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South Africa’s coach Mickey Arthur played down concerns that the team will be under-prepared for the Test series against India, which they go into without any practice games.A scheduled warm-up game against India A was cancelled but Arthur said South Africa’s tours of Pakistan and Bangladesh in the last six months have given them enough experience of subcontinental conditions. “There have been a lot of noises about not playing a warm-up match, but we’ve been in the subcontinent a huge amount lately and the guys are sound in terms of the different techniques required,” he told .”Warm-up games tend to be good for the first day and a half, and then the intensity wanes,” he said. “We believe we can replicate a warm-up game quite easily with some intensive centre practices.”Coming home (after the successful Bangladesh tour which ended on March 14) has allowed the team to be refreshed and re-energised, and we thought it was the best way to re-focus on getting back into the swing of things. We know it will be hard work, but it’s a mental shift more than anything else.”After a week which saw Charl Langeveldt pull out of the India tour saying he did not want to be included on the basis of his colour, South Africa’s captain Graeme Smith admitted the team had been affected by the selection controversy. “The evidence of this week shows that the off-field stuff does have an effect on the team,” Smith said. “There are a few things we need to work through, they can’t be left undealt with. We need to find a way to deal with these issues so we can concentrate on the cricket.”The first Test of the three-match series starts in Chennai on Wednesday.

Ricky Ponting said that he was more proud than relieved after Australiahad kept their nerve to emerge triumphant in yet another crunch game, andhe was effusive in his praise for the bowlers who delivered such tellingspells to script an 18-run victory.Though he was defending just 213, Ponting said that India’s early collapsehad given his team an edge that they never quite relinquished. “I thoughtwe were actually in the game for a fair bit of it to tell the truth,” hesaid, when asked if there had been a particular moment when he scentedvictory. “Though we hadn’t gotten the runs on the board, we got fourwickets quite early and if you looked at their team, you could realisethey had a fairly long tail with Ajit [Agarkar] batting where he was, andHarbhajan [Singh] after him.”We just needed another couple during the middle of the innings. I stillhad Brett [Lee] and Glenn [McGrath] and Stuey Clark up my sleeve, so I wasalways going to bring them back to hopefully finish things off. It was agood tight tussle right to the end, and Australia generally wins most ofthose contests.”The cockiness was tempered by the knowledge that it had been a close-runthing, with the pre-planned omissions of Michael Clarke and Shane Watsonappearing to be glaring ones halfway through the day. “It’s always nice tohave lots of options when you have a small total on the board but wedidn’t have that tonight. Brett and the rest of the guys were terrific. Wecovered the bases we were insufficient in. At the end of the day, it was avery good win. We’ve mixed and matched our teams, and we’ve won justenough games to make the final, as we always wanted to do.”There was unstinting praise for Lee, who finished with 5 for 38 whiledenting Indian chances with every spell he bowled. “I’ve said that I thinkhe’s the best one-day bowler,” he said. “It’s very rare that he doesn’tget wickets with the new ball. And you know that during the middle of theinnings, if you go back to someone with that sort of pace, it’s going tobe difficult for new guys starting against him. It’s just been a pleasurewatching the way he’s going about his work at the moment.”The Brads, Hogg and Haddin, who gave Australia hope with a quickfire77-run partnership, were also singled out. “That was a very good piece ofbowling,” he said, when asked about the manner in which Hogg had outfoxedSuresh Raina. “He’s a pretty under-rated player for us. He’s done a verygood job for a long period of time now. When he gets a chance, he does thejob and no one loves his cricket more. He was a vital cog in the chaintonight, the guy we were always going to have to go to for a breakthroughin the middle overs. He did it twice, and did well with the bat as well.”As for Haddin, Ponting said that his displays in the tournament hadrevealed that a future without Adam Gilchrist might not be so frighteningafter all. “We’ve known for a long time that Brad is a very goodcricketer,” he said. “In most other teams around the world, he’d haveplayed a lot more cricket. He’s just had to wait a long time behind Gilly.You’ve seen the way he’s batted and the way he’s kept. He’s going to be agreat replacement when Adam moves on.”The concerns centred on the batting, once again below par against adisciplined Indian attack. “The running wasn’t great either,” he said witha wry grin. “We’ve got to get a lot better before the final. The battinghasn’t been good. We’ve got out of jail a couple of times – Huss’s hundredthe other day, and Haddin’s been terrific at seven. The guys at the tophaven’t got in and got the runs.”Amid the euphoria, there was also some words of praise for Dinesh Mongia’sfine effort. “I think we always knew he was that sort of player, and theyneeded that sort at the top of their order. I wasn’t surprised when[Mohammad] Kaif came out when he did, and him [Mongia] as well. We knew hecould play, and he was very dogged. Losing wickets around him, it was upto him to stay and steer them through, and he nearly did that.”Lee was understandably thrilled with his five-for, which took histournament returns to 8 for 84 from just two games. “It’s always nice toget two early wickets,” he said. “With a man like Sachin Tendulkar outthere, it’s nice to chance your arm against the best. Along with Ricky[Ponting] and Brian [Lara], he’s the best going around, so I’m prettyhappy.It’s just my second chance. The way the sides have been picked, it’s givenall of us an opportunity to get back into it, and the body is feelinggood. It came out well tonight. Every spell I came up and bowled, I feltconfident, we had fantastic fields.”And though Glenn McGrath didn’t pick up any wickets, his tightfistedness -25 runs conceded from eight overs – played a big part in Lee’s success.”It’s always great to have Glenn back,” he said. “The figures speak forthemselves. Looking forward to the big final coming up on Sunday, the ICCTrophy and the Ashes as well, it’s a big summer, and hopefully one thatGlenn and I will be part of.”He also praised Ponting for his support during the lean years, when heexpended lots of energy in the nets without making it into the XI. “When Iwasn’t bowling well, he sat me down and put a couple of different ideas inmy head,” he said. “Thinking back to Brisbane a couple of years ago, hehad a really good chat with me. We look at Ricky as one for guidance.”As a member of the pace-bowling fraternity, he was also delighted by themanner in which Stuart Clark bounced back after a mauling in the lastgame. “I said after the last game, it’s unfortunate the way one-daycricket goes. He’s the kind of bowler who can turn around straightaway.He’s gone from a disappointing match to bowling fantastic. He bowled atgood pace, had a fantastic caught-and-bowled. That definitely changed hisgame.”

And after walking a disciplinary tightrope in recent times, Ponting spenta couple of minutes having to answer questions about the Tendulkarincident that saw him exchange more than a few words with Mark Benson, whoreversed his caught-behind decision. “The umpire made his decision, andthen he reversed it. I think he actually got it right in the end. Heexplained the reason why. I wasn’t that happy at the time, but it was theumpire’s decision.”Ponting made it clear that he hadn’t approached the umpire to voice hisdispleasure. “I didn’t approach him, he called me over to explain why hehad changed his decision,” he said. “I didn’t actually see Sachin beingcalled back. I was in the middle of a group with the guys, and Mark wascalling me over to explain it.”He refused to accept that such controversial moments made a case for theincreased use of technology. “I’ve never been a great fan,” he saidcandidly. “We’ve experimented with a lot of things. The Super Test was onewhere the umpires could refer everything to the third umpire. There were afew that went either way. I think technology for line decisions, the wayit’s being used, is about as much as it should be used.”You have to understand that umpires are human and they will makemistakes. Much like the players – we probably make as many mistakes asanyone going around. I’m a big believer in leaving the human element in.”After his last transgression, Chris Broad, the match referee, hadsuggested that Ponting was on very thin ice. And but for the umpirestaking a benevolent view of his antics today, he might well have slippedunder. With the Champions Trophy and the Ashes looming, Australia canheave a sigh of relief that it hasn’t happened.

The committee appointed by the West Indies Cricket Board to review the tenure of Bennett King, the West Indies coach, and his staff has been unable to determine whether the Board are getting value for money. However, they have recommended that King and his men stay put.The WICB issued a media release on the report submitted on February 15 by the committee headed by Jackie Hendriks and including the WICB directors Deryck Murray and Enoch Lewis were the other members.The evaluation of King, David Moore, the assistant coach, Stephen Partridge, the physiotherapist, and Bryce Cavanaugh, the trainer, had been prompted by a request by Chetram Singh, the Guyana Cricket Board president and WICB director, for the Board to determine whether King and his colleagues were worth the collective sum of US$1m they are reportedly receiving. Since his tenure began, King, who has been given full responsibility for the team, has presided over just one Test victory in 12 matches, the latest defeat being Monday’s 27-run loss against New Zealand in Auckland.However, in the release, the WICB said: “The Hendriks Committee noted that there was not sufficient evidence to work with in determining whether the investment in the coaching staff had paid dividends and suggested that the coaching staff be given more opportunity before a further evaluation is made.”Specifically, the Hendriks committee had been asked to:1. Review the conditions of employment which relate to the imported coaching staff and to evaluate the results which have been achieved to date and2. To advise whether, in the view of the committee, the results achieved have justified the investment.However, while failing to come to a firm conclusion on the success of King and his men, the committee commended “the obvious commitment of the coaching staff toward moving West Indies cricket forward”. The committee noted further that ” King and his support team appear to be keen and resolute in their determination to ensure that the West Indies team shows a marked improvement in both one-day and Test matches, and they realise that their future employment with the WICB depends very largely on an improvement of the team’s performances over the next 18 months.” It also concluded that strides had been made in fitness and technical areas.The committee also said King was “in complete charge of the West Indies team in accordance with his mandate and the results achieved by the team must be taken as an indication of the effectiveness of his tenure to date”. “However, off-the-field issues over which the head coach had no control have led to a negative view of his performance, including the lack of funds available for him to carry out certain of his plans and, too, the very unsettling industrial impasse that has existed before and during recent home and away series. The delay in implementing retainer contracts for players was also a cause for great concern by the head coach in working on achieving the goals and objectives set by the coaching staff.”The committee also found there was a need for several changes to be made in the running of regional cricket. These changes included the structure of West Indies first-class cricket, which they said needed to undergo considerable change so as to maximise its effectiveness; the need to adopt and implement the Regional Cricket Development Plan; the reintroduction of a central cricket academy with a vastly improved structure, and the establishment of satellite academies within the territories which would greatly enhance the effectiveness of the central academy; the need for a process and a system to be put in place to raise the standards throughout the region; and the need to appoint a West Indian understudy to the head coach to provide for succession planning.In addition, the committee urged that a consistent and uniform coaching policy throughout the region be established and that leadership training continued to be pursued.

Russel Arnold and Upul Chandana have been included in a 20-man pool for four ODIs against India in February. Also included are Sri Lanka A players Malinda Warnapura, Gayan Wijekoon and Avishka Gunawardene, who will join the other 15 currently in New Zealand for a five-ODI series.Sri Lanka are expected to leave for India on February 3 and return on February 18. The tour itinerary also comprises a warm-up match against the Indian Board President’s XI.This series will be Sri Lanka’s final international engagement before they embark to the Caribbean for the 2007 World Cup. Sri Lanka and India are grouped together in Group ‘B’ of the 2007 World Cup along with Bangladesh and Bermuda.Sri Lanka: Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Kumar Sangakkara (vice-capt, wk), Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Marvan Atapattu, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Chamara Kapugedera, Chamara Silva, Chaminda Vaas, Lasith Malinga, Ruchira Perera, Malinga Bandara, Dilhara Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Farveez Maharoof, Gayan Wijekoon, Russell Arnold, Malinda Warnapura, Upul Chandana, Avishka Gunawardene.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul might have picked up a host of honours at the West Indies Players’ Association awards but in doing so he infuriated both his own team and his opponents in their ongoing Carib Beer Series match. Chanderpaul was unbeaten on 78 at stumps on the first day of Guyana’s home game against Windward Islands when he departed for the awards ceremony in Trinidad.However, neither Guyana’s manager Carl Moore nor their coach Albert Smith was able to explain Chanderpaul’s absence and he was deemed “retired out”. Smith said it was disappointing the batsman had not discussed the situation with the team’s management.”He is our most dependable batsman and has done so much for West Indiescricket as a top-class batsman,” Smith told . “But if he knew he was just using this game for some practice and would then leave the guys he should have at least informed me as the coach and maybe allowed one of the youngsters to play.”The situation so incensed the Windward Islands that when they started their innings after lunch they refused to let Guyana use a substitute fielder. The Windward Islands manager Lockhart Sebastien was furious at the seemingly blasé attitude to a first-class game.”This is not a curry goat match,” Sebastien said. “This is a first-class encounter and things like this are allowed to happen and we wonder why West Indies cricket is in the state that it is in.”Chanderpaul told Devon [Smith] yesterday [Saturday] that he was here just to take a knock but we assumed he was joking. If he knew he had to leave then he should not have played and given one of the other youngsters a chance.”

Greg King, the Indian trainer, has been admitted to a hospital inAhmedabad with a viral fever. He has been in hospital for approximatelytwo days with intermittent fever. In the wake of widespread concern acrossthe country over the spread of dengue fever and chikunguniya the hospitalstaff have understandably taken all precautions.While there was little clarity over exactly what King was suffering from,it is understood that he was scheduled to be released on Thursday morning,and was prescribed strong medication to cover all eventualities. “The feverhas come down now, and the test results are also clear,” Rajan Nair, themedia manager of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), said, late onWednesday night.The news spread late on Wednesday evening and created a buzz among themedia, as several stories did the rounds claiming that King was sufferingfrom chikunguniya. However, team sources said that there was noconfirmation from the hospital about exactly what King was suffering from,and said that it was merely a viral fever. Another source in the BCCI alsoconfirmed that it was expected that King would be present in thedressing-room when the match against West Indies began.In the normal course the trainer of the Indian team being admitted tohospital with a viral fever would not make news. But the country is in thegrips of anxiety over chikunginiya and dengue, with several hundred peoplehaving died because of the illnesses.

ScorecardFile photo: Udara Jayasundera made a painstaking 63 off 153 balls for the Sri Lankans•WICB Media

The Sri Lankans’ bowlers let the NZC President’s XI’s eighth-wicket partnership plunder 124 runs, but batted marginally better than in the first innings to secure a draw in the three-day warm up game in Queenstown. The hosts took a 206-run lead before declaring and the Sri Lankans then moved to 226 for 6 by stumps.A 153-ball 63 from opener Udara Jayasundera led the Sri Lankans’ innings, and heightened his chances of a debut in the first Test against New Zealand next Thursday. He struck up a 108-run partnership with Kithuruwan Vithanage, who hit 61 off 109 himself. Angelo Mathews made an unbeaten 54, while Dinesh Chandimal collected 29. Kusal Perera and Kusal Mendis were dismissed for low scores for the second time in the match.The President’s XI bowlers shared the six wickets between them, Neil Wagner taking 1 for 31. Seamer James Baker picked up the innings’ best figures of 2 for 21.Earlier in the day, the Presidents’ XI’s resumed on 288 for 7, before hitting 111 runs in the next 15.3 overs. No. 9 batsman Tim Johnston hit 62 from 74 balls while Shawn Hicks finished with 79 not out from 85 deliveries. Sri Lanka lent their opposition a hand with 44 extras, including 21 no-balls. Dushmantha Chameera claimed his fourth wicket of the innings to end that eighth-wicket partnership and invite the declaration.

Matthew Maynard, who was axed as England’s assistant coach on Sunday, has been offered a role at his home county, Glamorgan. He will return to Sophia Gardens in 2008, where he will be the director of cricket – but not until next season.Maynard, who scored 22764 first-class runs in his 20 years with the club, plans to have a rest this summer and spend some time with his family, although he has been linked to a role with India’s academy.Glamorgan chairman Paul Russell told newspaper, “It is no coincidence that we have not replaced John Derrick [as director of cricket] and I believe Matthew would bring a lot to that role.”Maynard will not give up his dream of becoming England coach, and working alongside Adrian Shaw, Glamorgan’s coach, next season will give him the chance to have county experience which is another route to the top role.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Rajasthan Royals continued to surge up the points table by beating Bangalore Royal Challengers comprehensively by seven wickets at the Chinnaswamy Stadium to draw level with the Chennai Super Kings with three wins each. The win was set up by their bowlers, after Shane Warne decided to field, who restricted Bangalore to 135, allowing the batsmen to chase at a comfortable pace.The contest wasn’t too dissimilar to the one between the Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata earlier in the day, where Chennai completed an easy win after their bowlers kept Kolkata to 147. Having been put in on a pitch with a bit of assistance for the fast bowlers, Bangalore, perhaps taking cue from Brendon McCullum’s 158, felt that being positive was the way to go but several aerial shots resulted in a flurry of wickets.Bangalore were forced to play catch up right from the start, a predicament brought about by their batsmen’s urge to attack. Rahul Dravid was the first of the top four batsmen to get caught in the deep square of the wicket. He pulled his first ball, off Shane Watson, straight to Ravindra Jadeja at long leg. Two overs later, Shivnarine Chanderpaul tried to pull too but the ball took the top edge and found Jadeja, this time at third man.Ross Taylor briefly threatened to repeat McCullum’s heroics: he hit Sohail Tanvir for two sixes in his first over – the first over the bowler’s head followed by an edge which flew over the third-man boundary – and two fours in his second. Munaf Patel came into the attack and Taylor lofted him over midwicket for four, bettered that with a six next ball and then edged to the third-man boundary to take 15 off the over. The Bangalore batsmen, ridiculed by many as a Test XI, seemed to be proving a point. However, just when they looked in command, Jacques Kallis stepped out to Siddharth Trivedi and pulled straight to Munaf on the deep square leg boundary. The crippling blow came when Taylor fell in identical fashion, pulling to Graeme Smith to reduce Bangalore to 65 for 4.The spate of wickets didn’t curb the stroke play and Virat Kohli, India’s Under-19 captain, was fortunate to survive a catch on the deep midwicket boundary. Jadeja held on splendidly to the skier that was sailing over his head but, while trying to gain control, he hit the ground and touched the advertisement hoardings, making it a six instead. However, Kohli didn’t capitalise and nicked one to the wicketkeeper Mahesh Rawat while trying to make room and cut.Warne had instant success when he brought himself in the 12th over. Mark Boucher got an inside-edge onto the pads, and Rawat dived to pouch after the ball after ballooned in the air. At 78 for 6, it was left to Praveen Kumar, the India allrounder, to salvage the situation.Praveen relied on big hits to boost the total, and he did it with success, and sometimes with luck. A thick top edge off an attempted slog off Warne cleared the short straight boundary but Praveen showed that he could hit cleanly too by depositing the next ball into the stands at midwicket. He went on to score 34, a knock that ensured Bangalore played out their overs.A target of 136 meant than Bangalore had to strike early to have any chance of a successful defense. Praveen had Rawat caught behind early and dismissed Yusuf Pathan with a bouncer, which was top-edged so high in the air that Mark Boucher had to run towards fine leg to take the catch.Two early wickets gave Bangalore a sniff but Smith emphasised how crucial his presence at the top order was for Rajasthan with a sensible innings. Against the Deccan Chargers, Smith batted aggressively because Rajasthan were chasing 200 plus but today he focused on staying at the crease.Along with Watson he stabilised the innings, and soon Dravid had to turn to Anil Kumble, who was playing his first game in the IPL. Watson, though, greeted him with two pulled fours, and when victory was almost certain, he cut loose against Praveen taking 26 runs off an over which read 4, 6, 4, 4, 4, 4. One was left wondering where all the fielders were for the ball raced to the boundary without a Bangalore shirt in sight.Smith fell one short of his fifty, holing out to long-on, while attempting a third consecutive four off Sunil Joshi but Watson and Mohammad Kaif completed the chase with 17 balls to spare.

Danish Kaneria has turned down the chance to play in the Indian Cricket League. Kaneria, who is currently playing for Essex, said that he rejected the approach as his priority was to Pakistan and that “money is not everything”. He also called on the selectors to give him a place in the one-day side.In an interview which will appear on the Essex CCC website, he said: “There was an offer to me to play in the Indian Cricket League but my country always comes first to me. I always want to give 110% to my country so don’t want to be playing in another league.”There are three teams I want to play for – firstly my country, then Essex and my department, Habib Bank. They are three major teams who look after me so I try my level best to give to them.”International cricket is something different to domestic cricket so I want to stick with that. Money is not everything. I want to get my name where Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne is. I want to achieve something in my life.”I would love to be in the one-day team and I don’t know why the selectors and captain don’t have confidence in me. They should do because I’ve bowled well in the county game [with Essex] which has a high level in the one-day cricket.”Leg-spinners play a vital role in any one-day team such as India who have been putting Piyush Chawla up against the England batting line-up. I would love to play but it depends on the management, the selectors and captain. They should have faith in me in all forms of cricket.”Kaneria’s next international commitments are in October, with the Test series against South Africa in Pakistan. In the meantime, he has been confirmed by Essex as their one overseas player next year.