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The remarkable surge in public interest resulting from this summer’s Ashes series has been a double-edged sword for the ECB. While revenues are up and the public cannot get enough of the game, it has also served to highlight the decision to sign away all TV rights to satellite broadcaster Sky Sports.On Tuesday, David Collier, the ECB’s chairman, spoke of his hopes that terrestrial broadcasters will bid for the rights when they next come up for grabs, but that drew an angry response from Luke Johnson, the chairman of Channel 4, who lose the rights after the final Test at The Oval.In an interview with Mihir Bose in the Daily Telegraph, Johnson was quite clear what had been behind the ECB’s decision. “Our view is that the ECB did a very bad deal for the sport. They didn’t handle the negotiations well. They were short-term. They went for the money.”We tried to bring it to the attention of the relevant people at the ECB,” he continued. “But what happened is that there are certain factions in the ECB and they took charge of the negotiations and they are very commercially minded.”The ECB stance is unequivocal. TV money finances the game, and so it was honour-bound to take the best deal. Had it not, so the argument goes, then funding for the England team right down to grass roots cricket would have had to be slashed.While Johnson admitted that Channel 4 could never match the money Sky had available, he said he believed that going for the highest sum was not in the game’s best interests. “The ECB went for the money and they will find they have made a terrible mistake, with cricket disappearing from terrestrial television the level of interest in the sport will decline sharply,” he told Bose. “Cricket is not like football, it needs visibility. How will they get 20,000 people outside a Test ground?”A number of MPs have called on the government to make Test cricket one of the so-called “crown jewel”, events, such as Wimbledon and the FA Cup final, which have to be available on free-to-air terrestrial TV. Test cricket had such status until 1998 when it was taken off the list.Don Foster, the Liberal Democrats’ sports spokesman, told The Guardian: “It is frankly appalling that cricket is not on the list. I wrote to the secretary of state before the Old Trafford Test urging a review and the latest success demonstrates the need for a rethink even more clearly.”

Sourav Ganguly has dismissed notions of India “choking” in finals and believes their performances in the last few years justify his rebuttal. Under Ganguly, India have reached 12 finals and finished as outright winners just once. On two of those occasions, they were joint champions.Pointing to a few two-team series which went into the deciding game, Ganguly told the Press Trust of India that his team’s record wasn’t as bad as it was made out to be. “We won in West Indies when we were 1-1. We then beat Pakistan when we were 2-2. These were as good as finals. Then of course there was the NatWest title [when India beat England at Lord’s].”In three out of the last four one-day tournaments involving more than two countries, India were thwarted by the mighty Australians in the final stage. “We have lost to them [Australia] because they are such a good side. They lift themselves in the big match and we must similarly try to do on Sunday.”Sri Lanka nearly pulled off a fantastic victory in the previous game, despite the absence of Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan. “They will be boosted by Vaas and Murali,” said Ganguly, who quickly added, “it isn’t as if we would be playing them for the first time, we know how to tackle them.”

A pair of Australians have already come blisteringly close to the first century in the Twenty20 Cup, and last night it was Nick Knight’s turn to come, see and all but conquer, as Warwickshire made it two wins out of two in the Midlands/West/Wales division.Like Andrew Symonds and Brad Hodge, Knight fell agonisingly short of his hundred, but his 89 from 58 balls was too much for Worcestershire. Using a strong crosswind to pepper the short boundaries, Knight chipped reverse-sweeps over the infield and flayed through the covers. Even his own team-mates couldn’t keep pace – the next highest score was Ian Bell’s 16. Kadeer Ali kept Worcestershire in the hunt with a stroke-filled 53, but Ian Carter was unstoppable, finishing with 3 for 19.
ScorecardIf Knight took the individual honours, then the team award had to go to Somerset, who chased a barely-credible 194 for victory over Glamorgan, and still won with two whole overs to spare. They were catapulted towards the total by their captain, Jamie Cox, who opened the innings and clattered a six and 11 fours in his 21-ball 53. Somerset were 86 for 2 after five overs, and the Keiths Dutch and Parsons eased them to a stunningly simple seven-wicket victory.
ScorecardDown under the floodlights at Hove, with fire-eaters guiding their route, Sussex got their campaign up and running by beating fellow stragglers Middlesex by 41 runs. Matt Prior and Robin Martin-Jenkins were the mainstays for a decent total of 177 for 9, and Martin-Jenkins was back in action with the ball as well, picking up 4 for 20 in his four overs as Middlesex lost their way.
ScorecardThat man Hodge was back in the runs at Chester-le-Street. Not content with his 97 in Leicestershire’s previous match (and why would he be?), Hodge vented his spleen at Durham, cracking 64 in a total of 168 for 9, a target restricted by some impressive work in the field. Still, it was all too much for Durham, who were given a decent start by Nicky Peng and Phil Mustard, but then lost five wickets for 18 runs. Virender Sehwag, better known as an explosive batsman, detonated the tail with three wickets in three overs.
ScorecardAnd if anyone was in any doubt about how much this competition means to its competitors, then they needed only to witness Wasim Akram’s bat-flinging tantrum after narrowly failing to beat Essex. Wasim had lamped 20 runs off 11 balls to resuscitate Hampshire’s run-chase, but he and Simon Katich could not quite manage the 12 runs needed from Jon Dakin’s final over. Essex’s sub-par total of 155 for 6 had been built on a handy 49 from Andy Flower, and a promising 32 from Essex’s 18-year-old star-in-the-making, Mark Pettini.
Scorecard

Paceman Jason Gillespie wants to make up for lost time by playing in all six Test matches of the Australian summer.Gillespie understands the magnitude of the task he has set himself but clearly treasures each chance to represent his country after battling one injury setback after another throughout his international cricket career.”I want to play all the Tests this season,” Gillespie told AAP.”That’s going to be a big challenge to do that. Hopefully I can stay fit and my form can be good enough to get selected.”With my past, I’ve missed a lot of cricket and I’m trying to make up for lost time, so to speak. I don’t want to have any bad games, I want to be very consistent.”Gillespie returned from Australia’s victorious tour of England saying he was disappointed his form was not more consistent.But his Test figures of 19 wickets at 34.32 reflected the fact the 26-year-old South Australian was unlucky on the Ashes tour, often bowling brilliantly for little reward.He also displayed his ability with the bat, hanging on for a gritty 27 not out at Trent Bridge to help push the Australians back into the match after a first innings collapse.”I just want to play a big part in victories, obviously with the ball, but if I can contribute with the bat and in the field, that’s what I want to do,” Gillespie said.In his first outing since returning from England, Gillespie took 2-14 from eight overs for South Australia in a one-day trial match won by Tasmania in Adelaide last week.This Friday, he will lead the Redbacks’ attack in a day-night ING Cup match against Western Australia in Perth.And Gillespie said he expected a tough summer for the Australian side against a New Zealand outfit which has recalled allrounder Chris Cairns, paceman Dion Nashand spinner Daniel Vettori from injury.Not to mention keen rivals South Africa.”We always have great battles against South Africa and I’m sure this year won’t be any different,” Gillespie said.”For New Zealand to have their best players will be a bonus for them but it’s also a bonus for us because we want to play against the best they’ve got.”I think we’re going to have to be on the top of our game to bowl them out because they’ve got some very good stroke makers and some good batsmen who workthe ball around.”They’ve got a couple of their big guns back as bowlers so our batters have to be on top of their game.”

Tim Cutler, the chief executive of Hong Kong Cricket, has entered the debate over their one-day practice match against England in Abu Dhabi, calling it “a historic event where the teams met for the first ever time in a fifty over match” and holding out hopes of a full ODI against England in the future.While expressing gratitude to England for the opportunity, he also reflected upon Hong Kong’s ODI status and warned: “We need to make sure there are cohesive plans around fast tracking the development of emerging cricket nations across the globe.”The match was played as a 13-a-side practice match with the opportunity to play a full ODI against Hong Kong, who won full ODI status last year, not taken.Cutler suggested that time was short after the Emirates Cricket Board offered the Hong Kong fixture to England – and a Nepal fixture to Pakistan – via the ICC Development Team in Dubai.”To provide the best possible practice situation for both teams, it was then agreed between the coaching staff of both teams that 13 players would be allowed to participate from each team, with only 11 allowed to bat and/or field at any one time.”We appreciate the opportunity for our players to benefit from the experience in playing against a full-strength England ODI squad in preparation for Hong Kong’s ICC Intercontinental Cup and ICC World Cricket League Championship matches.”Cutler was careful to show gratitude to ECB, and especially his fellow chief executive Tom Harrison, for their qualified support and also praised Harrison’s interest in cricket as an Olympic sport, indicating that – comparatively at least – there are some signs of a more expansionist attitude under Harrison’s stewardship.

Hong Kong in talks for county pre-season tours

Hong Kong Cricket are hoping to continue their development by attracting first-class counties to the region in March.

Fresh from their first 50-over match against England, the HKCA now hopes that at least one county may be persuaded to prepare for the English domestic campaign by touring the territory for pre-season.

It is understood the club have been attracted by the possibility of their costs being subsidised by sponsorship arranged by the HKCA.

The HKCA, meanwhile, want to “present Hong Kong as a viable option for similar tours in the future,” in the words of their CEO, Tim Cutler and showcase their facilities at the Hong Kong Cricket Club and Kowloon Cricket Club. They hope such a tour might encourage more sponsorship for the sport from within the region.

They also aim to “build relationships and pathways” for their young players, in the hope that some could gain school or club places in England.

But he did not sidestep the very real issues facing Associate nations as they attempt to gain opportunities to grow the game, confirming that a reluctance from all parties to foot the bill for an ODI (thought to be less than $100,000) had played a part in the negotiations.”In response to various media reports and approaches; yes, the matter of the total cost for an ODI was mentioned during the (last minute) arrangements of the fixture, as would be expected,” he said.”Perhaps, if both parties had longer to prepare, a full ODI may have been feasible and hopefully this is something both parties can consider for the future. However the reality was that in the time available – less than a month – the proper arrangements that would normally be covered by a series MOU could not be completed in time.A memorandum of understanding describes a formal agreement between the parties indicating how a match should be staged and can vary in complexity depending on the requirements of those involved.”However frustrating it may seem (especially from an Associate ODI-status member perspective) the fixture would not have proceeded if not for the support of the ECB, especially its CEO, Tom Harrison. Tom has been one of the main drivers behind the scenes in the ECB’s change of stance to now support Cricket as an Olympic sport and the HKCA applauds his efforts in this respect.”I believe including cricket in the Olympics, alongside an expanded World Cup & World Twenty20 tournament structure are all critical to our sport’s growth. If we ever truly want to be the world’s favourite sport, we need to make sure there are cohesive pans around fast tracking the development of emerging cricket nations across the globe.”I think this particular instance highlights a need for an expanded fund / mechanism to support ODI / T20i matches between FMs and all High Performance Associate Members to underpin the bridging of the gaps between cricket emerging and the developed world. I look forward to discussing this more with the ICC Development Team as they continue to assist us in our future plans for Hong Kong’s cricketing success.”Hong Kong, ranked 16th in ODIs and 11th in T20Is, are holding preliminary discussions with at least two such nations.They also have a T20 fixture against Pakistan later in the month – although as yet this also has no T20 status – before official T20s against Afghanistan and Oman.March sees Hong Kong in a second, and successive, World Twenty20. Prior to the tournament, Hong Kong will host an inaugural home series against Scotland in January, and will take part in the Asia Cup qualifying tournament in Bangladesh in mid-February.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s move to Durham has been delayed with his work permit taking longer than expected. The details of his deal have been agreed and he will join for the remainder of the season, but the move can’t be finalised until the official paperwork is complete.”We have agreed terms with [him],” said a Durham statement. “However, he will not sign for Durham CCC until he holds a valid work permit and visa. This process is in hand but may take some time.”Chanderpaul is also being lined up for a return in 2008 if Durham’s current overseas professional, Michael Di Venuto, applies to become a European citizen. The Australian has an Italian passport through his father and as such would be classified as a Kolpak signing, freeing the county to sign Chanderpaul.His move to Durham has come at an important time for the club. They have recently lost Scott Styris, who has been recalled by New Zealand Cricket after injury concerns. If Chanderpaul gets clearance to play he will be available for the Friends Provident final, at Lord’s, on August 18.Other members of the West Indies tour party are also joining counties. Jerome Taylor is at Leicestershire under a Digicel-sponsored scholarship and Daren Powell has signed with Hampshire.

Canada 235 and 52 for 1 lead Kenya 231 (Mishra 83*, Osinde 4-51, Bhatti 4-82) by 56 runs
Scorecard A battling 83 from 19-year-old Tanmay Mishra helped Kenya claw their way back into the reckoning on the second day of their Intercontinental Cup tie against Canada at Maple Leaf Cricket Club after they had seemed out on their feet. By the close, Canada led by 56 runs with nine second-innings wickets in hand.Resuming on 14 for 4 in reply to Canada’s first innings of 235, Kenya continued to lose wickets and by lunch had slipped to 101 for 7 – it was remarkably similar to the first day when Canada found themselves on 102 for 7.The Canadians’ recovery had been led by , and Kenya found a hero in the precocious Mishra, who had already shown glimpses of his potential in recent one-day series. With Nehemiah Odhiambo he added 66 for the eighth wicket, but he really came into his own with the Nos. 10 and 11 when he marshalled the strike to frustrate the bowlers.Henry Osinde (4 for 51) and Bhatti (4 for 82), who did all the damage on the first evening, were the pick of the bowlers, but their figures suffered in the latter stages of Kenya’s innings.Canada, who led by only five, started well second time, but Thomas Odoyo struck a crucial blow shortly before the close when he removed John Davison.

Phil Jaques raised his fifth first-class double-century and passed 1000 runs for the season as he provided the brightest Australian note during a rain-troubled round of the County Championship. Batting at No. 4 for Yorkshire, Jaques piled on 219 from 261 balls as he shared a county-record partnership for the third wicket against Derbyshire with Anthony McGrath, who made 134.The pair’s 310-run stand at Headingley put Yorkshire in a strong position before they lost 7 for 24 to close the innings at 570 after Ian Harvey chipped in with 83. Surviving chances on 21 and 94, Jaques, who last summer became the first New South Wales batsman since Bob Simpson to score two double centuries in a season, reached 217 by the end of day one, but was part of the collapse on the second morning and now has 1039 Championship runs at 64.94.After watching their Australian counterparts plunder, Michael Di Venuto and John Moss both picked up half-centuries before the third day was washed out. Yorkshire then enforced the follow-on and Moss’s second half-century, his fourth of the season, helped his side to a draw. Derbyshire remain at the bottom of the Division Two table while Yorkshire are second, 15 points behind Durham.As Paul Collingwood was pushing for England selection with twin hundreds, Mike Hussey stepped in with 63 and 27 as Durham avoided the rain in their 207-run win over Somerset at Taunton. Mick Lewis, the short-term replacement for the injured Ashley Noffke, was wicket-less in the first innings but cleaned up the second time round with three late victims. The victory was Durham’s sixth of the season.In Division One, David Hussey added 29 and 30 as Nottinghamshire, who top the table, held on for a close draw against Surrey at The Oval. Notts have a six-point buffer over Kent while Hampshire, who also didn’t play this week, are 19 points adrift.Stuart Law struck 59 off 45 balls in the final of the Twenty20 Cup at The Oval on Saturday, but it was the highlight of a dismal innings of 112 as Lancashire easily gave up the trophy to Somerset. Andrew Symonds, who made 52 from 30 deliveries in the semi-final against Surrey, collected 12 before he was run out and then watched Graeme Smith, the South Africa captain, sweep Somerset to victory.

Daan van Bunge, who was the youngest member of the Holland side at the 2003 World Cup, entered the record books earlier this week when he hit the fastest century in the history of MCC’s Young Cricketers.van Bunge, 21, smashed a 38-ball hundred, including 14 fours and nine sixes, against the Surrey Under-19 team at Weybridge on Monday. His innings of 121 eclipsed Surrey’s total of 119, and helped his side to a 258-run victory. His record-breaking knock was made all the more impressive considering the other players who have passed through the young cricketers programme, including Ian Botham, Martin Crowe and Mark Waugh.”It’s a tremendous achievement for Daan to have scored a faster century than any previous MCC Young Cricketer,” said John Stephenson, MCC’s new Head of Cricket. “He is a player of enormous promise and, ever since he joined MCC, he has been a great credit to the club – on and off the pitch.”van Bunge, who is in his second year on the MCC staff, has been part of the Dutch international side since 2002, and had an impressive World Cup last year. He scored 62, his highest score in an international, against India in a losing cause, and then took 3 for 16 against England, taking the wickets of Nick Knight, Michael Vaughan and Andrew Flintoff.Darren Sammy, who is part of West Indies’ squad for this summer’s NatWest Series, is also a current MCC Young Cricketer, while England’s Rikki Clarke and Hamish Marshall of New Zealand are recent graduates of the scheme.

Nasser Hussain has delivered a riposte to Mike Gatting, who had said last week that Hussain was putting personal ambition ahead of the interests of the national side.Hussain has insisted that he is still the right man to lead the Test side even though Gatting said that England’s new one-day captain, Michael Vaughan, ought to be in charge of both teams.Speaking to the , Hussain said: “I believe that England will be a better side because I’m leading them – and no one else. If that sounds selfish or big-headed so be it.”I’ve told the selectors – and this is not selfish – that if they believe Michael Vaughan or anyone else will do a better job or I’m not doing a particularly good job, I’ll step aside.”Gatting, the last England captain to lead the team to an Ashes win, in 1986-87, said that Hussain’s pursuit of 100 Test caps and the desire to lead England to more Test wins than anyone else was “self-centred”. But Hussain insisted that there was nothing wrong about goal-setting.”I’m not apologising for having ambitions. That’s part of being a professional sportsman, captain or not. It’s the English mentality. When someone states ‘I’m ambitious’, he gets knocked. Here, everyone loves a loser.”Everyone loved me when I got back from Australia and South Africa last winter. ‘Poor old Nasser, having to try to deal with the Aussies and the Zimbabwe issue.'”England lost the Ashes series in Australia and subsequently boycotted their World Cup match in Zimbabwe, a decision that cost them points and contributed to their failure to make it into the second round. After England’s exit, Hussain announced his retirement from one-day international cricket, saying that it was the right decision for England as well as himself.And he insisted that staying on as Test captain was an equally selfless act on his part. “I’m taking the difficult road. I’m not taking the selfish road. I’m putting my neck on the line this summer because if we lose to Zimbabwe or South Africa [England’s Test opponents this season] it will be me the finger is pointed at.”