No ton no problem for Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen insisted he felt "a lot of happiness" despite missing out on a Test century against Sri Lanka at the Rose Bowl here on Saturday. Pietersen made a fluent 85 to help England to 195 for four at stumps on the third day of the third and final Test, a first innings lead of 11 runs.
But, just eight minutes before the schedule close, he was caught behind to give otherwise struggling medium-pacer Thisara Perera a first Test wicket.
His exit left Pietersen searching for his first Test century in Britain since making exactly 100 against his native South Africa at The Oval in August 2008. the first match of his brief and ultimately controversial stint as England captain. But the 30 year old said of his latest innings: "Actually, it wasn't frustrating at all. To play the way I've played today has given me a lot of happiness.
"To have gone back to basics and hit the ball straight and kept penetrating the opposite stumps, and playing in three or four areas, for me was brilliant."
Pietersen, who has scored just one hundred in his last 36 Test innings a Test best 227 against Australia at Adelaide in December, added: "If you'd said to me this morning 85 and to play the way I played, the hundreds will come and a lot of them, I hope.
"I had three or four scoring areas I've been really working hard on.

Page has turned for McDowell

Graeme McDowell believes it is time to get on with the rest of his career a year after he made his major breakthrough by winning the US Open.
Up until last year's edition of the year's second major at Pebble Beach, the Ulsterman had been better known as a top amateur and US collegiate champion who had failed to fully fulfill his potential.
After his stunning come from behind win in California, though, he was propelled into golfing stardom and he responded with last day Ryder Cup heroics for Europe, a playoff win over Tiger Woods and a spot in the top 10.
It was all stirring stuff and the personable McDowell lapped it up, but there was a price to pay and he duly paid it as his golf game suffered from the saturation he was experiencing both on and off the course.
"It was such a busy end to 2010 that 2011 seemed to just be there all of a sudden on my doorstep and I was in Hawaii and in the Middle East, and those four weeks that came right after the Middle East, there's no doubt I came back after those four weeks and I wasn't the same guy." he said.
"I wasn't swinging it the same way. I wasn't feeling the same way.
"Sometimes a run of momentum and adrenaline sort of has to hit a brick wall, as I guess I hit my brick wall. I've been trying to get over that wall ever since.
"At some point, those kind of runs, I guess, inevitably have to come to an end, especially if you're playing as much golf as I was."
Still, the 31 year old who was brought up playing golf on the famed links of Portrush believes that the last few weeks have shown that he has gotten back that edge and focus to his game that has been missing.
There have been no more tournament wins but strong, if inconsistent, performances at the Players Championship, the British PGA and the Welsh Open have brought him into the US Open with a renewed feeling of optimism.And the fact that he has now finally handed back the US Open trophy he has been displaying to all and sundry over the last year provides him with a fitting symbol that the page is turning. "If anything, I feel like the glare is off me this week," he said. "I feel like I've done it. "I've spent the last just under 12 months looking back at Pebble. I spent the last six months reflecting on 2010.
"And I mean, somehow having arrived here this week, I feel like I've done it now.
"I'm back yeah, my US Open trophy is back here with the USGA. I've handed it back and I'm ready to sort of get on with the rest of my career now."
McDowell says he is delighted with his draw for the first two rounds, which sees him set of in the company of British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa and US Amateur champion Peter Uihlein.

Chris Gayle wins big at WIPA awards

Chris Gayle has been named international cricketer and Test player of the year at the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) awards. Allrounder Stafanie Taylor picked up the international women's player of the year award.Gayle's recognition was chiefly inspired by his triple-hundred against Sri Lanka in November 2010, in Galle. The innings of 333 was Gayle's top Test score and the second time he went past 300 in Tests, making him only the fourth batsman ever to do so. He is at present out of the West Indies side, following a stand off with the board over his exclusion for the Pakistan series, and his participation in the IPL.Taylor was in rich form in 2010, scoring heavily in the ICC Women's Challenge in South Africa where she averaged 97.00. She is currently ranked No. 2 in the ICC women's ODI batting and allrounder ratings.Kieron Pollard and Darren Sammy were named the best ODI and Twenty20 players, while Keiron Joseph was named Under-19 player of the year. Jamaica, who won the Regional Four Day Competition for the 2010-'11 season, were adjudged the first class team of the year.