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Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Michael Clarke kept Australia hopes alive with a magnificent century•AFP

Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin kept alive Australian hopes of a world-record run chase with an unbeaten partnership of 185 that both stunned and enthralled the capacity Lord’s crowd. No sooner had England appeared set on an inexorable march towards their first Ashes victory at Lord’s in 75 years than the Australian middle-order duo produced a stoic, chanceless sixth-wicket stand to drag the tourists back into the contest.The evening session may have belonged to Australia, but advantage still rests with England. Australia require another 209 runs for victory, having been set an unprecedented target of 522 by Andrew Strauss, and will resume on Monday acutely aware that they are one wicket away from delving into their bowling stocks.But after a stirring fourth day, during which Australia made the impossible merely improbable, few would dare discount their chances entirely. Australia’s effort is already the fourth highest fourth-innings total in Lord’s 125 year history and 105 runs shy of Test cricket’s highest ever successful run chase. And this with five wickets still in hand.After being offered the light in the 86th over, Clarke placed his arm around Haddin as he strode from the playing surface, satisfied that their efforts had saved a day that, hours earlier, had lurched heavily England’s way. Five Australian wickets, three of which were contentious in the extreme, had fallen for just 128 runs before tea, and an expectant Lord’s crowd awaited an Andrew Flintoff-inspired England to complete a quick kill.But the script changed dramatically thereafter. Clarke, perhaps Australia’s most consistent batsman of the past 18 months, successfully navigated his way through a testing early period and appeared impressively immune from the suffocating atmosphere created by Flintoff and Graeme Swann. The Australian vice-captain notched his half-century in near even-time, highlighted by several sublime drives and crisp stroke play off his pads.

Haddin, meanwhile, entered the match brimming with confidence following his 121 in Cardiff, and looked the part early. His half-century was more attritional than Clarke’s – surprising, given their usual modus operandi – and was raised with a single to third man off Swann. Clarke reached his 11th Test century from the very next delivery with a push through midwicket, and celebrated with his customary wave of the bat and kiss of the coat-of-arms. This may well be remembered as his finest Test innings to date, and will presumably enshrine itself into Australian sporting folklore should it lead to a famous victory.Clarke and Haddin survived several anxious moments after the second new ball was taken, edging over the slips cordon on several occasions, but otherwise batted with tremendous maturity and determination on a day otherwise notable for a series of contentious dismissals that threatened to overshadow the broader contest.Controversy, not history, dominated discussion during the first two sessions and, again, much of the focus centred on Rudi Koertzen, whose 100th Test might well be his most disappointing. The South African official began the fourth day by ruling Simon Katich out to a Flintoff no-ball, but the bigger controversy surrounded his involvement in the dismissal of Phillip Hughes to a claimed catch by Strauss.Hughes was ordered to stand his ground by Ricky Ponting, the non-striker, after edging Flintoff low to first slip and, as has been the case twice previously this Test, Koertzen sought the counsel of Billy Doctrove. But unlike Nathan Hauritz’s claimed catch on Saturday, the on-field officials did not refer the matter to Nigel Llong, the third umpire, and Koertzen ordered Hughes back to the Pavilion for 17.Replays were inconclusive as to whether Strauss’ fingers were completely between ball and turf, and a third umpire referral might have resulted in a benefit-of-the-doubt ruling, such as that granted to Ravi Bopara the previous day. Hughes, though, was not so fortunate, and now finds himself under immense pressure to perform at Edgbaston after false starts at Sophia Gardens and Lord’s.Michael Hussey also had reason to feel aggrieved at his dismissal, ruled caught at first slip to a Swann delivery he appeared to miss, but the Australian batsman could have counted himself most fortunate to have survived an earlier lbw shout from James Anderson. Hussey’s wicket in the 33rd over appeared to signal the end of Australia’s survival prospects, until Clarke and Haddin combined for an unbroken partnership that has lasted 286 deliveries and 188 minutes entering the final day.Their efforts could not entirely detract from a virtuoso performance from Flintoff, playing his last ever Test at Lord’s. Storming in from the Pavilion End, England’s enigmatic allrounder bowled seven overs of pure menace for figures of 2 for 9 before lunch, accounting for both Australian openers in the process, and followed with seven more in the second session.Presumably, Flintoff will not be offering conciliatory handshakes and embraces to the Australians in the event of a second Test victory, as was the case at Edgbaston four years, given the ferocity of his encounters with Hughes and Ponting in the first session on Sunday. In the second over of the morning, Flintoff unleashed a ferocious bouncer that barely cleared Hughes’ helmet, and followed with an exaggerated verbal barrage delivered while walking backwards to his mark. The chirping also extended to Ponting, somewhat more practiced at the art than Hughes, as tempers frayed in this most pressurised of atmospheres.Ponting’s blood pressure rose further when Anderson struck him a painful blow to the right index finger, and again when a loose cut-shot resulted in him edging a Stuart Broad delivery onto his stumps. Marcus North also chopped on in the lead up to tea – his from a faster, flatter Swann delivery – as Australia stumbled to 128 for 5.Clarke and Haddin ensured England did not have it all their own way, but they still have quite the mountain to climb. An early wicket on Monday will tilt the balance firmly the way of England. Still, better an improbable chase than an impossible one.

Over of the day
When Laura Marsh took the new ball with her slower-than-slow offspin, she set the agenda for the contest with a teasing, strangling performance. Tossing the ball up at a pace that invited a rash response, he got under the skin of New Zealand’s openers, and then into their minds with sharp and biting turn. Suzie Bates, so crucial to their hopes of a defendable total, lost the plot after only five deliveries, galloping down the track to a ball that barely reached her, for Sarah Taylor behind the stumps to whip off the bails with glee.Wicket of the day
With one big gun gone, the other simply couldn’t afford to fail. But New Zealand’s captain, Aimee Watkins, wasn’t given the chance to script a riposte. Katherine Brunt’s extra pace had proven expensive in the semi-final, but this time it was simply deadly. Watkins came into this contest on the back of a crushing 89 not out from 58 balls against India, but before she could get going, Brunt swung a perfect yorker through her loose defences.Bowler of the day
Sporting an impressive shiner that enhanced her menacing credentials, Brunt bludgeoned New Zealand like a blunt instrument of attack that she’s become. Lucy Doolan drilled her through the covers for four from the final ball of her first over, but that was the sum total of the attacking strokes she permitted. From the remaining 18 balls of her spell, Brunt leaked nothing more than a spare of singles, and no runs at all off the bat from back-to-back maidens. Doolan lost the plot and steered a scoop to the wicketkeeper, before Rachel Priest hoicked a short ball and was caught with glee on the crease.Fielder of the day
Sarah Taylor was a jack-in-the-box behind the stumps, and justified her status as the rising star of England’s team with a performance that punished every one of New Zealand’s errors. She did for Bates with a quicksilver stumping from wide of the crease, then refused to be distracted by Doolan’s contortions at the crease, as she watched the ball take the edge of that attempted scoop, and fly high and hard to her right. Sarah Tsukigawa became her third and finest victim when she took off, again to her right, to snaffle a thick edge off Jenny Gunn. And then, for good measure, she wrapped up the run-out that ensured New Zealand would be bowled out from the final ball of their 20 overs.Drop of the day
Misfields were a rarity for either side, as both sets of fielders gave impressive support to their hard-working bowlers. But there was one lapse that, in the final analysis, proved very costly indeed. After her 76 not out from 53 balls in the semi-final run-chase, the one player that New Zealand could not afford to reprieve was Claire Taylor. But that’s exactly what happened, when Taylor was dropped by the keeper, Priest, before she had a run to her name. It was tough luck on the bowler, Kate Pulford, whose late seam movement had beaten Taylor three times in four balls in her previous over. This time she found the edge, but Priest couldn’t cling on as she stretched out her right mitt.Shot of the day
By the halfway point of the run-chase, Taylor’s only boundary was that edge through the wicketkeeper’s grasp, and the target, while never challenging, was starting to look more hazardous than anticipated. But then, out of the blue, Taylor unfurled a riotous on-drive against Pulford that soared down the ground and into the boundary boards for four. It was the first real statement of intent of her innings, and the first sign that New Zealand had little hope of recovery.

North Division

Chris Rogers and Greg Smith produced a hard-hitting opening stand of 84 to build on a career-best bowling performance from Tom Lungley, as Derbyshire powered to the top of the North Division with an eight-wicket victory over Leicestershire at Grace Road. Leicestershire owed their meagre total of 127 for 9 to their teenage talent James Taylor, who top-scored with 40 from 39 balls, but he was comprehensively trumped by Lungley, who returned the impressive figures of 5 for 27 in four overs. Rogers then burst out of the traps in the run-chase, belting eight fours and three sixes in a 36-ball 58, and was ably supported by Smith, who was there at the end with an unbeaten 47 from 53. The match was so one-sided that Stuart Law was unable to get to the crease and give his controversial new Mongoose bat another airing.Following his latest fitness snub from the selectors, Samit Patel did his utmost to remind England of his enduring qualities with bat and ball, while another England outcast, Chris Read, chimed in with 58 not out from 47 balls, but their efforts were not enough to rescue Nottinghamshire following a spectacular top-order implosion against Lancashire at Old Trafford. Chasing 152 following a solid Lancashire performance in which no-one managed more than Faff du Plessis’ 31 from 21 balls, Nottinghamshire capitulated to Tom Smith, who removed Ali Brown with his first ball and Graeme Swann with his fifth, and Glen Chapple. At 19 for 5, the game was as good as over, except no-one told Patel and Read. The pair resuscitated the innings with a sixth-wicket stand of 43, and Read went on to add a further 66 unbeaten runs for the eight wicket with Ryan Sidebottom. But in the end they couldn’t make up that early lost ground.

South Division

Ravi Bopara switched effortlessly back to Twenty20 mode with 45 from 31 balls, while his opponent in Friday’s tournament curtain-raiser against Holland, Ryan ten Doeschate, made 28 from 24, as Essex outmuscled Sussex under the floodlights at Hove. Batting first, Essex posted a gettable 148, a total that might have been even more but for a careless five run-outs – including Bopara just as he was reaching top gear, and his England team-mate James Foster first-ball. In reply, Sussex suffered a set-back when Luke Wright fell to David Masters for a second-ball duck, but it was his namesake Chris Wright who did most of the damage with 4 for 24. Graham Napier wrapped up the match with five balls remaining with his third wicket.

The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) has said it is ready to accept all Bengal players who had joined the ICL into its fold. Arun Mitra, the CAB joint-secretary, who met four of the seven ICL players from the Royal Bengal Tigers squad — Deep Dasgupta, Abhishek Jhunjhunwala, Subhomoy Das and Eklak Ahmid — in an hour-long meeting on Monday said the players were welcome to return but would need to follow certain procedures to exit the ICL.In fact, the CAB may also offer Deep Dasgupta the post of captain-coach of Bengal if he severs all ties with the unofficial league. “We had a long chat. Deep has a great cricket brain. It will be great for Bengal if he comes back to the fold. He has served Bengal well in the past and we still need him,” Mitra told the , the Kolkata-based daily.”We had a long discussion on various issues. We discussed the coaching issue. All these players are Bengal cricket’s assets. Once they get the release from the ICL, they’ll be up for selection for the Bengal squad.”Some of the ICL players said they needed to apply for a no-objection certificate from the ICL and once they get it they might make their next move to return to the domestic fold. However, Mitra said the return of those players did not necessarily mean that they would play for Bengal straight away. “All of them will have to perform well in the local league to qualify as probables for the state side,” Mitra was quoted by the .Dasgupta said he was keen to make a comeback as a Bengal cricketer and termed the talks as very fruitful. “I am honoured to be called for a meeting by the CAB. I believe I still have two to three years of cricket left in me. I’m fit enough to play any format of the game,” Dasgupta said.”We discussed many things. It would be good to play mainstream cricket again. But I’m still undecided. I have four days in hand to make up my mind. I’m also really passionate about coaching. But at this moment, I have to wait and think about my next move.”The three other Bengal players who joined in the ICL — Rohan Gavaskar, Subhajit Paul and Shibsagar Singh — were not present at the meeting.

Shahid Afridi believes Pakistan’s recent lack of international cricket will not hamper their chances at the World Twenty20 in England next month. Since January 2007, no team has played as little as Pakistan’s ten Tests and 50 ODIs. Even Bangladesh, the weakest Test-playing nation, have played 15 Tests and 55 ODIs and teams such as Australia and India have played nearly three times as much cricket in that time.The lack of Pakistani participation in the IPL has also not helped, but Afridi, fresh from a successful battle with the Australians, believes Pakistan are strong enough to overcome the dearth. “I don’t feel our lack of cricket will make much of a difference because we are still a strong Twenty20 side,” Afridi told Cricinfo. “We have a pretty similar team to last time with only a few changes and we have Younis [Khan] as captain now. He has done well and taken the team along with him so far and he will be vital come England.”Afridi himself will be a vital plank in Pakistan’s challenge, especially given his fine recent form. He was the leading wicket-taker against Australia, a consistent, nagging threat on slow, low surfaces and pole-axed their batting in Pakistan’s crushing Twenty20 win in Dubai. Few will forget either that he was player of the tournament in South Africa two years ago.England, where he has been effective with the ball in ODIs, offers a different proposition, however. “Wickets in England might be slower, a little less bounce so I’ll make slight adjustments to my bowling,” he said. “Maybe a bit more flight, but generally, as an ODI leggie, you have to be straight and tight and that works in most conditions.”Until the series against Australia, Afridi’s form had been uncertain, especially poor with the bat, over the last year. In 18 matches before the series, his highest score was 28. His bowling, though considerably improved, lacked wicket-taking penetration; in 11 ODIs against established teams last year, he picked up nine wickets.Pressure was building for his place in the side to be scrutinized. “I don’t take or give pressure, no matter what anyone is saying about me. I knew I was backed by the coach, the captain and the team and that is all I needed.”But the form dip did spur him on to a more concentrated fitness and training regime. “It’s come about through a lot of individual effort. I’ve worked really hard on my fitness levels. I used to be tired after bowling six to seven overs previously and then struggle. I’ve also concentrated in the nets on my lines and lengths because for a legspinner this is vital, especially in ODIs. Abdul Qadir [the chief selector] has helped with tips, though it is easy to listen and harder to actually execute.”Significantly, there were indicators of a revival in his batting fortunes. Though there was still no fifty, a couple of unusually responsible, properly constructed 40s stood out. The fight to curb his instincts, Afridi said, goes on. “I have really fought with myself in the ground, talked to myself a lot during my batting. I’ve had to control myself because I need to score runs for the team – that is the priority. I want to continue it in England, where I’ve had some success batting in county games. You need to counter the initial overs there but after that, conditions for lower-order guys like myself, are pretty good.”

Andy Moles, the New Zealand coach, is optimistic of pulling off a win on Monday in Napier despite his side picking up only one wicket on the fourth day. India trail New Zealand by 62 runs, after following on, and still have eight wickets in hand, with Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir at the crease.Moles said a draw was the expected result but hoped that with some luck New Zealand would be able to get the breakthroughs needed to win the Test. “There is only team that can win this game and that is New Zealand,” Moles said. “It is not often that we have been in that position. We hope a little bit of luck goes our way tomorrow and we get the opportunity to push for the win that we deserve. It only takes a couple of good catches and a special spell by somebody.”Moles said his bowlers, who had bowled 200.5 successive overs, were sore but had no injuries. “Obviously, you get a bit tired when you make teams follow on. My message to the team is that we’ve got to get used to it. If we are going to become a good Test side it is about getting big scores and then making teams follow on.”This is an exceptionally good batting wicket and they [India] have got some great players who played well on it. If we can get our intensity right and hit the right areas we could turn it our way. All we are looking for is two or three mistakes and we will be into the Indian tail. As we saw in the first innings, they have got a magnificent five to six at the front. If we bowl well and things go our way we can get quick wickets.”

Scorecard
Saeed Ajmal, the offspinner, took 5 for 105 to help Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) fight back against Sialkot at the Jinnah Stadium, restricting their lead to 90 when it seemed at one stage that the opposition would bat them out of the game. Beginning the day in a dominant position at 189 for 1, overnight batsman Naeemuddin progressed to complete his fourth first-class century, and was involved in a couple of fruitful partnerships which took his team past the KRL score of 296. He added 83 with Bilal Azmat and a further 90 with captain Mohammad Ayub as Sialkot were coasting along at 323 for 2.However, Ali Naqvi, the former Pakistan international, provided the breakthrough, ending the threatening stand and triggering a collapse in which Sialkot lost their last seven wickets for 63, with Ajmal’s five-for doing much of the damage. Middle-order batsmen Ayaz Tassawar, Haris Sohail and Nayyer Abbas each got to double figures but failed to consolidate as KRL, who seemed to be staring at the possibility of a massive first-innings lead at one stage, managed to get things back under control.But they suffered a setback just before the close, losing Saeed Anwar jnr as Sialkot ended the day with a slight advantage as a result of a lesser than expected, yet crucial, lead.

Trinidad & Tobago‘s hopes of closing in on leaders Jamaica were thwarted by persistent rain on the final day at St Augustine against Combined Campuses and Colleges. Having secured first-innings points, T&T were pushing for a win to gain the maximum 12 points from the game.However, only 14.4 overs were possible, with no play after the first hour. CCC, who conceded a 47-run first-innings lead, extended their overnight score of 43 for 2 to 71 without losing any more wickets. Simon Jackson, the CCC captain, got to his first half-century of the season, while at the other end nightwatchman Ryan Austin contributed four, in an unbroken stand of 71.Sherwin Ganga was named Man of the Match for a career-best 90 in T&T’s first innings. T&T, who are 15 points adrift of Jamaica, host Leeward Islands in the next round, while CCC face Barbados.

Group A

A steady performance from the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited bowlers kept Karachi Whites to 228 for 8 at the National Stadium. Ali Asad and Murtaza Majeed helped Karachi make a solid start after ZTBL chose to field, but the visitors picked up wickets frequently once the opening stand was broken at 75. Asad contributed 37 and Majeed top scored with 67, but barring Afsar Nawaz’s 39, none of the batsmen who followed made it past 25. Medium-pacer Junaid Nadir took 3 for 64, while Zohaib Khan and Azhar Attari chipped in with two apiece.Allrounder Yasir Arafat pushed his claims for a spot in Pakistan’s Test squad for next month’s series against Sri Lanka with 7 for 19 in 8.4 overs for Khan Research Laboratories against Sui Southern Gas Corporation in Rawalpindi. On a day when 17 wickets fell, Pakistan left-armer Sohail Tanvir took 0 for 28 in nine overs, as SSGC finished at 57 for 7 – 16 were extras – in reply to KRL’s 191. No. Ali Khan scored an unbeaten 42 to help KRL to that score, with both Saeed Anwar jnr and Mohammad Wasim making 39. Medium-pacer Shehzad Butt took 4 for 47, while Rajesh Ramesh had figures of 3 for 53.Three wickets for opening bowler Aamer Yousuf and two for former Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Zahid helped Pakistan Customs reduce Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited to 134 for 6 in the 43.5 overs at the Gujranwala. Azhar Shafiq top scored for SNGPL, the defending champions, with 55 not out while captain Misbah-ul-Haq made 33.An unbeaten 61 from Zulqarnain Haider and Muzaffar Mahboob’s 54 took Lahore Shalimar to 219 for 6 against Habib Bank Limited at the Gaddafi Stadium. Fahad Masood struck two early blows, but Abid Ali and Raza Ali Dar made 30s to string useful partnerships with Haider. Lahore found themselves at 127 for 5, but Haider and Mahboob shared a 74-run stand, which was broken by Shahid Afridi, who finished the day with two wickets.There was no play on the first day between leaders Pakistan International Airlines and Water and Power Development Authority in Sialkot.

Group B

Only 14.3 overs were bowled at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad, where the hosts stumbled to 51 for 4 against Islamabad. Saad Altaf took three, while his new-ball partner Rauf Akbar scalped the other.At the Niaz Stadium, Abbottabad failed to capitalise on two early strikes against Hyderabad. Put in, Hyderabad were reduced to 13 for 2. However, an unbroken 219-run stand between Azeem Ghumon and Faisal Athar helped them take the honours on the first day. Opener Ghumon hit 91 off 264 balls, while Athar was much quicker, scoring 127 off 214. Armaghan Elahi and Rashid Mansoor, Abbottabad’s opening bowlers, conceded 48 runs in their 34 overs.Second-placed Rawalpindi also overcome a shaky start to score 250 for 6 in 71 overs against Lahore Ravi at the Lahore City Cricket Association Ground. Waqas Ahmed and Junaid Zia shared the wickets as Rawalpindi slumped to 24 to 4. Jamal Anwar scored 35 and added 51 for the fifth wicket with Naved Ashraf, the captain. Ashraf then took charge of the innings, and found support from Fawad Hussain. The duo added 168 before Ashraf was dismissed for 105 by Waqas. Hussain was unbeaten on 85 at stumps.Opener Naeemuddin’s 65 and useful scores from the middle order helped group leaders Sialkot to 230 for 7 on the opening day against Multan in Okara. Put in, Sialkot had a 42-run opening stand before two wickets fell in quick succession. Naeemuddin and Haris Sohail (38) then put on 88, but yet again wickets fell in a flurry as Sialkot were reduced to 140 for 5, with offspinner Majid Majeed striking twice. Nayyer Abbas (41) and Ayaz Tasawwar (38) took the score past 200. Tasawwar will resume on the second day unbeaten on a 90-ball 38.

In the wake of the falling out between Kevin Pietersen and Peter Moores, which ultimately cost both men their jobs, the former England captain Tony Greig – who also lost the position in controversial circumstances – has said that the captain should be in ultimate control of the team.”Moores’ behaviour would suggest to me that he is one of the growing group of coaches who think the coach’s job is more important than that of the captain,” Greig said on his show. “He is very wrong and the sooner he and others like him are put in their place the better.”It’s also pertinent to note that every Tom, Dick and Harry is putting his hand up for the coaching job, hopefully the ECB will learn from this mistake and ask the new captain who he wants to work with. These days, captains and coaches have to work together and to impose a coach on a new captain is just plain silly.”Pietersen has never got on with Moores and should have been allowed to have a say in the man who should be his second in charge. This relationship was never going to work and let’s face it, once Pietersen was made the captain it was only a question of time before Moores was going to be ditched.”Greig can speak with some experience on the subject of losing the captaincy, as his career included a period remarkably similar to what Pietersen has now gone through. In 1977 he was England captain and had just led the team on a tour of India, though unlike Pietersen’s trip, Greig had come away victorious. But on his return the first signs Kerry Packer’s World Series were hitting the headlines.It soon emerged that Greig was heavily involved, personally recruiting some of the leading international names, and he was stripped of the captaincy and branded a mercenary. There was an Ashes series looming and England called up a Middlesex batsman, Mike Brearley, to lead the side, which the home side won 3-0.Greig said that England must now hope that Pietersen can put the problems behind him and focus on scoring runs for the team, beginning with the tour of West Indies and carrying forward into the Ashes series. Greig, himself, managed to perform after losing the captaincy with 91 in the first Test of 1977 Ashes series although his overall record for the contest – 226 runs at 32.28 and seven wickets at 28 didn’t stand out – and his career ended after the final Test at The Oval.”Regrettably, England might now never know what Pietersen was capable of as a captain, even though he added another twist to English cricket’s chaotic week when he insisted he’d be back as captain despite his controversial resignation,” he said. “Hopefully this extremely talented cricketer’s form doesn’t suffer as a result of this saga, which is something that England does not need.”