All posts by h716a5.icu

Sussex have signed Umar Gul, the Pakistan fast bowler, for this season’s Friends Life T20 competition

ESPNcricinfo staff05-May-2011Sussex have signed Umar Gul, the Pakistan fast bowler, for this season’s Friends Life T20 competition. Gul, who has the second-highest number of wickets in Twenty20 internationals, joins his countryman Rana Naved-ul-Hasan at the county.Gul’s 47 wickets in Twenty20 internationals have come at 16.00 and his figures of 5 for 6, against New Zealand at the Oval in 2009, remain the best by any bowler in a T20 international. He has been successful in England; during Pakistan’s controversial tour in 2010, he was the leading wicket-taker in the five-match one-day series.This could be the first time Gul takes part in the county season – he was signed by Gloucestershire in 2007 but didn’t play because of an ankle injury. He has twice before played in Twenty20 competitions outside Pakistan – for Kolkata Knight Riders in the first edition of the IPL and for Western Australia in the 2008-09 Big Bash.”Coming to Sussex is a privilege and the chance to follow in the footsteps of other Pakistani greats from Imran Khan to Mushtaq Ahmed, and to Rana Naved in the current team, is very exciting,” Gul said.Sussex won the domestic Twenty20 competition in England back in 2009, but lost in the quarter-finals last year.

Andy Flower has admitted Kevin Pietersen has had problems against left-arm spinners but says he is “very excited” by what he is seeing of Pietersen in the nets

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jun-2011Andy Flower, the England coach, has admitted Kevin Pietersen has had problems against left-arm spinners but says he is “very excited” by what he is seeing of the talismanic batsmen in the nets. The one blemish on England’s astonishing victory over Sri Lanka in Cardiff was Pietersen’s failure, falling to a left-arm spinner for the 19th time in his last 61 Test dismissals, Rangana Herath being the latest beneficiary. Flower, however, didn’t see that coming in the way of what he predicts will be a “great summer” for Pietersen.”It is obvious he has had his issues,” Flower said. “I will be perfectly honest with you, I am very excited by what I see from KP at the moment. I think he’s on the verge of being a very heavy scorer again. I love the way he’s training and I know when he transfers that to the middle he’s going to be a very heavy scorer. I envisage him having a great summer for England.”Meanwhile, the reported Pietersen had an extra net session on Tuesday, where he worked on facing left-arm spin, while his England team-mates had the day off. Pietersen has so far been defiant when questioned about whether he has a weakness against left-arm spinners.Flower pointed to Pietersen’s 99 against Bangladesh in March last year as an example that Pietersen was capable of handling left-arm spinners. “He’s had his obvious battles playing left-arm spin but he is aware of them and is working hard at them. When he was out in Bangladesh he scored a fine Test century [99] against at least two left-arm spinners. He worked hard in the nets there on his method against left-arm spin and he played them very comfortably. Since then he has had a few ups and downs, but I don’t envisage this problem continuing.”Pietersen had to face the left-arm spin of Shakib Al Hasan and Abdur Razzak during that innings. He scored a half-century against Bangladesh during England’s home series before a poor run against Pakistan drew criticism in the lead-up to the Ashes. Pietersen answered his doubters with a double-century in Adelaide, but that remains his only Test hundred in the last two years. That run has coincided with a lean patch in domestic cricket too.While Pietersen may have issues to work through, England’s rise in Tests continued in Cardiff where they bowled Sri Lanka out for 82 in 24.4 overs to pull off an improbable win. Flower said he didn’t have much hope of winning when England declared on the fifth day.”We thought there was just a 3 or 4% chance of us winning if we took a few early wickets with the new ball. But it was definitely the way to go, rather than let the game peter out to a boring draw.”James Anderson was injured during the Test and Jade Dernbach has been called up to the squad for the second Test, at Lord’s. Flower, however, said Steven Finn, 12th man in Cardiff, was likely to play.”Finn looks good to me. He looks like he’s got his rhythm back, which he lost in Australia. He has done some really good work with Richard Johnson at Middlesex and Angus Fraser. Physically, he looks big and strong now, less like a boy and more like a man. I caught a few balls with the mitt, and he is bowling quick. We will have a decision to make on which bowler to leave out, and it won’t be an easy one. But he’s got a very good chance of playing at Lord’s.”

Cardiff’s future as a Test venue is under scrutiny after the ECB announced it had lost the right to host one of next year’s three Tests against West Indies

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jun-2011Cardiff’s future as a Test venue is under scrutiny after the ECB announced it had lost the right to host one of next year’s three Tests against West Indies. The match has instead been put back out to tender, and will be open to bids from the other eight Test-playing venues, although Lord’s is the likeliest host.The decision came after Glamorgan succumbed to cashflow problems in the wake of this year’s disastrous first Test against Sri Lanka, which was dogged by rain and spectator apathy. Only 922 spectators witnessed England’s unexpected victory on the final afternoon, despite the offer of free entry.Earlier this month, the club advised the ECB that it would be late in paying its staging fee of £2.5million, and the club is understood to have made a loss in the region of £1.5million on the fixture.”This decision has been taken following close consultation with Glamorgan CCC and with a view to assisting the club in developing a sustainable long-term business plan for staging international cricket,” said David Collier, the ECB chief executive. “ECB recognises that the club has made considerable investment into developing and upgrading the SWALEC stadium and that this has brought considerable benefits to the wider game in England and Wales.”Glamorgan CCC has assured ECB that it will fully comply with the terms of the staging agreement in relation to its future international matches and further discussions will take place between both parties to ensure that the club continues to remain on a sound financial footing.”Cardiff will keep hold of a potentially lucrative ODI against India in September, as well as an ODI next year against South Africa, and the ECB said it would treat future bids for matches between 2013-16 strictly on merit. However, its viability as a Test venue is in doubt after the club chairman, Paul Russell, admitted to “conceptual difficulties” in marketing a venue in Wales as a home of English cricket.The situation was made all the more awkward after it transpired that the ECB had undermined their own bid process in an attempt to bolster the reputation of cricket in Wales. The MCC, that had also bid for the 2012 West Indies Test, is understood to have put in an offer of £1million for the match, although the successful Glamorgan fee was believed to be nearer £600,000.Had Cardiff remained the host venue, West Indies would have become the first touring team since Sri Lanka in 1998 to be denied a Test at Lord’s. That may now be about to change. Russell told ESPNcricinfo that Glamorgan would be making no further comment on the matter.

Josh Davey’s all-round performance helped Scotland to their second Clydesdale Bank 40 win in two days as they beat Warwickshire by four runs in a rain-affected match in Edinburgh

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-2011
ScorecardJosh Davey’s all-round performance helped Scotland to their second Clydesdale Bank 40 win in two days as they beat Warwickshire by four runs in a rain-affected match in Edinburgh.Scotland had picked up their first win in the competition against Northamptonshire and followed it up well, with Davey making useful runs and taking three wickets. However, it was a close-run match against the Bears as Ant Botha’s scintillating innings nearly earned the visitors victory in a match which was reduced to 22 overs due to inclement weather.Scotland’s innings got off to a poor start as Kyle Coetzer – who had scored a century 24 hours earlier – fell to the third ball of the match from Neil Carter, with fellow opener Calum MacLeod caught lbw off the bowling of Chris Woakes three overs later.New Zealander George Worker then scored quickly with 27 from 20 balls to put Scotland in a more commanding position and he was ably assisted by Davey who scored his 24 runs at a more leisurely pace. Worker was caught behind in the ninth over before Fraser Watts and Davey were both trapped lbw. Preston Mommsen’s added a vital 24 not out as Scotland made 120 for seven.Warwickshire started slowly in their reply but were still in the match until Davey took centre stage with the ball.The 20-year-old snared Varun Chopra for 14 before taking two further wickets in consecutive overs, first bowling William Porterfield for three and then running out Carter. Jim Troughton, with 19, offered some resistance until he was caught off the bowling of Mommsen, while Rikki Clarke, Woakes and Keith Barker all failed to reach double figures.Botha stepped up and attempted to drag his team back into contention as he smashed 45 runs from 24 balls, including three sixes. He then scored 14 runs off the first five balls of the final over but with five needed for a sensational victory the South African was run out by Safyaan Sharif from the final ball.

Ajay Maken, the Indian sports minister, has slammed the BCCI for refusing to come under the Right to Information act

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Aug-2011Ajay Maken, the Indian sports minister, has slammed the BCCI for its stand against the transparency-enhancing Right to Information (RTI) Act and the proposed bill to regulate Indian sports bodies. The bill, which could cover the BCCI too, was discussed at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday but failed to gain approval and will now be re-worked.One of the main reasons the Indian board has given for staying out of the ambit of the RTI, which opens up to public questioning the institutions covered by it, is that the BCCI doesn’t rely on government money. “The BCCI is a non-governmental organisation, which has its own constitution and generates its own funds,” the BCCI president Shashank Manohar told the . “In fact, there are two orders passed by the country’s Chief Information Commissioner wherein it has been clearly stated that the RTI Act doesn’t apply to the BCCI.”Maken, though, countered by saying that the BCCI indirectly received government funds. “How about the tax exemptions?” Maken asked. “How about the land they get? How much did they pay for the Feroz Shah Kotla? We are not asking them to reveal anything to the government. We are asking them to be accountable to the people. “Another recommendation in the bill is that people over 70 years of age should be barred from heading sporting federations. “I wonder why the proposed age-cap is 70, not 65 or 60?” Manohar said. “And what has age got to do with administration as long as the person concerned is in good health?”Maken defended the introduction of an age limit. “What is their problem with age limit? Doesn’t the judiciary, the bureacracy have age limits? Why can’t a good example be followed? If someone remains a federation chief for ever why will vested interests not develop.”The proposed bill also called for the inclusion of former players in cricket administration. “I can only speak for the BCCI which has its own constitution and office-bearers are elected democratically by state associations and other affiliated units,” Manohar said.”We have former players like Anil Kumble, Shivlal Yadav and Mohinder Pandove holding key positions in their respective associations as well as in the BCCI after they were duly elected to their respective posts. In BCCI, we only involve former players to deal with cricket-specific issues like selection, technical matters, coaching, mentoring etc, leaving the administrative issues to elected representatives.”All said and done, cricket is the best administered sport in the country. It is not as if the BCCI is a closed-door body. It submits its annual audited accounts to the Registrar of Societies after the same is duly circulated and vetted by its member associations.”At the ICC annual conference in Hong Kong earlier this year, the ICC gave its member boards a two-year deadline to democratise in an effort to reduce government interference in cricket administration. Manohar cautioned against the possibility of government involvement in this matter as well. “The ICC has recently amended its constitution and empowered itself to take action against Member boards in case of undue government interference in functional matters.”

Ryan Sidebottom produced a four-wicket burst before Yorkshire were frustrated by Somerset’s 10th-wicket pair on day two of the rain-hit County Championship match at Headingley

08-Sep-2011
ScorecardRyan Sidebottom produced a four-wicket burst before Yorkshire were frustrated by Somerset’s 10th-wicket pair on day two of the rain-hit County Championship match at Headingley.Former England paceman Sidebottom reduced the visitors to 215 for 9 with a lively spell of four for 14 in eight overs, but Alfonso Thomas and Steve Kirby then added 50 for the last wicket as Somerset were all out for 265. The partnership would not have got going if Thomas’ edge off Ajmal Shahzad had been taken by wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow, but neither he nor Adam Lyth at first slip moved, the ball bisecting them on its way to the boundary.Somerset were finally all out in 74 overs, leaving lowly Yorkshire to negotiate nine overs. They reached the close on 20 without loss. For the second day running, rain prevented any play during the morning session and it was 1.45pm before Somerset were able to resume their first innings on 140 for three. Further interruptions for bad weather meant that a total of 52 overs in the day were lost.Alex Barrow was on 55 overnight and Jos Buttler 43, and Buttler showed the same aggressive intent of the first day by slamming two balls in Moin Ashraf’s opening over to the cover boundary to complete his half-century from 42 deliveries with 11 boundaries. But Buttler had added only one more run, reaching 52, when his middle stump was lifted out of the ground by Richard Pyrah to end a 63-run stand in 11 overs with opener Barrow.It was after more heavy rain and an early tea interval that Sidebottom began to scythe his way through Somerset’s batting. He began by having Barrow superbly caught one-handed low to his right at first slip by Anthony McGrath for a steady 69 from 143 balls with eight fours, and in the same over Craig Meschede was caught behind without scoring.Peter Trego batted aggressively and leaned back to hammer Shahzad through the covers to bring Somerset a first batting bonus point at 202 for six, but the next ball was a perfect yorker which removed his middle stump.Wickets continued to tumble as Sidebottom gained lbw verdicts against Adam Dibble and Murali Kartik, but the late resistance from Thomas and Kirby denied him a five-wicket haul. Yorkshire lost some of their poise after Thomas’ escape and both batsmen appeared to survive low chances to Lyth at first slip before Adil Rashid came on for the first time to bowl Thomas round his legs for 49 off 68 balls with six fours, Kirby being quite content to survive on 15 against his former county.Kirby and Thomas were in action again with the new ball but Joe Root and Yorkshire captain Joe Sayers played out the remaining overs without any cause for alarm.

The Kochi Tuskers Kerala franchise has been issued a suspension notice by the BCCI for non-payment of a bank guarantee, PTI has reported

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Sep-2011The Kochi Tuskers Kerala IPL franchise has been terminated by the BCCI for breaching its terms of agreement, the new board president N Srinivasan has said after the annual general meeting in Mumbai. The trigger for the decision was the franchise’s inability to furnish a new bank guarantee for 2011. It is understood that the deadline for Kochi to submit the bank guarantee was March 26, 2011. So the BCCI felt it had every right to terminate the contract once the franchise had failed to produce it.”Because of the irremediable breach committed by the Kochi franchise, the BCCI has decided to encash the bank guarantee [for 2010] in its possession and also terminate the franchise,” Srinivasan said. When asked if Kochi had any chance of returning, Srinivasan responded: “No, we have terminated the franchise because the breach is not capable of being remedied.”Under the terms of the franchise agreement, each franchise has to submit a bank guarantee every year that covers the fee payable to the BCCI. “We waited for six months for the fresh bank guarantee to come,” a top BCCI official told ESPNcricinfo. “They kept saying they will, they will, they will. That had no meaning.”According to the official Shashank Manohar, who stepped down as BCCI president at the AGM, had told Kochi’s owners that in case they needed an extension, they should send a letter signed by all the owners stating they would fulfill their commitments under the franchise agreement or the BCCI could encash the bank guarantee. The franchise had assured Manohar they would send the letter the same evening.”The last president [Manohar] said that that if you want an extension of two to three days or more, you give us a letter signed by all the owners saying that we undertake to pay the guarantee money by such and such a date,” the official said. “And if we fail to do that we have no objection to the bank guarantee to be encashed by the BCCI.”The official said the Kochi owners sent a “simple letter” that did not include all the details Manohar had asked for and so the board took the decision to terminate the franchise. “[These] things do not work. It is even unfair to the other franchises.”According to the official, the BCCI was not worried about Kochi going to court because it was the franchise that had defaulted. As for the players, they are likely to go back into the auction. “And in case the players’ dues are not paid, we would ensure that it is paid from the bank guarantee money we encash.”The chairman of Kochi, Mukesh Patel, however, denied that the franchise owed the board any money. “The BCCI notice is wrong, prima facie,” he told . “We will take legal action against them after our legal team reviews the case in a day or two. Maybe we have to move court. We have never defaulted. The BCCI will be paying us Rs 12 to 15 crore ($2.5 million to $3.13 million) next month as a part of our central revenue.”The franchise’s dispute centres on the BCCI’s decision to reduce the number of IPL games from 94 to 74. “The number of games in Tender Document was 94; they then reduced it to 74 but did not reduce the franchise fees.”The BCCI also appointed Rajiv Shukla as the new IPL chairman, succeeding Chirayu Amin, and said that the league’s governing council would take a decision on whether to have another auction for a new franchise. With Kochi’s termination, the ten-team competition will be reduced to nine.The consortium that owns Kochi is reported to have defaulted on an annual payment of Rs 156 crores as a bank guarantee. In April 2010, the BCCI’s working committee had rejected demands from Kochi and Pune Warriors for a reduction in their franchisee fees. The two new franchises, which made their debuts in 2011, had sought a 25% waiver on the grounds that the BCCI had stated in the bidding document that each team would play 18 league matches in a season. The schedule was later reduced to 14 matches per team.The two teams already paid 75% of this year’s installment and wanted the balance waived. They argued the reduction in matches was a breach of the terms of the Invitation to Tender the BCCI had issued before the two new teams were bought. Since they had based their bid on the number of matches to be played, a reduction should therefore be accompanied by a reduction in the franchise fee. However, the BCCI voted to turn down the request at its meeting in Mumbai in April.In March 2010, the Sahara group had bid $370 million to became owners of the Pune franchise while a consortium of five companies called Rendezvous Sports World offered $333.33 million for Kochi.

A round-up of the action from the third day of the second round of Division One matches of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Oct-2011Karachi Blues strode towards their first win of the season by taking nine wickets on the third day against Zarai Taraqiati Bank at the National Stadium. ZTBL were at a precarious 128 for 7 overnight, and despite Sohail Tanvir’s 72 they could only manage 192 before being bowled out. Karachi Blues enforced the follow-on, and the ZTBL top order again folded cheaply. From 32 to 4, half-centuries from their captain Imran Nazir and Zohaib Khan helped ZTBL push the match to the fourth day, though they were still 34 runs behind Karachi with only four wickets in hand.Habib Bank Limited were left to chase 367 against Abbottabad at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium after Danish Karenia’s five-for restricted Abbottabad to 250 in their second innings. The major contributions came from Rameez Ahmed and Riaz Kail who both made 58, the latter unbeaten, while opener Fawad Khan made 48. Ahmed was Kaneria’s first victim, and he added two more to have Abbottabad in some trouble at 154 for 6, but Mir Azam (33) and Kail added 69 for the seventh wicket to set up a challenging total. HBL were 43 for no loss at the close of play.It was slow progress for Islamabad at the Diamond Club Ground but they finished the day at a solid 305 for 9, ahead of National Bank of Pakistan by 292. The first innings for both teams had been low-scoring affairs but Islamabad built on the platform provided on Thursday by the top order. The overnight batsmen, Umair Khan and Zeeshan Mushtaq, both went on to make half-centuries before cameos from Umair Mir and Shehzad Azam pushed the total beyond 300. The most effective of the NBP bowlers was medium-pacer Uzair-ul-Haq who took four wickets.Water and Power Development Authority were in sight of victory after Faisalabad collapsed in their second innings in Sargodha. Fast bowler Imran Khan and left-arm spinner Zulfiqar Babar ran through the Faisalabad line-up after they were in a strong position at 145 for 3, an overall lead of 229. Faisalabad lost seven wickets for 29 runs to set WAPDA a target of 259. Imran finished with 5 for 37 while Babar took 3 for 44. WAPDA’s top three failed to convert starts and they were 102 for 3 at one stage before unbeaten fifties from Aamer Sajjad and captain Naved-ul-Hasan took them to 205, 54 short of a win.Pakistan International Airlines consolidated their position against Rawalpindi at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, bowling them out for 224 for a first-innings lead of 124 before cantering to 185 for 2 in their second innings. Babar Naeem’s half-century carried Rawalpindi past 200 from their overnight score of 168 for 6 before Ali Imran took 5 for 54 to wrap up the innings. PIA had a strong start with Kamran Sajid (63) and Agha Sabir (34) putting on 65 upfront. Sheharyar Ghani was unbeaten on a brisk 58 with Faisal Iqbal for company as PIA ended the day 309 in front.Sialkot ensured they will get first-innings points as their match against State Bank of Pakistan at the Jinnah Stadium headed for a draw. Sialkot consolidated on their strong overnight position of 187 for 2 – their captain Mansoor Amjad top-scored with 91 to lead them to 316 for 3, just 26 short of SBP’s first-innings score. Sialkot then collapsed dramatically, losing their final seven wickets for 42. Fast bowler Waqas Ahmed finished with five wickets for SBP, though with three days completed and the third innings of the match having just commenced an outright result is unlikely.

A round-up of Franchise 1-Day Cup matches that took place on November 11

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Nov-2011Morne van Wyk’s 136 off 144 balls led Knights to 318 for 5, a total large enough to secure a nine-run victory in a rain-affected game against Lions in Kimberley. van Wyk, who is Knights’ opening batsman, captain and wicketkeeper, anchored his team and provided momentum after choosing to bat, hitting 13 fours and a six in an innings that ended only in the 49th over. He was supported by Dean Elgar, who made 48, while Ryan Bailey provided a strong finish by scoring 47 off 30 balls. Left-arm spinner Jean Symes was Lions’ best bowler, taking 2 for 36 in a ten-over spell. Lions had reached 91 for 2 after 16 overs, when their chase was interrupted for the first time by rain. Three overs were lost. Alviro Petersen and Neil McKenzie kept the innings on course, before Petersen was dismissed for 62 in the 26th over. There was another rain interruption in the next over, with Lions on 154 for 3, and seven overs were lost. The revised target was 269 in 40 overs, which meant Lions needed 115 off 79 balls. While McKenzie was at the crease, Lions had a chance of victory. But he was dismissed for 72 off 58 balls in the 37th over, when 43 were needed. Cliffe Deacon smacked three sixes during his 19 off 7 balls but Lions fell nine short.Chasing 206 in 48 overs against Warriors, Cape Cobras had reached 172 for 7 in 39.5 overs, three runs ahead of the D/L par score, when rain brought an end to the game in Port Elizabeth. JP Duminy remained unbeaten on 43 off 68 balls, steering Cobras’ tricky chase as wickets fell around him. The most vital boundary, however, was the four Rory Kleinveldt hit off Wayne Parnell moments before the players went off the field. That stroke took the Cobras past the D/L target. Duminy’s innings had pulled his team out of trouble after they had slipped from 66 for 1 to 80 for 4 and then 128 for 6. Nicky Boje took 3 for 26 in 10 overs for Warriors. Earlier in the match, Charl Langeveldt’s 4 for 46 had cut through the middle order to limit Warriors to 201 for 9 in 48.3 overs. The spinners Robin Peterson and Duminy picked up two wickets apiece as well. Opening batsman JJ Smuts was Warriors’ top-scorer with 49. Though seven of his team-mates made double figures, no one went past 30.Loots Bosman’s century was at the centre of a strong chase as Dolphins overhauled a target of 316 against Titans in Centurion. Dolphins made a strong start as their captain Imraan Khan scored 60 off 50 balls during an opening partnership of 94 with Bosman, off 12.1 overs. They had a strong second-wicket stand as well, with Bosman and wicketkeeper Daryn Smit adding 166. Bosman scored 112 off 102 balls, with seven fours and four sixes, while Smith contributed 95 off 111 balls. Though both batsmen were dismissed within a short time of each other, they had done enough to ensure victory. Cameron Delport blitzed 20 off 5 balls to achieve the target with five balls to spare and six wickets in hand. Titans’ innings did not have as strong a start as Dolphins’ did. They were 24 for 2 after 6.1 overs before a steadying 89-run stand between Henry Davids and Faf du Plessis, who went on to score 120 off 115 balls. The middle order made useful contributions as well, with David Weise remaining unbeaten on 46 off 24 balls to take his team to 315 for 6 in 50 overs.Points table

Cape Cobras 3 20 0 1 10 +0.835 551/89.5476/89.5 Dolphins 4 10 0 3 10 +0.147 317/49.1315/50.0 Knights 3 21 0 0 9 +0.630 663/120.4681/140.0 Warriors 3 11 0 1 6 +0.312 434/89.5406/89.5 Titans 3 12 0 0 5 -0.240 730/134.4735/129.5 Lions 4 03 0 1 2 -1.381 823/140.0905/124.4

Ed Cowan has reiterated Australia’s calls for a uniform approach to the Decision Review System on a day when he and Michael Hussey fell to decisions that would have been overturned had they been reviewed

Brydon Coverdale at the MCG26-Dec-2011Ed Cowan has reiterated Australia’s calls for a uniform approach to the Decision Review System on a day when he and Michael Hussey fell to decisions that would have been overturned had they been reviewed. As a Test debutant at the age of 29, Cowan has spent longer than most men watching the game from the outside, and he believes the ICC should take the lead on the DRS.Cowan’s call came after Michael Clarke, the Australia captain, had said before the match that he wanted consistency from the DRS, which the ICC mandated in Tests and ODIs earlier this year only to reverse the decision three months later. The BCCI’s opposition to review technology meant that under the new rules, in which both boards must agree for the DRS to be used, the system was always going to be absent from this series.Hussey was especially unfortunate to be given out first ball when umpire Marais Erasmus adjudged him caught behind, and replays showed Zaheer Khan’s bouncer had clearly come off Hussey’s sleeve. Later, Ian Gould gave Cowan out caught behind off R Ashwin, although Hot Spot showed no contact, and the batsman appeared to be surprised at the decision.When asked if he hit the ball, Cowan said, “I was disappointed to get out, it was a bit of a lazy shot … You saw the replays, you saw my reaction, you can join the dots I guess. With the DRS, I’m an interesting perspective because I’ve been a consumer of the game for so long; this is day one on the job for me.”So as someone who loves his cricket and has watched a lot of cricket, I just don’t understand why it can’t be handed down by the ICC to be uniform in all games. And that’s me speaking as an outsider, not as someone who has been in the bubble for a long time. It is an interesting one, we’ll see how it pans out, I’m sure it’ll even itself out over the course of the series.”Michael Hussey lasted one ball without the DRS•AFPRicky Ponting, speaking to ABC radio, also called for uniformity. “I thought it was compulsory in every series we are going to play, but apparently not. As players you want uniformity around the world and consistency in the technology and things that you are using in the game. And it’s just this one series against India that keeps poping up where we are not using the system. As players that’s what we are after”Those two dismissals, which took Australia from 4 for 205 to 6 for 214, gave India the advantage in the final session, although resistance from Brad Haddin and Peter Siddle later eased concerns for the hosts. Cowan said the loss of Hussey for a golden duck straight after the departure of Michael Clarke was pivotal in the day’s play.”It was a massive moment in the game, a huge moment,” he said. “We’d just had a 100-run partnership [between Cowan and Ricky Ponting], wrestled back the momentum, almost a 50-run partnership [Cowan and Clarke]. We felt we were half an hour away from really nailing them, grinding them into the dust. We get through that Zaheer spell unscathed and it is a completely different complexion to the day’s play.”It’s not an issue of DRS. It doesn’t matter what cricket you play in, umpiring decisions always change momentum in the game. It doesn’t matter whether it is an MCG Test match or me playing club cricket, that’s the game – we all accept that. Today momentum went against us because of it, two of your top six, but that’s the game and we’ll take the good with the bad.”This series is the first time Australia have played Tests without the DRS since their last battle with India, away from home late last year. And while the decisions went against Australia today, Cowan said their final position was a good result at the end of a day on which batsmen had to knuckle down.”I thought it was a really great day’s cricket,” Cowan said. “The bat had its moments, the ball had its moments, a good cricket wicket. If you bent your back and put it in a good spot you got something out of it. There was turn, there was bounce, but if you were good enough to play your shots, you could score runs. So it was great to see a good cricket wicket on day one. They bowled really well in patches. I thought we batted really well in patches and I think we’ve got our noses ahead.”That position came largely thanks to Cowan’s level-headed innings of 68 on debut, an effort that showed the value of developing his technique on a difficult, green Hobart pitch over the past few seasons. He faced the first ball of the Test and while wickets fell at the other end, he stayed calm, a result of what he described as a lack of jitters.”I was strangely not nervous, I can’t explain why,” Cowan said. “I was a little anxious when we won the toss and batted, but no more than we would’ve been if I was playing state cricket for Tasmania at Bellerive.”Those nerves of wanting to contribute for the team upfront, it is my job to set the game up. I should’ve been a lot more nervous. I had to keep pinching myself to think, ‘mate you should be more nervous here, more anxious’, but being relaxed really helped me through it and it felt like another bat-on-ball contest.”