For over twelve years now Curtly Ambrose has been putting the fear of God upbatsmen all over the world. But that will not happen for much longer as thissupreme fast bowler insists on bowing out of international cricket at the endof this series. It is of no surprise that this exceptional man does so havingtoday joined that exclusive, elite group of just four who have reached fourhundred Test wickets.Such illustrous cricketers as Sir Richard Hadlee, Wasim Akram and Kapil Devare in that group but leading it with 475 wickets is Courtney Walsh, the manwho has formed a most formidable bowling partnership with Ambrose. Betweenthem they have accumulated a staggering 875 Test wickets as they went aboutdemolishing the strongest batting line-ups over the years.Today they shared the five wickets that England lost for 105 by stumps andonce again, as is usually the case, the runs came more easily when these twostalwarts were replaced. For England, Graham Thorpe’s innings of 46 was theonly one of any note, but with 67 runs behind and five wickets remaining inthe first innings the match is evenly poised after the first day.The Headingley pitch lived up to its reputation of assisting pace bowlers butin the absence of low clouds – indeed, the first morning of the fourth Testwas greeted by a lovely blue sky which remained so for the rest of the day -Jimmy Adams decided to make first use of a wicket which had little grass. Hecertainly would not have wanted to bat last on the Headingley wicket whichdeteriorates rather than get any easier for batting.Although he lost Sherwin Campbell in only the third over, Adams wouldn’t havebeen unduly concerned until the score had reached 50 for 1 when things beganto happen for England.Craig White, who finished with his Test best figures of 5 for 57 and looksnow to be such an improved bowler, began an alarming West Indies collapse. Heswung the ball most effectively into the left handers and that movement wasthe basis of his first three dismissals.He brought one in sharply into Wavell Hinds who got a thin edge to it to becaught behind and struck again quickly in his next over when he trapped themaster batsman Brian Lara leg before. He drew him forward and moved the ballacross towards leg stump.After Darren Gough had removed Adrian Griffith, White again produced thein-swinger to Jimmy Adams who played on, via the inside edge. It reduced WestIndies to 5 for 60 before lunch and White had been instrumental in thatbatting debacle.It took an unbeaten half-century from young Ramnaresh Sarwan, who was ablysupported by Ridley Jacobs to halt the slide. Playing in only his fourthTest, Sarwan has shown tremendous potential since making his debut last May.This Test is already showing signs of a close finish.

The Zimbabwe Cricket Union held a press conference in Harare this afternoon to brief the media on last week’s talks with the ICC in Dubai and insisted that Zimbabwe’s Test status had not been suspended.Peter Chingoka, the chairman of the ZCU, told reporters that the board had agreed to "revision" of the four Tests scheduled for later this year until 2005. He explained that Zimbabwe’s Test status had never been up for review at the Dubai meeting and that it had "its Test status and enjoys all the benefits and obligations that come with it, just like the other nine full member countries."And Chingoka tersely dismissed accusations that the ZCU was guilty of discrimination. "Nothing could be further from the truth than the unjustified accusation of racism mischievously levelled against the ZCU," he said. "Our integration process is not just all-embracing in intention but also in implementation. We have continued to promote, develop and administer the game of cricket for the benefit of all Zimbabweans without discrimination of any kind."We remain committed to the full implementation of this document, whose contents have stood the test of time."He went on to explain that India, Australia and South Africa had all offered their support to try and help Zimbabwe gain much-needed experience. The three countries have offered places within their high-performance programmes to Zimbabwe’s promising players, as well as making available facilities for the development of coaches and umpires.Chingoka defended the constitutional process for the appointment of the ZCU board which, he insisted, "involves an independent panel made up of senior and respectable citizens."The meeting was impressed and satisfied with our presentation and requested that we make a similar presentation to the ICC executive board which meets in London on the 30th of this month."And he concluded by repeating that he hoped that the dispute with the rebel cricketers could be resolved but reiterated the board’s line that the matter was not one which needed the involvement of the ICC disputes committee.

Scotland captain Preston Mommsen has expressed relief at having secured the full four points from a pair of WCL Championship outings against Nepal after both contests were marred by poor weather. The two wins put Scotland level on four points with the Netherlands after the first round of play, with both sides scheduled to face off later this summer at the start of round two.”Very happy, very satisfied to come away with four points,” Mommsen said after Scotland’s nine-wicket win on Duckworth-Lewis over Nepal following the continuation of the game into Saturday’s reserve day. “That’s obviously what we wanted to come away with at the start. There were some challenges with the weather but we got through it, so credit to the ground staff here for getting us on.”Several days of rain in the lead-up to the first match on Wednesday resulted in a wet outfield that caused play to be reduced to 36 overs. Scotland was able to hold off a furious Nepal rally in a three-run win while the hosts won a key toss on Friday morning to put Nepal in under difficult conditions with rain falling intermittently in the first innings, but never enough to take the players off.”Obviously winning the toss and bowling first in pretty helpful conditions, it was a fresh wicket,” Mommsen said. “There was some steady rain throughout our bowling innings so that kind of gave the surface a little bit more grease and a little bit more carry for our seam bowlers. I think we showed if there is anything in the wicket, we’re certainly capable of finding that and it was slightly more difficult for them to bat on.”With the second innings target reduced from 168 in 50 overs to 110 in 22, the team reprised their explosive efforts during the World T20 Qualifiers last month. A 91-run stand between George Munsey and Matthew Cross allowed Scotland to reach the target in just 13.5 overs and Mommsen praised the pair’s aggression.”That’s the way we like to play,” Mommsen said. “You would have seen that in the last few weeks and it was no different here. We want to put pressure on the bowlers and take the attack to the opposition. Crossy and Munsey did that very well today. That’s something that as a team, we’re trying to develop, the intent to hit boundaries and at the same time knocking it around and being very busy, which those two were.”Though Mommsen was satisfied with the batting and bowling efforts, he still feels that there is plenty of room for improvement in the fielding department. Nepal captain Paras Khadka was dropped twice on Wednesday during his near match-winning partnership with Anil Mandal and the memory of Michael Leask dropping Wesley Barresi on 31 before he made 75 in Netherlands’ 32-run win over Scotland at Edinburgh during the World T20 Qualifier is still fresh in the mind.”There’s obviously still huge amounts that we need to work on, in particular the fielding. We were below par in these last two games. In the qualifiers, it let us down against the Dutch heavily, dropped catches. So that’s something we need to address and set about some new plans moving forward to make sure we improve that part of our game.”On the bright side, Mommsen was positive about the depth shown in winning the World T20 Qualifiers last month without county players Matt Machan and Freddie Coleman, while both players and seamer Josh Davey were also absent for the wins over Nepal. The captain expects competition for spots to get more intense in the lead-up to the upcoming Intercontinental Cup and WCL Championship fixtures against Netherlands.”Guys will have a few days off and then come together. We’ve got some fixtures against some County 2nd XI teams in the coming week and then we have the Dutch series in Holland. They’ll be crucial games. That will be a strong Dutch team, so we’ll have to be at our best.”

The Australians will not get a taste of Bangladeshi spin in their only three-day tour match from October 3. The national selectors picked a BCB XI squad of 13 devoid of any genuine spinners but included four pace bowlers for the docile Fatullah pitch.National selector Minhajul Abedin said that it was the team management’s strategy to not give the touring side an early advantage. “We are taking home advantage,” he said. “Like any other touring side that comes to Bangladesh, we will make it challenging for Australia to play spin, which is our biggest area of strength. We have picked more batsmen because Australia has a good bowling attack.”For the last few years Bangladesh have tended to keep specialist spinners, especially left-armers, away from touring sides for practice games. The only spin that Steven Smith’s side will face will be from allrounders Mahmudul Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Shuvagata Hom and Naeem Islam. Mahmudul and Shuvagata are likely to lead the spin attack as they have been doing well in the recent past.The first Test between Bangladesh and Australia will begin on October 9 in Chittagong.BCB XI squad Imrul Kayes, Anamul Haque, Mahmudul Hasan, Mohammad Mithun, Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Shuvagata Hom, Naeem Islam, Al-Amin Hossain, Kamrul Islam, Abu Jayed, Shafiul Islam

In the aftermath of the comical controversy, in which Ishant Sharma was left out of Delhi’s Ranji Trophy squad as he didn’t respond to phone calls and text messages, the team’s newly appointed coach Ajay Jadeja has admitted there is a need to “communicate better with the media.” After the issue generated headlines, Ishant was included in the squad though he only made himself available from the second game of the season, leading to another round of embarrassing headlines for the Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA).”I think we need to get better at communicating with the media and putting out clearer statements and making life easier for the media, so that they can have the right story and have one person talk about it,” Jadeja told ESPNcricinfo. “For the players, there should not be pressure on them to reply to the media or even for the selectors. We need to get better at communication, but every story that I have read says the same thing. The headlines keep changing, the stories say the same thing – that when he is ready, he will walk in. I don’t think anyone who has played the game or been around the game would question that. Which team in India would not like Ishant to play for them if he is available?”Jadeja, 44, comes into the role of head coach at a tricky time for Delhi cricket. Reports of rampant factionalism have dogged the early part of the season. Veteran players, such as Virender Sehwag and Mithun Manhas, have moved on to other associations, while some, like Rajat Bhatia, have been dropped altogether. Jadeja, who came through age-group cricket in Delhi and has played for the state in the past, recognises the challenges that await him.”Since it (Delhi) is the capital, it is always in the news, mostly not for the right reasons but fortunately till now I was given an offer to work with the team a few days ago,” he said. “I must confess that I haven’t faced a problem till now. The team has been picked by three selectors who are chosen by the government. I have been gratified by the association. I heard that there were three teams that were first put out but at the moment, things are looking good and that is what we hope.”File photo – In the absence of senior players like Virender Sehwag, Delhi’s responsibilities will rest on their captain Gautam Gambhir•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

In the absence of this core group of senior players, Delhi have named a young squad. Jadeja, who has been a player-coach in his stints at Haryana and Rajasthan, is excited about the opportunity to shape young careers.”For any coach, when you have young players coming in, their mindset or game plans are not set. It is easier to mould someone who is young and does not have set ideas,” he said. “I think it becomes easier for a coach when you have someone who is 18, 19 or 20, and not too experienced. It is easier to chat and talk to them because they are open to ideas whereas all of us who get old and are coming towards the end of our careers, have made up our mind that this is our limit, this is the way I play and I don’t want to tread a new path and I know what I am doing.”Jadeja also expects to forge a strong working relationship with captain Gautam Gambhir, the only player of international pedigree available for Delhi at the start of the season. While conceding that they have few shared interests outside cricket, Jadeja insisted having two individuals not afraid to “voice their opinion” at the helm will be a positive for the team.”He has always been the man who leads the team and he will be the man who leads this Delhi team as well because, whether it be KKR [Kolkata Knight Riders] or the time he led India, he likes to lead from the front,” Jadeja said. “I would be sitting on the backseat with a hat on top and, if needed, I’ll guide him, but he is the man in charge.”Whether we win the Ranji Trophy at the end of the season remains to be seen but the only aim of anybody who walks into that dressing room is to win the Ranji Trophy because we are not here to participate, we are here to win. That is what I, my captain and each of us believe and that is why we are going to the ground every morning and trying to do the best we can.”

Sri Lanka’s sports minister Dayasiri Jayasekera has said that elections for Sri Lanka Cricket will be held in January 2016. SLC has been administered by a nine-member interim committee, headed by former cricketer Sidath Wettimuny, since April 1.Speaking at an event at the Pallekele stadium, Jayasekera said: “Elections will be held in January next year, and those eligible could contest and get elected. Those elected to power to this prestigious body will have the challenge of generating their own finances to fund the ongoing projects for the future undertaken by the present interim administration.”This is not the first time January elections have been mentioned. Three months ago, the Sri Lanka board itself had stated its commitment to holding elections before the end of January.The interim committee was established because the posts held by the then existing office-bearers, led by president Jayantha Dharmadasa, had become null and void – the laws governing all sports bodies in the country require annual elections to be held on or before March 31 but SLC’s elections were postponed until the end of April due to the 2015 World Cup, which ended on March 29. The interim committee’s time in power was not specified, but it was expected to last not more than six months.In April, the ICC announced that the appointment of an interim committee at SLC was a breach of the ICC’s constitution. As such, it had placed certain sanctions on SLC, including holding payments due to the board in escrow, and suspending SLC’s voting rights at ICC meetings. The ICC had also urged SLC to hold elections by October, but this is understood to have been a soft deadline.

Match facts

November 5-9, 2015
Start time 0930 local (0400GMT)4:42

Manjrekar: SA stuck without a quality spinner

Big Picture

India’s wait for a Test at home is finally over. It has been two years since the team played a home series, and the drought is ending with a downpour. This is not just any series. This is the first four-Test series against South Africa in India, and South Africa’s first in India since they became No.1.The last time South Africa were in India, five years ago, the roles were reversed. Then, India were on top. But since then, South Africa have overtaken them and hosted India twice. Both times, the action has been absorbing. In 2010, India were hours away from upstaging South Africa in their own backyard. In 2013, the drawn drawn Test at the Wanderers provided one of cricket’s greatest what-ifs and the Boxing Day game which followed was a farewell to Jacques Kallis.That day, India may have wondered how South Africa would cope without Kallis and although they are still searching for the answer in ODIs, in Test cricket they have transitioned well. Better than India, some would say.South Africa have gone through a change of coach and captain without a change in results. India have grappled with a much more difficult changing of the guard, that will see play a home Test without any of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag or Saurav Ganguly for the first time since 1988. Virat Kohli was born that year, and half the current squad were not. But they are a young group, with a lot to prove, mostly to themselves. They need to show that cricket can move on.South Africa have already done that but need to keep moving. They have learnt that to hold on to their position at the top, they have to keep coming up with more creative ways to stay there. This trip will test those skills more than any other.

Form guide

(last five completed games most recent first)India WWLDD
South Africa DDWDW

In the spotlight

The series opener requires someone to set the tone and the two people most suited to doing that are the captains. Both are relatively new in the job with Virat Kohli leading India for the first time at home and only the seventh time overall .At least he has a good day to do it, on his 27th birthday. Kohli will want no gift other than a strong first showing from his men.Hashim Amla has been in charge for just eight matches, and has not lost yet. His own form, though, is under scrutiny. Amla has not scored a fifty on this tour of India and is struggling for runs. But he has a record in the country few can match. On three tours, Amla has scored four centuries, including a double-hundred, and amassed 823 runs, the most by any South African in India. If he can add 177 to that, he will become only the fourth overseas batsman to score 1000 Test runs in India. If he does that all in one innings, or even in one match, he will be back in form too.

Team news

India will field five bowlers, even if it means shortening their batting line-up. They are likely to play all three specialist spinners with only two of the three seamers, and will have to choose between Chesteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma at No.5.India: (probable) 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 M Vijay, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Virat Kohli (capt), 5 Cheteshwar Pujara/Rohit Sharma, 6 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 7 R Ashwin, 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 Amit Mishra, 10 and 11 Umesh Yadav/Varun Aaron/Bhuvneshwar KumarJP Duminy, who had stitches removed from the cut on his hand, is “unlikely,” in Amla’s words, to be rushed back from injury which will allow Temba Bavuma an opportunity in the middle order. South Africa will have to find holding overs from someone else, probably part-timers. They are likely to rely on their usual three-pronged pace pack, provided Morne Morkel passes a fitness test, which could see Dean Elgar and Stiaan van Zyl bowl more than usual. Imran Tahir could make a Test comeback 11 months after he last appeared in the longest format unless South Africa go conservative and opt for Simon Harmer.South Africa: (probable) 1 Dean Elgar, 2 Stiaan van Zyl, 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 Hashim Amla (capt), 5 AB de Villiers, 6 Temba Bavuma, 7 Dane Vilas (wk), 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Simon Harmer/Imran Tahir

Pitch and conditions

The PCA pitch has been the subject of more speculation than is normal ahead of this Test because it is expected to be India’s 12th man. Ravi Shastri has spoken about the importance of home conditions, which suggests India will request rank turners, and after the recent controversies with ground curators, they are likely to get them, even in Mohali which has traditionally been kinder to quicks. Amla said he expected the surface to turn “a bit,” but laughed when asked if that was all he expected. The square has not been relaid in 23 years, which would also suggest spin on offer. The pitch was yellowish-green in colour on the eve of the Test.The weather up north has been much cooler than in other parts of the country with pleasant temperatures in the mid-20s and no humidity. The seasonal smog, a product of the stubble-burning from rice farmers throughout the state, continues to hang in the air and with early sunsets, bad light could become a concern.

Stats and Trivia

• India have only lost one home Tess series in the last 11 years, to England in 2012. Between November 2004 and November 2015, they played 17 series at home, winning 12 and drawing five. They have not had any home Tests for the last two years.
• South Africa’s unbeaten nine-year streak on the road has included 13 series in all 10 Test countries other than their own where Test cricket is hosted, including Pakistan. Of those, there are only two places where South Africa have not won, but drawn series: India and the UAE, both twice.

Quotes “It will be an exciting and special moment for me tomorrow when I take the field in my first home game as captain. Secondly it’s my birthday as well so it doubles up the excitement for tomorrow.””I think we know the way South Africans play, whether it’s under me or Graeme. We try and play tough cricket on the field. There’s no need to look further than that. We try not to put any emphasis on the opposition, but on what we do. One of our successes is we’ve managed to bat, bowl and field pretty decently away from home and we want to continue that.”

Zimbabwe’s morale received a welcome boost just five days before the second Test match when they beat Yorkshire in this Vodaphone Challenge match.Heavy rain just before the scheduled start meant that play was delayed for 10 minutes, but Zimbabwe soon had their first success. With Yorkshire needing 180 to win opening bowler Mbangwa stuck in the second over with his second ball. He had Yorkshire skipper David Byas caught at forward short leg by Murray Goodwin.In his next over he removed Richard Harden for one. Harden hit a leading edge straight to Nkala at mid on. With the first ball of Brian Strang’s third over Victor Craven was caught by Grant Flower in the gully. There was more bad news for Yorkshire when Wood became the fourth man out. He was caught by Brent at mid off. Yorkshire were now 13 for four and Mbangwa had taken three wickets for just three runs.Michael Lumb who was making his first class debut for Yorkshire joined Garry Fellows. Michael who is the 21-year-old son of former Yorkshire vice Captain Richard Lumb cannot play county cricket for Yorkshire until next season because he was born in South Africa. The pair looked comfortable and took the score to 54 before Fellows was out. He pushed forward to Strang and was caught behind by Any Flower.Gavin Hamilton was nearly out before lunch but the ball dropped short of second slip when he was only three. Hamilton and Lumb were realistically Yorkshire`s last chance of winning the match. Lumb played some wonderful square drives and looked the mirror image of his father, because Michael is a left hander and his dad was a right hander. The pair added 40 when Hamilton was caught behind by Flower of Nkala’s first ball of his second spell.Middlebrook looked uneasy troughout his innings of 7 before he was caught by Grant Flower at point off Nkala. Guy hung in with Lumb and took the score to 128 before he was caught by Andy Flower off Strang. Next ball Hutchison was caught by Carlise at second slip after the ball had rebounded of Goodwin at third slip.Last man Hoggard tried to slog Yorkshire to victory and scored ten in no time. His attitude was followed by Lumb who also started to hit out. Hoggard was the last wicket to fall when he was LBW to Nakala. Lumb remained unbeaten on 66. When Lumb brought up his fifty he had scored 44 in boundaries.Brian finished with four for 41 and Nkala took two wickets for 24 runs. Mbangwa who was named man the match took four wickets for 39 runs but ended up with career best figures of 10 for 53.

Railways were staring at the prospect of surrendering the firstinnings lead to Punjab as they were reduced to 176 for 9 at stumps onthe third day of the Ranji Trophy Super League group B match at theKarnail Singh Stadium at New Delhi on Tuesday.Earlier, some good batting by tail-enders Sharandeep Singh (44 notout) and Navdeep Singh (42) saw Punjab push their score to 355. Endingday one on 246 for 7 there was very little chance that Punjab couldsalvage the situation. However, the two Singhs combined well, adding65 runs for the eighth wicket. While 355 is not the score they wouldhave been looking at when they began their innings, it is a score theywould settle for given the fact that they were 164 for 5.Punjab’s Kulamani Parida bowled his off breaks to good effect andended with the more than respectable figures of 6/84 off his 36.2overs.In response, Railways were neck deep in trouble. Losing their top fivebatsmen before tea was taken, Railways were reduced to 90 for 5.Opening the bowling, Gagandeep Singh was both economical and effectiveinitially as he picked up 2/17 off his 9 overs. In the post teasession Yere Goud (64 of 151 balls) and Kilamani Parida (34 of 46balls) added 46 runs in 13 overs between them for the ninth wicket .But Railways were to end the day with the score of 176 with only thelast pair at the crease, as Punjab consolidated on their first inningstotal.Navdeep Singh was easily the pick of the Punjab bowlers as he endedthe day with an analysis of 4 for 46 from 21 overs.

On the brief occasions that the sun shone at Supersport Park on Sunday, it cast its rays on the shoulders of Gerhardus Liebenberg.A century from the Free State man lifted some of the gloom on yet another rain-interrupted day of the Supersport Series clash between the Eagles and the Northerns Titans.After several interruptions due to rain and bad light, the rain eventually won the battle with the Eagles finishing a wet third day 67 runs behind Northerns and on 224 for five.When the covers were pulled on, Liebenberg was on 109 not out, coming off 283 balls and including 18 fours. A useful 64 from Andrew Gait helped set the platform for an impressive total from the Free State considering all the weather delays they have had to contend with over the past two days.After being able to add only nine runs to their score before play was abandoned on Saturday, Free State resumed on 63 for no loss. Liebenberg began the day with 29 runs to his name, and Gait on 27.The duo continued to dominate against the Titans’ bowling attack, with Liebenberg doing the most damage.Northerns fast bowler Greg Smith, although liberal with the extras considering his 11 no-balls bowled, ended Gait’s innings when he had the batsman caught behind by Kruger van Wyk.The rest of the Eagles’ batting line-up had little to offer. After losing their first wicket on 147, the Eagles slumped to their second loss 11 runs later, and put on a total of 63 runs in losing all five wickets before stumps.