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The Falkland Islands blew Costa Rica away on the second day of the Americas Division Four competition at the Reforma Athletic ground in Mexico City on Tuesday

Tony Munro16-Jun-2010

ScorecardThe Falkland Islands blew Costa Rica away on the second day of the Americas Division Four competition at the Reforma Athletic ground in Mexico City on Tuesday. A devastating spell of medium-pace bowling from Falkland Islands’ David Taylforth caused all the damage, as he picked up 6 for 14 and wrapped up the game with a four-wicket maiden which included a hat-trick.The day started with the Costa Ricans winning the toss and electing to field in cloudy conditions. In the third over, Sam Arthur bowled Falkland Islands’ opening batsman Mike Summers for just 2. Martin Collins then came to the crease and he faired a little better before he too was bowled the same bowler and Falkland Islands were up against it.The Falkland’s batsmen came to the wicket and left with great regularity and only Charles Hewitt, with a painstaking 21 from 50 balls, and David Pickup, with 24 runs from 53 balls, made any effort to occupy the crease.The Falkland’s innings folded for 131 runs with 11.3 overs remaining and the game looked all but lost at this stage. Ben Smith returned 4 for 32 from 10 overs to go with his century the day before. He was supported by Tim Baker who took 3 for 29 and Sam Arthur with 2 for 15.Playing in their first tournament of any kind, Falkland Islands never gave up hope, and the spirit in the team was further lifted in the first over when Taylforth had Tim Baker caught by Collins without a run on the board. Smith threatened to take the game away from Falkland Islands but he went, brilliantly caught at mid-off, to leave the Costa Ricans on 44 for 2.The Falkland players went to lunch believing they could conjure up an upset and set up a decider with the hosts in Wednesday’s game. After lunch the game swayed back and forth until the 29th over. With Costa Rica poised at 92 for 6 and still in need of 39 runs for victory, Falkland Islands needed a hero, and he duly stepped up.In what one spectator described as the most exhilarating finish to a cricket game, captain and Man-of-the-Match Taylforth came back into the attack from the northern end of the ground, and with his first ball of the over he had Richard Illingworth caught at gully by Ian Betts.This encouraged Falkland Islands to go on the offensive with two slips, two men in the gully and the rest of the fielders inside the circle. The second ball of the over brought Garth Tweedale forward only to be snapped up by Richard Marlor at one of the two gullies.This brought in Gary Sheriff with Taylforth on a hat-trick and a perfect, swinging delivery saw Sheriff groping forward and again Marlor in the gully did the honours. The Falkland Islanders jumped and screamed with delight for captain Taylforth but also at the sight of a well-deserved victory.The fourth ball was a dot ball to last man, Armando Foster, but the fifth was just short of a length and Foster went back but could not keep his hand down. The ball took the glove and looped to Marlor waiting in the same position as the previous two catches. Costa Rica’s innings ended with the score at 92 to give Falkland Islands victory by 39 runs.

Sussex strengthened their grip at the top of the table as they beat nearest rivals Essex by 17 runs in their Friends Provident Twenty20 battle at Chelmsford

29-Jun-2010

ScorecardGrant Flower is bowled during Essex’s collapse as their run chase fell apart•Getty Images

Sussex strengthened their grip at the top of the table as they beat nearest rivals Essex by 17 runs in their Friends Provident Twenty20 battle at Chelmsford.After posting a total of 174 for 5 on the back of a superb half-century from Matt Prior, Sussex restricted their opponents to 157 for 9. Prior dominated an opening partnership with Ed Joyce to such an extent that he scored 50 out of 65 runs before he drove David Masters to extra cover where Mark Pettini took a fine catch.Those runs came from only 27 balls and contained four sixes and four boundaries. Joyce, Murray Goodwin, Dwayne Smith and Andrew Hodd all reached the 20s to ensure Sussex set their opponents a testing target.Left-arm spinner Tim Phillips was the pick of the bowlers, conceding 22 runs in his four overs during which he claimed the wicket of Joyce. It looked as though Prior’s efforts would go unrewarded when Essex replied.With Pettini, who was restored to the side after a loss of form lead to him being dropped a fortnight ago, finding his touch without the burden of captaincy, Essex reached the halfway stage on 82 without loss.It was not until two overs and eight runs later that Pettini’s innings came to an end after he contributed 59 from 38 deliveries with the help of five fours and three sixes. But Essex’s hopes of recording a sixth successive win quickly evaporated as they lost their way.Pettini’s departure signalled a collapse that saw nine wickets go down in as many overs for 49 runs. Among them was young opener Jaik Mickleburgh who was run out for 32, but he struggled so much that he needed 42 balls to gather those runs while striking just two boundaries.A late flourish from John Maunders, who struck two sixes in an unbeaten 25 from 16 balls, gave the Essex reply an air of respectability but never threatened to prevent Sussex getting back on the winning trail.Their win came after two defeats and was backed up by some disciplined bowling and fine work in the field. Chad Keegan bowled with commendable accuracy while conceding just 19 in four overs, during which he gathered the wicket of Pettini, while Smith was also a model of accuracy while picking up one for 23.

Corey Collymore bagged six wickets as top-of-the-table Sussex sent Leicestershire crashing to defeat by an innings and 19 runs with a day and a half to spare in their County Championship Division Two clash at Grace Road

31-Jul-2010

ScorecardCorey Collymore bagged six wickets as top-of-the-table Sussex sent Leicestershire crashing to defeat by an innings and 19 runs with a day and a half to spare in their County Championship Division Two clash at Grace Road.After a delayed start because of rain Leicestershire lost their last six wickets for 97 runs in 32 overs with West Indian paceman Collymore claiming four of them for 27 runs in 9.1 overs after the lunch break.It gave him figures of 6 for 48, his best return since he joined Sussex in 2008. The only Leicestershire batsman to show any defiance was Jacques du Toit who struck 81 off 83 balls with 13 boundaries. Sussex wasted no time picking up their first wicket once play got underway with Leicestershire resuming on 59 for 4, trailing by 116 runs.Lewis Hatchett had two balls left of an unfinished over to bowl and with the first of them he produced a magnificent inswinger that shattered Tom New’s stumps. But that proved to be the only success of the morning for Sussex. Hatchett lost his line and length and Du Toit and Wayne White cashed in with a succession of boundaries. Du Toit reached 50 off 52 balls and at lunch the sixth wicket pair had put on 56 to take Leicestershire to 115 for 5.But the introduction of Collymore into the attack immediately after the interval slammed the door shut on the home side’s revival. Gaining movement through the air and off the pitch Collymore produced a superb spell of bowling and Leicestershire had no answer. He snapped up the wickets of Du Toit and Claude Henderson in the same over, both batsmen edging away swinging deliveries into the hands of Michael Yardy at first slip.Collymore then had Nadeem Malik dropped twice at slip in the same over before finally trapping him lbw. In between left-arm spinner Monty Panesar nipped in with a wicket as he beat White in the flight to give Ben Brown an easy stumping.The final wicket went to Collymore with Matthew Hoggard caught by Yardy to seal a comfortable victory. The victory earned them 23 points to consolidate their position at the top of the table.

There are a couple of ways of looking at Shane Watson’s opening partnership with Simon Katich

Peter English24-Aug-2010There are a couple of ways to look at Shane Watson’s opening partnership with Simon Katich. The straight numbers way, or through the increasingly friendly displays of two content men who form the most stable sector of the country’s batting.In statistical terms they own the second-best average for Australian openers in 20 Tests or more, with their 54.95 an innings putting them behind Bill Lawry and Bob Simpson. They currently have 1099 runs together and will never reach the mark of Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer (5655), mainly due to Katich’s age of 35. They are also unlikely to match the man love of their cuddle-happy predecessors, but are giving it a go.”We probably aren’t as emotional as those two were, with our public shows of affection,” Watson said. “But we’ve got a really strong inner bond. You’re never going to see as much hugging as what you did with Matt Hayden and Justin Langer, so we won’t be raising too many eyebrows in that regard.”They enjoy socialising away from the game, although Katich doesn’t use his celebrity cooking skills to fill Watson’s stomach. “We’ve had a good friendship, even before we ended up opening the batting together,” Watson said. “We know that deep down there’s such a tight inner bond because of what we’re doing, and trying to do. He’s an integral part of who we are.”Like any lasting relationship there have been bouts of silent treatment, the main one coming when they pretended to be strangers when stuck at the same end of the MCG in December. Watson was the one run-out, seven short of his first Test century, but they were soon speaking and scoring heavily again.The strength of their partnership has surprised Watson, and the odd couple has become one of the selection panel’s most successful gambles. Watson is the free-flowing, muscular, stylish striker who is made for the middle order, giving him time to recover from his bowling. The almost scrawny Katich is happy to scrape and scrap, focusing not on style, but the end-of-innings total.”It has been a really good combination of what we both do to set up a platform for the team,” he said. “I never really fully understood when the guys who opened the batting continued to talk about how important the relationship is for openers, and how important it is to be really close.”Watson likes where is so much, having scored 990 runs at 47.14 since replacing Phillip Hughes at Edgbaston last year, that his argument of not wanting to drop down the order is now convincing. At the start of his time at the top he wasn’t so sure, despite being desperate to talk up his suitability.Cold shoulder: Watson and Katich wait for the run-out decision at the MCG in December•Getty Images

“I love where I’m batting now,” he said. “It does really suit my personality in the game, which I never thought it would until I had the opportunity.”And in an order in which Ricky Ponting, Michael Hussey and Marcus North have been battling, the opening combination takes on extreme importance. Katich has talked about turning stands of 80 into 180 and Watson wants to transform his record for entertaining half-centuries into a reputation for big hundreds. “It’s something I will be continuing to develop and improve on,” he said. “It’s a part that needs to get better.”Of course, Watson is not just a recently married metrosexual who expresses his feelings and has found the perfect hair gel. He can also turn into a fast bowler of the 1970s, without the moustache, but with the loud mouth.He has tipped Steven Finn, the 21-year-old fast bowler, and Jimmy Anderson to struggle during the 2010-11 Ashes. Finn didn’t play the one-dayers when Australia were in England earlier in the year and Watson believes his lack of big matches can be exposed.”He is someone we can really try and make the most of his inexperience,” he said. “By them resting him during the [English] summer and us not seeing him during the one-dayers – no doubt he will feel the pressure. It is so foreign, he doesn’t know what to expect.”Watson highlighted Anderson’s poor record on the 2006-07 tour, when he took five wickets at 82.60. “If he doesn’t start out the way he wants to,” he said, “those wounds can open up straight away.”However, he does rate Stuart Broad after being dismissed twice by him in last year’s Ashes. “He will be the hardest bowler we’ll have to face in the English attack,” he said. “Because of how skilful he is on wickets that aren’t doing anything. He’s able to change his pace, seam movement, angles on the crease, he’s a really intelligent bowler. England are going to be reliant on him.”Australia will be looking to Watson and Katich to blunt Broad and take control of the innings. In the end it is only the numbers that matter.

The England & Wales Cricket Board has announced that it will be taking legal action against Ijaz Butt, the chairman of the PCB, after describing his allegations that England’s players accepted a bribe to lose the third ODI at The Oval as “wholly irrespons

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Sep-2010The England & Wales Cricket Board has announced that it will be taking legal action against Ijaz Butt, the chairman of the PCB, after describing his allegations that England’s players accepted a bribe to lose the third ODI at The Oval as “wholly irresponsible and completely without foundation”.However, in a strongly-worded statement on behalf of the ECB and the England team, it was announced that the final two matches of Pakistan’s tour would go ahead as planned. “It remains in the best interests of world cricket, the players and in particular of cricket supporters that the tour should continue, and it would set a dangerous precedent to call off a tour based on the misguided and inaccurate remarks made by one individual.”Butt’s allegations were of such extraordinary gravity that the ECB waited almost 24 hours before formulating its official response, and their statement was only issued after a lengthy meeting between the ECB and Team England, which stretched late into Sunday night. Present at the discussions were the ECB’s chairman Giles Clarke, the CEO David Collier, the managing director of England Cricket, Hugh Morris, and the England Captain and Coach, Andrew Strauss and Andrew Flower, who went on to have a subsequent meeting with all of the England team.”The team deplores and rejects unreservedly the suggestion that any England cricketer was involved in manipulating the outcome, or any individual element, of the third NatWest Series ODI at the Brit Insurance Oval between England and Pakistan last week,” read a statement issued on behalf of the England team. “The players fully understand their responsibilities as representatives of their country, and would not countenance giving less than 100% in any match they play.”In the circumstances, England’s players were, by the admission of their captain, Andrew Strauss, extremely reluctant to complete the series, and the rawness of the emotions between the two sides was demonstrated by an altercation in the Nursery Ground nets shortly before the start of the the Lord’s ODI, between Jonathan Trott and Wahab Riaz. There had been some speculation that the toss would be delayed as a result, but the game eventually got underway as scheduled.”We would like to express our surprise, dismay and outrage at the comments made by Mr Butt yesterday,” said Strauss. “We are deeply concerned and disappointed that our integrity as cricketers has been brought into question. We refute these allegations completely and will be working closely with the ECB to explore all legal options open to us.”Under the circumstances, we have strong misgivings about continuing to play the last two games of the current series and urge the Pakistani team and management to distance themselves from Mr Butt’s allegations. We do, however, recognise our responsibilities to the game of cricket, and in particular to the cricket-loving public in this country, and will therefore endeavour to fulfil these fixtures to the best of our ability.”Angus Porter, Chief Executive of the PCA, added: “The players appreciate the difficult position the ECB finds itself in, and is fully supportive of the actions taken by the Board, along with the ICC, to ensure all allegations of wrong-doing are properly investigated and acted upon. We will continue to cooperate closely with the ECB, with the aim of ensuring that the work to root out corruption is not derailed by mischievous attempts to detract attention from the real issues.”The ECB reiterated its faith in the integrity of its players by expressing its gratitude for the “outstanding conduct” of the players since the first allegations surfaced against the Pakistan team during the fourth Test at Lord’s, and added that it would be taking “all legal and disciplinary action which may result from Mr Butt’s comments”.”The ECB will continue to offer ICC its full support in taking the strongest possible action against all areas of corruption and is pledged to offering the ACSU its full support at all times,” continued the statement. “Given the current sensitivities surrounding this issue, ECB believes it is imperative that any serious allegations made against another team or player should be presented through the proper channels to the ACSU. Both ECB and Team England view the comments made by Mr Butt as defamatory and not based in fact.Hugh Robertson, Minister for Sport and the Olympics, said: “I welcome the decision by England to play the last two games of this tour. It is a pragmatic decision that is in the best interests of world cricket.”

Pakistan coach Waqar Younis has said that he was never consulted by the selection committee over the team composition for the England tour

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Oct-2010Pakistan coach Waqar Younis has said that he was not consulted by the selection committee over the team composition for various tours, including the tour to England earlier this year and the World Twenty20.”This is not for the first time that this has happened,” Waqar told the national assembly’s standing committee on sports, according to a report in . “I was totally snubbed during the selection of the Twenty20 World Cup team.”It also emerged on Tuesday that neither Waqar nor limited overs captain Shahid Afridi were consulted in the selection of the squad for the Twenty20 and ODI series against South Africa later this month.However, chief selector Mohsin Khan told the committee that Waqar was not in Pakistan at the time. “I am following the best practice. When the team for the England tour was announced, the coach was not even in Pakistan.”The inclusion of Yasir Hameed and Wahab Riaz, and the overlooking of former captain Younis Khan and Mohammad Sami for the England tour was said to have irked some of the selectors themselves, who were thought to have been against the decisions, and were apparently not consulted.The committee also took up on Younis’ continued omission from the team, asking the PCB to decide on the issue in a week. “We will direct Younis to contact the PCB and the board should resolve the matters relating to him within a week,” legislator Saud Majeed said. Younis is the only one among the seven players punished by the board after the Australia tour whose case is still stalled. Five of those seven players were selected to tour England, but Younis wasn’t among them.Pakistan had a positive start to the England tour, beating Australia in the two Twenty20 internationals, and then levelling the two-Test series with a victory at Headingley, Pakistan’s first Test win over Australia in nearly 15 years.However, they lost the first two Tests against England before winning the third. During their defeat at Lord’s in the final Test, the series was hit by spot-fixing allegations against the then captain Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif. They were provisionally suspended by the ICC before the Twenty20 series. Pakistan lost both Twenty20s and the subsequent one-day series 3-2.The committee has also asked the board to submit a report on the scandal and the tour itself.

VVS Laxman has reached Bangalore after a brief halt in his hometown of Hyderabad, but didn’t train with the team two days before the Bangalore Test.

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2010VVS Laxman, the hero of India’s gripping first Test win in Mohali, has reached Bangalore after a brief halt in his hometown of Hyderabad, but didn’t train with the team two days before the Bangalore Test. The rest of the team had a long nets session at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.Laxman had to fight back spasms in that match-winning 73, and is still recovering from the injury. He came in to bat at No. 10 in the first innings, and didn’t play any further part in the game until the end of day four. During the course of the game, he had to take three painkiller injections and tablets during every break on the final day.Laxman has been advised rest for his injured back, but a team source said he is feeling much better now. There is no word yet on whether he will play the second Test. In case he is ruled out, Saurashtra batsman Cheteshwar Pujara is likely to make his Test debut.India are, not for the first time this season, struggling with injuries in this series. Ishant Sharma and Gautam Gambhir have already been ruled out of the second Test. Both of them were unavailable at various points of time in Mohali. Australia are battling injury worries of their own: Doug Bollinger pulled out with an abdominal strain on the last afternoon in Mohali, and is yet to resume training.

Officialdom in Pakistan has finally made contact with Zulqarnain Haider in a continuing bid to find out the exact nature of events prior to the wicketkeeper’s sudden fleeing of Dubai for London

Osman Samiuddin12-Nov-2010Officialdom in Pakistan has finally made contact with Zulqarnain Haider in a continuing bid to find out the exact nature of events prior to the wicketkeeper’s sudden fleeing of Dubai for London. The PCB chairman Ijaz Butt spoke with Haider on Thursday and Wajid Shamsul Hasan, Pakistan’s high commissioner to the UK, also met with the 24-year-old.Though Haider told a local news channel that support and assistance had been offered by Ijaz Butt, a board spokesman said the purpose of the communication had been solely “to find out what made him do what he did.” The PCB’s three-man fact-finding committee – comprised team manager Intikhab Alam, the security manager Major Najam Javed and a senior board official Subhan Ahmed – has also been trying to establish contact, without success so far.Questions, however, are still being asked about Haider’s actions five days after the event. He insists he fled because of threats he received after turning down the approaches of an unidentified man who wanted him to be involved in fixing the last two ODIs against South Africa.In an interview with the fourth ODI, in which his unbeaten 19 helped Pakistan home in a nail-biter. Taffazul Rizvi, the board’s legal advisor, asked why Haider waited until Monday before deciding to leave; the latest the approach could have occurred was Thursday (the fourth ODI was on Friday), which means he waited four days before leaving.”In our culture, when are you worried about your family’s safety, you run to their side,” Rizvi told the . “Whereas he has run to a different country.”Reports have also emerged indicating Haider was on the verge of being dropped from the one-day line-up. The influential Urdu daily claimed in a front page report, citing team sources, that Haider was not inked in to be a part of either the fourth or fifth ODI. Instead, in a bid to find a better balance to the side, the team management was keen on doubling up Umar Akmal as a batsman-wicketkeeper in his place.But an ankle injury prevented Umar Akmal from playing the fourth ODI and though he fulfilled that role after Haider’s departure in the last ODI, claims he would have done so regardless of Haider’s status. The report suggests that Haider had been told of his ‘resting’ the evening before the last ODI.Haider, who has sought asylum in the UK and retired from international cricket, also said that he handed over two letters he received in his Dubai hotel room to the ICC’s anti-corruption unit. ESPNcricinfo understands, however, that the ICC at least has not received any documents yet from the player.

Darren Gough believes there is no way back for Australia in the Ashes series and can’t see them winning a Test regardless of who makes up their bowling attack

Andrew McGlashan09-Dec-2010Darren Gough believes there is no way back for Australia in the Ashes and can’t see them winning a Test regardless of who makes up their bowling attack. The situation has become so desperate for the hosts that there are growing calls for Shane Warne to make a comeback but, while Gough thinks the legspinner would seriously consider it, he says Cricket Australia can’t be seen to be making such a backward step.As England completed their crushing innings-and-71-run victory in Adelaide, a campaign was launched to encourage Warne – who last played Tests four years ago – out of retirement to help salvage the series. Bookmakers have cut their odds on such a move, and a website has been launched to raise money, while Warne himself called the talk “flattering”.”It’s not going happen. If someone rang Shane and said ‘we really need you’ I think he’d probably say yes, but Cricket Australia just aren’t going to do that,” Gough, who struck up a close friendship with Warne during their playing days, told ESPNcricinfo. “They would never ask him because it would be going back on their own statement to back youth. It just won’t happen.”I can’t see how they are going to win a game,” Gough added. “Their best chance is at Perth where their record is very good, but England have got players who all play well off the back foot so they won’t be worried about extra bounce – they’ll actually enjoy it. I just can’t see that they have the bowlers, whoever they pick, to bowl England out twice.”Gough is bemused by the decision to dump Mitchell Johnson for the second Test despite his wicketless display at Brisbane and thinks the selectors will have to immediately backtrack on that call for Perth. Johnson is currently working with Troy Cooley at the WACA, rather than playing for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield, and could be one of three players recalled alongside Ben Hilfenhaus and Nathan Hauritz.”The reason they are struggling is because they can’t take 20 wickets,” Gough, speaking at the Red Tractor beef and lamb launch ‘Give the Bird a Break’, said. “They left out their best strike bowler in Mitchell Johnson which was a total surprise to me. He’s the one guy who can bowl a team out and Ricky Ponting knows that and that’s why he has backed him in the media. It will be interesting to see which way they go. They’ll have to bring Johnson back to partner Ryan Harris so they have two strike bowlers.”England will also need to make a change to their attack for Perth after Stuart Broad was ruled out for the rest of the tour with a stomach injury. The three reserve quicks – Chris Tremlett, Tim Bresnan and Ajmal Shahzad – will play against Victoria in a three-day match starting on Friday and despite his strong Yorkshire connection, Gough would go with Tremlett for the Test match.”If it had been any other pitch over there I’d have gone for Tim Bresnan but I just think we need that bit of extra firepower at Perth where there’s a touch more bounce,” he said. “You look at history and the guys that have done well there are the tall bowlers – Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh, Glenn McGrath – the guys who can hit back-of-a-length to make the most of the extra bounce and carry. That’s the only reason I’d favour Tremlett. Bresnan is a fine bowler and in any other conditions I think he’d be the man.”I think Tremlett has developed a lot over the last few years and his move to Surrey has clearly helped him. The key for England is to continue to be positive and I think Tremlett is the man who can help them do that in Perth,” Gough added. “He would send out a positive message that England aren’t going to sit back on their 1-0 lead. However, if they come across some flatter pitches later in the series I’d play Bresnan because he bowls good reverse swing and accurately. For this Test, though, they need to replace Broad’s wicket-taking ability.”Gough has huge sympathy for Broad having twice experienced the major disappointment of leaving an Ashes tour. In 1994-95 Gough had produced a fine all-round performance in Sydney with 51 and 6 for 49 but then suffered a stress fracture of his foot, and eight years later returned home without playing a game. “He’ll be distraught,” Gough said. “An Ashes tour is the one you want to play on. I came home from my first Ashes tour and my last – without bowling a ball in 2002 – so I know exactly how he’ll be feeling right now.”Darren Gough is launching the ‘Give the Bird a Break’ virtual Christmas cooking school for men together with Red Tractor beef and lamb. For his recipe videos and top tips visit www.simplybeefandlamb.co.uk/birdabreak

Ian Bell carried his sparkling Test form into the one-day arena with an elegant, unbeaten 102-ball 124 to guide England to a comfortable seven-wicket victory against the Prime Minister’s XI at Manuka Oval

Andrew McGlashan at Manuka Oval09-Jan-2011
ScorecardIan Bell finished unbeaten on 124•Getty Images

Ian Bell carried his sparkling Test form into the one-day arena with an elegant, unbeaten 102-ball 124 to guide England to a comfortable seven-wicket victory against the Prime Minister’s XI at Manuka Oval. Bell’s innings made light work of an adjusted target as he added 82 with Steven Davies and 98 with Jonathan Trott before the team made a hasty trip to the airport for their flight to Adelaide.The Prime Minister’s XI total was built around brisk fifties from the captain Tim Paine and Daniel Christian before a late flourish from Brett Lee. Michael Yardy was the pick of England’s bowlers with 3 for 33, but while the visitors had rested their frontline quicks after the Test series they played a strong batting line-up and even needing more than a run-a-ball didn’t stretch them.Bell hasn’t been part of England’s Twenty20 set-up since 2008, but in his current form could push Michael Lumb for an opening berth against Australia in the absence of Craig Kieswetter. He is also trying to ensure he retains his place in the 50-over line-up with competition for places in England’s top order. Bell reached his hundred from 89 balls with ten boundaries and cleared the ropes with a straight drive as victory approached.However, as good as he was, he was fed some filth by the PM XI’s attack. Trent Copeland and James Pattinson, two young bowlers tipped for Test honours, struggled to tie the batsmen down while Christian, bought for US$900,000 at the IPL auction, was taken for ten-an-over. The fielding was also poor with Davies offered two lives during his 23 – on 2 and 20 – and Bell was put down at midwicket on 71 by Callum Ferguson.England scored at more than seven-an-over early in the chase as Copeland repeatedly dropped short and Lee also failed to make an impression despite showing decent pace. Xavier Doherty eventually broke the opening stand when Davies drove to cover but the early charge had put England well ahead of the rate when rain arrived to cut the chase from 44 to 35 overs. It made things a little tougher, at least on paper, but Bell was in serene touch and did as he pleased.Trott, who could be in a straight fight with Bell for a one-day berth, was equally comfortable as he switch from Test to one-day mode. Shortly after the rain break he collected consecutive boundaries off Pattinson to get his innings going. Christian bowled consecutive no-balls as the PM XI’s showed poor discipline. Doherty had Trott caught behind and Kevin Pietersen (13) missed a straight ball from Lee with four, but they were minor blips.The PM XI’s innings was a mixed affair with some attractive strokeplay but England managed to pull them back after a swift opening stand following a delayed start. Having playing little cricket in recent weeks, Ajmal Shahzad and Chris Woakes were rusty with the new ball as Paine and Usman Khawaja (22) added 75 with Paine taking 14 off one Woakes over.Spin was introduced for the 11th over in the shape of James Tredwell and he provided the breakthrough in his second over when he held a sharp caught-and-bowled from a thumping Khawaja drive. Paine went to a 55-ball half century but fell three balls later when he played back to Yardy’s left-arm darts and was lbw.Yardy proved especially difficult to score off as he went for just eight in his first four overs and collected a second wicket when Alex Keath, the Victoria batsman who turned down an AFL contract in favour of cricket, was also trapped on the back foot. The innings was steadied as Ferguson and Christian added 59 for the fourth, but a short shower interrupted their momentum and on the resumption Ferguson lost his leg stump when he backed away against Shahzad.Yardy then claimed his third when Tom Thornton, an ACT batsman, popped a regulation leading edge back to the bowler and Woakes took his first wicket in England colours courtesy of a fine catch at midwicket by Paul Collingwood to remove Sam Miller. Christian went to a 51-ball half-century with a thumping straight drive off Shahzad but couldn’t remain to finish off the innings when he tried a scoop over short fine-leg and was taken by Pietersen.Lee and Doherty added 35 to give the innings a late boost, but with a view to gaining some meaningful practice ahead of the one-day matches England probably didn’t mind a tougher run chase and they made it look so easy.