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Wellington v Central Districts Day 4
In a repeat of the result of last year’s final, Central Districts beat Wellington outright.Chasing a modest 227 on a wicket that offered the seamers encouragement throughout, Central stuttered briefly but always looked favourites to get there.Opener Geoff Barnett laid the foundation with a gritty 78. Nobody else in the top order passed 20 until Ewen Thompson, batting at number eight, scored 40 from 43 balls, including two sixes. The importance of his knock can not be downplayed. Thompson came to the crease at the dismissal of Barnett with Central teetering slightly at 167 for 6. However, his boldness and Bevan Griggs’ resilience (19 not out from 48 balls), guided Central to maximum points. Griggs finished with a useful match double after scoring 58 in the first innings. He also took five catches behind the stumps in Wellington’s second innings.James Franklin and Test hopeful Mark Gillespie took three wickets each, though Gillespie was expensive in the context of this match.Auckland v Otago Day 3
Auckland’s burst of four wickets late on the second evening looks more and more like an anomaly as the runs pile up at this batter-friendly venue.Neil Broom and Gareth Hopkins took their fifth-wicket partnership through to 219 before Broom fell to Chris Martin for 112.Wicketkeeper Hopkins continued on his merry way, securing a century after 199 balls and a few nervous moments on 99. He was ably supported by Lancastrian Kyle Hogg who must have walked out to bat with some trepidation after failing to score on a similar batsman’s paradise during the first round match against Canterbury.As it is there must be a few red faces among Otago’s top order after such a pitiful collapse.When rain stopped play late in the day, Hogg was on 53 and Hopkins 139 – but then Otage declared, which could prove an imaginative decision.Canterbury v Northern Districts Day 3
Northern have only Daniel Vettori’s allround abilities to thank for this match continuing into the fourth day.Vettori propped up a disappointing Northern effort with 86 – he was last man out – as the visitors collapsed against Shane Bond.Bond, playing his first match for the province this season, took 5 for 37 off 19.3 well-directed overs to decimate a Northern side that began the innings just two runs adrift of Canterbury.They soon found themselves marooned at 81 for 6, Hamish Marshall giving more headaches to the New Zealand selectors with his 19-ball innings of 1.Vettori was supported by Peter McGlashan who eked out a painstaking 13 from 65 deliveries before falling to Craig McMillan.

Inzamam-ul-Haq: unwilling to goto Australia for the ICC Awards or Captains’ Conference © AFP

Still annoyed with ICC selectors for overlooking him from the Super Series World XI squad against Australia, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Pakistan captain, today said he will not travel to Australia next month for the Captains’ Conference and the second ICC Annual Awards.Inzamam told PTI, “I have not yet made up my mind if I would play in the Super Series if given a late ticket, but I have definitely decided not to travel to Australia for Captains’ Conference and ICC Annual Awards. I have conveyed my decision to the concerned authorities.”Inzamam’s decision came a day after the Pakistan Cricket Board said it would back the captain if he decides to skip the Australian tour. Inzamam’s decision has also strengthened apprehensions that he might turn down a late invitation from the ICC to represent the World XI in place of an injured Sachin Tendulkar or Herschelle Gibbs.”I don’t think it would be a wise decision to take a long flight to and from Sydney for the Captains’ Conference when the same time can be better utilised to prepare for the home series against England. That is far more important than anything at the moment.”Michael Vaughan’s side, fresh from their Ashes success against Australia, arrive in Pakistan on October 26 for a three-Test and five-ODI series. When England last toured Pakistan in 2000, they won the three-Test series 1-0 while Pakistan clinched the ODI seriesInzamam added, “Instead of undergoing flight hazards, I have decided to pencil down my suggestions, opinions and recommendations and hand them over to the PCB so that they can forward them to the ICC.”Inzamam said it was a great honour for him to be nominated for three ICC awards. “I don’t think that I will win any award for the simple reason that if I get any award, it would be embarrassing for the selectors and I don’t think the ICC would put its selectors in a situation where they are left with no hiding place. Don’t you agree that it would be a bad publicity for the ICC or its selectors if winner of any of the three awards is originally overlooked from its World XI?”Inzamam, who averages over 50 in ODIs and 94.67 in Tests this year, has been nominated for Player of the Year, Test Player of the Year and ODI Player of the Year awards.

Murali faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines after surgery on his injured shoulder© Getty Images

Muttiah Muralitharan will undergo surgery on his injured right shoulder in Melbourne on Monday, and may be out of cricket for four months. He flew to Australia on Thursday night to see David Young, a shoulder specialist who has treated him before, and Young told him that unless he had surgery, a cyst in his shoulder could permanently weaken his bowling arm.”We’ve advised him to have the surgery. Otherwise, if it gets worse, it could threaten his career,” said Young. The surgery will treat a superior labrum anterior-posterior (SLAP) lesion, which in layman’s terms is a type of cyst which has caused a build-up of fluid around the nerves in his right shoulder. The problem developed because of the huge amount Muralitharan has bowled during his career. He has bowled more than 5000 overs in Tests alone.Murali has complained of pain in his shoulder for several months, and bowled with discomfort in the drawn first Test against South Africa earlier this month, although he still picked up five wickets to edge ahead of Shane Warne in their scrap for the Test bowling record. However, with Murali, who has 532 Test wickets to his name, unlikely to play again before a series against New Zealand in December this year, Warne has a chance to reclaim the record, and build a lead. Australia play four Tests against India in October, followed by two against New Zealand and three against Pakistan at home.Muralitharan remained philosophical about his injury setback, telling reporters on Saturday: “Nothing is certain in life. I think other people have to have a share. Shane Warne is a wonderful bowler and he should also have the record.” Warne, who had a similar surgery in 2000, drew level with Muralitharan when Australia played Sri Lanka last month, but has never held the record outright.

All Today’s Yesterdays – August 9 down the yearsAugust 8 | August 101992
The last day of Test cricket for David Gower, bowled for 1 by Waqar Younis in the second innings as Pakistan won by ten wickets at The Oval to take the series 2-1. In the previous two Tests, Gower had scored 73 and 31 not out – so there seemed to be something personal in Graham Gooch’s decision not to take him to India that winter, an omission that did England no good. Gower’s languidly brilliant shotmaking brought him 8231 Test runs, an England record broken shortly afterwards by … Gooch himself.1991
The day Ian Botham “just, just couldn’t quite get his leg over”. Botham’s hit-wicket dismissal against West Indies at The Oval sparked that comment from Jonathan Agnew, and a fit of hysterics in the Test Match Special box as Agnew and Brian Johnston fought an irresistible attack of the giggles. Johnston was still fighting for composure long after Agnew had given up the ghost, and the exchange has been replayed time and time again since.1977
As well as taking 143 Test wickets for England, Chris Old could bat a bit, as he showed in hammering a century in only 37 minutes for Yorkshire v Warwickshire at Edgbaston. He hit six sixes and 13 fours and scored his second fifty in only nine minutes.1976
In a typically powerful and merciless assault, West Indies captain Clive Lloyd scored an unbeaten 201 against Glamorgan at Swansea. Wisden called it “the fastest double century since Gilbert Jessop’s days in 1903”. In the next match of the tour, Lloyd’s side completed a 3-0 series win over England.1944
Birth of Terry Jenner, a Test legspinner who was best known for being hit on the head by England fast bowler John Snow at Sydney in 1970-71 but made a genuine contribution to Test cricket by recognising and nurturing the talent of Shane Warne.1965
Hostile fast bowler Peter Pollock completed his second five-wicket haul of the match to win the Trent Bridge Test. It was South Africa’s last Test victory in England until 1994.1926
Birth of Denis Atkinson, who took 47 Test wickets but is best remembered for his only Test hundred. Facing an Australian total of 668 at Bridgetown in 1954-55, West Indies were 146 for 7 when Atkinson was joined by Clairmonte Depeiza. Their stand of 347 was a record for the seventh wicket in first-class cricket. Atkinson scored 219 then took 5 for 65 to become the first to do that double in Tests. His brother Eric also played Test cricket.1946
Death of Ernie Vogler, one of the quartet of South African googly bowlers who toured England in 1907. The following winter, he took all ten wickets in an innings for Eastern Province – and his 36 wickets helped win the 1909-10 series against England. As far as Wisden can discover, he was the first batsman to be dismissed for a king pair in Test cricket, at Sydney in 1910-11. Some modern sources call him Bert – but one of his contemporaries, BJT Bosanquet the inventor of the googly, referred to him as Ernest.Other birthdays
1897 Ted Badcock (New Zealand)
1902 Edward “Nobby” Clark (England)
1911 Khurshed Meher-Homji (India)

The respective attitudes of competing skippers, Australia’s Steve Waugh and New Zealand’s Stephen Fleming were praised in newspapers on both sides of the Tasman as both teams made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear of their rain affected first Test at the Gabba in Brisbane yesterday.The New Zealand Herald: “Another explosive innings from Chris Cairns, who struck 43 off 37 balls, almost took the New Zealanders to the wire, but he was caught on the long-on boundary with three overs remaining and just 21 required.”Fleming said afterwards he thought New Zealand had a couple of chances to win – when he and Nathan Astle put on 100 for the fourth wicket, and when Cairns was rampaging at the end.'”I felt pretty exhilarated throughout, but in the end it was disappointing not to come away with a win, especially after getting ourselves in such a good position.'”It was a good challenge and we have no complaints – you don’t get handed test wins, and we knew we’d have to play out of our skins to earn it.'”Fleming’s counterpart, Steve Waugh, believed his side had created the best of the game-winning chances and rubbished suggestions that his bowlers had contravened the spirit of the game by bowling wide of the stumps.'”New Zealand’s bowlers pitched it pretty wide at times in our first innings, so I don’t think it was a big deal.'”Waugh said New Zealand might have thought they were going to win the match, but felt Australia had dominated the game generally, and would have been unlucky to lose.”Peter Roebuck, The Sydney Morning Herald: “A glorious cricket match ended with honours even as the Australians and New Zealanders threw themselves at each other with all their might.”Australia had the fright of their cricketing life. Under the Gabba lights and with spectators spellbound, the visiting batsmen chased hard and almost reached the end of the rainbow.”Magnificent blows from Chris Cairns and Craig McMillan took the tourists close to their target, only for prospects to recede as wild shots were played in the last couple of overs. Finally Cairns was held on the boundary and the home captain sighed the longest sigh of relief in his eventful career. At the end the teams retreated to the pavilion, bruised, blooded and unbowed.”New Zealand refused to go away and were stopped only by the stiffness of the target and the experience of their opponents.”All praise to both teams for having a go. All praise to the captains for breathing life into a game that was dying on its feet. Steve Waugh can hardly have expected the Kiwis to bat as well in pursuit of a tempting total.”The Daily Telegraph: “It was a fitting result – neither team deserved to lose but neither dominated enough to win and there was genuine warmth and respect among the sides when they shook hands after stumps.”Captains Steve Waugh and Steve Fleming can take a bow for putting the reputations of themselves and their countries on the line with last-day declarations which gave the match a wonderful finale.”The waterlogged game, which will enrich the experience of those who played in it, finished under lights at 6.20pm with a small crowd spellbound.”Chris Cairns (43) almost stole it for New Zealand when he joined Shane Lee and Carl Hooper in the exclusive club of people who have driven balls into the top deck of the Northern Stand.”He twice inflicted this treatment on Shane Warne who conceded 17 off his last over which left the Kiwis needing 21 off their last 18 balls with five wickets in hand for victory.”The Australian: “Three previous days of rain in Brisbane threatened to rob the match of any life but opposing captains Steve Waugh and Stephen Fleming deserve enormous credit for declaring to set up an enthralling and unexpected contest.”It was a spectacular chase, with Steve Waugh forced to spread the field far and wide and Glenn McGrath testing the limits of what is an off-side wide to prevent New Zealand snatching an amazing victory.”Only when the brutal Chris Cairns was well caught on the boundary by Ricky Ponting for 43 from 38 balls, having twice belted Shane Warne deliveries to the top tier of the redeveloped northern stand, could the Australians feel safe.”The Herald Sun: “There is no doubt one of the $64 questions before the Test started was whether New Zealand had the ability to bowl Australia out twice.”On the evidence offered during this rain-affected match, the Black Caps have not made ground on the Australian batsmen. This was despite the first-innings failures of Ricky Ponting, Mark Waugh, Steve Waugh and Damien Martyn.”New Zealand will have no better chance than having its rivals 6-263, yet it was still on the receiving end of a 486 first-innings scoreline.”Despite New Zealand’s failure to nail Australia when the gate had flung open late in the second-innings run chase, there is a positive culture within a squad that has had no alternative other than to learn the hard way.”Robert Craddock, The Herald Sun: “They don’t have many big names, they don’t do much big talking. They haven’t got the greatest record and they don’t win all that often.”But there is one thing you simply have to give the New Zealand cricket team – it’s got guts.”Quite frankly, its attitude puts England to shame.”Both teams deserve great credit for the show they put on yesterday, proving it is not a crime to risk losing a cricket game in the hope of winning it.”You sense Australia will learn more from yesterday’s experience than it did in all five Tests against the West Indies last summer.”Waugh’s declaration dragged players out of their comfort zone, which is the very philosophy the captain and the coach are all about.”

Leeds United’s new manager Jesse Marsch would have been hoping for a better result in his first Premier League game in charge of the club since replacing Marcelo Bielsa last Monday.

Having travelled to the King Power Stadium to take on Leicester City for the early afternoon kick-off, the Yorkshire club ultimately came away empty-handed after a goal from Harvey Barnes in the second half secured all three points for the home side.

In terms of individual performances from the players, there was one man in particular from whom Marsch would have surely been hoping to see a solid display, but he didn’t end up delivering when it mattered.

Raphinha was below-par v Leicester

With the full 90 minutes under his belt against the Foxes, Raphinha had 54 touches of the ball in total, with just 22 passes completed out of 29 attempted, also losing possession 22 times throughout the match.

The Brazilian also failed to find a team-mate with any of his five crosses and failed to completed any of the four dribbles he attempted, showing how disappointing he was with the ball when in possession.

Things weren’t much better for the winger when he didn’t have the ball, having lost six of his seven duels and giving two fouls away.

This performance ultimately earned the 25-year-old – who is currently picking up £63k-per-week according to Salary Sport – a disappointing overall match rating of 6.4/10, making him the lowest-rated Leeds player to start the game according to SofaScore.

Given how the attacker has been Leeds’ main goal contributor this season with nine goals and two assists to his name, and their highest-rated player in terms of overall performances from WhoScored, it’s safe to say that Marsch would have been looking to him to work his magic and help his team pick up a positive result.

However, having been described as a “passenger” at times in the past by Stephen Warnock, that’s arguably what Raphinha was today against Brendan Rodgers’ side, letting down his manager with an insipid display.

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With the Whites still in danger of being relegated, Marsch will undoubtedly be hoping that the Brazilian winger can fix up his performances and start adding some more goals and assists to his tally before the end of the campaign, or else the club could be facing another spell back in the Championship.

In other news: Graham Smyth has revealed a Leeds “surprise”…

Match facts

December 28, 2015
Start time 1430 local (9am GMT)Gautam Gambhir-led Delhi will be gunning for their second Vijay Hazare Trophy title against plucky Gujarat•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Big Picture

The presence of the big India stars brought some attention to the knockout week of Vijay Hazare Trophy, but it’s the two best teams with those hungry to do well at this level that are left standing. Axar Patel has been Gujarat’s talisman, but he is hardly the established star that would bring newspaper headlines to a tournament. Delhi, on the other hand, have relied mainly on team work in their bowling: Quicks Navdeep Saini and Suboth Bhati have gained massively from a dash of Ishant Sharma. Left-arm spinner Manan Sharma has been the perfect support act with an economy rate of 3.36, and Pawan Negi has had a bit of an X-factor about him.The batting of these two sides have been the opposite. Gujarat have shared around the duties: Parthiv Patel hits at the top, Priyank Pachal, Rujul Bhatt and Chirag Gandhi have been the rocks, and Manpreet Juneja returned to form with a fifty in the semi-final. Delhi are more reliant on Unmukt Chand and Gautam Gambhir. Nitish Rana has shown signs of maturity, and Negi has again provided crucial lower-order quick runs.This has been a good turnaround for both the sides after a disappointing first-class season. Delhi seemed to have put behind administrative controversies when they led the points table in the first half. They fell away in the second half whereas Gujarat failed to recover from a slow start. Only one team will cap it off, though.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Delhi WWWWW
Gujarat WWWWW

In the spotlight

The knockout stage played on tired pitches has been a low-scoring affair. The pitches, especially at Chinnaswamy Stadium, the venue of the final, have been two-paced and generally slow. In the first day-night match of the event, the conditions will be in focus.It might be easy to say Gujarat have been all Axar, but Rujul Bhatt will take exception. He has been a solid middle-order batsman, a good slip fielder and a steady offspinner. He is Gujarat’s highest run-getter with 278 runs, and has given away runs at under 4.5 an over. When Axar was running through Tamil Nadu in the semi-final, Bhatt bowled 10 straight overs for just 34 runs.Chand, meanwhile, is the only one with a realistic chance of unseating Mandeep Singh as the highest run-getter of the tournament. At 308 runs, he is 86 behind Mandeep’s mark of 394. He nearly scored that many in the semi-final, shepherding what could have been a tricky chase on the Chinnaswamy pitch.

Team news

Neither of the teams might have pressing reasons to change their winning combinations.Delhi (probable) 1 Rishabh Pant (wk), 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Unmukt Chand, 4 Gautam Gambhir (capt.), 5 Milind Kumar, 6 Nitish Rana, 7 Manan Sharma, 8 Pawan Negi, 9 Suboth Bhati, 10 Navdeep Saini, 11 Ishant Sharma.Gujarat (probable) 1 Parthiv Patel (capt. & wk), 2 Priyank Panchal, 3 Bhargav Merai, 4 Rujul Bhatt, 5 Chirag Gandhi, 6 Axar Patel, 7 Manpreet Juneja, 8 Rohit Dahiya, 9 Rush Kalaria, 10 Hardik Patel, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.

Stats and trivia

• This is only the second time these two teams are facing each other in a one-day match. The last encounter was a romp for Delhi, in the quarter-final of 2012-13.
• Axar Patel is the joint highest wicket-taker in the tournament, with 19 of them. He is tied with Punjab’s Siddarth Kaul.
• Delhi have won the Vijay Hazare Trophy once in 2013. Gujarat are looking for their first title.

Quotes

“We can’t take any opposition lightly. We were beaten by Assam in the days and that cost us the knockout berth. We lost against Vidarbha, a very close match. We could not chase 163. We have got enough instances for the fact that we can’t take any opposition lightly. Of course it being a final, we have to raise the bar in all the three departments and make sure that we put in a 100%, do our best so that we win the finals as well.”
“It is great the way preparation for Australia is going. Have batted and bowled well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. But I am taking it step by step. Right now thinking of the final only. Will think of Australia after that.”

An angry Ricky Ponting sets off for the pavilion after the third umpire ruled against him © Getty Images

Wide of the mark
Australia normally don’t give an inch on the cricket field but today their bowlers misplaced their radar and conceded an awful amount of wides. Brett Lee began the glut by firing the first ball of the third over down the leg side for five wides and the disease spread rapidly. James Hopes was the best, conceding only one wide, while Andrew Symonds and Brad Hogg also gift-wrapped five wides. The runs in wides totalled 31, the second highest that Australia have ever conceded in an ODI. Zaheer Khan began to return the favour by bowling two wides in the first over of Australia’s innings and RP Singh followed suit.Tendulkar at sea
An outstanding opening spell from Lee made Sachin Tendulkar look helpless at the crease. He was beaten on the drive by fast outswingers, surprised by a couple of bouncers, survived two close appeals; for caught behind when Snicko suggested an inside edge and a lbw shout when the ball might have clipped leg stump. Tendulkar had his troubles against the other bowlers as well; Nathan Bracken rapped him on the pads first ball and Mitchell Johnson’s bounce hit him on the shoulder of his bat. Tendulkar changed his bat twice during his innings and managed to weather the storm.An extraordinary wait
The spectators had cheered six boundaries off Sourav Ganguly’s bat but none had been forthcoming from Tendulkar despite the fielding restrictions. It was only in the 15th over, bowled by Hopes, that Tendulkar freed his arms and cut to the backward point boundary for his first four. The shot had broken a 42-ball drought and the crowd received it with robust applause.Nimble feet, clumsy hands
Brad Hodge, patrolling the square leg boundary, sprinted to his right to stop a flick from Tendulkar. The ball was winning the race and Hodge too realised that he wouldn’t be able to get there in time. As a last ditch effort, he slid feet first, like a football tackle, and prevented the boundary with his legs. In the next over, Hodge had to move quickly on the boundary to stop Tendulkar’s well-timed cover drive. This time he put in the conventional dive, hands first, but the ball bounced off him and went over the ropes.Caught napping
Tendulkar had battled to survive and reached a well-earned half-century before a utter lapse in concentration brought about his dismissal. He tried to paddle-sweep Hopes but missed and was hit on the pad. The Australians went up in appeal for leg before while Tendulkar had wandered to the middle of the pitch, his attention focused on Steve Bucknor’s finger. No one realised that the ball had gone to Lee at short fine leg who swooped on it and threw down the stumps while Gilchrist was still appealing and Tendulkar was yards short.The perfect finish
The Indians hadn’t hit a single six in their innings despite the boundaries at the Sector 16 Stadium being on the smaller side. Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Robin Uthappa had taken 14 runs off the 50th over and one ball remained. Almost unnoticed, Dhoni had moved on to 44 off 34 deliveries and he lofted the last one cleanly over long-on to hit India’s first six and bring up his fifty as well.Déjà vu
In Hyderabad, Yuvraj Singh completed a stunning piece of fielding and fired the throw to Zaheer who reprieved Matthew Hayden by breaking the stumps with his hand. That let off cost India only 13 runs. Today Yuvraj once again threw the ball to Dhoni with Hayden just short of his crease but once again the stumps were broken with the hand. Hayden was on 53 and went on to make 92.India ambushed
Australia had made a strong start to their innings but India had picked up Adam Gilchrist and the match was poised at 59 for 1 after nine overs. Australia went on the offensive in the next two overs and hit India hard. Ricky Ponting cut RP Singh fiercely for four and followed up with two exquisite drives, through mid-on and cover. Hayden pounced on Pathan in the next over and swung him over the midwicket boundary before drilling another four in the same region. Australia scored 26 runs in those two overs and the run-rate escalated.Stunned by a stumping
Ponting had leaned forward to drive Irfan Pathan but was beaten outside off stump. Dhoni quickly whipped off the bails and pointed to Ponting’s back foot, indicating that it was on the line. Umpire Suresh Shastri jogged in to replace and took his time in calling for the third umpire. The Indians didn’t seem too excited and they had returned to their fielding positions while the third umpire pondered over the decision. Ponting too was unperturbed, calmly waiting to take strike again, until he appeared shocked when the giant screen flashed “OUT”. He stood his ground a while, muttered for what it was worth, before striding off in a huff.

Scorecard
Gerard Denton forced a late collapse from the South Australia tail to help Victoria over the line in a nailbiting finish at Adelaide Oval. Denton set up the victory with early wickets then claimed three more with the second new ball to finish with a career-best 6 for 31 as the Redbacks came within nine balls of a draw.Mark Cosgrove tried desperately hard to save his side, curbing his usually aggressive strokeplay in just under five hours at the crease for 52 not out. At one stage it looked like he and Jason Gillespie might block out a draw but when Jon Moss trapped Gillespie lbw for 18 it paved the way for Denton to clean up the rest.Denton had Cullen Bailey caught at slip for 1, Paul Rofe caught behind for 0 and Shaun Tait caught at leg slip for 0 within the space of three overs. It had been Denton who got his side away to a terrific start by having the openers Shane Deitz (1) and Matthew Elliott (7) trapped lbw.South Australia’s target of 350 – it was set after Victoria added 45 to their overnight score – was irrelevant when Gillespie joined Cosgrove at 6 for 84 shortly before tea. They added 46 in an 83-minute partnership and seemed as though they could hold on as they battled against Shane Warne on a wearing wicket.Cosgrove laboured for 297 minutes with a strike rate of only 19.47, compared to his pre-match mark of 64.92, but his defence was not enough to stop Victoria claiming the six points, catapulting them from last to second on the Pura Cup table.

The Charity Commission has revealed that it is looking into proposals which would involve the demolition of the clubhouse at Southgate, the original home of Middlesex county cricket and one of the venues for currently used by the county. The venue was donated to the local community by the Walker brothers, who were an integral part of Middlesex’s early history, in 1855.The Walker Ground is protected by an old deed which prevents the sale or lease of the land, but the trustees believe that the future of the site would be guaranteed by a deal with a developer which would result in a new health club and spa being built. Enfield Council has also submitted an application which would see the clubhouse renovated and a new gym built on the site of existing squash courts.The ground’s trustees appear to be split, but one of them, Steve Young, told the Enfield Independent that said he believed the Walker brothers would be excited by the plans. “This action will enable the trust to be a viable entity managing a vibrant sporting community for the foreseeable future,” he said, “while retaining the predominance of cricket on the ground.”