New Zealand’s momentum, picked up from a convincing one-day series victory and first Test win in Hamilton, came to a screeching halt on Monday with a crushing 126-run defeat to England in the second Test. Chasing 438 to win the match, New Zealand flirted with pulling off the impossible when they reached 242 for five late on the fourth day.
Tim Ambrose and Paul Collingwood rescued England’s innings after New Zealand’s Jacob Oram had inspired a top-order collapse to ensure the second Test was evenly poised at the end of the first day’s play on Thursday. Ambrose and Collingwood came together with their side teetering at 136 for five during the middle session to combine for an unbeaten 155-run sixth wicket partnership.
England batsman Kevin Pietersen said the 42 runs he painstakingly scratched out against New Zealand on the third day of the first Test was one of the best Test innings he had played for his country. The aggressive and flamboyant Pietersen took 131 balls to make 42, in England’s total of 286 for six at the close of play on Friday.
England slipped to 87-2 in reply to New Zealand’s 470 all out at the close of play on the second day of the first Test on Thursday. Michael Vaughan was 44 not out with Andrew Strauss on one after Chris Martin took two late wickets. England were 383 runs behind on the first innings.
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/ 29 February 2008
Adam Gilchrist produced a scintillating 83 off 50 balls before a batting collapse by Australia gave Sri Lanka a consolation 13-run victory in their triangular series one-day international on Friday. Gilchrist smashed 11 boundaries and two sixes in his final innings at the Melbourne Cricket Ground until the collapse derailed his team’s pursuit of Sri Lanka’s 221 all out.
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/ 1 February 2008
Australia captain Michael Clarke steered his side to a nine-wicket victory over India in their Twenty20 international at a packed Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday. After skittling the world champions out for just 74, with Nathan Bracken taking three wickets, Clarke then scored 37 of Australia’s runs needed for victory.
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/ 25 January 2008
Defeat in the final of the 2007 French Open has not left a seed of doubt in the mind of Australian Open finalist Ana Ivanovic — quite the opposite. That painful loss to Justine Henin has in fact helped the 20-year-old Serb prepare for Saturday’s Melbourne Park showdown, Ivanovic told reporters on Friday.
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/ 15 January 2008
Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt advanced to the second round of the Australian Open on Tuesday with an easy 6-0 6-3 6-0 victory over Belgium’s Steve Darcis. The former world number one barely needed to get out of first gear and said it was one of his best starts to a grand slam.
West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor has been dropped for next week’s third Test between Australia and India, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Tuesday. ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed told a news conference that New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden would stand in the West Indian’s place.
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/ 27 December 2007
Australia took a firm grip on the first Test after Stuart Clark and Brett Lee produced a sustained period of hostile and controlled pace bowling to bowl India out for 196 late on the second day on Thursday. Clark, who finished with an outstanding 4-28 off 15 overs, captured the valuable wickets of Sachin Tendulkar (62) and Rahul Dravid (four).