This was not a day for the thrill seeking cricket supporter, but for the die hard Sri Lanka fan, as their spinners and fielders painstakingly winkled out the Indian top order to leave them on the verge of an innings victory and their first series win for 16-months at the end of day four.India’s batsmen, facing an enormous 377-run deficit when the they strapped on their pads on Friday evening, fought back bravely in the morning and afternoon, as Muralitharan bowled over after over to frequent shrieks of “howzat” and collective sighs of “aiyyo” from a vocal small crowd.The pitch was so placid, however, that even Muralitharan’s potency was diminished and a previously implausible draw actually looked increasingly possible, before two senseless run outs left India on 217 for six at the close, still 159 runs in arrears, with only one frontline batsman remaining.Muralitharan had eventually dismissed both openers after a 107 opening stand, but star batsmen Rahul Dravid (36) and Sourav Ganguly (30) looked comfortable with the score on 186 for two when disaster struck. Dravid shuffled down the pitch and drove straight to a deep mid-on. He immediately set off for a single, but Marvan Atapattu quickly swooped on the ball and in one motion threw down the stumps. Television umpire Tyronne Wijewardene was referred to, and he found that a disconsolate Dravid was millimeters short.Mohammad Kaif (5) was run out 30 minutes later. Ganguly worked a delivery from off spinner Thilan Samaraweera off his pads and set off for a quick single. Wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara, though, flashed out from behind the stumps to collect the ball and Ganguly sensed the danger too late. Kaif was left stranded halfway down the wicket without sufficient time to regain his ground.India has slipped to 196 for four and Sri Lanka’s fielders perked up, aware that the time had come for the kill.Six overs later Ganguly edged an off break to slip to give an elated Samaraweera his first Test wicket and Sairaj Bahutule lasted just two balls before he was bowled off his arm, as he tried to pad away a delivery from Sanath Jayasuriya. India had lost four wickets for 25 runs and their fate looked sealed.Hemang Badani (8*) and Sameer Dighe (4*) survived the remaining 27 minutes to the close but, barring the unexpected arrival of the north east monsoon this evening, India will be defeated and lose their first Test series against Sri Lanka for 16 years.Earlier in the day India had resumed on 28-0. Openers Shiv Sunder Das (68) and Sadagoppan Ramesh (55) had batted solidly, quickly seeing off an opening burst from the pace bowlers. Muralitharan was pulled into the attack in the ninth over of the day, but Das responded with a flurry of boundaries.The pint-sized opener cracked two straight boundaries in his first over and then cut him for another four in his next over. Fortunate to have survived when he swept onto his pads and was caught at midwicket, as umpire Asoka de Silva refused to refer the decision to the television umpire, Das went on to score his second fifty of the game and the seventh in his 11-Test career. He, though, was snapped up at silly point moments before the luncheon interval in Muralitharan’s second spell of the morning.The off spinner continued after lunch, as he bowled a marathon 29 over spell. Ramesh and Dravid batted cautiously and the run scoring slowed, but the Madras opener eventually reached his eighth Test fifty after nearly four hours of painstaking concentration.In the over before the afternoon drinks interval, however, Muralitharan picked up the wicket of Ramesh with a freakish off break that pitched outside leg, before spinning back sharply to clip the top of off stump. It was his tenth wicket in the game, a feat he has now achieved six times in his 65-Test career.

In the Trinidad and Tobago squad list for the Red Stripe Bowl,innocuously slotted between D Ramnarine and LA Roberts, is acombination of six letters that, oddly enough, spells a five-letterword.The six letters are BC Lara, and the five-letter word is “magic.”Lara’s return from a prolonged hamstring injury, coupled with thereturn of cricket in the West Indies after a four-month hiatus, bodeswell for the 2001 edition of the Red Stripe Bowl. The absence of ahectic international schedule, moreover, ensures that a number ofinternational players will turn out for their respective sides in whatis definitely the Caribbean’s singularly important domestictournament.Apart from Lara, speedster Mervyn Dillon and Daren Ganga figure in theTrinidad and Tobago squad. While Ganga tries to get selectors to lookpast what has been a tepid international career, Dillon will be hopingto project himself as a bowler capable of becoming the spearhead ofthe West Indian pace battery.Jamaica’s squad list reads, for the initial part at least, virtuallylike the squad list of the international team. Robert Samuels, WavellHinds, Chris Gayle, Marlon Samuels and Leon Garrick make up the firstfive names, while a stick of dynamite in the form of Ricardo Powell istucked away further down the list. If top-class exposure were the onlycriterion to go on, Jamaica would samba away with the cup unopposed.There is, however, that strange animal termed talent, and this iswhere Guyana gets a look in. Led by a rejuvenated Carl Hooper andincluding Shivnarine Chanderpaul in its ranks, Guyana also boastsRamnaresh Sarwan, he of the unending press coverage during the WestIndies’ tour to England. In the bowling department is Reon King, afast bowler who Colin Croft considers the “best of the young group.”The fourth team to be unusually well endowed with internationalplayers is Barbados, captained by West Indian opener Sherwin Campbell.Pace bowler Corey Collymore, wicket keeper Courtney Browne and batsmanPhilo Wallace find spots in the squad.History shows, however, that the presence of West Indian stars is noguarantee of victory. Last year’s champions, Windward Islands,included only players that were no longer being considered forselection to the international team. Precisely these players, such asJunior Murray, Cameron Cuffy, and Rawl Lewis, piloted the side toshock wins over heavyweights Jamaica and Guyana.The West Indies Cricket Board’s efforts to expand the base of regionalcompetition, however, see a division of the current champions intoNorthern and Southern Windward Islands sides. Northern Windwards willbe drawn from Dominica and St. Lucia while Southern Windwards teamwill come from St. Vincent and Grenada.Northern Windwards, in fact, kicks off the tournament on October 2with a Zone A Match against Jamaica. Zone B commences in Guyana with amatch between Barbados and Antigua. The final of the tournament isscheduled for October 14 at Kaiser, Jamaica.

A century knock from the dependable Pankaj Dharmani (106) enabledPunjab to score 300 runs for the loss of nine wickets against Servicesduring their North Zone Ranji match being played at Gandhi Ground,Amritsar, today.Services won a good toss on a grassy wicket and wisely put theiropponents in to bat. Seamers Sudhakar Ghag and Syed Javed proved thedecision right as they sent three top order batsman back to thepavilion with the scoreboard reading just 32. Ravneet Ricky (0) wasthe first to depart, in the very first over of the day, dismissed byGhag. Vikram Rathore (1)threw away his wicket in the fourth over as hechased a delivery off Javed to give a simple catch to Yashpal Singh atpoint. Munish Sharma irresponsibly steered an outgoing delivery offGhag to gully fielder PM Reddy, who did not make any mistake.Seasoned campaigner Dharmani then joined southpaw Yuvraj Singh, whowas looking in good nick from the very first ball that he faced. Theduo lived up to their reputation to get their team out of the woods.Dharmani was in tremendous touch and seemed to be unshakeable eventhough the ball was seaming a lot because of the early moisture in thewicket. The seam trio of Ghag, Javed and Pandey bowled an accurateline and length, but the pair took their team score to 97 for three atthe stroke of lunch. Dharmani completed his half century with aclassic off-drive to the boundary off Pandey.The second session of the day was dominated by Punjab as they scored99 runs and lost only the wicket of Yuvraj Singh, who lost his cooljust 54 minutes before tea. Yuvraj Singh (67) became the third victimof Ghag as he drove at an outgoing delivery, playing away from thebody, giving a regulation catch for wicket-keeper Sarabjit Singh.Yuvraj’s knock of 67 runs came in 121 balls, with nine hits to fenceand a mighty six during his stay of 156 minutes at the crease. Thepair added 127 valuable runs for the fourth wicket partnership. DineshMongia (11) came in at the fall of Yuvraj’s wicket and stayed for 54minutes at the crease but made the same mistake as Yuvraj just twominutes after tea. Javed brought about the dismissal, with thescoreboard reading 196 for five. Reetinder Singh Sodhi then stepped tojoin Dharmani, who was holding the fort from one end.Dharmani played elegant stokes to all parts of the ground, completinghis century in style as he cut a short ball from Pandey to the pointboundary. He was finally sent back to the pavilion by a classy incutter from Pandey, which took a thick edge for the keeper to hold.Dharmani’s knock was studded with 18 sweetly timed boundaries.Sandeep Sawal played a quick cameo of 17 runs off 16 balls, but thenbecame the fourth scalp of Ghag. Sodhi, in the company of tail-enderGagandeep Singh, put on 41 valuable runs. He missed his half-centuryby two runs, caught and bowled by Ghag while trying to pull a shortball and mistiming it; his knock came off 74 balls with nine fours.Gagandeep Singh (19) was the last wicket to fall in the day. Javedtook three wickets for 61 runs. At stumps, Punjab had scored 300/9,with Vineet Sharma batting on eight and Babloo Kumar yet to open hisaccount.Shafiq Khan stars for HaryanaShafiq Khan hit a fine 86, and his participation in a 71-run fifthwicket partnership enabled Haryana to score 282 for eight againstDelhi on the opening day of their North Zone Ranji Trophy league matchagainst Delhi.Delhi skipper Mithun Manhas’ decision to field after winning the tossdid not yield the desired results as Haryana openers Padamjit Sehrawatand Chetan Sharma gave their side a sound start, putting up 54 runsfor the first wicket. However, the visitors lost three wickets inspace of 22 runs. Shehrawat scored 47 before being trapped legbeforeby Amit Bhandari; Sharma, the first batsman to go, contributed 20.Skipper Parinder Sharma could score only eight, caught by Akash Chopraoff Bhandari.At lunch, Haryana were 105/3 off 29 overs; between lunch and tea, theyscored only 79 runs, losing one more wicket. The post-tea session sawthe visitors add 98 runs to their total, losing four more wickets. A42-run fourth-wicket stand between Ishan Ganda (26) and Shafiq Khanestablished Haryana’s innings; after the departure of Ganda, AjayRatra gave able support to Shafiq and both batsmen built up theinnings by adding 71 runs for the fifth wicket.The stand was finally broken by off-spinner Sarandeep Singh, who hadRatra (31) caught by Sohail Rauf. Haryana’s score at that stage was192 for five; they added 90 more runs for the loss of three wicketsbefore stumps. Shafiq was the last batsman to be dismissed, sent backleg-before by Abhishek Sharma. His 86 was studded with two sixes andeight fours, and he batted 241 minutes, facing 181 balls in theprocess.At stumps, Sumit Narwal ( 25) and Gaurav Vashist (0) were at thecrease. Bhandari and Sarandeep had picked up two wickets each.Himachal bundled out for 145 on Day OneJammu and Kashmir took advantage of Himachal Pradesh’s recklessbatting to bowl their rivals out for 145 in 75.1 overs on the firstday of their North Zone Ranji league match at Mandi.Ashwani Gupta and Jagtar Singh led the tourists’ assault, claimingfour and three wickets, while Surinder Singh and Vijay Sharma pickedup two and one wicket respectively.Earlier in the day, Himachal Pradesh won the toss and elected to bat.The hosts took the first blow in the 10th over when Nischal Gaur wascaught behind by Vikrant Taggar of Surinder Singh. Barring RajeevNayyar, who remained unbeaten on 41, all the Himachal batsmen giftedaway their wickets, negating the advantage of winning the toss andbatting first on a good wicket.At the end of the day, Jammu and Kashmir were at 22 for one in 15overs.

To say that the sight of three new-ball bowlers being picked for the Mohali Test was a welcome development is an understatement to beat all understatements. The paucity of pace bowlers has been one of the perennial weaknesses in Indian cricket, and to see three young fast bowling hopefuls making their debut in the same Test is something to warm the hearts of Indian cricket followers, particularly those able to remember the period in the 60s and early 70s when the new-ball attack was a farce. The list of those who opened the bowling for India would actually make an impressive batting line-up ­ ML Jaisimha, Salim Durrani, Ajit Wadekar, MAK Pataudi, Sunil Gavaskar, and even a wicket-keeper in Budhi Kunderan.

Things started to change for the better in the mid-70s, with the opening bowlers being Madan Lal, Mohinder Amarnath and Karsan Ghavri. But there is little doubt that it was the advent of Kapil Dev that changed the pace bowling scenario in the country. Not only did he show that it was possible for an Indian bowler to bowl at a reasonably good pace over an extended period and take a lot of wickets, he also proved to be an inspirational figure. Also, thanks to him, the nature of pitches underwent a change that augured well for the faster bowlers. Whereas tracks before he burst upon the scene always favoured the spinners, those laid during the Kapil-Dev era also had a good share of bounce, and one particularly recalls some of the wickets at Chepauk that made speedsters fairly lick their lips.Not unexpectedly, most of the young fast bowling hopefuls inspired by Kapil fell by the wayside, lacking the qualities that made Kapil such an outstanding bowler. But there were a few like Chetan Sharma and Manoj Prabhakar who, in racing parlance, proved to be stayers. Suddenly, in the 80s, Indian opening bowlers were regularly making deep inroads at the start of an innings, wiping off the tail in next to no time, and even winning Test matches. One recalls Kapil and Madan Lal routing England at Bombay 20 years ago virtually on their own, while the first bowler to take ten wickets in a Test in England was Chetan Sharma and not any spinner.Indeed, for much of the 80s, we had the slightly unbelievable scenario of spin taking a back seat as Kapil, Madan, Roger Binny, Chetan Sharma and Prabhakar not only carried the brunt of the bowling but were also responsible for winning Test matches and one-day internationals. The role played by the medium pacers in the World Cup triumph in 1983 cannot be overemphasized.Thanks in the main to Anil Kumble, spin bowling, relegated to a supporting role in the 80s, was back to winning ways in the 90s. But by this time, even with the retirement of Kapil, the attack had a balanced look. Javagal Srinath took over the role of spearhead, and he had the support of many promising youngsters.In the last decade, the role of the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai in shaping young hopefuls also cannot be overemphasized. Almost every talented fast bowler who has gone on to play for the country, if not exactly a product of the Foundation, has had some association with it. Indeed, even established stars like Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad and Ajit Agarkar have never missed a chance to hone their skills at the Foundation. Every time they have been confronted with a problem, they have visited Chennai to get a timely tip or two from Dennis Lillee, the moving force behind the Foundation, or TA Sekhar, the former Indian fast bowler and chief Foundation coach.Tinu Yohannan, the latest bowler to catch one’s eye, is more or less a Pace Foundation product. In a short while, he has improved by leaps and bounds, and one has no doubt that he will continue to train there.Indeed, the Foundation has long ceased to be an academy for Indian fast bowling hopefuls. Young bowlers from all over the world visit periodically to further their cricketing education, and this competition is bound to stand the Indians in very good stead.Over the last year or so, the Bangalore-based National Cricket Academy has also done its bit in furthering the cause of fast bowling in the country. There is little doubt that the Indian pace-bowling scenario has never looked healthier ­ the debut of three new-ball bowlers all at once at Mohali, the encouraging knowledge that Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra and Agarkar are still around, the burgeoning of young fast-bowling prospects, and the fact that Srinath’s fire, even at 32, is still burning bright.

Rain at Wellington’s Basin Reserve might have ruined everyone else’s day, but New Zealand’s left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori wasn’t complaining – it was another day for him to put his feet up and rest the ankle that is still recovering from injury.Play in the second National Bank New Zealand-Bangladesh Test was abandoned at 4.45pm when constant showers, after a mid-morning deluge, made preparation of the ground impossible in the time available.New Zealand will resume its first innings at 72/0 at the earlier start time of 11.30am tomorrow.For Vettori it was a chance to have a break from the heavy workload he has had in recent weeks, especially since returning to the Test side in Australia, having earlier been carried from Manuka Oval on a stretcher after suffering a twisted ankle.However, his recovery was so quick that he was back in Australia in time for the first Test, although he is still troubled by the ankle.”It comes and goes, at times it troubles me a bit,” he said today.”At other times it is fine. I am trying to keep on top of it at the moment but it does cause some annoyance.”Asked if he could quantify where he was at in terms of full mobility, he said that some days it felt like 50%.”Once I warm up and get into things it feels reasonably well, it’s that time when I come off for lunch and try to get back into it after it cools down a bit” that was the problem, he said.The good news however, is that he is feeling no ill effects of his stress fractures suffered last year in his back.He has suffered none of the tell-tale warning signs of problems, especially waking up in the mornings feeling sore.”I had quite a big two week period in Australia when I went from Adelaide through Hobart to Perth when I bowled close to 200 overs. To get through that was the biggest thing I’ve done so far,” he said.Bowling 25 overs into the teeth of a Basin Reserve northerly had also caused no ill effects. He wasn’t too upset to have to bowl into the breeze while the faster bowlers had the luxury of bowling downwind.”In the end it didn’t really affect my bowling, I was still getting the drift and the arm ball was swinging so it probably wasn’t too much of a concern,” he said.”I was there to play more of a defensive role so the quicks, who bowled very well at the other end, picked up wickets.”Within myself, I still see myself as an attacking bowler and was still trying to take wickets at that end,” he said.Vettori said he had to accept that when the wind was that strong he would have to bowl into the wind to keep the fast bowlers happy.He said he was feeling comfortable with the slight changes he has made to his bowling action, changes brought about because he had his shoulders going in one direction and his hips in another.”I found it [the change] has helped my bowling a bit. I get more on the ball doing it that way. It works out a bit easier to do things when you are not bowling across yourself,” he said.Vettori, who became targeted as a Harry Potter look-a-like by Australian fans, admits to being something of a cricket nerd and is aware of his advance through the ranks of some great names in New Zealand’s cricket greats as his wicket tally rises.”I keep a regular eye on that sort of thing,” he said of his placement at fifth equal on the New Zealand bowling list with Ewen Chatfield.If the New Zealand batsmen do their job tomorrow, Vettori can expect another day with his feet up before he sets about trying to advance up the bowling list during Bangladesh’s second innings.

It wasn’t the greatest way to make the VB Series finals, having to rely on how other teams played, but New Zealand’s inclusion is a great reward for an innovative summer campaign.Now it is time for the ‘think tank’ that formulated the game plan that effectively shut down the great Australian bowlers, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, and put the pressure on the Australian batting order, the two Test match openers excepted, to turn up a game plan to end the South African dominance of ODIs against New Zealand.Much has been made of the record between the two sides and South Africa does have a marked dominance, but some would say that should make New Zealand’s odds of success all the higher.However it is looked at it is high time New Zealand began to get things going their way more often.There is also the thought that in the plethora of ODIs between the two sides in recent years New Zealand has rarely been at full strength. If Chris Cairns, Shane Bond and Dion Nash can get into shape for the finals, then New Zealand has every chance of really putting the South Africans to the test.The requirements for success are not much different to what they were before the series started.An opening combination is a must. Nathan Astle is due again and it is a shame that more has not been made of bringing Brendon McCullum through. With him gaining experience and performing reasonably well there has to be plenty of long-term benefit in his being exposed to this sort of pressure.There is no doubt that Lou Vincent offers more run scoring potential down the order.The other aspect has to be the bowling at the death. Resolving this issue must be a key project for the remainder of the summer.Making the finals has offered up to three more matches which, when they are put with the five games to be played against England and more at the Sharjah tournament, provide a chance to get the matter sorted so that whoever are entrusted with the duty can develop more confidence in the role before the World Cup.There has to be plans within plans from here on in.But in the immediate future, the pressure is on the batsmen. In the eight games played to date, Cairns is the best of the New Zealand batsmen with 257 runs while Stephen Fleming has 242, Craig McMillan 202, Chris Harris 200, Astle, in only three games, has 106, while Adam Parore has 107.More centuries are clearly required by the batsmen to get the sort of totals that will win such crucial matches.In the bowling area, the emergence of Bond has been reflected in the fact he has 20 wickets at 4.40 runs per over, 10 wickets more than anyone else in the New Zealand side. Cairns has 10 (4.72) while Harris has eight (4.53), Daniel Vettori seven (4.20) and James Franklin (5.20) and Nash six (4.37) each.There must be a temptation to continue to expose Andre Adams to the top level. He brings the sort of outrageous hitting ability that could prove vital in swinging a game in its latter stages.The feats of the CLEAR Black Caps have captured the imagination of New Zealand cricket fans and the general public in a manner not seen since the 1992 World Cup.Making the final will only increase that interest and the stage is set for another week of late nights while the tides of fortune wax and wane through what has been an outstanding summer of cricket.And in the middle of it all England arrive on Tuesday for their tour.Long may the fine weather last.

Michael Vaughan’s first-up match heroics in yesterday’s series-equalling thriller at Eden Park have made him flavour of the week in England’s Sunday newspapers.But, as with New Zealanders now embroiled in the annual diet of Super 12 rugby, so the English, who are in the midst of their soccer season, are forever competing with soccer for news space, the prospect of a series final has provided plenty of news space for the cricket.A sampling of English opinion follows:The Sunday Times: “If England’s cricketers ever learn how to leave the blocks fast they could be world-beaters, because they certainly know how to fight themselves out of corners. A clinical performance in Auckland yesterday, their second in four days, secured a win by 33 runs to level the one-day series at 2-2 and render the humiliation in Wellington last weekend a distant memory.”Not for the first time, Nasser Hussain and his team have transformed themselves from chumps to champs in little more time than it takes to write their obituaries. Now all eyes turn to Dunedin on Tuesday, where they will start favourites to win a series they looked certain to lose after going 2-0 down with a perplexing lack of focus.”Seven days ago, there were villains galore. Yesterday, in front of a capacity crowd of 35,000 eager to see the home side put matters beyond reach, several of the visitors vied for the limelight as the hosts looked more like the drop-outs on Eden Park’s portable drop-in pitch.”If one man did more than any other to set up victory it was Michael Vaughan. Bristling to justify his recall in place of Owais Shah after impressing his captain in the nets on Friday, he hit the ball as sweetly as he can ever have done for 59 at better than a run per ball. It was an innings that gave substance to the middle of an England innings of 193 for six, reduced from 50 to 40 overs by two stoppages for rain.”The Guardian: “With more drama than a Coronation Street episode at Eden Park, even a Duckworth popped in at half-time to tell us how many runs New Zealand wanted. With all that was going on, it was hard to believe that it wasn’t Vera.”Messrs Duckworth and Lewis conspired through their unfathomable but ultimately fair system to invite New Zealand to score 30 more than England scored for victory. The upshot was that in an incident-packed, rain-interrupted game, England won by 33 runs to square the series 2-2 with one match to play in Dunedin on Tuesday.”According to the playing conditions, this 50-over game was scheduled to be played over two days in the event of rain, but was reduced to 46 then 40 overs per side much to the enjoyment of a capacity 35,000 crowd. Confusion was the order of the early part of the day as England made a workmanlike 193 for six.”On a pitch prepared on the number-two ground and transported 300 yards on a huge wheeled cradle, both sets of bowlers enjoyed themselves, while Graham Thorpe and Michael Vaughan excelled with the bat. Thorpe’s 59 in 67 balls was a masterly exhibition of his craft, all nudged singles and thumping boundaries. He has not had the easiest of times lately, but his domestic situation is now more clear to him and his cricket will prosper once more as a result.”Vaughan was a revelation as he dominated even Thorpe with his innings of 59 in 53 balls. He also held two quality catches early in New Zealand’s innings before his untimely exit from the field with a jarred shoulder. His innings was all that a one-day knock should be, with plenty of straight drives, square cuts and pulls, coupled with that deft glide to third man. This was not a cobbled-together innings but one of great maturity.”The Independent on Sunday: “From zero to hero is usually a long, arduous journey between diverse points separated by rather more than 18 letters of the alphabet. England have made it look as easy as ABC in a week.”After being two down in the series against New Zealand and all but out, they pulled level yesterday with one match to play. Seven days ago the tourists were washed up when they were all out for 89, suffered an abject defeat by 155 runs and were fortunate to keep it so close. Now, they are riding the crest of a wave.”It was New Zealand’s turn to flounder, although when they were drowning in Eden Park last night they still managed a determined wave. Having been dealt an unkind hand by the vagaries of the Duckworth-Lewis Method – though coldly statistical vagaries – they were simply never on the required pace.”The Sunday Telegraph: “First it was India who were given a shock, and now it is New Zealand. England are making a habit of fighting back when all hope looks lost, and Saturday’s win, with a little help from the Duckworth-Lewis method, has set up a mouth-watering series finale on Tuesday.”Reading the newspapers in New Zealand last Sunday, you could have been forgiven for thinking England were one of the worst teams to have set foot in their country after the annihilation in Wellington. New Zealanders must surely have wondered how England had hit back to level the series 3-3 in India, of all places. Now they understand why, and Nasser Hussain’s team must start as favourites in Dunedin after squaring the series at 2-2.”Brilliant batting from Michael Vaughan and Graham Thorpe set up the prospect of a commanding total until two lengthy breaks for rain curtailed England’s innings by 10 overs, and then the Duckworth-Lewis method intervened to leave New Zealand with a stiff target of 223 in 40 overs after England had made 193 for six.”Their top order again made heavy work of it and, despite explosive batting from Chris Cairns – the first time he has fired with the bat this series – and Andre Adams, the task was too great.”

Former South African Test all-rounder Mike Procter has been included on the International Cricket Council’s elite panel of match referees.Procter was named a member of the five-man panel along with Chief Referee Ranjan Madugalle of Sri Lanka, Clive Lloyd of the West Indies, Wasim Raja of Pakistan and India’s Gundappa Viswanath (India).All Test playing countries were asked to nominate candidates for theReferees panel and more than 30 were screened and interviewed by ChiefReferee Madugalle during a recent worldwide recruitment tour. The finalappointments were made jointly by Malcolm Speed and Sunil Gavaskar, chairmanof the ICC Cricket Committee-Playing.Between them the new panel has the experience of having played in almost 300Test matches. Three of them – Lloyd, Madugalle and Viswanath – are formernational captains.Panel members have agreed two year, full time contracts with the ICC andwill meet together for the first time at the Referees and Umpires Workshopnear Cape Town, South Africa from 21st to 24th March. This will includeseminars covering legal and procedural matters relating to cricketdiscipline, IT training, the psychology of decision making, the latestPlaying Conditions for international cricket, a presentation from the ICCAnti-Corruption Unit, medical, fitness and media training.Procter said he was “incredibly honoured” by the appointment. “I canonly say I will do my utmost to serve cricket to the best of my ability. Itis a real privilege and I would like to thank all those who have supportedme and who have wished me well with this new challenge,” he said.United Cricket Board chief executive Gerald Majola congratulated Procter on his appointment.”Mike has been one of the real drivers of transformation in South Africancricket and he will be a very sad loss to the South African selection panelonce he takes up his position on the ICC panel,” said Majola. “However,we know what a wonderful ambassador Mike will be for South Africa and hewill certainly bring to the ICC a genuine understanding of the issues withwhich we in South African cricket are faced. I would like to wish him well -we are all very proud of this latest of Mike’s achievements.”

MELBOURNE, Dec 31 AAP – A combination of relief and disappointment could lead Australia A to take an all-guns-blazing approach to tomorrow’s day-night cricket match against Sri Lanka at the MCG.Allrounder Andrew Symonds believes the conflicting emotions for players who have lived with selection anxieties could mean they will hammer out some frustrations.Symonds was today named in Australia’s 15-man World Cup squad along with fellow Queenslander Jimmy Maher, the Australia A captain.While Symonds was delighted at winning a berth, he felt for some of his Australia A teammates who missed out.Symonds and Maher agreed A-team allrounders Ian Harvey and Greg Blewett, batsman Michael Hussey and paceman Ashley Noffke were unlucky at being overlooked.Symonds said the timing of the squad’s release could mean some A players have their shackles freed.”I probably feel like there’s less pressure now that (the squad’s) actually been released,” he said.”It’s probably a load off everyone’s shoulders.”Maybe it’ll even spur people into action even more tomorrow. You might see a really fired-up side tomorrow.”Maher, who scored a century for Australia A against Sri Lanka earlier this month, said the A-team was keen to continue its good recent run, including wins over the Lankans and England.”There’ll be a lot of guys going out there to put on a show and we want to keep our form rolling with the A side and keep Sri Lanka under pressure when they play against Australia and England for the rest of the series,” he said.Sri Lanka will play veteran batsmen Aravinda De Silva and Hashan Tillakaratne, who were last week added to the Lankans’ World Cup squad.Captain Sanath Jayasuriya said the tourists’ confidence had picked up after their first win of the tour, against a country Victorian side in Hastings on Sunday.”We hadn’t had a win for three or four games and if we can have a win here it means we can get some confidence mentally,” he said.Sri lanka will rest off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan despite him bowling his first three overs of the tour on Sunday.Muralitharan is a chance to resume in the tri series match against Australia in Sydney on January 9.Teams:Australia A: Jimmy Maher (captain), Greg Blewett, Nathan Bracken, Ryan Campbell, Michael Clarke, Ian Harvey, Nathan Hauritz, Brad Hodge, Michael Hussey, Ashley Noffke, Andrew Symonds. Cricket Victoria to provide the 12th man.Sri Lanka (likely 12): Sanath Jayasuriya (captain), Russel Arnold, Marvan Atapattu, Aravinda De Silva, Dilhara Fernando, Pulsasthi Gunaratne, Mahela Jayawardene, Jehan Mubarak, Prabath Nissanka, Kumar Sangakkara, Hashan Tillakaratne, Chaminda Vaas.

XXXX Queensland Bulls pace bowler Ashley Noffke will miss Friday’s INGCup day/nighter against the Southern Redbacks, but remains in contentionfor Sunday’s Pura Cup match at the Gabba.Noffke was ruled out this morning after the Bulls medical and coachingstaff elected not to rush him back from a fractured right index fingerfor the one-day match at the Gabba.However they will assess him again on Saturday morning to see whether hemight be fit to take his place for the Pura Cup clash against theRedbacks that starts Sunday.The Queensland selectors have named a 13-man squad for the Pura Cup gameto cover if Noffke is unable to take his place.Queensland lead the Pura Cup competition and are in second spot on theING Cup ladder.Former Bulls captain Stuart Law has recovered from a dislocated fingerand retains his place in the ING Cup team after making his return to thelimited overs side in the win over the Western Warriors in Perth earlierthis month.XXXX Queensland Bulls v South Australia, ING Cup, Friday (D/N): MartinLove (c), Daniel Payne, Lee Carseldine, Clinton Perren, Stuart Law,Brendan Nash, James Hopes, Wade Seccombe, Nathan Hauritz, MichaelKasprowicz, Scott Brant, Damien MacKenzie (all twelve to play).XXXX Queensland Bulls v South Australia, Pura Cup, Sunday – Wednesday:Martin Love (c), Brendan Nash, Daniel Payne, Clinton Perren, Stuart Law,Lee Carseldine, James Hopes, Wade Seccombe, Nathan Hauritz, AshleyNoffke, Michael Kasprowicz, Adam Dale, Joe Dawes (one to be omitted).