Finn Push himself for England Test Squad

Finn declared himself fit to select for England: 

Steven Finn has declared himself fit for selection for the third Test and looks set to displace Stuart Broad in England's team.

Finn, who suffered a thigh strain in the first warm-up game of the tour, bowled two spells in the nets at training at Eden Gardens on Monday without discomfort and then stated: "If I'm needed on Wednesday, then I'll be ready to go. I feel in good rhythm. I'm in a good place."

Finn could face a tough return at Eden Gardens. For all the talk of the pitch - and the Eden Park curator, Prabir Mukherjee, has certainly talked a good game over recent days - it seems that the India captain, MS Dhoni, is going to receive exactly what he requested. Recently used - the last Ranji Trophy match on it ended on November 20 - it will offer, on the evidence of the practice pitches on the same square, far more to spinners than seamers. The England seamers struggled to get the ball to bounce above hip height in the nets which, according to Mukherjee, are much like the Test pitch. Finn may have extra pace but, on such surfaces, his control and skill will be even more important.

"If I'm picked as part of a two-man seam attack, I might be used in a strike-bowling capacity," Finn said. "There is a little bit of pressure, but you don't change your plans or the way that you bowl. Just because you're being used as a strike bowler doesn't mean you start bowling bumpers and yorkers all the time searching for wickets. You still have to have a degree of patience and use your skills wisely."

South Africa won 3rd test match against Australia

Australia lost 3rd test match by 309 runs:

To crib a line from E.T.'s Elliot, this is reality. South Africa embossed their No. 1 ranking with a fearful hiding of Australia in the series-deciding third Test in Perth, and not even the torrent of goodwill sent Ricky Ponting's way on his final day as an international cricketer could prevent resounding confirmation that the hosts remain a long way short of genuine aspirations to be the best team in the world. Three-hundred-and-nine runs short, in fact.


Ponting made an emotional last appearance at the Test match batting crease - fittingly afforded a guard of honour by Graeme Smith - but his final tally of eight was as unsatisfying as the rest of the day for Australia, as they failed completely to cope with the dimensions of a world-record run chase, or alternatively the need to bat for two days to save the match. The Ponting episode was a brief interlude in a day characterised by South Africa's unrelenting attack on the batsmen.

Ricky Ponting's internatinal cricket career ended

Ricky Ponting now got retired from test cricket:

For a moment, Ricky Ponting was a kid again. As he sat in the WACA gym and spoke one last time as a Test cricketer, the emotion finally got the better of him. Ponting, perhaps the toughest competitor of his cricketing generation, fought back tears as he thanked his family for all of their sacrifices. His wife Rianna was there with his daughters Emmy and Matisse. His parents, Graeme and Lorraine, were there too. It was a rare glimpse of the human side of one of sport's hardest men.

To understand Ponting, you have to understand his roots. Australia's most prolific run scorer was raised in working-class northern Tasmania and when he was nine or ten, he used to ride his BMX all around Launceston and the surrounding areas to watch the Mowbray Cricket Club play. He would sit in the change-rooms, rummage through the players' bags when they were on the field and try on their gloves, hold their bats. He helped run the scoreboard at the NTCA ground when Tasmania played there, for a few dollars a day.

At 11, Ponting was playing third-grade cricket with his father; when he became a first-class player, he financed new club-rooms with his first sponsorship payment. He learnt the value of the baggy green when his uncle Greg Campbell, Lorraine's brother and also a Mowbray player, played Test cricket briefly in the late 1980s. Ponting now lives in Sydney but has never changed clubs; if he was to play a club match again it would be for Mowbray.

Ponting walked off the WACA on Monday afternoon having equalled Steve Waugh's record of 168 Test appearances. Nobody has been part of more victories than Ponting. He has played 560 international matches in 15 countries around the world, or 24 if the individual nations that make up the West Indies are taken into consideration. As Ponting sat back and for the first time reflected on his 17-year international career, he became emotional when he considered where it all started.

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the opportunities I was given by them at an early age," Ponting said of his parents. A cough, as he held back the tears. "It's getting a bit harder". Sniff. "The Mowbray Cricket Club, if they see me up here like this at the moment they'll be all over me. That's the place I learnt the game and the person I am was moulded from my background and my upbringing. What you've seen over 17 years is a result of my early days at the Mowbray Cricket Club. Thanks to the boys back there."

Tough as they make them in Mowbray, there wouldn't have been a dry eye there either. Ponting still keeps a close eye on his club's scores. In fact, he keeps a close eye on everything related to the world of cricket. The kid who sat in the change-rooms and listened to the first-grade players tell stories about the match they'd just played still exists. That's what will make retirement so difficult for Ponting. Cricket has been his life.

It is no surprise that he will play on for Tasmania this season, like a junkie being weaned off slowly. From Perth, he will fly to Tasmania to start training for the Hobart Hurricanes. The Big Bash League starts later this week and Ponting will be part of it. Always renowned as a realist, the dreamer in Ponting came through when he considered watching Australia's next Test, against Sri Lanka in Hobart, and joked about warming up with the Test players and earning a late call-up.

"You ask the boys in the dressing room, they reckon I don't miss a ball that's bowled anywhere around the world," he said. "Of course I'll keep an eye on it because I'll miss not being out there. I'll be interested to see who comes in and slots into the No.4 spot and I'll be interested to see what the bowling attack looks like for Hobart.

"The way it works out I'll probably be down there anyway. I've got some training to do for the Hurricanes, leading up to that game, so I'll probably be in Hobart just before that. Who knows, I might even be around for the first day of the game. If I am, I might even join in the warm-up with the boys and see if there's just one more chance!"

There's that kid in the change-rooms again. Pick me! Let me play!

But for all of his cricket passion, Ponting knew the time was right to walk away from the international game. His scores over the past few weeks have confirmed it. Not that he had given up hope of ending with a match-winning hundred.

"I had a bit more of a fairytale ending in my own eyes than what's happened this week," Ponting said. Just then, the pipes in the WACA gym began to squeal, almost drowning out his voice. "Still things are going badly for me here as well! It's been one of those weeks."

Apart from when discussing his family, Ponting was relaxed in retirement. He joked about the standing ovation he had received, and the one given to his nightwatchman Nathan Lyon on the first day. He thanked the media for promoting the game and held no grudges about the criticism levelled on him in recent times. He finished with a brief thought about his legacy.

"Hopefully my impact and input on Australian cricket has left something behind. Thank you."

Sialkot has the ability to beat Pakistan domestic T20

Sialkot is the only team that can lead the Faysal Bank T20 Cup 2012:

Defending champions Sailkot Stallions are the most effective T20 side on the Pakistan domestic circuit. They have missed out on claiming the title only twice, winning it six times. They hold the record for the most number of consecutive wins, being unbeaten for 25 matches between 2006 and 2010. Stallions represented Pakistan in the Champions League in October this year, but failed to qualify for the main event - they lost the opening game against Auckland Aces but won their next game against Hampshire.

Opener Imran Nazir leads the solid top order, and the middle order is centred around captain Shoaib Malik. Seamer Naved-ul-Hasan and promising young left-arm spinner Raza Hasan lead the bowling attack. Stallions will miss spinner Abdur Rehman, who is serving a 12-week ban for using a recreational drug during his stint with Somerset in England.

Shane Watson confident that he can bowl

Shane Watson struggle to make himself a part of bowl:

Shane Watson has bowled 71 first-class overs in the past year. Peter Siddle delivered nearly that many in the Adelaide Test alone. Watson has bowled with the red ball in only one match this summer - the Sheffield Shield game in which he broke down after four overs. Since the start of last season, he has sent down fewer first-class deliveries than Simon Katich. And yet Australia will rely heavily on Watson to ease the workload of the frontline fast men when the Perth Test starts on Friday.

It is easy to forget how little long-form cricket Watson has played in recent times. His presence around the squad, and his omnipresence in Twenty20s and one-dayers around the world never keep him away from a headline or a highlights package. But the decider against South Africa at the WACA will be Watson's first Test on home soil since the disastrous 2010-11 Ashes campaign. How his body will cope remains to be seen, but he is confident that his most recent calf injury is behind him.

"Over the last week I've been gradually building up my running and my bowling," Watson said in Perth on Wednesday. "I bowled six overs in the nets yesterday before we left in Adelaide so I'm certainly going to be up to bowling as many overs as Michael [Clarke] wants and probably the normal sort of workload really that I bowl in a Test match. Things have progressed really well over the past week so I'm ready to go."

Left-hand batsman included in Bangladesh ODI squad

Bangladesh cricket team included left-handed batsman for ODIs:

Mominul Haque, a left-hand batsman, has been brought into Bangladesh's squad for the first two ODIs against West Indies as a replacement for the injured Shakib Al Hasan. The Bangladesh board announced their decision after the completion of the warm-up match between BCB XI and the West Indians in Khulna, where Mominul made 43.

Shakib was ruled out of the first two ODIs because of a stress reaction in his right tibia that caused a shin injury. He has another scan scheduled for December 1 and that will determine the length of his layoff.

"The team management had asked for a batsman to replace Shakib for the first two ODIs, so we picked Mominul," Bangladesh's chief selector Akram Khan said. "He has been batting well for the last one and a half years but I feel it will be wise not to have too many expectations of him because he is new. We will only want him to do things that a batsman does.

"We picked him from among the form batsman. He has been consistent for the A team, scoring runs in West Indies, and also has runs in first-class cricket at home."

New interview of Legendary Umpire Simon Taufel

I just tried to earn their respect on performance:

What made you want to become an umpire, and importantly, what made you continue to want to do it?

When I stopped playing, one of my close friends suggested I join him in an umpiring course. I did not really want to, but he twisted my arm and I went along and we did the course at the New South Wales Cricket Umpires' Association [NSWUA]. It was a good experience. I managed to pass their exam and my mate failed, so he went back to play cricket and I decided to stay on and look at umpiring as a way of earning some extra dollars to help me through university.

I did not take to umpiring with a view to going anywhere or doing anything - I just wanted to be part of it, but it's my nature that if I do anything or take up a project, I try and do it to the best of my ability. So, very quickly I found myself just working up through the grades, like a player would.

Who were the people who helped you in your development?

I had some really good teachers, and great leadership from some very, very experienced people within the game - guys who were Test umpires or guys who had been around Sydney grade cricket for a large number of years. I was extremely lucky that they were very happy to pass on the benefit of their experience, to share knowledge, and also able to mentor me in a way that helped create who I am today. They helped me in my umpiring style, where I try to be as unobtrusive as possible and try to be as professional and player-conscious as possible. I would not be talking to a player out on the field unless the player spoke to me. I would not try to be the centre of attention. I would make sure my preparation and presentation were of very high standards. Looking back now, I was just lucky to be part of the NSWUA for so many years, learning those values of cricket umpiring.

Are good umpires born or made?

To be a good umpire you have to be a good person, have good people skills and have good values. Those are the things people can constantly improve upon. So it is really important going forward that we look at the right style of person to be a match official. Not everybody is suited because it is a very demanding and challenging role. When you do a good job, no one says anything or notices, but when you do a bad job, you get a lot of criticism and negative focus.

You were one of the umpires who consciously built relationships with players. Was it your personality, or did you do it so you could do a better job?

 All I tried to do was be the best umpire I could be. I just tried to earn their respect on performance. I did not try to earn their respect or build a relationship based on friendship. That is a very difficult and dangerous way to go about it, because you do have to make very tough decisions: as to whether or not to give a player out, whether to abandon a game, and all those sorts of things. So it is really important that you make decisions for the right reasons and build relationships based on respect and trust.

Over the years, has the respect from the players increased or lessened?

Players have always appreciated that umpiring is a difficult job. Whenever we ask a player whether they would like to give umpiring a go, the vast majority of them would say, "Why in the world would I do that? You've got to be joking. I could not stand in the sun for six to seven hours and do what you guys do." There is a healthy level of respect.
 
 What has happened is, with the way we use technology in cricket today, a lot of people now appreciate how difficult the decisions are to make and how good the umpiring is at the highest level. When you look at the decision-making percentages these days, which are as high as 94 to 95% (and that is the average), there is a healthy understanding and a healthy respect for how difficult an umpire's job is. Having said that, it is incumbent upon me and every match official to always look for ways to get better.

Pakistan wants to invite Indian players for PPL

"Pakistan will be sent invite to India players for PPL",Zaka Ashraf:

LAHORE - Although the Pakistan Premier League (PPL) looks like a distant possibility, with no fixed dates and plans being kept behind closed doors, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Zaka Ashraf has confirmed that an invite will be sent out to the Indian players for the event's maiden edition.
“It's up to them whether they want to take part or not but the PCB will send out an invitation,”Ashraf was quoted as saying.

“My aim is to do whatever I can to put the relations between the two boards back on track because the fans want to see Pakistan and India in action,” he added.

Meanwhile, Ashraf severely criticised the Punjab government and said the unwanted interference - bringing down a wall of Gaddafi Stadium - could harm Pakistan's image and also the prospects of holding PPL matches in the province.

 “Politics should be kept separate from sports because it'll hurt Pakistan's image. We are trying to launch the revival of international cricket here and the Punjab government is doing such things. We can't even think of hosting an international team or a league match in Punjab in the current scenario,” Ashraf said.

Umesh Yadav will missed third test match

Umesh Yadav injured and will not play third test match against English team:

Fast bowler Umesh Yadav, who was ruled out of India's second Test against England due to a lower back injury, will miss at least the third Test of the series too, which starts in Kolkata on December 5.

 Yadav, the most effective of India's pace bowlers in the series-opener in Ahmedabad, will not recover in time despite there being a prolonged break ahead of the Test. "The injury is more serious than it was thought to be, so the team will have to make do without him for at least another Test."

South Africa vs Australia 2nd test drawn

South Africa drawn 2nd test and Du Plessis unbeaten by 110:

Faf du Plessis would not have been playing in this Test were it not for JP Duminy hurting his Achilles tendon at the Gabba. And just as Duminy did on debut in Perth four years ago, du Plessis has grabbed his first chance at Test cricket to provide a remarkable result for the South Africans. At the WACA it was a near-record chase of 414 for victory; this time South Africa's challenge was to bat for four and a half sessions on a wearing Adelaide Oval pitch to salvage a draw.

Thanks to du Plessis, they did so. Thanks to du Plessis, the scoreline remains at 0-0 heading into the decider in Perth, despite Australia having had the best of the first two Tests. And thanks to du Plessis, Australia's bowlers will have only four days to recover from some serious exhaustion, especially Peter Siddle, who sent down 63.5 overs for the match and was so debilitated by the time he bowled the final over of the match that he could barely stand up.

England crush out India and Tied test series by 1-1

England won 2nd test by 10 wickets:

England pulled back to 1-1 in a four-Test series when they breezed to a ten-wicket victory on the fourth morning of the Mumbai Test. It was a victory which will have roused England's self-belief in Asia and which brought into question India's entire strategy for the series of relying on sharply-turning tracks, leaving them with much to ponder ahead of the third Test in Kolkata next week.

India's slow bowlers had been outperformed by their England counterparts, with Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann finishing with 19 wickets in the match in favourable conditions they rarely experience. Panesar's match return was 11 for 210, Swann 8 for 113, but the Test had turned on an attacking century from Kevin Pietersen that will live long in the memory.

Shakib Ul Hasan Ruled out of first two ODI agains West Indies

Shakib ul Hasan will not play first two ODI matches due to injury:

Shakib Al Hasan, the Bangladesh allrounder, has been ruled out of the first two of five ODIs against West Indies because of a shin injury. Shakib went for a scan after the fourth day of the second Test in Khulna and was diagnosed with a stress reaction of the right tibia.

"We have decided that he [Shakib Al Hasan] will take no further part in the second Test match and will miss the two ODIs in Khulna," Bangladesh's physio Vibhav Singh said. "We will review his scan report with an orthopedic specialist in Dhaka to decide the best management plan for Shakib."

Muhammad Amir wants second chance

I wants second chance as everyone gets:

"If [Marlon] Samuels can make it then there is no reason why I can't make it," said Mohammad Amir, 20, and three years away from completing his ban for his involvement in the spot-fixing scandal in 2010.

"I want to come back with my head held high, with a new spirit and as a role model," he said. "I accepted everything and pleaded guilty only to give myself peace.

"I know there were things that shouldn't have happened, but I can't change my past. It is obviously tough staying away from cricket; I am coping with hell at the moment and nobody can understand how difficult it is to live away from cricket. I made a mistake and paid the price for it, but everyone gets a second chance and I want it too."

Amir said the biggest lesson the scandal has taught him is to be cautious when making friends. "I am cautious about trusting people. Just because a person appears to be nice doesn't mean he is a good friend. He is obviously not if he pulls you down when he sinks himself."

Cook and Pietersen equal most centuries for England

Pietersen's unbeaten century for England against India:

Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen both equalled the record for most England Test centuries as they carried the fight against India on the third morning of the second Test in Mumbai.

Cook fell for 122, 35 minutes before lunch, caught at the wicket by MS Dhoni as R Ashwin found turn and bounce. Ashwin's relief was evident as he ended a stand of 206 in 53 overs which had stirred England's hopes of achieving a victory to square the series.

 Pietersen saw through the session unscathed - 138 not out from 178 balls - as England progressed to within 29 runs of India's first-innings total with six wickets remaining. He added 76 in the morning session without a care in the world, his anxiety in Ahmedabad a distant memory.

Two matches of President's Trophy moved to Punjab

Faisalabad's Iqbal Stadium will not host the match between State Bank of Pakistan and SNGPL:

Two matches of the last round of the President's Trophy have been shifted out of Punjab, to Islamabad and Mirpur, following differences between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Punjab Government.

"There is no clash between the PCB and the Punjab Government," a PCB spokesman told ESPNcricinfo. "We are a sports body and want the games to go on and to avoid any further disruption we have decided to move our matches from the Punjab province to other parts of the country."

To avoid further disruptions, the President's Trophy matches have been moved to the National Stadium in Islamabad and Quaid-e-Azam stadium in Mirpur. "In the meantime, we are in negotiations with the Government to sort out any the issues they think need to be sorted," the spokesman said. "We want the smooth functioning of our tournament and apart from the President's Trophy matches the Under-19 match (Peshawar v Sialkot) has also been relocated to Peshawar."

The PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf said the board can't afford any disruptions at the moment. "We understand that the grounds are the property of the Punjab Government and it's up to them if they will let us play but they should show good spirit and work with a big heart," Ashraf told reporters in Lahore. "But if they carry on with such a condescending attitude we are left with no other choice but to take the matches away from the province."

J Kallis in not able to bowl because of injury

South Africa lost J Kallis's bowling in 2nd Test:

Jacques Kallis will not be able to bowl for the remainder of the second Test but he will be able to bat, South Africa's team management has said, after the allrounder sustained a hamstring injury in the first session and went off the Adelaide Oval. His availability for the third Test in Perth will depend on how he responds to treatment.

Kallis had taken two wickets in 3.3 overs to reduce Australia to 55 for 3 when he aborted his run-up and immediately went off the field. He did not return for the rest of the day, and will now have to spend as much time on the field as he spends off it if South Africa want him to bat wherever they wish. If he is unable to spend enough time on the field, South Africa will have to push him down the batting order to No. 7 or later.

Women's World Cup 2013 trophy detained by customs at Mumbai Airport

The trophy should be brought through cargo except baggage:

The 2013 Women's World Cup trophy replica, brought to Mumbai for a promotional launch of the event, has been detained by the customs officials at the Mumbai airport. The tournament will be held in the city early next year. The trophy arrived via baggage from Dubai, and according to customs rules trophies can only be brought into the country through cargo.

"The trophy should be brought through cargo. In the past we have notified that it shouldn't be part of the baggage. Prior permissions are required to bring them as part of baggage. As per the regulation, the authorities will have to pay a duty on it," Airports customs official PM Saleem told Times of India.

Saleem also mentioned that he had received a letter from the BCCI requesting for an exemption from taxes. However, without documents signifying the approval of the central government in this regard, the trophy will not be released, it is understood.

Sindh High Court asks to change PCB's constitution

The post of the PCB director general, created in 2008 by the then chairman Ijaz Butt, may cease to exist:

The Sindh High Court has issued a notice to the PCB to change its constitution, after accepting former Pakistan wicketkeeper Rashid Latif's petition that sought a 'fair and transparent' functioning of the board.

The petition demands the scrapping of two posts in the PCB, those of the director general and the security advisor, and seeks a new constitution in line with the ICC directives. "The powers assigned to the patron of PCB, who is the president of Pakistan, are in complete disregard and violation of the Constitution, as they smack of a non-transparent and discriminatory approach of the board," the petition said.

Herath Contributed great efforts for crushing win

Sri Lanka crush out New Zealand in 1st test:

A day that began on even terms finished being one-sided. New Zealand's fast-bowling stocks may be promising but their batting continued to be a serious worry and it let them down again, on a day when they had the rare chance of pressing ahead and aiming for a win. They slumped to a fifth straight Test defeat in conditions far less lethal than their scoreline suggested. The batsmen were largely victims of their own approach and lack of confidence against spin on a slow and low pitch.

Rangana Herath was again the wrecker-in-chief, continuing his incredible run in Galle, and finished with 11 wickets in the match. Both his hauls of ten wickets or more in a Test have come in Galle, where he's picked up 46 in eight games at 20.30, including five of his 12 five-fors. His achievement wasn't a surprise, certainly not against an opposition whose performances against spin have been woeful in the recent past. In their last five Tests, all of them defeats, they've lost 62 wickets out of 100 to spin. Only one of those games went into the fifth day.

Sydney Sixes ended Big Bash League contract with Umer Akmal

Umer Akmal's Contract with Sydney Sixes ended after PCB's clearance:

Sydney Sixes ended Umer Akmal's Big Bash League contract after Pakistan Cricket Board's clearance.Sydney Sixes Franchises said that as per contract he will ave to play atleast three matches with Sydney Sixes in Big Bash League. Sydney Sixes ended Umer Akmal's contract after PCB's permission for just one match with Sydney Sixes. According to Sydney Sixes its against to the contaract.