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Delhi 196 for 4 (Chopra 85*, Bhatia 81*) trail Uttar Pradesh 342 (Shukla 96, Sangwan 4-80, Narwal 4-81) by 146 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
A triple-strike from Praveen Kumar took Uttar Pradesh to the brink of controlling this game before Delhi rallied through an unbroken 160-run partnership between Aakash Chopra and Rajat Bhatia to reduce the deficit to 146 runs, with six wickets intact, at stumps on a rollercoaster second day at the Wankhede Stadium. The game is still in the balance; an early wicket on Friday will allow UP to get stuck in to the out-of-form lower order while Delhi will back their chances if this pair can stay at the crease for a couple more hours.Kumar swung out the three in-form top-order batsmen, including Gautam Gambhir for a duck, to reduce Delhi to 21 for 3 after UP were dismissed for 342 in the first session. But Chopra and Bhatia stood firm to prevent UP from running away with the game. After toughing out through the rough phase – he took 19 balls to score his first run – when Kumar was causing havoc, Chopra took charge in the post-lunch session with a fluent innings. He showed impeccable judgement outside the off stump and hit several delightful drives through the off side. There was a caressed square drive off Sudeep Tyagi and a couple of inside-out drives off Piyush Chawla that caught the eye. In the last session, he drove the seamers repeatedly through the off-side cordon as Delhi muscled their way back into the game.Mohammad Kaif had set his field carefully for Chopra. There was a short square leg and a slightly deep short leg for Tyagi, who got the ball to cut in from a length. Chopra played with soft hands, making sure nothing reached the waiting palms. Kaif, then, placed a leg gully but again Chopra kept his tucks and glances to the ground.Giving him able support was the feisty Bhatia. Though not as assured as Chopra early in his knock, he saw off the seamers before unleashing his strokes against Chawla. A six over long-on and a swung boundary saw him gain in confidence and he even hit Kumar for a couple of boundaries. He pulled Chawla and Praveen Gupta for two more sixes and drove the seamers with authority but the highlight of the knock was an attractive pull off Bhubaneshwar Kumar.Kaif’s field settings were creative – there were two short covers at times, a leg slip and a man breathing down on the batsman close on the off side on another occasion – but failed to get the breakthrough. He then asked Kumar to bowl a series of bouncers in the last session but Chopra swayed away from a majority, kept the ones aimed at the body down in front to leave the bowler muttering under his breath about the futility of bouncers as a strategy.Kumar must have wondered where the magic had gone; he had just ripped apart the Delhi top order with his ability to swing the cherry. With a packed slip cordon, he kept it full and moved the ball both ways to trouble the batsmen. He started the collapse with his third delivery, which was full and swinging outside off. With just one fielder in the covers, Gambhir took the bait but ended up edging an expansive drive to third slip. Shikhar Dhawan, who started off with a fierce cut and a cover drive, was set up nicely. Kumar bowled a couple of deliveries away before swinging one back in to take the fatal inside edge. Mithun Manhas was done in by a ball that curved in to trap him in front.Chopra played only nine balls from Kumar in the first spell before lunch and was reduced to being a witness to the damage. However, in the second half of the day, he took control with an assured knock and kept Delhi in the hunt.

Northamptonshire have signed two players to complete their winter player dealings. Niall O’Brien, a 25-year-old wicketkeeper/batsman who has played for Kent, and David Lucas, a 28-year-old left arm seamer, will both join the club ahead of next summer.O’Brien, who will provide cover for Riki Wessels, has signed a one-year deal and will join after the World Cup, where he is representing Ireland. He was born in Dublin but will become English qualified during 2007 and the head coach David Capel believes he has first-class qualities and is delighted to have found him “after much consideration and searching”.Lucas has had spells with Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire and will join for a trial period of three months. “David’s left arm style of bowling will add the necessary variety to our squad of seam bowlers that we require,” said Capel. And he hinted that Lucas could have a Championship future if he impresses at this stage. “Providing things develop as expected he could fit well into our game plans especially in the longer form of the game.”

Peshawar will host the first ODI on 6th February © Getty Images

Barely three days before India arrive for a six-week tour encompassing three Tests and five ODIs the itinerary has belatedly been finalised. The venues for the first two one-day internationals have been switched again, now back to their original locations but a larger gap has been created between the first two matches. Peshawar will now host the first game on February 6 and Rawalpindi the second on February 11.The original itinerary suggested by the PCB had Peshawar scheduled for February 6 and Rawalpindi, February 8. Following a request by authorities in Rawalpindi, however, the venues were switched. But switching Peshawar to February 8 was also problematic and the provincial government wrote to the PCB saying they could not provide adequate security on the day. A PCB official told Cricinfo the problem was the date, February 8., a day of religious significance on the tenth day of the Islamic month of Muharram is likely to fall either on February 7, 8 or 9. Traditionally, extra security is deployed in cities during the period and so, said the official, “we have avoided that date altogether. Peshawar was always ok with the 6th, as was Rawalpindi. That day is a problem for both cities so we have taken it out of the equation and instead put in a larger gap before the second ODI.”The dates for the third and fourth matches, at Lahore and Multan, have also been altered with the games now taking place on February 13 and 16. The BCCI have also agreed to this itinerary change, one which the PCB official was quick to confirm, would be the final one. “There will be no more changes now, this has finally been agreed upon and we are set to go.”The Test matches remain untouched which means after weeks of the PCB strongly hinting but the BCCI not actually confirming it, Karachi’s place as a Test venue – with even more security – has been secured. Since 9/11 this will be only the third Test to be held at the National Stadium, but by far the most significant, given that the other two opponents were Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Scorecard

Clinton Perren, the opener, looked in good touch but fell 14 short of a hundred© Getty Images

James Hopes made an aggressive century to lift Queensland from a moderate position to a strong one in the the Pura Cup match against Victoria at the Gabba. Hopes, who hit 14 fours and two sixes from 126 balls, turned the day the Bulls’ way after they were slipping at 5 for 186 before tea.Chris Hartley, the wicketkeeper, shared a 111-run partnership with Hopes before he was lbw to Cameron White for 50. Hopes, 26, departed with his second century and Queensland in good health after being caught by Peter Roach off Matthew Innes.Allan Wise grabbed four of the top five wickets as Victoria, who won the ING Cup match between the teams on Saturday, made regular indents, but he missed the wicket of Clinton Perren, who held the top-order together with 89.

Frizzell County Championship Division OneNottinghamshire v Essex at Nottingham
ScorecardAfter the extraordinary events of yesterday, Aftab Habib restored some sort of normality to proceedings at Trent Bridge with a dashing 152 to put Essex firmly on top. Habib came to the crease with Essex in some trouble at 47 for 4 – not quite as bad as 7 for 4 though – but he and Andy Flower, who’s slowly blooming back to his best – started the rescue-act. And when Flower was out for 32, James Foster continued the good work for Essex, as he and Habib added 178 for the sixth wicket. Foster, who is developing into a handy wicketkeeper-batsman – England selectors take note – blasted 14 fours and one six before he fell 15 short of what would have been a second first-class century. But Habib had no troubles notching up the 19th ton of his career, including 26 fours, before being trapped lbw to the part-time offspin of Kevin Pietersen. And then the more recognisable bowler, Stuart MacGill, wrapped up the tail as Essex ended their second innings with a lead of 483. Jon Dakin and Scott Brant then didn’t find things so easy second time round, as Notts put their first innings nightmare behind them to reach a far more respectable 58 for 1, but still 425 behind.Kent v Lancashire at Canterbury
ScorecardGary Keedy spun Lancashire into a strong position against Kent at Canterbury by taking 5 for 99. Four of those wickets were bowled, including Greg Blewett for a duck, and when he dismissed Matthew Walker for 11, Kent were reeling at 91 for 5. However, another young wicketkeeper enjoying a good season with the batting gloves, Geraint Jones, came to rescue with a quickfire 92, and with the help of Mark Ealham (43), Kent recovered to 267 all out – just 80 behind Lancashire. And then Kent threatened to finish the day in pole position when Ben Trott and Martin Saggers struck early to remove both openers with only 19 on the board, but Mal Loye (52*) and Stuart Law (28*) weathered the early storm to make sure Lancashire took the day’s honours.

Mushtaq Ahmed hits out against Surrey at The Oval

Surrey v Sussex at The Oval
ScorecardAnother impressive display from the Surrey bowlers in the sun at The Oval today, plus yet another wag from their tail – well, if you can call it that – put Surrey firmly in control over Sussex. Resuming on 401 for 8, Ian Salisbury and Saqlain Mushtaq added a further 78 runs between them as Surrey were eventually all out for 480 – the sixth time they have passed 350 this season. And after James Ormond (who finished with 4 for 81) struck twice early in Sussex’s reply, another bullying display from Surrey was on the cards. However, Sussex did show some resistance as Murray Goodwin (60), Tim Ambrose (75) and Robin Martin-Jenkins (61) all rolled up their sleeves and showed they weren’t scared of Adam Hollioake and his gang by giving them a taste of their own medicine. And with the help of a cameo 41 from 43 balls from Mushtaq Ahmed, Sussex clambered to 307 all out. But Hollioake then chose not to enforce the follow-on as Surrey reached 22 for 0 from the last 10 overs of the day to lead by 195 runs.Frizzell County Championship Division TwoDerbyshire v Worcestershire at Derby
ScorecardWorcestershire’s South African contingent helped to set up a likely second consecutive win after a day of bowling domination over Derbyshire. When Michael Di Venuto and Andrew Gait were cruising along at 83 for no loss in reply to Worcestershire’s 374, no-one in the Derbyshire camp could have been expecting what was follow. It wasn’t quite on the same scale as the avalanche at Trent Bridge yesterday, but losing 16 wickets in one day is still a disaster. After Matthew Mason picked up the first three Derbyshire wickets, Nantie Hayward (4 for 53) and Andrew Hall (3 for 28) then ripped through the middle-order and tail, as Derbyshire crashed to 179 all out. Ben Smith then duly enforced the follow-on, and it didn’t get much better for them second time around. This time Kabir Ali was the hero with the ball, taking 3 for 60 as Derbyshire finished a day they’ll want to forget on 185 for 6 – still 10 behind.Yorkshire v Durham at Leeds
ScorecardAfter Chris Silverwood promptly wrapped up the Durham innings this morning – including Jonathan Lewis for 124 – his mind must have been on watching the rest of the day from the comfort of the Yorkshire balcony, admiring his fellow team-mates’ batting prowess – but it didn’t quite work out that way, thanks to Durham’s Liam Plunkett. After a steady start to Yorkshire’s innings, in which Michael Lumb starred with a patient 105 and Yuvraj Singh scored his first Championship fifty, Plunkett blew away the middle-order (including four England internationals) at an alarmingly quick rate. Indeed, if it wasn’t for Lumb, who was last man out, Yorkshire would have been in deeper trouble than their 220 all out. With a lead of 60, it was Lewis again who led the way in Durham’s second innings with 43 not out, as they finished the day on top at 99 for 3.Northamptonshire v Glamorgan at Northampton
ScorecardTwo late wickets from Ben Phillips tilted the match in Northamptonshire’s favour in an otherwise closely-fought battle. Rob White and Mark Powell earlier top-scored with 55 each as Northants were bowled out for 262 – only seven runs behind Glamorgan’s first innings. Michael Kasprowicz took 3 for 77, including dangerman Phil Jaques for a duck and Jeffrey Cook for a golden duck, and David Harrison also starred with 4 for 64. But it was Phillips who finished the day with a smile as he removed Mike Powell and Dean Cosker near the close to leave Glamorgan needing a big day with the bat tomorrow on 71 for 4.

Shaun Udal Hampshire’s all-rounder, won the counties Players, player of the season 2001. Adi Aymes won the fielder of the season award.Jimmy Cook coach presented the awards at the teams end of season fancy dress party. He said of Shaun Udal “He has been 100% professional this season, his bowling has been a large contributary factor to the teams promotion, and he also batted better than ever, coming in at awkward situations to recover the innings.Shaun Udal was delighted with the award – “It is a great honour” he replied on receiving the shield “to be voted by your own colleagues to be the players player brings a lump to your throat, and I will treasure the memory”.”Adi Aymes“, Jimmy Cook said, “has not only been a great wicket-keeper for his side, and a great contributer with the bat, but he also inspired players around him. His fielding, was as always exemplary and deserves he the accolade”.

With Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side heading into Thursday evening’s Europa Conference League clash knowing they require something of a miracle to secure passage through to the next round of the competition, the 56-year-old Bhoys boss will undoubtedly be thinking up tactics that will provide his side with marginal gains over Bodo/Glimt at the Aspmyra Stadion.

Indeed, having been on the receiving end of a heavy 3-1 defeat in the first leg of the tie, the Hoops must defeat the Norwegian champions by two clear goals in order to take the game to extra-time, or three clear goals to see them through.

As such, the Greek-Australian coach simply must get his team selection absolutely spot on against Kjetil Knutsen’s impressive outfit if Celtic are to have any chance of qualifying for the next round of the tournament – with it appearing highly advisable for Postecoglou to make a change at left-back.

Postecoglou must unleash Taylor

While it is true that Greg Taylor endured a torrid evening up against Ola Solbakken, Hugo Vetlesen and Alfons Sampsted in the first leg of the tie – with the Scotland international earning an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.3 for his display – it would nevertheless appear a smart move to reintroduce the left-footer against Bodo/Glimt this evening.

Indeed, while Josip Juranovic is undoubtedly a fantastically talented player, who is more than capable of operating on the left of a back four, the fact that the Croatia international – who started at left-back in the 3-2 win over Dundee last weekend – is right-footed immediately makes Celtic more narrow, something that could well cause a problem against a side who set up in a 4-3-3 formation.

Indeed, with the middle of the park likely to be an extremely congested area of the pitch on Thursday, especially as Bodo/Glimt are an extremely efficient pressing side – as evidenced by their performance at Parkhead – playing a right-footer at left-back could quite easily play into the Norweigan’s hands.

Meanwhile, by starting the £8.2k-per-week left-footed Taylor, the 24-year-old would naturally look to progress the ball further up the pitch as soon as he receives it, in addition to generally providing Celtic with greater width when flooding forwards – something the Bhoys will undoubtedly need to do as often as possible if they are to have any hope of victory.

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As such, it would appear highly advisable for the 56-year-old to unleash the Scotland international who James McFadden dubbed a “brilliant” player who offers “so much more” down the left for Celtic against Bodo/Glimt, as he could well be the marginal gain Postecoglou is looking for.

In other news: Postecoglou could unearth Celtic’s next Dembele by unleashing 17 y/o “wonderkid”

Andrew Strauss’ comeback trail begins with a one-month stint in New Zealand © Getty Images

Andrew Strauss, dropped from England’s touring squad to Sri Lanka, has admitted he was shattered when Andrew Flintoff was handed the captaincy ahead of him for the Ashes last year.”Duncan Fletcher [the coach at the time] sat me down and said it was a tough call but that there were good reasons why they chose Fred [Flintoff],” Strauss told the . “Although I was still in the team, it felt like I was dropped. He couldn’t say anything to make it better. I just tried to be as supportive as I could.”However, Strauss didn’t find fault with Flintoff’s behaviour as captain. “He had a lot on his plate,” Strauss said. “With the responsibility of batting and bowling, perhaps the captaincy was too much. I’m not saying he wasn’t equal to the task. No matter who had captained that side – Michael Vaughan, Mike Brearley or anyone – we would not have won the series [Ashes] the way we played. I’m not sure my undefeated run would have carried on for long if I was captain. “Strauss is focused on making a comeback to England whites and is set to play for Northern Districts in New Zealand, though only for the one-day league.”This is the first time I have had a break in a very long time and I have enjoyed spending some time away from the game. But the only way I will get my England place back is to score runs. I have to do everything I can to be in form and in the best frame of mind if England need me. A month with Northern Districts is perfect.”

David Sales will continue as Northants captain in 2007 © Getty Images

David Sales has agreed a two-year contract extension at Northamptonshire which will keep him with the club until 2008 and has also agreed to continue as captain in 2007.Sales, 29, is currently enjoying a benefit year with the county and scored over 1200 runs in the Championship last year as the team missed out on promotion.He said: ‘It’s a great honour to be name captain again with such exciting times ahead. A new head coach in David Capel and David Ripley’s new position as second team coach/academy director will give us the knowledge and support we need along with their back room staff.”I am very much looking forward to the year ahead and expect some big things this year for the club. On my contract extension I am delighted to commit myself to the club for a further two years and hopefully a lot longer in the future’

England have named a 14-man squad for the Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka during February and following their winless tour of Bangladesh there are several news faces in the party.Steven Mullaney, Mark Stoneman, and Graeme White are the fresh players in the squad, although Mullaney, a right-handed batsman from Lancashire, has previous experience with the Under-19 team after playing against Sri Lanka in 2005. Richard Jones, a pace bowler from Worcestershire, is also back in the squad having been forced home from the tour of Bangladesh with a back injury.The 16-team tournament runs starts on February 5 in Colombo and England are grouped with Zimbabwe, Ireland and Nepal for the first round of matches.England squad Moeen Ali (Warwickshire), Varun Chopra (Essex), Rory Hamilton-Brown (Surrey), Nicholas James (Warwickshire), Richard Jones (Worcestershire), Andrew Miller (Lancashire), Steven Mullaney (Lancashire), John Simpson (Lancashire), Mark Stoneman (Durham), Huw Waters (Glamorgan), Graeme White (Northamptonshire), Greg Wood (Yorkshire), Robert Woodman (Somerset), Ben Wright (Glamorgan)