Highveld Lions to bowl first against Yorkshire ? Cricket News Roundup ? October 20, 2012 ? Part 2
Eager to make it to the knockouts of the ongoing Champions League Twenty20, the Highveld Lions won the toss and elected to field first against Yorkshire, underneath an overcast sky at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg today, in a match which could propel them to a spot in the semis.
Today?s game presents the Lions the opportunity to secure a semi-final spot alongside the Sydney Sixers, should they manage to win. Their victory will also render the remaining Group B matches, including the Chennai Super Kings versus Mumbai Indians game in the evening, dead.
Having proven their prowess at chasing in the previous matches during their ongoing CLT20 campaign, the Lions went into the match high on confidence, with just one change to their line-up ? youngster Dwaine Pretorius coming in for Zander de Bruyn. Yorkshire meanwhile, were hit by a series of unfortunate injuries, and forced to bring in Iain Wardlaw and Oliver Hannon-Dalby in place of the injured pair of Ryan Sidebottom and Moin Ashraf.
Backing Kevin Pietersen to deliver an outstanding performance during England?s upcoming tour of India, former England skipper Andrew Flintoff claimed the hard-hitting right-hander had always played his best innings under pressure.
?When Kevin's got a point to prove he usually proves it with the bat,? Flintoff said while speaking to BBC Sport. ?I think Alastair Cook might ... get KP at his best. When people get on Kevin's case he comes out swinging and scoring runs.?
Pietersen, whose 73-day exile from the England team recently came to an end after the resolution of his long-standing tiff with the England and Wales Cricket Board, was named in England?s squad for the upcoming tour of India. While doubts abound regarding his ability to settle back into the team, and deliver during the crucial Test series, Flintoff is convinced Pietersen will be fine, citing his thunderous performances for England in South Africa, in front of a jeering crowd in 2005, as an example of his tenacity.
Eager to secure his place at the top of Australia?s Test batting order, opening batsman Ed Cowan expressed his keenness to prove his worth against the South Africa, the current top Test team, in an upcoming extended-overs series this November/December.
?If you are proving yourself against the South Africans at the moment you are a high quality Test player,? Cowan said. ?And it also makes it pretty clear cut if you are scoring runs against them as opposed to Bangladesh or Zimbabwe when everyone is still asking questions, saying ?oh he wouldn't do it against the best team in the world?.?
Following a promising 68 on debut against India last year, Cowan has failed to rack up any outstanding performances, with his highest score in the extended-overs format being a 74. In addition, he also failed to impress during Australia?s tour of the West Indies earlier this year. However, selectors have decided to persist with the opening duo of Cowan and David Warner for Tests, which means the 30-year-old has an ideal chance to prove his mettle, as Australia take on South Africa in November/December this year for a crucial Test series.
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