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Sri Lanka Cricket’s Executive Committee will review the actions of captain Mahela Jayawardene and team manager Charith Senanayake, after Jayawardene said he had “lost all confidence in dealing with SLC” in a letter to the newspaper. Jayawardene’s letter had come after the newspaper carried a story about a request from Jayawardene to the SLC, which he had believed was confidential.Jayawardene’s request to the SLC was to have the player’s allotment of the guarantee fee from the World Twenty20 shared with the team’s support staff as well as Sri Lankan groundstaff and curators, whom he said had worked “closely and tirelessly with the team” during the tournament. This request was turned down by the board, which said it did not wish to “deviate from standard practice”.Details of this request and the SLC’s response were obtained by the , who ran a story on the matter, which also quoted SLC’s treasurer Nuski Mohamed laying out the reasons as to why Jayawardene’s request was denied. This public airing of an issue Jayawardene believed to be sensitive then prompted him to write a letter to the newspaper.”As the Captain of the National Team, I am disturbed and deeply disappointed that a confidential document handed over to Sri Lanka Cricket has been published in the on December 19 causing much concern, embarrassment to players and other staff members,” said Jayawardene in the letter, published on December 21. He said that as a result of the story being leaked to the papers, he had “lost all confidence in dealing with SLC in the future”.SLC has since issued a release saying the “release of [Jayawardene’s] views through the Manager, direct to the media is a breach of their respective contracts on the part of both the Captain and the Manager and this matter will be taken up for discussion when the Executive Committee next meets.”Jayawardene is due to step down as captain following the end of Sri Lanka’s tour to Australia.

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Odisha kept their cool and completed their first outright win in four years by defeating Haryana in Bhubaneswar. Haryana were expected to roll over after their first-innings implosion for 66, but they fought hard over the next three days to make sure it was not all one-way traffic for Odisha. Chasing 148 to win, Odisha were 60 for 3 overnight, and lost Abhilash Mallick early on. Their experienced wicketkeeper-batsman Halhadar Das followed soon after, and at 81 for 5, it was anybody’s game. No. 3 Govind Podder and Deepak Behera, however, put on 43 runs to take Odisha close to victory. Podder fell after a crucial half-century, but Behera and Lagnajit Samal made sure Odisha’s winless run didn’t extend any longer. The result puts Odisha on seven points after three matches, while Haryana are yet to get their first point having lost both their games so far.
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Tamil Nadu completed a dramatic victory over Maharashtra in Chennai – their first outright win of the season. Needing only two more wickets to finish off a thrilling match, Tamil Nadu took only 8.5 overs to confirm six points. Their spinners Aushik Srinivas and Malolan Rangarajan took a wicket each as Maharashtra folded for 88 on a pitch that was providing plenty of help to both the quicks and the spinners. The win takes Tamil Nadu to eight points after three matches, and Maharashtra are still stuck on one point after two games.
ScorecardUP gave themselves 91 overs on the final day to bowl out Karnataka and were well on course but a dogged ninth-wicket stand between CM Gautam and KP Appanna that lasted more than 10 overs denied them six points. UP, however, floated to the top of the Group B table with ten points.Declaring the innings at their overnight 343 for 5, UP set Karnataka a target of 446 overs on the last day and then struck early to remove the openers within the first 10 overs. Manish Pandey and Ganesh Satish resisted for 30 overs with a 122-run stand and both completed half-centuries, but well-set Pandey’s run out opened the gates for the home side. UP’s bowlers – led by Bhuwaneshwar Kumar’s 4 for 67- kept chipping away with wickets at regular intervals and were close to finishing the job when they took the eighth wicket with ten overs to go. However, Gautam, who scored 26 off 109 balls, and No. 10 Appanna, who scored 4 off 26 balls, survived the last hour as the match ended in a frustrating draw for UP.
ScorecardAfter four centuries and six half-centuries and nearly 1100 runs in four days, all Delhi and Baroda could do was to get a point each from their third round Ranji Trophy encounter at the Kotla. Replying to Baroda’s 561, Delhi scored 505 for six, largely due to the twin centuries from Mithun Manhas and Rajat Bhatia along with an entertaining half-century by Sumit Narwal towards the end.

Australia have not named a vice-captain for the Gabba Test, partially due to the fear it would create expectations of a succession plan for Michael Clarke’s eventual departure.The absence of the official vice-captain, Shane Watson, due to injury has left the Australians without a nominated second-in-command for the first Test against South Africa, but Ricky Ponting is expected to take control should Clarke have to leave the field.Brad Haddin served as vice-captain during last summer’s home Tests against New Zealand and India in Watson’s absence. David Warner was later installed as the vice-captain for the triangular ODI series against India and Sri Lanka when Watson was sidelined, but he was overlooked for the leadership when Clarke also succumbed to injury.Ponting took over the captaincy and Warner remained vice-captain, and the set-up was a minor embarrassment for John Inverarity and his fellow selectors, who have preferred not to name a vice-captain this time around.”We have had discussions about this,” Cricket Australia’s chief executive officer James Sutherland said. “The feeling has been, and this has come through the selection panel, that they didn’t feel there was a need to appoint a vice-captain given that Shane is the nominated vice-captain. I think it’s reasonably obvious who the nominal vice-captain would be if Michael went off the ground.”But the selectors gave feedback to the board and it was decided that it wasn’t necessary, and it may well only confuse things to be looking for someone to appoint as a vice-captain, because people might make presumptions about that appointment.”Although Warner, 26, was viewed as a player with leadership potential last summer, Australia are far from certain who will eventually be groomed as Clarke’s successor. If Clarke and Watson were both to miss a Test through injury, there is every possibility that Ponting would be temporarily reinstated, but with the Australians hopeful of regaining Watson for the second Test in Adelaide they believe the vice-captaincy is not a major concern.”With the Cricket Australia board you don’t have to officially name a vice-captain for every Test match,” Clarke said. “I’m certain if I go off the field there’ll be somebody there that can do that. At this stage we haven’t officially a vice-captain.”There’s plenty of guys – Mike Hussey, Ricky Ponting, Matthew Wade stands right beside me if I’m in first slip. We’ve got plenty of options there. Let’s hope I’m on the field the whole time and I don’t have to worry about it.”

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Shaminda Eranga picked up 2 for 25•Ron Gaunt/SPORTZPICS/SLPL

Nagenahira Nagas returned to the blueprint that devised their first three victories, as a belligerent innings at the top of the order and a clinical finish from Angelo Mathews backed up a strong bowling performance led by Shaminda Eranga. The Nagas’ six-wicket win over Uva Next ensures they avoid top-placed Wayamba United in the first semi-final tomorrow, a task Uva Next must now face, perhaps without wicketkeeper Upul Tharanga and allrounder Andrew McDonald, who both left the field through injury.Imran Nazir took flight for the Nagas in the chase, as he walloped eight fours and a six in his 25-ball 44. Nazir was typically powerful square of the wicket, punching Oram over cover to get the Nagas’ chase into gear, before hitting a spate of square boundaries in the last three overs of the Powerplay. He was stumped advancing to Sachithra Senanayake in the eighth over, but Mathews, his replacement, ensured the chase stayed on track, first by collecting risk-free runs into the outfield, before hastening toward the target as the close approached. He was unbeaten on 43 from 33 balls when he hit the winning runs with five balls remaining.Dilshan Munaweera contributed his highest score of the tournament for Uva Next, but sacrificed muscle-power for longevity, striking at a relatively steady 129 for his 45. The Uva top order was restrained by tight overs from Eranga and Mathews at the top of the innings, though Kanishka Alvitigala, who also took the new ball, could not boast their parsimony. Munaweera launched three sixes and two aerial fours, but struggled to pierce the infield for ones and twos until the field spread. He departed just as he’d looked set to launch when he miscued a scoop to short fine leg, but the selectors who have chosen him for Sri Lanka’s World Twenty20 squad will be encouraged by an innings of more application than he has shown so far in the tournament, though they will look to him to better ally that attitude with his striking power on the international stage.Thilina Kandamby also made 33 for Uva Next, but three run-outs and a strong collective bowling effort from the Nagas ensured the target remained manageable on one of the flattest tracks the SLPL has seen.Eranga resumed the intensity that had brought him success at the beginning of the tournament, in four one-over spells that reaped two wickets and only conceded 25. He troubled batsman with sharp seam movement throughout the innings, and found the yorker length he had been missing in the last two matches, even uprooting Hammad Azam’s leg stump in the 20th over.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsUva’s Jacob Oram, bowling at the start of the Wayamba innings, finished with figures of 3 for 6•Ron Gaunt/SPORTZPICS/SLPL

Wayamba United roared back after a poor start to record their second win in as many matches in the SLPL, beating Uva Next by 20 runs in Pallekele. Kamran Akmal’s 32-ball 36 helped Wayamba United recover after they had slipped to 44 for 4 from 5.3 overs, before late hitting from Milinda Siriwardene and Kaushal Weeraratne lifted them to 147 for 9 from their 20 overs. The Wayamba United bowlers also overcame a poor start, to strangle the Uva Next innings after the opposition openers had made a rapid start.Wayamba United stacked all four of their overseas players in the top five, and the move almost backfired when Tamim Iqbal, Mohammad Hafeez and Umar Akmal were all dismissed cheaply, with Mahela Jayawardene also contributing only 9. Kamran Akmal rebuilt alongside a unhurried Dinesh Chandimal however, taking runs to the outfield rather than attempting a counterattack – though the big shot did come occasionally, usually to the square boundary on the off side.At their demise at 82 for 5 and 90 for 6 Wayamba United were still threatening a small total, but entertaining 20s from Siriwardene and Weeraratne ensured the bowlers would have something to defend, as the exploited poor lengths from the opposition bowlers to put on 41 from 24 balls.In the chase, Dilshan Munaweera clobbered three fours and a six in his 26, and he alongside Shivnarine Chanderpaul took Uva Next to 30 from 2 overs, but none of the other batsmen were able to eclipse his score as they continued to lose wickets in close proximity.Akila Dananjaya was again impressive for Wayamba United, conceding only 20 from his four overs and taking two wickets in the process. Batsmen were not always fooled by his variations, but his turn and flight remained a threat throughout his spell and ensured few risks were taken against him. Isuru Udana also bagged two cheap scalps, while Chathuranga Kumara took three wickets for 33 from his four.

Pakistan is looking at the proposed India series and the Twenty20 league it has planned as means to overcome a shortfall of 70 crore Pakistani rupees (US$7.5 million approx) in its budget for 2011-12. The deficit was confirmed at the board’s governing council meet in Lahore on Wednesday.The PCB has been facing a financial crunch mainly because of teams refusing to tour Pakistan due to security concerns following the attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in 2009 – since then, Pakistan has been forced to host teams at neutral venues. The 2010-2011 budget was also in the red, before it was boosted by the hefty compensation that the ICC paid the board, following Pakistan’s removal as co-host of the 2011 World Cup.”We are forced to play away from home, this makes a difference,” a member of the PCB’s governing board told ESPNcricinfo. “But we have plans and the board is optimistic that by the end of this fiscal year, [even if we do] not cover [the deficit], we will be able to reduce the gap.”In a statement, the PCB said: “The Board members deliberated extensively on the budget and noted that like previous years the budget is a deficit one. They were assured that by the end of the financial year every possible effort will be made to reduce the deficit.”At the meeting, the council also approved the creation of four new regional teams in domestic cricket. This means an increase in the number of regional teams from 11 to 15, with Larkana, Dera Murad Jamali, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and two-time Quaid-e-Azam champion Bahawalpur being the new units.With Bahawalpur’s induction, the number of teams from Punjab province has increased from five to six – Lahore, Sialkot, Multan, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi are the others – while Dera Murad Jamali will join Quetta from the Baluchistan province. Larkana will join Karachi and Hyderabad as the regional teams from the Sindh province. FATA is a semi-autonomous tribal region in the northwest of Pakistan.Bahawalpur had been part of the Pakistan domestic structure until 1991, when it was merged with Multan.Another major decision taken at the meeting was to make it a requirement for every private party interested in organising a cricket tournament at the domestic level to procure a no-objection certificate from the PCB. Without the NOC, no PCB contracted player would be able to participate in the tournament. This decision was made with a view to bring all domestic cricket under the umbrella of PCB and to ensure it is in line with the ICC’s requirements on matters of corruption control, anti-doping, etc.

Ravi Sawani, the head of the BCCI’s new anti-corruption wing, has submitted his report on the allegations of corruption levelled against five domestic Indian players to board president N Srinivasan. The allegations, which allude to match-fixing and negotiating for extra illegal pay, emerged after a sting operation carried out by and forced the Indian board to call for an immediate investigation on May 16. Sawani, who was appointed as the commissioner of inquiry by the BCCI, had been asked to submit his report in 15 days’ time.The report will now be studied by the BCCI disciplinary committee, which comprises Srinivasan, Arun Jaitley and Niranjan Shah (both BCCI vice-presidents). Sanjay Jagdale, the BCCI secretary, said that no date has yet been fixed for the disciplinary committee to meet.The three-man panel, after studying the report, will decide on the final action to be taken against the players – Shalabh Srivastava, Mohnish Mishra, TP Sudhindra, Amit Yadav and Abhinav Bali. The players, if found guilty, will be charged under the BCCI and IPL codes of conduct.It is understood that Sawani, a former head of the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit, interviewed all the five accused in person. Sawani’s interrogation was based on the information and evidence he gathered from sources.The probe was ordered to investigate charges arising from the sting operation, including allegations of players agreeing to fix a match and being involved in match-fixing, players discussing IPL contracts outside the validity of their existing contracts with their respective franchises and whether the players’ conduct brought disrepute to the game or the BCCI in any form., in mid-May, had showed footage of a player bowling a big no-ball in a limited-overs match and played a recording of a phone conversation that it said was of a current IPL player negotiating a fee for bowling a no-ball. It also had at least three players on camera allegedly seeking more lucrative IPL deals – including extra money that would have violated their IPL contracts – with other league franchises through an undercover reporter posing as a sports agent.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Test cricket’s latest 10,000-run man, is providing incalculable value to a young West Indies team by the example he sets in training and at the batting crease, Darren Bravo has said. Bravo was at the crease with Chanderpaul when he passed the mark on day four of the third Test against Australia in Dominica, and their partnership briefly gave the hosts hope of chasing down a distant target of 370 to defeat the tourists.Though both would be dismissed before the close, Chanderpaul lbw on a DRS referral by Australia’s captain Michael Clarke in the final over of the day, Bravo said the progress being made by the Caribbean side was due in large part to the fact that the team’s younger players have Chanderpaul’s famously relentless batting to measure their methods against.”The good thing about it is whenever you talk to Shiv and ask for advice, he is 100% willing each and every time [to share his advice],” Bravo said. “We’re very fortunate to have him in this team at this point in time and we enjoy his company, he’s going to be around for a very long time still. He’s scored lots of runs and as young batsmen in the team we should try to take a page from Shiv’s book as much as possible – as long as we do we’re going to improve as a batting unit in the future.”I think the way he practises, he puts his heart and soul into the way he practises. Shiv’s a guy who will bat first at training and then be the last to leave the nets, so it is something us as young batsmen can look at. The way he goes about an innings is special, he plays the ball on its merits and his concentration level is very good. It is just a matter of learning from him as much as possible … very important for us to pick his brain at every opportunity.”Bravo said the privilege of being at the other end when Chanderpaul stroked run No. 10,000 would stay with him for a long time, and only served to strengthen a batting relationship that has already reaped six century stands in Test matches.”Batting with Shiv when he achieved his 10,000th run was a special feeling, really nice to be out there with him and share the moment,” Bravo said. “We’re all happy for him and he’s going to go down as one of the best batters for the West Indies, so I’m really happy for him.”Shiv is someone I enjoy batting with each and every time, we have had a few partnerships, we tend to get pretty decent partnerships. When I’m batting with Shiv he’s always there encouraging me and telling me to treat the ball on its merits and try to rotate the strike as much as possible. I try to do that. Batting with Shiv gives me confidence, we all know he’s much more experienced so batting with him is definitely a plus.”Having made 45 to conclude a series in which he has made plenty of starts but never quite carried on, Bravo said he was determined to learn from his first meetings with Australia. As stumps approached on day four, Bravo had been undone by a quicker delivery from allrounder Shane Watson – the ball was onto him with more pace than expected and prompted an edge through to wicketkeeper Matthew Wade.”I believe it was an effort ball from Shane that had a bit more pace than the previous delivery,” Bravo said. “I think, looking at the replays, it was too close to cut. I have to learn from those mistakes and go from strength to strength. I don’t want to focus too much on the negatives, I am always taking positives.”I’m disappointed in my performances [in this series] but I think I tried my best. In certain situations I was able to get a partnership with another batsman going. It is a learning experience and it is very important for me to learn from my mistakes.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Nitin Saini made his maiden Twenty20 half-century•AFP

Kings XI Punjab, slow starters in this IPL, broke through into the top half of the points table with what should have been a comfortable win over Royal Challengers Bangalore, who fell significantly short of the formidable target they looked good to set. Kings XI scaled down 159 amid some late panic that produced three run-outs, taking the game to the penultimate ball when it deserved a swifter ending.The platform for a successful chase was laid by youngsters Mandeep Singh and Nitin Saini, who batted assuredly, and stand-in captain David Hussey took them close with a fiery cameo. In the end, Piyush Chawla’s match-sealing six apart, Kings XI’s bowlers made the difference, with Praveen Kumar’s excellent opening spell and Azhar Mahmood’s economy at the death combining to undermine another Chris Gayle special and Virat Kohli’s return to form.Kings XI had no business losing with 13 needed off the last four overs. Not even after Saini fell trying to finish things off, miscuing a catch after scoring a half-century. Just one run came off the 17th over, and Mahmood was caught short in the next by an accurate throw from KP Appanna in the deep. Hussey followed when six were needed off nine, his dive to complete a second run beaten by AB de Villiers’ superb collection of a throw on the half-volley. Abhishek Nayar went next ball, trying an impossible run.Vinay Kumar brought it down to five off four in the final over, and the game was on a knife’s edge with two needed off two. Then came a length ball, allowing Chawla to free his arms, and he thrashed Vinay over deep midwicket. It brought up Kings XI’s fourth away win of the season, they’ve won five in all.The manic end almost undid an impressive show by Kings XI’s two upcoming talents. Mandeep was occasionally scratchy but delivered the start his team needed, timing the ball beautifully and even displaying some spunk against the accomplished bowling of Zaheer Khan. He pulled over midwicket and whipped over square leg for six, and slashed Vinay through point. He took the lead in the chase, over the more experienced Shaun Marsh, and Saini consolidated the good start.Saini was less attacking but batted with maturity, picking off the singles and twos comfortably, interspersed with some lovely strokeplay of his own. He drove Andrew McDonald beautifully down the ground, cut well against medium pace and spin, and marched close to his half-century with a confident pull off Zaheer. Saini didn’t feel the urgency to open up, his job made easier by Hussey, who smashed the left-arm spin of Appanna for two massive sixes before delivering the same treatment to Asad Pathan. By then, the pair had added 73 in 43 balls and the game was as good as over. Or so we thought.The batting backed up a superior show with the ball by Kings XI. Praveen, who conceded just eight off his four overs, the most economical spell this season, was the beneficiary of some early swing after his team chose to field. Though he went wicketless, the batsmen had few answers against his exploitation of the conditions, which included good bounce. Praveen beat the bat often, squaring up Gayle, troubling Kohli with outswing, forcing the batsmen to look for an opening at the other end while playing him with caution.Having conceded just 48 off the first nine overs, Kings XI were ahead but the introduction of spin and stark decline in the quality of bowling sparked a turn in the tide. Gayle and Kohli feasted on Piyush Chawla’s long hops, collecting 11 off his first over, and then launching him for a six each in his next. Gayle – who was dropped on 39 – then targeted an erratic Parvinder Awana, taking 19 in an over that included a powerful, flat six over long-on. The pair tore into length balls from Abhishek Nayar the next over, dispatching them over the fence, and five overs had suddenly yielded 68 runs. Just as Royal Challengers looked set for a commanding score, the momentum changed hands again.Gayle holed out in the deep against Mahmood, Kohli was done in by a skidder from Chawla – the two had added 119 – and the batsmen who followed weren’t able to bat as freely. Andrew McDonald and de Villiers targeted Awana for 14 in an over but fell in a space off three deliveries in the final over from Mahmood, who conceded only four off it. He varied his pace, surprised the batsmen with the short ball and was on target with his yorkers, ensuring Kings XI walked back satisfied with the hope of chasing a gettable total.

Match facts

Saturday, April 7, Bangalore
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)All eyes will be on Chris Gayle on Saturday•AFP

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There’s usually a buzz when Royal Challengers Bangalore are playing. They’re among the IPL’s richer, more high-profile teams with flamboyant owners and several star players. Their fortunes in the tournament are keenly followed by most, including a strong fan base. As they play their first game of the season in the heart of the city at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on a weekend, expect a cracking atmosphere despite the April heat.The Royal Challengers are a team endowed with batting firepower and Virat Kohli’s phenomenal recent run will be one of the major draw for supporters. But foremost in their memory will be Chris Gayle’s outstanding form last season, his two centuries and three fifties being the highlight of the team’s campaign. AB de Villiers is extremely reliable in the middle order and Tillakaratne Dilshan will add some more aggro to the side after the Test series against England. Add to that the track at Chinnaswamy Stadium, which generally favours the batsman and the trend of low scores thus far this season may just be under threat.Their opponents, Delhi Daredevils, have begun this season promisingly, beating Kolkata Knight Riders in their opening game. Irfan Pathan bludgeoned an unbeaten 42 and Morne Morkel lit up a damp evening with a couple of superb yorkers, including one that cut through Jacques Kallis. The win would be some boost to last year’s wooden-spoon winners. But an expectant Bangalore will be bracing for a Gayle airshow, even as his franchise owners have had to deal with a largely grounded fleet for some time.

Players to watch

An impressive 2010 IPL season with Mumbai Indians that included three fifties helped Saurabh Tiwary win a call-up to the national team and a bumper, millon-dollar signing with the Royal Challengers for 2011. However, Tiwary had a relatively quiet campaign last year, with 187 runs from 13 innings; he’d want to do much more than that this time around.Roelof van der Merwe‘s two wickets were overshadowed by Morkel’s destructive spell against the Knight Riders, but he’s a big asset in a Twenty20 side. He can prove effective with his left-arm spin while even opening the bowling, and showed his value by topping the wicket charts in South Africa’s MiWay T20 competition for the Titans.

2011 head-to-head

The Royal Challengers played the Daredevils just once last IPL, and won a very tight game with three balls to spare. James Hopes helped the Daredevils reach 160, and a half-century from Virat Kohli and cameos from Daniel Vettori and J Syed Mohammed helped them get home.

Stats and trivia