TOP 100 SPORT SITES
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| Alastair Cook wanders from the wilderness with timely ton | Paul Weaver The England opener's first Test century in seven months was a welcome return to form, and turned thoughts to Ian BellToday the sunshine has been brilliant and the afternoon has resembled a gleaming pane of glass in a houseful of dirty windows, for some forecasts suggest the weather on the last two days will be as sullen as the first two.It has been a day for batsmen or, to be more precise, one batsman, for Alastair Cook has wandered from the wilderness to score his first Test century for seven months.Cook scored 160 against an ordinary West Indies attack at Durham's Riverside in May. But since then he had averaged just 22 in 11 innings, following a disappointing Ashes series with scores of 15 and 12 in the Test opener in Centurion earlier this month.There is not much wrong with Cook's batting when the ball is short enough to cut or pull. But his weakness – or at least his perceived weakness – is against the delivery pitched up on or just outside off-stump.That is where South Africa targeted him today. Wally Hammond might have scored a hundred in a little over an hour. But Cook showed admirable discipline, leaving more often than a fickle lover, and defending when he was required to do so.He scored a high proportion of his runs on the leg-side, though he cut lavishly when length allowed. How England and Cook himself ached for this innings.Cook, who was 25 on Christmas Day, broke a clutch of records at Bedford School and was soon thrust into the Essex side beneath Graham Gooch's admiring gaze.Three years ago, he became the youngest England batsman to make a century on debut since Peter May in 1951. He was still only 22 when he scored his fifth and sixth Test centuries. He suggested greatness. But England would be happy to settle for a proper and reliable Test player, especially as they have no spare opener on this trip. No spare batsman, indeed.Those sons of South Africa, Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen, soon departed and then it was the very English partnership of Cook and Paul Collingwood who moved the match towards their side.The wind blew hard enough to remove a bail and have the umpires holding on to their hats. And South Africa bowled better than they had the night before. But Cook's concentration was massive.Well though he and Collingwood batted, it was thoughts of Ian Bell that often came to mind, as he fretted in the dressing room before his next Very Important Innings.Bell desperately needs a score here to salvage his Test career. Now in the middle of his 51st Test, he is Peter Pan in flannels, the batsman who has not grown into what might have been, what should have been.He is cricket's enduring cherub, who looks as bright-eyed and nervous now as when he walked out for England for the first time five years ago. And when he walks to the crease he carries all our nerves with him.It is batting at six where he had found most of his success, where he has scored four of his eight Test hundreds. He has scored two each batting at four and five but none at three, where he was most needed, and where he has played most of his cricket (33 innings out of 90) but averaged only 31.44.His Test batting average is 19.89 this year and 38.90 overall, some 17 runs short of Ricky Ponting, the batsman he would most like to be. But he would have been quite happy to be Alastair Cook today.England in South Africa 2009-2010England Cricket TeamSouth Africa cricket teamCricketPaul Weaverguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
The best team realistic money can buy, all for $80 million Our annual exercise to field a team based on the major league median payroll yielded a fleet, flexible team. rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Manchester United stake all on £500m bond issue Manchester United are accustomed to selling themselves to the world. feeds.timesonline.co.uk |
Sir Alex Ferguson’s compliance at odds with his achievements If you are a Manchester United supporter seeking someone to blame for the indignities of your club, just go to Old Trafford for today’s match against Burnley and turn your eyes to the dugout. There, furiously masticating, will be your culprit. feeds.timesonline.co.uk |
Federer storms back to see off Davydenko • Federer survives enthralling clash to win 2-6, 6-3, 6-0, 7-5• Battling Davydenko took dramatic first set with easeNikolay Davydenko, the smiling eccentric of this Australian Open, had little to laugh about after he blew Roger Federer off the court in the first set, lost 13 games in a row then fought back to nearly force a fifth set before succumbing to the cool genius of the world No1.But they both left everyone lucky enough to be there with a match to remember. Few could recall a contest of such fluctuations. It was the match of the tournament.Federer won 2-6, 6-3, 6-0, 7-5 in 156 minutes to reach the semi-finals of a major for the 23rd time in a row, and remains on course for a possible showdown in the final on Sunday with Andy Murray, who plays the Croat Marin Cilic tomorrow.It was bewildering tennis, one of the best comebacks of Federer's career - not that anyone outside Melbourne Park would have known it, because of a peak-time TV blackout by the host broadcaster after the first set.• Serena battles through but Venus bows out• Kevin Mitchell: Australian TV viewers short-changed• Robson eases into juniors last eight• Murray finally has something to shout aboutWhat TV viewers saw before Channel 7 left the tennis was Federer falling to pieces in the face of Davydenko's brilliant serve and inventive ground strokes. What they missed over the next 90 minutes, while Channel 7 were showing the news, a magazine programme and an episode of Home And Away, was Federer replying in kind.Davydenko had lost 12 matches in a row to Federer before beating him twice in their past two meetings, in London and Dohar, and talked with conviction of doing it again here. For half an hour, it seemed he would deliver.Federer finally got his act together after going 3-1 down in the second set. He found his serve against at just the moment Davydenko's tennis fell to pieces. Then, when order seemed to have been restored, Davydenko broke back to 3-3. His timing returned, his energy levels rose and there was a gleam in his wild eyes. He even managed a smile between games, when he took a 4-3 lead in the fourth.Davydenko saved match point at 5-5 with a couple of astounding returns, on either wing. He continued to produce remarkable shots, one low backhand stop-volley leaving Federer stranded at the back of the court. But he missed sitters too, and Federer hung in long enough for the break, then served out for the match.Australian OpenRoger FedererTennisKevin Mitchellguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |