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The County Ground at Taunton was today unveiled as the new home of women’s cricket in England.This initiative, the first ever of its kind for women’s cricket, gives the sport a permanent base. One of the key reasons behind the scheme is to assist with the fixtures in the women’s game, for both domestic and international matches. The ECB will endeavour to have domestic finals and key matches at Taunton every season with a view to bringing major domestic tournaments, such as the Challenge Cup and Junior Super 4s to Taunton in the future.At least one women’s international match is guaranteed at the ground every year. Crowds at Taunton have been the best away from Lord’s for women’s internationals ever since it first hosted a match in 1997. Promotion of women’s cricket will be an integral part of Somerset’s advertising and promotional campaign for cricket.Regional events, such as training camps and in particular the South Region winter training sessions, will be held at the cricket school on site at the ground. The regional women’s forums, which take place in October, will also now be hosted there.The new ground development which is planned by Somerset will incorporate suitable facilities for female athletes and the players will have access to all the services on a regular basis. Additionally, the South Women’s Regional Cricket Manager (WRCM) will have an office on site as part of the redevelopment.”Once again England is leading the way with new developments for women’s cricket,” explained Gill McConway, ECB executive director for women’s cricket. “We organised the first cricket World Cup for women and the first ever international Twenty20. We also instigated Super 4s, a competition which other nations are really keen to integrate into their domestic game.”For me this is a huge step for the women’s game – to have a first-class county ground wanting women’s cricket to be an integral part of their future is a definite boost. It’s an especially exciting time as there are stunning new development plans for the ground and to be associated with one of England’s most progressive county schemes can only benefit the game.”It will be the first time the women’s game will have continuity in the grounds where they play as Somerset have guaranteed us an international every year.”Charlotte Edwards, England’s captain, was equally excited. “I’m delighted with the choice of venue,” she told the BBC. “Taunton has always been a favourite ground, both personally and for the team: historically we have always done very well there, so hopefully we can continue that tradition!”I’m really excited about the development of the ground and what that also means for women’s cricket. It’s destined to become a great venue with brilliant facilities and it’s exciting that we’ll be a part of that vision and long-term development.”

Guwahati’s standing as an international venue is under serious threat in the aftermath of the fifth India-England ODI where crowd trouble erupted when the umpires called off play because of a wet outfield. There was rioting in the Eastern stands and the police had to fire tear gas shells to break up the mob which was breaking down stands, burning paper and plastic, pelting the ground with any missiles they could lay their hands on, and trying to break down the fence dividing the stands from the playing area. The lack of a swift or efficient response from the police cast a blackmark on the venue that will take some erasing.The real trouble began at approximately 12 noon when Rudi Koertzen and AV Jayaprakash went out to the middle to inspect conditions. There were many areas of concern, including but not restricted to, the bowlers’ run-ups, patches in the 30-yard circle, and the outfield. With the sun shining intermittently, fans in the stands could not understand why play was not getting under way. Although from afar the field appeared dry, it was far from fit for an international match, as Cricinfo verified, walking around the ground, up to the pitch, after the match was called off.”Announcements were being made from time to time on the public address system in Assamese, so the crowd was being kept updated about the situation,” Bikash Baruah, honorary secretary of the Assam Cricket Association, said soon after the match was called off. The fans, however, grew restless, and gave vent to their steadily increasing anger, first by throwing water bottles onto the field and burning scraps torn from advertising hoardings, newspapers and placards. When they ran out of bottles they improvised, breaking down wooden advertising panels and uprooting bamboo poles used for scaffoldings. They then proceeded to attack the short walls that hold the fencing, prying loose bricks and further breaking these down to hurl into the field of play.The crowd lit bonfires, piling on whatever flammable material they could find, and began to throw these lit items over the fence. While all this was happening, the police made brief forays towards the stands causing trouble but retreated swiftly when pelted with missiles. Some policemen were even taking cover behind the sightscreen, using an advertising hoarding as a shield to protect themselves.

The trouble escalated when the crowd began to target the television cameras, in place to cover the match. The television crew moved as many cameras as they could to safer positions, but there was nothing they could do about the two fixed cameras in place square of the wicket to judge run outs. When one of those cameras was totally wrecked by stones and other missiles, the police realised that the situation was fast growing out of control and began considering counter measures. By this time, however, the crowd had literally taken apart one of the six cameras used to generate Hawkeye images. The camera and its stand were dismantled and dumped in a bonfire, totally destroying it.”We are just in the process of assessing the damage. As the cameras are taken down and our engineers inspect them, we will have a fair idea of how bad the situation is,” James Rego, executive producer of Nimbus, said. “At the moment, I can tell you that at least four cameras have been badly damaged.” In all 31 cameras are used in the coverage of these ODIs. Whether Nimbus can source replacements in time for the next match is not entirely clear.”Hawkeye will definitely be affected for the next game as we have to get replacements from England,” said Rego. What is an area of immediate concern is the run out cameras, which are High Density cameras and far more expensive than the regular cameras used in other positions. If these are irreparably damaged, and suitable replacements cannot be found in time for the Jamshedpur ODI, on Wednesday, April 12, that match will be affected as the ICC has ruled that international matches cannot take place without the third umpire in place.”The damage is likely to be in the region of hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said Rego, while slamming the security apparatus in place. “This is a total security disaster,” he said, referring to the fact that the police were slow to take action even after the first camera went down. It was later revealed that the damage was around 6.5 to 8 million rupees (US$146,000 to 180,000).

The police attempted to defuse the situation by firing tear gas shells into the stand but both shells they fired lobbed well over the stands and out of the ground. Finally the police’s hand was forced as a gate in the Eastern stands was breached and fans started to come onto the ground. Then the police charged and grabbed hold of two young men while most of the rioters made good their escape through gate No. 11. The two who failed to make it received a severe thrashing in full view of the media and public as policemen took out their frustration. In the resultant melee, two policemen were also severely injured and later had to be taken away on stretchers.”The frustration was obvious because the spectators had waited since morning. They were expecting to see some action but once they realised the match had been abandoned, some of them indulged in pelting stones and bottles,” said Avinash Joshi, the District Commissioner “It was controlled quickly by the police and we ensured the trouble did not last by taking some effective measures. We have taken two men in custody and will interrogate them before taking further action.” The men are likely to be formally charged for destroying government property.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out

A sensational spell of seam bowling from Sreesanth inspired a rampage like few others in India’s cricket history, as South Africa were shot out for 84, their lowest total since readmission to the international scene. Only once had a home team capitulated for less against India – Australia collapsed for 83 at Melbourne in 1981, though that was the final innings of the match – as South Africa were positively outplayed on a day where 20 wickets tumbled at the Wanderers.India’s batsmen had a chance to control the game either side of the bowling carnage. Sourav Ganguly almost ran out of partners in the morning, before a surprising burst from No.11 VRV Singh boosted the total to 249 and allowed Ganguly to complete a pugnacious half-century. VVS Laxman’s classy unbeaten 42 stretched the overall lead to beyond 300 as India inched closer to their first Test win in South Africa.History might have pointed to India’s batsmen crumbling against South Africa’s pace battery but their fast bowlers reversed the trend dramatically at the Wanderers, conjuring up an incandescent spell in conducive conditions. And it was largely thanks to Sreesanth’s glittering maiden five-wicket haul.Starting with a peach of an inswinger to dismiss Graeme Smith, then replicating the delivery to the right-handed Hashim Amla, summoning a jaffa to undo Jacques Kallis, screaming past Mark Boucher’s defences and swinging out Shaun Pollock with a fuller one, Sreesanth was simply unstoppable. The seam position rarely wavered, the swing was mostly controlled and the pace was up near the 140 kph mark. In ten overs, he administered to South Africa a dose of their own medicine.Kallis’s dismissal summed up the story. First over after lunch. First ball shaped away and ricocheted off the splice; the second shaped away and turned Kallis inside out; and the third one, the , shaped away yet again, kissed the edge and flew to second slip. It was seam bowling of the highest class and South Africa’s best batsman was made to look like a novice.Sreesanth wasn’t without support. Zaheer Khan’s lifter that accounted for AB de Villiers, taking off from a good length and deflecting off the outstretched bat, was simply unplayable. The fielding – Virender Sehwag’s superb catch at gully and Laxman’s sharp takes at second slip -backed them up spiritedly as India entered unfamiliar territory in an overseas Test. Ashwell Prince and Andre Nel ensured against abject humiliation – Nel frustrated India with both his cross-batted swipes and cheeky outstretched tongue – but Kumble returned, removed the sticky Prince and blasted through Makhaya Ntini’s defences.

It was a frenetic day, one that began with India losing their way and then recovering due to a battling effort from Ganguly and some hilarious slogging from VRV Singh. Ganguly, who continued his composed effort from last evening, appeared to be running out of partners at 205 for 9 but VRV Singh not only provided him valuable support but also crunched a quickfire 29.Ganguly impressed in both attack and defence. A clattered pulled six off the ferocious Ntini was straight out of the memory bank and it was followed by a thumped straight shovel off Kallis. He didn’t farm the strike, allowing VRV Singh a chance to free his arms, and was vindicated by some effective slogs that boosted India’s total. It also allowed Ganguly a chance to get to half-century, a gritty effort in trying circumstances.He played a role in the second dig as well, as India rode on several cameos. Sehwag’s chancy, yet splintering, 29-ball 33 set the tone before Ganguly and Laxman steadied the innings. Laxman was regal in his strokeplay, making exquisite drives and even venturing some confident pulls. A couple of swished straight drives, with the bat in a horizontal position owing to the twist of the wrist, sent gasps around the Bullring.South Africa’s bowlers let them down yet again, favouring a short length on a pitch that demanded pitching it up. Incidentally, Pollock became the first South African, and tenth bowler, to reach the 400-wicket mark, a fully deserving milestone for such a champion peformer. South Africa were expected to have home advantage but they played their part in handing India the advantage on one of the most memorable days in their Test history.Short Cuts
Dileep Premachandran at Jo’burgHighlight of the day: On any given Saturday, it would have been ShaunPollock’s 400th wicket, but today he was eclipsed by a young man who canpoint to a haul of 24 Test wickets from five-and-a-half Tests. Sreesanthwas consistently the quickest bowler on either side, and he hit the seamas effortlessly as Glenn McGrath on a good day. Some atrocious battinghelped, but this was a day that will live long in India’s cricket lore, aday when the quick bowlers outgunned the opposition with their weapons ofchoice.Lowlight of the day: Several of the South African batsmen could tussle forthat accolade, but Herschelle Gibbs probably shades it for the half-asleepshot he played to get out. Lucky for him that it’s Mickey Arthur and notRay Jennings that’s coaching the side.Shot of the day: VRV Singh’s swat off Jacques Kallis that screeched to thecover fence. He batted only 19 balls, but his 29 was still more thananything South African managed.Ball of the day: It takes a special ball to get rid of a great batsman,and Sreesanth produced one to Kallis. It arced in a touch and then movedaway just enough to catch the outside edge. That was half the job done.VVS Laxman did the rest, pouching a superb low catch, even as Gangulydived across him.Catch of the day: Pollock’s stunner at mid-off to send off Mahendra SinghDhoni. Most eyes were already on the boundary rope when the shot was hit,but Pollock threw himself to his left, stuck out the left hand and held ondespite landing fairly heavily.Message of the day: Should have been: “Can we change to colouredclothes?”. South Africa have made tremendous progress as a one-day sideover the past two seasons, but their Test displays have been embarrassingat times. Too many of the players seem to be stuck in a complacent secondgear, a state of affairs that shouldn’t be acceptable.Off the park: All eyes turned to the Indian dressing room as SouravGanguly reached 50 in the first innings. Greg Chappell was on his feet andapplauding, like everyone else. Those who expected anything else appear tohave forgotten that Chappell needs a victory as much as every man in theXI. If they can pull it off, it will be an unparalled achievement.

Scorecard

In a must-win clash for both teams in Hyderabad, the ICL Pakistan XI were thoroughly outplayed by the ICL World XI, who booked their place in Tuesday’s final with a comfortable six-wicket win.A disciplined opening spell from Johan van der Wath and Daryl Tuffey put the Pakistanis on the back foot, and Abdul Razzaq and Inzamam-ul-Haq were dismissed with only 19 runs scored in 4.5 overs.Imran Farhat scored a quickfire 13-ball 20, but that was the only innings of note among the specialist batsmen as the World XI bowlers ran through the Pakistan XI line-up. A collapse reduced Pakistan XI from 52 for 2 to 62 for 6.Humayun Farhat and Naved-ul-Hasan managed to reach double figures, but left-armer Matthew Elliott accounted for the duo. Andrew Hall then took two tail-end wickets as Pakistan XI were bowled out for a disappointing 113. Elliott and Hall took three wickets apiece, while legspinner Upul Chandana scalped two.Elliott then raced away in the chase along with opening partner and fellow Australian Ian Harvey; he contributed a run-a-ball 26 as World XI scored at nearly ten an over. Riaz Afridi then struck twice to get rid of Elliott and Lou Vincent, but Harvey found company in Damien Martyn.A 47-run stand took their side further towards the target before Afridi once again struck twice in the same over. Harvey, though, compiled an unbeaten 52 to steer his side into the final, with victory achieved with 22 balls to spare.The World XI will meet a red-hot India XI, who have won three consecutive games, in the final.

New Zealand Cricket has cut a Test from Sri Lanka’s tour later this year and replaced it with two Twenty20 internationals.Martin Snedden, the NZC chief executive, said that the decision was made because of concerns over the weather. “It would have meant starting the first Test on November 29 and with our weather we were asking for trouble.”He added that preparations for the World Cup was also a factor. “The focus is clearly on the World Cup and there is a strong view among us that playing the Twenty20 game helps develop certain aspects of the one-day game.”It is likely that the first Test will now start on December 7 and the second the following week. The first Twenty20 game will be held on December 22 and the second on Boxing Day. The tour will conclude with five ODIs.New Zealand are virtually out of the Test circuit, with only these two matches scheduled between now and November 2007 when South Africa tour the country. They have no matches of any kind arranged until the Champions Trophy in October.

Australia’s usually impeccable preparation ahead of big tournaments has taken a hit after they were troubled by the amount of swing fast bowlers achieved in the warm-up matches for the ICC World Twenty20. However Tim Nielsen, the coach, said Australia’s loss to South Africa and narrow win against New Zealand in the practice games had been valuable learning experiences.”The fact that the ball has swung quite a bit has caught us off guard,” Nielsen said after Sunday’s defeat. “It was good for the batsmen to get out in the middle and there might be some benefits in the fact that the lower order did get a bat because if we need them later in the tournament, they’ve had a bit of a chance to have a hit.”The movement in the air was a positive for Australia in the New Zealand game, when Ben Hilfenhaus’ outswing brought him 3 for 11 from three overs. Against South Africa, however, Australia’s attack failed to have the same impact.AB de Villiers, who blasted 65 from 35 balls in South Africa’s win, said their performance would give them confidence leading into the tournament. “Victory is always important, especially against Australia because they’re a well-drilled side,” de Villiers said. “It wasn’t just a warm-up game. It’s a bit of a psychological advantage to beat the Aussies.”New Zealand’s confidence took a blow after their practice games brought convincing losses to Australia and West Indies. Daniel Vettori, the captain, said it was reasonable to expect his side would take a while to warm up.”We have come out of a winter with two months of not much action and being indoors all the time,” Vettori said. “It’s been good to get some action and whilst we are getting some things right we need to get our game all together to challenge in this tournament.”In New Zealand’s loss to West Indies it was Daren Powell who troubled them the most, finishing with an incredible 3 for 4 from his four overs. Powell said even though Twenty20 was a batsman’s game the early season conditions in South Africa might help the fast bowlers.”Never in your dreams you can think of bowling a dream spell like that,” Powell said. “Basically I went out there to bowl line and length and pick up wickets, the pitch was assisting me with the areas I was bowling but what I also tried to do was vary my length.”

Shot of the Day 1
‘Anything KP can do I can do better’ … Paul Nixon’s obsession with the reverse-sweep attracted mild derision during the CB Series in Australia, when he unfurled it with the same compulsion that Andrew Hilditch once reserved for the hook shot. But suddenly it was the shot that brought England back into the game, as he dropped to one knee and connected sweetly with a shot that sailed over point’s head, to cue a rapturous fit of splashing in the England dominated paddling-pool.Shot of the Day 2
Ravi Bopara’s blazing square drive off the final ball of Lasith Malinga’s spell. Nixon had just fallen, and the requirement had climbed to an uncomfortable 16 from seven balls, when Bopara latched onto the meagrest hint of width and screeched the ball to the backward point fence. It gave his side hope, as did his delicate paddle-sweep off Dilhara Fernando one ball later. Unnoticed amid the excitement, Bopara moved along to his maiden ODI fifty. He didn’t deserve such a cruel denouement.Slow starter of the Day
The match didn’t begin at quite such a frantic tempo. Upul Tharanga grafted his way through the early part of the innings and managed his first boundary off the 79th ball he faced, lofting Monty Panesar over mid-off. Tharanga eventually finished with 62 from 103 balls. Suddenly the scoring rates of England’s top-order didn’t seem quite so torpid.

Fielder of the Day
Ian Bell has the misfortune of looking a little innocuous in everything that he does, but on this occasion it worked in his favour. Tillakaratne Dilshan’s fierce cut into the covers looked like an easy single and probably more. But Bell, quick as a flash, pounced on the ball as it sped to his left, sprang back to his feet in an instant and, having taken a split second to size up his options, pinged down the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Underestimate him at your peril.Technological glitch of the Day
For the duration of this tournament, the umpires are experimenting with an earpiece wired up to the stump microphone. In theory, the equipment should help clarify marginal caught-behind decisions, but today Michael Vaughan suffered for a gremlin in the system. Chaminda Vaas speared one down the leg-side and, to the naked eye, Vaughan appeared to be nowhere near making contact. Unfortunately for him Billy Bowden’s earpiece clicked as the ball entered Kumar Sangakkara’s gloves, and up came the crooked finger.Cataclysmic dismissal of the Day
Bell’s run-out could be considered unfortunate, but Pietersen’s departure five overs later, as so often, was the death knell for England’s prospects. He had just got into his stride as well, slapping Muttiah Muralitharan for an extraordinarily forceful sweep through square leg. But two balls later his aggression got the better of him, as he chipped a leading edge into Murali’s midriff. It was the pivotal moment in a collapse of 4 for 32, and for all the excellence of the recovery through Nixon and Bopara, England were never again in control of the contest.Belated gesture of the Day
Even when they do the right thing, the ICC can’t help but get it wrong. They’ve had ten days to size up the dismal crowds in Antigua and do something about it, and have persistently done diddly-squat. Until, that is, the 48th over of Sri Lanka’s innings, when a press release arrived declaring that, as a “pre-Easter gift”, local residents would be given free entry for the second half of the match. The timing of the announcement was barking, but even more ridiculous was the insistence that they wouldn’t be doing the same for England v Australia on Easter Day itself. Wouldn’t it be nice, just once in this competition, to have a packed stadium regardless of the coffers?

The players in St Kitts currently seem to exist in a parallel universe. Upsets may be raining down in Jamaica and Trinidad, but the status quo in the World Cup’s smallest base camp hasn’t come close to being rattled. As Australia went through the motions ahead of their clash with The Netherlands at Warner Park on Sunday, Adam Gilchrist gave an indication of the relaxed mood in their camp, by admitting he didn’t even know how crushing South Africa’s 221-run victory over the Dutch had been.It’s a safe bet that this match won’t be providing the next great upset of what is already proving to be a spectacular World Cup. Herschelle Gibbs’ historical onslaught has left the Dutch morale dangling at their bootstraps, and their captain, Luuk van Troost, conceded that they would be hard-pressed to get over such a beating in just 24 hours.”We must clear our minds and try to forget what happened on Friday,” van Troost said. “We didn’t enjoy what happened against South Africa, there weren’t many positives, and I don’t want any more world records against my team. We need to do the basics right against Australia. If we bowl well and field with discipline we can be a better side.”Gilchrist did his best to avoid any complacency, although his confidence was understandable. “No result is a given, we’re well aware of that,” he said. “But winning is expected of us and we’d be disappointed if we lose. Some of the wickets here are going to provide assistance to slower bowling and that brings everyone into the game a bit more than an absolute flat road does where batsmen can swing freely. But securing the victory is the main thing.”Australia are unlikely to risk a recall for Andrew Symonds for such a low-key battle, although his return cannot be far off. In the nets on Saturday he was bowling his offbreaks for the first time since tearing his right bicep seven weeks ago, and to judge by some of the straight drives that scudded into the sightscreen, his big hitting has not been diminished by surgery.”It’s been really good solid progress from Symmo,” Gilchrist said. “He is right on track from where we had planned and plotted [he would be] prior to coming over here. When he gets back to playing an actual game, I’m not sure when that it is, but as far as being where we would like him to be, he’s progressing well.” The South Africa game next Saturday is the most likely option.

As for Australia making their own assault on the record books, Gilchrist wouldn’t be drawn into a six-hitting competition with the South Africans, although he was pretty confident his team-mates would put on a similar show. “Most of the top teams have got power hitters now in one-day cricket,” he said. “I don’t see any team really having an advantage. Most of the grounds in this region are pretty small, and such is the way that batsmen approach the closing overs in one-day cricket, there is going to be a lot of sixes hit.”As for the Dutch, to judge by van Troost’s resigned air, they are braced for the inevitable. “We haven’t decided on our final line-up,” he said, although having omitted both of their spinners, Adeel Raja and Mohammad Kashif for the South Africa match, that mistake is unlikely to be repeated. “We have a meeting coming up in the evening and only then we will decide. As for whether we bat or bowl first, we have no idea.”Australia (probable) 1 Adam Gilchrist (wk), 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Clarke, 5 Brad Hodge, 6 Michael Hussey, 7 Shane Watson, 8 Brad Hogg, 9 Nathan Bracken, 10 Glenn McGrath, 11 Shaun Tait.The Netherlands (probable) 1 Darron Reekers, 2 Bas Zuiderent, 3 Alex Kervezee, 4 Ryan ten Doeschate, 5 Daan van Bunge, 6 Eric Szwarczynski, 7 Tim de Leede, 8 Adeel Raja, 9 Luuk van Troost, 10 Billy Stelling, 11 Jeroen Smits (wk).

Former New Zealand wicketkeeper Kruger van Wyk, who played nine Tests for his adopted home, has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. He will return to South Africa, his country of birth, to take up the role of Director of Cricket at the University of Pretoria’s TuksCricket Academy.”While it always a tough decision, I feel the time is right to take on an opportunity outside of playing the game, working as Director of Cricket at Pretoria’s TuksCricket Academy,” said the 35-year-old van Wyk.”I’m extremely privileged to have lived my dream as a professional cricketer for the past 17 years and I would like to thank my family and friends for all their love and support during this chapter. My proudest moment was representing New Zealand at Test level, and I’m eternally grateful and indebted to New Zealand for the opportunity it has provided me and my family.”Having played first-class cricket in South Africa since the 2000-01 season, Van Wyk moved to New Zealand in 2006. He earned a call-up to the national side in 2012, and made his Test debut against South Africa in 2012. He played nine Tests, scoring 341 runs at an average of 21.31, with one half-century, a 71 against India in Bangalore in 2012.Van Wyk represented Northerns and Titans in South African domestic cricket, and Canterbury and Central Districts in New Zealand.