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With talent in abundance, Pakistan cricket team which is perhaps the best on paper in the world looks demoralised because of the total mess in the management.The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), is being run simply on personal whims of the establishment totally ignoring the potential of the players and selection or appointment of team officials who are simply either incompetent or have no say whatsoever in its functioning or policy making decisions. Whatever may be the reason, in nutshell the team’s performance is proof enough of all-round deterioration.The team’s performance at Tangiers (Morocco) and Nairobi in the just concluded tri-nation competition exposed the intentions and calibre of all those who are associated with the team and those who are at the helm of affairs. The responsibility cannot be put only on the team management or the establishment. If one cares to do postmortem of the recent events, which is a must and if someone cares to improve the things, it is evident that there is unnecessary interference from some quarters which is adversely affecting the team’s performance.The role in the overall performance of the team shows that personal likes and dislikes is governing the policy of the PCB. If national interest is dear to anyone, this factor should never be allowed to creep in. The problem is that it has become the governing factor. Those who talk of merit are living in a fool’s paradise at least in the present PCB setup.Every move of the establishment is manoeuvred which has plagued the board. Nobody in the PCB seems to be sincere or loyal to the game. If there would have been sincere people, they would not have allowed sports vultures to hang around. What is the contribution of individuals like Zakir Hussain Syed to cricket. He was offered a lucrative job of secretary, Asian Cricket Council and unconfirmed reports suggest that a situation is being created to adjust him somewhere in the PCB hierarchy.Presence of a few shady characters in Morocco has given new dimensions to rumours that Pakistan lost some of the matches in Tangiers under suspicious circumstances. May be someone sensing rift in the team and being present on the scene made full use of the situation.The Kenya episode, which resulted in Yousuf Youhana being sent home was the overflow of happening in Morocco which was covered up under the guise of fitness problem of the batsman. Can the PCB explain how come Youhana went for an MRI test without the consent of the team doctor. It was all doctored and nothing else.The present PCB setup has a set plan to have only ‘yes’ men or paid employees who dare not raise their finger on any issue. It adopted the policy of having paid selectors and perhaps the PCB chief himself was the worst sufferer when his yes men dare not pinpoint the fault of Junaid Zia’s bowling action. The result was that Junaid was called for chucking on four occasions. Team coach Haroon Rasheed failed to show any wisdom by not pointing out the problem with Junaid’s action after the first call. But, Haroon was more interested in his bread and butter than anything else.The present chairman of the selection committee, Wasim Bari, a gentleman cricketer, just cannot afford to put his foot down and at times he is not even aware of team selection. The PCB is in dire need of men of the stature of Haseeb Ahsan who despite having best relations with the then BCCP chief, Air Marshal (Retd) Nur Khan refused to select, player of the calibre of former Pakistan captain, Imran Khan, purely on medical grounds and stepped down, totally ignoring his relationship with Nur Khan.When Haseeb toured England with the Pakistan team as manager, the British press which is always out to run down visiting teams was perhaps most respectful. Then we have a man in Naushad Ali, who is a clean man and has managed the Pakistan team, is a former Chairman of the Selection Committee and a former ICC match referee with good reputation.But such people cannot be inducted in the board as they are men of principle and would work with full freedom without any interference. Nobody can doubt their credibility and credentials. There are some other people but they do not suit the present management who want to meddle in everything and are responsible for the present mess up.The latest action of the PCB in retaining Shoaib Malik and sending back Azhar Mahmood is simply disgusting. Shoaib Malik is being rated as a better off-spinner than Saqlain Mushtaq and a better batsman than Saeed Anwar. So much so that the PCB toyed with the idea of promoting him as an opener. Shoaib Malik scored two hundreds in one-dayer which gave boost to the manipulators to promote him in the batting order.The whole effort fired back as whenever he went to open the innings he played dot balls, resulting in increased pressure on the team. He only wanted to secure his place in the team caring hoots for the team interest. He failed as a bowler when in three matches he just bowled one over for 15 runs. In the last match against Australia he scored 37 from 94 balls which totally belied the PCB hierarchy’s doctrine.If anyone from Nairobi had to be sent home, it should have been Shoaib Malik, the worst performer on the present form and not Azhar Mahmood who has been declared unfit, a reasoning which is hard to challenge as neither the player nor the team doctor will support for obvious reasons.Those who follow the game must be surprised with the way the present management is handling Shahid Afridi, who holds the world record of scoring fastest century in one-day. The team management is toying with his batting position. He has batted at No. 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 and last time he was sent to open the innings. Can anybody in his senses ever make such decision unless there is some motive behind it.Misbah-ul-Haq, who has been unlucky in the past at last got a chance when the team management was left with no option and he slapped in the face of the establishment by scoring 50, 39 and 50. What was the team of so many experts travelling with the squad doing all along. All the team officials should be kicked out and fresh team of management should be inducted. But nothing will change as long there is interference from the top. Unless everyone who is given a particular assignment has a free hand which at the moment seems impossible. What has been the benefit of specialist, trainers imported from Australia for batting, bowling and fielding.Pakistan sports in general and cricket in particular is on decline and one cannot expect any improvement unless we do away with the politics of regionalism, nepotism and ‘sifarish’ and work with the sole aim of promoting national interest, keeping personal interest at a distance. No doubt it is easy to preach than practice but nothing is impossible if there is sincerity and loyalty to the nation which should not be compromised.

Pakistan raced to an easy ten-wicket victory over Zimbabwe at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo soon after lunch on the fourth day of the match. Left 57 to win, they took only 8.3 overs to get there without losing a wicket.Zimbabwe got off to the worst possible start to the fourth day, losing Andy Flower to the fourth ball of the morning without addition to their overnight score of 171 for five. A ball from Waqar Younis jagged back viciously from the pitch to trap him plumb lbw inside the crease. Flower was out for 13 to complete what for him was a disappointing series, with only one fifty to his credit. All hopes of setting Pakistan any sort of belated challenge or achieving a draw, with no rain at all likely, were crushed.Andy Blignaut began confidently, but had an escape when on 7 as slip Inzamam was slow to react to an edge that flew to his left. He continued to live dangerously, but the impression was that his approach was more `let’s have a bash’ rather than `let’s make a fight of it’. Waqar tried to trap him with a few bouncers, and Blignaut pulled him for two fine sixes, and was then dropped near the boundary attempting a third. Waqar may still bowl with tremendous skill, but his once feared pace has gone, especially on this slow pitch.Tatenda Taibu did his part well, and the fifty partnership came up off only 59 balls – of which Blignaut scored 37. Shortly afterwards Zimbabwe saved the innings defeat and went into credit with four wickets remaining. Blignaut immediately threw his wicket away, leaping extravagantly down the pitch, head in the air, to Saqlain and was easily stumped. His 41 came off 32 balls and included two sixes and four fours.Mluleki Nkala continued the fight with Taibu, but was surprised to be given out by umpire Venkat, caught at the wicket for 14, trying to hit Saqlain out of the ground, possibly the first really dubious dismissal of the match. Raymond Price, usually dour in Tests, experimented with the long handle and reached double figures for the first time in Tests before being bowled for 12 by a superb leg-cutter from Mohammad Sami.Henry Olonga held out with Taibu until lunch, after which Pakistan took the second new ball. The last pair did not survive long, as Taibu chipped an easy catch to mid-on for 57, leaving Olonga unbeaten with 3 and Pakistan with 57 to win.A wide and two fours by Taufeeq Umar off the first over, bowled by Olonga, suggested a canter. Price opened from the other end and was hit for four and six by Saleem Elahi, following which Olonga dropped a return catch from Taufeeq. The batsmen dealt mainly in boundaries; the batsmen did not need to run until they scored the 39th run of the innings.When Saleem turned Olonga to leg for the winning run, he had 30 (four fours, two sixes) and Taufeeq 21 (five fours). Pakistan thus deservedly completed a two-nil victory in the series.

After weeks or will-they, won’t-they, a weakened New Zealand team finally arrived in Lahore for the start of their short tour of Pakistan.The trip, scheduled as compensation following the abandonment of New Zealand’s 2001 tour after a bomb blast in Karachi, gets underway with back-to-back day-night matches at Lahore on Sunday and Monday, with five games in all. Faisalabad hosts the third match on December 3 before the series ends at Rawaplindi on December 5 and 7.There were several high-profile absences in the squad, with four players – Ian Butler, Craig McMillan, Scot Styris and Lou Vincent – withdrawing after receiving anonymous email threats a fortnight ago. Stephen Fleming pulled out after failing to recover from an abdominal injury.The arrival was low-key with the tour party quickly ushered through the airport and onto their hotel, all the time accompanied by a large number of police and army commandos.”We will provide the New Zealand team with full-fledged security,” insisted Adnan Bokhari, the sub-inspector of the Lahore police. “They are our distinguished guests and the security is just like that we usually give to any head of state.” Bokhari added that 2000 police and 150 commandos had been allocated to provide security for the New Zealanders.

Fast bowler Javagal Srinath was not included in a list, announced on Friday, of 20 probables for the ICC Knockout Championship scheduled for September in Sri Lanka.After a meeting of the selectors at Mumbai, the complete list was announced to the press. Although there are no other notable exceptions, left-arm spinner Murali Kartik and seamer L Balaji have, with consistent performances for the India ‘A’ side, forced their way into the list.The final squad of 14 is to be announced on August 12.Probables: Sourav Ganguly, Ajit Agarkar, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Mohammad Kaif, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble, Tinu Yohannan, Sanjay Bangar, Parthiv Patel, Ajay Ratra, L Balaji, Murali Kartik, JP Yadav, Dinesh Mongia, Virender Sehwag

One may not admire his batting against true fast bowling, but one can never complain that he is reluctant to take tips from former cricketers. Whether he will be able to execute those tips on the field is another question altogether.Twenty-four hours before the second Test Sourav Ganguly, the Indian captain, was seen in Geoffrey Boycott’s room with Sumit, the Indian touring team’s video-analyst. They were carrying the video-cassette of the third day’s play at the Bourda Oval, Guyana. No prizes for guessing that Ganguly was seeking advice from one of the finest of openers.And for his Prince of Kolkata, of course, Boycott had plenty of time. As the screen began to show how Ganguly got out, the Yorkshireman remarked, “See, you are moving your feet twice before playing the ball. First it is the back foot, then the front. That is why, while facing the ball, your body weight is being divided into two and keeping you in a locked position from where you can’t execute even the simplest of strokes.”So saying, he showed how to shadow and keep the body weight in one of his legs. “You have to do it whenever you get time. The world now knows that you are not comfortable against the lifting delivery. If you want to be one of the best batsmen, you have to practice more,” said Boycott. “What I showed you, try to do that in the nets. Concentrate hard on the wicket. Say to yourself that you are not going to gift your wicket. Prepare yourself mentally to play big innings. It can’t happen overnight. Maybe you will need one or two more Tests, but keep on trying.Boycott did not tone down his usual bluntness in advising the beleaguered Indian skipper. “Frankly speaking, the way your feet were moving in Guyana, I was not sure whether you had practiced hard before coming to this tour. I simply can’t think that someone can come to tour the Caribbean without solid homework.”When the Indian captain was about to leave the room, his biggest supporter said, “It would be better if you don’t go in at number three now. Go in at five. First prepare yourself for that spot and then go back to the one drop. This is your side. If the skipper looks shattered, it does not go well with the body language of the team. So to win this series, you’ve to bat confidently.”When Ganguly had left the room, this correspondent asked whether he would continue to bat at number three. Ganguly said, “He said so and he had his logic. I could not bat well in the first Test, while Dravid saved the match for us. But I am still thinking. One thing I can assure you is that whether I go in at three or five, I’ll score runs in this tour. Definitely”.Ganguly sounded confident, but it remains to be seen whether that confidence will be enough to garner him runs on this tour.

The morning after appearing for Wales in their historic victory over England at Cardiff, Somerset fast bowler Steffan Jones was in buoyant mood when I spoke to him.He told me: "It was a really great day for Wales and for me, and I’m very pleased with my performance. It gave me a chance to show Duncan Fletcher how well I can bowl in one day cricket."The Welshman continued: " This is the start of my season now, after struggling for several weeks with an injury. I bowled quickly at the start , and then bowled again at the death, I was pleased with my figures of 1 for 27 off 9 overs. This was a big occasion for me and a shop window to show the England management just what I can do."I asked about the catch that dismissed his Somerset team mate Marcus Trescothick. He told me: "I caught him out at third man off Andrew Davies. One of the Welsh boys said that `Banger’ looked round after he hit the ball, saw it was me and gave a smile."Steffan paid tribute to the way that the acting England skipper had reacted at the end of the game. He said: "Banger was very gracious in defeat, and came across to us all and said well done. When the winning run was hit I wasn’t on the field, but Banger grabbed one of the stumps and gave it to Steve James to give to me. I really appreciated that."He concluded: "Now I’m back to full fitness I am looking forward to making a real contribution for Somerset."

No matter what the outcome of England’s four-day game against a Sri Lanka Board President’s XI, which started at P. Saravanamuttu Stadium today, the team management will rest assured that one pressing problem has finally beenresolved.

Nasser Hussain has had a wretched 12 months with the bat and averaged only 11 runs in the last English season. However, after scoring 38 in Moratuwa on Monday and a fluent 81 today, he looks to have finally turned the corner andregained the elusive touch that deserted him after the unbeaten 146 that hemade in Durban over 13 months ago.”I was pleased with the way I was hitting the ball, I was much more fluentand batted much more like I want to bat,” he said afterwards. “It wasn’t asif the wheels had come off, it’s just that the fluency hasn’t been thereuntil this tour of Sri Lanka.”Hussain’s form suffered from a variety of factors. In England last summer heinjured his thumb, and he has also been the unfortunate victim of a string ofbad umpiring decisions. He admitted that captaincy had become an all-consuming occupation that was dominating his mind to the detriment of his own game.Speaking afterwards, he played down the effect of the captaincy upon his personal form. “I am not going to put it down to just that.” Nevertheless, he appears a man more at ease with the burden of leadership and admits: “My mind and the way I am going about my cricket is better. I have worked on a few things, cleared the mind and reminded myself of how to bat by looking at the likes of Atherton and learning from them.”The relief of seeing their leader score runs apart, England enjoyed a largely satisfactory day that was marred somewhat at the end by the loss of four wickets for 17 as the President’s XI took the second ball. Nevertheless, they finished the day on 307 for nine and can look forward to bowling on a wicket that is likely to deteriorate significantly under the hot sun.England’s batting was dominated by an opening partnership of 53 betweenAtherton and Hussain and stand of 113 between Michael Vaughan (57) and CraigWhite (63).Although two-paced, the P. Saravanamuttu pitch favoured the batsmen throughout the day. England had little hesitation in batting first having won the toss and cruised to 53 without loss after the first hour. Immediately after drinks Atherton was bowled for the third time on the tour, off his inside edge. Graham Thorpe was caught behind four balls later and England were 53 for two.By then, Hussain was looking increasingly comfortable. Unlike in Moratuwa, where he had struggled to time the ball, he struck it crisply and even indulged in his trademark cover drive. Having reached his half-century off 97 balls he celebrated with an imperious six against the off-spin of Thilan Samaraweera.Alec Stewart showed glimpses of form with 23 from 59 balls, but was eventually stumped as he tried to loft Hettiarachchi for a third straight boundary. The fall of Stewart brought Hick to the crease, and in spite of two clean boundaries he was diffident in his approach and he pushed a catch into the hands of Mubarak at short leg.When Hussain was adjudged caught behind England were 153 for five, and thepossibility of a collapse loomed. If England are to prosper in Sri Lankahowever, then the middle order will surely have to perform and with thepressure back on their team Vaughan and White responded well in theircontrasting styles.White has quickly realised where his strengths lie, and he played positively against the spin of Hettiarachchi and Samaraweera. Favouring the slog-sweep but also prepared to use his feet to drive powerfully down the ground, he hit nine fours and one six in his 69-ball 63.Vaughan was more studious in approach and played with particular patience at the beginning of his innings. Once established, however, he batted with greater fluency and worked the Sri Lankan bowlers into the gaps. He hit only three boundaries in all in his 57 from 128 balls.Just when the spirited and fiercely loyal English supporters at the groundwere dreaming of an imposing first innings score, Chaminda Mendis, thePresident’s captain, took the second ball with immediate success.The bustling Ravindra Pushpakumara induced a mis-timed pull from White thatballooned to square leg, and Vaughan thrashed wildly at a loose delivery from the same bowler in his next over. When Giles was caught at cover point and Croft was trapped lbw, England had slumped from 266 for five to 283 for nine in the space of three overs. Darren Gough and Andrew Caddick survived to the close.

Key Ventnor all-rounder Andy Whyte will miss the entire coming cricket season after fracturing his left knee in a freak accident while holidaying in South Africa.Whyte, a middle-order batsman and medium-pace bowler, underwent a three-hour operation in a Cape Town hospital last week after tripping into a drainage gully and fracturing his knee in six places.”It really was bizarre,” said Whyte, who had originally gone to Cape Town to watch the South Africa-Australia Test Match at Newlands.”One moment I was simply walking along, the next my foot gave way and I crashed on to the concrete base of a pretty deep watery gully.”I’m going to be in plaster for six weeks and there’s no chance at all of me playing this season,” he added.Whyte’s injury is a bitter blow for the Southern Electric Premier League new boys, who will be without al least four of last season’s unbeaten Hampshire League championship winning side when the new season begins on May 11.Mark Garaway, Walter Masimula, Lord’s-bound Steven Snell, Ian Hilsum and now Whyte will all be significant absentees.

Sri Lanka are still unsure whether their key spinner Ajantha Mendis will be fit to play their first Super Eights match against New Zealand on September 27. Mendis, who is suffering from a side strain, is scheduled to practice with the team today, and a call on his participation will be taken before the game.Mendis picked up the injury in Sri Lanka’s opening game against Zimbabwe on September 18, but completed his overs after being treated on the field. He has since then been under treatment and was left out of Sri Lanka’s final group match against South Africa on September 22; Sri Lanka lost that rain-curtailed game by 32 runs. Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lanka captain, had said Mendis’ omission from the South Africa match on Saturday had simply been precautionary but, despite having eight days to recover, Mendis is yet to regain full fitness.”We are monitoring his progress carefully. We took an MRI scan on his left side and it showed a slight tear,” Charith Senanayake, the Sri Lanka manager, said on Tuesday. “These injuries are quite common with fast bowlers, but because Mendis bowls at a fast pace may have strained himself,” he said. “Mendis bowled a few overs at the nets today, but we will monitor him carefully and take a call whether he is fit enough to play against New Zealand.”Mendis marked his return to international cricket after a back injury had kept him out for eight months in Zimbabwe game with the best bowling figures by a bowler in T20 cricket with six wickets for eight runs.

A pair of Otago attackers, Warren McSkimming and Andrew Hore, have proved to be the difference between the potentially top and almost certainly bottom team going into round seven of the Shell Trophy.Remarkably, all six Canterbury men out today failed to score. McSkimming removed five of them.The delighted all-rounder took a career best 6-39 with his right arm fast medium attacking bowling to dismiss Canterbury for 207 all out this morning. They added just nine runs losing four wickets, three to the Ranfurly-born 21-year-old, at the cost of just one run.He added the wickets of Canterbury’s Gary Stead and Jarrod Englefield before the close to complete a great day for him, but a miserable one for Canterbury.Otago had declared earlier shortly after tea at 255/6, 377 ahead.Hore batted just as his captain, Matt Horne, who got a golden duck, would have liked, smacking 77 in 89 balls, with 15 fours, before being bowled by a big turner from Aaron Redmond.Chris Gaffaney also did the job for Otago, scoring 63 before retiring hurt with a pinched nerve in his hip. He added 135 off 210 balls for the fourth wicket with the dominating Hore to put Otago out of sight.McSkimming, a second season Otago player, looked a class prospect. He leads Otago’s wicket taking charts with 19, and at one stage had 5-2 off 43 balls in the day. He finished with 2-15 off six overs, or, more impressively, 5-16 off 11.5 overall.”Wozza”, is fluent in what coach Dennis Aberhart calls “farmer talk,” and indeed comes from a close farming family. His father has played for Otago ‘B’. McSkimming may be unavailable for Otago’s potentially crucial match against Northern Districts starting on February 17th as he is due to be best man at his brother’s wedding.Now Dunedin based, but from the coldest place in New Zealand, Oturehua near Ranfurly, McSkimming told CricInfo, “I was rapped to get a five for. I wouldn’t say my pace has increased, but I’ve been working on a couple of things in the last couple of games and they’re coming right for me now.””The pitch is pretty flat, but a couple of them have popped and kept low. Tomorrow we’ve just got to bowl them out. We’re going to bowl our guts out.””It’s really dry and Paul (Wiseman’s) a pretty good bowler as you know and it probably will turn into a turner.”He bowls off a long run, with a slight stutter near the end, but has a fast arm action and has got quicker as the season has gone on.Coach Aberhart felt Canterbury batted too negatively yesterday, but believes Otago are in position for a win, although “we’ve got a bit of work to do.”The Auckland team popped by to the 1974 Commonwealth Games QEII Stadium, for a swim and to watch their next opponents, Otago, who they meet at Carisbrook on Tuesday.Former New Zealand captain, Lee Germon, was also in attendance, talking to Otago coach Dennis Aberhart, possibly about next season’s Shell Cup campaign.However, it is the new strike bowler (McSkimming) and ‘new’ leading batsman (Hore) that will be congratulated most warmly by new Otago coach Aberhart, as his team head for the victory tomorrow that will take them to the top of the Shell Trophy table.A pair of Otago attackers, Warren McSkimming and Andrew Hore, have proved to be the difference between the potentially top and almost certainly bottom team going into round seven of the Shell Trophy.Remarkably, all six Canterbury men out today failed to score. McSkimming removed five of them.The delighted all-rounder took a career best 6-39 with his right arm fast medium attacking bowling to dismiss Canterbury for 207 all out this morning. They added just nine runs losing four wickets, three to the Ranfurly-born 21-year-old, at the cost of just one run.He added the wickets of Canterbury’s Gary Stead and Jarrod Englefield before the close to complete a great day for him, but a miserable one for Canterbury.Otago had declared earlier shortly after tea at 255/6, 377 ahead.Hore batted just as his captain, Matt Horne, who got a golden duck, would have liked, smacking 77 in 89 balls, with 15 fours, before being bowled by a big turner from Aaron Redmond.Chris Gaffaney also did the job for Otago, scoring 63 before retiring hurt with a pinched nerve in his hip. He added 135 off 210 balls for the fourth wicket with the dominating Hore to put Otago out of sight.McSkimming, a second season Otago player, looked a class prospect. He leads Otago’s wicket taking charts with 19, and at one stage had 5-2 off 43 balls in the day. He finished with 2-15 off six overs, or, more impressively, 5-16 off 11.5 overall.”Wozza”, is fluent in what coach Dennis Aberhart calls “farmer talk,” and indeed comes from a close farming family. His father has played for Otago ‘B’. McSkimming may be unavailable for Otago’s potentially crucial match against Northern Districts starting on February 17th as he is due to be best man at his brother’s wedding.Now Dunedin based, but from the coldest place in New Zealand, Oturehua near Ranfurly, McSkimming told CricInfo, “I was wrapped to get a five for. I wouldn’t say my pace has increased, but I’ve been working on a couple of things in the last couple of games and they’re coming right for me now.””The pitch is pretty flat, but a couple of them have popped and kept low. Tomorrow we’ve just got to bowl them out. We’re going to bowl our guts out.””It’s really dry and Paul (Wiseman’s) a pretty good bowler as you know and it probably will turn into a turner.”He bowls off a long run, with a slight stutter near the end, but has a fast arm action and has got quicker as the season has gone on.Coach Aberhart felt Canterbury batted too negatively yesterday, but believes Otago are in position for a win, although “we’ve got a bit of work to do.”The Auckland team popped by to the 1974 Commonwealth Games QEII Stadium, for a swim and to watch their next opponents, Otago, who they meet at Carisbrook on Tuesday.Former New Zealand captain, Lee Germon, was also in attendance, talking to Otago coach Dennis Aberhart, possibly about next season’s Shell Cup campaign.However, it is the new strike bowler (McSkimming) and ‘new’ leading batsman (Hore) that will be congratulated most warmly by new Otago coach Aberhart, as his team head for the victory tomorrow that will take them to the top of the Shell Trophy table.