Batting meltdown but Redbacks beat Tigers & gain place on international T20 stage

South Australia have won a place in the T20 Champions League and the right to host the Big Bash final. .

They did so by beating Tasmania 131 (18 ov) to 9/108 (20 ov) in a low scoring match, one in which their batting after a promising start collapsed losing 6/4 (that's 6 wickets for 4 runs) precipitated by a hat trick (nos 6,7 & 8) by Rana Naved-ul-Hasan.

Fortunately the Redbacks bowlers once again rose to the challenge: Shaun Tait took wickets from the first two balls of the Tasmanian innings and Aaron O'Brien, Dan Christian and Shahid Afridi maintained sufficient pressure to keep the Tigers well and truly caged, even they didn't undergo a Redbacks type meltdown.

Now there's one more minor round game to play in the Big Bash comp followed by the final at home then, whatever happens from now on, off to India. T20 may not be my preferred form of the game (though I did go to the 91 run trouncing of Victoria last week ) but you can be sure I'll be, like many other South Australians, barracking for the Redbacks as they take those next steps.

Testfest: India win, Australia gain upper hand, Pakistan regroup

At Kanpur India completed an emphatic victory over Sri Lanka

At the Gabba on D2 the natural order of 2000s Test cricket things was restored as Australia pulled ahead by batting on to 8/480 dec and then taking five West Indies wickets for only 134.

At Dunedin on D4 Pakistan fought back against NZ with the ball to leave the match tantalisingly poised.

PS In Hobart the Tasmania v South Australia Sheffield Shield match was drawn after rain intervened.

Weather bleak, cricket not

Yesterday, I braved the bleak conditions and went to the Adelaide Oval for a short time to watch SA pursue, with some relish, Tasmania's modest first innings 236. James Smith made a fluent 116/189b while in the last session with the lights on Mark Cosgrove looked in extremely good touch for 46*/72b as his team reached 4/225.

The photo, taken from the Chappell Stands, shows the progress of the Oval redevelopment.

Scorecard

Domestic interlude #2

Tasmania 5/277 [50 overs] (T Paine 115, M Dighton 44, N Adcock 3/50) defeated South Australia 156 [39.2 overs] (X Doherty 3/21) by 121 runs with 10.4 overs to spare at Adelaide Oval: Ford Ranger one day interstate competition.

I went to the game with a friend who is visiting from the UK. Fortunately for him and the other spectators Tasmania won the toss , batted and proceeded to compile a handy but far from ungettable 5/277 from their 50 overs.

Tim Paine's 115 was the backbone of the innings, but everyone who went to the crease chipped in (the lowest score was George Bailey's 16). I thought that Paine was a tad slow until the ground announcer read out his strike rate: 115 from 130 balls. He was unobtrusively good: I could only quibble about a couple of poorly executed reverse sweeps and a ball or two's nervousness in the 90s.

The Redbacks pace attack lacked penetration and, in the closing overs, accuracy. Nathan Adcock bowled his offspin intelligently to check the scoring and take three wickets, all bowled, in the middle overs when the Tigers looked like breaking away. Dan Cullen also did well, without being as threatening as his captain.

I was looking forward to a hard fought contest, but was bitterly disappointed.

SA began rapidly (and rashly) in what always looked like a futile quest for bonus points which would keep their hopes of playing in the final alive. Only Ben Hilfenhaus was put to the sword (4-0-38-1) but he did at least make the initial breakthrough: Matthew Elliott in his final game caught for 15/14b. 36 for the first wicket was the highest partnership of the innings. What followed was, with some exceptions (a Callum Ferguson off drive comes to mind), a chronicle of ineptitude. Yes, there was some good bowling, especially from Xavier Doherty (10-1-21-3), but how can three run outs and a pub cricket style stumping be explained?

Embarrassing, unfocused... I'll say no more about the Redbacks, but the Tigers deserve praise. They have a young, keen and active team: their fielding (apart from captain Dan Marsh) was very good and their body language exuded confidence. My only criticism was that Marsh bowled himself too much: sure Doherty was doing a good job at the other end but SA were never going to win after Adcock was out for a scratchy 2 making it 6/85 (albeit in 15.4 overs). IMO Marsh should have given
his frontline bowlers a crack at the tail. Don't get me wrong: Marsh is no passenger, and seems to have both the respect of his players and a good grasp of tactics. He is the team's senior pro and is approaching, if he's not already been awarded, elder statesman status.

For their efforts the Tigers were rewarded with a bonus point, which they deserved. They now look like hosting the FR cup final. On today's performance they deserve to win it, and several of their players deserve to come to the notice of the Australian selectors.

Scorecard.

Cricinfo Bulletin.

Domestic interlude

South Australia 344 and 9/318 dec drew with Tasmania 383 and 8/232: Pura Cup at Adelaide. Tasmania 2 pts, SA nil.

This afternoon I went to the Adelaide Oval to watch Tasmania, who had led on the first innings, chase 280 from 52 overs to secure outright points.

The Tigers lost two early wickets before George Bailey and Michael Di Venuto steadied the ship and prepared the ground for a possible late overs charge. They slowly accelerated the pace, aided by some indifferent SA bowling and fielding. Jason Gillespie reduced his pace and had the keeper up at the stumps for several overs - see photo on left -and had Bailey lbw.

Soon afterwards Dan Cullen had Di Venuto, who had batted well despite being missed off a sitter at midwicket when he was 50, caught at long off. Next ball Gillespie, now off his long run, had Luke Butterworth caught behind.

At 5/153 from 32.1 overs it looked as if the Tasmanians would concentrate on saving the game but Dan Marsh and Tim Paine, who had done so well together in the first innings, added 64 in 65 balls as the Redbacks attack wilted. As so often happens in such situations a run out turned the game around, when Callum Ferguson's throw cut off Marsh for 41/43b. 6/217 became 7/220 when Paine hit a Ryan Harris full toss to his namesake Daniel, who took a good catch.

At this point Tasmania needed 60 from 58 balls with the tail exposed, ie SA had the upper hand. Yet strangely they didn't press the point hard enough. Cullen took a further wicket but both he and Ryan Harris weren't able to break through again, partly because of the batsmen's defensiveness, partly because of their own waywardness (each bowled a wide in the last 4 overs) and partly because of some timid captaincy from Graham Manou, who didn't crowd the bat until the last couple of overs. Team selection could also have had a bearing on the tactics: Cullen Bailey's legspin might have helped to prise out the tailenders.

The draw has snuffed out whatever chance the Redbacks may have had of reaching the Pura Cup final. Apparently it is still possible for the Tigers to do so. I didn't watch enough of the game to assess their chances, but on today's evidence they are a competitive side, albeit one with a couple of modest performers with the bat. I'll reserve my judgment about the Redbacks, who are on course to complete yet another disappointing first class season, despite some outstanding individual performances, eg Ryan Harris' 9/171 and two thirties with the bat in this game, and a couple of good team ones.

Scorecard

Cricinfo Bulletin

Congratulations Tasmania: well deserved winners of Pura Cup

Tasmania, which had progressively strengthened its hold on the game over the preceding two days, today administered the coup de grace to New South Wales and deservedly won its first ever Pura Cup/ Sheffield Shield at the 25th attempt. The Blues lost two early wickets, including that of Phil Jaques, and thereafter didn't offer much resistance, particularly to Ben Hilfenhaus (4/22) and Damien Wright's(5/13) bowling, and were all out for 149, leaving the Tigers victors by a massive 421 runs.

Congratulations Tasmania!

Scorecard.

Tasmania deservedly within sight of trophy: Pura Cup final Day 4

Today Tasmania exceeded perhaps even its own expectations and worked itself into a position from where it is inconceivable that it will lose, and quite likely that it will win, against New South Wales. The other possibility, a draw, will also deservedly give it the Pura Cup/ Sheffield Shield for the first time, a considerable achievement for the state team with the smallest player pool (which has also produced the current best batter in world cricket).

Overnight Tasmania were 6/203, a lead of 313. As I said yesterday, they were on top but not home and hosed. Today it took the NSW bowlers almost all day to take the last four wickets, and in doing so conceded another 257 runs.

The heroes were the same three who had pulled the first innings up by its bootstraps: Luke Butterworth, not content with his first innings maiden fifty, topped that with 106, his maiden century; Sean Clingleffer who made his first century for several seasons; and Damien Wright, a valuable 47 which took his match aggregate beyond a hundred.

The match has been well supported by the locals: more than 14,000 attended the first three days. I won't be surprised if that number is exceeded tomorrow, when NSW 0/3 after one over tonight, try to bat out the 90 (why not 96?) overs remaining.

A comment on online coverage.

Despite what I've said before, Cricket Australia's commentary doesn't hold a candle to Cricinfo's.
Compare how each described the first over of Tasmania's second innings.

Cricket Australia

2007-03-21 11:06:56	Over 0.2: Bollinger to Paine: FOUR! driven square of the wicket, off the mark with a lovely shot
2007-03-21 11:05:05	A bit of a delay as the Blues are waiting to see who will take strike, it's Paine so Bollinger grabs the ball

[When play is in progress the last five overs are shown in scorebook format, ie for this over .4...; once play stops so do the details.]


Cricinfo

0.1	Bollinger to Paine, no run, left outside off
0.2	Bollinger to Paine, FOUR, shot, positive cricket from the out-of-form Paine, not going to shoulder arms this innings, he blasts a cover drive away for confidence-building funs. And runs
0.3	Bollinger to Paine, no run, left
0.4	Bollinger to Paine, no run
0.5	Bollinger to Paine, no run
0.6	Bollinger to Paine, no run, bouncer, under it ... well navigated by Paine
End of over 1 (4 runs) - Tasmania 4/0 TD Paine 4* (6b 1x4) DE Bollinger 1-0-4-0 MJ Di Venuto 0* (0b)

Cricinfo's commentary is a bit quirky for some tastes perhaps, but it gives more details not only of each ball and also summarises each day and session using its well established house style.

Tasmania in the better, but still not winning, position: Pura Cup final Day 3

At the end of the third day's play of a hard fought Pura Cup final Tasmania (340 and 6/203) lead NSW (230) by 313 runs with 4 wickets in hand. On paper this gives them the advantage, but they'll be looking, especially after NSW's second innings revival in the previous match at Hobart, to extend their lead as far as possible. 350 would be good, 400 better.

Scorecard.

Advantage Tasmania: Pura Cup final Day 2

On Day 2 of the final, Tasmania's bowlers pulled NSW back after they reached 137 for the loss of only two wickets. Domenic Thornely was out at that point for a watchful 41. From there the Blues found it hard to survive against the Tigers' pace attack. They finished the day on 8/207, a long way short of being competitive, but , as the last game between the two sides showed, too early to write them off completely.

Scorecard.

Tasmania struggle but are revived by lower order: Pura Cup final Day 1

At Hobart today Tasmania won the toss, batted, collapsed to 5/90 in the face of some hostile NSW pace bowling, especially from Doug Bollinger, who took his first ever first class five wicket haul (which, as I was impressed with his bowling against SA earlier in the season, comes as a surprise to me).

Fortunately for at least the short term aspirations of the Tasmanians, their middle and lower order batting effected a revival of sorts, but Damien Wright (57 no ) and Luke Butterworth (40 no) will need to add more to their current 96 run partnership, and also to bowl well if the Blues are not to run rampant in the remaining four days (or as long as it takes to achieve a result).

Scorecard.

Gripe: Cricket Australia's online "live" commentary was very poor, with only occasional balls (like one every two or three overs) being described. To check it out (if you're so inclined) follow the links from here.

Tasmania v NSW final

The last first class match of Australian season 2006-2007, the Pura Cup final between Tasmania and NSW, begins tomorrow in Hobart.

According to Cricket Australia's preview the bookmakers have Tasmania favourites to win the trophy, probably because (1) a draw will suffice (there are no points for a first innings win), (2) Tasmania defeated the Blues last week, (3) Tasmania's form this season has been outstanding and (4) the match is being played at Hobart.

That said, both Cricket Australia and Cricinfo suggest some reasons why NSW is unlikely to go down without a fight, including (1) they have a solid tradition of success behind them, including success in finals played away from home, (2) they have better players, as exemplified by their four ( effectively three as Brad Haddin is in the World Cup squad), as opposed to the Tigers' one, reps in the ACA Pura Cup team of the season and (3) a suggestion that the Tigers might, as has happened on the three previous occasions when they've contested finals, be overawed by the situation and play below their best.

I've just looked at the Hobart forecast for the next few days: there is some chance of rain which, if it eventuates, will help Tasmania's cause by delaying matters. The Tigers will be the sentimental favourites, and rightly so, yet all but the youngest Australian cricket followers will remember how long it took for Queensland, despite fielding very strong teams, to break through and win the Sheffield Shield for the first time. I think that Tasmania should win because they've played consistently well throughout the year.

PS Apart from the Fox Sports TV direct broadcast a streamed radio commentary provided by the ABC will be available online through Cricket Australia's website http://cricket.com.au.