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Several of the Australians were in the Caribbean for the World Twenty20 last month, while others have been involved with the IPL since the Australian season ended. But for some, like Ponting and James Hopes, the past two and a half months has been an extended holiday. They don`t want to head to Southampton for the first ODI still rusty, so expect Australia to play their full strength team in this encounter.

For Ireland, there`s little to lose. Nobody truly expects them to beat Australia, but their history shows they are capable of upsets if their more fancied opponents fail to show them due respect. Next month they have two more chances to beat a Test-playing side when they host Bangladesh in Belfast, but knocking off Australia would be something special.
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Berrington and McCallum put Scotland on top

Richie Berrington struck a responsible 82 as Scotland overcame a top-order scare to move into the ascendancy on the second day against Netherlands in Deventer. Netherlands` bowling attack stuck to their guns in the early part of the day to reduce the visitors to 61 for 4 before the recovery began, and the lower order finished the day with a lead of 63, with three wickets left.

The wickets were shared around, with Mark Jonkman and Adeel Raja picking two apiece, while Berend Westdijk, Peter Borren and Ruud Nijman scalped one each. Raja was getting into his groove, having accounted for Simon Smith and Qasim Sheikh when Berrington began the rescue act. Neil McCallum provided the perfect foil, as they regained ground through patient cricket. Berrington struck nine fours in his 82, and the pair had raised 133 when Borren dismissed him with the first-innings lead in sight.

Gregor Maiden who came in next ensured the lead was duly achieved, before McCallum departed having reached his fifty. Matthew Parker worked his way to an unbeaten 28, and his stand with Maiden dispirited the hosts further before Nijman intervened, but the advantage remained well and truly with Scotland at stumps. Click here to more cricket news

Cricket News: Shahzad debuts as England bat

Andrew Strauss won the toss and chose to bat first on a hot and sunny day in Manchester, as England prepared to take on Bangladesh in the second Test at Old Trafford.

England confirmed before the toss that the Yorkshire seamer, Ajmal Shahzad, will make his Test debut in place of the injured Tim Bresnan, after he was given his chance ahead of the left-armer Ryan Sidebottom. "We`re excited by what he`s done in the squad in the last six months," said Strauss. "He swings it both ways and at a good pa



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Cricket News Australia can sort out Afridi in Tests - Ponting

Ricky Ponting is confident Australia can get the better of Shahid Afridi, the new Pakistan captain, during the two Tests in England in July. Afridi has not played a Test since 2006 and in 44 games against Australia across all formats, he has only ever scored one half-century.

Afridi will be the third man to captain Pakistan in Tests since the start of 2009 and Ponting is unconvinced that he is one of Pakistan`s best 11 Test players. Ponting said he was confident Australia`s pace attack would be able to counter Afridi`s attacking style in the five-day game.

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Cricket News:Rain halts Nottinghamshire hopes

Persistent rain rescued County Championship title challengers Nottinghamshire from the possibility of a second straight defeat as their clash with Essex was abandoned as a draw. Even with

the fast-drying Trent Bridge outfield, the weather never allowed the Notts groundstaff to remove the covers and the two,

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Cricket New Mohammad Yousuf won`t end retirement for

Mohammad Yousuf has closed the door on the prospect of coming out of retirement for Pakistan`s

upcoming tour of England,

saying he was still disappointed with the way he was treated by the PCB.

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Cricket News Injured Umar Gul doubtful for Asia Cup

Umar Gul is unlikely to be part of Pakistan`s Asia Cup campaign in Sri Lanka as a result of a lingering shoulder injury. He should, however, be fit in time for the tour to England later this summer. Gul injured his right shoulder when he fell awkwardly during a training camp for the World Twenty20 and subsequently missed the tournament.

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Cricket News Index Lyth powers Yorkshire with 133

An exceptional hundred from Adam Lyth helped Yorkshire dominate day one of their County Championship Division One match against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl as they reached stumps on 300 for 3.

Lyth (133) dominated an opening stand of 195 with Joe Sayers (49), before three quick wickets fell either side of tea. Anthony McGrath then hit an unbeaten 55 to help guide Yorkshire to the close with no further damage.

Hampshire skipper Nic Pothas won the toss but unexpectedly put Yorkshire in on what appeared to be a perfect track in cloudless conditions. He was immediately made to pay for his decision as Lyth roared out of the blocks.

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Cricket News Clarke retains Twenty20 captaincy

Australia`s selectors have forgiven Michael Clarke for his poor form in Twenty20, naming him to captain Australia against Pakistan in England in July. Clarke will lead the side for the two Twenty20s in Birmingham on July 5 and 6 despite his struggles with the bat in the shortest format, where his strike-rate of 101 is well below par.

Clarke was praised for his attacking captaincy at the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, where he guided Australia to the final, but he needs to lift his scoring rate to justify his position as a batsman. He has been given virtually the same squad, with the only change being the omission of Tim Paine due to the reduced need for a backup wicketkeeper.

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Batsmen gave Hauritz wickets: Intikhab

HOBART: Those who thought Australian off-spinner Nathan Hauritz had made the grade as a Test match slow bowler following his successive five-wicket hauls against Pakistan may need to reconsider.

Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam reckons Hauritz did not earn those wickets, instead being handed them on a plate by wasteful batting by the tourists in the second innings at Melbourne and Sydney.

In those matches Hauritz’s returns of 5-101 and 5-53 arrived amid a flurry of strokes by the tourists, as evidenced by his economy rates of 4.2 and 4.41 for the two innings.

“Hauritz has done well but I feel that we have given him wickets,” Intikhab said. “I can see if someone has bowled a really good ball and got somebody out, but we have been giving wickets by trying to get after him.

“I’m not taking anything away from Hauritz, I think he is an intelligent bowler and he bowled well, you have to give him credit for that.

“But I personally feel we have given him wickets rather than he has taken wickets.”

Intikhab’s words might help reduce the hype around Hauritz since his fourth innings successes, which followed Australian chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch’s call for the adopted New South Welshman to do more in the latter stages of a Test.

Hauritz’s general reliance upon flight and changes of pace rather than sharp spin for his wickets does leave him open to the prospect of being dismantled by nimble-footed batsmen, and Pakistan have in recent years faltered badly against spinners of the non-Indian variety.

Watching the Pakistan series from afar, Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack editor Scyld Berry was similarly skeptical about whether Hauritz could go on taking wickets if batsmen were a little less generous.

“Nathan Hauritz has done a decent job as Shane Warne’s replacement: 12 Tests so far and 47 wickets at 30 runs each,” Berry wrote in London’s Sunday Telegraph. “But the day will surely come when a batsman takes his off-spin apart.

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Shehzad helps Pakistan clinch series

Pakistan Under-19 clinched the three-match warm-up series against New Zealand Under-19 2-1 with a tight three-wicket win in the decider in Blenheim. Opener Ahmed Shehzad starred with a run-a-ball 76, striking 11 fours and a six, and was supported by the middle and lower

orders as Pakistan chased down their target of 233 with seven balls to spare. They were dented early in their reply, as two wickets fell for 36, but important contributions from captain Azeem

Ghumman (31), Mohammad Naeem (46), Hammad Azam (27) and Usman Qadir (22 not out) took them over the line

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Pakistan captain Mohammad Yousuf has shouldered the blame for Pakistan`s shock 36-run defeat against Australia in Sydney, and has said his dismissal was the turning point of Pakistan`s chase on the fourth afternoon.

After a disappointing morning session for the visitors, Australia set the visitors 176 to win their first Test in 15 years against them. Pakistan began the chase well, but lost wickets in clusters, a pattern similar to their failed, low-total chases in Sri Lanka and New Zealand last year. Salman Butt and Faisal Iqbal fell in the same over and just after tea Yousuf and Misbah-ul-Haq fell in the space of three balls to Nathan Hauritz.

It took a special return catch from Hauritz to dismiss him, but Yousuf called it a "pathetic" stroke. "My shot this afternoon was pathetic and it turned the game," he said. "Otherwise we would have won, not easily, but won. Yeah I blame myself."

Australia secure stunning 36-run win

Pakistan erased 77 of the 176 run victory target, but Australia claimed three top-order wickets as this gripping Test match threatened to go down to the wire. Both sides will be satisfied with their progress after lunch, although Australian can lay claims to having had the better of the day following a morning session that witnessed Michael Hussey and Peter Siddle add 123 runs for the ninth wicket.

Nathan Hauritz picked up five wickets as Australia took the series with a remarkable 36-run victory over Pakistan at the SCG

Imran Farhat and Salman Butt began the second session in an aggressive mood, taking the attack to the Australians - and Siddle in particular - as they sought a quick kill. Siddle went within centremetres of having Butt caught at gully by a diving Hussey, but thereafter was guilty of over-pitching and was punished to the tune of 27 runs from his four-over spell.

A change of bowler brought a change of fortune, however. Doug Bollinger proved troublesome for both openers with his full length, and was rewarded with the wicket of Farhat, caught by Mitchell Johnson at midwicket attempting to drive on the up. Johnson then sent shivers through the Pakistani dressing room by removing Faisal Iqbal and Butt within the space of three deliveries to reduce the tourists to 3 for 51.

Iqbal was drawn into a drive by a full-pitched Johnson delivery, only to edge to Brad Haddin. The Australian wicketkeeper was immediately called back into action with the spectacular, diving catch of Butt down the legside, a grab that might have been the best of his international career. Mohammad Yousuf and Umar Akmal ensured there was no further damage before the tea break, moving the Pakistani second innings total to 3 for 77 with a trio of boundaries off Nathan Hauritz.

Earlier, Hussey took full advantage of Yousuf's oddly defensive captaincy and a placid SCG pitch to restore Australia's victory prospects in the second Test. Hussey and Siddle carried their bats through the first session and at one stage looked set to break the 116-year-old ninth-innings Australian partnership record set by Syd Gregory and Jack Blackham also at the SCG.

Australia's revival was assisted greatly by the timid tactics of the Pakistanis who, as a result, were faced with a testing fourth-innings chase. Yousuf's defensive field configurations - which included eight men on the fence for Hussey, who was not in the business of dealing in singles as he sheltered Siddle from the strike - did little to enhance his own reputation as a leading tactician and played into the hands of the Australians.

Hussey has made more fluent centuries, but few as important as that completed on Wednesday. Having watched on from the non-striker's end as Australia lost 5 for 40 the previous day, Hussey seized control of the Australian innings on a flat batting surface and, in the process, relieved any lingering doubt that may have been hanging over his position in the team.

Hussey declined the charity singles being offered by Yousuf and instead looked to pierce the boundaries with drives that seldom left the carpet. He entered the nineties with back-to-back cover driven fours off the bowling of Danish Kaneria and sealed his first ton of the summer with a glorious straight drive off Umar Gul. Hussey punched the air in delight upon reaching the milestone, acutely aware of the innings' importance in the context of the match. Siddle, meanwhile, batted with tremendous discipline and restraint to raise his highest Test score.

Mohammad Asif and Kaneria claimed the final two Australian wickets six overs after the lunch break, but not before the hosts had added 95 runs on the fourth morning. Asif ended the obstinate stand of Hussey and Siddle by removing the latter to a shorter delivery gloved to slip. Kaneria then completed the innings and a personal five-wicket haul by bowling Doug Bollinger with a delivery that ricocheted off the batsman's elbow and foot. Hussey remained unbeaten on 134.

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From the Aussie press

News, comments and features from the Australian press during Pakistan's tour down under.

Sydney Morning Herald

Ducks in a row: Pakistan declares open season

“The Australian top order became an abject procession. If distinctions can be made between ducks, Hughes, replacing the injured Simon Katich, made a bad one: dropped first ball, slogged inelegantly at another, then wafted a catch to slip. Ponting half-pulled, half-hooked, half-fended at his first ball, which was half a shot too many to play properly, and he was again caught in the deep.”

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/ducks-in-a-row-pakistan-declares-open-season-20100103-lnbu.html

Waugh to be honoured at SCG

“The induction will take place at tea on day two of the second Test between Australia and Pakistan at Sydney Cricket Ground.”

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-sport/waugh-to-be-honoured-at-scg-20100103-lne4.html

Perth Now

Asif makes grand return to SCG

“Mohammad Asif recalls making a "bad debut'' at the Sydney Cricket Ground in January 2005, taking 0-72 off 16 overs as Adam Gilchrist clubbed a quick 113. “

http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/asif-makes-grand-return-to-scg/story-e6frg1wu-1225815733390

Daily Telegraph

Ricky Ponting tosses us into the fire

“It wasn't even a toss-up - the general consensus was that Australian captain Ricky Ponting should have given his bowlers first crack on an SCG green top yesterday when he won the toss.”

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/philip-hughes-and-ricky-ponting-out-for-nought-as-australia-struggle-against-pakistan-at-scg/story-e6frexni-1225815681698

Just how old is Aamer

“The Pakistan team would have you believe he is 17. Aamer quietly toes the party line. But Geoff Lawson remains dubious.”

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/just-how-old-is-aamer/story-e6frexni-1225815510340

Afridi rates Aussie T20 tougher than IPL

PERTH: Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has become the latest international star to throw his support behind Australia’s domestic Twenty20 Big Bash, rating it higher than the celebrated Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament.

Speaking after leading South Australia Redbacks to a 29-run win over Western Australia Warriors at the WACA Ground on Tuesday night, when he took 4-19 from four overs to claim man-of-the-match honours, Afridi said he would learn a lot from playing in the Big Bash.

Afridi is likely to feature in Pakistan’s upcoming one-day series against Australia and is also set to lead his country in the Twenty20 showdown between the two countries in Melbourne in February.

“Compared to IPL and all the other Twenty20 tournaments I think this [Big Bash] tournament is very tough,” Afridi said.

“[There is] good cricket and good pitches and I think this is a good preparation for me before playing in the one-dayers against Australia.

“Definitely if I perform well I will go with good morale so it’s very important for me.



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“I always enjoy cricket, especially in Australia and India, and I think you can learn a lot of things here when you play with good cricketers on a good track.

“If you perform here it matters a lot, so I’m always keen to perform.”

Despite starring with the ball against the Warriors, Afridi had earlier failed with the bat, falling first ball when attempting to slog an Aaron Heal full toss over long on for six.

“Obviously it was my first game and every new game has its own pressure. When the ball was coming in the air I thought I was going for a home run, but I didn’t,” Afridi laughed.