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Anant Wagesh Kanmadikar, former secretary of Indian board and the doyen of Madhya Pradesh cricket, passed away on August 15 at 2.00pm following a massive heart attack. Kanmadikar, 82, served as secretary from 1980 to 1985 and earlier served as a joint secretary between 1975 and 1980. He also served as the vice president of BCCI and as chairman of Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association. He is survived by wife, two sons and a daughter.Till recently Kanmadikar was actively involved with Madhya Pradesh cricket and as recently as May 2005, he acted as an observer to conduct the fair elections of Bhopal Divisional Cricket Association. He believed that though cricket was a religion in India, the youngsters lacked the right approach to the game. “Playing cricket from morning to evening would not help you,” he said. The need is to play with the right approach and proper guidance.”Sharad Pawar, BCCI president, condoled the death, hailing Kanmadikar’s contribution to cricket. “He was an untiring administrator. His contribution to the game at very crucial stages will be remembered forever,” Pawar said. “During his tenure as an office-bearer for 10 years, he coordinated for the success of the 1983 World Cup. It is sad that Indian cricket has lost an able administrator and a human being who always had the players’ requirements in mind. It is a great loss and the vacuum cannot be filled. He has contributed immensely not only for Madhya Pradesh and Indian cricket, but for world cricket too.””He was always accessible and a very friendly person,” Raju Bharatan, the veteran journalist recalls. “He was a very fit and remained actively involved with Madhya Pradesh cricket. He was fondly called as the Judge”.

ScorecardDavid Langford-Smith took five wickets for Ireland on the first day of their Intercontinental Cup match at Aberdeen against Scotland who were dismissed for 265. Ryan Watson was the only top-order batsman to star for the home side with a pugnacious 74 before he was caught at deep backward square by Langford-Smith off the bowling of Trent Johnston, the Australia fast bowler.Watson received little support from the Scotland middle-order until John Blain arrived at the crease, who proceeded to at last take command of the Ireland bowling, hitting 53 from 94 balls. In reply, Ireland lost Jeremy Bray in the slips and they now trail by 222 runs.

The Hong Kong Cricket Association have announced a squad of 14 for the women’s tour of Pakistan next month. The three-match ODI series is a qualifier for the 2009 Women’s World Cup.It will be the inaugural match for the newly formed Hong Kong women’s team who will be hoping to match the men’s side who performed so well at the recent ACC Trophy in Malaysia.The side is led by Neisha Pratt who last season averaged a remarkable 586 in the Hong Kong Women’s Cricket League. “The girls have put in a great deal of hard work over the summer,” Pratt said. “For sure we’ll be the underdogs against an established Test country like Pakistan. But the opportunity to qualify for a World Cup doesn’t come around every day and we’ll be giving it our best shot.”Squad
Neisha Pratt (Capt), Renee Montgomery, Chan Sau Ha, Betty Chan, Sarah Eames, Natasha Miles, Keenu Gill, Sam McIlwraith, Julie Atkinson, Godiva Li, Ishitaa Gidwani, Angela Kwan, Shaminda Wickramasinghe, Kylie Knott

Brian Lara has lifted his game ever so many times when up against the bestin the world. He was hoping his team would do just that as they take onAustralia at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai. Speaking at a pre-matchmedia briefing he said, “We have beaten the opposition [Australia] in thelast month and that’s a positive. We are going to ensure that the guysknow that and the biggest positive is the fact that the pitch is going toplay a part and we are looking to get the better part of it.”Lara did not place too much stress on the pitch, which has come in forplenty of criticism in the wake of the South Africa-New Zealand match.”Firstly you have to play on whatever pitch you’re given. There’s nothingyou can do about it,” he said. “What’s confusing is the fact that New Zealand batted first and didn’t put up a total on the board and SouthAfrica batted second and did not do well.”At the same time, Lara stressed on the importance of playing smartcricket. “It’s important for the team batting first to put up a goodtotal. It’s up to the people at CCI (Brabourne Stadium) to try and get things improved and the final is here as well. So we hope the pitches will improve,” he said.”It’s not the sort of pitch where you can think of 275 or 300 being on thecards. We will be looking to score as much as possible, analyse thesituation as early as possible.”Interestingly, Lara also said the pitch was not necessarily one where thebetter team would win. “It’s not a surface on which the better team isgoing to win, it’s the team that plays better will win,” he said.”Whatever you do first, do it to the best of your ability and take totaladvantage of the game at that stage.”Lara added that he and his team were putting the thumping loss against SriLanka behind them and looking to adapt as quickly as possible to theconditions before them. “We are the defending champions and there’s a certainstyle of play that we have to adapt to. The defeat on Saturday had noramifications on our position in the tournament and that all the teamshave started on zero and we are moving forward on that positive thinking.It’s a question of having belief in your players.”

Ronnie Irani, the Essex captain, has declared his hip operation a success after returning from Colorado.”I went over to Vail, Colorado last week initially to get a [left] hip operation from a guy called Marc Philippon – who also operated on Ashley Giles – and that was successful,” he said. “I was hoping to get the knee operation done at the same time but, with the angle they need to get the knee into, it would have been impossible because it might have damaged my hip. So I need to rest the hip and will then return to Vail in six weeks’ time when I’m going to take my wife and two children out who can do some skiing while I get operated on!”Irani enjoyed an outstanding 2006 season, scoring 1075 runs at 59.72 in the Championship; 379 runs at 63.16 in the C&G Trophy and 338 runs at 42.25 in the Twenty20 Cup. In addition, he led his side to success in the Pro40 and Twenty20 Floodlit Cup.”I’m still hoping that everything should be bang on schedule to be fit for the start of next season,” he added. “I’ve got plenty of time for the rehab on the knee – it’s not major surgery but it’s something similar to what I had three years’ ago on the right knee – and though you can never say never and things should be a little bit tender pre-season I should still be able to get through.”

Scorecard

Canada swept past Bermuda by three wickets in the fourth one-dayer of the ICC Tri-series on Thursday.Bermuda never really recovered from losing three wickets in the first four overs – including that of David Hemp – each to Henry Osinde. Bermuda’s score might have been worse if a straightforward catch, and a harder chance to the slips, had been taken. Saleem Mukuddem was comfortably the top-scorer for Bermuda, with 57, including four fours, and he was ninth man out before the last wicket pair saw out their 50 overs as Bermuda made 178.Canada lost their opener, Sandeep Jyoti, early on but Abdool Samad and Desmond Chumney put on 66 for the second wicket before both fell in quick succession. In spite of chasing a modest total, Canada’s innings was a stuttering affair. Several batsmen got starts before wasting their wicket – and it appeared the batsmen were too keen on an early finish, and the prospect of a bonus point.But Umar Bhatti showed the right amount of patience at No.7, batting calmly and sensibly as Canada won by three wickets with more than 10 overs to spare.Canada meet Netherlands on Friday in a match that is likely to decide the winners of this Tri-Nations series.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out

A pair of wickets for Makhaya Ntini and Jacques Kallis handed South Africa a slight advantage on a curtailed, yet absorbing, opening day at the Wanderers in Johannesburg. Two gutsy partnerships from India’s experienced middle order helped them recover after an early wobble but loss of wickets at crucial stages, including one at the stroke of stumps, reduced them to a shaky 156 for 5 at the end of the day.South Africa’s pace battery didn’t launch as savage an attack as they would have wished, especially with the pitch acting two-paced and the ball darting around. The bowlers took some time to find their radar and none except the metronomic Shaun Pollock made the batsmen play regularly. Andre Nel and Dale Steyn, who was to later pull up with a thigh strain, spewed fire, handing the batsmen some painful body blows, but lack of direction eased the pressure. Yet, Ntini and Kallis summoned probing deliveries when it mattered, induced the batsmen into indiscretion, and edged South Africa ahead.The timing of the wickets epitomised India’s day. Sachin Tendulkar, who crafted a valuable 44, fell as tea approached; Rahul Dravid, who’d got through a rough period in the second session, drove expansively just after tea; and VVS Laxman, who’d applied himself for 104 minutes and found his free-flowing mode, fell right at the end of the day. Had he not been dismissed, and had he continued his gritty partnership with Sourav Ganguly, one would have been tempted to call it India’s day. In one final moment, the scales tilted.Things could have been much worse for India. After an anti-climactic start to the day, when damp patches on the pitch delayed play by 90 minutes, India were struggling at 14 for 2 with their openers continuing their horror run. The introduction of Pollock, in the seventh over, had transformed the session from a sleepy opening into a charged dogfight. Pitching the ball on the proverbial penny, probing outside off and taunting with his subtle movement, he’d strangled Virender Sehwag into edging an away swinger.That was when Tendulkar and Dravid showed the kind of application that India ‘s batting had been crying out for all through this tour. Both weaved out of the way of short deliveries, which were either loopy or zipping, and endured several blows and steely glares. Tendulkar’s positive instinct ensured that the scoreboard kept ticking along, while Dravid’s bloody-mindedness ensured he got support. Their 69-run stand was India’s best effort for the third wicket against South Africa and it tells you the sort of rubble teams have found themselves in the past.

Tendulkar blended cautious defence with gorgeous strokeplay. All his seven fours came on the off side – five beautifully-balanced straight and cover-drives were interspersed with a delicate carve over the slip cordon and a controlled back-cut past gully. He religiously ducked under a barrage of short deliveries from Nel and Ntini and concentrated on tucking around the corner and scampering to the non-striker’s end.Dravid’s was a battling effort. He was greeted with a Pollock snorter soon after he walked in, a ball that took off from a good length as if it were propelled by a booster and crashed into his ribs, rendering him breathless for a few moments. He was also struck a few times on his gloves, once close to his injured finger on his right hand, but didn’t flinch from the challenge. His unflappability in the face of Nel’s fierce sledges were as indicative of his mood as was the judgement which he used to leave deliveries outside off. He brought off a couple of superbly-times boundaries as well – on one occasion crisply pulling a Ntini short one that kept low – and eased them past choppy waters.Dravid’s dismissal brought Ganguly to the middle, a fascinating sub-plot in the larger drama. He began with a confident push to the off side, scampering a quick single, and was in control for most of his 42-ball stay. A Nel lifter smashed him on the left shoulder and a couple of airy wafts missed the full, moving ball but Ganguly’s mental fortitude appeared to carry him through. His leaves were confident and one front-foot cover-drive brought back memories of Ganguly of old.Laxman produced some vintage strokes as well, the delicate maneuver of the wrists and all. Two consecutive drives off Kallis seemed to herald some magical strokeplay but the hardwork came to nought when he feathered an edge off Ntini. The light was getting worse, there was sprinklings of rain in the air and a game hanging on a slender thread swung South Africa’s way.Short cuts
By Dileep Premachandran at Johannesburg

Highlight of the day: The style with which Jacques Kallis picked up the two biggest wickets, of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. Both were undone bydeliveries that moved away a touch, just enough to kiss the edge throughto the slip cordon. People forget that Kallis had 200 Test wickets coming into thisgame, and he made it 201 and 202 either side of tea with the two biggestscalps possible. For a man who looks like he’s lumbering in, hedelivers one heavy ball too, clocking over 140 km/h several times during asplendid nine-over spell.Lowlight of the day: Virender Sehwag looked like an imposter, treadingwater 26 balls for four before he got the faintest of edges to a ShaunPollock delivery. A year ago, he was probably the most exciting batsman inworld cricket. Right now, he looks like someone with a learner’s license.Shot of the day: Andre Nel hustled in and offered a bit of width,and Tendulkar just leant forward and creamed it through the covers. Itwasn’t to last, but that moment of magic kept Indian fans happy a while.Ball of the day: In his second over back in the evening, Makhaya Ntini gotone to come in with the angle and straighten to take the outside edge. Theway Laxman was batting, it needed a special delivery to send him on hisway, and Ntini produced it just as the light worsened enough for theumpires to take the players off.Catch of the day: Graeme Smith’s delight after grabbing a low chance atfirst slip was all too apparent. After a hesitant start, Dravid was battingbeautifully but when Kallis induced the edge, Smith did the rest.Message of the day: The final paragraph of the press release given out toexplain the “dampness in the wicket [sic]” went like this: “The GautengCricket Board supports Chris Scott 100% as he made a decision that hebelieved was the correct one. He is the expert in his field and, as we allknow, has won the award as leading Groundsman in South Africa over the lastthree years.” Talk about getting defensive.Off the park: Rumours have been circulating about Wasim Akram working withIrfan Pathan for days, and repeated requests for clarification from theteam management resulted in a handwritten note from Greg Chappell beingsent to the press box. “We are grateful for Wasim’s offer of assistance,”it said. “I spoke with him in Durban during the ODI series.and told himthat I was happy for him to speak to Irfan as long as Irfan agreed. Irfansaid he was happy to speak with Wasim away from match time. At the end ofthe ODI series, Wasim left South Africa, and has only just returned. So tomy knowledge, no conversation has taken place. If any discussion is totake place, it will only be at a time and a place that suits Irfan.”So much for the old guru-shishya dynamics.

Try as he might, Graeme Smith will find it difficult to convince record-keepers that he has just led his side to Test wins in Kolkata and Lahore. For a start, the victories actually came at Newlands at Cape Town and Supersport Park at Centurion, not Eden Gardens or Gaddafi Stadium.Smith’s liberal approach to geography was actually a broad allusion to the surfaces his men happened upon at each venue: dry, flat, offering more turn the older they got, which is what you might expect at either subcontinental venue. But having registered such impressive wins in alien conditions, they might be just a touch surprised at coming across a St George’s Park pitch that its curator says will provide bowlers with pace and bounce. It’ll be a good surprise, though, like reuniting with a pleasant old acquaintance.AD Carter, the groundsman at Port Elizabeth, where the second Test between South Africa and Pakistan gets underway from tomorrow, told supercricket.com that the surface is as different from traditional PE low, slow turners as possible. “It reminds me of the one we had for the match between the Warriors and the Eagles earlier this month,” he said. “That one had pace and bounce and we hope this one will be similar.”It was a pleasant bonus for South Africa that their rookie spinner, Paul Harris, took more wickets than both Anil Kumble and Danish Kaneria on pitches that were supposed to be tailor-made for them. But you’d think on a surface supporting fast bowlers, South Africa would back their trio of Makhaya Ntini, Andre Nel and Shaun Pollock against most others.Generally, the hosts face few concerns, although AB de Villiers is causing a few nagging problems; he is an abnormally gifted sportsman, though a tally of three fifties in his last ten Tests and an average under 14 in his last four as opener is just plain abnormal. Hashim Amla was a problem before the last Test but he made good runs at a good time and Ashwell Prince’s patch is currently so purple, his pop namesake, whose favourite colour it is, called to ask for it back.About the only strife the middle order is currently facing stems from the stump mic’s kiss ‘n tell with Herschelle Gibbs during the first Test. Even that, though, is only vying for second place on the Global Race Issues chart, lagging behind a Bollywood queen’s travails in the celebrity goldfish bowl of Big Brother.But if ever a team was to admit to wariness over the state of the opposition, South Africa might contemplate doing it now. Pakistan fought for four days with virtually a two-man bowling attack at Centurion, one of whom had just come back from prolonged inaction and one of whom is suffering from a prolonged lack of threat.Mohammad Asif will find his way back but Danish Kaneria began the new year in much the same vein as last. He didn’t bowl badly, he didn’t leak runs, he spun the ball yet he didn’t really look like running through anything more threatening than margarine. Kamran Abbasi sums up the dilemma well here but it might help to have genuine strike bowlers operating at the other end.That is only one of the many reasons why the possible returns of Umar Gul and Shoaib Akhtar will lift Pakistan so much. With Asif in tow, this is Pakistan’s all-star pace attack, their current Harlem Globetrotters of pace bowling: there is pace, there is guile, there is bounce. In short, there is potentially everything in those three men you could hope for from a pace trio. It is still only a hope: Gul, despite coming through net sessions after an ankle injury, may yet be rested as a precautionary measure,Also hoping to return will be Pakistan’s own middle-order beard. The tourists’ batting did sufficiently well and no more in the first Test. In fact, what they didn’t do was exactly what Mohammad Yousuf had been doing all through 2006: converting (no pun intended). Like some cross-decade bash, sixties mixed seamlessly with thirties and forties but, heartlessly, no-one remembered to invite the centuries at Centurion.Yousuf, who dumped fifties altogether last year as if it were a crime against fashion (he made only three, and one of those was a 97), will be expected to bring just that ability. The hosts, though, will hope that his poor record in this country and relative rustiness since December combine to dampen his contribution.South Africa (probable) 1 AB de Villiers, 2 Graeme Smith (capt), 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 Ashwell Prince, 6 Herschelle Gibbs, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Shaun Pollock, 9 Paul Harris, 10 Andre Nel, 11 Makhaya Ntini.Pakistan (probable) 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Imran Farhat, 3 Yasir Hameed, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Mohammad Yousuf, 6 Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), 7 Kamran Akmal (wk), 8 Shoaib Akhtar, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Danish Kaneria, 11 Mohammad Asif.

Pakistan’s injury curse has continued with Shabbir Ahmed forced to fly home from South Africa after less than a week on tour. He picked up a groin strain during Friday’s Twenty20, his first match back since remodeling his bowling action.Darryn Lifson, the Pakistan physio, has estimated the recovery time to be around three weeks, which puts Shabbir’s chances of gaining a World Cup place in jeopardy. The final 15-man squad has to be named by February 13 and there won’t be any room for players under an injury cloud.Shabbir’s withdrawal adds to Pakistan’s catalogue of problems in South Africa, which have included Shoaib Akhtar’s brief, but dramatic, appearance in the Test series before he went home with a hamstring problem. Shoaib’s wasn’t originally part of the squad because he wasn’t deemed to be fit enough.Umar Gul played no part in the series after picking up an ankle injury during the warm-up match against South Africa A and Shoaib Malik was also forced to miss out. Inzamam-ul-Haq suffered from a back problem during the final Test and missed the Twenty20, although was passed fit to lead the team in the first ODI.

Canterbury made a decent reply to Central District’s first-innings 460, ending the second day on 208 for 2 at the Basin Reserve. . Michael Papps, the opener with international experience, hit 86 to go past 700 runs for the State Championship season. Shanan Stewart, who put on 99 with Papps after Todd Astle (41) was dismissed, was unbeaten at stumps on 56 with Andrew Ellis (17 not out) for company. Earlier, CD added 85 to their overnight score, with Tim Weston hitting an unbeaten 87.Mayu Pasupati proved his allround worth with two wickets on State Championship debut as Auckland kept Otago down to 130 for 4 by stumps on day two at Dunedin’s University Oval. Pasupati’s 76 had yesterday helped Auckland recover from 129 for 8 to 226, and handed the ball, he removed Aaron Redmond early and top-scorer Neil Broom (49) to finish with 2 for 23 from ten overs. Shaun Haig, the opener, hit 38 from 35 deliveries.In the eight overs of play on day two, Northern Districts needed just 16 deliveries to get the last two Wellington batsman out but lost opener BJ Watling to finish on eight for one at the Basin Reserve. ND added 13 to their overnight score to reach 314, and Dewayne Bowden then dismissed Watling to keep some momentum going.