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Somerset all-rounder Ian Blackwell is taking his preparations for the new season very seriously indeed. In addition to being on a strict diet since the end of last season, he has also given up drinking alcohol completely.Since the end of the festive season, during which he admits he “had a bit of a blow out” he hasn’t had a single drink.”This is a very serious business, and I’ve made a firm resolve that I will stick to it at least until the season begins and even beyond, although it might be difficult if I get a century in my first innings!” he told me.The former Derbyshire player enjoyed his best ever season in 2001, scoring nearly 800 championship runs, including four centuries, and taking 18 wickets. In addition he scored over 400 runs and took 12 wickets in the Norwich Union League.The 23-year-old told me: “Following the end of last season I trained twice every day before I went off to play for England in the Hong Kong Sixes. Since then I’ve continued to work to the same regime with Darren Veness and Andy Hurry, and I now run regularly.”I want to play for England so for the next three months it will be hard work, but it will be worth it because hopefully I will see the benefits for the next 15 years. It’s been a bit tough to begin with but it’s getting easier every day.”As an incentive, Somerset Chief Executive Peter Anderson has made a side wager with “Blackie” that he will be fitter than the player when the start of the new season comes. The club’s fitness instructors have been charged with setting an appropriate test that can be administered to find the winner.The prize for the winner will be a meal out for four at the other’s expense, and when I spoke to them recently both parties were confident of winning!

The quality of pitches in English domestic cricket will have to improve if England are to enjoy more consistent success at international level, and avoid the sorts of spin-influenced defeats that they suffered against Pakistan in Sharjah, according to Andy Flower.Flower, the former England coach who is now technical director of elite coaching at the ECB, feels that too many poor surfaces in county cricket are inhibiting the development of players and creating a greater divide between domestic and international cricket.In particular Flower and the ECB’s head spin bowling coach, Peter Such, fear that the development of young spinners is being impeded by pitches that provide too much assistance to medium-pace bowlers.”The pitches are a real problem,” Flower said. “We have a situation now where dibbly-dobbly bowlers like Jesse Ryder – and no disrespect to him, because he’s a fine cricketer – are match-winners in county cricket.”Spin bowlers don’t develop because the medium-pacers bowl their overs and batsmen are not exposed to quality spin. The necessity for fast bowlers is negated because the medium-pacers do the work but, when you get to international cricket, the pitches are completely different and the qualities that proved successful in county cricket will be of little use. Dibbly-dobbly bowlers are not going to win you Test matches. Their abilities are exaggerated by green county pitches.”You can watch a game in Division Two of the County Championship and not see a bouncer bowler. That’s a problem, because the first thing that a batsman will be tested by in international cricket is the short ball.”The pitches are contributing to the divide between county and international cricket and leaving us – the coaches at Loughborough – needing to bridge a significant gap in standard.”Flower’s comments are timely. It is not just that they were made as England subsided to a 2-0 defeat against Pakistan in the UAE with the level of spin bowling proving the key difference between the sides, but that the ECB are currently conducting a review into domestic cricket that seems certain to bring significant changes.Adil Rashid had a taxing Test debut in Abu Dhabi•Getty Images

The statistics of the series in the UAE underline the current gulf between English spinners and the rest. All told, England’s trio of Moeen Ali, Ali Rashid and Samit Patel, with fill-in overs from Joe Root and even Ben Stokes, claimed 20 wickets at 60.1 in 295.1 overs, only 23 of which were maidens. Pakistan’s trio of Yasir Shah, Zulfiqar Babar and Shoaib Malik bowled exactly that number of maidens in the third Test alone, while also claiming 17 wickets at 18.41.”In overseas Test cricket somewhere between 46-48% of overs are bowled by spinners, but in county cricket that figure is around 20%,” Such told ESPNcricinfo. “The pitches tend to start damp, which makes them seam-bowler dominated and makes it very hard for spin bowlers to break through. We need to do more to encourage spin bowling. It’s a tough gig at present.”The most important thing in the development of spin bowlers is that they get match-play overs, so they can use their skills in match situations. There is some talent out there, but at the moment young spinners are hitting a glass ceiling and it has become very hard for them to progress.”At present, the ECB are sending up to 16 young spinners abroad this winter – some just as net bowlers (Simon Kerrigan is unavailable with a stress fracture) – in order that they can gain experience in different conditions and benefit from the volume of overs denied them in county cricket. It is not a scenario that reflects well on the contribution of the domestic game.To that end, a scenario where the County Championship season starts abroad – probably in the UAE or Caribbean – remains possible. While it would not be a popular solution with county members, it currently seems inevitable that the county schedule will be cut to 14 games per side with two windows for white-ball cricket.Scheduling two games overseas would at least enable the competition to remain at 16 games per side and provide conditions in which spin bowlers might feature more prominently. The defeat to Pakistan may concentrate minds on the need to improve the development of spin bowlers.”County cricket is very much part of the solution,” Such said. “It is the biggest part of the solution. But we need to see young spinners bowling overs in county cricket.”

Patrick Boyland has revealed a fresh injury blow for Everton on Ben Godfrey ahead of their match at home to Manchester City in the Premier League this evening.

The Lowdown: Godfrey making progress

Earlier this week, the Goodison Park club tweeted that the 24-year-old was ‘making progress’ as he looks to step up his recovery from injury.

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The former Norwich City ace has not played since the 4-1 win at home to Brentford in the FA Cup earlier this month, and he had rarely missed a match this season before then (Transfermarkt).

Nonetheless, Frank Lampard will be hoping to have him back in the squad as soon as possible.

The Latest: Godfrey injury update

Taking to Twitter on Friday, The Athletic journalist Boyland revealed that Godfrey is still “a couple of weeks away” from returning to action.

There was better news on Abdoulaye Doucoure and Demarai Gray, though, with both players back in training and “with the Everton squad” ahead of this evening’s match.

The Verdict: Blow for Everton

It is certainly a blow to hear that Godfrey is still a fortnight away from being fully fit, despite making  progress in training.

The defender is currently ranking highly among his team-mates in terms of average tackles, clearances and blocks per game in the top flight so far this season (WhoScored), so Everton could certainly have done with his defensive fortitude against Pep Guardiola’s men.

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Nonetheless, he will now miss the Man City clash, and probably their FA Cup tie against Boreham Wood and forthcoming Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur, which will no doubt come as a disappointment to Lampard and the Toffees’ fan base.

In other news, this Everton player has been slammed as ‘awful’ at one thing

	One of the arresting images of the win: Harbhajan Singh charges out with the tricolour© Getty Images

One of the most arresting images from this match came a few minutes after the end. Harbhajan Singh, tricolour in hand, sprinted onto the field to join his ecstatic team-mates and quickly merged into a group jumping up and down. For a brief moment, before the support staff arrived, it was about white clothing, blue caps and a national flag.This has always been a close-knit unit but it’s obvious that defeat in Sydney, and subsequent events, brought them closer. The scorecard shows that the spoils were divided equally (there wasn’t a century nor a five-wicket haul) but there was so much more to suggest a beautiful bond. Like at Nottingham last year, this was a band of musketeers rallying around each other.Sample this for team effort: Ishant Sharma has bowled seven overs, RP Singh, ready to take over, has his cap and jumper off, Anil Kumble chats to Virender Sehwag, hears that Ishant is used to long spells in domestic cricket, Tendulkar joins in, RP too, Kumble realises Ponting is on strike, and hands the ball to Ishant. One ball later they’re all back together, this time celebrating Ponting’s wicket.Wickets came at the right time, largely because the bowlers didn’t waver. Rarely have three Indian fast bowlers bowled so well in partnership. Ishant stood out this morning but his effectiveness was enhanced because neither RP Singh nor Pathan gave much away opposite him. The run-rate was in control and, more importantly, the ball regularly hustled the batsman. No bowler was dominated and the fours were largely because of some outstanding batting on view.It’s tough to zero in on any one critical moment: RP Singh’s ball to trap Michael Hussey was as important as Ishant’s straighter one to get Ricky Ponting or Kumble’s fizzer to outdo Michael Clarke, or Sehwag’s beauty to nail Adam Gilchrist or even Irfan Pathan’s away-goer to beat Stuart Clark. Kumble has long insisted that India possess the bowling attack to thrive on any pitch and his troops showed how swing and seam could be far more lethal than pace.”As long as you are confident it doesn’t matter what sort of surface you bowl on,” said Kumble. “It’s important to stick to a plan and repeat it again and again. We’ve played enough cricket to understand how to adjust accordingly.”Tendulkar and VVS Laxman were always on hand for advice, Rahul Dravid had a word or two to offer between overs, and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, apart from his chattering behind the stumps, seemed to inform everyone about the direction of the breeze. It was fitting that the slip fielders were standing so close to each other, almost indicating the glue binding the team. When RP Singh hurried Clarke with a bouncer, striking him on the bat handle, Pathan ran in about 30 metres, from mid-on to the batsman, to urge everyone on. That was how desperate this team was to claw their way back.Team work is tough to quantify but a few pointers help: like in recent triumphs, the tail played a big hand, the batting order put together nuggety cameos, and the training sessions were joyous and sprightly. When Tendulkar dropped Andrew Symonds in the first innings, Dhoni’s reaction was instructive: he rehearsed how he could have gone for the catch, as if to say it was his. It wasn’t but it was a signal that he was on hand to help.The spirit seemed to infect even those not fully on board. India began the day with an intense session of catching practice. Gary Kirsten, the coach-in-waiting, whacked ball after ball in the air and made them practice taking skiers. “He’s been positive throughout, a great help in the dressing room,” Kumble said. “Having played against Australia, having played in Perth, he provided some valuable inputs. He’s been exceptional.”The end was reminiscent of the Kingston triumph in 2006. Like then, two lower-order batsmen were in belligerent mode and clearing the field almost at will. Catches were dropped and runs were leaked. The bowling plan partly went awry. But the effort was never found wanting. If it was Kumble who crashed through Dwayne Bravo’s defences then, it was Pathan out-doing Stuart Clark here. Like at Sabina Park, the stands at the northern end of the ground were packed with Indian supporters. Like then it was a must-win game and like then it was a side that just refused to give in.

Dav Whatmore and Habibul Bashar hope youngsters like Tamim Iqbal keep their nerve around India’s big stars © AFP

Dav Whatmore, Bangladesh’s coach, hopes his players won’t be overawed at the presence of India’s cricketers when both sides meet in their opening match of the World Cup.”Most of them are superstars but I would be very upset if our cricketers were to get overawed by it. Once you enter the field, you are equals,” he was quoted as saying to . “We would like to keep our focus despite who the person is – after all he has got two arms and legs.”Whatmore, 55, expressed his disappointment at the ‘minnow’ label tagged to Bangladesh, a side that has beaten Australia, India and Sri Lanka. “I would like to know what’s the meaning of minnows is in [the] Oxford Dictionary. We have secured important triumphs. But yes we are ninth in order so in that sense the other big teams are ahead of us. India is one of them and they are the first one we have to contend with.”I don’t remember when it was last when we played India; I think it was back in 2004. Given the geographical proximity, I would have thought we played more often.”Habibul Bashar, the Bangladeshi captain, echoed Whatmore’s concerns. “We have done well in recent past but then we never played a big team in year 2006. As we play against India, we realize they have a number of superstars. We have none. But we want to play as a unit with significant contributions coming from each and everyone rather than a couple of individuals.”Both coach and captain felt Bangladesh’s warm-up win over New Zealand was down to an all-round effort and expected more of the same from their players. Whatmore felt Tamim Iqbal, the rookie opener, would come good – “It will be a bit of a baptism by fire for him but I think he will acquit himself well” – while Bashar was wary of the left-arm variety in his spin department. “All our spinners, be it frontline Mohammad Rafique and Abdur Razzak or Saqibul Hasan, are left-arm spinners. We don’t have variety and I would have loved to have an offspinner. But they are the best spinners we have.”

James Anderson has a chance to impress in West Indies after missing out for India © Getty Images

James Anderson has been chosen in England A’s tour to West Indies which starts in February. Anderson missed out on the full England trip to India, but gets the chance to impress again when he heads to the Caribbean with a 15-man party which will be captained by Worcestershire’s Vikram Solanki.Ian Blackwell is in the squad, too, but he could yet head to India if Ashley Giles doesn’t recover from hip surgery in time. Giles underwent an operation in December, but is taking longer to rehabilitate than had been expected. So Blackwell will be on standby for Giles, after he missed out on the third spinner’s place to Monty Panesar.Also in the frame was Alex Loudon, who has the consolation of a West Indies trip, as does fellow Pakistan tourist, Kabir Ali. Alex Wharf, who has a handful of England caps, has been given another chance, too, while the rest of the party come from the Academy.England A squad Vikram Solanki (capt), Kabir Ali, James Anderson, Gareth Batty, Ian Blackwell, Rikki Clarke, Alastair Cook, Jamie Dalrymple, Ed Joyce, Alex Loudon, Sajid Mahmood, Chris Read, Owais Shah, Alex Wharf, Michael Yardy

ScorecardDominic Thornely scored his second century in consecutive matches and his fourth of the season to have New South Wales well-placed in their important match against Tasmania at Bellerive Oval. Thornely, who made a hundred against Western Australia last week, was unbeaten on 108 at stumps after pushing his side to 6 for 303 in a game they need to gain points in to remain in conention for the final.New South Wales began badly, losing Greg Mail to the first ball when he edged Damien Wright, and the pace throughout the day was slow – Thornely took 200 balls to reach three figures with 13 boundaries. Thornely built on the solid work of Matthew Phelps (72) and Phil Jaques, who hit the umpire Steve Davis in the back of the head, and will re-join Matthew Nicholson (23) tomorrow.Brett Geeves and Wright were the pick of Tasmania’s attack and collected two wickets each. Tasmania sit in fifth position and have no chance of making the final.