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Five of Mohammad Yousuf’s nine Tests as captain have been againstAustralia in Australia. Each one of them has been lost and the latestdefeat in Hobart, to seal yet another whitewash – Australia have four 3-0series wins on the trot now against Pakistan – is demoralising enough forthe inevitable movement to begin in Pakistan demanding his removal.Though Yousuf has been an amiable, well-liked leader of his men off thefield on this tour, his on-field captaincy has led to much criticism,particularly in its essential defensiveness; his timid tactics on thefourth morning at the SCG was the worst embodiment of it, allowingAustralia to sneak in and win a seemingly lost Test.Yousuf’s batting returns as captain have been poor; he averages under 34,with a solitary hundred in nine Tests. In this series, where much hasdepended on him, he hasn’t scored big, averaging less than 30 and makingjust one fifty in six innings. He conceded that leadership may haveaffected his output, but insisted that he would like to continue ascaptain.”Maybe [it has affected my batting]. I have good form but I don’t know, Iam just not making runs,” he said. “I’ve been in better form on this tour than in my last two tours but just not making enough runs. I enjoy my job and I wouldlike to keep doing it. I am trying to do it sincerely. Maybe my captaincyis affecting my batting. Maybe. There is a lot of pressure on me, to speakto batsmen and bowlers, but somebody has to do the captaincy. I have juststarted it and have only done six Tests so far and the circumstances Itook it up in, nobody wanted to do it. I have done ok I think.”I am a new captain and captains are not born. It takes time. I am willingto take help from anyone. They say I made mistakes. I probably did, forsure. It can happen. But tell me what to do, and then if I don’t learn oram not listening, then criticise me. I am ready, I will speak to anyoneabout it.”Right through the series Yousuf has insisted that expectations about hisside – “young and inexperienced” – have to be realistic, even if thisAustralia side was beatable, more so than past sides this decade.Australia, he said, were still the top side in cricket but bigger nameshave come in the past and returned vanquished.”Australia looked a beatable side people say, but what about ours, howbeatable did we look?” Yousuf asked. “We could’ve been better than them inSydney but the pressure got to us. We’ve been bowled out chasing 120before with bigger names in the team, like against South Africa inFaisalabad [in 1997-98]. That had such big names in it, you name me onehere, in this side.”What happened to past Pakistan teams here? Yes Australia was strong butwe were strong as well back then. Think of the names we have had, thebiggest names in Pakistan cricket, who have been part of losses here:Wasim, Waqar, Inzamam, Saeed Anwar, Shoaib, Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq, AzharMahmood, Abdul Razzaq, Moin Khan.”Pakistan’s next Test assignment will be Australia again, but this time inEngland in July this year, for what is a two-Test ‘home’ series. Thingsmight change by then, but patience and a few changes in the side mightmake for brighter prospects, said Yousuf.”If we are honest, all of us stakeholders, if we put together an honestteam, we can have a good team. It will take time. It took India time aswell, a lot of time. We can make this side better. We are weak in a fewareas. We lost the series and are disappointed. But the way they played, ayoung side, inexperienced, I am happy with that.”

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Left-arm fast bowler Saurabh Netravalkar routed Sri Lanka, taking 5 for 26 to lead India to a thumping ten-wicket win in Johannesburg. India, who won their second consecutive game, justified their decision to field by picking up early wickets. The first four Sri Lankan wickets fell for just nine runs, with Netravalkar doing the bulk of the damage. He was supported by his new-ball partner Sandeep Sharma, who grabbed 3 for 26, as India allowed just two Sri Lankan batsmen to reach double-figures. Sri Lanka only managed 52, and the Indian openers, Lokesh Rahul and Mayank Agarwal, required just 9.1 overs to complete the victory.

Tim Southee, the New Zealand fast bowler, has been drafted into the squad as cover for the injured Shane Bond for the second Test against Pakistan. Bond suffered minor abdominal discomfort following the 32-run victory in Dunedin and was subsequently ruled out of the remaining two matches.However, captain Daniel Vettori said that Daryl Tuffey , who was part of the squad for the first Test, would most likely be starting in place of Bond for the match tomorrow in Wellington. Southee, on the other hand, would be backup, in case any injuries were sustained during the period before that match.Southee’s inclusion comes after a strong outing for Northern Districts against Wellington in Hamilton during the Plunket Shield last week. Southee wrecked Wellington’s first innings, finishing with extraordinary figures of 25-12-27-8, but it was a terrific effort in vain as the home side lost by 38 runs.The 20-year-old did well in the limited-overs series against Pakistan in the UAE. He last played a Test against India in April.Tuffey, whose last Test was against England in 2004, hoped to make the most of the opportunity. “Obviously it’s disappointing for Shane with that injury,” he told the . “But it always works in roundabouts like that and I’ve been on the receiving end of injuries and giving other guys chances. He’s a good mate of mine and I’m really disappointed for him.”If my name is read out, which is obviously looking more and more likely with Shane being out, I’m just looking forward to the opportunity.”Tuffey, like Bond a former ICL player who will have a chance to revive to his Test career, has taken 24 of his 66 Test wickets against Pakistan. He didn’t play the Sri Lanka Tests and suffered a hand injury which forced him to return home from South Africa during the Champions Trophy. “I never thought I would have been playing Test cricket again,” he said. “But it’s funny how things have panned out.””The good thing about Daryl is every Test team that’s been named, he’s been disappointed not to be in it,” said Daniel Vettori. “He’s been close and he’s been bowling well.”The fast bowler Iain O’Brien, who dislocated the middle finger of his bowling hand during a career-saving spell on day five in Dunedin, did not think the injury would prevent him from playing tomorrow. “I bowled a couple to feel the finger and see how it came out,” he said. “It’s just sore, there’s no fractures, no nothing really, just a bit of bruising. I’ve just got to hope I don’t get a bang on it when I’m bowling.”Having endured an ordinary Test and playing almost for his place, O’Brien had a crucial part in the turnaround on day five of the Dunedin Test. He followed up Umar Akmal’s wicket with those of Kamran Akmal, with a sharp in-ducker, and Umar Gul. He will protect his injured finger with a splint when fielding but will not, per cricket’s rules, be allowed to wear it while bowling.”I’ve got some toys to cover it with,” said O’Brien. “With the cricket laws it’ll be nude when I’m bowling then hopefully I can cover it up and keep some impact off it when I’m fielding. It’ll be okay, I guess I have to try and hide it as much as I can when I’m fielding.”

Cricket South Africa is understood to have demanded almost US$100,000 to play two one-day internationals against Kenya last month.The news is a blow to leading Associates who are already struggling to arrange matches against Full Member countries and completely goes against the ICC’s aim of the game’s leading sides helping in the development of the game.South Africa played Kenya twice at the end of 2008, and it is understood that a similar arrangement was discussed for two matches in South Africa in late October or early November.However, Gerald Majola, the chairman of CSA, contacted Cricket Kenya with the demand and gave it three days to come back with an answer, even though that included a weekend. Although he was asked for more time to consider his proposal, Cricinfo has learned that arrangements were already in place for Zimbabwe to play the matches. It is not known whether Zimbabwe had to pay the same fee.”The simple story is that Kenya wanted to play some games against South Africa, but CSA would have incurred costs to host those games, so we were prepared to meet them halfway on the costs,” Majola told Cricinfo. “Unfortunately, they could not make up that amount, but there was no money paid out from Cricket Kenya whatsoever.”While the Kenyan board declined to comment, the fact that its total funding from the ICC is less than US$1 million a year, something known to CSA, means the request was never likely to be a serious option. As the Kenyans would also have paid for their flights and accommodation, had the games gone ahead then they could have accounted for up to 20% of the board’s annual budget.CSA needed to play matches to help fulfil its current broadcast contract. In the event, the two games against Zimbabwe were one-sided affairs played out in front of almost empty grounds.

Group A

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Pankaj Singh picked up 7 for 64 during Assam’s chase as Rajasthan put aside their off-the-field troubles to take full points in Guwahati. Madhur Khatri dealt Assam the first blow on the final day, sending back Dheeraj Jadhav for 16, with the hosts needing 294 to win. That opened the gates for Pankaj, who repeatedly dented Assam – an even better showing than his 4 for 44 in the first innings. The right-arm fast bowler was unstoppable as none of the batsmen managed to convert their starts, with Parvez Aziz top scoring with 45. Assam captain Amol Muzumdar had reason to celebrate though, becoming the highest run-getter in the Ranji Trophy, courtesy his 25 in the second innings.
ScorecardAkshay Wakhare’s five-for might have come too late as Goa held on to first-innings points against Vidarbha in Nagpur. The offpsinner ran through the Goa top and middle orders before they declared on 203 for 8 in their second innings. First-innings centurion Saurabh Bandekar was the top scorer for Goa with 40 off 53 balls. The target of 340 was near impossible to achieve as Jayesh Dongaonkar and captain Alind Naidu saw Vidarbha through to the end of the day’s play at 83 for 1.
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Debabrata Chowdhury’s half-century ensured crucial first-innings points for Tripura against Jharkhand in the drawn-game in Ranchi. Chowdhury added 44 to his overnight score of 34, taking Tripura’s first-innings total to 438 – a narrow lead of seven. Opener Siddhartha Sinha gave Jharkhand a solid start in their second innings with 76 and they finally took stumps at 167 for 3. Jharkhand would look to make-up for the lost points when they take on Vidarbha on November 10.

Group B

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Girikina Prasad’s five-for ensured Andhra grabbed first-innings against Kerala. Continuing from their overnight score of 208 for 6, Preambhastn Prem and Padmanbhan Prasanth battled valiantly, as the seventh-wicket stand yielded 82. Prem surrendered to Prasad nine short of his fifty, and the offspinner then proceeded to take out the last two batsmen to end with a well-deserved 5 for 100. Sitting pretty on a lead of 106, the Andhra openers, Hemal Watekar and Prasad Reddy, saw out the remaining 11 overs in the day without trouble.
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The runs continued to flow in Indore as the Haryana openers made merry after they had ensured first-innings points against Madhya Pradesh. Resuming on 364 for 7, still 182 behind Haryana’s mammoth first-innings total, Sanjay Pandey’s patient 46 only delayed the inevitable. He was the last wicket to fall, with the last three wickets contributing 70. Ahead by 112, Rahul Dewan and Ankit Rawat chose to extend Haryana’s domination, smashing 133 and 100 respectively. While Dewan scored 20 fours during his 171-ball innings, Rawat managed nine fours and three sixes during his knock. The unbeaten 244-run partnership was the perfect icing to the three points Haryana gained.

ScorecardAustralia coasted to an easy six-wicket win in the fourth ODI at the Marrara Cricket Ground to level the series 2-2 against Sri Lanka Under-19s. It was a poor day for the Sri Lankan batsmen in particular, as they lost half their side by the 20th over and posted a paltry 155. The Australian batsmen were hardly challenged as they sailed to victory within 38 overs.The damage was done early by the right-arm medium pace duo of Tim Armstrong and Alex Keath, who combined to reduce Sri Lanka to 4 for 56 by the 18th over. The situation got worse when they lost two more for the addition of only eight runs. Danushka Gunathilake, who top scored with 43, had some assistance from the lower order to push the score past 150. He remained unbeaten and hit four fours.The Australians progressed steadily towards the target thanks to the solid foundation laid by Peter Handscomb, who made 38. Both Keath and Armstrong rounded off a satisfying day’s work with scores of 25 and 39 to knock off the required runs and set up the deciding clash at the same venue on Sunday.

A little under a year ago, on the eve of the first of five one-day internationals against Sri Lanka, India received a blow with the news that Virender Sehwag had twisted his ankle at practice. Today they found out that Gautam Gambhir had aggravated a groin injury and would fly home. It was impossible not to feel the déjà vu.Gambhir’s groin injury has left India with another headache – Sehwag is already absent with a shoulder injury – but MS Dhoni put faith in the services of Rahul Dravid and the other batsmen. Part of Dhoni’s method since taking over the captaincy has been to experiment with his batting line-up. He has tried out different options at No. 3 and not always with success, but backed a flexible line-up to absorb the pressure.”Dravid is the ideal No. 3, especially in such conditions and during the evening when the ball swings and seams, so definitely he we will bat at that position,” he said. “Of course, you get conditions when there are fewer overs and higher asking rates, so then you shuffle and shift. We don’t have a fixed order: [Suresh] Raina, Rohit [Sharma], Yuvraj [Singh], myself … we have all batted at No. 3. It’s not too much of a worry.”And while admitting that Gambhir would be missed, he said that he was focused on the personnel available. “When someone is injured you can’t do anything, even though you have taken precautions in training. We hope he’s fit for the Champions Trophy. This gives someone else a chance he would not have got had Gambhir played. It’s a chance to prove yourself and that’s something we’ve done well in the past; the ability of a player to fill another’s shoes.”When asked about the void left by the loss of both openers, he was quick to point out that the most successful batsman in ODI history is still here. Dhoni’s vote for the man to partner Sachin Tendulkar was Dinesh Karthik – who he said was “doing very well in the nets” – because of his success in the role in the West Indies recently. The replacement scheduled to land in Sri Lanka is Virat Kohli, who opened in five ODIs here last year, but, as Dhoni firmly reminded everyone, he is not an opener.India have had almost a two-month gap since their last assignment, a one-day series in the West Indies they won 2-1. Since then they have had time off, conditioning camps, fitness assessments, and then the inaugural Corporate Trophy. Dhoni reckoned the players looked fit and that the break from competitive cricket would have helped.”I’d say we’re fresh, but that depends on the match result. If we win, you’d say we’re fresh but if we lose, we’re rusty. The Corporate tournament helped those who played, and I’m not worried about what people will say. We need to put in more effort than we did in the West Indies. The energy is definitely up, so is the intensity. We’ve got back-to-back games, which is challenging.”India, at No. 2 in the ICC’s ODI rankings, have done very well in Sri Lanka recently, winning their last two series, but Dhoni said the opportunity to move to No.1 was no added pressure. “We’re not worried. If we do well on the field, rankings and ratings will take care of themselves. The rankings will only come after the series. We take it game by game. Our first priority is to reach the final. Sri Lanka is a difficult place to play cricket but we have the potential and talent to do well here.”The tri-series itself is a rarity in today’s cricket calendar – India have played two in the last two years. They altered their itinerary to play back-to-back matches to accommodate an extra rest day, and there are questions about the logic of cramming in a brief series in Sri Lanka before the Champions Trophy in South Africa, where conditions will be different.Dhoni, though, was confident of India’s chances to win despite the short time-span. “In bilateral series, as they progress, you see how a player does, so subconsciously you put in plans. In a competition where there are more teams, you have to be fully prepared from the start,” he said. “You can come up with plans but on the day it gets tough. If you have a plan A, you’d better also have a plan B. We’ve not played many tri-series, it’s been mostly bilateral series. It’s not very common for us.”

Matthew Hayden will draw upon his IPL experiences to help navigate Cricket Australia through the uncharted waters of Twenty20 cricket as part of his newly-acquired role as board director. Hayden, who will replace the departing Allan Border on CA’s board, insists he will bring a contemporary voice to the decision-making process as cricket’s administrators attempt to strike a balance between the Twenty20 phenomenon and the more traditional forms of the game.Hayden was a foundation member of the Chennai Super Kings, and has been a staunch advocate of both the IPL and the 20-over game in general. He will become the only member of the board with first-hand experience of the Twenty20 game as a player.”The game is definitely at the coalface of anticipated change,” Hayden told Cricinfo. “What I can bring to the table is a real currency and a slightly more contemporary style of looking at the way cricket and the business of cricket is managed and maintained. Strategically it’s really important to recognise that iconic series such as the Ashes can never be removed, and in fact need to be protected and maintained, throughout the cricketing landscape. At a time when the market is looking to find new ways to engage our sport I think it’s also really important to go on a journey and go on a debate and recognise that we have got something very special in the creation of franchise cricket and the globalisation of those brands.”Jack Clarke, CA’s chairman, was hopeful Hayden would make a significant contribution to the board. “He brings a combination of contemporary, elite playing experience in all major cricketing nations; additional understanding of player issues through his work on the board of the Australian Cricketer’s Association, experience in the new Twenty20 phenomena as an IPL player, and a passion for development of Indigenous cricket,” Clarke said.”I congratulate Queensland Cricket on having the foresight and vision to appoint Matthew Hayden to the Cricket Australia Board so soon after his retirement from wearing the Baggy Green.”The move could improve relations between Cricket Australia and the players due to Hayden’s recent involvement in the game and his role as an executive member of the Australian Cricketers’ Association.Besides the retiring Border, Mark Taylor and Wally Edwards are the other two former Test cricketers who are now Cricket Australia directors.

Marcus North wants his vital 96 on the final day at Edgbaston to be the innings that kick-starts a run of consistency and eliminates all doubt over his position at No. 6. Despite North scoring two centuries in his opening four Tests, there were whispers last week that he could make way for Shane Watson to help the team’s balance, but he was rightly retained and played a key part in the draw that kept Australia in the series.The tourists, who must win the final two games to hold their No. 1 Test rating, travel to Leeds on Tuesday and are desperate to level the contest at 1-1, although they will face more familiar obstacles. Rain is forecast throughout the Test and there are concerns the fourth match could follow the same pattern as the third, which lost almost two days to the weather. The overcast conditions will also encourage the seamers and the Australians have already shown their fragility against the moving ball.They sailed from the safety of 126 for 1 on the opening day in Birmingham to being all-out for 263 after James Anderson and Graham Onions ran through them. “It’s not the first time we’ve faced the swinging ball, it’s just one of those innings,” North said. “We’ll work this week [on it for] the Test at Headingley [on Friday]. It does swing around a bit when it gets overcast there. It’s about us being a bit more disciplined in the way we are batting.”At Edgbaston North was incredibly focussed in the second innings when he and Michael Clarke, who was unbeaten on 103, saved the game during a 183-run stand. England started the day with thoughts of winning but North and Clarke only looked in danger when the result had been determined. North started expanding his game towards the end of the day and was caught athletically by James Anderson in the gully when trying to slice through gully to bring up his century.”I’m very disappointed not to get those four runs, but very satisfied with that partnership with Clarkey,” he said. “To see the day off and walk away with a pretty positive result.”North’s performance continued a pattern in his Test career where he either scores heavily or lightly. After starting with 117 on debut in Johannesburg he followed up with 5, 38 and 0 in his other innings against South Africa before producing 125 not out in Cardiff, 0 and 6 at Lord’s and 12 and 96 at Edgbaston. During his domestic career he has also experienced similar variations and when Tom Moody returned from Sri Lanka to coach Western Australia he had a long discussion with North over his sometimes casual attitude.”Give me a chance, it’s only my fifth Test,” North said. “Hopefully I can change that around in the next couple of Tests and get a bit more consistent. It’s something I’m always trying to work on, making sure there’s always some middle ground there. It’s consistency, but I’m pretty pleased with the way I’ve started Test cricket.”North was also happy with the character shown by the team in securing the draw and wants to take the momentum gained from a strong finish into the match into Leeds. “I have no doubt England went out there believing they could win that game,” he said. “We were four down with a lead of 200 and building, we played some very good cricket in this Test. Yesterday, hopefully, was a pretty important day of test cricket for the Australian team.”Despite their position, North said the side was very confident of taking the series. “If we play our best cricket we walk away winning Tests against any opponent,” he said. “We take away with us a lot of momentum and character and fight out of this Test, and hopefully that can set us up for the remaining two Tests.”

The deadline for brokering a deal in the bitter dispute between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) has been set for August. Shridath Ramphal, who has been given the responsibility of mediating negotiations, said it was critically important that an urgent solution was found, so that cricket in the region could return to a state of normalcy.Following his first meeting with both parties on Sunday, Ramphal said he believed the deadline would be possible to meet as both sides were keen on moving swiftly towards a resolution. “The parties, who were with me together over those many hours, and I share that view that we’ve got to get on with this quickly,” Ramphal told .”My own timeline – although the meeting hasn’t put a time on it – my own personal hope is that we can see this process through within August. By the end of August, this should be a process done and put behind us with a line drawn in the sand and with the future for West Indies cricket and the whole region, and indeed international sport [settled].”Ramphal, a former commonwealth secretary-general, was appointed to mediate, following a meeting between the WIPA, the WICB and Guyana president Bharrat Jagdeo, who is also chairman of the 15-nation trading bloc Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM), in Georgetown last Tuesday.The meeting ended the stand-off between WIPA and the board, because of which the first-choice West Indies players refused to play in the ongoing home series against Bangladesh, citing pay and contract issues as their main grievances.Ramphal also said the issue of West Indies cricket was too important for the mediation process to be treated lightly. “In Guyana, under the agreement that Jagdeo brokered as chairman of CARICOM, they called on the parties to proceed to mediation – in the language of the agreement – with expedition and I can understand why they did that,” Ramphal said.”West Indies cricket cannot afford a long stalemate, which is the situation we are in now. These issues that so trouble the game in the West Indies, trouble the game in the world and I’m sure that England and Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India – they are all looking. At this intimate process and hoping that the West Indies will get its act together and resume its prominent place in world cricket.”The impasse forced the selectors to hastily assemble a makeshift squad for the Bangladesh series and select a largely inexperienced 30-man provisional squad for the Champions Trophy in September. Though the first choice players have subsequently made themselves available,the WICB has opted not to revise the provisional squad.