An odd pitch and the problem of team spirit may mean that England play the big match [for $20 million against Stanford Superstars] with an impractical side, writes Mike Selvey in the Guardian.
The pitch at the Stanford Cricket Ground (referred to by its proprietor as the SCG for goodness sake) is an odd one: from a good length it carried through to the keeper only sluggishly; for the spinners it offered sharp turn (enough for Pietersen himself to bowl his offbreaks commendably well to Middlesex's plethora of left- handers); and, most significantly, for the tall bowlers Stuart Broad and Flintoff it gave some quite heady bounce when the ball was banged into the middle ...
It gives a pointer for their next match, today against Trinidad and Tobago, which may well settle who will be included for the big-money showdown. These games, it seems, will demand the big pacemen to hit the middle of the pitch, which means Broad, Flintoff and Steve Harmison, but also spinners and those who can take the pace from the ball.
It is from this situation that emerges a potential conflict between the pragmatic selection of the best side to do the job on Saturday and loyalty to players, coupled with a fear of upsetting team unity. The most vulnerable player in this scenario is Anderson, pretty much an ever-present in England's one-day side.
The Stanford Cricket Ground is well manicured but the real soul of Antiguan cricket is hidden elsewhere, writes Stephen Brenkley in the Independent.
The dear old Antigua Recreation Ground was empty yesterday. Beneath the high ramshackle stands named after the country's legends, a football pitch was laid out with a makeshift dugout on the side.
Near the centre circle it was just possible to make out what was a batting crease, a place where Sir Vivian Richards, albeit briefly because he did not need much time, flayed the England attack and where Brian Lara resided for slightly longer, two days longer, to make the world record Test score, and where the West Indians chased down a monumental target to win.
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