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Craig Kieswetter has described the England team he played in as divided by cliques and changed by success

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jun-20154:52

Cliques within the England dressing room?

Craig Kieswetter has described the England team he played in as divided by cliques and changed by success. In an exclusive interview with ESPNcricinfo, Kieswetter also explained his decision to retire following an eye injury and his frustration with his own England career.But it is his views on the England dressing room that will gain most attention. While Kieswetter stopped short of repeating Kevin Pietersen’s claims of bullying in the England environment, he does not paint a flattering picture.Though he says he came into a united dressing room in early 2010, he believes that winning the World T20 and then the Ashes in Australia “changed people”.”It wasn’t just us competing against the opposition,” Kieswetter said. “There was a sense that some of us were competing against one another. By the time we were No. 1 in the world, it was a very different dressing room. Success changed people. Cliques developed. There were jokes made in the dressing room if you had a South African background. When we warmed up in training, we were split into sides: South Africans v English.”There was lots of talk about it in the media and here we were making it worse. It created an unnecessary divide. A sense of them and us.”It grew worse. The Test players were together so much that, when the limited-overs players turned up, it felt like you were on the outside. The Test guys hung out with each other; the limited-overs guys hung out. The spirit I experienced in those first few weeks was never there again.”Craig Kieswetter’s England career peaked at the World T20•Getty ImagesThose “first few weeks” saw Kieswetter become the second youngest England player, after David Gower, to make an ODI century and win the Man-of-the-Match award in the 2010 World T20 final. But while he started out playing with rare freedom, he feels that prolonged exposure to the England environment left him feeling “caged” as a batsman.”Of all the England teams I played in over five years, that was the one that had the best spirit,” he said. “To be honest, I don’t remember it that clearly: we played golf, we went to the beach and we drank rum. Training tended to be optional. KP was at his best. So were Broad and Swann. But we were a proper team and everyone got on brilliantly.”I started out playing with freedom; I ended up caged. I guess if I was in the current set-up I would thrive, but I had a good record as an opener and they asked me to bat at No. 6. It’s tough, but I’m disappointed with the way I responded to it.”Kieswetter also explained his decision to retire from cricket following a blow to the eye sustained while batting against David Willey. “I know I can’t play at the level I want to,” Kieswetter explains. “I liked being a swashbuckling player. And I felt I had the talent to play for England. I don’t feel that way any more. I’m not the same player. I’m not as good as I want to be and I never can be.”I can still play. I can still be okay. But when I came back at the end of last season, there was a lot of bravado and adrenalin involved. In the end I just thought, there are too many mediocre players in county cricket – and good luck to them – but I don’t want to be another one.”Read the full interview here

Kabir Ali was forced to retire from cricket after failing to recover from a long-standing shoulder injury

ESPNcricinfo staff12-May-2015Kabir Ali, the former England allrounder, has called time on his cricket career because of a long-standing shoulder injury. Having injured his shoulder in last season’s Natwest T20 Blast, Ali underwent surgery but failed to recover. He decided to retire after doctors told him he would require more surgery.”I underwent major surgery and did all the rehab but when I tried to bowl, I struggled to get any pace,” Kabir said. “Doctors have suggested that I need further surgery, and that is a one-year process, and then there is no guarantee on me playing. I went out to Barbados, hoping the hot conditions might help the process as a last resort. It almost shattered me because deep down, I knew something was not quite right in the shoulder.”Ali last played domestic cricket in August 2014, for Lancashire, before he was released by the county in October after he injured himself. He has also played for Hampshire and Worcestershire. He took 500 wickets and scored 2755 runs in first-class cricket, to go with 261 List A wickets.”It would be unfair for me to push myself to other counties,” he said. “It’s a sad time because for the last 16 years all I have done is play cricket, whether it’s in England or overseas.”Ali, 34, played one Test against South Africa at Headingley in 2003, and 14 ODIs for England, picking up 20 wickets at an average of 34.10.

The Gunners have done some incredible deals down through the years – GOAL picks out their best ever signings below…

From the dominant days of manager Herbert Chapman’s tenure in the 1930s right through to the modern era, Arsenal have signed some sensational players who have gone on to write their names into the history books.

But which transfers rank as the greatest in the Gunners' long and illustrious history.

GOAL reveals all below…

Eddie Hapgood

Arguably Arsenal’s best ever signing.

Hapgood was plucked from lowly Kettering Town by Gunners manager Herbert Chapman in 1927 for just £950 ($1,170) and went to captain Arsenal’s all-conquering side of the 1930s.

He made 440 appearances in all competitions for Arsenal and won the First Division title five times, as well as the FA Cup twice.

The left-back spent 12 years with Arsenal before the onset of the Second World War, scoring twice. 

He died in 1973, at the age of just 64.

AdvertisementGettyIan Wright

Many questioned Arsenal’s decision to spend a club record £2.5 million ($3m) to sign Ian Wright from Crystal Palace in 1991.

The Gunners had just won the First Division title and had two-time golden boot winner Alan Smith leading the line, with Kevin Campbell also at George Graham’s disposal.

But from the moment Wright opened his account with a goal at Leicester City on his Arsenal debut, he quickly silenced any of his doubters.

He went on the score 185 goals for the club, overtaking Cliff Bastin to become Arsenal’s all-time record goalscorer in 1997.

Wright won a Premier League title during his time in North London as well as two FA Cups, a League Cup, the Cup Winners Cup and the Golden Boot.

Alex James

Known as one of the finest players to have ever played for Arsenal, James arrived from Preston in 1929 for £8,750 ($10,800).

The playmaker quickly established himself in Chapman’s stellar side and scored the opening goal as Arsenal beat Huddersfield 2-0 in the 1930 FA Cup final – a victory which gave the club its first ever major trophy.

James went on to make 261 appearances for Arsenal and formed a formidable partnership with legendary attackers Ted Drake and Cliff Bastin.

The Scotland international won four league titles for the Gunners and a second FA Cup in 1936. He was forced to retire due to injury the following year.

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Sol Campbell

There is plenty of debate over who is the best free transfer of the Premier League era, but not amongst Arsenal fans.

Sol Campbell’s move across North London from Tottenham in the summer of 2001 is the stuff of legend.

Members of the media were all expecting to see goalkeeper Richard Wright unveiled when they arrived at a press conference at Arsenal’s training ground, so there was an audible gasp when Arsene Wenger walked out accompanied by Campbell – who was football's most in-demand free agent at the time.

Arsenal had taken Spurs’ captain without having to pay them a penny and they had to watch their former idol go on to win two league titles and three FA Cups during his time at Highbury.

Manchester City midfielder Rodri called on his team to 'be brave' after they dropped crucial points against Chelsea at the Etihad on Saturday.

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Rodri calls on team to take responsibilitySpaniard levels game late onDefensive showing alarms midfielderWHAT HAPPENED?

The Spaniard drew City level in the 83rd minute after his side had trailed to Raheem Sterling's first-half goal. The hosts created a string of chances with Erling Haaland passing up a number of opportunities to score. But it was an alarming first-half defensive performance that was foremost in Rodri's mind when he spoke after the game.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT RODRI SAID

"I think we weren’t great in the first half," the midfielder told after the game. "We conceded another easy goal. I think we have to defend better. They almost created nothing in the first half.

"We knew about their counter-attacks and fast players, we have to defend the counter-attack better. From there it’s always more difficult to come back.

"It’s a matter of defending better. We tried in the second half. We wanted the ball and wanted to take risks. We were a bit scared of the counter-attack. You have to be brave."

In a separate interview with , Rodri again emphasised the need for defensive improvement. "It was in our hands and we have to do better individual actions and you can't let the game go this way. I'm not blaming anyone but we have to take responsibility if we want to win the league.
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GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

City had been on an ominously strong run of form of late, further boosted by the return of Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne. But Saturday's issues at both ends of the pitch is a reminder of some of the problems they faced earlier in the season where the control of last season's treble-winning campaign gave way to more chaotic performances such as the 4-4 draw against Saturday's opponents at Stamford Bridge in November.

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WHAT NEXT FOR MANCHESTER CITY?

City have a chance to make amends when they play their game in hand on their title rivals against Brentford at the Etihad on Tuesday night. A win would put Pep Guardiola's men a point ahead of Arsenal and just one behind Liverpool with 13 rounds of Premier League fixtures to play.

A Darmstadt 'Ultra' stormed the pitch and yelled at the dejected-looking players following their 6-0 thrashing at home by Augsburg.

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Darmstadt beaten 6-0 by AugsburgFan berates players after lossRemain rooted to the bottom of BundesligaWHAT HAPPENED?

Darmstadt remain rooted to the bottom of the Bundesliga following a brace from Philip Tietz and Ermedin Demirovic, plus goals from Fredrik Jensen and Ruben Vargas. After the humiliating home defeat, one supporter let his feelings known towards the players at full time.

AdvertisementWATCH THE CLIP

In the clip, the fan can be seen lambasting Darmstadt's players, who were grouped together on the pitch near one of the goals.

(C)Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Darmstadt, who have won just two league games this season, earned promotion to the Bundesliga last May but their stay in the German top-flight looks set to be short-lived as they are 12 points from safety with 10 games remaining.

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WHAT NEXT?

Next up for the Bundesliga strugglers, who were 5-0 down at half time against Augsburg, is a trip to fifth-placed RB Leipzig next Saturday, followed by a home match against defending champions Bayern Munich a week later.

ESPNcricinfo previews the second one-day international between England and New Zealand

The Preview by Alan Gardner01-Jun-2013Match FactsJune 2, 2013
Start time 10.45am (0945 GMT)England’s top-order failed to build a score big enough for their bowlers to defend at Lord’s•Getty ImagesThe Big PictureLike a confident election campaign team beginning to get wind of some worrying exit poll data, England are experiencing a few pre-Champions Trophy jitters. Having glided serenely towards this year’s limited-overs centrepiece with their Bank of England top three, middle-order pocket rockets and specialist seam-and-swing attack blueprint firmly in place, there is just a hint of disquiet. And not only because defeat to New Zealand at the Ageas Bowl would mean a first ODI series loss at home in almost four years.Injury deprived England of Kevin Pietersen several weeks ago – providing grist to the mill of those who worry about their stolid approach early in the game, two new balls or otherwise, and the subsequent pressure that puts on the players to come – and “niggles” now hang ominously over two key members of the bowling attack, in Stuart Broad and Steven Finn. Chris Woakes, in particular, was treated dismissively by Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor at Lord’s and the call-up for Boyd Rankin, who played his last ODI for Ireland in February 2012, might kindly be described as a gamble. Neither Rankin or Jade Dernbach are yet in the Champions Trophy mix but Alastair Cook was noticeably unwilling to make any guarantees on the fitness of Broad and Finn.But one flutter of panic does not make an episode of and England will likely dust off those shiny new red uniforms and refocus on imposing their “skills” against New Zealand. Switching rapidly between formats can cause problems for everyone and while a one-day side largely familiar to each other through Test cricket can have its benefits, the challenge is for them all to go up in gear together. It seems unlikely that so many of the batsmen will get in and not go on again. England came from behind to win the ODIs against the same opponents earlier in the year and will undoubtedly be sharper down at the Ageas Bowl.New Zealand’s position is, by contrast, an enviable one. Unfancied for the tournament to come and dogged by indifferent form over the last couple of years, Brendon McCullum was understandably excited by victory at Lord’s (which maintained their unbeaten record in ODIs there) and what it augurs for his team. Guptill’s return to form has been timed like the lofted six over long-on during his unbeaten century and the bowling attack demonstrated variety and skill. New Zealand are the only team other than Australia to win an ODI series in England in the last five years; they are in sight of a repeat.Form guide (Most recent first)
England LWWLW
New Zealand WLLWLWatch out for…After Tim Bresnan was sent for elbow surgery over the winter, Chris Woakes was given an opportunity to audition for the No. 7 spot. He performed creditably in New Zealand and is a more accomplished batsman but doubts about whether he has the requisite level of control if the ball does not swing for him resurfaced at Lord’s. He is considered by some to be a better red-ball prospect – and going at almost eight an over is certainly one way to confine your ambitions to a different format – but he should get another chance at the Ageas.Luke Ronchi joined the ranks of dual internationals with his New Zealand debut on Friday, taking three catches in a tidy display behind the stumps. An aggressive, fast-scoring batsman, he has been tasked with opening the innings but got little opportunity to demonstrate his abilities thanks to a pearler from James Anderson that saw him off for a three-ball duck. Improving on that may not be too difficult but Ronchi has a further incentive to impress, having played locally in the Southern Electric Premier League for Bashley (Rydal) during the early part of his career.Team newsLess than a week before the start of the Champions Trophy, England have some issues to ponder. Broad and Finn will be protected again and Bresnan remains on standby to leave for the birth of his child. After the struggles of Woakes and Dernbach at Lord’s, uncertainty stalks the replacements bench. Could Boyd Rankin – valued for his height, which differentiates him from the other fit bowlers in the squad – make a surprise England debut? Will Woakes’ batting keep him at No. 7, despite a rank display with the ball? Is a two-spinner policy conceivable? Might Ravi Bopara make yet another comeback? Unlikely. But the announcement at the toss will be interesting.England (probable) 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Ian Bell, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Joe Root, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Chris Woakes, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 James Anderson, 11 Boyd RankinDaniel Vettori’s continuing fitness woes mean that Nathan McCullum will again shoulder the spinning duties – a job he proved more than up to at Lord’s, taking 2 for 34. Aside from two top-order failures and Brendon McCullum’s continuing search for form with the bat, most of the XI that won at Lord’s made contributions of some sort so an unchanged side seems likely.New Zealand (probable) 1 Luke Ronchi (wk), 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Grant Elliott, 6 Brendon McCullum (capt), 7 James Franklin, 8 Nathan McCullum, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Mitchell McClenaghanPitch and conditionsThe pitches in Southampton can be on the slow side but internationals are usually blessed with a true surface to bat on; barring one rain-affected match, you have to go back to 2004 to find an ODI in which there was not an individual century scored on either side. A sunny forecast means minimal assistance for the seamers.Stats and trivia New Zealand’s only previous visit to the Ageas (formerly Rose) Bowl came during the 2004 NatWest series*. The match, against West Indies, was abandoned without a ball bowled. Ian Bell has made two of his three ODI hundreds at the ground: 126 on both occasions, against India and West Indies. New Zealand have won six of their last seven completed ODIs against England in England. James Anderson needs three wickets to overtake Darren Gough as England’s most successful one-day bowler.Quotes”The signal? It’s that [baby in arms] from the balcony. Then I’ll drop my shopping and hope I’ve bowled my ten overs, then sprint off, jump in the car with my spikes on.”
“When you lose two tall bowlers you want to replace them with another tall bowler.”
“South Africa was quite similar, we came off some tough Test defeats, then we rocked up and won the first game. We’re a very confident one-day team and it was a satisfying win.”
*June 1, 20.30 GMT: The original said the match was part of the Champions Trophy. This has been corrected.

Ryan ten Doeschate, the Netherlands allrounder, has been named the ICC Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year for the third time in four years, and for the second year running

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2011Ryan ten Doeschate, the Netherlands allrounder, has been named the ICC Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year for the third time in four years, and for the second year running. ten Doeschate was chosen ahead of Afghanistan allrounder Hamid Hassan, and the Irish duo of Paul Stirling and Kevin O’Brien, both centurions in the 2011 World Cup, during the awards ceremony in London.ten Doeschate, 31, played six ODIs in the voting period – August 11, 2010 to August 3, 2011 – all of them in the World Cup. He scored two centuries and a half-century, and averaged 61.40 for the period with a strike rate of 89.24.”I’m really sorry I couldn’t be there tonight,” ten Doeschate said. “It’s obviously a great privilege to win this award and I’d like to thank all the coaches and my team-mates who have helped me during what has been a very good year for the Netherlands cricket team.”ten Doeschate also was the first Associate player to win an IPL contract. He was bought at the 2011 auction by Kolkata Knight Riders.

Mark Ramprakash’s milestone of reaching 35,000 first-class runs was overshadowed by Alviro Petersen’s double century

25-May-2011
ScorecardMark Ramprakash’s milestone of reaching 35,000 first-class runs was overshadowed by Alviro Petersen’s double century as Glamorgan ended day two in control of their County Championship clash with Surrey at the Oval.In response to the visitors’ 419, Surrey ended the day 179 runs adrift with four first innings wickets intact having found themselves in trouble at 18 for 2. Jason Roy fell leg before to Chris Ashling, who struck again two overs later when Rory Hamilton-Brown was caught at the third attempt at third slip for 12.But thanks to Ramprakash (67), Surrey recovered to 113 for 3 at tea, having also lost Zander de Bruyn, who became Alex Jones’ maiden first-class scalp when he was caught and bowled off a leading edge.Ramprakash cut Will Owen for four to go 39th in the all-time list of first-class run-makers, overtaking Brian Close and, five balls later, went past the 35,000-mark by despatching Owen to the rope at extra cover.He raised his 69-ball half-century with a cut four off Robert Croft and added 90 in 24 overs in tandem with Steve Davies before driving loosely at Ashling to be bowled via an inside edge for 67. With support from Tom Maynard, Davies then shared another half-century partnership and moved to his own fifty in 94 deliveries.With 11 overs to go, Mark Wallace, leading Glamorgan in the absence of Petersen, who did not take the field after his marathon knock, appeared to be running out of ideas when Davies slashed at Owen and was caught at first slip. The Welshmen were given a further boost when Maynard shouldered arms to Owen in the penultimate over.Earlier, Glamorgan lost their last six wickets for 64 runs to leave their card looking decidedly top-heavy. Tim Linley could have picked up six wickets in the first half hour, but two chances went to ground and another flew at a catchable height in-between second and third slip.In the third over of the day, Maynard pulled off a brilliant catch at third slip to see the back of nightwatchman Owen. Four overs later, Wallace was snapped up at first slip before Croft, who was caught down the leg side, started his 41st birthday with a second ball duck.Resuming on 178, Petersen duly became the fourth Glamorgan batsman to make a double century against Surrey when he cut Chris Jordan for four in the 113th over. It had taken the Glamorgan skipper seven hours 40 minutes, 326 balls and it included 23 fours and six.Just before lunch, Jordan struck twice in the space of three deliveries when he accounted for Dean Cosker, who was caught at first slip, and Petersen (210), with one that nipped back off the seam.

The season’s top two run-scorers, Robin Bist and Vineet Saxena, disappointed today but the top two wicket-takers, Ashok Dinda and TP Sudhindra, did not

The Report by Abhishek Purohit in Indore12-Feb-2012
ScorecardThe season’s top two run-getters, Robin Bist and Vineet Saxena, failed but the top two wicket-takers, Ashok Dinda and TP Sudhindra, did not. Dinda continued his outstanding form, taking his tally for the first-class season to 56 wickets, but it was little-known Shami Ahmed who surprised Central Zone with pace, zip and bounce as the hostscrumbled against relentless seam bowling. Sudhindra gave it back to East Zone with two strikes, but Anustup Majumdar ensured the visitors stayed on top.Fifteen wickets had fallen on this ground on the first day of the Ranji Trophy quarter-final between Madhya Pradesh and Mumbai in January. Thirteen wickets went down today. The similarities went further. Mohnish Mishra and Naman Ojha had steadied the innings in both games. Against Mumbai, Mishra had gone, Ojha had followed and Madhya Pradesh had collapsed. Today, Mishra went, Ojha followed and Central collapsed.The grass on the Holkar Stadium pitch is known to retain its bite for the first day, and East understandably chose to bowl. Central instantly got a sample of what was in store, Dinda hitting Ojha on the box off the fourth delivery of the game and forcing the batsman to go off the field.Saxena and Mohammad Kaif survived several close moments in the first hour. Dinda kept bouncing and seaming it in from short of a good length, the wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha taking most deliveries with his gloves pointing skywards. After a glut of plays-and-misses, lbw appeals and inside edges, Kaif was adjudged leg before when he shouldered arms to an incoming Dinda delivery.With Basant Mohanty’s gentle medium-pace at one end, Dinda soon gave way to Shami, but there was to be no respite for Central. His run-up and delivery stride resembling Aqib Javed’s, Shami bowled slightly fuller than Dinda had, but still found similar bounce and more seam movement. Saxena’s block-or-leave policy lasted 48 deliveries and yielded three runs before Shami knocked his stumps out with a pitched-up delivery that came in.Ojha had recovered enough from the blow to come back at Saxena’s fall, and the score slowly started to move. Ojha has the useful ability to softly guide good deliveries past the slip cordon, and that method brought him some boundaries. Mishra, who hardly holds back when he drives, slammed Shami straight down the ground through the bowler’s hands. When they ended the first session only two wickets down, Central seemed to have got through the most difficult part of the day.After the break, Mohanty, whose run-up is as innocuous as his pace, got one to kick at Mishra, and Saha took the edge to end the partnership. In the next over, Shami got one to straighten and bounce at Ojha to give Saha another easy catch.When Bist flicked a harmless Shami delivery straight to square leg, Central were left reeling at 91 for 5. Mohanty now mustered up enough zip to uproot the last specialist batsman Parvinder Singh’s stumps.Piyush Chawla tried to gather some quick runs through a mixture of slogs and a steer over the slip cordon but Dinda took no time to rip through the tail. Shami was unfortunate to be denied a deserved five-for with a couple of catches being dropped in the slips. There was nothing unfortunate about Central’s capitulation, as the last eight wickets fellfor 51 runs, 26 of those from Chawla’s bat.Central’s bowlers came out determined to make as much use of the live grass as East’s had. Sudhindra, with whom accuracy is guaranteed, also found steep bounce, and bowled Manish Vardhan in his second over.Rajasthan’s Ranji hero, Rituraj Singh, playing in place of the injured Pankaj Singh, produced a stunning first ball. He swung a full delivery sharply into Dheeraj Jadhav, who left the ball on angle, only to find it curving in to knock back off stump.Sudhindra had Ishank Jaggi lbw off an inside edge to make it 48 for 3, but Majumdar, as short but built slightly heavier than the wafer-thin Saha, kept pinging the off-side boundary with confident drives. The captain Chawla bowled both his overs with a sweeper cover and the East Zone batsmen happily took singles to that fielder.Shami’s comment after stumps that he expected the pitch to help seam movement for the next two days should give Central some hope of making a comeback though.

Wrexham co-owner Rob McElhenney hailed Paul Mullin's hat-trick in his side's 6-0 win over Morecambe as 'incredible'.

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Wrexham thrash Morecambe 6-0Mullin scores a hat-trickCo-owner McElhenney praises strikerWHAT HAPPENED?

Phil Parkinson's men went second in League Two after thrashing Morecambe at the Racecourse Ground on Saturday. Joel Senior's own goal got the Welsh side up and running in the fifth minute before Mullin opened his account for the afternoon two minutes later. Substitute Jacob Mendy added an emphatic third in the 35th minute before Mullin scored in the 67th and 77th minute to complete his hat-trick. James Jones rounded off the scoring at the death to cap off a remarkable afternoon – one that co-owner McElhenney felt compelled to comment on.

AdvertisementWHAT ROB MCELHENNEY SAID

When Wrexham got promoted out of the National League in April, McElhenney quipped Mullin was one of the greatest footballers in the world. After his hat-trick, he continued his praise for the 29-year-old.

Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Wrexham are now in the automatic promotion spots after their win on Saturday. They are looking for back-to-back promotions and with Mullin back amongst the goals, the Welsh side could kick on even more this season – such is his goal threat.

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WHAT NEXT FOR WREXHAM?

Wrexham have just a few days to recover from this clash as they take on Harrogate Town on Tuesday night in another League Two clash.