Despite criticising his appointment, Javed Miandad says he is willing to work with Pakistan’s new coach Geoff Lawson. Miandad, along with Intikhhab Alam, was among the first to slam Lawson’s appointment, claiming that not only was he a foreigner, and thus “less patriotic”, but also that, on merit, Dav Whatmore was the better option.Lawson, placed in charge of Pakistan for two years initially, responded with a peace offering of sorts. He told that he wanted to bring his critics on board and use their inputs as well. Miandad, against whom he played eight Tests between 1982 and 1984, was the ideal personality to use, said Lawson.”I’d like to get Javed on board to be part of the coaching crew, to be part of the system and help out, because he was an outstanding player and a tough bloke as well,” Lawson said. “We could do with a few of those characteristics among the guys at the moment. I’m hoping to talk to all those people and see what contributions they can make. We can’t control outside influences but it would be good if we could have some of those outside influences being positive.”Miandad has now welcomed the offer, though was unwilling to firm up the sentiment. “I was and am always available whenever Pakistan cricket would need me,” Miandad told .But when asked whether he would consider the possiblity of working as a specialist batting coach, Miandad said, “It is premature to say anything on it. There is no such offer at the moment so I would only think about it if there is any possibility in the future.”Miandad, arguably Pakistan’s greatest batsman, described Lawson’s gesture as “a slap in the faces of those {PCB} officials” who have overlooked his credentials in recent years. Miandad has coached Pakistan on three occasions and in his last stint he was eventually replaced by Bob Woolmer in June 2004. Famously, the two had a private dinner soon after Woolmer took over but relations between the two continued to cool thereafter, leading Miandad to hope that “it will be different with Lawson.”
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has invited Percy Sonn, the ICC president, to spend a few days in Colombo and assess for himself the security arrangements that are in place for touring teams. Sonn, a former president of Cricket South Africa, is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on August 20 and spend about four days as the guest of Sri Lanka Cricket.”I have invited Percy to come and see for himself the security arrangements that are in place for India and judge for himself whether they are adequate,” said Jayantha Dharmadasa, the interim committee chairman of SLC.Dharmadasa said that the Sri Lankan board will make use of Sonn’s visit to press forward their case towards gaining compensation from South Africa following the cancellation of the Unitech Cup tri-series which was scheduled to be held in Colombo from August 14-29. The cancellation came about when South Africa pulled out of the tournament and returned home citing security concerns following a bomb blast near their hotel in Colombo while India, the third team, decided to stay back.Although the South Africans were assured of the highest security protection – normally given only to heads of state – they decided to return home basing their reasons on two similar security reports which said the Sri Lankan government was unable to guarantee the physical security of the team.Dharmadasa said that although Cricket South Africa had stated that both Boards could reschedule the tournament there was no way that Sri Lanka could have another tri-series involving India because of their international commitments.”India’s presence is vital for the fact that it not only boosts television audiences around the world but also nets in a huge amount of money from television broadcasters,” said Dharmadasa. Sri Lanka Cricket was due to receive US$11 million from Ten Sports who had bagged the television and broadcasting rights for the tri-series.The ICC’s media manager Brian Murgatroyd told Cricinfo early this week that it was not the role of the ICC to judge South Africa on their decision to pull out of the tri-series and that it was upto the respective cricket boards to reschedule the series if South Africa are to avoid being fined.Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Cricket interim committee will have a new secretary following the resignation of Adel Hashim on August 15. Hashim had stated ‘personal reasons’ for his resignation. Board sources have said that the new secretary will be appointed by the Sports Minister. Former Sri Lanka cricketers Jayananda Warnaweera, Sidath Wettimuny and Ashantha de Mel are those in the running for the post.
Muttiah MuralitharanOn his performance I bowled well but if Vaas had been bowling I would not have got 10 wicketsin the game. He is a great bowler, but unfortunately he got injured and itwas my turn. I just had to put the ball in the right places as they wereinexperienced cricketers.The younger guys gave us a good fight and theirteam spirit was obviously high. They wanted to do well. But the batting wasa little bit thinner.On whether he is going to race Warne again for records As you can see on TV, Shane is bowling really well in the Ashes and I amnot thinking about records at the moment. I just want to play well and dowell for Sri Lanka now. I am not setting targets for wickets because I wantto focus on winning matches for Sri Lanka. The team doing well is the mostimportant thingOn his shoulder The county stint helped me come through the injury. I had to play throughsome shoulder pain at the start but it got better and better My shoulder isperfectly alright now. There is always room for improvement but my bowlingis normal and the shoulder has not had any bad effectsOn his future I think I can go on for at least three or four years. After the World Cup,if I can play just Test cricket, then I think I can continue until 2009. Butit depends on how well the Sri Lanka team is doing and how long I can takethe pressureShivnarine Chanderpaul On his team’s performance We have been doing a lot of work and it is going to take some time. We havesome young guys and they are learning – they will come around eventually.Our fielding and catching was very good and our bowling in patches, like atthe start of this test match, showed some fight.On whether he felt the pressure being the batting pillar There is always pressure there and you just go out there to do your job as abatter. I was just looking to go out there and stick around so the otherguys could bat around me. It didn’t happen but that is just one of thosethings.On the ODI series We are just going to put this behind us and concentrate on the one-dayseries. It is a shorter version of the game and our guys are accustomed toplaying one-day cricket so it should be better for us. We just want to comeout and play some positive cricket.Marvan Atapattu On the positives to come out of the series A lot of positives came out of the series but the main positive was themental toughness shown to fight ourselves back into the game. In most cases,in Sri Lanka, we are used to batting one innings and then trying to bowl outthe opposition twice, but it didn’t happen here and we had close battlesuntil the fourth innings.On the West Indies batting performance They kept us guessing and gave us a bit of thinking to do in the dressingroom from time to time, which we enjoyed, and in the end it was more joyfulto overcome them because of that. They are a young side but they had nothingto lose. The pressure was on our side.On Sri Lanka’s reliance on Murali There is a reliance on Murali but we cannot change that. We all know MuttiahMuralitharan’s abilities and until he retires we will depend on him.On the top order’s poor form It is a matter of one innings in the end. We are not doing thingsdrastically wrong. You just need one innings to be back again in the runs.Kumar did it in style this time and hopefully, sooner rather than later, theothers will chip in to.On managing Vaas’s fitness Vaasy has been carrying the burden for some time now. We have to manage himcarefully thinking about the cricket we are going to be playing in the nest12 months. We need him to be right and on the park when we really need himrather than throwing him into every game.
Gary Kirsten, the prolific South African batsman, has confirmed that he will be retiring from international cricket after the current tour of New Zealand.Kirsten, 36, had originally planned to step down after last summer’s tour of England, but was encouraged to carry on by his good form and the support of his team-mates. Kirsten scored his 21st century in the first Test against New Zealand, which finished yesterday, and the second Test, which starts in Auckland on Thursday (March 18) will be his 100th. Of current players, only Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara have made more than Kirsten’s 7210 Test runs, and he was the first man to score a Test century against all nine possible opponents. He made his debut in 1993-94, after being called up as a replacement – along with his half-brother Peter – for the tour of Australia.Kirsten, who has yet to decide whether he will continue in first-class cricket, said: “It is a sad and emotional moment for me. I have been extremely fortunate to have had the privilege of playing for my country for so long. It has always been a massive honour to play for South Africa and I have enjoyed every moment of my career.”He explained the timing of his announcement: “My wife Deborah and I had made a decision that when our first child arrived I would retire, but with Joshua now nearly four months old it has overlapped a little. I want to wish the side all the very best in the future and hope that they will continue to go from strength to strength. I was lucky enough to play with and against some wonderful cricketers, and I take many great memories with me.”Gerald Majola, the chief executive of South Africa’s United Cricket Board, paid tribute to Kirsten’s contribution over the past 11 years. “We all respect Gary Kirsten’s decision to retire after an extraordinary playing career during which he set many milestones,” he said. “His records might well be broken, but they are there so that history can record for posterity his outstanding achievements at all levels of the game, but statistics do not tell the whole story, as they cannot record the manner in which he achieved these feats with sheer guts and an absolute determination to give of his best.”These are qualities that have been hugely admired and appreciated by all who have watched him around the world as he so ably represented the new South Africa in the first decade of its birth. South African cricket will always be grateful to Gary for his outstanding contribution, both as a batsman as well as a role model on how the game should be played.”
Kerala took a vital first-innings lead of 44 runs over Madhya Pradesh in a low-scoring match which has seen the bowlers reap rich rewards on a dicey track at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi. At close of play on the second day of the first Plate semi-final Ranji Trophy game, Kerala are 78 for five in their second innings, leading by 122 runs.Earlier, Kerala skipper Sunil Oasis’ decision to bat first after winning the toss on Saturday looked a bit suicidal, as the hosts lost both the openers with just 15 runs on the board. Sixteen runs later, Harvinder Singh Sodhi’s right-arm medium pace went on to snare its third victim to leave Kerala reeling at 31/3.But Hemanth Kumar (43) along with Ajay Kudua (33) and Vipin Lal (28*) averted a total disaster, steering their side to 156 all out. For Madhya Pradesh, old warhorse Narendra Hirwani and Harvinder Singh were the most successful bowlers with three wickets each.Madhya Pradesh started the second day at their overnight score of 21 for no loss, looking to gain the first innings lead. Into the third over of the morning, Tinu Yohannan trapped Mudassar Pasha (9) right in front of the wicket. And in his following over, Yohannan cleaned up Naman Ojha for a duck. Madhya Pradesh were soon in serious trouble when they lost their third wicket too at the score of 23, Dholpure (10) caught by Kerala skipper Sunil Oasis off Sree Santh.Wily leg-spinner Ananthapadmanabhan then came to the party, trapping Bundela (13) lbw and precitipating a mini-collapse. Skipper Amay Khurasiya was the next to go after having hit five boundaries and a six in making 43 – out caught and bowled by Ananthapadmanabhan. When Kudua took a smart catch to dismiss Abbas Ali for a duck off Ananthapadmanabhan’s bowling, Madhya Pradesh were reduced to 81 for six.The last four wickets fell for the addition of a mere 31 runs with Suresh Kumar going on to finish with the amazing figures of 8-6-2-2. This meant that Madhya Pradesh were bowled out for a paltry 112.Batting for the second time, Kerala batsmen had to battle hard under extremely difficult batting conditions. If there were four lbw decisions in the Madhya Pradesh innings, four off the five Kerala batsmen were given out similarly in their second essay; a clear indicator of the state of pitch at Kochi.Kerala’s most prolific scorer of this season Sujit Somasunder lasted just five balls, caught by Ojha off Pandey for a duck. This was followed by four lbw dismissals, including that of Sunil Oasis. The Kerala skipper showed a lot of commitment as he defied the bowling for almost an hour and a half, hitting threeboundaries and a six. At close of play, Ajay Kudua (3*) and Vipin Lal (0*) are at the crease.
Iain Griffiths and teenager David Wheeler hit centuries as New Milton piled up a massive 352-5 before defeating Southern Electric Premier League Division 3 strugglers United Services by 139 runs at Burnaby Road.Griffiths (123) and Wheeler (100) – his second century of the season – shared a third wicket partnership of 189 as New Milton reached their highest-ever SL total.Lee Beck took 6-36 as US slipped from 98-2 to 213 all out.Undefeated leaders Winchester KS have pulled well clear after a five-wicket win at second-placed Havant.But it was far from plain sailing as Winchester sank to 59-5 before Chris Wheeler (58) and David Parsons (28) produced an unbroken sixth-wicket stand to take the leaders past Havant’s 142 all out.Phil Mist (48) and Shane Ferguson (29) top scored for Havant, who had WKS in deep trouble after two-wicket spells by David Wade and Mist.But Parsons, surviving a confident appeal for a catch behind, and Wheeler steered WKS from 59-5 to 143-5 and to a five-wicket win.SEC Cup semi-finalists Rowledge appeared on course for victory over third-placed Alton when the rains came with the Surrey club comfortably placed at 58-1.Australian Craig Eichler (5-23) ripped out Alton’s top five, but Rowledge found themselves thwarted by veteran Paddy Heffernan (40 not out) and Brian Gillingham (18), whose unbroken ninth-wicket stand lifted the visitors from 98-8 to 152-8.But all Rowledge’s hopes were dashed by a 21st over downpour.Any fading prospect Gosport Borough had of featuring in the promotion chase disappeared with a seven-wicket thrashing from St Cross Symondians.Gosport’s batting collapsed against three-wicket trio Brian Lipscombe (3-26), Matt Perry-Lewis (3-14) and Chris Edwards (3-17).They would have struggled to reach 100, but for postman Mark Oxford (19), whose last wicket stand with Brendan Regan lifted Borough from 65-9.Kiwi Mark Parker (54) blasted St Cross home with a no-nonsence half-century.Burly South African all-rounder Jan Kaminski took 5-49 to set up a rain-trimmed ten-wicket win for Hook & Newnham Basics over Flamingos, who have slipped into deep trouble.Flamingos middle-order caved in from 80-3 (Richie Manthorpe 33) to 113-7 and only a spirited eighth-wicket rally between Adie Heath (20) and evergreen Dave Wright took the total on to 150.Hook made short work of a trunkated target, with Keith Lovelock (79) and Steve Shaw (50) completing the ten-wicket formalities.Hursley Park’s survival prospects improved with an eight-wicket win over Lymington II, whose 198-6 was cut to 138 when rain trimmed 15 overs off the match.Youngsters Steve Jenkin and Jason Carr (both 47) did their bit for Lymington, but consistent top-order batting by John Harris (44), Andy Marks (26), Rob Lowe (29) and Paul Edwards (29) carried Hursley home.A lively left-arm spell by Purbrook’s Mark Stanley (4-18) reduced Bashley (Rydal) II from 52-0 (Martin Herbert 38) to 88-5 and an eventual 159 all out.Once Ian Hunter (62 not out) and Mike Hennessy (40) had given Purbrook an 86-run start, it was plain sailing.Colin Pay’s 35 not out completed a nine-wicket win for Purbrook.
West Ham recorded a crucial 2-1 victory over Everton in the Premier League this afternoon as goals from Aaron Cresswell and Jarrod Bowen secured three points for the Hammers in the quest for European qualification.
The left-back scored an excellent free-kick to give David Moyes’ side the lead going into half-time before defender Mason Holgate volleyed a deflected equaliser past Lukasz Fabianski in the second half.
However, Bowen, on return from a month-long injury layoff, scored the decisive goal, tapping into an empty net after Michail Antonio’s strike was parried by Jordan Pickford.
To make matters even worse for Frank Lampard’s relegation-threatened side, captain Michael Keane was shown a second yellow card, the third consecutive league game in which Everton have seen a man sent off.
Although the English duo scored the goals, fellow countryman and midfielder Declan Rice was a rock in the middle of the park for the East London outfit at the London Stadium.
According to SofaScore, the Englishman recorded a 7.2 match rating after making 95 touches and enjoying a 94% passing accuracy against the Merseyside outfit.
Moreover, the 23-year-old won half of his ground duels whilst contributing one key pass, losing possession just nine times, an average of every 10.6 touches.
From a defensive point of view, the colossus showed just why he’s been dubbed an “explosion” and a “revelation” by his manager, contributing three interceptions as well as two blocks and one tackle.
It’s no surprise that West Ham’s prize asset was impressive, particularly against one of the top-flight’s biggest strugglers in Everton.
Rice has been repeatedly subject to a potential big-money move away from East London this summer, with Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola labelling the 23-year-old as “an exceptional player.”
However, Moyes has recently stated that the midfielder isn’t for sale and that a fee north of £150m would be the minimum asking price if he is to depart.
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The Irons are now back into the Premier League’s top six after their important league victory, however, seventh-placed Manchester United are level on points and have a game in hand.
Next up for the Hammers is the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Lyon, another crucial game that Moyes will need all of his players to step up for. A performance similar to that of today’s from Rice certainly won’t be objected to by those associated with the Stratford side.
AND in other news: Moyes can finally axe “shocking” WHU dud as claim emerges, supporters surely buzzing
The struggling Bangalore Royal Challengers team have received another blow with Wasim Jaffer suffering a fracture in his hand, one which will keep him out of action for three weeks.Jaffer picked the injury during the game against Chennai Super Kings on April 28 and it gradually worsened to the extent he couldn’t hold the bat yesterday. X-rays have revealed a fracture and Bangalore will once again have to grapple with opening woes.”It’s a huge blow as Jaffer has been our best opener,” Martin Crowe told Cricinfo. “He has really worked hard to adapt to Twenty20 format and it’s a pity that he would be out for three weeks.”Crowe hinted that J Arunkumar, the domestic player with a List A average of 33.96 from 100 games, might be given a chance in the upcoming encounters.Bangalore have tried five different opening combinations – Jaffer and Rahul Dravid, Shivanarine Chanderpaul and Dravid, Jaffer and Bharat Chipli, Jaffer and Virat Kohli and Jaffer and Praveen Kumar – but nothing has worked so far. Jaffer has scored 110 runs in 99 balls from five games and none of his partners have really fired. That 37 is the highest opening partnership they have had, and 13, their second-highest, says a lot about their problems at the start.Bangalore, wallowing near the bottom of the pool with five losses from seven games, next face Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on May 8.
Peter Moores said Monty Panesar’s persistent appealing during England’s third Test win against West Indies was simply a sign of his enthusiasm and not an example of unsporting behaviour. Panesar finished the match with figures of 10 for 187 at Old Trafford as England won by 60 runs to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the four-match series.It was the first time in a decade an England spinner had taken ten wickets in a Test but Panesar’s achievement was almost overshadowed on Monday by a succession of increasingly desperate appeals which might have seen him charged under the ICC Code of Conduct. As it was, umpire Aleem Dar made do with warning Panesar, reminding him to appeal to him first before celebrating a wicket.However, Moores was satisfied with Panesar’s conduct and he praised Dar and Billy Bowden for the way they dealt with the pressures of a hard-fought final day. Asked if Panesar’s appealing represented an attempt to put pressure on officials, Moores replied: “Not really, because I know it’s genuine. I think good umpires do understand that in many ways the enthusiasm and the excitement of the game can suck players into it. When the umpire says not out then Monty stops which I think is fine, it’s when people go again that isn’t right. I thought all the appealing that went on was fine.”With West Indies chasing what would have been a fourth innings Test record total of 455 to win, on a pitch taking turn, Moores said plenty of Panesar appeals were inevitable. “There was always going to be a lot of hits on the pad and a lot of bat-pads going on and there was going to be that sort of tension in the game,” said Moores.Panesar even appealed when a rogue ball bounced so much it hit Shivnarine Chanderpaul on the head. Afterwards Panesar said he’d struggled to keep his cool. “You want to take wickets and you want the game to go forward and it was a very testing period for myself, but I have to stay calm, put the ball in the right areas and let the pitch do the work,” Panesar said. “Aleem told me to appeal before I start celebrating. I guess I get a little bit excited when I’m out there.”England have opted for a four-man attack during this series with Panesar the lone specialist spinner. Moores said an increased workload had benefited Panesar. “The fact we’ve used three seamers has allowed him to bowl a bit more and from that he’s stepped up again and he’s shown what a quality bowler he can be,” Moores said. “He’s learning all the time and getting better and it’s very exciting to see spinners in the game because they create a different type of pressure.”
Friends and former team-mates have said their final farewells to Fred Trueman whose funeral took place this afternoon at Bolton Abbey Priory, North Yorkshire.Trueman was diagnosed with a form of lung cancer in May and died on Saturday. Ray Illingworth and Brian Close, the former England captain, joined several hundred mourners at the church where Trueman was a regular worshipper.”He was a genius. And I use that word very, very sparingly,” Dickie Bird, the former Test umpire told the congregation in his tribute to Trueman. “There have not been very many geniuses in sport — Muhammad Ali in boxing, (Diego) Maradona, Pele and (George) Best in football, Michael Johnson the great American athlete, (Don) Bradman, (Garfield) Sobers, (Dennis) Lilliee and Trueman. I put him up there.”A genius – and all these I have mentioned had a wonderful, wonderful gift. You cannot coach the gift, and that was balance. Trueman had wonderful balance. He bowled at pace, he swung the ball away late and by doing that he got all the great players in the world out.”You are cherished, my friend, you are cherished by us all,” he added.The Reverend John Ward, Rector of Bolton Abbey, said England had lost a “genuine sporting hero”.”But the loss to his country, his fans or his friends is as nothing compared to that of his family,” he said. “We meet many of us as strangers yet bound by our affection and respect for what I can only describe as a cricketing colossus.”A man capable of crossing all boundaries, be it four runs, six runs or social class.”The Yorkshire coach David Byas and captain Craig White also attended the service. Byas added: “He epitomised everything that cricket was about. He was a true Yorkshireman. He was Yorkshire through-and-through.”A book of condolence has been opened at Headingley, which will eventually be presented to his widow.