One interesting drawn Test & several other high scoring games

At Napier New Zealand drew with Sri Lanka after rain intervened on the last day when the Black Caps were on track for victory. From what I saw of the series (quite a lot, as it was shown on Foxtel) a 1-1 result was a reasonable result. Both sides will be playing against Australia later this season: Pakistan here soon and NZ at home later. I can't see either of them causing much trouble unless several players, not just the superstars of this match (Daniel Vettori backing himself at no6 and delivering a century or Danish Kaneria with 7 wickets in the NZ innings), punch above their weight.

Elsewhere a high scoring ODI saw India 7/414 just hold off SrI Lanka 8/411. Who said the ODI was dying?

While I was posting this I watched South Australia beat Victoria in a high scoring Ford Ranger Cup ODD at the MCG. Mark Cosgrove and Chris Rogers, two players who are apparently not on the Australian selectors' shortlist for any form of the game, scored centuries for their respective teams. This match followed hard on the heels of the Sheffield Shield fixture where Victoria lost only 4 wickets chasing down 384 . South Australia once again omitted legspinner Cullen Bailey: he might have made the Bushrangers fight harder.

Another recent Sheffield Shield match worth noting was Tasmania's one wicket win over WA from the last ball of the match The Tigers scored 9/351 thanks to 152 from Ed Cowan, who is having a prolific, though barely acknowledged on the mainland, first class season.

And one more, this time from the New Zealand domestic comp, where Central Districts notched 1/445, thanks to a second innings opening partnership of 428 ( a NZ record) to beat Wellington by 9 wickets.