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Hampshire select from 12 for the upcoming Frizzell Championship match starting on Wedneday 28th April against Leicestershire.John Crawley is still absent with a calf strain, and is left out of the squad.Hampshire and skipper Shane Warne will be looking to build on their good start to the season.Hampshire 12: Derek Kenway, Michael Brown, Lawrence Prittipaul, Michael Clarke, Will Kendall, Nic Pothas (wicket-keeper), Dimitri Mascarenhas, Shane Warne (captain), Shaun Udal, Chris Tremlett, Alan Mullally and Billy Taylor.

The Pakistan team has been fined for a slow-over rate in the second one-dayer against India at Rawalpindi.Ranjan Madugalle, the ICC match referee, ruled that Pakistan was three overs short at the stipulated cut-off time. While the team was penalised 15% of their match fee, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Pakistan’s captain, had to concede 30%. According to ICC regulations: (i) for each of the first five overs short of the minimum overs required, 5% of each player’s gross match fee in the fielding side; (ii) for the sixth and any subsequent over short of the minimum overs required, 10% of each player’s gross match fee in the fielding side.”Pakistan were earlier penalised for a slow over-rate in the first one-dayer at Karachi, when the bowlers took 20 extra minutes to complete bowling 50 overs.

The ongoing sponsorship dispute between the West Indian players and the board failed to reach a conclusion, with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) taking the firm stand that seven players, including Brian Lara, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Chris Gayle, would not be considered for selection until their individual contracts with Cable and Wireless were properly inspected.”In the board’s view, the basis of discussion has to be to field the best team in the circumstances and not the best team at all costs,” the board said in a statement. The confrontation between the two mobile companies, Cable and Wireless and Digicel, worsened with each blaming the other for a crisis which has been unresolved since last December. Digicel also rejected the proposals put forth by Keith Mitchell, the Prime Minister of Grenada.”The board has noted various comments and recommendations made on behalf of the CARICOM prime ministerial sub-committee on cricket issued in a statement by the chairman of that sub-committee on the evening of March 11, 2005,” stated the board. “The board also noted public statements issued by the parties involved. From these statements, it is the understanding of the board that the recommendations outlined in the prime minister’s statement have not been agreed to by all of the parties.”The WICB did not mention when the inspection of contracts would be completed. However, the West Indies Players Association has indicated that it has been successful in getting the players to waive the confidentiality clauses in their contracts, thereby making it easier for the board to scrutinize these documents.The board stated, however, that the home series against South Africa and Pakistan would proceed as planned, and that the West Indian squad for the first Test against South Africa would be named on March 17. It also stated that the board would commence inspection of the Cable and Wireless contracts of those seven players. “The purpose of the Board’s inspection of the contracts is to ensure that the contracts do not impose on the players any obligations which could cause them or the WICB to be in breach of the sponsorship contract which has been executed between the WICB and Digicel.”The players who hold personal endorsement contracts with Cable and Wireless – [Dwayne] Bravo, [Fidel] Edwards, [Chris] Gayle, Lara, [Ravi] Rampaul, Sarwan and Dwayne Smith – will not be considered for selection to the West Indies team until the board satisfies itself as to the nature of those contracts.”

Tim May, the CEO of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Association, has said that following a full briefing by the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) and informal discussions with members of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) he was confident that the ongoing dispute between the two would be resolved in the short term.The dispute has led to a number of players being unavailable for selection for the West Indies, including high profile names such as Brian Lara, Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan. The essence of the major dispute surrounds the commercial use of player attributes and restrictions that WICB seek to impose on players’ personal endorsement ability.While May was confident that the matters could be solved, he supported the players’ position on the matter, stating that the existing terms and conditions on the table were simply unacceptable and represented terms that no player association could accept.May believed that the recent election of Ken Gordon to the WICB presidency would have a positive effect upon the stalemate and that the mood of negotiation would change from impasse to one where all parties would work together to find a solution that would satisfy all parties. “At present the interests of all of the key parties are not being served,” he said. “Whether it be WICB, the players, the sponsor, the West Indies’ cricketing public or world cricket, all parties are suffering as a result of this dispute.”After discussions with key personnel from both sides of the dispute, I am confident that the mood of the negotiations will be conducted with a more positive and respectful manner and a solution will brokered in the short term.”

India and Pakistan are likely to play a five-match ODI series in Europe in 2007, according to David Collier, the England Cricket Board (ECB) chief. England could host two matches with the remaining to be staged at other venues in Europe.”We’ve had some discussions. It’s more likely it will be considered in 2007,” Collier told BBC Sport. “We’ve got a number of broadcasting issues we need to look at but clearly an India-Pakistan one-day series has some great attractions.”Lalit Modi, vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), said that Lord’s had agreed to host one of the matches, pending an approval from the ECB.The latest development is the result of the Indian and Pakistan boards agreeing to stage more matches between the two teams in neutral venues, especially in countries which have a large number of Asian migrants, both as a way to entertain the expatriate population as well as to maximise revenues. The two sides are scheduled to play two official ODIs at Abu Dhabi on April 18 and 19, and the funds from the first match will go towards the earthquake relief fund. In 2004, the BCCI helped organise a tri-series between India, Pakistan and Australia in Holland, prior to the ICC Champions Trophy.Collier also announced that the ECB would be bidding to host the proposed Twenty20 World Championship in 2009 and 2013, as well as the 2015 World Cup.”England has got the experience of Twenty20 finals day, where we have got three matches in a day. I think the ICC are looking to us for our experience in that type of format and it would be wonderful if we get a major global cricket event in the UK,” he said.

For a long time, it looked as though Anil Kumble would have to wait another day for Test wicket No. 435. Then, in the fading light, with the fourth ball of his 12th over, he trapped Mohammad Rafique in front of the stumps. “It’s definitely a kind of a relief to get there,” said Kumble. “I was really happy that I could get to 434 at Eden Gardens [against South Africa]. It was a really special moment – my family was there, my wife was there. She couldn’t travel here, but it’s a nice feeling to get to 435.”The crowd was slow-handclapping as he came in to deliver – not because they were egging him on to reach the landmark that would put him on top of the pile of Indian Test wicket-takers, but because Rafique was on 47, and within one cavalier stroke of his half-century. When the wicket fell, courtesy of a rare lbw decision from Aleem Dar, an umpire fast gaining a reputation as a not-outer, Kumble was engulfed by his team-mates.A moment later he held his hand up to the balcony where John Wright and the rest of the squad applauded. It was a rare Kumble moment, one when he grinned like a child, his dazzling smile taking the sheen off the floodlights at the Bangabandhu Stadium. It was one of those rare moments when Kumble actually showed some emotion on the field. “I’m not a man of emotions,” he conceded. “I don’t show too many emotions on the field. But I’m really happy with the way things have gone. When I first started I never thought that I would get to this level. I’ve played with Kapil . My first three or four years were with him, so it’s really nice to go past somebody you have looked up to from a young age. To be alongside him and then cross him, after having watched him on TV at one stage, is really good.”However, surpassing Kapil is certainly not going to stop the expectant fans from demanding more. “I’m relieved [to get past the mark] but again people are saying ‘Get to 500’, so I’ll have to put up with it. I just have to go out there and keep getting wickets,” said Kumble. And, given the rate at which he is going – 67 wickets in this calendar year already – 500 can’t be far away.When he reached 434, Kumble finally began to receive what he has been denied all his career – recognition as one of India’s greatest-ever bowlers. Whenever there was talk of great Indian spin bowlers, his name was conspicuous by its absence, simply because he was not a classical legspinner. But that doesn’t bother him one bit. “As long as I am defined as a bowler I am happy,” he said. “At the end of the day a bowler is there to get wickets and a batsman is there to get runs. How he does that is immaterial. I am somebody who is different from an orthodox legspinner. There is a feeling that you will be successful only if you do things a certain way, but I don’t agree with that. I’m happy that even with my style I’ve been able to get the results. At the end of the day it doesn’t really matter what style you bowl.”But Kumble is too hardened a campaigner to believe that the critics will shut up and go home, just because he has become India’s leading Test wicket-taker. When asked if he thought he had silenced his critics once and for all, he said, “I don’t think so. Critics are always there to say things when somewhere along the line you haven’t been doing well. I think that’s something which I don’t really worry about. If I thought too much of whatever people said then I wouldn’t be here. My job is to go out there, play, give 100%. The rest will take care of itself. I’m not there to prove anything to anybody. At this point of time I think I have proved enough, and ultimately I need to go out there and prove to myself that I am still achieving the results that I am capable of.”While no-one can doubt Kumble’s achievment, there have been some who believed, not so long ago, that he was past his best, and that he recently rediscovered the magic after coming back from a career-threatening shoulder injury. “I don’t think I rediscovered anything. Most of it was always there. It’s just that people started to recognise this when I began to do well once more. Right from day one you only try to improve. Every game you play you try to learn something. Over the years my experience has definitely helped in getting the results in Australia and after.”Coming back from injury was hard on the body, but fortunately Kumble is a man of strong will. This, and a burning desire to succeed, ensured that he had his chin up all the while. “Cricket at the international level has more to do with what’s between the ears than ability. At this level everybody is talented. You have to be mentally strong and that has definitely helped me.”But that’s not all that has helped Kumble. In his moment of glory, he remained true to character, and remembered to thank those that helped him along. It has become fashionable in recent times to dedicate every five-for and century to someone, usually prompted by a question in a press conference. But when the “do-you want-to-dedicate-this-to-anyone” question was popped to him, Kumble responded with one of his classic shrugs, smiled, and said, “No, I don’t think so. All my team-mates have been a part of it. I would like to thank them. Without their help I wouldn’t have got this far.”You can be sure that the team will have a quiet celebration to mark Anil Kumble’s achievement, and they certainly have plenty to thank him for.

West Indies are hoping for a massive reversal of fortunes in the third and final Test against New Zealand in Napier starting on Saturday while the hosts are looking to pull off a clean sweep in preparation for their expected tough tour of South Africa.New Zealand are looking to maintain morale before next month’s tour while the West Indies will be seeking to snap a record losing streak and to avoid a 0-3 drubbing in the Tests to go with the 1-4 hiding they took in the earlier one-day series.Despite their ten-wicket loss in the second Test in Wellington being the West Indies’ eighth successive defeat, Bennett King, the coach, claimed spirits were still intact and a win was not as elusive as history would suggest. “We don’t believe it’s a skill issue, we believe it’s an application and personal issue and we just have to be stronger as cricketers and people and we just have to go forward,” he said. We truly believe this side are capable of much better than what they’re doing.”While openers Chris Gayle and Daren Ganga have started each innings confidently, an apparent lack of concentration tends to creep in leading to wickets falling at regular intervals. The fact that Brian Lara is hopelessly out of form hasn’t helped and with Shivnarine Chanderpaul also struggling for runs the West Indies have suffered from a lack of steel in the middle order.While New Zealand’s batting has not been consistent either, they have benefitted from injuries in the West Indies bowling camp although King has assured Fidel Edwards, their strike weapon and most impressive player on tour, would be fit for the third Test. Edwards, who was sitting on a hat-trick at the end of New Zealand’s first innings of the last Test did not bowl in the second innings as a precaution against inflaming a leg injury. “He’s got a little niggle in one of his legs. It’s a jarring issue, but he’s in no doubt for the third Test, King said. Jerome Taylor may also start after missing the second Test due to a hamstring injury.Although New Zealand have the series wrapped up already at 2-0 they cannot afford to ease up as the selectors prepare to name the squad for next month’s tour of South Africa. Questions are already being asked whether the West Indians have provided adequate opposition to prepare New Zealand for the tough three-match series in South Africa, while South Africa warm up against Australia.But John Bracewell, New Zealand’s coach, said he was satisfied with their lead-up programme. “I think this series is a good platform because they have got some very good cricketers. We’re performing well as a unit at the moment and they’re not.” Bracewell said he had effectively pencilled in at least one extra seamer for the touring party of 15, while Michael Papps, the specialist opener, could also get a recall. Fledgling opener Hamish Marshall already knows there’s a question mark over his head.A year after being hailed as the new wonder boy of New Zealand cricket with centuriesagainst Australia and Sri Lanka he has struggled after being made to open the innings, and Bracewell has said Marshall needs a big score in Napier or he faces the axe. He finished last season averaging more than 45 in Tests, while his last six Test innings, four as opener, have produced an average of 11.83. “I’m still getting used to opening, and instead of being so defensive in terms of survival I just have to go out there and play my shots,” he said. “When you open you can get out early, and I have been, and it’s frustrating because it’s not through unplayable balls.”

Comeback medium pacer Shahid Nazir is aware he doesn’t have the pace of Shoaib Akhtar but promises that Pakistan can expect him to live up to expectations in England this summer.”It is a great challenge for me to fill in for Shoaib Akhtar,” the 28-year-old said in an interview on Friday after being preferred over Rao Iftikhar and Mohammad Khalil as a replacement for the injured Shoaib in the 16-man Pakistan squad for the series against England.”There is no doubt that Shoaib is among the world’s fastest bowlers and is somebody who takes a lot of wickets. But I have a lot of confidence in my abilities and believe that I can play a useful role for my team in England,” said Shahid, who last played a Test for Pakistan way back in 1999.Shahid said his absence from Test cricket has not affected his abilities as a medium pacer. “I have been regularly playing competitive cricket in Pakistan and abroad and in fact never lost hope of playing for Pakistan again,” he said.Shahid is one of the five fast bowlers selected for the tour of England and might spend most of the tour on the sidelines. The player hopes it won’t happen. “I am anxiously waiting for the opportunity to be in the playing line-up,” he said.Shahid was not even part of the 21-man preliminary squad Pakistan selected for the tour of England last month.But his forceful showing on the domestic circuit last season, Shoaib’s injury and Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq’s strong support paved the way for his return to the national team.Shahid added that he has ample experience of playing in England and hopes that it would be of some use for Pakistan.The Faisalabad-born player made his international debut for Pakistan in 1996 but has since played in just eight Tests and 17 One-day Internationals (ODIs).

As his former team-mates prepare to jet off to the Caribbean for the World Cup, England’s discarded wicketkeeper, Geraint Jones, is about to head in the other direction. He is heading for the country of his birth, Papua New Guinea, as part of a 17-man MCC touring squad.The MCC, the world’s most active cricket club, will play three matches against the Papua New Guinea national team, including a Twenty20 encounter. The players will then transfer their attentions to New Zealand, where they are set to play four matches in Christchurch and Queenstown, before moving on to Auckland for the final two-day game of the tour.After his dispiriting Ashes campaign, which effectively ended after the Ashes had been surrendered in the third Test at Perth, Jones returned to Brisbane where he helped his former club Beenleigh-Logan (with whom he had been a regular before moving permanently to England in 2002) reach their first grade final since 1998.”I am really looking forward to visiting Papua New Guinea and New Zealand with MCC,” said Jones. “I’m back among the runs at club level and am hoping to make some more on tour. I believe the England wicketkeeper’s job is still up for grabs and scoring runs for MCC, and for Kent, can put my name in the frame.”The squad also includes Jones county colleague, the England A offspinner James Tredwell, as well as three members of the Glamorgan first team – Michael Powell, David Harrison, and Mark Wallace. Mark Lawson, the Yorkshire and England Under-19 legspinner, and Simon Hawk, formerly of Durham UCCE, are other notable inclusions.”I am delighted that so many professional players, including Geraint Jones, have made themselves available for this tour,” said John Stephenson, MCC’s Head of Cricket. “I’m sure that the younger guys will enjoy playing alongside such experienced cricketers, and will benefit greatly from it.”MCC last toured New Zealand in 2002, and Papua New Guinea in 2003. The Club will donate $3,750, in partnership with the International Cricket Council, to the authorities in Papua New Guinea for investment in the local cricket infrastructure.Tour party Mark Rollinson (manager), Luke Marshall (capt), Ben Claypole, Danny Evans, Matthew Eyles, David Harrison, Simon Hawk, Geraint Jones, Ronnie Kotkamp, Mark Lawson, Scott McHardy, Michael Powell, James Tredwell, Mark Wallace, Peter Heseltine (physio), Barrie Leadbeater (umpire), Don Shelley (scorer)

Richie Benaud, the former Australian captain, has urged Shane Warne to prolong his Testcareer until the next Ashes series in England in 2009.Warne, the most successful bowler in Test history with 651 wickets in 133 games, will turn 40 during that tour. “I was talking to him the other day and said to him ‘You can do this’,” Benaud toldBBC TV. “He is bowling better now than I’ve seen him for years and years. It’s been wonderful to watch.”Warne took 40 wickets in a losing cause during this summer’s Ashes series and earlier this week established a new record for the most Test wickets in a calendar year when he surpassed Dennis Lillee’s total of 85 in 1981.Benaud believes if Warne continues his policy of not playing one-day internationals, despite pressure for him to relent in time for next year’s World Cup, he will still be a force to be reckoned with when they next visit England. “I told him ‘They thought they’d seen the back of you, now why don’t you give some serious thought to going across there for the next Ashes battle?’.”He looked at me for a long time and just turned and said ‘Thanks’, though whether that’s ‘Thanks, but no thanks’ or ‘Thanks, thanks’, I don’t know,” said Benaud, who called time on his own Test career at the age of 33. Warne had a number of injuries between 1998 and 2001, and was banned for a year in 2003 after failing a drugs test.But he remains at the peak of his powers and confirmed he wants to help Australia regain the Ashes on home soil next winter. “My record in my last 40-50 Tests has probably been better than at any stage of my career,” he said recently. “If I’m enjoying my cricket and bowling injury-free, then I hope I am playing in the next Ashes series. I have no immediate plans to retire. I’m enjoying my cricket, simple as that.”