The Somerset trio, Ian Blackwell, Andy Caddick and Marcus Trescothick and the rest of their England colleagues have now moved onto the next stage of their World Cup preparations.Over the weekend Ian Blackwell told me: "We are now in Port Elizabeth having just come to the end of a well deserved three day break in Sun City which was absolutely fantastic."For `Blackie’ who is a very capable and competitive golfer, Sun City with it’s well appointed golf courses was an ideal venue for a break. The young all rounder who has been one of the success stories of the England tour this winter continued: "We had two days golfing playing both courses, the Lost City and the Gary Player, where they play the Nedbank Two Million Dollar Challenge, and what fantastic courses they are. The Gary Player is ranked the third best course in the world and boy it was in good nick."He continued: "We picked two sides and played a Ryder Cup format competition. Our side lost 7 points to 3 although I did bring in 2 of the points playing really well. I shot a 90 on the Lost City course which wasn’t too bad in the circumstances. There is a crocodile pit on the side of the green by the thirteenth hole which was a bit scary, but thankfully I didn’t lose a ball in there."`Blackie’ went on: "I then shot an 85 on the Gary Player which I was over the moon with. The best thing was meeting Darren Clarke who played with Michael Vaughan and Andrew Flintoff on one of the days. He shot a lazy 70 apparently."He continued: " We had three cracking days and we are now in Port Elizabeth where we are going to be based for a while. We play against Eastern Province on Tuesday in our first game, and their side will include James Bryant, one of Somerset’s new signings, which will be interesting. It will be good to meet him and also gauge how good he is. I’m sure our coach Kevin Shine will be after a report."Looking ahead to the World Cup `Blackie’ said: "Things are looking in good shape for the big tournament. We regroup now and will be practicing in Port Elizabeth ahead of our first game, which is not too far away now and I’m really looking forward to it."

During the Australia v Namibia match at Potchefstroom, Adam Gilchrist and Glenn McGrath became the first wicket-keeper/bowler combination to effect 50 dismissals in ODIs. The leading wicket-keeper/bowler combinations in ODIs are:

Keeper Bowler Team M Cts Sts DisAC Gilchrist GD McGrath Aus 103 50 0 50Moin Khan Saqlain Mushtaq Pak 119 16 31 47Rashid Latif Waqar Younis Pak 132 40 0 40RS Kaluwitharana M Muralitharan SL 145 16 24 40MV Boucher SM Pollock SA 132 39 0 39A Flower HH Streak Zim 148 37 0 37Rashid Latif Wasim Akram Pak 114 36 0 36DJ Richardson AA Donald SA 91 35 0 35IA Healy SK Warne Aus 68 13 21 34RS Kaluwitharana ST Jayasuriya SL 173 8 26 34

In the above table “M” is the number of matches that they have played together.Gilchrist took 4 catches off McGrath in the match. This equals the record for the most dismissals in a Limited Overs International match by a wicket-keeper/bowler combination. The following wicket-keeper/bowler combinations have taken 4 dismissals in a Limited Overs International:

Dismissals Keeper Bowler For AgainstVenue Season(4 ct) RW Marsh RM Hogg Australia EnglandLeeds 1981(4 ct) HP Tillakaratne RJ Ratnayake Sri Lanka PakistanSharjah 1990/91(4 ct) A Flower EA Brandes Zimbabwe EnglandHarare 1996/97(4 ct) MV Boucher M Ntini South Africa AustraliaDurban 1999/00(1 ct, 3 st) KC Sangakkara M Muralitharan Sri Lanka South AfricaColombo-RPS 2000(4 ct) RD Jacobs CD Collymore West Indies Sri LankaColombo-RPS 2001/02(4 ct) AC Gilchrist GD McGrath Australia NamibiaPotchefstroom 2002/03

LAHORE, Feb 25: The South African Cricket Board has confirmed a 35-day tour to Pakistan from Sept 22 to Oct 28. Cricket in Pakistan suffered a major blow after 9/11 as with the exception of New Zealand in 2002 , no other team toured the country due to major security concerns.New Zealand, could also not complete its tour after a suicide bomb blast occurred in Karachi on the same day when the third and final Test was to start.A Pakistan Cricket Board spokesman, said on Tuesday that South Africa will play three Tests and just as many One-day Internationals besides one three dayer and a warm up one-day match during the tour.The venues of the matches will be decided later.Itinerary (without venues):Sept 22: Arrival.Sept 23: Practice.Sept 24: One-day practice match.Sept 25: Practice.Sept 26: First ODI.Sept 27-28: Travel/ Practice.Sept 29: Second ODI.Sept 30: Travel/Practice.Oct 1: Practice.Oct 2: Third ODI.Oct 3-4: Travel/ Practice.Oct 5-7: Three day tour match.Oct 8: Practice.Oct 9-13: First Test.Oct 14-15: Travel/Practice.Oct 16-20: Second Test.Oct 21-22: Travel/Practice.Oct 23-27: Third Test.Oct 28: Departure.

John Wright will continue as India’s coach for the next two months.Top Board of Control for India (BCCI) sources told the that the adhoc decision had been made to ensure Wright’s availability for the forthcoming tri-nations tournament in Dhaka, involving India, South Africa and hosts Bangladesh.When contacted at his home in Christchurch, Wright said that BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya had told him about the decision on Sunday. “I am quite happy with this arrangement and look forward to a successful campaign in Dhaka,” he said.The formal selection of the long-term Indian coach will, meanwhile, be made during the working committee meeting in two weeks’ time.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) today announced that Michael Vaughan had been appointed England’s new One-Day captain.The 28-year-old Yorkshire batsman succeeds Nasser Hussain who stepped down as captain of the One-Day side following England’s World Cup exit.Vaughan, who has captained England A and England Under 19s, will lead England for the first time in the forthcoming NatWest Challenge series against Pakistan and in the NatWest Series against South Africa and Zimbabwe.Chairman of Selectors, David Graveney, said: “As well as being a world class batsman, Michael is a strong character with a sound cricketing brain. Whilst he does not have extensive captaincy experience at County level, the selectors firmly believe he has the personal attributes required to handle the pressures of the England One-Day captaincy both on and off the field.”We have no qualms about splitting the Test and One-Day captaincy in this way. Other countries have operated this policy successfully and we see this as a terrific opportunity for Michael to demonstrate his undoubted leadership qualities.”Michael Vaughan said: “It’s a great honour to captain your country and I had no hesitation in accepting when the selectors offered me the job. It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do and I intend to enjoy it.”Nasser is an inspirational leader and he will be a tough act to follow as One-Day captain. But every captain has his own style of leadership and I want to do the job in my own way.”I’m under no illusions. Whether it’s Test or One-Day cricket, the England captain’s decisions are always under the microscope. That doesn’t bother me. I’m a big believer in the team ethic and if England are to improve at One-Day level, we need eleven `captains’ out there, not just one.”It has been decided that the England Test and One-Day captains will no longer sit on the four-strong selection panel. This decision will ensure continuity in selection although both Test and One-Day captains will continue to be closely consulted as part of the selection process.The International Teams Management Group (ITMG) has appointed the ECB National Academy Director, Rod Marsh, as a new selector and he will join David Graveney, Duncan Fletcher and Geoff Miller on the existing selection panel.Commenting on his appointment, Rod Marsh said: “This is a natural extension of my current role as Academy Director and I’m looking forward to it. There is plenty of talent within County cricket and I see my job as helping to spot and develop those players who have the potential to take the step up into international cricket.”They don’t necessarily have to be players who have been through the Academy. I’ll be coming into the job with a completely open mind and a real desire to try and help England progress as a side.”

England today named a 15 man squad for the forthcoming NatWest Challenge against Pakistan and the NatWest Series against South Africa and Zimbabwe.The squad contains six players yet to make their One-Day International debut; Kabir Ali, Rikki Clarke, Robert Key, Richard Johnson, Anthony McGrath and James Troughton. There are also recalls to the One-Day squad for Yorkshire’s Darren Gough, Nottinghamshire’s Chris Read and the Worcestershire batsman Vikram Solanki.Announcing the squad, Chairman of Selectors, David Graveney, said: “The bulk of this squad is under thirty years of age and has been chosen with the next World Cup firmly in mind. We are anticipating two tough series this summer, but we believe that now is the right time for us to look at younger players and give them an opportunity to develop on the international stage.”We did consider a number of more senior players and we have not drawn a line against any particular individuals. But it is our clear intention now to develop a strong nucleus of players who, we believe, will be approaching their peak come the West Indies in 2007.”Darren Gough’s inclusion is clearly an exception to this rule. But he is a proven match-winner who was badly missed during the World Cup and his inclusion will add experience to our bowling attack. As well as providing a strike bowling capacity, we also believe Darren can play an important role in passing on advice to the younger bowlers within the squad.”Chris Read has a broken right thumb and he has been included in the squad subject to fitness. The medical advice we have received is that this is an undisplaced fracture and it will take him around three weeks to recover. James Foster will be on stand-by to replace him.”Chris received an excellent report from the Academy during the winter. His game has clearly progressed with both bat and gloves and we believe that he can now fulfill the potential he showed at international level earlier in his career. “England Squad for The NatWest Challenge and NatWest Series

Players D.O.BMichael Vaughan (Yorkshire) (Captain) 29.10.74Kabir Ali (Worcestershire) 24.11.80James Anderson (Lancashire) 30.7.82Rikki Clarke (Surrey) 29.9.81Andrew Flintoff (Lancashire) 6.12.77Ashley Giles (Warwickshire) 19.3.73Darren Gough (Yorkshire) 18.9.70Stephen Harmison (Durham) 23.10.78Richard Johnson (Somerset) 29.12.74Robert Key (Kent) 12.5.79Anthony McGrath (Yorkshire) 6.10.75Chris Read (Nottinghamshire) 10.8.78Vikram Solanki (Worcestershire) 1.4.76Marcus Trescothick (Somerset) 25.12.75James Troughton (Warwickshire) 2.3.79The NatWest ChallengeTues June 17 England v Pakistan Old TraffordFri 20 June England v Pakistan AMP OvalSun 22 June England v Pakistan Lord’sThe NatWest SeriesThurs 26 June England v Zimbabwe Trent BridgeSat 28 June England v South Africa AMP OvalSun 29 June Zimbabwe v South Africa CanterburyTue 1 July England v Zimbabwe HeadingleyThu 3 July England v South Africa Old Trafford(D/N)Sat 5 July Zimbabwe v South Africa CardiffSun 6 July England v Zimbabwe BristolTue 8 July England v South Africa Edgbaston(D/N)Thu 10 July Zimbabwe v South Africa Rose BowlSat 12 July Final Lord’s(13 July reserve day)

Derbyshire’s captain, Dominic Cork, will appear before an England & Wales Cricket Board disciplinary panel on July 14, after hitting out at what he described as a "culture of cheating" in cricket, following his side’s acrimonious elimination from the Twenty20 Cup.Derbyshire missed out on a place in the semi-finals when they lost their final group game by one run to Leicestershire. That would have been the end of the matter, had it not been for an incident on the boundary edge, when Leicestershire’s Brad Hodge took a catch then stepped over the boundary rope in his follow-through. Derbyshire lodged a protest immediately after the game, but the ECB refused to reverse the result.Cork claimed the spirit of cricket had been “soiled” by the incident, and told the Daily Mail: “I blame the win-at-all-costs culture of cheating which is taking cricket down the road that has made football such a sleazy game. In football it’s diving, shirt-pulling, conning refs and feigning injury. In cricket, it is claiming catches on the bounce, pretending that the ball hasn’t gone over the rope and players standing their ground when they’ve thick-edged it to slip.”Both Cork and Derbyshire refused to comment further until the outcome of the hearing.

That Bangladesh will be drubbed 0-2 by Australia is an almost foregone conclusion – barring serious intervention from the weather gods, any other result seems improbable. Bangladesh will need more modest yardsticks to measure their progress. Extending the Tests to the fourth day would be a start. In their 19 previous matches, they have only managed that 11 times, and the weather had a huge hand to play on a couple of those occasions. Among the teams who have inflicted three-day defeats on Bangladesh are Pakistan (three times), Sri Lanka (twice), West Indies (twice) and South Africa (once). Significantly, Bangladesh haven’t yet lost a Test inside two days.David Hookes’s suggestion of a one-day Test is far-fetched, but Australia will surely fancy their chances of bowling Bangladesh out twice in a day. Already, Bangladesh’s two innings have lasted less than a combined total of 90 overs on two occasions. Against Pakistan at Multan in 2001, Bangladesh were bowled out in 41.1 overs in each innings, while West Indies bowled them out twice in 86 overs in Dhaka in 2002-03. On an average, Bangladesh have survived 132 overs per Test – that’s almost four-and-a-half sessions – while a Test featuring Bangladesh has lasted 263 overs, nearly three complete days.Worryingly for Bangladesh, though, their form has slumped considerably of late. In their last 11 Tests, Bangladesh average just 160 in their first innings and 173 in their second, compared to their overall averages of 182 (first innings) and 184 (second innings).Bangladesh have also notched up the dubious distinction of the maximum number of consecutive Test defeats. It currently stands at 13, and is likely to go up by two by the end of this series. It’s easily the longest losing streak; Zimbabwe are next in line with nine. New Zealand may have needed 45 matches to record their first win, but their worst run only consisted of six consecutive losses. After 19 Tests, they had lost just six, while India had 11 defeats and eight draws at the same stage of their Test career.Most consecutive losses in Test history
Bangladesh – 13 (Nov 2001 to May 2003) Zimbabwe (1), New Zealand (2), Pakistan (2), Sri Lanka (2), South Africa (4) and West Indies (2)
Zimbabwe – 9 (Nov 2001 to June 2003) lost to England (2), Pakistan (2), India (2) and Sri Lanka (3)
England – 8 (Nov 1920 to July 1921) lost to Australia
South Africa – 8 (March 1889 to April 1899) – lost to England
Australia – 7 (March 1885 to February 1888) – lost to England
India – 7 (July 1967 to January 1968) – lost to England (3) and Australia (4)
West Indies – 7 (November 2000 to January 2001) – lost to England (2) and Australia (5)
New Zealand – 6 (January 1954 to November 1955) – lost to South Africa (2), England (2) and Pakistan (2)
Pakistan – 5 (November 1999 to March 2000) – lost to Australia (3) and Sri Lanka (2)
Sri Lanka – 5 (January 1994 to August 1994) – lost to India (3) and Pakistan (2)
Another dubious distinction for Bangladesh: Only seven times has a team won all Tests in a series by an innings, and Bangladesh have been at the receiving end four times. Five out of those seven occurences have happened since 2000, the latest one being Zimbabwe’s capitulation in the two-Test series in England.The seven instances of a team winning every Test of a series by an innings:

Through all the stats about Bangladesh’s dismal display, here’s a crumb of comfort: Bangladesh, relatively speaking, haven’t succumbed to the pressures of playing overseas. Their second-innings average abroad is 188 – marginally better than the corresponding figure of 180 at home – while their first-innings average is only slightly worse (178 compared to 186).

Bashley (Rydal) lie second in the ECB Southern Electric Premier League after an convincing three-wicket win over lowly Liphook & Ripsley.The victory took them above Havant – who lost by 70 runs to the Hampshire Academy – and into the runners-up slot behind runaway leaders BAT Sports, who put their unbeaten nine-match record at risk at the BCG on Saturday.Seventeen wickets fell for 190 runs at Ripsley Park, but former Bashley skipper Neil Taylor felt that poor batting was to blame, rather than an undistinguished pitch."Lets say it was lack of application that caused most of the wickets to fall," he said diplomatically."It wasn’t a great strip to bat on, but it was more a 140 wicket than 94 all out in Liphook’s case."John Whiting (4-13)and Kevin Nash (3-28) were more than a handful for Liphook, who sank from 31-2 to 43-7 against the two Bashley seamers.David Wade (32) and Glyn Read (17) showed the application that was needed, but despite their eighth-wicket rally, Liphook were almost bowled out for 94 by lunch.Bashley hardly batted much better, with Andy Sexton (17) the only batsman in the top six to get into double figures.Tim Wheatley (3-32) and left-armer Read (2-20) created panic in the visitors’ ranks as Bashley faced an improbable defeat at 41-6.But Neil Sexton, with a carefully hit 33, and Neil Taylor (15 not out) turned the match in Bashley’s favour by doubling the total with a decisive eighth-wicket partnership which all but secured the points.Bournemouth experienced far less hassle in beating struggling Portsmouth by six wickets at Chapel Gate – but they did make rather hard work of their victory.Nick Reeves (2-30) struck two key blows early on, having former Hampshire all-rounder Lee Savident caught behind and re-arranging South African Andrew Locke’s stumps, both without scoring.It meant Ben Thane (28) and Naqeeb Ali Mohamed (19) having to squeeze out every run, particularly off Jo Wilson, who sent down his initial 13 overs of seam at a personal cost of five runs !The Liverpudlian, who finished with 3-25 off 18 overs, removed Naqeeb, Dean Oliffe and Paul Ancell in quick succession to have Portsmouth reeling at 68-6.Matt Keech, who made 87, found himself fighting a lone battle, although either side of lunch student Dan Neville provided valued support.With left-arm spinners Shaun Walbridge (5-48) and Adam Voges bowling in tandem, runs were always hard to come by and once the Dorset vice-captain had removed Portsmouth’s seventh-wicket pair, the end was nigh.When the watchful Nick Park (45) and Voges (40) took Bournemouth’s reply to 96-1, Portsmouth’s 159 all out appeared an academic target.But Bournemouth found themselves bogged down and lost four wickets before Matt Swarbrick (28 not out) and Charlie Holcomb took them home.

The Tasmanian Cricket Association is pleased to advise that all patrons who attend the VFL Finals match at Bellerive Oval on Sunday, 7th September between the Tassie Devils and Port Melbourne will receive the added bonus of a free pass to an ING Cup or one day of a Pura Cup match of their choice during the summer.Upon presentation of their pass patrons will gain free entry to any one of the five ING Cup or one day of the five Pura Cup matches to be held in Tasmania during the 2003/2004 season.Free tickets will be issued to patrons at the gates as they enter Bellerive Oval on Sunday.