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Former Pakistan allrounder Mudassar Nazar is the favourite to take over as director of the National Cricket Academy in Lahore.Although he is currently in temporary charge of Kenya following the resignation of Andy Moles last month, the situation in Nairobi in chaotic and it is not clear who Mudassar has to train given that most players have opted to play for the government-backed Cricket Kenya side rather than the official Kenyan Cricket Association. It is also reported that the KCA has no money and it is likely that Mudassar has not been paid. He flew back to Pakistan earlier in the week.”Once the offer is made to Mudassar officially we don’t think there should be aproblem for him to join the national academy," A Pakistan board spokesman said. "He is more keen on doing some work in Pakistan cricket and also the situation in Kenyan cricket is very fluid."Mudassar coached the Pakistan side in 2002 but was removed in the build-up to the 2003 World Cup. It is thought his appointment will be confirmed in the next few days and other coaching roles in the academy will be identified soon after.

India U-19 215 for 8 (Ravikant Shukla 62, Darwen 3-31) beat Australia U-19 214 for 6 (Henriques 85*, Gledhill 40) by two wickets
ScorecardAustralia’s Under-19 side suffered a two-wicket defeat in the opening ODI of their five-match series against India at Mohali.Chasing 215 for victory in 45 overs, the Indians lost openers Ankit Rawat and Anirudh Srikant cheaply, but Rohit Sharma and the captain Ravikant Shukla steadied the innings and Shahbaz Nadim played a patient knock of 26 to secure the win in the 40th over. Patrick Darwen was the most successful of the Australian bowlers with three wickets from his nine overs.After winning the toss, Australia’s openers were dismissed with the score on 4 and only an unbeaten 85 off 80 balls from Moises Henriques, who came in at No. 5, and 40 by the wicketkeeper Ben Gledhill pushed the total past 200.

Zimbabweans 206 and 193 for 8 (Williams 53*, Morkel 5-47) lead Combined Easterns/Northerns XI 275 by 124 runs
ScorecardOnly a combination of poor weather and dogged batting from Sean Williams took this match into a fourth day as the Zimbabweans ended the third day of their tour match against the Easterns/Northerns XI at Willowmoore Park in Benoni facing probable defeat.Play did not start until midway through the afternoon session, and even then only 21.1 overs were bowled before bad light came to the Zimbabweans rescue. In that time they took their total from an overnight 138 for 6 to 193 for 8, a lead of 124, thanks to Williams’s unbeaten 53.Much depended on Tatenda Taibu, but he had added just two to his overnight 21 in almost an hour when he became Morne Morkel’s fifth victim of the innings. Prosper Utseya hung around to give Williams support, but in the over before the premature finish he fell to slow left-armer Paul Harris for 9.

England have recalled James Anderson into their squad for the third Test at Trent Bridge which starts on Thursday.Anderson pulled out of the side for the Leeds Test with a heel injury, but scans showed that there was no serious damage. He passed a fitness test at Old Trafford this morning, and will travel to Trent Bridge to join the England squad tomorrow.”The heel feels fine,” said Anderson. “It’s only really troubled me whenI’ve bowled and the medical staff here are very pleased with it.”Paul Collingwood, who was in the squad for the first two Tests, has been released to play for Durham against Yorkshire in the County Championship.England squad
Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Strauss, Mark Butcher, Michael Vaughan (capt), Graham Thorpe, Andrew Flintoff, Geraint Jones (wk), Ashley Giles, Martin Saggers, Matthew Hoggard, Stephen Harmison, James Anderson

South Africa’s Mark Boucher-led run riot against Zimbabwe at Potchefstroom yesterday has left Graeme Smith, a spectator in the crowd, very impressed. Smith has been out of action since injuring his ankle in July, but looked forward to returning to captain an aggressive South Africa in next month’s Champions Trophy in India.”It’s fantastic to see how the guys played,” Smith told the website SuperSport.com after South Africa racked up 418 for five, their second total in excess of 400 this year. “It was nice to see them push themselves. In years gone by we would have been happy with 320, but we need to take ourselves to new levels. We’re looking to be more aggressive up front in the conditions we’re going to be playing in when we get to the ICC Champions Trophy in India next month. Hitting out at the death is not as easy there as it is in South Africa.”As for his rehabilitation from the ankle injury, Smith was positive that not being hurried back into the game was the correct approach. “We’ve decided to take things a little slower and not risk the ankle,” he said. “Rather than pushing it here and maybe setting myself back for a couple of days, I’d rather be 100% for India. I’ve started batting again and running around, which feels good after sitting on my backside for six weeks.””Obviously the injury was very frustrating, but it was also a blessing in disguise,” he added. “It gave me the chance to get into a good space, a good frame of mind. More than anything else, it’s the mental side of captaincy that causes strain.Add that to your own batting, especially if you’re batting up front, and you can see how important it is to be fresh. It’s a big year, and my brain needs to be ready for it.”Boucher, whose 68-ball unbeaten 147 was the second fastest hundred in one-day history, was just glad to reach the three-figure mark for the first time. “I’ve been striking the ball a lot better than in the past, and it’s a matter of just getting the runs behind your name,” he told reporters. “Hopefully, I can build on this.”Boucher also made light of the six times he was dropped by Zimbabwe’s fielders: “It was one of those days where whatever you swing at hits the middle of the bat and whatever is in the air and goes to hand goes down. The boys in the dressing room said I used up all my luck for the season.”

Hampshire appear to be in with a very good chance of winning their opening Frizzell Championship Division Two match of the season against Durham, but still have a job to do. Chasing 109 to win they lost openers Brown and Kenway early in the second innings.Hampshire started the second day in suicidal mode, four of the last five wickets to fall in the morning were poor shots offered up to the gleeful bowlers. Mark Davies was the receipient of most of these to finish with career best figures of 6 for 53.Hampshire lost five wickets in the morning for just 26 runs. Michael Clarke who had entertained the crowd on the first day was out early adding just 2 runs to his overnight score.With a deficit of 97, Durham lost three wickets for just 19, and a two day finish was looking likely. However, skipper Jon Lewis and Nicky Peng put together a brave partnership of 111, before Warne picked up the first of his 5 wickets bowling the young Peng quite comprehensively. Tremlett and Mullally, and a long economical stint from Mascarenhas all contributed to the visitors downfall, but it was Warne who finally put paid to any resistance with 5 for 68.With just 5 overs remaining in the days play, and Hampshire set 109 for victory, 11 runs in the first over looked like a stroll. Bowlers Plunkett and Davies has other ideas dismissing the openers before the close.

Nuwan Kulasekera and Lasith Malinga, two young fast bowlers from Galle, were the surprise inclusions in the 22-man squad announced today for Sri Lanka’s forthcoming series against England.Kulasekera and Malinga performed well for Sri Lanka in the recent Emerging Trophy tournament against Pakistan and India, and they have carried their form into the current domestic competition. Last weekend the pair combined to help beat title-contenders NCC – who included Hashan Tillakaratne, the Test captain, Kumar Sangakkara and Upul Chandana – by an innings.Meanwhile, Russell Arnold, Nuwan Zoysa, Lanka de Silva, Michael Vandort and Rangana Herath have also been rewarded for impressing on the recent tour to South Africa and Kenya. De Silva has been picked ahead of Prasanna Jayawardene, the wicketkeeper, and may even make it to the starting XI if Romesh Kaluwitharana fails to recover from a hamstring injury.Kaluwitharana has been named in the squad subject to fitness and de Silva, who batted well in South Africa, was chosen ahead of Prassana Jayawardene because of his better batting ability.The surprise exclusion is that of Jehan Mubarak, who scored centuries in South Africa and Kenya. Mubarak’s place has gone to Chamara Silva, a middle-order batsman who has been in the runs this season. “We have got reports that Mubarak is shaping up well and we don’t want to shatter his confidence by playing him too soon," Lalith Kaluperuma, the chairman of selectors, said. "He will be sent to India with the Sri Lanka A team next month and if he shows good form there we will recall him for the Test series against England.”The one-day squad will be picked next week.England, who are currently touring Bangladesh, are due to arrive in Sri Lanka on November 13 for a series of three ODIs and three Tests.Squad Hashan Tillakaratne, Marvan Atapattu, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Romesh Kaluwitharana (subject to fitness), Lanka de Silva, Upul Chandana, Kumar Dharmasena, Chaminda Vaas, Muttiah Muralitharan, Dinusha Fernando, Nuwan Zoysa, Nuwan Kulasekera, Chamara Silva, Tilan Samaraweera, Dilhara Fernando, Michael Vandort, Rangana Herath, Lasith Malinga, Russel Arnold.

The Cricket Reform Group (CRG), the self-appointed body headed by Michael Atherton and Bob Willis, last night published its manifesto for the future of the game in England. Entitled Making English Cricket Great – For Everyone, the document is a detailed top-to-bottom shake-up of the club and county structure.Many of the CRG’s proposals have been aired in public in recent months. In essence the document calls for a reduction in the amount of first-class cricket, a cull in the number of professional players from 450 to 276, a strengthening of links between clubs and counties, and an increase in the number of centrally contracted players from 12 to 24.One of the most controversial ideas doing the rounds – the scrapping of several existing first-class counties – was notable by its absence. The CRG would achieve the reduction in the number of players by limiting each county to a squad of 14, and the reduction in the amount of first-class games would enable most players to turn out for club sides on six or seven weekends.The County Championship would also be radically changed, with a six-team premier division underpinned by two regional divisions. The Twenty20 Cup would continue, but limited-overs devotees would be offered two midweek competitions – a knockout and a league.The CRG also recommends ending the influence of the First Class Forum on the ECB’s management board. “We passionately believe that a more streamlined management board must be given full control of the running of the game,” the document says. “The financial monopoly of the first-class counties must be challenged in order that the England team and the grassroots of the game, especially, receive greater financial support.”A delegation from the CRG met David Morgan, the ECB chairman, his deputy Mike Soper and John Carr, the board’s director of cricket operations, last week, and the ECB will consider the group’s suggestions before making any formal reply.County chairmen were sent a copy of the report last night.

From the early days of the Internet, Hampshire have had a presence as part of the Global front of CricInfo. Webmaster Vic Isaacs (scorer and statistician) inaugurated the site as an unofficial engine way back in those early days, and has continued to keep Hampshire supporters world wide informed of what was happening at the club.The move to the Rose Bowl did not stop the progress, but as the cricket became part of the greater Rose Bowl plc., it was felt that a change had to be made, and this is happening soon.www.rosebowlplc.com is already up and running, a proactive site with much information not just on Hampshire Cricket, but Membership, hospitality, concerts and many of the other aspects of the plc. such as fitness and golf.The Hampshire site will be moving soon to a new address www.hampshirecricket.com, but none of the features that has made this site one of the most popular club sites in the world will be lost. The Hampshire Cricket web site will be concentrating it efforts on purely cricket matters, scores, reports from the matches, news etc from the cricket office. It will all be there, in a cleaner looking interface.Watch out for this very soon, in the meantime this site will carry on giving you the news as it happens.Happy surfing

It’s amazing what a sporting gesture can do these days. There aren’t many, but Adam Gilchrist’s decision to walk against Sri Lanka in the World Cup semi-final has opened doors for a place in the corporate world.It was announced today that Gilchrist has joined Travelex, the foreign-exchange company, as a non-executive director. Travelex already sponsor Gilchrist and the Australian team, but they said they chose him for this position after he walked despite being given not out.Lloyd Dorfman, the company chairman, said Gilchrist showed strong ethics in a high-pressure situation: “Here you’ve got a guy who is prepared to walk himself out in the critical moment in the semi-final of a World Cup tournament, and in terms of integrity I don’t think you can do much better than that.”Gilchrist’s appointment is believed to be the first of its kind, and he was suitably shocked at the news. He said, “My reaction was, ‘What have I got to offer?’ When I walked in that game I certainly didn’t think it would lead to something like this.””I’m no expert on foreign exchange or the corporate world,” added Gilchrist. “What he has in mind is bringing in someone with a totally open mind, open eyes, fresh ideas, sitting in a boardroom asking the simple and obvious questions, the dumb questions that the experts might overlook.”Gilchrist surprised even his team-mates when he gave himself out in the match at Port Elizabeth last March. On 22 at the time, he tried to sweep Aravinda de Silva and was caught behind by Kumar Sangakkara. The Sri Lankans appealed, but umpire Rudi Koertzen turned them down, only for Gilchrist to head back to the dressing-room anyway. After the game, de Silva hailed Gilchrist as a gentleman, saying “It is very rare to see batsmen walking off. There are still some gentlemen in the game.”