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Flintoff signs three-year deal with Lancashire

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Andrew Flintoff has agreed a new three-year deal to play one-day cricket for Lancashire, ending speculation over his future in the county game

Cricinfo staff05-Nov-2009Andrew Flintoff has agreed a new three-year deal to play one-day cricket for Lancashire, ending speculation over his future in the county game after he opted to become a freelance player following the decision to turn down an ECB incremental deal.Flintoff is currently recovering from the knee surgery he underwent following the Ashes series in August and is aiming to return to action in the one-day series against Bangladesh at the end of February. After calling time on his Test career, Flintoff said that he wanted to become “the best one-day player in the world” and is also being linked with a number of Twenty20 sides around the world.This new contract will replace the rolling one-year deal that would have come into place after Flintoff declined the England offer and was due to expire in 2010 and takes him up until the end of the 2012 season. The deal doesn’t include first-class cricket but Flintoff may still make the occasional four-day appearance if Lancashire needed his assistance.”This contract will also give me the flexibility to play other forms of one-day cricket around the world, which hopefully help me develop as a player and in turn, help Lancashire and England,” he said. “I have felt part of Lancashire ever since I first played here as a schoolboy and I want to help them achieve success. I am looking forward to being around the Lancashire dressing room more now I have retired from Test cricket”I have enjoyed many highs with England over the years, but I have not had the same success with Lancashire and that is something I want to address. I have a good relationship with Peter Moores and Glen Chapple and hopefully I can be of help to them both on the pitch and in the dressing room.”Head coach Peter Moores believes that Flintoff’s presence in the squad will a huge lift for the side. “Fred is a proven match-winner, and the type of player that lifts a dressing room with his sheer enthusiasm and will to win. It’s great that he is going to be with us, and I’m sure our supporters will be just as thrilled with the news.”

Jaipur could host first India-SA ODI

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The Indian board is yet to finalise the schedule for the home series against South Africa early next year but has decided on Jaipur as the venue most likely to host the first ODI of the tour

Nagraj Gollapudi18-Dec-2009The Indian board is yet to finalise the schedule for the home series against South Africa early next year but has decided on Jaipur as the venue most likely to host the tour’s first ODI. A decision is also yet to be taken on whether the series will include Tests, as India have sought.Lalit Modi, chairman of the board’s tours and fixtures panel, said the final schedule will be worked out at a later date – it was held up by the absence of some members at the board’s working committee meeting today.Jaipur, he said, was picked because it had missed out during the Australia series earlier this year. That match was shifted to Vadodara due to a dispute at the Rajasthan Cricket Association between Modi and Sanjay Joshi, the then president. “As chairman of the BCCI’s tours and fixtures committee I’m going to recommend to the first ODI should be allotted to Jaipur because they had missed their term last time. In principle we have decided to give it to them,” Modi said.It was also decided that Ahmedabad will host the first four Rajasthan Royals games in the next IPL, with Jaipur allotted the final three. “The last three games will happen in Jaipur, as we have recommended some upgrading to be done. The first four will happen in Ahmedabad as they have already done a lot (of preparations),” Modi said. The arrangement was only for 2010, with Jaipur restored as the host venue for the 2011 edition.But barring that, the schedule as well as the venues for the other planned fixtures weren’t confirmed. “We are just fixing the schedule,” Modi said after the two-hour meeting at the Cricket Centre in Mumbai. “Unfortunately all the members were not present so the committee would be meeting in the next ten days to finalise the schedule,” he said.Last week the BCCI had sent a revised itinerary to Cricket South Africa requesting to play two Tests and three ODIs instead of the originally planned five-match ODI series. CSA is yet to approve the new schedule, though Gerald Majola, the South African board’s chief had given an in-principle nod.Modi also took the opportunity to make a public show of bonding with CP Joshi, the newly-elected RCA president, but said his gesture should not be read as a “compromise”. Earlier this month Joshi had defeated Modi in an acrimonious tussle to the RCA president’s post, winning the elections 19-13. Joshi was attending his first board meeting and cordially nodded to Modi’s suggestions.

Auckland complete successive wins in State Championship

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Tim McIntosh: top State Championship run scorer

Tama Canning: top State Championship wicket-taker

Auckland have won the State Championship for 2002/03, a successful defence, a feat they last achieved in 1994/95 and

Lynn McConnell25-Dec-2009

Tim McIntosh: top State Championship run scorer

Tama Canning: top State Championship wicket-taker

Auckland have won the State Championship for 2002/03, a successful defence, a feat they last achieved in 1994/95 and 1995/96.In the following two years, Canterbury also managed successive titles.Since then the series has been won by Central Districts, Northern Districts and Wellington, leaving Otago as the only side not to have won the country’s premier first-class competition since 1996. Otago last won the series in 1987/88.Auckland sealed the title today when Wellington, the only team who could challenge them, finished with a loss at Otago’s hands in Alexandra.The final points were: Auckland 34, Wellington 31, Otago 26, Northern Districts 22, Central Districts 22, Canterbury 16.A late run of consistent weather has resulted in some outstanding batting during the last few rounds of the series.The most notable individual feat of the summer was the triple century scored by Canterbury’s Peter Fulton. It was the first time a triple century had been scored in this country since the summer of 1952/53 when Bert Sutcliffe scored 385 for Otago against Canterbury.The only double century of the summer was completed by Matthew Hart today who scored 201 not out for Northern Districts against Auckland.What was interesting about Auckland’s success was its dominance of the run-scoring list for the summer. Clearly the key ingredient to success is runs. They had three players in the top six scoring list during the summer, yet only one of their bowlers, Tama Canning, who was the highest wicket-taker in the competition with 46, was in the top six of the bowling list for most wickets.Tim McIntosh scored most runs in the competition with 820, Matt Horne hit 671 and Rob Nicol 664.The advantage Auckland enjoyed over Wellington this year was probably in its run scoring. Richard Jones was easily the pick of Wellington’s batsmen with 726 runs.But there was a significant gap back to Chris Nevin, who hit 532, and Matthew Bell, 499, which left Wellington lacking the greater consistency of the Aucklanders.In their bowling, Wellington relied on the medium pace of Matthew Walker, who took 45 wickets, and the medium-fast bowling of Iain O’Brien 34 and Andrew Penn 29.Otago proved the big improver of the year, finishing in third place. Their achievement was based around the batting in their top-order of Craig Cumming, 751 runs, and Mohammad Wasim, 651, and the bowling of Shayne O’Connor, 42, Kerry Walmsley, 37, and Warren McSkimming, 26.How best then to measure the showpiece domestic competition, when 15 of the country’s top players were taking part in the World Cup?That is the conundrum when looking at the State Championship.However, it is a fact of modern cricket life, that the international players will only take part in a lowly percentage of the domestic cricket programme in any given year so it can be safely said that this year has been little different.At the time of the summer when the World Cup was contested, New Zealand would normally be involved in a Test series, which would mean only 12 players would still be out of the competition at any one time anyway.Do three less players available for the domestic programme represent a significant dropping in standard? Probably not.With that in mind it comes back to the view that no matter who is taking part, the runs still have to be scored, the wickets taken and the catches held.Thirty-six centuries were scored over the Championship this summer while last year 33 centuries were scored and, in the first summer of the return to two rounds of the domestic championship, in 2000/01, there were 39 centuries.At the same time there have been 22 five-wicket bags taken by bowlers this year, compared with 31 last summer and 28 in the season before.The fact that games are tending to last longer suggests that players are learning to pace themselves more in the four-day game and there is greater benefit from exposure to so much cricket over the two rounds.The most pleasing thing about this year’s batting is the sight of young players, Jamie How, Fulton, Nicol and Nick Horsley among the top 10 runs scorers, with another cluster of younger players just behind them.That is a sign of developing health and a significant factor in boosting the standards of the competition in the future.

Ryan Harris grabs five as Australia take series

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In his second one-day international, Ryan Harris kept a cool head under pressure to deliver Australia a 40-run victory and an unassailable 3-0 series lead after Shahid Afridi lit up a match that had threatened to fizzle out

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale26-Jan-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsRyan Harris was the star for Australia with five wickets in his second ODI•Getty Images

In his second one-day international, Ryan Harris kept a cool head under pressure to deliver Australia a 40-run victory and an unassailable 3-0 series lead after Shahid Afridi lit up a match that had threatened to fizzle out. Workmanlike half-centuries from Shaun Marsh and Michael Clarke, and a late Michael Hussey blitz, set up Australia’s 6 for 286 before Harris grabbed 5 for 43 to confirm Australia’s win.It was a remarkable effort from Harris, who finished up as the Man of the Match having only been called into the squad late on match eve as cover for Peter Siddle, who had a sore back. He began with a wicket in his first over and returned with three in two overs during the batting Powerplay when Afridi and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan were giving Pakistan hope of a famous fightback.They had taken 37 from the first three overs of the field restrictions. Harris was introduced with 65 needed from 42 balls and promptly yorked Afridi, who had raced to 40 from 29 balls, and two balls later had Umar Gul caught skying for a duck. The fifth for Harris came in his next over when Rana (33) was caught at midwicket and Nathan Hauritz finished things off in the 48th over with Mohammad Asif caught top-edging.That wrapped up the match and the series and consigned the two matches in Perth over the next week to dead-rubber status, which will test the patience of Australian fans for ODIs in a summer featuring ten of them. It would not have escaped Cricket Australia’s notice that the crowd of 15,521 was smaller than the attendance for the domestic Twenty20 final at the same venue on Saturday, when 17,722 turned up to the Adelaide Oval.There were late onslaughts in both innings and the hint of a surprise comeback, but overall the manner of Australia’s win won’t do a lot for the cause of the 50-over game. Professional though they were, from the start of the 20th over to the beginning of the 44th Australia struck only four boundaries and added 114 runs. It’s precisely these middle overs that the Twenty20 format eliminates.Clarke’s first four didn’t come until he had 56 runs on the board as he gladly pushed singles and twos to the defensive field. Despite the lack of pizzazz, it was the sort of innings his team was hoping for and he built three important partnerships, 85 runs with Marsh, 55 with Cameron White and 80 with Hussey.The fun came in the last ten overs when, led by Clarke and Hussey, Australia added 95, helped by sloppy work from Pakistan, who had earlier missed run-outs and dropped Clarke on 32. The 48th over, bowled by Gul, featured three consecutive no-balls – an overstep, a full toss above waist height, and a delivery with too many fielders outside the circle. The over took nine balls and cost 23 runs.Clarke (80) and Hussey, who hit 49 from 28 balls, both fell to Gul in the 50th over but by then they’d done their job. The platform had been built by Marsh and Shane Watson, who combine for a 63-run opening stand that ended when Watson was bowled trying to slog a wonderful offcutter from Asif.Marsh went on to pass fifty for the seventh time in one-day internationals and looked set for his second hundred when he was stumped for 83, lured at a wide, spinning ball from Saeed Ajmal. Ajmal was the hardest of Pakistan’s bowlers to get away, with 1 for 41 from his ten overs, but they’d dropped their other spinner Shoaib Malik and Australia handled the fast men with ease.It wasn’t quite the same for Pakistan, even though Australia’s three main fast seamers entered the game with a combined 14 matches of experience. Harris kicked things off with Kamran Akmal lbw for 1 in the second over in a decision that, while tight and probably striking him a fraction outside off, was not a howler from Asoka de Silva.His next call was. Salman Butt loomed as the man most likely to anchor Pakistan’s innings and had 34 when he was sent packing by de Silva, who upheld Clint McKay’s appeal despite the ball pitching a long way outside leg stump sailing well over the top of the bails, according to Hawkeye’s prediction.There was no doubt about the second of McKay’s three wickets. Younis Khan, who had taken 20 balls to get off the mark, was surprised by a sharp rising bouncer that took the top edge and was snaffled by Haddin. Mohammad Yousuf followed when he chopped on to Watson and it took an 85-run stand from Umar Akmal (59) and Fawad Alam (33) to give Pakistan a sniff.Afridi and Rana gave them more than that before Harris spoilt their fun. It will be a brave selection panel to leave Harris, a cover player in Adelaide, on the sidelines for the next two games.

'Vaseline incident should have never happened'

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Controversy erupted during the third Test in Chennai, when it was alleged that John Lever was using Vaseline on the ball to help it swing. Tony Greig recalls the incident

09-Feb-2010.John Lever wearing his controversial gauze strips•Getty Images

My team was touring India, and as result of victories in Delhi and Kolkata we went into the third Test in Chennai, or Madras as it was known then, 2-0 up. And what’s more we were in a very positive frame of mind.As every one knows, Madras is an extremely hot place and it was no exception for this Test – it was very hot indeed. My two fast bowlers, John Lever and Bob Willis, both wore the hairstyles of the day, which were very long. Just after the lunch break on one of the days, I cannot remember exactly which one it was, the bowlers were complaining of salt in their eyes. Obviously, it was partially to do with sweating profusely and to do with the fact that their long hair was hanging on to the liquid and it was getting into their eyes.In his wisdom, our physiotherapist decided that he should do what marathon runners do, that is put some Vaseline-impregnated gauze into the eyebrows of the bowlers. By doing so, it would channel the sweat down the side of the eye, as opposed to allowing it to go into the eyes. Well, I can tell you that it was a very silly thing to do because under the laws of the game, if you introduce a foreign substance onto the ball it is clearly cheating.What happened was that John Lever had a habit of taking sweat from him brow, which is perfectly legitimate as long as it is only sweat. However, he did mix the Vaseline-impregnated gauze with some of the sweat on his brow, because he had this habit of going straight across his brow. So, purely by accident, he found himself with a slippery hand and, as a result of that, he decided to get rid of that gauze. He took it off his eyes and put it down at the base of the stumps in front of the umpire. This was picked up by the umpire, who recognised that it was a foreign substance, and of course that’s how it got out of control.There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that this was an inadvertent mistake by our physiotherapist and that we weren’t, in any way, trying to pull the wool over Bishan Bedi and his team’s eyes. In fact, had we been doing that then why would Lever put the gauze down at the base of the stumps?So that’s basically what happened. Bishan Bedi was under a tremendous amount of pressure at that time because the team was 2-0 down, and after that Test match 3-0 down. There was plenty of speculation whether he would hang onto the captaincy. He was, I think, grasping at straws at that time. In any event, the explanation from Kenny Barrington and me, and indeed the response from Lord’s got behind my explanation that this was a mistake. I am quite happy to admit right now that it should never have happened, but it did, and there is nothing much we could do about it.

Twenty20 tournaments will benefit English cricket – Vaughan

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He believes the ECB in particular is still wearing their blinkers and that is important that England, at the grassroots level, embraces the opportunity to participate in international Twenty20 leagues with an eye on the next generation of players

Jamie Alter16-Feb-2010Cricket is historically slow at grasping the nettle but few countries have been able to resist the buzz of lucrative Twenty20 tournaments, and former England captain Michael Vaughan believes the format can only be good for Test cricket and, specifically, English cricket. While other cricket boards have embraced the lucrative Champions League Twenty20, the ECB has been keen to keep a lid on the excitement and is apparently in no mood to change its domestic calendar to accommodate the tournament this September.Vaughan, in Bangalore as part of the England Under-18 set-up, reiterated his view that embracing such Twenty20 tournaments could only be beneficial to English cricket.”I think the game’s moved. In a positive sense, it has gone forward. Test-match cricket is still the ultimate game, and the lads coming up all want to play for England in the Test arena,” he told Cricinfo. “But they realise that Twenty20 plays a big part in the county and international setup and of course with all the leagues coming up. They’ll all first and foremost want to play for England but they will be aware of the big leagues being set up and we need to find the right balance. We need to embrace Twenty20.”If you’re good enough to play one format you’re generally good enough to play all three, and players will want to develop their skills in all three, and that can only be good for English cricket. If you’re talking about back in county cricket, where players are already established, then yes, playing in Twenty20 tournaments gives the players much to gain from.”Vaughan recently criticised the ECB for its “arrogant” stance against the BCCI and its role in promoting the Champions League, writing in the that county players must play in such tournaments “to earn a few quid and get a massive buzz from playing in big grounds in front of decent crowds, something they never experience at home”.He believes the ECB in particular is still wearing blinkers and that is important that England, at the grassroots level, embraces the opportunity to participate in international Twenty20 leagues with an eye on the next generation of players. “It can only be good and you’ve got to start at an early stage,” he said. “Look at the lads touring here for this short trip. They need exposure, as do the players in county cricket, and nowadays that comes largely through Twenty20.”Twenty20 is positive because Test cricket needs to be looked at. We need good teams playing each other and playing attractive, aggressive cricket. The product has to be good. If we can produce a more exciting kind of Test cricket where you hit the ball harder and score faster that’s going to be more entertaining to watch, so in the long run Test cricket will gain from what Twenty20 has brought.”As a former international, Vaughan’s role with the U-18 squad is that of batting consultant, but his responsibilities also include sharing his experiences with the youngsters. More than just the technical aspects of the game, he hoped such visits to India would enhance the players’ minds and views and prepare them for the future.”I’ve played a number of Tests in the subcontinent, more over in Sri Lanka, and a lot of one-dayers, so I know how to talk to the lads,” he said. “It’s all about adapting to the conditions – the heat, the humidity, especially, and the pitches. Experiences like this – being away from home for two weeks for the first time – allows you get used to a different kind of lifestyle, food, and surfaces. Importantly they get to play a lot of spinners, with their varieties. Hopefully they can develop as players and as people and that’s good for them and for English cricket. We need that.”

Cook succeeds where Shakib falls short

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Plays of the day from Bangladesh v England, 2nd Test, Dhaka, 5th day

Andrew Miller in Dhaka24-Mar-2010Innings of the day
Shakib Al Hasan was 22 not out overnight, with a nightwatchman for company, four second-innings wickets still intact, and a slender lead of 94 on which to build. He knew full well that, after a series in which his batting had fallen a touch short of his recent high standards, today was the day to make his presence known to the opposition. And how superbly he responded to the match situation, first in partnership with Shafiul Islam, and then as a soloist while the tail loitered alongside him. A second Test century was the only just reward, but alas on 96, his adrenalin got the better of him.Anticlimax of the day
Shakib’s rush through the nineties was exhilarating to watch, as he took on James Tredwell with a series of slamming sweeps. With a horizontal bat and perfect power and timing, he picked off two fours and a two in the space of five balls, to move to 96 for the third time in his career. But then, from the final ball of the same over, Tredwell tossed it up, and Shakib – fatally – opted for a straight-bladed charge. Instead of dragging the ball through midwicket, he tried to seal the century in style with a six over long-off, but Matt Prior gathered and whipped off the bails. As had been the case with Tim Bresnan on the fourth day, a rush of blood ended a fine performance.Fielder of the day
After dropping the easiest catch of his life on Tuesday, Jonathan Trott came within an elbow of making spectacular amends during Bangladesh’s spirited morning performance. On 54, Shakib climbed into a pull off Stuart Broad, and sent the shot spinning down towards deep square leg where Trott, sprinting round from midwicket, dived and grabbed with his outstretched left hand. For a split-second he had it, but the impact on the turf jolted the ball loose from his grasp. One over later, however, he finally got it right, as Shafiul Islam top-edged a sweep, and Trott this time swallowed the chance on the edge of the rope. It was the hardest easy catch he will ever take, and his face was a picture of fear and relief as he tugged at his England badge to indicate his heart palpitations.Decision of the day
Trott could hardly stay out of the limelight as the match built towards its climax. After his excitement in the field, he was called upon to launch the run-chase, which he did with a decent turn of speed as he moved along to 19 from 30 balls. But then, however, Alastair Cook pushed a single into the covers, where Jahurul Islam slid and threw with impressive speed. A run-out appeal was referred to the TV umpire, Nadir Shah, who had only one angle from which to work. In one frame, Trott was out of his crease with the bails yet to drop, in the next he was home and the stumps were broken. Ordinarily, the benefit of the doubt would have gone to the batsman, but given the events of the past few days, Bangladesh deserved a break.Last word of the day
Alastair Cook has had a match that he’ll want to forget, particularly that horrible second morning when Bangladesh’s tail made a mockery of his field placings. But as he prepares to hand the captaincy back to Andrew Strauss, at least he can say that he took it upon himself to sort out his own mess. A fluent and focussed 109 not out was his final contribution of the tour. It was his second century of the series and, while the pressure evaporated once the result became inevitable, it nevertheless confirmed the strength of his character. Lesser players would have let the pressures of the past few days undermine their natural game. Cook just compartmentalised, and gone on with the business of run-scoring.

William Porterfield targets Twenty20 preparation

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William Porterfield, the Ireland captain, hopes his team’s three-week tour to Jamaica will set them up for an impressive display at the World Twenty20

Cricinfo staff03-Apr-2010William Porterfield, the Ireland captain, hopes his team’s three-week tour to Jamaica will set them up for an impressive display at the World Twenty20. The squad arrived over the weekend to take part in the Jamaica Cricket Festival with involves a West Indies team, Canada as well as the hosts.Ireland have been grouped with West Indies and England during the initial phase of the World Twenty20, which starts on April 30, so this tournament will allow them an advanced look at a few of the West Indian players they will come up against.”Our main focus is to use this tournament to help in our build-up to the ICC Twenty20 World Cup and we are looking to getting some good cricket under our belt and getting into the winning mentality,” said Porterfield. “This is a good tough tournament and we are really looking forward to it.”Trent Johnston, Ireland’s opening bowler, will be a key figure at the World Twenty20 and admitted it will be good to get a few matches under his belt after a period of down time since the qualifiers in Dubai.”It’s been snowing for a couple of days [in Ireland] so a lot of our preparations have been indoors; gym work and that sort of thing,” said Johnston. “We have been on sort of a break for about five weeks or so since the end of the qualifiers for the ICC Twenty20 World Cup, so we are probably a little bit rusty, but nothing that a few training sessions or a good three-day game won’t iron out.”As a senior player, I’d like to lead from the front,” he added. “Wherever experience or a cool head is needed, I’d like to get in and benefit the team as best as I can. Hopefully it will go well and we will get our preparation right heading into the ICC World Twenty20.”For Ireland the trip back to Jamaica also allows them to recapture memories of their 2007 World Cup campaign when they famously beat Pakistan to progress to the Super Eights. During their time on the island three years ago the Irish supporters became a focal point of a tournament that wasn’t often renowned for its crowds.”It feels pretty good to be back here in Jamaica, we have a lot of good memories from here and now we’re looking forward to the cricket,” said Porterfield. “The supporters were definitely one of the real highlights of the last time that we were here with the crowds and the atmosphere that they create so we are looking forward to playing in front if them.”When it comes to the World Twenty20 itself Ireland will be able to tap into the local knowledge of their coach Phil Simmons and Porterfield will also be relying on him for information about the players they will face in the next few weeks.”We don’t know a lot about the Jamaican team and so we will be relying on coach Phil in that area…we’ll take it as it comes and adapt once the tournament starts,” he said.

Dalmiya seeks clarity on IPL and CLT20 issues

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Jagmohan Dalmiya, the Cricket Association of Bengal president, has asked the BCCI for clarifications on several issues regarding distribution of revenues from the IPL and Champions League Twenty20

Nagraj Gollapudi03-May-2010Jagmohan Dalmiya, the Cricket Association of Bengal president, has asked the BCCI for clarifications on several issues regarding distribution of revenues from the IPL and Champions League Twenty20. The most significant instance relates to compensation following the cancellation of the 2008 Champions League Twenty20 – Dalmiya has said Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings, the two Indian entrants in the tournament, appear to have been “overpaid a sum of Rs 36.8 crores” [approximately $8 million] after the tournament was cancelled in December 2008, in the aftermath of the Mumbai terrorist attacks.Dalmiya, a former BCCI president, says his point of concern was that the money, which should have been distributed among the BCCI’s member associations, appears to have been shared by two IPL franchises instead.In his five-page dossier, a copy of which is with Cricinfo, handed over to the BCCI following a verbal submission at Sunday’s working committee meeting, Dalmiya lists out how the two franchises – one owned by N Srinivasan, the board secretary, and the other by a group of investors, including Lalit Modi’s brother-in-law – appeared to have been compensated for the cancelled tournament. The BCCI was entitled to pay Rs 10.2 crore [approximately $2.3 million] to the two teams, the same amount that it had released – as stated in the BCCI’s annual report – to the boards of Australia and South Africa for distribution among their teams.However, he says, the BCCI itself sanctioned Rs 20.8 crores [$4.6 million] for Chennai and Rajasthan, while Rs 26.2 crores [$5.9 million] was paid separately by the IPL governing council, according to the minutes of its meeting on August 11, 2009.Dalmiya felt “at the most a sum of Rs 5.1 crores could be paid to each of the two franchises – provided they could provide evidence of the loss suffered – which was evidently not provided to the Working Committee.” His note pointed out that it was never mandatory for the board to pay any compensation in case of cancellation of the Champions League. “There was no contractual obligation of BCCI to pay any monies to the Franchisees on account of cancellation of CLT-20.” This fact, he said, was suppressed from the working committee.Cricinfo had reported the bailout for the two IPL franchises last year. At the time Modi, confirming the news, said part of the payment had already been released to the two franchises. None of the other six participating teams had at the time been paid any compensation by the other national boards. The cancellation of the tournament cost each team a guaranteed participation fee of $500,000 and a share of the total prize money of $6 million, apart from potential sponsorship revenue.Dalmiya’s note, and his assertion that it was based on the BCCI’s annual report and accounts for 2008-09, will raise further questions over the role of senior BCCI officials who also served on the IPL and would have been party to such high-level decisions.

Bond advises rest and rotation for quicks

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Shane Bond has said there is a danger of Test cricket losing fast bowlers unless boards and team managements rest their quick men periodically

Cricinfo staff11-May-2010New Zealand quick bowler Shane Bond has said there is a danger of losing more fast bowlers from Test cricket unless boards and team managements rest them periodically.”Bowlers are almost going to be like pitchers, where you play a game and sit out the next, because of the amount of cricket played these days,” Bond told Cricinfo. “I worry that fast bowlers are going to withdraw from Test cricket early to play limited-overs cricket.”New Zealand’s often-injured pace spearhead, who retired from Test cricket last year, said Australia were possibly the only team in a position to give their fast bowlers a break. “They win more than they lose. They seem to rotate bowlers even during series and still win. People tend to forget they are resting and rotating and giving guys a week off here and there. A lot of the other teams, because they are struggling to win 50-50, are just playing their best team all the time, and they suffer when there are injuries.Bond turned out for Kolkata Knight Riders in the recent IPL and is now on show in the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean. He tipped the short format to develop as a showcase for fast bowlers. “You are not risking injury [in Twenty20] like you would when bowling eight- to nine-over spells, which sometimes can be dangerous.”Bond said his laziness as a teenager was to blame for the repeated breakdowns for which he became notorious over an all-too-short Test career. “The thing that hurt me the most was, I was really lazy in my late teens. Because of that, I got a lot of back problems. So I missed a lot of years from 17 to 23. I never had a good base for bowling. I just lacked it.”I went away from cricket, and then I am back and all of a sudden bowling proper fast. I went from a little bit of cricket to international cricket, where I am bowling fast. That catch-up was too much. The difference in intensity at domestic and international levels is massive and people don’t appreciate how big it is.”He ruled out a return to Tests but said younger bowlers could continue in the format as long as they managed their comebacks from injuries wisely. “I still see it now when I play with guys who are injured and they want to be back for a game that is, say, six weeks down the line. You’ve just got to come back when you are fully fit. Too many people – and I have made the mistake in the past – sometimes rush back to make a tour or a series even when they are not a 100% fit. You are better off taking it step by step.”Bond said the decision to quit Tests had been hard for him because he had badly wanted to get to 150 wickets in the format. “When I came back against Pakistan, I felt I had the opportunity once again to achieve those goals, and then, bang, I got injured. It was demoralising.”Test cricket is about getting people out and that’s what I do: I got people out. A lot of goals I wanted to achieve were built around Test cricket, but I am also a realist. I realised every time I played four- or five-day cricket, I broke if I played few games on the bounce. It is just the way I played: I find it difficult to hold back. I just go hard. It hurt me.”