London: After two days of being oppressed by New Zealand, England broke the stranglehold in impressive style to take charge halfway through the first Test at Lord's on Saturday. First, New Zealand was dismissed for 207 to give England a first-innings lead of 25, a significant amount on a tricky, soft pitch.
That lead was then boosted from 25 to 205, as Joe Root and Jonathan Trott found runs easy to harvest to help give England 180-6 at stumps. New Zealand fought back with four wickets in six overs in the last hour, three of them to the tireless Tim Southee, but that joy was offset by injuries to wicketkeeper BJ Watling, who hurt his left knee, and spinner Bruce Martin, who limped off after his 13th over. Neither finished the tea session.
Root, bowled for 71, one shy of his Test best on debut in December, and Trott combined for a stand of 123, easily the biggest of the match. They scored at pace to give themselves at least the last four sessions to bowl at New Zealand. Especially after New Zealand's first bat lasted less than three sessions. Root and Trott came together when New Zealand thought they regained the advantage by removing both openers with the total on 36.
Captain Alastair Cook was undone on 21 by leftie seamer Trent Boult for the fourth time in four Tests. Fellow opener Nick Compton, on 15, was set up well by Neil Wagner, who threw three
11:36 PM, May 18, 2013
London: The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is set to interrogate Rajasthan Royals' English recruit Owais Shah as a precautionary measure in the wake of the recent spot-fixing scandal that has rocked the ongoing Indian Premier League. Former England batsman Shah, a member of Rajasthan Royals which is at the centre of a major investigation by Delhi police after three of the team's players were arrested earlier this week...
08:05 PM, May 18, 2013
CLICK HERE for live ball-by-ball updates from day three of the first Test between England and New Zealand being played at Lord's in London. Day 2 Round-up: James Anderson took his 300th Test wicket and then ended a bold counter-attack by New Zealand's Ross Taylor as England fought back in the first Test at Lord's. The two players lit up a Lord's bathed in artificial floodlight to counter the overhead...
03:06 PM, May 18, 2013
London: Former England captain Andrew Strauss said on Friday it was important for the side's Ashes prospects that star batsman Kevin Pietersen regained full fitness. Pietersen is currently sidelined with a knee problem and in his absence England struggled to 232 all out in the first innings of the first Test against New Zealand at Lord's. Strauss retired from all cricket following a 2-0 series defeat by South Africa last...
12:32 AM, May 18, 2013
London: James Anderson became only the fourth England bowler to take 300 Test wickets when he dismissed New Zealand's Peter Fulton on the second day of the first Test at Lord's on Friday. Lancashire seamer Anderson joined Ian Botham (383), Bob Willis (325) and the late Fred Trueman (307), the first man in history to take 300 Test wickets, in a select quartet of England bowlers. The 30-year-old Anderson started...
12:02 AM, May 18, 2013
London: James Anderson took his 300th Test wicket and then ended a bold counter-attack by New Zealand's Ross Taylor as England fought back in the first Test at Lord's. The two players lit up a Lord's bathed in artificial floodlight to counter the overhead gloom of Friday's second day which ended with New Zealand 153 for four in reply to England's first innings 232, a deficit of 79 runs. Anderson...
11:50 PM, May 17, 2013
London: David Beckham would not rank among the top 1,000 players of the last 40 years, former England winger Chris Waddle said on Friday in comments at odds with glowing tributes to the retiring midfielder. Beckham, 38, announced on Thursday that he was retiring at the end of the season after winning trophies and titles in four countries and earning 115 caps for England - a record for an outfield...
11:50 PM, May 17, 2013
James Anderson took his 300th Test wicket and then ended a bold counter-attack by New Zealand's Ross Taylor as England fought back in the first Test at Lord's. The two players lit up a Lord's bathed in artificial floodlight to counter the overhead gloom of Friday's second day which ended with New Zealand 153 for four in reply to England's first innings 232, a deficit of 79 runs. CLICK HERE...
03:10 PM, May 17, 2013
England manager Roy Hodgson recalled Andy Carroll to his squad on Thursday for friendlies against Ireland and Brazil after the striker's recent good club form. The 24-year-old, who has not been involved in the national set-up since October's World Cup qualifier in Poland when he was an unused substitute, has recently scored four goals in six games for West Ham United where he is on loan from Liverpool. "In a...
11:46 PM, May 16, 2013
London: In the curtain-raiser to an action-packed English summer of international cricket, New Zealand stole the show by limiting England to a plodding 160-4 on the first day of the first Test at Lord's. The stage was set for England to show their true colors on Thursday, with the team back at full strength, at cricket's HQ, and desperate to rectify for a humbling series draw in New Zealand two...
11:06 PM, May 16, 2013
London: Some up and downs in the career of David Beckham, who said on Thursday he would retire from football at the end of the season: Up: Signs professional contract with Manchester United in 1993 and helps team win Premier League-FA Cup double in 1996. United wins league title again a year later. Down: Gets red card for kicking Diego Simeone in England's second-round match against Argentina at 1998 World...
10:21 PM, May 16, 2013
Reaction to David Beckham's decision to retire from football at the end of the season, which he announced Thursday: "He is a fantastic footballer and a fantastic person. All over the world you say 'David Beckham' and people know who that is." - Former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson. "I wish him well in the future whatever he chooses to do and I personally hope that will be in football." -...
10:16 PM, May 16, 2013
London: David Beckham is retiring from soccer after the season, ending a career in which he become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United. The 38-year-old Englishman recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He said in a statement Friday he is "thankful to PSG for giving me the opportunity to continue but I feel now is the right time to finish...
08:02 PM, May 16, 2013
Sydney: England will have 33 scheduled international playing days on their Ashes tour to Australia starting in November, Cricket Australia said on Thursday. The tour programme includes five Tests, a streamlined five one-day international series, three Twenty20 internationals and five other tour games. The Ashes Test series begins at Brisbane's Gabba ground on November 21 with further Tests in Adelaide (December 5-9), Perth (December 13-17), Melbourne (December 26-30) and the...
04:58 PM, May 16, 2013
New Zealand bowlers kept a check on the run-rate as England batsman got out after getting starts. Trent Boult got 2 two wickets with Martin and Wagner taking one each. CLICK HERE for live ball-by-ball updates from day one of the first Test between England and New Zealand being played at Lord's in London. PLAYING XIs: ENGLAND: 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Nick Compton, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Ian Bell,...
02:37 PM, May 16, 2013
London: New Zealand will assess weather and pitch conditions on Thursday morning before making a final decision on whether to field four pace bowlers in the first Test against England at Lord's. On the eve of the first match in the two-Test series on Wednesday, captain Brendon McCullum said the final place would go to either Doug Bracewell or left-arm spinner Bruce Martin, who played in the drawn three-match series...
09:32 PM, May 15, 2013
London: England were not complacent or under-prepared during their disappointing tour of New Zealand this year, captain Alastair Cook said on Wednesday. England, the world's second-ranked side, were outplayed by their eighth-ranked hosts and only a courageous century by Matt Prior and a rearguard batting effort on the final day secured the draw in the third test that left the series level at 0-0. "It was not a lack of...
08:31 PM, May 15, 2013
London: England's Rio Ferdinand has quit international soccer, the Football Association (FA) said on Wednesday. The Manchester United defender, who made his England debut against Cameroon at Wembley in 1997 and won 81 caps, had informed England coach Roy Hodgson of his decision, the FA said in a statement. "After a great deal of thought, I have decided the time is right for me to retire from international football," said...
01:22 PM, May 15, 2013
