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Central Districts’ match against India has proven invaluable for Test newcomer Michael Mason when he was named in the New Zealand team for the first Test of the National Bank series against India today.Mason gets his chance ahead of New Zealand Cricket-contracted player Chris Martin.A player who has already suffered more injuries in his brief career than most players would face in a lifetime, including a devastating broken ankle two years ago, Mason has been a comer as a spearhead of an impressive Central Districts bowling attack over the last four seasons.Mason is playing his 31st first-class match against India and before the start of the second innings of the tour match which finishes in Napier today he has taken 95 wickets at an average of 25.49.His CD captain Jacob Oram has also been included in the Test 12, and the reason for him making a precautionary withdrawal from his side’s match against India on the morning of the match has become more apparent.He was said to have felt a hamstring in the Super Max International on Wednesday evening, where he bowled impressively during India’s second innings, and felt it wasn’t worth damaging his leg.Like Mason, Oram has had a battle with injuries in recent years but as the tallest player to have played for the country, he stands at 2.01m, and has had reward for a greater concentration on his bowling technique in recent seasons.He increased the speed of what had been previously a pedestrian form of bowling to be sharpish with the advantage of his great height to unsettle batsmen. The work on developing his concentration has also started to bear him fruit.Oram first played for New Zealand in the home one-day series against Zimbabwe in 2000/01 and quickly fitted into the side and hit the winning runs in the deciding ODI against Pakistan at Carisbrook later in the season. He has twice been 12th man in previous Test sides.A foot injury ruled him out of most of last season but he was a member of the side to Sri Lanka for the Champions Trophy in September.”His selection follows huge progress in his bowling. He has brisk pace and his height makes for increased bounce which can prove awkward for batsmen in some conditions. He has been an impressive all-rounder for Central Districts this season with both the bat and ball,” selection convener Sir Richard Hadlee said.He has played 25 ODIs and has a strike-rate of 81.35 from the 336 runs he has scored. He has played 32 first-class games and has 1390 runs at 31.59 and 44 wickets at 22.54.He also had reward for one of the more commanding batting performances of the early season when scoring 96 out of his side’s 234 at Wanganui against Otago. He followed that with 52 not out in the second innings.The full team is: Stephen Fleming (captain), Nathan Astle, Shane Bond, Robbie Hart, Craig McMillan, Michael Mason, Jacob Oram, Mark Richardson, Scott Styris, Daryl Tuffey, Daniel Vettori, Lou Vincent.Unavailable for selection were Chris Cairns, who has been ruled out of both Test matches as he is to undergo keyhole surgery on his right knee on Tuesday to remove a piece of cartilage, Andre Adams, Shayne O’Connor and Ian Butler.Cairns is expected to be available for selection for the one-day series starting in Auckland on Boxing Day.Hadlee said the selectors were going into the two-Test series concerned about the lack of performance in the State Championship to date from the leading players in the country.”We are backing experience and what we know by putting our faith in players who have performed at the top level.”Mason is a bowler with good pace. He has been impressive in the current game taking three for 46 in the first innings v India and he swings ball away from right-handed batsmen,” Hadlee said.

Although the New Zealand v Pakistan Test at Karachi was cancelled after a bomb blast it is well worth examining how the two teams had fared in the past at Karachi. The two teams had played 6 tests at Karachi, Pakistan had won three and the remaining three were drawn.Here is a brief review of the previous tests between the two teams at Karachi:

1. 1955-56: Pakistan recorded their first Test victory at home by an innings and 1 run. New Zealand was out played for 164 and 124 in the two innings. Off-spinner Zulfiqar Ahmed claimed 11/79 and it was first 10-wicket haul in a match by a Pakistani bowler at home. Pakistan scored 289 (Imtiaz Ahmed 64). Henry Cave was New Zealand’s captain.
2. 1965: Despite skipper John Reid’s batting heroics (128 & 76) New Zealand lost by 8 wickets. Pakistan’s ace batsman of the era, Saeed Ahmed scored a career best 172 and opening batsman Mohammad Ilyas hammered a gallant 126. Intikhab Alam claimed 7 wickets. Hanif Mohammad led the home team.
3. 1969: It was ‘Little Master’ Hanif Mohammad’s last test. It was also the first unique instance when three brothers Hanif, Mushtaq and Sadiq participated in the same Test. Pakistan scored 220 & 283 for 8 declared. Left handers Sadiq Mohammad and Younis Ahmed (Saeed Ahmed’s brother) both playing their first Test, scored 69 & 62 respectively. Another debutant off-spinner Nazir Junior dismissed 7 Kiwi batsmen for 74 in their first innings (274). Despite gaining first innings lead of 54 runs New Zealand were poorly placed at 112 for 5 in the second when the match ended as a draw. Pervaiz Sajjad bagged all the five wickets that fell.
4. 1976-77: Majid Khan (112) scored a century before lunch on the first day and became the first batsman to achieve the feat after Sir Don Bradman (1930). Javed Miandad (206) scored the first double century of his career and skipper Mushtaq Mohammad scored 107 in Pakistan’s total of 565 for 9 declared. New Zealand made a spirited reply with a score of 486. Wicket keeper Warren Lees notched up a superb 159. Glenn Turner captained the New Zealand team.
5. 1984-85: JV Coney led the tourists and Zaheer Abbas skippered the home team. John Wright (107) and Saleem Malik (119 not out) scored centuries. Scores: Pakistan 328 & 308-5 dec. New Zealand 426.
6. 1990: Pakistan won by an innings and 43 runs. The duo of Wasim and Waqar demolished 15 Black Cap batsmen. New Zealand scored 190 and 194-9. Pakistan posted an impressive 403 for 6 due mainly to Shoaib Mohammad’s (203).

Summary: 1955-56 to date

Highest innings total for New Zealand: 468 (1976-77)
Highest innings total for Pakistan: 565-9 declared (1976-77)
Lowest innings total for New Zealand: 124 (1955-56)
Lowest innings total for Pakistan: 220 (1969)
Highest individual innings for New Zealand: W. Lees 152 (1976-77)
Highest individual innings for Pakistan: Javed Miandad 206 (1976-77)

Mike Kasprowicz has signed a two year contract with Glamorganthat will see the Australian pace bowler playing for the Welshcounty until 2004.”I`ve really enjoyed this season,” said the Australian who has taken over 50first-class wickets for Glamorgan this summer. “I can see a lot of successhappening in the future, and I`m really looking forward tobeing part of this over the next two years.”What`s struck me in particular has been the pride that the side have. Somany have come up together through the Welsh Schools and youth set-up, and the team havestuck together when the going has got hard this summer. Their pride has seenthem through and it`s really shown in our one-day performances.”

The joy that swept through the Sri Lankan camp when it was announced Muttiah Muralitharan was fit to play was quickly dissipated as the England bowlers worked steadily through the batting order.When the morning rain eventually relented and Nasser Hussain had won his fourth toss in 23 attempts, the bowlers made up for lost time by hustling out the Sri Lankans for 162. The pitch, with its steep bounce, was tailor-made for Andrew Caddick, and the tall Somerset pace man did not spurn the opportunity it offered him. Despite Murali’s appearance in the attack before the close, the England openers survived until stumps.Play could not get under way until 1.40pm, and within nine overs of the start, Sri Lanka had lost two wickets. Matthew Hoggard had struggled to match the consistency of Caddick, tending to over-pitch – the preferable of the two possible errors. However, he found a beauty that Marvan Atapattu had to play, touching it to Alec Stewart behind the wicket.A scoreboard that read 23 for one read 23 for two just four balls later. Caddick had earlier rapped Sanath Jayasuriya a painful blow on the hand. Now he found the edge and Stewart poached the catch from in front of first slip.There was a crying need for the Sri Lankans to stiffen their resistance, and Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara duly did so. With Caddick resting and the other bowlers unable to maintain quite the same sustained hostility, the batsmen settled in to offer evidence of their attractive strokeplay.Jayawardene, in particular, looked in elegant form and scored the bulk of the runs in a productive third-wicket partnership with Sangakkara. They had added 53 runs and were promising more riches when Sangakkara played the most appalling shot at a wide ball from Andrew Flintoff. He did well to reach it (or not!) without any apparent foot movement to present Stewart with his 200th victim as a Test wicket-keeper.Before the hundred had been posted, Aravinda de Silva forced Hoggard off the back foot straight into the gully, to be followed to the pavilion 14 balls later by Jayawardene, who offered Flintoff a regulation catch at second slip off the deserving Caddick. The same pair combined on the stroke of tea to bring about the downfall of Russel Arnold so that the tourists took an uncomfortable break on 108 for six.Chaminda Vaas joined Hashan Tillakaratne after tea to play with a good deal of commonsense before two wickets fell in the space of four balls to set Sri Lanka back on their heels once again.There was a suspicion of an inside edge as Tillakaratne was given out lbw to Alex Tudor before Nuwan Zoysa hooked high to deep fine-leg where Hoggard waited patiently for the ball to descend into his hands.Vaas proved admirably adhesive and found an equally determined partner in Charitha Buddika. They were not able to increase the scoring rate significantly, but did slow the rate at which the bowlers were taking wickets. Their stubborn partnership came to an end when Vaas played on to another wide ball from Flintoff.Muralitharan faced one ball to which he played an extraordinary one-handed drive. But next over, as Buddika tried to protect him from the bowling, the final wicket was sacrificed. They tried to steal a single that was never there off the last ball as Buddika tried to keep the strike and Caddick and Tudor effected the inevitable run out that ended the innings.The England openers had seven overs to face, the fifth of which was bowled by Muralitharan. From the fifth ball, he found the outside edge of Michael Vaughan’s bat only to see Jayawardene fail to grasp the chance at slip. Vaughan went on to score his one thousandth Test run, as the England batsmen safely negotiated the brief period of play that concluded in brilliant sunshine.

After rain had caused the loss of much of the afternoon at Bath, skipper Jamie Cox took everyone by surprise when he declared the Somerset innings closed just after teatime, 91 runs adrift of the Hampshire total of 252.His decision however was more than proved right when he saw Richard Johnson take a wicket with his first ball, another wicket in his second over, and then Matt Bulbeck on a hat trick.When the umpires offered the Hampshire batsmen the light they were only too happy to accept it and left the field with the score on 4 wickets for 3 runs, with play finally being called off at 6.15pm.Earlier in the day the middle order Somerset batsmen applied themselves well to take their overnight score of 79 for 5 onto 161 for 9, thanks to valuable contributions from Ian Blackwell (43) Rob Turner (33) and Keith Dutch (24).At the end of play Kevin Shine told me: "It was a good fighting effort from the batters this morning, and then a very intelligent declaration that caught everyone unawares, followed by some fantastic attacking bowling by `Johnno’ and `Bully’ backed up by some good catching."The coach concluded: "If we get a full days play tomorrow, and with the pitch not getting any easier we could have a fantastic game of cricket on our hands."

To the cash-strapped Zimbabwe cricket administrators, the current tourby the Indian team is expected to be a windfall.”It is good we have the Indians here this winter. It will be betterwhen they leave.” The statement attributed to David Ellmann Brown,President of the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) and Dave Houghton,former Test player and incharge of the National Academy, may or maynot be true but it is doubtful if they would disagree with thesentiment.The ZCU is expecting a windfall of 450 million Zimbabwean dollars(approx US $900,000) from the television revenue in this series. Thecricket body has never had a bigger bite than this pie in theirhistory. And they can only earn it after the Indians are through withtheir fixtures and have boarded the home-bound plane.In a cricket set-up where there are no sponsors and only a fewhundreds play the game, the revenue is most welcome and would keep thegame going in the six provincial bodies and the Academy.The ZCU is so short of funds it has not been able to run a domesticone-day competition between the provinces. Apparently, the cost ofrunning two competitions and footing the accommodation and transportbill is overwhelming.Yet, the game is growing every day as reflected in the overflowingcricketing engagements Zimbabwe is managing for itself. In the lastseason, Zimbabwe team left for Sharjah in mid-October, went to India,New Zealand, Australia and then played hosts to Bangladesh.They played five Tests, winning two, losing one and drawing theremaining two. Of the 23 one-dayers, Zimbabwe won seven while losing16 ties.This winter, between May and September, they would play host to noless than four countries. After India and West Indies come and playtwo Tests each and a triangular one-day series with the hosts, SouthAfrica and England are scheduled the fill the second half of thewinter.Zimbabwe have so far won five games from 50 Tests in nine seasons, twoof them by an innings.Their top players, contracted in three different categories by the ZCUaccording to their seniority and experience, earn around one millionZimbabwean dollars (approx $80,000) a year.In a country where economy is declining by nearly 10 per cent and thegovernment has stopped repayments of all foreign loans, includingthose owed to the IMF, it is not an insignificant sum.Indeed, Zimbabwe is in need of serious help because Canada has imposedpenalties, Denmark has cut back and European Union is consideringsanctions.The government reportedly owes more than US $4.5 billion to severalmultilateral institutions and Western countries. In the past fouryears about 1.4 million young people have left school with only about100,000 finding some kind of work in the formal sector.So high is inflation that the ZCU and its provinces have problems inmaintaining facilities, keeping nets in condition or to employ staffand manage irrigation of grounds.The players’ condition though has improved after they forced theiremployers, the ZCU, in a corner in a pay dispute last year. The flashpoint to this simmering discontent was the incident involving its starplayer Andy Flower in a Asia Eleven vs Rest of the World match inDhaka last year.The Rest of the World side, led by Mark Waugh of Australia, namedFlower as its 12th man. Flower, quite the best batsman in Zimbabweancricket, was not unduly worried. “As far as I get my 5,000 US dollars,I am okay,” he said.It intrigued Waugh and on his asking, Flower explained the conditionsof Zimbabwean cricket and its cricketers to the star Australianbatsmen. “In that case, you shouldn’t be playing for Zimbabwe,” Waughis quoted to have said.It triggered a response among cricketers. The ZCU, worried at the lossof star players like Neil Johnson and Murray Goodwin on account ofmoney, woke up in time to agree for improved conditions forcricketers.Brown, the ZCU’s president, is credited with ensuring enoughengagements for the national team to keep the game going in thecountry. At its helm since August 1998, Brown’s stroke of genius forZimbabwean cricket has been his achievement to ensure reciprocal tourswith other Test-playing nations.It has taken the load of guarantee money, to be paid to visitingteams, off ZCU’s shoulders. Australia, for instance, command a hugeguarantee money because of their star status.This is also the first time Zimbabwean cricket has opened itself tocricket in winter. There has never been any international cricket inthis country between May and September. It will assist Zimbabwe inmaintaining a viable financial organisation. The 10-year reciprocaltouring calendar which the ICC has made for Test-playing nations isalso most welcome for Zimbabwean cricket.Brown says the new programme will mean they would get at least one”icon” tour each season. Thus, Zimbabwean cricket can look ahead forstill better times in coming years.

India found themselves immediately enmeshed in Kensington Oval’s age-old jinx on the opening day of the third Test against the West Indies yesterday.On the ground where they have been beaten in six of their seven Tests and never won a match of any kind, they lost a wicket off the first ball of the match after they were sent in, had the trauma of Sachin Tendulkar’s dismissal for his second successive 0 of the series and were all out for 102 in 33.4 overs, broken into three parts by rain interruptions.By the close, called 19.3 overs before schedule as the day’s fourth shower swept in from the east, the West Indies had replied with 33 for the loss of Stuart Williams, whose edged drive off left-armer Zaheer Khan was neatly taken at third slip.With the use of the pitch over the next two days when it is usually at its most favourable for batting, they have a golden opportunity to press for the victory that would even the series, following their loss by 37 runs in the hard-fought second Test last week.Captain Saurav Ganguly was the only exception to India’s pathetic performance against four fast bowlers on a pitch faster and bouncier than those for the drawn first Test in Georgetown and for the second in Port-of-Spain that they won by 37 runs but far from intimidating.The collective malfunction was induced not so much by the conditions or by the bowling, as spirited as it was, but by history.Since their first tour of the Caribbean 49 years ago, Kensington has been to India what Waterloo was to Napoleon. Their key batsmen yesterday – Tendulkar, Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and V.V.S. Laxman – brought unhappy memories of their last Test at the prestigious venue when a seemingly simple winning target of 120 proved beyond them as they folded for 81.As captain, Ganguly spent just over two untroubled hours between the showers setting an example his partners had neither the inclination nor the technique to follow against four fast bowlers who could keep fresh between the weather breaks.He compiled 48 before he was last out to Merv Dillon’s sensational, tumbling catch in front of the disbelieving Three Ws Stand on the boundary’s edge at third man off a raised cut off the energetic Adam Sanford.Yet even he had a hand in the breakdown for he was culpable in the run out of Dravid for 17, just n From Page 47.when the two were easing the shock of Tendulkar’s rare failure.India made only one change to their winning 11 from Port-of-Spain, the slim right-hander Wasim Jaffer brought in for his third Test as the third opening partner for Shiv Sunder Das in the series.But the diminutive Das was the immediate victim, like Tendulkar later, for his second successive duck in the series. Tardy in defence, he was bowled middle-stump by Dillon’s on-target first delivery.It was a start that would have set off alarm bells in an Indian dressing room already suspicious of Kensington’s bogey. The position never got much better.In the seventh over, Jaffer, feet static, edged Dillon for reinstated wicket-keeper Ridley Jacobs, back where he belongs, to snare a sharp catch to his right.Three balls later, the 8 000 or so in the stands reacted as if Owen Arthur had just abolished all taxes as Tendulkar sparred at left-armer Pedro Collins’ second ball, angled across him, and Jacobs jubilantly claimed the deflection.Out fourth ball in his previous innings in the second Test, it was the first time India’s cricketing god had recorded successive 0s in his 94 Tests.Dravid began scratchily with an edge off Dillon that flew through vacant fourth on its way to the third man boundary.But he is India’s most solid batsman, Tendulkar not necessarily excluded, and he and the impressive Ganguly were steadying things when Ganguly pushed Cameron Cuffy to Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s left at cover.He initially summoned his partner for the run but then changed his call. Dravid skidded to a halt, spun around as quickly and nimbly as the quickest ZR but Chanderpaul’s return and Cuffy’s neat, low take before breaking the stumps were too swift.Umpire Billy Doctrove’s verdict on the television replay took ages but was inevitable.Ganguly found himself left with a tailend that begins with the little wicket-keeper Ajay Ratra at No.7 and the four bowlers when Cuffy, operating from the north after his opening burst from the south, produced a sharp breakback in the next over to breach Laxman’s loose drive and hit the off-stump.He was then 19 and was responsible for 29 of the 51 runs added before it was all over.Ratra gained a stay of execution through Hooper’s miss of a low chance at second slip off Cuffy and an hour-long rain stoppage. Ten minutes into the resumption, he predictably edged again and Jacobs gobbled the catch off Dillon.Sanford then restored some of the public’s vanishing faith in West Indian bowlers to bounce out batsmen – even if they were inadequate tailenders.Harbahajan Singh hooked into fine-leg’s lap in a replay of Port-of-Spain and Zaheer Khan stabbed a catch to short-leg as if shaking off a centipede.By this time, Ganguly realised he didn’t have long to do what he had to do and improvised two astonishing shots off successive balls from Dillon.Charging down the pitch, he slapped a four that whizzed to the extra-cover wall in front of the Kensington Stand and then hoisted the fast bowler on top of the Pickwick Pavilion’s roof.They were to be the last flickers of life in the dying innings.Dillon disposed of Srinath, lbw right after the late tea interval, and then hung on to his breathtaking catch off Ganguly to round off quite a day for himself – and for the team.Now it’s up to the batsmen to make the most of the effort.

The South Africans had made it clear before this Test match, if anyone waswilling to hear. They want to win the fifth Test and take the series 3-0;there would be no foot taken off the pedal. On Thursday they proved true totheir word, and seized the final Test against the West Indies by the scruffof the neck. At close of play the West Indies were 214-9, well short of par.

There was very little that did not go captain Shaun Pollock’s way apartfrom the toss, although Brian Lara (81) again wielded his magnificent batand helped lift the home side from total disaster to something approachingrespectability. Carl Hooper’s decision to bat first on a wicket that hasplayed well looked to be the correct one, but the West Indies batsmen failedto capitalise.Allan Donald (4-47), returning after the hamstring injury which kept himout of the fourth Test, looked back to his fiery best, while Pollock (4-24)was also outstanding.Things could not have got off to a worse start for the West Indies,their first wicket going down off the first ball of the match bowled byDonald. It was faced by debutant opening batsman Leon Garrick, called intothe side at the eleventh hour after his 174 not out against the SouthAfricans in a largely meaningless two-day warm-up game in Montego Bay at theweekend. The ball was just short of a length and rising on the diminutiveGarrick, the batsmen cutting it straight to Shaun Pollock in the gulley.Garrick’s preparations for the Test were hardly ideal, but he now knowsthe difference between a two-day knockabout and Test cricket. It was aninjudicious shot from a nervous batsman, who stood for several seconds atthe crease in horror and disbelief at the way he had thrown his wicket away.He joins a man who previously ran a club all of his own, for Testbatsmen dismissed for a duck on debut off the first ball of a Test match.The other is South Africa’s Jimmy Cook, dismissed by Kapil Dev of Indian inDurban in 1992-1993.By lunch, Shivnarine Chanderpaul (7) and Chris Gayle (25) had followed,and Marlon Samuels became Donald’s third victim when he edged to MarkBoucher in the first over after the interval. His departure brought captainCarl Hooper to the crease and for the next hour or so, he and Lara wrestedthe initiative slowly back towards the West Indies.The way it was handed back was a cameo of the series, and the culprit onthis occasion was the captain. Pollock set the trap with two men on theboundary behind square on the leg side, bowled the bouncer, Hooper (25)hooked and Gary Kirsten took the catch.Ridley Jacobs followed soon afterwards for a six-ball duck, but Dillonkept Lara company as the left-hander began to strike out. In eleven Testsagainst South Africa he has never reached 100 and again he fellfrustratingly short, spooning a catch to Jacques Kallis as he baled out of apull shot off Pollock. His 81 came in 228 minutes, off 156 balls andincluded 12 fours.Dillon (24) offered three chances, but after Boucher spurned two of themwith batsman on nought and two, he made it third time lucky with a goodcatch off a rising delivery from Donald which took the edge and flew high tohis right.

Sri Lanka, powered by a maiden double century from Kumar Sangakkara, mauled the highly over-rated four-man Pakistan pace attack to take an iron grip in the Asian Test Championship final at Gaddafi Stadium Thursday.Sangakkara, starting the day at 39 in the visitors 94 for one, struck a scintillating 230 – highest individual score by a Sri Lankan against Pakistan – as the tourists replied to home team’s modest 234 with 447 for five when curtains were drawn for the second day with four overs still to be bowled.Pakistan must be thanking the floodlights that came into operation 18 overs before the scheduled close. With the red new cherry in hand, Pakistan picked up Russel Arnold and Sangakkara in a space of four balls to restrict Sri Lankans from posting a much bigger lead.But the late double strike failed to take the honours away from Sangakkara inspired Sri Lanka who added an impressive 353 in 86 overs Thursday with 212 coming off boundaries.The left-handed Sangakkara, who reached his fourth career century in style by belting three boundaries in five balls off Shahid Afridi in the final over before lunch, reached his double century by flicking Mohammad Sami off his toes for his 27th boundary.His high quality and strokeful innings contained 32 boundaries and three sixes from 327 balls. He was dropped on 119 and 182 and then making a narrow escape at 215 when the edge flew between Younis Khan and Rashid Latif, was not the only one to toy with Pakistan’s mediocre attack.Skipper Sanath Jayasuriya, who began at 47, scored 88 in a stand of 203 while an elegant Mahela Jayawardena scored 68 in a third wicket partnership of 173 in as many minutes. Arnold joined in the fun and chipped in with a 52-ball 44 after being dropped by Younis Khan when 22. He hit six boundaries and added 71 runs in 72 minutes for the fourth wicket with Sangakkara.Jayasuriya’s innings spiced 14 boundaries from 159 balls while Jayawardena canned eight boundaries and a six in his 174-minute vigil at the crease. If Sangakkara, sixth wicket-keeper to score a double century, was in imperious form and in punishing mood, his cause was helped by poor, purposeless, and wayward bowling by the Pakistanis in overcast conditions.Pakistan pacers, relying on speed rather than accuracy and trademark swing bowling, bowled short and everywhere except stumps to be ruthlessly hooked, pulled and cut by Sri Lankan batsmen. Ironically, when the bowlers put the ball at the right length, they succeeded.Jayasuriya was caught at the wicket off Abdul Razzaq, Jayawardena was picked by Inzamam-ul-Haq at the first slip off Mohammad Sami, Sangakkara was smartly held by Younis Khan at first slip off Razzaq and Arnold’s furniture was disturbed by Shoaib Akhtar.

South Africa’s first-class competition may not have the same aura as its English counterpart, but it is still regarded as one of the best breeding grounds for Test cricketers. Since the franchise system started in 2004-05, the quality of the contests has become stronger and the cricketers produced have shown a readiness for a bigger stage.Last summer, the tournament went down to the final weekend, and this time the level of competition is expected to be just as strong.

Titans

Captain Henry Davids
Coach Matthew MaynardWhat’s changed
Most noticeably, the captaincy. Martin van Jaarsveld, who had a torrid time on his return to the South African domestic scene, has been replaced by Henry Davids. Less obvious could be the change in mood. A double tragedy struck in the off season and its effects could linger over the camp. The Titans will have to move on without long-serving chief executive Elise Lombard, who died of a heart attack in August, and coach Matthew Maynard lost his son, Tom, in an accident in the UK. Usually one of the most festive franchises, the Titans may be tinged with sadness this season.How they fared last season
The Titans won the competition with five victories from ten fixtures. Their season did not begin as planned, though, with a loss in their opening match to the Knights at home. They recovered to win in Durban against the Dolphins the following week. The pattern continued with a big win over the Lions and an innings defeat to the Cobras. By mid-season, the Titans were barely in contention. They gained consistency after that and three more wins secured the title.Faf du Plessis earned his Test call-up due to his 599 runs from four matches while new captain Davids was their most consistent player, with 637 runs from nine matches at an average of 37.47. Rowan Richards was their highest wicket-taker – 26 at 20.07, including two five-wicket hauls.Who to watch
Mangaliso Mosehle is on wicketkeeper watch as South Africa continue their search for a permanent replacement for Mark Boucher. Spinner Paul Harris still has a point to prove after he was dropped from the national team. Farhaan Behardien is trying to secure a spot in it.

Cobras

Captain Justin Ontong
Coach Paul AdamsWhat’s changed
Everything. With Richard Pybus resigning the post under a cloud – he said he was being undermined by the chief executive Andre Odendaal – the Cobras have new management. Paul Adams will hope to bring his knowledge of the international game into his first venture as a franchise coach. Justin Kemp has handed the armband to Justin Ontong, who will head up a unit that is used to winning but only had one trophy to show for it last season.How they fared last season
Participation in the CLT20 meant that the Cobras’ domestic season started later than normal but they made an impact immediately with an eight-wicket win over the Warriors. Innings victories over the Titans and Lions set them up well before their first defeat came – a shock result at the hands of the Warriors. They rallied to beat the Knights comprehensively but three draws and a narrow loss to the Titans at home ended up proving decisive. They remained on top of the table until the final weekend when they had to beat the Lions but were held to a draw.Justin Ontong scored 658 runs at an average of 59.81 to finish as their leading run-scorer while Dane Vilas caught the national selectors’ attention, averaging 48 with his with 528. Johann Louw and Rory Kleinveldt were the chief destroyers with 33 and 32 wickets respectively.Who to watch
Monde Zondeki makes his return to professional cricket after injuries forced him to lose his contract for a significant period. Dane Piedt and Siya Simetu are two spinners who have registered on the radar.

Knights

Captain Morne van Wyk
Coach Sarel CilliersWhat’s changed
The Knights have been consistent in the engine room and the playing field for many seasons and will continue in that vein this summer. Morne van Wyk continues to lead a familiar squad of few superstars.How they fared last season
Promise faded into mid-table mediocrity as the Knights surged to three wins from their first four fixtures but then compiled a succession of draws to finish third. Victories over the Titans, Dolphins and Warriors were followed by two draws. Remarkably, they only lost once but it was a heavy defeat. An innings-and-54 run humiliation at the hands of the Cobras preceded two more draws but they ended the season on a high, with a win over the Warriors.van Wyk continued his evergreen form with 754 runs at an average of 44.35. He was closely followed by Reeza Hendricks, who featured in the South Africa A side after scoring 748 runs. Experience topped the bowling charts with Quinton Friend claiming 40 wickets and Johan van der Wath, 34.Knights’ Reeza Hendricks is pushing for national selection•Getty Images

Who to watch
Hendricks and Rilee Rossouw are both pushing for national selection. With runs aplenty between them in seasons past, they must feel they don’t need many more before the national selectors come calling.

Lions

Captain Alviro Petersen
Coach Geoffrey ToyanaWhat’s changed
The bowling attack. The Lions have headhunted two strike bowlers in paceman Hardus Viljoen and legspinner Imran Tahir to bolster their ranks. Dave Nosworthy’s resignation paved the way for Geoffrey Toyana to take over as coach. As a former first-class cricketer, Toyana knows the structures at the union well and is also South Africa’s first black African franchise coach.How they fared last season
Two draws and a loss in their first three matches summed up what would become the Lions’ biggest problem over the season: an inability to bowl teams out. They were able to take 20 wickets against the Warriors, who they beat to earn their first win of the season. A crushing innings-and-83-run loss to the Cobras was followed by two victories, over the Titans and Warriors but their season petered out with three draws.Run-scoring came in droves for the Lions. Alviro Petersen wrested back his international spot with 816 runs from seven matches at an average of 62.76 and was the competition’s top run-scorer. Neil McKenzie was second highest with 790 runs, and Steven Cook contributed 690 to give the Lions a healthy top order. Pumi Matshikwe’s 30 wickets got him picked for the South Africa A side and Eddie Leie’s 24 scalps saw him emerge as an exciting legspin prospect.Who to watch
Quinton de Kock is being talked up as the next big wicketkeeper-batsman and will be closely monitored. Chris Morris was part of the South African squad who competed in an unofficial T20 tri-series in Zimbabwe and Matshikwe has shown promising signs in the fast-bowling department.

Warriors

Captain Colin Ingram
Coach Piet BothaWhat’s changed
The loss of Lonwabo Tsotsobe is the biggest concern for the Warriors who have a talented but underperforming squad. Since Russell Domingo was poached for the national assistant coach job, they have struggled to reach the highs of the 2009-10 season when they won two trophies. Not much has changed in their personnel, but they will need a change in attitude if they hope for success this season.How they fared last season
With seven losses from ten matches, it’s a wonder the Warriors did not finish last on the table. They managed over 350 runs just once in the competition and conceded over 350 six times. With three defeats from their first three matches, reaching parity was always going to be tricky for them but they almost stood up to the challenge. Wins over the Dolphins and Cobras kept them above water. But three defeats, a weather-affected abandoned match and a fourth loss ended their season dismally.It was not all woe though – Simon Harmer’s 44 wickets made him the tournament’s highest wicket-taker. Jon-Jon Smuts was their leading run-scorer with 742 runs at an average of 43.64.Who to watch
The Smuts brothers, Kelly and Jon-Jon, are entertaining and resourceful cricketers who could attract the attention of people in important places. Makhaya Ntini is still playing, despite international retirement, and Ashwell Prince is the senior statesman who has not given up on playing for South Africa just yet.

Dolphins

Captain Daryn Smit
Coach Lance KlusenerWhat’s changed
Another franchise who have had a complete change at the top, the Dolphins are another new-look team. After Graham Ford’s departure to Sri Lanka mid-season, Klusener was appointed interim coach and the players enjoyed playing under him so much that he was given the job full time. Smit is a new, enthusiastic leader, and they have acquired Tsotsobe and Jonathan Vandiar, but lost Tahir to the Lions.How they fared last season
A forgettable season for the Dolphins, who won one match in 2012, beating the Warriors by 227 runs.Divan van Wyk scored 669 runs at just under 40 and Imraan Khan contributed 652 runs. Kyle Abbott and Robbie Frylinck both took 33 wickets to lead the bowler’s rankings.Who to watch
Khaya Zondo and Mthokozisi Shezi have made waves in the batting and bowling departments respectively, while Vaughn van Jaarsveld is always on the national selectors’ minds.