Sydney hit Lions for Sixers

Having tipped the Highveld Lions, it was inevitable that the Sydney Sixers would win the Champions League Trophy. However, few would have predicted such a one-sided contest.

The South Africans had got this far despite the poor form of their captain Alviro Petersen, and his miserable run continued. Being dismissed for a single is bad enough but when the opener is fourth back in the pavilion with the score on nine, things looked serious for the men in red. Spinners Nathan McCullum, one of only two non-Aussies in the side, and Steve O'Keefe, ripped out the Lions' teeth inside four overs and it was only through some sensible resistance from Jean Symes that they posted a vaguely defendible target.

The competition has been memorable for the economy and wicket-taking of the Lions' own spin duo Morris and Phangiso but they couldn't provide a repeat of their semi-final heroics. Skipper Brad Haddin and SA-born England international Michael Lumb ensured the Aussies romped to an amazing ten-wicket victory. No surprise that the latter won the Man of the Match award - the top batsman nearly always does - but O'Keefe or Josh Hazlewood deserved the plaudits.

Pink was the colour at the Wanderers and congratulations for the Sixers for not only ending the fortnight unbeaten but also for doing it without star performer Shane Watson in the final three matches. Michael Lumb was the top CLT scorer on 226 and Mitch Starc claimed more wickets than anyone else, so the Sydney outfit really did win everything going.

It'll be interesting to see how the young franchise progresses. Champions of the Big Bash and now the international tourney, they will take some beating. IPL sides like the Daredevils and Indians may be stacked with global superstars but the Sixers looked a more cohesive unit, with a more solid bowling attack than any other side on show. Few of them will be returning in the forthcoming Test series but South Africa must be fancying their chances of gaining revenge against Australian opposition in a few weeks' time, even wearing white instead of garish 'mangenta'.

IPL 0, Rest of World 3

At last, something about the Champions League to cheer about! For a tournament funded, scheduled and structured to maximise the chances of an IPL franchise victory, it must be galling for the organisers to face the situation of all three remaining teams representing either South Africa or Australia.

The scarlet-clad Lions side ended the Delhi Daredevils' unbeaten run in the competition this evening. Chris Morris took 2-7 in his four overs, including the big wickets of Warner and Pietersen, as the IPL superstars collapsed in the second half of their innings. Morris' figures were especially notable because seamers are rarely so frugal, but he was well supported by spinner Aaron Phangiso and Sohail Tanvir. Neil McKenzie, as he so often is, had been the most impressive home batsman with an unbeaten 46 from 28 balls.

The domestic T20 Challenge runners-up may not boast an international all-star cast but they had enough quality to win three out of their four Group matches. Gulam Bodi is easily the highest scorer in the Champions League so far, thanks to three half-centuries. Phangiso is second in the wicket-taking table, and has conceded on average fewer than five runs an over. Rent-a-T20 paceman Dirk Nannes may have gone with the Lions for this tourney but he has been outshone by most of his team-mates.

Vying to meet them in the Final are their domestic conquerors the Titans and Big Bash winners Sydney Sixers. Plenty of talent in this semi, too. The Aussies are awash with internationals, and on paper their bowlers look particularly impressive. Starc, Cummins and Hazelwood are top-class young seamers, backed by Henriques and a certain Shane Watson. Watto opens the batting with England's Michael Lumb, but Brad Haddin, Dominic Thornely and Steven Smith make for a fragile middle-order. Nevertheless they have a 100% record to date.

I must make the Titans favourites, especially playing at Centurion. Jacques Rudolph has been in the runs, and Roelof van der Merwe's spin has been a potent weapon, even in the thumping defeat at the hands of KKR last weekend. All it takes is for the rest of the team to reach their potential and the Sixers will have a real challenge on their hands. De Villiers, Van der Merwe (with the bat), van Jaarsveld and Alfonso Thomas are amongst the South African line-up who can do considerable damage, but against such am strong Aussie attack, the batsmen have to make steady runs if they are to win. The Warriors have been South Africa's only CLT finalists in the three previous years but it could well be two this time, while he Sixers hope to emulate NSW who won the inaugural competition in 2009. I'll stick my neck out and go for the Lions to go all the way.

Where England Lions lead, the Test team must surely follow

I fear for the West Indies. With so little acclimatisation to English conditions, their main rehearsal for the First Test match resulted in a ten-wicket drubbing by the Lions at Northampton. If what is virtually the England reserves-cum-under-23 XI can inflict such a defeat on the tourists, what on earth will the world's number one side do at Lord's? With Darren Sammy one of the few players missing from the Test Eleven, it was an embarrassing defeat for the West Indians. No wonder Ottis Gibson has gone on record hoping that the game will go to a fifth day, and surely he didn't mean his own team would wrap it up inside four! Chanderpaul apart, none of the West Indian batsmen have compiled any sort of score coming into the Lions game. Barath, Edwards and Samuels are hopelessly out of form, so Sammy must at least be happy that Kieran Powell struck a useful 108 this week, and Darren Bravo passed 50 in each innings. The bowling's not looking much better, with a chunk of the attack still to arrive on these shores. Roach injured a hand, while Rampaul and Fidel Edwards bowled a mere ten overs on the final day, leaving Shillingford and Samuels to shoulder the burden while Michael Carberry and Joe Root filled their boots. So what about the Lions? While skipper James Taylor scored a century, it is Jonny Bairstow - who scored 50 - who has received the Test call-up as a replacement for the unlucky Ravi Bopara, withdrawn with a thigh injury acquired whilst playing for Essex. The Yorkshire 'keeper-batsman has looked good in the Championship, albeit in Division Two, whilst Taylor, now playing top tier cricket with Notts, had yet to notch a half-century other than against Loughborough students. Carberry did OK while Bell and Patel did themselves few favours whilst being unlikely to lose their places in a winning side. It was the Lions bowling which looked the most potent force. Surrey duo Stuart Meaker and Jade Dernbach generated useful pace, while Jack Brooks' 6-69 match stats demonstrated the progress he is making. At 27, he is a late starter but has now accumulated 115 first-class wickets in 31 games. Kent seamer Matt Coles, fresh from some strong county performances, also claimed six scalps for the Lions. At 21, he is probably down the list of Test bowlers-in-waiting but with more first-class experience with Kent and the Lions under his belt, he may yet make his mark, especially as he can bat a bit, too. As for the likes of Anderson, Broad, Bresnan et al, they must be licking their lips at the prospect of bowling to the West Indies, for whom only the rain can come to their rescue and even take the fixture to that fifth day.

England Lions fail to roar in Bangladesh

After all the fuss about the world's top teams failing to demonstrate their official supremacy abroad, it seems that the England Lions continued that trend by losing their unofficial ODI series against Bangladesh A 2-3. All five matches at Chittagong and Sylhet were low-scoring affairs and few England players passed fifty.

Joe Root's 81 was negated by Imrul Kayes' century in the fourth match but Jonny Bairstow's unbeaten 50 helped win the second and captain James Taylor redeemed himself with 65 not out to gain a consolation victory in the final fixture. Joss Buttler smacked some useful cameos throughout the series but the home team had more oomph about their batting. Nevertheless you might have expected a side boasting Taylor, Bairstow, Meaker,Buttler and Briggs to perform a bit better, although the games gave useful experienced to the relatively untried Roy, Brooks, Buck and 19 year-old left-arm paceman Tymal Mills.

They next travel to Sri Lanka for more of the same. Last year, the Lions had some great first-class experience, helping Taylor to become the highest first-class run scorer in the world for 2011. One-dayers are not his forte but his List A average is very high and more international experience at this format will help him develop into the role of successor or team-mate to the likes of Strauss, Bell and Morgan. Tom Maynard didn't have a great series but his time will probably come.

England Lions roaring in the wings

While the senior team are currently conquering all before them, the new pride of England Lions are just about honours even in their one-off four-day match against Sri Lanka 'A' at Scarborough. With such success on the Test scene, there aren't too many vacancies in the 1st XI right now, unless Jonathan Trott doesn't recover from his shoulder injury in time for Edgbaston. However, a good display in an 'unofficial Test' will catch the eye of selectors better than a month of centuries and wickets in the County Championship.

On the Caribbean tour, James Hildreth looked the part as he skippered a classy side. Unfortunately, his form has dipped with Somerset this summer and he has been dropped, along with Adam Lyth and Jimmy Adams. Leicestershire's James Taylor has been promoted to captain what is by and large a very young set of players. The exception is Ravi Bopara and, if Trott is unfit next week and selectors don't want to lose a batsman, his place surely has the Essex number three's name on it. However, if Taylor stakes a major claim for the Lions, why not give him a go at the top table? A former Young Player of the Year, his first-class average is not far short of 50 and he shown more consistency over the past three years than the likes of Lyth, Adams and others.

Taylor got off to a good start today, top scoring with 76, while Bopara made only 19. A few weeks ago, he thumped a big hundred against the same team, so he clearly knows his away around medium pacers and spin. My recent Player of the Week Alex Hales scored 50 today, while Jonny Bairstow and Samit Patel also weighed in with half-centuries. Yorkshire's 20 year-old Joe Root and Craig Kieswetter, an international veteran at 23 (!) fared less well.

Now it will be the bowlers' opportunity to shine. I'm a fan of Glamorgan's James Harris but Surrey duo Jade Dernbach and Stuart Meaker have fans in high places. Spinner Scott Borthwick hasn't played much first-class cricket in recent weeks, taking few wickets, but a maiden century for Durham against, yes, Sri Lanka A last week may have helped him clinch a place with the Lions ahead of Rashid and Briggs.

None of these players are seriously threatening the places of Anderson, Broad, Bresnan, Tremlett or Swann but if injury or mysterious food poisoning should strike, Geoff Miller and Andy Flower need to know there are talented bowlers waiting in the wings. Dernbach and Patel have already been tried in ODIs so they are in pole position. However, if it were my choice I'd give Chris Woakes the nod.

Anyway, let's see what the next three days bring in Yorkshire, and whether some of the Lions roar loud enough to keep England's Test heroes on their toes.

Will the England Lions Roar?

Most of the headlines around the announcement of the Engand Lions squad to face Sri Lanka next week concern the rivalry between Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara for the number six slot in the senior side. Fair enough, as they are leading candidates to fill the slot vacated by Paul Collingwood, but neither are exactly helping their cause.

I have written before about my appreciation for the Essex star's decision to forego the IPL payday in favour of playing first-class cricket and getting runs under his belt in readiness for Tests. Morgan, however, has been preparing for the five-day game by indulging in the lucrative T20 tournament, so he needs to perform in the Lions game at Derby. His lack of preparation did him no harm last summer when, against my expectations, he scored over 200 runs in his first three Test innings, including 130 against Pakistan. However, his last five yielded a miserable 45.

James Hildreth captains the side, as he did successfully during the winter. The Somerset man could be a genuine contender for the senior side only he is not enjoying the best of starts in the County Championship. Samit Patel is being talked up for a possible recall. He has scored one century and a few 50s so far this summer but bagged a pair at te hands of his ex-teammate Ryan Sidebottom. Perhaps his offspin could provide an extra dimension but he is still hardly an athlete in the field, unlike Morgan.

Hampshire's Jimmy Adams deserves his place as opener but I'm not sure who will be his partner at the start of the innings, since none of the other eleven open for their counties. There is no Adam Lyth for starters. Craig Kieswetter could have done the job, as he does in one-dayers but he is ruled out by injury. His fellow wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow takes his place, fresh from a successful few weeks for Yorkshire, but is not a natural opener. I admire James Taylor. Only two years ago he was the PCA Young Cricketer of the Year and, still only 21, he has a first-class batting average of almost 49, a sound temperament and, rarely these days, is content to compile an innings rather an succumb to arrogant slogs a la T20. I also like the fact that he is under 5 feet 6 tall and we shorties have to stick together!

I feel England have a wealth of young batting talent but I have my doubts about the bowling succession strategy. Every time we produce a Steven Finn or Graham Onions, and they leave their counties for England in order to prevent wear and tear, they automatically pick up long-term injuries. How does that happen?! Good to see both are in the Lions squad but it's Onions who has shown the most promise in the summer to date. Ajmal Shahzad had his Test debut against Bangladesh last summer and played for England in the World Cup, so is effectively in the driving seat for a senior recall. Chris Woakes must surely have been pushing for a place but sore shins has caused him to pull out. The curse of England fast bowlers strikes again?

The twelve is completed by Surrey's Jade Dernbach and Hampshire's young spinner Danny Briggs. A Performance Squad member in the winter, Dernbach enjoyed some good performances in the Caribbean and did well against Leicestershire last week. I haven't seen him play but, given he was born in South Africa he must surely get promotion soon! Briggs was also born overseas - but on the definitely English Isle of Wight! He is still barely out of his teens but has already claimed almost 100 first-class wickets, including many on the unfriendly West Indian wickets earlier this year. He really made his name in the domestic T20 competition in 2010, able to combine wicket-taking with eye-catching economy. Shane Warne may be retiring but do England have a great international leg-spinner of the future? If he continues in recent vain, he and Woakes deserve to be the cornerstones of England's one-day and T20 teams for years to come and I hope in Tests, too. Whoever is selected in the final XI next week, Sri Lanka will certainly have a tough game on their hands.