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In what is their first big foreign tour in two years, India find themselves in a strange situation – all square with the prospect of a greentop awaiting them on the first morning at the National Stadium in Karachi. If the blades do retain their length and if the ball darts around alarmingly, the whole series could be decided within the space of a session. Yet, it’s India’s medium-pace attack that has shown more promise through the series and there is no reason to not trust them to finish off the job when it comes down to the crunch.India have taken some aggressive decisions throughout the series – opening with Rahul Dravid at Lahore, choosing five specialist bowlers at Faisalabad – and have looked like a side that aren’t too paranoid about losing. They also appeared a relaxed lot ahead of one of their biggest tests in recent times – not scheduling practice yesterday and beginning today’s session with a round of fun and games. Karachi may be Pakistan’s cricketing fortress (they have lost here just once) but India seem least perturbed.Having been disappointed with the pitches at the two previous venues, Dravid appeared upbeat in the pre-match press conference. “It looks a very good pitch, might do a bit initially, but should be a very good wicket as the game goes on,” he said. “It is different to the ones we played in the last couple of Tests, but I feel that while it might help the bowlers a bit more and it might have a little bit in it early on, it will then pan out into a good batting pitch. Hopefully, we will have a result here, and it will go the way of the team that plays the better cricket for five days.”India named their 13-man squad on the eve of the match. As expected, Gautam Gambhir, Wasim Jaffer and Parthiv Patel were left out. Dravid added that the toss might not make such a vital difference, hinting that the team management might not be thinking of accommodating an extra batsman. With their 210-run partnership at Faisalabad, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Irfan Pathan showed that they can handle the simmering pressure of an India-Pakistan contest and India may decide that they don’t require additional batting cover. “Our batsmen give us a lot of confidence and experience,” he added. “They have had success and scored hundreds in different parts of the world and under different conditions in the last four or five years, and we are confident we can play in any conditions given to us.”India’s crucial decision will probably revolve around the bowling attack. At Faisalabad, Rudra Pratap Singh and Zaheer Khan had impressive bursts in trying conditions while Pathan went from pedestrian to probing as the game wore on. Ajit Agarkar, Dravid said, had recovered from his hamstring injury and considerable grass on the pitch may actually tempt India into using all four, with Anil Kumble being the lone spinner.”I think under the conditions, our bowlers have done admirably well,” Dravid continued. “It has been a challenge for them, and I think they have gained and learnt a fair bit. RP Singh, Zaheer and even Irfan in that spell on the final day showed encouraging signs. The way you motivate them on flat tracks is to tell them that they will benefit from what they have learnt from bowling on flat pitches when they bowl in more helpful conditions.”India will be well aware of another option, picking an extra batsmen who will provide them with a medium-pace option. Sourav Ganguly is yet to play a single innings in this series and, as always, it’s tough to rule out another comeback. Around 16 years ago, a 16-year-old boy played his first Test on this ground and began a new era in Indian cricket. Dare we suggest it, but is another era about to come to an end? Maybe, but as always, maybe not.

James Faulkner predicts more feats of run scoring and further sobering times for bowlers in the second ODI between Australia and India at the Gabba, even though playing conditions have actually eased in favour of the fielding sides since last year’s World Cup.Batting Powerplays were abolished three months after Australia’s players lifted the trophy at the MCG last March, but a preponderance of flat pitches, spring-loaded bats and powerful hitters mean that scoring has been only subtly affected by the change.Faulkner pointed out that the Gabba shared the WACA’s tendencies for fast scoring in ODIs, and expected something similar to the series opener when Australia reeled in India’s 309 with something in reserve, on a surface affording less assistance to the bowlers than the hosts had expected.”Everyone was quite surprised by the way the wicket played in Perth, it was very flat and we saw a lot of runs scored. I think any time you see 300 scored and chased it’s definitely a flat wicket,” he said in Brisbane. “I’m expecting the same sort of scenario here as well, I haven’t seen a one-day wicket that hasn’t been flat here for a fair while, so it should have good pace, carry and be a good contest again.”In general it’s a tough gig bowling in Perth and here. Runs can be scored so fast due to the pace on the ball, change-ups don’t grip as much as other grounds like the MCG and Canberra that we’ll see later in the series. Everyone got hit the other day so I don’t think you can single out one or two bowlers.”Commenting on the removal of the Powerplay, Faulkner said the ability of the fielding side to post five boundary riders was a relief. He also felt it meant that batsmen were less likely to contrive their innings by playing within themselves before the chance to hit into unmanned expanses of the outfield caused them to switch to and overtly aggressive posture.”I did notice a change,” he said. “The big change was the overs leading into the old Powerplay where batters tended to milk it around and stay in and then use that as a launching pad. That was a dangerous time for any team batting, if you lost a wicket before that five-over period it could really halt your momentum.”Likewise if you didn’t lose a wicket you could really set up a big total. I like the new rules, it goes back to five in the last 10 and it’s still a massive challenge for the bowlers, but it’s a bit more normal instead of players milking it around before.”While admitting he was trying to “avoid” taking in too much of the Big Bash League while on Australian duty, Faulkner indicated that Australia’s players felt no more pressure to be entertainers than they usually are under their coach Darren Lehmann’s desire for attractive cricket.”Every time you go onto the ground you try to entertain, I don’t think you specifically go out there and think ‘I want to put on a show’, it’s more worrying about what you can do to contribute to the team,” Faulkner said. “The revolution in T20 cricket and how successful the Big Bash has been this season with the crowd numbers that have attended and also on TV, it’s only going to get bigger.”It’s an exciting time for cricket in general, you’re seeing a lot more high scores in the one-day format as well. That’s entertaining enough.”

Amazing acts of individual brilliance have sometimes decided the outcome of Cup finals, and three breathtaking moments of magic from Shawn Findlay effectively settled the KFC Cup final last night.

As a result, Jamaica’s long wait for regional limited-overs glory is over, triggering emotional celebrations that included a spontaneous rendition of their national anthem moments after the mission was accomplished at 9.20pm.Under lights at the 3Ws Oval before an appreciative crowd, Jamaica won an absorbing duel against dethroned champions Trinidad and Tobago by 28 runs in a match in which Findlay’s sensational triple-play in the field proved decisive.As Trinidad and Tobago were trying to keep hope alive in pursuit of 231 from 50 overs, Findlay produced magic at critical times to help limit the men from the Land Of The Hummingbird to 202 in 49.3 overs.Daren Ganga’s men were just about starting to recover from the early discomfort of 36 for three in a fourth-wicket partnership of 43 between the solid Lendl Simmons and the potential big-hitter Kieron Pollard when Findlay intervened.Spectators at long-off were scampering for cover when Pollard launched into a drive against medium-pacer Brendan Nash that seemed headed for six, but were stunned to see Findlay leap to clutch in a spectacular left-handed catch.It was almost unbelievable. It was out of the top drawer. It was one of the finest ever in regional cricket. More was to come. With Simmons on 64 and a lot depending on him, he was prised out required confirmation from the television replay umpire.It left Trinidad and Tobago 130 for 5 in the 31st over and the match still delicately poised, but Jamaica refused to let up and went on to claim their first regional limited-overs success since 1999.Denesh Ramdin tried his best to rally the effort for Trinidad and Tobago, but when he was caught at extra-cover for 48 in the 42nd over, the match was as good as over. Findlay’s third piece of magic was late in the piece, a wonderful diving catch running in from the cover boundary in which the ball was taken inches off the turf as he dived forward.Jamaica owed their early inroads to incisive fast bowling from their West Indies combination of Jerome Taylor and Daren Powell, who combined to claim the first three wickets, including Trinidad and Tobago’s two most reliable batsmen at this level, Ganga and Dwayne Bravo.Taylor started things by removing Mario Belcon, who was an lbw victim playing across the line, in very much the same way Powell accounted for Bravo for a first-ball duck. In between, Taylor took care of Ganga, whose unconvincing attempt to hook ended up in a catch to the keeper. Twice, Taylor and Powell knocked batsmen on the helmet and their early impact was just as crucial as Findlay’s contribution.The two fast bowlers were earlier part of Jamaica’s rally at a time when Trinidad and Tobago might have been fancying their chances of restricting Jamaica to a total of less than 200. It was somewhat of a surprise that Trinidad and Tobago chose to field first and their decision seemed to be paying off when Jamaica were 167 for 7 in the 42nd over, subsiding to a quick three-wicket burst from leg-spinner Samuel Badree, after off-spinner Sherwin Ganga, who also took three wickets, stemmed the early flow of runs.Brenton Parchment provided the early impetus with 52 off 67 balls, but after Jamaica ran into the trouble they required important runs from the lower half which was getting a chance to bat for the first time in the competition. Danza Hyatt, who batted at No. 5, made 28 and there were also useful runs from Carlton Baugh (25), Nikita Miller (26), Powell (20) and Taylor (18).

Even on a cold Melbourne morning with all eyes on the MCG Test, the South Australia allrounder Mark Cleary could not avoid some good-natured sledging about the Redbacks’ woeful start to the season. Cleary won the “Biggest Basher” competition that launched the expanded domestic Twenty20 program, in which a player from each state tried to hit balls across the Yarra River.”It must be strange to win something,” said the New South Wales representative Ed Cowan, as Cleary accepted his prize – a yellow plastic bat that might be South Australia’s only trophy for the year. The Redbacks are languishing on the bottom of the Pura Cup and Ford Ranger Cup tables and questions have been asked by their own hierarchy about team management.Cleary tried to push the official line when asked about their poor form but his colleagues from other states were keen to rub it in. “We’ve got a good side,” was all Cleary managed to tell the media before Tasmania’s Travis Birt piped up with “No you don’t!”The friendly banter was typical of the jovial feel at the launch. But Cricket Australia will be keen for the states to take the Twenty20 format seriously, as it hopes to draw bigger crowds with attendances at Pura Cup and Ford Ranger Cup matches still disappointing.The players claimed they would be out there to win, but perhaps how much the states will focus on Twenty20 could be gleaned from the players enlisted to launch it: Nick Kruger, Aiden Blizzard, Peter Worthington, Cleary, Cowan and Birt are not exactly superstars. Blizzard found himself answering questions from passing Melburnians about when matches were on and who would be playing.But at least one team will be desperate to perform well. Cleary was confident that a string of Twenty20 wins could put South Australia back on the path to success in their four-day ventures. The next fortnight will tell if his optimism was justified or if indeed South Australia continues to be all at sea, like the eventual fate of the 30 yellow plastic balls that floated aimlessly down the Yarra.

Cricket Kenya will be holding its elections on June 24 with all positions on the board up for review.Under the constitution, the elections had to be held by the end of June and the date was the last available to fulfill that requirement.Samir Inamdar, the current CK chairman, is standing for re-election. As Kenya’s representative on the ICC, as well as a member of the ICC executive board, he should be in London for the start of a week of ICC meetings starting on June 24, but he will have to wait in Nairobi for the election results before flying out.The last elections were held in May 2005 when the old board, headed by Sharad Ghai, was kicked out.

1994-95 in South Africa
Wisden report | Cricinfo site
Pakistan arrived in South Africa with confidence high on the back of a hard-earned Test series victory over Australia, but would finish the tour with defeat amid rumours of dressing room unrest. Only the inaugural Test between the two nations was played, with both sides also taking part in the quadrangular Mandela Trophy held in South Africa before the tour started. Pakistan lost both their warm-up matches convincingly, to Western Province and Natal, and South Africa beat them by 324 runs in the Test at Johannesburg to record their largest win on home soil. Brian McMillan, with a maiden Test century, and Fanie de Villiers, who claimed ten wickets, were the heroes for South Africa, while Inzamam-ul-Haq gave further notice of his burgeoning talent with a defiant 95 in Pakistan’s second innings. Pakistan’s cause had not been helped by unfortunate injuries, with Waqar Younis pulling out on the eve of the Johannesburg Test, but it was clear that they had lost their discipline by the end of their stay. Worse was to follow, as they left South Africa for an ill-tempered tour of Zimbabwe.
South Africa 1 Pakistan 0

1997-98 in Pakistan
Wisden report | Cricinfo site
The first meeting between the two teams in Pakistan was a chance for both to lay claim to the position of the leading challenger to Australia at the summit of the world game. It was South Africa who emerged victorious, thanks in no small part to a strong unit and the allround talents of Shaun Pollock, Lance Klusener and Brian McMillan. Pollock and Allan Donald made for a formidable opening pair, in stark contrast to their counterparts Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram who, afflicted by injury and fatigue, did not play together until the final Test. Ironically, after a dead pitch and poor weather had ensured draws at Rawalpindi and Sheikhupura, this was to prove the decider. South Africa, inspired by the words and deeds of Pat Symcox and four second-innings wickets in seven balls by Pollock, came back from a big deficit to bowl Pakistan out for 92 and record a remarkable 53-run victory. For Pakistan the spinners Mushtaq Ahmed and Saqlain Mushtaq impressed throughout, while Ali Navqi and Azhar Mahmood became the first pair of same-team debutants to score a century in the same Test at Rawalpindi, but the defeat was an opportunity missed.
Tests: Pakistan 0 South Africa 1
1997-98 in South Africa
Wisden report | Cricinfo site
In the intervening four months before they met again in South Africa, Pakistan had regained the winning habit and thumped the West Indies 3-0 at home, while South Africa had gone down narrowly 1-0 in Australia. The stage was set for a battle between two well balanced sides, and accordingly the series was fairly drawn 1-1. Inevitably, however, the tour was dominated by controversy involving Pakistan. They arrived under a cloud surrounding Wasim Akram’s controversial omission, officially for fitness reasons, and Rashid Latif became their fourth captain in ten months. Allegations of match-fixing refused to go away and the gossips had a field-day when the first Test had to be postponed for twenty-four hours after two Pakistan players were supposedly mugged outside the team hotel. Whispers that the attacks had in fact taken place in local nightspots could not be proved, but the mud had stuck. The first Test at Johannesburg was a disappointing draw, notable only for Pat Symcox scoring 108 from number 10 in the order. Pakistan showed a fleeting glance of their remarkable abilities at Durban, with the spin of Mushtaq Ahmed helping them to a 29-run victory, but shot themselves in the foot in the final Test at Port Elizabeth. The recall of a clearly unfit Wasim Akram did little for team unity and Pakistan were heavily beaten, once more unable to convert their undoubted talent into a consistent level of performance.
Tests: South Africa 1 Pakistan 1

2002-03 in South Africa
Wisden report | Cricinfo site
The chaos that traditionally surround Pakistan plumbed new depths as they were soundly beaten in both the one-day and Test series by a ruthless South African side. Pakistan arrived on the back of a demoralising thrashing at the hands of Australia, but had regained some pride with convincing displays in Zimbabwe. However, when the real contest got underway they were found severely lacking. Save for one inspired batting performance they were poor in the one-dayers and went down 4-1, and things did not get much better as South Africa won both Tests convincingly. Once again the Pakistan camp was split throughout, with Wasim Akram, predictably, at the heart of things. Shoaib Akhtar withdrew from the first Test through injury and subsequently threw himself with gusto into the Durban nightlife, epitomising the prevailing attitude of the tourists, and the captain Waqar Younis appeared to have little hope of changing things around. South Africa profited from the Pakistanis decision to enter both Tests with just three bowlers and an allrounder, racking up 368 at Durban and 620 at Cape Town to gain a firm grip on each match that they never looked likely to relinquish. Pakistan pleaded exhaustion, while the result moved South Africa above Australia to the top of the ICC Test rankings, an outcome that appeared farcical in the wake of their comprehensive defeats at home and away to the Australians the previous year.
Tests: South Africa 2 Pakistan 0
ODIs: South Africa 4 Pakistan 12003-04 in Pakistan
Wisden report | Cricinfo site
When a bomb exploded in Karachi 48 hours before South Africa were due to arrive it looked like the tour was a non-starter. However, the discovery that the explosion was gang-related and had nothing to do with terrorism made the United Cricket Board of South Africa’s decision to cancel the tour look unnecessarily hasty. Inevitably, after much wrangling, the tour went ahead after all, albeit with an altered schedule that saw two Tests played instead of three and a further two one-day internationals added. On the pitch controversy was never far away either. Andrew Hall was banned after getting unnecessarily physical in the ODIs while his captain Graeme Smith was also punished. South Africa hit back, accusing Shoaib Akhtar of verbally abusing Paul Adams in the first Test. Akhtar was suspended and honours were even on that score, but the atmosphere between the two teams did not recover as the remainder of the series was played out in near silence, with players straining to steer clear of trouble. Pakistan won the series 1-0, with the pace of Akhtar and 99 from Asim Kamal on debut guiding them to victory in the first Test at Faisalabad. The second Test was drawn, with South Africa once more left to rue costly dropped catches as Pakistan clung on. It capped a disappointing tour for the South Africans, who appeared to have little stomach for the trip after a gruelling tour of England and for whom further contests with the West Indies and New Zealand lay in store. They did have the consolation of victory in the one-day series, but Pakistan’s greater firepower proved decisive in the longer game.
Tests: Pakistan 1 South Africa 0
ODIs: Pakistan 2 South Africa 32006-07 in South Africa
Cricinfo site
South Africa, fresh from beating India 2-1, were thoroughly tested at home by a strong Pakistan side before winning by the same margin. The tourists initially left out Shoaib Akhtar, ostensibly on fitness grounds – and allegedly due to a strained relationship with captain Inzamam-ul-Haq – but recalled him three days before the series began as Umar Gul pulled out with an ankle injury.Makhaya Ntini and Mohammad Asif ran through each others’ batting line-ups in the first Test at Centurion, but Ashwell Prince and Herschelle Gibbs’ 213-run fifth-wicket stand ensured South Africa edged ahead. Paul Harris’ four wickets left the hosts with less than 200 to get, which they chased down comfortably. The one black spot was a two-match ban for Gibbs, on grounds of racial abuse during an altercation with spectators. Pakistan fought back in Port Elizabeth, a lethal Shoaib ripping apart South Africa – and then joining Gul on the injury list with a hamstring problem – before Ntini replied in kind, but Inzamam made the difference with an imperious unbeaten 92 at No. 8. Asif and Danish Kaneria ensured Pakistan would also chase under 200, which they did, after a few flutters. Inzamam hailed the win as his best. In the decisive Cape Town Test, Pakistan’s batting failed twice despite Mohammad Yousuf’s induction; the South Africans followed suit in the first innings, and threatened to implode again at 39 for 4, before Jacques Kallis and Prince gave them a second series win in under a month.South Africa’s bowlers, led by Shaun Pollock and Ntini, helped them to an emphatic 3-1 result in the ODI series as Pakistan collapsed in the last two matches.Tests: South Africa 2 Pakistan 1
ODIs: South Africa 3 Pakistan 1

Ten more players have joined the roster of the Indian Premier League (IPL), according to the Indian board.The players to come on board for the proposed Twenty20 tournament include Graeme Smith, the South African captain, and Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand captain. Four other South African players have joined along with Smith, including Herschelle Gibbs, AB de Villiers, Ashwell Prince and Albie Morkel. The remaining players are Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Justin Langer, Scott Styris and Chaminda Vaas, now the ninth Sri Lankan player in the IPL, with eight of his team-mates having signed earlier.A pool of 22 players is now available for the various franchises to choose from, with the likes of Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Mohammad Yousuf and Stephen Fleming among them. Shoaib Akhtar, the Pakistan fast bowler, has also been approached, and is awaiting permission from the Pakistan Cricket Board to sign the contract.

A couple of days before the first one-day international, as the Indian team went through their paces at different parts of Kingston’s Chedwin Park, Mohammad Kaif and Ian Frazer were involved in an animated session on the concrete pitch at a remote corner of the ground.With the help of balls of different colours, shapes and material, Frazer delivered some fast short-pitched stuff on the jagged surface. Kaif decided to battle the pace and uneven bounce with a slightly open, two-eyed stance. Frazer would have none of it: “Go back to your original stance,” he hollered. And everytime Kaif veered even slightly to open out, Frazer kept urging him to change it. “Focus on the ball, don’t panic,” Frazer continued. “When you wait for the ball to come to you, you have more time than you think. Watch the ball carefully, but don’t glare at it.”Frazer later understood why Kaif was changing his stance. “It’s just one of those things batsmen try to do from time to time,” Frazer told Cricinfo. “I told him that it wasn’t the stance that was preventing him from scoring runs. It was the same original stance that helped him score so many runs, there is no reason why he shouldn’t be scoring again without resorting to a new stance.”In the practice game at Montego Bay, Kaif appeared far less fidgety than he had in recent months. He stood side-on and stuck a few gorgeous drives en route to a confident 49. In the first one-dayer at Kingston, he followed a similar approach, and though he rode his luck, surviving two dropped chances, the new-found confidence, for the first half of the innings at least, was there for all to see. “Only when you’re not batting well do you start analysing your technique,” said Kaif a day after the game. “You don’t think so much about your technique, bat-swing and head position when you’re in form. All you’re doing is watching the ball, everything else falls in place. When you’re not doing well is when all these things come into your mind. I changed a bit, it helped.”Kaif was glad he could get back his groove and looked to cash in for the rest of the series: “I’m happy I’ve got a good start in the first two games I’ve played. I wanted to stay till the end yesterday, and did just that. It’s good I didn’t panic. As long as I’m in the West Indies, I hope to carry on. You’ll see a different Kaif from now on.”

Norman Arendse, the new president of the South African board (CSA), has issued a statement clarifying his country’s stance of touring Zimbabwe following media criticism inside South Africa of the current A-team trip.”The Zimbabwe issue was debated fully, and at length, at the recent ICC AGM in London. Despite initial criticism from countries like Australia, England and New Zealand, after full debate and discussion, the Full Member countries of the ICC unanimously agreed to retain Zimbabwe as a Full Member.”The Full Member countries also agreed that it is not for the ICC to take up any moral or political stance on any issue in any of the Full Member countries. CSA is therefore committed to fulfilling its ICC obligations, and will only not do so, if instructed by the South African government whether to play there or not.”Arendse said that the issue had also been debated at the Africa Cricket Association meeting a fortnight ago, and also at a CSA board meeting last week, and the same conclusion was reached there. “The decision to continue with the tour was unanimous,” he concluded.The issue of Zimbabwe was always going to dog Arendse and he is likely to face ongoing claims that he is hardly impartial on the issue. As a lawyer, he was retained by Zimbabwe Cricket to act against its own rebel players, led by Heath Streak, in 2004.

Jacques Kallis is racing against time to be fully fit for the opening Test match against Australia at the WACA Ground in Perth, starting on December 16.Kallis has been receiving treatment over the last ten days after a scan revealed a grade 1+ in-substance tear to the common tendon of his left elbow. Kallis had a bowling session at the team’s practice today, under the watchful eye of Shane Jabaar, South Africa’s physiotherapist.”We have explored various forms of treatment to get him ready for the Test match. His response has been slow, but we are still hopeful that he will have a significant enough improvement to allow him to participate in the match,” Jabaar said. “We give him until Friday morning before a decision is taken on whether he will play or not.”