For Ashes series tickets are selling fast

Tickets are selling fast for this year's Ashes cricket series against England with some Test days already sold out, Cricket Australia said on Friday. Tickets for the opening three days of the third Test at Perth's WACA Ground have sold out while the fifth Sydney Test has sold out on day one and has very few seats remaining for days two and three, CA said. Brisbane's Gabba, Adelaide Oval and Melbourne Cricket Ground have also sold steadily, but tickets still remain for all days, it said. "There was ticket sales hysteria around the last 2006-07 Ashes series here and while we haven't quite reached those levels, ticket sales remain strong," Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland said in a statement. "In all, there are very few tickets remaining for the opening one or two days of play across all Ashes Tests and I certainly encourage cricket fans to get in quickly or they may be disappointed. "The opening Test at the Gabba gets underway on November 25 followed by Tests in Adelaide (December 3-7), Perth (December 16-20), Melbourne (December 26-30) and Sydney (January 3-7).England hold the Ashes after winning the last year's series 2-1 at home.

Ashes Sky's lobbying and BBC's reluctance keep Test matches off terrestrial TV

Plans to return the Ashes cricket coverage to terrestrial TV will be scrapped by the Government.
Under Labour proposals, the sporting event would have been given protected status and would have been shown on non pay TV services like the BBC.
But the coalition will announce tomorrow that it is dumping the idea.

The decision also means England football home and away qualifying games will not be protected as planned and neither will The Open golf tournament.
The sports and Olympics minister Hugh Robertson is set to confirm that it will not be adopting the proposals put together by a review panel under the previous Labour administration.
Instead he is expected to say that the recent list of protected events does not need changing.
The new Government is thought to have listened to concerns from organisations such as the England and Wales Cricket Board, who had argued that they would lose millions of pounds in revenue if they could not sell broadcast rights to the highest bidder.
Sky, which recently owns the rights to live Ashes games on its pay TV service, is also thought to have lobbied hard against the changes, while the BBC was reluctant to hand over large swathes of its schedules to cricket.
The decision will no doubt reignite concerns about the perceived closeness between the Government and Rupert Murdoch.
Former Football Association executive director David Davies's review unveiled in November had proposed returning the home matches of the historic cricket series back to free to air TV from 2017.
His recommendations had also removed protected status for the Winter Olympics along with The Epsom Derby and rugby league's Challenge Cup final.
The news will come as a blow to campaigners, such as former Labour John Grogan MP, who have been fighting to get live Ashes cricket back on terrestrial TV.
Mr Grogan last year put down an early day motion backed by 71 MPs calling on the Government to support the recommendations of the Davies committee.
Yesterday he expressed sadness at the decision. He said: 'I am disappointed that they have set aside the conclusions of the report which David Davies worked on with his colleagues for months on end.
'In particular there will be sadness that the Ashes won't be listed and a whole generation of people will grow up not being able to watch their national cricket team live.'
He also expressed fears it would affect the number of children taking up the game.
At the time that the panel's findings were revealed, cricket chief Giles Clarke had warned it could lead to 'a decade of decay' for his sport.
In 1998 home Test match cricket was controversially dumped from the list of 'crown jewel' events which allowed the ECB to negotiate multi-million pound deals with Sky.
In 2008 the ECB signed a four year deal with Sky and Channel Five (who broadcast daily highlights from home Tests) worth a combined £300million and running from 2010 to 2013.
The proposed changes had also included Wales Six Nations matches and all the international football qualifiers for the other home nations - Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
It is thought the tough economic climate strengthened claims by sports bodies that the moves would damage their revenues.
A spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport refused to comment ahead of tomorrow's announcement.

The Ashes: Australians plan for the Ashes

If any of the five Australia debutants can impress against Pakistan in the upcoming Test series, in November a ticket for the Ashes starting in Brisbane could be the reward. But Ahmed Rizvi writes that it is not just the new boys who are in need of nice performances, some of the most established members of the squad have question marks hanging over them, too
Ricky Ponting
The Australia captain has scored more than 11,900 runs and 39 centuries in Test cricket, but is yet to reach the three figure mark at Lord’s, where the first Test starts today. The likes of Bangladesh’s Tamim Iqbal have their name inscribed on the honour board at the home of cricket, but Ponting has a top score of 42 in six innings at the venue. This could be his last Test at the ground and “Punter” is keen to finally get a century on the haloed turf. “Over the years, I have not got a great record at Lord’s as far as Test cricket is concerned,” he said. “It would be nice to make a hundred there. But if that doesn’t happen, there’s not much I can do about it.”
Mitchell Johnson
Johnson also does not have glad memories of Lord’s.The last time he played a Test at the home of cricket, it was the fourth match of the 2009 Ashes and the left arm pacer was hammered for 200 runs as England won by 115 runs to take a 2-1 lead in the series. Johnson still remembers that game and is keen to exorcise those demons ahead of the battle for the urn Down Under.“That Ashes experience was very frustrating,” he said. “I was going through a few personal things at the time. I was spraying the ball about. But I have learned from it and proved to myself I am a better bowler.”
Michael Hussey

“Mr Cricket” also has bad memories from his last visit to England. Hussey was the least successful of Australia’s batsmen in the 2009 Ashes with two ducks and two other scores of less than 10 runs in eight innings, before he finished off with a well made 121 at The Oval. Against Pakistan, he has had no such problems with a memorable century at Sydney earlier in the year and an incredible innings of 60 from 24 balls in the semi final of the World Twenty20. He will be looking to build on those impressive knocks and hope to carry that form over for when England visit Australia later in the year.
Steven Smith
Since making his international debut in February this year, the leg-spinner has won many admirers for his attitude.His growing reputation will, however, be put to the test when the 21-year-old plays his first Test match, against a team traditionally strong against spinners.The England think-tank will be making notes as he bowls to the likes of the Butts, Akmals and Afridis.Should he succeed against players of their ilk, he will have truly arrived.If things don’t go his way, Smith can find solace in Shane Warne’s disappointing Test debut against India and come back stronger to follow in the footsteps of a peerless legend.
Tim Paine
A talented top-order batsman and wicketkeeper, Tim Paine could be making his Test debut against Pakistan today.He has already got glowing recommendations from his captain. “Expect a big showing from him,” said Ponting.
“He is very, very solid behind the stumps and very technically correct as a batsman.”Paine will look to prove him right after a mixed showing in the recent one-day international series against England when he failed to build on good starts.But if he can improve against Pakistan, a place in the Ashes squad will surely be his.

Uni Oval new home for Sutcliffe ashes?

The ashes of cricketing great Bert Sutcliffe might be shifted to the new home of Otago cricket, a move prompted by the demise of Carisbrook.
Otago Cricket Association chief executive Ross Dykes yesterday confirmed that the Sutcliffe family had given their blessing to relocating the ashes of the legendary left handed batsman from their place at Carisbrook to the University Oval.
Sutcliffe, regarded as Otago's and arguably New Zealand's greatest batsman, scored a then-record 17 first class centuries for Otago - equalled last year by Otago captain Craig Cumming - while amassing 6028 runs at an average of 59.09.
Sutcliffe died in Auckland in 2001, aged 77, but his ashes were returned to Dunedin to be buried in an urn at Carisbrook.
They rest under the same hallowed turf as the ashes of All Black Charlie Saxton, while others - including former Otago opening batsman Ray Hunt - were also believed to have been scattered on the field.
Yesterday, Mr Dykes said the idea of moving Sutcliffe's ashes was yet to be confirmed, but he imagined relocating them to a plot somewhere on the University Oval ground, with the spot marked by a brass plaque.
"Bert Sutcliffe was a cricket player, and they (his ashes) should be at a cricket ground," he said.
"The University Oval is the home of Otago cricket now, and Bert was our most famous player. If there are ashes, they should rest at the home of Otago Cricket," Mr Dykes said.
The transfer could take place in the next few months, while work to extend the University Oval's boundaries was under way, he said.
Questions about what to do with ashes at Carisbrook were raised in 2006, but have re-emerged as the Dunedin City Council - which bought the ground last year - considers proposals for the venue's future use, ranging from playing fields to a light industrial park.

Otago Rugby Football Union chief executive Richard Reid said he had discussed relocating Sutcliffe's ashes with Mr Dykes, and would support the move.
Mr Reid had also discussed Charlie Saxton's ashes with the All Black's son, Bill Saxton, but no decisions had been made and there was "no particular hurry".
"We are certainly aware of it and we will be respectful of everything we need to do, and work with the families," he said.
Carisbrook Stadium Trust chairman Malcolm Farry said Carisbrook was "hallowed ground", and perhaps more so than some people realised.
He had heard unconfirmed reports of families "not infrequently" gaining access to Carisbrook without permission to scatter the ashes of a loved one on the playing surface.
"I have no evidence of that ... but you can imagine, can't you, that possibly that might happen."