Stephen Harmison, England’s outstanding bowler of the season so far, got a rare compliment from his opposite number, Australia’s Glenn McGrath, after the NatWest Series final at Lord’s on Saturday. Both bowlers took three wickets in the tied match, and McGrath was later full of praise for Harmison.”I think Harmy is a class bowler,” McGrath told reporters. “There’s no doubt about that and I think he’s one of the main reasons England have improved over the last 18 months and one of the reasons why they’vebeen so successful. To have a bowler bowling at that pace with that lift and bounce, it’s got to give the rest of the team confidence.”Harmison and Andrew Flintoff choked the Australians after they had got off to an impressive start in the final, reaching 50 in less than seven overs. Harmison, brought on only as a second-change bowler, nailed Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyn, and later added Brad Hogg to his tally, making him the highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 15.There had been fears about Harmison losing his way in international cricket after his lackluster performances in South Africa in 2004-05, but Michael Vaughan, England’s captain, was quick to defend his ace bowler. “Just because you have a couple of bad games in the winter doesn’t make you a bad bowler. I thought Harmy today was, as he has been throughout the whole series, outstanding.”While McGrath was generous in his praise for Harmison, he was quick to fire a salvo against England’s opening batsmen, who haven’t had much success so far against Australia’s new-ball attack. “If you look at these three matches, our opening bowlers have been pretty successful against [Andrew] Strauss and [Marcus] Trescothick,” said McGrath. “They’ve been another key as to why England have played so well, setting a foundation, so that’s one positive we’ll take out of this series.”McGrath’s partner, Brett Lee, bowled an outstanding opening spell too, nailing Strauss and Kevin Pietersen, but Lee was also pulled up for bowling a pacy swinging beamer which Trescothick barely managed to avoid. Ponting, however, clarified that a problem with the foot-hold had caused the incident.”I had a look at where he landed, you could see where his front foot was slipping. It knocked the confidence out of him straight away. After that beamer he was holding back within himself because he just can’t keep his front foot.”It’s just a really difficult thing for Brett. Someone running in that fast, bowling that fast, if you can’t keep your front foot, it’s going to happen every now and then. I’m not trying to defend it but if you could slow it down and have a look at his front foot you’d understand. There were no hard feelings, everyone just go on with it.”

Leicestershire have signed Chris Rogers, the left-handed batsmen from Western Australia, as a replacement for Dinesh Mongia. Mongia has been called up by India for a triangular one-day tournament and he leaves at the end of this week.Rogers, 27, is set to make his debut in the Championship game against Somerset on Friday. Rogers had a successful spell with Derbyshire in the early part of last season before having to return home because of injury.James Whitaker, Leicestershire’s director of cricket, said: “We are delighted to have signed him and he will be with us for whatever period Mongia is away. Chris is a gritty and tenacious top order batsman and I am certain he will do a good job for us. He will make his debut against Somerset providing all the necessary paper work has been completed.”Rogers has a first class average of over 43 and has made 10 centuries. He said: “This is a good opportunity for me and I am really looking forward to it because there is still a lot of cricket to be played this season.”

Brett Lee has been ruled out for the rest of the second Test against Zimbabwe, and for the tri-series in India later this month. Diagnostic scans taken after he left the field in the second Test have revealed that he has a torn abdominal muscle, and will take around four weeks to recover.`I am bitterly disappointed,” said Lee. “I’ve worked really hard on my fitness and have basically gone through the past three seasons unscathed, so to miss this tour now is a major blow. I pretty much knew from my first ball this morning that something was wrong. There are times when I have stiffness and I can pretty much bowl through it – that’s part and parcel of bowling – but this certainly felt worse. But hopefully we’ve identified the problem early and it won’t turn into a bigger problem.”Errol Alcott, the physiotherapist of the Australian team, said, “The MRI and ultrasound revealed a disruption in Brett’s stomach muscle. He will placed in a rehabilitation program and I am anticipating a recovery period of at least four weeks.”

For all its uncertainty and drama, there are certain instances in sport where the expected almost always happens. Celtic or Rangers normally win the Scottish football title and the Chinese generally win everything in table tennis. If these teams don’t win, it is big news. Winning is a formality. In India, Mumbai usually win the Ranji Trophy.So when the 2004-05 season kicks off tomorrow, with seven Elite Group matches around the country, Mumbai start as strong favourites. History favours them overwhelmingly – 36 titles with their closest rivals winning six. More importantly, they are champions for two seasons running and hardly faced any challenge last time around. Their batsmen cruised along merrily and their bowlers chipped in at the vital moments. They wrapped up the semi-finals within three days and the final was all but over on the second. At the end of it all Chandrakant Pandit, their coach, was talking about the 15-year winning streak from 1959 to 1973.Another massive advantage that Mumbai have this season is that they play five matches at home. With the most balanced bowling line-up in the country, they usually thrive on the sporting Wankhede wicket – assuming of course that the Test match pitch was an anomaly. Three spinners of varied style and strengths – Sairaj Bahutule, Ramesh Powar and Nilesh Kulkarni – and three medium pacers who can consistently hit the right rhythm make them a formidable combination to face up to. Their batting will revolve around Wasim Jaffer, Amol Muzumdar and Vinod Kambli and they have enough allround strength to call up if needed.Their first game, though, against Railways in Delhi, will probably be one of their biggest tests. Railways entered the semi-finals last year and relied on the sum being greater than the parts. Sanjay Bangar and Harvinder Singh have international experience while Kulamani Parida, the offspinner, has been on the fringes of national selection for a while.The other big battle on the opening day will be between Tamil Nadu and Hyderabad at Chennai. Like last season, Tamil Nadu will rely on their high-voltage batting line-up to carry them through, and the first-day collapse in the final would surely rankle. Sadagoppan Ramesh, Sridharan Sriram, Sreedharan Sharath and Hemang Badani form a formidable combination and will have solid back-up in the form of Subramanium Badrinath, who topped the run-charts for them last season, and Dinesh Karthik, the wicketkeeper who slammed crucial hundreds in the semis and finals. Hyderabad don’t have too many stars in their team but they will ride on a mix of experience and youth: their captain, Venkatapathy Raju, and Ambati Rayudu, the 19-year old batsman hailed by some as the next great Indian batting star.It will be interesting to note the progress of Punjab under the guidance of Intikhab Alam, the former Pakistan captain who became the first foreign coach to be in charge of an Indian domestic team. They play their first match against Uttar Pradesh and like last season one would expect their medium pacers to come to the fore.Delhi and Karnataka were good in patches last season, with a few experienced players disappointing. Both teams begin their campaigns away from home – Karnataka against Bengal and Delhi against Gujarat.But whatever all these teams do, it will require something special to upset Mumbai’s quest for their hat-trick of titles. When Richard Cashman, the manager of the New York Yankees, was asked about the difference between his team and the rest he said, “The only difference is that the Yankees always win.” It is a similar story.

Division One

Points TableHampshire completed a slightly hollow 75-run win over Glamorgan, the day after Nottinghamshire sealed the Championship. Sean Ervine was the star with the ball taking 5 for 60, his best figures of the season, after Shane Warne had set Glamorgan 320. James Bruce did the early damage with the new ball before Ervine took over the demolition job but Hampshire are now fighting it out for second place.

Division Two

Points TableYorkshire’s victory charge against Derbyshire was held up by some stubborn lower order resistance from Ant Botha and Tom Lungley. The pair have added an unbeaten 133 with Botha just two shy of his first ton of the season. Steve Stubbings earlier made a typically dogged 91 while Mark Lawson, the young legspinner, impressed with three wickets. If Yorkshire can complete the win tomorrow it will seal their promotion to division one.

Exactly two years to the day he entered the offices of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), Gregory Shillingford closed the doors for the final time yesterday.The WICB terminated the services of Shillingford, its chief executive officer (CEO), in an action the board said followed consideration of a report on his performance conducted by its review and assessment committee, a review of the evaluation process, and comments from each board member.Barbadian Roger Brathwaite, who joined the WICB in May as chief marketing executive, will act as CEO until a replacement is appointed for the Dominican.Information reaching NATIONSPORT suggested that Shillingford’s performance was under review for some time now and the entire board was unanimous in its decision to part company with him.Efforts to contact him at home in Antigua and later on his mobile phone yesterday provide futile. Wes Hall, president of the West Indies Cricket Board, is in Sri Lanka.NATIONSPORT further understands that the board had outlined various targets for the CEO to attain, but under review it was felt by the board these were not being met.After this, efforts were made to reach an amicable solution between the WICB and the CEO. There were discussions back and forth over a settlement and it is still not sure if this was agreed to. The WICB is said to have acted on legal advice as the event unfolded.Just a few weeks ago, media reports surfaced indicating that Shillingford had resigned the post, but he was quick to refute these. Only last month, another employee, Laurie-Ann Holding, resigned as senior marketing manager (merchandising and rights).Shillingford started his tenure under former WICB president Pat Rousseau. He replaced Steve Camacho in the post, but yesterday’s sudden bombshell again shows that there is never a dull moment in West Indies cricket on and off the field.In recent times, West Indies cricket has been bombarded with several reports of indiscipline by players, attacks by foreign coaches on the goings on at the Shell Academy in Grenada, and now what appears to have been a split between a senior official and the executive.

New ideas experimented in the Super Series have not proved to be an unqualified success. The World XI have not come close to putting up a challenge in the six-day Test – which was over in three-and-a-half – or the three one-day internationals in Melbourne.Prior to the event, the ICC said the future of the venture would be based on the success of this pilot episode in the same way players are judged on results. So the ICC is in a difficult position and the commissioning of another series is unlikely.Going by some of the post-match comments they are going to find it difficult to bank on the support of those who took part over the last two weeks. John Wright, the World XI coach, didn’t write off the idea but suggested that there were alternatives.”From a personal point of view sometimes finals are attractive, where the winner takes all, one and two [in the Test match table] over the four years. There are various concepts that are other there. It is an attractive package but it has got to produce the quality of cricket to match.”Graeme Smith urged the ICC to go away and research this type of event before staging another: “I think it is too early to make a decision and we need to take some time and go and look at it. There are other concepts around and maybe a little bit more research and it can be a good idea.”He added that for the World XI the timing had not been ideal: “I think scheduling is important; a lot of our guys arrived here with no cricket. Australia have come out of a tough series, they are cricket fit and for some of our guys it was their first game in three or four months. The concept is going in the right direction but maybe just tinker with it a bit.”But just as Ricky Ponting made all the right moves on the pitch, as far as the ICC is concerned he is saying the right things off it too. “It’s been a very enjoyable Test match to play in. I think the concept is great, the idea of this series is fantastic and hopefully I will get to play a few of them through the years.” It is amazing how pleasing something is when you finish on the winning side.So while the matches have got a lukewarm response, the other issue under the spotlight was the increased use of the third umpire. Smith said that removing the human element from umpiring does not necessarily contribute to better decisions, while Ponting said that it was important not to make any hurried decisions about the third umpire, but was happy with what he had seen. “I think we are going to have to use it more until we get a really good idea on it. The thing I would be most interested in is what the umpires think of it and how they feel it worked.”

There aren’t too many cricketers whose initials are longer than their surname. There aren’t too many bowlers around with an economy-rate of less than 4.16 in one-dayers. Nobody has dismissed Sachin Tendulkar nine times in ODIs. And, as Marvan Atapattu said on the eve of the sixth one-dayer at Rajkot, not many medium-pacers from the subcontinent have excelled for more than 10 years on the international stage.For Chaminda Vaas, returning to Rajkot has a special significance. It was on this ground, on February 15 1994, as a raw 20-year-old, that he bowled his first-ever ball in international cricket. “It all began here and I learnt a lot from bowling on these pitches,” said Vaas on the eve of the game. “The ball swings more in Sri Lanka compared to here. Bowling on these dry wickets in hot conditions is a big test. I realised how important it is to hit the right spots consistently.” And over the last decade, not many bowlers hit them as often as Vaas.For four glorious years from 2001 to 2004, Vaas was arguably the best medium-pacer in ODIs. In 103 games in that period, he snared 146 wickets and had a staggering economy-rate of 3.95. This series, though, where he has managed just four wickets in five games at an average of 54, has been a let down and he has no qualms about admitting that his performances have been below par. “I have bowled well only in patches on this tour. I need to improve in the next two games.”In fact, his fifteen previous games in India haven’t produced too many wickets – 13 at 40.3 – but he’s been invaluable with his economy-rate of 4.44. Not many will forget his masterclass at Mumbai during the Independence Cup in 1997 when he took a wicket off the first ball of the innings, a wicket off the last ball of the innings, managed three maidens, and stunningly conceded just 13 runs in his 10 overs. The pitch was so flat that Sanath Jayasuriya and friends reached the target of 226 in the 41st over.What’s really hurt Sri Lanka in this series, though, is Vaas’s profligacy – he’s leaked 6.35 runs per over – and the pressure on the batsmen has been instantly released. The Indians went after him in the opening game at Nagpur, where he was clobbered for 67 in 10 overs, and haven’t let up ever since. “It is tough getting wickets on these pitches but economy is very important. I’m confident I can rectify the errors in the last two games and come back stronger.”However, there were glimpses of the vintage Vaas in Ahmedabad where he tied Yuvraj Singh in all sorts of knots in the early stages before dismissing him with a wonderful set-up – shifted mid-on to a short midwicket, tempted him to push in the vacant straight region and got him to mis-time an incutter.Rajkot and Baroda follow and it remains to be seen whether Vaas can find his old touch. Despite his lean patch, though, he always brings with him several other dimensions. Atapattu spoke about the value he adds to the side and said, “He works really hard and is an ideal role model for all of us. He is a perfect team man and has played a vital role in the nurturing of younger fast bowlers.” But what is the one quality that sets Vaas apart from the rest? “Basics,” said Atapattu in an emphatic manner.The peerless Wasim Akram was once referred to as the `left hand of God’. And despite his tribulations in the current series, in the one-day game at least, the boy who wanted to be priest, isn’t too far behind.

Abdul Rehman, Habib Bank’s left-hand allrounder, returned career-best bowling figures of 6 for 28, as Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) crashed to a nine-wicket defeat on the third day of the second-round Patron’s Trophy Cricket Championship match at the National Bank of Pakistan Sports Complex at Karachi.The game seemed to be ambling along even after Habib Bank had taken a first-innings lead of 90, having replied with 337 yesterday. But, in their second outing, KRL were simply decimated by Rehman’s slow left-arm and managed a poor 132 all out.Needing only 43 to win, Habib Bank got there in nine overs for the loss of one wicket and completed an emphatic triumph with a full day to spare, something that must have left them a bit surprised.Rehman, 25, picked up a match haul of 11 for 148, taking ten or more in a first-class encounter for the first time in his career. A third-wicket partnership between Mohammad Wasim (35), the captain, and Ali Naqvi (30), also a former Pakistan opener, yielded 53 runs before Rehman returned to spin a web around the batting order. Eight wickets fell for the addition of only a further 62 runs, as only two other batsmen managed to get into double figures. Although he finished on the losing side, Naqvi made valuable scores of 74 and 30 in the match in addition to taking 4 for 47 with his medium-pace in Habib Bank’s first innings.Earlier, Farhan Adil, resuming at his overnight 73, was dismissed after making 85 off 165 balls. Rehman then showed his batting prowess with a quick 37 in just short of an hour and a half with four fours and a six.In their first-round match habib Bank, the record seven-time Patron’s Trophy winners, claimed the three first innings points from a draw against Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). Pakistan Customs took six points in their win over KRL, after the latter had earlier attained the first innings lead.Wasim Khan, the fast bowler, finished with 12 wickets in the match as National Bank raced to a big 10-wicket victory over Service Industries, on the third day of their Patron’s Trophy clash at the Sheikhupura Stadium. Resuming at their overnight 90 for 5, Service Industries required another 75 runs to avert an innings debacle. They just managed to do that, but were bowled out for 176, leaving National Bank with just 13 to win – a target achieved in just 11 balls.National Bank have won the Patron’s Trophy title five times, while Service Industries qualified for this season’s first-class circuit after having won the Patron’s Trophy Grade-II tournament of 2004-05. They were beaten by Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) in their first-round Group B encounter.Earlier, Farhan Asghar, the Service wicketkeeper, fought well with an unbeaten 75, including 13 boundaries. His sixth-wicket partnership with Mustansar Ali produced 82, but the end for his team was not far. Khan’s 6 for 73 in the second innings gave him match figures of 12 for 111.Although Pakistan Customs replied to the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) total of 498 with courage, they were still 261 behind as the third day of their Patron’s Trophy match came to a close, at the United Bank Limited Sports Complex Ground No.1 at Karachi. However, even with a score of 237 for 6, Customs needed to reach a tally of 348 to avoid the follow-on. But, with only more day to play in the match, unless something dramatic happens on Monday it appears to be heading for a draw.SNGPL, who may now only be looking towards getting the three first innings lead points, failed to add to their overnight 498 for eight — which they had compiled over the full first two days — and lost the remaining two wickets in the one over bowled early yesterday.Customs were off to a sound start with Kashif Siddiq (66) and Hasnain Abbas (59) adding 98 runs together. The score was 147 for 1, when the next four wickets managed to add just a further 33 runs. The in-form Afsar Nawaz and Sajid Ali, the veteran, perished without scoring. Imran Khalid, Faisalabad’s slow left-armer, bagged three wickets and Mahmood Malik two with his fast-medium pacers. Fawad Alam, the teenaged left-hander, is still at the crease having scored an unbeaten 45.In their first-round match of the tournament, Customs had started by beating KRL although they collected only six points instead of the full nine as they had earlier surrendered the first innings lead. SNGPL did not have a match to play in the previous round.A second career hundred from Zulqarnain Haider, the PTCL wicketkeeper, extended his team’s first-innings lead over Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL), on the third day of their second-round Patron’s Trophy match, at the Iqbal Stadium at Faisalabad. Starting the day yesterday at 265 for 6, six runs ahead of ZTBL’s 259, PTCL took their total to 379, an overall advantage of 120. By the day’s close, ZTBL had scored 104 for 2 in their second innings.Zulqarnain, 19, hit a fine 102 while assisting Aamer Bashir, his captain, in a 116 run fourth-wicket stand on Saturday. Yesterday, he helped Tahir Mughal in another useful partnership of 52 for the seventh wicket. Tahir later went on score a valuable 70 off 112 balls with seven boundaries. ZTBL’s most successful bowler was Naeem Anjum, the slow left-arm bowler, who captured five for 122 runs in 37.3 overs.ZTBL, who have won the Patron’s Trophy title four times, were beaten by Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), 2003-04 runners-up, in the first round. PTCL, however, took six points from their win over Service Industries in their opening game.

Australia have handed a first international call-up to the Western Australia seam bowler Brett Dorey for the VB Series involving South Africa and Sri Lanka. There are also recalls for Damien Martyn and James Hopes, while Glenn McGrath returns after being rested for the Chappell-Hadlee series.Dorey, 28, is a straight swap for Mick Lewis and certainly comes with an interesting background. He represented WA at Under-17 and Under-19 level in 1995 and 1997, before heading to Europe on a travelling adventure where he found himself working as a bodyguard to the children of a wealthy Russian businessman. After returning to WA in 2004, he decided to play cricket again and was called into an injury depleted WA side to make his debut against Queensland in November.”It’s a dream come true to be selected to play for Australia,” Dorey said. “To think that two years ago I thought I’d never play cricket again and now I’ve been chosen to represent my country, it’s just amazing.”He has very limited experienced at domestic one-day level – 10 matches and 11 wickets – but has caught the eye of the chairman of selectors, Trevor Hohns. “Brett is an exciting prospect who has good height and is able to generate good bounce. He has had solid results in domestic cricket and we want to have a look at him at the next level.”Meanwhile Hopes, a powerful middle-order batsman and seam bowler, replaces Cameron White after recovering from a dislocated shoulder which ruled him out against New Zealand. Martyn replaces Brad Hodge after recovering from a finger injury while Mitchell Johnson misses out.Hohns added that Australia wanted to check out all their options ahead of the World Cup: “Even during this VB Series, there may be occasions where we look to other players. With the return of McGrath, Martyn and Hopes it just wasn’t possible to find room for everyone and the view is now firmly on preparing for the World Cup in 15 months time.”Australia squad Ricky Ponting (capt), Adam Gilchrist (wk), Simon Katich, Damien Martyn, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, Andrew Symonds, James Hopes, Brad Hogg, Brett Dorey, Brett Lee, Nathan Bracken, Glenn McGrath, Stuart Clark