‘T20 winner can get upper hand for Ashes’
Going: Good-good to soft in places
SOCIALIST AGENDA
EAGLE RIDGE AURORA THUNDER GAELIK COAST
CALDWELL RETURN TICKET
KOPA KILANA
(245) D Whillans 7 11-12 (D2) .......... Craig Nichol 119 (17)DMcCain811-11(D) ........................ BHughes 122 (22) M Scudamore 4 11-10 (CD) .................... R Patrick 127
K Dalgleish 4 11-8 ............................. B Garritty 129 J Goldie 6 10-7 (BF, CD) ............................................ H Reed 123
(27) L Russell 6 10-5 ........................... S Mulqueen 127
(17) R Menzies 8 11-12 (CD2) .............. B Hughes 144 (17) R Dobbin 10 11-8 (D4) ................... Craig Nichol 146 (16) I Jardine 7 11-4 (BF, D) ................. C O’Farrell 144
(175) B Ellison 7 11-2 (D4) ....... D McMenamin 150 (197)NAlexander710-10(D3) ............... JHamilton —
(16) L Kerr 8 10-0 (D4) ....................... S Coltherd 143 BETTING: 9-4 Return Ticket, 7-2 Gold Des Bois, 4 Dubai Days, 11-2 Sword Of Fate, 6 Some Reign, 8 The King Of May.
4-1 Chased leader, challenged 3 out, soon led, driven flat, held on, won at Wetherby 1m 7f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd beating Prince Escalus by shd, 4 ran. 1-1fav Held up in rear, mistake 7th, pushed along after 3 out, went third 2 out, not fluent last, kept on, no chance with winner, 2nd of 5, 4l behind Arvico Bleu at Carlisle 2m nov hcap ch (3) gd. 10-1 Held up in rear, headway approaching 3 out, soon close up, not fluent 2 out and edged right, jumped right and not fluent last, stayed on final 100 yards, challenged close home, forced dead heat, won at Ayr 2m hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gd in Apr deadheating with Torigni (12-1), 8 ran.
15-8 Led, ridden and pressed before last, hit final fence, soon headed and left behind by winner, no extra, 2nd of 5, 10l behind Armattiekan at Carlisle 2m hcp chs 0-115 (4) gd. 4-1 Raced in last, went 3rd and pecked 2 out, unable to get on terms, kept on, 3rd of 4, 4l behind Return Ticket at Wetherby 1m 7f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd.
DARREN Gough believes England’s T20 World Cup match with Australia is the perfect chance for either country to gain the early upperhand ahead of the Ashes.
The two rivals clash in Dubai looking to improve their chances of qualifying for the semi-final stage but there are also numerous players in each camp who will fly straight from this tournament to take part in this winter’s five-Test series Down Under.
Former England bowler Gough, who toured Australia twice, believes it will be difficult for the Test players not to have the upcoming series at the back of their mind during Saturday’s game.
“They are the biggest enemy and the biggest competitor you play against so whatever game it is you are thinking, ‘if I do well in this one, it is fresh in their mind next time,’” he told the PA news agency at the launch of Booking.com’s luxury T20 Pavilion at Totteridge and Millhillians Cricket Club.
“As a batter, if you get nought, the next time you go in adds that little bit more pressure. And it is the same for bowlers. If a bowler gets smashed for 50 off his four overs, next time he faces that batter he will be thinking that.” Gough saw first-hand what momentum can do ahead of an Ashes series back in 2005 when Kevin Pietersen’s fine form against Australia in white-ball matches saw