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Round two of the State Championship gets underway tomorrow and the rampaging Canterbury side will be looking to put a significant performance together against Northern Districts to get their season off to the perfect start.Both sides will suffer when the national side is chosen, and points gained at this early stage of the summer when the sides are at close to full strength could come in very handy further down the line.But there are other reasons for Canterbury to want to do well.All-rounder Chris Cairns goes into the match on 599 first-class wickets, Chris Harris will be playing his 100th first-class match and wicket-keeper Gareth Hopkins who is on 98 first-class dismissals.More importantly though is the quality time available to players who are prospective Test candidates for the New Zealand team to be named at the weekend.With that in mind Daryl Tuffey will be looking for a similar sort of return for Northern Districts that he had at the Village Green last year. That was the effort that saw him recalled to the Test team, with such outstanding effect in New Zealand’s victory over England at Eden Park.Should Ian Butler pass the fitness test he has to do before the match, it will be an important trial for him to show he is ready to be considered for Test play.Daniel Vettori will be looking too, to get more overs under his belt, the more the merrier probably.Equally, Chris Martin and Shane Bond will be wanting to have plenty of bowling too.In many ways this game is perfectly placed coming as it does before the Test. Two strong teams doing battle on what is expected to be a good pitch at Rangiora, should make for a tight contest.The other match of the round, between Auckland and Wellington at Eden Park’s outer oval, should be an equally absorbing contest.The home team’s batting, especially the top order, will be well tested by the highly impressive Wellington attack which did so well against Central Districts in the first round.Another good performance by left-armer James Franklin could make Test considerations very interesting while Mark Richardson, Lou Vincent and Matt Horne, all prospective Test batsmen will at least have the chance to work out against some top quality bowling.Then there’s the natural rivalry between these two sides to consider. It is shaping as one of the more intense rounds of the competition.

Former England captain Michael Atherton has backed Mark Butcher to be the next captain of the national team. The present incumbent, Nasser Hussain, recently indicated that he intends to stay in the job for another year.Although Marcus Trescothick, 26, the current vice-captain, and Michael Vaughan, 27, have both been mentioned as likely candidates, Atherton believes they should extend their success as England’s opening batsmen while Butcher, 30, takes the reins.”It looks like it is out of those three and I think the bookies’ favourite isTrescothick. My own personal choice would be Mark Butcher, I just think he has got a good cricket brain,” said Atherton.The Surrey left-hander made a successful return to international cricket against Australia last summer, crowned by his memorable, match-winning 173 not out against Australia at Headingley. He currently averages 32.87 in Tests.”He’s in prime form, old enough to have seen some of the vagaries of the gameand experienced some of the ups and downs,” Atherton told a Sports Writers’Association lunch in central London. “I would like Trescothick and Vaughan to flourish at the top of the order. They should be left to concentrate on that.””Butch has been through a bad run of form and left out of the team, he’s seenthings outside of the game which have affected his life and he’s come through.”Atherton also believes that if Graham Thorpe is fit, focused and available, he should be included in the squad for this winter’s Ashes series in Australia.Thorpe, 33, is taking a break from all cricket to spend more time with his young children, but has been asked to tell the selectors whether he is available for the Australian tour this week.”He is still the best player in the team and the one the Australians rate themost,” said Atherton. “They think of him as being our only world-class player.If he is fit and half-focused he is not right, I think you take him if he isfully focused. If Graham is fit he is an automatic pick for the selectors.”Of Darren Gough, who is aiming to prove his complete recovery from a troublesome knee injury, Atherton said: “If he is anywhere near fit they can take him and rely on back-up from the academy. It will be good for him if he can get fully fit over the next month and I think the selectors will take a risk on him.”Although England lost 4-1 last summer when injuries undermined their challenge, Atherton believes their chances this winter are better.”I think we will do rather better than people expect, I’ve played under Duncan Fletcher and been very impressed by what he has done as coach. The team is definitely moving in the right direction.”Fletcher will begin talks about a new contract with the England and Wales Cricket Board next Monday.”I hold him in the highest regard and I hope the ECB can capture his servicesfor the foreseeable future,” said Atherton. “They should go with what Duncan Fletcher wants because he’s an extremely clear-sighted coach with a long-term vision. I think they should give him his hand and let him do what he wants, I amvery impressed by his handling of the team.”

The crowds have been disappointing so far in the ICC Champions Trophy but on Friday afternoon even the streets outside Premadasa International Stadium will be overflowing. Match tickets are already exchanging hands for five times their face value. No one wants to miss the Sri Lanka-Australia semi-final. In a country that adores one-day cricket, this is the biggest game since the Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup final.Sri Lanka felt an equal weight of expectation on their shoulders in thetournament curtain raiser against Pakistan, when defeat would have forced upon them the humiliation of an early exit. Instead of wilting under the pressure they drew inspiration from the occasion and skipper Sanath Jayasuriya hopes that his players will react similarly in tomorrow’s game."This is the biggest game we have had for a long time," says Jayasuriya, dripping with sweat after the team’s final practice session. "The whole of Sri Lanka is following this match, hoping that we will win. But we must not put ourselves under too much pressure – we have to treat it like any other game."Jayasuriya is under no illusions as to the enormity of the challenge posed by Australia, even if Sri Lanka has the advantage of home conditions. Ricky Ponting’s side have emerged from a winter’s break in scintillating form, brushing aside their opponents with contemptuous ease."We are playing the best team in the world tomorrow – it is going to be very tough," admits Jayasuriya. "The boys know that it’s not going to be easy but they are looking forward to the game. We are not going to roll over just because this is Australia – we are going to give them a hard time."He wants the players to concentrate on the basics: "We have to carry ondoing the things that we have been doing well and stick to the basics. But to win against such a good side as Australia we are going to have to perform in all three departments."But the key will be the front-end of both innings: "We have to keep ourwickets intact during the first 15 overs. They have three of the best fast bowlers in the world and we have to be more cautious. But if there is anything loose then we must play our natural game."Jayasuriya comes into the game still suffering considerable pain from adislocated shoulder – an injury that may now require surgery – with aformidable run of form having scored 36, 102*, 71, 46, 97, 49 and 36 in his last seven games. He is the single most important reason for the turnaround in Sri Lankan fortunes and there may be concerns that he is due a failure.He just wants to prepare in the same manner, focusing on the present rather than the past: "I am not putting myself under unnecessary pressure to perform again. The important thing is to prepare for the game as I have been before."Coach Dav Whatmore admits the captain’s contribution has been immense but believes that the other batsmen will stand up to be counted when heeventually fails. "His performances have been wonderful recently and the knock-on effect is self-evident," says Whatmore. "But there have been others that have also contributed and we are prepared for the eventuality of Sanath not getting runs. We feel confident enough with the batsmen that we have to do a repair job if he fails."But Whatmore is concerned about the Australian batting, particularly the openers: "If you look at the other end both openers are capable of scoring big hundreds. They have been the catalyst for recent victories."Thus, restraining Australia’s powerful batting line-up has become the focus of Sri Lanka’s strategic planning. The selectors and management are yet to agree on the best course of action but it is clear that they have identified spin as their trump card on the slow, turning Premadasa pitch – the only question is how many do they play.Sri Lanka last played Australia at the same venue during the AIWA Cupstraight after the 1999 World Cup. During the final of that tournament Sri Lanka played just two fast bowlers, opening the bowling with the part-time off-breaks of Russel Arnold and bowling 35 overs of spin in all. Australia were bowled out for 202 and the hosts cruised to a comfortable eight wicket win.And once again the management are considering dropping a fast bowler toprovide the luxury of three specialist spinners. With Australia having four left-handers in their top six and a perceived weakness against off-spin, Kumar Dharmasena is certain to play alongside Muttiah Muralitharan.The dilemma is then whether to play leg-spinner Upul Chandana as well. If they do then either Dilhara Fernando or Pulasthi Gunaratne must step down. The fact that Fernando, despite being Sri Lanka’s most penetrative pace bowler, struggles with the new ball means that he is the most likely to be discarded.The case is more compelling when one considers extra depth provided byhaving both Dharmasena and Chandana in the lower middle order. With Chaminda Vaas they would bat down to number nine.Sri Lanka:Sanath Jayasuriya (capt), Marvan Atapattu, Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Aravinda de Silva, Russel Arnold, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Chandana, Kumar Dharmasena, Chaminda Vaas, Hasantha Fernando, Dilhara Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Pulasthi Gunaratne.

Somerset finished the first day at Edgbaston 109 behind Warwickshire with seven wickets in hand, but will have to do without the services of strike bowler Richard Johnson for the rest of the match, after he left the field early on during the morning with a hamstring injury.After winning the toss Warwickshire batted first, and looked like being dismissed cheaply before Graham Wagg ( 42 not out) and Melvyn Betts (23) came to the rescue by putting on 65 for the ninth wicket to enable their team to reach 230 all out.The pick of the Somerset bowlers was Steffan Jones, who on his return to the championship scene ended with 4 for 46 from his 16.1 overs.The Cidermen’s reply got off to the worst possible of starts when Piran Holloway was dismissed without any score on the board, and six runs later his opening partner Matt Wood followed him back into the pavilion.Mike Burns and Peter Bowler then steadied the Somerset innings, sharing a third wicket partnership of 104 before the acting captain was bowled by Duggie Brown for 54.At the close of play Peter Bowler remained unbeaten on 54, with night watchman Steffan Jones yet to score as Somerset had reached 121 for 3 off 35 overs.Afterwards Kevin Shine told me: "It was a good effort from all of the boys today, especially after losing one of our big guns early on. Steffan bowled well today, but I’m pleased with them all, they all knuckled down well after losing Johnno."He continued: "When we batted Mike Burns and Peter Bowler shared an important partnership to put us in a good position, and tomorrow we will be looking to get a lead."

Bradley Hodge, Durham’s overseas signing brought in to replace Martin Love,has broken his thumb during a training session less than a week after hisarrival from Australia.Bradley was bowling in a practice session in the nets the day before the NULgame against Notts when he was hit on the thumb.Brad will see a specialist tomorrow, but is likely to be out of action untilthe end of August.Chairman Bill Midgley said: “The Club is looking at the possibility of areplacement, but at this late stage in the season, the options forreplacements is limited.”

The star-studded Mohammedan Sporting Club faced their first defeat in Premier League against Victoria Sporting Club in BNS today. Victoria Sporting secured full points by beating their mighty rivals by 21 runs.Minhajul Abedin got the initial luck when he won the toss and sent Victoria to bat first. Despite losing two wickets at quick succession Jahangir Alam and Nuruzzaman started to consolidate the innings. The put on 28 runs in the third wicket before Jahangir (32), the man-in-form, imprudently got himself run-out. Rashed Hanif, the younger brother of Amir Hanif, made a big mark with the bat with the assistance he received from his captain Khaled Masud and Alok Kapali.Rashed baffled all efforts and plans made by the Mohammedan bowlers, who were frantically trying to get rid of him. The Pakistani hammered 8 fours and 3 sparkling sixes all the way through his brilliant knock (114). Khaled Masud (20) and leg spinner Kapali (33) gave him good support from the other end. Victoria threw a good challenge by ending up with 258 for 6 after 50 overs.Mohammedan’s regular Haq openers, Rashedul and Ehsanul, made a quiet but steady start as they carried off an 88-run partnership from 17.3 overs. Rashed Hanif, after a brilliant show with the bat, came up good with ball too as he broke the opening stand removing Rashedul Haq (41).Ehsanul (45) wretchedly became a run-out victim after a while when he attempted to make an easy single into a tight two. Sri Lankan star Hashan Tilkaratne went in with one-down Habibul Bashar and built a 37-run stand between them. Bashar was in the best of his forms and they both looked quite comfortable against the Victoria spinners. The chipped in with singles, twos and occasional boundaries before Saiful Islam was brought on from the pavilion end.This was a judicious decision made by Khaled Masud as Manjurul Islam and Rashed Hanif were slowly becoming ineffective. Right arm medium pacer Saiful troubled both Bashar and Tilkaratne a lot by bowling in a fixed line and length. Offie Masudur Rahman came to bowl at the other end and removed danger man Habibul Bashar for 18. Saiful, who was slowly making Tilkaratne impatient, soon got his precious wicket. The left-hander was clean bowled while attempting to play the bowler across the line only to miss it completely. Tilkaratne (playing in place of Tikolo today) made 23 off 38 balls.Saiful Islam trapped Sanwar Hossain lbw for naught in the very next ball, which seemed to be the turning point of the match. The next batsmen from the front-tail could hardly do anything, as they didn’t have too many overs left to play with a cool head. Mohammedan lost their 7th wicket with the score on 160.Wicket keeper Anwar Hossain set up a blasting knock of 34 off just 34 balls that included 4 boundaries but it was already too late for Mohammedan to do any sort of miracle. At the end of they bunched up 237 for 9. The spinner trio Enamul, Rashed Hanif and Masudur Rahman rolled up wonderfully, claiming 2 wickets each. Rashed Hanif was adjudged the man-of-the-match without a shred of doubt.

March:
Cambridgeshire 269 (RJ Rollins 83, NT Gadsby 58, DG Wilson 50no).
Hertfordshire 53-2.Bovey Tracey:
Wiltshire 141 (PM Warren 5-16). Devon 91-3 (NA Folland 63no).Thame:
Shropshire 277-6 (MJ Marvell 141no). Oxfordshire 27-1.Dean Park, Bournemouth:
Dorset 272 (M Swarbrick 149; KE Cooper 5-57).
Herefordshire 86-1 (NW Round 50no).Grantham:
Lincolnshire 296-6 (JC Harrison 117, RWJ Howitt 64), Bedfordshire 32-1.

Central Zone, riding on Gagan Khoda’s unbeaten 246, piled on theagony for South Zone on the second day of their Duleep Trophymatch at the Bhausaheb Bandodkar Stadium in Goa on Friday. Resuming at178 for two, Central Zone lost only one wicket the whole daywhile amassing a total of 469 for three. This was in reply toSouth Zone’s first innings total of 141.Khoda was in his elements. He struck the ball crisply and showeddeep concentration and total determination. By close, the 26-year-old righthander from Rajasthan had faced 416 balls and hit 29 foursand five sixes. Khoda, who played in two ODIs against Bangladeshand Kenya in 1997-98, was at ease against the reputed South Zoneattack which included Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, SunilJoshi, Aashish Kapoor, Vijay Bhardwaj and Venkatapathi Raju.Khoda and the other overnight batsman Md Kaif took the score to282 before the latter was caught by wicketkeeper Naidu off Kapoorfor 69. He batted three hours, faced 179 balls and hit seven foursand a six. The third wicket partnership between Khoda and Kaifadded 176 runs off 57.3 overs. That was South Zone’s only successof the day for Khoda and Yere Goud then came together to sharean unbroken fourth wicket stand of 187 runs off 54.2 overs. Atstumps, Goud who got a century in the last match against champions NorthZone was on 75 compiled off 163 balls with eleven hits tothe ropes. South Zone who are already in arrears by 328 runsface another tiring day in the field on Saturday.

The Irish 14 man squad for the ICC trophy in Toronto has been announced. It is:

The sky might be falling in on the Australians ahead of the Cardiff Test, but Michael Clarke is determined to retain a positive outlook. On a day in which Brett Lee was ruled out of the first two Ashes Tests with an abdominal injury and Australia’s training session was curtailed by heavy showers, the vice-captain maintained that his side’s preparation for the Ashes series had been “spot on” and even compared the new-look squad to the great Australian teams of the past decade.The Australians had hoped to carry their momentum from Worcester into Cardiff, but encountered problems before the first training session at Sophia Gardens had even begun. By far the most serious development on Monday was Lee’s abdominal tear, sustained during the England Lions practice game, which will at the very least rule him out of the Cardiff and Lord’s Tests. Depressing, too, was the local weather, which severely interrupted Australia’s morning training session, but had cleared by the time Andrew Strauss’s men arrived at the ground.Despite the tourists’ trials and tribulations, Clarke adopted a brave face when addressing the media on Monday. “What we learned in South Africa was when we are at the top of our game, confident and playing good cricket we’re as good as any team I’ve been a part of for Australia,” Clarke said. “We certainly feel that if we’re at the top of our game we can beat any team in any conditions. I feel our preparation has been spot on. It’s just about, over the next couple of days, getting your head right and making sure you’re mentally ready for what’s going to be a wonderful series.”Mental preparedness aside, Australia’s most immediate priority will be to configure a new-look bowling line-up in the wake of Lee’s injury. Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle and Stuart Clark would appear to be certain starters, leaving Ben Hilfenhaus and Nathan Hauritz to duel for the final berth. Neither have overpowered in their tour matches to date.The Sophia Gardens wicket is expected to assist the spinners after day three, but Hauritz’s returns of 2 for 260 from 68.2 overs against Sussex and England Lions will have done little to inspire the confidence of selectors. Hilfenhaus, meanwhile, claimed three wickets on a flat Hove pitch last week – albeit at a cost of six runs per over in the second innings – and made a steady contribution to Australia’s recent series victory in South Africa, but whether that will guarantee him entry into the XI for the Cardiff Test remains uncertain.”I think the fond memories of (the) 2007 (Ashes series) and also our recent tour of South Africa … will hold us in really good stead for Wednesday and throughout this whole series,” said a defiant Clarke. “I’m very positive, I’m very confident that we can win this series. I’m confident we’re playing good cricket already and I think we will continue to improve throughout this tournament.”We’ve got our own identity. We proved that in South Africa. It’s nearly two years now since Warney and Glenn (McGrath) retired. It’s been a long time. It’s great they’re still spoken about because they are and will always be legends of cricket, but I think as a team we’re continuing to gel. We’ve performed well in South Africa and got to know each other very well.”Clarke, though, was wary of a resurgent England following their 2-0 home series victory over West Indies. Despite this ostensibly being a battle between the first and fifth on the ICC Test rankings, the Australian vice-captain is bracing for a tight contest.”I always say that England are a very hard team to play against, but they’re even harder in their own conditions,” he said. “They’re coming off some good cricket against the West Indies, they’ve got some confidence and I’m certain it’s going to be a wonderful series. I hope this series in similar to 2005, but I hope the results are a little bit different. I didn’t mind 2007 either. That was a nice result.”