Going for the charge, India lose 2 wickets

After being frustrated by the gritty Pakistani batsmen, India finally dismissed Pakistan for 456 in their first innings, gaining a 160-run first innings lead. Misbah and Sami were India’s tormentors-in-chief in this session as India wiped off the tail effectively.

Mohammad Sami was the first of the wickets to fall in the post-lunch session, falling to part-time bowler VVS Laxman. This was Laxman’s second Test wicket. It brought an end to a defiant and a resilient knock from Sami. Laxman flight it up well, full and outside the off-stump, Sami’s eyes must have lit up as he went for a heave over mid-off, only to be caught at mid-off by Wasim Jaffer. Sami’s innings finally came to an end after occupying the crease for a little over 20 overs. Sami fell for 38.

Sohail Tanvir then followed, caught by Rahul Dravid off Anil Kumble at first slip. He went for the wrong’un from Kumble, which drew him forward and the couldnt manage the extra bounce as Dravid took a neat catch diving to his left. Tanvir failed to score. Shoaib Akhtar didnt hang around for long, as Harbhajan Singh struck two overs later, with Dravid snapping him up, once again at slip. And immediately after sending Akhtar, Kaneria followed him back to the hut, bowled by Harbhajan for 0. Misbah ul-Haq was left stranded at 161.

Pakistan successfully avoided the follow-on this morning, after a stodgy effort from their overnight batsmen. They succeeded in their bid to foil and frustrate the Indian bowlers. Misbah ul-Haq provided stiff resistance and also scored some runs as the Indians were falling short of ideas in their effort to break the partnership. Misbah was soon approaching his 150, while Sami was unbeaten on 24.

Mohammad Sami, at the other end dropped anchor and foiled the Indian attack, led by captain Anil Kumble. He also managed to launch a massive six off the Indian captain, as Pakistan inched closer to wiping off the deficit. The duo brought up their second fifty-run partnership of the series, at an agonizingly slow run-rate of 1.93. They had earlier added 87 for the seventh wicket in New Delhi.

Sami was lucky as Rahul Dravid dropped a tough one at slip when the Indian captain succeeded in producing an edge. The ball flew to Dravid at first slip, but by the time he could move, it struck his hands and the ball popped out.

Earlier this morning, on-field umpire Billy Doctrove was taken indisposed after he complained of some illness. Third umpire Amish Saheba took his place on the field, and got right into action as he made a brilliant decision when Dhoni caught Misbah, with the ball coming off his arm.

India looked lethargic on the field, the buzz around the bat was clearly lacking and totally short of a game plan. Zaheer Khan looked impressive for a while, but fizzled out as his spell came to an end. Pakistan’s strategy seems to be oriented around playing out time and force India to score quickly in their second innings, which could help them save the Test match with ease.

Muttiah Muralitharan breaks Test wicket record

England reached lunch on the third day of the second test against Sri Lanka with a 91 run lead after being bowled out for 281 shortly before the break – but the day belonged to Muttiah Muralitharan as he became Test cricket’s most prolific bowler ever.

The wicket of Paul Collingwood brought Murali’s total up to 709 when he returned for a second spell of the morning. He also secured a staggering 61st five-wicket haul in Test cricket.

	Record breaker: Muttiah Muralitharan celebrates his landmark achievement in Kandy

After Murali had equalled Warne’s total yesterday, there was a sense of waiting for the inevitable but the spinner had to endure a fruitless opening spell as England’s batsmen consolidated their strong position in the match.

Muralitharan proved unsuccessful for more than an hour and Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene was forced to turn to the new ball for a breakthrough.

It did the trick as a stubborn seventh-wicket stand between Collingwood and Ryan Sidebottom was broken in just the third over.

Sidebottom struck a Test-best 31, which represented the bulk of a 57-run alliance, but perished when a thick outside edge was well held, diving forward, by wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene.

Then, shortly before midday, the bounce of the new ball accounted for Collingwood, clipping his middle stump – a delivery Muarli later confessed had gone on instead of turning as he had intended – and the bowler was mobbed by his team-mates in the middle

There was celebration in the stands, too, as fireworks were set off for the local hero.

England were all out for 281 not long after the landmark achievement as Matthew Hoggard was stumped down the leg-side to provide Murali with number 710 and James Anderson was adjudged leg-before to Chaminda Vaas.

Earlier, Sidebottom had given England a lead with an on-drive for four off Dilhara Fernando in the opening over of the morning.

Having begun on 186 for six, two runs short of Sri Lanka’s first-innings total, England made steady progress as Collingwood showed trust in his partners.

Sidebottom survived one Murali over last night and fought gamely, striking only the third boundary off the off-spinner in the innings when he whipped the ball through midwicket, which also brought up 200.

England’s lower order proved stubborn and Sidebottom surpassed that target in moving past his previous best of 26 not out while Collingwood became increasingly adventurous as the innings drew on.

Improvising against Murali, he cut off his stumps for one boundary and deftly reverse-swept a three towards the end of 22 overs of defiance alongside Sidebottom.

Murali admitted he was glad that his record-breaking wicket had come on home soil, rather than in the recent tour to Australia.

“It is the right timing,” he said. “That’s a special wicket. It was not meant that way because I tried to spin the ball and it didn’t spin.”

Murali is sure to be the focus of much attention over the coming days and, asked to reflect on his career, he said: “The highlight was in England when I took 16 wickets at the Oval (in 1998) because it made people think that I was a good bowler and one who could take wickets overseas as well as at home.”

Regardless of the Sri Lankan’s incredible achievement, it is England who hold the advantage in the match on a slow pitch and will be optimistic of pushing on to win the match.

England must do so, however, without the fielding of Kevin Pietersen after he sustained a minor crack in the little finger of his right hand.

The 27-year-old incurred the damage while fielding in the first innings but is expected to bat if required in this match and be available for the second Test in Colombo this coming Sunday.

Quit if you want: BCCI to Vengsarkar

In a further hardening of stand, BCCI on Monday said chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar was free to quit and ruled out amendment of guidelines relating to the conduct of the selectors.

“…These guidelines cannot be withdrawn. So Vengsarkar is free to take his decision,” BCCI vice president Rajiv Shukla told reporters amid reports that the chief selector was keen on putting in his papers.

Shukla said Vengsarkar had told BCCI if the guidelines issued by the board were not withdrawn then he would like to step down.
“Now the official position is those guidelines have been framed keeping in mind the contitutional provisions and well-established rules and regulations and they cannot be withdrawn” he said.

The board recently issued seven-point guidelines which prevent the selectors from writing columns when on office. Vengsarkar agreed to stuck to the guidelines but sougth compensations for that.

Accordingly, the board set up a two-mwmber committee, comprising IS Bindra and Arun Jaitley, which shot down the possibility of any compensation, which angered Vengsarkar.

A miffed Vengsarkar returned home from Kolkata and also met fellow selector Ranjib Biswal in Mumbai.

Sources close to the chief selector told PTI that it was just a matter of time before Vengsarkar puts in his papers.

Kolkata Tigers beat Chandigarh Lions

Chasing a modest target of 125, Chandigarh Lions surrendered meekly handing a 43-run win victory to Kolkata Tigers in the fifth match of the Indian Cricket League’s Twenty20 tournament in Panchkula on Sunday night.

The Lions collapsed like a pack of cards and were bundled out for 81 in 17.3 overs.

They kept losing wickets at regular intervals, with their top order batsmen, including Hamish Marshall (7), Sarabjit Singh (8), Chetan Sharma (0) and skipper former New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns (7) failing to make an impact.

Englishman Darren Maddy wrecked the Lions’ innings by claiming four scalps, including that of opener Imran Farhat (23) and was declared Man of the Match. The Tigers also showed some brilliance in the field effecting three run outs.

Electing to bat first, the Tigers were bowled out for 124 in 19.3 overs. Openers Maddy (19) and Lance Klusener (12) did not make much of an impact while Abhishek Jhunjhuwala (11) and SG Das (0) also did not have luck going their way.

Tigers’ skipper Craig Mcmillan was looking in good form but was run out by some exceptional fielding by TP Singh. Rajesh Sharma took three wickets for the Lions while the team’s Kiwi import Daryl Tuffey took two.

Both teams have two points each from the two matches they have played so far.

Score card:

Kolkata Tigers:
Fall of wickets: 1-13, 2-42, 3-42, 4-50, 5-82, 6-83, 7-108, 8-110, 9-115, 10-124

Bowling:  A Hall 4-0-37-1, D Tuffey 4-1-8-2, A Uniyal 4-0-16-0, RS Sodhi 1-0-5-0, Rajesh Sharma 3.3-0-23-3, TP Singh 3-0-22-1

Chandigarh Lions:
Fall of wickets: 1-14, 2-38, 3-39, 4-51, 5-63, 6-65,7-70, 8-73, 9-81, 10-81

Bowling: M Hayward 3-0-14-1, Eklak Ahmid 4-0-26-1, M Diwakar 2-0-7-0, L Klusener 4-0-18-1, D Maddy 2.3-0-6-4, U Chandana 2-0-8-0

I miss playing for Pakistan: Taufeeq Umar

Panchkula : Unfazed by the Pakistan Cricket Board’s tough stand against the players participating in the Indian Cricket League (ICL), opener Taufeeq Umar on Sunday said he was still hopeful of making a comeback to his national side.

“If they call me, I am ready to play,” the 26-year-old told reporters after hitting an unbeaten 52 to give his side Delhi Jets their first victory over Hyderabad Heroes, which is led by former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq.

On the poor performance of the Pakistani team in both ODIs and now the Test series against India, Umar said the hosts were in pristine form and were helped to some extent by the injury woes of Shoiab Malik’s men.

“India has a good combination of youth and experience, which is firing well,” he said.

Former Pakistani wicketkeeper Moin Khan, who is coach of the Hyderabad Heroes, echoed Umar’s views and said the Pakistani team were going through a “rebuilding process”.

“Injury problems coupled with Mohammad Asif’s and Shoaib Malik’s absence is the main reason the team is not doing well at the moment. Once things settle down for them, they will have the right combination which can bring results,” he said.

On being associated with the ICL, Moin said the players should not be punished for participating in the league because they had not committed any crime.

“It’s not a crime to play for the ICL as is being made out to be by some Boards. I strongly condemn Boards like BCCI for trying to prevent players from practising in cricket grounds by using their influence. Such pressure tactics need to be condemned strongly by one and all,” Moin said.

IPL boss: we won’t lure stars

INDIA’S Twenty20 supremo has guaranteed the cashed-up Indian Premier League will not attempt to lure international players away from their national teams, allaying concerns of a Packer-style split developing within the game.

Lalit Modi’s comments come in response to a strongly-worded letter from Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland, addressed to senior Australian players who have signed contracts with the BCCI-backed IPL.

In the letter, published in The Sun-Herald yesterday, Sutherland forbade CA-contracted players from linking with the IPL until “various terms and conditions” were resolved, prompting fears of an exodus of disgruntled cricketers to the lucrative Indian Twenty20 League.

But Modi, head of the IPL and vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, moved to defuse the controversy yesterday, confirming the IPL was not seeking to undermine foreign boards, or the sanctity of Test and limited-overs cricket.

“The national teams come first,” Modi told the Herald from India last night.

“We will only choose players if they are free from international commitments. There is no conflict. The national teams come first.”

Modi’s sentiments were yesterday echoed by Sutherland, Australian Cricketers’ Association chief Paul Marsh and Australian vice-captain Adam Gilchrist, all of whom insisted players would be available for the IPL only during breaks in the Australian team’s schedule.

The Herald understands the 11 Australian players to have signed short-form Memoranda of Understanding with the IPL – including Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting and Brett Lee – were placed under significant time pressure to do so. With a limited number of contracts on offer, the BCCI offered to pay leading players 25 per cent of their contract value up-front if they signed by a deadline.

But by agreeing to the short-form MOU, the 11 players did not commit their services to a competition that, in its inaugural year, will directly conflict with Australia’s Test tour of Pakistan. In fact, Australia’s core players are unlikely to turn out in the IPL for the next two seasons, due to pre-existing commitments with the Test and one-day teams. That being the case, the players will likely receive only the initial 25 per cent “sign on” portion of the contract.

“The workload and the timing of when the Indian Premier League is on … it might be that Australian players are only able to play one of the next three years,” Sutherland said yesterday. “In terms of choosing to play in the IPL instead of fulfilling their [CA] commitments, it’s just not going to happen. There’s no indication that players are looking to put the IPL ahead of the pride of wearing their Australian colours.”

As it stands, contracted players will be placed in a national draft, and can be chosen by any of India’s eight IPL franchises, who will compete for $US3 million ($3.4 million) in prizemoney and the chance to advance to the Twenty20 Champions’ League, involving provincial sides from Australia, England and South Africa.

IPL contracts are understood to be worth up to $1 million for top players.

“In many ways, it’s like county cricket,” said Marsh, who met players before the Hobart Test to discuss the IPL. “Players are able to play in England during breaks in the CA schedule and only with the board’s approval. It’s not a choice between your country and the IPL, and certainly nothing like World Series Cricket.”

Gilchrist concurred, adding that players would not participate in the IPL without CA’s approval.

“I think it’s pretty dramatic to draw comparisons between the Twenty20 revolution and World Series Cricket all those years ago,” he told AAP. “World Series Cricket was quite dramatic, and there was a lot of bad blood around at that time, from what I’ve learnt, but it’s far from that at the moment.

“No one will play [in the IPL] without consent. We’re not trying to be rebels here. It’s a new opportunity for cricketers and it’s a very exciting one that I know Cricket Australia are endorsing and encouraging.”

The IPL is not without its issues, however. The one-and-a-half page short-form MOU issued by the IPL was described by Marsh as “lacking in a lot of detail,” and the long-form documents have yet to be received.

Other potential areas of conflict could arise in regards to the rights of players in the IPL draft, as well as conflicts between IPL sponsors and those of national boards. The IPL is also competing with the rebel Indian Cricket League, which started last week.

Brian Lara flops as Indian rebel league begins

Paymasters of the breakaway Indian Cricket League say they expect to run at a loss for the first two years of their initial three-year £48 million innovation, but are bullish when asked if they will pull the plug should the project fail.

The ICL, which began on Friday, features a number of county players among the six teams, including Chris Read, Paul Nixon, Darren Maddy and Vikram Solanki.

Yesterday, in two matches at Panchkula, Maddy scored just eight as Kolkata Tigers lost to Chennai Superstars by six runs, while captain Brian Lara made a golden duck and Solanki only five as Mumbai Champs lost to Hyderabad Heroes. The tournament is not yet rocking cricket as Kerry Packer’s World Series did in the Seventies, but it is causing a stir.

“I would not call it a ‘loss’, it’s an investment,” said Himanshu Modi, business head of the ICL for parent company Essel Group. “Efforts are fully behind it to make sure it works and I don’t see a reason why it cannot work, in one shape or form, even if we have to change course.”

Plans are already afoot for a second ICL in March as well as extending to eight teams and building grounds and infrastructure in all participating cities.

The Essel Group, who conceived the ICL after their Zee network failed to land the broadcast rights for India’s home matches, have signed 85 Indian players, 30 internationals, fitness trainers and a world-class production crew, not to mention ground leasing and building costs.

Against an aggressive rival in the shape of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, who have turned the global cricket establishment against ICL and banned participating Indian players from domestic cricket for three years, ICL is surviving.

The BCCI have attempted to undermine ICL with their own, grander Indian Premier League to be played over six weeks from mid-April. Modi believes this to be unworkable because of the international cricket schedule.

Modi, a namesake of his BCCI adversary Lalit Modi, has been with Essel for eight years after taking a Masters degree in finance at Strathclyde University.

“The ICL is here forever – why only three years?” said Kapil Dev, the figurehead of the tournament. “We don’t want to spoil a youngster’s life by giving them a job for three years and after that say, ‘Goodbye’.”