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“I am not surprised by the conditions over here. The ball does turn square in India but we all know that as foreign players coming over here we have to deal with the conditions here… because when you are playing in India, it’s all about how do we deal with the spin and we know that that’s what is going to happen,” 36-year-old Lee said at a promotional event.

“We should choose a team that is appropriate, naturally when you have to play spin. I am not surprised with the (turning) wickets when you know it is going to happen in India,” said Lee.

The Chennai pitch, on which the Indian spin trio of Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Harbhajan Singh captured all 20 Australian wickets, had drawn criticism as the track turned from the first day itself, but Lee said one always expects spinning pitches in India.

The ex-pacer, who took 310 wickets from 76 Tests, was optimistic about Australia’s chances in the remainder of the rubber and cautioned against writing off the team led by Michael Clarke.

“I just think with what has happened in the series, India one-nil up its exciting… But don’t write Australia off yet. I think Australia has got a lot more to offer. So I am looking forward to a big game tomorrow (second Test commencing at Hyderabad),” he said.

Conceding that his country needed to buck up in both batting and bowling, Lee was confident Australia can clinch the series from the position they are in now.

“Australia needs to start well, both with bat and ball, to be competitive in the series. I have got no reason to doubt why Australia can’t win the series,” he said.

Lee, who plays in only T20 tournaments like the Indian Premier League (IPL) post retirement, said Australia had been outplayed in the Chennai game and wanted them to learn from the defeat.

“I think India has chosen their side very carefully. They have done a good job with the side they fielded in the first Test match and outplayed Australia.

“What Australia now needs is to try to erase what happened in the last week, learn from what has happened, and try to put their best foot forward and try to be competitive and go to win the next game. This next game is do-or-die for Australia and we have to win it,” he said.

“I will be looking forward to see the team that is chosen for tomorrow’s match and also the way Australia go about playing that match. They would have to find a way to cork up the Indian batsmen and also a way to stop the Indian bowlers.

It is a huge challenge ahead of Australia,” he said.

“I think when you are playing in conditions you are not used to playing growing up with, it is going to be very tough. It is tough for a batsman to come onto these wickets but it is also tough for our bowlers to bowl on these wickets. In saying that it is Test cricket and that is what it is all about. It is a challenge. It is a test of the skill you have on offer.”

Lee expected captain Michael Clarke to make a few changes to the playing XI.

“It is a long series. I am looking forward to tomorrow when the second Test starts. I am sure Australia would go in with a different team knowing the wickets now. I think there could be a change tomorrow. I believe that India used their spinners effectively. Australia might go with a different line-up.”

He praised James Pattinson for bagging six wickets in the first Test.

“He did very well. He is a very good bowler and to take five wickets (in the first innings) on Indian soil is very tough to do. Everyone knows over here wickets are not conducive to fast bowling,” he added.

(Information Source: www.cricketcountry.com)

Billed as the battle of Sydney, it was the men in magenta who reigned supreme, outplaying their cross-town rivals to win with eight balls to spare.

However it was not all smooth sailing for the home side, with the advantage swinging throughout the match.

Set a competitive target of 144, the Sixers were dealt an early blow in their run chase with the dismissal of David Warner for a duck in the second over.

But the they were not to be put off – with Brad Haddin (59 off 48 balls) and Nic Maddinson (39 off 30 balls) combining for a 54-run partnership off 40 balls to put  the Sixers back on track.

With the match in the balance midway through the innings, Steve Smith (41 off 32 balls) and Haddin turned up the heat, smashing five fours and a six off the last six overs to help their team over the finish line.

After winning the toss and electing to bowl, the Sixers immediately put the pressure on their opposition, restricting the Thunder to just 11 off the first three overs.

The Thunder’s Usman Khawaja then tried to take the momentum away with consecutive boundaries, but it was short-lived – Starc got his man the very next ball to leave the Thunder at 1/23 after four.

But it was the Sixers’ new recruit Luke Feldman who was the standout for the Sixers with the ball, taking two wickets, including the wickets of Chris Rogers and Martin Guptill to finish with the figures of 2/19 off his four overs.

Struggling at 5/98 after 16 overs, the Thunder put the foot down to reach a competitive total of 5/143, but the Sixers proved it was never going to be enough as they cruised to their first victory of the season.

The Sydney Sixers’ next match will be a BBL01 Big Final replay against the Perth Scorchers at the SCG next Sunday, 16 December.

(Info Source: www.sydneysixers.com.au)

Brett Lee: His Greatest HitsSome hard-hitting highlights from the career of the Aussie pace bowler

Time was right to retire, says Lee. Brett Lee says some of his happiest memories have been in and around the cricket ground as he announces his retirement from the sport.

BRETT Lee has handed the baton to Patrick Cummins as Australia’s next fast-bowling superstar.

On the day Lee, 35, retired from international cricket, ignoring an open invitation from the selectors to play in the World Twenty20 this September, the excitement he usually saved for the field was directed towards Cummins.

“This kid is going to be a superstar,” Lee told The Daily Telegraph yesterday.

“He’s only 19 years of age, he does everything with the ball, he’s got a great temperament.

“He’s like a sponge, he listens and soaks everything up. He asks a lot of questions, he wants to learn, and to know what he knows now as a teenager is phenomenal.

“I’m really looking forward to watching his career blossom over the next few years.”

Lee claimed the criticism of Cummins for his injuries – stress fractures of the back and foot and now a strained side – were unfair and unwarranted.

“People are saying he’s always injured, now he’s hurt his ribs, but if you try and run in and put your body on the line every single ball at 19 as I did, I can relate to what he’s going through,” Lee said.

“He’s just got so much to offer Australian cricket.”

Lee is keen to continue the mentoring process he began with Cummins as a teammate almost half the veteran’s age.

“I’ve told him my phone is always on 24/7 for him,” Lee said.

“He’s a huge find for Australian cricket and is going to be a big part of the Australian cricket team.

“He’s a really nice guy, but if you put a cricket ball into his hand it becomes a missile and he turns into a different bloke, which is great.

“I was the same. I tried to be a gentleman off the field, but give me a cricket ball and you get that while line fever on the field.”

For all his great achievements, whether it be Ashes triumphs, World Cups, or just the second Australian behind Glenn McGrath to claim 300 Test and one-day wickets, Lee prizes his longevity in the game and still intends to play in the Big Bash this summer.

He denies the calf strain that sent him home early from Australia’s unsuccessful one-day tour of England was the catalyst for his decision and prides himself on his ability to keep fighting back from serious injuries.

“You’ve got to keep challenging yourself,” Lee said.

“The amount of times I was told, whether it was a coach or selector or the media, that I’m not good enough, that I would’nt achieve coming back, I’m kidding myself, somehow I always managed to bounce back.

“It’s an inner self belief, having a strong personality and being willing to put everything on the line and challenge yourself.

“That’s the thing I’m most proud of, to be able to overcome adversity on a number of occasions.”

Lee’s 310 wickets from 76 Tests left him behind just Shane Warne (708), Glenn McGrath (563) and Dennis Lillee (355) on Australia’s all-time list while his 380 one-day wickets was only one shy of McGraths 381, thwarting Lee’s attempt to become Australia’s most successful one-day bowler.

“I couldn’t get past the great man,” Lee said with a chuckle. “I’m honoured to finish so close to him.”

BRETT LEE

One-day career
Matches: 217
Wickets: 377
Maidens: 138
Best bowling: 5-22
Bowling average: 23.18
Economy: 4.77
Runs (batting): 1100
HS: 59
Batting average: 16.92

Twenty20 internationals
Matches: 25
Wickets: 28
Best bowling: 3-23
Bowling average: 25.5
Economy: 7.86
Runs (batting): 101
HS: 43*
Average: 16.83

Test career
Matches: 76
Wickets: 310
Maidens: 547
Best bowling: 5-30
Bowling average: 30.82
Economy: 3.48
Runs (batting): 1451
HS: 64
Batting average: 20.15

(Information Source: www.news.com.au)
 

On days like these Lee can still feel like cricket’s most irresistible force – certainly its most dashing. His rhythm is mesmeric, his line pristine, his swing fiendishly late, his speed thrilling and terrifying all at once. At 35, Lee is also craftier than he once was, and his use of the new ball provided a masterful lesson for all aspirant young bowlers watching. They included a teenager who was first inspired by Lee and now bowls alongside him – Pat Cummins.

After playing his final Test match in the last week of 2008, Lee has kept playing through serious foot and elbow injuries in limited overs matches, continuing to be an exemplar for both pace bowling and enthusiasm. His value can be seen as much off the field as on it, for he remains among the most recognisable and widely admired names in Australian cricket. This is not to say he is more figurehead than fast man, far from it. The opening over in Belfast confirmed his worth.

Lee entered the match needing another five wickets to overtake Glenn McGrath as Australia’s most prolific limited overs wicket-taker, and for a frenzied few minutes looked like blowing past his former pace partner inside one over. Will Porterfield arrived a fraction of a second too late to play the first ball of the match, swinging into him at 90mph and zipping past a crooked bat to splay the stumps.

“I saw it all right, I just saw it go past me,” Porterfield reflected later. “It was a decent enough nut, I pushed at it a wee bit, but it nipped back as well. These things can happen first up, he put the ball in the right area and you’ve got to give him a bit of credit as well. You’ve got to expect that if you’re playing a team of quality, they’re going to come out and hit their straps first up.”

Ed Joyce was the next man out, his vast experience of playing the moving ball with Middlesex counting for little. Edging across the crease to cover the stumps, Joyce could make nothing of his first ball, which thudded into his front pad and drew a vehement appeal from Lee and his slip cordon. The umpire deemed it to be missing leg stump by centimetres, much to the bowler’s surprise, but not his frustration.

Here was a moment for thought. A younger Lee might have cursed the decision, wondered at his luck and hurled down a bouncer to threaten Joyce’s helmet but not his stumps. He may also have strained for a yorker and sent it hurtling down the legside for a wide or a glanced boundary. Instead, armed with 13 years of jousting with batsmen of all techniques and inclinations, Lee aimed for off stump again, if anything with less inswing than before. Conscious of getting too far across and letting the ball whir into his pads again, Joyce did not cover up completely, and the ball seamed away a fraction to flick off stump.

Lee wheeled away in familiar celebration, the face that launched a thousand Weetbix campaigns, and locals blinked at a scorecard reading 0 for 2 after three balls. An awed Cummins dubbed this opening burst “ridiculous”. Niall O’Brien ground out the rest of the over, and Lee did not add to his wickets, but his bowling remained a most compelling sight throughout a spell of 3-1-10-2. It was all the more worth savouring for the fact it will not be seen for too much longer.

“To lose two wickets in the first three balls is never ideal, but he started pretty much on the money and it was always going to nip around a bit,” Porterfield said. “There’s not much more you could’ve asked of your opening bowler and we would’ve been looking for the same.”

Cummins, for one, is grateful to have watched Lee down the years, first as a spectator, and latterly a teammate for New South Wales, Australia and the Sydney Sixers. “He’s been the face of fast bowling for a while in Australia,” Cummins said. “His raw pace and always being a great competitor. It’s hard not to look up to him as a kid. He’s everything that a young pace bowler wants to be.”

Cummins is far too young to remember the Velvet Underground, but he has vivid childhood memories of Lee. He is faster and better for it.

(Information Source: www.espncricinfo.com)

Commenting on the ODI squad, National Selector John Inverarity said: “We will have to be at the top of our game to go to England and beat them on their home soil but we’ve selected a strong squad and believe we have the ability to win this one-day series.

“Steve Smith has been rewarded for his late season form. He has come into strong contention for the Australian ICC World Twenty20 squad to be named in August and the NSP is keen to have him in the set-up in England as the reserve batsman, noting that his leg-spinners would provide good variation to our attack.

“Mitchell Johnson has also been included in this ODI squad. He, also, is in strong contention for the ICC World Twenty20 and needs to be in the set-up and have some quality competitive cricket leading into this. The NSP is looking forward to Mitchell being reinvigorated after being out of the game for six months.

“We are also excited about the return of Pat Cummins and we are looking to ease him back into the team. He will not be expected to play in all of the eight scheduled games.

“Peter Forrest, Mitchell Starc, Dan Christian, Nathan Lyon and Peter Nevill have not been included in this squad. During the Australian summer and in the West Indies, Peter Forrest and Mitchell Starc were two young players who grasped their opportunities and acquitted themselves well and enhanced their reputations. However, they have made way in this squad for Steve Smith and Pat Cummins.

“In February and March, Dan Christian showed what a very useful and good all-rounder he is, making some strong contributions. He has been omitted to make way for Mitchell Johnson, but remains very much in our plans for the ICC World Twenty20 and a distinct possibility for the ODIs and T20s against Pakistan in August/September.

“Nathan Lyon and Peter Nevill have not been included as Xavier Doherty has been preferred as the only spinner and Matthew Wade is the only ‘keeper. It is a great deal easier getting replacements to England than to the West Indies and both Nathan and Peter will be on standby should they be required,” Inverarity said.

Commenting on the Australia A squad, Inverarity said: “The Australia A Squad has been difficult to finalise. While there is a busy schedule of cricket ahead, it cannot be known in advance which of the 15 players in the ODI Squad for England and Ireland will have heavy loads and those who will not and would therefore benefit from playing some games on the Australia A tour. Also, there is an ICC World Twenty20 preparation camp in Australia in August. Those on the Australia A tour who are selected for the ICC World Twenty20 (and the ODIs and T20s against Pakistan immediately before this) will have to leave the A tour after one or two of the scheduled four games. Hence there will be a need for replacements and a degree of flexibility.

“The Australia A Squad has been selected with two factors very much in mind. The first is that good performances in the Australian summer have been recognised and rewarded, while keeping an ever open eye for younger players coming through. The second is a focus on the Ashes tour of 2013 and familiarising a number of our less experienced international players and back-up players with English conditions. The NSP has also been mindful of not overloading some players, not least David Warner and Matthew Wade. David Hussey has had considerable exposure to English grounds and conditions. These three were not considered for this A tour as they will have had plenty of cricket.

“The NSP is keen to accelerate the return to form of Tim Paine. Tim was impressive when he represented Australia in the various formats and he is recovering well from his injury. Michael Klinger’s sustained good performances over a number of seasons has been recognised and rewarded and he will open the innings with Ed Cowan. Jon Holland has been included as a promising young spin bowler as we attempt to expand our spin bowling stocks.

“Joe Burns is a young player who has shown consistency and all-round batsmanship and it is anticipated that this tour to England will provide for him some very valuable experience. Another to come on the scene recently is Jackson Bird, who bowled exceptionally well for Tasmania last summer. It is likely that he will be well suited to English conditions. The NSP also regards Liam Davis and Tom Cooper as exciting cricketers who deserve opportunities to impress at this level. The NSP is pleased to note that Phillip Hughes and Usman Khawaja will have extended periods in the English County set-up, together with other more established players. Mitchell Starc will have a stint with Yorkshire and this will give him further valuable experience.”

(Information Source: www.cricket.com.au)

Set the Duckworth/Lewis-adjusted target of 158 from 40 overs after holding Australia to 154 for 9, the hosts made the worst possible start when Kieran Powell shouldered arms to Brett Lee’s first ball of the innings and was palpably lbw. But from an uncertain 74 for 4, Pollard and Dwayne Bravo constructed the most assured stand of the match, and took West Indies to a deserved win with five wickets and 11 balls to spare.

Pollard’s innings was punctuated by three sixes in one critical four-over burst, and it was a spell of scoring that would prove decisive. He saved a fourth for the closing stages of the chase, swinging Doherty over midwicket with such force that the ball clanged off the roof of a stand and bounded out of the ground.

Bravo was run out before the end, the final few runs collected a little nervously, but there was no doubting the importance of his contribution to a West Indian victory that ended a 14-match run without a win against Australia. Though Doherty and Clint McKay bowled diligently for the visitors, they had been given too few runs to defend. The five-match series is now level at one apiece.

The wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh landed the final blows, and with Chris Gayle celebrating in the stands amid speculation of a possible compromise between the former captain and the WICB, the hosts’ prospects for this series looked far brighter than they had on Friday.

Sent in to bat as much because of the threat of that rain as anything else, the tourists slipped to 46 for 3 and lost regular wickets across the innings that staggered to 154 for 9. David Hussey, Watson and George Bailey did their best, but could not find the right gears on a pitch slower and lower than the one for the first match.

Kemar Roach had struck twice in his fourth over, the second after a lengthy rain interruption, and Darren Sammy followed up with the wicket of Australia’s captain Watson. Roach’s display was particularly arresting as he fights to return to the Test team, while Sunil Narine’s spin was tidy and intelligent and earned four wickets.

Powell simply lost his bearings against Lee’s first ball when West Indies chased, letting go a delivery that shaped back a fraction but would still have been much too close to leave even if it had not moved. Watson chimed in with a yorker that Samuels played over, and while the slide from 42 for 1 to 74 for 4 was gradual, it left Australia with what appeared a decent chance of rushing to a 2-0 series lead.

However, Pollard swung the game definitively towards West Indies with a flurry of sixes. He powered three in a matter of minutes to push Watson’s fields back and cause him to change his bowlers, while also making the runs-to-balls ratio more or less irrelevant.

In contrast to Pollard, Bravo played with good sense and few risks, only once leaping down the pitch to loft Doherty over mid-on. In their contrasting approaches, Pollard and Bravo presented Watson and Australia with a union they could not separate before the match’s course had been determined, and it was a joyous celebration by both the home crowd and their players when the target was reached in fading light.

David Warner and Watson had made a steady opening after a brief shower delayed the start, reaching 16 for 0 in five overs. At this point more substantial rain pelted the ground, and sent the players off the field for about 90 minutes. When they returned, Warner was swiftly disposed of, playing back to a Roach delivery that skidded through low and flicked off stump. Next man Peter Forrest was undone simply and quickly, edging a ball of high pace and teasing line to second slip to depart for a duck in the same over.

Roach’s strikes had the hosts buzzing in the field, and when Andre Russell relieved him, Roach had the startling figures of 5-3-4-2. Watson had returned the West Indian fire with a smart six from the bowling of Sammy, but the West Indies captain would have the last laugh when he floated a slower ball that his opposite number chipped to midwicket.

Michael and David Hussey then set about repairing the innings, as Narine’s offbreaks received plenty of assistance from the pitch. The elder Hussey was dropped on eight, a sharp chance from the bowling of Sammy bursting through Pollard’s hands in the gully. The drop was not to prove too expensive, as Narine tossed an off break fractionally fuller than his usual length, prompting a thin edge behind and a neat catch by Carlton Baugh. Bailey again looked at home in international company, but was upset to squander his start by cutting Bravo to backward point.

While Lee scrapped as best he could, adding the second six of the innings with a mighty swipe wide of long-on, Australia’s total looked insubstantial. Thanks to Pollard, it would prove exactly that.

(Information Source: www.espncricinfo.com)

But some fine work by spinner Xavier Doherty, who claimed 4-49, saw the West Indies collapse to be eventually dismissed for just 140 in the 33rd over, with only some late hitting from captain Darren Sammy (35) getting them anywhere near the target.

But despite some impressive captaincy by Shane Watson in just his second match overseeing the Australian team, the tourists know their batting will have to substantially improve over the remaining ODI matches after only two batsmen, George Bailey (48) and Dave Warner (40) made anything close to a half-century.

Watson won the toss and chose to bat, though, with himself and opening partner David Warner posting 31 before the skipper was trapped lbw by Dwayne Bravo for 21.

Peter Forrest (26) and Warner then added another 60 before they were both dismissed in the space of five balls from part-timer Marlon Samuels, and when David Hussey fell cheaply three overs later, the Australians were in danger of squandering their good start.

But Mike Hussey and one-day international debutant Bailey steadied the ship, putting on 63 for the fifth wicket before Hussey fell for 26.

The tourists struggled to get the West Indies bowlers away in the final overs, but Bailey and Dan Christian (18 not out) managed to help lift the score past 200 by the end of the 50 overs.

Dwayne Bravo was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with 3-58, while Kemar Roach and Samuels both claimed two scalps.

The West Indies chase got off to a rocky start with Kieran Powell, Johnson Charles and Darren Bravo all falling cheaply within the first 10 overs.

Struggling at 3-33, Dwayne Bravo and Samuels resurrected the West Indies chase with some intelligent batting.

But, just as the pair looked settled at the crease, Christian clean bowled Bravo to spark an almighty collapse, with the hosts losing their next six wickets for just seven runs.

Skipper Sammy swung the bat late in a desperate attempt to claim victory, but Clint McKay had him caught by Christian for 35 as the visitors got their Caribbean tour off to the perfect start.

(Information Source: www.cricket.com.au)