AUSTRALIA - Manager: Mustafa Khan

THE AUSTRALIANS ON A ROLL!

Match report, 29th June, Harare: A mind-blowing performance by the Australians again but this time it was really big. The Aussies easily beat the inform Zimbabwe team. The morale of the team had improved tremendously beating the West Indies and South Africa in a row and now beating the Zimbabweans at their home territory.

The Zimbabweans were missing two important and consistent performers in Gavin Rennie and captain Alistair Campbell. This fact could well have been a major contribution to Zimbabwe's enormous loss.

The Zimbabweans won the toss and elected to bowl first on a wicket that would help the spinners a bit as the match progressed. Zimbabwe playing two leg-spinners in the match in Adam Huckle and Paul Strang. Mbangwa got the early breakthrough by getting Mark Taylor bowled. The former Aussie captain seems to be running through a lean period again as he has not really performed in the competition thus far. He has played 5 matches with 9 innings, no notouts and has scored just 136 at an average of 15.11 with the highest of 45.

The hero was the inform Steve Waugh. He played with ease to mount 147 off 256 balls smashing 21 boundries. Support was there for him, Mark Waugh, Ricky Ponting and Ian Healy gave good support and the tail played an important role to make a huge total of 343. The Zimbabwe bowling card looked poor as the Australians scored at a pretty healthy rate. The duo of Heath Streak and Paul Strang, that was expected to do well with the ball did not quite live up to the expectations of the home supporters. They both returned with poor figures of 1-81 and 3-105 respectively.

If the bowling was disappointing then the disaster was yet to come. Coming into bat wickets were falling after a little while. No one played a solid knock. Michael Bevan proved his worth in the test side by capturing mesmerizing figures of 7-22 off 13 overs. He dismissed the Zimbabweans for a very discouraging 89. The surprise performer had an average of 41 in the competition before the match and with this brilliant performance managed to get it down to 29.

The Australians rightfully enforced the follow on and the Zimbabweans put up a good fight at the end but it was too much of a task for them. The second innings was dominated by the batting of Andrew Flower and Dave Houghton. The bowlers did not do as well as the first but Reiffel picked up figures of 4-55 and Bevan picking up 2-71 giving himself 9 wickets in the match and rightfully named man of the match. This gives the selectors some hope as now they can be a bit relieved about the spin department missing Shane Warne.

Warne is expected to back by a week or so as he has recovered well and has been bowling in the nets lightly at home but will miss the home series against rivals England who have dominated the league thus far. Warne would have been a weapon on the Melbourne wicket but Gavin Robertson has been included in the side in place of Kasprowicz. That has been the only change in the side. The Aussie look to pull this one off as well but they know and admit that it will be an uphill task but now the team feels that they can top the league.

Some pre-match comments from Mustafa Khan for the match against England: "Great recovery by the side. I did not expect such a tremendous comeback from them. I am very happy for the team and now can expect a good outcome for the team in the competition. We know it will be very difficult for us to defeat the inform English side but we are not going to give in. I think we are quite capable of beating England even though it is managed by a very knowledgeable manager. I have respect for the man and his team but don't misunderstand it to fear as we fear no one but God. I admit that we will be missing Shane Warne very much. I know we depend on him to perform specially against England. All we can do is wait and time will tell our fate. I wish my team all the best!"

ENGLAND - Manager: Dan Thomas

The clash between the unbeaten England amd Warwick Todd's XI took place last weekend and proved very exciting. Even though both teams were unbeaten with the very impressive batting performances of Warwick Todd's XI who had yet to drop a bonus batting point and with a lowest 1st innings score of 467 to date, England were the definite underdogs.

Warwick Todd won the toss and as expected elected to bat first. They no doubt expected to score the normal 500 odd runs but the English bowling line up is very good and far better than any they had previously faced. Marsh was the first to go for just 7 lbw to Cork and with Boon out just before lunch honours were even at 85-2 at lunch. After lunch England applied real pressure and Border was brilliantly run out for just 7. Croft was bowling with real guile and totally bewitching the Todd XI batsmen. Wood, Ritchie, Matthews, Zoehrer and Todd fell to his spell as he bowled unchanged for most of the afternoon. Only some lusty hitting from Hughes in a last wicket partnership saw the Todd XI scrape past 200 to score a mere 234 - well below their normal performances. The only person to star with the bat was the man himself Todd who scored 65 before being one of Croft's 6 victims.

With a tricky hour until stumps England needed to survive which they managed until the very last over when Atherton lost all sense of responsibility and was stumped. Ending the 1st day at 46-1 England could be very happy with their performance.

On the 2nd day the nightwatchman Cork was dismissed with the very first ball and England lost Thorpe, Hussain and Hick cheaply as the Todd XI fought back. Standing firm all this time was the captain who recorded a very good 100 but was out soon after completing his century with the score then 190-6. There then followed a passage of play where the Todd XI dropped 4 catches and had a close LBW appeal turned down before Ramprakash was lbw to Alderman just short of his 50. Rhodes followed the next over and with the score only 233-8, the Todd XI must have hoped to minimise the lead. Unfortunately for them Croft scored an excellent 50 and Tufnell a surprising 31 as England reached 328, a lead of 94.

By the time the Todd XI were ahead again they had already lost 3 wickets but Border and Todd batted very well in a 101 run partnership to rescue them but crucially Border was out just before the close of play on the 3rd day.

The next day the final 5 wickets fell in under an hour as Cork ripped through the tail. Rhodes had a remarkable innings with 6 catches and a stumping.

England therefore needed just 116 to win and Stewart run out for 0 was not the best start. Atherton made up for his bad calling though with an unbeaten 76 to steer England home by 7 wickets.

England were delighted with their win and now top the table. Croft won the Man of the Match for the 3rd consecutive test and is now the highest rated bowler and top of the Warwick Todd medal table. (Gough now relegated to 2nd). England manager Dan Thomas said "We were thoroughly professional, I must admit I was worried by their batting line up but we showed that under intense bowling pressure they could crumble. Our bowling line up is of the very highest order and all have put in match winning performances. Our batting still gives us a slight cause for concern especially the form of the normally dependable Thorpe but we will remain unchanged for the next match."

England's next test is against Australia who beat Zimbabwe by an innings and are moving up the table. After the elation of beating Warwick Todd's XI this week England must not relax against Australia if they are to win the championship. Thorpe is being dropped from the problematic no 3 position to 5 in the order in the hope he can score some runs.

INDIA - Manager: Mat Kenneally

Dead and buried after the first innings India is celebrating having defeated West Indies in a supreme come from behind victory in Round 6. After being bowled out for an average 320 on a good batting wicket. Many experts said that India could play 11 batsmen but still couldn’t make up for a lack of talent. With the West Indies looking confident at 1/255 just prior to stumps on day 2 it was all the West Indies with Stuart Williams blazing 127 and Adams competently looking at another big score. But Sachin Tendulkar broke through, albeit a controversial decision, to get Adams for 84.

However, Lara and Williams continued the onslaught reaching 2/324 until Srinath brought the Windies batsmen down in a heap with the new ball. The spell of 5/8 brought India back into the match from what seemed oblivion. Manager Mathew Kenneally called the performance, ‘The greatest second newball perfromance of all time’. He also mentioned Prasad who did the hard work at the other end, ‘You need those guys (Prasad) at the other end for blokes like Javagal to perform’.

India took control in the second innings Ajay Jadeja playing the sheet anchor role Mongia (68), Dravid (71), and Tendulkar a titanic 128 from just 146 balls. The old warriors Ambrose and Walsh failed to put pressure on the awesome Indian batting line-up. The end result was a target of 406 in a day which usually translates into a boring draw. Many thought India had no hope with their weak bowling attack but once again they were defied. Once again on the Tuesday Srinath ripped through the poor West Indian batting line-up with a spell of 3/20. Kumble and Tendulkar did the rest Sachin providing excellent figures of 3/12. India lost 7/28 with Srinath bowling a brilliant Leg Cutter to get Lara at 63. Having got Lara twice Srinath believes he is a capable of applying a Glenn McGrath type spell on the superstar of world cricket. ‘I had his measure this time, I know I can do it in round 16 as well’ Srinath said. Azharuddin also impressed Manager Mathew Kenneally his 66* saved India from a score of 220 in the first innings. Azharuddin was relieved after the match, ‘My spot was under threat this week I’m glad I’ve come up trumps with not just a soft 50 but a real pressure innings’. On Tendulkar he simply said ‘Number one without a doubt’. Few that saw Sachin tear the Windies apart in both innings would disagree.

In all India have pulled off one of the greatest victories in test cricket. Their weak bowling attack proved brilliant in the second innings and their batting tactics were proved effective. With England defeating Warwick Todd's XI this weekend, India have their best chance of claiming the Warwick Todd trophy. ‘We have a super opportunity which we may only have a couple more times’ said skipper Kenneally, ‘We are past the Pakistan tragedy and are on track’. India set themselves for a top four finish and believe any hope of winning the tournament rides on this match. ‘This is it for us’ said Kenneally and their form would have people thinking they are primed for it.

NEW ZEALAND - Manager: Ben Buchanan

Another loss for New Zealand today, but not before some good signs with their batting. They managed to pile on 454 runs with 2 huge centuries to Stephen Fleming (159) and Craig McMillan (137). All looked good before once again the fielding let the Sri Lankans off the hook as they passed New Zealand's score and flew past the 600 mark, eventually being bowled out for 640. New Zealand then struggled to 210 leaving Sri Lanka very little to win. They did so with all wickets in tact.

New Zealand coach Buchanan, said "A win is definately on the cards but next weeks game against the Warwick Todd XI is going to be extremely difficult. But they aren't unbeatable as England showed last round."

The injury to Adam Parore will be a blow. Bryan Young is tipped to take over the keeping gloves. No other injuries means that New Zealand are close to full strength and will welcome the return of Vettori.

PAKISTAN - Manager: Nathan Porter

SOUTH AFRICA - Manager: Steve Hill

SRI LANKA - Manager: Keith McLeod

CONFIDENCE BOOST FOR SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka had a convincing win against an often incompetent-looking New Zealand team last week in the Warwick Todd World Champs. The Kiwi bowling was taken apart by a clinical Sri Lankan batting line-up, which made it look ineffective and toothless.

After New Zealand won the toss and opened the game with a respectable score of 454, the New Zealanders appeared to have a comfortable grip on the game, thanks largely to the classy batting of Cantabrian batsmen Craig McMillan and Stephen Fleming, who shared in a 215 run partnership. The Sri Lankans relied on their spin twins in the form of off-spinners Muttiah Muralitharan (5/127) and Kumara Dharmasena (2/129) to take wickets, and the two did well in difficult circumstances and on what proved to be a paradise wicket for the batsmen. Wicketkeeper Kaluwitharana also performed well with four catches and a stumping.

In reply, an 159 run opening partnership showed the way for the Sri Lankans, who were rarely bothered by the New Zealand bowling. Centuries by Jayasuriya (130 off 140 balls), de Silva (130), and Tillakaratne (140) contributed to an imposing first innings total of 640 runs. With left-arm spinner Danial Vettori out, the New Zealanders were forced to give part-timer Chris Harris a lion's share of the bowling, and the lack of bowling depth was severely exposed by the rampaging Sri Lankans.

Going into the fourth day, the New Zealanders were 186 runs in arrears and badly in need of some backbone in their batting. Once again this was provided by the sturdy figure of the pugnacious Craig McMillan (60), with Nathan Astle (61) this time providing the support. At 199 for 5, the New Zealanders must have seen a glimmer of hope, however that little hope was quickly extinguished as Sri Lanka took the last 5 wickets in the space of 12 overs and for only 11 runs. The wickets were shared evenly, as all bowlers performed well for Sri Lanka, and two runouts in the middle of the NZ order did not help their effort.

Sri Lanka were set a meagre 25 runs for vistory, which they gathered in short order, with the in-form Sanath Jayasuriya scoring a quick-fire 24 off 18 balls, including 5 boundaries.

The Sri Lankans now return home in a confident frame of mind, ready to take on Pakistan, the team lying above them in third spot on the table. 'We believe this could very well be the match of the round', said Sri Lankan manager Keith McLeod. 'Both we and the Pakistanis are in great form, but we really think the home advantage will swing the result in our favour. We're looking forward to a tough encounter.'

WEST INDIES - Manager: Joshua Johnson

The West Indies have once again failed to score a win, in a game that they should have won. After winning the toss the Indian team batted first, making a respectable 320. Cuffy did most of the damage for the West Indian attack, taking 5/58. In reply the West Indians made a fantastic start, due to some great batting by Williams in his first match in this series. He eventually made 179 and the team were at one point at 3/324. Unfortunately, the side then performed its mid/late order collapse, losing 7/53 ending with 377.

This performance left the teams evenly poised. A great second innings performance by the Indians made a draw look like the only outcome. Five of the Indian top order scored 50+, with the best performance by the great Sachin Tendulkar who scored 128* off only 146 deliveries. The team eventually declared at 8/462.

This left the West Indians the task of scoring 406 runs in one day. This made a draw look like a definite conclusion. Unfortunately the West Indians capitulated again. The Indians managed to bowl out the side in under a day for a pitiful 116. The West Indians losing their last 6 wickets for only 12 runs!

Next week the West Indians play the South Africans, whose run of bad form rivals their own. Hopefully, the team will respond and score their second win of the tournament. Bishop returns from injury this week, but some good recent performances by Cuffy will leave Bishop without a spot in the next match.

ZIMBABWE - Manager: Dave Hickey

After last week claiming that his Zimbabwe team was now one of the top cricketing nations, manager Dave Hickey today admitted that inexperience was still holding back Zimbabwe's development. "The curator prepared a spinning pitch to take advantage of our superior spin attack, with Australia being without Warne, but then we won the toss and decided to bowl first! I just could not believe that decision!" fumed Hickey. The return from injury of regular captain Alistair Campbell means that stand-in captain Andy Flower will avoid the embarassment of being stripped of the captaincy. It will be interesting to see if he is asked to act as stand-in captain again in the future.

After sending the Australians in on a perfect batting pitch, Australia reached 3/261 before a spirited spell from Mpumelo Mbangwa put the brakes on the Australian innings. Support from Paul Strang saw Australia lose their last seven wickets for just 82 runs to finish at 343.

The Flower brothers opened for Zimbabwe but once again the strain of batting after four sessions of wicketkeeping saw another Andy Flower failure. Australia then surprised by bringing part-time spinner Michael Bevan on after just ten overs. Despite the fact that Strang and Huckle had finished with five wickets between them, the pitch was not really causing too many problems for the batsmen. However, Bevan was about to change all that!

Bevan's first over was a "loosener" but just the nine balls into his spell, he found the edge of Grant Flower's bat for Healy to accept the chance. Three balls later Houghton was also back in the shed, after padding up to a straight ball. At the other end, Gillespie made short work of a tentative Wishart before handing the ball back to Bevan. The second ball of this over found the edge of Goodwin's bat and carried safely to Taylor. The next ball was another straight one but it was far too good for Andy Whittall. Paul Strang survived the hattrick and the over but the damage had well and truly been done. Zimbabwe had collapsed in spectacular fashion to go from 1/33 to 6/40 in just 13 balls! Bevan had the figures of 4/6 from his three overs and despite missing the hattrick, he had taken his four wickets in just seven balls.

Guy Whittall and Strang put on a 20 run partnership before Reiffel claimed the wicket of Strang. Whittall and Streak then added 29 runs in surviving to the tea break, where Zimbabwe had recovered somewhat to be 7/89, needing another 54 to avoid the follow-on.

Bevan resumed straight after tea and this time his third ball found the edge of Streak's bat before nestling safely inside Healy's gloves. Adam Huckle could not get the bat near Bevan's next delivery and was correctly judged to be lbw. With number 11 batsman Mbangwa coming to the crease, Bevan had a very high expectation of claiming his hattrick this time. Another straight ball beat Mbangwa's bat and unfortunately for Bevan also narrowly missed the stumps. The next ball was a little straighter and Mbangwa managed to get bat onto it, only to steer it directly into the nads of Ponting at bat-pad. Zimbabwe had lasted just four balls after tea, without adding a run.

Zimbabwe commenced their second innings and lost the wickets of Grant Flower and Murray Goodwin before Andy Flower and Houghton steadied the innings for Zimbabwe to be 2/65 at stumps. The Flower-Houghton partnership continued through the morning session on Day 3 and Zimbabwe appeared to be mounting a reasonable rescue effort at 2/188 when McGrath trapped Houghton in front for 70. Wishart joined Flower, who had by now reached his century, and they took the score to 3/208 before Reiffel claimed both batsmen in quick succession. With two new batsmen at the crease, Bevan came back into the attack and this time he quickly took two wickets in three balls, and with Reiffel getting another wicket, by tea the Zimbabwe innings was in tatters at 8/232.

Once again, play did not last long after tea, with Australia needing only twenty minutes to pick up the final two wickets to win by an innings and five runs, in less than three days.

Zimbabwe must quickly regroup as they this week travel to meet India who are on a high after successive victories over South Africa and West Indies. Zimbabwe have now slipped to 7th place on the table and they must win here to stay in touch with the leaders. With in-form batsman Gavin Rennie still out injured, Hickey will need a minor miracle to lift the morale of his troops.

WARWICK TODD'S XI - Manager: Warwick Todd

"An enormous success" was how Warwick Todd summed up his team's recent trip to England. "Merv and Fat Cat thought they had Boonie down and out, but he showed what a champion he is by knocking over three cans as the plane taxied in. His new mark of 75 cans will take a lot of beating and frankly I don't think there's anyone in the current Australian team who can do it."

When informed that his team had lost the Warwick Todd Trophy, he replied "Never mind, it'll turn up. It's probably just Merv mucking around!"

It will probably surprise no-one, then, to find out that England soundly beat the Warwick Todd XI in their Round 6 Top-of-the-Table clash. Warwick Todd won the toss and elected to bat, but the familiar sound of cans being opened soon made it apparent that the Todd XI did not have their minds on the job. (In their defence, this approach had in fact worked in every other match so far!). After a steady start, wickets began to fall and it soon became apparent that the Todd tactics of "belting the little Welsh so-and-so out of the park" were not working, as Croft proceeded to pick up 6 wickets. The Todd innings ended at 234 which was about half of what they would have expected.

In a very unfamiliar position, the Todd bowlers got on top early before the England tail wagged to see England dismissed for 328.

The Todd XI then lost three wickets in wiping off the deficit before a partnership between Todd and Border put the Todd XI back on course. A very dubious lbw decision ended the partnership and the tail also folded as the Todd XI were dismissed for 209.

England only needed 116 to win which they achieved for the loss of three wickets.

Next week the Todd XI are at home to last-placed New Zealand. Greg Ritchie suffered an injury on the flight home and it is likely than Dean Jones will return in his place.