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Matt Prior, the England wicketkeeper, has conceded that his role as Test vice-captain may have played a part in a lean Ashes series with the bat after he “under-estimated” the demands of the job

Andrew McGlashan27-Oct-2013Matt Prior, the England wicketkeeper, has conceded that his role as Test vice-captain may have played a part in a lean Ashes series with the bat after he “underestimated” the demands of the job but it has not doused his enthusiasm to be Alastair Cook’s lieutenant.Prior was officially elevated to the position for England’s series in New Zealand earlier this year having taken on the role during the tour of India when Stuart Broad was injured. Initially, Prior’s form remained as stellar as ever – including a monumental match-saving hundred in Auckland – but the runs dried up during the home season after he began with a pair against New Zealand at Lord’s just days after being named England’s Player of the Year.His average of 19 was his lowest in a series of four or more matches and the fourth lowest of his career. Prior termed the feeling of not contributing significantly with the bat as “horrendous” but now believes he has a better grasp of how he must balance the multiple demands of batsman, wicketkeeper and vice-captain.”First and foremost I am absolutely loving the role but I have to change a few things to make sure I still get the best out of myself as a player as well,” he said. “I underestimated what it meant. I thought I would just carry on doing what I was doing and it would just say VC next to my name on the team sheet.””I have realised that there is a time for team duties, a time when you have to make sure you get enough time and enough work as an individual, switching on to what you are doing. The last series was horrendous and I want to improve on that.”Prior’s senior position means he is part of the leadership team within England’s Test side alongside Cook and team director Andy Flower. However, England have begun their Ashes tour with continued speculation over the future of Flower after suggestions emerged during the latter part of the home season that this contest against Australia could be his last in the job.Before leaving the UK, Cook said he had no reason to believe Flower would depart after the Sydney Test and that the post-season break had given him a chance to refresh after a challenging season.After The Oval Test in August, Flower would not look further ahead than this return series but it has never been his style to throw too far ahead into future, at least in public. Prior said the team would do everything they could to ensure he is around for considerable time yet although admits he is a hard man to shift.”Firstly I would be really sad if Andy packed up,” Prior said. “He has been hugely pivotal in this team; look at when he took over in 2009 with what happened with Mooresy [Peter Moores] and KP. We certainly would try to persuade him [to stay] but anyone who knows him well enough will realise that once he’s made his mind up on something he’s not being persuaded.”Who knows what he is going to do? I hope he stays on but the important thing is we know we have got him for this Ashes series. That’s all we have to worry about.”Prior is now focused on being part of securing a piece of history for this generation of England cricketers with a fourth straight Ashes series win which they have not achieved since the 1890s.”It’s a huge carrot,” he said. “This team has really responded well to being a part of history, not just scoring runs and winning matches. I remember in 2009 we were having a meeting at Lord’s and said it was 75 years since we beat Australia here – we have to change that. Let’s change that. We did it. There was India away which was 28 years, or the Ashes first which was 25 years.”Those stats really get us going and the team enjoys those challenges and making that bit of history. This four in a row would be the biggest thing in my career and I imagine also for the other boys.”Investec, the specialist bank and asset manager, is the title sponsor of Test Cricket in England. Visit investec.co.uk/cricket or follow us @InvestecCricket

Kusal Perera and Tillakaratne Dilshan struck 96 rapid runs together, as Sri Lanka comfortably hunted down New Zealand’s modest 142 for 7 to take the series 1-0

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando21-Nov-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsKusal Perera and Tillakaratne Dilshan added 96 for the second wicket to steer the game Sri Lanka’s way•AFPSri Lanka pick up over-rate penalty

Dinesh Chandimal has been handed his first fine as captain, after match referee Chris Broad found Sri Lanka were one over short of their target in the second Twenty20 against New Zealand on Thursday. Chandimal will be fined 20% of his match fee, while his team is fined 10%.
The penalty could be significant in a 12-month period in which the World Twenty20 is scheduled; a second slow over-rate fine could see Chandimal banned for two Twenty20 matches, or alternatively two ODIs or a Test – whichever comes first.

Kusal Perera and Tillakaratne Dilshan struck 96 rapid runs together, as Sri Lanka comfortably hunted down New Zealand’s modest 142 for 7 to take the series 1-0. Both hit half-centuries, and while Kusal’s was the more belligerent, and the more attractive, Dilshan again whet his increasing appetite to bring chases home. He was unbeaten on 59 off 49 balls – his seventh international fifty in eight innings – after Kusal had walloped 57 from 37.Miserly debutant Ramith Rambukwella had been the only man to deliver four overs in a row for Sri Lanka, as Dinesh Chandimal made fine use of the Twenty20 bowling stocks at his disposal. All seven bowlers were called upon, injected in short spells and replaced swiftly when the batsmen showed signs of comfort. New Zealand did not suffer a collapse, but partnerships were prevented, and on a tacky surface, Sri Lanka’s controlled showing prevented even the in-form Nathan McCullum from doing unmanageable damage at the death.Though Kusal’s innings was emphatic, it had its share of good fortune. He lofted his second ball high over the long-on boundary, but two deliveries later, should have been trudging back to the dugout, when he pulled Mitchell McClenaghan to Andrew Ellis, at backward square-leg. Ellis shelled that chance, perhaps because the ball was hit so hard, but Colin Munro did not have that excuse on the long leg boundary, when he too spilt one, with Kusal on 39.In between the drops, Kusal’s strokes veered from excellent to extraordinary. A swinging length ball from Kyle Mills was launched into the sightscreen before he leant back to the next delivery and eased it between point and cover. A good eye and lightning bat speed are the pillars of his batting, and though there were plays and misses as well, the balls he hit almost invariably sped off the bat.Even in his short international career, though, he has tended to perish attacking, and despite two let offs, he did so again. Having crossed 50 off 31 balls – his second Twenty20 half-century – he came down the pitch to send Rob Nicol high into the air, off his top edge. Nicol moved a few meters to his left to complete the catch.In what is developing into a trend, for Dilshan, he was the slower of the two batsmen, whose partnership propelled Sri Lanka well beyond the asking rate and to eventual victory. There were no flashy strokes in his fifty, only measured attacks on poor bowling. Showing respect to New Zealand bowlers he did not fancy, he made sure he would be around to soak up the large crowd’s applause at the end.Hamish Rutherford had waited all tour for a match, but lasted only four balls, nicking Nuwan Kulasekara’s first ball – an away-swinger – to the keeper. Charging down the pitch to miscue an Angelo Mathews’ short ball, Neil Broom failed to impress in his first match for New Zealand in three-and-a-half years.The early strikes forced caution into New Zealand’s batting, and perhaps they reasoned they would make amends with violence later on, as they had in the ODIs. Only, no pair truly established rhythm at the crease, and the bowling changes brought wickets as well as a subdued run rate. Until the 16th over, New Zealand did not score at much more than a run-a-ball.McCullum had been a high-impact batsman during the ODIs, and though flashes of that form bore two fours in the penultimate over, the tackiness of the surface and a controlled death-overs showing from Sri Lanka prevented him from truly freeing his arms. He was run out going for an ambitious second in the final over, before a hitherto expensive Lasith Malinga trapped Nicol in front.Rambukwella produced exactly the sort of spell he had been picked for, conceding less than five an over with his tight offspin. He rarely departed from the length ball, pitched outside off stump, but his skill was tweaking the manner in which the ball arrived. Some were flighted, others were slow and flat, but most were darted in – sometimes after a pause in his delivery stride.Sri Lanka’s eight-wicket win was an apt reflection of their dominance over a severely depleted New Zealand side, and the hosts protect their No. 1 ranking as well. This match was supposed to be the second in the series, but Tuesday’s game was rained out, turning this into a one-off.

A round-up of all the matches that finished in the President’s Trophy on December 7, 2013

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Dec-2013Fawad Alam’s 20th first-class ton, and an incisive bowling performance from medium-pacer Ataullah, who finished with match-figures of 10 for 122, helped National Bank of Pakistan to a comprehensive 10-wicket win over United Bank Limited in Islamabad inside three days.Ataullah picked up four wickets in the first innings to run through a United Bank line-up which offered no resistance barring a 36 from Mohammad Irshad all the way down at No.11, and they were eventually bundled out for 129. National Bank’s innings was propelled by Alam’s 103, and his 84-run third-wicket stand with Umar Waheed, which propelled them to 285, and helped them secure a lead of 156.United Bank needed a big total to claw their way back into the game, but their second essay with the bat wasn’t any better than the first, as they folded for 160, with Ataullah once again shining with 6 for 64.Set a paltry target of just 5, the openers Nasir Jamshed and Anwaar Hafeez took the team home in three overs.

Brendon McCullum and BJ Watling added 352 in a record sixth-wicket stand, making sure New Zealand were now the only team that could win this Test

The Report by Sidharth Monga17-Feb-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
It began as a “let’s see what we can do” minutes after lunch on day three. Then it became about taking it to the next session. Then to the next day. Along the way it was about making India bat again. Even the most fanciful of New Zealand players or fans wouldn’t have thought or planned how they would go about it but, close to five sessions later, New Zealand are the only team in a realistic position to win this match. Brendon McCullum and BJ Watling added 194 to their overnight 158-run stand without ever looking in trouble, helping New Zealand take the lead to 325 by stumps. When the two came together, New Zealand were 152 in arrears.This is possibly New Zealand’s best rearguard ever. McCullum became the first New Zealander to score back-to-back double-centuries, and finished the day 19 short of their first triple-century. Watling played the longest innings by a New Zealand wicketkeeper and fell only two short of the highest by a New Zealand No. 7 in the second innings. Together they put on the highest sixth-wicket partnership, at 352 runs, in Test cricket. And when Watling finally fell, Jimmy Neesham came in and smacked an unbeaten 67 off 96, the third-highest by a New Zealand debutant at No. 8.Iron men: McCullum and Watling now have the highest sixth-wicket partnership in Test cricket•Getty ImagesNumbers, though, don’t do justice to the stories. The task New Zealand’s batsmen faced was enormous. They were going with an aim of just batting and batting for days, and at any point for a major duration in the partnership one bad ball could turn the whole match back in India’s favour. Having put in a huge effort on day three, New Zealand still began the day at 6 for 5. Just imagine the cruelty of getting out at any point in the first session, and watching India come back.MS Dhoni, too, decided to test their patience as opposed to their survival skills. Having spent most of the last afternoon waiting for a mistake, Dhoni attacked for about half an hour on the fourth morning before resorting to his fancy fields. At one point, he asked Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami to bowl from round the stumps with a seven-two off-side field. It is not hard to imagine that they struggled to bowl wide outside off. The only chance created with India still in the game was by Zaheer Khan, deep into the first session, but India had just one in-between slip that couldn’t get to the catch that a second slip would have taken.It can’t take away from the feat of McCullum and Watling. McCullum struggled with back and shoulder pains even on day three and has a dodgy knee. Watling had kept for 103 overs, and got a 37-over rest before coming out to bat again. They still showed intent as the fourth day began. Now that they were in credit, they knew runs would push Dhoni further on the defensive. Defensive he became, but now he struggled to even stem the flow of runs. The bowlers were not able to follow his outlandish plans, and kept straying every now and then. Fifty-six runs came in 13 overs in the first hour.The slips came out, the knuckle-ball slower balls from Zaheer Khan stopped landing, Shami and Ishant went back to bowling one loose ball an over, and India were already waiting for a mistake, or the new ball. The seeds for this were sown on the third day, when India’s fields suggested they were waiting for the new ball, 40 overs away.Milestones kept falling by the wayside. When McCullum went past 137, he had beaten his previous best aggregate for a Test series, 370, also against India. When he shouldered arms to Zaheer in the 118th over, at 312 balls, he had played his longest innings too. That leave was part of the only spell where India found some control through Ravindra Jadeja and Zaheer. Four maidens were bowled consecutively, but the two batsmen were too well set and too determined to let that draw them into a loose shot. The shackles broke as Jadeja angled too far into the pads, and New Zealand were off again.There was little happening for India. Just before lunch Jadeja beat Watling with one that ripped across him. Watling walked towards square leg, and you could imagine him grit his teeth and get his concentration back. Every time they played a false stroke – and there weren’t many – Watling would make sure they gathered themselves again. A Watling walk to square leg. A quiet word to McCullum.In between, McCullum found time to display some brilliance. In the 142nd over, with India already beaten to pulp, he found the boundary beating three men around the point region, and a man behind them in the deep. Soon they walked back together for a session break for the fourth time. The routine was same: a wee knocking of the fists, a quiet pat on Watling’s back.The third new ball arrived in the final session. It claimed Watling. The Joe Pesci to McCullum’s Robert de Niro. The lead was an even 200 with three-and-a-half sessions to go. McCullum tried to do to the third new ball what he did to the second. Beat it out of shape. This time, though, he was understandably fatigued. In the 164th over, he played and missed at Ishant thrice. Then, to the fifth ball, he left alone. The capacity crowd at Basin Reserve roared out an applause louder than one for a six or a wicket. They were with him. McCullum appreciated it, and went back to concentrate, to draw those powers out of somewhere. The moment of New Zealand’s home summer.Turned out McCullum didn’t need to beat the ball out of shape. Neesham showed he was more than capable of doing it. The game is now New Zealand’s. They will hope McCullum gets to his triple in the first three overs so that they can have a shot at two new balls while going for the unlikeliest of victories. Maybe not. After all they have a series lead, and an incredible comeback to defend.

After faltering badly in the first innings to concede a 301-run lead, India fought back strongly to make it a close contest, leaving Dhoni with ‘mixed emotions’

Abhishek Purohit in Auckland09-Feb-20140:00

‘Need to capitalise on situations better’ – Dhoni

MS Dhoni was disappointed at not pulling off the win, but had plenty of praise for the quicks’ performance in the second innings•Getty ImagesIndia were 301 runs behind New Zealand on the first innings. They rebounded from that position so well that at one stage they needed 185 to win with eight wickets remaining. To go down from that point left MS Dhoni with “mixed emotions” after a rollercoaster of a Test. He was proud of the way both his bowlers and batsmen had fought back in thesecond innings, but disappointed that India fell short by 40 runs in their chase of 407.”I think it is mixed emotions. The first innings we didn’t bowl well to start off,” Dhoni said. “The first session was good, but I think it was one of the best bowling performances if I see the second innings – definitely in the last two-three years – especially on a wicket where there was not much assistance after the first session. I think the second innings by the bowlers really brought us back into the game, and gave us something where we could have said, yes, this is a bigtarget, but we can look to chase it down.”India were 222 for 2 in the chase with Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan going strong but Kohli tried to pull a wide one from Neil Wagner in the 61st over and fell for 67. While Dhoni said batsmen had to make the most of such situations, he added that the phase where India lost wickets to the second new ball hurt them more.”Our batsmen batted well in the second innings. Close to the 85th over, we lost a few wickets and we had a tough decision (Ajinkya Rahane’s) at the same time which meant we were short of 30-35 runs and that was the crucialphase. The second new ball would have moved for maybe five-six overs maximum. That was the period when if we would have not given our wickets, we would have got those 40 runs. So there were quite a few things that did not go our way.”Despite their efforts in the second innings, India had conceded too much ground in the first, when they won the toss in overcast conditions and let New Zealand pile on 503 from 30 for 3. Managing 202 after that only added to their woes.”Both departments we could have done better,” Dhoni said. “Especially if you see the second innings bowling, there were hardly any shots played through the point region which meant we very tight, we were bowling close to the off stump area. Because of that, we used that same fielder in the short-cover position and we got a few catches there so I think yes, we gave away a few deliveries to score in the first innings because of which we were at the receiving end.”Once you get a couple of batsmen going, they have spent a bit of time … it was a wicket where you could have gone on to score big, (like) how Brendon McCullum scored. Yes, there were a few missed catches also, but those are part and parcel of the game. Anyone and everyone can drop catches. I won’t really point that. Yes, that also contributed to some extent.”

It was a far from smooth performance from West Indies, but they held themselves together well enough with bat and ball to overcome Ireland by four wickets at Sabina Park

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Feb-2014
ScorecardGary Wilson top-scored for Ireland with 62•WICB MediaDespite producing a far from smooth performance, West Indies held themselves together well enough with bat and ball to overcome Ireland by four wickets at Sabina Park. After restricting the visitors to 202, contrasting half-centuries from Dwayne Smith and Kieran Powell set the base in the chase, and West Indies finished with more than 13 overs to spareSmith, who was only drafted in for this match and for the games to follow against England because Chris Gayle had a back problem, did a passable impression of the man he was replacing by clubbing 55 off 53 balls in an opening stand of 100 with Powell. Playing his first ODI since December 2012, Smith hit the first two deliveries of the innings for four and later added three sixes before getting an outside edge off Stuart Thompson.Ireland took the chance to bring themselves back into the contest by removing Kirk Edwards and Darren Bravo as West Indies lost 3 for 8, but the captain Dwayne Bravo quelled their excitement with a boundary-filled 35 while Powell played at his own pace to bring up a controlled half-century from 72 balls.Dwayne Bravo was showing the form that brought him 217 runs in the one-day series against New Zealand last month, but just when he was seemingly taking West Indies to their target in a hurry, he was superbly caught on the cover boundary.Neither could Powell finish the job, being stumped off Paul Stirling, but the flying start provided by the openers meant West Indies were not under any run-rate pressure and although Denesh Ramdin went lbw, Marlon Samuels finished the game with a flurry of boundaries. The spinners, George Dockrell and Paul Stirling, tried their best to haul in the innings and did enough to suggest Ireland had not been too far away from a very competitive total.William Porterfield opted to take first use of the pitch, perhaps expecting it to get slower like the T20 surfaces did, and lost his opening partner Stirling in the third over when he was bowled by an excellent delivery from Jason Holder. After that, however, Ireland accumulated steadily in the opening Powerplay as Porterfield and Ed Joyce worked themselves into the 20s only to fail to convert.Porterfield became a maiden international wicket for Miguel Cummins, the 23-year Barbados fast bowler making his debut, when he was caught down the leg side during an over that had included three consecutive no-balls, with two of resulting free hits being hit for six by Porterfield.Joyce drove Dwayne Bravo to mid-off and Niall O’Brien, who had been brought into the side after missing the T20s, became Bravo’s second wicket shortly afterwards to leave Ireland uneasy on 78 for 4. Niall’s brother, Kevin, helped steady the innings alongside Gary Wilson, the Surrey wicketkeeper-batsman, as the pair added 45 in 11.3 overs but two quick wickets for Nikita Miller put Ireland on the back foot again heading into the final stage of the innings.Wilson played a controlled knock, aware that Ireland’s first priority was to use up their overs. He struck just three boundaries in his 96-ball stay but engineered a stand of 61 in 10.4 overs with Thompson. Ireland may have had visions of a total approaching 220 but could not quite find a final push for the innings as the last four wickets fell for nine runs after Wilson sliced Darren Sammy to point.For Ireland attention now switches to the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh although they will leave the Caribbean with the nagging thought that with a little more from their batting they could have gained greater success. West Indies, meanwhile, move into a three-ODI series against England in Antigua before Twenty20 preparation against them in Barbados.

A high-profile group of sports professionals has appealed for more emphasis to be paid to the “inner fitness” of England’s aspiring young cricketers

George Dobell01-Apr-20141:43

Fraser leaves door wide open for Trott return

Jonathan Trott’s struggles have promoted a rethink on the education of young cricketers•AFPA high-profile group of sports professionals has appealed for more emphasis to be paid to the “inner fitness” of England’s aspiring young cricketers to ensure that they are mentally attuned to surviving the pressures of high-level sport and able to develop a well-rounded life.The Journeys Through Sport group, which was founded by Neil Burns, the freelance coach and former first-class cricketer, has issued an open letter appealing for more understanding to be paid to mental health issues in the development of athletes in the belief that it will create a “healthier” sporting landscape.The letter has several high-profile signatories, including former England footballer Gary Lineker, the Somerset and England batsman Nick Compton and the England rugby world cup winner Richard Hill.It comes in light of the Jonathan Trott episode and is timed to coincide with Trott’s first match since he left the Ashes tour after the first Test in Brisbane suffering from what was described, at the time, as a “stress related illness” and has subsequently been described by Trott as “burnout”.Trott is engaged in a two-day friendly against Gloucestershire at Edgbaston, although his first-class comeback takes place in a three-day match against Oxford University in the Parks beginning on Monday.Trott’s explanation was deemed unsatisfactory by some, with Michael Vaughan, the former England captain, dismissing the original explanation as “a bit of a con” and suggesting Trott simply “did a runner” at “the toughest of times”.Now Journeys Through Sport, which describes itself as “a charitable organisation which funds research and development programs to develop ‘Leaders in Life’ through sport” has appealed for a more compassionate view towards those competing in “intensely demanding and public environments where their work can define them as people”.”So many sport development programmes seek to develop ‘toughness’ and competitiveness, without attending to the need to develop the whole person,” the letter states.”If sport’s leaders can provide environments whereby athletes feel secure enough to be open and honest about vulnerability and insecurities without being judged or feeling fearful about being discarded, then the sporting landscape will be healthier.”We urge sporting directors, coaches, and leaders of development programmes, to attend to the development of ‘inner fitness’ alongside ‘athletic fitness’ to help people understand ‘self’ better.”The letter goes on to describe “inner fitness” as addressing “a young person’s purpose in life, their values, the way they think and understand their emotions, and how they acquire the relationship skills needed to achieve a well-rounded life, both inside and outside their sport.”Journeys Through Sport also comprises several mental health professionals, including Alastair Storie, a former cricketer and current chartered psychologist, David Gilborune, a professor of critical social science and David Priestly, who is head of psychology and personal development at Saracens Rugby Club.The group have attempted to explain the pressures young sportspeople experience and appeal for a more understanding environment in which they learn to cope with such issues.The latter states: “The examples of sportspeople from a range of sports who have all experienced real difficulty with anxiety, depression, and wellbeing, is a salutary reminder of the effects of high pressure in the world of sport-performance where they live most of their daily life.”Most sportspeople compete in intensely demanding and public environments where their work can define them as people, where they have to excel at early stages in life, live away from home, and have to manage high expectations, injuries, transformational sums of money, and the ‘fame machine’ at a relatively young age. ‘Living the dream’ they might be, but this accelerated development and intensity is out of synch with emotional development and normal rates of maturation.”

Anthony Ireland hit the first half-century of his career as Leicestershire finished on a very competitive 333 for 9 against Kent.

Press Association21-Apr-2014
ScorecardMatthew Boyce gave Leicestershire a solid base which the lower order managed to build on (file photo)•Getty ImagesAnthony Ireland, who had a batting average of 6.19 coming into this match, hit the first half-century of his career as Leicestershire finished on a very competitive 333 for 9 against Kent.Kent looked in control of the contest when they had the visitors 198 for 7 thanks in part to some excellent bowling from Darren Stevens, who ended the day on 3 for 46. However, an 85-run partnership between Ireland and Jigar Naik, who finished on 41 not out, pulled Leicestershire back into the match.Kent won the toss and decided to field on the first day but there was no action as the rain saw play abandoned. Leicestershire began their innings positively as opener Matthew Boyce led the way with 68 alongside Greg Smith and then Ned Eckersley.However, Eckersley’s dismissal off the bowling of Mitchell Claydon sparked a flurry of wickets. Leicestershire lost 4 for 45, with two of them – Angus Robson and Ben Raine – falling to spinner Adam Riley, who ended the daywith figures of 3 for 52 having replaced James Tredwell.Niall O’Brien made a useful 32 before being caught lbw by Doug Bollinger but the Australia conceded nearly five runs an over. Rob Taylor steadied the ship for Leicestershire with a useful 20 before Naik’s 41, which included five fours, began the visitors’ revival.Ireland then took centre stage on his way to a half-century before eventually being caught by Ben Harmison off Riley. Kent’s frustrations continued until the end as Charlie Shreck put on another 18 before the umpires called stumps after 96 overs.This was Leicestershire’s first Championship match of the season after their opening game against Derbyshire was postponed following following the car accident which injured Tom Poynton and claimed the life of his father.

West Indies have dropped allrounder Marlon Samuels and opener Kieran Powell from their squad for the second Test against New Zealand in Trinidad

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2014West Indies have dropped allrounder Marlon Samuels and opener Kieran Powell from their squad for the second Test against New Zealand in Trinidad, and replaced them with uncapped batsman Jermaine Blackwood and Leon Johnson.Blackwood, a 22-year old from Jamaica, has played 16 first-class matches and averages 40.38, with three hundreds and six half-centuries. He scored two centuries for the High Performance Team in recent matches against Bangladesh A. Blackwood also scored 94 and 118 in the final of the 2014 regional four-day competition against Windward Islands.Johnson, 26, played three ODIs for West Indies in 2008, against Bermuda and Canada, but hasn’t appeared in an international since then. The Guyana batsman scored three half-centuries in the two matches against Bangladesh A. Johnson averages 33 after playing 50 first-class games.Samuels was dropped after he made a pair in West Indies’ 186-run defeat in the first Test at Sabina Park. He was dismissed second ball both times, and has only three scores above 20 in his last 12 innings.Powell made 28 and 0 in Jamaica, and has consistently failed to convert his starts for a while now. He passed 20 in eight of his last 15 innings but has a high score of 48 in that period.The second Test against New Zealand begins at Queen’s Park Oval on June 16.Squad: Denesh Ramdin (capt), Chris Gayle, Kraigg Brathwaite, Kirk Edwards, Darren Bravo, Jermaine Blackwood, Leon Johnson, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kemar Roach, Jerome Taylor, Sulieman Benn, Shane Shillingford, Jason Holder, Shannon Gabriel.

James Tredwell is still harbouring hopes that he can be the man to fill England’s spin void in the Test side even though he has lost his place in Kent’s Championship team this season

Andrew McGlashan30-May-2014James Tredwell is still harbouring hopes that he can be the man to fill England’s spin void in the Test side even though he has lost his place in Kent’s Championship team this season.In a joint decision between Tredwell and Kent it was decided to withdraw him from four-day cricket after one early-season appearance when Tredwell admitted he was struggling with his game after a large diet of limited-overs matches. It followed a poor 2013 Championship where he took 17 wickets at 56.76 in 11 matches between his England one-day commitments.He acknowledged that not being a regular in Championship cricket does not boost his prospects of adding to the one Test cap earned against Bangladesh in 2010, but believes that is partly countered by regularly being on show on the international stage even if it is in coloured clothes. He has claimed the scalps of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene among his six wickets in the series to date.”I’m the guy who is in front of the coaches and Cooky day-in, day out and hopefully the way I go about it and the things I do in training and matches keep my name out there,” he said. “I guess it’s not ideal I haven’t been playing four-day cricket, but I’m in front of them and hopefully that stands me in decent stead.”Tredwell explained he had found it difficult to adjust between the styles of bowling required for white-ball and red-ball cricket. He said he uses a more round-arm delivery in the one-day game and has struggled to regain the loop that is more effective in the longer format.Sri Lanka’s fond memories

Sri Lanka are taking positive memories from their last visit to Lord’s as they try to keep the one-day series alive.

In 2011 they won by six wickets with Dinesh Chandimal hitting a hundred and Lahriu Thirimanne said that should be the template for Sri Lanka to follow.

“We had a bad day at Old Trafford, but we are looking forward to Lord’s. The boys are practicing hard. we just want to forget what happened in the last match. When we last played here Chandimal got a century and we won the match.

“The batters need to take the responsibility to bat longer. If we post a good total the bowlers can do what they are capable of but 67 is very bad batting.”

“In English domestic cricket you’ve always got a four-day game around the corner where you can bowl a 20-25 over spell to maintain that rhythm,” he said. “But I’ve been away for longer periods where I’ve just been doing one type of skill – maybe that’s my fault, maybe I should have been focussing more on that side of things. It’s in there, I’ve just got to be able to pull it out again.”Coming back into the four-day game is not always easy to switch from one to the other. When you are involved in one-day stuff you fully immerse yourself in that, so to be able to slip from one to the other I’ve found particularly difficult so we all felt I needed some time to get my mind and technique right.”His role in England’s one-day outfit is far more secure. He has been termed “Tricky Tredders” by the team although “Steady Treddy” would be equally apt. When asked about his part in the attack after the Old Trafford match, Alastair Cook said: “You know what you’re going to get from him time and time again. He had a few tough times in Australia and he’s had to have a look at a few technical issues, but you know he is a clever bowler and he’s never let England down.”Tredwell has played 20 of England’s last 23 ODIs although in Australia he was wicketless in the three matches he played having previously become a target for the likes of George Bailey and Shane Watson in the series at the end of the last English season. More of the same will be likely at the World Cup. “That’s the challenge in international sport,” Tredwell said. “People work you out pretty quickly. It’s about combating that.”A return to Test cricket will probably remain out of reach for Tredwell, but with such a strong focus on the one-day game over the next nine months he should have no reason to feel left out.