Attempts by Zimbabwe Cricket to hold a board meeting grew increasingly farcical as yet another scheduled gathering was cancelled at short notice. There has still not been a legitimate meeting since the controversial AGM almost three months ago.On Thursday, Peter Chingoka, the embattled ZC chairman, called board members and told them that once again he had failed to obtain the quorum necessary to enable Saturday’s meeting to proceed. But Cricinfo has established that seven officials, including some provincial chairmen, had actually committed themselves to attending and Chingoka would have been the eighth, which would have completed the quorum. An insider suggested that the latest cancellation was a move by the pro-Chingoka faction on the board – primarily Tavengwa Mukuhlani, Cyprian Mandenge and Wilson Manase – fearing that the chairman and Ozias Bvute, the managing director, could face a tough time.On Wednesday, Clive Field, the players’ representative, met with the government-appointed Sports and Recreation Committee as the commission continued with its stakeholders’ investigation aimed at resolving the crisis. The commission asked the players to have faith in them, and they responded by agreeing to stay put for a few weeks while monitoring progress.”We were well-received. They understood our concerns,” said Field. “They have asked us to give them time to do a report and make recommendations. The players are prepared are prepared to stick around. But we explained to them that time was running away, and we need to move in a way that will not make cricket collapse.”The news of the cancellation comes on the day that the Herald quoted Chingoka as calling on the board members to appear at the meeting. “I am saying if the provincial chairmen really have cricket at heart as they claim then they should attend,” he said. “Their continued absence will not only delay the solving of a number of outstanding issues, it will also show who the real enemies of the game or people with ultra motives are.”On my part, I have been making myself available for meetings but there is nothing I could do without a quorum. I don’t make unilateral decisions but everything has been collectively done and even the response to the provincial associations should also be a collective responsibility.”There have been some attempts to isolate me and hold me responsible for board decisions yet such decisions have involved others on the board. That collective responsibility must also apply in our response to the provincial associations.”Chingoka also claimed that the “players haven’t signed contracts because there is need to clarify which exchange rate to use on their remuneration and it’s an issue the ZC management has referred to the board for guidance.” The players, however, would counter that the contracts are a side issue. They want Chingoka and Bvute out, and on Tuesday released a statement stating that they would not play for Zimbabwe while the pair remained at the helm, as well as supporting former captain Tatenda Taibu.The latest cancellation also leaves the game in limbo. It was hoped that a new national captain would be chosen, with it being a choice between Andy Blignaut and Hamilton Masakadza, and also confirmation of the new selection panel originally picked in September but subsequently voided when it was found that meeting had been unconstitutional.An Special General Meeting is scheduled for December 23 when ZC will try to pass its highly-controversial move to create five new provinces. If it succeeds, then the faction supporting Chingoka will almost certainly have enough muscle to regain control of the board and be able to quash the attempted rebellion by some provincial chairmen. The players, however, seem more determined to see the back of Chingoka and Bvute, and they, and the investigations into the board, could be the decisive factors in the battle for the future of cricket in Zimbabwe.

Kenya have included three players currently in the ICC’s Winter Training Camp in South Africa in their 14-man squad for the Afro-Asia tournament in Bangladesh next month.The Kenya Cricket Association chairman of selectors David Waters said allrounder Kalpesh Patel and fast bowlers Alfred Luseno and Nehemiah Odhiambo, who are undergoing the training with players from six other ICC Associate members in Pretoria, will form the backbone of the team.He added that legspinner Collins Obuya, who has also been out of the country working with Australia’s legspin coach Terry Jenner in Adelaide, would join the team as the most experienced player in the side.No captain was named, but is expected that Rageb Aga will lead the side if he can get time off from his studies in England. If he cannot, then Maurice Ouma will probably take charge.The January 16-29 tournament in the southeastern Bangladeshi port city of Chittagong will also feature other A teams from India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Zimbabwe were to have been the fifth side but they withdrew after their players refused to participate.Kenya squad Alfred Luseno, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Kalpesh Patel Collins Obuya, Maurice Ouma, Rageb Aga, Amit Bhudia, Tanmay Mishra, Rajesh Bhudia, Malhar Patel, Hafiz Manji, Jimmy Kamande, Abeed Janmohamed, Alex Obanda.

Michael Vaughan has conceded that England are major underdogs ahead of their tour to India next month. Vaughan, who is continuing his recovery from knee surgery, says the conditions will be a huge challenge for his young team.”People have to be realistic,” he said during an exclusive webchat with SunOnline. “Miracles don’t happen and we’re still a very young side. We beat Australia by playing great cricket on our home soil. You put us against anyone in the world in English conditions and I expect us to win.”But going to Pakistan or India, with different conditions, and it’s very tough for a team. Only Australia have won in India over the last decade. So even if Pakistan didn’t go well and India doesn’t go well, we will still be a good team going to Australia.”So I’m hoping we can go to India and put up a good fight and maybe surprise them because they’ll be big favourites.”England last won a Test series in India on 1984-85 tour, under the leadership of David Gower, and have subsequently lost 3-0 in 1992-93 and 1-0 when Nasser Hussain was captain in 2001-02.However, Vaughan is confident that he will be part of the team that departs for India, on February 12, with his recovery progressing well. He missed the one-day series against Pakistan so that he could have his long-standing knee problem operated on, and still give him enough time to return to full fitness for India.Although he has yet to test the knee in the middle – the only way to replicate the true strains it will endure during a match – Vaughan is pleased with how he is feeling. “The knee is good and it’s gone quite well since the operation four weeks ago.”I’m doing everything bar being on the cricket pitch twisting and turning. I’m doing a bit of running indoors and unless I have some real bad luck I expect to be on the plane in a few weeks’ time.”It was the cartilage that was the problem but I’ve had a bit of a tidy-up, a bit of a trim, and touch wood it seems to have done the trick.”

Ian Chappell believes Australia must start thinking of the Ashes by reinstating Michael Clarke instead of Brad Hodge for the three-Test tour of South Africa. Chappell, writing in his column for , said the selectors had to find a way for him to return after he was dropped for the third Test against West Indies in November.”Clarke is one of the six best batsmen in Australia – ahead of Brad Hodge – and his skill and flair will be an important ingredient if the Ashes are to be regained,” Chappell said. “Clarke is better equipped than Hodge to cope with the bounce and swing of a strong English attack and somehow the selectors have to have him back in the side before the first Test at the Gabba comes around.”The South Africa series and a two-match contest in Bangladesh in April are the only Tests Australia have before the Ashes starts at the Gabba on November 23. “Clarke is a player with a long-term future and also a potential Australian captain,” Chappell said. “He has had a kick in the backside and now is the right time to bring him back into the touring party.”The magazine also looks long term with Shane Warne predicting the South Australia slow-bowling duo of Cullen Bailey and Dan Cullen will go on to great things. Cullen, the offspinner who is currently recovering from a broken finger, was named the Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year at the Allan Border Medal while Bailey, the legspinner, is his full-time replacement.”If you can have an offspinner and a legspinner bowling together it always tests the batsman with different sorts of techniques, good variation,” Warne said. “They are going to be hard work in South Australia, those guys, and, who knows, down the track they could form the Australian spin bowling combination.”

The Central Districts duo of Mathew Sinclair and Jamie How each scored centuries to set Otago a challenging target of 401 at the end of the third day of the State Championship match at New Plymouth. Central declared on 259 for 1 with Sinclair and How undefeated on 103 and 134 respectively – Sinclair following up on his first innings ton of 121. Earlier, Otago were bowled out for 275, adding 84 to their overnight score, as Minal Patel claimed three wickets with his left arm spin. Otago batted out seven overs till stumps, ending at eight for no loss.Riding on James Franklin’s double century and a five-wicket haul by Charles Shreck, the seam bowler, Wellington defeated Auckland convincingly by an innings and 60 runs inside three days at Basin Reserve. After Franklin was dismissed for 208, and useful contributions from the tailenders, Wellington declared at 547 for 8. Shreck rocked the top-order, finishing with 5 for 64 off his 18 overs. Tama Canning (67) and Matt Horne (52) were the only two batsmen to cross fifty.Tailenders Brendon Hiini and Paul Wiseman displayed their batting talents, hitting centuries and taking Canterbury to a commanding position against Northern Districts on the third day of their State Championship match at Hamilton. The Northern Districts bowlers struggled to dislodge the pair, finally managing to get Wiseman out for 130. Hinni remained not-out on 100 as his side declared their first innings at 515 for 9. Wiseman scored briskly, hitting three sixes and 14 fours. Faced with a deficit of 246, Northerns finished on 89 for 1, Chris Harris claiming Alun Evans’s wicket.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Battered and bruised on and off the field after defeat, injury and illness, England performed well beyond expectations on the opening day at Mumbai, laying the foundations to launch a serious attempt at a series-levelling win. Powered by a fantastic century by Andrew Strauss, and a curious decision at the toss by Rahul Dravid, England finished on 272 for 3.A severe personnel problem for England became even more critical on the morning of the match, when Alastair Cook was ruled out due to a stomach bug. Perhaps the Indian think-tank believed they could capitalise on the unsettled opposition top order; perhaps they were swayed by the tinge of green on the track, or by a bowling attack which included three seamers. The decision was strange, but England, to their credit, grabbed the opportunity with both hands, with Strauss’s 128 easily the highlight.Over the last few months, Strauss has struggled – his last nine Test innings have fetched him 150 runs in all. He threatened to match that number in just one hit today, with a superbly planned knock. When the ball was new and moving around, he was content to see off the bowling, scoring just 35 at lunch. The horizontal-bat strokes were closeted away, replaced by drives in the V and through the covers. Then, after he had done the hard yards, he capitalised – unlike makeshift opener Ian Bell, who threw it away in a moment of indiscretion.As the pitch eased up in the afternoon, Strauss opened out and unfurled his full range – the drives became more extravagant, and the slightest error in length was punished with crisp cuts and pulls.He did have a couple of moments of good fortune, though. On 92, a hard slash off Harbhajan flashed past slip before Dravid could get his hands to the ball, and on 123, Mahendra Singh Dhoni dropped a more straightforward chance off Kumble. Strauss celebrated the first escape with a superb sweep to bring up his hundred – his eighth in Tests, and his first in the subcontinent – but could manage only five more after the second reprieve before nicking one off Harbhajan.

If Strauss’s knock was the story of the day, then Owais Shah’s performance on Test debut was a close second. From the outset, he oozed confidence, mixing intense defence with powerful drives and cuts. He started his innings with a smashing cut off Harbhajan, then stroked him delightfully through covers to bring up his fifty, and in between took full toll of the other bowlers as well. The fourth over after lunch was his highlight, as Shah waded into an utterly listless Pathan, slapping him down the ground, then flicking, and then driving through mid-on for three glorious fours in an over. Cramps in his hands curtailed the knock, but with an overnight rest, Shah should be back to try and inflict more damage to the Indian cause tomorrow.Kevin Pietersen ensured that Shah’s departure didn’t halt the momentum, playing with typical flair. The front-foot drives off the fast bowlers boomed as powerfully as ever, but there were moments of good fortune too, when top-edged pull shots evaded the fielders. And when he fell, Andrew Flintoff and Paul Collingwood were around to ensure that all the good work of five hours weren’t undone in a few minutes.Having erred at the toss, Dravid tried all the tricks to limit the damage, rotating his fast bowlers in short spells, getting the spinners on early when the fast bowlers proved ineffective, and changing the ends for Anil Kumble. However, India’s three-man pace attack was effectively reduced to two, with Pathan, bowling at medium pace with no swing, seam or accuracy, being completely off colour. Sreesanth was all fire and heart, but the best spell of the day came from Munaf Patel, after tea. Generating pace and bounce, he had the batsmen in plenty of bother, rapping Strauss on the pads, cutting him in half with an indipper, and forcing Pietersen to fend awkwardly. England survived all those moments, though, and ended the day with enough runs on the board to put pressure on India when it’s their turn to bat.

Ian Bell c Harbhajan b Sreesanth 18 (52 for 1)
Andrew Strauss c Dhoni b Harbhajan 128 (230 for 2)
Kevin Pietersen c Dhoni b Sreesanth 39 (242 for 3)

Three of the four bidders for the lucrative global television rights for 25 offshore ODIs to be played by India over the next five years have complained to the Indian board against irregularities in the tender process.Nimbus, ESPN-Star Sports and Zee Sports have alleged that Sahara’s tender was accepted by the board despite the bid being delivered after the 11 am (IST) deadline on Wednesday, which clearly violated the guidelines. They further alleged that the bid was not delivered in a sealed envelope as the rules stipulate.Nimbus and Zee Sports immediately sent out letters to the BCCI while ESPN-Star indicated that they reserved the right to take action if necessary. Meanwhile, Lalit Modi, the board’s vice-president, dismissed their claim and maintained that the bidding process was done in all fairness. “Sahara had deposited the money of five million dollars yesterday itself and its representatives were waiting at the reception whereas the other bidders had gathered in the boardroom,” he was quoted as saying by the .Himanshu Mody, the business head of Zee Sports, in his letter wrote, “We believe that the new BCCI administration has conducted the earlier tender process with complete transparency and fairness. There have been instances in the past, where companies have been disqualified on technical grounds. Keeping these facts in mind, we trust in all fairness, the Sahara financial bid should not be considered. We are hopeful the BCCI will take a fair decision on this occasion as well.”The BCCI is expected to announce the results of the bidding at Mumbai on Thursday. They have also fixed a reserve price of US $5 million per match and the bid is likely to fetch a minimum of $100 million.In his letter to the board, K Digvijay Singh, Nimbus’ CEO, said, “In line with the strict and uniform concurrence to BCCI policy, Sahara’s technical non-compliance with Clause 10 (b) of the Invitation To Tender (ITT) should render their bid subject to rejection according to the BCCI’s strict policies.”It may be noted that Nimbus has a positive working relationship with Sahara. Nevertheless, in the interests of equity and a constant policy that the present BCCI committee have taken pains to exemplify, we respectfully maintain that the Sahara bid should not be permitted to qualify herein.”The offshore television rights include the two India-Pakistan matches to be played in Abu Dhabi on April 18 and 19.

Richie Richardson and Andy Roberts, former players, have hit out at the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) for its stance on negotiating a contract for retainer fees with the regional board.Richardson said WIPA was pushing for too much money while Andy Roberts said the players’ association has been dragging its feet in meeting with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to discuss the contract. The WICB, after negotiations went beyond their first deadline of last Friday, have now proposed a further meeting with WIPA tomorrow with a new deadline of May 3 for the players to sign its offer for retainer contracts.Richardson said the players are failing to understand the plight of the regional game. “It is really sad the state of affairs of West Indies cricket at this present time,” Richardson told a local radio station yesterday. “We are all aware of what we are going through and rather than us getting together and trying to restore our cricket as quickly as possible we continue to fight and argue for things that should not be a priority in West Indies cricket.”Cricket is bigger than the players. The board and I think that in the interest of the fans and West Indies cricket we have got to really quickly sort out our problems and get on with playing and get the game going, get the fans happy and try and restore our cricket.”We are right down at the bottom of the table and yet our players are demanding big money. I don’t like to compare time but when we played we fought for a lot of things. We fought for better treatment of the players, for improvement in payments and things like that. If we were to adopt the same attitude that the players were adopting today we would have never gone out on the field of play because there was hardly any money.”But our priority was to go out there and play for West Indies, to go out there and represent the millions of fans who depend on us to keep them uplifted throughout their daily lives. Today the priority is money and it is really sad because it is destroying West Indies cricket.”I think the board needs to be a bit stronger. At the end of the day the board can only offer what it’s capable of offering to the players,” Richardson added. “Just take it or leave it. If they don’t want to go out there and play cricket I’m sure there are a number of players who want to go out and play. We’re not winning anything so you might as well go out there and invest in young players who want to go out there and play for their country and groom them and maybe in five, 10 years we will have a much better team.”Roberts, a former player and coach, said both WICB and WIPA should share the blame for the impasse, which has been raising its ugly head repeatedly.”It seems as though this is a problem we are seeing every tour West Indies have embarked on within the last year or so, whether it’s a home series or away series,” Roberts said. “I’m not casting the blame entirely on WICB and I’m not casting the blame entirely on WIPA. But I believe the CEO for WIPA has some ulterior motives because I cannot see every time you wait until the final hour before you decide to come to the bargaining table. If there’s any hiccup we are back to square one again. We have to find a team if the players decide that they are not signing any contract on Tuesday. Where do you find the top players from?Roberts also castigated the WICB. The players are to blame but the board has contributed to the problem. Check some of the salaries of some of the administrators.”

According to Haroon Lorgat, South Africa’s convenor of selectors, Herschelle Gibbs will move to No. 4 in the batting order and Thandi Tshabalala is unlikely to play the first Test in Sri Lanka.The website SuperCricket reported that Lorgat confirmed this decision after he announced the 14-man squad for the two Tests, saying: “I always make sensible decisions.” Gibbs has replaced Jacques Kallis, out for rehabilitation from elbow surgery, and has been slotted down the order to continue the Graeme Smith-Boeta Dippenaar opening combination.On Tshabalala’s selection, Lorgat said: “The principle reason for Thandi’s selection is for him to gain exposure and experience and it is very unlikely that he will play in the first test.” He added that the team management would keep a close eye on the 21-year-old in an attempt to ascertain when he would be ready to make the next step. “Judging by how he goes in practice and once he has been in those conditions for a week or two, we will not hesitate to choose him when he is ready,” Lorgat said. “We will play it by ‘eye’, if you like, but we would be bold enough to use him.”Lorgat also said that Johan Botha, the offspinner whose action was deemed illegal by the ICC, was on the mend. “Johan has done lots of remedial work with Vincent Barnes at the Sports Science Institute in Cape Town and Shafiek Abrahams at the High Performance Centre in Pretoria, and also with Russell Domingo, his coach back home,” he said. “The corrections to his action have been done and now it’s all about him bowling as much as possible so the changes become habit. Before the start of next season he will have a test in South Africa just so we can be confident he will meet the ICC’s regulations. After that he will go for the formal, independent testing in Perth.”South Africa play the first of two Tests in Colombo from July 27.

Division One

3rd day

Dale Benkenstein and Callum Thorp were the Durham heroes as they hurried to a three-day 227-run win against title contenders, Hampshire, at The Rose Bowl. Chasing 332, Hampshire were reasonably placed at 71 for 1 before a horrendous collapse of 9 for 33. Thorp swept to another five-wicket haul and a career-best 11 for 97 in the match. Thorp’s first wicket, John Crawley, was the one that really broke the back of Hampshire but it was Benkenstein who began the slide and he finished 3 for 16. Durham’s batting had worked as a team to build the lead but Benkenstein led from front with 61 and gained support from Phil Mustard. Shane Warne has plenty to think about on his flight back to Australia.Nottinghamshire are fighting tooth and nail to avoid the follow-on against Kent and still need another 57 despite four individual half-centuries at Canterbury. Darren Bicknell was robust at the top and Stephen Fleming more elegant in the middle with a 95-ball 51. But wickets fell steadily through the day and it needed Chris Read, with 67, to maintain any hopes of Notts getting past 450. Drop catches could cost Kent; they spilled Fleming twice and Bicknell three times. Graeme Swann and Ryan Sidebottom continued the resistance with an unbroken eighth-wicket stand of 62 and Robert Key may yet regret batting on so long on the second day.2nd day
A stand of 254 between Murray Goodwin and Chris Adams has put Sussex well in control at Arundel against Yorkshire. Following the early loss of Carl Hopkinson, it was a remorseless progression from Goodwin and Adams. Goodwin pounded the bowlers to tune of 235, his second ton of the season, with 33 fours and one six. Yorkshire’s attack has struggled all season and even with Matthew Hoggard and Jason Gillespie in tandem couldn’t make a major impact. Jason Gillespie broke the Goodwin-Adams domination but Craig White tried seven options without much reward. Michael Vaughan sat out the last two sessions after suffering from a hamstring strain,For a full report on Middlesex against Lancashire at Lord’s click here

Division Two

3rd day
Mark Ramprakash became the first man to reach 1000 Championship runs for the season with his fourth century of the summer, allowing Surrey to build a useful lead over Glamorgan at Swansea. Surrey were in a tricky position, trailing by 62, after Robert Croft hit a season-best 72 and Glamorgan’s last four wickets added 263 after beginning the fightback yesterday evening. Croft trapped Scott Newman lbw with Surrey still behind, but Ramprakash and Jon Batty added 125 and Ramprakash was still going strong at the close.Gloucestershire are making a decent first of chasing 323 at Bristol but with Hamish Marshall out of the picture Leicestershire will still be hopeful on the final day. Kadeer Ali and Alex Gidman – who was dropped twice – are leading the hunt after David Masters took two early wickets. Leicestershire’s innings fell away after a stand of 106 between HD Ackerman and Dinesh Mongia carried them 194 for 4. Martyn Ball removed Ackerman then Jon Lewis dismissed Mongia before the tail folded.2nd day
Northamptonshire crashed under the weight of Worcestershire’s huge total at Northampton after Graeme Hick had reached hundred centuries for the club at Worcester. Zaheer Khan produced another destructive spell following his nine-wicket haul against Essex. He claimed the first five before Stuart Wedge helped himself to 3 for 11 and Northants fell for an embarrassing 67 – the shortest innings of the summer off 152 balls. The start of their follow-on was no better as Khan struck again, and a massive defeat is on the cards, but at least they have passed their feeble first-innings effort.Andy Bichel marked his Championship bow for Essex with a match-winning 6 for 38 against Derbyshire at Derby. He raced through their second innings – at one stage Derbyshire were 20 for 5 – while Darren Gough chipped in with a couple. Michael di Venuto, who was Bichel’s first wicket, was repreived briefly when Rob Bailey, the umpire, changed his lbw decision after the batsman had edged the ball. The Essex openers, Varun Chopra and Mark Pettini rattled most of the way to the target – with the floodlights turned on – to give their team an extra day off. Earlier, Essex a gained a useful lead thanks to some feisty tail-end batting from Bichel and Alex Tudor after Andy Flower was removed early in the day by Steffan Jones.