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Everton Weekes, the legendary West Indian batsman, believes Brian Lara should be reinstated as Windies skipper despite his two lean spells in charge.”I would think that Brian Lara would be the one to captain the side at this stage with his experience and so on,” Weekes told the Trinidad Express. “Frank Worrell was captain of the side when he was 36, 37 or even older and he is still accepted in the view of many as the best West Indies captain we’ve ever had.”And Brian Lara can do that chore I believe. He’s an intelligent player, he’s an intelligent person, and if I were the selectors, I would offer him the job. You’ve got be a thinking player to perform like he does.”Lara, 36, was West Indies captain twice before but was replaced as skipper earlier this year by Shivnarine Chanderpaul who has so far won one Test match and lost seven in 11 games. Lara has also fallen foul of the West Indies authorities in 2005 after sitting out last July’s tour to Sri Lanka as well as the first Test in South Africa in March after a row over sponsorship.Lara, who is the top run-maker in Test history with an aggregate of 11,187 runs at an average of 54.04, has hinted that he wants to play in the 2007 World Cup before he calls it a day.

ScorecardFile photo – Mohammad Shahzad hit four fours and three sixes•AFP

Mohammad Shahzad struck 60 off 46 balls and the bowlers throttled the chase as Afghanistan beat Oman to take the T20 series 2-0 in Abu Dhabi.Having been inserted, Afghanistan had a strong start despite the early loss of Usman Ghani. Shahzad was circumspect early on before launching sixes off Ajay Lalcheta and Mohammad Nadeem. Shahzad then went onto reach his fifty off 38 balls with a lofted six over midwicket. Asghar Stanikzai and Karim Sadiq assisted Shahzad with useful contributions before Shafiqullah gave more impetus at the death with an 18-ball 32. Afghanistan plundered 51 off the last five overs to finish with 160.After picking up two wickets, Zeeshan Maqsood started the chase with a six and four fours but was dismissed in the third over for 24. Aaqib Sulheri’s scratchy innings came to an end three overs later. Khawar Ali and Jatinder Singh fought but struggled to keep up with the asking rate. Yamin Ahmadzai took three wickets while Rokhan Barakzai and Sayed Shirzad collected two wickets each as Oman eventually came up short by 12 runs.

Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, has opted out of the Test series against South Africa, indicating he did not want to play while fasting in the holy month of Ramadan.Salahuddin Ahmed, chief selector confirmed that Afridi had asked to be rested for the Test series and his request had been accepted. “Afridi asked the board to give him a rest because he wanted to fast during the remaining part of Ramadan,” Salahuddin said. “We have decided to accept his request and allowed him a rest. He will be in consideration for the one-day series.””I asked the Pakistan board to allow me to skip the two Tests against South Africa because it would be difficult to fast and play in Ramadan,” Afridi told .Afridi dismissed suggestions that he had withdrawn because of his poor show in the final of the ICC World Twenty20 against India. “We lost the final due to poor batting and I apologised to the fans for not doing my part in the final but that did not influence my decision of not playing Tests.”Afridi was named Player of the Tournament in South Africa with 91 runs at a strike rate of 197.82 and 12 wickets at an economy rate of 6.71.Pakistan’s squad for the first Test against South Africa is scheduled to be announced on Friday.

Marlon Samuels has been dropped from the 15-man squad for the four-Test series in England which starts next week. There are few surprises in the choices, although there is no back-up wicketkeeper or specialist spinner in the side. Ravi Rampaul returns while there is an overdue call-up for allrounder Darren Sammy.Gordon Greenidge, the former opener and current convenor of selectors, put his faith in the side when he explained the selection. “The task has not been easy, especially given the fact that the performance for the recently-completed World Cup wasn’t as great as we had all hoped,” he said during the announcement on local television. “We feel that this squad should perform credibly. We feel we have a good mix, and we’re hoping that this mix will start the ball rolling as far as the redevelopment or the re-defining of West Indies cricket for the future.”Greenidge also said he would address the squad prior to their departure regarding reports of indiscipline during the World Cup.Former West Indies selector Joey Carew expressed some surprise at the squad. “I can’t criticise the selections. The fact that [Marlon] Samuels and [Pedro] Collins are not there is noticeable,” he told . “I thought they would have chosen a spinner, Dave Mohammed, but they may think he is not up to Test standard.”Ramnaresh Sarwan, the newly appointed West Indies captain, insisted that the team needed support. ” I think it is important that the team gets the support which it needs to take West Indies cricket forward,” he said, while indicating that the team would struggle in the absence of Brian Lara.”I think it is an opportunity, obviously Brian was a tremendous player for us and a tremendous player for the world. I think that it is an opportunity for the younger players to actually show their skills and what they are made of. I am sure that they will be looking forward to it. It is very important for us to play as a team, as I have said before, and it cannot be a one-man show. I am sure that we will be able to pull together as a team and that the other players will be able to mature on the tour.”In regards to criticism of his game, Sarwan said the captaincy was an opportunity to step up. “Obviously, I have got out in different fashions – playing rash strokes – and maybe this is a blessing is disguise to give me more responsibility and this is something which I think that I need. So it is something which I am looking forward too and I am going to try and make the best of it.”The side leaves the Caribbean on May 8 and plays one three-day warm-up match against Somerset before the Lord’s Test on May 17. The squad for the three ODIs and two Twenty20 matches which follow the Tests will be named later.West Indies squad Ramnaresh Sarwan (capt), Dwayne Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Corey Collymore, Fidel Edwards, Daren Ganga, Chris Gayle, Sylvester Joseph, Runako Morton, Daren Powell, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Darren Sammy, Devon Smith, Jerome Taylor, Ravi Rampaul.

Saleem Mukuddem, the Bermuda allrounder, is one of three injured players to be missing from Bermuda’s training week in Trinidad.According to the Mukuddem, the lone highlight of an otherwise forgettable tour of Kenya last year, has suffered a lower-back injury and will stay in the country to undergo a CT scan. The other absentees are Stephen Outerbridge, the opening batsman and Stefan Kelly, Bermuda’s fast bowler, who have foot and thigh injuries respectively. All three players, however, are expected to be fit for the World Cricket League in Nairobi at the end of this month.The squad, now reduced to 14, are training in Trinidad to prepare for key battles later in the month. They return home on January 19 before heading straight back out to Kenya, where they play a warm-up match against Uganda on January 28.

Gwen Herath, the flag bearer of women’s cricket in Sri Lanka for nearly a decade, is no longer running the show but has silently quit following the merger of the Women’s Cricket Association of Sri Lanka (WCASL) with Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).The merger – an ICC requirement in which all women’s associations will merge with their country’s board – means that Herath will have no big role to play. She is reduced to being the head of a five-member women’s cricket committee of the SLC.”I decided to step down gracefully two weeks ago,” she said. “I will make arrangements to dissolve the women’s association for the full merger to take effect.”Herath admitted that she does not like working with interim bodies. “In other countries the women’s cricket associations have merged with elected bodies. With interim bodies you can’t fight injustice.”With an elected body you can take up matters which are irregular. But with interim bodies whom can you complain to? You have to complain to the Sports Minister who is responsible for appointing the interim body.”However she said she welcomed the merger because it means that, in the long run, female players stand to benefit greatly coming under SLC. She revealed that the women’s association were able to give the girls only US$ 100 for an entire tournament or tour in the past but, by merging with SLC, each member of the Asia Cup side will receive US$ 25 per day as pocket money and the officials US$ 40 per day. Even sponsorships will be the responsibility of SLC.During Herath’s tenure as president of WCASL she was able to raise Rs.2million (US$ 18,400) a year for five years through sponsorship from Singer, the sponsors of the national men’s cricket team when they won the World Cup in 1996.Herath was the life-blood of women’s cricket having inaugurated the women’s association in 1996 and seeing the country participate in three World Cup tournaments in 1997, 2000 and 2005.”Right throughout my presidency we were ranked sixth in the world out of 13 countries,” she said.One of Sri Lanka’s versatile cricket administrators, Herath was responsible for making Sri Lanka a member of the International Women’s Cricket Council in 1997 and for bringing Sri Lanka under the aegis of the ICC in 2005. She was also the first woman to hold the post of president of the male-dominated Puttalam District Cricket Association for 15 years.

Pakistan have lodged a formal written complaint against umpire Darrell Hair with the ICC and have asked for an inquiry into his conduct during the controversial Oval Test in August.”The letter outlines instances where we feel he violated the Code of Conduct,” said board spokesman Saleem Altaf. “We believe that an inquiry is necessary as it will have a bearing on the compensation claim.”The Pakistan board has rejected a claim for compensation totaling £800,000 lodged by its English counterparts. It maintains that the abandonment of the Oval Test resulted from the actions of the umpires and it should fall on the ICC, which employs all match officials, to cover such a claim.

Robert Key has been named as captain of a strong England A side for their four-day match against the Sri Lankans at Worcester, as the preparations for the first Test at Lord’s on May 11 step up another gear.The fixture represents a radical departure from the established pattern for touring sides’ warm-ups. In the past, visiting teams would often face second-string county attacks with key players rested, but the ECB has rightly taken the view that a chance for their reserve players to take on international opposition should not be squandered.”This is the first opportunity an England A side has had to take on a touring side in this country,” said England’s chairman of selectors, David Graveney, “and it allows players who are currently on the fringe of the international arena to press for places in our Test and one-day sides.”The team includes six players who were selected for England’s winter tours: Alastair Cook, Alex Loudon, Sajid Mahmood, Liam Plunkett and Owais Shah, together with Chris Tremlett, who had to withdraw from the Pakistan tour through injury. Key himself might have been called up in India had it not been for shoulder surgery, while Middlesex’s Ed Joyce was mentioned in several dispatches after a successful season in 2005. Surrey’s allrounder Rikki Clarke, meanwhile, played two Tests against Bangladesh in 2003-04.Perhaps the most intriguing selection, however, is that of Chris Read – England’s former wicketkeeper who has already scored two hundreds this season, one for Nottinghamshire v MCC in the season curtain-raiser at Lord’s, and another in the rain-ruined match against Yorkshire at Trent Bridge last week.Read, the best gloveman in the country, was axed from England’s Test side two years ago after Duncan Fletcher voiced concerns about his batting, but another good show here and he could yet find himself pushing for Geraint Jones’s Test place, which remains in jeopardy after another mixed winter.A pace attack of Plunkett, Mahmood and Tremlett represents a three-way shootout between the likely lads of the next generation, and Sri Lanka’s batsmen can expect a hostile reception when the match gets underway. For Tremlett, it will be an important chance to test his problematic knee, which held together successfully in the C&G victory over Ireland on Sunday.Alex Loudon, the forgotten man of England’s winter, gets another chance to push his credentials in a match situation, an especially timely opportunity given that England’s leading spinner, Ashley Giles, is unavailable at least until the arrival of Pakistan.Graveney confirmed that these contests are intended to become an integral part of the English season. “We also look forward to England A hosting Pakistan at Canterbury later in the summer,” he said. “[They] will become an important yardstick for the selectors in measuring how our best young players shape up against top quality opposition.”England A Robert Key (capt), Alastair Cook, Owais Shah, Ed Joyce, Ravi Bopara, Alex Loudon, Rikki Clarke, Chris Read, Liam Plunkett, Chris Tremlett, Sajid Mahmood, Coach: Peter Moores, ECB National Academy Director

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Last week, in a twist that few predicted, Sharad Ghai, the former chairman of the Kenyan Cricket Association who left office in 2005, started on the comeback trail. From almost nowhere he re-emerged as one of the three delegates representing the Nairobi Gymkhana club at the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association’s Special General Meeting held on Saturday July 7 to discuss, among other matters, the long-overdue overhaul of the NPCA’s constitution.The meeting followed an acrimonious Annual General Meeting of the NPCA held on June 20 at which it transpired that the NPCA executive had, in breach of its existing constitution, failed to convene any general meetings involving its member clubs for over two years. Both the NPCA acting chairman’s report and the treasurer’s report were rejected by the members. Following this meeting, 10 of the 14 member clubs of the NPCA who attended signed a petition of no confidence in the NPCA executive. The three delegates representing Nairobi Gymkhana subscribed to the petition.The Nairobi Gymkhana chairman, Bharat Shah, disapproved of his own club delegates’ stance and promptly replaced them, drafting himself, Ravindra Patel (the club secretary) and Ghai to represent the club in their place at the July 7 meeting.Cricinfo had heard that Ghai had been in contact with several clubs, but given what happened when he was involved in the old Kenyan Cricket Association, few believed the rumours were anything more than that.But it now emerges that he has received backing from two surprising sources.Firstly, the Gymkhana club, who were owed a large sum of money by the old KCA. In 2004 they had a dispute with the board and threatened to prevent any official matches being played at their ground. Only the personal intervention of Ghai staved off a showdown, but, even so, the club was left out of pocket when the KCA was wound up.The second ally is even more eyebrow-raising. Sukhbans Singh, the acting chairman of the NPCA, was one of leading figures in attempts to remove Ghai and the old KCA executive between 2002 and 2005. But it now seems that Singh, under fire from his own clubs, and Ghai have struck up a relationship. It is the most unlikely of alliances.That Ghai has regained a foothold in Kenyan cricket will surprise many. When he left office in 2005 Kenyan cricket was a shambles. The board was broke – Samir Inamdar, who replaced him as board chairman, estimated that he inherited debuts of US$500,000 – and virtually all the High-Performance money from the ICC was gone. The national side was in chaos – it had played only two ODIs in the previous two years and for six months the bulk of the national team had been on strike over non-payment of monies owed. There were no major sponsors willing to be associated with the game, and other international boards gave Kenya the cold shoulder. The KCA executive had fallen out with many stakeholders, and even the minister of sport had had enough and stepped in to dissolve it.In the intervening two years the finances have been put back on an even keel, sponsors are beginning to come back and the board has done a six-year TV and marketing deal. On the field, the side has played 28 ODIs and in February they won the World Cricket League which means they will take part in the Twenty20 World Championship in September. Internally, there has been a period of relative peace and development. There is still a long way to go but things are heading the right way.At this stage, Ghai is only one of three representatives for one of 17 registered Nairobi clubs. But there will be many who remember Kenya cricket’s recent past who will be watching events with interest. Some of them are already expressing the view that the Gymkhana post may the springboard for a tilt at something bigger, perhaps even a challenge to Inamdar in 2008.As things stand, Coast and Rift Valley provinces, who would both strongly oppose Ghai, muster enough votes to be able to prevent him succeeding. But there is talk that Centrals, who were booted out by Cricket Kenya last month after it became apparent that, to all intents and purposes they did not exist as a viable province, may be set to mount a challenge to that decision. Centrals was the creation of the old KCA.It all might be a storm in a teacup. A Ghai comeback would be one of sport’s most remarkable stories but stranger things have happened. It could be an interesting few months.

Five months have now passed since a BCCI-appointed committee announced, after two-and-a-half hours of deliberation, that Greg Chappell was India’s new coach. The announcement ended the most farcical of recruitment processes and heralded the beginning of Sri Lanka’s World Cup planning. Sri Lanka, forced to take second picks after their wealthier neighbour, were able to secure their first-choice selection: Tom Moody. Everyone was happy.Since then, though, the two Australian coaches have faced starkly contrasting fortunes. Moody settled in swiftly, immediately winning the respect and confidence of the captain and players. As coaching honeymoons go, it could hardly have been more blissful: 13 wins in 14 matches and hardly a murmur of discontent (apart from the normal grumbling about the hiring of foreign coaches from certain jingoistic sections of the media). Sri Lanka are settled, happy and riding a wave of confidence.Chappell, meanwhile, was plunged into controversy. During his first tour, the Indian Oil Cup, the first murmurs of dissatisfaction leaked out as some players privately indicated unease with his love of theory. Then a damaging rift opened up with Sourav Ganguly during the Zimbabwe tour that followed. The Ganguly Issue, a spat played out in the full glare of the Indian and world media, openly divided the team and uncertainly now lingers over both Ganguly’s and Chappell’s futures. Ganguly’s timely tennis elbow created a convenient opportunity for the selectors to appoint Rahul Dravid as captain, easing the tension, but the road ahead still looks rocky.Chappell’s troublesome start has highlighted just how fortunate Moody was to inherit a united team with a strong leader. Marvan Atapattu’s selection as the captain of a fantasy World ODI XI was just recognition for a man who has drawn the team closer together and laid solid foundations for the future. Moody took over a team that was already sailing in the right direction. While there remain serious problems in Sri Lankan cricket – a bloated first-class structure, declining standards of school cricket, and a frequently short-sighted and unprofessional administration – the national team is in good health.Moody’s tenure has already brought visible improvements with some of the younger brigade – Dilhara Fernando, Farveez Maharoof and Upul Tharanga, in particular – progressing quickly. John Dyson, the previous coach, was strong on match preparation and opposition analysis but lacked the hands-on approach in the nets that Sri Lanka’s players are used to. Moody, in contrast, who has the advantage a close connection and deep understanding of the modern game, has an imposing aura at the training ground, controlling proceedings tightly and ramping up the intensity with his own participation.

Unlike Chappell, Moody’s approach is not cluttered with complex theories and philosophies. His ability to simplify the game, clearly pinpointing areas where technical changes will bring the greatest results, has greatly impressed the players. His communication skills, with the players and the media, are excellent. He appears laidback and relaxed, but he’s also firm, prepared to speak his mind, and is very professional.To the credit of the cricket board – notwithstanding recent confusion surrounding the future of physiotherapist CJ Clarke, who was first led to believe he would be taking over fitness training, his professional strength, before the board changed their minds out-of-the-blue without prior consultation with Moody or Clarke – Moody has also been allowed to build a strong team management set-up that has great expertise.For the first time an assistant coach, Warwickshire’s Trevor Penney, has been employed. The appointment has created a stir because the board was expected to employ a Sri Lankan coach – Rumesh Ratanayake and Roy Dias were the frontrunners – to gain experience. But Penney’s farsighted willingness to take a pay-cut from a position within the ECB Academy to join an international team made him the ideal candidate for the job.In addition, a new physiotherapist, another Australian called Tommy Simsek who was recommended by Alex Kontouri, Sri Lanka’s physiotherapist for seven years, has been drafted in and a mental-skills expert was available from Moody’s first training camp with the team. Just over a decade ago Sri Lanka didn’t even have a full-time coach but they now have a first-rate backroom team.But despite a successful start, Moody is well aware that the real journey starts now. Recent series wins against second-rate West Indies and Bangladesh sides merely provided a gentle introduction to an exhausting and tough year ahead. Sri Lanka’s performance in the Indian Oil Cup was superb, but everyone knows that they are a very powerful force at home. Overseas success is the Shangri-La that Moody is looking for.Sri Lanka’s record in India is poor, although this is partly because there have been so few visits since 1996, when they graduated as a global cricketing power. They have not won a single Test in 11 matches spread over five tours, the last of which was a drawn series in 1997-98, and they have won only six of the 19 ODIs they have played on Indian soil – two of which were in the 1996 World Cup. So while India appear there for the taking, Sri Lanka are under no illusions as to how difficult a tour like this could be.However, this new Sri Lankan team do now have the talent and resources to improve their record in India. Not only are the internal dynamics healthy and the team management strong, but new players have strengthened the line-up, especially Maharoof, who adds valuable batting depth to the one-day team as a fast-bowling allrounder, and Tharanga, who has slotted in impressively at the top of the order.The continuing rise of Kumar Sangakkara, the rediscovered confidence of Mahela Jayawardene, the growing maturity of Tillakaratne Dilshan, the continued consistency of Chaminda Vaas and the return of a revitalised Muttiah Muralitharan, all provide further reasons for confidence. The only slight concern has been the inconsistent form of Atapattu and Sanath Jayasuriya in recent months, but their class is uncontested and it just a question of when they rediscover their best touch.Moody is wise enough to realise that honeymoons can’t last forever, but there is every chance it might last a little longer. Sri Lanka are in fine shape.