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ScorecardChris Nash averages 43.35 in first-class cricket this season•Getty Images

Chris Nash, the Sussex opener, has made three of his 12 first-class centuries against Nottinghamshire but none of them in a winning cause. Given that the first corresponded with their relegation in 2009 and the second came in a defeat at Hove this season, he might feel that the latest was at least worthwhile. Sussex, 349 behind on first innings, escaped with an honourable draw, leaving Nottinghamshire to reflect on a missed opportunity that might yet prove costly.Nash made 162, the third highest score of his career and the third highest in this match, behind Michael Lumb’s 171 and the 163 with which James Taylor signed off before turning his thoughts towards a possible Test debut on Thursday. At 29, that possibility has probably eluded Nash, although he has become a solidly consistent performer in Championship cricket with an average this season of 43.35, which stacks up fairly well against most of the specialists in his position.This was not his most testing innings, in terms of batting conditions at least. Although there was rain about, the ball did not swing appreciably and the pitch became largely unresponsive to any form of bowling after the first day. No wicket fell at all between 4.49pm on Saturday and around 12.30pm on Monday, with less than two hours in that time accounted for by rain. Yet Nash’s durability was admirable — the innings spanned more than six hours — his application faultless, his shot selection similar and his timing sweet enough to bring many a burst of appreciative applause.He clearly likes playing against Nottinghamshire. In his last 10 first-class innings against them, encompassing the three centuries, he has amassed 786 runs, only three times being out for fewer than 57.It was the 216-run partnership for the first wicket, shared with the almost-equally obdurate Ed Joyce, that effectively scuppered Nottinghamshire’s bid to turn their huge first innings lead into a win. It would have continued a while longer but for a stunning catch by Lumb, diving to his left at midwicket, that not only denied a certain boundary but left Joyce looking to the heavens, two short of his century.But the clutch of wickets Nottinghamshire needed never seemed likely to materialise. Nash fell eventually to Andy Carter, whose persistence in inviting the pull and hook at last paid off thanks to Taylor being in the right place on the rope, but by then captain Chris Read was already desperate enough to throw the ball to Riki Wessels, whose off-spin is so infrequently seen that he had bowled only three overs in England in his whole career. His two first-class wickets had been taken for Mid West Rhinos, in Zimbabwe.Wessels is not that scruffy, to be fair to him. Indeed, in the ninth of his 13 overs — six more than he had bowled in the same match before — he took the next wicket to fall, picking up a caught and bowled offered by Luke Wells. Michael Yardy top-edged Harry Gurney to mid-on in the next over and Murray Goodwin missed one from Patel but there was never a serious chance that Nottinghamshire would snatch a victory.With Warwickshire unable to see off Surrey at Edgbaston, the two leaders in the First Division are level on points and games won. Warwickshire and Somerset – well positioned in third – will make up their game in hand of Nottinghamshire in the next round but of greater significance to the Trent Bridge side is the players they will now lose to international commitments, which is why Mick Newell, Nottinghamshire’s director of cricket, saw it as an opportunity missed.”After two days I thought we had every chance of winning the game but we never looked like getting 10 wickets and as with the Warwickshire-Surrey game it just goes to show that teams fight hard in this division and you don’t get any easy wins,” he said. “We both – ourselves and Warwickshire – probably expected to win this week and haven’t.”It is a game we could have done with winning because I know that we are going to be one or maybe two international players short for every game now. That was our last one with a full-strength side and if we are going to win the title we are going to need two or three or maybe even four players from outside the normal XI.”We always knew it was going to happen, that we would lose one or a combination of James Taylor, Alex Hales and Samit Patel over the next five weeks, so we are not complaining. But there are some tough games to come and the players who come in are going to have to do well.”From a Sussex viewpoint, the result was rather more satisfactory, as Nash confirmed. “It was disappointing the way we played on the first day and four points is not a great return for all the hard work but the draw was a good result for us considering where we were after the first two days,” he said. “But it was good to salvage a draw and we’re pleased with the way the season is going. If you had said we would be through to finals day in the Twenty20, top of our group in the CB40 and fourth in the Championship at this stage we would have taken that.”For myself to bat through for that length of time in that situation, to get us through to the draw, was quite satisfying. I’m not normally renowned for batting for days on end but the situation dictated the way I played and I quite enjoyed it.”Nottinghamshire have a really good seam attack but I’ve done well against them the last few years and that’s a good thing to have in my locker.”

Australia captain Michael Clarke’s signing of a contract with the Sydney Thunder for next summer’s BBL may be the solution to an impasse that had left David Warner curiously unsigned at the end of the competition’s primary recruitment window.Clarke officially confirmed his move to the Thunder on Wednesday, and his signature grants the team the big Australian name they crave to sell their team to the public in the lead-up to season two. It was a role that had been taken up by Warner last summer when he captained the Thunder.”Playing for Sydney Thunder is a great opportunity for me to play for a team rooted in Sydney’s western suburbs as well as to support Cricket Australia in building on last year’s Big Bash success,” Clarke said. “I am really excited about playing a part in the Big Bash, particularly as it will be against the other Sydney team.”Not only do I get to play alongside superstar T20 internationals like Chris Gayle and Shahid Afridi but also with a bunch of great young guys just starting to make their mark, many of whom grew up in the west.”However Warner is understood to be keen to move across town to the Sydney Sixers for 2012-13, and had begun discussing terms with the team that lifted the inaugural BBL trophy.This is believed to have led to an untidy round of discussions between Warner, the Sixers, the Thunder and Cricket Australia, as the opening batsman’s personal preference was weighed up against his value as the face of the Thunder and its desired market in Sydney’s west.Apart from winning the BBL last summer, the Sixers cultivated a happy team environment around the SCG under the coaching of Trevor Bayliss and the wider management of Stuart Clark.By contrast, the Thunder battled for strong results and faced difficulties surrounding their home base at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium, with transport believed to be one of several issues for players.Warner, meanwhile, had also changed management since the summer, moving across from Peter Lovitt’s Driver Avenue Group to Tony Conolly’s Entourage Management, which handles the business of the Test vice-captain Shane Watson.As current members of Australia Test team, Warner and Clarke are unlikely to play more than one BBL game, the season-opening ‘derby’ between the Sixers and the Thunder at the SCG, but their presence in competition marketing and advertising is considered critical to drawing crowds to the games.Clarke’s presence at the Thunder allows the team a major Australian name on which to hang its colours, alongside the high-profile overseas imports, Gayle and Afridi. It also allows Clarke to be more firmly engaged with the western suburbs in which he grew up.Last summer Clarke chose not to take part in the BBL and concentrated his energies on making a strong start to his Test captaincy of Australia, leading the team to a 4-0 hiding of India in the series played opposite the Twenty20 competition. However he warmed to T20 later in the year, accepting Sourav Ganguly’s lucrative offer to play for Pune in the IPL.This short stint signalled Clarke’s interest in making a T20 nest for himself that may extend beyond the end of his international playing career, as it has done for the likes of Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne and Matthew Hayden.

ScorecardMax Sorensen celebrates taking one of his four wickets•ICC/Rob O’Connor

Max Sorensen and Alex Cusack each took four wickets to help Ireland skittle Afghanistan for 84, as their rain-hit Intercontinental Cup match finally got underway on day three. By the close, Ireland had built a 42-run lead with eight wickets in hand, giving them the opportunity to try and press for victory on the final day.Trent Johnston also impressed with the ball, taking 2 for 7 off eight overs, as the Afghanistan batsmen struggled against the seaming ball. Only three players reached double figures – Afsar Khan, Samiullah Shenwari and Gulbodin Naib all scoring 13 – as the innings lasted just 29.1 overs.”Once the conditions dried up and it allowed us to get out on the field, I think the bowlers set us off on the right foot,” Ireland captain Kevin O’Brien said. “It was a good all-round performance”It was always going to be if you win the toss you’re going to bowl, I think that was probably the only way we were going to get a win. With the bowlers putting in a performance and now the top four putting us in a hugely strong position, it certainly is on the cards tomorrow. If we can get a full day in, maybe 60 or 70 overs at Afghanistan, we certainly would fancy our chances.”Ireland showed how to play in the conditions, with Cusack adding an unbeaten 34 batting at No. 3, to go with his 4 for 31. Naib and Karim Sadiq made the breakthroughs for Afghanistan but after Paul Stirling fell for 42, Cusack and Surrey’s Gary Wilson added a further 61 runs.

Australian cricket will be in search of a new Test match sponsor ahead of the 2013-14 Ashes series, after Vodafone announced it would end a union that has lasted 11 years and furnished the game with more than Aus$10 million in financial support. The telecommunications company will end its relationship with Cricket Australia following the end of next summer’s series against South Africa and Sri Lanka.Vodafone first chimed in as Australia’s major Test-match backer when Ansett Airlines collapsed just weeks ahead of the 2001-02 home summer, and has promoted the brands Orange, Three and Vodafone in turn over more than a decade. However the company’s recent series of network and customer service problems in Australia has prompted a change in focus; the network is also withdrawing its presence in Australia’s V8 motor racing competition.”Like all sports’ sponsorships, there comes a time when the sponsor achieves its partnership objectives and moves on with new strategic priorities,” CA’s commercial general manager, Mike McKenna, said. “We understand that Test cricket has helped Orange, Three and Vodafone become Australian household names, and we look forward to continuing to work with Vodafone next summer in what will be the final season of our successful relationship.”Our partner, via these brands, has helped us promote Test cricket and the sport is better for their long-term support.”While McKenna stressed CA’s view that “the Australian team playing Test cricket at home is possibly the most valuable sports’ sponsorship asset in Australia”, the search for a new major sponsor may yet prove vexing.CA is already heavily reliant on alcohol and fast food sponsorship to maintain the corporate slice of its revenue, and Twenty20 Big Bash League teams all complained last year of the difficulties in finding new sponsors in an increasingly competitive and financially frugal marketplace.However the lure of a home Ashes series in 2013-14 to begin the new partnership is CA’s ace in their pursuit of a new name to emblazon on the Test shirts of its players and sight screens of the country’s grounds.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsLasith Malinga sunk the Chargers with 4 for 16•AFP

After their first win on Thursday following five consecutive losses, Deccan Chargers were back to being what they have been this IPL season – dismal and disappointing. Once again, a decent start proved to be a false dawn. Once again, they had only themselves to blame. On a greenish Wankhede pitch aiding fast bowlers, Chargers allowed Harbhajan Singh figures of 4-0-13-2. They contrived to lose regular wickets, hitting wide balls straight to fielders. And they did not have another bowler remotely in the class of Dale Steyn, who tormented the home batsmen nearly every delivery he bowled.Not that Chargers did not try, initially at least. Their captain Kumar Sangakkara, with 83 runs in five games at a strike-rate of 95.40, sat out the game. Chargers made three more changes. Shikhar Dhawan and Parthiv Patel even managed to add 37 by the sixth over, which was not a bad start given the appreciable swing and bounce RP Singh was getting.And then they fell apart. Six wickets went down in the space of 7.3 overs for 29 runs. Parthiv checked his drive to an RP slower delivery but ended up chipping it to mid-on. With Cameron White, JP Duminy and Daniel Christian available, Chargers sent Ishank Jaggi at No. 3. After looking clueless against pace for six deliveries, Jaggi tried to attack Harbhajan and found mid-off. White slashed his first delivery to third man; Christian was to cut his fifth straight to point.In between, Dhawan, having watched his side implode, charged out to Harbhajan, only to be stumped for 29. It was to be the highest score by a Chargers batsman tonight. Harbhajan kept the pressure up, firing some in, tossing many up, and varying his pace.Though Duminy tried to ensure Chargers at least played out their 20 overs, their lower order crumbled against Lasith Malinga by the 19th. It wasn’t an easy pitch to bat on by any means but Chargers needed something truly special from Steyn to even challenge Mumbai Indians.Steyn tried as hard as he could. He knocked back Richard Levi’s stumps first ball of the chase with a pacy outswinger. He could have had Rohit Sharma four times in four deliveries, but the ball beat the outside edge each time. Steyn came back in the ninth over, with a forward short leg to Dinesh Karthik, who immediately nibbled one through to the wicketkeeper.Steyn could have had a third wicket, and Chargers could have still made a match of it, had Amit Mishra not put down a straightforward chance off James Franklin at third man with 36 needed off 44. The scorebook recorded a spell of 4-0-10-2, but it did not reveal the extent of the pressure Steyn created, even in a chase of just 101.Rohit’s luck, though, was to earn him an invaluable 42 runs, and ultimately prove decisive. He was beaten on the drive, he was beaten on the cut, and he was beaten on the defensive push. Inside edges eluded the stumps. An airy push went just over extra cover, a clip just past midwicket. But today, Rohit had more lives than a cat. By the time he finally threw it away, holing out down the ground off Duminy, Mumbai Indians needed only 26 off 36.The home side handed the visitors another chance, when Franklin gloved a hook to the keeper, but Mishra was to again give it away. A wide, a full toss and a short ball in his poor 18th over that went for 14 finally shut the door on Chargers, leaving them with their sixth loss in seven completed games.

Melissa Bulow has made it to Australia’s AIS-Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars squad for the 2012-13 contract period, following her fine domestic Twenty20 season with the Queensland Fire. Bulow, a batsman, is one of 18 players in the squad, which was selected by the women’s national selection panel [WNSP] on Tuesday. Shelley Nitschke, who retired from international cricket last July, and Annie-Rose Maloney, are the players to miss out from the previous squad.

The Southern Stars squad

Alex Blackwell, Melissa Bulow, Jess Cameron, Sarah Coyte, Lauren Ebsary, Sarah Elliott, Jodie Fields, Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy, Julie Hunter, Jessica Jonassen, Meg Lanning, Sharon Millanta, Erin Osborne, Ellyse Perry, Leah Poulton, Clea Smith, Lisa Sthalekar
In: Melissa Bulow
Out: Shelley Nitschke, Annie-Rose Maloney

The Southern Stars are supported by Australian Government, through the Australian Sports Commission Women in Sport Media Grant, which aims to extend the reach of women’s sport in the Australian media.”The forthcoming season includes two ICC ranking events – the ICC World Twenty20 to be held in Sri Lanka in September 2012 and the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup to be held in India in March 2013. It is pleasing to see minimal change in the squad, reflecting the good performances of the team over the past 12 months,” WNSP head, Julie Savage, said. “[The omitted] Annie-Rose Maloney had experienced a disappointing domestic season with the ball.”Melissa Bulow has been added to the squad following an outstanding Women’s Twenty20 season for the Queensland Fire, in which she was the leading run-scorer, scoring 505 runs at an average of 50.5 and a strike-rate of 119.39.”

West Indies have recalled batsman Narsingh Deonarine for the first Test against Australia in Barbados, starting April 7. The 13-member squad also includes fast bowler Ravi Rampaul, who missed the one-dayers and Twenty20 due to injury and illness.Deonarine, the left-handed middle-order batsman and offspinner, last played for West Indies during the home series against South Africa in 2010. He was the leading run-scorer in the Regional Four-Day Competition with 582 runs in seven matches at an average of 44.76. He also took 20 wickets for Guyana, including two five-wicket hauls.”Deonarine has been the leading the batsman this season in the Regional Four-Day and has demonstrated his commitment and a new level of maturity,” said Clyde Butts, the chairman of selectors. “We have not seen many big scores from the batsmen in this year’s competition, but he has played some very good innings for Guyana and also bowled very well coming onto the latter half of the tournament. We expect this same level of focus against the Aussies. He is sure to be an asset.”Deonarine was among those not offered a contract or retainer last year by the West Indies Cricket Board because his fitness was “deemed unsatisfactory”. The board was not pleased with his attitude to fitness, which it said was “unacceptable for an international cricketer”.

Squad for first Test

Darren Sammy (capt), Kirk Edwards (vice-capt), Adrian Barath, Carlton Baugh (wk), Devendra Bishoo, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Narsingh Deonarine, Fidel Edwards, Kieran Powell, Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach

Butts said he was impressed by the performances of the batsmen on the two away tours of Bangladesh and India last year, and backed them to do the same against Australia, ranked No.3 in the world.Kirk Edwards, who scored a century on Test debut against India last year, has been named Darren Sammy’s deputy. Those missing from the squad that toured India include the experienced batsman Marlon Samuels, wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin and spinner Shane Shillingford. Samuels, who played the one-dayers recently is away in India for the IPL.Rampaul was unable to be considered for the West Indies pre-tour training squad or the ODI series due to a bout of dengue fever. He also had to shrug off a shoulder problem. He played for the Trinidad and Tobago in the Regional Four-Day semi-final against Barbados, taking 4 for 55 in the first innings.The one-dayers and Twenty20 series were shared 2-2 and 1-1 respectively.Edited by Kanishkaa Balachandran

ScorecardEd Cowan made 82 for Tasmania•Getty Images

Ed Cowan ensured Tasmania would take first-innings points on the second day at Bellerive Oval, where his 82 steered the Tigers past Queensland’s 205 late in the afternoon. But Cowan fell shortly before stumps and at the close of play Tasmania were 5 for 221, leading by 16 runs and relying on Matt Johnston, who was on 3, and Luke Butterworth, who had made 9.Cowan was caught at cover off Ben Cutting, who collected 2 for 57, and it gave the Bulls a sniff having not long ago removed Mark Cosgrove, who was run out for 67. Cosgrove and Cowan had compiled a 95-run partnership after the loss of the captain George Bailey, who was bowled by Matthew Gale for 27 off 30 balls.Bailey needed to bat early in the day for he was due to fly out in the afternoon to join Australia’s one-day squad in Brisbane ahead of Sunday’s ODI against India. In the morning, Queensland had added only 10 to their overnight total as Jackson Bird (6 for 62) claimed the final wicket, Alister McDermott lbw for 13, with Cutting left unbeaten on 79.