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Craig Wishart has been ruled out of the VB Series with a knee injury, and will be replaced by Dion Ebrahim. Wishart originally damaged his left knee while batting in last Sunday’s match against Western Australia at Perth, and after consultations with specialists in Adelaide and Sydney he is to return home for surgery.”The injury may have recovered with rest in a couple of weeks, but realistically Craig would not have been mobile enough to take a full part in a demanding one-day series,” said Brad Robinson, Zimbabwe’s physiotherapist. “In the long term he is best having an operation to affect a full recovery, rather than play on with an injury that could have recurred at a future point.”Wishart himself said, “It’s obviously a major disappointment not to be able to play in the VB Series. I feel that I’ve been in good form and I know my runs are important for the team.” He continued: “But, we have a lot of Test and one-day cricket ahead in the next few months so my immediate aim is to regain full fitness and return to the side as soon as possible.”Ebrahim will join up with the squad at Sydney on Saturday evening. where Zimbabwe play India and Australia in the space of two days. “It’s pretty unlikely he will play against Australia on Sunday,” Geoff Marsh, Zimbabwe’s coach, said, “but he will come into contention for the two games we have in Hobart next week.”On a better note for Zimbabwe, Stuart Carlisle, who picked up a slight thigh strain in the game against Australia A at Adelaide, is expected to be fit for their opening game, against Australia on Sunday.

With a host of international stars expected to light up the field at the National Stadium, Habib Bank Limited (HBL) will take on Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) in the final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan’s premier first-class tournament.While this will be HBL’s fifth final appearance in the 50 years that the tournament has been played, they have only won it once, and that too 30 years ago. The march to the final, having lost only one match in the process, was made possible on the back of strong all-round performances.Featuring only one batsman in the top 50 this season – Hasan Raza with 735 runs in 10 matches – HBL were boosted by the inclusion of Younis Khan and Shahid Afridi in the 15-man squad for the final. While Afridi has played two matches for HBL this season – scoring a quickfire 70 and 33 – Younis was forced to miss the entire domestic season due to international commitments. Taufeeq Umar (284 runs at 71) and Imran Farhat (171 runs at 43) did start the season well for HBL, but were later banned from playing domestic due to their involvement in the Indian Cricket League.In the field, HBL have been brilliant; Mohammad Aslam and Fahad Masood have taken 78 wickets between them and have been key ingredients in HBL’s route to the final. The inclusion of Danish Kaneria and Abdur Rehman – who took eight wickets on Test debut against South Africa at this ground last year – might signal the omission of Dilawar Khan, the Peshawar-born legspinner who has 28 wickets in five matches. While Rehman has only bagged a solitary wicket in the only domestic match he played, Kaneria already boasts a tally of 17 wickets from three.SNGPL have already achieved the credible feat of reaching the final in their debut first-class season. Their star has been the 17-year-old Umar Akmal, younger brother of Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran, who has scored 849 runs in eight matches at an astonishing average of 94 with a strike-rate of over 90. His unbeaten 248 against Karachi Blues remains the second highest score of the tournament and was nearing his second double before the last league match was called off after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Mohammad Hafeez (639), Khurram Shehzad (594) and Yasir Arafat (524) have been notable performers with the bat and SNGPL will welcome the return of Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan’s backbone in the last six months.Samiullah Khan Niazi, on the fringes of an international debut during the last few years, has been devastating with the ball – 43 wickets at an average below 19 in nine matches. While SNGPL’s bowling line-up will not scare tooo many, the medium-fast duo of Imran Ali and Asad Ali will be hoping to add to their joint tally of 64 wickets.Keep an eye on
Akmal, if he plays. His participation is in doubt due to his call-up to the Under-19 squad but his inclusion will only cause problems to HBL purely from his penchant for scoring quick runs. Others on offer are Afridi – Karachi is one of his favourite grounds – and Younis after his dazzling century in the first Test against South Africa on this ground.Pitching it right
The National Stadium pitch is a gift to all. While it offers assistance to fast bowlers on the first morning, it gradually settles down to aid batsmen over the next few days before the crumble makes it interesting on the last two days. With plenty of boundaries expected, the ball will roughen up quick and reverse-swing post-tea will form part of proceedings on a daily basis. Mid-20s temperatures will ensure fast bowlers can bowl effective, long spells, especially with spin expected to tie up one end.Teams (from)
HBL – Rafatullah Mohmand, Khaqan Arsal, Younis Khan, Hasan Raza, Shahid Afridi, Aftab Khan, Humayun Farhat (wk), Kamran Hussain, Abdul Rehman, Danish Kaneria, Fahad Masood, Sajid Shah, Aslam Qureshi, Farhan Iqbal, Dilawar HussainSNGPL – Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Saleem Mughal, Azhar Shafiq, Yasir Arafat, Hafiz Majid, Ali Niazi, Umar Akmal, Imran Khalid, Adnan Rasool, Adnan Akmal, Farhan Asghar, Arsalan Mir, Tauqeer Hussain, Samiullah Khan Niazi, Asad Ali, Imran Ali, Asim Butt, Faisal Rasheed, Adil Raza

South Africa 131 for 7 (de Villiers 52*, Patel 2-17) beat New Zealand 129 for 7 (Mills 33*, Pollock 3-29) by three wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

The last time South Africa played a Twenty20 they choked in memorable style against India in the ICC World Twenty20 and nearly imploded again this time before coming through by three wickets with a ball to spare against New Zealand at the Wanderers. AB de Villiers, with an unbeaten 52, kept his cool as the home side did their best to hand New Zealand a morale-boosting win, but it was left to Johan Botha to strike the penultimate ball for four.For three quarters of the match South Africa had everything under control following an impressive performance with the ball. But Jeetan Patel brought New Zealand back into the contest by removing Mark Boucher and Shaun Pollock as de Villiers struggled to find anyone to partner him to the end. With three overs to go they needed 14 but just seven came from the next 12 balls and South Africa started having nervous flashbacks.To add to the tension Vernon Philander was run out on the second ball of the final over and de Villiers, who’d reached his first Twenty20 fifty off 43 balls, couldn’t get the strike. In the end it was down to Botha and he flicked Kyle Mills through midwicket to send the crowd into raptures. Disappointingly it wasn’t a full house, a stark contrast to the ICC World Twenty20 final staged on this ground two months ago, but those present witnessed another match which showed how much fortunes can change during 40 overs.South Africa rested Makhaya Ntini and Andre Nel, and the strength of their reserves was indicated with Pollock collecting three wickets on his return. The home side caught well, although they couldn’t hit a barn door with their attempted run-outs, as New Zealand threatened to fall inside the 20 overs before Mills flayed a defiant 33 at the death.Chasing 130 shouldn’t have proved as testing as it turned out. Jacques Kallis, who was controversially omitted from the ICC World Twenty20, looked intent on showing his aggressive side but picked out fine leg after being rushed by Mark Gillespie’s bouncer, and Graeme Smith’s poor run was extended when he edged Mills.JP Duminy kept the innings on track with a punchy innings at No. 3. He showed a panache for the pull shot and was shaping to take South Africa home on his own when he slog-swept Daniel Vettori over deep midwicket. But the New Zealand captain had his revenge three balls later with a clever piece of bowling to draw Duminy out of his crease.Normally secure in the field, New Zealand’s catching then began to let them down. de Villiers launched Vettori high into the night sky and Mills couldn’t steady himself under the chance at long-off, but that was nothing compared to Gillespie’s howler at midwicket to reprieve Boucher. Patel then made his double incision, trapping Boucher lbw – although there was a doubt – and removing Pollock thanks to a fine catch at deep midwicket by Ross Taylor.The equation reached a run-a-ball as Patel proved difficult to score off, but a meaty six over midwicket from Albie Morkel appeared to seal the result. Not so. Morkel slapped Scott Styris’ second ball to cover before Taylor and Lou Vincent combined to run out Philander in the final-over panic. Although New Zealand ultimately couldn’t pull off the heist, their fightback should have at least boosted spirits ahead of the one-day series.Their earlier efforts had been depressingly familiar as the batting slumped to 98 for 7. Brendon McCullum slapped a wide delivery straight to point and Jamie How picked out cover after a promising start in his first outing of the tour. Pollock was the beneficiary on both occasions, making the most of an outing in international colours after missing the recent Tests. Smith was confident enough in his bowlers – or dismissive enough of New Zealand’s chances – to keep a slip, or sometimes two, throughout much of the innings.Morkel bowled a nippy spell to keep the pressure on as Taylor fell in familiar fashion, pushing away from his body and sending an edge to slip, and collected Gareth Hopkins in his final over when the reserve wicketkeeper limply guided a wide ball to point. Vincent scratched around for 20 balls before trying to reverse sweep a low full toss from Botha, whose impressive economy was helped by batsmen tied to their crease.Styris played an almost lone hand with his 30, but it wasn’t until Mills opened up in the closing overs that New Zealand showed real intent. It is no coincidence that Mills wasn’t involved in the Test hammerings. He cleared long-off against Dale Steyn and in the final over creamed Charl Langeveldt straight down the ground with a little help from the altitude. In the final reckoning it hadn’t quite given New Zealand enough to play with, but if they show the same spirit the one-day series could be a worthwhile contest.

Steve Harmison is in line for his first Test appearance since the West Indies series in June, after Peter Moores, England’s coach, conceded that Matthew Hoggard’s prospects of being fit in time for Sunday’s second Test at Colombo are extremely doubtful. Though Hoggard batted in England’s training session at the Premadasa Stadium on Friday, he has not attempted to bowl since injuring his back during Sri Lanka’s second innings at Kandy, and Moores conceded that time was running out.”His back’s still sore,” said Moores. “It’s got better as backs do, but tomorrow’s the key day. He’s going to have to bowl tomorrow to be available for selection.” The likelihood of that happening, however, is slim in the extreme, and worryingly for England, Hoggard is not the only seamer in the wars. Ryan Sidebottom missed training with a stomach complaint, while James Anderson bowled with strapping on the left ankle he injured during the warm-ups.Both men are still expected to be fit for selection, which leaves a straight choice between the experienced Harmison and the rookie Stuart Broad, who has yet to make his Test debut. From the evidence of their performances at nets, there was only one man showing any relish for the contest. Harmison was listless for long periods of his spell, and spent several minutes between deliveries discussing his action andrun-up with Moores and the bowling coach Ottis Gibson. Broad, on the other hand, plucked out Michael Vaughan’s middle stump with a seaming delivery, and was lively and eager to impress throughout.Even so, the indication from the England camp is that they are prepared to trust in the greater knowhow of Harmison, for what has become a must-win match. “We’ve seen Steve over the last two weeks, not just in the last few net sessions,” said Moores. “He’s an experienced Test-match cricketer, and in Steve we’ve got someone whocreates bounce, creates pressure, and is someone who Sri Lanka won’t like to face.”The final point is the crucial one as far as England’s permutations go, because their seam attack at Kandy was lacklustre once the friendly first-day conditions had evaporated. “Our line and length wasn’t too bad, but we’ve got to be a bit more savvy and streetwise,” said Moores. In Harmison, England have a cricketer whose reputation for devastating menace precedes him. If he doesn’t play in this contest, there seems little point in ever calling on his services again.Moores, though, gave the impression of a man who was prepared to disregard the evidence before his eyes, and trust Harmison’s big-match instincts to kick in on the day. “Whenever you play someone in a Test match, you never quite know what you’re going to get,” he said. “There’s always an element of risk. Steve worked hard during the last Test match, but one of the challenges during Tests is that you bowl by yourself in the middle. He needs time against batters, so netting today was good.

“The real challenge comes when he pulls on an England shirt again and goes out to play for his country,” said Moores. “We all know that nets are different. You get fantastic net players who can’t translate that in the middle, so we can only take so much from that. You have to take stuff from how the player is around the team – how he’s talking, how he’s feeling. Steve’s doing everything right, both on the fitness and technical side, and if he’s the best man for the job, he’ll play.”Another omission for Broad would be a tough break for a player who has been waiting patiently for his debut since the start of the English summer, but at the age of 21, there is no question that his chance will come before long. Moores, though, wasn’t going to be rushed into giving him that first call-up. “The challenge with Stuart is to know when to release him into Tests,” said Moores. “There’s no doubt he’s pushing very hard. He’s playing well and offers some options with the bat as well, and he’ll be very much talked about in selection, as will everyone.”Broad’s willowy frame is a concern for the team management, however. He has the height to be a fast bowler, but so far lacks the meat on his bones that will make him a durable England prospect. “He’s adaptable, he’s got a knack of getting wickets, and he’s getting stronger all the time,” said Moores. “But part of Stuart’s thing is getting the physical strength to deliver his skill over a decent length of time, in what are pretty harsh conditions.”He’s earned his right to be in this squad because of how he’s performed,” said Moores. “He’s probably physically ready to bowl three spells a day over five days, but he’d be pushing the limits of it, to be honest. Mentally, for a young bloke, he’s very strong and I think he’s got a Test match in him, but whether he’d be able to play three on the bounce, I don’t know yet.”Both men could yet be called upon if Sidebottom and Anderson fail to recover fully from their respective ailments. England do have previous in that regard, having purged their entire new-ball attack between the first and second Tests in Sri Lanka four years ago, but Moores implied that Hoggard’s enforced absence would be sufficient change among the seamers. “I saw enough from the England team that we can still win the series,” he said. “If we play to our ability, and put them under pressure. The challenge is to do that, and sustain the pressure over longer periods with bat and ball.”

Josh Hazlewood is out of the fifth Investec Test and for the seventh time on this and the previous West Indies tour Peter Siddle’s claims appear likely to be ignored by the selectors, opening the way for Pat Cummins to resume his Test career.The coach Darren Lehmann has been moved to explain why Hazlewood will not be playing, but a cloud remains over how the most experienced seam bowler in the tour party has not been used even once on this trip, even as England have prepared a succession of green, seaming surfaces ideally suited to Siddle’s skills.Siddle was understood to be utterly bereft about his omission for the Trent Bridge Test, and confided to his former captain Ricky Ponting that he felt his last chance to play for Australia had gone. The pitch for the Oval Test looks likely to provide similar levels of assistance to the bowlers, but with the Ashes gone it is likely that Cummins will be chosen alongside Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc.The captain Michael Clarke said that Siddle remained in contention to play, and that at the age of 30 he should not be discarded as an Australian pace bowler. “Sidds is still working extremely hard and continues to get better,” Clarke said. “He’s played a few of the practice games and probably hasn’t got as many wickets as he would’ve liked.”But he’s certainly in contention for this Test match. He might’ve had a niggle after the tour game so the medical staff have tried to look after that. He bowled fine yesterday, I faced him in the nets and he bowled really well. Sidds is only 30 so I think he’s got plenty of time left in him, and he’s been a big part of the Australian Test team over a period of time.”Siddle has not played a Test since the first match of last summer in Adelaide when he bowled poorly while battling illness. Hazlewood has been preferred in each match since then, and Siddle was not awarded a Cricket Australia contract despite being chosen for this tour. The pitches in England seemed to create the ideal scenario for his inclusion as a consistent seam and swing bowler of much experience.Hazlewood, meanwhile, has struggled to maintain consistency, and Lehmann and the selection chairman Rod Marsh were seen in lengthy conversation with him in Northamptonshire. Lehmann said it had been decided that the least experienced member of the bowling attack needed rest before niggles became larger issues.”Josh has played six Tests since the West Indies tour and the last nine Tests for Australia, as well as playing an important part in the World Cup,” Lehmann said. “He has managed to get through this period without any major injury which is pleasing, though currently he does have some niggling problems that we would like to manage. As such, he was not considered for selection for the 5th Test.”On his return to Australia his niggles will be investigated further and he will work with our coaches, and our medical and fitness staff to have him prepared for the next series he is selected to play in.”Lehmann’s clarification leaves Cummins very much in line to play, resuming his Test career nearly four years after he made a memorable debut against South Africa in Johannesburg, taking the Man-of-the-Match award in a narrow victory on a helpful pitch for bowlers. According to Clarke, The Oval looks to be another such surface.”It still looks pretty green from the boundary so I imagine it will look even greener up close,” Clarke said. “It’s going to be another really tough Test match for the batters, but we just have to find a way to fight our backsides off, whether it goes two days or three days I’d just like us to be on the right side of that two or three days.”Mitchell Marsh has also firmed to return to the side ahead of his brother Shaun, after the latter was seen in deep conversation with Rod Marsh during Australia’s final training session.

Close
ScorecardClaire Taylor and Lydia Greenway put England in a commanding position over South Africa in the third day of the first Test at Shenley. Taylor scored a Test-best 177 and Greenway 70 as England ended play with a 163-run lead.Taylor hit 22 fours in her marathon innings and shared a mammoth 203-run partnership with Greenway, who was eventually bowled by Leighshe Jacobs to leave the score on a dominating 340 for 4. Jane Smit (56*) and Helen Wardlaw (36) then joined in the fun as England piled on to 497 with a lead of 181 runs.South African openers Claire Cowan and Josephine Barnard saw out the last half hour with no alarms to finish on 18 for no loss.

The Sri Lankan umpire Asoka de Silva and Steve Davis of Australia have been promoted to ICC’s Elite Panel, following the body’s decision to expand the pool from 10 to 12 umpires.de Silva, the former legspinner who played 10 Tests and 28 ODIs between 1985 and 1992, was one of eight full-time umpires selected for the ICC’s Elite Panel when it was first introduced in 2002. de Silva has stood in 33 Tests and 76 ODIs after making his debut in 1999 and has served previously on the Elite Panel between 2002 and 2004.Davis, 56, has stood in 11 Tests, 71 ODIs and three Twenty20 Internationals having made his top-level debut in 1992.”Their promotions are a result of perseverance, hard work and commitment and I am sure these two umpires will serve as an inspiration to the other international umpires who are striving hard to break into the Elite Panel,” Dave Richardson, the ICC’s general manager, said. “For Asoka, it will be his second time in the Elite Panel and he has returned after performing outstandingly on the international panel over the past 12 months.”Asoka brings with him a combination of playing and umpiring skills and that combination is one that we believe will serve him well in the months and years to come.”Steve has served an apprenticeship on the fringes of the Elite Panel and his elevation reflects not only his consistency during recent years but also his excellence over the past year in particular.”I have no doubt that the elevation of these two quality umpires will strengthen the Elite Panel.”de Silva was understandably delighted in his promotion, adding: “It has required a lot of hard work leading to good decision-making on a consistent basis and I am glad my efforts have been recognised. I am now keen to ensure I maintain the high standards I have set myself.””I am thrilled to be appointed to the Elite Panel,” Davis said, “as it has to be the aim of every umpire to be appointed to this select group. I have worked hard for this and now I look forward to concentrating on umpiring on a full-time basis. I have always enjoyed the company of those umpires already on the Elite Panel and now I have the chance to work with them all on a more regular basis. I am really looking forward to the challenges ahead.”

Hampshire’s woefull Frizzell Championship season continued at The Riverside ground of Durham on the third day, being forced to follow on 304 runs behind the home side. They then lost a further five wickets before the close.Resuming at 88 for 4 overnight, John Francis and Nic Pothas belied what had gone on the previous evening by surviving untill just before the lunch interval, when Pothas, back after injury continued his good form, reached a half century before being caught in bizaare fashion off his own foot to Nicky Peng at forward short-leg.Having batted soundly for 285 minutes, Francis pulled the ball to square leg and was superbly caught by Peng diving to his right for 65, it was his highest first-class score of the season.Hampshire’s last three wickets fell without any addition to the score and the follow on was enforced.Hampshire’s second attempt fell immediatly into disarray with Simon Katich and John Crawley both back in the pavilion for a joint return of 6 runs. James Adams and Robin Smith then batted stoically but the perservering Neil Killeen accounted for Adams caught behind, then Smith one short of a half century fell lbw.Nic Pothas continued to show why he has been missed during his injury spell by battling out to close, but the fourth day would need a miracle that only the nearby “Angel of the North” could perform.

Australia may have won their two-Test series against Zimbabwe at a relative canter, but the matches failed to grab the public’s interest and both games were played out against backdrops of banks of empty seats.Part of the problem was that a weak Zimbabwe side was never going to have widespread appeal, and also the matches were played very early in the Aussie summer – the international season doesn’t usually kick off until the beginning of November – and Steve Waugh believes the timing was the major turnoff. "Obviously the culture’s not there of watching Tests in the off-season," he shrugged. "I mean, it’s a pretty good side to watch, and I don’t know why they didn’t turn up. They’re going to have to do it a bit differently next year."The series was also competing with end of the Australian Rules football season and the start of the rugby World Cup. The last day of the Sydney Test was watched by around 1300 spectators (an total of 18,500 paid to see the four days), leading Waugh to joke that he was thinking about going round and thanking them individually at the end of the game.Officially, Cricket Australia is putting a positive spin on events, but privately it has to be not best pleased. James Sutherland, CA’s chief executive, admitted that gates were "disappointing", but said that outside factors had materially affected interest. "I think that there were a lot of things that were conspiring against us for this series, and I would hope that in the future that we wouldn’t have things conspire against us."The Sydney gates were of particular concern, but Sutherland flat-batted suggestions that the matches were played in the wrong place at the wrong time. "Sydney is a market that has in the past supported Test cricket very well. But we have to recognise that it was out of season or out of time, and there were other reasons for that."CA’s other experiment, the Top End Tour – staging Tests in the north of the country during the close season – was also a mixed success. Again, the opponents – Bangladesh – were poor box office, but it was still predicted that 11,000 would turn out for Darwin’s inaugural day of Test cricket. In the event, almost 7000 attended the first day and the crowds tailed off on the following two days. It was a similar story at Cairns. The acid test as to the viability of matches outside the season will come in July 2004, when the Sri Lankans, a more attractive draw, visit.

Scotland will play meet the qualifier from the Africa region – in all likelihood Kenya – while Canada will face the winner of the Asian group – either UAE, Malaysia or Nepal – in the semi-finals of the Intercontinental Cup in Sharjah in November. The draw was made at Edgbaston during the Kenya v Pakistan ICC Champions Trophy match.The decider in the African group will take place in Nairobi between October 1 and 3 when Kenya host Namibia. The Asian group’s final game is between Malaysia and UAE in Kuala Lumpur between September 17 and 19.The semi-finals will take place in the United Arab Emirates from November 16 to 18, with the three-day final starting on November 21.Scotland was the first Associate Member to qualify for the semi-finals, defeating Ireland by eight wickets in Dublin to win the European group. Canada was the second country to qualify, drawing the final match against Bermuda in Toronto and so squeezing out USA by three points.