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Batsman of the day
Mahela Jayawardene may have been Sri Lanka’s stand-out performer, butthe most fluent batsman of the day was his partner Chaminda Vaas. He’smore than just a tailender these days – earlier this year he picked uphis maiden Test hundred against Bangladesh. He deserved a secondcentury today, as he flogged England into submission with a successionof thumps, drives and swishes. They were agricultural but hugelyeffective, but in the end the allure of three figures proved too much.Mind you, Michael Vaughan did his utmost to drop the steeplingtop-edge that eventually did for Vaas. The bowler, Matthew Hoggard,didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.Drop of the day
He’s at it again. Matt Prior’s third clanger of the match came atprecisely the right moment to destroy what remained of England’sdwindling resolve. Jayawardene had only added five runs to hisovernight 149, when he edged low to Prior’s right, off the lucklessRyan Sidebottom. He got both mitts to the chance but couldn’t clingon, and a furious Sidebottom stalked down to fine leg in anunderstandable huff. That was the fifth chance that Prior has spilledoff his bowling in six Tests, and the missed victims – Jaffer,Tendulkar, Laxman, Dilshan and Jayawardene – are not exactly the typeof players who squander such lifelines.Fielder of the day
If England were slipshod, Sri Lanka were electric when their turn cameto field. Doubtless they were gagging for a run-about after two dayscooped up in the pavilion, but the stand-out performer wasTillakaratne Dilshan. Yesterday he was himself run out for 84; todayhe put the skids under England’s innings with a superb swoop and shyfrom the covers, to dismiss Ian Bell at the non-striker’s end. It wasa crass bit of calling from Bell’s partner Alastair Cook, but suddenlyEngland’s innings was reminiscent of the last time Bell was run out ina Test … on that fateful day at Adelaide last winter.Crass dismissal of the day
It’s hard to quantity the various depths that England plumbed in theirday’s work, but two men were more culpable than their colleagues.First there was Michael Vaughan, who set the tone for England’sinnings with arguably the most stone-cold lbw of the year. He’dwatched from the non-strikers’ end as Vaas zipped hisoffcutters past Cook’s prodding edge, but then – when he finally goton strike – he decided to offer no stroke to a ball that started afraction outside off stump, and sure enough snaked back in to rap thepads.

Crass dismissal of the day no. 2
England’s cricket in this series can best be summed up as naïve, andalas, Ravi Bopara epitomised that in the manner of his departure.England had only been back on the field for three balls after lunchwhen he lobbed an awful whip across the line straight to mid-on. Thecatcher, incidentally, was the debutant Chanaka Welegedara, who canhardly have hoped for a tamer introduction to Test cricket. Two dayswith his feet up in the dressing room, then a lollipop of a catch tosettle the nerves.Delivery of the day
Kevin Pietersen has faced some snorters in his lifetime, but few havebeen as blisteringly quick, accurate or unexpected as the exocet thatLasith Malinga unleashed before lunch. It skimmed off the deck like atennis ball out of the surf, fizzed at Pietersen’s face, and brushedhis glove as he whipped his body out of line in a movement reminiscentof Robin Smith against the West Indian quicks. Up went the finger, asPietersen froze at the crease, transfixed by the venom of thedelivery. Subcontinental wickets aren’t meant to provide bounce likethat, but it’s thrilling when they do.Contest of the day
Seeing as the English weren’t providing any opposition, the SriLankans decided to play among themselves. After the rain-break theyre-emerged 20 minutes early for a warm-up, most of which time wasspent playing bowls with a set of spare cricket balls. Muralitharan,as you might imagine, produced some wicked spin to land his attemptson a sixpence. He’s a pretty handy allrounder, it would appear.Hold-up of the day
So far in this series we’ve been held up by bees, dogs and an awfullot of rain, but “cultural experience stops play” is a new one, I’msure. Play was all set to resume after lunch, but down on theconcourse in front of the indoor nets, a frenzy of Kandyan drummersand dancers were bongoing away to themselves, quite oblivious to theumpires’ gesticulations. Eventually they got the message and troopedoff, a touch disconsolately. And with good reason too. No-one has yetasked the Barmy Army to shut up.

ScorecardJerome Taylor and Nikita Miller triggered an astonishing Leeward Island collapse in which 8 wickets fell for only 51 runs. At 99 for 2, Leeward Island were in a strong position, and all set to take the first-innings lead over Jamaica, but were bundled out for 150, still 38 short of Jamaica’s total. However, Wilden Cornwall struck back for Leeward with two wickets, and had Jamaica in some bother at 39 for 3 as the second day ended.Taylor claimed 5 for 23 and Miller took 4 for 47 on the uneven track, which assisted the bowlers, but not as much as on the first day. Leeward were 2 for 2, but a 97-run counter-attack between Runako Morton (50) and Sylvester Joseph (35) ensued before Jamaica ran through. Soon Leeward were 116 for 8, but were helped along by two stubborn innings by Carl Simon (15) and Kerry Jeremy (19).Jamaica then lost both openers and Lorenzo Ingram for 32 to restrict Jamaica’s lead to 77, with two days to achieve a result.The two other matches – between Barbados and Windward Island, and Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago – were both rained off.

A record number of tickets have been sold for Tuesday’s NatWest Series match between England and South Africa at Edgbaston. A grand total of 20,260 tickets have been snapped up for the day-night game – the most ever at the ground. It beats the next highest of 19,223 for the England v Pakistan match in 2001, and the 18,319 for England against New Zealand in 1994.Dennis Amiss, Warwickshire’s chief executive, said: “We are delighted that Edgbaston is sold out for the one-day international on Tuesday. It promises to be a great encounter and the atmosphere at a packed Edgbaston is always memorable. We hope that this success will be mirrored for the Test match later in the month and I am sure that all those who buy tickets for that will witness a fantastic sporting encounter.”Stuart Robertson, who has recently been appointed head of marketing at Warwickshire, added: “Edgbaston is second only to Lord’s in terms of capacity and it will be great to see the ground full to the rafters during the NatWest Series match. Although we are not yet sold out for the npower Test match, we expect to see some huge crowds for that match as well. With big crowds at the recent Twenty20 matches cricket in the West Midlands is very much alive and kicking.”The Test match between England and South Africa takes place from July 24 to 28, and although tickets are available for all five days, they are selling out fast. They can be purchased by calling 0121 446 5506. Discounts are available for groups, schools and families, information about which can be found on that number.For further information, call Warwickshire’s marketing department on 0121 446 4777.

Ray Bright, the former Australian left-arm spinner, will conduct a three-day training programme with some of Tasmania’s young slow bowlers. The sessions will commence from Friday, August 1, in the Indoor Centre at Bellerive Oval, Hobart. Among the items on the agenda for Bright is a two-hour session – from 10am to 12 noon on August 1 – spent exclusively with Xavier Doherty, a promising left-arm spinner.Bright’s international career lasted 10 years, during which time he played 25 Tests and 11 one-day internationals. He was also in the Australian team that took part in the first World Series against West Indies and the Rest of the World. Bright played 184 first-class matches for Victoria, taking 471 wickets at 32.08.

Rahul Dravid appeared relaxed and cheery despite India’s nine-wicket loss in the second Test. His counterpart, Inzamam-ul-Haq, was equally candid in the post-match press conference.

Rahul Dravid
On the reasons for the defeat
They [Pakistan] played well over three-and-a-half days. They played better cricket than us. It is as simple as that.On what the team could have done better
You can look back upon [a lot of areas] and do [things] differently. I wish we had batted better, got the tail out quicker, but the toss is not the only reason. We didn’t bat well enough in the first session, and as you saw, the wicket was up-and-down towards the end. It would have been interesting if either team was chasing 250 on the last day. In hindsight we could have done it differently. If I knew that we would be four down at lunch, we would have done things differently. But we don’t have the benefit of hindsight.On whether his run-out in the second innings was the turning point
One run-out cannot be the turning point. It is the team that plays better that wins, and they [Pakistan] were deserving winners.On not making runs as captain
I was looking forward to this Test. But I played a poor shot [in the first innings]. I was disappointed personally, and hopefully, I will have the opportunity to correct this in Rawalpindi. And make some runs on this tour.On Pakistan’s tail wagging in the first innings
In the first innings we could have done with 75 more runs. And we could have restricted them to less. We needed 150 runs from somewhere. Shoaib Akhtar showed the character to stay at the wicket, something that is not in his nature. Credit to him.On whether mental fatigue led to a rare occasion when India’s batting failed in both innings of a Test
There was no mental fatigue, at least I hope not. We were all very keen and excited to play well here. It’s very hard to point out exact reasons why we failed twice. We know we are most dangerous when we bat well and put runs on the board.On whether umpiring decisions going against India made a difference
We were better in Multan, they were better than us here, and in both games the better team won. Umpiring is part and parcel of the game. I believe that both teams should accept what they get in terms of umpiring.On the fact that India has won the first Test of a series and then immediately lost the next in away series
We definitely think that we have not [handled] this aspect well. We have to find solutions to that problem. I don’t think complacency was a factor. It is not as if we did not try hard enough. That is something we can rule out. We have changed a lot of things over the last two-and-a-half years and hopefully this is something we can change.On the positives India can take out of this match
Yuvraj [Singh] was brilliant. He was batting under pressure and did brilliantly for someone who is playing only his third Test. [Irfan] Pathan and [Lakshmipathy] Balaji showed great heart on what became a flat wicket on the second and third days. They ran in hard consistently. Viru [Virender Sehwag] has been fantastic and Parthiv’s attitude towards the end showed guts and character. I couldn’t have asked for more.On Umar Gul’s spell in the first innings
I admit [Umar] Gul was a surprise package, an inspired selection. Hats off to the young kid. He did well to put the ball in the right areas. He broke the back of our batting and was deservedly the Man of the Match.On the fact that India won comprehensively in Multan and that Pakistan also completed their win with plenty of time to spare
It has been an evenly contested series. Neither team has had a clear advantage. Whoever executes their plans better is going to win. It will be the same in Rawalpindi.On coming back from defeat
It’s disappointing to lose – personally and as a team. I don’t deny that. But character is how you pick yourself up and come back. It does hurt but you have to look ahead and stay positive.On whether the deciding Test would be more intense and competitive
It has been intense and competitive right through. It can’t get any more intense than it already has. Rawalpindi is an important game, the last of this tour.On whether the team was affected by speculation about who would be dropped if Yuvraj Singh was to be included in the third Test
It did not affect the side. That’s the beauty of the game. In this part of the world all sorts of things are discussed, in board-rooms and living-rooms, but there was no talk about this in the dressing-room.

Inzamam-ul-Haq
On the criticism after Multan
This was a very good comeback by our team after what happened at Multan and it was a good answer to the criticism. The boys were very demoralized after the defeat but the criticism in the press was overboard. I was very disappointed by a lot of remarks from ex-Pakistani players and greats. I expected them to try and lift our team after what had happened but they did the exact opposite and I wasn’t very happy with that.On India batting first
I wasn’t that surprised – there was some support for the bowlers and I would’ve bowled anyway had we won the toss. There was something in it for the first few hours.On Rawalpindi
It’s the decider and it is a crucial game. We have to work even harder for that match. There are still some weaknesses in the team. We know that but they will have to be ironed out for the next game. I will not take these lightly at all, and we intend to work even harder now.On Javed Miandad’s hints at retirement following the criticism
The criticism has been intense and uncalled for. I feel similar to Javed that if it continues then it will become difficult for me to carry on as well. If I had said something like this following Multan, then people would have said that I have lost. I am saying this now, after a victory, because I want to make it clear that it is difficult to work under this amount of pressure. Criticism is okay but it has to be positive and constructive.On the new players and selection for the next Test
We will have to see what happens in the next few days. There are still injury concerns, but these players all played extremely well. We will decide on their status closer to the next game.On the failure of the India batting
We know India has a very strong batting line-up and that is why it was so important to take such a big lead. Our bowlers then bowled very well, to a good line and length and it worked. A failure in one match doesn’t mean that their batting isn’t strong, but our bowlers are also confident now for the next game. We will have to work even harder for the next game.On the pressures of captaincy
Captaincy is about handling pressure, but I would argue that international cricket is itself mainly about how you handle the pressure.On confidence
The boys were obviously down after the first game but they now have their confidence back. It will spur them to work even harder for the next match.On the lack of crowds
I think the one-day series played a part as it was held before the Test matches. Also, the security and all its concerns probably helped to keep a few people away, but with a win now, hopefully, more people will turn up for the next game.On Shoaib Akhtar
There was no question of him not wanting to play this Test. He was obviously down after Multan but he is a human being. Like everyone else he goes through bad patches, he performs sometimes and sometimes he doesn’t. He can still bowl better than he did today although his rhythm is coming back. Hopefully he will be in full flow in the next Test.On the fielding
We need to improve our fielding still. It was okay but it can get better. And no, I don’t think we need a coach for it.On the turning point in the game
Rahul Dravid’s run out in the second innings.On his own form and Sachin’s
My own form is good at the moment and I hope to continue it. Sachin is a big player and he will perform no doubt. But if he has another match like he did here then I won’t mind.On the tiff with Kumble
We spent so much time on the field together I just thought we should have a chat. It was nothing special.On the overall progress of the team
The entire squad has been working hard and they have done well. There are some areas that we need to work on and we are still learning as a team. But there is a picture emerging of a team now and a group of players who, if they continue to work hard, will be of benefit to the team.

Taj Television, a Dubai-based cable television operator which runs TEN Sports, has secured Sri Lanka’s broadcasting and sponsorship rights for the next four years after matching a US$ 48 million bid from ARY Digital.Taj Television, the current rights holders, had a matching rights clause in their current contract which allowed them to outbid any competitor providing they upped the bid by an agreed percentage. The final amount that will be paid to the board, assuming it can deliver on its promised tours, is approximately US$ 50 million.The new deal represents a substantial jump in income for the Sri Lanka board, which has been facing financial difficulties during the past two years because of a legal wrangle with WSG Nimbus. The stiff competition for the rights – which include television, radio, internet, wireless and title-sponsorship rights – follows the announcement that the four-year period, from January 2005, will include three tours by India.India are due to play in a triangular series in 2005 and 2006, as well as undertake a full Test and one-day tour in 2008. England and Australia, the two other most lucrative visitors, will also tour during the contract period.

In spite of England’s defeat in the final of the Champions Trophy, Andrew Flintoff has consolidated his position as the world’s leading one-day player. According to the PwC ratings, Flintoff now lies fourth in the batting table and seventh in the bowling, and is unsurprisingly rated as the best allrounder in the game, ahead of West Indies’ Chris Gayle (eighth and 23rd respectively).Marcus Trescothick, who scored a valiant but futile 104 in the final, has climbed to fourth in the batting charts after top-scoring 261 runs in the tournament. That was almost 100 more than the next most prolific batsman, Ramnaresh Sarwan, who was named as Man of the Tournament after picking up match awards against South Africa and Pakistan. He has slipped from fourth to seventh after falling cheaply in the final.Of the bowlers, Steve Harmison makes the biggest leap up the rankings, climbing 16 places to No. 20 after another penetrative new-ball spell. The batting list is still topped by Sachin Tendulkar, however, despite the fact he missed the tournament through injury.

Several changes have been made to the international and domestic programsfor Australian cricket next summer, and India will benefit during their tour with an extra match, Cricket Australia said today. They will play a Queensland XI in a three-day match at Allan Border Field from November 29-December 1.As a result of the inclusion of this match, the Indian three-day gameagainst Victoria in Melbourne will now start two days earlier on November25. The one-day match against the Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra has beentransferred from December 1 to January 28. India¹s other tour match, athree-day clash against Australia A in Hobart (December 19-21), remainsunchanged.

Steve Rixon, the former Australian wicketkeeper and New Zealand coach, has joined the call for Matthew Hayden’s exclusion from the Australian team for the fifth Ashes Test, which starts at The Oval on September 8. Hayden has struggled throughout the series, scoring only 180 runs in eight innings at an average of 22.50, and Rixon reckoned it was time for Simon Katich to move up the batting order as Justin Langer’s partner.”I’d be leaving Matthew Hayden out and letting Simon Katich open,” Rixon told . “I’ve no doubt Ricky [Ponting] will want him in the team, but it shouldn’t happen. I’m a fan of Matthew Hayden. He’s been sensational for Australia. But this is a one-off Test with everything – and I mean everything – at stake. It’s the biggest match Australia has played for as long as I can remember. Matthew is a frustrated batsman. Even he would have to admit he’s out of form. It’s been too long since he’s made a big score.” Hayden hasn’t scored a hundred in his last 15 Tests, and averages only 30.23 over that period.”He can come back for the next Test, but he shouldn’t be in this one,” Rixon continued. “I’ve never seen him play the way he is at the moment. Some of the balls he misses, he wouldn’t have hit it with two bats.”If Hayden plays, I hope he gets runs and proves me wrong. But we need batsmen to go out there and fight to save the series. Katich will do that. He was ready for the innings of the life before he was taken out through no fault of his own,” Rixon said, referring to Katich’s 183-ball 59 at Trent Bridge, an innings which was cut short by a dubious lbw decision. “Simon showed that’s it’s possible to bat for a long time against these bowlers when you get tough. The selectors need to be strong on this.”Meanwhile Jason Gillespie, another Australian who has been struggling throughout the tour, rejected suggestions that there will be wholesale changes to the Australian team after the current series. Gillespie was dropped from the fourth Test after taking just three wickets at 100 apiece in the first three.”I honestly don’t believe there is a feeling of a sea change within the team,” Gillespie told . “There is talk of this being an older team but you’re only as old as you feel. We all feel fresh, the batsmen are hitting the ball well, the bowlers are doing well, it’s business as usual.”So, I don’t know if I buy into that sort of talk. That sort of talk always happens when you’re not playing well. “We’ve played a couple of bad games, we haven’t played to our usual standards, and you have former players in the media having their bit to say, which is fine. We know we can do better, it’s time for us to fine-tune our skills and we’ll silence [the critics] when we win at The Oval.”

Anyone arriving in the UK this morning could be forgiven for thinking that cricket was the nation’s obsession and football was a mere afterthought to fill in the gap between seasons. But then again, the Ashes aren’t won every day (or even every decade).While the broadsheets attempted to retain some sense of restraint – if only in appearance as opposed to their writing – the tabloids had no such worries. “FantASHtic” boomed the front page of The Sun, while its back page was devoted entirely to a picture of Michael Vaughan and the words of William Blake’s Jerusalem. The Mirror also put aside its front and pack pages to the cricket, and chose a different pun to lead with – “URNcredible”. And inside, just to put football finally in its place, the headline – “They think its all Oval … it is now”.The broadsheets also went into overdrive, with pages devoted to the match, and in some instances special pull-outs as well. But it was Kevin Pietersen’s performance which attracted the column inches. “When sport and drama can reach no higher plane and spectators are watching through the gaps between their fingers, even the greatest athletes can have performance strangled from within them. Pietersen’ s colleagues from higher up the order yesterday bore witness to that,” wrote Owen Slot in The Times. “Those who survive, we tend to associate with steely mentality: Jonny Wilkinson, Nick Faldo, Bjorn Borg. But to come equipped with soaring self-belief clearly helps, too. Arguably, Pietersen had no right to be “the man who did it”, but when your mentality is as cocksure as his is, who is there to stop you? “

In The Daily Telegraph , Geoff Boycott said Pietersen was “a belligerent individual. He is cocky and confident; there is a touch of arrogance about him. I love it, so long as he produces runs. All the great players have had self-confidence and self-belief. They have all been full of themselves. But the point is that they have delivered. Up until this point, Pietersen has had the persona but he hasn’t had the runs. All we want now is for him to take a catch, and then he has cracked Test cricket.”In the same paper, Martin Johnson carried on the theme with his tongue firmly in his cheek. “A grateful nation woke up this morning with the unshakeable conviction that Kevin Pietersen was wonderful, and if this was a view which happily corresponded with his own, what the heck. He even has an autobiography in the pipeline, no doubt with a diamond-encrusted front cover and the modest working title, KP Superstar … many batsmen take to wearing lucky charms, like a rabbit’s foot, but while they generally wait until the rabbit is dead, Pietersen became the first cricketer in Ashes history to bat with a live animal as a mascot. Wearing a skunk underneath your helmet may not meet the approval of the RSPCA, but in England’s hour of crisis, it certainly got the job done.””Play Pietersen, they said before this series began,” wote Mike Selvey in The Guardian. “Tolerate his lip and his ego, the bling, bullshit and 50-grand ear stud. And forgive him his batting peccadilloes – of which there would be many from such a free spirit with a confidence level on red alert – because somewhere along the line he will deliver an innings that matters. Yesterday was his, the day this brash fellow, with the skunk-chic haircut and more front than Durban, channelled it all into one remarkable innings that saved the day for his team and won them back the Ashes.”In The Independent, James Lawton caught his breath. “England won the Ashes, but long after this is a detail of cricket history assigned amid a thousand others, this day, this summer, will surely live at least as long as all who saw it and felt it and were carried, for a small but totally absorbing fraction of their lives, into a world where men, however young and green, however steeped in gritty experience, kept digging down and finding new dimensions to both their will and their talent.”Also in The Independent, Peter Roebuck said that the England had won the Ashes fair and square. “They looked the Australians in the eye and exchanged blows until the weaker side fell.. He concluded: “Perhaps, though, the last word belongs to a cheerful crowd’s lone trumpeter, a splendid gentleman who reminded all and sundry that it is only a game by routinely greeting Langer with his rendition of ” hi-ho, hi-ho, it’s off to work we go”.Back to The Times , where Christopher Martin-Jenkins touched on the massive interest in the match across the country. “There has never been a series followed at close quarters by so many as this,” wrote Christopher Martin-Jenkins. “When Radio 4’s computer was switched on in the Test Match Special commentary box yesterday morning there were 18,543 e-mail messages unread.”