Former Hampshire wicketkeeper Adrian Aymes cracked 128 – but finished on the losing Hursley Park side as Sparsholt chased 276 to win by eight wickets at The Quarters.Aymes, who captains Hursley, shared a century opening partnership with Raman Prendergast (58) and another sizeable stand with Paul Edwards (33) as his side powered to 276-5.But it wasn’t enough !Tim Richings led the Sparsholt response in style, enjoying century stands with Ollie Kelly (28) and Jerry Frith as the visitors sped towards a second consecutive victory.Frith, who earlier took 3-56, hit 80 not out and Nick Boxall an unbeaten 42 as Sparsholt reached 277-2 with eight balls to spare.Easton & Martyr Worthy have moved into a challeging third place after beating Lymington by 56 runs. It all went horribly wrong for the Larks, who put Easton into bat at the Sports Ground – and chased a massive 278-9 around the field !With Glyn Treagus missing, Dan Peacock had to play despite breaking a little finger the previous weekend. But his inability to bowl left Lymington woefully short of options – and Easton cashed in.After two early setbacks, Shaun Green (56), Francis Gill (54), Kevin Neave (56) and Steve Green (30) ran amok for Easton, who closed at 278-9.Ian Young (46) held the Lymington top order together after Mark Stone (4-31) had claimed four scalps.Lymington dipped to 108-5 before Matt Malloy (49), Peacock (42) and Christian Pain (33) took their reply to 222 all out.Leaders Old Tauntonians & Romsey, who visit St Cross Symondians next Saturday, had it all too easy at United Services and won by five wickets.US dipped from a promising 67-0 (Sam Lavery 44) to 166-9 (Raj Naik 3-44) – a total OTR polished off in 36.5 overs, with Charles Forward hammering 84.Purbrook, last season’s Division 3 champions, look set for a prompt return to their former abode after crashing to a fourth successive defeat.They were skittled for 111 (Cleeve 60) by Gosport Borough, who posed 216-8, with Andrew Watkins (52) and Mike Rees (41) prominent at the top of the order.Borough have suspended opening batsman Lee Wateridge for two matches following an incident in the previous week’s defeat by Hursley Park.

Pakistan will be represented at next week’s women’s tournament in the Netherlands, despite the fact that the Pakistan Cricket Board’s team will not be taking part.One of the messiest situations in world cricket, albeit domestic, has not been resolved despite the best intentions of Pakistan’s judiciary, and cricket administrators on both sides of a bitter row that has broken out in Pakistan over who has the right to run the women’s game in that country. A team chosen by the PCB was refused entry into the Netherlands competition, and would not have been able to compete anyway because it was refused visas to the Netherlands.This was because the International Women’s Cricket Council continues to recognise the Pakistan Women’s Cricket Control Association as the body most representative of women’s cricket in that country and had sent the invitation to compete to them.IWCC president Christine Brierley, who will see her Council vote next week on whether they should be integrated into the International Cricket Council, said the PWCCA team was expected to participate as they, like the other competing countries, had paid their entry fee.”I have received no legal advice at this point of time that says that the legal action brought by the PWCCA against the PCB has been resolved,” Brierley said. “I also have received no official government statement that advises the IWCC that the PWCCA is no longer the recognised body to represent the interests of Pakistan women’s cricket. This is an essential requirement of IWCC membership.”Curiously, the PCB perceived an enquiry from Brierley to them regarding the outcome of legal consultation between the parties in the dispute as a signal that some sort of impasse had been overcome.But Brierley said that both the parties in Pakistan had been told that a report on the dispute was to be discussed at the IWCC’s next meeting on July 24.”We cannot cease or change membership of the IWCC unless it complies with the IWCC rules and the PWCCA membership is assessed according to the criteria of membership. Both the PCB and the PWCCA have a copy of the criteria of membership. It does not assist world cricket and the IWCC to be continually involved in what is essentially a domestic matter for Pakistan cricket,” she said.The Pakistan Cricket Board’s reaction to their side’s exclusion from the tournament has been to demand that the PWCCA side not be allowed to use the word Pakistan to describe themselves at the tournament.Trouble between the two parties has been ongoing since last year when the Pakistan High Court ruled that the PCB was the body best suited to run women’s cricket and asked that the two bodies get together to sort the matter out. However, when the PCB started arranging trial matches an approach to the Court by the PWCCA achieved agreement that the PCB had acted outside of its mandate.The situation flared again recently when the PCB claimed that a resolution had been achieved. However, the PWCCA claimed the PCB was guilty of contempt of court.One of the organisers of the PWCCA, Shaiza Khan, took the PCB to task for what she claimed were “totally wrong and absolutely baseless” comments. She accused the PCB of “intransigence” over its treatment of court orders and said it appeared “to be demonstrating a sense of utter irresponsibility.”A restraining order had been placed on the PCB by the High Court ofMr Sana Ateeq Khan. When the PCB appeared to break that order by claiming differences had been resolved the PWCCA then asked for a contempt of court to be considered.

With the new faces ushered into the one-day squad after the World Cup, one of the aims of the England selectors was to produce a good, athletic fielding team capable of cutting it with the best, and on today’s performance, they’re well on their way.England’s fielding has been sharp all series, but here they were electric. Seven catches in all were taken, ranging from the fluky to the fantastic. Andrew Flintoff bagged three, two of them smart slip catches, and one an absolute cracker diving one-handed to his right at third slip to dispose of the man of the moment, Jacques Kallis. It was an inspired moment, emphatically ending South Africa’s early progress, and uplifting the England attack after a shaky start.While the match was billed as a dress rehearsal for the real thing on Saturday, James Anderson fluffed his early lines when his first two overs went for 24. However, after a spell in the outfield while Flintoff produced his heroics, Anderson reverted to his usual role of boy wonder with a remarkable return to finish with 4 for 38. Darren Gough, who has been treading the boards for ages, proved he has no plans for a swansong, and Ashley Giles showed signs of overcoming this season’s stage fright with his best spell of the summer although he still ended wicketless.Flintoff, described as the linchpin of the team by Michael Vaughan, was again the allround star of the show with a buccaneering fifty and an important wicket, but it was his stunning catch that really turned the game England’s way.Click here for the Wisden Bulletin

England’s women go into the first npower Test against South Africa at Shenley looking for an inspirational start for their new Head Coach.Richard Bates, the 31-year-old former Nottinghamshire off-spin bowler, was named as the new Head Coach in May this year. With little time to spend with the England squad before the npower women’s Test series and NatWest Women’s Series, Bates has at least been helped by the experience of his involvement with the women’s game since 2001.A part of the coaching support staff with the England U19 and Senior England women, Bates was also a Super Fours coach in 2002. “Being coach of the Super Strikers has been a huge advantage for me as I know the players and have the benefit of working within the women’s cricket coaching system for the past months,” he said ahead of the first of two npower Tests and three NatWest ODIs during August.He takes over a squad with increased confidence having moved steadily up the One-Day International table, from fifth to third in the past couple of years under the tutelage of John Harmer. He has also been immediately impressed by the depth of talent available to England.”There’s no doubt that there are many more players to chose from for England, and the depth in talent is apparent in all departments. With Super Fours acting as a finishing school for the elite players, many have taken their opportunity to prove they are ready to play international cricket. In addition, it’s proof that the system is working, and that the Counties and Clubs are working increasingly hard on raising both the numbers of girls playing and the standard of play.”Bates knew what he was taking on having seen England perform at close quarters and spending time with the England U19 on their highly successful tour of Australia. His involvement with the Harmer revolution in women’s coaching ensures that his own strengths as a coach will enhance and drive the progress already made and provide continuity for the squad.”These are really exciting times for the England team. They are a great squad, with lots of enthusiasm and an exceptional level of commitment to their training and playing. The England players work hard to be part of this set-up and it shows in the way they play the game,” said Bates, impressed by the dedication the elite women show to their sport, from training and traveling to their willingness to constantly learn and develop. Equally impressive is the work/cricket balance they achieve given that many have full time jobs or equally time demanding families.Looking forward to the opening match of the npower Test Series, Bates added: “I wish the England team a good and, hopefully successful series and in particular I would like to wish the very best of luck to our two debutants, Beth Morgan and Rosalie Birch.”

Billy Taylor has been released by the new county champions, Sussex, after failing to agree terms for a new contract. Taylor, 26, contributed 21 wickets towards Sussex’s maiden County Championship victory, as well as a handy tailend batting average of 18.33. He has been linked with a move to Hampshire.”It is with regret that the Club agreed to allow Billy Taylor to leave after five seasons with Sussex,” said Peter Moores, the coach. “Billy came to see me towards the end of last week to talk about his future. He indicated that he had already been offered an opportunity at another county and was very keen to take this up as he felt it would give him more chance at regular first-team cricket.”After some discussion it became clear that Billy had already made his mind up that a fresh start was his best option even though the club was prepared to offer equal or better terms.”We wish Billy well for the future though it would be wrong for me not to say it is tinged with some sadness and regret as Billy has always given his all for the club and we would have liked to have kept him.”Shaun Rashid, another seamer, has also been released after just one year, while Jason Lewry, Mike Yardy and Tony Cottey have been awarded one-year extensions to their contracts.

There were not many people who believed that Hampshire could win the countychampionship at the start of the 1973 season. Sure, they had a powerfulopening batting pair in the South African Barry Richards and West IndianGordon Greenidge. And with the likes of David Turner and Trevor Jesty theyhad batsmen who could continue the good work at the crease. But it was aline-up better suited to limited-overs competition and their weaker bowlingattack had always hampered their success.

This did not deter Peter White, their new scorer, from taking a bet at 66-1on them winning the championship for the first time since 1961. Some say itwas more out of loyalty than good judgment. White collected his winningsafter Hampshire had won half and drawn the other half of their 20 matches toclinch the title with a game to spare.Their batsmen lived up to their reputations with both Greenidge and Richardsnotching more than 1,000 runs each. But it was the bowlers who surprisedeverybody – Bob Herman, Tom Mottram and Mike Taylor took more than 50wickets each and spinners Peter Sainsbury and New Zealander David O’Sullivanchipped in with 40-odd wickets apiece.”We had a wonderful team spirit too,” recalls Turner. “Our bowlers performedsuperbly. However, a lot of our success came because of our fielding.Greenidge and Richards took everything that flew to them in the slips, andwe had some good ground fielders.”

Richards remembers the success but, like many international players, wasmore focused on the Test arena. “I don’t want to demean the achievement ofwinning a county championship but I was young and wanted to play Testcricket,” he said. “I eventually found the challenge had gone out of playingcounty cricket and I left a lot of runs out there.” His greatest challengewas a healthy competition that developed between himself and Greenidge asthey attempted to out-perform each other. It was a contest that many abowler around the shires would grow to regret.

1 Richard LewisA right-handed batsman and occasional leg-break bowler who played in 13matches in the championship-winning season, he was with the county from 1967to 1976 but had the misfortune of being understudy to the best openingbatting pair in county cricket at the time. Played for Dorset until 1989 andnow coaches cricket at Charterhouse school.

2 David O’SullivanA fine slow left-arm bowler who thrived in dry conditions, the New Zealandergrabbed plenty of wickets late in the season as Hampshire’s title chasegathered momentum. Achieved career-best figures that summer when he took6-26 against Nottinghamshire. Hampshire had to choose between him and AndyRoberts, the West Indian fast bowler, the next season and reluctantlyreleased the Antipodean. He played in 11 Tests and lives in New Zealand,where he is successful in the insurance business.

3 Mike TaylorRejected by Nottinghamshire after eight years, in his first season for hisnew county, the right-arm medium-pace bowler took 63 wickets at an averageof 19.33. He repaid Hampshire for their faith with solid performances untilhe stopped playing in 1980. Became marketing manager at the club in 1984 andretired last year. He lives in Chandler’s Ford, near Southampton.

4 Tom MottramThis was Mottram’s finest season in four summers in first-class cricket,taking 57 wickets at an average of 22. Mottram played 35 matches and took111 wickets. He is an architect in Poole, Dorset.

5 Bob HermanA right-arm fast-medium bowler, Herman took 81 wickets at an average of21.66 in his first season at Hampshire in 1972, having moved from Middlesex,and followed that with 63 the next summer. Followed in his father’sfootsteps by playing for Middlesex then Hampshire. Turned out for Dorset fortwo seasons until 1979 before becoming an umpire. He was a prolific hitterin club cricket for Sarisbury Green, where he teaches at the local school.

6 Gordon GreenidgeThe Barbadian-born right-handed batsman moved to England at the age of 12and, although approached to play for England, waited for his chance with theWest Indies. When it came he never looked back, playing 108 Tests andscoring 7,558 runs at an average of 44.72. Stayed loyal to Hampshire, andhis partnership with Richards provided the platform for many successes.Retained his interest in the game after he retired, and was the battingcoach for Bangladesh in the World Cup in South Africa.

7 Andy MurtaghA lower-order batsman born in Dublin, Murtagh played in five games in thechampionship-winning season in which Hampshire used only 13 players butstruggled to win a regular place in the powerful batting line-up. He is ateacher and in charge of cricket at Malvern College near Worcester. Hissons, Tim and Chris, are on the books at Surrey.

8 Trevor JestyAn aggressive middle-order batsman who started with Hampshire in 1966, Jestydid not enjoy one of his best seasons with the bat in 1973. Had more successas a change bowler, taking 35 wickets at 20 runs apiece. Jesty played 340games for Hampshire until he moved to Surrey in the winter of 1985. Spenttwo and a bit seasons at The Oval and then played for Lancashire. He scored1,000 runs in a season 10 times and played in 10 one-day internationals forEngland. Now a respected first-class umpire.

9 David TurnerAfter Greenidge and Richards in the batting line-up came Turner, a solidleft-hander who piled on 19,005 first-class career runs at an average of30.55. Born in Wiltshire, he played for Hampshire from 1966 until 1989 andscored 1,000 runs in a season nine times. Returned to Chippenham where heruns a key cutting and shoe repair business that he took over from hisfather. When he has time he plays social cricket and enjoys a round of golf.

10 Peter SainsburyA slow left-arm bowler and lower-order batsman, this was his finest seasonand he was named one of Wisden’s five cricketers of the year. Sainsburychipped in with more than 700 runs, but it was his bowling that turned thetide Hampshire’s way as he took 49 wickets at an average of 17.73. The onlyplayer to win championships with the county in both 1961 and 1973, he waswith Hampshire from 1954 until 1976. Sainsbury hit 1,000 runs in a seasonsix times and took 100 wickets in a season twice. After hanging up hiswell-worn boots, he became Hampshire coach from 1977 until 1991, and has nowretired to the golf course.

11 Richard GilliatLike many good captains, Gilliat was slightly aloof but well respected. Hisstrongest ability was his tactical awareness and a penchant for getting thebest out of his players. Although he had a strong batting line-up, winningthe championship title required bowling teams out twice in three days, andGilliat’s use of his attack could not be faulted in 1973. He played forHampshire in 220 matches from 1966 until 1978 and captained the county from1971 until his retirement. Gilliat hit 1,000 runs in a season four times andcaptained Oxford University at cricket and football. He is deputy headmasterat Charterhouse school.

12 Barry RichardsHampshire followers would drool over a Richards century before lunch, andfor good reason. The South African was a stylish and technically correctbatsman whose brilliance at the crease was curtailed in the Test arena byapartheid. However, he showed that black and white could mix by forming aformidable opening partnership with Greenidge. Richards played in only fourTests for South Africa, but enjoyed a batting average of 72.57. He was chiefexecutive at Queensland and lives in Perth, Western Australia. He is atelevision commentator and writes a newspaper column.

13 Bob StephensonThe Hampshire wicketkeeper started his career at Derbyshire before moving toSouthampton in 1969. Played in 263 games for the county and was captain in1979, his penultimate season. He ran a sports shop specialising in shootingand fishing and is sports coach at Twyford school near Winchester.

Brian Luckhurst, the former Kent and England batsman, has been appointed Kent’s president for 2004. Luckhurst, 64, scored more than 22,000 first-class runs for the club between 1959 to 1985.He played 21 Tests for England between 1970 and 1975, and averaged just over 36, scoring four centuries including a top score of 131 against Australia at Perth in only his second Test.Robert Neame, the current club president, said, “He has been a great ambassador for the club. I wish him every success in the year ahead."

Close India 650 for 5 (Tendulkar 220*, Laxman 178; Gillespie 3-112) v Australia
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It could not have been a better day for India. Sachin Tendulkar made 220 not out, his third Test double-century and his 32nd hundred, and added 353 assured runs with VVS Laxman (178) in a partnership that ground out any chances of an Australian win. India finished the third day on 650 for 5, a total that effectively ensured that they would not lose this match, and would keep the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Steve Waugh, playing his last Test, looked more and more forlorn as the day went on, out of ideas on how to turn the match around, as two men who have tormented Australia so often in the past put together an exhibition of masterful batting.India seized the momentum early in the morning, as Laxman and Tendulkar smashed Brett Lee for seven fours in three overs to hit him out of the attack. Laxman hit five of these, with wristy flicks and elegant drives that evoked memories of the last time he played at Sydney, when he smashed a Stan McCabesque 167. Having got the day off to a blazing start, though, the batsmen then focussed on careful consolidation, playing the bowling on its merit.Laxman’s innings was all sense and sensuousness, with swathes of studied watchfulness punctuated by passages of dazzling brilliance. He caressed balls that pitched outside off through the leg side with the most delicate flicks of the wrist; he cut and drove on both front and back foot with flowing grace; and yet, there was no risk in his batting. His shotmaking was judicious, while his strokeplay was magisterial.

At the other end, another master. Tendulkar did not destroy the bowling today as much as he allowed it to disintegrate. He played a solid compact game, clearly determined to make sure that the errors of Melbourne were not repeated, when India had frittered away a fine start. He was outscored by Laxman in the morning session – he began the day on 73 to Laxman’s 29, and reached his 100 when Laxman was in his 80s – but did not let that bother him, and in fact, walked down the pitch a couple of times when it seemed that Laxman was shifting gears, to caution him. He did put away the bad balls, and played quite a few of his staple straight-drives and back-foot punches, but he batted largely within himself, giving respect to a lot of balls he might, in his younger days, have tried to put away. Instead of going to the bowlers, he made them come at him, strain themselves for extra effort, and in the process, reveal their inadequacies.There was little the bowlers could do. Lee was off rhythm, not getting his length right in any of his spells, bowling either too short or too full. Jason Gillespie and Nathan Bracken were accurate but never hostile, while Stuart McGill imparted a lot of spin off the pitch without ever looking likely to take a wicket. He bowled plenty of balls to Laxman on just the length outside off which had induced edges from him in his two innings at Melbourne, but there were no reflexive prods from Laxman, who got into line, watched the ball till the last possible moment and let it go if it was spinning away, as it usually was.India did not accelerate as the last session began, which indicated that they did not intend to declare towards the end of the day, but to bat on, just as Australia had done against England at Headingley in 1993. As Gideon Haigh recounted in a recent piece in Wisden Asia Cricket, Allan Border, then captain, had famously told Steve Waugh that he wanted to “cause further mental and physical disintegration”. Here, the Australians began to disintegrate after tea – at least MacGill did, dropping Tendulkar on 149 and Laxman on 177.The second new ball finally got Australia the long awaited breakthrough, as Laxman was bowled for 178 through the gate by an incutter from Gillespie (547 for 4). Rahul Dravid had been lbw to a similar incutter the previous day, and Gillespie had a couple of lbw shouts against Tendulkar, who shrugged off these aberrant moments and moved on fluidly towards his double-century. He timed the ball beautifully in the last session, and one shot that stood out, and that he played repeatedly, was the wristy on-drive for four between midwicket and long-on.Sourav Ganguly made an aggressive 16, off 11 balls, before being yorked by Lee (570 for 5), and then Parthiv Patel took over. Patel, astonishingly, dominated an 80-run partnership with Tendulkar, making 45 off 40 balls, including seven crisply struck boundaries. Although many of these were off MacGill and Simon Katich at the tail of the day, it showcased his potential as a batsman.Tendulkar, meanwhile, moved on to his highest Test score, concentrating hard, running harder, all the way till the last ball of the day. It was not just the quantity of his runs that made this a career highlight; it was also the import of the occasion, with India all set up for an away series win against the best side in the world. It was, of course, the farewell Test of another modern great, wearing a baggy green cap. But Steve Waugh has never been a man for sentimentality, and he, of all people, will appreciate what India have accomplished so far.

Canterbury 215 (Fulton 90, Wiseman 65, Orchard 5-10) and 136 for 3 (Stewart 78) trail Northern Districts 434 by 83 runs
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The weather may turn out to be be Canterbury’s ally in the race for a place in the State Championship final. While nearly a full day was possible at Gisborne, Wellington and New Plymouth were subjected to the heavy rain that hit most of the North Island. If no further play is possible in the other two games, Canterbury will hang on by their finger nails, with the knowledge that they will have to beat Wellington outright to claim the title.Canterbury will also need to put up a better show than they produced after being asked to follow on. Peter Fulton’s innings ended on 90, soon after the resumption, while Paul Wiseman scored 65 after 231 minutes of graft. But he became the first of the victims who were involved in a hat-trick by Mark Orchard. It was only the fourth occasion in ND’s 51-year history that a hat-trick had been achieved, as Orchard finished with superb figures of 5 for 10.In their second innings, Canterbury lost two early wickets, including Fulton for a duck, but then recovered to reach 136 for 3 at stumps. Shanan Stewart (78) fell towards the end of the day after a 111-run partnership with Gary Stead (39 not out). However, Canterbury were still 83 runs behind ND’s first innings total.Otago 154 for 2 (Gaffaney 69) trail Wellington 482 for 9 dec (Walker 126, Nevin 124*) by 328 runs
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Central Districts 268 trail Auckland 316 by 48 runs
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India 675 for 5 dec (Sehwag 309, Tendulkar 194*, Yuvraj 59) beat Pakistan 407 (Hameed 91, Inzamam 77, Pathan 4-100) and 216 (Youhana 112, Kumble 6-72) by an innings and 52 runs
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It took India just 12 balls on the final morning to put the lid on their historicmaiden Test win in Pakistan. If Rahul Dravid, leading the side in Sourav Ganguly’s absence, had sat down and written a script for his dream Test match, it would have been exactly as this one played out. Pakistan were bowled out for 216 after following on, and India won by an innings and 52 runs. After 52 years of India-Pakistan encounters, 49 years after India first toured Pakistan, they could finally savour the sweet taste of victory here.And it was sweet. For the team had come together spectacularly over four days and a bit. When the final wicket fell, every member of the team rushed towards the stumps at both ends. Within minutes only the two stumps that housed cameras were left standing. Instinctively the team gathered in a huddle and began to jump up and down, unable to contain their joy. The huddle, which has become a feature of Indian cricket in recent times, was on display again. Some consider it to be an ostentatious display of team spirit and unity, but at the moment it’s working for India.But, winning a Test is not merely about huddles. It’s about sticking to a plan over a period of time and delivering the goods. For India Anil Kumble and Irfan Pathan did just that over two innings on a wicket that had nothing in it for the bowlers. And it was fitting that this pair bowled the last two overs of the match.Kumble began the proceedings on the final day, and bowled from around the wicket in an attempt to exploit the rough created by the fast bowlers’ follow-throughs. Yousuf Youhana played out the over safely, and stole a single off the last ball to retain the strike. Pathan was given the ball to send down the second over and he continued to bend his back and put in maximum effort. Youhana struck one gorgeous boundary back down the pitch, and just for a moment it appeared as though he was prepared to go after the bowling.Pathan then banged the fifth ball in short and Youhana swayed out of the way. Pathan repeated the exercise with the last ball and this time Youhana (112) had to play a shot in order to try for a single to keep the strike. He miscued his pull shot, and Dravid called early to get under the catch that sealed India’s win .This win is all the more significant as it comes in the first Test of a series. India have won solitary Tests in Dhaka, Bulawayo, Kandy, Port of Spain, Leeds and Adelaide before this one in Multan, but none of those wins, barring the one-off Test against Bangladesh, have resulted in series victories. This triumph gives India an excellent chance of winning a series overseas.