Not the Johnson of '09, but a fine imitation

To watch Mitchell Johnson zip the ball through at pace on a bouncy Potchefstroom pitch, to see him curve the ball just enough to trouble the batsmen, it was impossible not to think back to his tour of South Africa in early 2009. On that trip, Johnson was at times unplayable, his combination of aggression, speed and swing a menace to South Africa's strong batting line-up.

At the time, it seemed Johnson could have been anything. In the two and a half years since, he has been everything: hero, villain, leader, follower, superstar, nobody. Back then he was the spearhead, the new-ball star who had just demolished Graeme Smith's men - and his hand - in Australia.

A new-look Australian attack was being built around him, but within two years he was being fitted in around the rest of the bowling group. On the last day before his thirtieth birthday, Johnson showed that he can still deliver some of those same traits that made him a champion in 2009, with his effort against South Africa A.

There was a hint of his aggression, when he banged in a bouncer that JP Duminy couldn't escape, his bat fending the ball down accidentally. There were moments of swing, perhaps most impressively an inswinging yorker that ended the innings by bowling the No.11 Marchant de Lange. And there was speed that troubled both batsmen and the wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, who at least once failed to get his hands in position in time to collect Johnson's delivery.

It wasn't the Johnson of 2009, but it was a recognisable imitation. Admittedly, the conditions could hardly have been more helpful. Peter Siddle was equally difficult for the South Africans to handle, and Vernon Philander troubled Australia's batsmen later in the day. Australia went in without Pat Cummins and Ryan Harris, both of whom would have thrived on the surface.

"We could have played all five [fast bowlers]," Johnson said at the end of day on which he took 4 for 38. "It looked like a bit of a WACA wicket ... You could see how much bounce there was and how much carry, there were a few balls that really took off today. Fast bowlers always love seeing that.

"There was a little bit of up and down [bounce]. It seemed like there was a spot from the top end that if you hit it back of a length it just went through a little bit low and if you bowled a touch fuller it was jumping. Especially with the newer ball it was doing that more so, and their boys did the same sort of thing, getting that bit of extra bounce as well."

Not that Johnson bowled with a very new ball. He hasn't had that job for some time: only three times in the past 18 months has he opened the bowling for his country in a Test. At first change he has been able to settle in to his rhythm without the pressure of being expected to curve the new ball like a hoop. And despite his love of South African conditions, it might not be something that changes on this tour.

"I'm happy to bowl wherever I'm needed for the team," he said. "I'd love to bowl with the new ball. If I get the opportunity to in the second innings I'll definitely put my hand up for it. I've bowled first change for a while now, especially in one-day cricket it's probably been my strong point. We'll wait and see.

"It didn't really swing as much with the new ball for myself. I got a couple to swing, but I found that it swung a little bit later on when I came on for my second spell. Peter Siddle said the same thing, he said it was swinging a little bit more as well. It's almost like English conditions, where you get the lacquer off the ball and get a nice shine on it, and it swings a bit more."

Johnson picked up two lbws in the top order, neither of which swung dramatically, and his delivery that bowled Robin Peterson was angled in to the left-hander. But Johnson is at his most dangerous when his variety surprises the batsmen, and that was the case on the first day in Potchefstroom.

Come the Cape Town Test, the conditions may not suit him quite as well, with a slower Newlands pitch likely. But he will love bowling at the Wanderers in the second Test. He took eight wickets in a Test there two and a half years ago and was Man of the Match, then ultimately Player of the Series.

He is not the same Mitchell Johnson that he was last time he visited South Africa, but he's performing a reasonable impersonation. For now, after his ups and many downs since the 2009 Ashes, the Australians will take that.

Guptill, Taylor put NZ in control on flat pitch

New Zealand 275 for 3 (Guptill 109, Taylor 76*, Williamson 49) v Zimbabwe
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details


Martin Guptill acknowledges the applause for his second Test century, Zimbabwe v New Zealand, only Test, Bulawayo, 1st day, November 1, 2011

Martin Guptill paced New Zealand's innings with a century but threw it away towards the end of the day 
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Matches: Zimbabwe v New Zealand at Bulawayo
Series/Tournaments: New Zealand tour of Zimbabwe
Teams: New Zealand | Zimbabwe


New Zealand's batsmen had the opportunity to dominate Zimbabwe on a lifeless Bulawayo surface but a cautious approach against restricting lines and fielders in run-saving positions limited their first day of Test cricket since January 2011 to a good one. With the bowling mostly as flat as the pitch, a gifted wicket in each session - including that of centurion Martin Guptill - let Zimbabwe escape from having a fruitless day, though they didn't help themselves by not taking the rare tough chances.


That New Zealand were three men down was due to Brendon McCullum's impatience, Kane Williamson's slowness in getting back into his crease and Guptill finding midwicket off a long hop. Ross Taylor and BJ Watling survived some close moments against the second new ball - the only time Zimbabwe's seamers created any sort of pressure - to end a solid, if unspectacular, day for their side.


Guptill and Taylor did not look like getting dislodged as they worked the bowling around in a 132-run stand for the third wicket, both men unwilling to do anything extravagant. Guptill batted with care, going without runs for prolonged periods as the Zimbabwe seamers bowled straight with either a short mid-off or short mid-on in place after lunch. With Ray Price bowling a leg-stump line from over the wicket, the onus was on New Zealand to either unsettle the bowling or make a mistake. They did neither, waiting for loose deliveries and putting them away.


After a quiet period, Guptill skipped out of the crease to loft Price inside-out over long-off for six to move to 99. A pulled boundary off a long hop gave him his second Test hundred but he was out soon after, pulling a similar one from Hamilton Masakadza straight to midwicket.


Guptill's dismissal was similar to the way his two team-mates had fallen before him. After Taylor opted to bat in friendly conditions, McCullum threw away the opportunity to make a big score when he dragged an attempted pull off Kyle Jarvis onto his stumps.


Williamson and Guptill carried on unfettered but Zimbabwe had another gift coming their way when Williamson was run-out after lunch in freakish fashion. He tried to avoid a throw to the wicketkeeper from the bowler Ray Price but ended up being just short of his crease as he dragged his foot back.


The placidity of the wicket was on display as early as the second over when consecutive deliveries from Njabulo Ncube - one of five debutants in the game - bounced in front of Regis Chakabva, keeping wicket as Tatenda Taibu played as a specialist batsman. Guptill soon warmed up with three fours in Jarvis' third over, the second of which flew on the up between backward point and gully.


Zimbabwe had a couple of chances against Guptill; once when a powerful drive off Price went through the bowler's hands at head height just before lunch and again when Price could not get down in time at short mid-on as a punch went through his legs. With the three fast bowlers failing to get anything out of the surface, Price bowled a lot of overs and even part-timers Masakadza and Malcolm Waller were pressed into action.


How easy it was for the batsmen was evident when Guptill just plonked his front foot out and smashed Price for a straight six. Williamson looked a lot more fluent than Guptill, using his feet to loft Price for consecutive boundaries and timing the ball into the gaps off the seamers till he became the second New Zealand batsman to give it away when no bowler looked like getting him out.


In his first Test as captain, Taylor batted safely, going hard only at the cut when offered width and driving pleasingly through the off side. He was fortunate when Chakabva missed a sharp diving chance down the leg side off the second new ball. Watling became the next man to be let off as stumps approached when neither of Price and Chakabva went for a thick edge off the persevering Jarvis as it flew between them.


On such an unresponsive pitch, the excellent over-rate was the only thing going for Zimbabwe as New Zealand dictated the flow of proceedings, albeit at a leisurely pace.

Eden curator has a dig at Dhoni's 'ugly wicket' remark

Kolkata, Oct 27 (IANS) Veteran curator Prabir Mukherjee hit back at Mahendra Singh Dhoni for terming the Eden Garden's wicket for the fifth cricket ODI against England 'ugly looking', asking how could the Indian captain then bat for so long and top score in the match.


'He knows good English. He has the liberty to express his views. But I would only say had the wicket been 'ugly', how is it that the opening batsmen of both sides did well? How is it that Dhoni himself played for so long,' septuagenarian Mukherjee told IANS.


Mukherjee said considering the fact that it was a virgin wicket and international matches are not played at Eden Gardens at this time of the year, the 22 yards did behave well.


'I did not see any problem. England bowled very well to take the Indian top order. Problem is one always wants to get the wicket of his choice. If one does not get it, then it's a bad wicket, though facts may be to the contrary,' he said.


Batting in the first session, Indian openers Gautam Gambhir and Ajinkya Rahane put on 80 runs following which India lost three wickets in quick succession before Dhoni blazed an unbeaten 75 to pilot India to 271/8.


In reply, England openers skipper Alastair Cook and Craig Kieswetter gave their team a sound start during a rollicking 129 run stand before England lost their way to the Indian spinners and folded for 175 to lose the match and finish on the wrong side of a 5-0 whitewash in the ODI series.


Dhoni, however, expressed his disappointment with the track at the post-match prize distribution ceremony, saying his team was fortunate to score 270-plus runs.


'If you see the wicket, you don't get the same kind of confidence. To some extent, it was a very ugly looking wicket. Once you are not really set, one ball can spin or keep low, the reverse swing the bowlers were getting in the afternoon, it was very difficult to score runs. We are fortunate to score 270-plus runs on a wicket like this.'

TIMELINE - Pakistan spot-fixing scandal

LONDON (Reuters) - Timeline of the Pakistan corruption scandal which resulted in former test captain Salman Butt and pace bowler Mohammad Asif being found guilty of corruption in a British criminal court on Tuesday. A third player, Mohammad Amir, pleaded guilty before the start of the trial.


Aug. 29 2010 - Police confiscate the trio's mobile phones after allegations in The News of the World that they had arranged for deliberate no-balls to be bowled in the fourth test against England at Lord's. Their agent, Mazhar Majeed, is arrested and released on bail.


Aug. 30 - Pakistan slump to the heaviest defeat in their test history, losing the series 3-1. Manager Yawar Saeed says the one-day series, involving two Twenty20 matches and five one-day internationals, will go ahead.


Sept. 1 - BoomBoom, official kit suppliers to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), announce they have suspended their commercial relationship with Amir and are reviewing their position with the board.


Sept. 2 - Saeed tells reporters before a warmup match against Somerset at Taunton that Butt, Amir and Asif will take no further part in the tour. The decision is welcomed by England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chairman Giles Clarke. The three players attend a meeting at the Pakistan High Commission in London. High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan tells reporters the trio had maintained their innocence but had asked the PCB to pull them out of the remainder of the tour because of the "mental torture" they had undergone.


Later in the day, the ICC release a statement saying the three players had been suspended under its anti-corruption code and face possible life bans.


Sept. 3 - The three are questioned separately by London police. ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat tells a news conference at Lord's that the sport faces its worst crisis since the 2000 match-fixing scandal which resulted in life bans for international captains Hansie Cronje (South Africa), Salim Malik (Pakistan) and Mohammad Azharuddin (India).


Sept. 4 - The News of the World quotes Pakistan opener Yasir Hameed as saying match-fixing was rife in the team. Hameed denies ever speaking to the Sunday tabloid. The newspaper also says a fourth, unidentified Pakistan player is being investigated.


Sept. 5 - Hameed attends a meeting at the Pakistan High Commission and afterward issues a statement saying he was duped into speaking to The News of the World.


Sept. 10 - Butt, Amir and Asif return home after agreeing to return to England if requested to help with the police investigation.


Sept. 14 - Police interview Pakistan pace bowler Wahab Riaz.


Sept. 18 - Lorgat issues a statement saying an investigation had been launched into the scoring pattern in Pakistan's innings in the third one-day international at the Oval on the previous day. Pakistan had won by 23 runs.


Sept. 20 - The ECB threaten legal action against PCB chairman Ijaz Butt after he suggests the England team had been bribed to lose at the Oval. Riaz and England batsman Jonathan Trott clash in the nets before play begins in the fourth one-day match at Lord's.


Sept. 23 - ECB say they will start immediate legal proceedings against Ijaz Butt unless he gives a "full and unreserved apology" for his allegations. Butt withdrew his allegations six days later.


Feb. 4 - Britain's Crown Prosecution Service charge Salman Butt, Asif, Amir and Majeed with conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments and with conspiracy to cheat.


Feb. 5 - Three-man ICC tribunal finds Salman Butt, Amir and Asif guilty of corruption. Butt is banned for 10 years, with five suspended, Asif for seven, with two suspended, and Amir for five.


Nov. 1 - Butt and Asif found guilty at Southwark Crown Court in London of "conspiracy to cheat" and "conspiracy to accept corrupt payments" for fixing part of a test match. It is later revealed Amir pleaded guilty before the start of the trial.

England End India Tour On Winning Note

England 121-4 (Pietersen 53) beat
India 120-9 (Raina 39) by six wickets
Twenty20 International, Kolkata
Scorecard

England ended their dismal tour of India on a winning note by clinching a six-wicket win in the one-off Twenty20 International at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Kevin Pietersen defied a fractured thumb to score a fine half-century as England overcame India's score of 120 for nine with eight balls to spare.

On a slow track, India packed their side with batsmen and all-rounders but still failed to post a competitive score as Steven Finn returned three for 23, Tim Bresnan two for 19 and Ravi Bopara two for 16.

Samit Patel also took a wicket as only Suresh Raina (39 in 29 balls) and Ravichandran Ashwin (17 not out in 11) were able to dominate the bowling for any length of time.

Robin Uthappa made just one on his return to international cricket while Ajinkya Rahane's first Twenty20 International on home soil saw him fail to score while Ravindra Jadeja and Praveen Kumar also registered ducks.

In reply, Alex Hales (11) and Craig Kieswetter (12) gave England a good start but it needed Pietersen's stroke-filled 53 in 39 balls to put them into a winning position.

He hit five fours and three sixes before he was trapped in front by Raina but innings of 21 from Samit Patel, 14 not out from Bopara and two not out from Jonathan Bairstow were enough to ensure England took the spoils.

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Kevin Pietersen Reprimanded For Dissent

England batsman Kevin Pietersen has been reprimanded by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for showing dissent during his side's Twenty20 International against India in Kolkata.
Pietersen set up England's six-wicket win with an innings of 53 in 39 balls but has been reprimanded for his reaction to being given out leg before wicket to Suresh Raina.
The charge was laid by standing umpires Sudhir Asnani and S. Ravi as well as third umpire Vineet Kulkarni and fourth umpire K. Srinath.
Pietersen pleaded guilty to the charge.

"As an experienced cricketer, Kevin should know that when the umpire raises his finger, a player should leave the crease without showing his emotions no matter what he may think of the decision," match referee Roshan Mahanama commented.

"In this case, Kevin displayed excessive and obvious disappointment at the decision which sent the wrong signals to all those watching the match at the ground and on television, and as such, merited some form of action."