Cricket Kenya has announced a six-year partnership with Nimbus Sport for the management of commercial and television rights. The deal gives Kenyan cricket a massive boost and will be worth a minimum of US$150,000 a year, and could bring in as much as US$1 million over the full term.The news comes after the board had spent months trying to persuade people to invest in the national game. The current Cricket Kenya board, which took office in May 2005, had struggled to cast off the legacy of the old regime, but this deal could open the door to more sponsorships and take Kenyan cricket forward after three or four years in the doldrums.”We are extremely pleased to be associated with the world’s leading sports marketing agency in cricket,” Samir Inamdar, the chairman of Cricket Kenya, said. “Nimbus Sport had earlier managed the commercial rights and television production for the Kenya – Bangladesh series in 2006. We were delighted with the unprecedented visibility and reach that Kenyan cricket got through this association.”Nimbus are the commercial rights partner for the Afro-Asia Cup and has also managed sponsorship sales for Zimbabwe Cricket for the Zimbabwe – Bangladesh series in 2006. This partnership with Kenya will add to their presence in Africa.”We are very excited with our partnership with Cricket Kenya,” Digvijay Singh, the chief executive of Nimbus Sport, said. “We believe that Kenya has the potential for being an ideal and active cricketing destination. The combination of picturesque grounds, relaxed ambience and quality cricket along with extremely attractive tourism destinations presents immense marketing potential and opportunities.”
First-class debutant Shawn Gillies made a mockery of South Africa’s top order and then Beau Casson took 4 for 21 to force the follow-on on a miserable day for the visitors at the WACA.Gillies bagged the wickets of both openers in his first over and then snared a third just two overs later to open the door for Casson to clean up. At stumps South Africa were 2 for 25, trailing by 187 runs and in need of some seriously staunch batting to save the match on the final day.South Africa were already on the back foot at tea, losing four wickets for 116 after the home side had declared their first innings at 8 for 391. But things got worse for them as they lost eight wickets for 88 in the final session.It was medium-pacer Gillies, called into the state team for the first time after some impressive performances at club level in Perth, who did the damage in the afteroon. With his second delivery, the 24-year-old bowled opener AB de Villiers for 27 after the South African dragged the ball onto his stumps. De Villiers and partner Jacques Rudolph had added 71 runs and looked comfortable until Gillies was introduced. Just four balls later Gillies, a Jamaican-born allrounder, struck again as Rudolph, on 43, lifted a catch to David Bandy at point with the score on 72. That was about as good as it got for South Africa.Two overs later he dismissed Ashwell Prince, caught near the boundary after top-edging a hook shot. That wicket saw South Africa slump to 84 for 3 and gave Gillies figures of 3 for 7 – not a bad start for his first three overs of first-class cricket. Herschelle Gibbs then helped steady the ship but he fell just before tea, bowled by Ben Edmondson for 25.But this stability was only transitory – after tea South Africa lost their last six first-innings wickets for 63 runs, and the first two of their second innings for 25.Earlier in the day Western Australia declared their innings closed half an hour before lunch after the South Africans failed to stamp their authority on a state team which has lost its first four domestic matches. Charl Langeveldt was the best of the South African bowlers taking 4 for 104 from 24 overs.South Africa’s coach Mickey Arthur denied there was any cause for panic amongst his ranks He said the players simply needed to blow out some cobwebs after their tour of India where they played four one-day matches.”We haven’t pushed any panic buttons,” he said. “The guys are still very, very tight. We have come across four or five time zones in the last week and that was almost expected. We’ve been very low intensity, obviously building up to next week and then to the Test match.”
Eagles 222 and 89 for 3 require 302 runs to beat Western Province Boland 242 and 371 for 9 dec (Puttick 98, Strydom 78, Bassage 56, Duminy 55*) ScorecardAt Goodyear Park in Bloemfontein Western Province Boland put the Eagles under pressure after declaring at 371 for 9 and then reducing them to 89 for 3 on the third day of their SuperSport Series clash.The top four Western Province batsmen all passed fifty, with Andrew Puttick falling for 98. He had struck 16 fours and one six in his five-hour, 190-ball stay at the crease before he was caught off the bowling of James Henderson. Strydom scored 78 before he fell to Cliff Deacon. The runs continued to flow as Ashwell Prince joined the party, putting on 55 with JP Duminy before he became Henderson’s second victim, caught for 26. With three quick wickets falling Prince called them off at 371 for 7 with Duminy not out on 55. He had spent three hours at the crease striking six boundaries.An early setback for the Eagles left them at 45 for 3 as they lost DaveyJacobs, caught behind off Alan Dawson for 9, James Henderson, trapped leg-before by Rory Kleinveldt for 11 and Ryan Bailey clean bowled by CharlWilloughby for 1. Jonathan Beukes (46) and Morne van Wyk (19) saw theEagles through to 89 for 3 when stumps were drawn.Titans 213 and 226 for 5 (de Bruyn 91*) lead Dolphins 294by 145 runs ScorecardAnother early day at Kingsmead in Durban saw the Titans and Dolphinssquaring up for what could be an exciting finish, with the Titans holding alead of 145 with five wickets standing going into the final day.The Titans’ second innings never received the momentum that they required aswickets fell at crucial stages. Partnerships were broken just as they becamethreatening. Martin van Jaarsveld was caught for 34 just as he began to look dangerous. Justin Kemp fell for 27 while Geoffrey Toyana lost his wicket on 21. In the end it was left to Zander de Bruyn, not out on 91, and Kruger van Wyk, unbeaten on 27, to bat the Titans to 226 for 5 when bad light forced the players off the field.Lions 175 for 9 dec and 277 for 9 dec (Motaung 116, Peterson 4-84)lead Warriors 217 by 235 runs ScorecardAt St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth, Tyron Henderson’s heroic 59 off 64 balls gave the Warriors a slender first-innings lead of 42 over the Lions.Henderson and Abongile Sodumo (34) had put together a gutsy eighth-wicket partnership of 45 to see the Warriors edge ahead before being bowled out for 217.The Lions made the best possible start, with Adam Bacher (47) and William Motaung putting on 133 for the first wicket. With the loss of Bacher the Lions lost their way and were it not for a match-saving maiden hundred from Motaung, the Lions may have faced an early defeat. HD Ackerman put together a determined 31 before the Lions were forced to declare at 217 for 9. The declaration came because of an agreement by the Lions to not bat the injured Charl Langeveldt.The Warriors will bat tomorrow with a getable target of 236.Keith Lane works for Cricinfo in South Africa.
Australian batsman Simon Katich was presented with the coveted Hampshire Players’ Player of the Year award for 2003 at the awards ceremony on Monday evening at the Rose Bowl.The award, voted for by his fellow squad members and presented by Southampton and England footballer James Beattie, was the culmination of a superb inaugral season for the left-hander.’Kat’, as he is known in the dressing room, was delighted to recieve the trophy. “I am really honoured to win this award, especially as it comes from a vote from my colleagues,” he said.Katich has been Hampshire’s most consistent batsmen, scoring over 1,000 first-class runs and over 700 in the limited-overs form, scoring five centuries in the process.All-rounder James Hamblin recieved the ‘Olive Ford Memorial Trophy’ for the most improved uncapped player of the year. Hamblin received the award from Olive Ford’s sonBrian, the former Chairman of Hampshire County Cricket Club.
New Zealand’s fighting recovery to win last night’s first game in the VB Series over Australia at Melbourne provided plenty for sports journalists to get their teeth into.Chasing a target of 200, Australia fell over for 176 to hand New Zealand a surprise first-up victory.The New Zealand Herald: “It could not have been a more astonishing turn-up, given that Australia had been coasting at the start of the chase, losing Mark Waugh early, but then piling on the runs courtesy of Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting and Michael Bevan – who all batted as though they had a bonus point in mind.”The slightly reckless plan turned to custard through the middle of the innings, when Shane Bond first had Ponting caught by James Franklin at fine-leg and then enticed Bevan to slash high to the same fieldsman at third man.”Australia’s task may not have been helped by an eight-minute delay because of a crowd disturbance in the Great Southern Stand, where police evicted more than 200 spectators who had been hurling rubbish on to the field.”Whatever the impact, Steve Waugh’s side were unable to deal with the pressure applied by New Zealand during the second half of the chase, as Bond’s good work was built on by Cairns, Vettori and Harris.”The Sydney Morning Herald: “Ponting and Michael Bevan, two of the fastest men between wickets in the world, pushed frenzied singles and slashed boundaries but the heady pace had an intoxicating effect.”‘I’m very disappointed, we batted very poorly,'” Australian captain Steve Waugh said.”‘Full credit to New Zealand and the way they came back after being 7-90, but we should have won the game from there.”‘It was really basically stupid play by all batsmen.'””The beneficiary was the previously humbled Bond.”The New Zealand quick put his side back in the game with two important wickets.”In the 19th over, with the score at 2-98, Bond slid a ball down the leg side and Ponting obliged by flicking it off his hip and down the throat of James Franklin on the fine-leg fence. His 45 was made from 54 balls.”Six runs run later, Bevan fell slashing a wide ball high outside his off stump and top-edging to Franklin. Bevan’s dismissal for 27 off 46 balls gave the Kiwis a sniff at 4-104.”Peter Roebuck, The Sydney Morning Herald: “Thanks to [Chris] Harris, the Kiwis gave their hosts something to chase, which they failed to catch, all-rounder Chris Cairns taking three key wickets as Steve Waugh’s men fell 23 runs short.”In this brand of cricket a batsman is obliged to keep the score moving along, like a drummer in a rock band keeping the beat going. A team batting first cannot predict the sort of score needed to trouble its opponents and can push too hard or too soft.”Top-class bowling by the Australians pushed the Kiwi batsmen into error. Still, it was only one innings and, as was seen in the Test series and later in the evening last night, these New Zealanders can think up ways of putting the Australians on the back foot.”The Weekend Australian: “For years now, long-suffering Australian cricket fans desperate for a competitive home summer have been awaiting this season’s showdown between the game’s heavyweights.”What few anticipated, however, was that the other fighter would be a recent graduate from the lightweight division and would be clad in the black trunks of New Zealand, rather than the eponymous green of South Africa.”Last night’s opening one-day international at the MCG provided a stark illustration of the difference between the repeatedly disappointing Proteas and the constantly surprising Kiwis.”In short, the trans-Tasman opponents don’t understand when they’re beaten.”Bounced out for 199 on a lively MCG pitch by Australia’s menacing pace attack, New Zealand bounced back under the floodlights after Australia appeared set, not just for victory, but for the bonus point granted to teams who win in double quick time.”To say the summer needed an Australian loss (just their third international defeat of any kind at home since 1999) might rattle the patriots, but would satisfy the realists.”That it took the dogged Kiwis to finally inflict it should surprise nobody.”
Sussex University overcame three over reducing rain breaks to ultimately triumph in this inaugural Varsity Cricket match at the Saffrons. Not helped by having their overs reduced on three separate occasions, Sussex were restricted early on by the combination of tight bowling from the impressive Matt Bibby and Dave Lester plus some athletic fielding from the infield.Sussex University took a while to show their pedigree until Robert Crufts arrived at the crease. Crufts and skipper Awais Asif found the required momentum and the last 10 overs yielded 68 runs, however, it still looked a meagre total whilst Brighton’s opening partnership of Geoff Raggett and Ben Hudson were at the crease.At 86-0 off 17 overs, the game was apparently won, however, a hostile spell from Ollie Wills changed the game completely as he cleaned bowled both openers and sped through the defences of the middle order. Reduced to 106-7 in a mere seven overs the game was up save for some lusty blows from Bibby.With Ollie Wills the unanimous choice as The Atlantis Man of The Match Award, the event sponsors handed over the trophy to Sussex’s delighted captain Awais Asif. Once again the cricket was good the weather and crowds not.
Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch is already facing a huge nightmare at Elland Road as reports emerge over the futures of star duo Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha…
What’s the story?
The American was appointed quickly after Marcelo Bielsa’s exit from the club, and according to transfer insider, Dean Jones, could be set to lose two of his most important players come the summer.
He said: “Sadly for Leeds fans, the Bielsa exit is not the only one they will be sorrowing this year. From what I’m hearing, the chances of Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha staying beyond this season are slim-to-none.”
Nightmare for Marsch
Make no mistake about it, losing Phillips and/or Raphinha in the summer transfer window would leave Leeds fans worried about where the club goes.
The Whites’ Premier League status is very much in the air given results under Bielsa this season, and Marsch has an almighty task to turn things around before the end of the campaign.
Relegation would almost certainly see the duo depart for pastures new given just how much their stock has risen, while even survival may not guarantee anything.
Dubbed as “star dust” and a “match-winner” by The Athletic’s Leeds correspondent Phil Hay, Raphinha has simply been a revelation since his arrival from Rennes.
This season has seen him score an impressive nine times in 24 Premier League games as well as provide two assists too, including netting against the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea recently too.
Phillips on the other hand has simply been the heartbeat of this Leeds side for a number of years now, and it was only recently admitted by The Athletic’s Phil Hay that while a new contract could well be signed by the midfielder, it wouldn’t stop him from potentially leaving.
He said: “On one hand, a new deal will elevate his salary to the level an England international should be at. On the other, it hikes up his value to the highest possible level and there’s a lot of realism at Elland Road about Phillips’ trajectory. At this rate, it feels like a matter of time before someone bids big for him and in those circumstances, it’s not as simple as the club rejecting an offer.
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“The situation would depend on whether Phillips wants to stay, how much the bid is worth and whether actually, a sale at the right time could work for everyone if the club know how they will reinvest. Leeds don’t want to lose him but they respect him enough not to want to hold him back either. He’s rapidly becoming Champions League material. But expect a new contract to be agreed before long.”
Marsch may only be in the job a matter of days, but he is already facing a massive Leeds nightmare.
Meanwhile, Marsch must unleash this Leeds academy talent…
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.”
Brad Haddin has spent plenty of time as a spectator this year so he was simply pleased to get a decent hit in Australia’s opening ODI against India on Saturday. Haddin made 69 in Australia’s imposing 307 at Bangalore but he could miss Tuesday’s match at Kochi as Ricky Ponting recovers well from a hamstring injury.Haddin was part of Australia’s World Cup-winning squad in the Caribbean but did not play a game and was used as a specialist batsman in two matches at the ICC World Twenty20, facing a total of 20 balls. His effort on Saturday was his second half-century in 22 ODIs and justified Australia’s decision to include him and Adam Gilchrist in the same side.”I’m always a wicketkeeper first,” Haddin told the . “I’ve spent a bit of time working on my batting and I’ve been lucky enough to make my way into the team with the bat, so I wanted to make a statement that I can bat as well.”I didn’t take too much notice of the scoreboard. I usually look at it all the time, but I didn’t think too much about it. I didn’t want to complicate things. I hadn’t had a hit for a long time, so I was just trying to worry about the ball.”Haddin was one of the leading scorers in Australia’s domestic one-day competition last year when he made 406 runs at 67.66. However, if Ponting continues his quick recovery it could force Haddin back on the sidelines in the second ODI.Gilchrist said he was pleased Haddin had showed his potential. “People may think he only gets picked in these squads as a backup keeper but to me he is very much here on his own batting ability,” Gilchrist told the . “He was in the World Cup squad as a spare batsman and it is a bonus he is also the next-in-line wicketkeeper.”
England’s preparations for the first Test were given a lift as Steve Harmison underwent a workout in the nets at the Adelaide Oval. However, there are still no guarantees that he will be fit for Brisbane and England will wait until Sunday morning to assess his fitness to see how he responds.Harmison began gingerly off two or three steps but he stepped up the pace before bowling off a longer run. Andrew Flintoff, the England captain, said Harmison would be re-assessed early on Sunday on the team’s return to the ground for the final day against South Australia.”Harmy’s bowled somewhere between 12 and 15 overs. He’s run in, he’s bowled and injuries for fast bowlers are part-and-parcel of the job, so we just have to see what happens tomorrow morning, how he pulls up. He’s a key player for England, has been for a numerous time now in the Test side. We still want Harmy fit, but we’ll know more in the morning.”After Harmison woke up on Friday morning with pain in his side, the England management took the decision not to risk him against South Australia, calling in Sajid Mahmood. The problem was a recurrence of the one that caused him to miss the one-day series against Pakistan in September. He went for a scan which proved inconclusive before being given a cortisone injection.A spokesman said that the team management was “pleased with the way he came through”. However, Duncan Fletcher has voiced his concerns about Harmison’s lack of bowling ahead of the Ashes with him having sent down just 25 overs in competitive action on the tour.”He’s been an effective bowler for us and the other bowlers feed off him,” Fletcher said on Friday. “We’ve just got to monitor the amount of balls he bowls because we’ve got to get some mileage in his legs.”Meanwhile, Flintoff was satisfied with his steady build-up to next Thursday’s Ashes opener in Brisbane after returning to full bowling duties following his ankle injury. “In the first innings I bowled a little bit quicker than what I have done and I’m pleased with the way I’m progressing,” he said. “I’ve had no ill-effects from the ankle, everything’s been fine, I’ll bowl a few more overs tomorrow just to top up a little bit.”