Despite the chaos inside Kenyan cricket, the International Cricket Council has refused an application from the Kenyan Cricket Association to postpone the country’s ICC Intercontinental Cup tie against Namibia schedule to take place at Windhoek between February 25 and 27.Sharad Ghai, the embattled chairman of the KCA, made the approach to the ICC against a backdrop of total confusion inside Kenya. Out of the squad of 31 named for the match, 14 remain on strike, others have yet to be officially told of their selection, and training has ground to a halt as there is no money to pay coaches or for facilities to enable the few players that are around to train. Despite claims from the KCA that the squad is training, Cricinfo knows that the remaining players have yet to all assemble.”We feel that we need to field our strongest team for this championship and that is why we sought to have the game postponed,” Ghai told The Nation. “The ICC has said no and even the Namibians are not willing to consider it.”The newspaper report adds that a senior KCA offical described the ICC as “an organisation which preaches water and drinks wine … the leaders of world cricket prescribe for others medicine that they themselves find too bitter to swallow.”Ghai, who has been indirectly criticised by the ICC, hit back in the light of the publication of a letter from Malcolm Speed which appeared to encourage Ochillo Ayacko, the sports minister, to take action against the KCA.”It is convenient for the ICC to have Kenya in crisis so that they don’t have to worry about what to do with our attempts to gain Test status,” Ghai said. “The issues which the minister is reported to have raised with the ICC in those letters last year have been raised so many times in the past and we have always responded to them and asked anyone with evidence of wrongdoing, including the ICC, to produce it.”When one looks at FIFA’s governance, it is based on the system of one country one vote. It could be argued that the ICC structure is not democratic. However, as that is what the constitution states, all members are bound by the terms thereof.”

Keith Mitchell, the Prime Minister of Grenada, has reacted to Teddy Griffith’s statement and feels it’s “premature and unnecessary”. Griffith announced that seven of the West Indian players – including Brian Lara, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Chris Gayle – who have contracts with Cable & Wireless, rivals of Digicel, the team sponsor, would not be considered for further selection, unless they presented the non-financial provisions in their contracts for review by the WICB.”It’s unfortunate that Teddy chose to go to the airwaves and raise the temperature,” he was quoted as saying in the . “There were compromises being put forward that would be seriously considered, and we alerted him and all persons involved as to what was taking place. He assured me he would do nothing to do injury to the negotiating process. I’m not sure he achieved that by his announcement.”However, Mitchell, who is also the head of the CARICOM sub-committee on cricket, was optimistic of reaching a solution and said “all was not lost” in the long-running dispute between the WICB and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA). He added: “I think there have been some reasonable proposals put forward that will lead to some kind of compromise solution.”He also revealed that he would chair a meeting in St.George’s tomorrow, attended by all the parties, aimed at reaching an “amicable solution” and allow the West Indies team enough time to gear up for the home series against South Africa, starting on March 31.Dinanath Ramnarine, the WIPA president, Denis O’Brien, the chairman Digicel, and an unnamed “top executive” of Cable & Wireless will also be present at the meeting. “I’m very hopeful that we should have some solution on Monday,” Mitchell told Caribbean Media Corporation radio. “I’m heartened by the fact that all the parties are committed to coming at the highest possible level. [It would] allow West Indies Cricket to put forward its best players on the field and, of course, do no damage to our prospects of hosting a successful World Cup and all the aspects that go with it.”Mitchell was also intent that the West Indian board inform both South Africa and Pakistan, by March 14 ,whether their tours were still on saying that there was still a possibility of WIPA instructing the players not to sign any contracts if the various issues were not settled. Mitchell had succeeded in coming to a last-minute deal between the WICB and WIPA a few months earlier which allowed West Indies to send a full-strength side to Australia for the VB Series. But several points, including the introduction of annual retainer for 16-20 leading players, remained unresolved.”I don’t see Digicel investing a lot of money in a weak West Indies Team for any considerable time,” he continued, “or benefiting from its sponsorship, and Cable & Wireless can’t benefit from sponsoring players who are not members of the West Indies Team. The WICB is not going to achieve everything it wants to achieve. Neither party can afford to do that.”

Railways 355 (Ali 80, Bangar 79) and 471 (Goud 138*, Yadav 97) drew with Punjab 309 (Dharmani 115) and 137 for 4 – Railways won the Ranji Trophy because they took the first-innings lead.
Scorecard
How they were out

A game that twisted and turned on the first four days meandered to an anti-climactic, inevitable, end as Railways strolled to their second Ranji Trophy triumph by virtue of gaining the first-innings lead. After grinding their way to a massive lead of 517, Railways enjoyed a cheerful afternoon picnic at Mohali as Punjab stuttered to 137 for 4 before the game was finally called off.Within the first two hours of the day, Yere Goud had continued his resolute methods and reached a memorable hundred, his 12th in first-class cricket, the tail wagged with some unexpected restraint, and made sure that the title was completely secure. The lack of intent to go for an outright victory was a shade disappointing, but as every Railways player will tell you, too much is at stake and they couldn’t afford even the slightest of risks.The rest of the day was spent waiting for the celebrations to begin.After a solid start, Punjab lost three wickets in quick succession, two to Sanjay Bangar, and thoughts of a collapse crept in. But Ravneet Ricky’s fluent 64 prevented any such crumbling as part-timers tried their luck with the ball.The end came at 3.37pm after seven mandatory overs. Jai Prakash Yadav, the architect of the triumph, was the first to grab a stump as the Railways players converged for a raucous celebration. Every single member of the side contributed to the triumph with Yadav, Goud and Sanjay Bangar leading the way. Through the season, they unearthed Madan Yadav, a left-arm spinner with promise, while Amit Pagnis and Harvinder Singh changed from occasional contributors to genuinematchwinners.The young Punjab side – this was the first season for many players – walked off completely flat but they will look back at the several positives from the season. Intikhab Alam instilled a cladding of steel in them and their triumph at the Wankhede, something sides very rarely achieve, was a massive achievement in itself. There were initial signs that Ravneet Ricky and Reetinder Singh Sodhi might finally translate potential into performance, Dharmani soldiered on, while Gaurav Gupta, a pugnacious middle-order batsman, and VRV Singh, the fast bowler, had impressive starts to their careers. They rode on team effort rather than individuals and reached the finals for the first time in 10 years. They are probably at the same stage that Railways were in around 2001 and if they build on their gains, they could be a dominant force in the years to come.Strains of bhangra filled the air as the Railways players danced off the ground into the dressing-room. Apart from the Ranji Trophy, there was much more to look forward to – promotions, increments, a better gymnasium, improved infrastructure, renovation of their dormitory at Delhi and the like. The champagne was uncorked soon after and the fairy-tale turnaround from relegation contenders to national champions was just beginning to sink in.How they were outRailwaysHarvinder c Gupta b Rajesh 26 (396 for 9) Beaten by onethat went away and nicked to Gaurav Gupta at first slip.Madan c Dharmani b Vineet 38 (471 all out) Flashed at awide one and nicked to the wicketkeeper.PunjabSodhi c Wankhede b Bangar 15 (32 for 1) Edged one whileattempting to drive through the covers.Kakkar c Wankhede b Bangar 1 (34 for 2) Almost identicalto Sodhi’s dismissal.Muneesh c Pagnis b Madan 7 (52 for 3) Pushed forward toone that turned away and was caught at silly mid-on.Ricky b Parida 64 (110 for 4) Tried to pull a short onebut was bowled after the ball kept low.Siddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Cricinfo.

Moin Khan has been omitted from the 17-man Pakistan squad for the tour of the West Indies. Moin had been picked by the selectors in the provisional squad announced on Saturday (April 30), but the squad was then sent for ratification to the Pakistan board, which decided to exclude him. The rest of the line-up remains the same.The PCB has opted instead for Bazid Khan, a 24-year-old opener who has played two one-dayers so far. Bazid, the son of the former Pakistan captain Majid Khan, was in excellent form for Pakistan A during their recent tour of Sri Lanka, scoring 336 runs in three innings, including two centuries and a half-century in the two Tests.Pakistan will play three one-day internationals and two Tests on the tour, with the first match to be held in St Vincent on May 18.Pakistan squad
Salman Butt, Shahid Afridi, Bazid Khan, Yasir Hameed, Younis Khan, Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), Yousuf Youhana, Asim Kamal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal (wk), Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Shabbir Ahmed, Shahid Nazir, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Arshad Khan, Danish Kaneria.

Shane Bond has been included in both the Test and one-day squads for New Zealand’s tour of Zimbabwe in August. Jeetan Patel, the Wellington offspinner, was the only new face in the one-day side while the 15-man Test squad was picked on expected lines. Daryl Tuffey and Chris Harris have both been left out of the tour, with each given more time recover from their injuries and get back to fitness.Bond, 30, has been out of international cricket for more than two years owing to a back injury and his return as the spearhead of the attack will bolster a struggling New Zealand side who have won just four of their last 21 Tests.”It is exciting to see Shane Bond back after a successful return to first class cricket,” John Bracewell, the coach, was quoted as saying in the . “We will monitor his progress in Australia with the Emerging Players team and expect that should he continue to progress well, we will see him return to international cricket at some stage during the Zimbabwe tour.”Though there were indications a few players would not tour Zimbabwe on moral grounds, none declared their unavailability. Bracewell added that Tuffey would join Daniel Vettori, Chris Martin and Kyle Mills as extra players with the Emerging Players team going to Australia next week.Patel, 25, has picked up 86 wickets in 46 first-class games and Bracewell cited the reasons for his inclusion. “Patel has been selected for the one-day series as part of our buildup to the World Cup,” Bracewell said. “He bowled well at domestic level last season and has the ability to bowl under the bat and late in the innings. Spin bowlers of this type have been very successful in the West Indies.”Test squad
Stephen Fleming (capt), Daniel Vettori (vice-capt), Nathan Astle, Craig Cumming, Lou Vincent, Hamish Marshall, Scott Styris, James Marshall, Brendon McCullum (wk), Jacob Oram, Kyle Mills, James Franklin, Shane Bond, Chris Martin, Paul Wiseman.One-day squad
Stephen Fleming (capt), Daniel Vettori (vice-capt), Scott Styris, Nathan Astle, Chris Cairns, Lou Vincent, Hamish Marshall, Brendon McCullum (wk), Craig McMillan, Jacob Oram, Andre Adams, Kyle Mills, Jeetan Patel, Shane Bond.

Ricky Ponting has admitted that Australia’s embarrassing collapse against England in the Twenty20 international has raised the stakes involved in Wednesday’s one-day game with Somerset.Australia looked decidedly rusty as they were skittled for 79 by England’s bowlers at The Rose Bowl on Monday in the first hostilities between the two countries ahead of the Ashes Test series. And Ponting admitted it was now important that the likes of Michael Hussey and Michael Clarke get some time at the wicket at Taunton before the triangular series with England and Bangladesh gets underway at the weekend.”Half of the reason Hussey and Clarke batted where they did on Monday was to have some time in the middle. But Clarke got out first ball and Hussey only faced half a dozen,” Ponting said. “We’ve got to look at that. The good thing is that Hussey has been playing a lot of cricket over here with Durham so he shouldn’t be out of touch. I’ve also kept a pretty close eye on him in training and he looks pretty good.”Clarke did a lot of work at home pre-season but there is nothing as good as some time in the middle as we all know. Hopefully both Hussey and Clarke, and even myself and Damien Martyn, will have time in the middle in the Taunton game. It is probably a pretty important game for us now against Somerset and we’ve certainly got to try and get whatever we can out of that.”We had a good game down at Leicester the other day. We got a lot out of that game as far as batsmen getting time in the middle and the bowlers having a good work-out. Hopefully we can do the same at Taunton.”And Ponting admitted there were areas work on: “We can all improve a little bit. It takes a little time to get back into the pace of the game at international level. We’d had two months off leading into this tour. I’m sure there is still a bit of rustiness there although I’ve been happy with what we have done. By the time Saturday and Sunday come around, there won’t be any excuses as far as preparation goes from us.”Australia face Bangladesh at Cardiff on Saturday and will get their chance for revenge when they again lock horns with England at Bristol on Sunday.Ponting also revealed that he would not be in favour of the Twenty20 format being used for a mini World Cup. He said: “I think we will play a few more of these games around the world. It has been great for the game over here in England. When I played one for Somerset last season we had a full house and it’s done a lot for the game over here.”It’s a good game for the fans. I don’t see it becoming a Twenty20 World Cup. I think it is better being played as a fun, more light-hearted sort of game. That’s my opinion. I don’t think it should be taken that seriously.”

New Zealand may ban a planned tour by the Zimbabwe cricket team scheduled for December because of “appalling abuses of human rights” perpetrated by Robert Mugabe’s government, Phil Goff, the country’s foreign minister, has stated.”The Zimbabwe cricket team should not anticipate that it will be granted entry into New Zealand,” Goff said in a statement. “The imposition of a ban on the team would send a strong message to the Mugabe regime that New Zealanders and their government abhor the actions it is taking against its people.”Mugabe’s government has been pulling down thousands of homes and businesses, leaving hundreds of thousands homeless in winter, according to the United Nations. The destruction targeting mostly poor areas has been condemned worlwide and follows March elections described as a sham by foreign governments. Goff said he had been advised Thursday of the planned tour by Zimbabwe and he had not yet had a chance to discuss it with the cabinet or get legal advice.”However, given the current appalling abuses of human rights and relentless trend of the Zimbabwe government towards a dictatorship, the New Zealand government would not welcome a visit from a side representing Zimbabwe at this time.” New Zealand Cricket officials were not available for comment. Martin Snedden, the NZC chief executive, and Sir John Anderson, the chairman, were on their way to London for the ICC annual meeting.Earlier, Goff said the government had no legal way of stopping the scheduled tour by the New Zealand cricket team to Zimbabwe in August. Full strength Test and one-day squads for the tour were announced by NZC on Wednesday.”Only a dictatorial, autocratic regime can stop New Zealanders from leaving their own country,” Goff explained. “That’s exactly what we’re protesting about in terms of what Mugabe is doing.”Nevertheless, the government would prefer the tour not take place but NZC said that its players had unanimously agreed to embark on the five-week tour after an independent security report gave the all clear. Snedden told reporters that the team would be liable for a fine of more than $2 mllion under ICC rules if it pulled out.

The International Cricket Council ruled out cancelling New Zealand’s tour to Zimbabwe next month but said it accepted the New Zealand government could stop it going ahead. The New Zealand government has opposed the tour because of alleged human rights abuses in Zimbabwe. But it has ruled out legislating a ban on the tour or directing New Zealand cricket to cancel it.Ehsan Mani, the International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman, has said in a letter that the ICC had rejected the New Zealand government’s request to alter its tour schedule. However the letter conceded that the ICC recognised the reality that governments could apply sporting sanctions. “Our members accept and respect that where this clear directive is given by a national government, the obligations of the future tours programme will not apply.”A spokesman for New Zealand Foreign Minister Phil Goff said clarification was being sought from the ICC on what would constitute a clear directive. “We want to clarify whether a parliamentary motion saying New Zealand Cricket should not tour would be sufficient to give New Zealand Cricket a release,” the spokesman said.Unless New Zealand cricket can win a release from its tour obligations, it faces a fine of at least US$2million and claims from Zimbabwe for lost revenue. Opposition to the tour has grown in New Zealand as Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s government presses ahead with a campaign to demolish shacks and other illegal homes and businesses, leaving hundreds of thousands homeless.Zimbabwe’s first black Test cricketer Henry Olonga arrived in New Zealand Tuesday to support the campaign to cancel the tour, saying the situation in his former country could be likened to apartheid in South Africa.

Rumours that the Old Trafford pitch might be a spinners’ paradise were scotched by Jim Cumbes, Lancashire’s chief executive, when he told reporters that it was likely to favour quick rather than slow bowlers.”At the moment the pitch is like concrete,” he said. “There is plenty of pace and bounce and at this stage I would expect it to favour the seamers rather than the spinners. Traditionally it has favoured spin but it has been prepared slightly differently this time because of the weather. There should be some turn from the fourth day on, but I don’t think it will be turning sideways early in the match.”That view was backed by Old Trafford groundsman Peter Marron. “Everyone keeps telling me it will turn square. I don’t think it will. It’s rolled out flat, it’s got a polished surface and the weather forecast is good.” But he added that it would offer something for the slow men. We spent years trying to get pitches to turn for English bowlers,” he smiled. “It happens to do it naturally now. But I don’t think it will turn as quickly as everyone thinks it will”On the evidence of matches this season, there seems little to support claims that the ball could turn sideways early on. The most successful bowler at Manchester in 2005 is Durham’s Steve Harmison.Stuart MacGill, who was expected to partner Shane Warne, might now sit out the game, but he said that a faster surface would still suit him. “It may well actually work in our favour, because a bit of extra pace in the deck wouldn’t hurt me much.”But while the Australians appear unfazed, Tony Ware, the head curator of the MCG, told Sydney’s SEN radio that any attempts to prepare a quick track to negate Warne and MacGill could end in disaster. “It’s a tricky exercise,” he explained. “I think their only option, if they want to not have a spinning wicket, they have to have almost a damp wicket on day one or day two, which only means that the Test match becomes determined by the toss of the coin, which nobody wants to see. If the curator is under a bit of direction to put water on the wicket so close to a game under English conditions, I think they need to be a little careful with that.”

Australia 302 and 366 for 9 (Ponting 156, Flintoff 4-71) drew with England 444 and 280 for 6 dec
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details5th day
Bulletin – England come agonisingly close
Verdict – The draw that roared
Australian View – Captaincy when it counted
Quotes – “I thought I had let it slip”
On the Ball – Ponting finds his feet
Cosmic Corner – It’s written in the stars
Roving Reporter – Thousands join the jittery stampede
Gallery – Pictures from the fifth day
4th day
Bulletin – Strauss to leaves Australia facing huge target
Verdict – England’s jigsaw begins to take shape
Aus view – Australia face their day of destiny
On the ball – England’s dark horse delivers
Quotes – Strauss and McGrath reflect on the day
Gallery – Pictures from the fourth day
News – Australia rocked by Warne and Ponting bust-up
3rd day
Bulletin – Warne saves the follow-on
Verdict – Warne is the leader Australia lack
Aus view – Taking an unfamiliar route
Quotes – Fletcher plays down Jones errors
Paper Round – The tables are turned
Spot of the Day – Warne saves Australia again
Roving Reporter – And the rains came down
News – Clarke’s back troubles likely to persist
Gallery – Pictures from the third day2nd day
Bulletin – Giles and Jones leave Australia struggling
Verdict – Lost in transition
Aus view – Taking an unfamiliar route
Quotes – ‘I’ve done what Ashley Giles can do’
On the Ball – Giles turns it on
Gallery – Pictures from the second day
1st day
Bulletin – Vaughan leads England’s charge
Gallery – Pictures from the first day
Verdict – Australia fear the unthinkable
Australian View – A leader in need of direction
Quotes – Vaughan and Warne play to type
News – Clarke suffers back injury
On the ball – Putting it all together
Shane Warne’s 600
News – Warne reaches 600 wickets
Stats – The road to 600
Comment – The ride of the decade
Ian Healy – Bowled Shane
Tribute – Wisden Cricketer of the Century
My Favourite Cricketer – Magic in his wrists
Preview package
Preview – Warne to the fore as Ashes come ablaze
Stats – Warne’s playground