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Yuvraj Singh, Mandeep Singh and Ambati Rayudu have been included in India’s preliminary squad of 30 players for the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-2012Yuvraj Singh has been included in India’s preliminary squad of 30 players for the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka this September. Mandeep Singh, the Punjab batsman who plays for Kings XI Punjab in the IPL, and Ambati Rayudu, the Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians batsman, are the only uncapped players in the list.Mandeep has played 13 first-class matches for Punjab and North Zone, scoring 1074 runs at an average of 63. He had a successful IPL 2012 for Kings XI Punjab, finishing the season as the tenth-highest run-scorer, with 432 runs at a strike rate of 126.This selection is also Rayudu’s first call-up to an India shortlist since he returned to the BCCI’s fold after playing the Indian Cricket League (ICL). He’s played 47 matches for Mumbai Indians, making 1084 runs at a strike rate of 128. Rayudu was Mumbai Indians’ second-highest run-scorer in 2012, scoring 333 in 15 innings.This is Yuvraj’s first official inclusion in an India squad following his treatment for a mediastinal seminoma, a rare germ cell cancer, in the United States. His last appearance for India was in a Test match against West Indies in Kolkata in November 2011, and his last one-day match was the World Cup final against Sri Lanka in April that year. Yuvraj had respiratory difficulties through 2011 and in May he withdrew from the ODI series in the West Indies due to an “illness”. He toured England but had to return home after breaking his finger in the Nottingham Test and later played two home Tests against West Indies. However, he then pulled out of the ODI series against West Indies in November citing an “abnormal tumour in his lung”.Yuvraj had originally targeted the CB series in Australia for his return to international cricket. However, he was ruled out of that tournament and travelled to the US in late January for what was later revealed to be cancer treatment. Yuvraj spent three months in Indianapolis’ IU Simon Cancer Centre and returned to India in early April 2012. He is currently training in Bangalore and said he believed Twenty20 was the best format for him to begin his return to competitive cricket.It is understood Yuvraj aims to play at least two matches in the three-day Buchi Babu tournament in Chennai or the four-day KSCA League in Bangalore or the inter-district Katoch Shield tournament in Punjab.Probables: MS Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Umesh Yadav, Ashok Dinda, Ajinkya Rahane, Manoj Tiwary, Rahul Sharma, Vinay Kumar, Zaheer Khan, Yuvraj Singh, Robin Uthappa, Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan, Mandeep Singh, Piyush Chawla, Ravindra Jadeja, Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu, Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel, Naman Ojha, Dinesh Karthik, Praveen Kumar, L Balaji.

By this stage of an English summer, Marcus Trescothick customarily has scored around 1500 runs at a rather superior average than any other batsman in the country

Ivo Tennant at Taunton21-Aug-2012
ScorecardBy this stage of an English summer, Marcus Trescothick customarily has scored around 1500 runs at a rather superior average than any other batsman in the country and hence there is highly optimistic talk of a call-up for the final international match. It is axiomatic that he remains the best opener in the County Championship. For no fault of his own, the scenario has been altogether different this year.If Trescothick was going to be severely injured, as he was at Trent Bridge in May, it was best that this should happen this sodden summer. He was out of action for three months. In seven championship innings, which has been all he has managed owing to his ankle problem, he had not made a half century. He had not looked especially out of touch, but his had been a long lay-off and there was an instantaneous requirement to pick up his game, however late in the season and however bowler-friendly the conditions.Such encumbrance fell away now. In making an unbeaten 89, Trescothick rocked backwards and forwards and propelled the ball through to the cover boundary. There were the customary flicks off his legs, dabs to third man, which was not always tenanted, and, since he has managed to keep pretty fit, some good running between the wickets. A couple of winters ago he was offered £1m by his then bat sponsor if he cleared the pavilion at Lord’s. You would not have bet against him in this touch.Statistics can appear skewed and none more so than when the realisation dawned that Trescothick was approaching the 50th first-class century of his career. Graeme Hick and Mark Ramprakash are more or less contemporaries, are not nearly such successful international batsmen, and yet each has more than double that tally.Anyway, he will be pleased with this innings, for not only did it signal a return to form, but it was not scored on the kind of flat Taunton surface of old.There was appreciable turn before lunch for Monty Panesar, who thought he had had Trescothick caught at short leg on 60, following through as if he was a fast bowler. Umpire Nick Cook had a word with him at the end of the over. That was the one discordant note on a day when the ball constantly seemed to be hitting the sweet spot of his bat and go pinging off towards the boundary.The other Somerset batsmen did not fare so well. Arul Suppiah was soon bowled by Steve Magoffin, playing an indeterminate pushed drive; Chris Jones was caught at cover, not to the pitch of a rare ball that Panesar did not push through; and James Hildreth, going back to the same bowler and trying to square cut, was taken by Ben Brown. That was131 for 3.Just before 3pm torrential rain began, preventing any further play. Sussex had not looked like dismissing Trescothick, surely still the best opening batsman in England, but they are in need of wickets, lying as they are 11 points behind Warwickshire, the Division One leaders. Last season Trescothick scored 1,673 first-class runs at an average of 79.66. Before his eighth innings of this season, he had mustered just 94 at 13.42. This innings will have brought about a significant improvement on those figures. He has hit 16 fours thus far.

The next edition of South Africa’s domestic Twenty20 competition will include a seventh franchise, and will feature ten foreign players

Firdose Moonda13-Feb-2012It’s not quite the same as the IPL, BBL, BPL or any other cricketing premier league, but South Africa’s domestic MiWAY T20 challenge has ensured it will have an added edge in its next season. The competition will include a seventh franchise, and the glamour factor will come from ten foreign players who will be spread around the squads. The new franchise is called Impi, a Zulu-word which means an armed body of men.The new team was unveiled at a low-profile launch at a hotel next to OR Tambo International Airport, a far cry from the usually lavish affairs associated with Twenty20 competitions. It probably fit the occasion, though, because Impi will be based at the equally unspectacular Willowmoore Park in Benoni.Former England Twenty20 captain Paul Collingwood will lead Impi and they have so far signed one other international: Ryan ten Doeschate, the South-African born Netherlands allrounder. The team has been allowed to contract four overseas players and are in advanced negotiations with another two. The idea behind the additional franchise is to give opportunities to players who just miss out on franchise selection and compete in the semi-professional leagues.”There are too many players we are missing,” Vincent Barnes, coach of Impi, told ESPNcricinfo. “I’ve been travelling around the country to watch players and strategise the compilation of this team and I had about 30 names in the end of players I thought could play. We could only contract 11 but we definitely have enough players in South Africa.”The 11 players include eight from major unions – four hail from the Johannesburg-based Gauteng union, three from Western Province and one from Kwa-Zulu Natal – and three from lesser-known areas. Adrian McLaren and Charl Pietersen from Griqualand West in Kimberley and Cobus Pienaar from the Benoni-based Easterns are in the squad.”It’s a big stage for them and I want to make it clear that we are here to compete and to win,” Barnes said. Should Impi make it to the final, they will qualify for the Champions League T20, an even bigger stage.Some of the other foreign players that will feature in the T20 tournament are not really foreigners at all. Alfonso Thomas and Martin van Jaarsveld, both of whom started their careers at what is now the Titans franchise but now play in England, will play as overseas players for TitansCobras have retained the services of Owais Shah and have added Brad Hogg to their squad. Lions have signed Dirk Nannes and will welcome Sohail Tanvir in time for their third match while the biggest drawcard of the event belongs to Dolphins, who have snagged Chris Gayle. Warriors and Knights were both unable to afford any internationals and will play with their regular domestic squads.The competition was at risk of going unsponsored as CSA’s much-talked about bonus scandal battles through its second year. However, short-term insurance company MiWAY came on board at the last minute to back the event. Impi have also managed to secure funding from the newspaper, which recently completed its first year.Their first match will be on February 17, against Lions, while the competition itself kicks off on February 15, with the first match featuring Warriors and Cobras in Port Elizabeth.Impi squad: Paul Collingwood, Ryan ten Doeschate, Adrian McLaren, Dominic Hendricks, Richard Cameron, Cobus Pienaar, Charl Pietersen, Khaya Zondo, Siya Simetu, Beuran Hendricks, Craig Alexander, Pumelela Matshikwe, Ryan Canning

England will name their Test squad to face Pakistan in UAE on Friday as they embark on the challenge of maintaining the No. 1 spot in Test cricket

Andrew McGlashan08-Dec-2011England will name their Test squad to face Pakistan in UAE on Friday as they embark on the challenge of maintaining the No. 1 ranking. In 2011 they played eight Tests, winning six and drawing two, but in 2012 that number swells to 15 so the much-vaunted depth of England’s resources will be tested again.A mark of England’s success in climbing the rankings has been how seamlessly players have slotted in when changes have been made through form or injury, Chris Tremlett and Tim Bresnan being the stand-out examples. The players who are currently outside a likely first-choice eleven are vital to the make-up of the squad. If the selectors follow the same pattern as for Australia they will favour those players ready to step up to Test level at a moment’s notice rather than those with potential in the future. The England Lions trips of the subcontinent will allow those players on the fringe to play regular cricket in case reinforcements are required.The key position is which spinner (or even spinners) accompanies Graeme Swann in the squad. There needs to be at least one option who, if the worst case scenario struck and Swann was ruled out of a match, could be the frontline spinner in a Test. Currently that man remains Monty Panesar who toured Australia as Swann’s understudy but wasn’t required. Last season he was the highest wicket-taker in Division One of the County Championship in 2011 with 69 victims at 27.24.Scott Borthwick, the Durham legspinner, Hampshire’s Danny Briggs and Simon Kerrigan from Lancashire, who took 9 for 51 against Hampshire last year, are the rising stars so it is shaping as now or never for Panesar, who has spent the last couple of months playing club cricket in Sydney, to resume his Test career.Yet, whether Panesar makes the first eleven will depend on if Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower are willing to move away from the current balance of six batsmen, the keeper and four bowlers – albeit in conditions that haven’t demanded a second spinner, or specialist fifth bowler – unless they opt for the risky strategy of two quicks and two spinners.The prolific form of England’s top five, Matt Prior’s consistency in Test cricket, plus the developing allround skills of Bresnan and Stuart Broad, suggest England could cope with the shift in strategy but don’t be surprised to see the balance remain the same. However, there is no doubt that at some point next year – whether in UAE, Sri Lanka or India – England will need two spinners in the same attack.England’s previous Test team, against India at The Oval in August, was without Jonathan Trott due to injury and Ravi Bopara was in the middle order. Trott, the ICC International Cricketer of the Year, will be back at No. 3 against Pakistan and Eoin Morgan will expect to retain his spot if he completes a successful recovery from the shoulder surgery that ruled him out of the one-day tour of India.At the end of England’s home season Bopara’s stock had risen considerably after a successful one-day series against India, but the return contest on the subcontinent didn’t see further development as he became one of a number of England batsmen to struggle against spin. The other options include promoting James Taylor or even taking Samit Patel to cover a number of bases with his spin bowling.In the pace-bowling department there are plentiful options to choose from. The depth available is highlighted by Tremlett’s situation. He began the year by helping seal the Ashes series then starred in the dramatic victory against Sri Lanka, at Cardiff, before bagging career-best figures of 6 for 48 at The Rose Bowl. Yet, so seamlessly did Bresnan replace him against India after injury struck that he was hardly missed.Now, having lost his place to injury he will need someone to break down – or Bresnan to not recover from his elbow surgery – for a spot to open up. Then there’s Steven Finn who was England’s one bright spot during the one-day series in India. He bowled with pace and hostility having developed his game away from Test cricket and looked primed for another opportunity.The final spot will be a reserve keeper and Steven Davies could fill the same role he did during the Ashes. That would mean only one change – Bopara for Paul Collingwood – from the original 16 that travelled to Australia last year. Davies hasn’t featured for England since the one-day series in Australia, at the start of which he was omitted from the World Cup squad in favour of Prior. He scored 1035 runs at 39.80 in the County Championship for Surrey although another option could be Jonny Bairstow if the selectors want to have a look to the future.Possible squad Andrew Strauss (capt), Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Chris Tremlett, Steven Finn, Ravi Bopara, Monty Panesar, Steven Davies

Ricky Ponting, the Australia batsman, has said that he encouraged India’s Rahul Dravid to keep going when their sides met in a two-Test series in India last October

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Aug-2011Ricky Ponting has said that he encouraged Rahul Dravid to fight through his struggles and continue playing when their sides met in the two-Test series in India last October. Dravid was going through a lean patch at the time – his only century in 2010 up till then had been against Bangladesh and he managed just one half-century during the series against Australia – but Ponting said he urged Dravid to ignore critics who wrote him off.”I remember after our last series in India there was a lot of talk and speculation about Dravid being finished,” Ponting told . “I actually went and found him at the end of the series and said ‘don’t you even think about retiring’ because I just saw some stuff in a few of his innings that suggested he was still a very, very good player. I just said ‘don’t let them wear you down, don’t let them get you down’. I received a similar text message before and after the Ashes from him as well.”After that home series against Australia, Dravid scored two centuries against New Zealand before a string of low scores in South Africa. Since then, he has been prolific in tough conditions, with four centuries in seven Tests spread across West Indies and England. In the second of those tours, where England humbled India to claim the No. 1 Test ranking, Dravid was easily India’s best batsman, with three centuries and 461 runs over the four Tests.Ponting, 36, has not scored a Test century since January 2010, said it was nice to see the 38-year-old Dravid doing well. He believed players like Dravid were as much an inspiration for senior players like himself, as for youngsters.”There are a few [who provide an inspiration for batsmen of advancing years]. Sachin [Tendulkar] and [Jacques] Kallis both had a great last year; Dravid is doing well now. It’s not only good for guys of my age to see guys doing that, it’s good for the younger blokes to see it as well; to know that if you keep doing the right things and working hard, and if you’ve got talent, then age is not a barrier in our game.”While young players have role models to look up to, Ponting said he worried that an excess of Twenty20 cricket played at youth level would hinder the development of Test batsmen.”The big worry I’ve had about Twenty20 cricket and even other shorter forms of the game being played at really developmental times in kids’ careers is that it won’t teach them the art of concentration. Cricket for me when I was growing up meant batting until someone got me out, and if that took them a week then that’s how long it took them.”Now, even Under-17s and Under-19s are playing T20 games in national championships, and at the detriment of two-day games. Good state players these days are averaging 35; if you were averaging 35 when I was playing your dad would go and buy you a basketball or a footy and tell you to play that. So there are areas of concern there; I don’t know how you change them.”Ponting is one of the few senior members left in what is a transitional Australia team that goes up against Sri Lanka in a three-Test series. He said India, who lost their No. 1 Test ranking in England, could also enter a similar phase once their experienced batsmen retired, but believed their barren bowling reserves were a bigger cause for concern.”India still haven’t reached that point that I thought they’d get to yet. They’ve still got that crux, those great batters in that side. Time will tell with India now. Dravid was probably one who was in the gun before the rest of them and he’s found a way to come through. They [Tendulkar, Dravid and VVS Laxman] are all about the same age and they won’t go on forever. They will be tested more than anything with their bowlers. I think we found even in the last few years that a lot of their spin bowling probably isn’t as strong as it used to be, and if you take Zaheer [Khan] out of their fast bowling stocks there’s not much left there either; so they’ve got an interesting couple of years ahead.”India’s whitewash in England has led to criticism that there is too much emphasis on the shorter formats of the game in the country, and Ponting, who has not played in the IPL since the end of its first season, said the tournament was affecting India’s cricket.”They’re probably prioritising Twenty20 cricket as much as anyone aren’t they, with the IPL being based there and the commitment some players have to certain franchises and tournaments going on around that. I reckon a good example of where their cricket is now is the fact they played RP Singh in that last Test match, when he hadn’t played a first-class game since January.”While India have got the great players they’ve had they’ll remain competitive, but once those guys move on it’ll be really interesting for them, and I think South Africa will be exactly the same. Once [Graeme] Smith and Kallis and [Dale] Steyn go out of that team it’ll be interesting to see how they rebuild as well.”

Australian batsman Sam Robson hit an unbeaten 94 and helped maintain Middlesex’s promotion bid with a six-wicket County Championship win over Division Two rivals Surrey in Guildford

23-Jul-2011
ScorecardAustralian batsman Sam Robson hit an unbeaten 94 and helped maintain Middlesex’s promotion bid with a six-wicket County Championship win over Division Two rivals Surrey in Guildford.The 22-year-old from Paddington, New South Wales, decided the outcome by scoring the sixth half-century of his fledgling first-class career in helping to steer the visitors to their victory target of 189 with 29 overs to spare.Having seen three of his team-mates depart in the space of nine overs, Robson maintained a cool head to lead the visiting run chase with a three-hour stay that included 11 fours and a six. Together with his captain Neil Dexter, Robson added 86 in 17.3 overs either side of tea for the fourth wicket to take their side to the brink of victory before Dexter fell leg before for 31 after an hour at the crease.It was left to Robson, a dual passport holder, to see the visitors to the win line with a back-foot force to the ropes at long-on to give Middlesex 22 points to Surrey’s three. After a circumspect start to their run chase through opening partners Robson and Scott Newman, Middlesex suffered a case of the mid-session jitters in losing three quick wickets.Newman (39) tossed away a good start with a back-foot waft against Zander de Bruyn to be caught behind, then the same bowler darted one back off the seam to pluck out the off stump of Chris Rogers (6).Dawid Malan, the third left-hander in the Middlesex top four, attempted to withdraw the bat against Tim Linley only to steer a catch low to Tom Maynard at third slip to go for four and make it 84 for 3.Robson, crab-like in his stance at the crease but with a penchant for jumping into the air when forcing through the covers, found a willing ally in his skipper Dexter who departed with only 19 needed for victory. At the start of the final day Surrey, who had been made to follow on, batted for just over an hour in adding 73 to their total of 379.Again, it was Friday’s century-maker Maynard who entertained the meagre Saturday crowd with his big hitting and fearless stroke play as he took his boundary count to 17 fours and six sixes. The young Welshman rode his luck and was dropped three times; twice by keeper John Simpson when stood up and more inexplicably by Dexter, who downed a sitter at mid-on, again off the bowling of Corey Collymore.The hosts soon lost night-watchman Linley leg before to Tim Murtagh then Maynard’s career-best knock came to an end on 141 off 101 balls when he took one risk too many and skied off a leading edge to Jamie Dalrymple at slip.Murtagh then took his match tally to 10 for 128 and his season’s championship aggregate to 50 wickets when he snared Stuart Meaker leg-before without scoring. Last man Jade Dernbach holed out to mid-on to give the luckless Collymore a deserved wicket and leave Middlesex a minimum of 80 overs in which to chase their victory target and complete their first championship double over Surrey since 1983.

Former West Indies fast bowler Curtly Ambrose has been inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2011Former West Indies fast bowler Curtly Ambrose has been inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Joining Ambrose in 2011’s Hall of Fame class was an Australian trio of former allrounder Alan Davidson, former women’s captain Belinda Clark and the late fast bowler Frederick Spofforth.One of the finest bowlers of all time, Ambrose picked up 405 Test wickets at an average of 20.99 in a career that had remarkable performances. He took 6 for 24 to skittle England for 46 in Trinidad in 1993, and 7 for 25 against Australia at the WACA in 1993 to win the series for his side. He also played 176 ODIs, taking 225 wickets at an average of 24.12.”It is a privilege and an honour to be inducted in the Hall of Fame,” Ambrose said. “In the history of cricket there have been many great cricketers and to be part of that elite group, I’m very happy and very humbled.”I never thought that this day would come. This only tells me that all the hard work I put in throughout my career did not go unnoticed. I see this also as a just reward for all the joy and happiness that I may have brought to cricket and cricketers alike.”Ambrose, Davidson and Clark will be inducted during the ICC annual awards in London, while Spofforth will be inducted later next year in a ceremony involving the former fast bowler’s family.

A round-up of the third day of the tenth round in Division One of the Quaid-E-Azam Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Dec-2010Babar Naeem led Rawalpindi to what was ultimately a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Faisalabad with an attacking half-century at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Naeem made an unbeaten, run-a-ball 83, the highest score of the game, as the hosts made light of what could have been a tough chase in a low-scoring game. After 31 wickets had fallen on the first two days, only two fell on the third day as Naeem and Shoaib Nasir added 74 for the second wicket to effectively seal the win and take them to second place in the points table.National Bank of Pakistan moved up to fourth in the table after completing a seven-wicket win over table-toppers Habib Bank Ltd at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal continued to put pressure on Pakistan’s selectors to recall him to the national side; his 70 off 62 ensured NBP raced to their 153-run target. HBL gave themselves a sniff of a chance of getting back into the match with three early wickets, but Kamran and Naumanullah put together an unbeaten 108-run fourth-wicket stand to see NBP home. HBL seamer Sarmad Anwar took two early wickets as NBP were tottering at 45 for 3, before Akmal came in and took the game away from HBL.Islamabad needed only 17.3 overs on the third day to complete a comprehensive win against Sialkot at the Diamond Club Ground in Islamabad. The margin in the end was an innings and 50 runs, as Sialkot collapsed to 138 all out in their second innings. It was only a slight improvement from their first innings, when they were bowled out for 131 and it was the Islamabad seamers once again who took all the wickets. Nasrullah Khan finished with nine wickets in the match, Fakhar Hussain added two scalps to his first-innings tally of six, and Rauf Akbar, who missed out in the first innings, too three in the second. Sialkot started the day at 51 for 4, and lost wickets at regular intervals on the third morning. Captain Mansoor Ajmad managed 59, but he was one of only four Sialkot batsmen to reach double figures.Multan sunk to their tenth straight defeat, as Karachi Blues beat them by eight wickets at the National Stadium in Karachi. Karachi’s win had been a foregone conclusion since they bowled Multan out for 65 on the first day. The visitors started the third day at 205 for 8 in their second innings, just five runs ahead of Karachi. Mazhar Bashir got a few quick runs on the third morning, getting to 55 not out of 66, and Multan set Karachi an easy 50 runs to win. Seamer Tabish Khan took Multan’s two remaining wickets to finish with 6 for 79 in the second innings and 11 wickets in the match. Karachi lost two early wickets, but didn’t waste too much time, knocking off the required runs in 10 overs.Asad Ali bowled Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited back into their game against Water and Power Development Authority at the Lahore City Cricket Association Ground, taking seven wickets in WAPDA’s second innings to restrict them to 257 after they had reached 154 for 3. Asad first removed Nawaz Sardar for 69 before Ali Azmat was run out for 3. Ammer Sajjad and Ahmer Said added 43 before Asad struck again, having Sajad caught behind for 57. The lower order then capitulated, as Asad finished with 7 for 105 to give him match figures of 11 for 174. Chasing 344 to win, SNGPL lost Yasir Arafat without scoring but Naeemuddin, who is not out on 74, added 83 with and Jahanzeb Abdullah and 40 with Khurram Shehzad to take his team to 123 for 2, leaving them requiring 221 for victory on the last day.Pakistan batsman Shoib Malik’s half-century helped Pakistan International Airlines extend their lead over Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited to 249 with two second-innings wickets remaining at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad. Malik made a determined 55 after PIA had slumped to 88 for 5 and then 108 for 6, finding enough support in Tahir Khan, who made 24, to add 62 for the seventh wicket. Seamer Rehan Riaz did the damage for ZTBL, taking 6 for 48 from 20 overs.

Zimbabwe have included allrounders Malcolm Waller and Greg Lamb in their 15-man squad for the lone Test against Pakistan which starts on Thursday

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Aug-2011Zimbabwe have included allrounders Malcolm Waller and Greg Lamb in their 15-man squad for the lone Test against Pakistan which starts on Thursday. Injured medium-pacer Keegan Meth and allrounder Elton Chigumbura, who picked up a knee injury on match eve, are the only absentees from the squad which memorably beat Bangladesh earlier this month in Zimbabwe’s return to Tests after six years. Chamu Chibhabha was drafted into the side in place of Chigumbura.Lamb, 30, has played 14 one-dayers for Zimbabwe since his debut last year. He makes it to the Test pool after taking three wickets, including that of the experienced pair of Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan, in the tour match against the Pakistanis and following that up with a solid 40.Waller also had a decent outing against the Pakistanis, taking two tail-end wickets before making a brisk 32. He returned to the Zimbabwe set-up for the one-dayers against Bangladesh, after being sidelined for more than 20 months. He was also the fourth-highest run-getter last season in the Castle Logan Cup, Zimbabwe’s domestic first-class competition.Squad: Brendan Taylor (capt), Regis Chakabva, Chamu Chibhabha, Craig Ervine, Kyle Jarvis, Hamilton Masakadza, Tino Mawoyo, Chris Mpofu, Ray Price, Vusi Sibanda, Tatenda Taibu (wk), Prosper Utseya, Brian Vitori, Malcolm Waller, Greg Lamb

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has launched a programme aimed at educating its cricketers and officials on staying clear of corruption in the game and maintaining appropriate standards of conduct

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Apr-2011The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has launched a programme aimed at educating its cricketers and officials to stay clear of corruption in the game and maintaining appropriate standards of conduct on and off the field.”We have held lectures for all the regional teams including coaches who are part of the domestic structure and also for the national under-19 and A team players and support staff,” former wicketkeeper Wasim Bari, who heads the programme, told The participants were given lectures on the ICC’s anti-corruption code and the PCB code of conduct. “We are also telling them how to behave in a dressing room, how to interact with strangers and outsiders and how to avoid getting lured into corrupt practices,” Bari said. “We are preparing them for international cricket.”Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, who are currently serving minimum five-year bans from the ICC’s anti-corruption tribunal for their role in a spot-fixing scandal during last year’s tour to England, were not allowed to take part in the programme. One of the steps for their rehabilitation in the verdicts was their involvement in such programmes.”Since they have appealed against their bans the matter is technically sub-judice,” said Bari. “So we can’t involve them at the moment.”Lectures were delivered in Urdu and a manual based on the ICC anti-corruption code and the PCB’s own code of conduct in Urdu was also distributed. The PCB also plans to hire foreign experts to give future lectures.On Wednesday the PCB also introduced stricter regulations for agents wishing to represent their players commercially, a consequence of the alleged misdeeds of player-agent Mazhar Majeed in the scandal that saw Asif, Amir and Butt punished.The developments are part of initiatives recommended to the board by the ICC’s task force on Pakistan. Last October, in the immediate aftermath of the spot-fixing scandal, a concerned ICC had recommended a series of remedial measures for the PCB to implement in an effort to clean up the game in Pakistan.The task force, headed by ECB chairman Giles Clarke, was deputed to work with the PCB in the implementation.