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Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, says he is “worried” about the addition of Paddy Upton to Gary Kirsten’s coaching staff for India’s home series against South Africa, since the mental-conditioning specialist possesses inside knowledge on his key players.Arthur hoped Kirsten, the retired South Africa opener and the team’s former batting consultant, would do well as India’s new coach “except against South Africa”, but suggested that he was not so sure about Upton.”I am worried about Paddy Upton,” Arthur told Cricinfo. “I hope that he will respect the confidentiality of his relationship with the players, which is similar to a doctor-patient relationship because he has worked on the mental approach of most of our top six.”Kirsten took over as India coach on March 1 and recommended Upton to the BCCI, which is finalising the paperwork for a full-time contract.Upton, closely associated with Kirsten’s academy in Cape Town, has worked with most of the current South Africa players, including Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis. He was also South Africa’s biokineticist and fitness trainer in the mid-to-late 1990s, and a fitness trainer with the team from 1994 to 1998.”Gary is a genuine cricket man and I wish him all the best except against South Africa,” Arthur said. “Coaches analyse their opponents anyway so I not worried about his intimate technical knowledge of our players.”Arthur is currently in Bangladesh with his team for a two-Test series and three one-dayers. South Africa is expected to reach Chennai a few days after their Bangladesh tour ends on March 14, for the first of their three Tests against India.Asked to assess India’s performance during the recent Australia series, Arthur felt they had played particularly well. “They put pressure on Australia and seem to have developed a ruthless streak,” he said. Arthur, however, hoped that unlike in Australia, the forthcoming Test series would be “tough and uncompromising but played in the right spirit”.On the Indian Premier League, which follows the India series, Arthur said that while it was good for cricket, “there must be a window period for it in the international schedule.”

Experience prevailed over youth as the star studded ONGC team pipped PCAColts XI by two wickets in the 7th JP Atray Memorial cricket tournament atthe PCA Stadium in Chandigarh today.The PCA Colts piled up a huge total of 318 for the loss of four wickets inthe allotted 50 overs. However ONGC managed to overhaul this challengingtotal for the loss of eight wickets with one over to spare.The Colts team opened through Gaganinder Garry and Ankur Kakkar. Theopening pair started off slowly, scoring 45 runs in the first 10 overs.Garry was first to go as he has caught brilliantly at gully, trying to cuta short delivery.Yuvraj Singh and Kakkar were in good nick. Yuvraj, fresh from his inclusionin the Indian team for the Nairobi tournament, placed the ball neatly inthe gaps. His knock of 60 included 10 elegant boundaries. Trying to boostthe scoring rate further, he was stumped off the bowling of VirinderShewag. By then he had put his team in a strong position as they were 142runs after 26 overs for the loss of only two wickets.Kakkar carried on merrily at the other end and completed his 50 off 72balls. The brightest part of the innings came when Pankaj Dharmani andSanjay Kumar came together at the crease with the score at 190 at the endof 35 overs. The two added 96 runs off just 77 balls. Dharmani was in fullflow as he smashed an unbeaten 96 off just 76 deliveries. He hit 12powerful boundaries and a huge six. Sanjay Kumar gave him good support insmashing 50 runs off 45 balls.ONGC XI got off to a flying start as openers Gagan Khoda and Sandeep Sharmahammered 80 runs off just 56 balls. Sandeep was in fine form, slamming 50runs off just 29 balls which included nine hits to the fence. Khoda alsoscored at a run a ball for his knock of 34. After the fall of these twowickets, ONGC lost three more wickets cheaply and they were down in thedumps at 117 for five. Mithun Minhas and Shewag however took the team outof the woods. Both scored half centuries to take the team to the doorstepof victory. Towards the end Md. Saif took charge with an unblemished 52runs off 62 balls to clinch the issue in favour of his team. Yuvraj Singhand Vineet Kumar tried their level best to change the course of the matchin their favour, but despite capturing three wickets each for 47 and 66runs respectively, they could not. Shewag was declared man of the match.

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.”

The South African players were fined 5% of their match fees – Graeme Smith, their captain being fined 10% – for a slow over-rate during the second Test against West Indies in Cape Town.Roshan Mahanama, the match referee, imposed the fine after South Africa were ruled to be one over short of its target after time allowances were taken into consideration.In accordance with the ICC Code of Conduct regulations governing over-rate penalties, players are fined 5% of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time, with the captain fined double that amount.South Africa won the match by seven wickets to square the series 1-1. The next Test, to be played at Kingsmead in Durban, begins on January 10.

Herschelle Gibbs, one of South Africa’s opening batsmen, has been fined 40% of his match fee (approximately £800) for a “deliberate attempt to mislead an umpire” during the closing stages of the fourth day’s play of the second Test between South Africa and England at Durban.The umpire Darrell Hair reported Gibbs for gesturing at the top of his armand pointing towards him after facing a rising delivery that led to acaught-behind appeal from Steve Harmison. Gibbs pleaded guilty to theoffence, which breaches the ICC’s code of conduct, and the match refereeClive Lloyd handed him the fine.Gibbs was undefeated on 11 at stumps, having survived a chance off Harmison in the fourth over that Geraint Jones put down.

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Australia romped to a thoroughly convincing victory, although later than expected on the final day, in the opening Test of the four-match series at Bangalore. An entertaining ninth-wicket stand delayed the inevitable, but with the skies completely clear, it was always going to be a matter of time. The end came 44 minutes after lunch as India were crushed by 217 runs.The Indian top order collapsed last night, and with just four wickets left, only the last rites were left. Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan batted in unfettered fashion and gave the Sunday crowd a lot to cheer. Both went about dismantling Shane Warne’s figures as his march towards the world record was halted. Warne went wicketless all morning, and will have to wait until Chennai for another chance to eclipse Muttiah Muralitharan’s tally.At the start of the day, though, the Indians waged a grim battle. Rahul Dravid faced only Warne while Pathan kept out Michael Kasprowicz at the other end. The only scoring shots in the first 12 overs were Dravid’s two fours off Warne and, like last night, he refused the singles. Pathan survived a large dose of fortune in the sixth over of the morning, edging an attempted drive off Kasprowicz, as Michael Clarke grassed a tough chance diving to his left at second slip. The rest of the time, though, Pathan got behind the line of the ball and blocked confidently.The Australians did their bit to break up the rhythm of the morning, and Adam Gilchrist’s juggling of bowlers and ends finally paid off when Kasprowicz nailed Dravid in the 14th over of the day. The ball pitched outside off, cut back in and trapped him lbw for 60 (118 for 7).

With Dravid gone, the tailenders played with unrestrained freedom and delayed the inevitable by a few hours. Pathan blasted two massive sixes over midwicket as he shimmied down the track, the second of which was taken brilliantly on the pavilion balcony as one of the spectators leant over the railings and clung on. He also pulled off some delicate sweeps and smart nudges and padded away a few balls from Warne with calm authority.Harbhajan joined in the fun by slog-sweeping Warne over midwicket. They added 72 rapidly before lunch, and went on to break the record for the highest ninth-wicket stand for India against Australia.Jason Gillespie ended the revelry a few overs after lunch, soon after the new ball was taken, as Pathan (55) played back to one that pitched on a good length. The ball kissed the outside edge and Adam Gilchrist did the rest (214 for 9). Harbhajan swished around a little longer, smacking one off McGrath that landed inches in front of the extra-cover fence, before a top-edged hook went straight to long leg.The batsmen were also largely helped by the attacking fields that the Australians set, with a number of men in the catching zones, and there were a few edges that landed in vacant areas. This was the only time in the game when the Australians didn’t mind conceding a few easy runs, as they had choked the rest of the batsmen with their disciplined approach.

Glenn McGrath carried on from where he had left off in the tour game in Mumbai, and was near-impossible to score off, while Kasprowicz’s ability to vary seam, length and pace left several batsmen clueless. The Australians religiously practised bowling at one stump before the start of each day’s play, and that was exactly the line that they consistently achieved throughout the game.The batting in the first innings had helped Australia seize the initiative as Clarke, Gilchrist and Simon Katich handled the spinners with ease. They didn’t find it as easy in the second innings, though, with Harbhajan teasing them with a magnificent spell. That, apart from the lower-order batting, is something that India will take with them to Chennai. The other departments, though, need some serious oiling. These may be early days yet, but Bill Lawry’s team of 1969-70 may just be shuffling in their seats.

Scorecard
An unbeaten 90 to Chris Rogers gave Western Australia a stunning day to remember as they took a 46-run first-innings lead after dismissing Tasmania for 86. Rogers finished with 14 fours from his 105 balls to prove the Bellerive Oval pitch was fine for run-scoring once the home side had lost a dramatic 9 for 46 to set a new low against the Warriors.Sent in by Justin Langer on a green surface, Tasmania started at a crawling pace, making only 12 in the 16 overs before David Dawson was dismissed, and only Michael Di Venuto (25) and Brendan Drew (13) reached double figures. Steve Magoffin was on a hat-trick after lunch, removing Michael Bevan and George Bailey, but Dan Marsh, who was returning to the lead the side after recovering from a shoulder injury, narrowly survived the third ball.However, Marsh became Magoffin’s third victim four balls later when he was caught behind by Luke Ronchi. Ben Edmondson then arrived to match the haul of his former Queensland 2nd XI team-mate, and the only positive for Tasmania was they crept past their lowest score at Bellerive of 76.Langer and Rogers replied at almost five an over to collect first-innings points in their opening stand of 111, which was broken when Adam Griffith dismissed Langer for 35. Griffith also picked up Shaun Marsh and Adam Voges as Tasmania hit back late in the day, but with Rogers in charge his side controlled the match when bad light stopped play 14 overs early.

The Indian board has decided to reject Pakistan’s proposal for a three-match one-day tour in mid-March. The Pakistan board had requested the BCCI for a series once the Australian tour was shortened but India felt their players’ schedule was too tight to accommodate another tour.”The players have had a long and strenuous tour of Australia and will return only on March 8 or 9,” Niranjan Shah, the board secretary told Cricinfo. “They have to assemble for the South Africa series on March 22. So it will be really tough to play three ODIs in between.”The series had been under discussion between the two boards following the hesitancy shown by Australia in coming to Pakistan as scheduled in March-April. It was decided recently that Australia’s tour – if it goes ahead – would be considerably shortened. Pakistan were then keen to utilise the free period in the first half of March.The Pakistan board, it is learnt, were confident that the tour would go ahead and had already began preparations for the three games, all scheduled for Lahore. The decision from the BCCI – taken by the office bearers today – was conveyed to the PCB chairman, Nasim Ashraf, by his Indian counterpart, Sharad Pawar.However, India are likely to tour Pakistan for a short one-day series before the Champions Trophy in September-October.

Close England 393 and 297 for 3 (Cook 104*, Collingwood 36*) lead India 323 (Kaif 91, Hoggard 6-57) by 367 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

A brilliant maiden Test century from England’s new boy-wonder, Alastair Cook, and a typically pugnacious – and decidedly fortunate – 87 from Kevin Pietersen set England up for a shot at an extraordinary Test victory, after a fourth day at Nagpur that exceeded the wildest expectations of even the most diehard member of the travelling Barmy Army.By the close England led by the small matter of 367 runs, with Cook leading the way and receiving a tumultuous ovation for his 104 not out on debut, an innings that had spanned the best part of six hours and included 243 balls of supreme application. It is extraordinary to think that he is just 21 years old, for this was a performance that Marcus Trescothick, the 69-Test veteran whom he has replaced for this match, could scarcely have bettered.Allied to his first-innings 60, Cook’s performance was the best by an England debutant since his opening partner, Andrew Strauss, made 112 and 83 against New Zealand at Lord’s in 2004. He too had been called up in desperate circumstances, when Michael Vaughan’s dodgy knee gave way in the nets, but even Strauss would admit that his own magnificent debut has to pale in comparison. Given the venue, the opposition and the strength-sapping heat, not to mention Cook’s own tender years, this was in a class of its own. England cricketers, we are led to believe, should not be mature enough at 21 for such jaw-dropping feats of endurance.But this is no ordinary youngster. Cook had been marked out for great things since his days at Bedford School where he spent his summers breaking batting records for fun, and you could well imagine that his self-confident and economical stance has hardly changed since the day he first picked up a bat.For much of his innings, Cook was content to bide his time and play every delivery on merit. Thanks to Matthew Hoggard’s six-wicket haul, which was wrapped up within seven balls of the resumption of India’s innings this morning, England had earned themselves a priceless 70-run lead. Cook and Andrew Strauss set about doubling this and more in a 95-run opening stand, seeing off the new ball with aplomb and repelling the best efforts of Anil Kumble who, on a desperate day in the field for India, remained a shining beacon of virtue and persistence throughout.

Even when Irfan Pathan struck twice in two balls after lunch to remove Strauss for 46 and Ian Bell for 1, Cook’s resolve was unshakeable. He ploughed onwards and upwards with a resolve that Geoffrey Boycott could not have bettered, and somehow remained oblivious to the byplays accompanying Pietersen’s outrageous performance at the other end. The pair added 124 for the third wicket, but Pietersen enjoyed a charmed life amid some typically rabid hitting, the most extraordinary moment of which came when he had made just 36.With 15 minutes remaining before tea, Pietersen appeared to toe-end a half-volley straight back to the bowler, Kumble. The Indian players had absolutely no doubt they had their man, but Pietersen stood his ground and a lengthy delay ensued as the third umpire, I Shivram, studied the incident from all angles.In the opinion of most observers, the ball clearly bounced first on the turf, then looped up off the bat and into Kumble’s hands, but to the astonishment of the entire stadium, Sivaram decided otherwise. Even Pietersen was surprised in hindsight. “I have looked at it from a few angles,” he admitted to Sky Sports afterwards, “and I think I am very fortunate to get 87 today.”He compounded his good fortune when Sreesanth in the covers dropped a skier, again off the luckless Kumble, and not even his eventual dismissal could compensate for Kumble’s ill-fortune. Pietersen had smeared the previous over for 16 adrenalin-fuelled runs, and though two balls later he top-edged a sweep to Dravid at leg slip, Paul Collingwood somehow survived a stone-dead lbw appeal first ball, as a Kumble topspinner fizzed into his back pad. When Lady Luck turns against you, she really lets you know about it.But then again, the Indians did little to earn much luck either. As the innings progressed, Cook began to sense the need to lift his tempo to match his team’s needs, but Harbhajan Singh dropped the simplest of return catches when he had made 70, and then looked on aghast as Dravid at slip spilled a one-handed chance on 92. By now it was a race against the close for Cook, and he began playing as many shots as the circumstances would allow. A sweet cover-drive off Kumble took him to 96, but with Collingwood on hand to scamper the singles, he reached 99 with two overs of the day remaining.In the event, he needed just one more ball. Harbhajan offered some width outside off stump, and Cook was onto it like a flash, carving through point for four before haring down the pitch with his arms aloft in triumph. He had become just the 16th player to score a century on debut for England, and at 21 years and 69 days, he had ousted Peter May as the youngest of them all. If his efforts today go on to set up an extraordinary Test victory against the odds, you can be sure it will be recalled as one of the greatest as well.

IndiaSreesanth lbw b Hoggard 1 (323 for 10)
Wicket-to-wicket delivery, struck in lineEnglandAndrew Strauss c Dhoni b Pathan 46 (95 for 1)
Nipped off the pitch, grazed edge, low catch for keeperIan Bell c Dhoni b Pathan 1 (97 for 2)
Cut across bows, thin edge to keeperKevin Pietersen c Dravid b Kumble 87 (221 for 3)
Sweeping out of the rough, top-edge to slip

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Muttiah Muralitharan wanted to make what might be his final Test in England one to remember. He achieved that in stunning fashion at Trent Bridge with a haul of 8 for 70 as Sri Lanka stormed to a 134-run victory to level the series, ripping through England with a mesmerising spell which brought back memories of his first Test in this country – when he took nine at The Oval in 1998.Muralitharan was on for all ten – having previously twice fallen one short in Tests – but that feat disappeared when Matthew Hoggard was run out. His third nine-for also went begging when the last wicket fell to Sanath Jayasuriya, but that will be of little consequence to Muralitharan who just beamed with pride having steered his team to a stunning result. Once he’d got started on England, breaking the encouraging opening partnership of 84 between Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss, there was no stopping him. He claimed six during the afternoon session as England went from hopeful to hapless.The target of 325 always left England a mountain to climb, although they started positively with Strauss and Trescothick making steady progress either side of lunch. Jayawardene went into a holding pattern for all his bowlers, apart from Muralitharan and it was surprising to see relatively defensive fielding settings. But Sri Lanka have had a gameplan and stuck to it during this match.The tactic of keeping England quiet worked in the first innings and Jayawardene was banking on the same method second time around. The plan came together in fine style. Muralitharan duly made the breakthrough when Trescothick played back to another perfect doosra that skidded through and clattered the offstump. He was unsure at first, appealing for lbw, but quickly joined his team-mates in celebration.Sri Lanka should have had another moment to enjoy when Alastair Cook, on 1, thin-edged Jayasuriya but Kumar Sangakkara couldn’t hold on. However, they didn’t have to wait long before Muralitharan created mayhem. Before the clatter, Strauss registered his first half-century of the series from 88 balls; but you sensed that something was about to give.

In a very similar manner to his first-innings dismissal at Edgbaston, Cook was trapped by the doosra then Strauss departed as his edge bounced off Sangakkara’s glove in the direction of slip. While England had Kevin Pietersen at the crease – damaged hamstring and all – there was still hope. Not for long. Pietersen won his battle with Muralitharan hands down in the first two Tests; here it has gone convincingly the other way.Pietersen sashayed down the pitch but only succeeded in getting a faint glove – via pad – to short-leg. It was the strike Sri Lanka wanted but more was to come when Andrew Flintoff fell to a thick inside-edge to complete a miserable match with the bat. Tillakaratne Dilshan made it a hat-trick of catches with the best of the bunch when Paul Collingwood jabbed down on the ball, got the bottom of the bat, and it bounced up from the toe of his boot. Dilshan lunged forward and to his right to get his hand underneath the ball to take a sharp catch. The wickets came in such a rush that each celebration hardly had chance to die down.Geraint Jones became No. 7 for Muralitharan and all eyes were turning to the magic complete set – achieved only twice before in Test cricket by Jim Laker and Anil Kumble. But it wasn’t to be when Hoggard was brilliantly run out by Chamara Kapugedera from midwicket with only a single stump to aim at. Jon Lewis quickly joined the procession back to the pavilion and it appeared that Muralitharan would finish how he started in England – with a nine-wicket haul.However, after some defiant and loudly cheered blows from Monty Panesar, Jayasuriya capped his comeback Test with the final wicket and Sri Lanka could celebrate one of their greatest triumphs. Panesar’s late boundaries – including a swept six off Muralitharan – completed an encouraging performance on a personal note after he’d earlier secured his first five-wicket haul. But the day was all about one man – who never knows when he is beaten – and a team that carries the same fighting qualities.

Marcus Trescothick b Muralitharan 31 (84 for 1)
Alastair Cook lbw b Muralitharan 5 (104 for 2)
Andrew Strauss c Jayawardene b Muralitharan 55 (111 for 3)
Kevin Pietersen c Dilshan b Muralitharan 6 (120 for 4)
Andrew Flintoff c Dilshan b Muralitharan 0 (120 for 5)
Paul Collingwood c Dilshan b Muralitharan (125 for 6)
Geraint Jones b Muralitharan 6 (132 for 7)
Matthew Hoggard run out – Kapugedera (136 for 8)
Jon Lewis lbw b Muralitharan 7 (153 for 9)
Monty Panesar lbw b Jayasuriya 26 (190 all out)

Chamara Kapugedera c Cook b Plunkett 50 (287 for 8)
Lasith Malinga b Panesar 22 (320 for 9)
Muttiah Muralitharan c Strauss b Panesar 2 (322 all out)