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Sri Lanka will finish their two-Test tour of New Zealand in April, after the original trip was cancelled following the Boxing Day tsunami. Martin Snedden, the chief executive of New Zealand Cricket, said he was also working to reschedule the four one-day matches that were abandoned when the Sri Lankan squad returned home to assist with their nation’s recovery.The Tests will begin on April 4 and April 11, and the venues are expected to be confirmed in two weeks. “The climatic conditions in early April are normally similar to those in March,” said Snedden, “and we are confident that Test cricket can be played at that time of year.”Shane Warne, who played his first one-day international since December 2002 last night, will captain a FICA World XI in three limited-overs matches against New Zealand in a hastily arranged replacement series to raise money for the tsunami victims. Warne will be joined by Muttiah Muralitharan, Sanath Jayasuriya and Andy Flower at Christchurch on January 22, Wellington on January 24 and Hamilton on January 26.Warne has also refused to shut the door on a possible one-day return after he showed his value in the limited-overs arena during the charity match. “I definitely enjoyed it,” he told ABC Online. “It’s something I speak to Ricky [Ponting] about a fair bit and chat about it, but at this stage I’m still retired. But I do enjoy playing it and who knows, down the track, you never know.”Snedden said that NZC hoped to break even from the series, or to run at a manageable loss. “It will be expensive to hold, but the benefits for the home cricket season and the Black Caps, as well as those who benefit from our fund-raising activities, will make the series more than worthwhile. The series is an important initiative.” Snedden said funds from the matches would go to World Vision and Sri Lanka’s Cricket-Aid, which is providing emergency relief for the homeless.FICA World XIsGame 1 Shane Warne (capt), Andy Flower, Ian Harvey, Graeme Hick, Sanath Jayasuriya, Lance Klusener, Nick Knight, Muttiah Muralitharan, Jonty Rhodes, Kumar Sangakkara, Heath Streak, Chaminda Vaas.Game 2 Shane Warne (capt), Andy Bichel, Matthew Elliott, Andy Flower, Ian Harvey, Graeme Hick, Sanath Jayasuriya, Lance Klusener, Nick Knight, Muttiah Muralitharan, Jonty Rhodes, Kumar Sangakkara, Heath Streak, Chaminda Vaas.Game 3 Shane Warne (capt), Michael Bevan, Andy Bichel, Matthew Elliott, Andy Flower, Ian Harvey, Graeme Hick, Sanath Jayasuriya, Justin Langer, Muttiah Muralitharan, Jonty Rhodes, Kumar Sangakkara, Heath Streak, Chaminda Vaas.

The BCCI is toying with the idea of inviting Sri Lanka to tour India early next year, in order to meet its contractual obligations to Doordarshan, the national broadcaster.According to a report on rediff.com, the BCCI’s agreement with Doordarshan stipulates at least 27 days of international cricket on home soil in a season. India’s engagements for 2003-04 allow for only 20 days, inclusive of two Tests against New Zealand, and a triangular series also involving Australia. Unless the BCCI can find seven days from somewhere, they stand to lose about Rs 460 million – the last installment of their deal with Doordarshan, which expires in April 2004.Doordarshan clinched the contract, beating off competition from the likes of Sony Entertainment Television, in 1999, anticipating more matches between India and Pakistan in the wake of Pakistan’s tour of India earlier that year. The Kargil conflict put paid to those hopes.According to KS Sarma, CEO of Prasar Bharti, “BCCI this year hasn’t been able to fulfill its quota of 27 days of international cricket because the scheduled trip of Pakistan to India didn’t materialize.”Discussions are on to facilitate a tour of Pakistan early next year, but the BCCI’s contractual bind means that they might well sacrifice that in order to accomodate a touring side.India return from their tour of Australia only in February 2004, when Sri Lanka are scheduled to host the Aussies. With the international calendar so tightly packed, it’s difficult to see where a tour could fit in. That said, unless Sri Lanka or Bangladesh – very much the last resort – oblige, the BCCI could be kissing a lot of money goodbye.

Part IV: High Drama Down UnderIn any Indian fan’s list of famous triumphs, the unexpected victory atMelbourne in February 1981 will rank very high ­ and for good reason.A win abroad, against strong opposition, achieved against all odds,with the Indian side crippled by injuries to key bowlers, and afterbeing in arrears by 182 runs in the first innings ­ this is the stuffof which fiction and film scripts are made. But even this scenario wasmade more surreal by one more dramatic event that marked the twistsand turns over five days at the Melbourne Cricket Ground ­ a nearwalkout by the Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar after he had furiouslydisagreed with an lbw decision against him.

It is true that India had won two successive Tests in Australia in1977-78 against a sub-standard Australian side, denuded of the Packerplayers, and had come close to winning the series. But against fullstrength Australian teams on two previous visits, they had lost eightout of nine Tests played. And, in 1980-81, Australia were the secondbest team in the world, behind West Indies, with a particularly goodrecord at home. Prior to the series with India, Australia had beatenNew Zealand in a three-match series 2-0.Things moved as expected when Australia wrapped up the first Testagainst India at Sydney by an innings in three days. The home teamthen had the better of a drawn second Test at Adelaide. So India couldstill level the series by winning the final Test at Melbourne, but forlong this seemed an impossible task. In spite of a gallant 114 byGundappa Viswanath, India could only get to a modest 237 in the firstinnings. Allan Border (124), with good support from Greg Chappell (76)and Doug Walters (78), saw Australia reply with 419 midway through thethird day.As Gavaskar and Chetan Chauhan opened the Indian second innings, theodds predictably were on Australia completing a 2-0 triumph. Gavaskarhad been woefully out of touch, struggling to get 48 runs in fiveinnings, but this time he settled down, and the pair led India’sfight-back with their ninth three-figure partnership in Tests.On the fourth morning, after the pair had put on 165, Gavaskar wasadjudged lbw to Dennis Lillee for 70. He disagreed with the decision,stood his ground, and alternated between pleading and arguing with theumpire and the Australian players. Then Lillee came near him, pointedto his pad, and said something to him. Already upset, Gavaskar by nowwas furious. He stormed off the field, pulling a reluctant Chauhanalong with him.The Indian manager, Wing Commander Salim Durrani, met the agitatedGavaskar near the boundary line, asked Chauhan to stay on the field,and instructed Dilip Vengsarkar to go in. The manager’s timely actionsaved a potentially embarrassing situation, but in the meantime, Indiahad to continue their fight to save the match. Chauhan top-scored with85, and there were good supporting knocks from Vengsarkar (41),Viswanath (30) and Sandip Patil (36). A total of 324, however, meantthat Australia had to get only 143 runs for victory.The wicket was showing some signs of wear and tear, but it seemed toosmall a target to cause the Australians, with their formidable arrayof batsmen, any trouble. Moreover, by now the Indians had major injuryproblems. Kapil Dev had pulled a thigh muscle and was unable to openthe bowling; in fact, he had batted with a runner in the secondinnings. Dilip Doshi had a fractured instep, but was just about in acondition to bowl. Shivlal Yadav, while batting in the first innings,had sustained a hairline fracture on his toe thanks to a Len Pascoeyorker. He had bowled 32 overs in the Australian innings, retiredmidway through, was not in a position to bat in the second innings andwas thus out of the action for the rest of the Test.So India were left with one fit (Karsan Ghavri) and two half-fitbowlers, and this weakened trio were to bowl Australia out for lessthan 142. It seemed Mission: Impossible until Ghavri dismissed JohnDyson and Chappell with successive deliveries to leave Australia at 11for two. Super-fast work by Syed Kirmani stumped Graeme Wood off Doshiat 18, and with the Australians teetering at 24 for three by the closeof play, the match had suddenly come to life. However, Australia werestill the firm favourites as the target was within reachable limits,and Kim Hughes, Doug Walters, Allan Border and Rod Marsh were stillaround.On the final morning, Kapil Dev put aside his discomfort and, with theaid of pain-killers, took the field. He and Doshi now bowledunchanged, the left-arm spinner taking the crucial wicket of the inform Hughes. Thereafter, it was all Kapil. Bowling with fire in hiseyes, the Indian spearhead maintained a perfect line and length, madethe batsmen play at every ball, and gave nothing away.In a trice, the strong Australian batting line-up crumbled before hisinspired spell. With Gavaskar, still smarting from what had happenedthe previous day, egging his team on, the home side were shot out for83, leaving India winners by 59 runs. Not one batsman got to even 20,and Kapil finished with five for 28. Of course, the roles played byGhavri (two for 10) and Doshi (two for 33) were also vital in shapingone of the most dramatic victories in Indian cricket history.

Friday marks the beginning of a T20 season that continues on till the end of April 2016 for Bangladesh, so naturally their captain Mashrafe Mortaza wants to find the best team combination looking ahead to the World T20. But his opposite number only has one thing in mind.”Every international game is important. T20 is a format where everyone can express themselves. We have to execute well and hopefully have one in the bag, especially in the first one,” Elton Chigumbura said.Zimbabwe’s wait for their first win on their tour to Bangladesh is getting longer and longer and is making Chigumbura more morose with every passing press briefing. But men like Tinashe Panyangara and Graeme Cremer should give him reason enough to feel encouraged.Panyangara bowled excellent first spells in all three ODIs and although he only has taken five wickets, he was easily the best Zimbabwean bowler on show. He is also showing improvement in his death-bowling skills, bowling good yorkers and helping Chigumbura squeeze the runs down. Cremer, meanwhile, has been doing well in the middle overs without much reward as well.”I thought Tinashe Panyangara and [Graeme] Cremer bowled well over the three games,” Chigumbura said. “[Taurai] Muzarabani, besides the first game, came back well. Luke Jongwe can bowl better than what he did in the ODI series. It wasn’t bad as well. Obviously when you are playing in that kind of a wicket, I thought they did reasonably well.”Panyangara is our main bowler. He is a guy who shares his experience with the youngsters. I am sure they are learning from him. Hopefully they can be close to his level soon for the betterment of the team.”It’s the batting that has worried Zimbabwe. Bangladesh, meanwhile, have had a cruise. They’ve even managed to win without Shakib Al Hasan, who is on paternity leave. The two T20s against Zimbabwe will be another chance to find out how they can cope without their best allrounder.”Our first target would be to find our best combination,” Mashrafe said. “We wouldn’t’ have many chances later on to do so. Winning is important, but not as much as finding our combination. If we had Shakib around, we could have played Sabbir up the order but nowadays you need a good hitter at No. 6, who can win you games when you need 40 off 20 or 30 balls. We have asked all 14 players to be prepared for a place in the XI.”Chigumbura too has the World T20 in his mind, but his last word was the win and a way to resurrect their tour.”It is another way of finding our best combination going forward to the World T20. Every guy in the team wants to perform and make sure that they will be in the World T20 squad. Obviously this series is important for us, at the same time to try and bounce back in this tour.”

News – Murali breaks Warne’s record
Interview – ‘No spinner has Warne’s thinking power’
Andrew Miller – Murali sparks delirium in Kandy
Rob Steen – An undiluted champion
Timeline – Spinning his way to success
Stats – The Murali story in numbers
Records – World-record holders over the years
Archive – The challenges of facing Murali
Surfer – In praise of Murali
Gallery – Magical Murali

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Jermaine Lawson did his case for selection no harm with a six-wicket haul on the rain-hit third day’s play between Jamaica and Windward Islands at the Beausejour Stadium in St Lucia. Lawson’s 6 for 70 bowled out the Windwards, resuming on 96 for 4, for 251 and gave Jamaica the first-innings points before they progressed to 43 for 2.Lawson, 25, has had his share of injury problems but hit his straps with a devastating spell of 5 for 8 in 6.4 overs. Hyron Shallow (39) was the first to go, caught by Brenton Parchment for 39, Darren Sammy (80) was bowled off the inside edge, and Liam Sebastien (10) offered mid-on the easiest of catches. With the score on 251 for 8, captain Rawl Lewis (14) needlessly slogged left-arm spinner Nikita Miller to long-off. Lawson needed no invitation to go all-out, and removed Deighton Butler and Dennis George with no further change to the total.After the lunch interval, Jamaica lost openers Danza Hyatt, bowled by medium-pacer Jean Paul for 1, and Parchment lbw to Deighton Butler for 11. Wavell Hinds, the captain, finished unbeaten on 19 in the company of Lorenzo Ingram (7 not out) before rain ended play prematurely.
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Adrian Barath and Daren Ganga, the Trinidad & Tobago openers, put on an unbeaten 170 on the first day the weather gods allowed play to begin against Guyana at Guaracara Park in Trinidad. After rain and soggy ground conditions hampered play on the first two days, Guyana won the toss and inserted T&T and Barath, on debut, hit 73 and Ganga, on his 28th birthday, made 76 in the 56 overs completed. The duo’s effort bettered the previous best opening stand for T&T versus Barbados – 150 between Richard Gabriel and Kenrick Bainey at Kensington Oval in 1979.
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Only four overs were possible in just about a half hour’s play on the rain-affected third day of the Barbados-Leeward Islands clash at Crab Hill. Heavy overnight and early morning rain drenched the outfield and delayed the start until after tea, when Barbados, reached 9 for 0 before another shower curtailed the day’s action.

There are fine cricket writers in Australia but their work is rarely to be found in the daily newspapers. The inexhaustible torrent of contentious analysis from Peter Roebuck of the Sydney Morning Herald is the exception not the rule. The newspaper cricket writers have a rich vein of chauvinism in common with their rugby colleagues, and it does grate. They occasionally find fault with their heroes, but they make their run of victories sound like an imperial progress, and they regularly patronise their opponents, perhaps instinctively. To discover that there are flaws in the crystal of Australian cricket, you need to turn to . in Britain and have in common a compulsion to seek out good writing and a preference for controversial, even awkward, opinions. Although our may once have had an establishment flavour, that is now much diluted. was never burdened. The flavour of the sixth edition is richly contrary.The most uncompromising contribution comes, not surprisingly, from Chris Ryan (Warwick Franks’s successor as editor). In a piece titled, “When will we see c Nguyen b Yunupingu”, Ryan berates Australian cricket and cricketers for an uncaring, sometimes contemptuous, attitude towards Aboriginals and immigrants from south-east Asia. One in 10 of top-flight Australian Rules football players is Aboriginal, but less than 1% of first-class cricketers. Jason Gillespie right, whose great grandfather was a Kamilaroi warrior, is the first person of Aboriginal blood to play for Australia, but he is, so it seems, a reluctant role model. (David Frith in his Ashes report remarks that Gillespie looks more like a French aristocrat.)Ryan’s conclusion is stunning: “Unless Australian cricket diversifies in tune with the population it risks becoming ghettoised, irrelevant: an historical anachronism played out by a shrinking number of white men before a dwindling handful of white spectators.”Aboriginal communities – “stifled by joblessness and alcoholism, petrol sniffing and mind-twisting boredom” – have plenty to gain from cricket, but those few who have put a toe in the water have usually been confronted by a barrage of racist sledging. Darren Lehmann’s assault on the Sri Lankans (“black c***s”) gives us the tone of it. Jimmy Maher, of Queensland and Glamorgan, commented that Lehmann calls a spade a spade – “which is not necessarily a bad thing.” You see what Ryan means.Mark Ray doesn’t exactly spring to Shane Warne’s defence, but he does ask if he is not more sinned against than sinning. Ray’s Warne is trapped in a perverse celebrity culture in which film stars and actors get away with 57 varieties of bad behaviour while sportsmen are judged by much narrower social standards. Ray is sympathetic towards Warne, a vain and naïve man, who discovered too late that being the best wrist-spinner in history is no defence against gold-diggers and opportunists. “In the lead up to the 2003-04 season there were rumblings that Warne’s team-mates might prefer to carry on without him,” he says. “Warne’s career, one that had reached the highest peaks while dabbling in farce, was threatening to end as a sporting tragedy.”Gideon Haigh asks what the ICC is for and can’t come up with a satisfactory answer, partly because the ICC itself has not done so. Why are they there? What outcomes are they seeking? How will they decide if they have succeeded? Haigh says that, unless they come up with some answers, they will have their work cut out averting failure. John Benaud is shrewd, informative and admiring of Mark Waugh. does not compete with the yellow Almanack. The focus is on Australian cricketers. Ricky Ponting is Cricketer of the Year. Wade Seccombe, the Queensland keeper, is the Pura Cup’s top man. The 2003 World Cup winning team is judged to be the best of the three Australian teams that have won the World Cup, though to anyone who watched the astonishing recovery of Steve Waugh’s 1999 team which had to win seven straight games to survive and win, that seems harsh.The editor’s notes identify Michael Clarke as the coming man in Australian cricket, and he also found room for the Laws of Cricket, for which, thanks.Rating: 4/5Click here to order a copy at CricShop