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Bangladesh have recalled Tushar Imran, the middle-order batsman, for the forthcoming one-day series in Kenya. Bangladesh, who recently lost a five-match one-day series to Zimbabwe, are scheduled to play three one-day internationals in Nairobi on August 12, 13 and 15.”Imran had been a stand-by for the African tour. We have called him as a replacement for injured captain Habibul Bashar,” Mahmudur Rahman, the Bangladesh Cricket Board chief executive, was quoted as saying in an AFP report. Imran, whose last one-day appearance was against Australia at home in April, has so far scored 545 runs in 35 matches with two half-centuries. Khaled Mashud, the wicketkeeper-batsman, has been retained as the captain.Bashar, who was ruled out of the series owing to a finger injury, couldn’t hide his disappointment after Bangladesh went down 3-2 at Harare. “You can’t imagine what a pathetic moment it was when the embassy officials at Nairobi informed me that Bangladesh lost the match badly,” he told . “I had a 24-hour stopover there and obviously it was the most painful experience for me. I feel sorry for the country’s cricket mad people but I must request them to keep faith in us because we have proved in the last few series that we are an improving side. There is no room for excuse for this debacle but I still believe that we are far better a team than the present Zimbabwe side.”

Sourav Ganguly, who underwent a second operation on his left thigh, has been ruled out of the first two one-day internationals of the tri-series later this month. Ganguly was operated upon to remove an abscess on his left thigh, in a 30-minute surgery under general anasthesia in a hospital in Kolkata.Speaking to the Press Trust of India, Ganguly said, “I’m now feeling better. The pain is much less.” The nursing home where he was put up issued an evening bulletin saying that Ganguly’s condition was stable and he was on a normal diet.Dr Mrinmoy Nandy, the supervising doctor, elaborated: “We went for the minor surgical procedure as he was in severe pain and in a great deal of discomfort. We’ll review his condition late tonight, after which a decision will be taken on his release. But the normal hospitalisation period in such cases is 48 hours.”Ganguly’s brother, Snehasish, said that Ganguly was expected to be discharged on Sunday morning. But when would he be back on the field? That question remained in the corridor of uncertainty.

Mumbai 476 (Mazumdar 51, Raju 6-139) beat Hyderabad 166 and 158 (Rayudu 53, Bahutule 6-53) by an innings and 152 runs
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Sairaj Bahutule weaved his web around the Hyderabad batsmen as Mumbai romped into the final with a massive victory at the Wankhede Stadium. Hyderabad capitulated for just 158, to follow up their first-innings debacle, and were whipped by an innings and 152 runs. Bahutule, who engineered the collapse, finished with 6 for 53 with his legspin.Mumbai began the day with an imposing 389 for 3 and Amol Mazumdar soon completed a confident half-century. The Hyderabad bowlers had suffered a severe mauling yesterday, with Vinayak Mane and Vinod Kambli smashing hundreds, and a total in excess of 500 was very much in sight. But they struck some vital blows this morning and restricted Mumbai to 476. Venkatapathy Raju, the left-arm spinner, picked up three important wickets and the offspinner Shivaji Yadav spun out the tail.The Hyderabad batsmen put up a sorry show in the second innings as well. Ambati Rayudu and Anirudh Singh put on 71, but that was the only consolation in a miserable batting effort. The last six managed only 15 between them as Nilesh Kulkarni, the left-arm spinner, and Bahutule got stuck in. Rayudu also played the lone hand in the first innings, but his elegant 95 was the solitary light in a dismal batting show.Railways 251 for 5 (JP Yadav 73*) trail Tamil Nadu 481 by 230 runs
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Tamil Nadu tightened their grip on their semi-final at Chennai as they prised out five Railways batsmen on the third day. Chasing a daunting 482 to gain the first-innings lead, Railways went about their task in a very patient manner. Sanjay Bangar survived 255 minutes for his 47 and got them off to a solid start. But Somsetty Suresh and Ramakrishnan Ramkumar, the left-arm spinner, picked up two wickets each and put Railways in trouble at 122 for 4. But they managed to wriggle out due to Jai Prakash Yadav’s unbeaten 73, which included eight fours and three sixes. But Yadav will need plenty of support from the tail, if Railways are to grab that lead.Orissa 318 and 110 for 3 (RR Parida 74) lead Madhya Pradesh 258 (Ojha 74, Patwardhan 71) by 170 runs
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At Cuttack, the pendulum swung back Orissa’s way as they sat cosily on a 170-run cushion by the end of the third day. Things had been completely different at the end of the second day, though, with Madhya Pradesh coming back well into the game. MP began the day at 132 for 2, still 186 runs behind, but they were reduced to 177 for 8 as lunch approached. Nikhil Patwardhan’s 71 was largely responsible for lifting them to 258. Earlier, Naman Ojha was run out after a well-made 74. The Orissa bowling was led by Deepak Mangaraj (3 for 61) and Sanjay Satpathy (4 for 75). Orissa finished on 110 for 3 at stumps with Rashmi Ranjan Parida anchored the innings with a 145-ball 74.Maharashtra 546 for 7 (Kanitkar 180, Jadhav 132, Satbhai 84) lead Haryana 236 by 310 runs
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Maharashtra, as they have done in most matches this season, piled on a mammoth total at the Nehru Stadium in Pune. Hrishikesh Kanitkar hammered 180 and Satyajit Satbhai, the wicketkeeper, contributed 84 as Maharashtra went about batting Haryana completely out of the match. Kanitkar stroked 19 fours in his 498-minute innings, before he was caught behind off Gaurav Vashisht, the offspinner. Satbhai remained unbeaten at the end of a day in which Haryana were given a thorough hiding.

CAPE TOWN, Feb 21: Prediction of the outcome of a one-dayer especially when there is not much difference between two teams is risky business. Taking this factor into account, no one here is sticking out his neck to foretell the result of Saturday’s crucial Group ‘A’ clash between Pakistan and England at the Newlands.The match is equally important for the survival of both Pakistan and England if they harbour aspirations to make it to the Super Six stage.It is more vital for England who can not afford to lose any points, after having forfeited four against Zimbabwe by refusing to play in Harare citing security fear in the politically unstable co-hosts. And above all, their next two matches are against all-conquering Australia, already assured of a place in Super Six with the added satisfaction of taking points into the next stage, and India who revived their challenge for the next stage with a comprehensive victory over Zimbabwe in midweek.A loss for Pakistan will be a disaster but not catastrophic as they could still squeeze into the next round by winning all the remaining three matches. However, their position could become precarious if the weather plays tricks in their remaining matches.Yet instant version of the game is not all that teams likely to win should succeed as things could go wrong as the unfancied New Zealand and West Indies proved against the hosts and second favourites South Africa that had left Shaun Pollock and his colleagues at the mercy of their opponents and the real possibility of an early ouster from the tournament.The Pakistanis for the past two days have been taking nets very seriously and every player seems to mean business and Waqar Younis’s boys were determined not to repeat the mistakes made again Australia.There are no injury problems and the Asian giants are in a happy position to field their strongest lineup unlike England, who are troubled by niggling injuries to skipper Nasser Hussain – who missed the Namibia match – Ashley Giles and Ian Blackwell.But England coach Duncan Fletcher, hopes that the trio were getting better and expected to be considered for the vital encounter.”We have had few injury problems but I am confident the players will be fit” he told a press briefing on Friday.Well aware of the potential of Pakistan team the Zimbabwean-born coach admitted that they were a side to fear and capable of beating the best when on song. “Pakistan are a real threat to any team. They have class players but we are not overawed by the occasion” he added.Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis appeared more confident that the boys had learned from the past mistakes and were keen not to repeat them against England as a slip could prove fatal.”We did not do well against Australia especially in the middle overs and threw the early advantage. We have to bowl better besides the batting has not clicked. I am hoping our premier batsmen Inzamam-ul-Haq and Yousuf Youhana to strike form tomorrow which will definitely put them on right track in the competition,” Waqar hoped.Waqar said England were always a competitive side as they have some good all-rounders and warned that opener Marcus Trescothick was a dangerous batsman who could turn a match on its head.Teams (from):ENGLAND: Nasser Hussain (captain), James Anderson, Ian Blackwell, Andrew Caddick, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Stephen Harmison, Matthew Hoggard, Ronnie Irani, Nick Knight, Alec Stewart, Marcus Trescothick, Michael Vaughan, Craig WhitePAKISTAN: Waqar Younis (captain), Saeed Anwar, Taufiq Umar, Saleem Elahi, Younis Khan, Yousuf Youhana, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Azhar Mahmood, Wasim Akram, Rashid Latif, Mohammad Sami, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq.Umpires: Rudi Koertzen and Brian Jerling (both South Africa).TV umpire: Steve Bucknor (West Indies).Match referee: Mike Procter (South Africa).

Resuming at 218 for 4, Somerset 2nds lost their six remaining wickets for the addition of just 82 more runs on the third day of their game against Gloucestershire 2nds. For Gloucestershire Tim Hancock took 3 for 59 while Jon White ended with 3 for 66.Following on 303 runs behind, Somerset had reached 214 for 4 by close of play, with Michael Coles not out on 37. Earlier Chris Hunkin had made 77, Wes Durston 41 and Keith Parsons 31.Somerset require 89 to make the visitors bat again, and if they are to save the game will be looking for Coles, who has enjoyed a great start to the season with the bat, to go on and make a big score.

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Karu Jain and Jhulan Goswami, India’s stand-in captain, stitched together a 53-run fifth-wicket stand to help their side overcome Bangladesh in Dambulla and record a fourth-successive win in the Women’s Asia Cup.Chasing 161, India collapsed to 58 for 3, with Anagha Deshpande, Asha Rawat and Thirush Kamini falling on 18. Deshpande was bowled by Panna Ghosh while the other two were run-out. Priyanka Roy and Rumeli Dhar briefly steadied the innings by adding 30, before Roy became the third run-out victim. Dhar, however, could not build on her 39-ball 31 when she was caught by Ghosh off Shathira Jhatir. Jain and Goswami then stood firm to take India to safety, with Jain being the main aggressor, striking five boundaries.Earlier, Salma Khatun, the 17-year old Bangladesh captain, played a lone hand of 90 before her team folded for 160. Khatun’s knock, which took 140 balls and featured 20 fours, took her to third-spot in the run-getter’s list. Her decision to bat first, though, went awry as Bangladesh collapsed to 14 for 3, with legspinner Kamini claiming two of those wickets. Khatun then partnered Ghosh in a 64-run stand to get their innings back on track, but a Roy double-strike hampered their progress. Khatun kept up the fight and made the most of the little support she got before falling in the 48th over.
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A fine all-round performance by Eshani Kaushalya, who top-scored with 44 before taking 3 for 25, took Sri Lanka to a 45-run win over Pakistan in Karunegala.Pakistan lost their openers early chasing 195, but captain Urooj Mumtaz, who scored a 106-ball 57, added runs with Sajjida Shah (27) to keep them in the hunt. They fell in quick succession – Shah was run-out while Mumtaz was dismissed by Kaushalya – and Pakistan then lost their last six wickets for 40, with Chamari Polgampola taking career-best figures of 4 for 26.Sri Lanka fell to 57 for 3 after being put in to bat, before captain Shashikala Siriwardene scored an attacking 34, which included seven fours, to keep them afloat. But Pakistan’s bowlers maintained a tight lease on the game, forcing Sri Lanka to 118 for 6. Kaushalya then changed the course of the innings with 44, and when she was eventually run-out in the 42nd over, Sri Lanka had progressed to 161. Mumtaz was the best bowler on view from Pakistan, taking four wickets with her legspin.

Mitchell Johnson will use a trip to India’s pace foundation to prepare for Australia’s seven-match one-day series in the country starting in September. Dennis Lillee, a part-time coach at the facility in Chennai, and Troy Cooley, the Australian bowling mentor, will monitor Johnson’s progress as he plans a return to the starting XI after not being called on during the World Cup or Ashes.A bowling vacancy has been created by Glenn McGrath’s retirement, but with Brett Lee recovering from an ankle problem Johnson must move ahead of Shaun Tait, Stuart Clark or Nathan Bracken to play. “Learning to bowl in those conditions is pretty timely with the matches coming up in India, which hopefully I will be involved in,” Johnson, who left on Tuesday, told AAP.”I did a lot of bowling at the World Cup in the nets and I am keen to develop the knowledge that I got there a bit further. It’s obviously great to be working with ‘DK’ again and to have Troy there as well. The knowledge that will be at my fingertips will be exceptional.”Johnson will spend a week in Chennai and will be joined by the Queensland bowler Grant Sullivan and local fast men. “I have only just started gym work,” he said. “I’ve had a fair break so this will be the first time I will be really getting into bowling again since the World Cup.”

ScorecardPakistan A drew their Top End Series match against Australia A after a sporting declaration by the hosts set up an interesting climax. Set to chase 245 at just over a run a ball, Pakistan responded to the challenge strongly till Australia applied the brakes in the final session. The captains called off the match ten overs before the scheduled close of play.Earlier, Shane Watson continued with his good form with the bat, with his half-century taking his side to a position from which they could force a result. Resuming on 2 for 57, Australia added only seven runs to their overnight score before Travis Burt fell to left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman. Mohammad Khalil’s double strike in one over then sent back Phil Jaques and Brad Haddin with the score on 86. Watson continued playing positively as he and Brad Hodge took the score to 165 when Haddin made a surprise declaration.Allotted 40 overs, Pakistan changed their strategy, sending in Rafatullah Mohmand to open with Shahid Yousuf instead of Mohammad Hafeez, the first-innings centurion. The openers added a quickfire 53 in six overs and the signs looked ominous for Australia. However, the bowlers pulled it back, with Mitchell Johnson dismissing Misbah-ul-Haq immediately after tea. Pakistan were still in the reckoning, sticking to the required rate as long as Mohmand was around. However, the run-rate slackened after he was bowled by Watson in the 15th over, after which a draw was the only possibility. In contrast to the first innings, Hafeez chose to play out time, scoring 6 off 48 balls, while Hasan Raza helped himself to an unbeaten half-century. The match was called off with Pakistan requiring a massive 100 off the last ten overs.The action in the Top End Series moves to Cairns where Pakistan A play their next match, against New Zealand A from July 17 while Australia A take on India A in another four-day encounter, starting the next day.

ESPN-Star Sports (ESS) has put forth a fresh proposal to the Board of Control for Cricket in India, saying that if they were awarded the right to broadcast the four-Test India-Australia series, they would pass on all profits (after costs) from advertising, and payments from Doordarshan, to the BCCI. However, this is unlikely to have any impact till the Supreme Court gives its ruling on the whole matter on September 28. There is an urgent need to resolve the impasse before Australia’s tour of India, which begins with a tour match against Mumbai, the Ranji Trophy champions, on September 30.The Supreme Court is expected to rule tomorrow and determine whether Zee’s original bid for the rights was valid. If the court rules in favour of Zee, ESS could go to court once more, contending that Zee are not eligible in the first place. If the court rules against Zee, then the question of who will produce or broadcast the series comes into play.In a letter to Jagmohan Dalmiya, the BCCI president, ESS offered their solution. The BCCI received the letter early on Monday, September 27. The letter, sent by Rik Dovey, the managing director of ESS, reiterated the ESS claim that Zee Networks was ineligible to be one of the contestants for the telecast rights. “As you know, it was our contention before the Bombay High Court that Zee was hopelessly ineligible in terms of your tender, in that, as admitted by Zee’s counsel, Zee had not done a single day’s production of a clean feed for an international cricketing event,” says the letter. “Equally, it was our contention that not only had it not produced a cricketing event, it had not telecast a single cricket event either live or delayed.”The letter goes on to explain the rationale behind taking the matter to court and then withdrawing the petition. “We were confident of success in our petition but since it was expressed on your behalf that the Australia tour might be jeopardised in view of the ongoing litigation and since your counsel made a statement that there was no concluded contract and that the tender would be cancelled, in the larger interest of cricket, we agreed to and did in fact withdraw our petition.”Then the letter explains, in three points, the fresh proposal ESS have tabled before the BCCI:”1.ESS will undertake the production and telecast of the India-Australia series on our networks. As you are aware, we have our own production unit and in-house production capability and leading commentators. (As you are aware Zee has neither in place).”2.We have an agreement in place with Prasar Bharati to carry the signal on Doordarshan. (As you are aware Zee has claimed only to have an “in principle” agreement, which has so far not been disclosed.)”3.We will give the BCCI all the net advertising revenues earned on our channel and our net share of the DD revenues net of costs.”The BCCI has so far not reacted to ESS’s latest offer. The marketing committee of the board is set to meet tomorrow, and sources indicate that the board could produce the pictures themselves, if the court’s ruling opens a door to such a possibility, through World Sports Group. If this happens the series will be telecast on Doordarshan in India and sold to interested parties worldwide.

England 319 and 99 for 3 (Butcher 46*) beat West Indies 208 and 209 by 7 wickets and lead the series 2-0
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It didn’t take long: inside half-an-hour England had knocked off the 28 runs they needed to secure victory, a 2-0 series lead, and retention of the Wisden Trophy. The last rites came with stunning speed, as Mark Butcher cracked consecutive fours off Adam Sanford, one through the covers, and the winning one straight down the ground.England will have had one eye on the skies when they woke up this morning, after the umpires controversially took the players off last night. But it dawned fine in Port-of-Spain, meaning it was only a matter of time.Nonetheless England, so assured in the gloaming last night, made a hesitant start in the bright sunshine. Nasser Hussain survived a close leg-before shout off Sanford’s first ball of the day, then nicked his second and was caught behind for 5 (71 for 3). It could have been worse. Before he’d scored, Graham Thorpe edged Sanford, but this time Ridley Jacobs tried to take the regulation chance one-handed, and floored it.Thorpe wasn’t in the mood to hang about, cracking three fours in Sanford’s next over, and Butcher was as busy as he had been last night. Brian Lara’s trial on the field was mercifully short. But the recriminations around the Caribbean aren’t over yet. Already Ricky Skerritt, West Indies’ manager, is throwing in the towel. Lara might not be far behind.Andy Ganteaume – famous for scoring a century in his only Test innings, in 1947-48 – gave the Man of the Match award to Stephen Harmison, for the vital first-innings spell that wrenched back the initiative England’s way after Chris Gayle and Devon Smith had kicked the match off with a century partnership.Steven Lynch is editor of Wisden Cricinfo.