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ScorecardDavid Willey’s career-best gave Northamptonshire a valuable lead•PA Photos

Yorkshire have not been beaten in the Championship but haven’t won a match since May, which is of much greater significance in their quest to return to Division One. After losing more than 40% of their playing time to the awfulness of this summer, you could hardly blame them for feeling a tad frustrated. But maybe their own shortcomings would have caught up with them anyway.They were lacking something, certainly, as Northamptonshire pulled away from them in the final session on day three. Yorkshire were nicely placed when rain ended the morning session early, going to lunch with a lead of 14 after taking four wickets for 60 runs as Northants progressed uneasily to 235 for 7. By the close it was a different story.Thanks in large measure to an enterprising and entertaining 76 from David Willey, a career best from the left-arm seam bowler, Northamptonshire turned a position of vulnerability into one of strength, converting that deficit into a lead of 103. Yorkshire will do well to emerge from this match with a victory, which will only heap pressure on them going into their final four fixtures, the first of which is against the Division Two leaders, Derbyshire. With Hampshire and Kent breathing down their necks with games in hand, and the distraction of Twenty20 finals day looming, they can ill afford to let their focus blur.It seemed to become a little fuzzy during the three and a quarter hours lost to the weather here. They had bowled well during the morning, Adil Rashid in particular. The legspinner, confidence bolstered, continued where he had left off on Thursday, giving little away and adding two more wickets. Moin Ashraf, in a testing spell from the Wantage Road End, took two in two balls and came close to a hat-trick. But the evening session tended to reinforce the suspicion that Yorkshire’s bowling lacks a cutting edge.Rashid finished with five wickets – for the first time in the Championship since the first match of last season – but could not pin down Willey, who has an aggressive side that you would expect in one of his pedigree. He chose a good moment to record his fifth first-class half-century and overtake his previous best of 64: his father, the redoubtable Peter, was on the ground for an ex-players’ reunion.Willey’s partnership with wicketkeeper David Murphy added 73 in 18 overs, claiming two batting points along the way. Rashid broke them up when he had Murphy leg before and had the last word against Willey, whom he bowled through the gate. That wicket completed his five, and snatched an extra bowling point for Yorkshire with four balls to spare, but Oliver Stone, the 18-year-old in only his second Championship innings, countered with his fourth boundary three balls later to secure Northamptonshire’s fourth batting point.All this built handsomely on the century completed by Stephen Peters in the morning, the first of what has been a lean season by his standards. High expectations accompanied Peters as a young man and, while it might be argued that he has not fulfilled them completely, at 33 he is an accomplished opening batsman and a prolific scorer. This was his 28th career century.His 85-run partnership with Rob Newton ended when the latter edged Ashraf to first slip in the fifth full over of the morning. Ashraf struck with his next delivery as Andrew Hall missed a full, swinging ball, and failed by a whisker to have James Middlebrook leg before with his hat-trick attempt, the ball straying a fraction to leg.Middlebrook, going back to a ball bowled with a little more pace, became Rashid’s second victim and Peters the third when Joe Root held an extraordinary catch at forward short-leg, somehow ending up with the ball in his hands after ducking to protect himself from a full-blooded pull. At that point, Yorkshire occupied the higher ground.Now they are at the bottom of the hill again, trailing by 98 runs. With only a day left, and the strong possibility of more overs lost, it should not be difficult for them to extend their unbeaten run. But with the jostling for a promotion place becoming urgent now, it isn’t really enough.

ScorecardThe captains, Javed Ahmadi and Babar Azam, before the start of the semi-final•Peter Lim/Asian Cricket Council

A strong all-round performance by Pakistan Under-19s helped them beat Afghanistan Under-19s by 151 runs and qualify for the final of the Under-19 Asia Cup, where they will play either India or Sri Lanka on July 1.Pakistan’s opener Sami Aslam, who has been in fine form in the tournament with scores of 121, 82 not out and 47 in earlier matches, scored 77 with ten boundaries. Aslam and captain Babar Azam put on a 69-run opening stand, before Azam was dismissed for 33.Azam’s departure didn’t prove a dampener for Pakistan, as Imam-ul-Haq continued attacking the Afghan bowlers. Haq scored 69, with seven fours, before being bowled by Sharafudin.Umar Waheed, who top-scored for Pakistan with 76 in their last match against Malaysia, carried his form into the semifinal by scoring 77 at over a run a ball. Waheed and Mohammad Nawaz scored 76 runs in the last ten overs to help their side post 296 for 3.Afghanistan faltered at the start of their innings, with Ehsan Adil dismissing by both openers cheaply. Their middle-order showed some resistance, with Mohibullah Paak top scoring 41, with two fours and one six.But Pakistan’s right-arm fast bowler Azizullah kept the pressure on, picking four wickets in his nine-over spell, to help his side dismiss the opposition for 145 and clinch an easy victory.

Scorecard
Half-centuries from Devon Thomas and Veerasammy Permaul revived West Indies A•West Indies Cricket Board

Three wickets each for Bengal medium-pacer Shami Ahmed and legspinner Rahul Sharma helped India A bowl out West Indies A for a modest 252 on the first day in Barbados.India made a strong start to the series after electing to field as Ahmed and Co reduced the home side to 126 for 7, before two unlikely sources of resistance led West Indies’ recovery.Devon Thomas, the Leewards Islands wicketkeeper-batsman, made only his second first-class half-century in nearly three years and captain Veerasammy Permaul scored his maiden fifty to lift West Indies past 200. The pair collected 92 runs for the eighth wicket before Rahul Sharma bowled Thomas for 57.There was a 44-run partnership for the fourth wicket between Nkrumah Bonner and Jonathan Carter but little defiance otherwise from the top-and-middle order.This is an important series for both the home side’s openers: Lendl Simmons, who scored 792 runs at 49.50 in ODIs for West Indies last year, was returning from a finger injury which kept him out of top-flight cricket since February, while Kraigg Brathwaite was trying to re-stake his claim for a Test opening slot after being dropped following a dismal series against Australia. Neither of them could make an impact though, as they were both dismissed for 11.Brathwaite battled for more than an hour before becoming the first of Ahmed’s three victims. Besides Ahmed, another Bengal medium-pacer Ashok Dinda had a decent outing, as he shook off the side strain which kept him out of the second half of the IPL, to bowl 17 overs for one wicket.

Match facts

May 1, 2012, Jaipur
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Royals are back at their fortress, where they have a 100% record against Daredevils•AFP

Big Picture

Rajasthan Royals will still be wondering how they botched the chase against Delhi Daredevils two days back. With 15 needed off 12 balls, with nine wickets in hand, you would back yourself for a comfortable chase. Yet, what ensued reiterated the theory that all it takes is good over to tilt the scales in Twenty20s. Leave too much to the end, and the joke’s on you. Royals have a chance to set things right against the same opponent, in their Jaipur fortress. They will be boosted by the arrival from the West Indies of the Australian Shane Watson, who will have to conquer jet-lag first, and Morne Morkel next. If Watson does play straightaway, the question is who will make way – either Brad Hodge or Owais Shah. Three consecutive defeats will be at the back of their minds when they take on the in-form Daredevils.With 14 points, Daredevils are still on top. Should they lose, they will remain in that position. Luck’s going their way and their season has been a marked improvement from last year. This will be Kevin Pietersen’s last game before he flies back home and his presence as an impact player will be missed. A big plus for Daredevils is the contribution of two low-profile Indian players – Shahbaz Nadeem and Yogesh Nagar. Nagar was the unsung hero of the previous game, making the most of the final over to give the score some respectability.

Form guide

(most recent first)
Delhi Daredevils: WWWLW
Rajasthan Royals: LLLWW

Players to watch

Though Morkel’s tight penultimate over in the chase hogged the attention, Umesh Yadav‘s effort in the final over cannot be ignored. Though he had 12 to defend, he was parsimonious in his first three deliveries, giving away only two runs. A freak six by Ajinkya Rahane nearly overshadowed his efforts, but Yadav held his nerve for the final ball, beating the well-set Rahane for pace.Royals’ Amit Singh picked up two wickets, but was the most expensive bowler at the Kotla, giving 41 runs. Twenty of those came off his final over, the last of the innings, which made the difference in the final analysis. If Siddharth Trivedi returns, Amit Singh’s place could be in trouble.

Stats and trivia

• Royals and Daredevils have played each other twice at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. Royals won both games.
• Daredevils run-rate in the last six overs stands at 9.15, while their bowlers concede 8.11 per over in the last six.
  

  Quotes

  “We probably bowled the best of any teams against Delhi, who have such a formidable batting line-up.”

  “Great spirit shown by the team. Brilliant stuff from Morne. Must have been heartbreaking for Ajinkya though.”

Match facts

Tuesday, May 8
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)This is already Rahul Dravid’s most productive IPL season•AFP

Big Picture

After the hype surrounding Sourav Ganguly playing an away game at Eden Gardens has died down, Pune Warriors have a disappointing season, not unlike the previous one, to reflect on. The season began with much promise, with three wins in the first four games. The next eight have brought seven losses; there was a run of seven consecutive losses last year as well. The defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders was typical of Warriors’ performance; they fought hard, they came back twice, once with the ball and once with the bat, but ultimately, could not get over the finish line. Their play-off chances are almost over now.Rajasthan Royals gave their chances of making the top four a boost with a big win over Kings XI Punjab, which broke a run of four consecutive losses. In their five remaining games, they face Warriors twice and bottom-placed Deccan Chargers once. They wouldn’t want to slip on Tuesday, considering their other two matches are against Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.

Form guide

(completed games, most recent first)
Pune Warriors: LLLLL
Rajasthan Royals: WLLLL

2011 head-to-head

These sides played each other just once last season, with Royals winning by six wickets in Jaipur

Players to watch

It took only two outings for Shane Watson to turn in a match-winning performance, against Kings XI. Thirty-six runs at a strike-rate of 211.76 and two wickets at an economy-rate of 5.50. His class is the boost a flagging Royals campaign needed.With the focus on Ganguly in Kolkata, Angelo Mathews turned the game briefly with three consecutive sixes off Yusuf Pathan. Had it not been for Sunil Narine’s spell of two overs for eight runs towards the end, Mathews may well have won the game for Warriors. He’s revived many stuttering chases for Sri Lanka.

Stats and trivia

(All stats prior to the start of Monday’s game)

• Surprisingly, Warriors have scored the most runs this season, 1721
• This is already Rahul Dravid’s most prolific IPL season, with 379 runs, bettering his return of 371 in 2008.
• Steven Smith has taken the most catches this season – eight – along with Rohit Sharma.
  

  Quotes

  “We have shown in this competition that we are a team to be taken seriously even though not many people would have given us a chance at the start.”

Kings XI Punjab captain Adam Gilchrist has credited his bowlers for exploiting the grassy conditions in Mohali on Thursday and helping his side beat Pune Warriors by seven wickets to register their first win in of the IPL season. Punjab’s Kings XI’S bowlers justified Gilchrist’s decision to bowl first for the third straight match, with Dimitri Mascarenhas picking up his second five-for in Twenty20 cricket and Harmeet Singh striking twice to restrict Warriors to 115.”I knew that it was a bit risky to bowl first, given that we had bowled first in our previous two games and we had not got any momentum going,” Gilchrist said. “Our bowlers bowled beautifully today. The wicket had a green cover. There was a big storm last night, a lot of moisture around.”Gilchrist said that the bowlers, especially Mascarenhas challenged the batsmen at all times by putting the ball in the right spot. Chasing 115, Punjab always looked in control with Shaun Marsh, who missed their last match due to injury, top-scoring with 64. “It’s wonderful to see Shaun, he’s such a beautiful player to watch,” said Gilchrist. “I read an article which said he’s the most successful batsman in IPL history. He’s just a great player and it’s nice to see him back.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsVirender Sehwag sliced a wide ball to third man and was caught for a duck•Getty Images

India abandoned their rotation policy and played all three senior batsmen. They also brought in a spinner in place of a fast bowler. They still leaked runs at the death. Their heavyweight top order still caved in cheaply.Sri Lanka were on a different plane. Their old guard provided the base and the new order built on it to boost them to a substantial total. Their disciplined bowlers, led by Nuwan Kulasekara, dismantled a shaky India line-up, minus the in-form MS Dhoni, to take Sri Lanka into second position behind Australia with a game in hand. Parthiv Patel, Dhoni’s replacement, lasted seven deliveries and made 4.Faced with a stiff chase, Virender Sehwag threw away his wicket yet again, Sachin Tendulkar wasted another start and Gautam Gambhir guided one straight to gully.Sehwag had missed the previous two games and was stand-in captain today but that did not bring about any change in his approach. He went after the second delivery of the chase, a short and wide one from Lasith Malinga, reaching out to slice it tamely to third man.Tendulkar and Gambhir played some pleasing strokes but Kulasekara snapped up both batsmen, a reward for disciplined line and full lengths. He kept Tendulkar guessing with a few that came in and some that moved away. The batsman was a little late in deciding to leave a good length delivery and edged it onto his stumps.With two 90s as an opener in his previous three games, Gambhir dropped down to No. 3 to allow Sehwag and Tendulkar to open. He lasted longer than the two but ended up dabbing Kulasekara to gully after walking down the pitch.Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina struggled initially but benefited from three dropped catches to keep India in the game with a 92-run partnership. Raina’s leading edge off Angelo Mathews was put down at point by Tillakaratne Dilshan. He was on 4 at the time. Kolhi was let off twice, both times by Dinesh Chandimal at deep midwicket, first on 14 off Thisara Perera, then on 32 off Malinga.Raina could not capitalise, though, and, on 32, popped another leading edge, off Farveez Maharoof this time, straight to cover. Kohli carried on for a while longer but he was always battling against the climbing asking-rate and the thin batting. After having taken six runs off the first two balls of a Perera over, Kohli, on 66, looked to smash the third one and ended up slogging it to mid-on. Kohli’s departure left India 172 for 5, and with no chance against an asking-rate of over eight an over.Irfan Pathan cracked a few boundaries to reduce the margin of defeat and deny Sri Lanka the bonus point, but the match had been decided much earlier, with Sri Lanka in control right from their opening partnership.Mahela Jayawardene started the innings again, and gave Sri Lanka another strong start along with Tillakaratne Dilshan. Lahiru Thirimanne led the young middle order’s charge as Sri Lanka shrugged off the successive departures of their three senior batsmen in the middle overs.India’s bowling followed a characteristic route, the spinners bringing them back in the middle of the innings before the fast bowlers and part-timers leaked runs at the death. Sri Lanka took 81 off the last eight overs, including 24 off two from Vinay Kumar, and 24 off two from Kohli and Raina.Thirimanne kept the runs coming with some enterprising strokes to ensure 124 for 3 did not turn into something worse. Mathews, who backs himself to score from any position and in any situation, smashed 49 off 37 deliveries at No. 6 as India’s bowling came apart.With Vinay and Umesh Yadav each having two overs left, Sehwag showed scant confidence in his quicks and turned to the part-time bowling of Raina and Kohli for the 49th and 50th overs respectively. The result was the same, as Mathews plundered more runs.Sri Lanka’s final score was a reflection of the kind of start that their former captain and his replacement had given them. Jayawardene and Dilshan batted with assurance for 95 runs at over five an over and India did not look like making a breakthrough till Sehwag pulled off a stunning catch to send back Jayawardene. Dilshan punished the slightest width outside the off stump for boundaries.India sneaked back through a double-strike. On 45, Jayawardene swung Pathan hard into the on side, but Sehwag got in the way with a big dive at midwicket, and held on to a sharp catch. Dilshan fell for 51 on the cut when R Ashwin got one to bounce.Kumar Sangakkara came in and swung Yadav straight to fine leg, and at 124 for 3 Sri Lanka were in danger of frittering away an excellent start. Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal did not allow that to happen with a 71-run stand that came at a run-a-ball.Thirimanne did not hold back with the big strokes. He favoured the off side, mostly point and third man, as he steered and dabbed for boundaries. Irfan ended Chandimal’s stay with a yorker on leg stump but India ran into Mathews next. The scoring-rate picked up, as the pair added 49 in seven overs.Thirimanne’s batting was classy but the same could not be said about his backing up. Despite the changed law on run-outs while backing up, he repeatedly left his crease even before the bowlers were into their delivery stride. Ashwin was well within his rights to remove the bails in the 40th over as Thirimanne went walking early again, but India decided to withdraw the appeal in good spirit after a discussion with the umpires. It made no difference to Thirimanne, though, as he continued to take an early start at the non-striker’s end.He eventually fell chipping Ashwin to sweeper cover but Mathews was around to lift Sri Lanka to a big total, which proved to be well beyond India’s reach.Edited by Dustin Silgardo

Justin Ontong, the Cape Cobras allrounder, has been included in South Africa’s squads for the one-day and Twenty20 international series in New Zealand in February. Graeme Smith has been left out of the Twenty20 side, and another Cobras batsman Richard Levi will open with Hashim Amla in the format. JP Duminy was chosen ahead of Ashwell Prince in the Test squad, which also includes Robin Peterson in place of Paul Harris.Marchant de Lange, who took seven wickets in an innings on Test debut against Sri Lanka, was selected for his first tour and was named in the Test and T20 squads. Jacques Kallis and Dale Steyn were rested for the Twenty20 series.Ontong hasn’t been part of a South Africa squad since the 2009 World Twenty20 in England, where he did not play a game. The last time he played for the country was in March 2009, a T20 match against Australia. However, Ontong averaged 72 in this season’s 1-Day Cup, South Africa’s List A competition, and 76 in the SuperSport Series, the first-class tournament. He played some crucial knocks in the 1-Day Cup, with his three half-centuries all coming at close to a run a ball, and he helped take the Cobras over the line in the final with an unbeaten 37 off 28 balls.”Ontong fully deserves this latest call-up,” Andrew Hudson, Cricket South Africa’s selection convener, said. “He has shown outstanding domestic form this season and I believe he has developed into a more mature cricketer. His finishing ability was a key factor in the Cobras’ success in winning the 1-Day Cup.”He is the complete limited-overs package, being a fine batsman who will strengthen our fielding disciplines and also give us another bowling option.”We have decided to try out some exciting new options in the T20 squad such as Levi, Ontong and de Lange. There are only 11 matches left in this format before we travel to Sri Lanka for the ICC World Twenty20 and this is really the last chance to explore the talent we have at our disposal. Having AB de Villiers fit again for T20 action also gives us a lot more flexibility and better balance.”South Africa will play three Twenty20s in New Zealand, five against Zimbabwe at home and three more in England before the World Twenty20. An ICC trophy is the one thing noticeable by its absence in the South African cabinet and one of coach Gary Kirsten’s foremost priorities is to change that.Smith’s exclusion from the squad suggests he is not in the plans for the World Twenty20. Instead, it looks like Levi, who made an impression at last year’s Champions League T20 and was the third highest run-scorer in the 2010-11 Pro20 competition, will be groomed. Rusty Theron, who is renowned for his death bowling, has also been given another chance.Albie Morkel keeps his place in the limited-overs squad. He was not included in the original squad for the ODIs against Sri Lanka, but was called up as a replacement for Dean Elgar ahead of the first ODI. He was only required to score quick runs down the order and did not take any wickets in the series.Rory Kleinveldt and Elgar, who were both selected for the ODI series against Sri Lanka, were not considered because of injury. Kleinveldt did not play in the series and sustained a quadricep injury after the first match in Paarl. Elgar hurt his knee in the field in a SuperSport Series match and was forced to withdraw from the squad before the series started.Twenty20 squad: AB de Villiers (capt), Hashim Amla (vc), Johan Botha, Marchant de Lange, JP Duminy, Colin Ingram, Richard Levi, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Justin Ontong, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Rusty Theron, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

Match facts

December 26-30, Durban
Start time 10:00 (08:00GMT)Vernon Philander’s knee injury was a major worry for South Africa ahead of the Durban Test•Getty Images

The Big Picture

For a team that has almost always been near the summit of the Test rankings, South Africa’s recent home record is surprisingly ordinary – no series wins in more than three years. Their performances at Kingsmead in that period are similarly bleak – losing to each of the other major contenders for the title of world’s best Test team. Graeme Smith and his side get the chance to erase both those blots this week as they take on a disjointed Sri Lanka.After subsiding for below 200 in both innings of the first Test, the Sri Lanka batsmen won’t be overly thrilled at the sight of a green-tinged track. In a bid to bolster the batting, Sri Lanka are mulling bringing in highly rated wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Chandimal in place of Kaushal Silva, who hasn’t had the best of times in his three matches as replacement for regular gloveman Prasanna Jayawardene.The number that is becoming synonymous with discussions about the decline of Sri Lankan cricket is the number of Tests they have gone without a victory since the retirement of their greatest player, Muttiah Muralitharan, last year. That now stands at 15, but almost as worrying is that in only two of those matches have Sri Lanka managed to bowl out the opposition twice.Adding to the troubles on the field, are the many problems off it. A bankrupt board which is struggling to pay player salaries, and has indefinitely postponed its domestic matches. To top it off was the confusion in communication – their captain Tillakaratne Dilshan’s announcement that fast bowler Nuwan Kulasekara will join the squad was over-ruled a few days later by the sports ministry. All of which means Sri Lanka will need a Christmas miracle to pull off a victory in Durban.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
South Africa WLWDL
Sri Lanka LDLDD

Watch out for…

Thilan Samaraweera boasts a career average of 52.20 after playing as many as 69 Tests. But he doesn’t get the respect that others with similar figures do because of his average record overseas, particularly against top teams like England, Australia and India. A big contribution on a tough Kingsmead track against a world-class South Africa attack will be a fitting riposte to his detractors.Jacques Rudolph revived a seemingly dead South Africa career with a wagon-load of domestic runs this year, but he hasn’t been able to carry that form to the Test level. With no half-century in three Tests, the selectors could be tempted to bring back Alviro Petersen if there are more failures. Petersen himself was axed after a relatively short fallow period, and his recall to the squad for the series sends a message to Rudolph.

Team news

South Africa will be waiting on Vernon Philander’s fitness after he injured his knee during training, but it seems likely he will play. If he doesn’t, Lonwabo Tsotsobe is the likely replacement, provided he has recovered fully from a side strain which has sidelined him since early November. If not, South Africa will have to call on a reserve – Marchant de Lange could make his debut. Smith has said that “ideally the team will stay the same.”South Africa: (probable) 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Jacques Rudolph, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 AB de Villiers, 6 Ashwell Prince, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Imran TahirDilshan has hinted that Chandimal will play in place of Kaushal Silva and it’s expected that Thisara Perera will sit out for Dhammika Prasad.Sri Lanka: (probable) 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan (capt), 2 Tharanga Paranavitana, 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Thilan Samaraweera, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 8 Rangana Herath, 9 Dhammika Prasad, 10 Dilhara Fernando, 11 Chanaka Welegedara

Pitch and conditions

Durban has usually been a fast bowler’s delight, and it is expected to have plenty of swing this time round as well, so don’t count on a high-scoring draw. The bowlers will relish the green pitch and overcast conditions and the only downer is the mid-week rain that is predicted.

Stats and trivia

• Sri Lanka are the only team against which Jacques Kallis hasn’t scored a Test century
• If Chandimal is picked, he will be Sri Lanka’s eighth Test debutant this year, the most since 1999
• In Tests between the two countries, Muttiah Muralitharan has 104 wickets – that’s more than twice the next highest, Shaun Pollock with 48

For a full stats analysis, click here.

Quotes

“The wicket looks like it should go more than three days, unless one team puts up their hand and plays unbelievable cricket. It will be a good Test wicket with something for both bat and ball and something to play for over five days for a change.”
“I remember facing Mfuneko Ngam, who was the quickest bowler I had faced. It was a Test match that we fought hard to draw.”

Gautam Gambhir has come out in support of the under-pressure VVS Laxman, saying nobody has the right to decide when he should retire. There have been reports coming out of India, quoting BCCI officials, which say Laxman is going to retire soon. One report even said that Laxman might have played his last Test in Perth. Adding to that is criticism from former players, who feel the team is aged and urgently needs the infusion of fresh youngsters.Gambhir said it was not fair for anyone other than the player himself to talk of retirement, or for people to criticise just one man. “Look, my question is, why criticise one person? He has been a legend of the game. It’s not only, VVS Laxman but all of us [who have underperformed]. The top six, the top seven should be criticised equally. We have all failed as a unit. So why only VVS Laxman?”He has been a legend of the game. He has served Indian cricket for a long, long time. There should not be anyone [else] who should be deciding about his retirement. It should be him. Whenever he wants to take it, he should take it. Rather than criticising just one person, you should be criticising all seven batsmen who have failed as a unit. The entire team is behind him [Laxman], and I have always believed you should not criticise only one or two people. If you are to criticise, criticise all seven batsmen who have not performed well and let the team down.”No one should decide when people should retire, it should be the individual’s decision. And it would always be an individual’s decision. Whether it be the media or people back home or whether it’s ex-cricketers, I think no one has any right to force anyone to take retirement. It should be his personal decision. He has served Indian cricket for a very long time, and he is still working very hard, as people have seen in the nets. I have said it’s just a matter of one innings. With one good innings he will be confident again.”Whether Laxman is going to retire anytime soon or not is not clear, but the indications here are that Laxman will play the Adelaide Test. India had a full training session at the WACA ground, and Laxman batted for a long time. Duncan Fletcher, the coach, spent most of his time working with Laxman, especially when Trevor Penny, the fielding coach, gave him throwdowns.