The Pakistan cricket team received a minor shock when they reached Ranchi as an unidentified person hurled a stone at their team bus. According to Saleem Altaf, the team manager, the stone narrowly missed Inzamam-ul-Haq, who was sitting near the window, as the bus came out of the airport complex in Ranchi.”The stone thrown by a miscreant shattered the window and the mood of the team,” Altaf was reported as saying in . “We were scheduled to have a nets session on Thursday in preparation for the third one-day international in Jamshedpur on Saturday. But after this incident Inzamam suggested we cancel the nets and allow the boys to take complete rest for the day.”The players were forced to alight at Ranchi as there was no airport at Jamshedpur, the venue for the third game of the series. The Pakistan players were already unhappy with the travel arrangements made for the one-day series with matches scheduled all over the country. However, the Indian board had defended their itenerary saying that smaller venues had to host the one-dayers according to the rotation policy.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced that it is prepared to host the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy. The tournament is supposed to be held by India, but if the Indian government does not provide a tax exemption for it, the ICC may decide to shift it to Pakistan.According to the Press Trust of India, Abbas Zaidi, the PCB’s director of media and public affairs, has said that the PCB has been promised a tax exemption for the event by their prime minister, Shaukat Aziz. Zaidi was quoted as saying: “The prime minister has assured us that if Pakistan has to host the tournament the government would not tax the tournament earnings which go to the ICC.”India was supposed to host the last ICC Champions Trophy as well, but it was shifted to England after the Indian government refused a tax exemption. Zaidi felt that that scenario might well be repeated here.”We are just waiting and watching,” he said. “India has the right to stage the tournament but in case we’ve to host it, we are prepared and we would be happy to do it for the ICC. But frankly speaking I don’t think India would like this tournament to go to Pakistan. It’s a prestigious event and the BCCI could succeed in getting tax exemption from their government.”The Indian board is doing all it can to get the required exemption. Ranbir Singh Mahendra, BCCI’s president, and Jagmohan Dalmiya, the ex-president, met India’s prime minister Manmohan Singh a few days ago to plead for an exemption. Manmohan promised to consider the matter, but no timeline was offered for a decision.Also read: A taxing problem

For eight long years, English cricket has been clinging to the memory of one glorious morning – at Edgbaston in 1997. It was the first Test of the summer, England were buoyant after a clean sweep in the one-day warm-ups, and an expectant nation watched in awe as the all-conquering Australians were reduced to 54 for 8 in just 19 explosive overs.Nineteen overs? Try 20 balls. That is the benchmark now, after the most exhilarating evening of psychological point-scoring. Not in their wildest fantasies could England have envisaged the sort of debacle that unfolded in Australia’s innings. Seven wickets for eight runs in 3.2 overs. It’s too extraordinary for words.The Twenty20 format encourages crash-bang-wallop cricket, but nobody imagined that that would be the sound of the most formidable batting line-up in the world collapsing in an undignified heap. England were fit, focused and firing; catches went to hand, the batting went to plan, and the bowling – led now, as in 1997, by the indefatigable Darren Gough – was a revelation.Gough’s presence in this team of young thrusters was a salutary reminder of the dark old days of English cricket, the days when, more often than not, he was the solitary shining light. From his buccaneering batting on the Ashes tour in 1994-95, via Edgbaston `97, and onto his hat-trick 18 months later, his attitude has never been less than up and at `em – even when he could barely walk in 2002-03, ahead of his career-saving knee surgery. Today, Gough epitomised the hunger that is driving England this summer, and could yet drive them to surpass all expectations come the sharp edge of the campaign.Forget all the pretence that this performance will count for nothing when the real event gets underway on July 21. England were victorious in their last Test against Australia in 2002-03; they won magnificently over 50 overs in last summer’s Champions’ Trophy, and now they taken a howitzer to the popgun variety of the game as well. If the secret in Test cricket is to win every session, then Australia have just put in a 34.3-over performance that would have shamed Bangladesh. This sort of crash-landing was not in their travel plans.Admittedly, their prior experience of Twenty20 cricket would not have prepared them for the ambush that England had in store. Back in February, they treated the format as one long in-joke, as the New Zealanders paid homage to their glory years of the early 1980s with beige outfits and silly hair, and Glenn McGrath aped Trevor Chappell’s infamous delivery by pretending to bowl underarm. There were no such fripperies on display today, as Gough all but burst a blood vessel in bouncing Andrew Symonds on his hat-trick ball, before Andrew Flintoff indulged in a spell of pre-emptive thuggery to beat Brett Lee back into his cage.Everything that could go right for England did go right. Jon Lewis got wickets on his international debut; Kevin Pietersen displayed once again his unabashed love of the limelight, and Steve Harmison was allowed three utterly stress-free overs in which to find his range against Australia – and find it he did, by uprooting McGrath’s middle stump to bring an end to the festivities.There will be sterner tests for sure, but Australia have been warned of the depth of England’s resolve in this series. This evening, 18 months of stunning success were condensed into 20 balls of bedlam.

Sourav Ganguly’s six-match ban, which was upheld by Michael Beloff, the ICC’s appeals commissioner, could yet come up for arbitration according to an Indian newspaper report. Ehsan Mani had earlier denied that the issue had been debated, but , based in Kolkata, claimed that a source had told them: “An arbiter is going to be appointed. One will soon know who stands where…”The paper also quoted another source as saying: “Strictly technically, the Executive Board took up the BCCI’s objection to the application of the Code of Conduct provisions and Sourav wasn’t specifically named in the deliberations…”The ICC’s official stand is that they await a response from the Board of Control for Cricket in India, but it would be an extreme step to overturn the ban, with Ganguly already having sat out two matches. In the past, transgressions of the Code of Conduct have never come up for review once an appeals commissioner upheld the ban.Ganguly, who stands to miss four more games, ruling him out of the one-day tournament in Sri Lanka, was still clueless as to his fate, saying: “Till now, I haven’t heard anything and, so, wouldn’t like to say anything.”Since then the ICC has made it clear that no further action would be taken on the case till the Indian board puts forward its point in a written communication. A spokesperson said in a media release, “The ICC, through its President Ehsan Mani, has agreed that should the BCCI wish to take this matter further it must write to the ICC which would then refer this to the ICC Disputes Resolution Committee.”

As Bangladesh prepared to leave England, Mohammad Ashraful vowed to use the trip as a springboard for further, more consistent, success. Although Bangladesh twice went down by an innings in their two Tests against England, they rallied in the one-day internationals with Ashraful’s run-a-ball hundred setting up their shock five-wicket win against Australia in Cardiff.It is now four years since Ashraful, on the verge of his 17th birthday, became the youngest player to score a Test hundred when he reached three figures against Sri Lanka.Although he failed to live up to that promise during the Tests against England, Ashraful was pleased by the way he responded to early failures later in the tour by scoring 259 runs in the Natwest Seires at over 43.”I was not happy with the Test series against England but I’ve been happy to comeback in the one-dayers and score runs again. I had the thinking before that I could score 100 in every innings, so my thinking was not mature – but I am more mature now. I know I can’t get a 100 every game but I can continue my form.”I am more mature now in my thinking and batting. I want to continue being consistent in the next series. I think I can do that against Sri Lanka in our next series. If I do that, then I hopefully will have got rid of the inconsistency tag. I don’t just want to have scored runs in this series in England. I want to be a success all the time.”Bangladesh’s victory against Australia in Cardiff was their lone internationalsuccess of a tour that featured some heavy defeats. But an upbeat Ashraful insisted: “I feel Bangladesh can become an even better side. In two or three years we can challenge anyone. At the moment we get a good start to the innings and don’t always catch up in the middle or late order.”I think this can happen. If we can score runs all the time, then we can challengeanyone. To beat Australia gave us a big lift. Before that we were not in good form butafter that match everyone was changed mentally. It gave us self-belief.”Meanwhile Bangladesh captain Habibul Bashar said several of his players could dowell in English county cricket. “I don’t know if they are going to get any offers but I think Ashraful, Shahriar Nafees and Aftab Ahmed are capable of playing at that level. I’d be very happy if they get offers and the chance to play in the county games. I hope that the counties have been looking at some of our players.”Nafees, who won the man of the match award for his 75 against Australia atCanterbury on Thursday, and Ahmed will be returning to England with the BangladeshA team later this month along with Nafees Iqbal and Nazmul Hossain.Nafees, 19, said: “We have to take good things out of every game on this tour and work out the areas which went wrong and improve on them. It has been a big learning curve for all of us.”

The tearaway fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has given the Australians a warning ahead of the second Test, which begins in Sharjah on Friday. Regardless of the extreme heat, he intends to bowl fast and maintain his wicket-taking ways. Although Pakistan are 1-0 down in the series, Shoaib is fresh from causing two batting collapses at Colombo, and believes the conditions in Sharjah will help him strike again.”I’m at my best. I am running fast, and the rhythm and flow is there,” Shoaib said after a gruelling net session. “I feel very strong in the legs. I’m always keen to do well against Australia. They are the best batting side in the world, and it gives me a lot of motivation to destroy this line-up.”The conditions in the desert emirate, where this is not usually the cricket season, are sweltering. The temperature is forecast to remain in the high thirties, but Akhtar relishes the trying conditions.”There will be more swing for me here. Unlike Colombo, while it is hot, it is not humid here, which suits us. I’ve played enough cricket at Sharjah to know that I’m more effective here. Since it is drier, I’d be quick off the wicket, and the dry surface would scuff the ball early for us to get reverse swing.”And reverse swing at his pace, he added, is absolutely lethal. “Other people have tried to reverse swing the ball, but it is the pace in our armoury that makes it unplayable.”Shoaib learned the art from Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, and intends to learn more about the nuances of fast bowling while playing county cricket next season.”I want to learn more through county cricket but without wrecking myself. Now that two overseas signings are allowed to each county, it is possible to have a lesser workload,” he said. Refusing to mention the county he would join, he added that negotiations were in progress with two counties.It was evident from his demeanour and his words that he intended to inflict more misery on the Australian batsmen. “I’ve always bowled well in one-day cricket. But my Test average is not good enough, simply because I’ve not played Tests regularly.”Shoaib believes he can get to 350 to 400 Test wickets. “But my job is to win matches for Pakistan. That is what I want to do.”The Aussies are beatable. We beat them in June, and that showed the way for Sri Lanka to beat them in the Champions Trophy. We came very close to beating them in the first Test at Colombo. There they were looking at 600 (in the first innings) and I had to manoeuvre to turn things around.”I was successful in the post-lunch session. I did it again on the fourth day with five wickets in 15 balls. Faisal Iqbal, Taufeeq Umar and Younis Khan batted well, but we could not finish it off, mainly because of our inexperienced batting. But the Aussies now know that despite the inexperienced batting, beating us would not be easy.”Anyway, it is my job to lead the way, to be the inspiration, to lift the team. And I’m doing just that.”

USA beat Canada by 39 runs
Defending champions Canada were on the receiving end of a surprise first-day defeat at the hands of the USA on the opening day of the Americas U19 Championships in Toronto. The host nation, winner of both previous U19 Championships in 2001 and 2003 respectively, were beaten by a committed United States outfit by 39 runs.After being put in to bat, the USA scored consistently to set themselves up with a good total, thanks largely to second and third wicket partnerships of 47 and 83 respectively. Opening bat Ravi Timbawala, later named Man of the Match, put together an excellent innings of 67 in 94 balls, and his partnerships with Akeem Dodson (23 in 40 balls) and Hemant Punoo (32 in 56 balls) put the US side in a commanding position at 148 for 2 after 25 overs.Accurate bowling from Krunal Patel (3 for 44 in 10 overs) and Trevin Bastiampillai (2 for 38 in 10 overs) brought Canada back into the frame, but a 51-run sixth-wicket partnership between Ramsabad Kumar (42 in 73 balls) and Danai Nathanial (22 in 32 balls) eventually guided USA to 246 all out in 50 overs.In reply, Canada were pegged back by some consistent bowling and tigerish fielding, and in contrast to the USA innings, simply could not put any meaningful partnerships together, being reduced to 100 for 5 after 20 overs. It was left to middle-order batsmen Gunjan Patel (28 in 73 balls) and Waqas Junaid (37 in 60 balls) to try and mount a real challenge, but eventually 207 all out in 46.1 overs was as far as the Canadians could go.Excellent bowling from Usman Mohammad (2 for 49 in 10 overs) and Anil Deopersaud (3 for 44 in 10 overs) were the best of a fine all-round team effort.Bermuda beat Argentina by nine wickets
Argentina elected to bat first, but apart from a determined innings of 30 by Pedro Bruno, no other batsmen really mastered the Bermudan attack, and they were bowled out for 92 in just 26.5 overs. Man of the Match Stefan Kelly ended with fine figures of 4 for 22 in 9,5 overs. Bermuda made light work of their target, romping home in the 16th over, led by 49 from skipper Oronde Bascome.

ScorecardFive wickets after tea infused life into a game heading for a draw, but the Titans could not prise out the Lions’s last two wickets. Lions ended on 276 for 8, far short of the unrealistic target of 409 they had to chase in 84 overs.Daryll Cullinan, the Titans captain, batted on for 12 overs at the start of the day, eventually declaring with the score on 394 for 9. From the very beginning, it became obvious that the Lions were not going to chase the target. At tea, they were 164 for 3. Five balls after tea, Adam Bacher edged Paul Harris to slip for 93. Dale Steyn then took two more quick wickets, and there was panic. The score was now 189 for 6. Hylton Ackerman and Ahmed Omar staged a revival amid fading daylight, but with the reintroduction of Stein, two wickets fell of consecutive balls. But Ackerman went on, and remained unbeaten on 81, a captain’s innings that saved his team.
ScorecardThe target of 374 set by Western Province Boland proved to be beyond the Warriors’s reach. The 114-run victory suggested WPB’s campaign was back on track after a rocky start to the season.To win, the Warriors needed some player to make a big score. What they got instead were only starts. Mark Bruyns, Arno Jacobs and Mark Boucher all failed to convert good starts into a winning score. Bruyns had worked hard and looked set for more when he was caught off Charl Willoughby for 61. Jacobs was patient in getting to 60 when he was also caught off Willoughby. Boucher was watchful but was bowled by Neil Johnson for 49. From 214 for 4 the innings fell away as the Warriors were bowled out for 258, with Rory Kleinveldt taking 3 for 40.
ScorecardThe Dolphins made a splash in Durban, squeezing past the Eagles by two wickets to move to the top of the table. After bowling out the Eagles for 193 in the second innings, it should have been an easy win. But the road to 206 was not easy, for Victor Mpitsang took three wickets to leave the Dolphins reeling at 40 for 3. Three more wickets, including Dale Benkenstein and Lance Klusener, heroes of the first innings, left the Dolphins on 110 for 6. Two more wickets for Roger Telemachus and the game was all but lost at 142 for 8.But Andrew Tweedie, at No.9, and Zahir Abrahim, one place below him, put on 67 in 12 overs to snatch an unlikely victory. Tweedie, who had scored at nearly a-run-a-ball, ended on 42.

The popular comparison between Australia and New Zealand is with two sport-loving siblings. For years Big Brother took a passing interest andexpected no surprises. Any upset was written off as a fluke, and NewZealand gained consolation instead of congratulation. The contests havealways been spirited … and are getting closer.The Trans-Tasman Trophy is fought between the Shaky Isles and a continent,but New Zealand have grown up. Where they once rode behind Richard Hadleeduring home-and-away series wins in 1985-86, the players now walk in line.Three summers ago they eyed their opponents as stubbornly as the All-Blacks during the haka. Over three Tests – two were seriously rain-affected – the sides could not be split. Neither captain left with a victory, but StephenFleming had more to smile about.Apart from two series against India, it was Australia’s toughest assignment since that 16-in-a-row winning streak. New Zealand are struggling with niggles and sniffles this time, and have talked down their chances. Their attack has attracted the pop-gun cliché, and the squad includes Hamish Marshall, a batsman without a maiden first-class century. If they manage a win it will be only their third in a Test Australia. Hadlee set up the first with 9 for 52 and 6 for 71 at the Gabba in 1985-86, and walked off the WACA with 11 wickets and the series three weeks later.But as the younger brother stands taller, the older one doesn’t knowwhether the threat is comical or serious. Ricky Ponting should remember2001-02, because the Kiwis will hit hard. Back then, Steve Waugh donated arun-chase at Brisbane and New Zealand finished just ten runs away from taking aTest remembered for the weather and hulking Chris Cairns boundaries.Hobart was also rain-ruined, but at Perth the world champions-elect wereturned on in a style they had used to dominate opponents.Four New Zealanders reached centuries before Daniel Vettori’s 6 for 87almost allowed them to enforce the follow-on. Safety eventually came lateon the final day for Australia with some generous decisions from the Zimbabweanumpire Ian Robinson. Three Tests have been the maximum for Trans-Tasmanaffairs; that one was crying out for five.Rather than expansion, this summer’s contest has contracted and will bedecided in two matches over 13 days. It may be long enough to determine anAshes winner, but a tourist would be scowled at for taking so little timeover a South Island ski holiday or a north Queensland adventure. Australiaenter from the strength of a final-frontier victory over India, andunder-rating the opposition remains their biggest concern. Walking overBangladesh proves little, although Fleming’s double-century and Vettori’s20 wickets stood out. Weaknesses have been appearing since losing threeTests to England during the winter.Fleming returned from Bangladesh with a mystery illness, Vettori iscarrying a sore shoulder that restricts his throwing more than hisbowling, and Nathan Astle has a wonky back. Shane Bond and Daryl Tuffeyare also missing, and Chris Cairns has retired from Test cricket. Jacob Oram, the allrounder, and the squad of fast bowlers face a tough two weeks.Hopefully Fleming’s illness will not affect his tactical decisions. How hedeals with the Australian batsmen should be a feature of the series. BothWaughs were targeted with short balls last time, and Damien Martyn’scompulsive cutting was exposed. The best captain in the world needs to beready for the globe’s top team.Australia have held the Trans-Tasman Trophy since a 3-0 victory in NewZealand in 1999-2000, a series which included the return of Matthew Haydenand the resurgence of Martyn. Both men will again be watchedclosely as Hayden reacts to a slump in India and Martyn discovers if hecan reach even higher than his subcontinental heroics.A broken thumb has reportedly left Shane Warne without a flipper. Couldthis be a twist on his trick of introducing a new ball with the summer’sfashions? His confidence is high despite the injury that forced him tomiss the final Test of a breakthrough series in India, and he marks hisrun against a favourite opponent.Warne has already suggested Fleming cannot pick his variations, and thetwo are good friends. But Warne plans to “nail him”, “give it to him” andlaugh about it over a beer afterwards. Both teams try to play in the sameold-fashioned, aggressive style and matches are anticipated with grudges.Because of this the players – and the countries – seem closer. Almost likebrothers.Peter English is Australasian editor of Wisden Cricinfo.

The Afro-Asian Cricket Cooperation (AACC) has drawn up plans for a six-team, 16-match Under-19 tournament in the Indian port city of Vishakapatnam. The competition, featuring teams from India, Pakistan. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, South Africa and Zimbabwe, will be held from November 19 -27, 2005, and will be used as a warm-up competition for next year’s U19 World Cup.Jagmohan Dalmiya, the president of the Asian Cricket Council and chairman of AACC, explained the rationale behind the tournament. “Afro-Asian Cricket Cooperation is a regional body formed by the Africa Cricket Association and the Asian Cricket Council to support the development activities of its members across both continents,” he said. “The recent Standard Chartered Afro-Asia Cup was the AACC’s first tournament venture. An A Team tournament, featuring the players on the brink of selection for the Test and ODI teams, is scheduled to be held early in 2006.”Peter Chingoka, president of the Africa Cricket Association said: “These kinds of player-formative exercises are very much part of what the AACC aims to promote over the next few years.”The U19 World Cup will be held in Sri Lanka in February 2006. “Our cricketers all have ambitions to play at the highest level,” said Gerald Majola, Cricket South Africa’s chief executive. “Age-group tournaments such as these in different conditions against their cricketing peers can only help them on their way to the top.””It’s important that players get as much exposure as possible to top competition and different conditions,” said KK Haridas, ACC events executive. “Vishakapatnam will provide a close approximation to what the U19 players will encounter in Sri Lanka.”In a joint statement, Hoosain Ayob and Sultan Rana, the development managers of Africa and Asia respectively, affirmed that “Alongside Africa’s and Asia’s existing development activities, these high-profile events are welcome additions. The scale and scope of our development program through the support of the AACC, to boost the efforts of all our members will be substantial”.The tournament will feature three matches a day, beginning with Pakistan v Sri Lanka, India v Bangladesh and South Africa v Zimbabwe, and two rest days between qualifying matches before the final on Sunday, November 27.