All posts by csb10.top

Stephen Moore and Vikram Solanki utterly dominated the second day against Gloucestershire at Cheltenham, batting through among the rain, to end with unbeaten centuries in a second-wicket stand so far worth a mighty 301. By the curtailed close, with only 56.3 overs of the second day, Moore was on 120 and Solanki 179 from 161 balls in what was the highest second-wicket partnership in Worcestershire‘s history, beating the 300 between Philip Weston and Graeme Hick against India in 1996. The pair also brought up personal milestones – Solanki passing 13,000 first-class runs and Moore reaching 1000 runs for the season – as they carried on flawlessly on a decent batting surface. Worcestershire now lead by 42 runs with nine wickets remaining.Glamorgan fought back on the second to leave their game against Essex delicately poised at Garon Park. The visitors wrapped up the Essex innings for the addition of another 67 runs after the batting side resumed on 139 for 5 – level with Glamorgan’s first effort. Essex captain Mark Pettini (21) was unable to add to his overnight score before he was caught at short mid-off in the first over of the morning. The last two wickets added 47 as Glamorgan regretted dropping Graham Napier on 0 at square leg off a skier following an attempted pull. Glamorgan’s second innings suggested the wicket had flattened out from the opening day as they reached 252 for 5 at the close with consistent contributions down the order. Robert Croft was unexpectedly promoted to open as a pinch-hitter to take advantage of the new ball but he soon edged through off Napier. Conventional opening pair Richard Grant (75) and Gareth Rees (62) then put on 120 for the second wicket before a flurry of wickets gave Essex the ascendancy once more. Michael Powell (36 not out) and Mark Wallace (26 not out) added an unbeaten 62 for the sixth wicket to leave Glamorgan 185 runs in front on a slightly truncated day owing to rain which lopped off seven overs.HD Ackerman’s agonising 199 boosted Leicestershire to a strong 432. The side were helped by Tom Smith – the on-loan Lancashire player registering his maiden Championship fifty from 28 matches – and Claude Henderson, who was unbeaten on 53. Ian Salisbury took the final three wickets to end with a haul of 5 for 87. Darren Maddy and Navdeep Poonia began the reply for Warwickshire when play was called off for the day at Grace Road.There was no play on Thursday between Northamptonshire and Derbyshire at Chesterfield because of rain.

The leaders Nottinghamshire slipped to 114 for 4 in reply to Durham‘s 266, with Bilal Shafayat carrying their hopes through an unbeaten fifty at Trent Bridge. Only 32 overs were played, but it was enough for Steve Harmison to claim two wickets after being left out of the Test team, including Matt Wood in the 3.4 overs of the morning session. Callum Thorp and Dale Benkenstein also make inroads to leave the match finely balanced.Solid innings from Zander de Bruyn and Marcus Trescothick launched a positive reply for Somerset after Sussex reached 419 at Horsham. Justin Langer could only manage 15 before being removed by Robin Martin-Jenkins but the second-wicket pair continued undaunted until Jason Lewry broke the stand when it was worth 141. Trescothick departed not long afterwards, another victim for Martin-Jenkins, falling eight short of his century and Peter Trego fell shortly before the close to Luke Wright.Yasir Arafat took six wickets to finish off Hampshire for 367, but Joe Denly and Rob Key responded well with an opening stand of 110, Kent ending up on 241 for 3 at Canterbury. Key was dropped on 33 at slip and Denly was given two lives, on 24 at mid-off and 28 in the slips. Both batsmen will have been frustrated to miss out on their centuries after being given second chances, while Imran Tahir had two victims in his pocket. Hampshire’s last five wickets fell for 40 and that could prove crucial in the final outcome.Only 13.3 overs were possible at Headingley, where Yorkshire added 30 runs without any loss before play was called off at 1.40pm. They still trail Surrey by 124 runs but crucially have all ten wickets remaining in their first innings and are well placed to erase the deficit.

Alex Tudor, whose omission from England’s 16-man Ashes squad was described as a “close call” by England’s chairman of selectors, is included in England’s winter academy squad.Tudor, 24, was man of the match in the win over Sri Lanka at Old Trafford, but since then he has suffered shin splints and he looked below par in the last two Tests of the series against India.

“Alex Tudor has been included in the academy squad rather than the Test squad because we have concerns about his strength and stamina and want him to concentrate on these areas this winter,” said Graveney.There is also a berth in the 15-man academy squad for Lancashire’s 20-year-old pace bowler Jimmy Anderson, who has taken 44 first-class wickets in 10 matches this season. But Warwickshire’s Ian Bell, widely tipped as a likely England selection at the start of the summer, misses out with a back injury.”Following discussions with both Warwickshire and Rod Marsh, Ian Bell has not been included in the academy squad to go to Australia,” Graveney said. “He has a stress fracture of the back and it is felt that he needs a rest after a long period of continuous cricket.”However, we will consider including Ian on the trip to Sri Lanka in the NewYear provided he makes a satisfactory recovery from injury,” he added.Academy squad: K Ali (Worcs), J Anderson (Lancs), G Batty (Worcs), I Blackwell(Somerset), R Clarke (Surrey), K Hogg (Lancs), G Muchall (Durham), M Panesar(Northants), C Read (Notts), D Stevens (Leics), C Tremlett (Hants), J Troughton(Warwicks), A Tudor (Surrey), G Wagg (Warwicks), M Wallace (Glam).

We recently announced our winter squads to prepare for next season. Traditionally this time of year is busy one for me and coming off my first season as a first-class coach I hadn’t realised just how busy it would be.The coaching process contains four very distinctive phases: Observation, Planning, Implementation and Review.When I first arrived in Hamilton to begin my new challenge, I met with a number of different people (including players, administrators, interested supporters and players from opposition teams) with a view to forming an objective opinion about what stage of development the Knights were at.I have been in the role now for nearly nine months and this time encompasses four months of actual play. In this period I have observed the players in competition, in training and as people generally. While it is a relatively simple task for a skilled coach to look at a player and gain a good feel for the technical abilities of the player, getting to know the make-up of people in terms of their personal philosophies and values about the game, can take significantly longer.It is important to me that I gain an understanding of:

• Why the players play the game (because this assists me to understand where the motivation drivers lie)
• What their ideal performance state is (in terms of arousal levels – psych up, not out)
• The player awareness of the skills they require to perform consistently (this is vital if you value the players having the ability to self-analyse)
• The player understanding of their strengths and weaknesses
• The quality of the personal planning of the player
• The player’s ability to make decisions (whether they have a process they follow)
• The player’s ability to analyse (what needs to be taken care of right now, then the ability to execute)

People say that cricket is played 90% in the head and 10% in the hands, so for me it does not make sense to spend 90% of my coaching time on developing the 10%.Coaches should not feel that they have to have all the knowledge because we don’t and, in my case, working with elite players I know that each of them has a personal style which has been developed over a long period of time. They know far more about themselves than I do. The challenge for me is to develop this understanding. I would do them a major disservice if I looked to clone them technically.I believe it is important to understand how much the player thinks about, knows and is able to verbalise about themselves in all aspects of their game.Smart coaches get the players to teach them about themselves.What I know is not as important as me knowing how much the player knows. Once I ascertain these things from the player I am better placed to assist them in the development process and therefore motivate, and develop, the tools that will release their maximum potential.It can be daunting for coaches sometimes. I know I have felt intimidated when working with players who have exceptional skills, or a high level of understanding of the game’s skills, because you feel that they know more than you. But that’s OK, as long as someone knows.Your role just shifts in its function.The less aware technically and tactically the player is, the more leadership you are required to provide. At the other end of the scale with the high achievers/performers your role becomes one of challenging the player to think about the mechanics and tactics of their game – they are working if they are thinking. The other significant benefit in this approach is that you also develop your learning about the player which, after all, is paramount.Over April and May I have been preparing my player reports on the State Northern Knights and also conducting the major component of my winter planning. It was quieter watching I can assure you.There were some very positive performances through the season in both competitions for the State Northern Knights and as the result of the recent elevation of Robbie Hart, Ian Butler, Scott Styris and Matthew Hart to join Daniel Vettori and Daryl Tuffey in the Black Caps, things are looking promising for next season.I feel we have made significant progress in our pursuit of creating an environment where the players are challenged, and encouraged, to be the best they can be.Our primary objective is to develop the players and an outcome of that, if we are successful, is that we will be without players for our domestic competitions which will provide us with some interesting challenges and opportunities for an exciting crop of young players who seek to earn a Knights cap – roll on next summer.

St Lucia has hosted several outstanding Jazz Festivals in the past but it has never been the venue for the type of electrifying atmosphere that was generated at its new state-of-the-art Beausejour Stadium yesterday.International cricket’s newest venue was bursting at the seams to celebrate an enthralling six-wicket West Indies victory over New Zealand.It was set up by yet another outstanding contribution from Mr Can Do No Wrong Shivnarine Chanderpaul and equally vital input from Ramnaresh Sarwan and captain Carl Hooper.And significantly, it was achieved without anything noteworthy from their champion but now struggling world record-holder, Brian Lara.He made way for Hooper and Ridley Jacobs before he came in to end a successful run-chase in pursuit of a challenging 249.It was attained for the loss of four wickets with five balls in reserve when Lara spanked a boundary through extra-cover to trigger wild scenes.When Hooper emerged from the pavilion in Lara’s accustomed No. 4 position, the West Indies still required another 108 from 100 balls to take a 1-0 lead in the series that has now been reduced to four matches.By then, Chanderpaul, opening the batting in a One-Day International for the first time in a year, was firmly entrenched after sharing successive stands of 55 with Chris Gayle and 86 with Sarwan.For the remainder of the evening, the 10 000 fans in the stands screamed themselves hoarse with patois chants and did the Mexican Wave over and over as Chanderpaul and Hooper increased the tempo when it was so vitally needed.The unstoppable Chanderpaul remained to the end, unbeaten on 108 off 135 balls his fourth century of the season in both forms of the game.Hooper provided even more excitement with some scintillating strokes in a run-a-ball 47 before he was pacer Paul Hitchcock’s third victim in the 46th over.By then the West Indies had done enough to bring down an asking rate that stood at 7.40 after 42 overs to a more manageable 24 from 25 balls.This was a good victory. What made it good was the manner in which we chased, Hooper said.It wasn’t exactly a small total to get, even though the wicket was good and the outfield wasn’t huge, but the manner in which we got the runs; I was very pleased.It had been proposed more than once in recent matches that the in-form Chanderpaul would move up from No. 6 and it finally came to fruition yesterday.At the start, he allowed Gayle to do the bulk of the scoring, but he blossomed to play some enterprising strokes, none more memorable than a six over extra-cover off Daniel Vetorri’s left-arm spin.The left-handed Chanderpaul also counted eight fours on the way to his third hundred in limited-overs internationals in the identical position where he made his previous two.We have been thinking about Shiv opening for a while. Today was an opportune time to do it, Hooper said.He seemed pretty keen on opening. Batting through the innings is important and I thought it worked well for us.In contrast, Lara has been a shadow of himself since returning to the game with a bothersome elbow, but there were some who felt that he would never have been demoted from his accustomed slot.Brian has been struggling for form all during the Indian series and I’d like to say that the coach and Brian thought it best if I was promoted ahead of him, Hooper said.New Zealand’s total was clearly a lot more than the West Indies bargained for after Pedro Collins sliced through the Black Caps’ top half by snatching three scalps in five balls inside his first two overs.A position of 55 for four represented immense strife for New Zealand, but they recovered admirably after Collins removed Chris Nevin (to an irresponsible slash to a wide ball), Craig McMillan (bowled from a forcing back foot stroke) and Chris Harris (lbw shuffling across his stumps).Before those were gone, Mervyn Dillon enjoyed the distinction of claiming the first international wicket on the ground with the finest ball of the match, which cut back sharply and cut Nathan Astle in half.The noisy crowd, including many visitors from neighboring islands, might have anticipated an even lower total than New Zealand’s 176 in their opening abandoned match, but there was a splendid recovery in two significant partnerships that involved captain Stephen Fleming.Very early in the piece, he was showing bold aggression and the use of his feet against the faster bowlers, but as New Zealand lost wickets frequently, he changed to a lower gear and played responsibly for his 89 off 116 balls.The first phase of the fightback was in association with Lou Vincent the pair adding 57, but the more meaningful stand was one of 81 in 18.4 overs with Scott Styris.Styris, a big-hitter who specialises in the abbreviated version of the game, launched a calculated assault, especially in the closing stages when he clouted three sixes, including two off Dillon.His 85 off 83 balls, which also included eight fours, ensured that New Zealand raised 76 for the last ten overs, in which Dillon suffered badly. After the fast bowler’s first five overs went for 17, his second quota yielded 43 runs.With the runs flowing freely at the death, it was surprising that Collins, the West Indies’ best bowler on the day, was not utilised for his full ten overs, while the part-time spinners Gayle and Ryan Hinds did so.Still, it did not matter in the end.

Karachi Blues’ fine start to their National Junior (Under-19) Grade-I Cricket Championship match against Islamabad was spoilt by heavy afternoon rain as they were stopped in their tracks at 146 for one on the first day of this three-day game.After winning the toss at the picturesque Shalimar Ground, Karachi Blues were helped by responsible batting from Nasir Aziz and Naveed Khan, both of whom struck half centuries.When play was called off, 25 minutes before lunch, Nasir was 63 not out with Naveed batting on 58. Khurram Manzoor, was the only victim of the day, falling to pacer Saif-ur-Rehman for 21.Elsewhere, Faraz Patel stroked 16 boundaries in making 116 off 163 deliveries as Karachi Whites piled up 313 against defending champions Peshawar at National Stadium.Peshawar, in reply were 78 for two with skipper Abdul Nasir batting on 40.Summarized scores: *At Shalimar Ground, Islamabad:KARACHI BLUES 146-1 in 24.3 overs (Nasir Aziz 63 not out, Naveed Khan 58 not out) v ISLAMABAD.*At National Stadium, Karachi:KARACHI WHITES 313 in 79.2 overs (Faraz Patel 116, Mubashir Ahmed 90; Sajid Saeed 3-89);PESHAWAR 78-2 in 16 overs (Abdul Nasir 40 not out).*At Lahore Country Club, Muridke:LAHORE BLUES 208 in 71.5 overs (Mohammad Saeed 63, Azhar Ali 46, Adnan Butt 43; Riaz Afridi 3-70);FATA 52-2 in 15.4 overs.*At PCB Regional Academy Ground, Rawalpindi:RAWALPINDI 241 in 75.1 overs (Usama Shabbir 68; Arun Lal 4-44, Abdul Hameed 3-54);QUETTA 44-1 in 17 overs.*At Bahawalpur Stadium:BAHAWALPUR 213 in 79.1 overs (Asif Iqbal 72; Asim Naseer 7-61);LAHORE WHITES 32-2 in 11 overs.Our Sports Correspondent adds from Lahore: Multan’s paceman Kamran Hadi captured six for 23 as Kasur were bundled out for 99 in their first innings on the opening day of the three-day National Junior (Under-19) Grade-II Cricket Championship at Multan Stadium Wednesday.Multan replied with 170 for six in 54 overs by stumps.Elsewhere, Okara’s slow left-armer Zulfiqar Babar claimed seven for 69 as Faisalabad scored 252 in their first innings at Bohranwali Ground in Faisalabad.Okara, however, were in deep trouble at 43 for four at close of play.Leg-spinner Adeel Malik (six for 53) and Faisal Khan (97) put home side Sialkot in a commanding position against Mianwali at Saga Ground.Summarized scores: *At Multan Stadium, Multan:KASUR 99 in 57 overs (Kamran Hadi 6-23);MULTAN 170-6 in 54 overs (Yasir Arafat 50, Mohammad Siddique 46).*At Shola Ground, Quetta:TURBAT 160 in 43.3 overs (Khalil Ahmed 4-64, Ghulam Sarwar 3-18);GHAGHAI 161-6 in 54 overs (Nadir Khan 59 not out, Ghulam Sarwar 43; Javed Raza 3-42).*At Saga Ground, Sialkot:MIANWALI 192 in 56.3 overs (Mohammad Bilal 60, Shahid Hameed 41; Adeel Malik 6-53, Mansoor Amjad 3-64);SIALKOT 193-5 in 44.3 overs (Faisal Khan 97, Shahid Yousuf 50)*At Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar:BANNU 208 in 57.1 overs (Raheem Baz 50; Mir Usman 5-105, Abdul Shakoor 4-38);AZAD JAMMU KASHMIR 114-4 in 35.4 overs (Afaq Raheem 68 not out).*At Nawabshah Stadium, Nawabshah:SUKKUR 355 in 78.2 overs (Asghar Ali 120, Yasir Ali 101; Abdullah 4-60);BADIN 45-2 in 19 overs.*At D.I. Khan Stadium, D.I. Khan:DERA ISMAIL KHAN 88 in 45.1 overs (Irfan Khan 53 not out; Abdul Wajid 3-4, Ihsan Elahi 3-29);MARDAN 90-8 in 40 overs (Kashif Sattar 3-29).*At Bohranwali Ground, Faisalabad:FAISALABAD 252 in 76 overs (Ghulam Dastagir 59, Naved Haider 44, Qaiser Majeed 40; Zulfiqar Babar 7-69);OKARA 43-4 in 19 overs (Mudassar Hussain 3-13).*At Mahmood Stadium, Rahimyar Khan:SARGODHA 236 in 79.1 overs (Usman Arshad 73; Kashif Rasool 3-71);RAHIMYAR KHAN 49-1 in 15 overs.*At Jinnah Stadium, Gujranwala:ATTOCK 114 in 43.4 overs (Ali Imran 5-40, Saeed Ehsan 4-40);GUJRANWALA 156-4 in 49 overs (Aamir Gulzar 41, Imran Ali 41).*At Niaz Stadium, Hyderabad:MIRPURKHAS 95 in 43.5 overs (Shoaib Leghari 5-11);HYDERABAD 91-7 in 55 overs (Syed Rehan 3-23, Nabi Mohammad 3-39).*At Police Ground, Larkana:KARACHI GREENS 215 in 74.3 overs (Hassan Saud 65, Fahad Iqbal 41; Kashif Ali 3-32);LARKANA 29-1 in 13 overs.

Yousuf Youhana became a doubtful starter for next week’s Sharjah Cup after he was forced to pull out from Thursday’s National One-day Championship final.Youhana’s employers PIA said Wednesday that the middle-order batsman was carrying a groin injury he had sustained during the last league match against Allied Bank in Karachi.The title favourites further said Youhana left the field Tuesday in PIA’s nine-run victory over National Bank after just five overs. He was limping and looked in discomfort, they said.”His injury seems to be severe otherwise he would not have pulled out from the final,” the team management said in a statement. However, Yousuf Youhana played down his injury scare saying the groin muscle was only tight.”I am just being careful and there is nothing serious or alarming. I don’t want to miss the Sharjah tournament or the series against New Zealand,” Youhana said from Lahore.Pakistan coach Mudassar Nazar was surprised when contacted in Lahore. “If he doesn’t play on Thursday, naturally questions will be asked. If he says he sat out because of groin trouble, then the doctors come into picture,” he said.Mudassar said Youhana was too valuable a player to be risked. “Of course, we will ask him how he feels. If he says he can play in Sharjah and then in the series against New Zealand, we have no problems. “But he will have to pass a fitness test for Sharjah ,” he said. The Sharjah triangular begins Monday.He added: “Youhana did the usual running at the Gaddafi Stadium and I didn’t notice that he was uncomfortable. But then groin doesn’t hurt much when you running in a straight line.”Mudassar said if there was enough doubt on Youhana’s fitness, Faisal Iqbal would be drafted in the side.”Faisal is the 16th player and he is a deserving candidate.”Faisal was last week added as non-playing member for which the critics slammed the youngster instead of targeting people who named him as a tourist. Faisal has scored consistently in the top order for PIA in the ongoing One-day Championship.

Richard Pybus has been given time till October 24 to decide if he wants to continue as the Bangladesh coach for the forthcoming West Indies series. The Bangladesh Cricket Board has written to him, the outgoing chief Mustafa Kamal said on his last day at the board headquarters.”The BCB will write to him officially to come before our West Indies series. If he doesn’t decide to come then we will take a decision based on his action,” Kamal said, flanked by Nazmul Hassan, the man succeeding him as the BCB president, after a five-hour meeting on Friday. Kamal had to chair the meeting as issues such as the one concerning Pybus and the Bangladesh Premier League franchises’ non-payment remain unresolved. Kamal, however, said that both issues will be tackled in the October 24 meeting, which he will also attend.”We will have another meeting on October 24. There have been family issues with Pybus. He hasn’t been able to convince his family to come here. We can’t agree to his demands. We can’t give him long leaves just for him to meet his family abroad. He is a professional coach, but we can’t make this provision for him.”If he doesn’t come then we’ll have to appoint someone else. I don’t think it’ll be a good idea to appoint Richard McInnes as it will disturb the development aspect of the BCB,” Kamal said, contradicting his earlier statement that the Australian could be appointed on a short-term basis.The other urgent issue for the BCB is the continuous failure of the BPL franchises to complete payments to all players who took part in the Twenty20 competition. It was announced earlier that teams who do not complete payments will be re-auctioned on November 7, but there are 54 cricketers who have remained unpaid including six overseas ones. The board will review the teams’ payment details in its next meeting, Kamal said, which will be four days after the deadline of October 20.”We have asked the franchises to make themselves updated in all areas. They should complete all the payments. We gave them a date till October 20, to complete all their payments, foreign or local.”If they don’t, then we will take a decision on October 24 regarding BCB’s relationship with these teams. We won’t want the BPL’s value to be diluted, this is a cricket board’s property and we want this to run properly.”

Bangladesh cricket history’s most cheerful day was when they achieved a stirring victory against Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup. It stunned the World since Pakistan, up to that stage of the tournament was leading and well ahead of Australia, the ultimate winners. In fact, that historic victory paved the way for Bangladesh’s admission to the ICC as a regular member, a status granted a year later. Since then, Bangladesh has made a good effort to establish its credentials in International Cricket. Although they lost their inaugural Test match against India at Dhaka in November last and more recently have again been out played in the first Test match of the current two-test series against Zimbabwe, they have fought well and learnt at the same time. One should give them due credit for the amount of effort their cricketers have put in these matches and that also assures their bright future.Bangladesh played its first One-day Internationals in 1985-86 and to date has played 40 ODI’s, losing 38 and scoring a solitary victory each against Kenya, Scotland and Pakistan. It would be worth reviewing their performance in the recently concluded One-day International series against Zimbabwe.Harare – First match:
Bangladesh tasted heavy defeat at the very out set of the series. Zimbabwe taught the babes of International Cricket a tough lesson by seven wickets. Bangladesh reached a relatively low total of 151 for 8 in 50-overs. Akram Khan (35), Mushfiqur Rahman (31) and Mohammad Rafique (22) were the only notable scorers. B Strang (2/25), Mutendera (2/45) and A Blignaut (2/24) all bowled well to contain the visitors and claim wickets. Zimbabwe, slowly but easily reached the target with 6.5 overs and seven wickets to spare. S Carlisle scored 40, A Flower 40 not out and G Flower 32 not out.Harare – Second match:
Alistair Campbell scored his seventh One-day century (103) off 145 balls with 8 hits to the fence. He was associated with S Carlisle in a 2nd wicket partnership of 133 to enable Zimbabwe reach a modest total of 230-7, after being put into bat by Bangladesh. Manjurul Islam returned his career best analysis of 3 for 37 in ten overs. Bangladesh in reply, crashed to 103 all out in 30.4 overs. Only Javed Omar carried his bat for 33. Incidentally, the opener repeated this feat in the second innings of the first Test also. Bangladesh’s last six wickets fell for 28 runs in nine overs. Heath Streak claimed 2 for 20, Mutendera 3 for 23 and Viljoen 2 for 14. Skipper Naimur Rahman struck 25 off 21 balls with four fours.Bulawayo – Third match:
Bangladesh gave a good account of themselves in this match. Zimbabwe scored an imposing total of 308 for 4, mainly built through the 148 runs of a 4th wicket partnership between brothers Grant and Andy Flower. Grant scored 142 not out and Andy 81. S Carlisle scored 42 not out. Though Bangladesh surpassed their previous highest score of 257 yet their valiant effort fell 36 runs short of the target. Opener Javed Omar scored 69, Habibul Bashar hit 74 and their 3rd wicket partnership produced 74 runs off 103 balls. B Strang claimed 3 for 56, Mutendera 2/44 and Andy Blignaut 2/41. Grant Flower who had smashed 65 off the last five overs was the Man of the Match and the Series.For the tourists, Javed Omar, Habibul Bashar, M Rahman and N Rahman batted with determination while Manjural Islam, Mohammad Sharif and Mushfiqur Rahman bowled well. Zimbabwe fully exploited the lack of experience and weaknesses of the minnows of International Cricket and thus convincingly won. However the visitors have surely been enriched with useful experience and exposure to top-level cricket.

FULL NAME: Patrick Kudzayi Gada
BORN: 5 May 1978, at Harare
MAJOR TEAMS: CFX Academy (1998/99), Manicaland (1999/2000-2000/01),Mashonaland (2001/02). Present club side: Takashinga
KNOWN AS: Patrick/Paddy Gada.
BATTING STYLE: Right Hand Bat
BOWLING STYLE: Right Arm Medium Fast
OCCUPATION: Professional cricketer
FIRST-CLASS DEBUT: CFX Academy v Australian Cricket Academy, at AlexandraSports Club, 27-29 March 1999
TEST DEBUT: Still awaited
ODI DEBUT: Still awaitedBIOGRAPHY (updated March 2002)Patrick Gada, Academy student in 1999, is one of the most promising young all-rounders in Zimbabwe. He is highly rated for his attitude and self-discipline. He is a non-smoker and does not drink alcohol; from a young age he practised hard and worked on his fitness. He is a pleasant and quietly-spoken young man who deserves to go far in the game.Like most black players at the present, Patrick has no family background in cricket, although his family has always been very enthusiastic about soccer. His interest in cricket began at Chengu Primary School in Highfield, a high-density suburb of Harare, and he well remembers the times when Dave Houghton used to come and coach. Later on Lazarus Zizhou and Dave Levy took over, and both had much to do with developing Patrick’s interests and skills. Patrick has always been first and foremost a batsman, but he has kept up his medium-paced bowling and occasionally bowls useful off-spin as well. He opened both batting and bowling from a young age.His first match, as far as he remembers, took place when he was about ten years of age. Once he scored 125 in a thirty-over game, when he was captaining his team, and won the Willards Trophy for his school. He took part in the national primary schools cricket week, captaining the Harare South team and being selected for the national B team.He progressed to Prince Edward High School, having been offered a place there by the Zimbabwe Cricket Union because of his cricketing potential. He had also been offered a place at Chinhoyi High School, but preferred Prince Edward mainly because of the better sporting and academic opportunities it provided. He was immediately appointed as captain of the Under-13 team and progressed up the school year by year. He remembers his best scores when he reached the first team as being 90 against St John’s and 78 against Eaglesvale, batting at number four. He used to bowl regularly as well, opening the bowling at times and taking useful wickets, with seven in an innings being his best performance. In 1995 he went on tour to England with the school team. He names the late `Bunny’ Brereton as the high-school coach who helped him the most.At school Patrick was also an athlete, notably in triple jump and long jump. He played rugby and soccer as well, but cricket remained his premier sport. He played his first club match in 1992, for Bionics Cricket Club, which became in turn Hungwe, Winstonians and now Takashinga.In 1993 Patrick was selected for the Mashonaland Under-15 team, where he did well and was a reserve for the national side; he progressed to the Mashonaland Under-19 team along with such players as Brian Murphy, Gavin Rennie, Darlington and Everton Matambanadzo and Gary Brent. Even at the age of 16 he made some good scores, but just missed selection for the national side. He left high school after gaining his O-Levels in Form Four, but hopes to improve his academic qualifications at some time in the future.He followed his cricket interests, doing some coaching privately in the high-density areas and assisting the Zimbabwe Cricket Union and the Mashonaland Cricket Association on a private, part-time basis. In 1995/96 he began to play for Old Hararians Sports Club, coaching and practising in Highfield and at Harare Sports Club during the off season. His best club performance has been 96 not out against Kwekwe in 2001/02. In 1998 he was encouraged by the Old Hararians captain Trevor Penney to apply for the Zimbabwe Cricket Academy, and he was accepted for the 1999 season.His main memory of that year, along with many other students, was the visit of the Australian Cricket Academy team, which completely outclassed the local academy, mainly due to the express pace of Brett Lee who terrorized the locals and caused Patrick himself much concern. "It was a great turning point for all the Academy guys," he says.From 1999 Patrick played and coached in England. It was a good experience, although he found the pitches too slow, sub-standard and uncovered. He did learn to adapt to the various pitches, both good and bad. In the years 2000 and 2001 he played for Preston Nomads in Sussex, enjoying both seasons with bat and ball. "It is always good fun and experience playing in the UK," he says.After leaving the Academy, Patrick went to Manicaland for the remaining two years of his Academy contract. He opened the batting for them in the Logan Cup and played some useful innings, gradually finding the confidence to play his strokes more readily at that level.In September and October 2001, after the English season, he also visited the United States of America and played in Florida and Hartford, Connecticut. He came across some good players, especially from the West Indies, and had a good time both on and off the field. On his return, having completed his three-year contract with the Zimbabwe Cricket Union, he decided to return from Manicaland to Mashonaland, especially as he had family responsibilities after the death of his mother. He signed a new contract and returned to Takashinga, who are now based in his home town of Highfield. He enjoyed a good all-round season in the national league, and expected to finish with the most wickets and the best bowling average for the league season.As a batsman his main attribute, he feels, is his concentration and the ability to bat for long periods of time, while as yet he is not fully fluent with his strokes at the top level. He is a strong back-foot player, scoring the majority of his runs on the on side and square of the wicket, while he also cuts well. He admits to having difficulty with the moving ball outside the off stump but is working on the problem. He is happy to open the innings, but given the choice feels he would prefer number four or five. He usually fields in the middle distance or in the gully. He has a very safe pair of hands and enjoys fielding, and is fairly quick to the ball.Cricket heroes: Viv Richards, Richie Richardson and Graham Gooch.Toughest opponents: "Brett Lee still sticks out in my mind, no doubt about that, for his express pace! I would love to face him again sometime, hopefully take him on, but if not to stick around for a long period."Future ambitions: "I hope to stay in the game and keep working on my game all the time. It will take time, but I hope to keep improving. I would like to play cricket at the highest possible level, and do well. I also want to assist youngsters as we keep trying to build up Zimbabwean cricket. My biggest wish at the moment is to represent Zimbabwe in the coming World Cup as we host all our home games."Biggest influences: "My late mother, my dad in Highfield, my family and good friends all around the world."Proudest achievement: "I remember when I was captain of Harare South and my junior school in Highfield, the England A side came over, including Michael Atherton, Neil Fairbrother, Derek Pringle and `Sid’ Lawrence, in 1989/90, and I got an autographed bat from them. Then I was rated High Glen Best Junior Batsman, in 1990. Also when I was awarded my cricket colours at Prince Edward High School in 1994 for the most outstanding performance and service. Also meeting the master King Viv Richards at the Malcolm Marshall Memorial match in London in 2000, and again in America in 2001, in Hartford, Connecticut."Best friends in cricket: "Amos Maungwa – he’s always out there, he tries very hard and we play and practise together for Takashinga. All those who love the game and always think positively. My late mother and all my remaining family for all their trust, love and encouragement; Devon Malcolm, the Hopkins family and Mr John Smith, all in Sussex, England."Other interests: "I like reading, especially cricket magazines and current information. I like fitness training; every time I’m free I go out and work on my fitness. I also like listening to music and watching cricket on television or on tape."Personal views: "I would like to help juniors coming up and offer a helping hand from the knowledge I’ve gained from the game so far. I can’t wait to see Zimbabwe get on top of world cricket and dominate more than West Indies did and more than Australia will ever do. My young players for the future are team-mates Tatenda Taibu, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Hamilton Masakadza, and Joe Gatting (son of Mike) who plays for Preston Nomads and Sussex CCC juniors. My motto in life is to respect and learn from others, and above all give thanks to the Almighty."

Sri Lanka Cricket and the Pakistan Cricket Board have confirmed that both boards have begun investigations into the allegations that several first-class umpires were willing to influence matches for illegal payments. The claims came to light on Monday, when India TV broadcast a sting alleging that umpires from three countries had agreed to accept money to give decisions favouring certain players.”Initial investigations are being carried out by our anti-corruption unit,” SLC chief executive Ajith Jayasekara told ESPNcricinfo. He also said the SLC had not yet contacted the umpires, as it “would like to know what really is happening before we did anything.”A PCB spokesman also said the board was looking into the situation. “We are in contact with ICC and carrying out a detailed investigation into the matter,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “For us it is just a TV report. We have sought the details involved in the matter and it is too early to say anything. The PCB maintains that we have a zero-tolerance policy towards any kind of corruption in cricket at any level.”One of the umpires named by in their programme, Bangladesh’s Nadir Shah, denied any involvement in match-fixing. “I was taken to Delhi to sign a contract for umpiring in the Sri Lanka Premier League,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “But when I saw these people making match-fixing approaches, I backed off. I didn’t do any SLPL matches, as you must know. I was never involved in match-fixing at any level.”Shah told that he cut off contact once he was approached about fixing. “These are baseless allegations. They said their piece, nobody is listening to what I have to say. When they asked me to fix matches, I said I can’t do it,” he said. “I didn’t let anyone know because I didn’t think it would go that far. My agent told me to stop contacting them so when they called me later, I said I am not interested.”The Bangladesh board said it was taking the issue ‘very seriously’. “We are collecting all the evidence from the reports that we have seen in the news,” Jalal Yunus told reporters in Mirpur. “The board president has told me that there will be an inquiry committee, after which we will come to a decision.”Pakistan’s Nadeem Ghauri, another umpire named in the sting, also said he was innocent. “I was approached by some TV channel from India who asked me to do an interview through Skype,” Ghauri told reporters in Lahore. “They did ask me about the fixing stuff, but I had nothing to say on the topic. They asked me to come to India and be part of their TV shows.”I have submitted all details to the PCB about my communication with the caller in India. In fact, the company had been offering me not only TV shows appearances, but also league contracts as umpire. I asked them, on the direction of the PCB, to write me officially about the offer and details of the contract, then we will be able to make a decision. They didn’t agree; they asked me to come to India to negotiate contract, which wasn’t possible due to the visa process. Hence we had communicated through Skype. But then my Indian friend, umpire Anil Chaudary, told me that this is a fake company and have no office based in India. So I disengaged myself from communicating with them.”The ICC is known to have asked to share the tapes of the undercover operation so that the tapes may be examined by its anti-corruption unit and also studied by member boards in order to understand the content of the sting operation and the context in which all statements were said to be made. The tapes seen on TV on Monday night established that the two umpires who had been linked with two World T20 practice matches, did not officiate in any capacity in those matches, either on or off the field.The future course of action against the umpires, however, will have to be taken by the home boards under whose jurisdiction these umpires are appointed and operate. While it is possible for the ICC to strongly recommend suspension of the umpires pending investigation, the actual decision of suspending them, however, can only be taken by the home boards who appoint them. The ICC could however take action against an umpire found to be in breach of its code of conduct for umpires in an international match. What it would need though is concrete evidence of this breach of conduct or an individual confession of the same.In the sting, conducted through July and August, the reporters claimed to belong to a sports management company and promised the umpires officiating assignments in events of all kinds around the world, largely domestic Twenty20 leagues. The reporters, who worked undercover, carried out the sting mainly through interviews and conversations via Skype, an internet videophone service.