England’s bowlers in good shape for the Ashes

BIRMINGHAM - England’s bowlers are in perfect shape for the Ashes.

Pace bowler James Anderson took five wickets, while left-arm spinner Monty Panesar claimed three victims and Andrew Flintoff two.

Collingwood believes he has Australia’s number ahead of Ashes

LONDON - England all rounder Paul Collingwood has revealed his double century in the last Ashes convinced him he could cut it against Australia.

Thomson calls Ponting a ‘crap’ skipper

MELBOURNE - Former Australian pacer Jeff Thomson pulled a barbed shaft at compatriot Ricky Ponting, calling him a “crap” skipper with few supporters in the country.

Vaughan retires from all forms of professional cricket

LONDON - Former England captain Michael Vaughan Tuesday retired from all forms of cricket bringing down the curtains on an international career spanning over 11 years.

KP ‘psyches’ Oz batters with reverse swing terrors ahead of Ashes

LONDON - England batsman Kevin Pietersen has said that there is a good chance that Australia’s batters will come up against reverse swing during the Ashes series.

Proteas give England blueprint on how to beat Aussies

MELBOURNE - South Africa has handed over England its successful blueprint on how to beat the Australians in the Ashes 2009.

Panesar ‘back to basics’ before Ashes to save his career

LONDON - In an attempt to save his career, England spinner Monty Panesar, has turned to basics and is returning to what he does best, bowling the same ball six times an over.

Watson certain to miss first Ashes Test

MELBOURNE - Australia’s injured all-rounder Shane Watson has been almost ruled out for the first Ashes Test after he did not train with the team in Worcester.

Warne continues his battle with Collingwood

LONDON - Former Australian spinner Shane Warne has turned up the heat on his continuous feud with English batsman Paul Collingwood, with this time commenting on his performance in the World Twenty20 tournament.

Lee slipping from Ashes reckoning

LONDON - Former Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie believes that Australian bowling spearhead Brett Lee, who has been struggling with injuries, is in danger of falling out of the Australian team, similar to the way that he was dropped after the 2005 Ashes tour.

‘A to Z’ for the Australian squad to win the Ashes

QUEENSLAND - In an analysis done by a leading Australian newspaper, it has formulated a plan which has suggested different methods to the Australian squad for winning the historic Ashes series this year.

Siddle predicts on-field verbal spats with Pietersen

LONDON - Australian fast bowler Peter Siddle has predicted plenty of on-field verbal spats between the Australians and England’s star batsman Kevin Pietersen during the upcoming Ashes series, which is scheduled to begin from July 8.

Barmy Army ups the Ashes ante against Punter and his boys

LONDON - England’s Barmy Army has upped the ante by releasing a tongue-in-cheek tune, bashing Aussie captain Ricky Ponting in time for The Ashes.

First Ashes cricket pitch brought back to life

LONDON - The first cricket pitch used for an Ashes series on English soil has been returned to sporting use after seventy years.

Vaughan to announce retirement from Test cricket

LONDON - England’s most successful Test cricket captain Michael Vaughan will announce his retirement from Test and first-class cricket this week.

Oz bowlers fail to impress in drawn tie against Sussex

SUSSEX - The drawn tour game against Sussex has left the Australian cricket team management with creases on their foreheads, at least insofar as deciding their bowling line-up for the first Ashes Test against England to played in Cardiff from July 8.

Australian fans ask cricketers to behave well

SYDNEY - Australian cricket fans have asked Ricky Ponting’s team not to sledge, swear, cheat and spit during the Ashes series starting next month in England.

England cricketers to train in Belgium for Ashes

LONDON - The England cricket team is all set to chug along to Belgium on the Eurostar to get battle hardened for the first Ashes Test starting July 8 in Cardiff.

No balls can cost Oz bowlers Ashes selection, warns Nielsen

MELBOURNE - Australian coach Tim Nielsen has warned his bowlers to stop bowling no balls or it could cost them a berth in the Ashes Tests.

Writing off Panesar biggest mistake Australia can make: Strauss

LONDON - Andrew Strauss, back in charge for the Ashes after Paul Collingwood captained England in the World Twenty20, has warned the Australians to not write off Monty Panesar.

Climate phenomenon affects Ashes cricket series’ results, says Indian-origin researcher

WASHINGTON - An Indian-origin researcher from the Walker Institute at The University of Reading has shown that the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon significantly affects the results of the Ashes cricket series.

Warne says England would rue picking Panesar for first Test

LONDON - Spin legend Shane Warne insists that England is wrong to line up Monty Panesar to play in the first Test against Australia, starting July 8.

Hodge, Ferguson favourites to replace injured Watson in Oz Ashes squad

LONDON - Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has said that he is prepared to call up a batting replacement to the Ashes squad because of Shane Watson’s knee injury.

Stuart Broad wants to win Ashes to shut up his dad

LONDON - England’s fast bowler Stuart Broad wants to help his team regain Ashes, in order to stop his dad Chris from talking about his triumph against Australia 22 years ago. Broad has grown up knowing all about the glory of winning the Ashes, because his father keeps telling him, The Sun reports. “Do I talk to dad about what it is like winning the Ashes? Well, he certainly speaks to me about it! I’m not saying it is boring but, well, it was the highlight of his career and what he is best remembered for. He was Man of the Series,” Broad said.

Mark Waugh confident of Australia retaining Ashes

SYDNEY - Former Australian star, Mark Waugh, has expressed confidence in the Australian squad ahead of the historic Ashes series, saying that Australia is well placed to retain the trophy in England.

At right length, Lee’s formidable, says Gillespie

SYDNEY - Former Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie feels that Brett Lee can become a formidable force against England in the Ashes series if he can get his length right.

England women crowned World Twenty20 champions

LONDON - England women won the inaugural World Twenty20 cricket cup beating New Zealand by six wickets in the final at the Lord’s here Sunday.

Michael Hussey wants to enjoy all three forms of cricket

MELBOURNE - At 34, Australian batsman Michael Hussey is well aware of his shelf life and wants to play all the three versions of cricket despite the relentless international programme taking a huge toll on his body.

Tufnell goes Aussie ’sledging’ with Ashes anthem song

LONDON - As cricket fever sweeps England, Marmite and Phil Tufnell have got together to give the Aussies a sound verbal thrashing with their new cricket anthem The Ashes Song.hil and the Wooden Urns’ comic song aims to sledge the Aussies and cheer the England players on to victory this summer.

Symonds is a simple guy, asserts Waugh

NEW DELHI - Former Australian captain Steve Waugh Friday gave a peek into the mind of his troubled compatriot Andrew Symonds, saying the Queenslander thrived on the support of his state-mates.

F1 in turmoil as 8 teams announce rival series after failing to resolve budget dispute

SILVERSTONE, England — Eight Formula One teams began preparations for a rival series after failing to resolve their dispute with motor sport’s governing body over financial constraints on Friday.

F1 teams to form breakaway series after failing to resolve budget cap dispute with FIA

SILVERSTONE, England — Formula One’s biggest teams began preparations for a breakaway series early Friday after failing to resolve their dispute with motor sport’s governing body over financial constraints.

Flintoff will play key role in winning Ashes, says Laxman

LANCASHIRE - Stylish Indian batsman VVS Laxman believes that his Lancashire team-mate Andrew Flintoff will recover from his knee surgery to play a vital role in England’s endeavor to bring back the Ashes from the Australians.

England will get a massive boost with Flintoff’s return: Ponting

LEICESTER - England will get a massive boost with the return of all-rounder Andrew Flintoff to the Test squad ahead of the Ashes series, claims Australian captain Ricky Ponting.

Flower backs Flintoff to be “fit and firing” for the Ashes

LONDON - England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff is almost certain to make his way back into the team for the Ashes.