Standard Bank, the leading sponsors of limited overs cricket in South Africa, could not have scripted a better finale to the 2002-03 Standard Bank Cup as it heads for an exciting finish, with only Border, winning a home semi-final match, and Boland, not sure of a home semi-final, the first qualifiers to go through to the final four.In Pool-B, Boland will be waiting for the Free State vs. Eastern Province clash on Friday 3rd January. A win will see Free State through with Boland gaining the home ground spot while a Free State win with a Bonus Point will take it to Net Run Rates as to who qualifies for the top spot. A Free State loss will see Western Province going through with Boland playing at home.In Pool-A the permutations are too many to list, suffice to say that KwaZulu-Natal, Easterns and Griqualand West can all still qualify with Border who have already captured the home ground spot. The team winning with a Bonus Point in the final round should qualify for the other spot.First priority for Easterns and Griqualand West is that they have to win to stay in contention. If Easterns beat Northerns then Griqualand West, with a negative Net Run Rate will have to beat KwaZulu-Natal with a Bonus Point. While if KwaZulu-Natal gain the Bonus Point then all is lost for the other two teams.KwaZulu-Natal and Griqualand West have the advantage of playing the final match and by that stage will know exactly what is required.Remaining fixtures:Friday 3rd January 2003Northerns vs. Easterns at SuperSport Park (D/N) start 15:45
Eastern Province vs. Free State at St Georges Park (D/N) start 15:45Sunday 5th January 2003KwaZulu-Natal vs. Griqualand West at The Oval (Pietermaritzburg) (Day) start 10:00
Gauteng vs. Namibia at The Wanderers (Day) start 10:00Friday 10th January 2003First Semi-FinalBorder vs (Boland/Free State/Western Province) at Buffalo Park (D/N) start 15:45Second Semi-Final(Boland/Free State) vs. (KwaZulu-Natal/Easterns/Griqualand West) at (Paarl/Bloemfontein) (D/N) start 15:45Wednesday 15th January 2003Final (D/N) start 15:45

The Barbados Cricket Association has switched the venues for thefirst three matches it will host in this year’s West Indiesfirst-class championship that opens on Friday, January 31.Windward Sports Club in the rural district of Lucas Street in theeastern parish of St. Philip will now host the first two matchesto be contested in the island between West Indies-B and India-Afrom January 31 to February 3, and Barbados and India-A fromFebruary 7 to 10.North Stars Cricket Club in the rural district of Crab Hill inthe northern most parish of St. Lucy now stages the third roundgame between Barbados and Jamaica from February 14 to 17.Because of rehabilitative work being conducted on KensingtonOval, this venue will not be ready in time for the start of theChampionship, remarked Michael Hall, chief cricket operationsofficer of the West Indies Cricket Board.It will be the first time the two Barbadian grounds will behosting matches in the West Indies first-class championship, butWindward previously staged a first-class contest between Barbadosand South Africa-A two years ago.For further information:Adriel Richard
Media Relations Specialist
Saunders-Franklyn Associates Inc
Suite #4,
1st Floor Wildey Plaza Wildey,
St.Michael Barbados, West Indies
Tel: 246/437-5588 (PBX) Tel: 246/228-5245
(direct) Fax: 246/437-5593
E-mail: [email protected]

The Tasmanian selectors have today named an unchanged squad of 13 to play the Western Warriors in the ING Cup fixture to be held at Bellerive Oval on Sunday 9th February 2003.CASCADE TASMANIAN TIGERS

Jamie COX (Captain)
George BAILEY
Sean CLINGELEFFER
Graeme CUNNINGHAM
Michael DIGHTON
Michael Di VENUTO
Xavier DOHERTY
Brett GEEVES
Adam GRIFFITH
Scott KREMERSKOTHEN
Daniel MARSH
Ben OLIVER
Damien WRIGHT

The final twelve to represent Tasmania in the match will be decided on the morning of the match

It was if time was standing still as the past, present and future of New South Wales andAustralian cricket were fused at the crease in the recent NSW vs QueenslandPura Cup match.It was the final match of the season and NSW with an 80-rundeficit on the first innings needed to win to make it to the final.Always the man for the occasion, Steve Waugh played a vintage knock,reminiscent of his more famous one only two months earlier at the same venueagainst England.Waugh wound back the clock as he bludgeoned the Queensland attack intosubmission and turned the first innings deficit into a handy lead. It wasthe first time he had made a century on the Sydney Cricket Ground against Queensland.It was 18 years earlier in a game against Queensland that Waugh made hisname. Waugh actually made his first-class debut in a game against Queenslandat the Gabba but it was the 1984/85 Shield final where he came of age.After Queensland scored 374 in the first innings, Waugh batting at No 8 came to the crease with NSW at a perilous six for 223 which shortly becameseven-down when Imran Khan went. The 19-year-old Waugh, batting with a maturityway beyond his years, led the tail to take NSW to 318. He made 21 in thesecond innings as NSW went on to win the final by one wicket, the only timethe Shield has been won in the last session of the season.That game metamorphised Waugh from an unknown into a player who could leadAustralia out of their doldrums. He had performed on the national stageagainst the national captain and it would be less then a year before hewould be representing his country.Notwithstanding brief times when he has been dropped or when he has beeninjured, this has been the first time in nearly a score of years that Waugh has beena regular for NSW. For him it would have been a case of ‘Back to the Future’as he got another taste of what it’s like to be a first-class cricketer inAustralia. It’s a unique situation which Waugh finds himself in. Playerslike Border and Boon devoted themselves to winning the Shield only afterthey had retired from international cricket.Waugh finds himself in a position to win the Shield late in his career, notas a bit player but rather a key cog in the machine. Most internationalplayers try to return to first-class cricket after their Test career isover. Now because Waugh has been dropped from the one day team and has spentthe better part of the season with the Blues, when he finally does decide tohang up the boots, whether or not he decides to play first-class cricket forNSW won’t be an issue.Playing Pura Cup cricket for the last two months has honed Waugh’s skillsand he should be the first player selected for the tour of West Indies.Based on what he saw from the vantage point of 22 yards away, Waugh wouldn’tmind if Michael Clarke was selected.Waugh had the best seat in the house whilst Clarke was putting on a battingclinic. Right from the start, he displayed shots of the highest quality andwas equally merciless on all the Queensland bowlers. This was no popgunattack, rather the leading one in Australia. Granted they were weakened bythe absence of Adam Dale and Joe Dawes and an injured Lee Carseldine but inMichael Kasprowicz and Ashley Noffke they possessed two of the leadingwicket-takers for the year.Michael Clarke is the type of cricketer that Steve Waugh loves and loves tohave in his team as he is the full package. An aggressive batsman, a shrewdpart-time bowler, a magnificent fielder with a cannon-like arm, silky handsand an intelligent cricket brain.Clarke could slot right into the Australian side now and is the type ofcricketer who has the rest of the world bemused as to how this countrykeeps producing players of the highest calibre.The Pura Cup final is a five-day game and has a Test match feel to it. Theintensity and passion displayed in finals past is testament to how much isat stake.In Australian sport, there is no rivalry like the one which exists betweenNSW and Queensland. Cricket has done its fair share in fuelling this rivalryand will do so again as the two lock horns to decide who is the bestprovincial cricket team in Australia, if not the world.The game will be contested fiercely as one. NSW will go into the game asunderdogs. Queensland are playing on their beloved Gabba and gunning fortheir fourth straight championship whilst NSW will be looking to break theirnine-year drought.Only two sides have ever won a Shield away from home. NSW won the firstfinal at the WACA in 1982/83 and Queensland also won at the WACA in 1996/97.Which statistic will give – that NSW has never lost a final to Queensland orthat Queensland has never lost a final at home?The Bulls have not lost a game to their southern rivals since a fullstrength NSW defeated Queensland by eight wickets in November 1993.NSW have the big name players in the two Waughs, Slater, MacGill and Katich.The Blues have been fortunate in that the players have been spreading theload. In Sydney, it was Steve Waugh, Clarke, Nash, Katich and MacGill whocontributed. At the WACA, it was Mail, Slater, Mark Waugh and Clark who roseto the occasion.Queensland used to benefit greatly from the fact that their players werejust on the fringe of Australian selection. Now Andrew Bichel, AndrewSymonds, Matthew Hayden, Nathan Hauritz and Jimmy Maher are all in SouthAfrica which depletes the Queensland side.It was the experiences of that 84/85 final which helped transform Steve Waughinto a hardened cricketer. But for a win over India in the sub-continent, hehas achieved everything there is to do in the game and leading NSW to statesupremacy after such a long drought will be another jewel he can add to atruly glittering career.

The Australian Cricket Board is set to publish the findings of ShaneWarne’s drugs hearing in full within days whether or not the leg-spinnerdecides to appeal his 12-month ban from the game.ACB spokesman Peter Young said the board was reconsidering its decisionto hold back publication of the anti-doping committee’s judgment aftertalking with the body which would hear any possible appeal.The ACB had been waiting until Warne had appealed or decided againstappealing to the National Sports Disputes Centre.”We’re progressively coming to the view after having spoken to theNational Sports Disputes Centre that it is possible to publish itwithout jeopardising the appeal process,” Young said.”There are some mechanical issues to work through, but we do plan topublish it as soon as we can.”When we do publish it, we will do so with full transparency.”The ACB has been criticised for not releasing the anti-dopingcommittee’s findings publicly, but said it wanted to ensure Warne’srights to a fair appeal weren’t compromised.Australian Cricketers’ Association boss Tim May said Warne may have beendone a disservice because the full judgment had not been released.Warne has until Saturday to appeal against his suspension.

Leicestershire v Essex, Grace Road
ScorecardEssex won the toss, batted first and were skittled for 188, asLeicestershire took firm control of proceedings at Chelmsford. PhilDeFreitas led from the front with three wickets, including a subdued NasserHussain who managed just 6 from 33 balls in his first outing of the season,as Essex slumped to a gruesome 91 for 7. They showed the value of having aformer Test opener batting at No. 9, however, when John Stephenson thumpeda lusty 50 to rescue the remains of the innings. Stephenson then grabbedthe wicket of Trevor Ward for 44, as Leicestershire closed on 114 for 3.Surrey v Warwickshire, The Oval
ScorecardOn their early-season form, Surrey, the hottest favourites for theChampionship in years, are threatening to emulate Yorkshire’s hero-to-zeroantics last season, as Warwickshire outplayed them on the first day at TheOval. Nick Knight, feeling the effects of a knee injury, and Tony Frostadded 153 for the first wicket, before Martin Bicknell and Alex Tudorfought back with five cheap wickets in the middle order. Mark Wagh,however, battled on to reach 91 not out at the close, thanks to someexcellent support from a robust tail.Sussex v Kent, Hove
ScorecardThirteen wickets fell on the first day at Hove, as Sussex and Kent tradedblows on an overcast day. After winning the toss and bowling first, Kent’sAlamgir Sheriyar took 5 for 65 with strong support from Martin Saggers andMark Ealham, as Sussex found the conditions tough to handle. Chris Adamsfared better than most with a hard-fought 54, but Kent found batting noeasier later in the day, as they lost two quick wickets and a third beforethe close. Robert Key was the first to go, bowled for a duck while playingno shot to James Kirtley.Division TwoDerbyshire v Somerset, Derby
ScorecardAndy Caddick started his season as he means to go on with four wickets on arain-shortened day at Derby, but it was Richard Johnson who started therout with a three-wicket burst at the top of the order. Johnson removedMichael Di Venuto, Chris Bassano and Steve Selwood without conceding a runas Derbyshire were bundled out for 190. Peter Bowler fell early in reply,but Somerset’s captain Michael Burns charged to a rapid 40 before beingdismissed by Dominic Cork, off the last ball of the day. Marcus Trescothickwas left unbeaten on 15.Durham v Gloucestershire, Chester-le-Street
ScorecardJonty Rhodes continued his excellent form with a dogged 60, as Gloucesterestablished a strong position on a seaming wicket at Chester-le-Street.They may yet regret a mid-innings collapse, as they lost four wickets fornine runs, but by the close, Jack Russell had grafted his way to 31 notout, with determined support from Jon Lewis and Mike Smith. Earlier, TrevorHancock’s 59 had helped build a strong position, while Rhodes became afirst Championship victim for his former South African team-mate, DewaldPretorius.Hampshire v Yorkshire, Southampton
ScorecardWisden’s cover-boy and England one-day captain-in-waiting, Michael Vaughan,lasted just seven deliveries on his return to action, as Hampshire’sseamers ripped through the Yorkshire line-up at the Rose Bowl. Vaughan wasbowled by Wasim Akram for 1, before Alan Mullally picked up three wicketsin an excellent spell to reduce Yorkshire to 84 for 5. Michael Lumb dug inwith a face-saving 60 not out, but when Shaun Udal popped up with twowickets in two balls, Yorkshire were teetering at 128 for 7. Enter DarrenGough, who smashed a gloriously flamboyant 30 not out, with four fours anda six, to take some of the sheen off Hampshire’s day.Worcestershire v Northamptonshire, Worcester
ScorecardVikram Solanki and Ben Smith did their best to stem the tide, butNorthamptonshire pulled together their best performance of the season todismiss Worcestershire for 236 at New Road. John Blain and Ben Phillipsshared nine of the wickets as six batsmen failed to reach double figures.After Smith had been trapped lbw by Jeff Cook for 50, Solanki shepherdedthe tail with a determined 79, before he became the fifth of Blain’swickets. In reply, Northamptonshire reached 108-1 when rain stopped play

Frizzell County Championship Division OneWarwickshire v Nottinghamshire at Edgbaston
Scorecard
Kevin Pietersen’s second century of the summer put Nottinghamshire in a strong position at Edgbaston, as they closed on 389 for 3 after dismissing Warwickshire for their overnight score of 351. Pietersen smacked an unbeaten 140 off 178 balls to build on a second-wicket stand of 146 between Guy Welton (99) and Usman Afzaal (72), and added 146 in 33 overs in an unbroken fourth-wicket partnership with Chris Cairns (52*). Pietersen was at his best, hitting 90 in boundaries, including a towering six over the pavilion off Mark Wagh. Little went right for Warwickshire. Melvyn Betts suffered a groin strain in his third over and limped off shortly after lunch, and Waqar Younis (0 for 59) and Collins Obuya (0 for 40) both looked uninspired.Kent v Sussex at Tunbridge Wells
Scorecard
Sussex took their overnight score to 311 at the Nevil Ground. A rapid 43 from Mushtaq Ahmed at No. 10 was the highlight of a consistent batting performance, while Robin Martin-Jenkins contributed a composed 67. Paul Hutchison scored 18 and bowled five overs before James Kirtley completed the long trek from Chester-le-Street to Canterbury and took his place in the side after being left out again by England. And it was Kirtley who took two wickets to reduce Kent to 90 for 3, before Andrew Symonds (54) and Matthew Walker (30) appeared to have stopped the rot with a fourth-wicket stand of 90. But Mushtaq grabbed both their wickets in the dying overs to leave Sussex on 188 for 5.Lancashire v Leicestershire at Liverpool
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Andrew Flintoff’s good form with the bat continued as he cracked an unbeaten 71 to help Lancashire to 503 for 6, their highest total at the Aigburth ground. Flintoff, playing as a specialist batsman because of a trapped nerve in his shoulder, took his first-class average for the season to over 100 in his 55-ball onslaught. Mark Chilton (108) completed his hundred in the morning, and then Carl Hooper (74) and Stuart Law (82) put on 123 in 26 overs as Leicestershire wilted. Flintoff was back in the spotlight when Leicestershire batted, catching the debutant John Maunders (16) off Sajid Mahmood, and then Hooper took a superb low slip catch to account for Virender Sehwag (30). Leicestershire closed on 117 for 4, still 386 in arrears.Middlesex v Essex at Lord’s
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Middlesex continued their fightback from 23 for 3 yesterday, and were finally all out for 363 at tea, before reducing Essex to 95 for 8, still 119 short of the follow on, by the close. Ben Hutton made 107, with 15 fours, and shared a stand of 103 with Abdul Razzaq (54). Paul Weekes (51*) organised the tail, and added 42 for the ninth wicket with Simon Cook (20) and 39 for the last with Chad Keegan (21). Jon Dakin finished with 5 for 86. But four catches from the wicketkeeper David Nash, and 3 for 7 in seven overs (including six successive maidens) from Simon Cook left Essex in tatters. The key wicket was that of Will Jefferson, brilliantly caught by a diving Nash for 22.Frizzell County Championship Division TwoGlamorgan v Derbyshire at Swansea
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Play got under way a day late at St Helen’s, and Glamorgan made up for lost time by scoring 395, largely thanks to their acting captain, Robert Croft (84), and Dean Cosker who put on 81 for the last wicket. Tom Lungley was the chief destroyer for Derbyshire with 4 for 101 as Glamorgan slipped to 216 for 5, but Croft shepherded the tail sensibly to almost double their score. Derbyshire survived the last four overs of the day unscathed.Gloucestershire v Northamptonshire at Gloucester
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Gloucestershire’s bowlers must have nightmares about bowling to Michael Hussey, the Northants opener and captain from Australia. Last year in the corresponding fixture (at Bristol) he romped to 310 not out. This time he made do with just 264 – with 35 fours and two sixes – before Jon Lewis had him caught. Hussey put on 260 for the sixth wicket with Gerard Brophy, who had reached 152*, his highest score for Northants, when Hussey declared shortly before tea at a towering 622 for 8. Gloucestershire’s reply started well as they reached 96 for 0, but Carl Greenidge struck twice in three balls and then in the next over Andre Nel twice in two as four wickets fell for no runs. By the close Gloucestershire were 109 for 4, 364 runs short of avoiding the follow-on.Hampshire v Durham at Southampton
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An eighth-wicket partnership of 123 between Dimitri Mascarenhas, who spanked 14 fours in his 92, and Shaun Udal (60*) converted a handy Hampshire total into a huge one at the Rose Bowl. They were all out shortly before tea for 456. Earlier Simon Katich took his overnight score to 135, and Nic Pothas made 79: Danny Law and Nicky Phillips finished with four wickets apiece. Durham’s reply stalled when they lost two wickets in successive overs at the end of the day, but debutant James Lowe, only playing because of a long list of Durham injuries, was still there on 41 as they closed on 107 for 2.Somerset v Worcestershire at Bath
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A fine allround performance from Andrew Hall put Worcestershire into acommanding position against Somerset at the Recreation Ground. First Hall cracked six sixes and 11 fours in his 104 as Worcestershire amassed 538, and then took 2 for 27 as Somerset were skittled out for 238, and made to follow on 300 runs adrift. On a good pitch, Jamie Cox’s 37 was the top score in Somerset’s innings as they lost their last eight wickets for 123, and it would have been far worse but for a belligerent 35 not out from a limping Nixon McLean at the end. Somerset reached 19 for 0 second time around.University Match
Bradford/Leeds UCCE v Yorkshire at Bradford
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Ismail Dawood, the Bradford/Leeds captain, hit 125 out of 241 in reply to Yorkshire’s big first-innings total of 409 for 3 at Bradford. Dawood, who hit 16 fours and a six, didn’t get much support – the next-highest score was Mark Bagley’s 26. Yorkshire didn’t enforce the follow-on, cruising to 140 for 2 from 26 overs in the final session.Click here for yesterday’s County Championship review

The deep voice rolling its Rs as it served up sentences in the most delicious Scottish brogue had people looking around the room frantically, wondering what Sean Connery was doing at a conference for cricket coaches organised by the MRF in Chennai. Cinema buffs were immediately disappointed to discover that the voice was only Dr Sandy Gordon’s. But that disappointment didn’t last long, for few people think, and talk, as good a game of cricket as him.Drawing Gordon aside for a second, it was a pleasant surprise to hear him talk about things less incomprehensible than cognitive behavioural psychology. “I played soccer as a part-time professional in the north of Scotland. One of the teams I played for was Buckie Thistle, and Alex Ferguson, who had just moved from Rangers to Falkirk, played against us in the Scottish Cup. He was a striker and I was a defender. They beat us 2-1, but when he came to Aberdeen to coach the team there, I helped him find a good school for his kids and that sort of thing. We got to know each other quite well.”But Gordon isn’t just dropping names when he talks about "Fergie" and the success Manchester United have had in transforming themselves from a good team to a great one. And he isn’t from a purely soccer background either: “I played cricket and golf in the summer and there were three or four families who were very passionate about cricket where I came from, in Huntley.”Okay, so that’s fair enough, we all had a knock in the backyard or kicked a ball on the streets as kids, and that can sometimes lead to a career in sport. But which five-year old says, “when I grow up, I want to be a psychologist”? Not even the young Gordon. “I was keen on all sports and wanted to be a PE teacher. I always knew that and I did it for a couple of years. Then later I decided to do another degree and I became interested in social and educational psychology.”I liked sports psychology because I was a player and I had some pretty bad coaching practices during that time. I also met some players who were emotionally unhinged or had problems dealing with pressure,” he says, chuckling. Today, these two factors comprise the nucleus of a lot of Gordon’s work.Recently, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) woke up to the fact that a psychologist could play a huge role in giving the team an edge. Sportsmen, especially successful ones, tend to have king-sized egos and this could easily get in the way of Gordon’s work. “At the top level every player is looking to prolong his or her career, so they’re not at all resistant to feedback. They just love any kind of feedback. As coaches, we’re paid to give feedback. I’ve never had any player say he didn’t want my opinion.”Not even the big stars of Indian cricket? “I really feel that I was just part of the facilitation process with the Indian team. It’s the players who are out there playing and they’re the ones who should be patted on the back. I’m quietly pleased with the reactions I’ve had though.”But what exactly did Gordon say or do to turn the Indian team into a fist-pumping, charged-up unit? Remember the rugby-style huddles from the World Cup? “They [the team] created the environment. I threw up the questions and challenges in terms of group and individual gameplans and how to attain momentum and they applied all of that to their situations. Remember, I wasn’t there at the games so they’re the ones who did it.”However, on the eve of the World Cup, the morale of the Indian team wasn’t the greatest after the hammering they received in New Zealand. “While they were a bit apprehensive just before the start of the World Cup, they were also excited to be playing in it. A few players were resigned to the fact that they might not play a game. When I talked to them, I asked what they wanted to get out of the tournament. They then understood that there were certain individual goals over and above the team goals that players could achieve.”Interestingly, the very day after the 2002 NatWest Series final, in which India successfully chased 326 against England, Gordon had a chat with the team. They told him that other teams thought they were mentally soft and they wanted to change that. “It was really John Wright’s ambition to identify the areas that needed work. We started to explore why India were mentally tough at home, but struggled abroad. I compared what the Indians did on tour with what the Australians did and there was a world of difference. The players needed to realise that going away does not mean you’re on enemy territory. You’re on a cricket field, and that’s home.”He’s said it before and he’s happy to say so again: “I wasn’t surprised at all at India’s toughness in the World Cup. They fully deserved to be in the final. They didn’t play well in the beginning, getting thumped by Australia, but they bounced back strongly. I was pleasantly surprised to see how well they came together and the way they enjoyed the game.”And to think things turned around for the simplest of reasons. “A commitment by the individual and the team to giving the best effort possible for every delivery. Cricket’s a simple game really. Focussing on the right things, getting your attitude right, thinking positively and decisively.”If only it were that simple to put into practice. “Australia will always be up there because of the domestic competition they have and the type of player it produces. I don’t know the system here, but I know there’s an awful lot of politics involved. So when a player comes through the system in Australia he’s already tough, a thoroughbred. The infrastructure puts Australia well ahead.”Is there no hope for India then? After all, changing the system is so difficult that hardly anyone bothers anymore. As one critic was quick to point out, what good is there in toughening up the national side when the foundations are so weak? “[Training in] mental skills really needs to start at the under-17 level, at least. It’s got to start much earlier than the national team. You can’t unscramble an egg you know. It’s there already and you can’t go back and change things. Certainly this model is only a band-aid solution. It can’t work from the top downwards.”

Hampshire will be making no comment today (Wednesday) after a meeting with Ed Giddins this morning to discuss the seam bowlers future.Rumour and speculation in the papers had intimated that he had retired, however a club spokesmen stated that they will not be making any statement today.On the subject of a replacement overseas player for Wasim Akram, Paul Terry the club manager had stated that they had made an offer to Heath Streak the Zimbabwean captain. Streak who played one season for the county in 1995, declined the offer due to his committments with the Zimbabweans Cricket Union. The search goes on.

Hampshire Second XI coach Tony Middleton will be looking for his young Academy side to reproduce their Time game form in limited-overs cricket when the ECB Southern Electric Premier League returns to its 50-over format tomorrow.The Academy team clinched the Time pennant when they ended BAT’s long unbeaten record last weekend.It was the Young Hawks’ fifth win in eight Time matches and enabled the county youngsters to pip BAT to the pennant by three points."It was a tremendous achievement by the lads, who won five of their eight matches by playing some very positive cricket, particularly against Havant and BAT recently," praised Middleton.The Young Hawks haven’t fared as well in the limited-overs game, but Middleton says : "It’s all part of their cricketing education to play the different formats of the game."They are in the habit of winning now and I’m hopeful it will continue."If the Academy complete the double over Bournemouth – they recorded a fine 83-run win at Chapel Gate in June – they could step up the pressure on BAT at the top.Bournemouth are unlikely to relish a return trip to the Rose Bowl, just four days after suffering an agonising SEC Cup defeat against Havant in midweek.Chasing Havant’s modest 121-7, Bournemouth cruised to 75-0 … only to finish nine runs short in the end.BAT will expect to strength their position overall with a win at Calmore Sports, who have been cast 31 points adrift at the bottom after losing ten of their 12 matches.They were routed by a massive 209 runs at Southern Gardens in June – the day when Dan Goldstraw returned a season’s best 8-29.BAT will be strengthened by the return of Damian Shirazi tomorrow, while Calmore will be looking to reproduce the spirited performance they produced at Liphook & Ripsley last week.Chris Sketchley is back for Bashley (Rydal),who entertain struggling Portsmouth at the BCG.Bashley lie fourth in the log, compared with second-to-bottom Portsmouth, whose announced title challenge has not quite materialised.Cambridge-bound Bevis Moynan is out of the Havant team, which celebrated an improbable Contracting Cup success on Tuesday night.But Steve Snell, Chris Wright and Matt Cox, who missed the final, will all be back against Liphook & Ripsley at Havant Park.The South Wilts-Andover derby will be preceded by the unveiling of an Honours Board in the Lower Bemerton clubhouse in memory of Gordon Gay, the Salisbury club’s late chairman and president, who died last summer.Jason Laney returns to the South Wilts line up alongside Hampshire’s James Tomlinson, while Chris Travers makes his Andover debut.