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Mohammad Sami, the Pakistan fast bowler, has said he would play against India with a positive outlook and the will to prove his critics wrong that his temperament was not suited for international cricket. Sami, 24, said while carrying out bowling exercises advised to him by former Pakistan captain and great Imran Khan on Friday that he had been boosted with the positive remarks about him made by Imran. “It has not been easy for me. People tend to look at my averages but don’t see how many Tests I have played abroad or at home on generally batting tracks. They don’t see the number of times luck has simply not supported even some good wicket taking balls,” he said.But Sami said he had always been encouraged and supported by his captain, coach and teammates and Imran’s visit to pass on some advice to him had come as a big confidence booster for him before the series against India. “It is a big series for me, no doubt about that. I know there are expectations from me and I need to take more wickets. But I have had some good spells and after some tips passed on by Imran I am positive about the coming series,” Sami said while targeting one stump with the new ball.Imran specially visited the Pakistan camp at the National Cricket Academy here on Friday and spent over an hour working with Sami, whose selection has been criticised by many critics and some former players who point out to his Test bowling average of 46. Sami has taken 65 wickets in 24 Tests and another 105 in 74 One-day Internationals. Sami said getting advice from Imran had come as a big help and he learnt one or two new things from the former fast bowler. “But he made it clear to me what line of attack I should adopt and spoke about the importance of being disciplined in the basics of fast bowling,” he added.Sami said he was looking forward to the Tests against India despite their strong batting line-up. “I am preparing myself for the challenge because they have some quality batsmen. But I am confident because I have bowled a lot to them in the last two years and I have got a feel of their individual batting traits at the crease.”

Rajasthan slash ticket rates
It was difficult for the authorities in Jaipur to fill up the 30,000 seats at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium and resorted to slashing the ticket rates, reported. That wasn’t all. The Rajasthan Police demanded Rs 80,00,000 (approx US$ 200,000) for providing security for the first match against Kings XI Punjab. Terming IPL to be an event organised for monetary benefits, the Rajasthan Police refused to provide security free of cost.No full house at Chennai either
Despite the presence of the most expensive player in the IPL, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings are struggling to get a full house for their first home match against the Mumbai Indians. A day before the match, reports that only 15,000 of the 38,000 available tickets have been sold. Besides the now-mandatory cheerleaders, Chennai have also lined up singer Hariharan and popular drummer Sivamani to entertain the crowd.Hayden settles in
Matthew Hayden was all praise for Dhoni’s leaderships skills and even said he had an aura about him. “I have no issues with that. Dhoni is a fine thinker and a confident individual,” said Hayden. “There is an aura about him. For me, it is a great experience sharing the dressing room with Indians and learning how they go about their cricket.”West Indies players to return on May 18
Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo are expected to return to the West Indies on May 18, in time for West Indies’ series against Australia. West Indies Cricket Board CEO Donald Peters said that the players will return four days before the first Test in Jamaica, starting on May 22 .Another floodlight failure at Eden
While the Kolkata Knight Riders have got off to the perfect start, winning two out of two, they are yet to get things in order at their home ground, Eden Gardens. After being criticised for preparing a difficult track for their first home game, which was also blighted by a power failure, there was further embarrassment as two of the floodlights went off during a practice session.

Dilip Vengsarkar, India’s chairman of selectors, has said he is pleased with the team’s performance in the one-off Twenty20 game against Australia in Mumbai.”We played excellent cricket against a formidable team like Australia,” he told reporters. “The Aussies play cricket at a different level, but we showed on Saturday that we too can be dominant.”Vengsarkar rued the loss in the sixth one-dayer in Nagpur, where India lost their way chasing a huge target after getting off to a solid start, to hand the series to Australia.”Had we won in Nagpur we could have very well drawn the series.”He was also impressed with Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s captaincy skills and the way he maintained his composure under pressure. “He did a good job during the series. He is a good thinker and a calming effect on the side.”Vengsarkar felt the wins in the last two matches against Australia would lift the team’s spirit. “It will stand us in good stead and our morale will be higher when we play Pakistan,” he said. “Even when we go to Australia these wins will help because we have beaten them here. At least it will be at the back of our minds that this team [Australia] is beatable.”When asked to compare the current Australian side with the West Indies team which toured India after the 1983 World Cup, he said: “Both are great sides. In 1983 West Indies really clobbered us in the one-dayers and Test matches. But this time we held our own and played extremely well against the Aussies.”The selectors will pick the squad for the ODIs against Pakistan on either October 26 or 27 during the Challenger Trophy, India’s premier domestic one-day tournament, in Ahmedabad. The first one-dayer against Pakistan is on November 5 in Guwahati.

Glenn McGrath has signed off on his career by winning the World Cup’s Player of the Tournament prize with a record 26 wickets. When McGrath stepped from the Kensington Oval he entered retirement and then collected his third World Cup winners’ medal after seven weeks of bowling brilliance.In 250 one-day internationals McGrath collected 381 wickets and his 71 World Cup victims in 39 games are 16 ahead of the previous mark set by Wasim Akram. McGrath, 37, has made continued high performance a trademark and he finishes his career in fifth place on the ICC one-day rankings.One of only five players to reach 900 rankings points, McGrath reached his statistical peak of 903 during the seven-match ODI series against South Africa in March 2002. Only Joel Garner, Richard Hadlee, Shaun Pollock and Muttiah Muralitharan collected more points from the complex ratings system. McGrath holds the same spot in the Test records after capturing 914 points during the 2001 Ashes series.

Shane Warne launched another attack on his former coach John Buchanan, who he said was responsible for Australia’s CB Series loss to England on Sunday. Warne said Buchanan must be held accountable for Australia’s gruelling taper-training program, which appeared to leave the side flat at the end of the one-day program.”From what I hear, the boys trained really, really hard, probably too hard and it affected them,” Warne told . “They got tired for the finals and didn’t perform really well so John Buchanan has to take responsibility for that.”Warne famously questioned the worth of coaches in general last September, with the line: “I’m a big believer that the coach is something you travel in to get to and from the game.” He said such hard practice sessions were not ideal preparation for a team constantly aiming to perform at their best.”If you’re playing international cricket, all you want to be is fresh and happy,” he said. “You don’t want to be trained into the ground. But that’s the way he wanted to do it but it didn’t work out. Hopefully it will hold them in good stead for the World Cup.”Buchanan admitted the heavy workload and Australia’s desire to be well prepared for the World Cup had affected their performance during the CB Series. He also said complacency and an expectation the side would keep winning contributed to Australia’s decline.

Patrick Ochan and Jimmy Okello have been banned for life by the Ugandan Cricket Association (UCA), after the duo went missing at the end of the ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament in Darwin.The bans are unlikely to have a significant impact on the duo – it has been reported that they have now taken up residence in Adelaide after applying for, and successfully obtaining, working visas.”By the rules of the association, we dissociated ourselves from the act [their disappearance] and banned them from playing cricket for Uganda ever again. They would have no cause to come back to us at all,” William Kibukamusoke, the chairman of UCA, told Cricinfo on telephone from Kampala.Ochan and Okello, who are multi-talented sportsmen, have also been barred from representing Uganda in any other sport. The duo have played in the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF’s) circuit. Ochan, who was the more successful of the two, had a career-best ranking of 428 in the ITF’s junior level, and represented Uganda in the Davis Cup.”They will never [represent Uganda in any international sport]. We passed this information around all our sister associations. Their talent is now wasted,” Kibukamusoke said. “That [their banning] was the statement we made to the police in Darwin. We had to leave the case clear, and there was no use moving out without making a police case.”Interestingly, Ronnie Kintu, a sports journalist with the , a Ugandan newspaper, also went missing with the two after Uganda defeated Argentina in the final of the tournament on June 2. “He [Kintu] wasn’t grabbed but the other two were grabbed – wherever they were staying in the neighbourhood, they were uprooted and apprehended,” Kibukamusoke said.Though Ochan and Okello were found in Sydney by Australia’s Immigration Department on June 12 – no action was taken as their visas were valid till July 28. The had reported that Ochan and Okello were staying with Ken Skewes, a South Australia player who they befriended at an Under-19 tournament. Skewes had contacted the authorities when he realised that the two were being sought.Meanwhile, Ochan and Okello are enjoying life in their adopted country. “We got the visas last week and I’m even going for official cricket practice with my new club tomorrow,” Ochan told on August 1. Jimmy [Okello] is currently playing soccer with the Africa Stars Club and scoring goals for fun. Our ability to play most of the games here has made us very popular.”

Suggestions circulating inside the US to the effect that the ICC would again withdraw recognition of the USA Cricket Association because of its failure to meet certain deadlines have been dismissed.While the ICC did impose deadlines, and ICC spokesman pointed out that none of these were imminent.The conditions under which the USACA was readmitted to the fold were as follows:

Division One

Harbhajan Singh took 4 for 64 to bowl Worcestershire out for 217 on the third day against Surrey at Guildford, forcing them to follow on. Surrey’s last two only added a further 22 to their overnight 347, but their bowlers quickly tore into Worcestershire’s top-order; Matt Nicholson removed his compatriot Phil Jaques and Vikram Solanki before Harbhajan took over. Steven Moore, the Worcestershire wicketkeeper, stood in Surrey way with a combative 58, but his wicket prompted an inevitable slide from the lower-order who collapsed to 217 all out. Following on Worcestershire moved to 46 without loss, still trailing by 106.Read John Ward’s full report of Yorkshire’s third day against Kent at Scarborough.Hampshire continued to rule the rod over title-chasers Sussex, who barely recovered from their overnight 65 for 6 to make 145 at The Rose Bowl. Luke Wright’s 46 added a touch of respectability. Hampshire’s reply was by no means flawless, at 83 for 3, but John Crawley’s unbeaten fifty took them to 113 without further loss. They will aim to quickly erase the deficit on Saturday morning and march on to a steady lead.

Division Two

Justin Langer and Simon Katich, former Australia team-mates, set up an enthralling finish to Derbyshire and Somerset’s match on the third day at Derby. Katich declared Derbyshire’s first innings on 94 for 2, 246 behind Somerset who increased their lead by 84 before setting the home side 331 to win in 98 overs. Somerset’s last five smashed 160 runs before lunch with Craig Kieswetter stroking an impressive 52 from 43 balls. Derbyshire then added 94 in 31 overs – Katich declaring after a brisk 29 – before Somerset, batting for the second time in the day, cracked 84 in 20 overs. Bad light forced the players off early, but an intriguing final day is in prospect with Derbyshire requiring a further 329 runs on a wearing pitch.Northamptonshire made steady progress against Nottinghamshire at Northampton after rain washed out the first day. Three fifties from the top four helped them past the 200-mark, but Notts struck back in the evening session to restrict them to 264 for 7. Stephen Peters, David Sales and Alex Wakely struck the half-centuries, while Robert White fell just short, with 46. Last week may have been one for the old-timers – but Mark Ealham added his own contribution today, with four wickets.A wet outfield meant there was no play between Glamorgan and Leicestershire at Abergavenny, nor at Bristol for Gloucestershire’s match against Essex.

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Karnataka were in for a rude shock in their Ranji Trophy opener at the Moti Bagh Stadium in Vadodara, being bundled out for 85 after an inspired opening spell by seamers, Rakesh Patel and Irfan Pathan Sr. Karnataka’s decision to bat first backfired with Patel scything through the top order with 5 for 85, while Pathan chipped in with three wickets in 15 miserly overs.The duo shared the first six wickets to fall with six of the Karnataka batsmen failing to get past double figures. Baroda too got off to a shaky start – NC Aiyappa accounted for both openers with the score on 24. Ajit Bhoite, promoted to No.3, counterattacked with a fluent 62-ball 48 as Baroda went about wiping out the deficit. Seamer B Akhil struck two vital blows at the end of the day but Baroda, 28 runs ahead with six wickets in hand, were very much the side in command.
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Gagandeep Singh, Punjab’s opening bowler, instigated a manic opening hour at the PCA Stadium in Mohali, tearing Bengal’s top order apart. Gagandeep’s opening burst left Bengal reeling at 18 for 5 – including Sourav Ganguly falling for 6 – and it was only because of the former Indian wicketkeeper Deep Dasgupta that they averted a humiliation. Dasgupta’s 73-run partnership with Laxmi Ratan Shukla revived them somewhat but lack of lower-order support didn’t help matters. Dasgupta, who led the side to the runner-up spot last season, battled for close to four hours, managing ten fours in his rescue mission. Bengal’s bowlers struck three vital blows before the day was out, restricting Punjab to 75 for 3.
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Jaydev Shah’s composed hundred helped Saurashtra recover from a shaky position, recovering from a jittery 7 for 2 to a competitive 298 for 7 at the end of the first day’s play at the Ordinance Equipment Factory Ground at Kanpur. Having being promoted from the Plate Group last season, Saurashtra had one of the toughest games first up, taking on defending champions Uttar Pradesh on their home turf. Shalabh Srivastava, UP’s opening bowler, pegged them back with two wickets within the first six overs but a couple of handy partnerships rescued them.Shitanshu Kotak and Cheteshwar Pujara – one 34 years old with 14 seasons of first-class behind him, the other 18 in his second domestic year – reversed the tide with a 130-run stand. Kotak’s dismissal brought in Shah, son of current board secretary Niranjan, who solidified their position with a 159-ball 124, one that included 22 hits to the fence. His dismissal in the third session, off Rudra Pratap Singh, was followed by two more as UP came back into the contest.
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A fine century from Anirudh Singh, his third in first-class cricket, and a promising debut from Ravi Teja, the 19-year-old opener, got Hyderabad’s campaign off to a fine start against Maharashtra at Chatrapati Shivaji Stadium in Karad. Choosing to bat first on a ground hosting its first match in six years, Hyderabad ended the day on a comfortable 254 for 3. Teja kickstarted the innings with a breezy 84, comprising 13 fours, repaying the faith that the selectors had shown in him, throwing him into the deep end after a string of impressive performances at the Under-22 level. His 121-run stand with Anirudh laid the platform before VVS Laxman consolidated their position with a solid 31. Anirudh was unbeaten when play was called off – 36 minutes after tea owing to bad light and a slight drizzle – but his even 100, in 197 deliveries with 12 fours, had put them in control.
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A five wicket haul from Ashraf Makda, the left-arm opening bowler, helped Gujarat gain the upper hand on the first day against Rajasthan at Ahmedabad. Justifying his captain’s decision to field first, Makda and his partners halted Rajasthan’s fine start, restricting them to 204. Vikram Solanki, one of Rajasthan’s foreign imports, had a good start to his campaign, managing a 95-ball 58, but Makda bowled him, changing the complexion of the game. Nikhil Doru offered some middle-order resistance, with a little help from Kabir Ali, the other import from Worcestershire, but a quick three-wicket haul from offspinner Kirat Damani cleaned up the tail. Gujarat suffered two early jolts and ended the day on 43 for 2.
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Joginder Sharma’s 4 for 54 with his medium-pace enabled Haryana to bowl out Andhra for 202 in 71 overs at the Bansi Lal Stadium in Rohtak. Joginder and Sachin Rana, who conceded only 27 in 11.5 overs, reduced Andhra to 33 for 4. Satya Kumar Varma, coming at No.3, was the only batsman who managed to resist the Haryana attack and remain unbeaten at 105. On a day when no-one else crossed 25, Varma attempted to push the score forward along with the tail, adding 38 with Syed Sahabuddin and 50 with Lakshman Kishore, but Sharma broke both partnerships before they could do any serious damage. Haryana’s openers batted out the last six overs adding 8.

Michael Vaughan, the England captain, insists that there will be no “Ashes let-down” for his side when they play Pakistan. On the eve of England’s departure for a three-Test and seven one-day match tour, Vaughan told reporters at the team’s hotel that his side would have to be at their best to win in Pakistan.”The Ashes are a massive goal and we attained that in the summer. It was great to play the cricket that we did in England. We’ll certainly keep our feet on the ground but we have to draw confidence from the fact we beat Australia and played some fantastic cricket in the summer.”There are only five players from England’s successful 1-0 win in a three Test series on their last tour of Pakistan in 2000-01 – Vaughan, Matthew Hoggard, Ashley Giles, Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Flintoff – in the current squad and Vaughan said his team would have to adapt quickly to the conditions.”It’s a big challenge and opportunity for the team to continue the progress we made in the summer,” said Vaughan, who doubled up as a sightscreen pusher when England won five years ago in fading light at Karachi to clinch a dramatic series win. “The last two years the England team have played some good cricket and the tour to Pakistan is really going to test our skills in conditions which some of the players haven’t played in.”Pakistan’s pitches traditionally offer plenty of assistance to spin bowlers and although Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach and former England batsman, said he wanted to play the series on good rather than turning wickets, Vaughan was in no doubt about what sort of surfaces would confront his men.”I would be very surprised if we go to Pakistan and it doesn’t spin. But we have become decent players of spin over the last few years,” said Vaughan. “Look at the World XI team (in the recent ICC Super Test in Australia) and the success Stuart MacGill and Shane Warne (both leg spinners) had against the best players in the world. That shows what success we had against Warne. He managed to take 40 wickets but we took him for a few an over.”Duncan Fletcher, the England coach, said the lack of hype in comparison to the Ashes would also work in the squad’s favour. “After what took place it should be one of the best tours to go on. There should be very few distractions and I think that will be good for the side.”England will be without injured reverse swing specialist Simon Jones, one of their Ashes stars. “He will be missed because he has become a fantastic bowler with reverse swing, but it creates chances for Liam Plunkett, James Anderson and Alex Loudon,” admitted Vaughan. “It will be a real challenge, but an exciting challenge. We just need to stick to our basics and get our plans right.”England play their first tour match in Rawalpindi, a three-day game, starting on October 31 with the first Test at Multan commencing on November 12.