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ScorecardDurham made the most of what play was available on a rain-truncated second day at Chester-le-Street. They killed off Surrey’s tail early in the morning to remove them for 183 and then their openers eased them to a lead of 122 by the time stumps were drawn early.Matt Nicholson was the overnight threat, but he added 8 to his 24 before becoming the first victim of the second day, Liam Plunkett’s second wicket, caught by Shiv Chanderpaul. Plunkett then removed Jimmy Ormond on the same score – 176 – before Harbhajan Singh fell for 6, leaving Ottis Gibson with 4 for 50.Gibson stepped up to fill the gap left by Steve Harmison who left the field with a stiff back after bowling two overs. Harmison was playing his second match after recovering from a hernia operation which ruled him out of the Test series against India. His fitness will be a worry because Durham are set to appear in their first ever final at Lord’s on Saturday when they take on Hampshire in the Friends Provident Trophy final.Mark Stoneman (26*) and Michael Di Venuto (44*) batted for 17 overs of Durham’s second innings, during which time they put on a confident 73 to solidify Durham’s position. Mark Butcher used five bowlers, but none of them were able to find the breakthrough.All of the matches which were supposed to be starting today were rained off, which was particularly frustrating title-chasers for Yorkshire – who are playing bottom-placed Worcestershire in the first division – and leaders Somerset in the second.

The last round of Pura Cup matches looms as a bowl-off between Australia’s spinners after Stuart MacGill was named in the New South Wales squad for his first match back since an operation on his right wrist in December. The Blues and Victoria are both vying for the right to host the Pura Cup final – the teams have already qualified and are equal on points – but the performances of several slow bowlers will add an intriguing sub-plot.Australia are searching for a Test spinner for their tours of Pakistan and West Indies following the retirement of Brad Hogg, and a fit MacGill would be the leading candidate. His ability to bowl long spells was uncertain due to his lengthy lay-off, however MacGill grabbed 4 for 66 on the weekend for his club side Sydney University.”I was very, very nervous before I bowled a ball because I wasn’t sure if I was ready to go yet,” MacGill told . “But very shortly into my first spell, I knew I was ready to play state cricket.”He has two games to show the selectors where he is at and the second of those matches, the Pura Cup final, will provide an interesting head-to-head battle with one of his main rivals, Victoria’s Bryce McGain. Before that, he must focus on the four-day game against South Australia at the SCG starting on Friday, which may also feature the Redbacks’ Cricket Australia-contracted legspinner Cullen Bailey.Having been overlooked since the opening game of South Australia’s campaign, when he returned match figures of 1 for 103 against Victoria, Bailey has been recalled to a 12-man squad for what could be his second match of the summer. He replaces the newly-retired Jason Gillespie in an otherwise unchanged Redbacks group and if he makes the starting line-up he will not only be trying to out-perform MacGill but also his South Australia team-mate Dan Cullen.Bailey was the state’s preferred slow bowler last season, when Cullen was on the fringes, but in 2007-08 the roles have been reversed. Cullen has played seven Pura Cup games this summer, and although his return of 14 wickets at 59.42 has been disappointing, he has also been mentioned as a potential tourist with the national team.MacGill’s main aim will be to get through a full first-class match as his comeback from surgery for carpal-tunnel syndrome has so far been limited to a couple of club outings. He pulled out of a New South Wales Second XI game last week as the focus remained on his Pura Cup return.He is joined in the Blues squad by Brad Haddin, whose ODI commitments have finished, and Grant Lambert, who is back from injury. Daniel Smith, Steven Smith and Burt Cockley have made way for the returning trio. Victory against South Australia would mean New South Wales will host the Pura Cup decider but a loss or draw will leave the venue to be determined by Victoria’s result against Queensland.New South Wales squad Phil Jaques, Phillip Hughes, Peter Forrest, Simon Katich (capt), Usman Khawaja, Dominic Thornely, Brad Haddin (wk), Grant Lambert, Beau Casson, Matthew Nicholson, Mark Cameron, Stuart MacGill.South Australia squad Daniel Harris, Jake Brown, Andy Delmont, Callum Ferguson, Daniel Christian, Shane Deitz, Graham Manou (capt, wk), Mark Cleary, Ryan Harris, Cullen Bailey, Dan Cullen, Paul Rofe.

Justin Kemp, the South Africa allrounder, has signed a two-year Kolpak deal with Kent after retiring from international cricket.Kemp, 30, played four Tests and 85 ODIs but was dropped following the World Twenty20 last September. He had a previous two-year stint with Kent in 2005 and 2006.”I am really looking forward to playing for Kent again,” he said. “Rob Key and Graham Ford have built a really strong squad. The plans for the ground at Canterbury are very farsighted. These are exciting times and I am keen to make a real contribution to the success of the club over the next two years.”Kent have also received confirmation that Azhar Mahmood, the former Pakistan allrounder who has a two-year deal, has been granted British citizenship so will count as an English-qualified player.

The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) will host a rematch of last year’s Women’s National Cricket League (WNCL) finals when arch-rivals Victoria Spirit and the New South Wales Breakers do battle in the three-match series beginning on 31 January.The finals showdown is a best-of-three match series with the limited-over games scheduled for 31 January, 1 February and the deciding match, if required, on Monday 2 February.Victoria Spirit claimed its inaugural WNCL title last season, defeating the New South Wales Breakers 2-0 in the finals series, also played at the MCG.Since the women’s national competition was established as the WNCL in 1996-97, the two sides have dominated the championship. New South Wales won six consecutive titles before Victoria broke the sequence to claim last year’s championship.In their two limited-over encounters this season, the sides completed a thrilling tie at Butler Oval in Frankston, before Victoria Spirit claimed a four wicket victory the next day at the same venue.Overall, the two states have played 25 times with the WNCL head-to-head battle standing at New South Wales (15), Victoria (9) and one tied result (this year).In WNCL finals series, they have met on four occasions – 1996-97, 1998-99, 2001-02 and 2002-03.Six players have played in all 25 WNCL matches between the states – Bronwyn Calver, Julie Hayes and Lisa Keightley (New South Wales), and Cathryn Fitzpatrick, Melanie Jones and Belinda Clark (Victoria). Clark played 15 WNCL matches for New South Wales before relocating to Victoria.Play begins at 1000 and entry is free. Patrons should enter via gate 8.

50 overs New Zealand 340 for 7 (How 139) tied with England 340 for 6 (Mustard 83, Cook 69)
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Jamie How produced the innings of his life to guide New Zealand to within a single blow of victory in the fourth ODI at Napier, but in the end his 139 from 116 balls was trumped by six balls of nerveless discipline from England’s rawest recruit, Luke Wright. His solitary over of the innings – his third in four international matches to date – resulted in six thrifty runs and the game’s pivotal dismissal, as England snatched an incredible tie from the jaws of defeat to carry the five-match series into a decider at Christchurch on Saturday.In any ordinary match, How’s masterclass would have won the contest with a yawning chasm to spare. He batted throughout with a Test-class composure, and yet moved to his hundred from a mere 86 balls, cashing in on Napier’s short square boundaries with a series of shredding drives and emphatic pulls. England’s own efforts with the bat had been impressive – Phil Mustard made a career-best 83 from 74 balls as he added 158 for the first wicket with Alastair Cook, and Paul Collingwood latched onto six leg-side sixes in an England-record 24-ball fifty – but all the while that How was easing New Zealand towards their target, their efforts paled to insignificance.With seven overs remaining, New Zealand needed a fraction more than a run a ball with seven wickets still standing. It was looking like a done deal – not least because the same team, 12 months previously, had twice chased 340-plus scores to beat the mighty Australians. From Jesse Ryder’s pugnacious opening salvo of 39 from 32 balls, via Brendon McCullum’s gutsy 58 from 65 and a run-a-ball 48 from Ross Taylor, New Zealand had demonstrated the firepower and the willpower to win. James Anderson bowled a succession of long-hops to concede 61 runs from his first six overs, and England’s lack of a specialist fifth bowler was causing an over-reliance on the ineffectual offspin of Owais Shah.But then, suddenly, something clicked within the England mindset. Scott Styris, on 20 from 17 balls, lashed their best bowler, Ryan Sidebottom, down Anderson’s throat at long-on, and one over later, the disastrously out-of-form Peter Fulton ran himself out for a four-ball duck as he chipped and charged to a pumped-up Kevin Pietersen at mid-on. The dangerous Jacob Oram punctured the off-side ring with a fierce drive in the next over, from Stuart Broad, but then picked out Pietersen at short cover with his next shot. Three prime wickets had fallen in consecutive overs, and with 25 needed from 24 balls, a sense of vertigo began to set in for the New Zealanders.Back came Anderson for his final two-over burst. Suddenly his length was full and menacing, and backed up with a hint of reverse-swing, he conceded a meagre two runs in his ninth over to lift the requirement to a daunting 23 from 18. Though Daniel Vettori connected with a scythe over mid-on, the equation was still fractionally in England’s favour when Wright was thrown the ball on a whim by his captain. There was no planning involved in the hunch – England in their desperation had been forced to bowl out their big guns early, but Wright was confident after producing an effective innings of 24 from 13 balls, and it showed.

He did nothing more than bowl six consecutive wicket-to-wicket deliveries, but with no room to swing their arms, New Zealand’s batsmen were forced to take on the ground fielders. Pietersen missed by inches from midwicket with How stranded, but one ball later Anderson – who was superb in the field – did not. How had to turn back after Vettori’s drive went straight to the man, and he carried on walking as his stumps were pinged down from ten yards.And so it all came down to the very last ball. Vettori was on strike, although he arguably should not have been there at all, after the third umpire failed to notice that his bat had been in the air during an earlier run-out referral. Wright kept it full and straight once again, and a cramped shot squirted out to point. A direct hit would have given the match to England, but the shy slipped past the stumps and so the spoils were shared. As he left the field, Collingwood admitted he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but there’s little doubt that, after the devastation at Hamilton, England would happily have accepted a win and a tie in their next two games.England did, however, have their eyes on a bigger prize at the start of today’s game, and by the interval, Vettori was doubtless pondering the wisdom of bowling first. England’s sizeable total might have been very different had McCullum behind the stumps held onto the simplest of edges off Chris Martin, when Cook had made just 2 from 14 balls. The opportunity, however, went begging, and Cook joined Mustard in England’s biggest stand of the series.The main source of England’s mayhem was Mustard, who allied power with patience and even some delicate touch play in his most convincing innings to date. It was the brutality of his cutting and square driving that really caught the eye, and set the tone for the day. Vettori was running out of options as the stand entered the 27th over of the innings, so he tossed the ball to the innocuous seamer, Ryder. But, in a remarkable maiden ODI over, he removed both men in quick succession – Mustard to a flat smack to wide long-on, and Cook to a perfect wicket-to-wicket seamer that nipped through bat and pad to rattle middle stump. Perhaps it was the memory of that intercession that prompted Collingwood’s last-ditch gamble. Either way, part-time medium-pacers are the toast of Napier tonight.

Sri Lanka A 245 for 8 (Udawatte 92) v Zimbabwe Select
ScorecardZimbabwe Select put up a spirited fight after lunch to check Sri Lanka A’s progress on the first day of their four-day match at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. The hosts bowled superbly in the afternoon to restrict Sri Lanka to 245 for 8 at the close.Sri Lanka looked on course for a huge score when openers Mahela Udawatte and Tharanga Paranavitana took them to 78 for 0 at lunch. They extended the opening stand to 98 before Paranavitana edged Prosper Utseya to the keeper. Udawatte was dropped twice, first on 19 and then on 89, and punished the errors before he offered Timycen Maruma a return catch.Maruma was the outstanding bowler, finishing with 3 for 48. He was not initially supposed to play but was drafted in as a late replacement for Sean Williams who withdraw with a severe headache a few minutes before the start.Utseya and Chamu Chibhabha chipped in with two wickets apiece while Christopher Mpofu picked up one.

New Zealand A continued their excellent form at the Emerging Players Tournament in Brisbane, finishing on top of the table after their 32-run victory over Karnataka State Cricket Association XI. Neil Broom again starred for New Zealand with 62 and he had good support from his captain James Marshall, who scored a brisk 51 from 47 deliveries.Grant Elliott chipped in with a 38-ball 40 as New Zealand made the most of Marshall’s decision to bat first at Sandgate Redcliffe. S Dhananjaya tried to keep Karnataka in the game with 4 for 44 but when New Zealand were dismissed for 278 in the 50th over, the chase was always going to be difficult.Bharat Chipli was promising with 76 from 68 balls and there were contributions from Raju Bhatkal (46) and KB Pawan (44) but Karnataka fell for 245. New Zealand will play South Africa Emerging Players in Saturday’s final.
South Africa Emerging Players cruised past the Australian Academy and into the final, finishing the preliminary games with a convincing seven-wicket win over the hosts at Redlands. The series ended on a low for Australia, who suspended three players on Thursday for poor behaviour at their Brisbane accommodation, as South Africa overhauled the target with nine overs to spare.Johan Botha’s decision to field first paid off when Australia wobbled to 9 for 189. Luke Ronchi made 65 and Phillip Hughes scored 58 but they had little help trying to get on top of Botha (3 for 27) and Yusuf Abdullah, who collected 3 for 43.Gulam Bodi made batting look easy and compiled 86, while Francois du Plessis was also in control with 62. South Africa reached 3 for 190 in the 41st over and settled in second spot on the tournament table, ahead of Australia in third and the last-placed Karnataka.

A proposed change in the annual tri-series format has received backing from Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden, who believe the concept is tired. Cricket Australia is considering swapping the schedule from almost six weeks of matches to two head-to-head contests for 2008-09.Starting as the World Series Cup in 1979-80, the idea was Kerry Packer’s, but the senior players believe after almost 30 years it is time for a change. “The system has got a little bit tired,” Hayden told AAP. “If you’ve got a decreased number of games but a highly competitive tournament it’s an asset.”The series involving Australia, India and Sri Lanka, which starts in February, involves 12 group games before the best-of-three finals. “Towards the back end of the tri-series if one side, like Australia has done for a long time, has dominated the competition, there does seem to be a lot of dead rubber games,” Hayden said. “That could be Hobart’s [only] game and I believe they deserve a more meaningful game.”Matches between the two visiting teams have also struggled for support in recent years and Gilchrist said Cricket Australia needed to determine if they could improve the product. “It would be interesting to see what the public think,” he said. “It will be interesting to see how the public attends the coming summer’s triangular series, that might give us a bit more of an indication.”Cricket Australia’s board was planning to discuss the change during a meeting on Friday, but the programme for 2008-09, which includes New Zealand and South Africa, will not be finalised until March. Expanding the Ashes series to six Tests is also on the agenda.

Ryan Butterworth, now playing for Mashonaland, was one of the leading students at the CFX Academy for 2001 and the only one to score a century in the Logan Cup that season. Although he was never selected for one of the national age-group teams at cricket, his performances for Old Hararians in the national first league club championship probably won him a place at the Academy.His club plays him as an opening batsman, as did the Academy for a while, although he would prefer to bat at number four if given the choice. He sees himself as an all-rounder, though, bowling medium-paced seamers ("I just try and move the ball around as much as I can") and also keeping wicket at times.Ryan comes from a sporting family, although cricket was not the most prominent. His father played at school, but not as an adult, but has always given Ryan the utmost encouragement. When he was very young, Ryan used to play cricket along with other sports in the family garden at home, along with his twin brother Brendan, who is less inclined towards sport and gave up cricket after junior school. He attended Gateway Primary School in Harare and his natural sporting ability came to the fore, as he was a leading member of the school cricket team throughout his years there, usually as captain. His best performance there was 96 not out against Eaglesvale School while in the colts team, and against the same opposition he took eight wickets in an innings in another match. He was selected to captain the Harare Schools B team in the national primary schools week of 1993.He progressed to Prince Edward High School, and with his natural leadership qualities continued to captain teams throughout his career. At that stage cricket was not his primary sport as he was more inclined towards swimming and triathlon, but the personal interest of headmaster Clive Barnes did much to encourage him. "He used to come around and watch when I was captain of the A side; he came and spoke to me a bit and taught me a bit," says Ryan. "Then I went on to the first team, with George Lee-Bell as coach."Ryan was in the first team for four years, his best performance being 133 against Peterhouse during 2000, his only century for the school, although he scored several fifties and took a couple of five-wicket hauls. During the first couple of years in the team he kept wicket, and then, after the departure of a strong bowling side led by David Mutendera, he found himself taking the new ball. He attended Mashonaland and national trials at Under-15 and Under-19 levels without gaining final selection. He particularly enjoyed his matches against St George’s College and Peterhouse, as he had some friends there and they responded to the challenge of playing each other.He joined Old Hararians Sports Club, the Old Boys club of Prince Edward School, and for the last three seasons has opened the batting for them. National umpire Russell Tiffin, an Old Hararians man, came round to the school to speak to the team, as a result of which Ryan joined up. He pays tribute to the great support and help he has received from club captain Trevor Penney. He scored about six centuries for the Old Hararians second team, but has yet to break that barrier in the first league.Ryan played a season of winter league cricket for Mvurwi, for whom he scored several fifties. He also came under the influence of former national batsman Andy Waller when he took an `O-level’ break, working on his farm in that area to gain come farming experience, as he was thinking at that time of taking up a career in farming.Ryan’s most celebrated innings before his century for the Academy was his 33 in the final of the national club first league knockout competition, for Old Hararians of Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo in 2000/01. Conditions were damp and difficult, and Ryan’s determination, top score for his side, did much to give his team a competitive total and bring about an eventual victory."I opened with Conan Brewer, and Pommie Mbangwa and John Rennie opened the bowling," he said. "The ball was seaming around like I’d never seen it before on the Sports Club Test wicket. It was very hard early on. The rain came and we had a break; we went back on and it was still seaming. As the ball got a bit older it started swinging, and John Rennie was swinging it plenty. I played a stupid shot to get out, two balls before drinks. My game plan was just to see out Pommie and John Rennie, and when the new bowlers came on to attack them. It worked to an extent."Playing for the Academy, often as wicket-keeper, he struggled in the early matches but then took full advantage of a good pitch at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo to hit an aggressive century in the final Logan Cup match of the season. Later in the year he played against the touring Indian and West Indian teams. "Opening the batting against the West Indies and Bangladesh in the one-day games was great," he said. "Pity I never scored any runs!"About his year at the Academy, Ryan says, "I’ve learned to concentrate more. Patience is a virtue and you need to work hard at it to get where you want to go."He successfully applied to stay in Mashonaland after his year at the Academy was over. "It’s quite a challenge in Mashonaland and that’s what I like," he said. "I had a good club season after the Academy, averaging about 46. I got 97 not out and 86 not out, and four or five fifties. In Logan Cup it’s been thirties and forties every innings!"He plans to spend the 2002 season playing for Wolverton at Milton Keynes in England before returning to Mashonaland to fulfill the third year of his contract with ZCU.Ryan is an aggressive batsman, his favourite strokes being the cover drive and the pull and hook. He feels he is better suited to the middle order in the longer version of the game but is happy to open in one-day cricket. He admits to the tendency of losing his concentration once he gets to the twenties or thirties, and the need to carry on to a big score. He is an excellent all-round fielder and enjoys that area of the game.He is most grateful to coaches Dave Houghton and Gwynne Jones for their work at the Academy. "I think it’s going to do very well for Zimbabwe cricket, with all the youngsters coming through."Cricket heroes: "Daryl Cullinan is one of them, definitely, and Viv Richards. And now Trevor Penney, who has also been a great help to me."Toughest opponents: "I think among bowlers it’s got to be Campbell Macmillan. Every time I face him he gets me with a ball that does the wrong thing! Reon King is definitely the fastest I’ve ever faced – and Travis Friend – but I’ve faced Campbell more often and he’s troubled me a lot."Immediate ambitions: "At the moment it’s the Zimbabwe A side next year, and hopefully from there I’ll go bigger."Proudest achievement so far: "My 133 against Peterhouse for Prince Edward."Best friends in cricket: "Conan Brewer – I’ve been with him for the last three years opening for the PE first team. I hope he’s coming to join the Academy next year; he’s one more year of school. I’ve made many friends in cricket and I really enjoy all the guys at the Academy."Other sports: "Rugby for Prince Edward first team; in triathlon I represented Zimbabwe; tennis and swimming. I still play social tennis and I’ve just stopped rugby because of the Academy. I have no time for triathlon any more."Outside interests: "Nothing – just cricket!"Dave Houghton says: "Ryan is quite a good strokeplayer and a good fielder as well. He tends to get out a lot in the thirties and forties. He played quite a crucial role with his innings of 33 to help Old Hararians win the national league last Sunday – but again got out in the thirties, so we have some work to do encouraging him to compile big scores rather than just getting good starts."

Scorecard

Matthew Wade justified Victoria’s decision to make him their No. 1 wicketkeeper with 83 and four catches on debut as the Bushrangers took control against South Australia. Despite all their off-season batting work the Redbacks showed little improvement from their woeful 2006-07, ending the day at 8 for 162 and trailing by 276.Gerard Denton and Dirk Nannes claimed three wickets each as several Redbacks made starts and failed to go on. Matthew Elliott fared best with 42 but the Borgas brothers’ first Pura Cup match together will be one to forget – Jason edged Denton behind for 1 and Cameron went in the same manner for 0.Mark Cosgrove managed six fours in his 34 before nudging to short leg off Bryce McGain right before tea. A further five wickets fell in the final session and at the close the home side was 127 short of avoiding the follow on, with Cullen Bailey on 18 and Jason Gillespie on 2.South Australia were also disappointing with the ball as they let Victoria’s last two pairs add 118, with Wade the major contributor. He was chosen ahead of Adam Crosthwaite because of his batting skill and although he survived a couple of dropped catches he showed serious potential, striking nine fours and two sixes. Nannes, who made 31 not out, and Peter Siddle (17) were Wade’s tail-end helpers.