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An unbeaten 41 from all-rounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla helped Bengal complete a memorable comeback win against defending Ranji Trophy champions Railways at Siliguri on Saturday. Chasing 154 for victory after dismissing Railways for 129 in their second innings on the third day, Bengal reached the target with three wickets to spare. Debang Gandhi, who made 37, and opener Deep Dasgupta with 29 were the two other batsmen who played a part in setting up the win that earned Bengal two points.Rajasthan’s 159-run first innings lead proved vital in gaining them a four-wicket win on the final day of their elite group encounter against Hyderabad at Jaipur. Hyderabad, who began the day on 226-4, were eventually dismissed for 350 in their second essay; opener Daniel Manohar the top-scorer, making 101 before being run out. For Rajasthan, off-spinner Rahul Kanwat claimed 5-37.Kanwat (41) along with opener Gagan Khoda (51) and captain PK Krishnakumar (43*), then, ensured that their team reached the victory target of 192 with four wickets and a little over four overs to spare despite a four-wicket haul from opposing skipper Venkatapathy Raju. The hosts were rewarded with two points for their efforts.A monumental effort from opener Sandeep Sharma helped Himachal Pradesh gain a nerve-wracking draw against Delhi in another elite group four-dayer at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Sharma, who began the day on 25*, went on to make 170 off 354 balls with 24 fours and two sixes, before falling to the last ball of the day, as his side ended the final day at 336-8 in their second innings. Virender Sharma (48), who shared a crucial 90-run sixth wicket partnership with Sharma, also played a role in ensuring that Delhi only got one point from the match (for earning a 262-run first innings lead).At Guwahati, Punjab went on to complete a comeback win against Assam. The hosts, who began the day chasing 286 runs, wilted against the spin of Navdeep Singh (5-59) to be dismissed for 196 in 79 overs. The margin of defeat might have been much larger if it had not been to the spirited efforts of Kiran Powar (55) and Manoj Joglekar (49). Punjab walked away with two points for the win.At Chennai, meanwhile, Tamil Nadu earned a lucky draw against Uttar Pradesh. An umpiring error, which saw the match being called off twelve minutes before the scheduled close, denied the visiting Uttar Pradesh team an opportunity to end a frustrating 34-ball last-wicket stand between Laxmipathy Balaji (3*) and MR Shrinivas (14*). The duo’s hung on grimly to ensure that Tamil Nadu, who were set a target of 298, staved off defeat by ending on 194-9. Uttar Pradesh, however, did not have to leave empty-handed; they got one point for having earned a 44-run first innings lead.Mumbai, for their part, completed an innings and 72-run win over Andhra Pradesh at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday morning. With left-arm spinner Nilesh Kulkarni claiming four wickets, the hosts dismissed Andhra, who resumed their second essay on 133-7, for just 184 to claim three points, including a bonus point, from the match. For the visitors, Hemal Vatekar waged a lone battle, ending on 75 not out. Mumbai now have seven points from three matches as against Andhra’s tally of just one.Kerala thrash Tripura at KochiThe plate group encounter between the two sides ended 14 minutes before lunch on the fourth day. Tripura, who after being asked to follow-on were 62-3 at the end of the third day, capitulated to 139 all out in their second essay as Kerala completed an innings and 148-run win. Opener R Deb Burman, who made 58, was the only batsman to put up any resistance against spinners KN Ananthapadmanabhan (leg-spin) and Suresh Kumar (left-arm spin), both of whom ended up with three wickets each. Kerala now have won all their three group matches and are on the verge of clinching a semi-final berth.At Nagpur, hosts Vidarbha emerged winners, thrashing Goa by 203 runs. The visitors, who began the final day at 10-1, chasing 369 for victory, were dismissed for a paltry 165. Spinners Pritam Gandhe (5-33) and Madhusudhan Acharya (3-65) were the wreckers-in-chief. Vidarbha, after gaining two points for the win, now have three points from as many matches while Goa have only one.The Haryana-Maharashtra match at Rohtak was one of the few drawn matches on the day. Maharashtra, who resumed their second innings at 124-2 declared after notching 262-4; Abhijit Kale completing his second century of the match, reaching 104 not out of 211 balls.Chasing 276 for an improbable win, Haryana settled for a draw, making 121-4 before stumps were drawn. Maharashtra secured one point for having gained a slender 13-run lead on the third day.

Like their away record in most countries, India’s pastperformances in England make for poor reading. They have won onlytwo of the 13 series played in England and lost the remaining,including the sole Test of 1932. Broken down into Tests, Indiahave won just three and lost 22 out of 41 matches.On past record, then, England would seem to have everything intheir favour as the 2002 series gets underway at Lord’s onThursday. At the game’s headquarters, India has a particularlyunenviable record, having lost nine and winning only one of 13Tests. In the vastly different wicket and weather conditions ofEngland, Indian teams have generally come a cropper. This hasbeen the case even though the record has improved marginallysince Ajit Wadekar’s team in 1971 proved that England could bebeaten.Why then is the mood generally upbeat in the Indian camp, despitethis woeful record? For starters, the near-miraculous triumph inthe NatWest final 10 days ago has raised the visitors’ confidencemore than a notch. Sure, that was one-day cricket and this is aTest series, but a victory boosts a side’s confidence, and themanner in which that triumph was achieved showed that this is nota side waiting for the opposition to run over them.Indeed, the players seem hungry and impatient for success. Led bya man who has proved time and again that he is a tough, nononsense captain, the side is an ideal blend of youth andexperience, with a formidable array of stroke-playing batsmen whocan put to the sword any attack. The bowling, by comparison, hassome holes, but these can be covered up by the strong batting andby outstanding fielding ­ a department in which India now possessome notable exponents.Also, on close scrutiny, it can be observed that despite the homeadvantage, England are a pretty modest side, and being beset withinjury problems has not helped their cause. The non-availabilityof Darren Gough, Andrew Caddick, Alex Tudor and MarcusTrescothick has meant that both the batting and bowling have beenconsiderably weakened. It is still not a poor side and is ratherwell served in both batting and bowling, and Nasser Hussain hasproved to be a worthy leader in the past. However this does seemto be the right time for a full-strength, confident Indian sideto strike. Certainly, it constitutes their best chance to win aseries outside the subcontinent for the first time since theydefeated England in 1986.But to be candid, India have problems of their own as well,despite the rosy-looking scenario. The thin bowling line-up isone such obvious deficiency. Playing in the second half of thesummer, India will have to go in with both Anil Kumble andHarbhajan Singh, which means there is place for only two of AjitAgarkar, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra. Sourav Ganguly can beexpected to fill in the fifth bowler’s role more than adequatelyas he has already shown.

As far as the batting goes, there is no problem with the middleorder. On the contrary, it is a case of an embarrassment ofriches, what with Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman,Ganguly and Virender Sehwag around, and the problem will be oneof whom to leave out. But there have been questions raised overthe top of the order. The first choice should be the conventionalone – Shiv Sunder Das and Wasim Jaffer. But given the former’slack of form both in the West Indies and on the tour thus far,there has been talk of opening with Sanjay Bangar, Sehwag or evenDravid.In my view, the tried and tested pair of Das and Jaffer should beentrusted with the job at Lord’s. Das has to be treated withpatience and understanding. He is technically sound and is onlylacking in confidence. He needs only one good score to boost hismorale. Bangar, for all his recent all-round form, is clearly nota Test-class opening bat. Sehwag’s aggression would be betterserved in the middle order, and blustering methods at the top arenot likely to succeed in English conditions. If anything, theexample of K Srikkanth in 1986 could be offered as a deterrent toany such move. The swashbuckling batsman could muster only 105runs from six innings at an average of 17.50 in the Tests, andeven on the tour he had a rather unhappy time, scoring just 344runs from 14 innings at an average of 24.57.

However, indications are that Sehwag will open with Jaffer in thefirst Test. Of course, the silver lining in playing Sehwag at thetop instead of Das would mean that Laxman, who otherwise might bethe one left out, will get a look-in. India can only hope thatthe gamble of playing Sehwag as an opener ­ and that is what itis, a gamble ­ pays off. However, as far as sending Dravid onceagain to open the innings, there should never even be anydiscussion on the subject. He has been made a sacrificial lamb ofsorts in the limited-overs game, and this kind of treatmentshould not be meted out to the vice-captain and the side’s sheetanchor in Tests. It is also to be hoped that he is not entrustedwith the wicket-keeper’s job and that Ajay Ratra will take hisrightful place behind the stumps.

Luke Ronchi has won the prestigious ECB Southern Electric Premier League batting award after hitting a half-century in Bashley-Rydal’s comfortable six-wicket win at Andover.His 53 ensured he finished the leading run scorer in Premier Division 1 – 28 ahead of Liphook’s South African all-rounder Alistair Gray and in front of Damian Shirazi, who finished with a league runners-up medal after BAT surrendered the championship to Havant.To cap a double celebration for Bashley, Kevin Nash grabbed three Andover wickets to win the August Southern Electric Cricketer of the Month prize.Nash took 3-33 to take his August wicket tally to 16 and his season’s haul to 36 – one more victim than team-mate Matt King achieved last year.Toby Radford, the former Sussex and Middlesex opener, fought a lone battle for Andover, who dipped from a promising 80-1 to 150-9.Radford hit a painstaking but nonetheless invaluable 64 – out of 134-7 before he was dismissed – and was the only Andover batsman to master a mean Bashley attack.Ronchi, on his farewell appearance, took 1-11 off ten overs, while Chris Sketchley (2-23) and Neil Taylor (2-27) dictated terms with the ball as Andover struggled on the low-bounce London Road surface.Bashley-Rydal lost promoted opener John Whiting and Andy Sexton, but bright and breezy half-centuries by Ronchi (53) and Neil Thurgood (55) swept them to the brink of a six-wicket win.Thurgood took a distinct liking to Andover spin pair Martin Docis and Gareth Tate, who were hit for a combined total of 74 off 5.3 overs.Dale Middleton’s 22 not out eased Bashley home with 22 overs to spare.Burridge bade their Premiership farewells, losing by four wickets to South Wilts at Lower Bemerton.Ironically, former Burridge all-rounder Tom Caines played a major role in their demise, taking 3-34 before hitting a key 60 in the South Wilts run chase.Only Jo Dixon (25), Paul Hawkins (20) and Paul Ancell (19) made any real impact as Burridge tumbled to 133 all out, Paul Draper (3-21) and Caines sharing six of the wickets.South Wilts promptly lost two wickets for one run, but Caines (60) steadied the slide and, with help from Colin Moody (22) and Tim Lamb (23), eased the Salisbury club to 134-6.Portsmouth fielded only three first team regulars as they too dipped to 133 all out (Dean Oliffe 57) at Liphook & Ripsley.Neil Randall (57) hit his first half-century of the season as Liphook cruised home, with Ali Gray making 43 not out.

Time is a terrible thing to waste, especially when you’re about to take on the best in the world.Since assuming the role of West Indies coach, John Dyson’s public utterances have been, if anything, much more measured and cautious than the former Australian opener’s watchful style of batsmanship. In fact, should the regional side happen to be in town in the midst of the next Carnival season, he would surely be able to hold his own at the Queen’s Park Cricket Club’s calypso competition, given his command of double entendre.He has become a past master at saying nothing and everything at one and the same time, challenging the listener to focus so much on reading between the lines that he couldn’t ever be accused of making a direct, damning statement about anything related to West Indies cricket.Maybe in his brief time here he’s already picked up on how insecure and sensitive we are to straightforward criticism, and how easily we fall instead for mamaguile.So when he comments that he and the squad have “made do with what we have been able to do” in relation to last week’s training camp in Antigua, you know, like an iceberg, there’s a lot concealed below the surface. No doubt he would be much more direct behind closed doors, or at least you would hope so if he sees this assignment as more than just another job with a fairly decent salary and lots of travel opportunities thrown in.But, then again, we didn’t need Dyson to say anything to recognise that, once more, a combination of issues related to finance, planning, administrative competence and players’ priorities has resulted in the failure to make the most of an ideal opportunity for intense preparation in a team environment, especially after finishing so strongly against Sri Lanka last month.In the five weeks since rain washed out the last one-day international in St Lucia, we have been provided with even more compelling evidence as to how irrelevant the West Indies Cricket Board is when it comes to charting a way forward for its own senior team.With no player under retainer contract, there was no legal obligation for any West Indian involved in the Indian Premier League to return to the Caribbean in time for last week’s training camp. In fact, were it not for the mandate of the International Cricket Council, the trio of Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo (Chris Gayle’s injury prevented him from contemplating the same) could have skipped the first two Tests against Australia in pursuit of considerably more cash on the subcontinent.It was a prospect that WICB CEO Donald Peters had actually conceded as a virtual certainty a week before the ICC meeting in Dubai established that sanctioned international fixtures must take priority over private tournaments. To argue that the players should have been swayed by a sense of moral obligation to the regional side ahead of the filthy rich franchises is a waste of time, simply because such an unwritten obligation no longer exists in an environment of looking after number one.

Clearly all the kissing-up to and bigging-up of the players by regional officialdom–Peters’ claim that Marlon Samuels’ two-year ban was the consequence of some sort of entrapment reflects that kowtowing mentality-has not dented their collective resolve to seek their own interests first and foremost.In the immediate aftermath of the punishment handed down to Samuels, the WICB brought players and team management up to date with the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Policy, a presentation that could very well have included sound effects of a gate being slammed shut and the clattering hooves of an increasingly distant steed.Once again, embarrassingly, a part of the world that produced a sporting unit 20 years ahead of its time is caught scrambling to make amends after yet another horse has bolted from the stable.Dyson’s veiled lament is no different from that of his compatriot, Bennett King, who was coming to the end of his first 12 months as West Indies coach during the last tour of Australia in 2005. On the eve of the first Test in Brisbane, he commented that since succeeding Gus Logie in the job after the dramatic Champions Trophy final triumph in September, 2004, he had to work through three disruptive showdowns between the WICB and the Players Association and was struggling to establish any sort of harmony or team ethos, given that he had already worked with more than 30 different players in such a short space of time.Less than three years later and with a record financial windfall supposedly in their coffers from the hosting of the 2007 World Cup, we are faced once again with the consequences of weak, reactionary leadership. At least now the bitter adversaries of 2005 appear to be on the same side, although it’s not too clear which side that is. And let’s not stoop to the level of equating frenetic vupping (at Eden Gardens or Guaracara Park) with preparation for Test cricket.Yes indeed, a Test match starts tomorrow, with the recently-arrived stand-in West Indies captain Ramnaresh Sarwan walking out for the toss at Sabina Park with Ricky Ponting, who probably understands the Jamaican dialect by now. Hopefully, Sarwan will have the good sense not to enquire of his Australian counterpart as to the weather on the island recently.

New Zealand can expect to meet a much more disciplined West Indies team, on their tour starting next week, than the side which toured here in 1999/00.That team lost both Tests and suffered a clean sweep of defeats in the five One-Day Internationals.That’s the view of former New Zealand captain John Wright, who has been coaching the Indian team during their tour which has seen the West Indies take the Test series 2-1. A five-match one-day series is just about to start.”They looked a pretty good unit,” he told CricInfo today.”We’re disappointed, we should have played a lot better in the last Test.”They batted very well, and batted in depth. We had eight hundreds scored against us.”They are a lot tougher now. They are like us, they find it hard to win away from home but only South Africa and Australia have beaten them at home amongst all countries for the last 10 years,” he said.Wright said the opening combination of Wavell Hinds and Chris Gayle was a good one while Ramnaresh Sarwan was a very solid batsman. Brian Lara had been a little out of touch while the tail-enders didn’t offer too much trouble with the bat.”They have four quicks again and they have been bowling good patterns.”Mervyn Dillon and Cameron Cuffy have been very disciplined and both bowled well against us,” he said.They were not fast bowlers in the most recent West Indies mould.”Adam Sanford gets it through but Dillon and Cuffy are not out-and-out quick bowlers, they are not by any means express,” he said.New Zealand leave for their tour on Tuesday. They play five One-Day Internationals and two Test matches in Barbados and Grenada.

Nottinghamshire’s Benson & Hedges campaign sufferedits first setback when former Trent Bridge favouriteMathew Dowman guided Derbyshire to their first groupvictory.The left-hander scored an unbeaten 75 from 96 balls asDerbyshire survived a late scare to get home by sixwickets with four balls to spare.Nottinghamshire’s total of 231-5 looked a good one ona slow pitch but Rob Bailey and Michael Di Venuto gaveDerbyshire an excellent start before Dowman tookcharge.He settled an absorbing contest by flicking GarethClough for six over deep square leg and then pickinghim up for another boundary to end a run of threedefeats in the Northern Group.Notts still go through to the quarter-finals but their 100 per cent record was shattered by the player they released at the end of the 1999 season.Derbyshire skipper Dominic Cork said: “This was allabout Mathew Dowman. I am absolutely delighted forhim.”He took responsibility and control and obviouslystill feels he has a point or two to make to one ortwo people at Trent Bridge.”Notts seemed set for a fourth victory as all theirbatsmen chipped in after Derbyshire had won the tosson a bright but cool day.Usman Afzaal top-scored with 50 but Kevin Pietersengave the innings a final flourish with an unbeaten 35from 29 balls.Bailey and Dowman put the home side firmly on courseuntil a brilliant diving catch by Guy Welton sent backBailey and Derbyshire wobbled when Cork was bowled fora duck but Dowman held his nerve to win the day.

Neither Otago nor Canterbury could claim to have secured the advantage after the first play of their State Championship match at Molyneux Park in Alexandra today.Otago, limped their way to 206 after being 66/4 and 121/6 at different stages of their innings while Canterbury at stumps were in the precarious position of 31/3.When play began this morning in the 156th first-class contest between the two sides, a clear blue sky with a cool temperature greeted the players but by the time stumps were drawn a very hot day had been experienced.Brendon McCullum, with a forceful 40, led the way for Otago with the first wicket not being lost until the total reached 60.Runs were hard to come by for many periods of play but Craig Pryor with 46 fought hard and a patient 29 by No 9 Nathan Morland was all Otago had to look back on with any satisfaction.Debutants Jordan Sheed and Scott Waide scored 14 and 12 respectively and gave us a small glimpse of future promise. Martyn Croy faced 76 balls for seven runs.The Canterbury bowling was quite tight with Wade Cornelius impressing again with four for 36 from his 25.5 overs.Paul Wiseman, in perhaps not his best season, with three for 22 from 13 also bowled well, while Chris Harris with two for 35 from 20 overs was most economical.Warren Wisneski left the field with an injured foot having no success for 46 from 12.2 overs. Ryan Burson with one for 49 from 18 overs completed the Canterbury wicket takers.Canterbury started their innings with only nine overs to bat until stumps and never found the exercise easy. They lost Shanan Stewart for one, Robbie Frew for 15 and nightwatchman Burson for three to be 31/3 at the close of play.Bowling for Otago, David Sewell had good reward for his initial efforts with two for eight while Kerry Walsmley took the other wicket at a cost of 21 runs.Day two looms as a most interesting one with Canterbury desperate to get first innings points but against an Otago side which seems to have the upper hand at the end of day one.

A new cricket hotline dealing only with information on next year’s ICCCricket World Cup in South Africa opened on Saturday. Members of thepublic can call (27) 83 123 2003 between 7am and 7pm, seven days a week.Normal cellphone rates will apply.

Western Warriors warmed up for the final of the Champions Cup tomorrow with an easy 108-run win over Central Districts in Perth today.Going into the game CD had the chance of playing in the final themselves if they could beat their Australian hosts, but a disappointing batting effort, where the top order again failed the side, meant CD were never competitive.In the field, CD did a superb job in holding the Western Warriors to a total of 257/8, when it seemed that a score in excess of 280 was on the cards.But in the end it didn’t matter as CD couldn’t capitalise with the bat.Earlier, the New Zealand team’s bowlers kept the pressure on after the Warriors made a sound start with the bat.Marcus North especially, showed out with some solid batting and kept the top order moving before being bowled around his legs by off spinner Glen Sulzberger for 56 runs scored off 80 balls.New player Peter Worthington marked his debut for the Warriors with a half century scoring 54 off 63 balls.In the latter part of the innings the restriction of Justin Langer to an effort where he took largely singles and twos played a major part in Western Australia being held to only 257. Langer was out trying to hit out for 60 off 63 balls.In the last 10 overs the home side was only able to score 50 runs.CD captain Jacob Oram and Sulzberger, the two players with One-Day International experience this summer, bowled especially well. Oram bowled his 10 overs and finished with one for 39 while Sulzberger’s nine overs produced two wickets for 38.But the younger bowlers, the players who did so well in the New Zealand Shell Cup campaign, were all too expensive and lacked control at the vital stages.CD’s batting response started out at a good clip but the steady loss of wickets and a run rate requirement that hovered between 5.5 and six runs per over kept the pressure on the home side.Opener Jamie How impressed with another solid innings where he wasn’t afraid to loft the ball and he scored 39 runs.But the early loss of David Kelly dragging a ball from Brad Williams onto his wickets and the frustrating batting of Craig Spearman, most under-mined the CD hopes. Spearman, playing some outstanding shots got cleaned out by a full-pitched ball having scored 13 runs off 13 balls.Ben Smith could work no miracles and he departed for a duck while Oram just looked like he was getting into a good scoring groove when he was undone by a superb yorker from Matthew Nicholson. Out for 25 off 27 balls his departure signalled the beginning of the end.Sulzberger having lost Mark Douglas to a run out was soon gone also, to a superb close quarter catch taken by Simon Katich.The tail was wrapped up fairly quickly as the home bowlers feasted on the CD carcass.Williams, bowling with some fire and pace took two for 22 from five overs, North had two for 20 from four overs, Hogg two for 33 from 6.2 while Stuart Karppinen had two for 40 from 10 overs bowled on the trot.It was a comprehensive Western Warriors win and one that should see them favoured to complete the tournament with a victory tomorrow.

Yuvraj Singh, who is expected to mark his return to international cricket during the first Twenty20 in Visakhapatnam, has said he is treating his comeback as a new beginning. The match is expected to be attended by several of his friends and family members.Yuvraj overcame a rare germ cell cancer, diagnosed late last year, after undergoing chemotherapy in the USA and was named in the Twenty20 squad after being declared fit by doctors at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.”It is hard to believe that I will be playing for India again,” Yuvraj said. “A few months back I had trouble climbing four steps, now I can’t wait to take the field. It is like starting a new life.”Yuvraj has received a lot of media attention over recent months, with fans praying for his speedy recovery. It continued when he resumed training and not surprisingly, much of the attention in the lead-up to the first Twenty20 against New Zealand has centered on him. However, the captain MS Dhoni cautioned that the increased attention could be distracting to the player and the team, especially with the World Twenty20 coming up in Sri Lanka.”The whole world is talking about his comeback in a manner as if they are helping him out. In a way, it puts the burden on the individual,” Dhoni said. “It’s important to keep it as normal as possible, not to let him think what has really happened in his life.”He has fought through it as he is a strong character. As I said, he needs to turn up and just enjoy his cricket. That’s what he has done from age-group cricket till now. So he should not think about anything else.”Yuvraj’s return was welcomed by his fellow team-mates, some of whom last shared a dressing room with him back in November 2011, during the home Tests against West Indies.”Now this is what we call a comeback,” said Harbhajan Singh, who is also making a return after being dropped. “There can’t be a bigger inspiration in cricket than Yuvi. It is a privilege to be back in the dressing room with him.”Batsman Suresh Raina said his story was an inspiration. “Yuvi is such a great fighter. He has put in so much effort, and worked really hard at the NCA,” Raina said. “You will get to see this when he comes out on the field. He is a team man. We are pretty confident that he will do well.”