England's play 'not in the spirit of the game'

Ricky Ponting has implied England employed delaying tactics in their dramatic draw in the first Test of the Ashes this weekend. James Anderson and Monty Panesar held out in a 69-ball stand but it was the actions of 12th man Bilal Shafayat - who twice came on to offer Anderson new batting gloves - which drew the frustration of the Australian captain.He said: "They can play whatever way they want to play. We have come to play by the rules and the spirit of the game and it is up to them to do what they want to do."Noting that tail-ender Anderson had already changed his gloves in a previous over, Ponting suggested that it was unlikely another swap was required. England captain Andrew Strauss denies that the home team were trying to stall the match and commented that he believed the game had been played with great spirit throughout. The visiting side go into Thursday's second Test at Lords at odds of 13/8 to win with bookmaker Coral (Go to Coral »). A draw is considered the most likely outcome with Betdaq (Go to Betdaq ») offering a tie at 24/19.

Written By:- Simon (About our Authors)
Posted on:- 13/07/2009 - 12:00 PM
Filed in:- Cricket Betting News