Stephen Alleyne, the former president of the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA), died of a heart attack on the morning of October 15. Alleyne, 47, headed the Barbados Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the 2007 World Cup and was also a former director of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB).He was the driving force behind Barbados getting to host Super Eight matches and final of the World Cup. He was also in charge of the redevelopment of the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown. The ground did not host any international games in 2006, due to the renovation work ahead of the World Cup.Alleyne was a member of the BCA’s Board of Management from 1992 to 1993. He then served as the Third Vice-President from 1994 to 1997, and later the First Vice-President in 1999. He took over as president after the death of Conrad Hunte, the former West Indies batsman, in December 1999. He was then elected President in 2000.Ali Bacher, the former president of the South African cricket board, said that Alleyne’s contributions to the game in the West Indies would be missed. The two first met when Bacher arrived in Barbados for Hunte’s funeral and he stated that he was impressed with his abilities as an administrator.”I always told him he had the attributes to be president of the West Indies Cricket Board,” Bacher told the , a Barbados-based daily. “There were two main reasons. The first was he had a great respect for the legends who helped build the game in the West Indies. He had a desire to keep the legends as part of the game. The second was that, as an actuary, he understood the commercial world very well and looked at the commercial side of West Indies cricket and how it could work.”When I heard of his death I was absolutely shattered. He was in the prime of his life. It’s a national tragedy, he was such a gifted person and wonderful man.”Joel Garner, the former West Indies fast bowler and current president of the BCA, acknowledged Alleyne’s contribution to cricket in the West Indies. “Stephen possessed a brilliant mind, a quiet confidence and he was always willing to give advice freely. He was thoughtful, meticulous and would be thoroughly analytical before he offered his counsel.”

The road to the 2011 World Cup continues for six teams with the start of the ICC World Cricket League Division Two in Windhoek, Namibia this weekend. The hosts, as well as Argentina, Denmark, Oman, Uganda and United Arab Emirates will battle it out over a week of action at three venues around the city.And at stake are four places in the World Cup Qualifier (formerly the ICC Trophy) in the UAE in 2009, the tournament that will determine which of the leading ICC Associate and Affiliate teams will go to the World Cup in the Asian subcontinent two years later. For five of the teams in Windhoek, it is a road they have travelled down before as Denmark, Namibia, Oman, Uganda and the UAE all played in the ICC Trophy in 2005 but failed to reach this year’s competition.However, Namibia (2003 in Southern Africa) and the UAE (1996 in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) have both reached World Cup finals so they should know exactly what is at stake and what sort of rewards are on offer to the successful sides.The new kids on the block are Argentina, a country basking in the glory of its success in the recent rugby World Cup where they reached the semi-finals and finished third.The cricketers have done just as well in many senses because, as late replacements for the United States of America in the ICC WCL Div.3 event earlier this year in Darwin, they were not expected to make many headlines. On paper, at least, the likes of Fiji, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea and the Cayman Islands all looked likely finalists alongside the fancied Uganda, and there were also Italy and Tanzania to consider.But Argentina proceeded to rip up the formbook and won through to the final before losing out to Uganda, the other side to earn promotion from that event which gave both line-ups their tickets to Windhoek. It will be fascinating to see if Argentina can continue their journey or whether they will get stopped in their tracks by some of the more experienced sides on show.Explaining the significance of the World Cricket League and how the Windhoek tournament fits in, ICC global development manager Matthew Kennedy said: “The idea of the WCL is to give each of the ICC’s 91 Associate and Affiliate Members a clearly defined pathway to progress and develop in world cricket. Apart from Division 1, which involves the top six Associate sides, the next best teams from the ICC Trophy 2005 have been allocated to Division 2 and 3 events along with the top teams from each of five regional qualifying events.”It means that regular global one-day cricket opportunities are no longer confined to just the top sides in the LG ODI Championship table and this tournament in Windhoek is an example of that. Our belief is that by exposing these sides to different opponents and different conditions they will improve and take that improvement back into their own domestic structures thereby helping our strong sport grow even stronger by broadening its base to a significant degree.”With places up for grabs in the World Cup Qualifier, the incentives and rewards for teams to improve have never been greater and I wish all the sides in action in Namibia the best of luck in what should be a terrific tournament and a great advertisement for Associate and Affiliate cricket.”

Chennai Superstars 155 for 8 (Harvey 36, Law 34) beat Chandigarh Lions 143 for 8 (TP Singh 35, Hall 30*, Shabbir 4-23) by 12 runs
Scorecard

Chennai Superstars became the champions of the inaugural ICL tournament, with all-round team work helping them beat the Chandigarh Lions by 12 runs. After being put into bat, the Superstars made 155 for 8 which seemed to be short of their expectations, but Shabbir Ahmed tamed the Lions with his 4 for 23, which included the first hat-trick of the tournament.The grand finale lived up to its reputation with a Super Bowl-like atmosphere: a fashion show, Bollywood stars, a full house, fireworks, and big hits. Panchkula, on the outskirts of Chandigarh, was alive and reverberating. Sadly, only part of the cricket matched the entertainment off the field.Shabbir packed off the Lions’ openers quickly. Imran Farhat’s slash ended in the hands of wicketkeeper Chris Read and Hamish Marshall’s waft at a beautiful outswinger gave Read his second catch. 19 for 2 quickly became 30 for 3 when Manish Sharma’s lofted on-drive was snapped by S Saravanan just a yard from the boundary.TP Singh along with Dinesh Mongia then did the repair work with Singh adapting well to the frequent changes in the bowling made by the Superstars’ captain, Stuart Law. But just when the Lions seemed to have turned a corner, Singh’s paddle sweep landed in the hands of Thiru Kumaran at short leg.Mongia, who had played a crucial knock in the semi-final, seemed to be doing an encore but Law once again played his card smartly bringing back his match-winner Shabbir. The Pakistani struck twice getting Mongia and Chetan Sharma off consecutive balls. Mongia tried to defend an offcutter which took his off stump while Sharma was out lbw, rapped in line with the leg stump. It completed a hat-trick for Shabbir who had got Marshall off the last ball of his second over.Cairns, the danger man, was done in by a beauty from Harvey; bowling wide of the crease, Harvey sneaked one past the strong defence of Cairns. Andrew Hall and Sarabjit Singh tried their best to fight back but they could not match the mounting asking-rate or Law’s shrewd thinking. In the process, the Superstars lived up to the billing of being the form team, with five victories in the seven games they played.Batting first, the Superstars failed to capitalise on an enterprising start given by Ian Harvey, who finished as the tournament’s leading run-getter, and G Vignesh. After Vignesh holed out to cover, Read walked in and sent a fuller one from Hall to the cover boundary. Harvey punched one in the gap between cover and mid-off against Amit Uniyal, the left-arm seamer, who tried to angle one away but pitched it short. A slow ball which came out as a full toss was pushed past Cairns to mid-off for another boundary.Mongia, who was brought on in the seventh over, soon had a smile on his face as on his second ball, Read was run out while attempting a cheeky single. Russel Arnold fell soon after, but,Harvey remained unruffled at the other end.His immaculately-timed punch off Cairns forced mid-off to be pushed back. Cairns then had to swallow the pain first of a no-ball and then bowling Harvey on the resulting free-hit. But Harvey’s cup of luck had run dry; he pushed an innocuous Mongia delivery to the unguarded leg side, but wicketkeeper Sarabjit Singh rushed to short leg and picked and threw in one motion to run Harvey out.Harvey’s departure slowed the scoring, as the Superstars could manage only 30 runs between overs 10 and 15. Hall lived to his death-bowler reputation giving away only four runs in the final over which saw two run-outs, including that of a desperate Law trying to finish a tight double. Even if the Superstars might have thought they fell short by at least 20 runs, in the end Shabbir’s bowling clinched the title and the US$1 million prize money.

Bangladesh U-19 203 (Nadimuddin 66, Nasir Hossain 41, Pathiran 4-43) beat Sri Lanka U-19 159 (Perera 47, Mahmud 3-24) by 44 runs
ScorecardNasir Hossain turned in a fine all-round performance to help Bangladesh Under-19 beat their Sri Lankan counterparts by 44 runs in the third one-dayer at the Shaheed Chandu Stadium in Bogra. Hossain was named Man-of-the-Match for his 41 runs and two wickets as Bangladesh took a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.Electing to bat, Bangladesh lost Mithun Ali in the second over, but two patient partnerships, 56 for the second wicket between Nadimuddin (66) and Ashraful Hossain, and 82 for the third between Nadimuddin and Nasir Hossain put the innings on course. Marshall Ayub, the No. 5 batsman who had made a defiant 90 in the previous match, scored a run-a-ball 24. Bangladesh were well-placed for a final assault at 163 for 3 in the 42nd over, but were unable to up the scoring as left-arm-spinner Sachith Pathirana snapped up four wickets.The Sri Lankan reply was rocked by a triple-strike from Dolar Mahmud which left them at 26 for 3. Mathurage Perera made 47 but the visitors were unable to stitch together any substantial partnerships. They collapsed from a relatively secure 113 for 5 to 118 for 9, dashing hopes of a victory.The next match is scheduled for Monday in Fatullah, with the final match in Mirpur on Wednesday.

India’s chances of fighting back from the 1-0 deficit against Australia have been dealt a huge blow with the news that Zaheer Khan, who missed the second Test in Sydney with a left heel injury, has been ruled out of the entire series. He has been ruled out for four to six weeks and will leave for India tomorrow while his replacement VRV Singh, the right-arm medium fast bowler, will fly to Australia on Friday.Zaheer has been India’s leading bowler over the last year – in nine Tests in 2007, he took 41 wickets at 25.73, including a nine-wicket haul in India’s win in Nottingham. However, he has also been plagued by fitness concerns. His current injury, which cropped up during practice a day before the second Test, was the same one that kept him out of the third Test against Pakistan in Bangalore last month.Zaheer first picked up the injury during the one-dayers in England in August. He had a similar fitness problem on India’s last tour to Australia in 2003-04, pulling out of the second Test in Adelaide with hamstring trouble, playing the third match and then missing the fourth. He also pulled a muscle in his right leg during India’s next tour, to Pakistan, and was forced to fly home after the first Test in Multan.Niranjan Shah, the BCCI secretary, said Sreesanth and Munaf Patel were not considered as neither had proved his match fitness. Munaf is recovering from back spasms that had ruled him out of the third Test against Pakistan.A shoulder injury has kept Sreesanth out of international cricket since the ODI series against Pakistan in November. He has ignored doctors’ advice to undergo surgery and has instead opted for ayurvedic treatment. The two have been asked to report to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) on Friday, where they will work with Dav Whatmore. Sreesanth said he has been bowling at the nets and feels good about his recovery. “Even today I bowled at the NCA indoor nets,” Sreesanth said.These injuries are the latest in a series of fitness concerns for India’s fast bowlers. John Gloster, the team’s physiotherapist, had sent a 14-page report to the Indian board regarding the injuries suffered by the players. He said most players were forced to go through games carrying niggles because there was simply no time for them to either recover from injuries or do the rehabilitation work needed.VRV last played for India in the first Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong in May last year. He has taken 15 wickets at 33.26 in four Ranji matches for Punjab this season. He said the call-up was a godsend and that his experience of Australian conditions – he was one of three to receive the annual Border-Gavaskar scholarship in 2005 – would be valuable.”I was in Australia two years back and have some knowledge about the nature of pitches there,” he told . “I will play according to my strength and bowl according to the nature of the wicket. I hope to perform and do well.”

Shoaib Malik has threatened to sue an Indian family for alleging that he married their daughter in a ceremony conducted over the telephone five years ago.In a hurriedly-arranged press conference in Lahore on Tuesday, Malik confirmed he had a relationship with the girl, Ayesha but denied a (wedding ceremony) ever took place. “I liked Ayesha and I told my family about that,” Malik said. “Elders of both families discussed the matter but the chapter was closed after they couldn’t agree on certain things. I can never think of cheating on a girl and since it was something that disturbed me, I am here to clarify the matter.”Ayesha’s father, Mohammed Ahmed Siddiqui, claimed last week that Malik married her on June 3, 2002 before all but abandoning her and should be punished for it. “There should be a fatwa (legal religious announcement) against him. My demand to him is to accept the marriage and divorce my daughter. She does not want to go back to a cheater like him. And we want our life back,” Siddiqui told an Indian newspaper.Siddiqui claims that Ayesha met Malik in 2002 during a cricket match in Dubai, where she was working as the vice-principal of an international school. “It was Malik who called me up and asked for my daughter’s hand. Although I had objections to my daughter marrying a Pakistani boy, I agreed because both of them were keen,” Siddiqui said.Siddiqui said the couple married over the phone after a two-month courthship, with witnesses from both sides. “I have the (proof of marriage) issued by a judge in Sialkot,” he said. Siddiqui, however, was not willing to produce that proof of marriage: “I will not give it now because my lawyer has asked me not to say anything about it as my case might not succeed.”Malik’s camp, however, insist they were lied to over the identity of the girl and that the family is exploiting Malik’s fame and status as Pakistan captain. “We are not denying the fact that Malik had an affair with a girl named Ayesha on the internet almost six years ago,” Imran Zafar, Malik’s brother-in-law, said.”He had planned to marry her and Mohammad Siddiqui claimed she was his daughter. But the photographs they showed of Ayesha to Malik were not those of their real daughter. They had been cheating Malik.”He added that Malik will go to India soon to file a case for fraud against the Siddiqui family. “We cannot allow anybody to defame Malik like this,” he said.

All the pieces finally fell into place for India as they closed their campaign in the league phase of the CB series with an emphatic seven-wicket win against Sri Lanka in Hobart. Mahendra Singh Dhoni couldn’t have been happier to reach the final against Australia.From winning the toss, to restricting the opposition to a small total, to finally chasing down the target well ahead of time, the Indians came full circle and earned a bonus point for their hard work. Keeping in mind ground conditions, India decided to opt for the five-bowler strategy which had worked against Sri Lanka last week in Adelaide. Munaf Patel replaced Sreesanth while Praveen Kumar came in for Virender Sehwag.It didn’t matter for Dhoni that Praveen had gone wicketless and scored just six runs in the tight chase in Adelaide under lights, a game India eventually won. “We would play with five bowlers against Sri Lanka, that was our plan,” Dhoni said, adding the reason the team-management went with one batsman less was that they were confident of getting the runs with the rest of the batting order. “We’d batted quite well against Sri Lanka in the past games and someone was always scoring. We just wanted to put pressure by having an extra bowler.”Having played each of the other two teams on more than a couple of occasions in the series, Dhoni understood that there was a need for different strategies. “Swing against Australia and seam for Sri Lanka”, he put it succinctly. And he was proved right. Even if Sri Lanka began briskly with Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara taking advantage of some wayward bowling by Ishant Sharma and Munaf in the first 10 overs, India soon bounced back.Irfan Pathan put the initial breaks by granting no width to the batsmen. At the other end, Praveen was accurate and nerveless; surprising given this was just his second game of the tournament. Deception was the main weapon with which he attacked, and he was a proud hunter at the end of the day with four big wickets bagging the Man-of-the-Match award.At around 125-130 kph, Praveen’s pace is tempting to most batsmen. But his strength lies in the ability to suddenly raise his pace, in addition to the swing he imparts with a fluent side-on action. It was the same today, except that Sri Lanka’s top order failed to respect his good deliveries. That fact was lost on Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Chamara Silva, whose disregard earned Praveen his reward.”He has an element of surprise, has the talent, and can swing it both ways,” Dhoni said of Praveen, who himself felt a flat deck made his wickets that much more precious. “The wicket was very good for batting, and the four of us performed well”, Praveen said.A lack of wickets in the two preceding games hadn’t dented Praveen’s confidence. Strong performances at domestic level, where he is a new-ball bowler for Uttar Pradesh, ensured that. He was the second highest wicket-taker in the 2007-08 Ranji season with 36 wickets from six matches at 16.00 and in the Ranji Trophy final, he had Delhi reeling with first innings figures of 8 for 68.”I have been bowling well at the domestic level, and now I’ve got a chance. I don’t bowl first change there, I bowl with the new ball and here the ball does not swing after the initial part,” Praveen said.Dhoni felt his first-change repaired the damage of the Sri Lankan assault in the initial overs and thereby negated the advantage the ball gives once it loses its sheen. At 7 for 93, Sri Lanka faced an embarrassing end, but Chamara Kapugedera along with Lasith Malinga managed to do some repair work with a 46-run eighth-wicket partnership before Ishant finished it off.Right throughout the series, Dhoni has acknowledged his bowlers’ efforts. If anything it’s the inconsistency in his batting order that has given him some distress. The failure of the openers, especially the low scores of Sachin Tendulkar has become a talking point. But the Indian captain stood firmly behind Tendulkar. “People have been talking about Sachin for all the years I’ve played. But one should be careful when one writes about him.”With their key batsmen, Tendulkar, who answered his critics with a solid 63, and Yuvraj Singh back among the runs and their bowling improving with each outing, India can look Australia in the eye when the first of the three finals begin in Sydney on March 2.

Scorecard

Sri Lankan opening batsman Malinda Warnapura and captain Mahela Jayawardene struck form against an inexperienced Guyana President’s Select XI (GPS) bowling attack and steered the visitors to 343 for 5 on the opening day of the tour match at the Providence Stadium.Warnapura struck 14 fours and a six before retiring on 132 off 184 balls, while Jayawardene was dismissed for 99 off only 110 deliveries with 12 fours. None of GPS’s bowlers impressed and the attack which contained three Under-19 bowlers – Jason Dawes, Steven Jacobs and Sharmarh Brooks – struggled to contain an experienced Sri Lankan batting like up after choosing to bowl.GPS’s captain Patrick Browne was the most experienced player since choices for the team were restricted because players were participating in the sixth round of Carib Beer Series matches.Warnapura took advantage of an inexperienced new-ball attack – Kemar Roach and Dawes – and added 115 for the first wicket with Michael Vandort. Dawes’ time in the middle was brief, as he pulled up after bowling 2.1 overs and was forced to leave the field. Vandort fell soon after lunch, bowled by legspinner Davendra Bishoo for 29. Kumar Sangakkara added 59 for the second wicket with Warnapura before Brooks bowled him for 22.Jayawardene had a stroke of luck early on when he was dropped on 6 by Roach on the midwicket boundary. At tea, Sri Lanka were 253 for 2 and Warnapura retired during the break to allow Thilan Samaraweera some batting practice. They continued to dominate and put 68 for the third wicket before Jacobs bowled Jayawardene and Samaraweera was run out just before the close.In addition to dropping four catches, the President’s XI were handicapped early in the day when the genuinely quick Jamaican teenage pacer Jason Dawespulled up’ and was forced to leave the field after bowling 2.1 overs.