LONDON (Reuters) – New Zealand will assess weather and pitch conditions on Thursday morning before making a final decision on whether to field four pace bowlers in the first test against England at Lord’s.

On the eve of the first match in the two-test series on Wednesday, captain Brendon McCullum said the final place would go to either Doug Bracewell or left-arm spinner Bruce Martin, who played in the drawn three-match series in New Zealand this year.

LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) – New Zealand will assess weather and pitch conditions on Thursday morning before making a final decision on whether to field four pace bowlers in the first test against England at Lord’s.

On the eve of the first match in the two-test series on Wednesday, captain Brendon McCullum said the final place would go to either Doug Bracewell or left-arm spinner Bruce Martin, who played in the drawn three-match series in New Zealand this year.

LONDON (Reuters) – Resilience in the face of adversity has shaped the course of New Zealand cricket since naturalist Charles Darwin sighted freed Maori slaves and the son of a missionary at play in 1835.

Although rugby union and the world champion All Blacks have cast a permanent shadow over the summer game, New Zealand have consistently punched above their weight, particularly in the one-day arena.

LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) – Resilience in the face of adversity has shaped the course of New Zealand cricket since naturalist Charles Darwin sighted freed Maori slaves and the son of a missionary at play in 1835.

Although rugby union and the world champion All Blacks have cast a permanent shadow over the summer game, New Zealand have consistently punched above their weight, particularly in the one-day arena.

SWANSEA (Reuters) – Swansea, a sprawling Welsh seaside settlement dating back to William the Conqueror, is a city of contrasts stemming from its role in the world’s first industrial nation.

Copper smelting succeeded ship building as the city’s primary industry and the disparity between a bleak industrial centre and the attractions of Swansea Bay led poet Dylan Thomas to describe his birthplace as an “ugly, lovely town”.

SWANSEA, April 26 (Reuters) – Swansea, a sprawling Welsh seaside settlement dating back to William the Conqueror, is a city of contrasts stemming from its role in the world’s first industrial nation.

Copper smelting succeeded ship building as the city’s primary industry and the disparity between a bleak industrial centre and the attractions of Swansea Bay led poet Dylan Thomas to describe his birthplace as an “ugly, lovely town”.

LONDON (Reuters) – Readers of The Cricketer’s Almanack in 1864 could study the phases of the moon, the dates of the English Civil War and the past winners of the Oaks, the Derby and the St Leger.

Of more pressing relevance to those attracted by the second word in the title of the new publication was the warning that fielders stopping the ball with their hat would automatically incur a five-run penalty.

LONDON, April 10 (Reuters) – Readers of The Cricketer’s Almanack in 1864 could study the phases of the moon, the dates of the English Civil War and the past winners of the Oaks, the Derby and the St Leger.

Of more pressing relevance to those attracted by the second word in the title of the new publication was the warning that fielders stopping the ball with their hat would automatically incur a five-run penalty.

LONDON (Reuters) – Unprecedented levels of skill, intensity and endurance have transformed global sport into spectacular mass entertainment and handsomely rewarded its leading exponents.

Now that the euphoria of last year’s acclaimed London Olympics has dissipated, however, a spate of troubling stories in the first quarter of 2013 show an altogether darker and more disturbing side to a glamorous, multi-billion-dollar industry.

LONDON, March 29 (Reuters) – Unprecedented levels of skill, intensity and endurance have transformed global sport into spectacular mass entertainment and handsomely rewarded its leading exponents.

Now that the euphoria of last year’s acclaimed London Olympics has dissipated, however, a spate of troubling stories in the first quarter of 2013 show an altogether darker and more disturbing side to a glamorous, multi-billion-dollar industry.