Irresistible England again dominated India with bat and ball, and defied the
Oval rain, to stay on course for an npower series whitewash.

England dominate as India crumble again

India’s cricketers are being provided with a 24-hour security contingent until the end of their tour of England. Without it, they would have gone home after being caught up in the riots which swept across England last week.

ECB saved series by giving India 24-hour security after riots

While somerset and Lancashire worry about how the weather might influence their title prospects with less than a month left in the race, Warwickshire’s anxieties are directed more towards the England selectors.

Warwicks fear losing Woakes to national service for title run-in

There was a time when playing Ireland across the water would be nothing much more than a jolly for England’s cricketers. But no longer – and certainly not after a certain World Cup result that did wonders for the sale of the dark stuff all around the globe.

Cook to lead fringe England squad to take on Ireland’s Cup heroes

Lancashire’s plan to pile on enough runs to put Worcestershire out of contention in search of the win that will give them the lead in the Championship was undermined by a batting collapse at Blackpool, where a century from Vikram Solanki gave the visitors a faint chance of pulling off an unlikely victory.

Round-up: Lancashire’s collapse allows Solanki to set up tight finish

When a man named Strauss tells you what is and what isn’t waltz, you are inclined to listen – and this is especially so when he also happens to be arguably the most successful captain in the history of English cricket.

James Lawton: Unstoppable Bell makes Pietersen play second fiddle as England waltz

Around halfway through the report on the crisis in Australian cricket, the authors reach the nub of the problems. They conclude that nobody can bat, bowl or field.

Australia admit: ‘We can’t actually bat, bowl or field

Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen piled up twin hundreds in a record triple-century
stand as England showed India no mercy on day two of the fourth npower Test
at The Oval.

England dominate at The Oval

Alastair Cook is likely to lead an England team minus several star names in a
one-day international against Ireland in Dublin next Thursday.

Alastair Cook set to lead fringe squad in Ireland

Corporate folk have a thing about rebranding, even when it seems quite
unnecessary. Just as Marathon once inexplicably became Snickers, so the City
End at Edgbaston is now the Birmingham End. Perhaps it is so spectators
still taking in the unfamiliar view from the top of the enormous new
pavilion don’t forget where they are.

County round-up: Wonderful Woakes leads the rout of Hampshire

Andrew Hilditch, Greg Chappell and Tim Nielsen are the high-profile victims of
sweeping changes at Cricket Australia, brought on by a review into the
sport.

Sweeping changes for Australian cricket following review

England were jolly good yesterday, India were dreadful. In the two hours of play that were possible on the first day of the final Test, the story of the summer unfolded.

Clinical England pour on the agony

The Oval is the place to be, it would appear, if you want to see a Test team hit rock bottom. England managed it 12 years ago when losing to New Zealand and, for a couple of hours yesterday, India’s attack set a new low in terms of scraping the barrel.

‘Daddy’ Gooch proud of protégé Cook as he savours English rise

More than two years since international cricket was suspended in Pakistan, plans are being laid for rehabilitation. It will be fraught with complexity and will need delicate negotiation, but the initial intention is to send a goodwill XI comprising star players from round the world.

Cricket to return to Pakistan when ICC sends in World XI

Maybe the opening over bowled by Rudra Pratap Singh here yesterday in a Test match said to be laden with historical significance was not the most anticlimactic passage in the annals of big-time sport.

James Lawton: Bewildered and beaten, India run up the white flag

England finished a drastically truncated first day of the fourth npower Test
at The Oval with a useful initial advantage over India.

England on top as rain ruins first day

Whatever unfolds these next five days, whether indeed England’s Test cricketers will even need five days to apply one final devastating heave to the tumbling self-confidence of their Indian counterparts, or whether India can resurrect some of their old authority with the bat, if not the ball, one thing is certain: The Oval has a special place in the hearts of Indian cricket lovers old enough to remember 1971, which will not be diminished even by another mauling as comprehensive as that at Edgbaston.

Brian Viner: Kennington’s venue of epic deeds

Lancashire fans have been known to have the odd grumble about the elements over the years – usually something along the lines of how rain has deprived them of winning the County Championship since they shared it in 1950 – but the weather gods smiled upon the Red Rose yesterday.

County round-up: Son of Blackpool grateful for the sun as Lancs shine

England will take the field at The Oval today for the first time as Test champions of the world. It has a lovely ring to it, a status bestowed simply by being top of the ICC rankings, which they confirmed by defeating India at Edgbaston last Saturday and going 3-0 up in the series.

Strauss’ grand plan: Finish off India, then conquer world

The age when English cricket was regarded as a joke has been banished for ever. In looking forward yesterday to the fourth Test as captain of the newly installed No 1 team in the world, Andrew Strauss said: “English cricket’s been through a long evolutionary cycle. The days of it being kind of a laughing stock have gone, hopefully for good, for all sorts of reasons. The challenge for us all is to make sure that continues.”

Anderson passed fit as England aim to have the last laugh as well

England’s final ascent to the summit has been peculiar in one remarkable respect. The man taking the back seat, almost its sole occupant, is the same fellow who has spent most of his Test career jostling for position at the front, often doing the driving and stamping the tickets.

Off colour – but is this the start of a Swann dive?

James Anderson bowled for half-an-hour during England’s net session this
morning without apparent discomfort from his “minor” thigh injury.

James Anderson eases England injury fears

If Indians were saddened by their team’s woeful performance last week and their fall from the top perch of Test rankings, then they could hardly have been entirely surprised. What certainly did hurt was the manner of their idols’ defeat.

‘Humiliation complete’ as India laments latest embarrassing defeat

If you want to know which way this title race is going, look up. With the battle for the pennant now into its final month, the key factor may not be playing heroics but just how much time each of the four sides in contention (Durham, Lancashire, Somerset and Warwickshire) get in the field. The weather forecast suggests there will be plenty of rain over the next month. If it does end up playing a key role then Warwickshire could be the team to watch: the county suffers fewer rain days in August and September than its three rivals for the title, according to Met Office figures (see panel, below).

Will Hawkes: Why weather gods could have final say in congested title race

Look away now Ravi Bopara. The diminutive Leicestershire batsman James Taylor hit another century yesterday as England Lions hammered Sri Lanka A by 135 runs in a one-day game at Northampton.

Cricket round-up: Lions maul Sri Lankans as series victory is Taylor-made

There can be no other job like it. Part of life as a professional sportsman is being told how to go about your business by people who claim to be experts but have never been within a light year of a changing room.

Why Strauss is England’s greatest ever captain

England may need to offer further evidence of their strength in depth following enforced changes yesterday to their squad for the fourth Test. Jimmy Anderson, one of the heroes of Edgbaston and of recent campaigns in general, has an injured quadriceps, and Chris Tremlett failed a fitness test on his back.

Onions back in Test frame after injuries hit Anderson and Tremlett

England today called Graham Onions into their squad for the fourth npower Test
at The Oval, after Chris Tremlett was ruled out and James Anderson emerged
as a new injury concern.

Chris Tremlett ruled out of final India Test

Some years ago, on a visit to London, Imran Khan was confronted about his spacious property outside Islamabad. How does it behove the former cricket legend to speak of Pakistan’s poor, a student demanded to know, when he lives in “a palace”? “Don’t you dare call it a palace,” Khan snapped back, in mock outrage. “It’s paradise.”

Imran Khan: A cricketing hero with his eye on political glory

Stuart Broad has heaped praise on England’s coach and captain, Andy Flower and
Andrew Strauss, for making them the number one Test side in the world.

Stuart Broad praises Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss for England rise

England might be on top of the world but they have places to go. The ranking they finally and officially achieved on Saturday by sweeping aside India for the third successive Test match is as deserved as it was belated. Now, it seems, there is progress to be made.

Flower insists this is just the start of something bigger

It is not often the august Royal Automobile Club get it wrong but they did
this time. They said the distance between Edgbaston cricket ground and St
James’ Park, Newcastle, was 208.78 miles with a driving time of three hours,
eight minutes and 40 seconds. The cost of petrol, they added, would be at
least £35.

James Lawton: English cricket’s triumph mocks tawdry offerings of the big kick-off

On a balcony at The Oval 12 years ago, Nasser Hussain was jeered. He stood there looking out over the ground and said defiantly: “I’m proud of my team and the way they fought.” They booed some more.

Five captains, 78 players and three coaches: How England finally hit No 1

An awesome batting display earned Sussex an eighth consecutive win in the
Clydesdale Bank 40 yesterday as victory over Worcestershire kept them on
course for a place in the semi-finals.

County round-up: Gatting and Joyce lead the way as Sussex smash 399

England are on top of the world. The crushing defeat of India yesterday by an innings and 242 runs put them 3-0 ahead in the series and confirmed their status at the summit of Test cricket.

Joyful England soar to summit

England’s victory could not have been much more comprehensive, the statement made in wresting away India’s status as the world’s best cricket team as emphatic as they could have imagined it might be.

Strauss warns of job only half done – staying on topis the really difficult bit

After the boom, the bust. And after the bust, the struggle for recovery. A few years ago the economies of the Western world experienced a crash after years of plenty and are now on a long hard road back to respectability. Similarly, Australia’s cricketers dominated the game for the best part of two decades, then crashed, and are now experiencing what Brett Lee described this week as a “transitional phase”. By that he means they’re transitioning from bad to worse. What he didn’t mention is that this process is being aided by erratic selectors and a lack of first-rate talent coming through the domestic game.

Amol Rajan: Hilditch’s selection sleave Aussies in the gutter looking for stars

It is reasonable to assume that Alec Bedser would steer well clear of fancy terms such as “leader of the attack” to describe Jimmy Anderson, the man who yesterday nipped past him into seventh place on the list of England’s leading Test wicket-takers.

Spearhead Anderson takes a giant stride up the honours board

England knocked India off the top of the world Test rankings with a crushing
innings-and-242-run victory at Edgbaston this afternoon.

England beat India to take world number one slot

Durham only managed to secure a couple of points in their attempt to extend their lead at the top of the County Championship while all their title rivals, Lancashire, Somerset and Warwickshire, had a week off.

County round-up: Mascarenhas skittles Durham

In securing their future, it is heartening to see Warwickshire have remembered their past. An integral part of the £32 million redevelopment of the Pavilion End at Edgbaston is the cricket museum. In it, the rich history of the club and the ground are told simply, straightforwardly and accessibly. Artefacts are few and far between but the storyboards lining the walls, taped recollections and old film footage provide an insight in to the deeds and players of the past.

On the Front Foot: Edgbaston’s passion for the past is a lesson for the future

Alastair Cook went on and on yesterday. For most of the time he looked as if
he would go on some more, all the way until England was once again a green
and pleasant land.

Run machine Cook hits epic 294 to leave India reeling

The story of Alastair Cook’s latest massive contribution to the England cause
will always be accompanied by a torrent of eye-catching little numbers like
12 hours at the crease and 33 fours and a total of runs just six short of
300. But if these particular statistics hardly lie, nor do they tell the
whole story.

James Lawton: This pillar of England, the marathon man, goes from lambs to a slaughter

Sourav Ganguly, one of India’s most successful captains, believes his old team sunk to a new low earlier this week. But he has urged fans and critics alike to show them some patience – and insisted that now is not the time to make sweeping changes.

Ganguly laments India performance but urges critics to keep the faith

Graeme Swann has been conspicuous by his quietness for most of this summer.
But while England have moved to within touching distance of a world title
without much wicket-taking assistance from their spinner, today could be
tailor-made for a significant appearance on centre stage.

Stage set for Swann to turn the screw

11.04: Start 456 for 3

How the third day unfolded

A start delayed until 1pm and subsequent stoppages for bad light brought more frustration for the Championship leaders Durham at Chester-le-Street, where captain Phil Mustard found bowling bonus points hard to come by.

Mustard must try to cut deal for Durham

Alastair Cook narrowly missed joining England’s elite club of
triple-centurions but nonetheless steered his team ever closer to number one
Test status at Edgbaston today.

Cook steers England closer to comfortable victory

Alastair Cook last night came up with a variation on the theme that cricket can be a funny old game. “It’s mad how you can be disappointed after scoring 294 – only cricket can do that,” he said.

‘You have to look at the runs I did score rather than the six I didn’t’

Ravi Bopara’s disappointment at contributing only seven to England’s mammoth total at Edgbaston will not have been eased when he learned that England Lions captain James Taylor had made a century in a comfortable victory over Sri Lanka A at Worcester.

Taylor century puts pressure on Bopara