Lunch
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details

The tsunami-postponed Test series started with a battling first session after New Zealand, relieved to have waved goodbye to Ricky Ponting’s formidable Australian team, made a watchful start with the bat after winning the toss. Sri Lanka’s bowlers, still missing their injured talisman Muttiah Muralitharan, probed away accurately and both teams left the field for lunch satisfied as New Zealand reached 61 for 1.The only casualty of the morning was Craig Cumming (12) as Chaminda Vaas, swinging the ball a smidgen and cleverly working the angles, zeroed in on a perceived susceptibility to being trapped lbw after a difficult series against Australia. Eventually, Vaas, having changed ends to bowl into a fresh breeze, landed a perfectly pitched full-length inswinger that would have curved into middle-and-off stump (35 for 1).Sri Lanka could have earlier claimed the wicket of James Marshall, as Sanath Jayasuriyia, partially obstructed by a flailing dive from wicket-keeper Kumar Sangakkara, grassed a straightforward chance at first slip off an attempted forcing stroke in Nuwan Kulasekera’s first over of Test cricket. James Marshall capitalised on the reprieve, resisting Sri Lanka’s bowlers until lunch and finishing on 24 not out.All three of Sri Lanka’s seamers bowled well, maintaining a tight line and length and forcing the Marshall Brothers to graft hard for their runs. Vaas created question-marks with his inswing, Kulasekera bounced in with refreshing enthusiasm and nipped the ball in, and Lasith Malinga always threatened to take a wicket with his remarkable science-defying catapult action, generating bounce and pace and very nearly finding the shoulder of Hamish Marshall’s bat with a nasty lifter just before lunch.Before the start, New Zealand confirmed the call-up of allrounder Kyle Mills, who replaced Daniel Vettori who decided to rest a sore back. Vettori wasn’t New Zealand’s only injury problem either with Scott Styris (knee), Jacob Oram (back), Ian Butler (back), Darryl Tuffey (bicep) and Michael Papps (finger) all unavailable for the two-Test series. Sri Lanka also have injury problems with Murali and Nuwan Zoysa both recovering from surgery.Sri Lanka, who have fond memories of McLean Park in Napier having won their first-ever Test outside the subcontinent at the same venue back in 1995, were positive in their selection, resisting the safe option of selecting seven frontline batsman so they could play five bowlers, including two spinners. Shantha Kalavitigoda, Farveez Maharoof and Ruchira Perera were the players omitted from the touring party.New Zealand team:1 James Marshall, 2 Craig Cumming, 3 Stephen Fleming (capt), 4 Nathan Astle, 5 Hamish Marshall, 6 Lou Vincent, 7 Brendon McCullum, 8 Kyle Mills, 9 Paul Wiseman, 10 James Franklin, 11 Chris MartinSri Lanka team:1 Marvan Atapattu, 2 Sanath Jayasuriya, 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Thilan Samaraweera, 6 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 7 Upul Chandana, 8 Chaminda Vaas, 9 Rangana Herath, 10 Nuwan Kulasekera, 11 Lasith Malinga.

Sri Lanka’s national selectors might finally get financially rewarded for their efforts. The job has so far been an honorary one, but Tryphon Mirando, the secretary of the interim committee, said that they will meet shortly and discuss ways of compensating the selectors.”Over the years the selectors have spent their own money on travelling, and [using] their personal phones to be in touch with each other,” Mirando explained. “If we expect them to do a job properly they should be duly compensated.”The selection committee is presently headed by former Sri Lanka offspinner Lalith Kaluperuma, and comprises Don Anurasiri, Pramodya Wickremasinghe, KM Nelson and Shabbir Asgerally.

An Aussie and a Kiwi adding 163 in an international match at Belfast? It may not sound right but it happened today as Canada’s antipodeans, John Davison and Ian Billcliff, flayed Namibia’s bowlers at the Woodvale Cricket Club.Tucked underneath Black Mountain in West Belfast, Woodvale is no classical cricket ground, from its square shape, brick walls and short boundaries to the fact that it is invisible to passers by, being surrounded by housing. Twice I went round the block in search of the sound of leather on willow, questioning my ability to read a map and, indeed, my sanity. Perhaps the drive up the famous Shankill Road, with its sea of Union Flags, proved too much of a distraction.I stepped through the gate just in time to see both the first of Davison’s four sixes travel into a neighbouring property and the gentleman who was painting that house showed no interest in getting down from his ladder to retrieve the ball. Davison, Canada’s Australian captain, soon passed 50 but offered a chance on 58 which was grassed by his opposite number Deon Kotze.At the other end, Billcliff offered some much-needed support having joined Davison at 26 for 2. Just as Davison lives in Sydney, Billcliff conceded that preparing for the ICC Trophy back home in Auckland was a little weird. Dropping Billcliff at third man before he had scored turned out to be a 90-run blunder for Namibia. Add to that the 67 further runs Davison benefited by after life and you have an entirely different proposition to the eventual victory target of 285.The words “catches win matches, eh” uttered by Namibia’s 12th man Mattheaus Van Zyl could not have been more pertinent. Like many of his team-mates, Van Zyl lives and plays cricket in South Africa which goes some way to explaining how a country with just five senior clubs can make it to the World Cup as Namibia did in 2003. Of interest, too, is the fact that – unlike most of the rest of their competitors in this tournament -Namibia’s players are all born in Namibia.Everything is just a little more relaxed away from the highest level. The players sit as club players do, on the edge of the ground, not worrying where their gear is strewn; officials as high-ranking as the President of the Canadian Cricket Association sit on park benches, and the media (in this case limited to yours truly) eat lunch with highly-rated umpires (Billy Doctrove).Even the ground announcer wandered around soaking up the action, until he came across a name in the Canada team that required a moment to compose himself before attempting to pronounce. “I was hoping he didn’t have to bat,” announced the announcer as Pubudu Dassanayke went to the crease.Dassanayke did not prosper with the bat but was sharp behind the stumps – and he needed to be when he caught Danie Keulder for 83 down the legside off George Codrington’s offspin. Keulder had been in full flight despite losing his opening partner JB Burger – Namibia’s star batsman at the World Cup – for just 8. With Keulder gone too, Namibia started to lose direction and wickets.They did however have few problems hitting sixes. Kola Burger and Louis Burger enjoyed a mid-afternoon feast that ensured their team would go close and Canada would go through a number of new balls. One enormous Kola Burger strike was still tracking up when it sailed over a three-story house.There was no shortage of encouragement right to the end when Namibia needed 19 off the last two overs. Caribbean and Asian voices rung around the Canadians in the field while the locals cheered catches and boundaries alike. But when Namibia’s No.9 Stephan Swanepoel reduced the target to three with a four and two sixes, the locals’ chants changed to “easy, easy”.And although Namibia had just one wicket in hand with one over left, it probably should have been. The moment got the better of Swanepoel though and Codrington’s excellent catch inside boundary saw Canada indulge in a baseball-style victory pile-up and left Namibia’s nearly hero knelt-down, distraught on the pitch. All this, and it’s just the first round.

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.

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.

When Thilan Samaraweera was succoured into a cover drive off a floated legbreak from Danish Kaneria and caught at slip, a momentary lapse that ended along and determined resistance, it precipitated a sudden rush of anger, notwith Samaraweera for he had batted bravely, but with Asantha de Mel, SriLanka’s chief selector.De Mel’s decision to discard Tillakaratne Dilshan from the Test team, notbecause of an alarming slump in form but because he had become “frustrated”by the team management’s apparent reluctance to blood new players, turnedout to be of crucial significance.There can no doubt that Jehan Mubarak has talent. He also has displayed gutsin the past, most notably against South Africa at Centurion in 2002 when hewas thrown into the deep end and scored a gritty 48, but this was not thetime to throw him back into the fire. His time should have come naturally,against weaker opposition or after injury to one of the top six.His case for immediate inclusion was hardly overwhelming: a first-classaverage of 29.04 and one century in 92 visits to the crease. Statistics canbe misleading – Kumar Sangakkara’s first ever first class century was in aTest match – but there was simply no need, or indeed point, in thrustingMubarak into the limelight at the expense of Dilshan, a player who hadseemingly just cemented his place.Mubarak was put under intense pressure. Deep down he would have known in hisheart that his team-mates, although they may have tried to make him feelwelcome, were surprised and shocked by Dilshan’s omission. Mubarak foughtbravely in the first Test, scoring 34 important runs, but thereafter it wasall downhill with scores of 0, 13 and 2. It would be a true tragedy if hewas to become the second innocent victim of de Mel’s “frustration”.When Samaraweera snicked to slip it was a pivotal time in the Test match.Sangakkara, with help from Mahela Jayawardene and Samaraweera, had resistedfor two and a half sessions. The score was 333 for 4 and Sri Lanka hadfinally established a slim lead. It was the perfect time for Dilshan toenter the arena. Since returning to international cricket he has played hisnatural aggressive game, with some notable success against England andAustralia.An injection of energy into the innings would have eased the pressure onSangakkara’s tired shoulders and carried Sri Lanka away from Pakistan.Instead, though, the innings stagnated and then nosedived with three morewickets tumbling in the final hour. Pakistan were left jubilant at theclose, aware that only a miracle could prevent them from levelling theseries. The duly did so.Sri Lanka though can be proud of their performance. They were put into baton a tricky damp pitch and forced onto the backfoot from the start. But theybattled hard, session after session, refusing to be broken as the Pakistanlead ticked up. Certain doom appeared inevitable but the likes of ChamindaVaas, Jayasuriya and Sangakkara were heroic in their refusal to surrender.If you measure results in with results it mattered little, Sri Lanka werethe losers and a series was shared, but this was a performance to celebrate.Once again, it showed how well Atapattu has bonded together and inspired histeam. They are once again a tight unit, committed to fight for each otherand for Sri Lanka until the very end. This spirit is so precious.Unfortunately, their task was undermined by a selector. De Mel may well beupset with the attitude of John Dyson, who has taken a stronger stance onselection than Dav Whatmore, and Atapattu, both of whom are focused onwinning, but he must understand that they are accountable for results. Theirjob is to win series and to carry Sri Lanka to the top. Their mission was tobeat Pakistan.De Mel may have had some sound reasons for his frustration, but there was noneed for a public attack two days before a tri-series final, and there wasno need for Dilshan to be sacrificed. De Mel made a misjudgement, a seriousseries-wasting clanger, but will he be held accountable? Only the SportsMinister can answer that. But he should go, and go soon before more damageis done.

Ric Charlesworth, who coached the Australia women’s hockey team to two Olympic gold medals, has accepted the role of high-performance manager with New Zealand Cricket. A former state batsman with Western Australia, Charlesworth will replace John Reid in October at NZC’s Lincoln University centre, where he will oversee elite player and coaching programs and sports science initiatives.Martin Snedden, the NZC chief executive, said Charlesworth was a world leader in the field of high-performance sport and had the right mix of skills. “Ric has outstanding experience as a top sportsman, coach and consultant,” Snedden said. “He has represented and captained Australia in hockey at the highest level, has been Australian coach of the year six times and has written four books on high-performance coaching.”Snedden said he was confident he had secured the services of a capable replacement for Reid. “He will drive NZC’s high-performance programs forward so that we continue to compete effectively in international cricket and move closer to our strategic aim of dominating at the top level,” he said.Charlesworth, a 52-year-old qualified doctor, has had a wide-ranging career that included a 10-year stint as a federal member of Australia’s parliament, 227 hockey games for his country and work with football and rugby teams in Europe. He played 47 games for Western Australia from 1972-79 and was captain in his final season.

Darren Gough believes England have the firepower to conquer the world, after their dramatic Ashes victory over Australia this summer. England embark on tours to Pakistan and India this winter, with selectors due to announce the touring squad on Monday.Gough, who played 58 Tests and 157 one-day internationals for England, believes England now have the capacity to win against any opposition in any conditions following this summer’s historic triumph.”I honestly believe England have got the attack for all conditions now,” he said. “The last time we played there [in Pakistan], it was all about mixing it up with slower balls and offcutters; but this England attack do that naturally anyway – I don’t think the conditions will faze them.”Earlier today, Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq stated ‘the conditions in Pakistan will not suit’ England’s attack, which Gough disagrees with. “It won’t be easy for them and it’s a difficult tour, but it won’t be beyond them,” Gough added. “In Pakistan you tend to get flat wickets and a lot will depend on team spirit away from the cricket, which won’t be a problem with this side.”England are poised to name a 16-man Test squad, but with the 12 players who featured in this summer’s Ashes series virtually picking themselves, the selectors’ main discussions will centre on the back-up players.Wicketkeeper Geraint Jones still has the support of coach Duncan Fletcher and captain Michael Vaughan despite an inconsistent summer behind the stumps; Nottinghamshire’s Chris Read, Essex’s James Foster and Matt Prior of Sussex are vying for the back-up spot.Worcestershire’s Gareth Batty and Northamptonshire’s Monty Panesar are possible inclusions as reserve spinners, while James Anderson and Chris Tremlett are fighting for inclusion as the back-up seamer. Robert Key, Ed Joyce and Owais Shah will battle it out for inclusion as a spare batsman alongside Paul Collingwood.The 15-man one-day squad also virtually picks itself having done well during the one-day series against the world champions, although England may choose to include some younger players to give them experience as part of the long-term build-up to the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.That could mean Gough being replaced, possibly by Gloucestershire’s Jon Lewis, which Gough concedes is a possibility:”I know they want me around, but the one thing they’re going to have to discuss is whether they need to have a look at someone else just in case I’m not around for the 2007 World Cup,” he said. “This winter would probably the ideal time to do it and that’s the decision they’ve got to make. Either way it’s fine with me as long as the communication is good and they tell me what they’re planning.”

Ricky Ponting will play his first game for Tasmania in two seasons when he starts the ING Cup match against Queensland at the Gabba on Saturday. The lack of appearances from Ponting, the Australia captain, has upset his state as he used breaks in the international calendar to rest instead of turn out for the Tigers.Ponting will be in charge of the side for their opening one-day game of the season and will have Michael Di Venuto as his deputy. Adam Polkinghorne will also play his first limited-overs match for his state after a two-year absence.Jimmy Maher, the Queensland captain, will become the state’s most capped one-day player when the Bulls field a full-strength line-up including the Test players Matthew Hayden and Shane Watson. Stuart Law is the current holder with 85 matches, but Maher, who is the limited-overs competition’s leading run-scorer with 3661, is on course to become the first Queenslander to play a century of first-class and domestic one-day games.”Stuey Law is one of the all-time greats for Queensland so to pass him in any regard is a great thrill,” Maher said. “The fact we are playing at the Gabba as well as it being one of the rare occasions when we’ve got everyone on deck is even more special. We didn’t get our season off to best of starts last week so our focus is pretty firmly on performing well as a group this time.”TasmaniaGeorge Bailey, Travis Birt, David Dawson (wk), Michael Dighton, Michael Di Venuto, Xavier Doherty, Adam Griffith, Ben Hilfernhaus, Scott Kremerskothen, Adam Polkinghorne, Ricky Ponting (capt), Damien Wright.

With the national team ranked seventh in the one-day table and 12 ODIs against Sri Lanka and South Africa at home on the near horizon, the Challenger Trophy, which gets underway at Mohali on October 10, provides an ideal dress rehearsal for the Indian side to rediscover their winning ways. As always the tournament will also offer a chance for lesser known players to make a name for themselves in a domestic tournament that probably commands the most national interest. This will be the first time that Powerplays and Supersubs will be used in India and there are even match cameras in place for referring lbw decisions to the third umpire, a system that needs the board’s final clearance before its implementation.Clash of the unequals
Unlike the previous three editions, when the three teams picked had a balanced look about them, this year will see an uneven battle, on paper at least. With two important series coming up, the selectors felt that the senior side needed to gel as a unit and settle upon the right winning formula. Also, a strong senior side means that lesser-known players in India A and India B will get a chance to test themselves against the best talent in the country, barring Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid, who are currently taking part in the Super Series, and Sourav Ganguly, who was ruled out owing to a tennis elbow.Players to watch out for
The tournament has already generated tremendous interest owing to the presence of Sachin Tendulkar and his every move, after a six month lay-off, will be eagerly scrutinised. Venugopal Rao and Suresh Raina, who are yet to score a half-century in ODIs, will get another opportunity to showcase their talent while Zaheer Khan and VVS Laxman, omitted from the tri-series in Zimbabwe, have a chance to show that they aren’t finished as one-day players.The Challengers has also been the tournament when names, familiar only through media reports, make their first appearance on television. After reading reams and reams about his composure and class, it was delightful to watch a young Rahul Dravid counter Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble in the 1995-96 edition of the tournament. Nobody who saw the ’94-’95 final will forget Sairaj Bahutule’s outrageous legbreak to bowl Vinod Kambli. Will we be talking about Piyush Chawla, the legspinner from UP, or Manoj Tiwari, the allrounder from Bengal, at the end of this series?Lights, cameras, action
The previous edition of the Challenger Trophy, at Mumbai in March this year, wasn’t televised and received a lukewarm response. Going by the events in the build-up to the tournament, this one promises to have a much bigger appeal. Tendulkar’s presence always adds zing to any event but worldwide coverage from Zee Sports and positive ticket sales have added an additional buzz to this event. The Punjab Cricket Association have prepared for his tournament like the way they would for an international game and media facilities and security have been spruced up.Pitch view
When the Challenger Trophy was held in Mohali in 1996-97, the team batting second won all four games with no team managing more than 250. But those were the days when this stadium held the reputation of being the bounciest track in the country and assisted the faster bowlers throughout. Ever since it has produced some high-scoring encounters and, despite the greenish tinge to the pitch on the eve of the game, promises to turn into a belter. That at least some of the batsmen take this opportunity by the scruff of the neck, though, remains to be seen.Teams:India Senior:Sachin Tendulkar, Satyajit Parab, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif (capt), Y Venugopal Rao, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Harbhajan Singh, Murali Kartik, Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar, Zaheer Khan, JP Yadav, Vidyut SivaramakrishnanIndia A:Gautam Gambhir, Dheeraj Jadhav, VVS Laxman (capt), Suresh Raina, Hemang Badani, Niraj Patel, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Ramesh Powar, Rudra Pratap Singh, Laxmipathy Balaji, VRV Singh, Shahbaz Nadeem, Manoj TiwariIndia B:Shikhar Dhawan, Robin Utthappa, Dinesh Mongia (capt), Sridharan Sriram, Sunny Singh, Parthiv Patel (wk), S Sree Santh, Ranadeb Bose, Amit Bhandari, Ravikant Shukla, Piyush Chawla, Sreekumar Nair