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Scorecard
Sri Lanka A secured a tremendous advantage by putting up 335 for 2 against Bangladesh A on the opening day of their first four-day match at the Colts Cricket Club in Colombo. Malinda Warnapura and Thilan Samaraweera struck unbeaten hundreds in a partnership of 313 for the third wicket.After choosing to bat, Sri Lanka A got off to a disastrous start, losing both their openers for 22. Fast bowler Nazmul Hossain removed Mahela Udawatte in the third over for 5 and then had Michael Vandort caught for 10 in the seventh.However, if Bangladesh thought they would seize the day, they had another think coming.Once Warnapura, the nephew of Sri Lanka’s first Test captain Bandula Warnapurna, and captain Samaraweera got together it was all one-way traffic. Warnapura struck 177 off 291 balls with 11 fours and a six. Samaraweera last played a Test for Sri Lanka against England in 2006 and today he accumulated 129 off 232 balls.Bangladesh used seven bowlers but only Hossain met with any success. Khaled Mashud, one of Bangladesh’s most experienced Test cricketers, was playing for Bangladesh A after being dropped from the World Cup squad.

Wasim Akram has urged Australia not to pull out of their scheduled tour of Pakistan despite further unrest in the lead-up to next month’s elections. Australia have a tentative plan to play three Tests and five ODIs in Pakistan starting in mid-March but the visit will not go ahead unless a Cricket Australia security delegation decides the players will be safe.Despite further bomb attacks in Pakistan this week, Akram believes Australia’s cricketers would have nothing to fear. “I think everything will be fine after the elections,” Akram told the . “Things will settle down.”Australia should play in Pakistan. They will be safe there, and there will be so much security around them. It is not sporting figures who are being targeted.”After the assassination of the former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto in late December some Australia players were concerned about proceeding with the tour. However, Stuart MacGill was one who remained keen to go ahead with the visit, provided the unrest in Pakistan eased after the February 18 elections.

Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lankan captain, is looking forward to a disciplined performance from his bowlers in the remaining qualifying matches of the Champions Trophy after making a winning start.Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by 37 runs in the opening qualifier under lights here on Saturday, but their bowling left a lot to be desired. They conceded 36 extras, the second-highest contributor in Bangladesh’s total of 265 for 9, after posting a challenging 302 for 8. Their bowlers sent down 13 wides and six no-balls.”We did not play our A-class game and there are certain areas where we have to improve and we will do that in remaining games,” said Jayawardene. Sri Lanka play Zimbabwe at Ahmedabad on October 10 and defending champions West Indies on October 14 at Mumbai in their last two qualifying matches. The top two sides will advance to the main draw that features world champions Australia, England, India, South Africa, New Zealand and Pakistan.Jayawardene said his team did not perform up to the mark in the opening game because they had not played much international cricket in recent months. They played their last full one-day international three months ago. “We didn’t play a smart game, especially in the second half of their innings but we have not played many one-dayers recently and that was one of the reasons why we were not able to perform to our potential.”He didn’t blame the dew for his bowlers’ below-par performance when they fielded under lights at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium. “The dew came on only around 8.30pm and by that time the spinners had nearly bowled their overs,” he said. “We have to expect such things in day-night matches. I think it is good that we fielded in the evening. It will give us an idea what to expect in remaining matches.”Habibul Bashar, the Bangladesh captain, defended his decision to field first after winning the toss, saying his bowlers failed to make the most of conditions in early stages. “It was a good toss to win,” he said. “There was grass on the wicket, but we didn’t put the ball in the right areas in the opening 10 overs.”Seamers Mashrafe Mortaza, Syed Rasel and Farhad Reza failed to get early wickets and went on to concede 188 runs in 28 overs. “In the end, the target proved too high for us,” said Bashar, whose team still managed to post their highest-ever total against Sri Lanka in 18 one-day internationals.Jayawardene, however, said he would have batted first had he won the toss. “It was a good wicket to bat on. I think it is always better to set a target when you play against teams like Bangladesh.”Bangladesh will now meet the West Indies on October 11 and Zimbabwe on October 13 at Jaipur.

Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach, warned his players to expect some stiff resistance from England, especially after their disappointing Test series against Sri Lanka.England began the series as favourites but had to settle for 1-1 in the three-Test series after a spirited fightback by Sri Lanka in the final Test at Trent Bridge. However, Woolmer doesn’t expect any easy offerings when Pakistan begin their tour, keeping in mind that England would be determined to bag a comprehensive win at home before heading to Australia in their bid to retain the Ashes.”England’s show against Sri Lanka means nothing for us”, Woolmer told Reuters. “It is not our divine right to win and we will have to play very well to beat them. Winning in England is never easy.”The England side suffered a huge setback after Andrew Flintoff and Simon Jones got sidelined due to injuries. Pakistan too had their share of bad news with Shoaib Akhtar, their key fast bowler, failing to make the Test squad because of an ankle injury which failed to heal in time. However, Woolmer saw this as an opportunity for the other fast bowlers to carry the load with merit.”I think the writing was on the wall for us as far as his injury is concerned and we have to play without his pace,” Woolmer said. “However, we have played without him in the past and managed. It is a good opportunity for others to be counted.”

Despite that traumatic defeat in the second Test at Adelaide last week, England’s captain, Andrew Flintoff, believes his team are capable of making history when the crucial third Test gets underway at the WACA tomorrow.”This Perth Test is huge,” Flintoff told reporters on the eve of the match. “We’re very proud of what we’ve achieved as a team in the last three or four years and we want to carry on creating history as a team. We are very much aware that we would be creating history if we did come back into the series and it’s something we desperately want to do.”No English side has ever come back from 2-0 down in an Ashes series, and it has only been done once in the history of the contest – by Don Bradman’s Australians in 1936-37. Even so, Flintoff called on his side to harness the same resolve they had shown in recent seasons, which – when the dust has settled – are sure to be remembered as some of the finest performances by any England teams in history.There was the Ashes triumph in 2005, of course, which needs no further mention here – least of all because the “A-word” has been banned in the Australian dressing-room. But since Flintoff became the heartbeat of England’s team in the winter of 2003-04, they have won in the Caribbean for the first time in 36 years, in South Africa for the first time in 40, and until their defeat in Pakistan last winter, had won six series in a row, including all seven Tests of the 2004 summer.A turnaround on this tour, however, would top the lot. “I don’t think we need any more motivation,” said Flintoff. “We’re in Australia playing an Ashes series and for all of us now it’s probably the biggest Test of our careers. Everyone is up for it in the dressing-room, because to come back into this series now would be the ultimate.”It’s a very proud team and we want to give a good account of ourselves,” he added. “We came close in Adelaide but in this game we’ve got to go one further. This Perth Test is huge. Ideally we need a win and, if not, a draw and then the last two [Tests] will look after themselves. This game we have to look at almost in isolation and hit them hard.””We’ve had to get Adelaide out of our system,” said Flintoff. “We were probably in shock at Adelaide and then two days later it sunk in. A lot of good things came out of the Test but for two hours we lost our way and lost the Test. It just shows you can’t do that playing against Australia.”

Flintoff singled out four performers at Adelaide for special praise – Paul Collingwood, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell and Matthew Hoggard – but it is his own performance as captain, batsman and strike bowler that will be the most pivotal to England’s fortunes. To that end, there has been much concern about the state of his injured ankle, but Flintoff insisted that he was fit and ready to bowl flat out.”My ankle is fine,” he said. “I bowled in the nets yesterday, but I haven’t bowled today. After my surgery I probably naively thought everything would be fine and I’d get no pain ever again in my life. But playing back-to-back Test matches is tough. I’ve not done it for a while and I did get some discomfort.”I had it checked out and I’ve bowled since – in the last innings of the last Test and in the nets here – so it’s not something I’m concerned about. We’ve tried to limit the overs I bowl in a day for a period of time now, but that’s dictated by the situation in the game. I’ve always been a willing bowler and I’ll carry on doing that.”After a few days off to recover from the shock of Adelaide, Flintoff was adamant that his team was ready for their big challenge. “After the loss it was a little bit flat, but the team has been great throughout,” he said. “There is still that confidence and the calmness which we’ve had all along on this trip. It’s a side full of character and that’s going to have to come out in this Test.”Apart from the defeats I’ve enjoyed the trip,” he added. “I think all the lads have. When you lose Test matches you will get criticism and that’s something I’m prepared to take. I’ve had it before and I’m sure I’ll have it again. I’m happy in what I’m doing and I’ve given the job everything I’ve got and I can rest easy in that.”

Having edged out India by 18 runs in a gripping tussle on Friday night, Ricky Ponting was confident of carrying the momentum forward into Sunday’s final against West Indies. Despite chopping and changing the side over the four league games, Australia managed to top the standings, and Ponting was determined that the preparation for the Champions Trophy would be completed in the best possible fashion, with victory in the final.”It was a terrific win by the team last night,” he said. “We’ve managed to win just enough games to make it through to the final, and the guys have had a chance to play some cricket and worked really hard in the last couple of weeks.” Ponting also suggested that the team taking the park on Sunday would be very close to that which would contest a group featuring India, England and possibly West Indies at the Champions Trophy next month.”I think it’ll be pretty close, the team we’ve picked has had to come out of that Champions Trophy squad, so that’s the way we’re looking at it,” he said. “I don’t think there’ll be many changes, apart from Brad [Haddin], who’ll be replaced by Adam [Gilchrist] of course. There can’t be anyway because we’ve only got 14 in the squad.”Having lost Monday’s game and survived a massive scare in the tournament opener, there was no question of taking the West Indian challenge lightly. “They were probably in position to win the first game as well and we got out of that one,” said Ponting. “We nearly pegged them back in the second game chasing runs, so they’ve been a little bit shaky chasing, which is a good sign going into a big game. It’ll be nice to get a total on the board tomorrow and see if they can chase them again.”They’ve played well, but I think their batting relies on a couple of players and their bowling’s been helped by the conditions in the series. They were the ones that deserved to get to the final first, and now that we’re there, we can hopefully put on a good show.”While he indicated that Shane Watson would once again open – he made 79 from 74 balls against India last week – Ponting had no issues with the manner in which teams had been picked during the fortnight. “It didn’t necessarily come down to the best performers. Looking at someone like Andrew Symonds, he hasn’t made many runs in this series but you’re not going to leave him out, are you? He’s a matchwinner.”There were no concerns over his own form, though he hasn’t played a big innings since stroking a superb 54 in the opening game. “It’d be nice to get some tomorrow,” he said. “I think I’ve actually been a bit stiff in a couple of the games. I got one that didn’t bounce in the first game and was caught at short fine leg and then fine leg in the other two innings, but that’s the way it goes. I feel okay, so hopefully that score can be tomorrow.”There was praise too for Haddin, who leaves for home after the final, after some eye-catching displays in this competition. “I was a bit surprised looking at the television last night, and seeing that he’d played 18 one day games for us,” he said. “I didn’t think he’d played that many. But he’s just matured a lot as a player, I think having a leadership role with New South Wales has helped him out, and whenever he’s come in, in a lot of different roles, he’s looked at home. He’s got a lot of years ahead of him, and would be able to slot into our national side very easily.”Brad Hogg, who played such a vital role in the defeat of India, was another who keenly awaited the final clash. “It rained the other night [the first game against India] when I got a crack and I was just looking to get some overs under my belt,” he said, when asked about the India game. “I’m very happy with how that went and very happy about the team getting into the final.

“It’s just a matter of chipping in and doing what’s best for the team. I was happy to do that job, and I think the team is now starting to gel after a few months’ break.” When quizzed about he had set up Suresh Raina, finally getting him with a googly that he didn’t read, Hogg smiled and said: “You bowl to each player and try to work them out, but the more you bowl to them, the more they start to read you. So hopefully, you get them out cheaply and they don’t get that chance.”Though his evening was soured somewhat by Fremantle, his Aussies Rules Football team losing a preliminary final, Hogg was delighted to be back in the mix, having been in and out of the side in recent seasons, despite playing a prominent role in the World Cup triumph of 2003. “The way the team’s been picked over the last couple of years, Watto [Shane Watson] and myself have been in and out of the team,” he said. “If you go back to when Ian Harvey was playing, I think it was either me or Ian going in and out of the team. That’s the way it’s been and we’ll see how it goes down the track. I definitely want to play in the next World Cup; to defend the title would be sensational.”For the moment, all his thoughts concerned West Indies, and a tilt at a first trophy of the season. “We’ve got a good line-up and I think we can take out the West Indies,” he said. “I think we’ve got to target Lara and Gayle, make sure they don’t get a good start. If we can put the pressure on them, it adds to the pressure on the lower order.”Some Australian newspapers may have dubbed it the ‘Who Cares Cup’, but don’t go telling that to the players. Now that they’re in the final, with all the experimentation behind them, there’s only one thing on their minds. With the Champions Trophy, the only bauble missing from the cabinet, and the Ashes looming, an emphatic victory tomorrow will be just the springboard that Ponting and his team need for the arduous seasonahead.

Malcolm Gray, the outgoing president of the International Cricket Council, has said that he wishes more culprits had been caught in the matchfixing controversy. In an interview to The Melbourne Age, he implied that some of the cricket boards were too keen to protect their national sporting heroes.”One of the disappointments is that we didn’t get more scalps,” said Gray, “but it’s probably understandable because we and the anti-corruption unit don’t have any legislative power. We cannot march into somebody’s house and carry out a search or we cannot arrest people so we can only do it by investigation and by persuasion.””The other reason,” he continued, “is that there is a tendency to want to protect the sporting hero, and that’s [something] the fans, the public and I think some of the authorities tend to [do] as well.”It was an accusation that didn’t go down well with the Indian board (BCCI). Kishore Rungta, treasurer of the BCCI, and Jaywant Lele, former secretary, said in Mid-day that the Indian board never tried to conceal the identity of any cricketers."I don’t think the Indian cricket board, or any cricket board for that matter, has tried to protect the identity of any cricketer who was involved in the match-fixing scandal."Lele agreed: "The Indian board has brought to book all the culprits who were involved. I think Gray is just talking in the air, without any support or evidence to support his claims."Gray, who has just handed over charge of the ICC to Pakistan’s representative, Ehsan Mani, said that it was time to “draw a line in the sand” and move on. He did not think any more culprits would be uncovered.

Match facts

January 5, 2016
Start time 1100 local (2200 GMT)Tom Latham will be keen to impress after posting middling scores in the series so far•AFP

Big Picture

Following two humbling defeats at the beginning of the series, would anyone have given Sri Lanka a chance of finishing the series level? With a bounce in their step since Nelson, and a number of injuries having eroded New Zealand, Sri Lanka might have a nearly-even shot at finishing 2-2. Having defeated only West Indies in the past 12 months, a drawn away-series will count as something of a moral victory.When Brendon McCullum aggravated a long-standing back injury by skidding into the advertising hoardings, New Zealand had hoped the pain would pass, and that they would get their captain back before the end of the series. Coach Mike Hesson has now said McCullum’s condition is more serious than initially thought. As such, he is unlikely to play in the deciding ODI. Kane Williamson is set to take the reins again.Though Tim Southee and Doug Bracewell are both out of contention, but through Matt Henry, Adam Milne, Trent Boult and Mitchell McClenaghan, the hosts still possess a pace battery capable of exposing Sri Lanka. They may be hampered slightly by a Bay Oval surface that is known to be a little sluggish though, and the less-heralded spin-bowlers – Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi – may have roles to play.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)

 New Zealand: LWWLW
Sri Lanka: WLLWW

In the spotlight

Tom Latham may not have played any matches in the series if the top order had all been fit, but injuries to Williamson, then McCullum have enabled his inclusion – probably for all five matches. He was steady in the Test series, but has so far been only middling in the ODIs – with a high-score of 42 in the third game, in Nelson. A good score in the final game will help signal to the selectors that he is indeed the man to replace McCullum at the top of the order, once McCullum retires at the end of the home season.Once Sri Lanka’s frustrating, unfulfilled talent, Chamara Kapugedera has had something of a rebirth in the past year, in which he played two excellent middle-order innings in Colombo T20 internationals. In Christchurch, he played two typically aggravating innings, in which he hit promising lovely early boundaries, but fell before he had made a significant contribution. He didn’t have the chance to bat in either of the Nelson games, but he will know that the back-end of this tour is crucial for him. Strong performances here will likely see him through to Sri Lanka’s World T20 squad.

Teams news

New Zealand’s major selection conundrum will be which seamers to play. Bracewell has left the squad and Boult has been brought in. McClenaghan may be the man to miss out.New Zealand (probable): 1 Tom Latham, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Kane Williamson (capt.), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Henry Nicholls, 6 Mitchell Santner, 7 Luke Ronchi (wk), 8 Trent Boult, 9 Adam Milne, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Ish SodhiWith Thisara Perera having delivered two decent overs in the rained-out match in Nelson, Sri Lanka may consider playing him in Mount Maunganui as well – though Nuwan Pradeep is the more aggressive bowling option. The top order is likely to stay in tact. Jeffrey Vandersay failed to contend with a slippery ball in the fourth game, but will probably retain his place.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Danushka Gunathilaka , 3 Lahiru Thirimanne, 4 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 5 Angelo Mathews (capt.), 6 Milinda Siriwardana, 7 Chamara Kapugedara, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Jeffrey Vandersay, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Nuwan Pradeep/Thisara Perera

Pitch and conditions

The strip at Mount Maunganui has generally played slow and low, and has not been conducive to high scores in the past. The weather forecast suggests a full, uninterrupted match will be played. It is expected to be cloudy but dry, with the temperature rising to 21 degrees.

Stats and trivia

• New Zealand have played two ODIs at Bay Oval, against South Africa, and lost both. The highest total in these matches was 282 – the other three scores were all below 250.
• Chamara Kapugedara – a specialist batsman – has played 78 ODI innings, and averages 21.70. Before this series he had last played an ODI for Sri Lanka in August 2012.

Quotes

“Brendon’s really struggling with his injury. He hasn’t progressed as well as we would have thought, so he’s probably unlikely to play tomorrow. Long-term he will get some further assessment. He’s not playing the T20s, so he’ll get a decent break before Pakistan arrive, and certainly before Australia arrive.”

Darren Pattinson could make his first-class debut against South Australia at Melbourne on Friday. Pattinson, the Victoria fast bowler, has been called into the 12-man squad after Gerard Denton suffered a recurrence of the severe shin soreness that kept him on the sidelines before Christmas.Pattinson, 28, was plucked from obscurity for the limited-overs team earlier this season when the majority of Victoria’s contracted fast bowlers were injured. He played five games and proved a steady and economical performer.Brad Hodge has also returned to the line-up and will captain Victoria after his brief and unsuccessful foray into the Australia one-day team. Rob Quiney was omitted from the 12 to make way for Hodge.South Australia, who prop up the Pura Cup table in last place, will need a turnaround in form to challenge the second-placed Victoria. The Bushrangers are coming off a confidence-boosting come-from-behind victory against New South Wales last week when they chased down 360 in the fourth innings of a low-scoring game.Victoria squad Nick Jewell, Lloyd Mash, Michael Klinger, Brad Hodge (capt), David Hussey, Jon Moss, Andrew McDonald, Adam Crosthwaite (wk), Shane Harwood, Michael Lewis, Darren Pattinson.South Australia squad Tom Plant, Jason Borgas, Matthew Elliott (capt), Daniel Harris, Mark Cosgrove, Ben Cameron, Shane Deitz (wk), Ryan Harris, Jason Gillespie, Dan Cullen, Shaun Tait, Cullen Bailey.

In what appears to be a climbdown of sorts, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is considering introducing a central contracts system once again linked to the seniority of players.A senior board official told Cricinfo that a number of different models were being examined and would be presented at the next ad-hoc committee meeting on June 17. The options include giving weight to seniority and using a similar grade system to the one that was in use under the previous administration, where greater experience equalled greater reward.This seems to be a contradiction of the board’s earlier plans, outlined in the immediate aftermath of Pakistan’s World Cup exit, when chairman Nasim Ashraf said that all existing central contracts stood suspended and new ones would be performance-based only.Shafqat Naghmi, chief operating officer, told Cricinfo, “We are looking at various models and options and considering an ABC graded system. One model is where the player’s pay will be based on a 20% weightage to seniority, 40% to last year’s performances based on a ranking system, 20% to discipline and 20% to fitness. But as far as discipline and fitness go, it might be unfair to include it this year as a proper system has to be put in place first to measure discipline and fitness.”Naghmi confirmed that basic match fees for all players, regardless of experience, will remain the same (though an increase on previous years according to Ashraf) and only the actual monthly retainer is likely to vary. Other options include doing away with gradations of players based on seniority altogether but it appears unlikely that the model will be approved.A group of senior players met the board yesterday to discuss the options available, Naghmi revealing that they were keen for the old system to be put in place again. “Any new model can potentially be more lucrative for players. We are going to introduce for example, fielding-based incentives, where players will be rewarded for fielding achievements like run-outs.”Once a system has been approved by the ad-hoc committee, the contracts will be handed out to 20 players from July 1.