Lords, a name that in the world of cricket means something akin to the holy ground, as the sport’s “most famous ground” according to the Times, UK, is considering selling its name. It becomes the latest major traditional sport venue in Britain to consider selling naming rights to a major sponsor. Wembley Stadium and Twickenham considering doing the same, in rugby. Lords cricket grounds are part of a major redevelopment project in London, England.
London, England (GenevaLunch) – England won their first Ashes Test at Lords since 1934 when Andrew Flintoff claimed five wickets to end the Australian resistance. The match was over before lunch as England won by 115 runs. The First Test at Cardiff ended in a draw so England lead 1-0 in the five Test series. Details, Times, UK
London, England (GenevaLunch) – England dominated the Second Test at Lords but the Australians forgot to die. England set them a daunting 522 run target for the last innings, higher than any side has achieved to win a Test.
London, England (GenevaLunch) – England are in a dominant position after three days of the second test at Lords: the first test ended in a draw. They lead by 515 runs with two days to play. The Australian tail enders held up the English attack but fell just in time for England captain Andrew Strauss to have the chance to enforce the follow-on. However he prefered to bat again, possibly influenced by the easy batting conditions, the fitness of Andrew Flintoff or simple cowardice.
London, England and Beijing, China (GenevaLunch) – England made a great start to the second test, winning the toss and putting on 196 runs before the first wicket fell. Australia then fought back and destroyed the English middle order, only captain Andrew Strauss maintaining resistance with an unbeaten 161 runs. England ended on 364-6, a respectable score but nowhere near what could have been achieved. Details, Guardian
Meanwhile Beijing witnessed a rather different game of cricket between expats and refugees, reports UNHCR in Geneva, the UN refugee organization.
Lords/London, England (GenevaLunch) – Shahid Afridi was the star as Pakistan at last was in the news for a celebration of victory. The Pakistan team has played little cricket in the last few years as other teams have refused to travel to Pakistan because of security concerns. The last team to visit was the Sri Lankans who were forced to end their tour by a terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team bus.
London, England (GenevaLunch) – England sent the World Champion Indian team back early when they beat them by three runs at Lords. India won the toss and put England in to bat. Pietersen lead the England batting with 46 runs before falling lbw to Jadeja. England slipped from 121 for 3 to 153 f0r 7 in their twenty overs, a total that the Indian batsmen would normally expect to reach without much difficulty.
London, England (GenevaLunch) – The Netherlands beat England on the final ball of the opening match of the world Twenty20 match at Lords.
