Date-stamped : 20 Aug97 - 03:04 Igglesden shows his strength By Paul Weaver at Canterbury Kent (201) trail Australia (207-5) by 6 runs ALAN IGGLESDEN and his Amazing Injuries sounds a little like a macabre circus act. The Kent fast bowler has been injured so fre- quent- ly that he must be on the short list if ever they do a remake of The Wild Bunch, or The Godfather. This weekend he is playing only his fourth first-class match in two years. Kent pay him on a month-to-month basis these days, a sort of pay-as-you-play scheme. Yesterday he reminded Kent supporters that a considerable bowling talent has wasted away on the physio`s treatment table. He took three wickets for five runs in 11 deliveries as Australia, against whom Igglesden played the first of his three Tests in 1989, stum- bled to 65 for four at tea in reply to Kent`s 201. He broke through in his third, fourth and fifth overs as he had Michael Slater lbw for 14, Justin Langer caught behind for 20 and Mark Waugh also caught behind for a single to leave Aus- tralia 40 for four. Just before Waugh`s dismissal Greg Blewett was run out by Matthew Fleming`s direct throw. Steve Waugh anchored Australia`s innings, adding 66 in 18 overs with Ricky Ponting, who then had his off-stump knocked back by Mark Ealham, and an unbroken 101 with Michael Bevan. At the close Waugh was 94 not out, having struck 17 boundaries, and Australia were 207 for five. It was hardly the response Australia envisaged after bowling out Kent in just 50.3 overs. Remarkably, the first and last three Kent batsmen all failed to score as Mark Kasprowicz and Shane Lee each took four wickets. Kasprowicz hardly deserved to be dropped from the Test side after just two matches and now he is preparing for his return at the Oval on Thursday. At one point he had four for 18 in eight overs and took the first four wickets to fall. Kent did not score a run off the bat until the fourth over and by then had lost two wickets. Trevor Ward was caught behind off the second legitimate ball of the day, Alan Wells went the same way and Ed Smith was well taken at third slip. Kent, 122 for six at lunch, were revived by a stand of 90 in 19 overs between Ealham and Fleming, who made 67 from 79 balls with 14 fours. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Fatigue hits Australians By Peter Deeley at Canterbury Second day of three: Kent (201 & 234-5) lead Australians (315) by 120 runs ON THE 100th day since departing Australia, the tourists are un- derstandably showing signs of wear and tear. Assured of the Ash- es, they may be struggling to put together a sufficiently po- tent fast bowling attack at the Oval this week to further em- phasise their dominance over England in the series. Shaun Young has been drafted in from Gloucestershire and Shane Lee - with Somerset last summer -from Lancashire league duties to fill the gaps left by injuries to Jason Gillespie (stress fracture of the back) and Brendon Julian (broken wrist) while Paul Reiffel has re- turned home to be with his pregnant wife. Mike Kasprowicz, who played in the first two Tests, took four wickets in Kent`s first innings when the ball swung but looked less effective yesterday and sent down a series of no-balls. Still, he is likely to take the new ball at the Oval with Glenn McGrath and it is likely that the Tasmanian all-rounder Young will make his Test debut - though on this form he looks less than Test-class. This is not the kind of quick attack calculated to put the frighteners into even a demoralised opponent. If Michael Atherton can at last win the toss, Australia could conceivably be pounding the wide open spaces of the Oval for the better part of two days. That of course may be no more than wishful thinking. On the plus side for the visitors, Steve Waugh - acting captain here in place of Mark Taylor - treated this game with the solemnity he brings to bear in all he does, despite a thumb injury. Coming in when Australia were 35 for three on Saturday, he was last man out after 4.5 hours - giving Steve Marsh his fifth catch of the innings - having hit his fourth century of the tour and the 45th of his career. Waugh and Michael Bevan added 158 for the sixth wicket before Bevan once more fell to the hook, pulling a short ball from Ben Phillips to Trevor Ward. Phillips took three wickets in the space of 17 balls to limit Australia`s lead to 114. Then Kent`s opening pair, Trevor Ward and Ed Smith exposed the deficiencies of this Australian attack with a partnership of 99. Smith reached 46, a first-class best for the club, before he was leg before to Mark Waugh. Ward looked set for a century when he rammed one of Bevan`s full tosses to midwicket. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Tour Match: Australians in control to pick up prize-money By Peter Deeley at Canterbury Australia (315 & 231-4) bt Kent (201 & 343) by 6 wkts AFTER this victory in the final Tetley Challenge game of the tour, Australia`s record against the counties curiously mir- rors their record in the Ashes series to date: three wins and one defeat. In the nine meetings on the county circuit, the tourists lost to Derbyshire, also beat Leicestershire and Hampshire and drew five - many of these being badly hit by the weather. The other first- class game, against Combined Universities, was complete- ly washed out. The depth of their batting here was too much for a Kent side short of their key fast bowlers. After weathering some early scares in the shape of Kent`s Zimbabwean leg-spinner Paul Strang, success came with some ease in the final straight - Ricky Ponting and Michael Bevan putting on 90 in 75 minutes to earn the visitors -L2,000 in prize-money with more than 10 overs to spare. The problems Strang posed, until he started over-pitching, should set the Australians up for the very different challenges they will experience today when, after initial practice at the Oval in preparation for the final Test, they go to Brands Hatch to savour high-speed action behind the wheel of a racing car. If they come through that experience unscathed only one prob- lem remains to be resolved by Thursday - which of the two Aus- tralians called into this game from the nether regions will be the first-change bowler at the Oval. Mark Taylor called it a `bowl-out` between Gloucestershire`s Shaun Young and Shane Lee, who was drafted in from Lancashire league cricket. Based on figures alone it was hardly a contest. Lee finished with match figures of eight for 113; Young with two for 86. The Australian captain said before the game: "Young has his nose well and truly in front." But after the game, Steve Waugh, deputis- ing here for Taylor, suggested the final selection could be a very close run matter. "Both are still under consideration and I thought both bowled well. Shaun Young tried too hard in the first innings, but in the second he did just the kind of job we will need in the Test - containing the batsmen. "If I was a betting man I would say Young was still the slight favourite, coming straight out of county cricket, but I`ve never see Lee bowl better. He has learnt a lot in this game." Lee`s second-innings haul would have been five but for the aw- ful hash Michael Slater made of catching a skied slice off Mark Ealham. The England player had given an earlier chance, but showed much welcome aggression, powering his way to 85 off 118 balls before Ponting made a glorious diving catch at mid- wicket. Ealham`s aggression set Australia the task of scoring 230 off a minimum of 62 overs and at the outset Slater promised to ac- complish the task himself in minimal time. Slater`s total loss of form is an equal loss for the game it- self. Here was a batsmen who once enthralled crowds with his cavalier play, yet is now merely a peripheral in the context of the Test game. His 47 here was his highest first-class score of the tour; even with it he has only scored 159 in eight in- nings. Ponting survived two chances off Strang - one put down by the bowler himself - but then he and Bevan assumed control and col- lected 16 boundaries between them as the game ran away from Kent. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com)