CRICKET Digest:England coach Duncan Fletcher is backing bowling coach Kevin Shine to solve the problems affecting Steve Harmison and restore him as England's spearhead for the Ashes.
Harmison's failure to mount a threat during the 277-run first-Test defeat in Brisbane has put the spotlight on Shine to find the answers before the second Test at the Adelaide Oval in the early hours of Friday morning.
Appointed following the defection of Troy Cooley to his homeland in Australia, Shine has a tough act to follow.
But Fletcher believes the former Somerset coach can produce similar results to Cooley and allowed him the space yesterday to take Harmison to the Adelaide Oval for a one-to-one session while the rest of the England squad had a day off.
"I spoke to Kevin and asked him if he wanted me to come down. But I might get a little fidgety there and want to get involved - and you've got to be careful," explained Fletcher.
"He's very confident he can do something, and I fully support Shiney. He came highly recommended to us from Troy Cooley; he coaches alongside very similar lines to Troy, and that's why we went for him."
The Durham fast bowler finished with unflattering figures of one for 177 off 42.1 overs at the Gabba.
Fletcher has also acted to dampen speculation surrounding the possible England comeback of injured captain Michael Vaughan, who has been given the go-ahead to make his competitive return for the Academy side against Western Australia's 2nd XI in a one-day match in Perth.
But Fletcher is keen to avoid rushing Vaughan back to action and said: "We're still planning he might be ready for the one-dayers - and if anything comes earlier than that then all well and good."
Australia batsman Michael Hussey has predicted the batting woes England suffered on a fast, pacy track in Brisbane may not resurface at the slower Adelaide Oval.
"The conditions in Adelaide might suit them a little bit more than the pace and the bounce of Brisbane. I think Brisbane is a hard place to start any Test series for a touring team."
Despite Hussey's pitch report, the Australian selectors have resisted the temptation to recall back-up leg-spinner Stuart MacGill - instead preferring to retain pace bowlers Mitchell Johnson and Shaun Tait in their 13-man squad.
Ganga keeps West Indies' hopes alive
West Indies opener Daren Ganga played a lone hand of 77 to keep his team alive in the third and final Test against Pakistan yesterday.
Ganga steered West Indies to 191 for six at close on day two with his defiant and unbeaten knock on a slow, low bouncing pitch which he described as a real challenge for batsmen.
Pacer Umar Gul and leg-spinner Danish Kaneria took six wickets between them but Ganga ensured his team were not rolled over by the home side, who had been bowled out for 304 one hour into the morning session. After a solid 51-run opening stand between Ganga and Chris Gayle, who stroked his way to 40 from 54 balls, West Indies were rocked by Gul, who took three wickets in 10 balls.
Pakistan lead the series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Lahore by nine wickets. The second in Multan was drawn.
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