Once the trumpeting and jubilation of India’s triumph dies down one can actually sit down to ask what does this victory mean? Several answers may emerge but one among them may be a succinct “not much”. Of course it’s good to get back into the habit of winning and it’s great for the batsmen to find their touch but winning on such a pitch, tailor-made for a batting party, can’t eliminate cracks that have appeared recently.India have yet to find the fifth-bowler solution – Sachin Tendulkar did a fair job today by conceding just, yes in the context of the game, just 5.4 per over. “He did a good job for us,” said Rahul Dravid, “but we’re always looking at options. Ganguly couldn’t bowl today because of suffering a slight cramp but he’s been bowling well at the nets and can be a handy operator on these pitches. It was always going to be difficult on this pitch but considering the conditions, I thought we did OK.”One can’t blame the players too much; they can only play on the surfaces that are offered. Brian Lara looked at the upside, talking about how such pitches provide for such great entertainment. “The 50-over game is about batsmen since the time it was invented,” he responded. “There was nothing wrong with the pitch. The curator said there would be more than 300 and that was how it turned out. At the end of the day, we are entertainers and we hope the pitches in the Caribbean are like this in the World Cup so that everyone will be able to enjoy the games.”Dravid didn’t think that such a high-scoring clashes would be the order of the series. “The pitches won’t be playing like this throughout the series,” felt Dravid. “Nagpur has always been a very good pitch for batting. The last time we played at Cuttack, the pitch was slow and tricky. Chennai being a day-night game, we’ll have to take the dew factor into account. And Baroda usually helps the bowlers early on. So we’re playing in different zones and things maybe different.”What India must be credited with, though, is to cash in on such a good pitch, none more so that Ganguly, who made a splendid return. “When people score runs, it solves a lot of problems for us,” said Dravid about the importance of Ganguly’s knock. “It’s important for our key players to score runs. It was a very good innings, especially because he was coming back after a long time. It’s a great sign and he stayed at the wicket and set up the game for us.”Lara seconded the judgement. “Unfortunately Ganguly didn’t get a hundred,” he said. “He’s a player of high class and you expect performances like that. We know he’s eager to get back and you got to give him credit. He’s mentally strong and to come back and do well shows he’s very capable. Batting out there he showed how eager he was.”It’s tough to overshadow the sort of innings that Ganguly played but Shivnarine Chanderpaul did just that. Dravid admitted to be nervous towards the latter stages, adding that Chanderpaul’s presence was always going to be crucial. “We knew we had the game in control but when you have a batsman who plays as well as he was, you never know. It was one of the better innings I have seen while chasing, especially in India.”

Silver League finalBuoyed by Bhilal Khilji’s 132, Multan made full use of the absence of Rao Iftikhar and allrounder Azhar Mahmood from the Islamabad line-up, as they posted an impressive 326 for 4 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Both Iftikhar and Azhar are with the Pakistan squad in South Africa, thus denting Islamabad’s chances to get promoted to next season’s Gold League.Khilji’s knock came off 218 balls with 22 fours and a six. Opener Usman Tariq chipped in with 56. Bilal was joined by Kashif Naved in a 134-run stand for the fourth wicket. Naved’s 72 came off 109 balls with 11 boundaries.Gold LeagueFawad Alam hammered his second century of the tounament, as Karachi Harbour ran up an impressive total of 323 for 6 against Faisalabad at the National Stadium in Karachi. The 21-year-old, who was tipped earlier in the season to at least make Pakistan’s preliminary World Cup squad but eventually didn’t, came in at number five with his team at 140-3 and proceeded to score his third first-class hundred.Fawad faced 149 deliveries to make 103, that included 15 boundaries. He dominated the 132-run fifth-wicket partnership with Fahad Iqbal. Karachi Harbour, led by Danish Kaneria, won the toss and decided to go in first. Khalid Latif and Wajihuddin got off to a good start, adding 53. Wajihuddin scored a resolute 67 off 121 balls with nine fours and a six and his second-wicket stand with Akbar Rehman was worth 85. Seamer Asad Ali bowled usefully for Faisalabad with figures of 3 for 97 from 27 overs, although he conceded 13 no-balls and a wide. Ahmed Hayat picked up 2 for 57 in 16 overs.Sialkot took a step closer to toppling Karachi Urban from the top of the Gold League table, as they dismissed their opponents for just 164 at the Jinnah Stadium on Wednesday. By the close of play, the Sialkot openers batted out the remaining overs, adding 53.Seamer Kashif Daud, playing his first match for Sialkot after having captured 21 wickets for Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) in the Patron’s Trophy earlier in the season, picked up five wickets for 54 runs in 11.5 overs. Only wicketkeeper Amin-ur-Rehman reached 30 for the visitors. Four others got good starts but couldn’t go beyond that. Sialkot’s in-form paceman Tahir Mughal struck three times before Daud took over.Mohammad Wasim and Babar Naeem scored half-centuries as Rawalpindi compiled 330 in the opening day against Lahore Shalimar at the Lahore City Cricket Association Ground. At stumps, the hosts lost opener Ashfaq Ahmed for a third-ball duck, finishing at 15 for 1.After being put in to bat, Rawalpindi lost two early wickets before Naeem smacked 63 runs off just 77 balls with five fours and five sixes. Wasim was joined by Awais Zia in a 69-run sixth-wicket stand. Wasim’s 75 came off 119 balls with 10 boundaries. Four more wickets then fell for an addition of 59 runs to make it 264 for 9. Yasim Murtaza and Najaf Shah proceeded to add 66 in a rollicking last-wicket partnership that took the score to 330 in less than an hour.Yasim made 42 off 54 balls with five fours and a six while Najaf remained unbeaten with 31. Mohammad Khalil returned figures of 3 for 57 in 19 overs.

The Lions won yet another last-ball thriller when they beat the Dolphins by just two wickets in their Pro20 match at Kingsmead.Needing nine runs from the final over and two from the final delivery, Dolphins left-armer Yousuf Abdullah bowled a bouncer at Lions tailender Eugene Moleon which hit the batsman on the helmet and deflected over the wicketkeeper’s head allowing Moleon and fellow tailender Garnett Kruger to scamper through for the winning runs.Opener Blake Snijman anchored the Lions’ run chase for the first 17 overs with a career-best 69 from 46 balls keeping his team alive even when they slumped to 35 for 4 in the seventh over chasing a victory target of 166.The home side had veteran opener Doug Watson to thank for their total of 165 for 6. Having been regularly overlooked in cricket’s most explosive format, Watson belted an impressive 62 from 43 deliveries while fellow opener Imraan Khan (25) and Hashim Amla (36) also made significant contributions.But inspired death bowling from Tyron Henderson and Gerhard de Bruin put the skids under the Lions closing overs and only 25 runs accrued from the final five overs when a total in excess of 180 had seemed likely.The Lions’ run chase was similarly scuppered early on when Abdullah trapped danger men Alviro Peterson (2) and Neil McKenzie (1) lbw with sensational, inswinging yorkers and then had Vaughan van Jaarsveld caught for four.But a stand of 61 between Snijman and Justin Ontong (20) for the fifth wicket kept the Lions’ hopes alive and a brilliant contribution of 35 from 24 balls by Dumisa Makalima nudged the game their way. But without a brace of sixes from off spinner Werner Coetsee, who had earlier bowled brilliantly to concede just 28 from his four overs, the Dolphins would still surely have prevailed.The Lions now move to the top of the table with consecutive last-ball victories while the Dolphins ponder the possibility of another miserable Pro20 series without a victory from their opening two matches.

ScorecardA captain’s knock of 86 from Charlotte Edwards and a brisk 56 from Claire Taylor couldn’t prevent New Zealand sweeping to their second win in the 4th match of the Women’s Women’s Quadrangular Series in Chennai.Chasing a sizeable 292, England lost Caroline Atkins with the first ball of their reply – and Laura Newton didn’t last much longer either. But the two Taylors – Sarah and Claire – put on 82 for the third wicket to stage a recovery. Though they fell in quick succession, Edwards took the attack to New Zealand’s bowlers, smacking 13 fours in her 93-ball innings. Once she fell to Louise Milliken, England slumped to Suzie Bates and Sarah Burke.”New Zealand batted really well,” Edwards said, “but then we were going really well too and I thought we’d be able to chase 291. We lost wickets at vital times – losing Sarah [Taylor] and Claire Taylor very close together. That’s when we lost the game though me and Beth Morgan had a good partnership too. It was a good game of cricket and its disappointing to be at the losing end of it.”In contrast to England’s stuttering effort, New Zealand’s innings contained four half-centurions with Sarah Tsukigawa contributing a violent 78 from just 56 balls. Whereas England’s lower order rather petered away, New Zealand’s fizzed with aggression as Aimee Mason (19 from 23) and Nicola Browne (36 from 23) pushed their side up to a large, winning total.”We got off to a good platform and Browne and I had a good partnership,” Tsukigawa said. “In this ground when you bat first you need at least 300 because the outfield is lighting quick. While bowling it wasn’t easy. I think me and a few other bowlers got two bad balls an over and [let] them off the hook for a while. But we managed to pull them back in.”

Tickets for the Test and one-day series between England and West Indies can be bought directly from the grounds or from the ECB via its ticket hotline (+44 (0)8705 338833 – calls charged at national rate).All information is correct as at April 23, 2007. For the latest position please contact the grounds directly.It is worth noting that the following statement has been made by the ECB regarding the purchase of tickets on auction sites: “If people buy tickets on Ebay etc and they are in breach of ground regulations (as are those selling them on) then they can be ejected.”

Tests

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The MCC’s world cricket committee has said that the game’s international calendar is far too cluttered, and wants to see less one-day cricket.”While lucrative for national boards, one-day cricket can be of a higher intensity and involves more travel than Tests,” a statement issued on its behalf said. The committee advocated a maximum of three one-day internationals or series, otherwise it said that an “elongated series often result in tired players more susceptible to injury”.”The MCC’s observation does not come as a surprise to us,” Tim May, the chief executive of the international players’ association (FICA) told Cricinfo. “FICA has been communicating such a message to the ICC for the past three years. Unfortunately, the ICC is not being given the power from its members to introduce any effective ceilings regarding the volume of cricket.”The MCC committee’s comments come at the end of a week in which even more ODIs have been crammed into the international calendar.On Friday it was announced that India will take on Pakistan at Glasgow on July 3 and Pakistan will play Scotland at Edinburgh two days earlier. In the week before those matches, India play South Africa in three ODIs at Belfast and those games are preceded by Ireland playing back-to-back ODIs against India and South Africa.In the second week of July, West Indies, Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland play in a quadrangular one-day tournament, again in Belfast.In early June the Afro-Asia series takes place in Chennai and Bangalore, a time of year when heavy rain is expected.The extra series are all outside the ICC’s Future Tours Programme and are arranged by the individual boards as money-earners. However, there are increasing signs that the endless schedule of one-day tournaments is leaving broadcasters weary, and there remain doubts whether some of the matches detailed above will attract TV coverage.

Craig Wright and Trent Johnston, the Scottish and Irish captains during the World Cup in the Caribbean, may have experienced different fortunes at the tournament, but both are unequivocal in the belief that their countries will only progress up the cricketing ladder with hard cash, not soft soap.Last Friday, Wright declared that his troops may have hit a “glass ceiling” and risked slipping backwards, without “significant financial assistance.” Then, within 24 hours, following his team’s emphatic defeat by India at Stormont, Johnston issued a resonant cri de coeur. “We have got to put professional contracts in place, so that players can get back to the standard we set in the West Indies, when we had a schedule of 24/7 cricket,” he said. “Without that, we are amateurs with jobs and families to worry about and it is always going to be tough.”The issue of how best to develop the emerging nations remains a taxing dilemma for the ICC, which meets this week in London. Yet there is one obvious solution to the present monetary shortfalls faced by the likes of Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands and Kenya. Namely, that the sport’s governing body should kick Zimbabwe out of international cricket, withdraw its annual payment of $10m to the ZCA, and tell Peter Chingoka, the chairman of the latter organisation, that it is grotesque that he should expect to be subsidised indefinitely.At a stroke, the move would finally demonstrate that the ICC has some connection with the real world and recognises that questions of morality and ethics should not be left solely to the politicians. After all, the reigning global champions, Australia, have already refused to tour Zimbabwe, with the support of their prime minister, John Howard, and it seems probable that the West Indies A squad’s imminent visit to the African country will also either be cancelled or feature such a depleted Caribbean party that any subsequent matches staged in Harare or Bulawayo will be rendered meaningless.In which light, what do Zimbabwe bring to the table to justify their Full Member status? Even in purely cricketing terms, they are a second-rate proposition, without the likes of Henry Olonga, Heath Streak, the Flowers, Andy and Grant, and Sean Ervine. But, in the wider scheme of things, their continued participation in international cricket is abhorrent: a glaring contradiction of all the social, political and multicultural values which are supposed to be enshrined in the ICC’s constitution, but which have been left to wither on the vine under the inadequate stewardship of the council’s chief executive, Malcolm Speed.

It shouldn’t be forgotten that cricket is fairly trivial in the grand picture of discussing Mugabe’s myriad crimes. And yet, the ICC is struggling at the moment to properly finance its associate members, a state of affairs which will doubtless be raised at Lord’s over the next days, as the panjandrums pick over the bones of the calamitous World Cup, which finished in darkness but not before sufficient light had been shed on the organisers’ collective blundering to ensure that the event will be remembered with derision.From which perspective, if Speed and his colleagues decided to call an abrupt halt to Zimbabwe’s presence in the ranks then that $10m could be the catalyst for professionalizing the game in Scotland, Ireland and beyond.I spoke last week to Roddy Smith, the chief executive of Cricket Scotland, and he estimated that half-a-million pounds a year would guarantee that his organisation could place 12 to 15 players on contracts, as well as pay for any foreign tours which the Scots are keen to pursue. Given that the Irish are in a similar position, we can conclude that a £3 million leap of faith by the ICC would allow both Celtic nations to establish a full-time structure for the next three years, at which stage they would have to demonstrate to the authorities that they have forged commercial and local authority partnerships within their own territory as a means of moving towards self-sufficiency.Nobody, least of all Smith, is asking for hand-outs, but it should be obvious to even the most blinkered ICC placeman that if cricket is to expand beyond its present pool, it has to invest in missionary work rather than simply be content to throw the minnows a couple of ODIs every summer.Heaven alone knows, the ICC badly requires an injection of credibility. What better way than by expelling Zimbabwe, whose politicians have sparked anarchy for the sport ever since 2003? And by rewarding those nations with ambitions to transcend the goldfish bowl and advance into the big pond.

Mohammad Rafique, Bangladesh’s veteran left-arm spinner, says his performances in the ongoing Test series against Sri Lanka are the worst of his career.Rafique has picked up a solitary wicket in the two Tests at a cost of 272 runs, and has also gone for over four runs an over as Bangladesh have been roundly thrashed. “So far it has been my worst-ever performance in Test cricket. I bowled 35 overs in the last Test without any success,” Rafique said. He remains six wickets short of becoming the first Bangladeshi to take 100 Test wickets.And the situation might not get any better in Kandy, where Bangladesh arrived to play the third and final Test, beginning from July 11. The pitch has traditionally favoured seamers. “Murali can turn the ball on glass, so the condition doesn’t matter to him. But bowlers of our calibre should get some assistance from the wicket which was also not the case in the first two Tests and I think it will be the same here,” said Rafique.Rafique, who was greeted on entry to his hotel room by a number of monkeys who attacked him, said the failures of his batsmen had made his job tougher and that of Sri Lanka much easier.”I think if our batsmen are able to manage at least 300 runs, then it could have been a different story for the bowlers. Actually the Sri Lankan batsmen played us freely after our poor scores in both the first innings. Another reason is that we played too many one-day games in the last year. We have to work hard to get our basics right in Test cricket,” he said.Rafique added that he did not want to be considered for the subsequent one-day series against the hosts due to a family commitment.

Eight Pakistan players, including Shoaib Akhtar, signed six-month central contracts offered by the PCB on Friday. The remaining 12 are expected to sign them over the next few days.The signings quashed speculation that had lingered over the last few days in Pakistan that several leading players, including the likes of Shahid Afridi and Shoaib, might join the Indian Cricket League (ICL).A clause in the new contracts clearly states that permission must be sought from the board when opting to play in a professional league; the PCB has already said that any contracted player turning out for the ICL will not be considered for Pakistan. Seven current players were reported to have been approached by the league.Shoaib, after signing the contract, told that he had turned down an offer from ICL as representing Pakistan was more important than money. “I was offered a decent amount from the Indian league officials. I have decided that my country is far more important for me and I am important for my team so I have decided not to take the offer,” Shoaib said.”Pakistan has to play in the Twenty20, then against South Africa, then againstIndia and Australia, so I am more focused for the Pakistan assignments than playingany series which is not for my country.”Shoaib was the first player to sign the contract, the board was keen to point out. In the past, he has refused to do so. “Shoaib was the first to sign the contract. Seven others including Shoaib Malik, Umar Gul and Salman Butt also signed them,” Ahsan Malik, director communications and marketing, PCB, told Cricinfo.Mohammad Asif and Afridi have also turned down offers. “It was good and tempting but I see a strong future for myself in the Pakistan team,” Afridi told . “I don’t want to let my fans down.”The board held a meeting with the players on Friday where it explained in detail several aspects of the contracts and gave players the chance to raise any queries or objections. “We told the players to look over the contracts over the next three or four days but a few signed them immediately. The others will look over it in the next three to four days,” said Malik.Talat Ali, Pakistan team’s manager, told that the players were very happy with the terms in the contracts offered to them. “The ones who didn’t sign are those whoare based in Karachi and couldn’t attend the meeting. But they are expected to sign them today,” Talat said. “There is extra money for winning a series, a match, scoring a hundred, taking four catches and wickets.” Twenty players have been offered contracts in all, which will last till the end of this year. From January onwards, the players will receive year-long contracts.Ali also took a strong view against the ICL as well, terming it “Mickey Mouse cricket”. He told : “I use this word because even if it is held it is not official or serious cricket. It is a rebel series not involving countries and it would be more befitting if it was held in Disneyland instead of in a Test-playing nation.””I don’t see this league tempting our players no matter what stage of their career they are in,” he said. “Even if someone wants to do something privately for the sport and young players they must have the blessings of the concerned cricket authorities and an example of this is the MRF Pace Academy in India or Intikhab Alam’s academy in Muridke [near Lahore].”

2nd dayJames Tomlinson took 5 for 78 – his second five-wicket haul of his career – as Hampshire bowled out Worcestershire for 289 to gain a sizeable first innings lead of 155 at Kidderminster. Hampshire were finally bowled out for 444 after Shane Warne, the captain, belted a quickfire 46 from 30 balls. And they carried forward the momentum with an early wicket in Worcestershire’s reply, Tomlinson having Daryl Mitchell caught behind for a duck. Before long, Hampshire had reduced them to 88 for 5 but Steven Davies (84) and Abdul Razzaq rescued Worcestershire from the mire with a sixth-wicket stand of 122. Razzaq was the last man out for 78, and Hampshire built upon their lead before stumps.1st daySussex took control of the key clash against Yorkshire with Michael Yardy’s 119 helping them to 386 for 5 at Hove. Yardy and Richard Montgomerie (73) added 178 for the second wicket as Sussex ensured they had a platform from which they could build a large total for their spinners to bowl at. Yardy, who made his second Championship century of the season, then added 79 with Murray Goodwin before Adil Rashid removed both in quick succession. However the runs kept flowing as Andy Hodd and Robin Martin-Jenkins built another partnership.

Ed Smith’s 111 was the main contribution for Middlesex as they built a solid total against Gloucestershire at Bristol. The innings wobbled on 81 for 3 during the morning session, but Smith, with his third century, added 174 with Eoin Morgan (76). After they both fell within 10 runs, Ben Scott and Tim Murtagh added 99 to put Middlesex on course for full batting points. Scott ended the day unbeaten on 76.Already promoted Somerset took control against Essex at Chelmsford as Charl Willoughby helped rout the home side for 144 before building a lead of 140. Willoughby made excellent use of the new ball as Essex fell to 13 for 3 and they never recovered. Peter Trego struck two blows in the middle order before the spinners and Willoughby did the rest of the damage. Tom Westley, the England Under-19 batsman, played a lone hand with 72. In reply, Somerset raced out of the blocks as Marcus Trescothick (59) and Neil Edwards (54) added 114. Danish Kaneria shouldered a heavy burden, with six wickets, and James Hildreth’s half-century pulled Somerset further away.Northamptonshire were indebted to Nicky Boje’s fine 125 to heave them up to 310 on the first day against Leicestershire at Grace Road. But Boje apart, Northamptonshire’s batsmen struggled; the next highest score was Lance Klusener with an uncharacteristically patient 45. Ryan Cummins was the principle wicket-taker and picked up his maiden five-wicket haul with 5 for 60. Tom New and John Maunders, the Leicestershire openers, put on 57 without alarm and go into the second day trailing by 253.