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The man responsible for running the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean has claimed that two of the region’s highest-profile cricket grounds are in desperate need of renovation.Chris Dehring, chief executive officer of Windies World Cup, told the Sunday Sun newspaper that Jamaica’s Sabina Park and Barbados’s Kensington Oval were not fit to be used in the 2007 World Cup, and that investment of several millions of dollars was needed to get them ready in time.”You are talking about two countries which have been so-called traditional venues of international cricket in the Caribbean,” Dehring explained. “Yet, because of their status as traditional venues, very little, or certainly not enough, has been done, to improve the quality of the stadiums in these countries over the last 40 years.”So what you have is a situation where the best or the most modern cricket stadiums are actually now in the Eastern Caribbean: St Lucia, Antigua, St Vincent and Grenada, which have new facilities and purpose-built cricket stadiums.”That’s one area where both Jamaica and Barbados have fallen behind. I think it’s quite sad when you think about the tradition of cricket in Barbados where you have Kensington Oval, which the Barbadians refer to as the Mecca. I ask myself if this is the Mecca, why hasn’t an investment befitting a Mecca taken place in Barbados over the last 30 years.”Dehring did, however, argue that the very lack of readiness presented its own opportunities. “The beauty about it is that there is really no country that is absolutely ready, so, this is a green field. You don’t have these massive infrastructures you would have to move out of the way to put the World Cup infrastructure. It really is an opportunity to put in place exactly what we want and factor in what we need in the Caribbean, whether it is the cricket World Cup or not.”Dehring concluded that although the plans were as much as two years behind schedule, he believed that the Caribbean would be ready in time, and he dismissed reports that the International Cricket Council (ICC) was looking at alternative venues. “All of the television rights have been sold all around the world,” he said. “I don’t think it could be disbanded even if the ICC wanted to, and the ICC and the Caribbean have no intention of walking away from the exciting challenge of the World Cup in the West Indies.”Asked whether last week’s suggestions for a revamp of the whole one-day structure would affect the tournament, Dehring smiled. “It’s just like saying that somebody submitted a proposal for restructuring the Olympic Games and Athens is in danger.”

New Zealand Cricket’s financial performance came in slightly above budget with a surplus before grants of $2,598,518 last summer.That was $68,000 above budget, a performance NZC chairman Sir John Anderson described as “a sound result.”However, when the grants of $4,339,489 to associations, including an extra one million dollars for the return to two full rounds of Shell Trophy play, were taken into account the net result for the year was a deficit of $1,740,971.The annual report will be presented at NZC’s annual meeting at the New Zealand Cricket Pavilion at Bert Sutcliffe Oval on September 14.Anderson commented: “New Zealand Cricket’s business is cyclical in nature, revolving equally around the commercial value of opposition teams touring New Zealand and revenue-sharing from World Cups.”New Zealand Cricket is in a sound financial position, with significantly increased revenues in the next two years confirmed from tours to New Zealand by England this coming season, India in 2002/03, and the World Cup in South Africa in February 2003.”This confirmed revenue will provide a solid base to allow New Zealand Cricket to continue with its mission to promote cricket nationally, provide appropriate national competitions and field competitive international sides,” he said.However, he attacked a prevailing attitude, especially in government circles, that leading sports such as cricket no longer require funding support due to their ability to attract significant television rights fees and sponsorships.Anderson said: “This presents a serious concern for New Zealand Cricket as we recognise the business environment in which we operate is fragile and television rights income can vary significantly from year to year.”Anderson also recognised the performance of New Zealand’s teams on the field of play.”For the first time in our cricket history the New Zealand men’s side celebrated the winning of a world title, lifting the ICC Knockout Trophy in Kenya during September.”Three months later when captain of the CLEAR White Ferns, Emily Drumm, held aloft the prized CricInfo Women’s World Cup after a tense final against Australia, both our international teams had achieved a historic result.”These achievements by the players were the pinnacle of five years of dedicated effort to up-skill and significantly resource the elite level of both the men’s and women’s game,” he said.Cricket’s place in the New Zealand sporting spectrum was confirmed as the country’s No 2 sport, and the most popular summer sport by UMR Insight in its annual National Business Review-Compaq sports poll.The poll showed 67% of people were either very interested or fairly interested in cricket, an increase of 13% on the last poll in 1998.Anderson also said the website of New Zealand Cricket, nzcricket.co.nz had become the No 1 sports site in New Zealand over the past 12 months.”The site, hosted by CricInfo, attracted more than seven million page views during December 2000 compared to 5.8 million the previous December. This no doubt reflected the popularity of the women’s world cup.”However, one of the biggest areas of growth on the site during the 2000/01 summer was in the live scoring of Shell Cup and Shell Trophy; again affirming that although fewer people are physically attending matches, cricket remains a passion with a huge number of New Zealanders,” he said.Anderson also praised the efforts of Christopher Doig, who resigned as Chief Executive during the year.”The past five years have seen a period of unprecedented growth in the structures and business fortunes of New Zealand Cricket, building on the recommendations of the 1995 Hood Report.”The resignation of Christopher Doig as Chief Executive, in February, provided an opportunity for the Board of NZC to take stock of the considerable progress made under his stewardship and to reaffirm the organisation’s direction moving forward.”Christopher Doig had signficantly grown the revenue streams. His skill in securing sponsorships and commercial contracts provided the platform to professionalise the delivery of a number of facets of the game,” he said.

Surrey’s jubilant supporters on the Family Day at Foster’s Oval saw thepresentation of the trophy to the ‘Lions’ for winning the Norwich UnionNational League Division Two.It’s been a most successful season for the London team having already gainedpromotion, prior to today’s match, to the first division of the League andwill, no doubt, be completing the formality of gaining the one required pointto clinch the Championship title from their match at Old Trafford next week.As such, their last league match today was simply of academic interest tothem and for their opponents, Durham, the victory by 59 runs would be alittle consolation. They have had a poor season, they will still be finishingtowards the bottom of the league’s second division points table and have beenrelegated to the second division of the championship. However, they will bepleased with their fourth victory of the season today in the League.Surrey, having been obliged to bat second, made a spirited reply with IanWard showing glimpses of the form that brought him the big hundred in thatrecord-breaking stand with Mark Butcher earlier in the week in thechampionship match. Ward and Alistair Brown hit freely with the latterreaching his half-century from as few as 36 balls, having hit seven of thoseto the boundaries and a six.They put up 87 on the scoreboard before Brown became the first of IanHunter’s three victims. When he claimed the next two wickets, he had taken 3for 7 in a 12-ball spell. Surrey’s next stand of 38 was the highest of theirinnings and when that was broken with the dismissal of Gareth Batty for 20,Surrey were unable to make a recovery. The only score of note after that was37 by Gary Butcher as Durham’s bowlers took control and off-spinner NickPhillips with 4 for 30 produced his best figures in the League. It tookDurham 40.3 overs to dismiss Surrey for 192.Durham had begun their innings poorly, losing two wickets for 31 within halfan hour to the bowling of Carl Greenidge. But in distinct contrast to thatstart came the third wicket stand between Jimmy Daley and Paul Collingwood.They put on 177 runs which is a Durham record for the third wicket in theNational League. It was a weakened Surrey attack with none of the bowlers whowere in the championship match which ended the previous day, included in thisteam of five changes. But, nevertheless, Daley and Collingwood batted well,playing some fine strokes during their 196-ball partnership.By the time Collingwood had his off-stump uprooted by Tim Murtagh in the40th. over, he had 86 to his name from 97 balls with eight boundaries and asix which he hit over long-off in the previous over from the same bowler. Ithad been an expensive over conceding 14 but not quite as expensive asGreenidge’s first over when he returned for a second spell, that went for 16.Jon Lewis hit a quick 25 from 19 balls before being caught at long-off from alofted drive and in the meantime Daley reached his maiden century inlimited-over’s cricket, he has three in first-class. Having opened the batting, he was the last to be dismissed, off the final ball of the innings for 105 from 134 balls.It had been a brilliant innings with 46 of his runs coming from boundaries. He had taken Durham to 251 for 5, their highest total this season in one-day cricket.

ScorecardSarfaraz Khan and Ricky Bhui during their match-winning partnership•PTI

A tight bowling performance followed by Sarfaraz Khan’s unbeaten 59 steered India Under-19s to a comfortable seven-wicket win in the tri-series final against Bangladesh Under-19s in Kolkata. Bangladesh collapsed to 116 in 36.5 overs, after which India reached the target in just 13.3 overs.Opting to bat, Bangladesh were rescued briefly by a third-wicket stand of 54 runs between Joyraz Sheikh and Nazmul Hossain Shanto after the openers fell early. The Indian attack, led by left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar, then rocked the Bangladesh middle order, reducing them to 96 for 6 from 67 for 2. As many as four Bangladesh batsmen were dismissed for ducks as they lost their last eight wickets for 49 runs.Jaker Ali’s 24 was the only resistance India faced after the third-wicket partnership, as no batsman apart from Joyraz, Shanto and Jaker crossed double-figures.India chased down the target with rather ease despite losing three early wickets in the space of 12 balls. Ricky Bhui then combined with Sarfaraz to post an undefeated 75-run partnership that saw India through.

Kenya’s allrounder Thomas Odoyo was named as the winner of the inaugural Associate ODI Player of the Year at the ICC Awards ceremony in Johannesburg.In 19 ODIs during the voting period, including two for Africa XI against Asia XI at the Afro-Asia Cup in India, Odoyo took 27 wickets with his right-arm medium pace at an average of 24.25, including three four-wicket hauls. In that time he also scored 488 runs at an average of 48.80 and with a brisk strike-rate of 85.61 runs per hundred balls.His efforts were instrumental in securing victory for Kenya at the inaugural ICC World Cricket League Division One in Nairobi last February and he also represented his country at the World Cup in the West Indies in March.Competition for this award was stiff and Odoyo narrowly beat off the challenge of other short-listed candidates, fellow Kenyan Steve Tikolo, Netherlands allrounder Ryan ten Doeschate and Canada wicketkeeper-batsman Ashish Bagai.Accepting his award, Odoyo said: “It is a great honour for me. It’s the first time for an Associate player to win an ICC Award so I am truly delighted. When we [Kenya] played in the first ICC World Cricket League I really played well and helped my team to win the competition. Hopefully this will encourage more guys in Kenya to play the game and that can only be a good thing. It is a great day for me.”The Associate ODI Player of the Year Award serves to recognise and reward the efforts in ODIs of an outstanding cricketer from the six countries outside the ICC Full Members – Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, the Netherlands and Scotland. Each of the six countries was invited to nominate players and an initial 18-strong list of nominees for this award was the result.

Younis Khan, the Pakistan captain, and Bob Woolmer, their coach, haveadmitted that they were “very disappointed” with the events that led to acouple of their players testing positive for banned substances, addingthat they would have to accept part of the responsibility for the same.Both refused to divulge too many details but said that the team couldn’tafford to be bogged down by this setback, especially before their crucialChampions Trophy opener against Sri Lanka tomorrow in Jaipur. Younis, while denyingspeculation about a third player coming under the scanner, admitted that thenews had come as a jolt but hoped that his team could pick themselves upand raise their game in tomorrow’s clash.Interestingly it was Woolmer who’d mooted the idea of testing players fordrugs – when the ICC officially instituted random dope tests for theChampions Trophy. “I instituted the idea of having our players tested fordrugs to try and obviate anything that might happen at a particular venueor tournament,” he told the media in Jaipur. “So we asked the medicalpanel to give the players drug tests – which they did at the end ofSeptember. So I take responsibility for that.”This is the first time that drug testing is officially instituted by theICC,” he continued. “Therefore we thought we’ll pre-empt that by having tosee what the players were doing. In a coach’s life, you prepare. The teamplays on the field, but you try to prepare the team. You try and make theenvironment to the best it can be, you try and give the players the bestopportunity you can. So what we need to do is to test our players – infact 25 players were tested – and unfortunately, the timing was not right,but there we are. If it’s going to happen, it happens.”However, he refused to be drawn into discussion about the exact reasonbehind the players taking banned substances. “I’ve been involved withProfessor Tim Noakes at the Sports Science Institute in Cape Town on theseparticular issues,” he continued, “and I do understand what happens. Theimportant thing is that the Pakistan Cricket Board will make a statement and let’s leave it at that for now.”Younis, who clarified that the delay in sending the results of the testsmeant the news broke on the eve of their first game, echoed the sameviewpoint. “In today’s situation, players take any small thing and itturns out to be a banned substance,” he said. “It’s all our responsibility- players, management. Hopefully it won’t happen again.”For a team that’s been shrouded in controversy over the last three months,the Champions Trophy couldn’t have got off to a more inauspicious start.Yet, Woolmer had no doubt that they would “rise to the challenge”.”We haven’t discussed this as a team yet as the events have happened veryquickly from yesterday to this morning,” Woolmer reflected. “We will besitting down with the team this evening and will chat it through. I’mpretty confident that the team will take any adversity in their stride andthey’ll rise to the occasion and play good cricket tomorrow. We have toput these issues behind us, as we have with all the other issues and get onwith playing cricket, because that’s our job, that’s what we’re paid to doand that’s what we have to do. We’ll make it very clear that we’re goingto go out there and fight very hard. It’s very important for us to try andgain two points against Sri Lanka tomorrow.”It’s been a tough few months for Woolmer, who’s had to experienceconsiderable turbulence as the Pakistan coach. He admitted that it was aunique journey – when asked if he thought about quitting the job – addingthat his love for the game was keeping him going. “There are a lot ofthings that go through your mind when these things happen,” he explainedemotionally. “One thing that holds me is that I love the game of cricket.I’ll be more excited tomorrow to get on the field and play some cricket. Iwill be honest – I haven’t come across anything like this in my life, itwill be a wonderful experience for me, it is a wonderful experience forme. It’s difficult to understand why it’s happening but it is happening,and therefore I have to deal with it as it happens. But I enjoy cricket, Ilove cricket and cricket is my first passion and only passion. I do thisjob because of that reason so whatever happens, happens.”

Duncan Fletcher, the England coach, has suggested he could continue his role beyond the 2007 World Cup. Fletcher, born in Zimbabwe, told the : “I’m going through the 2007 World Cup and we’ll see what happens after that. My enthusiasm is as strong as ever.””It’s also because I’m seeing our one-day side develop nicely. They have lagged behind the Test team but they’re a young team and are catching up – and increasingly they’re becoming the same team.”Fletcher, 57, has been an instrumental figure in England’s resurgence since taking up his post in 1999, at a time when England’s Test fortunes were at their lowest ebb. Remarkably, only six years later, England are now placed second in the Test table and much of the behind-the-scenes changes are Fletcher’s work: it was he, for example, who helped introduce the controversial central contracts, a move which many believe has been a key factor in allowing England’s Test players sufficient time to recover and recuperate in between Tests and tours.Despite his efforts to help and improve English cricket, it was reported yesterday by the that he has been denied British citizenship. The Home Office declined to comment.

New Zealand are scheduled to play their first full series in Bangladesh in October, the Bangladesh Cricket Board has confirmed. The series will consist of two Tests and three one-dayers, with a practice match kicking off the tour.The Bangladesh board hopes to inaugurate a new venue in Chittagong during the series, but whether it will host a match will be decided after an ICC venue inspection team examines the facilities. The ICC team will then inspect three new cricket grounds to see if they are up to Test quality.The Tests will be played in Dhaka and Chittagong, and the three one-day internationals will be shared between the two cities.New Zealand tour itinerary
October 14-16: Three-day practise match
October 19-23: First Test, Dhaka
October 26-30: Second Test, Chittagong
November 2: First ODI, Chittagong
November 5: Second ODI, Dhaka (D-N)
November 7: Third ODI, Dhaka (D-N)

After the euphoria of their epic and record-breaking victory in the fourth Test against Australia in Antigua, West Indies must now show some more of the same energy and enterprise in the one-day international series, starting in Jamaica on Saturday, or the Aussies will bring them back down to earth as fiercely as a Glenn McGrath tongue-lashing.

West Indies go into the seven-match series fielding a largely inexperienced squad, with an average age of just under 25. There are three players from outside the Test side: the World Cup duo of Ricardo Powell and Corey Collymore, and the uncapped Ryan Hurley, an offspinning allrounder from Barbados, but no Shivnarine Chanderpaul, whose brilliant hundred paved the way for Tuesday’s historic victory.Chanderpaul fractured the middle finger on his left hand while taking to catch Adam Gilchrist during Australia’s first innings at St. John’s, and he will now miss the entire one-day series against Australia and, possibly, next month’s series against Sri Lanka as well. “The fracture was complex and required urgent surgery,” said Ricky Skerritt, the West Indies team manager. “The best medical opinion indicates that Shiv will be out of cricket for at least six weeks.”Ridley Jacobs will also miss out. Saturday’s fixture would have been his 119th ODI, but he has been given more time to recover from the groin injury which caused him to miss the second and third Tests in Trinidad and Barbados. His place will be taken by Carlton Baugh, who stood in for him in those matches and is one of five new caps in the West Indian squad, the other four being Hurley, Dave Bernard, Devon Smith and Omari Banks – whose unbeaten 47 on the final day at Antigua was a performance of huge maturity that few other 20-year-olds could have emulated.The mechanical Daren Ganga is not required, despite his twin centuries in the Test series, but Pedro Collins, who was dropped after the second Test in Trinidad, misses out as well – quite a fall from grace for a player who opened West Indies’s bowling in the first match of World Cup just three months ago.For Australia though, it’s the same old faces, as they pull on their gold jerseys for the first time since their crushing World Cup win in Johannesburg. In come Michael Bevan, Andrew Symonds, Ian Harvey and Nathan Hauritz, while Stuart MacGill, Ashley Noffke and Martyn Love nip over to England for a spot of county cricket, and Steve Waugh and Justin Langer fly home.Ricky Ponting will return to action as well, after shaking off that virus which caused him to miss the Antigua defeat. His last one-day innings – 140 not out from 121 balls – earned him the Man of the Match award in the World Cup final, and with centuries in each of his three Tests this series, West Indies need no reminder of his destructive capabilities.To date, Australia have won 10, lost 12 and tied one of their 23 ODIs in the Caribbean, and last time round in 1998-99 the seven-match series ended all square at three-all. But since then, Australia have progressed right to the top of world cricket with two World Cup wins, while apart from a spirited but ultimately doomed World Cup campaign and a 3-2 series win in India last year, West Indies haven’t made the strides they would have wanted.So as long as Brian Lara doesn’t single-handedly take the Aussies apart, and no-one on either side mentions Mrs McGrath, Australia should have no problems adding this series to their routine 3-1 Test win.West Indies Brian Lara (capt), Ramnaresh Sarwan (v-capt), Omari Banks, Carlton Baugh (wk), Corey Collymore, Mervyn Dillon, Vasbert Drakes, Chris Gayle, Ricardo Powell, Marlon Samuels, Devon Smith, David Bernard (12th Man).Australia Ricky Ponting (capt), Adam Gilchrist (wk), Michael Bevan, Andy Bichel, Ian Harvey, Matthew Hayden, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee, Darren Lehmann, Glenn McGrath, Andrew Symonds, Jimmy Maher (12th Man).

The England under-19 women’s team will start as hot favourites to retain theEuropean Cup for their country when play begins in the four-nation tournamenttoday. The round-robin competition is being held at Bradfield College, Reading,in the English county of Berkshire, and concludes on Sunday.England have generally sent their ‘A’ team to this championship, which isconducted every two years against the full senior national teams of otherEuropean countries. This year, with rebuilding of the senior squad for the 2005World Cup in their sights, all fourteen England representatives are under theage of twenty.Lancashire all-rounder Arran Thompson leads a side which includes three otherplayers who have appeared at full international level for England – LauraHarper, Nicki Shaw and sixteen year-old Leanne Davis.Three players have been chosen from the Yorkshire team that last week won theWomen’s County Championship – Laura Spragg, Claire Atkinson and Clare Gough (norelation apparently to Darren).Making their first appearance at international level in this tournament is ateam from Scotland. Women’s cricket was virtually unheard of at competitivelevel in Scotland as little as two years ago, however the hard work of adedicated group of people has seen the formation of a national side under theleadership of Linda Spence which has enjoyed success against county sides fromthe north of England.Ireland and Holland return for this year’s European Cup, but one team who willnot be present is Denmark. Women’s cricket has undergone a dramatic decline inDenmark since they hosted the 1999 European Championships, with the local clubcompetition being disbanded in 2000 when teams were unable to field sufficientplayers.England Under-19 play Scotland in the opening round today, while Ireland facethe Netherlands. England, represented in the past by their ‘A’ team, have beenunbeaten in European Cup play since the tournament’s inception in 1989.Squads:England: Arran Thompson (capt), Alexia Walker (vc), Laura Joyce, Laura Harper,Laura Spragg, Clare Gough, Kate Oakenfold, Claire Atkinson, Nicola Shaw, LeanneDavis, Sarah Clarke, Ebony Rainford-Brent, Isa Guha.Ireland: Nikki Squire (capt), Anne Linehan (vc), Caitriona Beggs, Aoife Budd,Miriam Grealey, Cecilia Joyce, Isobel Joyce, Grainne Leahy, Barbara McDonald,Ciara Metcalfe, Lara Molins, Clare O’Leary, Saibh Young.Netherlands: Carolien Salomons (capt), Teuntje de Boer, Maartje Köster, BirgitViguurs, Pauline te Beest, Cheraldine Oudolf, Annemarie Tanke, Carly Verheul,Caroline Hes, Marjolijn Molenaar, Eugenie van Leeuwen, Mandy Kornet, MinouToussaint (wk).Scotland: Linda Spence (capt), Kari Anderson (vc), Sara MacLean, ElizabethSmith, Alison Ramsay, Vari Maxwell, Kathryn White, Fiona Urquhart, AileenGalvin, Denise Newlove, Pam Quin, Caroline Sweetman, Shona McIntyre.