Scrap Champions Trophy, says Hayden

Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden has called for scrapping the Champions Trophy as there already is a World Cup in the 50-over format.

Hayden, writing about his vision for cricket, questioned why the tournament should be held when there is already a World Cup in 50 overs format. The Champions Trophy is scheduled to take place in South Africa Sept 22-Oct 5.

'There's too much cricket, too much of it is meaningless, and there are just too many different formats.' Hayden wrote. 'Playing the World Twenty20 every other year is too much. And why have the Champions Trophy (a 50-over tournament) when you've already got a 50-over World Cup?

'There are strong lessons to be learned from the success achieved in other sports, such as the quadrennial cycle of football World Cup and UEFA European Championships.

Cricket should follow this with a similar cycle of T20 World Cup and ODI World Cup. To maximize coverage these should be played in odd-numbered years - football major competitions, and the Olympics, are in even-numbered years. The Champions Trophy should be scrapped. '

Hayden also suggested a two-month window for the Indian Premier League to avoid overlapping of schedules.

'The main point of conflict between the IPL and the established game is in scheduling, particularly the subsequent clash of players' contracts. This can be avoided in the future by creating a two-month window each year. I'd hold it in March and April - when other forms of the game take a back seat, no Tests, no World Cup cricket and so on.

'We need to do this. The IPL has the ability to generate international fan bases in the same way as achieved by the English football's Premier League. I believe some IPL matches should go on the road each year and be played in other countries, to make it a global competition.

'The sooner the world of cricket embraces the IPL, the sooner everyone can find ways to benefit from its massive potential,' he said.

A courageous stand to save Sehwags of future

Delhi cricket is a world in itself. Here, laws are meant to be flouted, and anyone who sticks to rules is considered a lunatic fit for an isolation ward. Here, men stab each other in full public view and are not apologetic about it. Here, cricket is just a means to serve vested interests, to push mediocrity to the forefront, and to ensure that those with talent but no clout are dead before they can breathe. It is a world where everyone is guilty, be it an official who has never played cricket, or a player who plays ball with those in power. From time to time, people have raised their voice against this injustice but have not been powerful enough to silence those whose whispers can send a chill down the spine of even the most honest. Bishan Singh Bedi, cricketing iconoclast and fearless crusader of the cause he believes in, succeeded once in breaking this stranglehold of Delhi's cricketing thugs, but not for long. They were back again, and today they roam the grounds of Kotla without the fear of being punished, mocking at transparent selection with their brazen disregard of genuine talent. Young cricketers, no matter how much talent they possess, are not allowed a look in, unless they happen to be the sons of the mighty and powerful, who abound like ants in a sugar field in India's capital. The pressure to please those who matter is so much that the number of players in a Delhi junior team goes up to 25, sometimes even 30. You need not always be a powerful businessman, a politician, a bureaucrat or a cop to push your child into the team, or resort to bribery to have your son play for the state team; you can also get your way by hiring goons to threaten those in power. In this world, nothing is a secret. Every newspaper has, from time to time, published reports of how corrupt the DDCA edifice is. But this has not stopped the next selection having a large quota for players who have nothing but their parents' CVs to recommend them. It is a world where even those who play well have had to resort to backdoor methods of appeasing those whose approval is a must. Those who are wondering why Virender Sehwag, safe in his fame, riches and iconic status, all of a sudden raised his voice and created a chaos in this 'ordered' world, perhaps don't know this story: For two consecutive years a young lad from the suburbs of Delhi would go to the selection trials of Delhi cricket only to be shooed away after facing only half a dozen balls in the nets. The crestfallen youngster found a godfather in Satish "Neelu" Sharma, who recognised his potential and pitted him against the full might of a DDCA team. The boy smashed half a dozen sixes in his rampaging hundred, something that has become a signature of almost every Sehwag innings when he plays for India today. Maybe it is payback time for all the Sehwags who are regularly shooed away from the DDCA nets even today. We must all applaud the courage of a man whose rebellion has given a voice to all those meek, helpless players who clamour for a fair trial.

More than virus, Dilshan's batting contributed to Kiwi defeat: Vettori

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori has said that more than the energy-sapping virus that stuck his team during the first Test match at the Galle International Stadium, it was Sri Lankan batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan's explosive batting which contributed to New Zealand's 202-run loss.

Dilshan scored 92 runs in Sri Lanka's first innings and scored quickfire 123 runs in the second to take Sri Lanka to an imposing target of 413.

"When you look at how well Dilshan played and how poorly we bowled to him, it was probably the defining moment of the game," Stuff.co.nz quoted Vettori, as saying.

"There were a couple of opportunities there to put pressure on them, but everything we did, he took it away from us. He played exceptionally well, he played very aggressive innings, and when you've got a player like that, it makes it very tough to captain," he added.

Vettori said that he wanted to take the game to the wire, however, failed to do so, as multiple players being ill in the team meant that they were bowled out for a meager 210 runs.

"I really hoped we'd take it down to the wire. I hoped that we could bat for long periods of time, but in some ways a few illnesses counted against us and the application wasn't quite there," Vettori said.

He further said that one of the most disappointing things in the Test was to lose as many wickets to the seamers as they did.

"Obviously Murali's a difficult customer to come up against but the way Thushara bowled was probably where we let ourselves down," Vettori said.

Ponting, Hussey fight back

Australia lost two wickets in the morning session but Ponting and Hussey were playing cautiously on Day 4 of the last Ashes Test against England.

South Africa omit Morne Morkel from Champions Trophy squad

South Africa omitted paceman Morne Morkel from their squad on Thursday for the Champions Trophy which starts next month.

Morkel was a member of the party which played Australia in a one-day international series in April.

"South African cricket is blessed with an abundance of fast-bowling talent with the emergence of (Lonwabo) Tsotsobe and Wayne Parnell as outstanding new prospects and Charl Langeveldt becoming available again," said convenor of selectors Mike Procter in a statement.

"Langeveldt is not fit enough yet to be considered after his shoulder surgery and Morne Morkel is the unlucky one to miss out. He (Morkel) is very much part of our long-term planning and has a major role to play but we would like to see more consistency from him."

The 24-year-old Morkel has played in 21 ODIs, taking 31 wickets at an average of 30.16.

Left-arm swing bowler Tsotsobe, who has recovered from a long-term injury, and left-arm spinner Robin Peterson are the only new players in the squad.

"Planning for the 2011 World Cup is very much part of our thinking but there is a lot of cricket to be played before then," said Procter. "We must take our selections series by series and not get ahead of ourselves.

"We have four quality spin bowlers and two all-rounders in Jacques Kallis and Albie Morkel to back up the seam attack. There is also batting potential most of the way down the order."

The Champions Trophy takes place in South Africa from Sept. 22 to Oct. 5.

Squad - Graeme Smith (captain), Johan Botha, Hashim Amla, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Albie Morkel, Makhaya Ntini, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Roelof van der Merwe.

Delhi and Disputes Cricket Association

Virender Sehwag's revolt against the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), alleging nepotism and corruption in the selection of state teams and continued interference by the sports committee has seen more players, both former and present, voicing their displeasure at the manner in which cricket's governing body in the Capital runs the sport.

This, however, is not the first time that Delhi players have taken on the administrators over "injustice" done to them. There have also been precedents where senior cricketers have threatened to leave the state.

In 1980, Bishan Singh Bedi led the first major revolt against the then DDCA president, Ram Prakash Mehra. Delhi had won the Ranji Trophy two seasons ago and captain Bedi wanted the association to give more money to the players.

Mehra refused and a defiant Bedi was dropped ahead of the match against Haryana in Rohtak. In a hurry, Vinay Lamba was asked to lead the team but he was left with only four-five players on the field after the likes of Madan Lal, Rakesh Shukla and Sunil Valson, among others, walked out in support of Bedi. The management hastily summoned uncapped players — Sudhir Pathak, Arun Khurana, among others — from the Capital to play, before deciding to concede the match. Madan Lal and Shukla, though, rolled back on their decision later and joined the Delhi team for later games.

However, the players' opposition did eventually bring the Mehra regime to an end. Interestingly, Sunil Dev, who is now the DDCA sports secretary, played a major role in that episode, siding with Bedi and other senior players.

After that incident, DDCA witnessed a series of protests, though none on a big scale.

In 1984, former Delhi opening batsman and skipper Venkat Sundaram took a delegation of players to the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, seeking his intervention in setting things right at the DDCA, which at the time was led by Kamal Nath. The players wanted the prevailing proxy system of voting — under which a member can nominate another person to vote on his behalf — to be done away with. Later, Bedi and other players, including Manoj Prabhakar, also led an agitation against the system. There was little success this time and proxies still rule at the DDCA.

In 1990, Madan Lal and a few former cricketers, including Kirti Azad, Surender Khanna, Venkat Sundaram, started 'Operation DDCA Clean-up'. "The present DDCA officials have had a long innings. It is time for them to quit. We have had enough of their nonsense," Madan had said. He expressed his displeasure at the factionalism in Delhi cricket. The former India all-rounder holds the same views even today.

The latest revolt by Sehwag is mainly against the sports committee, which is a medium to appease 114 DDCA-affiliated clubs. In the early 1990s, players and members from those clubs held a big demonstration in front of the Ferozeshah Kotla, seeking involvement in the running of the game in the Capital. In its meeting on October 26, 1994, the DDCA executive had given some power to the sports committee, on an experimental basis. Initially, its main task was to manage the DDCA league and the hot weather tournament and co-ordinate with the administrators in running the game. But the sports committee kept gaining clout and now even picks the panel of selectors, managers and coaches.

In the past the discontent had led to players like Ajay Jadeja, Murali Kartik, Gursharan Singh and Amit Mishra leaving for other states and now Sehwag and Co are threatening to do the same.

Sri Lanka clinch 202-run win after New Zealand slump

Sri Lanka clinched a resounding 202-run victory on the final day to take a 1-0 lead in their two-match test series against New Zealand on Saturday.

The hosts set New Zealand an unlikely 413-run victory target and dismissed them for 210 in 71.5 overs shortly before tea on the final day.

Spinner Muttiah Muralitharan claimed three for 88 for a match haul of seven for 161, to mark an impressive return to test cricket after a knee injury.

Skipper Daniel Vettori, battling a stomach bug in scorching heat, provided some resistance with a gritty 67, but the next highest score was Brendon McCullum with just 29.

Left-arm fast bowler Thilan Thushara, Sri Lanka's leading paceman in this match, struck early when play started on time, for the first time in this rain-interrupted game.

Thushara's burst left New Zealand reeling at 39 for three after Martin Guptill (18) was bowled by a beautiful leg-cutter and Tim McIntosh was caught low down at slip for a duck.

Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara then sprang a surprise, throwing the ball to part-time spinner Mahela Jayawardene.

However, the unorthodox tactic worked, Jayawardene snaring Ross Taylor (16) thanks to a fine leg-side catch from wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene.

Leg spinner Ajantha Mendis then had Jacob Oram trapped leg before for 21, reducing the visitors to 125 for five at lunch.

After the interval, Vettori and Jesse Ryder (24) battled hard with a 48-run stand for the sixth wicket.

Muralitharan eventually had Ryder caught behind with a flighted off break that spun sharply.

The bowler followed up with the wickets of Jeetan Patel (22) and Iain O'Brien (five) and Mendis had Vettori caught behind, dashin New Zealand's hopes.

Thushara finished with two for 37 from 14 overs and Mendis claimed two for 50 from 18.5 overs.

Trott puts England on top

Debutant Jonathan Trott scored a mammoth 119 to help England set the Aussies a challenging target of 546 runs to win.

Bangladesh won by 49 runs

bangladesh won by 49 runs

Team India hit the ground running

Mahendra Singh Dhoni had the words 'Have feet, will dance' emblazoned in silver across his black sleeveless t-shirt, and while breaking into a jig would've been the last thing on his mind at the end of a gruelling three-hour session at the Ferozeshah Kotla on a searingly hot Monday afternoon, he did have enough left in the tank to want a round of badminton at the indoor courts (unfortunately, he and RP Singh couldn't play for the lack of shuttlecocks).

The players hit top gear for a brief while even as the sun beat down upon them during a Team India fitness assessment session before another hard season ahead. It didn't take long for Ashish Nehra and Praveen Kumar to shed their tops in an attempt to counter the heat, while Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma, RP, Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh decided to stick to their Team India training gear.

The eight players completed the sprint-repeat schedule - running six sets between cones placed at variable distances - and the core training programme of push-ups, pull-ups and squats inside the gymnasium under the watchful eyes of coach Gary Kirsten, strategy head Paddy Upton and physio Nitin Patel even as fitness trainer Ramji Srinivasan noted down their Body Mass Index, heart rate and endurance levels. Nehra was spotted wearing a bandage on his bowling arm but the left-arm seamer is expected to be fit. Sources confirmed it was nothing serious and Nehra had suffered a slight bruise during fielding practice about a month back.

Kirsten, Upton and Patel arrived straight from the airport after a delayed flight even as players trickled in way past noon. The remaining players, including Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh, will be sweating it out on Tuesday in Mumbai.

"The players had enjoyed a long break and we wanted to assess their physical condition," Kirsten said. "We have conducted an assessment that we will keep as reference material. We will have more such tests in future and compare it with the results we have here. This is the beginning of our preparations for the coming season.

While the conditions bordered on the brutal - the maximum temperature in Delhi was 38 degrees Celsius on Monday - Kirsten said he didn't really mind that. "The heat might appear a bit too much but the more players stretch themselves, the more they will be tested. Hopefully when they give the next test in the cooler climes of Bangalore, they will shock me with their fitness levels," Kirsten, who even put himself through the sprint test along with Ishant and Nehra, said. "I must say that I am really happy with the players' physical condition," he added. Dhoni, meanwhile, only said that it was a "routine affair" before leaving for the airport.

Training camp from Aug 27

Team India will have a four day training camp at the National Cricket Academy from August 27. The camp is expected to focus on both physical conditioning and skills before the players disperse on August 30 to participate in the BCCI Corporate Cup. The team is expected to regroup on August 7 before leaving for the Sri Lanka tri-series.

Younis Khan hopes of winning major titles in next two years

Notwithstanding rumours of rift in the Pakistan cricket team and match fixing allegations during the just concluded Sri Lanka One-Day series, captain Younis Khan has said his team would win major tournaments in next two years.

Interacting with media persons after winning the fifth and final match of the ODI series, Khan said he had a pool of 20 cricketers in mind who will win 'either the Champions Trophy this year or the 2011 World Cup.'

He expressed hope that if selectors and team management supported him and players perform according to their capability, Pakistan can surely pocket major tournaments in near future.

"The pool of players includes some talented players and if things go well and everyone including the board, selectors, team management and players fulfill their roles properly I am sure we can win one of the two big tournaments coming up," The Nation quoted Khan, as saying.

Khan said he would have loved to have the same authority that former captain Imran Khan enjoyed during his days.

"When Imran was captain things were different. There were fewer people running the board, there were just a few selectors. So I don't think it is possible to get the same authority that Imran had. But if it can happen I would love to have that authority and call the shots," he said.

Khan rejected reports that he is in favour of dropping vice-captain Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf from the team.

He also criticized former players for fanning rumours about fissures in the squad and match-fixing.

"If we perform badly I don't mind being criticized but the criticism should be logical and based on facts and figures it should not be personal. That only hurts the team. Some of our former players need to realize that," Khan said.

Ponting left out of Australia Twenty20 squad

Michael Clarke will take over as captain of Australia's Twenty20 team to play England after Ricky Ponting was given permission to go home after the last Ashes test.

Ponting will return to Britain to take charge for the bulk of one-day international series but the selectors wanted to give him a rest as they start blooding younger players for next year's Twenty20 World Cup in West Indies.

"Ricky Ponting is having his workload managed and will return home to Australia after the fifth test at The Oval and will miss the ODI against Scotland, the two Twenty20s and the start of the of the ODI series against England," Australia's chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said in a statement on Tuesday.

"This is the last opportunity we have to give Ricky a break until next year, with the ICC Champions Trophy, ODIs against India and of course a full domestic summer against the West Indies and Pakistan to finish 2009.

"The plan for him to return to Australia before rejoining the team is considered the most appropriate course of action.

"This gives Michael Clarke another opportunity to captain the Australian Twenty20 and ODI side."

Clarke's promotion is a further sign that he is being groomed to eventually replace Ponting as test skipper.

Clarke is the current vice-captain of the test side and has been Australia's best batsmen this year, scoring two hundreds and averaging 89 in the Ashes.

The selectors named separate squads for the Twenty20 matches and one-day internationals as part of their building process for the West Indies next year.

Promising opener Phillip Hughes and paceman Stuart Clark failed to make either side while batsman Mike Hussey and pace bowlers Peter Siddle and Nathan Bracken made the one-day side but not the Twenty20.

"We obviously know what Mike Hussey and Nathan Bracken are capable of in one-day and Twenty20 cricket, but with limited opportunities at international level in this format of the game we wanted to look at different players as we look to improve our Twenty20 performances," Hilditch said.

"Their omissions do not mean we won't look to them for the World Twenty20."

Zimbabwe goes down fightinghttp://cricket.yahoo.com/prematch-ZimbabwevsBangladesh_23000

Chasing 321 runs to win, Zimbabwe fell short by 49 runs as they were bowled out for 271. Shakib-al-Hasan's all-round show won him the man of the match.

BCCI doctor not consulted on Zaheer's injury

Cricket Board''s Sports Medicine Consultant, Dr Anant Joshi today said that he was not consulted by the BCCI about the shoulder injury sustained by pace spearhead Zaheer Khan for which the left arm bowler underwent a surgery last month.

"In Zaheer's case I was not consulted (by the BCCI)", Dr Joshi said.

According to Joshi, Zaheer's injury and its treatment shows very clearly there needs to be better co-ordination between the physio and the surgeon in treating injuries.

"One has to have a balance while taking decisions as far as surgery or rehab is concerned.

It should be a joint decision between a physio and a surgeon. One should neither rush into a surgical treatment nor drag the physiotherapy treatment too long.

Both should strike a fine balance together," Dr Joshi told TV9 news channel.

Zaheer sustained the injury in mid-May while playing for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League held in South Africa.

But he waited till July 13 before going under the surgeon''s scalpel in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The left-arm pacer carried his injury into the Twenty20 World Cup that followed the IPL in June in England and underwent the surgery much later after skipping the next tour by India to the West Indies. He's now expected to be out of action till the end of this year.

Expecting Zaheer's recovery time to last from four to six months, Dr Joshi feels a nodal sports medicine centre with several branches is the ideal way to treat injuries to cricketers in India.

"I do not think that having a couple of therapists - a physio and a trainer - is adequate for a country like India.

We should have a nodal agency with state-of-the-art facilities as well as zonal infrastructure and a referral centre where coaches, physios and surgeons can work together", he said.

Dr Joshi had brought flamboyant batsman Yuvraj Singh back on his feet without surgery on his injured knee before the last World Cup in the West Indies.

Dr Joshi said Yuvraj's recovery was successful because his progress was monitored closely for two months and, after seeing improvements in his muscle strength, he (Dr Joshi) decided to go ahead with non-surgical management.

Fitness test for Champions Trophy probables

Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid will be among the ICC Champions Trophy probables from

West and South Zone who will undergo fitness Tests to be conducted by BCCI physio Nitin Patel here tomorrow.

"This is a routine test ahead of any series after a break," Cricket Board sources said today, adding North Zone players and others will undergo a similar fitness tests in Delhi's Ferozshah Kotla today.

Among the cricketers who would be tested tomorrow are Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma.

The test results would be forwarded to the BCCI ahead of the national selection panel sitting at Chennai on August 16 to choose the final 15-member team for the September 22-October 5 tournament in South Africa and the squad to Sri Lanka for the September 8-14 triangular ODI series.

Younis Khan rebuffs match-fixing allegations

Pakistan cricket captain Younis Khan has rebuffed match-fixing allegations levelled against his side saying that his team-mates earn well enough not to participate in corrupt practices for extra money.

The News quoted Younis as saying that match-fixing might have been possible in the 80s and 90s, as players could be lured into corrupt practices because of lower wages.

"Now, a player earns around seven to eight hundred thousand rupees per match. So, I don't think he needs to get involved in such things. I am thankful to God for what he has given me. I wouldn't like to earn my living by sacrificing my self respect and honour," he said.

Confident Ponting eyes Ashes urn in series decider

A confident Ricky Ponting is ready to erase the biggest blot on his captaincy record in next week's Ashes decider at The Oval and sees everything going in Australia's favour for a match his team needs only to draw to retain the urn.

It is for the first time in 43 years that the scores have been tied heading into the final match of an Ashes series. But England is wracked by injury and form woes coming off their innings and 80 runs fourth Test defeat at Headingley.

"It will be difficult for them to bounce back now. It'll only be that because of what we've got out of this game and what we felt we got coming out of the Edgbaston Test," said Ponting.

"We've got some of our guys that have been struggling for a little bit of touch, some of them probably in the best form of their careers which is great. Everything is heading in the right direction for us at exactly the right time of the tour," FOX Sports quoted him, as saying.

With his side firing on all fronts, Ponting said the south London clash would be one of the biggest moments of his stellar career.

It is a chance for him to atone for the 2005 Ashes series defeat that is still considered as the lowest moment in his five years in charge.

"It's a chance I've been waiting for this whole tour and a chance the whole team has been waiting for," he said.

But England has a good record at The Oval, having been undefeated in their last seven Tests at the ground. England captain Andrew Strauss insisted his side's poor show at Headingley wouldn't mean a thing next week.

Zaheer faces lengthy layoff after shoulder op

Indian strike bowler Zaheer Khan has been ruled out of action until the end of the year after undergoing surgery on an injured shoulder, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said on Friday.

Zaheer had an arthroscopic labral repair carried out on his left shoulder in South Africa last month, the BCCI said in a statement.

"Zaheer is undergoing rehabilitation in South Africa and is recovering very well. He is expected to return to international cricket by the end of this year," the statement said.

The 30-year-old left-arm bowler suffered the injury while fielding during the Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this year, although he still played in the Twenty20 World Cup in England in June.

He subsequently missed India's four-match one-day series in West Indies.

India's next assignment is a triangular one-day series involving hosts Sri Lanka and New Zealand from Sept. 8-14, followed by the Champions Trophy in South Africa from Sept. 22-Oct. 5.

Test cricket is not dying: Tendulkar

Even as quite a few players have sounded the impending death-knell of Test cricket in the wake of the huge popularity of Twenty20, one of the game's icons, Sachin Tendulkar, has said he does not fear for the health of the game's most traditional form.

The master batsman likened Test cricket as the main course in a meal and Twenty20 as its dessert and told Wisden Cricketer magazine in an interview that one cannot survive on just the latter part of a meal.

"There is no way Test cricket is dying. Twenty20 cricket is the dessert and you cant survive on that. Who wants to eat only desserts? Test cricket is my main course, with all the meat and vegetables, and then it is nice to have Twenty20 as a dessert," Tendulkar said.

The master batsman, who has earned crores in endorsement deals over several years, said he worries about the runs he would get and not about signing of lucrative contracts.

"I started playing cricket at six with a tennis ball not because I wanted to be a millionaire but because I loved cricket. Maybe in 10 years or even now people will pick up cricket bats thinking only about the huge money in Twenty20 cricket.

"Money should just be coincidental. The passion and the desire are the most important thing. I worry about runs, not contracts," he told the magazine.

Tendulkar also revealed that he had decided not to play Twenty20 internationals in order to prolong his Test and one-day career.

"I felt as though I would have been a loose link in the team, I couldn't do that to them. I was not sure I would last, there was something missing. If my body wasn't strong enough to last through the tournament then I couldn't play," he said.

Tendulkar said the secret to his batting lies in keeping the mind clutter-free and his best efforts had come when his mind thought of the present and not of the future, which was not an easy thing to do.

"The toughest thing is to clear your mind. The mind always wants to be in the past or the future, it rarely wants to be in the present. My best batting comes when my mind is in the present but it doesn't happen naturally, you have to take yourself there.

"I am not able to get in that zone as often as I would like but, when you are there, you don't see anything except the bowler and the ball."

As he grows older, Tendulkar feels, he has realised the importance of good breathing and relaxing while batting.

"You have to allow your instincts to take over, trust me, your instincts are 99 per cent right but, you know, the older I get the more I realise how important your breathing is to good batting. By that I mean, if you focus on breathing and relaxing, you can force yourself into a comfortable place to bat," he declared.

Akmal and Anjum power Pakistan to huge win

Pakistan ended their losing run against Sri Lanka with a comprehensive 146-run victory in the fourth one-day international on Friday.

The tourists, who lost the test series 2-0 and trailed the one-day series 3-0, won their first game of a difficult tour after teenager Umar Akmal scored a brilliant maiden century, powering Pakistan to a formidable 321 for five.

Akmal, the 19-year-old brother of wicket-keeper Kamran, smashed an unbeaten 102 off just 72 balls with five fours and four sixes.

Sri Lanka made a confident start with opener Upul Tharanga stroking 80 off 89 deliveries and skipper Kumar Sangakkara cracking 39 from 33 balls, but then struggled when the ball grew softer on a slow spinning pitch.

The hosts eventually collapsed in the middle overs with medium pacer Iftikhar Anjum claiming five for 30.

Off spinner Saeed Ajmal claimed two for 24 from seven overs and leg spinner Shahid Afridi took two for 40.

Sri Lanka were bowled out for 175 in 36.1 overs.

Earlier, Pakistan made the most out of a good batting pitch having won the toss with Kamran Akmal (57) and Imran Nazir (23) adding 61 for the first wicket.

Sri Lanka's slow bowlers fought back, reducing Pakistan from 106-1 to 130-4, but Umar Akmal then took centre stage with a magnificent display of hitting.

Captain Younus Khan provided support with a 89 from 111 balls, a more measured innings that included just four boundaries.

The fifth-wicket pair shared a match-winning 176-run partnership, plundering runs at a frenetic rate during the final overs of the innings.

Leg spinner Malinga Bandara was Sri Lanka's most economical and effective bowler, claiming two for 44 from his 10 overs.

Sri Lanka did not help their own cause by giving away 29 wides, 26 of which were delivered by Lasith Malinga.

Australia take charge after frantic opening day

Australia took control of the fourth Ashes test with devastating swing bowling and positive batting on a dramatic first day on Friday.

Seamers Peter Siddle and Stuart Clark sliced through the England batting order to dismiss the hosts for 102, their lowest total in an Ashes test at Headingley for 100 years.

Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting shared a quickfire second-wicket partnership of 119 and the touring side ended the day on 196 for four, a lead of 94 runs as they bid to level the series.

"We just relaxed a bit today and were a bit more patient and a bit more consistent with our lines," Clark told a news conference. "We are well ahead in the game now but we know there are still four days to go."

Michael Clarke was unbeaten on 34 at the close with Marcus North on seven.

England's day started badly when all-rounder Andrew Flintoff was ruled out through injury but their captain Andrew Strauss won the toss.

He survived a huge shout for lbw to the first ball of the match but lasted only 17 balls and scored three runs before edging Siddle to third slip where North took a brilliant one-handed catch.

Ravi Bopara made one before he tamely prodded Ben Hilfenhaus to Michael Hussey at gully and Ian Bell, on eight, failed to avoid a short ball from Mitchell Johnson and gave wicketkeeper Brad Haddin a simple catch.

Paul Collingwood edged a vintage Clark outswinger straight to Ponting at second slip for a duck and Alastair Cook's resistance ended on 30 when he edged Clark to Clarke at first slip.

Stuart Broad was caught at short mid-wicket by Simon Katich off Clark for three to leave England reeling on 72 for six at lunch.

PROCESSION CONTINUED

The procession continued as Graeme Swann, Steve Harmison, James Anderson and Graham Onions fell in quick succession to Siddle, who finished with test-best figures of five for 21.

Clark took three for 18 and Matt Prior top-scored for England with 37 not out.

Watson smashed the first two balls of Australia's innings for four but the touring side lost Katich for nought when he fended a rising Harmison delivery to Bopara at leg gully.

Ponting batted aggressively from the start, pulling Onions's first ball for six and taking 17 off his opening over.

The Australian captain and Watson completed the first 50 partnership of the match off only 69 deliveries.

Watson had just reached his third successive half-century since being promoted to open when he was trapped lbw by Onions for 51.

Ponting moved on to 78 and looked on course for another test century but he misjudged a full delivery from Broad and was adjudged lbw.

Hussey also started well but he too was fooled by Broad's line and trapped lbw for 10.

Clarke was struck a fierce blow on the helmet by a Harmison bouncer but he and North grimly took Australia through to stumps without further loss.

"We've had a poor day but we have to take it on the chin," Prior said. "The guys are annoyed for today but raring to go again tomorrow."

Board plans own anti-dope system

A day after backing the players in rejecting the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) controversial 'whereabouts clause', the Indian cricket board on Monday made efforts to show that it was serious about controlling the use of banned substances in the sport.

The BCCI is now set to chart out its own anti-doping measures for domestic cricketers, while proposing that the ICC adopt a "cricket-specific" anti-doping code that will take into consideration only the duration of the international cricket season, rather than WADA's all-year-round stipulations.

BCCI's chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty told The Indian Express that these dope tests on domestic players would commence from next year. "This year, the BCCI will first educate every association about dope testing. We can't just issue templates of WADA and expect them to read it. The language used by WADA is difficult to understand, so we'll be hiring experts to give lectures on this. We want associations and players to understand why this thing is important in today's sport," Shetty said.

Earlier this year, the ICC had circulated a template of the anti-doping code for all of its members to adopt in order to help them govern anti-doping matters at a domestic level in a manner that will be consistent with WADA's code-compliance.

Educating players

The BCCI said it would spend two months in the education phase — with sessions with players, doctors, coaches, physiotherapists and trainers — explaining the pros and cons of the use of medicines in modern sport. "Many cricketers at the domestic level don't have knowledge of all these doping activities. We will inform Ranji Trophy-level cricketers what it is all about," Shetty said.

Once the players have been explained the new dope-testing measures, the BCCI plans to start conducting random tests. If anyone is found guilty, the board itself will decide on the actions to be taken, rather than go to an outside agency.

As a result, several associations will now have to hire doctors and physios on either full-time basis or per-season basis, rather than the current system in which some of them are employed only for the duration of the Ranji Trophy.

"For the Indian team, if any player is prescribed any medicine by any doctor, they first contact physio Nitin Patel who clears the medicine and tells the player if it's okay to use it. The same will apply to Ranji Trophy players, who will have to ask their respective physios," Shetty said.

Seeking NADA help

But with no proper testing facilities of its own, the BCCI is hoping to seek the help of the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). "You need things like cold storages and many other things to preserve the samples. NADA is a subsidy of WADA and it comes under the Central Government. They are best to look into matters of testing," Shetty said.

The 'whereabouts clause' requires players to give their location on a quarterly basis and asks athletes to be available for one hour every day for random, out-of-competition tests. The Indian players have objected to the clause saying it was an invasion of privacy and a potential security threat.

Board officials have said that the sport did not require such an elaborate mechanism.

Asiad implication

As things stand, however, if the BCCI rejects the WADA stipulations, it will not be able to be a part of multi-discipline events such as the Asian Games and the Olympics. Cricket will make its Asiad debut in the 2010 edition, to be held in Guangzhou, China.

The BCCI doesn't have an alternative, feels Randhir Singh, secretary-general of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). "The players must fall in line with the WADA clause," he said on Monday. "I am confident they (cricketers and BCCI) would adhere to the clause. The international body (ICC) recognises the code. They should look into the problem and solve it. In any case, we have more than a year to go for the Games," he added.

Randhir also felt that there was some kind of misunderstanding about the clause. "It is a simple clause and every sportsperson abides by it. Adherence to the WADA regulation has become even more important with the sport offering medals in the Games."

Akram happy with budding Indian fast bowlers

Pakistan's legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram was impressed with the nine young fast bowlers who attended the 19-day camp that concluded here Monday.

The camp was conducted by Gatorade Centre for Pace Excellence (GCPE) at the Modern School in Vasant Vihar.

During the camp, players were taught by chief coach Akram how to identify a batsman's weaknesses, especially when they are bowling on the flat, sub-continental pitches.

Akram said that such initiatives will help bowlers correct their techniques.

'India has never had dearth of talent but initiatives like Gatorade Pacers that spots and scientifically trains the talent will go a long way in getting India's next generation of fast bowlers. This initiative is special to me for another reason - it also inculcates the culture of sports science in the players at the young age; which I believe is critical if one were to consistently deliver at one's best over a long period of time,' said Akram.

The boys, who were selected by a talent hunt programme, were also taught about personalised hydration and fitness program so as to ensure that they bowl at the best from the first over of the day to the last over of the day.

'Optimal Hydration is a strong performance differentiator once you have similar skill and fitness levels. We learnt this the hard way, I am happy initiatives like this are exposing young students, coaches and administrators to the importance of optimal hydration,' he added.

T.A. Sekar, who is the chief technical consultant, said that more centres like GCPE to spot talents and correct their techniques at a young age were proposed to be set up.

'While India today boasts of match winning pacers, it is critical that we keep spotting and developing that talent at grassroots level to get the next generation ready. It takes a lot of efforts, from a variety of experts to shape a talent into a good fast bowler.

'Wasim and I reviewed the progress and we are very satisfied with the results. The bowlers too are very happy. The next camp will be conducted in December. We are giving them home work till then,' he said.

Former Pak captains blame lack of scientific cricket structure for team's loss

Pakistan's inconsistency has saddened former captains, who blame it on the absence of a scientific cricket structure in the country after the team suffered Tests and ODI defeats at hands of Sri Lanka.

Legendary all-rounder Imran Khan, who captained the team to the 1992 World Cup triumph and is now an active politician, said he wouldn't blame the players for the losses in Sri Lanka because they are the same set who won the World Twenty20 in June.

"There is no proper cricket structure in the country something on the lines of what Australia and England have. And that is hurting our players and our progress," the Dawn quoted Khan, as saying.

"There is no shortage of talent in Pakistan but the only need is to have a system where this talent is properly groomed to go onto play international cricket," he added.

Former captain Zaheer Abbas said Pakistan's existing cricket system; including domestic cricket and the board administration was outdated and needed to be revamped.

"There is no logic in the way Pakistan cricket affairs are being run at all levels. You need to have a strong system to produce good results. We need a batting coach in Sri Lanka and instead we have a bowling coach with the team," Zaheer said.

Zaheer pointed out that the same set of people were coming in and out of the board for the last so many years despite having failed to produce any results.

Former captain Aamir Sohail, who resigned last month as director of the national cricket academy after reported differences with the board Chairman, said nothing would improve in Pakistan cricket unless it was reorganised on scientific and logical lines. ohail said unless there was proper utilisation of human resources and strong leadership in the board, nothing would improve and Pakistan will continue to remain an inconsistent team.

Former skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq said there appeared to be no problem with the players selected for the Sri Lanka tour, but the problem was that the tour selection committee was playing the wrong combination all the time.

Strauss hopeful about Flintoff's fitness

England cricket captain Andrew Strauss remains "very confident" that all-rounder Andrew Flintoff will be fit to play in Friday's fourth Ashes Test, despite the fast bowler struggling through Monday's stalemate at Edgbaston.

Flintoff bowled only 11 overs on the final day as Australia - in trouble at 161 for four before lunch - batted on and on to reach 375 for five before the two teams shook hands on a draw, reports The Independent.

"He seems OK," insisted Strauss. "It was one of those situations towards the end where I'm conscious there is no point in tearing him to death when there's not a lot going on. But I think he is doing OK and we are still very confident he will be OK for Headingley.

"There is obviously some soreness but I don't think anything has deteriorated massively. He needs to rest up well because back-to-back Tests are hard for any bowler. Then we will see how he is on Thursday," he added.

Flintoff, who has had injections between Tests to keep him going, insisted on Sunday night that it would take something "pretty serious" to force him out of the action at Headingley. And with England still one up, he knows that a victory in Leeds will see the Ashes regained with a match to spare.

"If he's not fit enough to do the job he won't play. But if he is fit, we want to play him. The Headingley Test is a massive Test - if we win there, then we win the Ashes," Strauss added.

"He will be assessed this week and he knows what to do with the injury but the key is how sore he is on Thursday. Fred has to be honest about his body and he has been so far," Strauss said.

Strauss also admitted that England were bullish yesterday morning about their chances of going 2-0 up at Edgbaston.

"We came to the ground optimistic that we might be able to force a result, so it's a little bit of a let-down," he said.

"But the conditions didn't help us like we thought they would and the ball didn't swing. But there are still a huge number of positives to come out of the game and for three days we were on top of Australia again," he added.

England's last hope of success yesterday came when Strauss dropped Michael Clarke on 38 in mid-afternoon off the bowling of Ravi Bopara. Clarke went on to hit an unbeaten century - his second hundred of the series - and he shared in a match-saving stand of 185 with Marcus North.

"If I'd caught that you never know but we were getting to last throw of the dice time," said Strauss.

WADA bemoan BCCI decision, urges it to sign the clause

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on Sunday expressed its concern over the Board of Control for Cricket in India's decision rejecting a WADA clause which makes it mandatory for the Indian cricketers to be available for out of competition testing.

The Indian cricketers have refused to sign the "whereabout" clause which requires them to furnish information about their location three months in advance for out of competition tests, claiming that it infringes on their privacy.

On Sunday, WADA President John Fahey said that he was concerned of the Indian Board backing its players who objected to the "whereabouts" clause, which requires them to furnish information about their location three months in advance for out of competition tests.

"WADA laments the decision of the BCCI and is concerned by it," Fahey said in an e-mail reply.

"WADA expects that Indian cricketers and the BCCI will understand that, as the ambassadors and guardians of their sport, they have a duty to protect its integrity and will see the benefits of cooperating with the ICC to enforce the World Anti-Doping Code like the rest of the world," Fahey added.

"One of the key principles of efficient doping control is the possibility to test an athlete without advance notice, and athlete whereabouts information is crucial to ensure that surprise effect. Out-of-competition doping controls are one of the most powerful means of deterrence and detection of doping ... an important step in strengthening athlete and public confidence in doping-free sport," Fahey further added.

The WADA Anti-doping Code has been already accepted by 571 sporting organisations, including International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee and International Sports Federation.

West Indies finally get a win against Bangladesh

West Indies finally managed to beat Bangladesh with a five-wicket win in the Twenty20 match which concluded the tour on Sunday.

Having suffered defeat in both test matches and all three one-day internationals the victory will be small consolation for the makeshift West Indies team which has been without its leading players throughout the games.

The tourists never truly recovered from a poor start which left them at 12 for three and they were not helped by four run outs.

Naeem Islam struck two fours and two sixes as he made 27 from 18 balls but then set off for an impossible run and wicketkeeper Devon Thomas threw down the stumps.

A total of 118 for nine was only going to be defendable if Bangladesh's spinners, who have tortured West Indies throughout the tour, found their groove quickly.

But West Indies had little trouble meeting the target with 19 balls to spare thanks to an aggressive 37 from Devon Smith and an unbeaten 37 from Travis Dowlin.

West Indies' leading players boycotted the test matches due to a dispute over contracts and payments and although they ended their protest the West Indies Cricket Board stuck with the back-up squad that had made themselves available.

Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by six wickers in third ODI

Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by six wickets in the third one day international in Dambulla on Monday to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.

Scores: Pakistan 288-8 (U. Akmal 66) v Sri Lanka 289-4 in 46.3 overs (M.Jayawardene 123, U.Tharanga 76)

Australia resume play on Day 5

After finishing Day 4 on 88/2, Australian batsmen resumed their second innings on Day 5 of the third Ashes Test against England at Edgbaston.