Sri Lanka v Pakistan, 2nd Test, SSC, Colombo, 3rd day

Sri Lanka 70 for 1 (Dilshan 46*, Junaid 1-22) trail Pakistan 551 for 6 dec. (Hafeez 196, Ali 157, Misbah 66*, Herath 3-165) by 481 runs

Afternoon showers on day three put an outright result in serious doubt as only one session could be played out. In that session, Pakistan added 63 to their overnight 488 before declaring. In the next 70 minutes, Sri Lanka were put through a sterner test than the Pakistan openers, but they lost just one wicket.

Pakistan's quicks generated more response from the pitch than their Sri Lankan counterparts, but that didn't translate into too much success as Tillakaratne Dilshan rode his luck. An overnight declaration on 488 was a consideration because of the weather: 45 overs had already been lost on day two, and forecast for the rest of the Test wasn't the brightest either. However, Pakistan went for the scoreboard pressure, and declared only after they reached 550.

Pakistan didn't meander aimlessly, though: Misbah-ul-Haq went at a strike-rate of 82.50, much higher than his ODI career statistic, and Abdur Rehman hit two straight sixes in his 18 off 13. It took Pakistan little under an hour, and 12.4 overs, to score the 63 runs that took them past 550. In the process Misbah reached his 17th half-century, scoring 37 off 40 balls on the third morning. The fields were spread far out so he had to rely more on well-placed ones and twos as opposed to boundaries. Asad Shafiq and Adnan Akmal perished for the cause, but Rehman provided the required thrust with sixes off both spinners. Rangana Herath bowled one over fewer than a whole ODI innings.

Ten minutes later, with runs on board already, Pakistan made a spirited start with the ball. Aizaz Cheema and Junaid Khan bowled faster and hit the seam more often than the Sri Lankan bowlers. As a result, they bowled more threatening deliveries in one spell than Sri Lanka did in the whole innings. Cheema began with a short-of-a-length delivery that reared towards Tharanga Paranavitana's chest. Paranavitana never settled in, and was caught bat-pad to a Junaid delivery that seamed in. This was Paranavitana's seventh duck in his 28th Test, a high rate for a Test opener.

Tillakaratne Dilshan, at the other end, tried every trick in the book to get out, but the pitch and luck smiled on him benevolently. The seam movement in Junaid's first over seemed to have rattled him, and he hoicked at the last ball of that over; the leading edge fell straight of mid-on. Until lunch, Dilshan kept slashing and flashing, twice edging short of the cordon, once bisecting keeper and first slip. In Saeed Ajmal's first over, minutes before lunch, he survived a desperately close lbw shout when he was hit just above the knee roll bang in front and inside the crease. However, nothing stopped the aggressive Dilshan: he followed that lbw shout with two lofted fours, a response not too different to the rest of his innings. By lunch he had raced along to 46 off 54.

Kumar Sangakkara was much more reassuring for Sri Lanka, clipping the first ball he faced for four, and continuing to do so. The only moment of concern at Sangakkara's end arrived when he got a thick inside edge onto his pad, but it was too meaty for Azhar Ali at short leg to react in time.

West Indies v Australia, 2nd Test, Port-of-Spain, Day3,Cricinfo

West Indies 252 for 9 (Chanderpaul 94, Deonarine 55, Baugh 17*, Edwards 0*, Lyon 5-68) trail Australia311 by 59 runs

West Indies came close to having a very good day in Port-of-Spain but finished on the verge of conceding a significant first-innings lead to Australia. Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who fell six short of another hundred, and Narsingh Deonarine added 130 for the fifth wicket before Nathan Lyon broke the resistance then swept through the lower order with the second five-wicket haul of his career to leave West Indies trailing by 59 and the last pair together.

Nothing appeared more certain than Chanderpaul reaching his 26th Test century, and second of the series, after another masterful display of defiance but he was pinned lbw by Lyon from around the wicket - the fifth such decision of the innings. Opposition teams expend huge energy trying to shift Chanderpaul, but know there are likely to be some easier rewards once he has gone. To make the timing even worse for West Indies, two overs earlier Deonarine's excellent supporting hand had also been ended when, with his first ball back into the attack, Lyon drew him down the pitch and Matthew Wade showed the importance of having a tidy wicketkeeper.

Lyon had be brought back to the bowling crease with the second new-ball only seven overs after Ben Hilfenhaus and James Pattinson had not made the most of it. He waited until his 21st over for a wicket but a bowlers' lot can change in a flash. Darren Sammy, in an attempt to repeat his breezy first innings in Barbados, picked out long-on and Shane Shillingford added to his opposite number's success when he got an inside edge that was superbly held by Ed Cowan at short leg. Lyon's fifth wicket came when Kemar Roach was given caught down the leg side although Wade was more interested in the stumping opportunity. Australia's new keeper was impressive in tough conditions, not conceding a bye in 104 overs.

Smart stats Shivnarine Chanderpaul followed up his century in Barbados with 94 in the first innings in Trinidad. He has now scored 908 runs in eight home Tests against Australia at an average of 82.54 with five centuries. Chanderpaul's dismissal was only the third in thenineties in his career. It is the fifth time in a Trinidad Test against Australia that a West Indian batsman has fallen in the nineties. The 130-run stand between Chanderpaul and Narsingh Deonarine is the highest fifth-wicket stand for West Indies against Australia in Tests in Trinidad and seventh on the list of top fifth-wicket stands for West Indies against Australia. Nathan Lyon's 5 for 68 is his second five-wicket haul inTests after his five-for on debut against Sri Lanka in Galle. It is the first five-for for an Australian spinner against West Indies since 2005. From 230 for 4, West Indies lost five wickets for the addition of just 19 runs. The number of runs scored (19) is fifth on the list of lowest aggregates for West Indies against Australia between wickets six to nine The overall run-rate in the match presently (2.35) is the lowest ever for West Indies-Australia Tests since 1990 (min 200 overs bowled in first two innings). The number of lbw dismissals in the West Indies innings (5) is joint-second on the list of most lbw dismissals in aninnings for West Indies against Australia. The top-five West Indian batsmen were dismissed leg before making it the first such occurrence in Tests.

The evening collapse of five for 19 in 12 overs was another example of West Indies not being able to sustain a performance for long enough to take control. The 44 overs that Chanderpaul and Deonarine combined (and the period when Darren Bravo was also at the crease) was another of those uplifting passages that West Indies are just managing to produce slightly more regularly. Chanderpaul's role came was no surprise but Deonarine showed application that was less well known, remaining calm as he reached 4 off 43 balls before beginning to expand his strokeplay either side of lunch.

Before Lyon's intervention Australia's only breakthrough had come from Michael Hussey as Michael Clarke again went through his book of captaincy tricks. On a surface gripping for medium-pacers Hussey, developing something of a golden-arm of late, and Shane Watson were tough to score off. Hussey produced a delivery that swung late to beat Bravo and take his back pad. Again, though, Bravo had given flashes of what makes him stand out as a batsman particularly his off-side driving.

Chanderpaul had been given a life on 8, off Lyon's bowling, when Clarke could not hold a thick edge at slip which came off Wade's pad. Alongside Deonarine he initially focused solely on survival - although Deonarine was inches from being run-out the ball before lunch - but at the start of the afternoon session Australia lost their way a little and the batsmen cashed in.

Pattinson struggled with his rhythm throughout the day and later left the field with back spasms after an awkward piece of fielding. His first over of then afternoon was taken for 16 by Chanderpaul which included three boundaries alongside two no-balls. Deonarine was not all defence, either, and a whip through midwicket off Lyon stood out before he launched David Warner over midwicket for six. Rain brought an early tea, but had not seemed to disrupt West Indies.

Chanderpaul brought up the 200 with another six, a slog-sweep off Michael Beer, and when Deonarine's third half-century arrived from 132 balls with a rasping cover drive thoughts were even turning to the potential of the hosts building a first-innings lead that would put the pressure back on Australia. Then, however, Test cricket showed that despite it being the longest format a strong position can unravel in the blink of an eye. And, for West Indies, it was a familiar feeling.

West Indies v Australia, 1st Test, Bridgetown, Day3,Cricinfo

Australia 248 for 5 (Clarke 73, Hussey 47*) trail West Indies 449 for 9 dec by 201 runs

West Indies remained firmly on top after three days of attritional cricket in Barbados, where Darren Sammy's early strikes and Devendra Bishoo's variations kept Australia's batsmen from making significant progress. At stumps on day three Australia were 248 for 5, with Michael Hussey on 47 and Matthew Wade on 19, and while they had almost passed the follow-on mark they were not yet safe in the match.

The big challenge for West Indies remained finding a way to turn their impressive performance into a victory. Rain again played a part on the third afternoon and their task for the final two days was to run through Australia's lower order quickly, bat again and set the visitors a target, and then skittle them a second time. The way this match has unfolded so far, that looked like it would be easier said than done.

But through Sammy and his colleagues West Indies had at least put themselves in the much stronger position. Last time the two sides met in a Caribbean Test series, the hosts had several days of inspired cricket but were unable to string together enough in one match to take a victory from Australia. This time they had started with two encouraging days, and worked through the third in the same fashion.

Michael Clarke provided Australia with a fighting half-century but threw his wicket away, while Shane Watson and David Warner also failed to capitalise on solid starts. Watson was also accountable for the ugly run-out of Ricky Ponting, a calamitous confusion that left Ponting fuming as he walked off the field.

The pair had come together after Sammy removed both openers in almost identical fashion, pitching the ball on off stump and nipping it away from the left-handers Warner and Ed Cowan. Cowan was on 14 when his thin edge found the wicketkeeper and Warner had made a promising start and had 42 when he edged to second slip, and Sammy's accuracy and persistence was impressive.

Those strikes were followed by the run-out of Ponting for 4 when Watson turned the ball behind square leg and took a single, and then called for the second, hesitated, and called Ponting through again. The throw from the deep to the wicketkeeper's end found a confused Ponting out of his ground as Watson loitered halfway down the pitch and Ponting's frustration was evident.

Watson was nearly involved in another run-out later when Clarke was saved only by a wayward throw. That, together with poor use of the review system, were the only real blemishes that could be attached to the West Indies fielding effort. Twice Watson survived lbw appeals that could easily have gone against him, once when he offered no shot to a prodigious inswinger from Sammy, who asked for a review and saw the replays show a perilously close prediction that had the ball hitting off stump, but only in the "umpire's call" zone.

In the next over, Kemar Roach appealed for lbw against Watson and also received a not-out verdict. This time Sammy decided against asking for a review but replays showed the ball would have struck enough of leg stump to have the decision overturned. West Indies wasted their second review after lunch when Sammy was off the ground and the vice-captain Kirk Edwards asked for the third umpire to check another Roach lbw appeal that was clearly sliding down leg.

But those errors of judgment didn't prove too costly. Watson threw his wicket away in the first over after lunch when he flashed impetuously at Roach and was caught behind for 39. It was hardly the innings Australia needed from Watson in his first Test batting at No.3. Clarke and Michael Hussey led a fightback with an 82-run partnership and they had to work hard against Bishoo, whose variations kept them from scoring freely.

Clarke used his feet against the legspinner and lofted him straight down the ground for six, but otherwise the Australians typically waited for poor balls from Bishoo and did the best they could to keep the good ones out. Clarke brought up his half-century from his 121st delivery with a fine cover-driven boundary from the part-time offspin of Narsingh Deonarine, and he was fortunate to have got there after a contentious review when he was on 27.

Clarke was adjudged caught behind off a Bishoo ball that stayed low and he immediately challenged the out decision from the umpire Tony Hill. Replays did not clearly show that he hit the ball but nor did there seem to be overwhelming evidence to overturn the call, but that was what happened and it was a serious let-off for Clarke.

Eventually, Bishoo had his reward when Clarke tried to clear long-off but succeeded only in skying a catch, and it was an unwise shot selection at a time when Clarke and Hussey needed to continue building their partnership. Hussey was more watchful and by stumps was approaching a half-century, and Wade struggled against Bishoo with a packed close-in field, but he was good enough to put away the bad balls when they came.

Bishoo's challenge on the fourth day will be to run through the tail, although with the new ball due Sammy will first turn to his fast men to do that job. And if they can manage it, victory will be a possibility, although a draw remains the more likely outcome.

Sri Lanka v England, 2nd Test, Colombo, Day3,cricinfo

Sri Lanka 4 for 0 and 275 (Jayawardene 105, Swann 4-75) trail England 352 for 4 (Pietersen 106*, Cook 94) by 181 runs

A century of great bravado, and not a little theatre, byKevin Pietersen sharpened England's anticipation of their first Test win of a troubled winter as they took a first-innings lead of 185 runs in the second Test in Colombo.

Pietersen brought chaos to Sri Lanka's ranks with a potent combination of imperious strokeplay and impatient slogs. His 151 came from 165 balls with 16 fours and six sixes and was a flamboyant contradiction of the suspicious, attritional cricket that had gone before. As he struck 88 runs between lunch and tea to transform the game, he batted pretty much as he pleased. "I probably played a bit one-day modish, but I feel as if I'm in very good form so why not," he said.

On a dead pitch that experts galore had agreed made strokeplay almost impossible, Pietersen batted as if such limitations were intended for lesser men, banishing the memories of a demoralising winter. He had been England's least successful batsman in four Tests in Asia, scoring only 100 runs at 13. To draw supreme confidence from that record was quite something. It does not take much to stir his self-belief.

He departed reluctantly, appealing to the DRS for clemency after Sri Lanka's left-arm spinner Rangana Herath defeated his paddle shot with a flatter delivery. As reviews go, it was based on little more than the fact that he fancied an encore or two, and replays predictably judged him plumb, but he had provided such flamboyant entertainment that he could be forgiven his indulgence.

Herath, who had 1 for 102 at one stage, recovered his poise once Pietersen's storm had blown out and finished with 6 for 133, his third six-for in successive innings, but there was none of the pleasure he had felt during Sri Lanka's 75-run win in Galle. There is enough treacherous bounce in this pitch to encourage England's stronger pace attack and Graeme Swann can expect substantial, if slow turn.

There was also a controversial element to Pietersen's innings when the umpires, Asad Rauf and Bruce Oxenford, clamped down on his unconventional switch hit when he was only two runs away from his 20th Test century, issuing a warning on the dubious grounds that he was changing his stance too early. "To bowl before the bowler delivers is unfair," Rauf said afterwards. "There is no intention to outlaw the stroke," Oxenford added.

Tillakaratne Dilshan objected to the switch hit, in which Pietersen changes his hands on the bat to become, in effect, a left-hander, and stopped twice in his run-up as he anticipated a repeat. Rauf intervened on the grounds of timewasting - not against Dilshan but Pietersen - and after a conversation with Oxenford warned Pietersen, informing him England would recieve a five-run penalty if he repeated the tactic.

Dilshan's protest came during an over in when Pietersen thrashed his way from 86 to 104. He had unveiled the switch hit in Dilshan's previous over to combat a defensive leg-stump line and when he was rewarded by a woeful long hop it was apparent that Dilshan, until then Sri Lanka's most effective bowler, had lost the psychological game.

After being told by the umpires that he risked a timewasting penalty, he bided his time, reverse swept again with Dilshan committed to the delivery, and reached his hundred to roars of approval from England's sizeable contingent of fans. "No dramas," he said. "They just told me to get my timing right."

Soon afterwards, Ian Bell fell for 18, mistiming a hook to midwicket as a ball from Dhammika Prasad did not get up. It was symptomatic of an innings in which he had rarely timed the ball and he walked off shaking his head at Pietersen's audacity. Batting alongside Pietersen has a tendency to make you feel inadequate. If Bell felt its full force, so did Matt Prior when he tried to hit Herath down the ground and paid the consequences.

For Pietersen, it was all plain sailing. He had been riddled by doubt against Pakistan's spinners, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, in the Test series in the UAE, but Sri Lanka's slow bowlers - for all Herath's recovery - were a grade below that class. When Suraj Randiv attempted an Ajmal-style doosra it pitched halfway down. Pietersen had a life on 82, though, when Prasad deceived him with a slower ball but followed up with an even slower attempt to catch.

England produced their most authoritative batting of the winter. They resumed on 154 for 1 and their top three created the platform to enable Pietersen to strut his stuff.

Alastair Cook, six runs short of a century, was the only England batsman to fall before lunch. It was Dilshan who did the trick, finding modest turn to have Cook caught by Mahela Jayawardene at slip. Earlier, when Cook had 84 to his name, it was still a surprise to see him dust off a reverse sweep, especially as he had eschewed the conventional variety. The ball deflected off the pad to Jayawardene at leg slip, umpire Rauf showed no interest, and despite innumerable replays the third umpire could discern no sign of a flick of the glove for which Sri Lanka's captain had appealed.

Randiv's use of DRS for an lbw appeal against Trott, on 42, was even more wasteful. Replays showed an obvious inside edge. Trott communicated this to the umpire with a subtle quizzical look and a peaceful examination of his inside edge, his alibis presented with the tranquillity of his strokeplay. He fell soon after lunch, edging a turning delivery from Herath to slip.

Nothing was going right for Sri Lanka. Appeal began to follow appeal, each one of them increasingly absurd. Sri Lanka entered lunch with one more wicket and an urge to study TV replays that would have only brought more disappointment. Pietersen at his most disrespectful was about to inflame them even more.

New Zealand v South Africa, 3rd Test, Wellington, Day3,Cricinfo

Tea South Africa 437 for 7 (Boucher 30*, Philander 18*) v New Zealand  

A string of wickets in the second session lifted New Zealand from the dire to merely the desperate, but South Africa remained well ahead in the Test, moving to 437 for 7. Chris Martin and Mark Gillespie took two wickets each, clawing through South Africa's middle order in the first period in the match the hosts can claim to have won, but the wickets were still too few and the score already too large to give New Zealand anything more than a thin chance of levelling the series.

Movement off the pitch had largely evaded New Zealand throughout the innings, but a reinvigorated attack led by Martin used the seam to reap their most fruitful session of the Test. Alviro Petersen had scarcely played a false stroke in the first session, but was trapped in front by a Martin indipper in the first over of the second. AB de Villiers then fell to a similar ball four overs later, inside edging onto his middle stump.

Gillespie also found immediate reward for movement, removing Jacques Rudolph for 11 with another one that wobbled off the seam. Rudolph, who had tweeted his disapproval of the Wellington weather the previous evening, can hardly have improved his opinion of the place after a failure with the bat.

Dale Steyn preceded Vernon Philander to the crease, but was soon sent back, again by Gillespie, who surprised him with a foot of extra bounce. For the first time in the match, New Zealand had prevented opposition partnerships from taking root, and having toiled for 3 wickets while South Africa amassed 362, the hosts had suddenly taken 4 for 42.

Philander partnered Mark Boucher astutely, exercising caution and opportunism in equal parts - much as the top order had done previously, and the pair put on an unbeaten 33 without offering a chance.

Earlier, hundreds from Alviro Petersen and JP Duminy had consolidated South Africa's dominance, and taken them to a near unassailable position. Petersen had been perched on 96 overnight, and although New Zealand had the new ball with which to eke a nervous stroke, Petersen moved to triple figures as smoothly as he had navigated the wind and the rain on day two. A cover drive off Chris Martin's fourth ball reaped the first two runs of the day, before a rasping cut brought his third Test ton, confirming his place in the batting order after four muddling performances on tour had put it in jeopardy.

His approach changed little following the milestone as he stuck methodically to the scoring strokes that had carried him to his first success in New Zealand. Drives straight and through cover were measured out when the hosts went looking for swing, and the pull again proved productive, particularly off Daniel Vettori, who had bowled a touch short throughout the Test.

JP Duminy moved deep into the nineties with three consecutive cover drives, handsomely struck off Doug Bracewell, but was made to wait 18 balls to move from 98 to 100. He did not allow his anxiety to turn into rashness, though. A clip off the pads brought him his century - the second in his career after the match-winning 166 at the MCG in 2008. The pair had put on 200 for the third wicket before Duminy was caught at slip off Gillespie.

NZ v South Africa, 2nd Test, Hamilton, Day3,Cricinfo,Philander stars in resounding SA win

Innings South Africa 0 for 0 need 101 to beat New Zealand 185 and 168 (Williamson 77, Philander 6-44) 

Vernon Philander bagged his finest bowling figures in a sublime six-Test career, as South Africa set themselves 101 to win on day three in Hamilton. South Africa's seamers have been outstanding with the new ball so far on tour, but it was their command of reverse-swing bowling that demolished the hosts' lower order, and set New Zealand on course for a second successive three-day loss at Seddon Park. Philander finished with 6 for 44 from the innings, and 10 for 114 for the match, his Test average shrinking ever more impressively to 13.6.

Kane Williamson resisted South Africa for 193 deliveries, going past 50 for the first time in five Tests to finish on 77. Having resolutely seen out the first session, Philander needed only three balls to remove him in the second. The off-stump line had Williamson playing at the ball, and a hint of movement was enough to catch his outside edge. With New Zealand's last recognised batsman went their hopes of setting a challenging fourth innings target.

Morne Morkel found dramatic, late movement on his return to the crease and New Zealand's tail was clueless on how to counter it. Doug Bracewell was lucky to get an inside edge on one that struck him in front, but the rapid, tailing inswinger that sent his off stump cartwheeling might have got the better of most top-order batsmen. His dismissal was the second instance in the day where a New Zealand batsman had left a ball that moved in viciously to clip the stumps - Kruger van Wyk being the other.

Mark Gillespie swung wildly, hitting three boundaries off Philander's next over - but he was caught at slip on the last ball. Chris Martin didn't last long.

Williamson had begun the day watchfully, as Dale Steyn found the reverse swing that had undone Ross Taylor late on day two. Balls outside off stump were left alone, even those short and wide or overpitched, while the deliveries angled at the stumps were defended resolutely or worked towards the leg side. Williamson had ended the previous evening on 41, but took a further 43 balls to score the nine runs required for his half-century.

Daniel Vettori was almost as reticent, scoring significantly slower than his characteristic busy pace, despite a disposition to be more punishing on bad deliveries. A clipped boundary through the leg side had his innings under way, and though his vanquisher in the first innings, Vernon Philander, troubled him with the ball that darted back in, Vettori's hand-eye coordination was good enough to get bat on ball, even if his footwork was often muddled.

Graeme Smith moved methodically through his arsenal as he searched for a breakthrough, as the New Zealand pair saw out spells from the frontline seamers. But the hosts were reminded of the relentless threat in the opposition attack, when Jacques Kallis produced a terrific effort ball that reared sharply, and took Vettori's glove as he attempted to evade it.

Kruger van Wyk partnered Williamson astutely for his 20, negotiating Kallis and Imran Tahir with confidence, before surviving a short-ball barrage from Dale Steyn. But he could not see out the session against Philander, who reverse swung the ball significantly on his return to the crease, beating van Wyk's outside edge, before bringing one back in to take his off stump.

New Zealand v South Africa, 1st Test, Dunedin, Day 3

South Africa 268 for 3 (Smith 115, Kallis 107*, Rudolph 13*) and 238 lead New Zealand 273 (McCullum 48, Vettori 46, Philander 4-72) by 233 runs

A 200-run stand and hundreds to South Africa's two most experienced hands put the visitors in command in Dunedin, after New Zealand had begun the day strongly with bat and ball. South Africa held a 233-run lead at stumps, with seven wickets in hand and Jacques Kallis at the crease on 107.

Kallis completed his 42nd Test hundred late in the day, moving clear of Ricky Ponting to become the second most prolific century-maker of all time, after having defused early pressure from New Zealand, who had taken two wickets in an over when he came to the crease. His partnership with Graeme Smith was the first century-stand in the match, and the afternoon session the first in which no wickets fell, as New Zealand rifled through several bowling plans in their attempts to scuttle the association.

The slow scoring-rate, borne out of a tiring pitch and defensive tactics from the hosts meant South Africa could not yet make the game safe. But in a match in which neither side scored 300 in the first innings, Smith and Kallis sapped the spirit from the New Zealand attack as the day wore, and set their side on course for a massive second-innings total.

Kallis collected most of his runs square to begin with, betraying the slowness of the pitch, but added the straighter strokes from his repertoire towards the evening. Smith, meanwhile, was comfortable working the ball to his favoured leg side, but was forced to be more reticent than usual, as the hosts' seamers bowled wide outside off stump to him, with several catchers behind the stumps awaiting a loose stroke. Both men were happy to wait for the poor deliveries, and in contrast to Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum on the previous day, were satisfied to accumulate steadily, instead of searching for bursts of quick runs.

Doug Bracewell took all three wickets, and was the most threatening bowler throughout the day. He extracted movement through the air and off the pitch in his first spell, nailing Hashim Amla for nought with a super outswinger, albeit one that pitched well wide of off stump. His spell with the second new ball was no less impressive towards the close of play, creating two strong lbw appeals as well as bowling Smith with one that nipped off the seam to take a deflection off the inside edge.

Smart stats Graeme Smith's century is his second against New Zealand and his 22nd as captain. It is his second century in six Tests after the second-innings hundred in the win against Australia in Cape Town. Jacques Kallis scored his 42nd Test century and moved past Ricky Ponting's tally of 41 hundreds. Only Sachin Tendulkar with 51 Test centuries is above Kallis on the list of batsmen with most centuries. With his sixth century against New Zealand, Kallis moves to joint-second with Rahul Dravid on the list of batsmen with the most centuries against New Zealand. Only Javed Miandad, with seven centuries, is above Kallis. The 200-run stand between Smith and Kallis is the third-highest third-wicket stand for South Africa in Tests against New Zealand. Kallis and Hashim Amla have been involved in the two higher stands. The 200-run stand between Kallis and Smith is South Africa's 18th double-century stand since the beginning of 2007. In the same period, no other team has been involved in more double-century partnerships. New Zealand have chased more than 234 (the present target) on only three previous occasions and only once against major Test opponents (excluding Bangladesh) since 1990. On the other hand, South Africa have lost eight times (five to Australia) since their readmission when they have set a target of 234 or more.

In between the two new-ball spells though, New Zealand looked alarmingly toothless. Chris Martin, the prime destroyer in South Africa's first innings, could barely beat an edge in his 17 overs that were notable for their lack of movement. Tim Southee tried several plans of attack, to various fields, first trying to take the ball away from Kallis with a stacked slip cordon, before coming back with an aging ball to rattle him with reverse-swing. Neither ploy flustered the batsmen, who were glad for straight, full deliveries from Southee, having had plenty to watch through to the keeper from others who bowled wide.

Daniel Vettori looked New Zealand's best chance of prising a scalp through the third-wicket stand, but despite turn, flight and three close catchers to Smith, he could force neither an edge nor a false shot. One hopeful shout for lbw was shown to be missing off stump, and though he proved more difficult to score off than the seamers - he did not pose a trial either.

New Zealand created chances in the overs following tea, but twice Martin Guptill was too deep to snaffle thick edges - one each from Kallis and Smith - and two more times run-out opportunities requiring direct hits were missed. New Zealand stuck to the wide line outside off stump to Smith, hoping to draw a rash stroke, and he almost succumbed in the 90s, when the scoring rate roused his frustration. Occasionally he flashed and missed, reminding himself to rein in the cover drive. But as a tight offside in-field constricted him further, he couldn't help but reach, even moving across the stumps to toe-end a ball from Tim Southee that barely landed on the strip.

He batted out six tense dot balls from Vettori on 99, but Smith eventually reached triple-figures - a good omen for the visitors who have never lost on the previous 23 occasions Smith made hundred. But just as his scoring trended north, Kallis slowed dramatically at the other end, having parked himself on 90. After 24 dot balls there, he began to move again, taking five more overs to reach triple-figures.

Jacques Rudolph was sent in ahead of AB de Villiers and survived an lbw appeal off Bracewell that was overturned in his favour upon review. South Africa will press for a definitive advantage tomorrow, with plenty of batting still to come.

New Zealand v Zimbabwe, Only Test, Napier, 3rd day,New Zealand Win innings and 301-run victory

Four quicks have 'venom in every spell' - Martin

Chris Martin, who claimed career-best figures of 6 for 26 against Zimbabwe in Napier, has said New Zealand's success in the Test had much to do with a four-pronged pace attack. New Zealand's bowlers combined to bowl Zimbabwe out twice on the same day - only the third such instance in history - propelling the hosts to an innings and 301-run victory.

"It was [overwhelming for Zimbabwe] I think … four [fast] guys with the ball, they all do something a little bit different. We don't probably get over-bowled, so there's a little bit of venom in every spell." New Zealand played four quicks in the match, with Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell and Tim Southee partnering Martin. In Zimbabwe's first innings, each of the four fast bowlers picked up two wickets apiece to skittle the visitors for 51, while in the second Martin and Bracewell polished them off.

"The pitch actually quickened up a wee bit over the course of the match. I'm definitely more of a bounce bowler, so I enjoyed the bounce and pace in it. Dougie just swings the ball very nicely to the right-handers, and is always going to be a threat. I think Boulty and Timmy were hungry, and definitely wanted the ball the whole day. So we were all competing for it, and it's nice to get a win out of that kind of competitiveness within the bowling ranks."

With Daniel Vettori filling the spinner's role, the New Zealand line-up comprised only five frontline batsmen, plus wicketkeeper BJ Watling. However, with some of the bowlers' ability to contribute with the bat as well, the line-up isn't unstable, Martin said. "I like to see it [five bowlers playing] happening. I think the ability of Doug and Timmy with the bat is going to get better and better, and with Dan batting at six - he's out there to score runs every time he plays, he probably averages about 40 [with the bat] over the past five years - I think we're going to have some success."

Martin's eight wickets in the match took him level with Chris Cairns on the list of New Zealand's top wicket-takers. With 218, Martin is joint-third, behind Richard Hadlee and Vettori. "I had him [Cairns] on the radar, but perhaps not at the start of the day," Martin said. "I'm stoked to have got that far, and hopefully I push on past him."

Tweaking his run-up has helped him be more effective, Martin said. "I tinkered with something last summer, just to get my stride patterns right with my run-up, so I wasn't over-striding. Now I'm cruising in a little bit more, the angle with which I'm bowling now is helping me swing the ball more."

After the limited-overs series against Zimbabwe, New Zealand will face stronger opposition in South Africa and, according to Martin, they are up for the challenge. "I think the consistency with which we have attacked that off-stump line, with a little bit of movement, and the way we have drawn them [batsmen] into playing shots that perhaps they didn't want to, I think against any side that is always going to be competitive.

"The slip catching has been out of this world. I don't think I have seen a better one than the one Dean Brownlie took today. All of those things we may have to do for longer periods against South Africa, but they definitely bode well for the ability of our boys to remain composed and get the results, which is something we have carried on from Hobart."

New Zealand v Zimbabwe, Only Test, Napier, Day3,Cricinfo

Innings Zimbabwe 0 for 0 and 51 (Waller 23) trail New Zealand 495 for 7 dec (Taylor 122, Watling 102*) by 444 runs

Zimbabwe sunk to their lowest Test total in a catastrophic first innings that lasted less than 29 overs. They had succumbed for 54 against South Africa on their last away Test tour in 2005, but they trumped even that ignominy in Napier, getting bowled out for 51, leaving themselves them 444 behind New Zealand's 495 for 7 declared.

Malcolm Waller offered the only resistance amid a procession of abysmal surrender, when he managed 23 before edging Tim Southee to the slips. At least he made a double-figure score - something that evaded each of his team-mates, who between them recorded three ducks, two twos and three threes.

Zimbabwe's batsman conveyor belt kicked had kicked into gear in the hour before lunch, after BJ Watling's maiden ton heralded New Zealand's declaration. They lost five wickets for 20 runs before the break, ensuring the task of saving their first away Test in six years became almost impossible. The visitors might have hoped to breach the follow-on target of 295, but not only did that seem a fanciful pipe dream at lunch, the rate of implosion suggested they wouldn't even manage 40.

Waller defied New Zealand for 42 balls - a paltry show in truth, but a rearguard given the context, with momentary support from Regis Chakabva and Graeme Cremer who stayed around for 20 and 23 balls respectively. Once those three were dismissed though, the tail bowed as meekly as those who had gone before them at the top of the innings, who in turn were padding up again for the second time in two hours.

Lunch Zimbabwe 20 for 5 (Chakabva 1*, Waller 0*, Martin 2-5) trail New Zealand 495 for 7 dec (Taylor 122, Watling 102*) by 475 runs

Zimbabwe face a mammoth first-innings deficit after losing five wickets for 20 in response to New Zealand's 495 for 7 declared on the third morning in Napier. The New Zealand pacemen dismissed the opposition top order in just over an hour after BJ Watling completed a maiden Test hundred in his first innings as wicketkeeper-batsman.

Tino Mawoyo and Forster Mutizwa perished in identical fashion, flailing wildly at Chris Martin's indippers that went on to disturb their stumps, before Hamilton Masakadza, Brendan Taylor and Tatenda Taibu also continued the spectacular surrender, pushing hard outside off stump to provide the slips with a supply of edges.

Zimbabwe would have begun their innings with hopes of breaching the follow-on target of 295, but that now seems the most fanciful pipe dream, with even their lowest ever Test score of 54 looking unlikely at the current rate of implosion. Stand-in New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum employed no fewer than seven catching men in addition to the keeper in the final overs of the morning, with his opposition so willing serve up their scalps to the hosts' sharp but hardly extraordinary bowling.

Zimbabwe had dislodged Doug Bracewell three balls into the third morning, but their start should have been yet brighter had Shingi Masakadza not overstepped two balls later. Watling was given out lbw to a delivery angling in to him, but was handed his first life upon review - one of many costly misses for Zimbabwe in the field.

Tim Southee, on orders to partner Watling for as long as possible rather than wield his characteristic long handle, ended up doing both. He battled out the first 20 minutes risk-free before two straight fours off Kyle Jarvis signaled intentions to propel New Zealand towards 500. Greed ended his enterprising innings at 44, as he looked to slam a third consecutive boundary off Graeme Cremer over midwicket only for Malcolm Waller to swallow his mishit.

Boult saw Watling through to his ton, which didn't come without drama. He was dropped in the gully off Jarvis at 90, and at 94, was hurried-up by the dressing room who granted one more over to reach three figures before the declaration would come. A slog to midwicket off the next ball he faced brought him four, and he was almost run out attempting an ambitious two to get his century, with Watling only able to celebrate the milestone after the third umpire ruled him home by a whisker.

England Vs Pakistan 2nd Test At AbuDhabi Day3 Cricinfo

Pakistan 257 and 125 for 4 (Azhar 46*, Shafiq 35*) lead England 327 (Cook 94, Trott 74, Broad 58*, Ajmal 4-108) by 55 runs

For the first time in their notional home series, Pakistan had a crowd to strengthen their resolve. They came in their thousands after Friday prayers and sat on the grassy banks at the Sheikh Zayed stadium. What they witnessed was Test cricket at its most attritional but they also witnessed a clue to Pakistan's batting future.

Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq came together at 54 for 4 with Pakistan still 16 runs in arrears and England's bowlers coming to terms with the rigours of playing Test cricket in Asia. It is a rare sight to see England with two spinners bowling to an attacking ring. With Pakistan faltering, they were even beginning to think they might like it.

This time Azhar and Shafiq did not have Misbah-ul-Haq at the non-striker's end learnedly chiding them to be patient but they were patient all the same. They ground out 71 at barely two an over and when the third day closed they had drawn the fire from England's attack. Shafiq treated Pakistan's supporters to two successive boundaries off Monty Panesar, Azhar offered a couple of serene drives and a skip down the pitch to loft Graeme Swann over long-on but it was stern-minded stuff.

Their response was essential. Much was made of England's flimsy top-order batting during their 10-wicket defeat in Dubai; Pakistan's looked just as brittle. Panesar and Swann have not been as magical as Saeed Ajmal, nor have they turned the ball as sharply as Abdur Rehman, but in their first Test together for two-and-a-half years they laid down a challenge.

Mohammad Hafeez and Taufeeq Umar fell to nothing more substantial than artfully-pitched straight balls; a substantial sandstorm could blow through the gap between Taufeeq's bat and pad. Younis Khan got a beauty from Panesar which turned to uproot his off stump. Then the old fox, Misbah, fell: a third wicket for Panesar. Misbah looked for a reprieve on DRS but the dispassionate conclusion had to be that the third umpire, Billy Bowden, was right to conclude that the ball had hit pad before bat.

The growing quality of pitches in the UAE has contributed to two engrossing Tests. It was widely anticipated that this could be a tedious series on unresponsive pitches. Instead, there has been enough life for bowlers to relish an even contest. For those watching from England, whichever side they have been rooting for, it has been well worth an early alarm call.

Smart stats Sixteen batsmen were dismissed bowled or lbw in the first innings of both teams, which equals the record for the first two innings of a Test. The record for an entire Test is 26, in last year's game between West Indies and Pakistan in Providence. Saeed Ajmal is playing his 19th Test, and has taken 97 wickets at 27.92. After 19 matches, Graeme Swann had taken 85 wickets at 30.84. Of the 25 Test wickets that Mohammad Hafeez has taken, 20 have been of left-hand batsmen. He averages 21.30 for each of those wickets; against right-handers he averages 91.20. Stuart Broad's batting average at Nos.8 and 9 is 30.43. With a cut-off of 40 innings at those two positions, onlyfour batsmen have done better in Test history.

But the main benefits have come from the advent of DRS. Technology is rapidly making defensive pad play a thing of the past as umpires grant lbw decisions where once they would have looked askance. The game is different now: livelier, more combative and eminently more watchable. The downside is that lbw decisions are at an all-time high but with the future of Test cricket in such doubt, technology has provided a timely shot in the arm.

That England were able to put the squeeze on Pakistan owed everything to Stuart Broad, whose enterprising, unbeaten, 58 from 62 balls gave them a 70-run first-innings lead. England made 116 runs in the morning session at a rate of nearly 4.5 runs an over as Broad poured his frustration with England's careworn batting in the series into every shot. He had made some mildly provocative remarks about his England batting colleagues after Pakistan had been bowled out for 257, remarking on Twitter that it would make no difference if the batsmen did not frame themselves.

When Ajmal had broken England's dominance with three quick wickets on the second evening, frustration had been etched into Broad's face as he watched from the boundary edge. At such times there is something endearing about his unabashed desire to win a cricket match.

He batted like a man on a mission. If it was up there he would hit it, old ball and new. He needed good fortune on 33 when he survived the narrowest of run out decisions by the third umpire Bowden. Azhar pounced on the ball from cover and threw down the stumps as Broad chanced a single off Junaid Khan. As he dived for the crease it was debatable whether his bat was grounded. But he brought up England's 300 by slog-sweeping Abdur Rehman's left-arm spin for six into the Knocking Area - a sanctuary perhaps for the England batsmen he had previously chided.

The old ball was 84.5 overs old at start of play but Misbah entrusted the task of dismantling England's lower order to his spinners. Matt Prior was intent on playing them off the back foot whenever possible but Ajmal had his measure. He was badly dropped at deep square-leg by Junaid and then spared from an lbw decision by the tiniest inside edge. By the time Ajmal had him lbw on the back foot, a decision upheld after an England review, it was apparent he needed to be put out of his misery.

Ian Bell was also dropped, a rasping return catch to Rehman which flew through his hands for four, and was also beaten several times by Rehman's sharp turn. His tremors against Ajmal's doosra were less apparent but he fell to Gul and the second new ball, England failing with DRS for the second time.

Pakistan finally parcelled up England's innings one over into the afternoon as Hafeez, an increasingly redoubtable all-round cricketer, took two wickets in three balls. Panesar, whose last Test innings had been a heroic rearguard action against Australia in Cardiff, this time managed a more prosaic second-ball duck. Panesar, lbw, signalled that he had hit it, but England had omitted to save a review for him.

South Africa Vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test at Durban Day3 Cricinfo,Live Score,Highlights

Lunch Sri Lanka 338 and 65 for 3 (Sangakkara 28*, Samaraweera 9*) lead South Africa 168 by 235 runs 

Watch Highlights

South Africa's quicks made two breakthroughs as they strained to keep Sri Lanka's lead within manageable proportions on the third morning in Durban. After an hour's play was lost due to a wet outfield, Kumar Sangakkara battled to be undefeated on 28 at lunch, his first contribution this series following three innings that have yielded three runs.

There are plenty of theories over what helps fast bowlers at Kingsmead. The Green Mamba is a usual suspect, but today the talk was about the change in wind direction that would help the ball jag around. It was overcast in Durban as well, but there was still no dramatic swing or seam for the South Africa fast bowlers.

That didn't stop them from probing away all session. Morne Morkel got his customary extra bounce to hassle the batsmen, Dale Steyn got a hint of away swing, and Marchant de Lange continued to impress on debut. The batsmen got a taste of what was to come in the first over of the day - Morkel got the first ball to fizz past the outside edge, and three deliveries later he got Sangakkara's outside edge only to see Mark Boucher's late dive distract Graeme Smith from pouching a catch at slip.

The batsmen were beaten on innumerable occasions in the first hour, and a majority of the runs came through the gully region. Paranavitana had a particularly torrid time - fidgety around the offstump, and was struck on the back as he ducked too late to a Morkel short ball. Eight of his nine runs came through not entirely assured glides past gully, before his innings ended with an edge to fourth slip.

Mahela Jayawardene and Sangakkara then eased the lead past 200 with a series of boundaries against more testing fast bowling. The stand ended when Jayawardene unwisely decided to pad up to a de Lange incutter which would have gone on to hit off stump.

Sangakkara, however, survived till lunch and grew in confidence over the course of the innings. Towards the end of the session, he whipped a gift from Jacques Kallis on the leg stump for four before upper cutting de Lange for another boundary. He still has first-innings hero Thilan Samaraweera for company, and the talented youngsters Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal to follow. With the lead already 235, South Africa need something special to end their Durban jinx.