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There are difficult decisions to be made by the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board selection panel as they try to put together a formidable team that can successfully defend the regional KFC Cup limited overs title.Although the selectors remain tight-lipped on the final composition of the squad, the chairman of selectors Dudnath Ramkissoon did say that coming up with a final 14 is proving to be quite a challenge.”It will be difficult to make the final decision with all the players getting runs and taking wickets,” Ramkissoon said. “A number of the batsmen are getting some runs which is very encouraging, but the bowling needs to be a little tighter. I think we are in a fortunate position where we have a wide range of players to choose from in terms of performances.”There is only a certain number of people we can carry, and it is unfortunate that some players will have to be left out. It is not that they are not performing well, it is that the other guys are performing better at this point in time.”T&T have been preparing for the KFC Cup since late August. However, they will be without two key players for next month’s tournament. “It is a bit unfortunate for us that two of our young players, Darren Bravo and Adrian Barath, who are performing very well and hitting very good, will not be in the national squad.”Bravo and Barath will be representing the West Indies Under-19 team in the KFC Cup as part of preparation for next year’s ICC Under-19 World Cup.”This will only give an opportunity for other players to come into the squad. All the Test players will be available – Ravi Rampaul, Denesh Ramdin, Dwayne Bravo- and of course they will strengthen the team. These guys will bring their experience not only to the matches, but having them training with the team will encourage the youngsters and will be an inspiration and motivation to them during the practice sessions.”

Scorecard

Bengal’s opening pair made the most of winning the toss to pile the agony on Baroda at the Moti Bagh ground in Vadodara. Anustup Majumdar, in only his third first-class match, recorded his maiden hundred while the relatively experienced Arindam Das matched him in a fine 221-run stand. The duo made the most of Baroda’s greenhorn new-ball attack and struck 33 fours between them in a sensible partnership. Majumdar was run-out shortly after reaching his century but Das was undefeated at the end of the day.
Scorecard
Daniel Manohar cracked his eighth first-class hundred to give Hyderabad a solid start in Mohali but Punjab’s spinners fought back by grabbing five wickets between them. Having been inserted on a surface that usually assists the seamers first up, Hyderabad were propped up by a 128-run opening stand between Manohar and Ravi Teja. Hyderabad, though, somewhat lost their way from there. VVS Laxman fell for 38, an innings that included eight fours, and the middle order struggled against the left-arm spin of Ankur Kakkar and the offspin of Karan Goel. Both were economical, conceding less than three runs an over, and brought Punjab back into the contest towards the end of the day.
ScorecardRajasthan unravelled for the second time in as many games, collapsing for 105 against Maharashtra in Jaipur. Having been shot out for 85 against Delhi, Rajasthan’s batsmen continued the trend with only three managing double figures. Munaf Patel’s four-wicket burst rattled the top order before Harshad Khadiwale, the medium-pacer, and Sairaj Bahutule, the veteran legspinner, ran through the tail. Bahutule, who claimed three wickets in just 2.4 overs, reached an important milestone: he now has 550 wickets in first-class cricket. Khadiwale, a centurion in the first round, carried on his good form to allow Maharashtra to lead by 50 runs at the end of the day.
ScorecardUttar Pradesh rode on handy contributions from most batsmen but Andhra stayed in the hunt on a see-saw first day in Anantpur. Electing to field first, Andhra dismissed the UP openers early but a string of partnerships kept thwarting them through the day. Ravikant Shukla held the lower order together with a doughty 56 but neither Mohammad Kaif (34) nor Suresh Raina (13) could make much of an impact. P Vijay Kumar, the medium-pacer from Andhra, kept them in the match with an impressive four-wicket haul.
ScorecardMithun Manhas led a shaky Delhi batting effort, one which never found much momentum against an attack led by medium-pacer Sandeep Jobanputra. Saurashtra had a satisfying day on the field, considering that they chose to bowl first in an away game. Jobanputra, in his third first-class season, pocketed his fourth five-wicket haul and was well backed up by medium-pacer Kanaiya Vaghela (2 for 27). Entering at 47 for 2, Manhas produced a patient knock, consuming 130 balls for a gritty 62. Shikhar Dhawan and Rajat Bhatia couldn’t convert their 30s into big ones and Delhi limped to 244 at the end of the day.
ScorecardRahul Dravid scored a century in the second successive game, pushing Karnataka to a dominant 270 for 4 against Himachal Pradesh in Bangalore. Dravid’s 121, an innings that included 14 fours and four sixes, formed the backbone of a solid Karnataka batting performance. He was backed up by KB Pawan and C Raghu, both of whom posted half-centuries on a batsman-dominated day.
Scorecard
Fifties from Dinesh Karthik and Rajhamany Srinivasan, the latter playing his third first-class match, rescued Tamil Nadu in Chennai but it was Mumbai’s bowlers who claimed most of the honours. Aavishkar Salvi, playing his first Ranji game of the season, set the tone with a couple of early wickets before Ramesh Powar, omitted from India’s Test squad against Pakistan, got stuck into the tail with a four-wicket haul. Karthik’s energetic half-century, with 12 fours and a six, was in contrast to Srinivasan’s stodgy effort, one that used up 229 minutes. Mumbai’s openers got through 11 overs without losing a wicket.

Nottinghamshire’s best day of the season has left them in striking distance of a first Championship win at Trent Bridge since May 1999. After taking their own first innings score to 371 and picking up one Glamorgan wicket during the morning session, they took nine more wickets in the period between lunch and tea to bowl out their visitors for just 187.Following on, 184 behind, Glamorgan fared little better at the second time of asking. Without a run on the board Robert Croft should have gone. A casual flick off his legs flew straight to Paul Johnson at square leg. Inexplicably the `dolly’ went down – to rub salt in the wounds with Johnson holding his head in his hands and the ball at his feed the batsmen ran a cheeky single.The unlucky bowler Paul Franks soon had cause for double celebration dismissing Croft and Powell in the same over. The off spinner tried to cut a rising delivery and for the second time in three hours was taken by Hewison in the gully.Michael Powell clipped his first ball for four and then lost his off stump to the next. Franks jubilation was understandable if not, perhaps, a little excessive.Things got even better for the England one-day international when he picked up the prize scalp of Matthew Maynard in his next over – again it was the off stump that took the pounding and again it preceded wild scenes of delight.At 20-3 the departure of Glamorgan’s captain would surely have dented the spirit of the dressing room but their day of suffering ended shorly afterwards when bad light halted the day’s play, with still 28 overs remaining.Franks had taken all three wickets, at a personal cost of just eight runs. In Glamorgan’s first innings the pick of the Notts bowlers was AJ Harris, who bagged 5-69 to take his haul for the season to 40.With still two full days remaining Notts could yet revive their fading hopes of promotion from division two.

There will be no Morkels at this year’s World T20. The brothers, Albie and Morne, do not feature in South Africa’s World T20 squad, making it the first time in nine years and seven tournaments since the 2007 fifty-over World Cup that the family will not be represented at an ICC event.They can consider themselves “unlucky”, in the words of both captain Faf du Plessis and coach Russell Domingo, who explained the reasons for their squad being Morkel-less when it heads to India in March. Albie, who made his return to international cricket last October against India, was sacrificed for David Wiese while the selectors could not find a place for Morne among an attack that is banking on Dale Steyn’s return to fitness and includes Kyle Abbott and Kagiso Rabada.”If you look at it, Albie has done really well but David Wiese has played 90% of the games for us and Albie only played that one game. David has been bowling exceptionally well, he bowls a lot more than he bats and he is a lot more versatile as a bowler. He can bowl at the death, he can bowl in the middle, he has done really well for his IPL team and he hits the ball just as far but Albie can count himself very unlucky,” du Plessis said. “The No.7 role is more a bowling allrounder’s role.”Domingo put it more bluntly: “They are similar players but they are different players. Wiese is more a bowling allrounder. Albie is more a batting allrounder. We decided to go with more of a bowling allrounder.”All that is only half the story. Albie did only play one game on his comeback, when he replaced Wiese, who had fractured his hand and had to sit out the three matches against India, but in that one game, Albie’s performance was with ball in hand, taking a career-best three for 12. While it’s true that at international level, Albie has not had the same eye-catching returns as Wiese, his experience in an otherwise young attack may have counted for something, especially as South Africa are also without Morne.”Morne Morkel has been an integral part of our one-day and T20s for the last couple of years and he has missed out,” Domingo said. “His experience will be missed. He has been an incredible white-ball bowler for us but we can only take fifteen.”Morne fell out of South Africa’s T20 plans when they started resting him for selected series. Since 2013, he has only played eight T20Is, including two at the 2014 World T20 and it seems South Africa have moved on from him, especially in terms of the type of bowlers they want in this format.”For the first time, we’ve got a lot of death options which is something we didn’t have in the past,” du Plessis said. “If you’ve got Abbot, KG [Rabada], Wiese, [Chris] Morris, it gives you so many options. I think that’s why we are such a strong bowling unit.”That may not mean Morne is completely forgotten. Should Steyn not come through the three T20s he is due to play against Australia in March, Morne might be the man who gets called up. “There is a bowler who has been spoken to if Dale is not fit, he will go,” Domingo said. “So there is a contingency plan in place but we are pretty confident Dale will be fine. It’s not for me to disclose who the bowler is.”But that still means Morne’s chances are slim. Both Domingo and du Plessis seem confident Steyn will travel to the tournament, more lethal than ever. ” Dale hasn’t played a lot of cricket lately and I think he is going to be very hungry,” du Plessis said. “He is at that stage of his career where he wants to show to the world why he is such a good bowler. I think we are going to see a great Dale during this World Cup.”According to Domingo, Steyn started bowling this week and will look to a play a club game towards the end of February but his rehabilitation is still progressing on a “day-to-day,” basis.At the other end of South Africa’s XI, they have the opposite problem. Instead of absentees they have an overload with Quinton de Kock returning to bid for one of the opening berths currently occupied by Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers. When de Kock lost form mid-2015, de Villiers was promoted to the spot in an experiment and it worked. Now that de Kock has regained form, South Africa need to decide what to do with de Villiers.Both Domingo and du Plessis want de Villiers to bat high up, preferably open. “AB will bat in the top three. He has been used as an opener, he will probably be used as an opener when we get to the event,” Domingo said, which may mean Amla is the man to miss out.”We know we have two great openers in Hashim and Quinny but also, it’s really important to try and give AB a go at the top. He is one of those players that can on the day score a hundred and really take the game away from the opposition,” du Plessis said. “My personal thinking is to let AB do that. He is one of the few players in the world that can do it.”For me its really important that those first six overs in India to try and be as positive as possible. The decision becomes who is going to open with AB between Quinny and Hashim.”

A light-hearted cheer went up near the Prindville Stand around six in the evening. Umpire Billy Bowden turned down a loud appeal from Mitchell Johnson, when he yorked Rahul Dravid, and a small section of the crowd responded with, “We want Bucknor, we want Bucknor”. It was one of the few noises made on a rather quiet day, one where a genteel wave swept across the WACA.It’s been a tumultuous week but the events of the first day – for most of it at least – were disconcertingly slow. The anti-climax surrounding the pitch didn’t help but you would still expect some noise, at least from the grass banks. Things picked up towards the evening, especially with Australia fighting back with wickets, and a few spectators were even warned. One cheekily held a banner that read, “No more monkey abuses” and was promptly told to pack it in. Another tried his best to stir up the crowd but was led out of the ground when he began to swear.A crowd of about 16,000 watched the first day’s play. It’s worthwhile pointing out what had to say about the very first Test in Perth, back in December 1970. “It was perfectly organised, and nearly 85,000 spectators saw it. That number was nearly twice that at Brisbane, and gate receipts in the region of £50,000 were almost three times as large.” Thirty seven years since and the atmosphere seems to have diminished.The Australian cricketers behaved like schoolboys sitting on the front bench. The ferociously quick Shaun Tait actually apologised to Sachin Tendulkar after appealing for a caught-behind decision. No-one else appealed since it had rapped his forearm. There was soon another appeal against Tendulkar, a really close shout from Andrew Symonds, but the reactions were a sight for the times: Symonds cursed himself, Adam Gilchrist and Michael Clarke turned around to chat about it, and Ricky Ponting let out a gentle apologetic kick.And if the atmosphere got heated at all, there was the quiz show to divert the attention. Through the day, every ten minutes or so, a question would be asked over the public announcement system, urging spectators to send in their responses. Just as Brett Lee seemed to be setting up Tendulkar in a fine spell, we were asked, ‘Which Australian fielder has the most number of catches?’ Talk of enjoying a good contest.It was a fine day for cricket: hot, bright and pleasantly windy. Justin Langer was out there first thing in the morning and subconsciously started to step towards the middle of the pitch, tempted to indulge in some shadow practice. Soon he realised he was in his leather boots, not spikes, and didn’t need to practice at all. “The umpire looked up at me in a funny way and I thought, ‘This is not your stage any more’. I then just watched Ricky Ponting go through the motions.”Half an hour before the toss Langer was in the thick of the action, presenting Chris Rogers with his baggy green cap. It’s been more than a year since he retired but Australia’s next crop of openers isn’t allowing us to forget his style: Phil Jaques turned into a like-for-like replacement and Rogers, in Adam Gilchrist’s words, isn’t attractive but effective.Kerry O’Keeffe, the former Australian legspinner who regaled the press and corporate guests during lunch, felt Rogers had shown how colour-blindness wasn’t an impediment to Test cricket. He also reminded everyone of how John Rogers, Chris’ dad, played a few games for New South Wales. “There’s Gilchrist from New South Wales and now Rogers,” he said with the distinctive laugh that’s thrilled radio audiences across the country. Wonder what O’Keefe thought of Clarke’s latest crew cut, in light of his recent comments about NSW players being given a bottle of hydrogen peroxide along with their state caps.

Group A

Hasan Raza scored his sixth first-class double-century as Habib Bank Limited (HBL) had Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) on the run at the United Bank Limited (UBL) Sports Complex. Facing a big HBL first-innings total of 419, SSGC had crashed to 194 for 8 in reply still requiring another 76 runs to avoid the follow-on. Hasan, who over a decade ago had become the youngest Test cricketer ever, had reached his 32nd first-class century on Friday with an unbeaten 158 and was eventually dismissed for 204 that included 20 fours and a six. He added 132 runs for the ninth wicket with Fahad Masood (40 off 61) to take his team past 400 after being 281 for 8 at one stage. Sohail Khan took the last two wickets to fall and finished with 6 for 102, his career-best figures. In reply, Saeed Bin Nasir, with an unbeaten 88, was the lone fighter for SSGC as they slumped to 91 for 5. Having faced 175 balls and hit 12 fours and two sixes, Nasir will have Sohail for company as he sets off reducing the damage for his team on the penultimate day.Despite a century by Afsar Nawaz, Karachi Whites were fighting to at least procure the first-innings lead against Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) at the National Stadium. Resuming on 279 for 7, Karachi were bowled out for 315. Afsar’s 105, his eighth first-class century, came off 180 deliveries with the help of 16 fours. In reply, WAPDA had reached 277 for 6 by close after suffering an early setback when their opening batsman Ahmed Said had to retire hurt but resumed his innings at the fall of the sixth wicket. There was a splendid 111-run second-wicket partnership between Tariq Aziz (70) and Nawaz Sardar (75) that laid a decent foundation for WAPDA’s reply.Hyderabad gave a spirited reply to National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) at Niaz Stadium as, facing NBP’s first-innings total of 477, the home team ended day two on 115 for no loss. Fawad Alam, the Pakistan left-hander, reached 151 after having started on 104 overnight. Mansoor Amjad (46) and Tahir Mughal (51*) gave good support to Alam as the last four wickets added 109 runs. For Hyderabad, the left-handed Aqeel Anjum, already with a double-century in the tournament, hit an unbeaten 49 while Azeem Ghumon contributed an unbeaten 61 off 135 deliveries as Hyderabad look towards 328 in order to avoid a follow-on.Multan too were off to a strong start against Lahore Ravi at the Gaddafi Stadium . Replying to Lahore’s 397, Multan finished at 184 for 2. A 152-run second-wicket partnership between Usman Tariq (69) and Rameez Alam (88*) helped Multan after they had lost their first wicket for 15. Overnight on 295 for 4, Lahore could only add 102 as Abdur Rauf and Rahat Ali grabbed quick wickets to restrict the home side.At the Sheikhupura Stadium, after having gained a 32-run first-innings lead in a low-scoring match against Sialkot, Faisalabad increased their advantage to 159 but lost five wickets in their second innings. Sialkot were undone by medium-pacer Asad Zarar and slow left-armer Saadat Munir, who had identical figures of four wickets for 32 runs. Left-arm spinner Nayyar Abbas took 4 for 28 as Faisalabad slumped in the second innings with only Ijaz Ahmed, their captain, standing firm with an unbeaten 49.

Group B

After having scored his maiden first-class double century, the 17-year-old Umar Akmal went on to score 248 for Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) before being run out against Karachi Blues at the Asghar Ali Shah Stadium. SNGPL reached a massive total of 624 for 5 before Mohammad Hafeez, their captain, declared. Azhar Shafiq chipped in with a valuable 100 and Mohammad Farrukh scored an unbeaten 51 to boost SNGPL’s total as Karachi, in reply, lost four wickets with only 54 runs on the board. A fightback by the middle-order saw them end the day on 174 for 6 at close.Following a Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) first-innings total of 465 for 9, Islamabad replied with 164 for 4 at Diamond Cricket Club Ground thanks mainly to an unbeaten 101 by opener Raheel Majeed. Earlier, KRL resumed on their overnight 345 for 3 and Azhar Ali took his unbeaten 123 overnight to 150 before being caught behind after hitting 18 fours in his 258-ball knock.Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) rode on a maiden first-class century by Sarfraz Ahmed as they compiled an impressive 436 in their first innings against Abbottabad at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium. Sarfraz, batting at No. 6, faced only 153 balls for his 117 that included eight fours and two sixes. Abbottabad, in reply, were given a 90-run third-wicket stand that allowed them to finish the day on 151 for 3.Resuming on 44 for no loss, Rawalpindi extended their total to 328 for 7 – a lead of 155 – against Quetta at the KRL Stadium. All of Rawalpinidi’s batsmen, barring opener Usama Shahroon, went into double figures with Naved Ashraf (98) top-scoring for his team. Quetta, already placed at the bottom of the group, look set for another loss.Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) were all out for 398 in their first innings as Adnan Raza and Wajahatullah Wasti, ZTBL’s captain, scored half-centuries against Peshawar at Arbab Niaz Stadium. Resuming on 202 for 2, Inam-ul-Haq reached his century as his team scored at over three runs an over. Rahatullah was the pick of the Peshawar bowlers with four wickets and Bilal Khan picked up three. In reply, Peshawar openers put on 25 runs without being separated in the 12 overs possible before close.

Sohail Tanvir, a Rawalpindi allrounder, has been called up to the Pakistan Twenty20 squad as a replacement to Shoaib Akhtar, who was sent home from South Africa after being involved in a dressing-room scuffle with team-mate Mohammad Asif.The ICC’s technical committee approved Tanvir as a replacement for Shoaib on the basis of “exceptional circumstances”. A statement released by the ICC cited the following reasons for the approval: “the incident and disciplinary action taken by the Pakistan board is not related to the matches in the event; the tournament has not commenced; and there is a precedent to support the replacement.”Tanvir, 22, who bowls left-arm medium-fast, played only two matches for the Rawalpindi Rams in Pakistan’s domestic Twenty20 tournament in the last season. He has scored 84 runs and taken no wickets in the 10 Twenty20 games he has played in the last three years. But he impressed national selectors in a series of training camps and practice matches over the summer and was said to be close to a place in the original squad. He is highly-rated by Aaqib Javed, coach at the National Cricket Academy, who says his wrong-foot action and pace are deceptive.Shoaib was handed an indefinite suspension after he allegedly hit Asif with a bat. He was already on six weeks’ probation following a breach of discipline last month after he left a training camp in Karachi without informing officials.Pakistan’s first match of the tournament is against Scotland in Durban on September 12.

Man of the dayFew cricketers have deserved a day in the sun quite like Ryan Sidebottom. Dismissed for so long as a one-cap wonder after his solitary appearance at Lord’s in 2001, he never got a sniff of a recall in the Duncan Fletcher days, despite taking 50 wickets a season on a regular basis for Nottinghamshire. He was nothing more than a trundler, so the reasoning went, but he’s trundled into the record-books in this game. With his father, Arnie, watching from the stands, he picked up England’s 11th hat-trick in Test history, and the first since his new-ball partner, Matthew Hoggard, in Barbados four years ago.Dismissal of the dayThe hat-trick was special, but there was another wicket that fell in the intervening over that arguably made even more of a difference. Brendon McCullum had emerged to a rousing reception, two places higher than his customary No. 7 position. The intention was clear – New Zealand wanted quick runs to set up a challenging declaration – but that wasn’t quite how it mapped out. McCullum blocked his first ball from Monty Panesar, then mowed his second, high and hard over deep midwicket. But he didn’t connect as sweetly as intended, and Andrew Strauss made good ground to complete another excellent catch. The wobble was now fully on.Catch of the day No. 1It doesn’t take much for the vultures to start circling around Hoggard’s career. One off-colour game and the talons have quickly been extended, but at the age of 31, he demonstrated his enduring athleticism with an outstanding pluck at deep midwicket. Jamie How connected sweetly, as he has done all summer, but Hoggard judged the flight and his run to perfection. He galloped 20 metres, leapt at the last possible moment, and got both hands to the offering with both feet off the ground. It was an outstanding moment, reminiscent of Darren Gough’s outfield extravagances, and it gave England just a sniff of salvation.Catch of the day No. 2What is the matter with Alastair Cook? It seems only last week that England had to hide him in the field. Every catch that came his way was juggled at least three times, and even strokes along the ground were an invitation for error. But now he’s leaping like a spawning carp every time the ball comes close, and Ryan Sidebottom would not be celebrating his maiden Test hat-trick without his incredible efforts at gully. If his first was good then his second was spectacular, a full lift-off to his left to pouch a fizzing edge from Mathew Sinclair. It was his fifth of the match, and every one has been a collector’s item.Shot of the dayUntil their innings started to go pear-shaped, New Zealand’s destiny was in the hands of their former captain, Stephen Fleming, who struck the ball as sweetly as ever during his 88-ball 66. Some of his driving was as languid and elegant as David Gower’s, with whom he shares a birthday, but it was his pick-up for six off Steve Harmison that really took the breath away. It was short and misdirected, but helped on its way over fine leg with dismissive insouciance. He’s got four more innings before he calls time on his career, but on this evidence, he could endure for several seasons yet.Unexpected acceleration of the dayThe pace of New Zealand’s innings and the drama of their collapse made the grind and shuffle of England’s effort seem like a long-distant memory. But their 11-hour, 867-dot-ball stodgefest really did happen. And Paul Collingwood really did score from just 29 of the 182 balls he faced in a four-hour 66. And so it took everyone by surprise when, in the 157th over of the innings, he galloped down the track to Daniel Vettori and deposited him coolly over long-off for six. Like Kevin Pietersen on the third day, it was a lone statement of aggression.

A match that’s already witnessed a slew of records saw Rahul Dravid become the sixth batsman in Test history to break the 10,000-run barrier. He reached the landmark with a clip towards midwicket off Morne Morkel and raised his arms aloft mid-way through the run.He reached the milestone in the 119th over of the first innings, when he went from 79 to 80. There was a standing ovation from the audience at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, a ground where he is yet to get a century. He acknowledged the cheers from the dressing-room and also received a congratulatory hug from Sourav Ganguly at the non-striker’s end.Dravid joined two other Indians – Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar – in the list, which also contains Steve Waugh, Allan Border and Brian Lara. Dravid managed to reach the mark in his 120th Test, in a career that began in 1996. 23 of those runs, though, came for the ICC World XI against Australia in October 2005During the course of the innings Dravid also became the first batsman play 150 innings while batting at No.3. Though his was a sedate knock, his 268-run second-wicket partnership with Virender Sehwag allowed India a chance to harbour hopes of an unlikely win.

Match facts

Thursday, May 15 to Monday, May 19, 2008
Start time 11.00 (local), 10.00 (GMT)

The Big Picture

It’s the start of a new English summer, but the resumption of a familiar and unexpectedly intriguing tussle. This is the 11th consecutive international fixture between England and New Zealand, and there will have been 19 in a row by the end of the one-day international series in June. Nevertheless, familiarity has not yet bred contempt, and both sides enter this Test with plenty to prove after the hits and misses of their previous three-Test encounter in March. England emerged triumphant on that occasion after losing embarrassingly in the first match at Hamilton, and start once again as favourites, but nothing suits the Kiwis better than being written off as no-hopers. And no venue inspires touring sides more effectively than Lord’s.

Test form guide

England – WWLDDL
New Zealand – LLWWWL

Watch out for …

Ryan Sidebottom The Man of the Series in New Zealand, where he took hat-tricks, career-bests and every plaudit available. He’s just been named as England’s Player of the Year for 2007, after picking up 53 wickets in 12 Tests, and will be looking to make 2008 even more special.Brendon McCullum Arguably the most explosive attacking batsman in the world today. He made 96 on his last visit to Lord’s in 2004, but has yet to make a century against senior Test opposition. Last month’s incredible unbeaten 158 in the IPL, however, showed just what he can do when the mood takes him.Aaron Redmond New Zealand’s top order was the weak link during the home series defeat, and the loss of Stephen Fleming has exacerbated the problem. Nevertheless, Redmond, who is set to make his debut, has a watertight technique and a burning desire to occupy the crease come what may. His six-and-a-half hour 146 against the England Lions demonstrated his abilities.

Team news

As expected, England named an unchanged eleven for the third match running, with Matthew Hoggard missing out. Andrew Flintoff might have been back in the fold had his side strain not postponed his comeback, but the coach, Peter Moores, is keen to reward the players who turned the team around in New Zealand.England 1 Andrew Strauss, 2 Alastair Cook, 3 Michael Vaughan (capt), 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ian Bell, 6 Paul Collingwood, 7 Tim Ambrose (wk), 8 Stuart Broad, 9 Ryan Sidebottom, 10 James Anderson, 11 Monty Panesar.New Zealand, on the other hand, are expected to make sweeping changes, both personnel and positional. There are three changes in the top order from the Napier defeat, with Stephen Fleming retired, and Matthew Bell and Mathew Sinclair omitted. Redmond comes in for his debut, along with the Northern Districts rookie, Daniel Flynn, while James Marshall is recalled at No. 3. Oram returns in place of Grant Elliott, but with McCullum moving up to No. 5, he slips into the conventional allrounder’s slot of No. 7. Vettori plays despite requiring stitches in his spinning finger last week.New Zealand (probable) 1 Jamie How, 2 Aaron Redmond, 3 James Marshall, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Brendon McCullum, 6 Daniel Flynn, 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Daniel Vettori (capt), 9 Kyle Mills, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Chris Martin.

Stats and trivia

New Zealand have won just eight of their 91 Tests against England, but four of those have come away from home including at Lord’s in 1999 en route to a memorable series win.Tim Southee, who made his debut at Napier in March, scored more runs in a single innings (77) than his probable new-ball partner, Chris Martin, has managed in 40 Tests (74 runs at 2.55).

Quotes

“I do expect to win, but we’re not going to underestimate them. They’re a good bowling unit and they scrap very hard.”
England’s coach, Peter Moores, talks up his side’s prospects
“They are just a steady side and on their day they can be a very good side.”
New Zealand’s Chris Martin hits back.