Test suffers consecutive washouts

England v West Indies play abandoned For the first time since 1964 - at Lord's against Australia - the first two days of an England home Test were washed out after the second day at Edgbaston went the same way as the first. Such had been the volume of rain in Birmingham that the umpires took the decision shortly after the scheduled lunch interval and no one was surprised.The forecast for the weekend...

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Another tough test awaits batsmen

Weren't the limited-overs formats, especially in the subcontinent, supposed to be a batsman's game? The two Twenty20s in Hambantota and the first ODI in Pallekele have all been about the bowlers though, with the batsmen being tested in seaming conditions reminiscent of cricket in the early English summer. The frequent rain interruptions during Thursday's one-dayer added to that impression.June is not cricket season in Sri...

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FICA begins legal action over BPL payments

Legal proceedings have been initiated by the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations (FICA) against the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the franchises involved in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) following a widespread failure to pay players.The first edition of the BPL ended in February but,despite repeated assurances and deadlines, FICA has been informed that many players have yet to receive full payment....

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Billy Doctrove retires from international cricket

Billy Doctrove, a member of the ICC's Elite panel of umpires, has announced his retirement from international cricket. Doctrove, who served as an international umpire for 14 years, will not be seeking a renewal of his contract after it expires at the end of this month.Doctrove was due to officiate in the ODI and Test series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan but had to withdraw and return home to Dominica due to a family bereavement....

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There's life after Pietersen - Gooch

Graham Gooch, England's batting coach, admitted that Kevin Pietersen's retirement from international limited-overs cricket has opened up a big hole at the top of the batting order, but insisted it is not so huge that it cannot be filled. Gooch, England's leading run-scorer in Test cricket, called Pietersen a "box-office player" but did not criticise the decision to step down from ODIs which has also led to the...

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Rain washes out first day

England's ambitions to inflict a 3-0 whitewash upon West Indies were frustrated by the weather as rain washed out the first day of the third Test at Edgbaston. It was the first time a full day's play in a Test in England had been lost because of bad weather since the third day of the 2009 Ashes clash against Australia, also at Edgbaston.Rain is forecast on Friday as well, raising the possibility that the opening two days...

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Seamers set up comfortable win for Pakistan

It turned out to be a good toss to lose for Pakistan, as their seamers, led by Umar Gul, set up a comfortable six-wicket win by keeping Sri Lanka to a paltry 135. The ball nipped around, skidded, turned and bounced alarmingly and tested the technique and patience of the batsmen, with the cloudy conditions giving the bowlers an overwhelming advantage. Three rain interruptions in the first innings did little to help Sri Lanka's...

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Kaneria cleared but Faysal Bank match probe continues

Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, has been cleared by the panel appointed to investigate allegations of foul play in the Faysal Bank Super Eight T20 match between Karachi Zebras and Peshawar Panthers in Rawalpindi. The panel will continue its probe into the game, but Kaneria has been given a clean chit. A two-member committee comprising Karachi City Cricket Association's secretary Ejaz Faruqi and senior cricket writer Qamar Ahmed...

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Sammy delight at Gayle's return

Darren Sammy did his best to conceal a big and wide smile but was not shy to admit how happy he would be to see Chris Gayle re-enter the West Indies dressing room soon. Gayle was part of the 15-man squad announced on Sunday by the Caribbean selectors for the three-match ODI series and the solitary Twenty20 to be played in England from June 16. Gayle's inclusion brought to an end the bitter dispute between him and...

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Davies called up as Prior cover

Steven Davies, the Surrey wicketkeeper, has been drafted into the England squad for the third Test against West Indies after Matt Prior picked up an eye infection. Davies, who was playing in the County Championship against Sussex at Horsham and will leave at the close of play, will be released on Thursday morning if Prior is passed fit. He has yet to play Test cricket but has been the reserve Test keeper of the last...

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Sri Lanka hope to reverse UAE loss

The drawn Twenty20 series in Hambantota, in which there was little to separate the teams, has set up the five-ODI contest nicely. The pattern of both T20s was the same: the batsmen made just enough runs and the bowlers used the swing and seam available in the evenings to defend modest targets. Sri Lanka will hope to improve the recent head-to-head record, having lost five of their last six ODIs to Pakistan. Four of...

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South Africa's home summer schedule with Pakistan and Newzealand

South Africa have replaced their traditional Boxing Day Test with a Twenty20 international for the 2012-13 home season, during which they will host New Zealand and Pakistan. The home summer will begin the week before Christmas, after South Africa's return from a Test series in Australia. New Zealand will play three Twenty20s, two Tests and three ODIs through January, after which Pakistan will tour for a full series in February...

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Waqar interviewed to replace McDermott

Waqar Younis, the former captain and coach of Pakistan, has been interviewed for the position of Australian bowling coach, as Cricket Australia intensifies its search for the man to replace Craig McDermott.Based in Sydney after he concluded a two-year stint as coach of Pakistan in 2011, Waqar is understood to have spoken to CA's team performance manager Pat Howard about taking on a role that was unexpectedly vacated...

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PCB chief meets politicians to discuss India series

Following PCB chief Zaka Ashraf's trip to India last week which led to increased optimism about resumption of cricketing ties between the two countries, he met with senior politicians in Pakistan to discuss the issue."They all supported our positive intention to build up a relationship and revive the cricketing ties with each other," Ashraf told a press conference in Islamabad. "What I feel is that we will be able to play each other this year in...

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Gayle finally recalled for West Indies

Chris Gayle's 15-month international exile is over after he was formally recalled to the West Indies ODI squad for the forthcoming series against England, starting in Southampton on June 16.In keeping with the fractious and drawn out nature of the dispute that kept Gayle out of the team, his recall was confirmed after a meeting of more political than selection nature in St Vincent. Gayle and his agent Michael Hall spoke...

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Bangladesh to play T20s in Netherlands

Bangladesh will get more matches to fine-tune their World Twenty20 preparations after it was announced that they will play two Twenty20s in Netherlands next month. One match will be against the home side, and the other against Scotland during a five-day stay in Netherlands following their tour of Ireland. The matches will be played at Voorburg Cricket Club near The Hague, on 24 and 25 July.There has been no international...

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Tanvir retained for Sri Lanka ODIs

Pakistan fast bowler Sohail Tanvir has been retained for the ODIs in Sri Lanka and will replace the injured opening batsman Nasir Jamshed in the squad. Tanvir impressed in the two Twenty20s in Hambantota, bowling economically and taking four wickets. He also picked up the Man-of-the-Series award.On the request of team management, chief selector Iqbal Qasim in consultation with the National Selection Committee...

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Narine absent but set for Test bow

Sometimes a person's absence is more notable than their attendance. So, just as Kate Middleton might have provoked even more column inches had she not shown up to her wedding, so Sunil Narine's absence from the first day of the tour match at Grace Road was arguably more surprising than anything he might have achieved on the pitch.Narine, the 24-year-old spinner, was called up on Wednesday to replace the injured Kemar...

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