ICC looking at four 25-25-25-25-over innings in ODIs

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The ICC is considering a trial splitting of one-day matches into two innings of 25 overs for each team, Dave Richardson, the ICC's cricket manager, has said.

The idea was mooted by Sachin Tendulkar last week.

"I quite like that idea, I believe South Africa may trial something along those lines," Richardson told BBC Sport. "This might work in day-night cricket where one team has to bat in day and the other at night. It provides something different and reduces the effects on the team who loses the toss and has to bat first on a damp wicket, for example."

Richardson believed the concept, discussed during the ICC's cricket committee annual meeting at Lord's in May, could breathe life into the 50-over format, which has been increasingly threatened by the rise in popularity of Twenty20 cricket.

Though two innings of 25 overs could lead to new strategies and even reduce the influence of winning the toss in favourable conditions, Richardson was eager to prevent results becoming predictable. His concern was that splitting the innings could take away scoring opportunities for the batsmen.

"I don't necessarily like the idea of playing two matches of 25 overs each with the openers batting again," he said. "The charm of one-day cricket is seeing someone batting at four and scoring a good hundred. If you bat in the middle order of a Twenty20 or a new 25-over innings, you're not to get much of an opportunity to hit three figures, one downside of the Twenty20 game."

The clamour for a fresh approach to the one-day game has grown considerably with players including Tendulkar 50-over games be played over two innings to provide similar overhead conditions for both teams. Tendulkar said the contests were becoming too predictable because results of "close to 75% of matches" could be predicted after the toss.

The England and Wales Cricket Board recently agreed to scrap the domestic Friends Provident Trophy, the only 50-over domestic cricket tournament, in favour of an expanded Twenty20 competition along with a 40-over format. Cricket South Africa are also likely to join the bandwagon as it considers changes to its 45-over competition.

However, Richardson said the experiment would have to be successful at the domestic level before changes could be made to the international game. "The bottomline is if we can come up with a product that is better than the existing one, then everyone would like to look at it," he said. "If it has been trialled successfully at domestic level, it may give the trial to give it the go-ahead at international level.

"The ICC has been proactive with ideas and innovations, like the powerplays. The idea of the 'super-sub' (scrapped in March 2006) wasn't as successful and got rid of quite quickly. One of the criticisms was that we trialled things at international as opposed to domestic level. Our tactics going forward are member countries trial changes first domestically and if they are successful, then we can take them on board at the international level."

The ICC's cricket committee is set to meet again in 2010 when the results of the experiment will be discussed.

Yuvraj and Nehra knock New Zealand out

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India 156 for 4 (Tendulkar 46, Raina 45*) beat New Zealand 155 (Nehra 3-24, Yuvraj 3-31) by six wickets

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Sachin Tendulkar gets ready to nudge one past the keeper, India v New Zealand, 2nd match, Compaq Cup, Colombo, September 11, 2009
Sachin Tendulkar scored a fluent 46 © AFP
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Matches: India v New Zealand at Colombo (RPS)
Series/Tournaments: Compaq Cup
Teams: India | New Zealand
India stumbled in pursuit of 156 under lights but MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina kept cool heads to steer them to a six-wicket win with 57 deliveries to spare and with it end New Zealand's tournament. New Zealand, after opting to bat, made a complete mess of things and ended up with 155, a total that briefly challenged India but eventually proved to be inadequate.

Inspired by their two most experienced bowlers, New Zealand refused to surrender without a scrap but their spirited effort on the field wasn't enough to defend a modest target. Dinesh Karthik was removed early in the piece to bring Rahul Dravid to the crease but his comeback was a labored 45-ball 14, after which Sachin Tendulkar fell for 46. Raina joined Dhoni and finished off the chase with a calculated 72-run partnership.

Dravid endured a few testing moments as he adjusted himself to this format. Shane Bond was particularly quick and nasty in a hostile first spell, which included a fiery maiden sixth over, and repetitively tested Dravid with the short deliveries. Dravid negated Bond's aggression with customary grit only to be trapped lbw by Jacob Oram.

Tendulkar came out full of intent and treated the sparse crowd to some stunning shots. He repeatedly whipped Mills across the line, deft of wrists, for boundaries and welcomed Ian Butler into the attack with a fierce cut behind point and the shot of the day - a stylish whip off the back foot to a ball that pitched back of a length. Daniel Vettori was hammered off the back foot as Tendulkar closed in on fifty, but a clever change of pace had him lobbing the simplest of chances to cover. The bowler, the batsman and the catcher couldn't believe it.

Sixteen minutes later Yuvraj Singh moped off after he was beaten in flight to pop a catch when attempting to play another slog-sweep for four off Vettori. Raina eased the nerves a pinch by swinging Vettori for six and following up with three past midwicket, and continued to play with a perfect blend of aggression and smartness. His back-foot play was especially pleasing - he rocked back to pull anything even slightly off line - and backed himself to swing deliveries that had a bit of air. Dhoni was his composed self and put his head down to indulge in some good old-fashioned ones and twos. He helped steer the chase with a dependable innings, one devoid of any risks.

A cursory look at the New Zealand card would suggest an ordeal against pace on a juiced-up track in Australia or England, but the truth was they struggled against a tidy fast-bowling attack and failed to cope with Yuvraj. Having lost the toss, India turned in a committed display in the field to take to pieces a line-up woefully short on inspiration and effort. Once they had New Zealand at 19 for 3 they provided few escapes routes, and that was the deciding factor in the result.

India, led initially by Ashish Nehra before Yuvraj continued the carnage, were on top from the time the first wicket fell. Nehra set the tone for India's domination with a lovely new-ball burst, in which he passed 100 ODI wickets. With his second ball, he beat Jesse Ryder's loose shot across the line to hit him in front of leg stump and then removed Brendon McCullum with one that straightened and rapped the pads in front of middle.

Ashish Nehra successfully appeals for an lbw against Brendon McCullum, India v New Zealand, 2nd match, Compaq Cup, Colombo, September 11, 2009
Ashish Nehra took 3 for 24 © Associated Press

Having watched an edge from Ross Taylor sneak through between slip and keeper, RP Singh held back the length and got Taylor nicking to Dhoni for 11. New Zealand's worries against left-handers - Thilan Thushara has been a handful all tour - continued with a poor display. Such was their discomfiture against the left-arm variety that Yuvraj's gentle slow turners soon looked like missiles.

Puttering along to 22 from 41 balls, helping put on 32 with Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill fell in Yuvraj's first over. Barely settling in to see what Yuvraj could offer, or if the pitch would assist turn, Guptill stabbed at one and Dravid, at first slip, reminded all of his class as a catcher with his 194th pouch.

Elliott, who looked the only one capable of batting till the 45th over and beyond, was then incorrectly given out for 22 by Kumar Dharmasena down the leg side. Replays showed the ball brushed only his pads as he attempted to tickle it fine. New Zealand had reason to feel aggrieved, but their efforts at the start had been unforgivable. The rest of the New Zealand line-up made fleeting appearances and there was little let-up for them as Dhoni rotated his bowlers, with the top four providing the dividends. New Zealand will need to improve considerably if they are to live up to their No. 4 ranking and challenge teams in the Champions Trophy. cricketmore

ESPN CricinfoESPN Cricinfo Live Scores Australia tour of England and Scotland, 2nd ODI: England v Australia at Lord's, Sep 6, 2009

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England

Australia

Match scheduled to begin at 10:15 local time (09:15 GMT)

Current time: 08:10 local, 07:10 GMT
England squad
AJ Strauss*, JM Anderson, RS Bopara, TT Bresnan, SCJ Broad, PD Collingwood, JL Denly, EJG Morgan, MJ Prior†, AU Rashid, OA Shah, RJ Sidebottom, GP Swann, LJ Wright
Australia squad
RT Ponting*, MJ Clarke, NW Bracken, CJ Ferguson, NM Hauritz, BW Hilfenhaus, JR Hopes, MEK Hussey, MG Johnson, B Lee, GA Manou†, TD Paine†, PM Siddle, AC Voges, SR Watson, CL White For More Crickinfo And More Cricketmore

England need top order to fire

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Match facts
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Start time 10.15 (9.15 GMT)

Luke Wright launches into the deep, England v Australia, 1st ODI, The Oval, September 4, 2009
Luke Wright gave England a chance in the opening match but had been left with too much to do © Getty Images
Related Links
Players/Officials: Callum Ferguson | Adil Rashid | Luke Wright
Matches: England v Australia at Lord's
Series/Tournaments: Australia tour of England and Scotland
Teams: Australia | England

Big Picture

One down, six to go. Australia took an early lead in the one-day series by holding off a spirited late charge from England's lower order to secure a four-run victory at The Oval. They almost let the match slip away in the closing overs, but Nathan Bracken held his nerve and Ryan Sidebottom will be the only one who can explain why he left the ball with three deliveries remaining and eight needed.

There is a real determination in the Australian side to treat this one-day series as a new chapter after the Ashes disappointment. It is an evolving unit as planning looks ahead to the 2011 World Cup and one of their newer faces, Callum Ferguson, produced a classy, unbeaten 71 to hold the innings together on Friday. Andrew Strauss admitted he hadn't seen much of him and England need to come up with some plans. Ferguson is already averaging over 50 in ODIs.

For England it was a familiar tale of frustration from the top-order as they all reached double figures without anyone passing Ravi Bopara's 49. There were a number of loose dismissals - Matt Prior top-edged a reverse sweep, Bopara fell to a lazy stumping and Owais Shah tread on his stumps - and too much was left to the lower order. However, England will take encouragement from Adil Rashid's performance. He followed an impressive bowling spell with 31 off 23 balls, to further enhance his growing reputation.

Form guide
(last five matches, most recent first)

England - LWWWW

Australia - WWLWW

Watch out for…

Luke Wright has been up and down England's one-day batting line-up like a yo-yo but he has returned in a middle-order role to give the side impetus and striking power late in the innings. The early signs were promising as he gave the team a chance of chasing down 10-an-over for the final eight overs and launched the only six of the opening match when he drove Shane Watson handsomely over long off. If it hadn't been for his run-out off a no-ball England might have got over the line. Wright's bowling was limited to a single over in conditions which didn't suit his hit-the-deck style, but he needs to work on his accuracy to become a reliable option for Andrew Strauss.

Mitchell Johnson returns to the scene of his Ashes horror show. It was his first-innings display - 132 off 21 overs - in the second Test that went a long way towards costing Australia the match. He admitted to not really having a clue where it was going but, to his credit, recovered well form the ordeal despite still being short of his best. He was back at first change for the one-day series and started with three wickets at The Oval, including the key middle-order brace of Shah and Paul Collingwood, and is capable of winning a match of his own.

Team news

Joe Denly is still ruled out because of his knee injury and no cover has been called up so England's top order is unlikely to change. The two-spinner ploy also worked well at keeping a lid on Australia's scoring alongside Paul Collingwood, but their effectiveness also depends on the nature of the surface. Ryan Sidebottom wasn't quite at his best, but the variety he brings is useful for the side.

England (probable): 1 Ravi Bopara, 2 Andrew Strauss (capt), 3 Matt Prior (wk), 4 Owais Shah, 5 Paul Collingwood , 6 Luke Wright, 7 Stuart Broad, 8 Adil Rashid, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 James Anderson, 11 Ryan Sidebottom.

There seems little reason for the Australians to change a winning side. Tim Paine will hope to get off the mark this time but Cameron White's elevation to No. 3 was a success with a half century.

Australia (probable) 1 Shane Watson, 2 Tim Paine (wk), 3 Cameron White, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 Callum Ferguson, 6 Michael Hussey, 7 James Hopes, 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Nathan Hauritz 10 Brett Lee, 11 Nathan Bracken.

Pitch and conditions

The forecast remains good even though there is an autumnal chill in the air. Lord's can usually be relied upon to produce excellent one-day surfaces while the outfield is also rapid. The pitch had a tinge of green the day before the match, but expect it to be given another trim before the action begins.

Stats and trivia

* England and Australia have played nine ODIs against each other at Lord's and the head-to-head currently stands at 4-4 with one tie, which was the Natwest Series final in 2005.

Quotes

"We thought we were in control, but always at the back of our minds was what happened against South Africa. A couple of times when we thought we were in a pretty good position, they'd take the batting Powerplay and overcome us at the end."
James Hopes says Australia almost had full confidence they would hang on at The Oval.

"It was nice to perform with bat and ball but I have still got a long way to go. It has increased my confidence bowling to the Australians who are a great team. The more you play the more confidence you get and hopefully I can show that in the next game."
Adil Rashid enjoyed his performance at The Oval, but knows it is just the start.