06 January, 2009

Doug Bollinger South Africa will enter the final day of the third 3 Mobile Test against Australia needing a further 314 runs to pull off an improbable win.

Set an imposing victory target of 376 from a minimum 116 overs, the Proteas are 1-62 at stumps on day four.

Stand-in skipper Neil McKenzie (25) and Hashim Amla (30) will resume the fight for a history-making last-day win – and series clean sweep – with at least 90 overs to be bowled.

Past run chases at the SCG suggest victory will elude the Proteas on a wearing wicket.

Australia's fourth innings total of 2-288 in the 2005/06 season against South Africa is the highest winning total in a Sydney Test.

The tourists' task is made more difficult by the absence of skipper Graeme Smith who is nursing a broken finger and troublesome left elbow and is highly unlikely to take any further part in proceedings.

After Australia declared its seconds innings closed at 4-257, Doug Bollinger (1-11) made the early breakthrough, picking up his first Test wicket after makeshift opener Morne Morkel (0) chipped a catch to Mitchell Johnson at mid on.

Amla survived a close call on five, edging Peter Siddle (0-16) past a late diving Brad Haddin.

Ricky Ponting closed his side's innings after Michael Clarke (41) was caught in the deep going after quick runs.

Michael Hussey remained not out on 45.

Australia resumed on day four at 0-33 with Matthew Hayden and Simon Katich at the crease.

Hayden (39) dragged Morne Morkel (2-38) on to his stumps after working hard in an attempt to build his first substantial score of the summer.

He belted seven fours in a 63-ball stay that produced just as much sweat as substance.

The 37-year-old was given a rousing send-off by the SCG crowd.

Ricky Ponting (53) almost collected a golden pair after leaving the first ball he faced only for it to catch the inside edge of his bat, narrowly missing the stumps and going down to the boundary for four.


The Australian skipper's innings then flourished as he raced to a half-century at almost a run-a-ball rate.

It came as a surprise when he played on to Morkel attempting a cut shot.

There was also plenty of surprise when Simon Katich (61) was given out lbw to Dale Steyn (1-60), with only wicket-keeper Mark Boucher seemingly interested in an appeal.

Clarke and Hussey then combined for a fourth wicket partnership of 76 that has helped place Australia in the box seat to win for the first time this series.

07 January, 2009

Australian players celebrate Australian paceman Mitchell Johnson has bowled South African skipper Graeme Smith with 10 balls to spare as Australia escaped with a thrilling victory in a remarkable 3 Mobile Test at the SCG.

The courageous Smith (three), coming it at No.11 with a broken left hand and injured right elbow, and tailender Makhaya Ntini (28) held Australia up for 29 minutes and appeared likely to escape with an against the odds draw.

But Johnson – Australia's best bowler all series – struck at 5.34pm before being swamped by delirious and relieved team-mates.

Chasing an improbable 376 for victory, the Proteas were all out for 272.

The hosts won the match by 103 runs, with paceman Peter Siddle (match figures of 8-113) named man-of-the-match.

Smith (326 runs at 65.2) was named man-of-the-series.

The Proteas took the series 2-1 but Australia will remain top of the International Cricket Council's Test rankings.

In a dramatic final hour of an enthralling match, Ntini was dropped twice on 16 but held on to play the innings of his life.

Dale Steyn (28) and Ntini had earlier frustrated Australia's push for victory with a ninth-wicket partnership of 50 before Andrew McDonald (2-32) trapped Steyn lbw.

That opened the way for the courageous Smith to make his entry with 7.2 overs left.

Hayden dropped Ntini off Doug Bollinger (2-53) in the next over as Australia's chances of victory appeared to be evaporating.


But in a series containing plenty of unexpected turns, Johnson produced the final twist as the noisy last-day crowd of 9075 went into raptures.

South Africa entered the final day needing a further 314 runs to pull off an improbable win - and a series clean sweep - having progressed to 1-62 at stumps on day four.

But any hope of an unlikely victory disappeared when the tourists lost Neil McKenzie (27), Jacques Kallis (four) and Hashim Amla (59) in the opening session.

AB de Villiers (56), JP Duminy (16) and Mark Boucher (four) fell after lunch and it appeared the home side was coasting to a comfortable victory.

Steyn, Ntini and Smith had other ideas, ensuring a tremendous series finished on an appropriately dramatic note.

Teams start afresh after tough Tests
January 10, 2009

Match facts
South Africa want Herschelle Gibbs in their plans for the next few years and this will be his first outing since completing an alcohol rehabilitation programme

Sunday, January 11
Start time 7.35pm (08:35 GMT)


The Big Picture

Can anything really live up to the Test series we've just witnessed between these two teams? Probably not. But the world's two top-ranked limited-overs sides going head to head in a Twenty20 match in front of a likely crowd of more than 75,000 at the MCG should be a terrific spectacle in any case. Australia will be desperate for some strong performances to ease the pressure after losing their first home Test series in 16 years. South Africa have declared that they are treating this portion of their trip as a separate tour. Both teams are taking the opportunity to trial some fresh talent.


Twenty20 form guide

Australia - LWWLL


South Africa - WWLWL



Team news

Australia have rested Brad Haddin due to his heavy workload in the past month and Luke Ronchi will take up the position behind the stumps. Ronchi was excellent with both bat and gloves in the West Indies this year but his domestic batting form has been down this summer and a lower-order position is likely. Michael Clarke and Mitchell Johnson have also been given time off. Australia's major decision is which bowlers to include. They will be keen to get some overs into Shaun Tait, while Nathan Hauritz might miss out on the spin position due to Cameron White's batting ability.

Australia (possible) 1 Shaun Marsh, 2 David Warner, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Hussey, 5 David Hussey, 6 Cameron White, 7 James Hopes, 8 Luke Ronchi (wk), 9 Ryan Harris/Ben Hilfenhaus, 10 Nathan Bracken, 11 Shaun Tait.

South Africa have named their starting line-up and there is no Hashim Amla, Neil McKenzie or Morne Morkel. Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Vaughn van Jaarsveld are set to make their international debuts, while all eyes will also be on Herschelle Gibbs in his return to the national side.

South Africa 1 Herschelle Gibbs, 2 Jacques Kallis, 3 AB de Villiers, 4 JP Duminy, 5 Vaughn van Jaarsveld, 6 Mark Boucher (wk), 7 Albie Morkel, 8 Johan Botha (capt), 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Makhaya Ntini, 11 Lonwabo Tsostobe.


Watch out for ...

David Warner was the bolter in Australia's squad. At 22 and having not yet made his first-class debut, Warner was picked on the strength of a couple of brilliant limited-overs performances for New South Wales. He made a state record unbeaten 165 in from 112 balls against Tasmania and followed it a week later with 97 from 54 balls - narrowly missing the fastest one-day hundred in Australian domestic history - against the same opponents in Hobart. He will be especially fascinating to watch if he uses the double-sided bat he has trialled this season; it allows him to play the reverse-sweep without changing his grip.

Herschelle Gibbs turns 35 next month but South Africa view him as an important part of their campaign for the 2011 World Cup. Those plans were derailed slightly in November when Gibbs was demoted from the national setup after breaking a team curfew. A month-long alcohol rehabilitation programme was the result and this will be Gibbs' first appearance since the incident. The coach Mickey Arthur has told Gibbs he expects him to lead from the front as the senior man in the top order; it will be interesting to see how he responds.


Pitch & conditions

The MCG's drop-in pitches have not been easy to score on in recent years. The surfaces are often two-paced and in limited-overs formats bowlers have had more reason to cheer than usual.


Stats and trivia

The teams have met in two Twenty20 internationals for one win each.
The MCG has hosted only one Twenty20 international and the 74 made by India last year was the lowest innings total ever recorded by a Test-playing nation in the format.
Australia have never been beaten in a Twenty20 match at home
This is only the second Twenty20 match South Africa have played outside their own country


Quotes

"We're expecting a huge backlash from them in this series and they have to start as favourites. There's no doubt about that."
South Africa's coach Mickey Arthur

"It's just about, I guess, starting the series well and that starts here with the Twenty20. The big thing is we've got some young blokes who add something different."
Australia's fast bowler Nathan Bracken

11 January, 2009

David Warner Emerging New South Wales talent David Warner will make his Australian debut on Sunday night after coach Tim Nielsen confirmed he would play in the KFC Twenty20 international against South Africa at the MCG.

Twenty-nine-year-old Queenslander Ryan Harris and Warner's Blues team-mate Nathan Hauritz were both left out of the XI.

The swashbuckling Warner, who has clubbed 101 runs off just 62 balls in three KFC Big Bash matches at a strike rate of 162.90, will join a host of fresh faces in the national team and Nielsen admitted he was energised by the prospect of seeing players who are foreign to the Test arena wearing the green and gold.

"To see the likes of Warner and (Shaun) Marsh back in the squad, or in the squad for the first time, and (Luke) Ronchi having a run around (and Ben) Hilfenhaus there is going to be really exciting for us," he said on Sunday morning outside the team hotel in Southbank.

After nine Test matches in just 11 weeks, Nielsen is also anticipating the dramatic change of pace that the Twenty20 clash will bring in front of what is expected to be a crowd of nearly 80,000.

The highly-anticipated encounter will be another date in what has been an intense international workload for Australia since the start of October.

"I think we're playing a lot of cricket at the moment because in the past there's been series that have been cancelled or had to have been delayed," Nielsen explained.

"We're in a busy part of our future tours program, we have a couple of years every now and then where it's quieter, we're going into a very busy period."

"South Africa have just come off the back of that period for them so it's something we need to be aware of and we need to manage our players' programs accordingly."


One such player Nielsen said would need to be managed is captain Ricky Ponting who will lead Australia in a Twenty20 international in Melbourne for the first time.

"Coming up we play both the one-day series against South Africa and New Zealand and then the next day, after a Twenty20 game (against the Black Caps), we take off to South Africa for the Test series," he said.

"We'll certainly be aware of how much work our players are doing and trying to give them a bit of a rest at some stage mainly to ensure we don't take them to high injury-risk periods."

Australian team: Ricky Ponting (c), Michael Hussey, David Hussey, Ben Hilfenhaus, James Hopes, Nathan Bracken, Luke Ronchi, Shaun Marsh, Shaun Tait, David Warner, Cameron White. 12th man: Ryan Harris or Nathan Hauritz.

11 January, 2009

Debutant David Warner clubbed the second fastest Twenty20 international half-century ever as a new-look Australia defeated South Africa by 52 runs at the MCG on Sunday night.

Warner, who is yet to make his first-class debut, had the 62,148 fans in frenzy, smashing 89 off only 43 balls and rewriting several chapters of the history book.

He spearheaded Australia's charge to 9-182 before the Proteas, aided by 78 from 48 balls from the unflappable Jean-Paul Duminy, were dismissed for 130.

The Proteas were not in the hunt after losing wickets in each of their opening three overs as Australia bounced back from its Test series defeat earlier this summer.

But it was Warner, just the third Australian in 158 years to represent his country before making his first-class debut, who stole the show with his man-of-the-match performance.

Plucked from obscurity after several equally electrifying innings for New South Wales in limited overs cricket, Warner has suddenly become the cult hero of Australian cricket.

In just over an hour of power, Warner smashed six sixes and seven fours to be the owner of the equal fifth highest Twenty20 international score and third best by an Australian, and the sixth fastest international half-century in all forms of the game.

Only Yuvraj Singh has hit a faster half-century in Twenty20 internationals than Warner, reaching the mark off 12 balls against England in Durban in 2007.

Warner's heroics enabled Australia to set a challenging run chase despite losing 7-42 in the final 38 balls.

Not only did he upstage several of his more decorated team-mates, including Test captain Ricky Ponting, Warner showed no respect at all for several members of the Proteas attack.

Test stars Jacques Kallis, Makhaya Ntini and Dale Steyn were all in the destructive path of Cyclone Warner.

Warner showcased a high-voltage blend of traditional and unorthodox shots and, of course, a slice of luck.

His square cut off Kallis which beat gully and point was straight from the text book, while his six off Steyn's bowling, which roared some 25 rows into the stands, lifted him past 50.

He was fortunate edges flew through a vacant slip and gully area but was otherwise unthreatened.

But the Australians, who reached their 100 in the 10th over, lost momentum following Warner's dismissal in the 14th over.

Steyn was again Australia's nemesis, claiming 3-38, including the wickets of Luke Ronchi and James Hopes.

Duminy lifted the Proteas from a dire position at 3-12 after three overs with an innings which, if not for Warner's earlier in the night, would have wowed the fans.

He slashed nine fours and one six - an outrageous scoop above the wicketkeeper off Shaun Tait's bowling - but could not rescue the visitors.


His dismissal, lbw trying to reverse sweep David Hussey, all but ended the Proteas' bid for victory.

Tait, in his first match for Australia in nearly a year, bowled with extreme pace and fire.

AB de Villiers felt Tait's wrath when he fell onto his wickets after being struck on the hip.

He has a 'badly bruised hip' and struggled onto his feet after his dismissal.

South Africa ring in the changes for Brisbane

January 12, 2009

Match facts

Wayne Parnell has risen quickly and will make his senior debut for South Africa at the Gabba



Tuesday, January 13
Start time 6.35pm (08:35 GMT)


The Big Picture

South Africa were over-powered by the rookie opener David Warner during the first clash and have one game to find some more consistent form ahead of the five-match CB Series, which starts in Melbourne on Friday. The Warner experiment was an instant success for Australia, with him pounding 89 off 43 balls, while the local bowlers also contributed in the 52-run triumph. JP Duminy (78) was the only one to pass 12 for South Africa, who will start as under-dogs at the Gabba. A crowd of about 38,000 is expected, and if it is achieved it will mean approximately 100,000 people have watched the opening stages of Australia's limited-overs season.


Twenty20 form guide

Australia - WLWWL
South Africa - LWWLW



Team news

South Africa have called for three changes and there may be a fourth if AB de Villiers doesn't recover from a painful hip injury. de Villiers, who is undergoing physio on the servere bruising, under-edged while trying to pull a 155.6kph delivery from Shaun Tait and the pain of the blow caused him to double over, with the bat hitting the stumps. Wayne Parnell, the left-arm medium-fast bowler, replaces Lonwabo Tsostobe, Morne Morkel comes in for Makhaya Ntini and Hashim Amla allows Jacques Kallis to have a rest. Parnell, who is capable of swinging the ball, is an uncapped 19-year-old and was the leading wicket-taker in last year's Under-19 World Cup.

South Africa 1 Herschelle Gibbs, 2 Hashim Amla, 3 AB de Villiers, 4 JP Duminy, 5 Vaughn van Jaarsveld, 6 Mark Boucher (wk), 7 Albie Morkel, 8 Johan Botha (capt), 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Wayne Parnell.

Australia are carrying a 13-man squad and the only two who weren't used in Melbourne were the allrounder Ryan Harris and Nathan Hauritz, the offspinner. It's unlikely Hauritz will be called, but Harris, who is an adopted Queenslander, may win a start ahead of Cameron White.

Australia (probable) 1 Shaun Marsh, 2 David Warner, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Hussey, 5 David Hussey, 6 James Hopes, 7 Luke Ronchi (wk), 8 Ryan Harris, 9 Nathan Bracken, 10 Ben Hilfenhaus, 11 Shaun Tait.


Watch out for ...

Shaun Tait was fierce in his first international engagement for a year, upsetting the South Africans with his speed, bounce and fire. Kallis was hit on the shoulder first ball before de Villiers' dismissal, and Tait came back at the end to finish the game by bowling Tsotsobe. The upshot was 2 for 36 off four overs from a brutal, unpredictable and injury-prone fast man.

Dale Steyn experienced some unusual pain in Melbourne, with Warner greeting him with consecutive sixes from the first balls he faced, but recovered to capture 3 for 38. Expect some more flames from South Africa's attack leader, especially on a traditionally bouncy surface at the Gabba. It's unlikely Australia's batsmen will be able to repeat Warner's early treatment this time.


Pitch & conditions

The Gabba wicket block is in excellent shape, offering true bounce and excellent carry. If there is cloud cover and humidity the bowlers, who will need to use all available help, should gain useful swing. A morning shower is expected, but the wet weather is not predicted to stay around for the evening.


Stats and trivia

South Africa have only batted out their 20 overs once against Australia in Twenty20s, and it was the only game they won
Ricky Ponting needs two runs to overtake Andrew Symonds (337) as Australia's leading run-maker in Twenty20
Australia won the previous match between these teams in Brisbane by 95 runs


Quotes

"I don't mind the Gabba, it's short straight, so it's in my zone. If anything is there I will play my natural game."
David Warner

"Since I have arrived you could see he's really focused. He is very confident from his three Test matches and he just seems so calm."
Johan Botha on JP Duminy

13 January, 2009

Mike Hussey A bumper crowd of 37, 457 has witnessed Australia take a 2-0 clean sweep of the KFC Twenty20 international series with a gritty six-wicket win over the Proteas at the Gabba on Tuesday night.

A maiden Twenty20 half-century from Mike Hussey, who was handed a life when on two courtesy of a missed stumping by South African keeper Mark Boucher, saw the hosts overhaul South Africa's total of 5-157 with seven deliveries left.

Hussey joined skipper Ricky Ponting at the crease with their side precariously placed at 2-29 in the seventh over and proceed to slam five boundaries and one booming six in a gutsy unbeaten knock of 53 runs from 32 balls.

Ponting (38) and Hussey put on 61 runs, but just as they looked to be taking control of the match, Morne Morkel struck twice for the visitors in the 13th over.

Morkel found Ponting short of his ground with a skilful piece of fielding from his own bowling before JP Duminy held onto a spectacular catch in the deep to see David Hussey out for two.

Four overs later Duminy turned from hero to villain for the visitors, misjudging a catch in the deep when slugger Cameron White was on nine.

It was the first of four consecutive boundaries from White as Australia jumped into the box seat, requiring 17 runs from the final three overs.

From there the hosts eased towards their target, with White dispatching Morkel for a huge six to bring up the required runs and move his personal score to an impressive 40 runs off 18 balls.

Earlier Duminy's second half-century in as many games played a lone hand propping up the Proteas total of 5-157.

Promoted to No.3 in the absence of AB de Villiers and fresh from a sparkling 78 at the MCG, Duminy continued his one-man show with a gutsy knock of 69 off 41 balls that featured seven boundaries and two sixes.

But Duminy received little support, with Hashim Amla (26), Mark Boucher (19) and Albie Morkel (19) the only other men to make it into double figures for the visitors.

In reply, David Warner, fresh from cracking 89 runs off only 43 balls on Sunday night at the MCG, could not repeat his clean-striking heroics in Brisbane, clean bowled by Dale Steyn for seven in the fifth over.

Opening partner Shaun Marsh (15) joined him in the change rooms soon after when, shooting for a six, he gave South African skipper Johan Botha a tough catch at mid-on.


Ponting and Hussey initially struggled to keep the runs flowing and at the halfway point of the Australian innings, they had reached 2-56 and required a challenging 10.2 runs an over off the final ten.

Ponting went but Hussey proved up to the task as he and White put on an unbeaten 69 for the fifth wicket..

13 January, 2009

Matthew Hayden Australian opener Matthew Hayden has this morning announced his retirement from international cricket.

Awarded the 359th Baggy Green Cap for Australia, he played 103 Tests scoring 8625 runs at an average of 50.73, after making his Test debut back in March 1994, coincidentally also against South Africa.

He made his one-day international debut a year earlier against England in May 1993 and went on to play 161 one-day internationals scoring 6133 runs at an average of 43.80.

The 188cm and 95kg left-hander has since been a thorn in the side of most pace bowling attacks with his powerful hitting intimidating bowlers around the world.

After joining Justin Langer at the top of the order in 2001, the pair became arguably Australia’s best ever opening combination that regularly dismantled the world’s best bowling attacks.


The Queenslander has also racked up a host of personal awards to go with his team achievements such as the 2002 Allan Border Medal and Test Player of the Year, 2003 Wisden Cricketer of the Year, ICC ODI Player of the Year in 2007.

Just last year Hayden was named Australian ODI Player of the Year at the Allan Border Medal following a fantastic year that saw him dictate Australia’s path to a third consecutive ICC Cricket World Cup with 659 runs at 73.22. This included a 66-ball century against South Africa which is the fastest century in World Cup history, earning him the Key to St Kitts.

Matthew Hayden quick stats:

Tests
Debut: 4 March 1994 against South Africa at Johannesburg
Test Cap 359
103 Tests
8625 runs at 50.73, HS of 380 against Zimbabwe

ODI
Debut: 19 March 1993 against England at Manchester
ODI Cap 111
161 matches
6133 runs at 43.80, HS of 181* against New Zealand

January 15, 2009

AUSTRALIA batsman Michael Clarke has passed a fitness test and will play against South Africa in Friday's first one-day international match at the MCG.

Clarke passed a fitness test on his injured right thumb at training on Thursday, including a couple of net sessions, after missing the two Twenty20 matches.

"He'll be fine to play," captain Ricky Ponting said.

"He completed all his training well today, he's still got a fair bit of discomfort in his thumb but he's had since the first Test match (in December) and got through pretty well.

"So it's a good sign for us that he's fit for selection."

Clarke's inclusion means young gun David Warner has been released from the Australian squad, and that he can play for NSW against Victoria in Saturday night's Twenty20 match in Sydney.

Australia are yet to finalise their XI and will decide on Friday whether to include specialist spinner Nathan Hauritz or play another all-rounder.

Wicketkeeper Brad Haddin will also return after a rest, and Queensland all-rounder Ryan Harris is the only member of the squad ruled out at this point.

Friday's match will provide a good gauge on the public's attitude towards the 50-over game, given the popularity of the Twenty20 matches at the MCG and Gabba.

But Ponting was certain the 50-over game was still relevant.

"I've got no concerns about the 50-over game," he said.

"We understand how big Twenty20 has been for the last couple of years now and how exciting it is for the public and for players.

"But that's behind us now, we've got to focus on the (one-day) series starting tomorrow.

"We've played some good cricket over the last week in the Twenty20 stuff, the energy and enthusiasm of some of the young guys around our squad has been terrific.

"We've got a very flexible squad, a lot of versatility around the group at the moment, which is a massive bonus for 50-over cricket.

"So everything's heading in the right direction as far as our 50-over cricket is concerned, and hopefully we can start the series off on the right note tomorrow."

16 January, 2009

Australia players rejoice after a wicket Australian captain Ricky Ponting has won the toss and elected to bat in the opening Commonwealth Bank Series one-day international against South Africa at the MCG.

In a blow for the Proteas, star batsman AB de Villiers was unable to recover in time for the match after receiving a nasty blow on his hip from a Shaun Tait thunderbolt during Sunday's Twenty20 international in Melbourne.

South Africa has decided to go into the match without veteran paceman Makhaya Ntini.


For the hosts, Michael Clarke has been confirmed to take his place in the starting XI after proving his troublesome thumb is up to the task.

Mike Hussey has been promoted up the order to open the batting with fellow Western Australian Shaun Marsh.

Australia has never beaten South Africa at the MCG in five attempts.

Australian line-up: Ricky Ponting (c), Shaun Marsh, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, David Hussey, Cameron White, Brad Haddin (wk), James Hopes, Nathan Bracken, Ben Hilfenhaus, Shaun Tait.

South Africa: Johan Botha (c), Herschelle Gibbs, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, Neil McKenzie, JP Duminy, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Mark Boucher (wk), Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn.