fletcher conceded that Pakistan remain a threat, not just to England but to any side in the world. He singled out Akram and Saqlain as potential match-winners. Perhaps he deliberately ignored mentioning Shoaib, but he too along with Akram and Saqlain was likely to cause a few nightmares of his own to English batsmen.Pakistan’s bowling generally remains in fine fettle, and quite capable of blowing away England. “We’re giving Shoaib the new ball, because with his pace he could get us early wickets, and Wasim is bowling beautifully well,” said Waqar. “Our only weak showing so far was against Australia in the middle overs, and that cost us the game. I believe Saqlain can play a role here”, said he.But it is the batting and not bowling which is causing Pakistan management a great deal of discomfiture. Having already played out a different set of openers in two matches, and still unsatisfied with the results, the one-down position too remains unsettled. But the mother of all worries is the form, or the absolute lack of it, of Inzamam-ul-Haq. Quite inexplicably, he is woefully out of touch. On the eve of team’s departure for the World Cup, he had promised that to bolster the frailty in the batting, he would be willing to bat a notch higher, at number three.That promise remains unfulfilled, and Pakistan has been worse off due to it. If Inzamam walks to the middle at one-down, it could serve Pakistan in good stead in more ways than one. Firstly, he could hope to have the time to play himself back into form. Secondly, if he fires, it could stem the rot in the middle order, which has not made a substantive contribution in any of their two matches so far, leaving it only for the late order to give respectability, and not added impetus, to the total.But Waqar dispelled any likelihood of Inzamam playing at one-down: “He is comfortable at number four; the team also requires him to bat there”.Toss, as Waqar Younis mentioned, would be a vital factor. “I’m sure whosoever wins would bat first and try and put runs on the board”, said he, adding, “Since both our teams are struggling for form in batting, I hope it would be our bowling which would make the difference”.With no fitness problems, the Pakistan management would be hoping that the anxiety regarding the batting takes care of itself in this encounter.Going into the match, Pakistan does have an edge over England – in terms of morale, fitness, resources etc. They only need to make sure that they maintain a high level of intensity, and fire on all cylinders.

Mike Worrell’s choice as Man-Of-The-Match surprised some of the few spectators at Kensington Oval yesterday, including the award winner himself.Worrell, a former Barbados and West Indies "B" wicket-keeper, chose Barbadian fast bowler Tino Best, who took seven wickets, including a five-wicket haul in the first innings, that set up Barbados’ ten-wicket win against bottom-of-the-table West Indies "B"."I was surprised. For the last couple of games, the batsmen have been getting it, and Sherwin [Campbell] made a brilliant 135. I just thought he would have got it," Best said."Carlton Baugh made a fighting hundred as well. That was impressive."Best, one of the fastest and most exciting fast bowlers in the Caribbean this season, is the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 35 scalps.With the return of Vasbert Drakes, Pedro Collins and Corey Collymore from West Indies duties, however, his place in the team for the semifinals of the International Challenge is not guaranteed."They are Test players. I would like to do well around them," Best said."I am not thinking about being dropped. I am thinking about Barbados’ cricket in general. If we put out the best team out there and I’m not in it, bad luck for me."In this match, Best was relegated to first-change, with captain Courtney Browne opting to share the new ball with Collymore and Ian Bradshaw."We have a semifinal and a final coming up and we need to give everybody some bowling," Browne said."Tino has not been doing well up front with the new ball. He has been getting most of his wickets with the old ball. Corey Collymore is just back and I thought that he came in and held his own very well."Best echoed Browne’s view about his performance with the new ball."In my first spell, I don’t think I bowl that quick. I try to get my length," he said."It is when I come back for a second spell, it is when I put down everything."

Santiago gleaned a measure of compensation from a disappointing MetropolitanCricket Cup campaign with a clinical 7-wicket dispatching of a depletedPrince of Wales Country Club (PWCC) line-up at the Craighouse fields onSaturday. The defeat left PWCC in bottom (fourth) place in the2002/3 Chilean cricket season.PWCC openers Clinton Porteous and Dean Ilott started well enough. They puton 51, on an unpredictable pitch and against some genuinely fast bowling.Even Ilott (17), who normally bats like he’s on Valium, got into the actwith some positive shots and sound defense.Porteous was at his dashing best, using his feet well and not afraid to hitover the top. He contributed 31 before he became Santiago skipper JayAnglin’s first victim when he gave mid-off some catching practice.But that was as good as it got for PWCC. Porteous’ dismissal triggered a sadprocession of batsmen to and from the pavilion. Anglin and off-spinner PeteSmith ripped through a sorry middle and lower order that seemed to lack boththe gumption and skill to make a fight of it. Hardly troubling the scorer,the remaining batsmen capitulated from 51/0 to 66 for the loss of 8 wickets(all out). Destroyer-in-chief Anglin’s incisive inswing and looping bouncebagged five wickets, while Smith, playing in his last game in Chile beforeheading home to Australia, took three with his skidding off-spin.The pitch dried during the day, making batting an easier proposition lateron. PWCC’s Ian Scott and Ilott sent back three Santiago batsmen early on torestore some respectability to the scoreline. But Simon Shaulders wasn’tgoing anywhere, and he found a willing ally in Edwin Huysing. The pair sawoff the opening bowlers, and the pie-throwers who followed, knocking off thewinning runs with more than 20 of their allotted 35 overs to spare.But 3rd spot must be cold comfort for Santiago, who must have expected tohave at least made the Metropolitan Cup final. They will be askingthemselves why they saved their best performance for last after losing allthree of their fixtures.For PWCC, it was a poor way to go out after such a strong showing early on.Their unsung bowling attack proved to be a match for the other teams, andtheir fielding was solid, but their glass-jaw middle order just wasn’t goodenough.The day ended with a quick double-wicket beer match, which was played ingood spirits. But I suspect Santiago’s Blair Douglas was drinking shandies.

Four years ago when Australia visited the West Indies, Corey Collymore took on the Aussies and looked to be the genuine article.Four years on the world champions are on their way back to the region and Collymore is still waiting for his second West Indies Test cap.The tall, accurate seam bowler has struggled with injury, but this has not fazed him. His aim for now is to do well for Barbados in the upcoming Carib Beer International Challenge matches and take it from there. The Bajans meet Trinidad and Tobago in tomorrow’s semifinal at Kensington Oval."I’m focused on doing well for Barbados and helping my country to win the tournament," Collymore said in a rare interview after yesterday’s training session at Queen’s Park."I just want to put in my best performances and leave it up to the selectors. I know what it is like at the top [in West Indies team] and my aim is to stay there, but I’ll just take it step by step."Since recovering from a near career-ending back injury three years ago, the 25-year-old Collymore has been selected only for One-Day Internationals by the West Indies selectors.He was a member of the ill-starred West Indies side at the recent World Cup in South Africa, but did not bowl in his only match against Bangladesh at Benoni.He has chalked up 32 One-Dayers and this has left him branded as a "One-Day player" and not suited to the longer version of the game."I rate myself as a cricketer in the true sense of the word, not a One-Day cricketer," he said. "I have taken over 60 wickets in about 16 matches for Barbados in four-day cricket so that speaks for itself."In his career he has managed 90 wickets in 28 first-class matches since his debut five years ago. His best figures are six for 109 against Guyana at Kensington Oval."I have fully overcome my back injuries, but this has caused me to be more chest-on and as a result I have lost a bit of my pace. I still move the ball around and I feel good about the way I’m bowling right now."I need to put in a bit more work to get everything in the right place and by Friday I’ll be ready."

Steve Rixon, who coached New South Wales to the Pura Cup and domestic one-day Cup double last season, has been re-appointed coach for another year.It will be Rixon’s fourth season in charge of NSW in his second period as coach. He previously coached NSW from 1989-1995, winning three Sheffield Shield and three one-day titles and was at the helm when they won the double in 1992-93 and 1993-94. He is also a former coach of New Zealand.Rixon’s first act following his re-appointment was to quash rumours that Michael Slater was on the verge of retiring to pursue his fledgling career as a television commentator. “I had talks with Michael just prior to him leaving to go overseas and our final words were he’d be back in July ready to fire up for the pre-season,” Rixon said. “As far as I’m concerned, Michael will play.”But Rixon admitted that he was still waiting to hear from Mark Waugh, another possible retiree. “Mark’s another one that we’d obviously like to see around for another year or so,” Rixon said. “I think if you asked Mark, he’d probably say, ‘I wouldn’t mind playing,’ but he’s got other interests that he may have to weigh up and that’s what we’ve got to wait and see. That decision should be made in the next three weeks, I’d like to think.”

Yesterday, it was Robert Croft the batsman who was the scourge of Derbyshire. Today, itwas Croft the bowler who left the visitors in danger of following-on intheir Championship match at Swansea.At the end of another rain-affected day, Derbyshire were teetering on 190-8, still 205runs behind Glamorgan, with Croft having taken 5/61 from 27 overs on a wicket that,as expected, gave assistance to the spin bowlers.Dean Cosker also picked up two wickets including the prized scalps of Mohammad Kaif,Derbyshire`s newly registered overseas player and their captain Dominic Cork. Coskerfinished a good day`s work with figures of 2/44 from his 16 overs.Derbyshire`s tailenders will resume in the morning battling to avoid the follow-on, whilst Glamorgan`s supporters will be hoping that the rain, whichprevented any play in the morning session today stays away from Swansea Bay tomorrow,as the Glamorgan spinners look to press home the advantage they gained in the 65 overs today, and secure Glamorgan`s first win over Derbyshire at St.Helen`s ground since 1970..

It is a subject of feverish speculation as to how the portable pitch to be used in Darwin for Bangladesh’s historic international matches there will behave. Dav Whatmore, Bangadesh’s coach, believes that it might be a slow one.Speaking to ABC Radio, Whatmore said: “It’s a drop-in pitch. [There] seems to be some indication it might be slow but we’ll never really know until you start playing.”Bangladesh will not have to wait long to find out. On Friday they take on the Chief Minister’s XI, less than a week after their two-wicket win over the Commonwealth Bank Academy side. If Whatmore’s prognosis about the pitch is confirmed, they will face the Australian new-ball attack with somewhat more confidence than you’d expect from international cricket’s fledglings.Meanwhile the Chief Minister, Clare Martin, has announced the team to play Bangladesh. The local side has been bolstered by the inclusion of Michael Clarke, who will captain the team, and Australian allrounder Nathan Hauritz, who played for Queensland’s Academy XI in Bangladesh’s first tour game.”I wanted to give Territorians an opportunity to play against Bangladesh,” said Martin, “and I know a squad of local cricketers have been training in preparation for the match.”James Sutherland, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, said that the decision to include two CA-contracted players would help generate further interest in the game. Clarke and Hauritz have recently returned from the tour to West Indies and represent Australia’s next generation of players, having already played for the national side in one-day intenationals.Martin also renewed a call for volunteers, inviting Territorians to grab the opportunity to be involved in the staging of international cricket. She said that each volunteer would have an opportunity to watch the cricket after performing their duties, which would take up only three hours of their time. Apart from free entry, they would also receive a free polo shirt and hat, lunch and an opportunity to be involved in one of Territory’s major sporting events.Chief Minister’s XI squad
Michael Clarke (captain), Darren Treumer (vice-captain), Terry Bayly, Nick Berry, Anthony Dent, Mark Hatton, Brad Hatton, Nathan Hauritz, Tim Knox, Adrian McAdam, Ian Redpath, Ken Skewes, Ken Vowles, Ashley Williams.

South Australia’s build-up for the forthcoming season got underway today with fitness testing at the Kidman Park Sports Institute in Adelaide.The squad got together yesterday to lay some programs and put plans in place for the new season. The rest of the week will be occupied with a variety of speed and agility, weight and fitness programs.The squad has been bolstered by the return from Britain of vice-captain Greg Blewett, wicketkeeper Graham Manou and 2003 Bradman medalist Ryan Harris. New state coach Wayne Phillips said he was looking forward to getting the team together.”The physical side of pre-season starts tomorrow, and we will be usingexperts at SASI to help with the physical preparation of the squad,” hesaid. “I’ve been in the job for a month now, have talked individually with theplayers and I’m now looking forward to getting into the physical side oftheir preparation.”