England Test captain Andrew Strauss has expressed his frustration at having his players defend him following his lengthy run without a century and his team's poor form on the sub-continent.

He was disappointed and he was defiant. If he was going anywhere he was not saying so. It was neither the time nor the place. There was a series still on the line and, if it cannot be won by England now, it can be drawn.

A taxi belonging to Peterlee killer Michael Atherton has been vandalised outside the home where he murdered three people then shot himself.

Durham police under scrutiny for decision after family member raised concerns

A taxi driver who murdered his partner, her sister and her sister's daughter before shooting himself at the family home on New Year's Day held licences for six weapons and was known to police from three years earlier after threatening to harm himself.

Since the destiny of the Ashes was decided it has been fascinating to observe the two captains. Andrew Strauss is the undisputed commander-in-chief of the England team and nothing that happens in Sydney this week will change that.

Fans are intensely idealistic about the game they love; but many players see what they do as simply the grind of earning a crust for themselves and their families

Famous series victory awaits England if they can thwart fierce South African attack

Former England captain Michael Vaughan believes England were fortunate to get away without official sanction over the 'ball-tampering' row, but predecessor Michael Atherton has criticised South Africa for over-reacting.

It worked for Panesar, but when batsmen mentor tail-enders, sparks can fly

Andrew Strauss may be right to believe that winning cricket matches is the ideal preparation for winning more, but if he thinks that a 2-0 whitewash of the West Indies is anything more than a useful warm-up for the Ashes, he need only take a look around his county dressing room.

Stephen Harmison last night pleaded with the England selectors to pick him for tomorrow's crucial third Test against South Africa. When Harmison was dropped by England on their tour of New Zealand many believed he had made his last international appearance, but the débâcle of Headingley and a desperate desire to triumph in a must-win Test have encouraged the selectors to return to their former enforcer in the hope that he can rediscover the form that made him the most feared fast bowler in the world.

The run-out controversy against New Zealand last month has capped a difficult year for Paul Collingwood but, out of form and with his Test place under threat, he tells Glenn Moore that he is confident he can respond in typically belligerent fashion

The Australian yirdaki (didgeridoo) player Alan Dargin invented a uniquely fast, powerful, non-traditional style, dubbed "rock'n'roll didgeridoo". At his favourite busking site on Sydney's Circular Quay, he was a familiar figure to tourists and locals alike for two decades. He recorded five albums with various colleagues and travelled widely outside Australia, performing in the US, Japan and Europe, in 1993 playing the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London. His most widely seen appearance was as an actor, however, with a cameo role in the 1994 movie The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.