Day two

A century from skipper Hasan Raza accompanied by some fine seam bowling from Rajesh Ramesh and Imran Javed enabled Karachi Urban to take full control of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Gold League final against defending champions Sialkot at Multan Cricket Stadium. Raza’s hundred, the 28th of his first-class career, saw Karachi to 403, before Sialkot were reduced to 93 for five by day’s end.Honours began almost even on the second day, Karachi six wickets down with 249 on the board. But Raza, on a painstaking 56 not out overnight, switched gears early on. Though Karachi lost two early wickets, with less than 300 scored, Raza found a useful partner in Tanvir Ahmed. The two put on 97 for the ninth wicket, Ahmed’s share a not insubstantial 36.By the end, Raza had moved to an unbeaten 161, with as many as seven sixes and thirteen fours, a stark contrast to his go-slow yesterday. Sarfraz Ahmed took two of the four remaining wickets to finish with an admirable six-wicket haul.The momentum though had shifted by then and Sialkot, once hoping to face a total of under 300, were now left with a mini-mountain to overcome. They got off to the worst possible start, Ramesh dismissing Majid Jahangir and highly-rated Shahid Yousuf in successive balls when Sialkot were only on 14.Thereafter, it didn’t get much better; Tariq Mahmood, former Pakistan U-19 World Cup winner and offspinner with the Murali action, was promoted up the order and crawled to a 44-ball, 76-minute two. Javed eventually sent him back, as well as Atiq-ur-Rehman who provided solitary, futile resistance. When Ayub Dogar also fell, Sialkot were tottering at 71 for five. Ijaz Ahmed, captain and former Pakistan one-down legend, came out firing and was unbeaten on 19 as the day drew to a close.He will need to roll back the years if Sialkot are to have any chance of preventing Karachi from adding to their record Quaid haul of 17 wins.

May 14, 1948 Bob Woolmer is born in Kanpur, India1968 Made his first-class debut for Kent. Scored an unbeaten 50August 24, 1972 Played the first of his six one-day internationals, against Australia at Old Trafford. Took 3 for 33; did not bat1975 Selected in England’s World Cup squad, but broke his hand before the tournament started and forced to do 12th man dutiesJuly 31, 1975 Made his Test debut against Australia at Lord’s. Made 64 runs, and took a wicketSeptember 3, 1975 Scored a 495-minute 149 in only his second Test, at The Oval, to save the game against Australia1976 Named one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the YearJune-July, 1977 Scored back-to-back centuries against Australia at Lord’s and Old Trafford. His 137 at Old Trafford was his last fifty-plus score in Test cricket1977 Signed up for the Kerry Packer-led World Series Cricket1980 Returned to Test cricket, playing two matches against West IndiesJuly 7, 1981 Played the last of his 19 Tests, against Australia, again at Lord’s. Made 21 and 9.1982 Joined the rebel tour to South Africa, which ended his career as an England player1984 Retired from first-class cricket and emigrated to South Africa, where he takes up coaching assignments in high schools1991 Appointed director of coaching at Warwickshire1994 Warwickshire win three out of four trophies, and are runners-up in the NatWest Trophy, with Woolmer as coach.1994 – 1999 Took over as coach of South Africa. During that period, South Africa won 21 Tests out of 44, emerging victorious in ten Test series out of 15. South Africa emerged as one of the leading one-day sides during his tenure, winning 83 out of 111 matches between December 1994 and June 1999.1999 World Cup His swansong as South Africa coach which came to an unfortunate end after South Africa were knocked out in a thrilling semi-final against Australia. He was in the news for different reasons at the start of the tournament when cameras caught him conversing with captain Hansie Cronje through a earpiece when South Africa took the field against India.2001 Takes over as ICC’s High Performance Manager, working towards the development of the game among the Associate countries, helping them compete in the 2003 World Cup.March 2003 Was one of the candidates shortlisted for the coach of West Indies.August 2003 Turns down an offer to coach Sri Lanka.June 2004 – March 2007 Took over as Pakistan coach from Javed Miandad after Pakistan’s home-series defeat against India. His contract was to run till the end of the 2007 World Cup. In this period, Pakistan win 37 out of 69 one-dayers and ten Tests out of 28.

Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappell, India’s captain and coach, have said their team are gearing up for their World Cup opener in a confident and relaxed frame of mind.”Whatever the conditions are, they will vary from venue to venue and that’s going to be part of the challenge, as it is in any World Cup,” Chappell said after his team’s first practice session at Port-of-Spain. “We will have to bat [on different pitches] as every team will. Not every wicket is same and not all conditions around the world are same. That’s what sorts out better teams from others. We are looking forward to our first game.”India open their campaign against Bangladesh at the Queen’s Park Oval on Saturday. Sri Lanka and debutants Bermuda are the other sides in Group B. “We have looked at our group and we know what we have got to do,” said Chappell. “We have got three good games coming up and that should help prepare us to go further. The guys have enjoyed a few days of peace and quiet before the tournament, so in a way that’s been good. Now, everyone is keen for the tournament to start.”Dravid said he had told his team-mates to soak up the World Cup atmosphere without losing focus. “The World Cup is about working hard and preparing right,” he said. “It’s also about ensuring we have a downtime as well. We relax and enjoy the atmosphere. We enjoy the World Cup because it comes once in four years. I’d like my boys to soak up the atmosphere and to soak up everything that goes around the event, but obviously work very hard. We have to ensure we give the boys enough time to relax and take their minds away from cricket so that when they come back to the ground they are fresh and really keen to go out there and do well.”Chappell spoke of the non-cricketing activities that the team had enjoyed during the last few days. “We’ve have been practising, relaxing, swimming, sailing and snorkeling. We have been doing things you would expect to do in the West Indies, things that sometimes the guys don’t get an opportunity to do. It’s been a nice change of pace from the point of view of what happens on a normal tour, particularly in India where you are playing every three days. It’s very hard to fit in some relaxation. So it’s been good for the guys to have that opportunity to change of pace, but not so much that it distracts them from what they are doing.”

The performance evaluation committee (PEC), formed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to look into Pakistan’s dismal World Cup performance, questioned several players and officials in Karachi.Wasim Bari, former chief selector, Younis Khan and legspinner Danish Kaneria, as well as former selector Iqbal Qasim and fast bowler Mohammad Sami, were all questioned.The players and officials were asked to record their views about the poor performance in the World Cup and also asked for suggestions for the improvement of domestic cricket.Talking to reporters after his session with the committee, Sami blamed the team for a lack of application in the Caribbean.”Our batting, bowling and fielding, all were miserable in our short stint in the West Indies and all the team members are responsible for the team’s early exit from the event,” he said.Kaneria, however, spoke about the failure of Pakistan’s batsmen, while also expressing surprise over his exclusion for the Ireland game. Pakistan’s defeat in that game, their second in a row, condemned them to an early exit from the tournament.The committee, having already questioned several big names including Inzamam-ul-Haqand Mushtaq Ahmed, will carry out their next assessments in Lahore. Ijaz Butt, chairman, said the committee will finish their assignment in the next seven days before submitting their final recommendations to the PCB.

Nimbus, the Indian production company, has secured the rights for India’s offshore series against South Africa in Ireland in June. The series was under threat yesterday when the BCCI’s deal with Zee Sports fell through, but Nimbus have stepped in to alleviate Ireland’s fear of the whole tournament being cancelled.Nimbus agreed to pay US$24.20 million for the series and, according to Lalit Modi, the BCCI vice-president, bagged the rights after Zee failed to pay the stipulated amount by the deadline of May 28.”Nimbus have agreed to pay US$6.05 million per match for the four matches in Ireland [against South Africa on June 26, 29 and July 1] and Scotland [against Pakistan on July 3],” said Modi. “We have terminated the contract through a letter sent to Zee today.”According to Ashish Kaul, Zee’s senior vice-president, his company had pulled out of the deal because they were not given the same discount offered to Nimbus for telecasting the matches held in India, after the broadcasters were forced to share the feed with public broadcaster Doordarshan. But Modi denied this claim.”Zee were offered the same discount as Nimbus but it was not agreeable to them,” said Modi. If Doordarshan, with whom all broadcasters have to share their feeds, does not encrypt its signals, Nimbus will be given a discount of Rs 257 crore from their overall deal of US$612 million with the BCCI to telecast all cricket played in India till March 2010.”We recognise the problems faced by broadcasters over the non-encryption of Direct to Home (DTH) signals by Doordarshan and have come to an amicable settlement with Nimbus,” added Modi. “We have held many meetings with both Nimbus and Zee over the issue.” After Zee’s pull-out the BCCI held talks with ESPN Star Sports, Ten Sports and Nimbus who were the only ones who accepted the board’s offer.Modi also disagreed with Zee’s views that the BCCI kept the broadcasters in the dark about offshore ventures and said, as per the agreement, the telecasters were told about future offshore ties six months in advance.Harish Thawani, Nimbus’s chief, expressed satisfaction with the four-match deal and said they would be interested in televising further offshore matches organised by the BCCI. “We have come to an amicable amount and we are happy that the BCCI have quantified our losses and compensated us,” said Thawani. “Cricket has to go on. One or two technical matters have also been dealt with.”Thawani added that the matches would not necessarily be shown on Nimbus’s Neo Sports channel but there was a possibility of it being syndicated to six other channels, including regional ones, as was done with the Bangladesh series.These developments come 24 hours after Nimbus pulled out of broadcasting the Afro-Asian Cup beginning in India on June 5. They cited the absence of several big stars in the Asian XI as the reason for pulling the plug. However, the series will take place as planned after the Asian Cricket Council struck a last-minute deal with ESPN-Star.

Fourteen players named in Kenya’s side for the forthcoming ICC Champions Trophy match against Namibia have refused to allow their names to be included in the squad.The 14, which includes Steve Tikolo, the former captain, have been on strike after falling out with the Kenyan Cricket Association over backpay and contractual issues. It had been hoped that the recent decision by the government to suspend the KCA had cleared the way to end the dispute, but today’s news indicates otherwise.However, the continuing stand-off could be a temporary obstacle. The KCA executive, with which the players are at loggerheads, have retained control for a short period after going to court to ask for a review of the minister’s decision. If, as many predict, the application to have the government’s move overturned is dismissed, then the new Normalisation Committee is more likely to be able to reach agreement with the strikers.Yesterday, the KCA named a 31-man squad for the match, but this has now been trimmed to 17 following today’s news. “As it stands, the KCA still has things it has to sort out like the allowances which they were supposed to have cleared by January 20 which they have not done,” said Tikolo. “And they haven’t even explained why.” The explanation might be straightforward. The KCA is reported to be almost bankrupt.Tikolo also revealed that he will be playing in England from April, “For the time being I will play for Swamibapa in the league but come April I will be going to England for a stint with a club in the northern Lancashire league,” he said. Cricinfo can confirm that Tikolo will join Haverigg, a small club on the west coast of Cumbria, on a one-year contract. Haverigg play in the Daniel Thwaites North Lancashire & Cumbria League Premier Division.

The Indian board (BCCI) has named Nitin Patel as replacement for the injured physiotherapist John Gloster.Patel, a London-based physiotherapist, has previously worked with the Baroda Cricket Association and with the England and Wales Cricket Board’s fast bowling research group. He did his masters in Sports and Exercise Medicine from the University of Nottingham in the UK.”He [Patel] has acquired experience [by] working closely with national high performance programme team to develop measures for injury prevention/pre-rehabilitation and rehabilitation,” said Ratnakar Shetty, BCCI’s chief administrative officer.The BCCI said that Gloster, who fractured his elbow on June 21, would be out of action for at least four to six weeks. However, he is expected to return to the side after his surgery and advise and assist Patel in the interim.Patel said that he would leave for Belfast on Tuesday evening and would reach only after the first ODI against South Africa. Though the BCCI release indicated that Patel would be with the team for the rest of the tour, captain Rahul Dravid stated otherwise.”The board has checked out his credentials apparently, and he’ll be here with us for two-three weeks only, till John gets fit,” Dravid told . “And John will be with us in any case after two-three days to supervise.”Shetty had earlier stated that India A physio Vaibhav Daga would join the team in England.

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.

The Indian board has marked out 60 to 70 million rupees ($1.47-1.71 million) for women’s cricket this season, almost twice of what had been allotted last year.”The increase in the money available means women will get to play more days of cricket, approximately thrice the amount they played last year,” Shubhangi Kulkarni, the convenor of the BCCI’s women’s committee, told Cricinfo.While last season state cricket was restricted to limited-overs matches, this year women’s state teams will play one-day as well as two-day fixtures. Apart from that, Under-19 inter-state tournaments as well as zonal tournaments will be organised for women. Like with men’s cricket, prize money for women’s tournaments will also see an increase.The women’s committee further plans to hold Level I courses in cricket education for women keen on becoming coaches, scorers or umpires.Though an increase in prize money for international tournaments is planned, it isn’t exactly clear yet how much will be handed out.

It’s sudden death for Australia and Sri Lanka. In a rematch of the World Cup final the winners will move into the semi-finals and the losers will head out of the ICC World Twenty20. The teams come into the crunch match in different states of mind, Australia still struggling to accept the format after losing to Pakistan while Sri Lanka are buoyant after coming through against Bangladesh. Australia have also been hit by the injury to Ricky Ponting, who was ruled out for the rest of the tournament – however long that may be for his team.Bat talk: With Ponting missing, there is a spot to fill for Australia and the favourite is Shane Watson, who recently recovered from a hamstring injury. It could mean a reshuffle in the order and Brad Hodge – who has been consistent – might get a promotion. “We have just got to get it right in one go,” Andrew Symonds said.Sri Lanka laboured to 147 against Bangladesh, but it proved more than enough and was a fine example of a batting side adjusting their sights. After an explosive start to them tournament Sanath Jayasuriya has had two lean matches, while Kumar Sangakkara hasn’t displayed his best form.Wrecking ball: Australia have stuck with four frontline fast bowlers and Stuart Clark has been the main success with eight wickets at 10 apiece and an economy rate of 5.37. Brett Lee, Nathan Bracken and Mitchell Johnson have also performed solidly, but the fifth bowler’s quota, shared between Symonds and Michael Clarke, has been a weakness. The return of Watson would allow another fast bowling option to relieve the pressure.Sri Lanka’s experienced attack proved too much for Bangladesh at the Wanderers and even without Muttiah Muralitharan they are a handful. Dilhara Fernando has been impressive throughout with his mixture of slower balls and bouncers. “He’s been superb with his changes of pace,” the coach Trevor Bayliss said. “It’s a bit of a surprise that he’s been one of the better bowlers.” Farveez Maharoof’s introduction at the expense of Gayan Wijekoon has also strengthened the bowling.Keep an eye on: Lasith Malinga. As he showed in the World Cup (with four wickets in four balls against South Africa) he can change a game in one over, about the same amount of time it takes him to change his hair style.Shop talk: Symonds was confident the Australians could overcome the loss of Ponting: “You lose the best player in the world and it’s going to leave a bit of a hole,” he said, “but Shane Watson seems to have recovered very well from his hamstring injury and he played very well at the World Cup. Brad Hodge batted well [against Pakistan] and he has played quite a bit of Twenty20 so there are blokes who can handle the situation.”Despite a handsome victory, Bayliss admitted Sri Lanka’s batting struggled in their previous Super Eights match. “We took a few of the wrong options,” he said. “Even though it’s only 20 overs it is all about partnerships.” Fernando and Chaminda Vaas took it fairly easily in training at Newlands, but just as a precautionary measure.Pitching it right: This is Sri Lanka’s first visit to Cape Town in the tournament so they will have to adjust to a slower, lower surface but that should suit their game. Australia are used to conditions although the ground has had two days of solid sunshine which may change the surface a little and it is also the first 10am start at Newlands.TeamsAustralia (probable) Adam Gilchrist (capt, wk), Matthew Hayden, Brad Hodge, Andrew Symonds, Mike Hussey, Michael Clarke, Shane Watson, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark.Sri Lanka (probable) Upul Tharanga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Chamara Silva, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Jehan Mubarak, Faveez Maharoof, Chaminda Vaas, Dilhara Fernando, Lasith Malinga.