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Match facts

November 27-December 1, 2015
Start time 1400 local (0330 GMT)4:32

Ponting: Don’t see a lot change in strategy

Big Picture

Back in 2009, the MCC World Cricket Committee discussed its concerns about the future of Test cricket. “Except for certain icon series, such as the Ashes, Test cricket throughout the world, and in particular the lower-ranked nations, is in very real danger of dying,” the committee said in a blunt statement. It went on to recommend that day-night Test cricket be trialled as a means of keeping the game alive. After six years and countless tweaks to the pink ball, that recommendation is about to come to fruition. One of the sport’s oldest venues, Adelaide Oval, will play host to the newest concept in Test cricket. For the first time in 138 years, a Test match will be played with a ball that is not red. For the first time in 138 years, a Test match will be played at night.It is a significant moment in the history of Test cricket but it also represents a continuation of the evolution of the game. The first Test match was timeless, with four-ball overs and a red ball; Test No.2188 will has a five-day limit, six-ball overs and a pink ball. One of the key mysteries is how the pink ball will perform. Will it swing, and for how long? Will it seam? Will it discolour too quickly? Will the players be able to see it properly in the evening? And will the spectators? Whatever the case, trials at Sheffield Shield level have satisfied Cricket Australia that the Kookaburra pink ball is sound enough to be used in a Test match. There have also been concerted efforts from administrators and groundstaff to ensure a non-abrasive Adelaide Oval pitch to preserve the ball as well as possible.The change has been made largely for fans, so they can watch on TV in prime time or head to the ground after work to catch the second half of the day’s action. But it is the players who must deal with the subtle differences in how the ball will move, and how visible it may be. And the players from Australia and New Zealand do so in this Test with a series on the line. Australia have already done enough to retain the Trans-Tasman Trophy by taking a 1-0 lead after two matches, but New Zealand could yet escape with a second consecutive drawn series in Australia if they win in Adelaide.And as well as being the start of a new era for Test cricket, it is also the dawning of Australia’s post-Johnson period, with Mitchell Johnson’s retirement after the Perth Test altering the look of their attack. His departure also completed a series of retirements during 2015 with Michael Clarke, Ryan Harris, Shane Watson, Brad Haddin and Chris Rogers also having ended their Test careers. Now in the space of five months they have lost 523 Test wickets and 20,323 Test runs of experience. The times they are a changing.

Form guide

Australia: DWWLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)

New Zealand: DLWLW

In the spotlight

Mitchell Starc has in the past spoken of his dislike of the pink ball, but his record with it suggests he ought to change his tune. In his only two pink-ball day-night Sheffield Shield games, Starc has collected 15 wickets at 13.80, and notably both of those matches were at Adelaide Oval. The retirement of Mitchell Johnson has left Starc as the clear spearhead of the attack and if his record is any indication, he may begin the post-Johnson era by strengthening that claim even further.With scores of 23, 23, 1 and 17 so far in the Test series, Martin Guptill needs to provide New Zealand with something more. And maybe this is his opportunity. His only two fifty-plus scores of the tour have come in the practice matches in which the pink ball was used. Against the Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra last month he scored 94 and against the Western Australia XI in Perth he managed 103 before retiring to allow others a chance. Guptill is renowned as a dangerous one-day striker and perhaps the pink ball, which some observers say is more similar to the white ball than it is to the red, might suit him.

Team news

Australia must make at least two changes due to the retirement of Mitchell Johnson and Usman Khawaja’s hamstring injury. Shaun Marsh comes in for Khawaja, with Steven Smith likely to move up to No.3, and Peter Siddle is the probable replacement for Johnson, having been 12th man in the first two Tests. James Pattinson would likely only get a look-in if the selectors were worried about Josh Hazlewood’s workload. Steve O’Keefe has been released from the squad to play in the Sheffield Shield despite his remarkable record with the pink ball – 18 wickets at 18.22 from three day-night Shield games.Australia (possible) 1 Joe Burns, 2 David Warner, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 Adam Voges, 5 Shaun Marsh, 6 Mitchell Marsh, 7 Peter Nevill (wk), 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Peter Siddle, 10 Josh Hazlewood, 11 Nathan LyonAn unchanged New Zealand XI had appeared likely until captain Brendon McCullum hinted at the pre-match press conference that there could be changes. Neil Wagner took five wickets and Mitchell Santner four in the practice match in Perth – where admittedly 13 wickets were taken due to the playing conditions – and might be a chance of playing. Trent Boult bowled without apparent discomfort at training on Wednesday and is expected to play, having struggled with back soreness following the Perth Test.New Zealand (possible) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Tom Latham, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Brendon McCullum (capt), 6 BJ Watling (wk), 7 Mitchell Santner/Mark Craig, 8 Doug Bracewell, 9 Matt Henry/Neil Wagner, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Trent Boult

Pitch and conditions

More grass than usual has been left on the Adelaide Oval pitch in an effort to help prevent rapid deterioration of the pink ball, and that may also mean the ball seams and spins. The lack of abrasiveness will also likely make it hard to extract reverse swing. The forecast for the match is for warm weather and possible rain towards the end of the game.

Stats and trivia

• Starc’s record with the pink ball is outstanding but so is that of Josh Hazlewood, who in two day-night Shield games has taken nine wickets at 15.44
• The pink-ball records of Australia’s batsmen vary greatly: the extremes are Steven Smith with an average of 219 from two innings and Joe Burns, who has an average of 9.00 from six innings
• The second Test in Perth was the fourth-highest scoring Test match of the 400 that have been played in Australia

Quotes

Steven Smith on the idea of day-night Test cricket
Brendon McCullum, the New Zealand captain

Scorecardand ball-by-ball details
How they were out

South Africa cruised to a fourth straight victory in their one-day series against West Indies, thanks to a blistering 37-ball fifty from their captain, Graeme Smith, and a coolly compiled 77 from 86 balls from AB de Villiers. But the man who stole the show on an emotional evening at Kingsmead was Shaun Pollock, who bade farewell to his adoring home fans with one final display of his allround qualities.Pollock has had more taxing assignments in his 12-year, 302-match one-day career, but there was a sense of inevitability about his penultimate appearance. First he strangled West Indies’ batsmen with the trademark figures of 10-3-38-1, and then, against a backdrop of banners reading, among other things, “For he’s a Polly good fellow,” he marshalled the final overs of a trouble-free run-chase, and sealed the deal with a carve for four off Dwayne Bravo.The result was the perfect retirement present, but West Indies had only themselves to blame for missing out on a consolation victory. After winning the toss, their innings was a hotchpotch affair that started with impressive resolve, folded with weary familiarity, then revived itself in an extraordinary final flurry, as the tailenders Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards clobbered 57 unbeaten runs from just 33 balls, to transform their innings from a perilous 206 for 9 to a respectable 263.But it never looked like being enough from the moment that Smith was dropped at gully from the very second ball of South Africa’s reply. After taking an over or two to find his range, he lacerated the new ball and moved from 4 to 50 in just 26 balls. Taylor and Daren Powell were each carved for three fours in an over, and Darren Sammy might well have gone the same way, had Smith not picked out Shivnarine Chanderpaul at square leg as he pulled at and miscued a long-hop.South Africa were 77 for 1 in the 12th over, and they never looked like surrendering the initiative, not even when Jacques Kallis and Herschelle Gibbs both fell to indiscreet forcing shots. In de Villiers and JP Duminy, South Africa had a middle-order pairing with enough nous to play the bowlers on their merits, and they had 99 risk-free runs for the fourth wicket to put the result beyond doubt.Duminy was in sight of his fourth half-century in 24 games when he lofted indiscreetly at Bravo, with less than 50 runs still needed, while de Villiers might have had designs on his fourth hundred, when he miscued a slow full-toss to midwicket. But into the fray, to lap up the acclaim, strode Pollock, and he did not disappoint.West Indies were left to pick out the positives of a performance that had promised better. Thanks to their tailenders, they did reach their highest total of the series, but that should have been achieved with much less drama after Brenton Parchment and Sewnarine Chattergoon had opened up with a composed stand of 97. But in typical West Indian style, the rest of the innings didn’t follow the same script. Chattergoon and Parchment fell in the space of two overs before Marlon Samuels, who slammed a wonderful 98 in the third match of the rubber, ballooned an attempted pull to midwicket for 4.Bravo and Chanderpaul regrouped well in a fourth-wicket stand of 42, but Chanderpaul undid that good work by running his partner out with a crass call to de Villiers’ right at cover, before paddling an attempted sweep to Smith at backward square leg. Patrick Browne then gave a brief indication of the fireworks to come when he crashed consecutive sixes off Makhaya Ntini, who endured a truly dreadful day. His nine overs disappeared for 80, including 24 off the last of the innings. But once again for West Indies, it was an insufficient show of defiance.

Scorecard

It’s official. Saurashtra have clinched a place in the Ranji Trophy semi-finals at the expense of the defending champions Mumbai and, as Group A runners-up, will play Uttar Pradesh in Baroda next week.Once news came in that Delhi had also made the last four, shutting out Mumbai in the process, this match lost any significance and the captains had no hesitation in calling it off before the mandatory overs. By then Amol Muzumdar had celebrated his 100th Ranji game with an aggressive 187 and Ajinkya Rahane compiled 149 but it was Saurashtra who took the honours with the first-innings lead.Muzumdar, Mumbai’s captain, who yesterday said he wanted to go out and enjoy the last day, played a refreshingly positive innings with shots around the ground but will be disappointed with what followed his exit. Rohit Sharma survived a confident appeal for caught behind off Sandeep Jobanputra before playing a casual shot to the covers. Ramesh Powar attempted an atrocious pull off his first ball and Vinayak Samant fell in a similar manner. When Abhishek Nayar (41) fell edging a cut and Mun Mangela top-edged a pull to Jaydev Shah, Mumbai had folded up and denied themselves some consolation points as they left the tournament.Jobanputra turned in a tidy spell in the late afternoon to pick up a deserving five-for as Mumbai’s recent woes against left-arm seamers continued. He got the ball to straighten off a length and sent down a few short ones as Mumbai’s batsmen committed hara-kiri.The seam bowlers, barring an incisive Jobanputra, were guilty of bowling short and Muzumdar made them pay with some powerful cut shots. He brought up his hundred with one such stroke and the ensuing celebration – the wind-up of the fist, a hop of joy, the bat raised high to the dressing room and to the sparse crowd – showed how important the occasion was in his 14-year first-class career.His joy, however, was nothing compared to the elation expressed by at stumps by the Saurashtra players, who got into a huddle before shaking hands with the opposition. Their dream season continues.

Scorecard
How they were out

England’s hopes of securing a face-saving draw they scarcely deserve have been boosted after torrential rain washed out the final two sessions on the fourth day at Galle. The players left the field shortly before lunch and, despite occasional brighter spells, monsoonal rains soon enclosed the ground. During the morning England showed more fight after yesterday’s feeble effort as Alastair Cook’s half century guided them to 102 for 1 following an opening stand of 67 with Michael Vaughan.The forecast for the final day is not too encouraging so the series is threatening to fizzle towards a damp end. At least Cook’s unbeaten 53 has begun to restore England’s pride, but if the weather relents and a sustained period of play is possible on Saturday they still face an uphill battle with a mammoth 316 runs between the sides.There was slightly less venom from Chaminda Vaas and Lasith Malinga with the new ball than their destructive burst on Thursday. Cook benefited from a couple of edges that fell short of the slips and his tendency to play away from his body kept the quick bowlers interested. Boundaries flowed as the openers soon managed to perform better than the first six wickets in the first innings.Welegedera has impressed on his debut with a languid action and good control of line. He troubled Vaughan with swing, nearly bringing a repeat of the first-innings dismissal when Vaughan left a ball which bounced over the top of middle stump. While that leave was too close for comfort, the drive which brought his downfall was far too wide to be chasing given England’s dire situation. The edge flew quickly to second slip, but Mahela Jayawardene swallowed it with ease moving to his left.Muttiah Muralitharan was made to wait while Tillakaratne Dilshan was thrown the ball first for a few exploratory of his offspin. One delivery spun square past Cook’s edge to bring startled looks from the batsman and grins from the fielders. Muralitharan eventually settled into his first major spell of the match and was played with relative comfort as Cook and Ian Bell took England past their shameful 81. Cook reached his third half century of the series off 103 balls and Bell eased into his innings with a classy punch off the back foot against Vaas.Dark clouds began to mass behind the pavilion and the two batsmen were clearly keeping an eye on the weather. Sri Lanka were not impressed by their time wasting, but steady drizzle forced the umpires to call for the covers. Briefly it looked as though the rain would pass, but then torrential downpours soaked the ground. Sri Lanka have played so dominantly that they deserve the chance to wrap up the series in style, but even another day of rain won’t kid anyone over who has ruled the roost during the past three weeks.

Despite his excellent performance in the Sydney Test, Stuart MacGill could find himself out of the squad for the tour to New Zealand. MacGill took 8 for 170 in the game and was named the Man of the Match in Australia’s comprehensive nine-wicket win, but Ricky Ponting indicated in the post-match press conference that MacGill might not find himself on the flight to New Zealand.”Going to New Zealand, the wickets will probably be flatter and won’t turn as much as this one, so the event of playing two legspinners there will probably be unlikely. We’ll probably go back to a more structured sort of line-up over there.”Ponting admitted, though, that MacGill and Shane Warne had shared an excellent rapport during the Test: “They work really closely in the nets leading up to games. They talk a lot out in the middle about how they’re bowling, what they’re trying to do and how they’re trying to get batsmen out. At different times in this game, when they were on together, they were trying to work in a partnership, which is obviously as important with the ball as it is with the bat." Between them, McGill and Warne took 13 of the 20 Pakistani wickets.If MacGill doesn’t make it to New Zealand, he is likely to play an important role for New South Wales, his state team, who have important engagements coming up which coincide with the matches in New Zealand – the Blues, currently second in the table, play a Pura Cup game on March 10, the same day as the first Test begins in Christchurch, while the finals will start on March 18, the same day as the second Test in Wellington. Considering that New Zealand is only a three-hour flight, the selectors may feel that it’s better for MacGill to keep playing state cricket and fly him for the Tests only if necessary.However, MacGill has an excellent chance of making his first Ashes tour, given that the five Tests will be played late in the season in England when the pitches should have dried out and become more conducive to spin.

In what appeared to be an attempt to break the spirit of the foot-sore WestIndians, Sri Lanka’s batsmen ground on remorselessly on the fourth day of theGalle Test, to set-up an opportunity for their spinners to press for victoryon the final day.Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya finally called the innings to close on590-9 after Hashan Tillakaratne had completed his eighth Test century andthe West Indian players had been forced to endure just over 14 hours in thefield.The old fashioned “wear them out then knock them out” strategy then producedits first casualty when a weary Chris Gayle was caught at mid-off whilsttrying to drive an innocuous looking delivery from Chaminda Vaas.Daren Ganga and Ramnaresh Sarwan held their together their concentration till the umpires finally called off play, with the West Indies 9-1, still 133 runs in arrears.West Indies coach Roger Harper was upbeat at the close, pointing out thatthe team had scored over 400 in the first innings and were confidant ofbatting out the final day on a pitch that has not deterioratedsignificantly.Sri Lankan coach Dav Whatmore described it as “a tremendous effort by thebatsmen to overhaul the West Indies total” but the tourists could have beenput under greater pressure if the batsmen been more industrious earlier inthe day.Starting the day on 343-3, they struggled to score freely in the first twosessions, as the West Indies employed deep-set fields and bowled tighterthan they had done on Thursday and Wednesday. Sri Lanka scored 69 in themorning and 94 in afternoon before raising the tempo slightly in evening,but still only cobbled together 247 runs in 92.4 overs.Sanath Jayasuriya admitted that they had got “a little bit stuck” butinsisted that the intention had always been to gather a lead of around 150.”We wanted to try and make sure that we didn’t have to bat again,” heexplained. “Unfortunately we lost Russel (Arnold) and Kumar (Sangakkara), asthey are the players who can score freely. At the end of the day I am happy.We managed to get a 140 run lead got one wicket before the close.”It will be difficult tomorrow, as batsmen can still score runs on thiswicket,” he warned. “Getting out Carl Hooper and Brian Lara will be the keyto victory.”Sri Lanka were indeed handicapped by the early loss of Russel Arnold, whowas trapped leg-before by Dinanath Ramnarine for 33 in the fourth over ofthe day. He had the ability to push the run-rate and without him therun-scoring mantle was passed onto the team’s grafters.Kumar Sangakkara’s 140, which last for eight hours and 48 minutes, was anepic display of concentration and patience, but he struggled on the fourthmorning and should have been caught off his very first scoring shot by ChrisGayle at first slip. In the end, he managed only 14 runs in 107 minutesbefore he was run out after a mix-up with Tillakaratne.Tillakaratne and Thilan Samaraweera, playing his second Test innings aftermaking a century on his debut, then chipped away at the lead.After lunch the innings came to a virtual standstill as 22 runs were scoredin 12 overs during a grim passage of play. At one stage the pair went 36overs without hitting a boundary.When Tillakaratne lofted Neil McGarrell straight down the ground to bring uphis fifty, and finally overhaul the West Indies first innings total, the pairstarted to show greater urgency.The partnership was only broken after tea, when Samaraweera top edged anattempted pull and was caught by Ridley Jacobs for 77, by which time it hadyielded 154 runs.Chaminda Vaas (7), Niroshan Bandaratillake (4) and Muttiah Muralitharan (14)then attacked the bowling as Tillakaratne completed his patient century. WhenMuralitharan was trapped leg-before and Jayasuriya declared, he had scored105 from 247 balls.Sri Lankan hopes, as they have done so often before, now appear to rest inthe hands of off-spinner Muralitharan. However, on this flat pitch, the WestIndies really should be able to salvage a draw.

A sparkling century from young tyro Ambati Rayudu saw Hyderabad amass 296 for four from the first day’s play of their Ranji Trophy elite group match against Bengal at Secunderabad on Thursday.Rayudu pretty much held the innings together with Daniel Manohar, but scored almost twice as many runs off a similar number of deliveries as his partner. While Manohar made 64 off 163 balls with eight fours, Rayudu hit 134 off 165 balls with 16 fours and five sixes. The knock pushed Bengal onto the back foot, and at the close of play, the hosts were in a strong position, with D Vinay Kumar and Arjun Yadav unbeaten on 39 and 23 respectively.Kishan Choudhary rattles Himachal PradeshPlaying against Rajasthan at Jaipur, Himachal Pradesh found themselves bowled out cheaply on the first day of their Ranji Trophy elite group match, with medium-pacer Kishan Choudhary scalping four for 28 off 20.2 overs.No Himachal batsman crossed 30, and only Sandeep Sharma’s 28, Aashish Kapoor’s 26 and Shakti Singh’s 27. The visitors were bowled out for just 166 in 84.2 overs, and in reply, Rajasthan played out three overs without getting off the mark.Mumbai suffer batting collapse at DelhiMumbai’s batting continued to let their side down in this year’s Ranji campaign, collapsing against Railways on the first day of their Ranji Trophy elite group match on Wednesday.Off-spinner Kulamani Parida took four wickets for 30 runs off 16 overs, hastening the Mumbai decline. NS Shetty was the only batsman to offer a measure of resistance, but he too could scrape together only 26. At the close of the day’s play – which started after lunch due to heavy fog – Mumbai were 101 for seven.Amit Bhandari runs through AndhraPicking six wickets for 73 runs off 17.4 overs, medium-pacer Amit Bhandari ran through Andhra Pradesh in their Ranji Trophy elite group encounter against Delhi on Wednesday.Apark from Andhra skipper MSK Prasad and KS Sahabuddin, no other batsmen displayed any sign of application at the crease. Prasad made 59 off 132 balls, but Sahabuddin’s unbeaten 71 off 109 balls was a far more entertaining affair, displaying nine fours and one six and ruining Bhandari’s figures to some extent. Andhra were bowled out for 198 in just under 60 overs, and in reply, Delhi staggered to 59 for five, Sahabuddin starring again by taking four wickets for 16 runs off eight overs.Balaji rips through Orissa at ChennaiWith a deadly spell of five wickets for 25 runs off 12.1 overs, Lakshmipathy Balaji shattered the Orissa middle order in their Ranji elite group encounter against Tamil Nadu at Chennai.Orissa found themselves bowled out for only 122 in 42.1 overs, with Sanjay Raul making 24 as the top-scorer. Extras, of course, outscored him with 34. In their first innings, Tamil Nadu were 144 for two, with S Sriram and Hemang Badani unbeaten on 47 and 36 respectively.Zaidi scalps five against PunjabIf it had not been for 40s from Ravneet Ricky, Reetinder Sodhi and A Uniyal, Punjab would have been even more humiliated by Ashish Winston Zaidi’s five for 84 off 28 overs at Mohali.Punjab could only manage 208 in their first innings, with Ricky top-scoring with 45 and Uniyal following up with 44. Considering they were, at one stage, 21 for four, it may be looked upon as a fair recovery. In reply, Uttar Pradesh were 39 for no loss.Naidu gives Vidarbha the edgeVivek Naidu made an unbeaten 74 (100b, 13×4)that gave Vidarbha the upper hand in their Ranji Trophy plate group tie against Tripura at Nagpur. After Tripura were bowled out for a measly 102 in 53.1 overs, openers AV Deshpande and Naidu almost overhauled that on their own, putting on 84 for the first wicket.Deshpande hit 51 off just 49 balls (11×4) against Tripura’s toothless attack, and although he was dismissed, Naidu guided Vidarbha to 165 for two by the close of play, a lead of 63 runs.Leggie Mishra deflates BiharHaryana managed to skittle Bihar out for just 225 in their Ranji Trophy plate group match at Gurgaon on Wednesday, with leg-spinner Amit Mishra picking six for 86.Only Bihar opener MS Dhoni managed to play with any semblance of comfort, stroking 85 off 120 balls with 14 fours and one six. He did finally fall to Mishra, and the next eight wickets fell for only 120 runs. Bihar occupied 78.2 overs for their 225, and by stumps, Haryana had reached 23 for no loss.Maharashtra, Mandar Sane dominate J&K at PuneAnother leggie who performed the starring role for his side was Mandar Sane of Maharashtra, who ripped through Jammu & Kashmir to scalp eight for 43 off 16 overs at Pune.Jammu & Kashmir’s only significant batting performance came from opener H Fayaz Ahmed, who made 49 off 104 balls with nine fours. None of the others could play Sane at all, and the visitors collapsed to 131 all out in 48 overs. In reply, Maharashtra were 155 for two, with NA Godbole batting well on 68 off 116 balls.Hemanth Kumar strokes century at DelhiBatting fluently, C Hemanth Kumar hit 116 delightful runs off 251 balls (11×4), rescuing Kerala from 50 for two and taking them to 220 for two by the close of play against Services at Delhi.Hemanth Kumar was given good support by skipper Sunil Oasis, who made 71 off 157 balls (8×4), and the two kept the Services attack at bay for almost two and a half sessions, adding 170 runs for the third wicket. The day ended early due to bad light, but it left Kerala in a good position.

When Andy Flower and Henry Olonga protested the “death of democracy”, the Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak insisted that sport and politics could not mix. In the latest edition of Wisden Cricket Monthly Tom de Castella asks him whyHeath Streak can have no illusions about the dreadful things that happen in Zimbabwe. Last August his father was jailed because he refused to give up his farm to Robert Mugabe’s licensed thugs. But his refusal to make a political statement during the World Cup seemed to put him on the government’s side. Despite his own intimate understanding of widespread hunger and repression, his silence appeared to imply criticism of the brave black-armband protests of team-mates Andy Flower and Henry Olonga. Streak became known among opposition supporters as the Anti-Flower.

His reputation for having deserted the side of the angels started before the World Cup when Streak sounded strident and uncompromising. Here was a man who spoke only of sporting performance while all around him people were trying to survive the state-sponsored famine of Mugabe. His defence was lame. “I believe sport and politics can’t mix,” he said. “The security of teams coming here is perfect. I think things should go ahead.”In retrospect it might seem not to have been worth it. During the World Cup the team, distracted by the controversy, suffered. Despite making the Super Six stage, partly due to England’s refusal to play in Harare, the team was thrashed by Kenya and beat only Namibia and Holland. Now Streak, at 29, has to oversee the rebuilding of a side hit by four retirements of key players, starting with Flower and Olonga.On the two-Test tour to England he leads a team whose vice-captain is a promising 19-year-old wicketkeeper, Tatenda Taibu. The only team members whose Test qualifications are not in doubt are Streak himself and Grant Flower. As a fast bowler of great strength and stamina, Streak has taken 180 wickets at 26.98 in 51 Tests and averaged 21.01 with the bat. At Lord’s on May 22 he leads his side for the 14th time in Tests. But he is now considered less as a hero and more as an enigma in international cricket.A big, physically imposing man with dark smouldering eyes, Streak belongs to the strong, silent school of leadership. He is ill at ease under interrogation by journalists and it is easy to see how he became a media bogeyman. “Never complain, never explain” would summarise his public relations technique. He obviously prefers the new ball to do his talking for him.When we met in Bulawayo, his hometown, he was sitting at a cafe table nursing a cup of tea being unrepentant about his behaviour during the World Cup. “No one lives in an ideal world,” he said. “We’re in a world where there’s terrorism and a war in the Middle East. At the end of the day sport is a job like any other, the players are just trying to make a living.”Flower used similar language to reach exactly the opposite conclusion when we spoke a couple of days later. “It’s a bit of a cop-out to say `I can’t get involved in politics because I’m a cricketer’. What about a businessman, what about a bricklayer? That argument is flawed. Only in an ideal world do sport and politics not mix.”But Streak’s own daily life is inseparable from the consequences of politics. We had been talking for 10 minutes when a man approached our table with two small sacks. A conversation ensued in Ndebele, the local African language, which ended with Streak handing over money in exchange for the unlabelled sacks. “Sorry about that,” he said. “It’s so hard to get bread these days. I’m lucky to know people who can.”

Streak insists he is not insensitive to the pain people are suffering but his public position is uncompromising. He believes that sportsmen stand above politics and have a separate responsibility for a higher national ethos. “I think, as far as we can, sports people must realise that we’re ambassadors for our country and we’ve got to try and keep to sport as our topic,” he said. In what appeared to be a gentle dig at Flower and Olonga he added: “I encouraged the team to do that so that they could try and focus and give themselves their best chance in the tournament.”But not many personalities are as simple as they look, and it would be a serious error to think that Streak is motivated by racism. He grew up in Matabeleland, in the south-west of the country, and feels a strong kinship to the area’s Ndebele tribe who make up about a fifth of Zimbabwe’s population and have suffered more than any other ethnic group during Mugabe’s 23-year rule. I had watched Zimbabwe’s opening Super Six game against New Zealand with the squad of Bulawayo’s biggest football team, Highlanders, and was surprised to hear the esteem Streak is held in by Bulawayo’s Africans. As Streak put on an exhibition of ferocious hitting, scoring 72 off 84 balls, one partisan spectator said: “Heath is a great man, a real Ndebele, he learnt Ndebele before he could speak English. You would never know he was white the way he speaks it.”When I told Streak he leaked a little passion. “I grew up in a farming area and used to play with Ndebele kids, so my first language as a youngster was Ndebele and I’ve spoken it ever since. I think it’s a pity more Europeans here don’t speak the language. We learn how to speak Afrikaans and French but I think it would be of greater benefit to speak African languages. You have a much greater understanding not only of what people are about but also their culture.” He is a Matabele and a Bulawayo boy and proud of it.His cultural sensitivities make his stubborn political position all the more perplexing. When the subject turns to the 40 democracy campaigners arrested at the Holland match, who were later locked up in a cell measuring 15 feet by eight with no functioning toilet, Streak is ambivalent. He described the incident as “disappointing” and then repeated his familiar mantra. “To use a sporting stage to make political statements is a little bit unfair on the sport and also on the people who go there for an enjoyable day and are impartial to what’s going on.” It is his denial of any political context which gives rise to the “Mugabe apologist” tag, however unfair.Streak himself declares that the World Cup was a “fantastic” tournament that will accelerate the development of cricket in Africa. He regrets the cancelled game with England. “We were disappointed in a cricketing sense when England decided not to come,” he said. “We’ve always had a good rivalry in the past here; we’ve beaten them and they’ve beaten us. But I do sympathise with Nasser Hussain who was already under a lot of pressure without this boycott issue.”Pressed on England’s safety in Harare he sighs. “I always say `my crystal ball went in for a service so I can’t really tell” – a sign perhaps that his certainty before the World Cup was dented slightly by the demonstrations that did take place, together with the knowledge that an England protest would have dwarfed the others. Indeed opposition supporters have said that weeks of detailed planning had gone into preparation for a “stunning” demonstration for the England match. They will not reveal the plan. “We might use it another time, so we’re not telling anyone,” said one of them.If the past was lined with potential pitfalls, the future looks no less testing. With Flower and Olonga joined on the international retirement list by Guy Whittall and Alistair Campbell Zimbabwe look fragile. Unless young players, such as Tatenda Taibu, and the medium-fast bowler Andy Blignaut quickly establish themselves as replacements the English tour could become a rout. Streak, who made his debut against Pakistan 10 years ago, says Zimbabwe are in a “rebuilding phase”.Zimbabwe did restore some pride by defeating Kenya and Sri Lanka to reach the Sharjah Cup final in April and, playing as a national team against England, Zimbabwe can perform well above themselves, as they did in a well-fought, rain-spoiled draw at Trent Bridge in 2000 after losing by an innings and 209 runs at Lord’s. (Streak took nine wickets at 20.22 in the series.) But the youngsters will have to step up fast if Zimbabwe’s “rebuilding phase” is not to turn into a bereavement phase.Click here to subscribe to Wisden Cricket MonthlyThe June 2003 edition of Wisden Cricket Monthly is on sale at all good newsagents in the UK and Ireland, priced £3.25.

Frizzell County Championship Division OneKent v Lancashire, Canterbury
Even though Kent and Lancashire have both yet to win this season, Lancashire start this tie as favourites, considering their better form in the Championship. Four draws out of four may not sound like an electrifying start, but all those games were disrupted by bad weather with Lancashire in a strong position, and as long as the skies stay blue, a win can’t be too far away. Kent have also had their fair share of rain, but they sit only three points off the bottom and desperately need a win for morale as well as points. Their captain, David Fulton, makes his first Championship appearance of the season after recovering from an eye operation which, at one stage, was feared could end his career. However, Amjad Khan (shin) and Min Patel (back) remain sidelined. Lancashire are boosted by the presence of Andrew Flintoff, who has recovered from a shoulder problem sufficiently to play – if only as a batsman. James Anderson is unavailable because of England commitments, and Kyle Hogg continues his recovery from a calf injury.

Nottinghamshire v Essex, Nottingham
Nottinghamshire and Essex slipped to within two points of each other after heavy defeats in the last round, so the incentive for victory will be even bigger than usual. Notts do have a victory to their name this season – against Warwickshire early on – while Essex, with four draws out of five, have yet to record a victory. Notts will be boosted by the presence of both Chris Cairns and Stuart MacGill, who will play together for the first time. Cairns returns to the side after missing the last two matches on international duty, but Chris Read is absent with a broken thumb. Essex are likely to be without Ronnie Irani, their captain, who is struggling with a knee injury, while Nasser Hussain is away with England and John Stephenson is out with a twisted ankle.Surrey v Sussex, The Oval
It’s first against third at The Oval as Sussex look to keep in touch with Surrey, the leaders – but it’s not going to be easy. Surrey demolished Essex in the last round with impressive allround displays from Martin Bicknell and Jonathan Batty, and after their win over Somerset in the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy, they will be hard to stop. Unsurprisingly, they have named an unchanged squad, with Alec Stewart and Mark Butcher in Durham for the second Test and Alex Tudor continuing his recovery from a knee operation. Rikki Clarke, today named in England’s ODI squad, faces the prospect of being 12th man again. For Sussex, Tony Cottey is doubtful after missing the C&G Trophy defeat by Middlesex because of a back problem, while Kevin Innes, who scored a first-innings century against Nottinghamshire last week before making way for James Kirtley, looks set to keep his place for the whole match this time.Frizzell County Championship Division TwoDerbyshire v Worcestershire, Derby
Only two points separate Derbyshire (4th) and Worcestershire (5th), but the momentum is with Worcestershire, who pulled off a spectacular win against high-flying Gloucestershire last week, while Derbyshire fell to the perennial whipping-boys Durham. Mohammad Ali and Lian Wharton are added to the Derbyshire squad after sitting out the C&G Trophy fourth-round victory over Glamorgan, with Ali expected to reclaim a place in the side. Whether Wharton, a left-arm spinner, makes the final XI depends on the state of the Derby pitch, although he and Tom Lungley are the most likely of the 13-man squad to miss out. For Worcestershire, David Leatherdale is overlooked for a third successive Championship game despite scoring 80 and taking 5 for 36 in his two most recent one-day outings. He is replaced by Anurag Singh, the only change to the team that beat Yorkshire by 67 runs in the C&G Trophy fourth round.Northamptonshire v Glamorgan, Northampton
If Northants could choose any side to play to claw themselves away from the bottom spot, then Glamorgan would probably be the one. Glamorgan have lost two out of their last three Championship matches, and like Northants, are floundering at the wrong at the end of the table and have yet to win. Kepler Wessels, the Northants coach, recalls Mark Powell, Carl Greenidge and Monty Panesar, with Michael Cawdron and Tony Penberthy making way. Meanwhile, Glamorgan’s coach John Derrick is sweating on the fitness of David Hemp and Adrian Dale, who are both unwell. David Harrison, who rarely features in the one-day team, returns to four-day action, while Dean Cosker is expected to play as a second spinner alongside Robert Croft.Yorkshire v Durham, Leeds
Yorkshire will fancy their chances of getting their season back on track when they take on Durham at Headingley. An early-season victory against Northants remains Yorkshire’s only win of the season, and Somerset and Gloucestershire are beginning to pull away at the top. However, they will be bolstered by Darren Gough’s third Championship appearance of the season following his recovery from a hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Durham can take some encouragement from their first Championship win for two years, against Derbyshire last week, but injuries to Martin Love (broken thumb) and Vince Wells (back), along with the effects of a dispiriting drubbing against Lancashire in the C&G Trophy, could spell another defeat.

Sri Lanka’s fastest bowler, Dilhara Fernando, has fully recovered from aserious back injury and is raring to have a go at the Englishmen. He couldplay in Kandy if conditions favour an extra pace bowler.

Fernando went six months without international cricket after suffering astress fracture of his spine. He last played for Sri Lanka at Sharjah inApril, before the pain became so unbearable that he had to undergotreatment.Sri Lanka Cricket fast bowling coach, Champaka Ramanayke, reveals thatFernando first complained about his back during the 2003 World Cup. Theinjury apparently contributed to him bowling so many no balls.Ramanayake, with whom Fernando has been working with for the past fivemonths, helped identify a technical fault in his action, which is coined`counter rotation’ by bio-mechanic analysts."He was twisting his spine and putting too much pressure on it. The endresult was a fracture. We have identified the fault and changed hisalignment so that he’s bowling more upright now," said Ramanayake.During Dilhara’s absence the likes of Prabath Nissanka (now recuperatingafter knee surgery), Dinush Fernando and Nuwan Kulasekera have all pushedtheir claims for a regular berth. Nuwan Zoysa is also fighting his way backinto contention, bowling with greater zip and purpose.But despite the growing competition for places, Dilhara is confident that hewill soon regain his berth and unafraid of competition."When I first joined SSC, there were about five Sri Lankan bowlers in theside. Quite a number of people advised me to change club, arguing that Iwould not get a chance. But I stuck it out. There presence gave me anincentive to bowl better and improve my performances. I finally managed toconvince SSC to pick me," said Fernando."I am facing a similar situation today in making a comeback into thenational team and I am confident I can do it. As they [the other pacebowlers] keep on improving their performances it offers me a challenge toperform better to regain my place," said Fernando.The 24-year-old said he obtains the majority of his wickets with the slowball and the bouncer. "In the one-day game I bowl the yorker at tailenders.But I know I need to pitch the ball up further for success at the Testlevel."Fernando has been timed at 91.9 mph against South Africa at Durban where hereturned his best figures of five for 42 in 2000. He has natural pace buthas paid for and inconsistent line and often for bowling too short.Fernando said the best ball he bowled was to England opener Michael Vaughanin the Manchester Test in 2002."I did not play a single practice match and came straight into the Testmatch. I bowled a slow ball to Vaughan, which he failed to read and put upan easy catch. That has been the best ball I’ve bowled at internationallevel," said Fernando, who has 33 wickets from 13 Tests and 73 wickets from55 one-day internationals.There was a time Fernando was plagued with no balls, but since changing hisaction the problem as eased. "I bowled no balls whenever I tried to bowlfast and when I had problems with my run up," said Fernando. "There has beena considerable improvement in the number of no-balls I bowl after I changedmy run up. It has been very evident during the current season."Fernando said that he had not modelled his bowling action on anyone inparticular, but has been a keen follower of South African fast bowler AllanDonald. Sri Lanka hope he will have and equally distinguished career, no onedoubts that he has the raw ingredients.