The ICC has expressed great delight with the work being done ahead of next year’s World Cup in the West Indies and Ehsan Mani, the president, said he believes it will be “the best World Cup ever”.Speaking late on Thursday after a series of meetings with other senior officials working on the tournament, Mani said they have been very impressed and the legacy that would be left behind will demonstrate that the West Indies has become a major player in the international game.”We are delighted with the pace of progress and the level of professionalism being displayed by those charged with the responsibility of getting the tournament in place,” Mani said. “There is a whole team doing nothing but living, breathing and sleeping World Cup and that is the way it has to be if you are going to be successful.”This is the first time the Cricket World Cup is coming to the West Indies and it is long overdue. It was time for the West Indies to say it was ready to stage the game’s biggest event. From what we have seen being put in place, I believe this will be one of the greatest ever, actually, the best World Cup ever.”Next year’s tournament will be the first time in the history of sport that a major international tournament is played in nine different independent territories.”Given the legacy and history of West Indies cricket, it’s only right that the West Indies should be hosting a World Cup,” added Mani, who steps down from his post at the end of July. Percy Sonn of South Africa will replace him.”The West Indies is unique. Every territory has its own unique flavour and the following of the game here is second to none. The whole culture of the Caribbean is going to make this a fantastic World Cup.”Organisers have predicted that the event will attract more than 100,000 visitors to the bustling archipelago and Mani said the region can handle the traffic adequately.He added, “The West Indies is used to a lot of tourists, the islands of the Caribbean are hosts to a huge number of people every year. What we have done is to ensure there is a bit of fine-tuning to make sure they are looked after well and are comfortable as possible. All has been progressing well. We are confident.”.

Division One

Hampshire crushed Nottinghamshire by 299 runs to take top spot in Division One. John Crawley completed his second hundred of the match as Hampshire extended their lead to a mammoth 505 before Shane Warne declared. Notts made a steady start as Darren Bicknell and Jason Gallian added 70, but Warne had mBicknell taken at slip and held onto Gallian off his own bowling to put Hampshire on course. Notts were only two down at tea, but the final session brought a clatter as James Bruce, nipping the ball around at decent pace, claimed his first career five-wicket haul. As is so often the case, Warne had the final say when he trapped Charlie Shreck lbw to bring the curtain down on a dominant Hampshire display.Middlesex charged to an impressive eight-wicket win against Yorkshire to take the honours in the Division One basement battle. The match sped to a finish as 17 wickets tumbled in the day, on a pitch that had previously been full of runs. Ed Joyce added just one to his overnight score, but Middlesex were handed a vital lead through a feisty lower-order partnership of 78 between Johann Louw and Chris Peploe – pushing the advantage to 60. It took Yorkshire five wickets to move ahead as Chris Silverwood again struck with the new ball. Peploe and James Dalrymple then shared seven wickets as the batting put up little resistance.Durham are being made to work harder than expected to nail Warwickshire after Tony Frost struck 96, setting Durham a tricky 160 to win. When Warwickshire subsided to 177 for 8 it appeared a formality for Durham, but Frost and Heath Streak added 113 for the ninth wicket. Ottis Gibson eventually broke through, and finished with three wickets, while Gareth Breese claimed four with his offspin. Durham suffered two early blows but Breese and Gary Pratt eased them to the close and whittled the runs required to fewer than 100.

Division Two

4th dayGlamorgan sealed their first Championship win of the season, downing Derbyshire by six wickets. Robert Croft and Dean Cosker wrapped up the Derbyshire resistance for the addition of 76 runs during the morning session, leaving them to chase 140. They made a rocky start, losing four top-order scalps for 78, as Derbyshire put in a spirited effort. However, Michael Powell and Mark Wallace steadied the nerves and combined in a sensible stand of 62 as Glamorgan enjoyed that winning feeling – at long last.3rd dayGareth Batty claimed his first five-wicket haul of the season as Worcestershire ended just two wickets short of a crushing victory against Somerset. Cameron White slammed a defiant first-innings century but Roger Sillence grabbed a career-best 7 for 96 as Somerset followed-on. Second time around they fared no better, as Batty went through the top order. Peter Trego biffed 67 off 72 balls but it shouldn’t take long for Worcestershire on the fourth morningFor a full report of Surrey against Leicestershire at The Oval click here.

Andrew Flintoff admitted that England’s lapses in the field had madethe difference, as Sri Lanka batted out the last two-and-a-half daysto secure a remarkable draw in the first Test at Lord’s. But he wasnot allowing the disappointment to dent his enthusiasm after ahard-fought match, and insisted that England were all set to win theseries.”It’s quite bizarre, but I’m not going to make an issue of it,” hesaid, after England had shelled at least nine clear-cut chances in thecourse of Sri Lanka’s two innings. “You see the lads in practice andyou know how hard we work. We’re a good catching unit, and we’ve takena lot of chances over the last two or three years.”It’s just one of those things,” he added. “I dropped one at slip andI’m not the worst standing there. I saw it all the way, but it hit thewrong part of my hand and just fell out. I’m not making excuses, butit’ll be put down to experience. If it happens every week then we’lltake a look and identify it.”Flintoff himself got through an alarming number of overs in the match- 68.8, including 51 in the second innings alone. “I’ve got a fewmiles in my legs,” he conceded. “But it’s the first game of the summerand the first time I’ve bowled. It’s the exception rather than thenorm, and I don’t envisage doing that next week, but it was somethingdictated by the state of the game.”It was a bit of a comedown for England’s new captain after the headyscenes at Mumbai in March, but he refused to be despondent. “It wastough, but not so much from a captaincy point of view,” he insisted.”As captain I did what I thought was best and went with instincts. Youplace your fielders, and you bowl where you think will take wickets orstop runs. It’s tough, but I’m enjoying doing it.”Flintoff preferred to reflect on the positives of the match, inparticular the performance of the new guys in the side. “Alastair[Cook, who made 89] was fantastic, Sajid [Mahmood] turned the game onits head, and Liam Plunkett bowled really nicely once he settled downand got into the rhythm.”One man who was underused in England’s attack was the spinner, MontyPanesar, but Flintoff defended his decision to stick with the seamers.”We saw Murali bowl a lot of overs without any success because therewasn’t much spin. Monty bowled really well but I thought the best wayto take wickets was with the seamers, they looked threatening.””The mood in the dressing-room is great,” he added. “They are a goodbunch of lads, and though we’d have liked to come out with a win thereare a lot of positives. Some young bowlers have come in and performedwell on the big stage, and the batters are firing.”We know Sri Lanka can fight, we’ve seen it before. They came out andapplied themselves in the second innings, but if we’d held our catcheswe’d have won the game. There’s no need for doom and gloom, we’redoing alright.”

Mark Ramprakash is no stranger to being on the receiving end of taunts from spectators. Last week at Lord’s he was jeered by Middlesex supporters still bitter about his acrimonious departure from the county, and at The Rose Bowl on Thursday he was again targeted by Hampshire fans.Ramprakash was reportedly confronted by two spectators in the pavilion after Surrey’s win over Hampshire in the Twenty20 Cup, leading to him requesting extra security. It followed Ramprakash’s celebrations when he ran out Hampshire’s last man to wrap-up the victory – he ripped off his shirt and ran to a section of the crowd who had been jeering him, signaling at them to be quiet.”I came down here about two years ago and the crowd were abusive and today they started on me when they thought a ball I stopped had gone for four,” he told The Times. “Normally it’s quite good-natured stuff but this wasn’t particularly pleasant. It was nice to have the last laugh.”

South Africa’s decision to withdraw from the tri-nation series had all theinevitability of the monsoon showers that have lashed the city over thepast week. Once the bomb went off near Liberty Plaza, and once thesecurity team that they trust implicitly reckoned that the risk had become”unacceptable”, it was only ever a matter of when the players would leavethe country. In the end, it took two days of interminable waiting beforewhat most people already knew was confirmed. The players will now leaveearly on Thursday morning, most likely in four batches.Back in 2003, there had been much anxiety before their tour of Pakistan,with only last-minute parleys and detailed inspections of the safetymeasures convincing the players that it was safe to go. But ever sinceNichols and Steyn came on board to assess security situations, the playershave been content to follow their advice on such matters. Once FaisalNagel, the security officer accompanying the team on this tour, sent areport to the board in the wake of the Monday bombing, saying that thesituation was too dicey to stay on, the players’ minds were made up.That much was clear even on Tuesday evening, after it was announced thatthe Dubai-based Olive group would carry out an independent securityassessment. Far from being flustered, the mood in the South African campwas upbeat and relaxed, with players convinced that they would be headinghome, no matter what. It helped that Gerald Majola, the Cricket SouthAfrica chief executive, had initially come out in their favour, thoughpressure from government quarters had subsequently prompted a rethink.So while the media speculated about what might happen, several of theplayers spent Tuesday night in the Cheers Pub at the team hotel, havingdinner and light-hearted games of pool while joking about which flightsthey would take back home. The team management had apparently asked for 27business-class seats for the team, but with such a bulk booking notpossible, there were plans to send the team in three groups, via Doha,Singapore and even London.By Wednesday morning though, with no decision taken, there was anincreased element of jitteriness and belligerence. A team meeting in themorning reportedly had the team deciding to head home, with or without theblessing of the board. By early afternoon, with the Olive report beingsent to Cricket South Africa, it was certain that they would leave, andall that remained was for administrative hurdles to be surmounted. Majola,who had been on vacation before this crisis broke, hurriedly convened apress conference at 3:30pm (7pm Sri Lankan local time) in Johannesburg,but by then Sri Lanka Cricket had already been informed of the decision towithdraw.An email sent by Majola to Duleep Mendis spoke of the warm relationshipthat the two countries shared, but reiterated that the situation was toodangerous in South African eyes for the tour to go on. And by the timeArthur read out Majola’s statement to the media – no questions wereentertained – Sri Lanka Cricket and the BCCI had already announced theirplans for a three-match series to be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club,where drainage facilities are markedly superior to that at the Premadasa.The very fact that the Indians weren’t keen on a five-match series – theywill leave Colombo more than a week ahead of schedule – suggests that theytoo have a few concerns about the situation. Under the circumstances, itmakes little sense to point fingers at the South Africans for bailing out.With the rain constant and the security cordon tight, boredom and a siegementality were nearly inevitable. A half-hearted performance with mindsback home and nerves on edge would have done no one any favours, least ofall the crowd.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board is faced with a quandary ahead of picking their 14-member squad for the Champions Trophy with Habibul Bashar’s fitness status not yet confirmed. Bashar, their captain, has said he can confirm his fitness status only a week after the ICC deadline of September 7 for submitting the squads.It is possible that Bashar will be included in the squad and later replaced if he fails his fitness test. “As far as I know, one can only replace an injured player from the 30-member probables but we are still not clear about the rules,” Mahbubul Anam, the board general secretary told the , a Dhaka-based daily. “That’s why we have to go through the ICC laws first about the matter then we will discuss with the selectors,”Bashar fractured his left thumb during the second one-day match against Zimbabwe in July. He missed the last Champions Trophy in England in 2004 because of a fracture to his right thumb. Mahbub said that the Bangladesh board might ask the ICC to look at Bashar’s case as a special consideration.But Faruque Ahmed, the chief selector, was confident that Bashar would recover in time for the tournament. “Yes, you can say it is a little bit of a dilemma for the board as well as the selectors because we have to pick the final team by September 7 while we can know the exact position of Bashar only a week later. But I am not too bothered with the situation as Bashar is recovering well and his injury is also not a serious one.”Though Faruque himself supported Bashar’s inclusion in the squad, he said that the final decision would be taken only after the selection panel had discussed it. “I don’t know the details of the ICC rules about the matter but I don’t think there is any rigid law,” he added. Bangladesh are scheduled to play West Indies, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in the qualifying round of the Champions Trophy beginning October 7. If they finish in the top two, they will advance to the next round of the tournament to play the six top-seeded teams.

Darrell Hair, the Australian umpire at the centre of the ongoing ball-tampering controversy, has claimed that his offer to resign if offered US$500,000 was made at the behest of the ICC. In a statement issued through his lawyers last night, Hair stated that he was invited to put his offer in writing by Doug Cowie, the ICC’s umpires manager.Hair said that his offer “was not a spur of the moment thing” and that he had a dialogue with the ICC. This immediately shifted the focus to Cowie, who first responded to the infamous Hair email last Tuesday by suggesting that his resignation offer “may have merit”.But Hair has now claimed that Speed made only a partial disclosure of exchanges three days later. Hair’s lawyer also said that his latest statement was designed to “address certain misconceptions that appear to have arisen as a consequence of the release of certain confidential correspondence between Mr Hair and ICC”.”I was encouraged to make the offer that was disclosed by ICC on August 25. During an extended conversation on August 21 with Mr Cowie I was invited to make a written offer. The figure in the e-mail correspondence was in line with those canvassed with the ICC. I would have thought that it was quite apparent from the text of correspondence that I had been in discussions with ICC about the issue. The opening words of my e-mail to Mr Cowie confirm this: ‘Just (to) firm up what we discussed earlier this evening … ‘”The ICC quickly rebutted the claim. A spokesman said: “There were many informal discussions between Mr Hair and Mr Cowie between the end of the Oval Test and Mr Hair’s first e-mail on Tuesday, including a discussion on the potential impact on his career. Mr Cowie’s role was to support and counsel Mr Hair, as his manager, at a difficult time. It is our understanding that at no stage during their conversations was there discussion of a pay-off, nor secrecy, nor deadlines, nor misleading the public over reasons for retirement — all of which was subsequently laid out in Mr Hair’s email.”Speed said he wanted Hair to continue as an international umpire but wasn’t sure whether it would be possible after all this. He went on to back Cowie as well. “If he could play it again, Doug would play it differently,” Speed said. “When the email came to me, I saw that not for one second could we contemplate it.”

It’s hard enough for top-quality bowlers to come up against a rampagingChris Gayle, just spare a thought for the lesser teams. Unfortunately forthem, Gayle’s made a habit of pulverising minnows – he averages 59 againstZimbabwe and close to 49 against Bangladesh – and today it was apremeditated assault. Start steady, motor along and go ballistic towardsthe end.”Things weren’t that easy,” he said at the end of the day, beaming acheeky smile. “The wicket was keeping low and one needed to concentrate. Ineeded to capitalise on the start. Hopefully I can better my performanceagainst Sri Lanka.” But was the wicket really that difficult? WasBangladesh’s surrender understandable? “It was a good wicket and we sawthat when they batted early on. But they didn’t really capitalise on thestart. It wasn’t the easiest of wickets to start but it’s something thatneeded you to dig deep. Once you got in you can pace yourself and go onfrom there.”The manner in which he went after them as the finish line approached madethe bowling look quite pedestrian. “It’s definitely not the weakest attackin ODI cricket,” Gayle retorted when asked his thoughts. “They bowledwell, especially the two left-arm spinners. They put the ball in the rightareas. My game-plan was to go out there and not take it for granted. I’m agood reader of the game and it’s a situation – when I’ve played 100 andodd one-day games – that one learns.”His constant chatter with Shivnarine Chanderpaul, towards the end of thegame, didn’t go unnoticed. “Chanderpaul and myself wanted to work well inpartnership, we wanted to communicate and plan it well and stay till thethe end,” he continued. “I wanted a hundred and he wanted a fifty, so hesaid, ‘Chris, whatever you do make sure I get my fifty as well.'”Gayle and Chanderpaul have taken care of the bulk of West Indies battingin the opening two games of the tournament but Brian Lara wasn’t tooconcerned. “The game on Saturday [against Sri Lanka] is very, veryimportant for us we’s love to qualify No.1 and move on. If Chris andChanderpaul are the only two to bat on Saturday, this is great for us.There is no room for experimentation at this present time. You just haveto win, win, win.”No team wants to pick themselves up from a loss going into the moreimportant stage of the tournament,” he continued looking ahead to the SriLanka game, “so I think both teams going to be very competitive. WestIndies is going out to put out their best XI and we are going to go reallystrongly for a win. I think three wins on a trot, going into the secondstage of the tournament, is definitely going to be positive.”West Indies’ fortunes, though, will hinge on the fitness of their players,three of whom were ill-disposed. Lara admitted that it was a seriousconcern. “Starting with Sarwan, Smith and Morton, and now Fidel it’s hardto quarantine the guys specially if you travel. Hopefully Fidel will beback in the field soon.”

David Graveney, England’s chairman of selectors, has denied claims that the side are prioritising Test-match cricket over the one-day game.His comments come on the back of another poor performance in a one-day tournament by England, whose defeat of West Indies at the weekend was scant consolation for being eliminated at the group stage.”We treat one-day cricket with the same intensity and attention to detail as we do Test cricket,” Graveney insisted. “It’s true that some people who support English cricket are only interested in Test matches, but we know we have to earn the support we get for one-day games … you do not have that by right … and you do that by putting up good performances and winning matches. We have not done that and we know we have work to do.”Nobody is sitting on their hands and not rating one-day cricket as important as Test match cricket,” he continued. “For me, it is equally important. Despite what a lot of people said, we went to India to win the tournament, so if you do not win it and you are out before the first stage is over, then it is obviously disappointing.”Asked about the forthcoming Ashes, Graveney admitted that the scheduling of major events was against England. “We always have an Ashes series before a World Cup, which obviously slightly affects our preparation going into the tournament,” he said. “But [the World Cup] will be great viewing time for the UK this time, and we will be doing everything we can to realise our potential.”England have won only seven of their last 24 ODIs.

110 v Sri Lanka, 1st Test, Galle, March 2004
In danger of losing his Test spot on a surface as unfamiliar as a snow field, Martyn calmly resists the pressure of Muttiah Muralitharan as he scores his first century in two years. “Emerging from a bad patch,” reported, “Martyn reasserted his right to bat at second wicket down with a methodical display.” The ball was spinning wickedly, it was so hot and humid that umbrellas and seats accompanied the drinks, and Australia began their second innings 161 behind. Martyn turned up with Australia 14 ahead and stayed for almost five-and-a-half hours, sharing a 70-run stand with Matthew Hayden before the crucial partnership of 206 with Darren Lehmann decided the result.104 v India, 2nd Test, Chennai, October 2004
India prepare to level the series 1-1 when Martyn and Jason Gillespie unite at 145 for 4 with a lead of four late on the third day. Playing as far back as possible and waiting for bowling lapses to pull or sweep, Martyn performs as comfortably as any Westerner could hope to in sauna-like conditions, and regained control with Gillespie, the nightwatchman, in a 139-run collection that pushed Australia ahead. Reprieved by a dropped caught-behind on zero, Martyn’s punishment lasted 210 balls and he was so confident that he allowed himself the rare extravagance of a six off Anil Kumble to bring up his century. Not even the fifth-day rain could dampen Martyn’s performance.114 & 97 v India, 3rd Test, Nagpur, October 2004
He misses the chance to be the first Australian since Don Bradman to score three centuries in consecutive innings, but seals the Man-of-the-Series award with a brilliant double. calls Act 1 “a handsome century” while he was “elegant” in the second. On a greener wicket, he showed he could re-adapt and cut and drove with aesthetic ease in a 165-ball innings of 16 fours. Knowing runs from the tail were used up in the previous Test, he made sure of another impressive contribution alongside Lehmann and Michael Clarke, before the second-innings near-miss batted India out of the game and the series.

165 v New Zealand, 2nd Test, March 2005, Wellington
A most un-Martyn-like start in damp conditions suited to seam as he swings, misses and French cuts twice in the early stages. However, the tea break brings a dramatic transformation on the way to a career-high score. Breezing 82 in the final session, Martyn reached his fifth century away from Australia in 13 months as his second fifty came in 68 balls. Drives, pulls, flicks and glances decorated the innings and he woke up in the same mood the following day. If Gilchrist had not smashed 162 from 146 balls it would have been a high-profile treasure.101 v South Africa, 3rd Test, March/April 2006, Johannesburg
Six innings into his recall Martyn hadn’t justified his spot, but when Australia need him most he steps in with his cape. Australia were cruising towards their target of 292 when they lost 4 for 39, but Martyn was the glue. He set up the side with an impressive 101 from 208 balls before Michael Kasprowicz and Brett Lee sealed the victory for a 3-0 result. Under extreme pressure Martyn rewarded the selectors for relying on his experience. It was his 13th and final Test century.