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Scorecard
Sunny Singh completed a fine hundred and put Haryana on the road to the Plate Group final. Sunny’s tenacious 137 and valuable contributions from the lower order took Haryana to a healthy 453 in the semi-final against Jharkhand in Chandigarh. Sachin Rana stroked a plucky 83 and had two good partnerships with Ajay Ratra (40) and Amit Mishra (47). The day got better for Haryana when they snapped up two Jharkhand wickets in the four overs that they got before stumps.
Scorecard
It turned out to be another damp day at Dharamsala with only seven overs of play possible between Himachal Pradesh and Services. Himachal were 9 for no loss when play was called off due to bad light. In case there is no result in the game, the winner will be decided by the toss of a coin.

There is no deadline for West Indian players to sign the match and tour contracts for the upcoming tour of Australia, scheduled for November 2005, according to a source close to the negotiations between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA).The WICB, in its September 13 invitation to 30 players for the tour of Australia, had stated that “the players accepting the invitation are required to sign the letter and return it to the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) by 5 pm on September 19”.On September 16, Dinanath Ramnarine, the WIPA president and CEO, said in a press release that according to an agreement between himself and Ken Gordon, the new WICB president, all players “may accept the invitation to participate in the camp in preparation for the tour of Australia with the clear understanding that there has been no agreement with regards to the match/tour contract and that the players would not be bound by the draft match/tour contracts which accompanied the invitations sent by the WICB for the Australian tour later this year as discussions are ongoing”.Ramnarine stated that the counsel for the West Indies Cricket Board, represented by senior counsel Charles Wilkin, and the West Indies Players Association, being advised by Dr Kusha Haraksingh, CARIFORUM Lead Negotiator on Dispute Resolution, were to meet over the weekend to “settle all outstanding issues” on match/tour contracts for senior West Indies cricketers.The source said that players were advised by WIPA not to sign any match/tour contracts because negotiations “are still in progress”. The source also said, contrary to a Barbados report, fast bowlers Pedro Collins and Fidel Edwards only indicated that “they accepted the invitation and never indicated they would sign the match/tour contracts”. “They were misquoted,” the source said. “They will not sign now because the contracts are still being negotiated.”WIPA had pointed out Friday that they only received a copy of the match/tour contract on September 13, “the same day it was sent to the players”, and reiterated that they want to reassure the public and all stakeholders that “we are committed to finding a resolution and for the best team to tour Australia…”Despite the lack of a settlement to date, players are still expected to turn up for a preparatory one-week camp from September 24-30 at the Three Ws Oval at the Cave Hill campus of the University of West Indies.Invited players:Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Wavell Hinds, Brian Lara, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Chris Gayle, Denesh Ramdin, Daren Ganga, Dwayne Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Dave Mohammed, Sylvester Joseph, Ryan Hinds, Runako Morton, Marlon Samuels, Dwayne Smith, Devon Smith, Narsingh Deonarine, Carlton Baugh Jr, Omari Banks, Xavier Marshall, Pedro Collins, Corey Collymore, Jermaine Lawson, Tino Best, Fidel Edwards, Ian Bradshaw, Deighton Butler, Daren Powell, Dwight Washington, Jerome Taylor.

Brendon McCullum, New Zealand’s wicketkeeper-batsman, is fit for theirforthcoming one-day and Test series against Sri Lanka.McCullum, 23, was hit on the knee twice in a row by Jason Gillespie in the second Test against Australia last month. Although precautionary tests revealed a minor fracture, Warren Frost, NZ’s medical co ordinator, said that X-rays showed that it had healed. “He did suffer some pain in Australia but it is showing signs of good progress,” Frost said. “It is more of an inconvenience than anything.”The first one-day international against Sri Lanka is on Boxing Day, and the one-day series is followed by two Tests.

After a week of heavy downpours, the fourth one-dayer in Grenada went the way of the previous two, and was abandoned. Heavy rain in the morning yesterday, compounded by showers in the afternoon, meant that at dusk on the eve of the match the outfield at Queen’s Park was saturated. Further showers today ruled out the possibility of even a 30-overs knockabout.The umpires were worried enough to inspect the ground at 5pm last night. They quickly came to the conclusion that there was no chance of a prompt start, and by 9am this morning, the match was abandoned. It is a massive blow to the cricket-mad population – more than 10,000 tickets had been sold for the match on an island where the total population is around 90,000.The mood of the players was not helped when they were told that conditions in St Lucia, where there are back-to-back matches this weekend, were also poor after more heavy rain. Even Barbados, where the final game is to be played in a week’s time on May 5, is wet. Of all the Caribbean islands, that is the one where good weather can usually be guaranteed at this time of year.The England camp is struggling to stay upbeat after two washouts last weekend. “I’ve never known such a period in my career,” shrugged Marcus Trescothick. “You might lose a game in England or a National League match but I’ve never known anything like this when the forecast is consistently bad for the next week. Who knows, it could potentially rain for the rest of the games. It’s not the ideal situation but if we are still leading the series 1-0 by the time we get on the plane home next Thursday I’m sure we won’t be that worried about it.”England’s increasingly desperate attempts to stay fit – including head tennis – backfired on Paul Collingwood yesterday when he broke his nose in an accident playing basketball.Trescothick admitted that boredom was causing problems. “We just have to do what we can, when we can,” he said. “It is a case of anything to get the blood flowing, to stop us feeling lazy and lethargic in our rooms.”

Just over five weeks after The Oval was at the centre of one of cricket’s most fractious days, ending with Pakistan forfeiting the final Test against England, the main protagonists return to the scene of the row today to start a two-day hearing into Code of Conduct charges brought against Inzamam-ul-Haq by the ICC.The centre of the imbroglio is the 56th over of England’s second innings on the fourth day. Umpires Billy Doctrove and Darrell Hair, believing that the ball had been tampered with, changed it and awarded England a five-run penalty. Soon after, during tea, Pakistan decided to stage a protest against the decision. Ultimately, the umpires decided that Pakistan’s refusal to play amounted to the Test being forfeited. Cue chaos.Crime and Punishment
Inzamam is facing two charges, of ball-tampering and of bringing the game into disrepute. The former is on behalf of the team; no individual or specific incident of tampering has been highlighted so as captain, Inzamam faces the heat. If found guilty, he faces a fine of between 50 and 100% of his match fee and/or a ban of one Test or two ODIs.The latter charge, of bringing the game into disrepute as a result of not leading his team out to play, is potentially more serious. Again, as captain of a side that refused to play, Inzamam is in the dock and if found guilty, he faces a ban of between two and four Tests or four to eight ODIs.Who’s who
Pakistan: Inzamam-ul-Haq, Shaharyar Khan (chairman PCB) and Bob Woolmer (Pakistan coach). Danish Kaneria, Umar Gul and Zaheer Abbas (team manager) have all provided written statements as witnesses.ICC: Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove, Peter Hartley (third umpire), Trevor Jesty (fourth umpire), Mike Procter (match referee), Doug Cowie (ICC umpires and referees manager).Judge: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lankan ICC chief match referee)Support cast: Both sides are also backed up be legal representation. The PCB hired a UK-based legal firm, DL Piper, to represent them. Madugalle will be assisted throughout the hearing by the ICC’s lawyer David Pannick QC.Evidence m’lord
The PCB has claimed from the very beginning that there is no proof that ball-tampering occurred, that nothing has been captured on video and no single person caught. This, of course, overlooks conveniently that no evidence other than the ball itself and the umpires’ words is needed. Forensic tests on the ball to determine tampering has been suggested while those who have seen the ball – journalists and Pakistan officials – claim that there isn’t sufficient evidence to conclusively say tampering has occurred. The ball was 56 overs old and The Oval historically provides a dry, rough surface. Further, a fair few boundaries – and thus advertising hoardings around the ground – had been tonked.The disrepute charge seems more straightforward. Everyone knows Pakistan didn’t come out to play; though the PCB claimed the protest was meant to last only a few minutes, it lasted nearer 50. Both umpires even went to the Pakistan dressing room to ask Inzamam whether he would come out to resume the Test, to which they received no satisfactory answer and thus decided to forfeit. Mike Procter’s testimony will be of particular interest here, if only to establish whether he knew that the Test had been forfeited when he convinced Pakistan to come out and play eventually.

Anything else I should know?
Quite a lot as it happens. The ICC leaked emails from Darrell Hair in the aftermath of the incident in which he offered to resign for US$500,000. Zaheer Abbas has been replaced as manager of Pakistan since the Oval Test. An initial difference in opinion has emerged between the two umpires on when the ball should have been changed. Pakistan were reported in places to be calling up expert witnesses in the form of Geoffrey Boycott, John Hampshire and Simon Hughes. There is history between Hair and Pakistan; Pakistan have rumbled for some time now about Hair’s officious attitude and claim they complained officially about him last year. Ehsan Mani, ICC president at the time, denies the claim.Decision time
The hearing is to be held over two days, behind closed doors and Madugalle has a maximum of 24 hours after it is over to adjudicate on both charges, which means a decision by Friday. However, the PCB can appeal on behalf of Inzamam and Malcolm Speed, ICC CEO, can do likewise on behalf of the ICC if either party is unhappy with the decision.Exactly what that decision will be of course is difficult to know. That hasn’t prevented though some speculation. Most, including PCB officials, believe that Inzamam might escape punishment for ball-tampering and face a ban for bringing the game into disrepute. Pakistan sees the ball-tampering charge as the more serious one in any case.Privately, ICC officials seem to have acknowledged they are in a no-win situation, especially over the disrepute charge. If Inzamam is found guilty – and it is hard to see, even with mitigating circumstances, how he cannot be – then he has to be banned and the options are for one of between two and four Test matches or four to eight one-day internationals.If Madugalle is lenient, then the ICC will be slammed by many for undermining the tenant that the umpire is the sole arbiter of the laws during a game. If the ban is lengthy – and it is worth recalling that Arjuna Ranatunga was initially slapped with a six-match ban in 1998-99 when he took his side off the field at Adelaide, although that game did resume – then Pakistan are sure to appeal, and the whole affair rumbles on.Any scenario still leaves the question of what to do with Darrell Hair, particularly for the Champions Trophy, unanswered. He seems to think he is officiating there, the ICC is delaying announcing officials for the tournament, India and Pakistan have officially objected to his presence there and the latter, some reports suggest, have threatened greater action – including a possible pull-out – if Hair stands. In other words, this two-day hearing is unlikely to be the last word on the situation.

Despite the euphoria of that historic victory at Sabina Park, England’s coach, Duncan Fletcher, has urged his players to avoid complacency as they prepare for Friday’s second Test in Trinidad. “It’s very important that we look after our own game and prepare for the next Test,” he stressed. “If we start focussing on other things we’ll probably forget about what we’ve got to do, so we’ll just let that be – it’s out of our hands.”On the face of it, England have established a devastating psychological hold on the series, after bowling West Indies out on the fourth morning in Jamaica for 47 – their lowest-ever total. But recent history in the Caribbean would suggest that no side is more dangerous than West Indies when written off. Five years ago, Brian Lara inspired them to a 2-1 series lead against Australia, after they were bowled out for 51 in the first Test. And five years before that, in 1993-94, England were themselves bowled out for 46 by Curtly Ambrose in Trinidad, only to come storming back the following week, to record the first Test win by a touring side in Barbados for 59 years.”We must have an advantage,” admitted Fletcher, “because confidence levels will be high among the bowlers, while the batters have showed a lot of character. For someone like Mark Butcher, who took a bit of a battering and is pretty bruised, for him to go and win like that is a huge advantage – if we’d lost and he’d taken that battering it would have been pretty hard to come back strongly.”England’s bowling hero on that fourth morning was Steve Harmison, who returned in spades the faith that his coach has invested in him, with second-innings figures of 7 for 12. “We’ve shown a lot of faith in a lot of guys,” said Fletcher, “and Harmison is certainly one of them. It was about three years ago when we realised that this was the guy that England needed and needed badly – most sides need a guy with pace and bounce and he’s got another dimension in that he can also swing the ball.”Troy Cooley, England’s bowling coach, was equally full of praise for Harmison. “He’s got himself organised, his attitude is absolutely right and because of that he’s been able to bowl the way he wants to bowl. This could be the launch-pad to go on to big things.”But if England need any indication of just how dangerous West Indies are likely to be, they might as well ask Graham Thorpe, England’s sole survivor of that 46-all-out debacle in 1993-94. On that occasion, England had believed they were in line for a surprise victory, after taking a healthy first-innings lead at Port-of-Spain. But Ambrose steamed in with an irresistible display, taking 6 for 24 as England folded in 19.1 overs.”They will be hurt because we were hurt,” said Thorpe. “It’s quite humiliating to be bowled our for such a low score, although at least we were away from home when it happened. It was the most humiliated I’ve ever been on a cricket field, but I remember Mike Atherton saying at the time that it was a top spell of bowling, and it was. We knew we were up against a great bowler and we didn’t really have the answers on that day, but it makes you analyse your game that little bit more.”We came back and won in Barbados so we’re well aware that West Indies are not a pushover,” warned Thorpe. “We have to expect them to bounce back. No professional sportsman likes to be beaten in that way and bowled out for that sort of score. They’re a hugely talented side who could come back and win the next game, but it’s for us to analyse our own games and see how we can improve.”Nevertheless, England’s heroics made for a pleasant journey to Port-of-Spain, in stark contrast to the recriminations searing through the West Indian camp. “It’s a huge bonus for us,” admitted Thorpe, “because we expected two really tough days. But we’ve plucked a performance out of the air. It happens every now and then, but it’s got us in the driving seat and that’s a fantastic start for the tour.”

Nathan Astle’s strategy to cope with the conditions and the Indianbowlers was masterful. He played mostly on the front foot – 159off the 207 balls he played, showing minimal footwork on 19 ballsand stepping out four times. He played the ball late, allowing itto come to him instead of reaching for it. But when he did rockback, he made it pay; 42 off his 103 runs came off the 25 timeshe went on the back foot. His strike-rate on the back foot was168; the rest of the time, it was 35.

As the above statistic indicates, he played the bowling on itsmerit. Off the 181 occasions that he received a ball on a goodlength or just short of a good length, he made 57 runs. The 13balls that the bowlers dropped short to him went for 34 runs. Hisshot selection was immaculate.

While many of Astle’s singles and twos came via sweeps and dabson the on side, most of his boundaries came from cuts off shortballs on the back foot. In terms of runs, Astle’s wagons wheelappears quite balanced: 56 runs on the off side, and 47 on theoff. But in terms of boundaries, it is decidedly different. Ofhis 14 fours, 12 came on the off side, with 10 of them in the arcbetween extra cover and backward point.

New Zealand are known for planning for their opponents andconditions. Clearly, Astle had done his homework exceedinglywell.Amit Varma is managing editor of Wisden Cricinfo in India.

KwaZulu-Natal defeated high-riding Easterns and consolidated their position at the top of Pool A with a third consecutive victory, putting together a polished team effort to win by an innings and 102 runs. Hundreds from Doug Watson and Dale Benkenstein, along with 98 from Lance Klusener, ensured that Easterns were always on the back foot. A career-best 6 for 43 from the young offspinner Imran Khan, voted Man of the Match, made life even more difficult for the Easterns batsmen, who were bowled out in their follow-on innings shortly before lunch on the final day.In Paarl, Griqualand West made light work of Boland, winning by 100 runs. Benjamin Hector scored a hundred, Wendell Bossenger made 93, and a quick 70 from Shahid Afridi helped Griqualand to 475. Deon Kruis then took 10 for 119, his medium pace proving too good for Boland. Rashaad Magiet (91) and Con de Lange (89) did, however, offer some resistance.Allan Donald showed that he is still a bowler to be respected when he helped Free State to a ten-wicket win against Eastern Province. His 5 for 95 in the first innings was overshadowed by an excellent 145 from Carl Bradfield, the Eastern Province captain. But after a second-innings collapse by Eastern Province, Morne van Wyk (106*) and Jonathan Beukes (88*) knocked off the 198 runs needed for victory.At Newlands Western Province outplayed North West from day one with Neil Johnson and Andrew Puttick both scoring hundreds to guide them to 480 for 5 declared.Meanwhile, Border produced the surprise of the round by defeating Northerns by six wickets. Steven Pope, Border’s hero, scored an unbeaten 146 in their successful run-chase. For Northerns there was a light at the end of the tunnel though, with Alfonso Thomas putting together a good allround performance in scoring a fifty and taking 7 for 63.SuperSport Series Pool AKwaZulu-Natal beat Easterns by an innings and 102 runs. KwaZulu-Natal 495 for 6 dec (Watson 147, Benkenstein 112, Klusener 98, Kent 73); Easterns 215 (Toyana 72, Khan 6-43) and 178 (van den Berg 57, Koenig 53, McLean 4-41).Griqualand West beat Boland by 110 runs. Griqualand West 475 (Hector 114, Bossenger 93*, Shahid Afridi 70, Mashimbyi 61, Smith 50, Groeneveld5-112) and 131 for 5 dec; Boland 205 (Magiet 91, Kruis 5-46) and 291 (de Lange 89, Kruis 5-73).Free State beat Eastern Province by 10 wickets.Eastern Province 331 (Bradfield 145, Donald 5-95) and 103; Free State 237 (Venter 61, Louw 4-45) and 198 for 0 (van Wyk 106*, Beukes 88*).SuperSport Series Pool BWestern Province beat North West by 10 wickets. Western Province 480 for 5 dec (Johnson 135, Puttick 101, Duminy 80*, Bassage 69, Prince 50) and 16 for 0; North West 266 (Bula 60*) and 229 (Bailey 82, Henderson 4-61).Border beat Northerns by 6 wickets. Northerns 197 (van Jaarsveld 63, Henderson 5-73) and 317 (Rudolph 64, Thomas 52); Border 230 (Strydom 53, Thomas 7/63) and 286 for 4 (Pope 146*).Pool A and B Log Tables.

Matthew Hayden believes his world record score won’t be enough to stop Ricky Ponting winning the Allan Border Medal next week. Hayden, the 2002 winner of Australia’s highest cricketing honour, said, Ponting had done enough in both forms of the game to walk away with the award.”I think Ricky’s the foregone conclusion,” said Hayden, who blasted a world record 380 in the first Test against Zimbabwe last year. “He’s been the standout player through the summer, throughout the winter and throughout the last summer as well – in both forms of the game.”Ponting, who was last year’s Test player of the year, scored 1503 runs at an average of 100.20 in 2003. He also struck three double-centuries to become the first player since Don Bradman to score three double tons in a single year.Ponting was also Australia’s leading run-scorer in one-dayers with 1154 runs including his World Cup-winning innings of 140 not out, making him a strong contender for the one-day player of the year – an award he picked up in 2002.While there are individual awards for the Test and one-day player of the year, the overall award – the Allan Border Medal – is decided by votes earned in both forms of the game. No player has won both the Test and one-day award in the same year.Past winners of the Allan Border Medal have been Glenn McGrath (2000), Steve Waugh (2001), Hayden (2002) and Adam Gilchrist (2003).

Geoffrey Boycott has said Andrew Flintoff could be an even more effective one-day international player if he was promoted to open the innings.Writing in , Boycott said: “For me Andrew Flintoff has been a revelation and shown he is England’s most valuable player.”Personally, I feel we need to experiment to find his best battingposition. He can do so much damage so quickly that I would like to see himtried as an opener.”He continued: “Adam Gilchrist of Australia moved from Test middle-order to one-day opener with amazing results. Like Gilchrist, Flintoff could soon put the bowling side on the defensive and wondering what the hell has hit them.”England beat Pakistan 2-1 in the NatWest Challenge and defeated South Africa byseven wickets in the NatWest Series final at Lord’s last week. These were two large steps forward for a new-look side which the England selectors hope will form the nucleus of the 2007 World Cup team.Boycott added: “I think they played splendidly, fielded athletically and looked as if they were enjoying themselves.”Even more surprising than his generally wide-ranging endorsement ofEngland’s players was his praise for the selectors, whose decisions he hasoften criticised. He said: “Our selectors have done well and our team has done even better.”But any thoughts that the usually hard-hitting Boycott had gone soft were dashed with his comments about Vikram Solanki: “He gets out cheaply too often, playing extravagant shots that are not on.”This was Boycott’s first major article since he revealed last month that hewas optimistic about winning his battle against throat cancer. He aims to return to television broadcasting when given the go-ahead from his doctors.Click here to read the article in full