The first day of the opening Test between New Zealand and England was abandoned because of rain without a ball being bowled yesterday, as off-spinner Graeme Swann flies to the US for surgery.
New Zealand won the toss and chose to bowl in heavily overcast conditions, before umpires Paul Reiffel of Australia and Asad Rauf of Pakistan ruled that the light was too bad to allow play to begin on time.
Heavy rain then began to fall at the University Oval, forcing ground staff to fully cover the pitch and surrounds. The rain continued throughout the day, preventing play in the first two sessions and causing the umpires to abandon the day just 75 minutes before scheduled stumps.
Photo: Reuters
Playing hours are to be extended on the remaining days to make up for lost time and only 30 overs are likely to be lost if a full days’ play is possible on each of the next four days.
Earlier, Swann was ruled out of the three-Test series in New Zealand with an elbow injury, with the England team saying he will fly to the US for surgery. Monty Panesar was named in his place.
The 33-year-old Swann underwent an operation in 2009 to remove bone fragments from his right elbow and his new procedure will likely sideline him until early in the northern hemisphere summer. The first Test of England’s Ashes series against Australia is scheduled to be played at Nottingham, England, from July 10.
Swann had previously announced in his regular newspaper column that after England’s Test warm-up match against a New Zealand XI his elbow was causing “discomfort.”
“I’ll be honest, the elbow is always a concern,” Swann said in the Sun. “It’s been hanging over me for several years and, despite having an operation in 2009, the problem hasn’t entirely gone away.”
“It would be a massive pain in the backside if my wonky elbow forced me to miss any of the Tests against Australia. I’m absolutely determined to be available for what might be my final two Ashes series and that means managing the elbow as well as possible,” he said.
New Zealand named opening batsman Hamish Rutherford, son of former captain Ken Rutherford, and left-arm spinner Bruce Martin to make their Test debuts yesterday.
The 32-year-old Martin was first named in a New Zealand Test squad in 1999, but did not play and has had to wait a further 14 years for his Test debut.
Santiago Castro on Tuesday had an immediate impact off the bench as he scored the goal to send Bologna into the Coppa Italia semi-finals for the first time in 26 years. Bologna won 1-0 against last year’s runners-up, Atalanta BC, and are to play either holders Juventus or Empoli in the final four. Juventus are to host Empoli in their quarter-final on Feb. 26. The last time Bologna reached the semi-finals was in 1999, when they lost 4-2 to ACF Fiorentina. There were chances for both sides in a high-tempo match in Bergamo, but it was Bologna who broke the deadlock 10 minutes from
After nearly six years away from the NBA, New Taipei Kings player Jeremy Lin (林書豪) is set to participate in the 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend’s Rising Stars mini-tournament as the coach of Team G League. The NBA announced Monday (U.S. time) that the Taiwanese-American player will join a trio of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famers – Tim Hardaway Sr., Chris Mullin, and Mitch Richmond – as honorary coaches for four teams featuring 28 rising talents. "See you soon in the Bay," Lin wrote in an Instagram story sharing the news. As the All-Star Weekend will take place at
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was
The 40-year-old LeBron James on Thursday became the oldest player to score 40 points in an NBA game, putting up a season-high 42 in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. James passed the record held by Michael Jordan, his idol and the only other NBA player to score 40 after his 40th birthday. “I’m old, that’s my take,” James said when asked about his latest achievement. “I need a glass of wine and some sleep, that’s what I think.” Jordan did it for the Washington Wizards just three days after turning 40 in February 2003. James is 38