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Strong competition among seamers for first Test but balancing XI could be an issue

George Dobell17-May-2021

Top order

England are likely to pick four men who are seen as contenders for the top three: Dom Sibley, Zak Crawley, Rory Burns and James Bracey. While Sibley is just coming back from a broken finger – he is playing a 2nd XI match at present – the England management are confident he will be fine and he has enough credit in the bank to retain his place.Of the four, Burns is perhaps the least certain of a spot. Having been dropped in India, he is not “in possession” and with England wanting to take a look at Bracey, he could be squeezed. But he has been in consistent form in the Championship (only Kiran Carlson has reached 50 more often than his five occasions this season) and is seen as being relatively well equipped for the Ashes.The form of Haseeb Hameed (and, to a lesser extent, Adam Lyth) has been noted by the England management, but he will need to sustain it a while longer to win a Test recall. If a Lions squad was required tomorrow, however, he would have an excellent chance of involvement.

Middle order

With Joe Root and Ollie Pope assured of their places, England have to decide whether to play Bracey in the middle-order or stick with Dan Lawrence. Both will be in the squad.

Wicketkeeping

With Jos Buttler resting, Ben Foakes looks likely to keep the gloves and play his first home Tests. Bracey is also a more than competent keeper and provides back-up if required. Pope’s brief career as a Test keeper – remember the Hamilton Test of 2019? – would appear to be over.Related

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Spin

Jack Leach is now established as England’s first-choice spin bowler and is certain to be in the squad. With an even chance that he will not be required in the first Test, though – Middlesex have claimed one wicket with spin bowling at Lord’s this season, though Leach took four there in the first match of the season – it is likely Silverwood will feel that only one spinner is required. He is also keen to ensure fringe members of the squad play cricket rather than remain part of an enlarged squad.If they do feel the need for a second spinner, Dom Bess (who has nine wickets at 42.66 this season) could be included, while Matt Parkinson (who has taken 19 wickets at 19.21 so far this season) is also a contender. But it is expected that Leach will be the only specialist spinner.

Seam

Given the reaction when Stuart Broad was left out of the first Test of last summer, it will be interesting to see how the England management approach this series. They have made it apparent, however, that they want to take a look at Craig Overton (32 wickets at 13.96 this season) and Ollie Robinson (29 at 14.72), so it may be that Broad and Anderson are rotated as they were in the winter and play in one Test apiece. Olly Stone is understood to have recovered from a toe infection and, with Jofra Archer absent through injury, is also likely to rotate with Mark Wood to give England a genuine fast bowler in each Test.Craig Overton sits second behind Simon Harmer on the Championship wicket-taking charts•Getty Images

Balance

Injuries and the absence of the IPL players renders it tough to balance the side. It means all their viable all-round options (Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes) are unavailable and leaves them with the prospect of either batting Foakes at No. 6, and leaving a long tail but a five-man attack, or at No. 7 to allow six specialist batters and make do with four bowlers. The latter is the more likely scenario and would leave England with the option of either playing four seamers or three seamers and spinner. The four-seamer option again appears more likely.The toughest decision might be over where to bat Bracey. While he generally bats in the top order for Gloucestershire, he could also bat at No. 5 or No. 6 or even do that and keep wicket. He is seen as an unusually versatile player by the England management and may well allow them to only name a 15-man squad.Other options that might have been considered – picking Matt Critchley (averaging 51.20 with the bat and 36.18 with his legspin this season) as a spinning allrounder to bat at No. 6, for example – would appear to have been resisted.Likely squad: Joe Root (capt), James Anderson, James Bracey, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Dom Sibley, Olly Stone, Mark Wood

The inexperience in the bowling ranks didn’t help, the Zimbabwe captain says

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur25-Feb-2020Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine has said that his batsmen should have taken advantage of the drizzle to stay in the one-off Test against Bangladesh for longer. The visitors were bowled out for 189 in their second innings, eventually losing by an innings and 106 runs. They lasted just 52.3 overs on a cloudy fourth day with occasional drizzle.Ervine said that the batsmen shouldn’t have played shots in the air, rather let the ball get soaked more in the rain. “Batting first, we should have got at least 400,” Ervine said. “The wicket was good enough to post a score like that. Getting bowled out for 265 put us on the back foot and allowed Bangladesh to go past us. We could have also batted better in the second innings. The wicket wasn’t really that bad. I thought our bowlers worked hard to get those six wickets. Obviously [we] didn’t hit the right areas enough, but I just thought that our batting let us down.”It was a combination of application and execution. The guys obviously tried to go over the top and didn’t execute the plans properly. In the past, it has been difficult to bat last in Dhaka. Possibly, guys played a few too many shots because of the turn. But the ball was wet because of the drizzle.”Zimbabwe still had some conviction left in their batting when Ervine, who made a century in the first innings, got set with Sikandar Raza. They added 60 for the fifth wicket before Mominul Haque ran out his opposite number with an excellent direct hit from the covers.”It was very disappointing,” said Ervine. “At the time it seemed like myself and Raza were going well. We got some momentum on our side, and then we basically gave it back to Bangladesh. I have always wanted to get back-to-back hundreds in a game, and I thought today was the perfect opportunity.”He said that Zimbabwe missed Sean Williams the most, but also suffered due to an inexperienced bowling attack.”Sean Williams is a big part of our team,” Ervine said. “He contributes with the bat, ball and field. We missed him hugely.”We have an inexperienced bowling line-up. Charlton Tshuma was playing his first game. Victor was playing his third Test match. Ainsley played a handful of games. Donald Tiripano is the experienced one. We just didn’t hit the right areas for long enough. Without doing that, you can’t build any pressure.”

Abdur Razzak’s match haul of 12 for 144 helped curb North Zone after South Zone’s strong batting innings

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Dec-2018South Zone retained the Bangladesh Cricket League first-class title after their nine-wicket win over North Zone in Chittagong. This is the fourth time they have won the competition, having earlier been champions in the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons.Veteran left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak struck the decisive blows in South Zone’s last round match, taking 12 for 144 to pick up the Player-of-the-Match honours.Razzak took seven wickets in North Zone’s first innings, restricting them to 293 runs in 83.4 overs. Ariful Haque missed a century by two runs as he made 98 off 151 balls with six fours and three sixes. He added 135 runs for the seventh wicket with Ziaur Rahman, who scored 69 off 103 balls with seven fours and two sixes.South Zone replied strongly, making 541 in 125.3 overs, with centuries from Anamul Haque and Al-Amin. The pair added 176 for the fourth wicket before Al-Amin retired hurt when he was on 110. He eventually made 128 off 161 balls with 12 fours and three sixes. Anamul struck 16 fours in his 180 off 314 balls, that spanned seven hours and 44 minutes. Sunzamul Islam took 6-158.North Zone, behind by 248, were then bowled out for 280 in 82.2 overs with Razzak taking 5-75 from his 32.2 overs. Junaid Siddiqui (77), Naeem Islam (67) and Ziaur (77 not out) struck fifties but neither could push past the sixties or seventies.Anamul and Fazle completed the very short fourth-innings chase of 33, making 35 for 1 in 7.1 overs.

Hayley Matthews, Afy Fletcher and Stafanie Taylor led the charge for West Indies as Sri Lanka collapsed from 63 for 1 to 136 all out

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Oct-2017WICB Media

The spin combination of Hayley Matthews, Afy Fletcher and Stafanie Taylor worked through Sri Lanka’s batting order to set up a six-wicket victory for West Indies in the first match between the two – which counts for points in the ICC Women’s Championship – in Tarouba. Sri Lanka’s batting floundered against the three, who picked three apiece, as they collapsed from 63 for 1 to 136 all out.Sri Lanka lost their first wicket in the 12th over after opener Nipuni Hansika was struck on the pads by legspinner Fletcher. Yasoda Mendis and Chamari Atapattu set up a 41-run second-wicket partnership, with the latter becoming the first Sri Lanka batswoman to score 2000 runs in ODI. Matthews’ charge, however, removed both the batsmen before they could build on their starts. She also dismissed the No. 5 Prasadani Weerakkody for 8.Taylor and Fletcher scythed through the rest of the order as Sri Lanka fell away quickly.West Indies were off to a shaky start as they lost Kycia Knight and Taylor inside the first five overs. With 49 for 2 on the scoreboard, Matthews retired hurt on 22 and had to be stretchered off after the third ball of the 20th over. Having pulled the ball to short square leg, she dropped on her knees, clutching her right thigh. Earlier, following the third ball of the 14th over, she had received medical assistance for what seemed to be slight unease with her left hamstring. However, later she confirmed to ESPNcricinfo: “It was just bad cramp, but I’m all good”.After Matthews departed, Chedean Nation and Deandra Dottin kept the chase ticking along before slow left-armer Inoka Ranaweera removed both of them and reached the 50th-wicket milestone in ODIs. However, Merissa Aguilleira (32 of 48 balls) and Kyshona Knight (21 off 36 balls) finished the job over the next ten overs.Matthews was named the Player of the Match for her spell of 10-2-18-3.

Sussex produced their best bowling performance of this season’s NatWest T20 Blast but are out of the competition after rain robbed them of victory against Glamorgan at Hove

ECB Reporters Network28-Jul-2016
ScorecardGeorge Garton (centre) impressed with four wickets in county colours•Getty Images

Sussex produced their best bowling performance of this season’s NatWest T20 Blast but are out of the competition after rain robbed them of victory against Glamorgan at Hove.Having dismissed Glamorgan for 101 in 13.2 overs, Sussex were 30 for 1 when the rain, which had reduced the contest to 14 overs a side, returned after four overs of their reply.The teams got back out for one more ball before it started to rain again and they were unable to return to bowl the five more deliveries which would have constituted a game. Umpires Peter Hartley and Steve Gale abandoned the game at 9.50pm with both sides taking one point each.As it was Essex’s win over Middlesex at Lord’s knocked Sussex out of contention for the knockout stages anyway.Chris Nash drove to cover in the second over of the reply but Sussex were ahead on Duckworth/Lewis when the rain returned.They will rue the fact that they might have had time to face the five more balls needed to constitute a match had they not had to bowl five extra deliveries because of no-balls in the Glamorgan innings.Star of the show for Sussex was 19-year-old left-armer George Garton who bowled superbly to take career-best figures of 4 for 16. Glamorgan only got as many as they did thanks to 26 extras and a last-wicket stand of 24 between Michael Hogan and Shaun Tait.A crowd of 6,500 were rewarded for their patience when the game started at 7.30pm as the Sussex quick bowlers relished a pitch with bounce and carry while too many Glamorgan batsmen gave their wickets away with loose shots.Garton came on in the fifth over with Glamorgan already in trouble. Tymal Mills first over consisted of ten deliveries and included seven no-balls and a wide but he finished it by inducing Mark Wallace to drive his slower delivery to extra cover and give Matt Machan the first of five catches, a new county record in the competition.Colin Ingram fell in identical fashion in Mills’ next over and David Lloyd was caught at cover having been squared up by Jofra Archer.Garton has Aneurin Donald brilliantly caught by Machan running around the deep mid-wicket boundary and in his next over Garton held an easy return catch when Graham Wagg mis-timed a pull. The 19-year-old then claimed two wickets in his final over as Andrew Salter was bowled heaving across the line and Timm van der Gugten caught at short fine leg.Skipper Jacques Rudolph joined the procession when he mis-timed a pull off leg-spinner Will Beer. At 62 for 8 Glamorgan were in a sorry state but their last two wickets did manage to add 39 runs before Chris Jordan had Craig Meschede and Tait both caught at mid-off by safe hands Machan.

For the fourth time in four games, Netherlands batted first and set Nepal a challenging target, but unlike the previous three matches, the visitors held their nerve to register a consolatory three-wicket win in Rotterdam

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jul-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo: Paras Khadka hit six fours for his maiden T20I fifty•Peter Lim/ACC

For the fourth time in four games, Netherlands batted first and set Nepal a challenging target, but unlike the previous three matches, the visitors held their nerve to register a consolatory three-wicket win in Rotterdam. Netherlands took the series 3-1.Set 140 for the win, Nepal looked to be heading for a 0-4 whitewash when they fell to 76 for 4 by the 13th over. However, their captain, Paras Khadka, steered the team back on track with a crucial half-century, his first in T20Is. Khadka scored 54 off 40 balls, with six fours, and anchored a match-changing 44-run stand for the fifth wicket with Sharad Vesawkar. Khadka took Nepal to within 10 runs of victory, but his dismissal off Mudassar Bukhari in the penultimate over offered Netherlands a glimmer.Sompal Kami, the No.8 batsman, then stroked the first delivery he faced for four, reducing the equation to six needed off the last over. Ahsan Malik bowled Pradeep Airee first ball, but Kami and Basant Regmi held on to take Nepal home with two balls remaining, Kami sealing the win with a cover drive for four.Earlier, a poor start from Netherlands saw them restricted to 139 for 7. With Sagar Pun (3 for 26) and Regmi (2 for 31) striking at regular intervals, the hosts soon found themselves struggling at 83 for 7. Roelof van der Merwe, who switched permanently to Netherlands on Tuesday, counterattacked by blasting a 27-ball 40, but it would not prove to be enough.

Maybe they are in denial or maybe he was simply in an impossible position, but there were times when it was hard to remain straight faced when Samit Patel spoke to the media after the second day’s play in Ahmedabad.

George Dobell in Ahmedabad16-Nov-2012Maybe they are in denial or maybe he was simply in an impossible position, but there were times when it was hard to remain straight faced when Samit Patel spoke to the media after the second day’s play in Ahmedabad.It was not his laudable faith in his teammates, or his admirable desire to fight from the desperate position in which England find themselves that provoked the raised eyebrows. Both are to his credit. It was the insistence, in the face of all facts, that England were “good players of spin” that was hard to take. For England, with one or two notable exceptions, are not good players of spin. The record does not suggest that. It grabs us by the shoulders and screams in our faces. It has been proved over the last year really rather often and no amount of insistence otherwise will change that. Only an improvement in form will do so.Patel’s explanation for England’s struggles in their reply was also grimly amusing. “The ball’s harder and I think it spins more when the ball’s harder,” he explained. And, while there is some truth in that, it ignores the fact that England also had a new ball. In fact they had two of them.To be fair to Patel, he was in an almost impossible position. Having been kept out in the field for the best part of two days and then lost early wickets, there was little positive to take from proceedings. At least when he spoke of the challenge ahead, his words rang true.”We have two world-class batsmen at the crease,” he said. “Ian Bell is still to come, there’s me and there is Matt Prior. There is a lot of batting. There’s no question about how long we can bat. We’ve got the same potential of batting as India have and we’ve got to keep believing that. I think the telling time will be when the ball gets soft; then we can get in.”We’ve put in the hard yards; we know what we can do. Tomorrow, we hope we can show what we’re made of. We’re going to have to play some good cricket. It’s hard work – but that’s Test cricket. We have to front up. We can’t go anywhere. We’ve got to stand up and be counted. It’s no place for hiding.”Patel was also quite right to acknowledge that India’s batsmen had played beautifully. “Sometimes you have to give credit to the batsmen,” he said. “Sehwag played outstandingly well and Pujara carried on. Yuvraj played as he does. They’re good players of spin. As the Indians showed, if you bat a long time, you can wear teams down. That’s what they did. It’s something we expected. You lose the toss, and field for two days. We knew what was coming and we’re prepared.”

Lendl Simmons finally made his first international hundred and, with the help of Marlon Samuels, powered West Indies to a total that proved too much for Bangladesh

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran13-Oct-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Marlon Samuels and Lendl Simmons had a partnership of 150•Associated Press

Five years after his debut, Lendl Simmons finally made his first international hundred, and with the help of another batsman who has resurrected his international career this year, Marlon Samuels, powered West Indies to a total that proved too much for Bangladesh in the first ODI in Mirpur. The pair put on 150 for the first wicket before a power-packed Kieron Pollard cameo further demoralised a Bangladesh team that was on a high after their dramatic win in the Twenty20 two days ago.Bangladesh were asked to chase down 299, which was higher than any ODI score they have made in the past two years, and despite a quick half-century from former captain Shakib Al Hasan and a patient one from makeshift opener Naeem Islam, they ended well short.Simmons had made half-centuries in six of his previous nine ODI innings, but failed to reach triple-digits each time. On Thursday, he made a fidgety start before settling in on a surface that didn’t have much in it for either the medium-pacers or the spinners.In the sixth over, he was hurried into a pull which was top-edged just wide of the bowler, then he mistimed a straight drive with which he still managed to find the boundary, before jumping outside leg as he looked to crash a short ball through off without managing to connect. He punched the air in frustration after missing out on a cut in the next over, but then showed how good he could be with fours through cover off the back and front foot.Simmons was the dominant partner in an opening stand with Adrian Barath, whose usual effervescent batting style wasn’t on display in a watchful 21 that consumed 47 deliveries. Barath was struggling with a hamstring problem, and retired hurt after the 15th over, the first victim of the newly introduced ban on runners.That provided no relief for Bangladesh as Samuels began aggressively – muscling a six over wide long-on and following it up with a slap past cover for four. Both Samuels and Simmons soon settled down and largely dealt in singles against an unthreatening Bangladeshi attack. The odd poor delivery was smacked for a boundary, like the high full toss offered by Shakib in the 29th over, and West Indies smoothly progressed to 133 for 0 after 30 overs.

Smart stats

• Lendl Simmons’ 122 is the fifth century and the highest ODI score made by a West Indian batsman against Bangladesh. He surpassed Brian Lara’s 117 scored in Dhaka in 1999.

• Simmons’ century is his first in ODIs. He has scored eight half-centuries in 30 matches and averages 34.07.

• West Indies lost their first wicket with the score on 217. The 150-run stand between Marlon Samuels and Simmons after Adrian Barath retired hurt is the third-highest opening stand for West Indies against Bangladesh.

• West Indies’ score of 298 is their second-highest score in ODIs against Bangladesh behind the 314 in Dhaka in 1999.

• The 78-run stand between Imrul Keyes and Naeem Islam is the second-highest second-wicket stand for Bangladesh against West Indies.

Simmons then unfurled a couple of nonchalant sixes over long-on off Abdur Razzak to close in on his century. He reached the milestone in the 37th over, a delivery after Samuels was dropped by the keeper. There were more opportunities that Bangladesh wasted in the field, with Simmons, a notoriously poor runner, reprieved at least twice when a direct hit would have run him out.The final onslaught began in the 40th over, the last of the batting Powerplay, with Simmons bludgeoning a series of fours. The bowler, Shafiul Islam, also sprayed one down the leg side to concede five wides as 21 runs came off the over, leaving the new captain Mushfiqur Rahim with his hands on his head. Both Simmons and Samuels perished in a Rubel Hossain over soon after, but Pollard pulled out some massive hits in a 25-ball 41 to push West Indies close to 300.Bangladesh never looked like they could keep up with the tall asking-rate. Their best chance was if Tamim Iqbal gave them a flier but he was bogged down by the West Indies new-ball pair of Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul. He tried to break free when spin was introduced, trying to hammer Devendra Bishoo’s first ball, but could only edge it to the keeper.The other opener, Naeem, had even more trouble in providing the early momentum. At one stage he was 19 off 50 deliveries, and Bangladesh were crawling along at well below four an over when a much brisker rate was called for. Imrul Kayes, the regular opener, had to come in at No. 3 as he was off the field towards the end of the West Indies innings. He tried to inject some momentum with early boundaries and at the halfway stage Bangladesh still had an outside chance after reaching 101 for 1.That was snuffed out in the batting Powerplay that was taken after 25 overs, in accordance with the new rules that mandate that it should be completed within the 40th over. As it has done so often, the batting Powerplay resulted in a slew of wickets: both set batsmen, Kayes and Naeem, were dismissed, and Mohammad Ashraful edged a catch to the keeper.At 130 for 4, the game was pretty much over though Shakib raised some hopes with an enterprising 67. Still, it wasn’t enough to spoil Denesh Ramdin’s day – he captaining West Indies for the first time, on his return to ODI cricket, in the absence of Darren Sammy who was out with an upset stomach.

Manoj Badale, co-owner of Rajasthan Royals, has said he doesn’t understand why the board did not give the IPL franchise a chance to defend itself

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Oct-2010Manoj Badale, co-owner of Rajasthan Royals, has said the team has provided the BCCI and the government with all the information they had asked for but was not given a chance to defend itself before being expelled from the league.”That seems to us at least unfair,” he told the news channel . “It seems surprising to us that these issues, all of which were communicated, all of which were documented for the past three years, are suddenly brought up when there is regime change as opposed to being brought up in time.”Badale said he met with BCCI president Shashank Manohar last week and was told the team would be treated fairly. He did not reveal any other details of the meeting, however, saying it was a private conversation and not something he wanted to discuss with the media.While the franchise issued a statement in the wake of the announcement saying it would be considering legal action, Badale told another news channel, , that in his experience these things get resolved around a table, and it is only if negotiations fail that legal action will be considered. He also defended his franchise’s record of transparency.

The ripple effects

The ramifications of the case go far beyond these two franchises. Rajasthan had close ties with the English county side Hampshire, who on Monday issued a statement clarifying that no final deal had been signed as yet. The ties with Hampshire were part of a four-nation “global sporting franchise” planned by Rajasthan, but the plans are now presumably on hold.

“We voluntarily chose to submit an enormous document with the Foreign Investment Promotion Board back in July 2009, which went into extraordinary detail about our ownership structure.”The IPL governing council ejected Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab from the league this past Sunday on charges of transgression of shareholding and ownership norms that threatened to “shake the very foundation of the tender process”.The two franchises are now considering their options. A statement from Rajasthan Royals hinted at legal redress without explicitly mentioning it. The Punjab franchise said its legal team was studying the BCCI’s decision, which it also called unfair and not in the IPL’s collaborative spirit, and hoped for negotiations to settle the issue.

The county champions, Durham, will play against MCC in the world’s first floodlit four-day game in Abu Dhabi next March, after it was confirmed that the traditional opening fixture of the English season would be shifted from Lord’s to the Zayed Internatio

Andrew Miller11-Dec-2009The county champions, Durham, will play against MCC in a floodlit four-day game in Abu Dhabi next March, after it was confirmed that the traditional opening fixture of the English season would be shifted from Lord’s to the Zayed International Stadium.The match, which will be contested from March 29 to April 1 using the pink balls that MCC has been pioneering in recent seasons, was confirmed this week at an MCC Committee meeting, and according to MCC’s head of cricket, John Stephenson, such a radical step could pave the way for a new future for Test cricket.”We are delighted to confirm the MCC-Champion County match will take place in Abu Dhabi, and greatly appreciate Durham’s enthusiasm and co-operation,” said Stephenson. “Ultimately, this match is being played in Abu Dhabi for two reasons. Firstly, we felt that the proposed fixture schedule for Lord’s (April 3-5) was far too early in the year to play meaningful cricket, with poor weather a very likely possibility.”Secondly, we’ve been asking cricket authorities around the world to help us trial the pink ball under floodlights. If this match is a success, it could help to re-invigorate Test cricket. We have an opportunity to play our part for the good of the game and we’re determined to grasp it.”The logistics of the fixture are still to be confirmed, including the hours of play and its first-class status, but MCC’s chief executive, Keith Bradshaw, told Cricinfo that he would be addressing the latter issue directly with the ICC. “Give the work that we’ve been doing with respect to the pink ball,” he said, “we feel that this is an innovative trial that needs to be undertaken to see if it is suitable for Test cricket.”It is not a decision that we have taken lightly, and I know some MCC members and public might not agree with it,” Bradshaw added. “We are not suggesting for one minute that we intend to take the Champion County fixture away from Lord’s permanently, but this comes hot on the heels of our World Cricket Committee meeting in Dubai, at which we felt that a match under lights in white clothing was an innovation worth exploring.”The Zayed international cricket stadium is the home ground is the home of Abu Dhabi CC, who last month signed an agreement with MCC to become Associate Club partners. It recently hosted a series of one-day internationals between Pakistan and New Zealand.”Although it is a disappointment not to have the traditional season opener at Lord’s we fully understand and support the reasons for that and are therefore honoured to have the opportunity to take part in this innovative and historic match,” said Durham’s head coach, Geoff Cook.”As the game of cricket generally is moving forward, the possibility of playing with pink cricket balls for the first time in a four-day match, under floodlights, is an experience that the players will be really looking forward to.”Cook’s stance represents a significant change of heart, because as recently as September, he was outspoken in his refusal to trial the MCC’s pink ball in the dead-rubber county fixture between Durham and their already-relegated opponents, Worcestershire.”I was not keen,” said Cook at the time. “It was a first-class match and I thought we should retain the game’s integrity.” The MCC’s inability to test the pink ball in first-class conditions was the principle reason why next May’s proposed day/night Test against Bangladesh had to be shelved.MCC will select a competitive team to face Durham, with the best county, MCC University and United Arab Emirates cricketers in line for selection.Meanwhile, an ECB meeting has approved a change in the points system for the 2010 County Championship season. In a bid to increasing attacking intent, 16 points will now be awarded for a victory and just three for a draw in 2010 – a change from the previous 14 and four.Bonus points remain unchanged, with five for batting and three available for bowling in first innings, although they will now only be awarded for the first 110 overs. Use of the heavy roller is now outlawed once play has commenced.