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Scorecard
Mohnish Parmar took three wickets and Pratharesh Parmar scored a half-century as Gujarat Cricket Association Xi sent hosts Kenya their second successive defeat in the tri-series tournament, this one by seven wickets.Gujarat won the toss and chose to field. Kenya were in trouble straight away, losing Alex Obanda for a golden duck with just two runs on the board. Wickets tumbled at regular intervals after that, with only two Kenya batsmen passing 20. Maurice Ouma topscored with a patient 43, while Thomas Odoyo made 41 as Kenya were bowled out for 169. Mohnish and Siddharth Trivedi were the pick of the bowlers, taking 3 for 22 and 3 for 25 respectively.Gujarat stumbled at the start, with Piyank Panchal departing without troubling the scorers. But Pratharesh steadied the ship with a solid half-century before Bhavik Takhar and Bhargav Merai saw Gujarat home with 100 balls to spare.

Mark Pettini, the 26-year-old Essex batsman, has signed an extension to his contract that will keep him at Chelmsford until the end of the 2012 season.Pettini has been at Essex throughout his county career, making his debut in 2001. In 2007 he took over as captain from Ronnie Irani and remained in the job until earlier this season, when wicketkeeper James Foster took over.Though he played for England Under-19s, the closest Pettini has come to full international colours was when he was named in England’s provisional squad for the 2007 World Twenty20 but he did not make the final 15. His form has tailed off recently but, freed from the captaincy, he hopes he can help Essex prosper in the coming years.”I am obviously delighted to have signed an extension with the club,” Pettini told www.essexcricket.org.uk. “I have thoroughly enjoyed my time so far with Essex and the success that we have all achieved. I look forward to the next two years, we have a very strong dressing room and we are confident that we can achieve even more success in the coming seasons.”

Ahead of their first meeting with interim IPL chairman Chirayu Amin tomorrow, a number of franchises have told Cricinfo they are against player retention and playing fewer matches next year, and would like to see more transparency and accountability in the way the league is run.Following the suspension of Lalit Modi as IPL commissioner and the addition of two new franchises, a number of issues concerning this year’s player auction and next season’s tournament are still to be resolved. Chief among them is the issue of player retention. There have been debates over whether the original eight franchises should be allowed to keep any of their current players. Sachin Tendulkar has suggested teams be allowed to retain eight players – four Indian and four international – but the four franchises that spoke to Cricinfo felt all players should go back into the auction pool.”The practical thing to do is let them go and bid for the players you want in a transparent manner,” one franchise official told Cricinfo on the condition of anonymity.As a potential compromise, an official from another franchise suggested giving each team two “cards” for the auction. The cards would give the teams the first right of refusal for one Indian player and one foreign player from their team. So if the maximum bid for a player, say MS Dhoni, was set at $2 million, then Chennai could use the card to bid $2 million and automatically retain him even if another franchise bids the maximum amount.In case Chennai choose to bid less than $2 million for Dhoni, and that bid is matched by one or more of the other franchises, then Chennai would have the first right to break the tie and take the player, using the card. “[That way] everything is decided on the auction table,” the official said.In the wake of India’s disastrous World Twenty20 campaign, many observers blamed IPL fatigue for the team’s poor performance, leading to speculation that fewer matches will be played next year. The IPL governing council is reportedly studying a proposal that recommends the teams be split in two groups, with a total of 68 matches. Under the current format, 94 matches are set to be played next year.However, none of the franchises Cricinfo spoke to were in favour of shortening the tournament. They argue that their decisions are based on a particular business model and certain projections. “The number one reason for adding teams and having more matches was having more revenue. If the number of matches is reduced, it doesn’t work for me,” a franchise official said. “We can address the problems [player fatigue] arising out of that; there is a solution. But reducing matches and the reduction of revenue is not on.”One proposed solution was to limit the Indian players to 14 matches each, but there were reservations about how acceptable that would be, considering the large sums of money being paid for them.Other issues of concern are the maximum permissible size of teams and a salary cap that includes players bought outside the auction. As things stand, teams will be allowed to spend $7 million each on players at the auction. But there is no limit to how much money can be spent on players outside the auction, or how many players a team can buy. This gives franchises with deeper pockets an advantage; hence a cap to level the playing field.”We will ask for a cap on the spend,” a franchise official said. “We will ask for a cap on the number of people a team can hire. Nobody should have a squad of more than 25 or 30.”The teams would also like a larger voice in the running of the IPL. Among the suggestions is that the governing council should include a franchise representative, who would pass on information to the franchises in a timely way, allowing them to plan their operations more efficiently. Ultimately, clarity and communication are what the franchises want most to get on with the business of running their teams.

ScorecardSteve Kirby bowled his heart out but went unrewarded and left the field injured•Getty Images

Steve Kirby must wake up some mornings feeling rather like Sisyphus. He was the unfortunate fellow who so offended the gods that he was sentenced to an eternity of pushing a rock up a hill, only for it to roll down just before the peak. Which is how Kirby must feel trying to win games for Gloucestershire despite his butter fingered slip cordon and his mis-firing batting line-up.Just what Kirby has done to offend the gods remains uncertain. Sisyphus seduced his niece, took his brother’s throne and betrayed Zeus’s secrets; Kirby is, by all accounts, an excellent uncle and has shown no inclination to seize any thrones.Yet he has enjoyed no fortune. Despite earning a well-deserved reputation as one of the best fast bowlers in the country and coming tantalisingly close on several occasions, he has never won an England cap. And, on a day when he could easily have claimed 4 for 20, he instead conceded nearly six an over, remained wicketless and limped off the field 10 overs before the close suffering from what may well have been a broken heart.He deserved better. Generating sharp pace on a sluggish wicket, he troubled all the batsmen only to see two relatively easy catches put down off his bowling and several other edges fly to the third man boundary.The end result was a match that remains evenly poised at the halfway stage. Though the hosts, seven points behind third-placed Gloucestershire but with a game in hand, at one stage looked to be on the verge of establishing a substantial first innings lead, the visitors fought back strongly in the final overs.At one stage Worcestershire, with seven wickets in hand, trailed by just 31 runs. Gloucestershire then claimed 3 for 7 in 23 balls, as the day finished with Worcestershire 16 behind but only four wickets left. Gloucestershire, who have not won a first-class game at New Road since 1986, are right back in the match.The best batting of the day came from Alexei Kervezee. The 20-year-old, who qualifies for England in December 2011, oozed class as he cut, pulled and drove with delicious timing to pass 50 for the fifth time in the championship season. Twice he skipped down the pitch to loft the left-arm spin of Vikram Banerjee for straight sixes and his half-century – studded with seven fours and two sixes – occupied only 45 deliveries.Moeen Ali was slightly less convincing. Though he unleashed some typically languid drives down the ground, and flicked the ball off his legs sweetly, his innings was interspersed with some nervous moments outside off stump. Several times he flashed only to see the ball pass perilously close to the slips, while he also edged Banerjee between keeper and slip on 32.Still, Moeen and Kervezee’s partnership bodes well for the future of Worcestershire cricket. With a combined age of just 42, they added 107 in 18.3 overs of fearless, joyful strokeplay that helped their side rebuild from 107 for 3.Batting had looked far less straightforward for their colleagues. Both Daryl Mitchell and Vikram Solanki were undone by the extra bounce of a pitch that remains unreliable, with Mitchell caught at short-leg off the glove and Solanki caught off the glove at gully. Though Phil Jacques prospered for a while, he departed to an outside edge after feeling for one outside off stump.Things could have been even better for Gloucestershire, however. Solanki was dropped twice, both times off the deserving Kirby, once before he had scored and again when he had just two. If the first chance, to Steve Snell at second slip, was straightforward, the second, to the normally reliable keeper, Jonathan Batty, was as simple as they come.The value of Kervezee and Moeen’s partnership became apparent once Kervezee played around a straight one from Lewis. Ben Smith, who hasn’t scored a first-class century since the dawn of time (or July 2006 for those who like their statistics a little more precise), departed later the same over to a fine, diving slip catch as he prodded forward, while Richard Jones was bowled by a surprisingly sharp yorker from Gidman.Moeen remains, however, and, if he earn his side a lead of around 100 on the third day, will have done much to set up victory that could prove vital in the promotion race.Earlier Gloucestershire were grateful for the contribution of Chris Taylor as their batsmen struggled once again. They currently average the lowest score per wicket of any side in the country and are the only team without a first-class century in the campaign.It’s fair to say that some in the Worcestershire dressing room were underwhelmed by the comments about Matt Mason in the first day’s report. They pointed out that Mason’s record last season, 43 championship wickets at 27.58, compares favourably with most. And that he was more than capable of standing without help on a bus.Mason made his point quite eloquently on the pitch, too. While he lacked pace, he maintained a tight line and length and used his height to generate enough bounce to unsettle all the batsmen. Gidman and Marshall both paid the price for prodding outside the off stump as Mason utilised the uneven bounce sensibly and showed the benefit of his experience.He might easily have had a third wicket. Had Moeen, at third slip, clung on to a chance offered by Taylor when the batsman had just 50, Gloucestershire would have been 201 for 9. As it was, the tail carved out another 44 runs, with Taylor compiling his highest score of the summer. He pulled one six off Richard Jones but paid the price for making room against Alan Richardson was comprehensively bowled.Meanwhile Franklin departed to a routine outside edge, Banerjee was brilliantly (if somewhat fortuitously) caught at slip as he edged a full-blooded cut and Lewis paid the price for a flat footed drive.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) today asked the ICC to give a final push to convince its member boards to accept the contentious whereabouts clause by November 2011, failing which it would be declared non-compliant to the WADA code.”We don’t set deadlines. Being a signatory, we expect the ICC and cricket to remain committed to the WADA Code. The ICC has done a lot in the last three years, now they just need to give the final push,” WADA director general David Howman told reporters.The whereabouts clause requires cricketers to furnish details of their location three months in advance. India’s cricketers, backed by the BCCI, rejected the WADA code because of this clause, saying it represented a violation of privacy and a security threat. Howman said that it was up to the ICC to convince BCCI and other member boards ahead of the November 2011 deadline.”The ICC is responsible for its member boards. ICC’s job is to ensure that member boards comply with the WADA Code. We are going to have our next review in November 2011 and by that time if ICC fails to convince its member boards to comply with the Code, we will declare them non-compliant in our report to the International Olympic Committee. We don’t have the purview to take actions against any non-complaint member, it is IOC and respective Olympic Council’s prerogative,” Howman said.Howman defended the whereabouts clause with the logic that India’s cricketers were on the road for a major part of the year, during which their whereabouts were public knowledge, and hence disclosing the same for the remaining days in the year was not a security threat.”Let me say ‘why’, and I don’t identify any one player here. But if I were living in this country, I would know where these players were, probably, for 250 days a year. So, if it’s going to be a security issue for 250 days of a year, I know how to breach that security because I know where they are. So if this information is pertaining to the other 115 days (of the year), where’s the breach?” he asked.Howman also hit out at Indian cricketers who sought to take refuge in Indian constitution’s ‘freedom to privacy’ clause. “If I tend to the issue of the (Indian) constitution, that’s nonsense. There’s no breach of the Indian constitution in acquiring the ‘whereabouts’ information. I just think it’s a red-herring and the red-herring should be caught, dried, smoked and eaten. And then we get rid of it,” he said.Cricket is set to make its debut in the Asian Games in Guangzhou, and pending acceptance of the code, India’s participation in the event could be under jeopardy. Howman said it would be up to the Olympic Council of Asia to take a call on the issue.Howman insisted that the whereabouts clause was not an infringement on privacy, citing the example of the large number of professional sportspeople who have accepted it. “More than 13,000 athletes are giving their whereabouts, so it is not a big deal. There are no constitutional problems, no breach of privacy but I will be more than happy to engage in discussion with cricketers,” he said.”We will ask BCCI to liaise with the National Anti-Doping Agency to form an anti-doping programme fit for India. Anil Kumble is a member of WADA and understands the rule. He is not concerned by it,” Howman said.

Bangladesh 166 for 5 (Kayes 57) beat Barbados 130 for 3 (Hinds 50*) by 36 runs
ScorecardBarbados had wickets in hand but couldn’t mount the target•Getty Images

Imrul Kayes provided the anchor and Mohammad Ashraful the impetus, as Bangladesh warmed up for Saturday’s World Twenty20 encounter with the champions Pakistan by easing to a comfortable 36-run victory over Barbados at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown.With Tamim Iqbal missing due to a hand injury, Ashraful was promoted to open alongside Kayes, having missed the recent visit of England due to a loss of form. He responded with a pugnacious 35 from 12 deliveries, as Bangladesh rushed along to 166 for 5 in their 20 overs, after being asked to bat first.Ashraful was the first to fall in the ninth over, with the score on 64, when he was caught by Alcindo Holder off Carlos Brathwaite, but Kayes pushed along to a measured 57 from 59 balls, with Aftab Ahmed (26 from 20) providing powerful support in a second-wicket stand of 53 in 34 deliveries.In reply, Barbados lost their first wicket after four balls, which Rashidi Boucher edged to Ashraful at slip, to give Mashrafe Mortaza – another man who played little part in the England series – a wicket. From that point on, Barbados never seriously threatened to chase down their target, although Bangladesh’s bowlers found breakthroughs hard to come by. The captain, Hinds, produced a 48-ball half-century, before Jonathan Carter’s 30-ball 45 not out enlivened the closing overs. But the result was never in doubt.

Graeme Smith, South Africa’s captain, has been cleared to resume training for the ICC World Twenty20 after recovering from the finger injury that forced him to return home mid-way through the ongoing Indian Premier League.”Cricket South Africa’s medical team is satisfied that Graeme has made a complete recovery from his finger injury,” South Africa’s team manager Mohammad Moosajee said. “He has been given the all clear to resume training in preparation for the ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean and the South African tour of the West Indies that follows. Graeme did pick up a slight fever last week but he should be ready to start practising on Wednesday.”Smith broke the middle finger of his right hand while taking a catch in Rajasthan Royals’ match against Delhi Daredevils on March 15 and had to return to South Africa. It was the second finger injury Smith had picked up in little more than a month. He had hurt his little finger on the left hand during the build-up to the Eden Gardens Test in February, which kept him out of the one-dayers against India.South Africa will play World Twenty20 warm-up games against Sri Lanka and England, before beginning their campaign against India in St. Lucia on May 2 and Afghanistan in Barbados on May 5.

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has slammed the PCB’s decision to ban four of its players , saying it had made Pakistan cricket a “laughing stock in the world”, and recommended heavy fines instead. Akram was part of the inquiry committee that investigated Pakistan’s disastrous tour of Australia, whose findings led to the PCB’s decision, but he did not attend any of the meetings due to personal reasons.”These penalties have made Pakistan cricket a laughing stock in the world,” Akram told AFP. “You don’t ban players for such problems. Had I attended any meeting or given recommendations I would have suggested fines, but not bans.”The Pakistan board banned Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf from playing for Pakistan in any format for an indefinite period, while handing out one-year bans to Shoaib Malik and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan. Shahid Afridi and the Akmal brothers were fined Rs2-3 million [$24,000-35,000] for various misdemeanours and put on six-month probations.Akram said Younis and Yousuf were valuable to the team in both Tests and ODIs and their unavailability for selection would damage the 2011 World Cup campaign. “What I suggest to PCB is to stick with heavy fines, but don’t implement the bans because we still need Yousuf and Younis in Tests and one-day cricket. With the World Cup in 2011 so close, this decision will hurt our team badly.”The bans were handed down by an inquiry committee comprising former players Wasim Bari, Zakir Khan and Yawar Saeed, besides Wazir Ali Khoja, a member of the PCB governing council, and Taffazul Rizvi, the board’s legal advisor. The committee looked into reports from former coach Intikhab Alam, manager Abdul Raqeeb and newly appointed coach Waqar Younis, who was the bowling consultant during the Australia tour.Akram, however, said that this was not how disciplinary problems should be resolved and that it was the duty of the team management to deal with them. “Pakistan cricket is in turmoil,” Akram said. “We are anyway not playing [international] cricket [at home] for security reasons and this will further embarrass our players. No board in the world deprives cricketers of their livelihood. If there were discipline problems, it was the duty of the captain Yousuf, coach Intikhab Alam and manager Abdul Raqeeb to deal with them.”I have been hearing since last year that Malik has been a disruptive influence. If that is so, why was he kept in the team? Pakistan has already been weakened by various problems and this will further hit it badly. We can’t even find 11 good players because of lack of talent in the country.”

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Lydia Greenway’s 81 took England to an emphatic win•Getty Images

England women began their tour of India with a big win over the Board President’s XI in Bangalore, two days before their first ODI against India. Lydia Greenway’s 82-ball 81 and Sarah Taylor’s 52 took England to 273 for 9. Then spinners Laura Marsh and Charlotte Edwards ensured the win was completed with more than eight overs to spare.The Board President’s XI had reason to cheer early in the game after dismissing Edwards (17) and Ebony Rainford-Brent (1) by the sixth over. But Greenway put on half-century stands for the next two wickets – 77 with Taylor and 66 with Beth Morgan – and that took the momentum away from the home side.Left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht was one of the most economical bowlers for the Board President’s XI, conceding only 48 for one wicket in her 10 overs. Medium-pacer Harpreet Dhillon took 1 for 19 in her six overs.Chasing a steep target, the home side tripped at the start, losing opener Latika Kumari for a duck off the fifth ball. They crawled to 33 for 3 in 12 overs. Captain Babita Mandlik top scored with 33 before falling in the 24th over, caught off Marsh. The last four wickets fell in successive overs.It was a clinical performance by the England side but for one blip; they conceded 21 wides – as compared to Board President’s 13 – with Isa Guha being the main culprit, bowling seven wides and a no-ball.

England have got their wish for three first-class warm-up games before the 2010-11 Ashes series after their poor preparation was a factor in their failed defence on the previous trip. Cricket Australia released its fixtures for next summer and in a change to tradition it will begin in October with a limited-overs series against Sri Lanka, while there is no spot in the schedule for the fading Chappell-Hadlee Trophy.The Ashes remains the main event and England, who lifted the urn in August, have locked in three-day games against South Australia and Western Australia and a four-day match against Australia A in Hobart. The tourists hope the extra first-class fixture will settle Andrew Strauss’s men before the opening Test in Brisbane from November 25. On the previous tour they opened the trip with a one-day contest before two low-key state games and were under-prepared at the Gabba.After the five-Test series, which is due to finish at the SCG on January 7, the teams have two Twenty20 internationals before seven ODIs. The schedule comes despite Ricky Ponting’s criticism that seven-match bilateral engagements are too long.Australia’s international season concludes with the final one-dayer on Febuary 6, giving the sides two weeks to prepare for the World Cup in the subcontinent. “It’s a very busy period for the Australian cricket team over the next 18 months with an Ashes trophy to regain, but we also have a very strong focus on retaining our position as the No.1-ranked one-day team in the world,” James Sutherland, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, said. “A World Cup win would make it four titles in a row.”2010-11 itinerary
Sri Lanka in AustraliaTour match v Queensland, 22 October, Brisbane
Tour match v New South Wales, 24 October, Sydney
T20 tour match v New South Wales, 27 October, Sydney
Twenty20 international, 31 October, Perth
1st ODI, 3 November, Melbourne
2nd ODI, 5 November, Sydney
3rd ODI, 7 November, Brisbane
England in Australia
Tour match v Western Australia, 5-7 November, Perth
Tour match v South Australia, 11-13 November, Adelaide
Tour match v Australia A, 17-20 November, Hobart
1st Test, 25-29 November, Brisbane
2nd Test, 3-7 December, Adelaide
Tour match v Victoria, 10-12 December, Melbourne
3rd Test, 16-20 December, Perth
4th Test, 26-30 December, Melbourne
5th Test, 3-7 January, Sydney
Tour match v PM’s XI, 10 January, Canberra
Twenty20 international, 12 January, Adelaide
Twenty20 international, 14 January, Melbourne
1st ODI, 16 January, Melbourne
2nd ODI, 21 January, Hobart
3rd ODI, 23 January, Sydney
4th ODI, 26 January, Adelaide
5th ODI, 30 January, Brisbane
6th ODI, 2 February, Sydney
7th ODI, 6 February, Perth