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West Indies have made an unpromising start to their preparations for the tri-series with Australia and South Africa, as they were beaten twice in the space of three days by Barbados Select in a pair of practice matches

Daniel Brettig28-May-2016West Indies have made an unpromising start to their preparations for the tri-series against Australia and South Africa, as they were beaten twice in the space of three days by a Barbados Select XI in a pair of practice matches.Thrashed by 50 runs in a day-night encounter at the Kensington Oval on Wednesday, West Indies lost again by four wickets in Cave Hill on Friday. These were the first fixtures for the team since their World T20 victory in India, with the squad comprising of some T20 players mixed with younger names.While the main priority for the team was to gain match practice in a variety of conditions ahead of the tri-series, the fact that they were unable to defeat a side composed of some players with limited international experience and Barbados’ fringe players does not bode well for harder assignments ahead.In the first match, half-centuries from Shai Hope and Omar Phillips led the way for Barbados Select in compiling a tally of 290 for 8 from 50 overs. Offspinner Hayden Walsh (3 for 17) and seamers Kevin Stoute (2 for 28), Tarik Shorey (2 for 33) and Dario Seale (2 for 50) then rounded West Indies up for 250 in 47.1 overs.Conditions were lower and slower in Cave Hill, and West Indies scrapped their way to 200 for 9 from 45 overs after choosing to bat. No player was able to make a half-century, while medium-pacer Kyle Mayers scooped 4 for 47.In reply, Barbados Select cruised to the target with seven overs to spare, helped by 49 from Aaron Jones and 48 from Hope. West Indies’ opening match of the tournament is against South Africa in Guyana on June 3.

Journalist Charlie Bennett is buzzing over the news that Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak has been nominated for the Premier League’s POTM award.

The Lowdown: Isak nomination

As shared on the Premier League’s official Twitter page, Isak is one of six nominees for the Player of the Month (POTM) award for March, along with Brighton and Hove Albion’s Alexis Mac Allister, Aston Villa’s Tyrone Mings, Liverpool’s Mo Salah and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard.

The Sweden international scored two goals in his last match away at Nottingham Forest in the top flight last Friday, which came after a goal at home to Wolves in the previous game week, helping Newcastle win both in the process.

The Latest: Bennett buzzing

Taking to Twitter, Bennett has been left buzzing over the update, claiming that Isak’s nomination is ‘wholly deserved’:

“Alexander Isak nominated for PL player of the month. Wholly deserved. The frustrating – but equally exciting – thing is Newcastle fans have only seen glimpses of his quality.

“Immense quality. Imagine him at 26/27/28.”

The Verdict: Finding his feet

Isak is finally starting to find his feet at St. James’ Park since his club-record £63m move from Real Sociedad last summer.

The striker unfortunately missed a large chunk of the season with injury, but showed early signs of what he is capable of, scoring in two in his first three appearances for the club, including on his debut at Anfield against Liverpool.

Aside from his goals, Isak ranks in the top 11% of all forwards for a number of key metrics for forwards in Europe’s top five leagues over the last year, including progressive carries, successful take-ons, touches and progressive passes received per game.

Nonetheless, if the Magpies want to give themselves the best chance of finishing in the top four and qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the next campaign, then they need to keep Isak fit.

Journalist Ben Jacobs has claimed that Arsenal are currently among the "frontrunners" to land midfield transfer target Declan Rice in the summer window.

What’s the latest on Declan Rice to Arsenal?

While the Gunners will no doubt be primarily focusing on the exploits in the Premier League as they look to win the division as he enter the final 11 games of the campaign, others will still have one eye on the upcoming transfer market.

In fact, it seems the West Ham United captain may even be looking ahead to the end of the season as he dropped a big hint about his future when saying in December that he wants to play Champions League football soon.

This no doubt would have put a number of clubs on high alert and while speaking about the player on the Devils United podcast, Jacobs said Manchester United and Chelsea are both keen on the player but tipped Arsenal to get the deal done if things remain as they are.

He said: "Declan Rice is a player that Manchester United have liked for a while, but Arsenal and Chelsea are thought to be the frontrunners.

"And the reason for that is because, a bit like what I said a moment ago, Rice just really likes living in London and has spoken glowingly about Mikel Arteta.

"So I sense that Arsenal are frontrunners, but Chelsea are still very much in that race as well."

Why does Declan Rice want to join Arsenal?

As Jacobs alludes to, Rice is understood to be very keen to learn under manager Arteta – with the midfielder said to be a big fan of the Spaniard (via The Guardian).

What's more, the Gunners seem to be in the market for a big new midfielder signing – evidenced by their failed attempts to sign Moises Caicedo in the winter – so the West Ham captain may be able to see a clear path for him to claim a spot in the starting XI.

On top of that, the club's superb season now means the prospect of winning major trophies in the near future is a lot more realistic and this will no doubt appeal to Rice who is yet to win any silverware up to this point in his career.

Of course, clubs like Chelsea and Man Utd will also be able to offer him similar incentives, so it's not a done deal just yet. But it does feel as though this transfer is in Arsenal's hands for now.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is facing somewhat of an injury crisis at the wrong time, with Leandro Trossard, Kieran Tierney and Eddie Nketiah not pictured in training prior to the Europa League clash with Sporting.

It meant all three missed out on the tie and despite striker Gabriel Jesus returning to the squad, the European clash came just too soon for the Brazilian.

This has left Arteta incredibly short of attacking options, with potentially Emile Smith Rowe or Gabriel Martinelli having to play as an unorthodox striker, yet there may just be another option for the Spaniard – unleashing academy star Amario Cozier-Duberry.

When will Amario Cozier-Duberry make his debut for Arsenal?

With Arteta’s current dilemma, there is every chance some academy starlets get a chance to impress and Cozier-Duberry could be one of the lucky players to take to the field.

That said, he may well need to overcome his own injury first having been substituted at half-time in the U21s’ recent defeat to Liverpool.

The hope will be for the Gunners that the issue the teenager is suffering from doesn’t keep him out for too long, with the second leg next week potentially set to be the ideal time to finally unleash him.

The 17-year-old has made the matchday squad on numerous occasions this season yet is still to make his debut. He is amongst one of the highest-rated products in the academy, with talent scout Jacek Kulig previously describing him as “Hale End’s finest” late last year.

In just 22 appearances across the U18 and U21 teams this season, the winger has scored ten goals and grabbed six assists, a wonderful return for someone who predominantly plays on the flanks.

Could Arteta utilise him in a more central role next week potentially? It’s plausible, particularly if attacking injuries continue to plague the squad and Arsenal can wrap the tie-up.

The teen has impressed in the Football League Trophy, averaging an outstanding 7.95/10 rating via Sofascore across two outings, scoring twice, taking two shots per game while also creating a big chance, proving he could certainly operate in a more central role if required.

With Premier League glory Arteta’s main priority, the Europa League gives him a great chance to rotate his squad, although even he wouldn’t have anticipated being without so many key players.

Newcastle United will return to Premier League action today when they head to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City following their disappointing defeat in the League Cup final at Wembley last weekend.

Eddie Howe will be keen for his team to bounce back and channel their focus into their promising Premier League campaign which could result in a chance to compete in European football next season if they continue their incredible form.

The Magpies are fifth in the top-flight table and no other team has conceded fewer defeats so far, however, they have also tallied up the joint-highest amount of draws (11) which has seen them recently fall out of their long-standing position in the top four with Tottenham Hotspur four points clear in fourth.

Taking all three points from their visit to Manchester this afternoon would give Newcastle a great opportunity to close the gap with Spurs and continue their ambitious pursuit of Champions League football next season, anything less could cause them to fall even further away.

As a result, Howe must look to his squad to improve performances and the attacking threat, in particular, as they haven’t won a Premier League game since the 15th of January against Fulham – picking up three draws and one defeat thereafter.

One player who has been an inconsistent presence since the turn of the year is Callum Wilson and now the Newcastle boss must make an important decision on the popular striker’s selection in the difficult meeting with Manchester City.

Should Howe ditch Callum Wilson vs Man City?

There is no doubt that Wilson has been a consistent and reliable performer in front of goal for the Magpies over his time at St James’ Park – tallying up 68 appearances, 27 goals, and registering eight assists, however, injury issues have always plagued the player.

The 31-year-old has suffered several incidents of injury over his career including two Cruciate Ligament Ruptures and has been unavailable on numerous occasions since joining Newcastle in 2020.

In the first half of this season, Wilson was a huge threat in front of goal scoring six times which led to his inclusion in Gareth Southgate’s England World Cup squad, however, since returning to action on Tyneside the forward has struggled to be effective.

His most recent appearance as the starting striker at Wembley on Sunday against Manchester United was a testament to how much Wilson has been struggling to impose himself on opponents and led to BBC Radio Newcastle’s John Anderson this week claiming the player “hasn’t looked the same”.

Over his 89-minute performance, the £46k-per-week dud only managed eight accurate passes, 25 touches, and lost possession of the ball every 3.8 touches, as well as failing to have a single shot on target throughout the monumental fixture.

Wilson has only found the back of the net once in the Premier League since returning from international duty in Qatar and now puts his manager under pressure to make changes in the final third to find a resolution.

With that in mind, Howe must now ruthlessly ditch Wilson this afternoon and instead give Alexander Isak the opportunity to prove himself to stake his claim to the starting role in front of goal as the England international’s recent performers have not warranted an extended run in the XI.

In the week he released his autobiography, Paul Mullin wrote another chapter in his Wrexham career with a clinical hat-trick against Morecambe.

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Mullin hits clinical hat-trickWrexham romp to big winDragons go second and close gap at topGettyWHAT HAPPENED?

The League Two promotion chasers were in need of a win after their stumble at Accrington last week, and they bounced back in the most emphatic fashion, thumping Morecambe at the Racecourse Ground on Saturday. Wrexham's Hollywood owners and fans alike will have been delighted to see their talismanic forward show signs of returning to top form with a smartly-taken treble.

AdvertisementWATCH THE GOALSGetty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

It's been quite the week for Mullin, having missed a penalty in the tetchy loss to Accrington last weekend then releasing his brilliant autobiography on Thursday. After a pre-season disrupted by a horror injury, Saturday's haul will boost hopes that Mullin is returning to top form.

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WHAT NEXT FOR WREXHAM?

The win sees the Red Dragons leap into the automatic promotion spots, and Wrexham fans had more good news when pace-setters Stockport went down to a surprise defeat at Newport County, cutting the gap at the top to five points. There's little time to celebrate though, as Wrexham prepare for a trip to Harrogate Town on Tuesday night.

Andrew McGlashan talks to Mal Loye about his experiences in Australia, being dumped for the World Cup and how he is now focussed purely on Lancashire

Andrew McGlashan11-May-2007

Sweeping statement: Mal Loye refused to change the way he played when his England call came © Getty Images
While England’s top-order floundered in the Caribbean there was one player who would have at least tried to clear the boundaries. But he was splitting his time between a pre-season tour of South Africa and the early throws of a domestic season. With every delivery patted down the pitch or left outside off stump the situation was crying out for Mal Loye’s aggression and innovation.Loye wouldn’t have solved all England’s woes and meant they were the ones lapping up the adulation of an adoring public instead of the Australians. Far from it, the one-day problems run much deeper than the top three but they are symptomatic of the larger malaise. However, Loye would have gone down blazing rather than blocking and England’s total wouldn’t have crept to nine runs in the seventh over of the virtual quarter-final against South Africa.He could certainly be forgiven for feeling a little bitter about the way he was discarded by England following seven matches in the CB Series. “After missing out on the World Cup I had a bit of a sulk,” he admits, “but after that all I have focused on is Lancashire, it’s all I can do. It’s what has made me successful.”Loye’s career record reads more than 13,000 runs in first-class cricket and more than 8000 in limited overs matches. He was on the verge of a Test cap in 1998 when called up to face Sri Lanka after Mike Atherton was injured. But at the last minute the selectors had a change of heart and went for Steve James. “They wanted an opener for an opener and I was told thanks but no thanks.”Loye has had to deal with his fair share of poor communication over the years so, recently, took it as a positive that he received a phone call to tell him he wasn’t in the 25-man development squad. “The selectors let me know that but that’s the only contact I’ve had in my whole career so I’ll take a positive from that. Now it’s about kicking on and getting some scores under my belt.” It’s been a mixed start to the 2007 season for him, a century at Edgbaston and a run of innings in the thirties and forties. “It’s frustrating, I keep giving it away.” The selectors let me know that but that’s the only contact I’ve had in my whole career so I’ll take a positive from that Even if Loye’s international career is done and dusted his brief stint at the top level is still packed with incident, some before he’d actually arrived in Australia. When Kevin Pietersen was hit in the ribs at the MCG, Loye was in New Zealand during a club stint with Auckland. “I was getting text messages and phone calls from people back home who were watching the TV and they were basically telling me I was in. Then Ravi [Bopara] got called up, but I knew I was close so there was still hope.”However, injuries were never far away and it wasn’t long until Michael Vaughan pulled a hamstring at Hobart. “I’d actually just played my first game for Auckland after coming back from an injury,” Loye explains. “Then I came off and noticed that Vaughan needed a runner and I was pretty sure after the feedback earlier that week that I had a good chance.”Two days later he walked out at The Gabba with Andrew Strauss against Australia. Nerves? “I just remember thinking I had nothing to lose. I wanted to make the most of the day because it might have been my one and only chance. If I’d been 24 I would probably have gone in very differently and put extra pressure on myself but as I was 34 I just thought I had nothing to lose.” And just to show he wasn’t going to hold back, the trademark sweep came out, against Brett Lee of all people. “I had a look at it and realised what a good pitch it was. Even though it was a low-scoring game it was a belter, and after watching the Ashes and a disappointing start to the one-dayers I just thought taking them on was the best way to go. Glenn McGrath said a few things but I was just enjoying it so much that I didn’t hear a lot.”

Taking it on the chin: Loye took some battle scars away with him from Australia © Getty Images
The results were mixed – but mainly on the low side – as Loye found out that McGrath, Lee and Co. don’t take kindly to such treatment. But, given his chance again, Loye would do the same despite taking a crack on the chin in the second final at Sydney. “I wanted to do it again next ball,” he said before explaining his variation of getting back on horse. “It’s a bit like when I had a car crash as a kid and later that same day I wanted to drive because the longer you leave it the more you are going to doubt yourself. It’s a shot like a pull or a hook which you can get hit playing and you don’t stop using those.”So, having watched from the sidelines, what did one of the country’s most aggressive one-day batsmen make of England’s efforts in the Caribbean? “As openers now you have to have an all-round game, you can’t just go in and play one way.” But he still offers his support to Vaughan, the man who took his place for the World Cup. “It depends on conditions. Everyone is going on about Vaughan but I think he has the game to smack it around and also the technical ability when it is doing a bit.”Loye certainly hasn’t given up hope of having another taste of the big time and the Twenty20 World Championship in September is giving him a target to focus on. “Ultimately it’s always at the back of your mind and to play in a tournament like that would be amazing but it depends the route the new management wants to take. I don’t know how they are thinking so all I can do is score runs for Lancashire.”For someone who waited so long for an opening it would be easy to feel contented with a handful of one-day caps and playing a helping hand in a rare one-day success. However, for Loye there is certainly not a feeling of fulfillment. “I’m not satisfied at all. To play at the highest level is to play Test cricket and if that never happens I’ll look back and it will be a huge regret. But you can only do so much and the rest is in other people’s hands.”

It was none the revival of the one dominant theme surrounding this rivalry: Indian batsmen v Pakistani bowlers

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan in Delhi23-Nov-2007

Today’s play provided an illustration that the battle between India’s batsmen and Pakistan’s bowlers is still being furiously fought. © AFP
The Kotla Test is alive and well. There was a fear, especially after Pakistan’s insipid showing over the last few weeks, that this series was going to be consigned to the cricketing dustbin. It took a combination of factors to make the second day a riveting spectacle, none more so than the revival of the one dominant theme surrounding this rivalry: Indian batsmen v Pakistani bowlers.Turn the clock back and you have series after series hyped thus. Very often it’s been about India’s masterful wrists taking on Pakistan’s exotic brand of pace and legspin. It’s often simply trotted out as an overused cliché but the fact remains, and today was an example, that the battle is still being furiously fought.It was a day when red-hot pace (Shoaib Akhtar) met rock-solid defence (Rahul Dravid); when outlandish wrong-footed medium-pace (Sohail Tanvir) ran into willowy wrist-work (VVS Laxman); and when the artful legspin of Danish Kaneria jousted with Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s unconventional shot-manufacturing. It was also a day for two run-outs, umpteen raucous appeals, several verbal confrontations and an atmosphere that matched the quality of cricket on show. Heck, even the sun stayed out for most of the day.Tanvir has to be one of the most freakish cricketers around – not only with respect to his action but also his rapid rise. Six months back he was a nobody, in June he was one of the many young prospects attending Wasim Akram’s bowling camp, by September he was part of a side that reached the ICC World Twenty20 final, in October he broke into the one-day side (yet there were many still calling him “limited”).Today he snared two of the biggest wickets at hand. One came into the left-hander, sneaking through the gate that Sourav Ganguly opened; the other did the same to the right-hander, castling the technically superior Rahul Dravid. Stranger still, he reacted in stoic manner, without the hint of a smile. Here is someone whose arms, head and legs defy the laws of mechanics ball after ball. Yet he often appeared the most morose man on the field. At the media session early on in the tour he thought it best to introduce himself before answering questions – “Ladies and gentlemen, I am Sohail Tanvir, [the] left-arm fast bowler …” – but few will need any introductions now. Here is someone whose arms, head and legs defy the laws of mechanics ball after ball. Yet he often appeared the most morose man on the field Up against him was Laxman, a far more languid character whose smile can light up an entire room. Unlike Tanvir, there is no real effort in Laxman’s game, no jerky movements, no awkwardness. He walked in amid a mini-crisis but was soon executing flicks from his magical repertoire. In typically humble fashion he later dismissed all those gorgeous strokes, saying he “just played according to the merit of the ball”.The tough bit would have been handling Tanvir, occasionally swinging the ball both ways, but Laxman picked it off as delicately as if he were peeling an egg. “Tanvir is a very different kind of bowler so it is very important to get used to his style of bowling,” said Laxman, “and getting used to his style was challenging. Yet I thought Shoaib was the best bowler for them.”For sheer adrenalin-fuelled pace Shoaib has few equals. His run-up appeared shorter than usual but the strange bit was the manner in which he marked it – setting a mark on the ground and starting ten feet behind. He was used in short bursts and clocked around 145kph whenever given the ball. He was greeted by “Indy, Pindi, Rawalpindi” when fielding near the boundary-line but laughed it all away with one of those “What do you know about the donkey work” laughs.Dhoni was the most innovative one on view. He danced down the track to Tanvir, in an attempt to negate the swing, and brought out a few agricultural pulls down the ground against Danish Kaneria. He ran hard, fidgeted and didn’t hesitate giving the bowlers some lip. His free-flowing style eased the pressure on Laxman, one who has tended to be bogged down when batting with the tail. In contrasting styles they ensured that India’s batsmen ended the day with a slight edge over the Pakistan bowlers. Both sets can take a bow: it was the absorbing contest that – finally – ignited the series.

The international schedule demands that England rest their key performers or face a repeat of the Kevin Pietersen stand-off

George Dobell02-Jun-2012There is a certain irony in England debating whether to rest one player within a week of telling another he cannot rest as much as he would like. While it would be disingenuous to draw too many similarities between the cases of James Anderson and Kevin Pietersen, their scenarios do highlight a dilemma that looks sure to become a greater problem over the next year or two: the onerous international schedule.When England name their squad for the third Test at Edgbaston it seems likely that Anderson will be excluded. Stuart Broad may also be rested for the game.While their status as England’s two first-choice seamers remains unquestioned, the England management are keen not to over exert them in a series that is already won. They hope that by providing opportunities to the back-up seamers, Steven Finn and, perhaps, Graham Onions, they can not only keep Anderson and Broad for more important matches to come but provide some experience to the support bowlers should they be required to step up in the future.There is logic in that. While some will decry a perceived degradation in the value of Test cricket – also, with some logic – it is an inevitable sign of the times. There is no way England – or several other international teams – can get through the next 18-months without squad rotation. Those members of the squad who hope to play in all three formats of the game, can expect to spend less than two weeks (from December 24 to January 2) in England between late October and April. Even before that, they face a trip to Sri Lanka for the World Twenty20. It is asking too much of the players and their wives. It is not sustainable.Anyone doubting the absurdity of the current fixture programme need only look at the scheduling of the ODI against Scotland on August 12. It comes just six days after the second Test against South Africa at Headingley and four days before the third Test at Lord’s. To make matters worse, it is also scheduled two days after a Lions fixture against Australia A in Manchester and two days before a Lions fixture against the same opposition in Birmingham. It is surely the person responsible for such scheduling who should be the one ‘retiring’ from the ECB.There is no way England can sustain such a fixture schedule at the same time as any pretence about the sanctity of international cricket. Something had to give and if it is resting a leading player or two from a Test in a sealed series against an opposition struggling for equilibrium, then so be it. That Anderson is not happy speaks volumes for his excellent temperament: it is good that he wants to play. But, just as he bounced back after being omitted from England’s side for the World T20 success in the Caribbean, so he will bounce back from this. He is not the one about which England should worry.

“There is no way England can sustain the current fixture schedule at the same time as any pretence about the sanctity of international cricket”

No, it is Pietersen’s future that is causing the headaches. Given the schedule and the way in which the ECB are keen to look after Anderson, it is not hard to understand why Pietersen wanted more time to rest. He was requesting, after all, only what England imposed on him a year ago by ‘resting’ him from the ODI series against India. Had the England management – too heavy on the stick and too sparing with the carrot – handled this situation better, he might simply have missed a few games this summer and resumed normal service over the winter. He might have continued to play ODI and T20I cricket. Or he might just have retired from ODIs. But, bearing in mind that England have a different captain for each format of the game, the ECB’s argument that the ODI and T20I squads are so closely linked that opting out of one limited-overs format should automatically rule a player out of the other, is fatally flawed.Perhaps Pietersen does not cut a particularly sympathetic figure. His decision – a decision that he would have been insane not to take – to participate in the IPL rather than resting will always rile some and, perhaps more pertinently, it is apparent that he has never developed the reservoir of loyalty and affection within the England set-up that others – the likes of Andrew Strauss and Paul Collingwood – did, to see him through the lean times. He has been tolerated, not embraced, for some time.But just because Pietersen is not wildly popular does not make him wrong. His needs are not so different from those of Anderson. Perhaps they are expressed differently, perhaps they are more personal, but they are not so different. Both are individuals who require careful handling and both could, with careful management, still have a huge role to play in the future of England’s Test and limited-overs teams. If the ECB continue to push the players too hard, however, the cracks will become more apparent.

Australia bounced back from a terrible tour of England with a resounding victory in Harare

The Report by Daniel Brettig02-Jul-2018
Billy Stanlake is mobbed by his team-mates•AFPOne centimetre taller than Joel Garner’s lofty 203, Billy Stanlake towered over Pakistan’s top order at the Harare Sports Club in a spell that delivered Australia their first international victory in any format since the Newlands ball-tampering scandal, by nine wickets with a gaping 55 balls to spare.Making the most of what early-morning life existed in a dry surface, Stanlake blasted out the top-four Pakistani batsmen in a spell of 4 for 8, helped by three fine catches from his captain Aaron Finch, who had granted his young spearhead the chance to bowl first by winning the toss and kept him going for four consecutive overs.The game was more or less decided by Stanlake’s burst, with all four wickets falling to catches behind the wicket. If Fakhar Zaman seemed nonplussed by his dismissal, adjudged caught down the leg side when attempting a hook shot at another high bouncing Stanlake projectile, then there was no broadcasting budget room for DRS to determine whether or not he was right to quibble. A pair of lbw appeals, by Jhye Richardson and Usman Khan, might also have attracted referrals.Chasing a mere 117, Finch, D’Arcy Short and Travis Head galloped home, for a win so emphatic as to belie the fact Australia had lost eight matches in a row in all formats since Cameron Bancroft, David Warner and Steven Smith were mixed up in a ball-tampering plot against South Africa in Cape Town a little more than three months ago. With a 10am local time start, the victors were able to celebrate their result over lunch.Stanlake’s impact was further evidence of his potential to become a major handful for all international opponents, following a similarly eye-catching display against England in the fifth ODI at Old Trafford in Manchester. Such was his steep trajectory that he made the Harare surface seem more reminiscent of the WACA Ground more than two decades ago – certainly Garner would have approved of the different game he compelled Pakistan’s batsmen to play.Having trounced hosts Zimbabwe in the tournament opener on Sunday, Sarfraz Ahmed named an unchanged team to tackle the Australians. Finch’s XI featured the left-hander Nic Maddinson, who was included in the squad despite losing his state contract with New South Wales. Maddinson relocated to Victoria and will play for the Melbourne Stars in this summer’s Big Bash League.Taking the new ball, Stanlake had to wait for only three balls before Mohammed Hafeez flirted fatally with a bouncing ball outside the off stump, sending a comfortable edge through to Finch at slip. In his next over, Hussain Talat was unable to ride the lift of another steepler, which took the shoulder of the bat and hung in the air just long enough for Finch to run across from slip and take a neat one- hander nearer to where gully might have been.Zaman’s dissmisal in Stanlake’s third over will remain a matter for debate, as Alex Carey’s appeal from behind the stumps was met with an affirmative answer from the umpire Jeremiah Matibiri, but there was no doubt about the exit of Sarfraz, offering a slightly open defensive blade and edging in the vicinity of Finch for another alert snaffle.The remainder of the innings was always going to be a faltering salvage operation, not helped by a horrid run-out when Shoaib Malik loafed the first run and was then stranded when he realised too late that a more industrious Asif Ali was eager for a second. Asif’s innings then ended when he completely misread the length of a Marcus Stoinis delivery, and though some late punishment was handed out to Andrew Tye, the West Australian still finished with a trio of mop-up wickets.Finch and D’Arcy Short set out after their modest target as though eager for an early lunch, punching gaps in the field with something like impunity before the left-hander miscued to midwicket.Head came in to provide all the support required as Finch closed in on the win with a succession of meaty blows, raising a half century from just 27 balls in the process. Zimbabwe, who already looked the third best of these sides by a distance, have been warned.