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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because it would be difficult to fast and play in Ramadan,” Afridi told .Afridi dismissed suggestions that he had withdrawn because of his poor show in the final of the ICC World Twenty20 against India.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.

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.

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.

For all England’s attempts to try to get the media to concentrate on the immediate task in hand – Sunday’s warm-up against Namibia – the media wouldn’t leave the Z word alone.In the end Michael Vaughan played ball, claiming to more than one raised eyebrow that Zimbabwe had not been discussed by any of the players since they had arrived in Windhoek. “There hasn’t been a mention of it at all, we’ve just been working hard on our fitness,” he said. “We’re not particularly looking forward to it, but it’s five opportunities to impress on the field. I want the guys to concentrate on the cricket, it’s crucial that they focus on winning matches.”If there are any political questions we have Richard Bevan, David Morgan and John Carr coming out to answer them … and if there are any other questions I will be answering them.”Vaughan will be relieved that queries regarding Zimbabwe should be put on the back burner for three days at least as England meet Namibia in two one-day warm-up matches. Their preparations haven’t been ideal. Storms have limited them to a few gentle outdoor sessions, and a request to the Namibians that they be allowed to field all 14 players in each match was firmly declined.”The weather has intervened, and we have done a lot of fitness, which we always intended to do on this part of the trip,” Vaughan explained. “We’d have liked to have had a bit more middle and net practice, so we’re going in slightly rusty, but we still expect a decent performance. We have a young, exciting team – and I expect them to perform to a decent standard even if they haven’t had much net practice.”England won’t be taking Namibia too lightly. On the only previous occasion the two sides met, during the 2003 World Cup, the match was far closer than expected and for a time there was a sniff of an upset in the air. England went on to win, but it was closer than expected.

The following are the occurrance when Hampshire have been involved for an against in a Victory after following on.VICTORY AFTER FOLLOWING ONHampshire (94 & 314) bt Somerset (221 & 176) by 11 runs at Taunton 1895Hampshire (15 & 521) bt Warwicks (223 & 158) by 155 runs at Birmingham 1922Hampshire (185 & 449) bt Glamorgan (437 & 104) by 95 runs at Rose Bowl 2003DEFEAT AFTER OPPONENTS FOLLOWING ONHampshire (208 & 140) lost to Surrey (110 & 297) by 59 runs at The Oval 1866
nb – A margin of 80 was the criteria at that periodHampshire (300-8d & 80) lost to Essex (149 & 310) by 79 runs at Bournemouth 1992Statistics – Vic Isaacs

New Zealand’s cricket selectors must have issued a collective prayer when hearing that CLEAR Black Cap Jacob Oram had been diagnosed with a broken bone in his foot.After almost providing permanent work for New Zealand’s health service with an amazing bout of injuries last summer, the last thing the selectors want is injuries before a ball has been bowled in the domestic cricket season.But that’s what they got when Oram was examined after his injury was realised during a training session at Palmerston North at the weekend.Oram wasn’t sure where the injury occurred but after returning from New Zealand A’s tour of India he found the injury in his left foot got progressively worse the more he practised.He faces four weeks keeping the pressure off his foot while on crutches and while he may be able to bat in six weeks, he won’t be able to bowl for another four weeks after that.That puts him on a tight schedule to get match hardened in readiness for his near certain selection for New Zealand’s VB Series team which travels to Australia in early January.Oram, the tallest man to play cricket for New Zealand at 1.98m, made his debut last summer in the Black Caps and quickly cemented his place with a string of good performances. A batsman who has quickly developed his bowling he is regarded as a developing force in the national side.He captained Central Districts during the last domestic summer and took them to a celebrated Shell Cup victory.

Amit Mishra will turn 33 this November. He has been a first-class cricketer since 2000, and made his international debut more than 12 years ago. Yet now is the most secure he can feel about his place in the side. This is the first time he is starting a home season with reasonable hope of playing a significant part in all three India squads. Before the Sri Lanka Tests in August this year, Mishra had played every match of a series only twice – against South Africa in 2010 and against England in 2008, both at home – but even then he did not feature in the limited-overs sides on those tours.The only other time he was picked in all the matches of a series – not counting those when first-choice players were rested – was the World Twenty20 last year, when Mishra repaid the faith by ending up as India’s second-best bowler, only to be left behind later in the year by Karn Sharma in the Tests and Axar Patel in the World Cup side. If he was hurt, he did a good job of not making it apparent. With the Sri Lanka tour and a dearth of spin, especially with Ravindra Jadeja not coming back the same bowler post a shoulder injury, Mishra has capitalised on the opportunity. He can now feel comfortable that he is a first pick in all squads. Except that he isn’t taking his place for granted.”Whether I will play depends on captain and team management,” Mishra said on the sidelines of India’s pre-season preparatory camp in Bangalore. “I still can’t say I will play all the matches, but yeah I can say that the way I have performed I should get some matches. I am positive in my mind, I am positive about my bowling, I am looking to improve.”Mishra knows better than to take his place in the side for granted. He has been in and out of the side most of his career. As he said in an interview with ESPNcricinfo earlier this year, Mishra has come back a more mature legspinner. He has shown better control of his legbreak, and through some variations has shown he can get better of his old problem: slow turn, which used to let batsmen recover even if he beat them in the air.Asked if he has ever bowled better, Mishra said: “I can only say I have improved. I have worked hard.”Asked about the slowness, he said: “Yes I needed to work on bowling the right pace for different pitches and different batsmen. I have worked hard on my fitness, on my strength. Now I feel I can bowl the pace I need.”How much confidence does being assured of a place give him? “Nobody should think along the lines of whether he is in the side or not,” Mishra said. “Just work on your bowling. I have just thought of ways to improve over the last four-five years. That chases out negative thoughts from your head.”No doubt you are disappointed when not part of the team, but whenever I have been left out of the team I have looked for ways to improve. Work on my fitness [apart from the bowling]. Work on my fielding. Work on my batting.”Mishra said he worked on his batting too to become more valuable to the side. He said he learnt the value of lower-order runs when he captained Haryana, when he always looked for extra runs from himself and fellow bowlers. In a team that is looking to play five bowlers, Mishra’s runs will be welcome.On Thursday Mishra, along with 29 of India’s best cricketers, will begin to work on his bowling, batting and fielding again after a short break. Thursday will be the fourth day of India’s pre-season camp, which got off to a slow start with the board president dying on the eve of the camp.The first three days have been all about medical appraisals and fitness work. Players have mostly stayed indoors. They began with a visit to Hosmat Hospital for a medical check-up followed by training in the gym of National Cricket Academy at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. MS Dhoni and Ambati Rayudu had a net session on Wednesday, but it was optional activity.

Punjab, led by the returning Harbhajan Singh, were shot out 147 as Bengal‘s Pradipta Pramanik and B Amit shared six wickets between them on the opening day in Amritsar. Eighteen-year-old Shubman Gill, in his comeback match after an injury layoff, provided the lone resistance, top scoring with 63.Opting to bat, Punjab lost Jiwanjot Singh in the 10th over to Pramanik’s left-arm spin to trigger a collapse that resulted in them being shot out in just 46 overs. Gill apart, no other batsman topped 15. In reply, Bengal were off to a strong start, finishing on 70 for no loss at stumps, with Abhishek Raman (42*) and Abhimanyu Easwaran (33*) at the crease.Keenan Vaz led the middle-order resistance for Goa as they folded for 239 against Vidarbha in Porvorim. The hosts crashed to 92 for 6 having elected to bat first, as Vidarbha spinners Akshay Wakhare and Aditya Sarwate picked seven wickets between them. Vaz’s 72 took them to 216 for 8, before the last two batsmen folded.Diwesh Pathania (4 for 45) and Vikas Yadav (3 for 10) dismantled Chattisgarh as they were bowled out for 130 against Services on the opening day in Raipur. Wicketkeeper-batsman Manoj Singh’s 53 of 117, laced with seven boundaries, provided the sole resistance for the hosts, as four of their batsmen walked back for a duck. Services seamer Pathania scalped his fifth three-for this Ranji Trophy season. In reply, openers Navneet Singh (17*) and Ravi Chauhan (21*) took Services to 39 for no loss at stumps.

A 1-1 scoreline between England and Sri Lanka is an unexpected turn of events after the home side cruised to victory in the opening match. But England managed to exploit bowling second, which is clearly becoming a crucial factor, and draw level by 65 runs. With the monsoon rains arriving in Colombo, where the final two matches will be played, the third encounter of the series is shaping as a possible decider.But while it was England’s quick bowlers who put them on course for a win on Thursday, spin also played a role with Graeme Swann taking 2 for 27 to follow his important contribution of 34. And Swann’s impressive form means Monty Panesar, who began the tour as England’s No. 1 spinner in ODIs, is going to face more time on the sidelines unless the series throws up a pitch expected to be a raging turner.Captain Paul Collingwood has been full of praise for Swann, who is back in the international arena more than seven years after making his debut against South Africa in January 2000. But success for Swann means a frustrating time for Panesar, who hasn’t been able to force is way into the starting XI despite playing six of the seven matches against India when England won the series 4-3.”We all know what Monty can do but Graeme Swann is performing well and that’s what we’ve asked him to do and that’s what he’s been selected for – his contribution in all three dimensions of cricket is crucial to the team,” said Collingwood. “He’s been very good. He changes his pace very well and just his overall contribution has been pretty special.”To come in at number eight and perform with the bat as well is a big contribution, especially on wickets like this. His fielding is pretty good and to bowl his 10 overs for not many runs and take crucial wickets is a really good all-round performance.”It is Swann’s three-dimensional role in the side which is proving attractive to Collingwood and Peter Moores. Without the services of Andrew Flintoff, it is allowing them to play three frontline fast bowlers – James Anderson, Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad – while also adding extra depth to the batting. His offspin has also provided a wicket-taking option for Collingwood and he produced a perfect delivery to remove Tillakaratne Dilshan, who was bowled through the gate trying to drive.Sri Lanka are considering strengthening their spin attack with the inclusion of legspinner Kaushal Lokuarachchi after England milked the part-time offerings of Dilshan and Sanath Jaysuriya in the second match to begin their recovery. In an attempt to adjust to conditions under lights, should they be asked to chase again, Sri Lanka switched their practice session to the evening and coach Trevor Bayliss said he was surprised that all five matches were day/night fixtures.”We’ve still got to be confident playing at home, but the one thing I’ve found a little bit strange coming from Australia to here was that we’re actually playing five matches at night,” said Bayliss. “I can see the point of having one or two at night, but I thought that if there is a home-ground advantage, we’ve probably lost that by playing at night.”He said life would have been tougher for England if some day games had been included in the series. “If we’d have played in the middle of the day when it’s a bit warmer for the English guys, it might have been a bit more interesting. But that’s the sort of thing you have to put up with and that’s the decision that’s been made and we’ve got to work out a way to play in the conditions that we’re given.”Sri Lanka (probable) Upul Tharanga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Chamara Silva, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Jehan Mubarak, Farveez Maharoof, Chaminda Vaas, Lasith Malinga, Dilhara FernandoEngland (probable) Alastair Cook, Phil Mustard (wk), Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood (capt), Owais Shah, Ravi Bopara, Graeme Swann, Stuart Broad, Ryan Sidebottom, James Anderson

Dave Richardson, the ICC general manager cricket, has explained that the Members’ Participation Agreement (MPA) from 2007 to 2015 will provide greater flexibility for players taking part in ICC events.While almost all the other ICC members are ready to sign the MPA, the Indian board announced last week that it would not do so it in its present form because it affected its commercial interests.The MPA is a document which lays down guidelines and restrictions that the players must follow for ICC events, including those that deal with ambush marketing. “The new MPA will be more flexible for players than previous agreements regulating participation in ICC events,” Richardson said. “In drafting the player terms that fall within the MPA we have taken on board the views of players, including views expressed from India, to build a framework of agreements that will provide added benefits to players.”Players will be faced with fewer restrictions regarding their own endorsement deals and will have greater control over the use of their own player attributes before, during and after ICC events,” he continued. “The formal and informal discussions that we have had with players and their representatives indicate widespread support for these developments. The new system will have the added benefit of incorporating clearer guidelines and opportunities for all.”While the ICC is required to deal directly with the Indian board on player issues, I’ve always enjoyed a good relationship with the Indian captain Rahul Dravid and several of their leading players and, should the BCCI permit, I’d welcome an opportunity to answer any queries they may have.”However, the India board has taken a firm stand. “I think we made it very clear that we will not be able to sign the document in its current form,” N Srinivasan, the BCCI treasurer, told . “We differ on basic issues and are clear that certain basic minimum changes are required. We will inform the ICC of this by Monday, the deadline they have set us.”Percy Sonn, the ICC president, had said that if India failed to sign the MPA then it was possible that it could not continue as one of the joint hosts of the 2011 World Cup. However, he added that he hoped that an agreement would be reached and common sense would prevail.