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Sourav Ganguly: has a problem with the higher authorities © AFP

Even if the rain made a result impossible at the Gabba, India, despite their sensational showing on Friday, would perhaps be happy to walk away with a draw and their dignity, but they will live the next days in the fear of their captain being put out of action for the next Test in Adelaide. In the second Test against New Zealand at Ahmedabad earlier this year, Sourav Ganguly became the first player in the history of cricket to be docked a couple of runs for ignoring the umpire’s warning about running on the danger area of the pitch. Now he runs the risk of being the first Test captain to be suspended for slow over-rates.Admittedly, it will be a drastic step for the match referee to consider, but Mike Proctor will be well within his rights to impose a one-match suspension on Ganguly if India are unable to substantially reduce their deficit, which currently stands at 10. “Such decisions are always taken at the end of the match,” Proctor told Wisden Cricinfo last night, “I have had a word with Ganguly and the team management and I will be watching them closely.”This is not the first time the Indians have fallen foul of Proctor on this count. He had fined the entire team 35% of their match fee for slow over-rates in the Hamilton Test during India’s tour of New Zealand earlier this year. While he would not accuse India of slowing down deliberately, Proctor said it was a serious issue. While the Indian management sought to play down the issue, a senior official admitted privately that the matter was of concern to the Indian camp.The new playing conditions of the ICC lay a greater responsibility on the captain for any tardiness on the field. While players can be penalized 5% of the match fee for every over bowled short, the captain is liable for a 10% penalty. If the shortfall is more than five overs, the fine is raised to 10% for regular players and 20% for the captain. At end of the first day, Ganguly was liable for a penalty exceeding his match fee, giving rise to speculations that if the trend continued Proctor would be left with no choice but to hand out a one-match suspension. A shortfall of more than five overs amounts to a Level Two offence under the new ICC Code, which translates to “bringing the game in to disrepute.”While that description can be challenged, it is undeniable that the Indians were markedly lethargic on the field on Thursday, with the wicket keeper and the slip fielders changing ends gingerly. The contrast was remarkable following Proctor’s warning. The fielders sprinted so quickly between the overs that a televsion producer was overheard remarking that it was costing his channel considerable advertising revenue.Wisden Asia Cricket

It took nine overs for South Africa to make the 44 runs, required to win the Durban test match by 10 wickets. 36 runs came of the 5 angry overs bowled by Sami, a senseless display of short-pitched bowling , the equivalent of banging one’s head against a wall.By contrast, England made Australia sweat it out for the 107 runs it needed, losing 5 wickets. It was an inspiring piece of cricket.England bowled with passion, pride and commitment, qualities of heart missing in Pakistan effort. It would have been nice if Pakistan had taken a wicket or two. It goes to show a frame of mind, an attitude.Waqar Younis, perhaps, believes that he himself is two bowlers because he goes in with a bowler short in both versions of the game. In the Durban test match, Pakistan played 4 bowlers and to compound the mistake, won the toss and sent South Africa in, as if it had McGrath, Gillespie, Lee and Warne in the team.The first calculation, a captain must do, is whether he has the bowling resources to take 20 wickets to win a test match. There’s no point in packing the batting if you can’t get the other side out.Besides, if your top five batsmen don’t fire, what can we expect an additional batsman to do? Shahid Afridi does not seem to fit into the team management’s planning, for whatever reasons, what is Mohammad Zahid in the team for?In the three-day game preceding the test match, by some quirk of fortune, or absent-mindedness, Mohammad Zahid played and he took 5 wickets. Perhaps, this was not considered good enough. Sent in, South Africa made 366 in ideal bowling conditions.True there was no Wasim Akram or Shoaib Akhtar, one back home and the other still in Durban, ostensibly undergoing treatment though hardly incapacitated: All the more reason to have batted first and put some runs on the board.Batting was always going to be difficult and Shaun Pollock let loose his battery of quick bowlers and they blasted Pakistan out. The openers, about whom so much concern has been shown, gave Pakistan a solid start but once Taufiq Omar was out, the door was opened.Inzamam got out to a brute of a delivery and, suddenly, the South African bowlers seemed to grow horns. Hanif Mohammad was in the dressing-room, watching the proceedings as the batting coach. His mind must have flashed back to his monumental innings of 337 against the West Indies and Gilchrist was part of the attack and Gilchrist was ferociously fast and he ‘chucked’ his bouncer and the batsmen wore no helmets.Hanif the batting coach can pass on some tips but he can’t pass on the application and steely resolve he brought to his batting. He put a very high price on his wicket.It is not that the Pakistan batsmen are not talented. It is simply that they don’t bat as a team. Pakistan batted better in the second innings. Another hundred runs and Saqlain could have won the match for Pakistan.The batsmen should see the videos of how they got out and they will be able to see how poor the shot selection was. Youhana twinkled like a diamond. But he played an ambitious shot seeing that a fielder had been posted at fly-slip and he took the bait.One hopes that Pakistan will do better at Capetown. It will be the last international match before the World Cup and Pakistan needs to take back some pride from South Africa before it returns to do battle.Teams that refuse to play in Zimbabwe will forfeit match points. This is not enough. Zimbabwe as a venue is a part of the package of the World Cup.The pressure is coming from England even the government has weighed in with Claire Short, a cabinet minister saying it would be “shocking and deplorable” if the England team went to Zimbabwe. The irony is that Zimbabwe’s team is mainly made up of whites.Yet, they seem to be willing to play but the high-minded English find it morally repugnant to play in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe. By introducing politics into sport, the World Cup is being put to risk. People like David Graveney are entitled to their opinions but are singularly unqualified to make political judgements.I would guess that they have no idea about the imperatives of Zimbabwe’s politics nor any idea of the white man’s rule in that country and how the best lands in that country were ‘stolen’ from the Zimbabwe blacks. It is a shameful history. The ICC must take a tough stand.Pakistan’s team for the World Cup will have been announced when this column appears in the print. I expect to see no surprises and if they are, I will comment on them next week.But one hopes that no one will be picked if he has a question mark hanging over him about his fitness. It’s time that PCB’s medical panel showed some teeth. Players who carry injuries don’t get better by playing.This would seem fairly elementary to even a layman. And unfit players are bad for the morale of the team and morale is a key component of a team. This too is elementary.

The players turned up, the crowd turned up, more than 7000 of them, but someone forgot to order a pitch for the New Zealand-Zimbabwe Boxing Day Test at Wellington’s Basin Reserve.Those who made the effort to shake off their post-Christmas Day torpor must have wondered why they bothered when the arrived at the ground for what has now become a New Zealand cricket tradition.For all their efforts what greeted them was a grey-looking, lifeless pitch that was a far cry from the superior pitches that have been prepared in recent years.Predictably, the play was dull with New Zealand crawling to a laborious 190/4 by stumps with Nathan Astle looking for a big score on 56 not out, off 174 balls and in 242 minutes, and Craig McMillan 20 not out.The real test of the effect of such a slow day’s batting will be seen in the number of people who bother to turn up tomorrow.New Zealand coach David Trist, never short of the right word, described the day’s play as being played at a “sonambulistic pace.”It would be a challenging Test match and the game would be played slowly, he said. The pitch would turn and once seeing the covers off the pitch that was why New Zealand decided to play both its slow bowlers, off-spinner Paul Wiseman and leg-spinner Brooke Walker.Zimbabwean coach Carl Rackemann said: “It is drier than what we expected. It is pretty much a dead sort of wicket but it is what both teams have got to deal with.”It is not an easy pitch to bat on, but it is not easy to get people out,” he said.That was reflected in the 60 runs per session during the day at a run rate of 2.11. As a result Rackemann felt the day had been “fantastic” for Zimbabwe.”Another wicket at stumps would have been deluxe for us,” he said.Trist still believes New Zealand has the chance to post a high enough score to allow it to dictate terms.”The game is poised. We have a platform and if we can bat well into the afternoon and have 330-340 that will be competitive. It should be an interesting match for the connoisseurs of cricket,” he said.New Zealand did nothing to help their cause by executing four dismissals of woeful waste.Nathan Astle, enjoying his longest and most productive Test innings since the 86 he scored in Harare earlier this summer, used the occasion well and by the end of play was starting to flow into his shots while his running between the wickets, especially in partnership with Craig McMillan, at last added some urgency to proceedings.”He batted with patience, diligence and made few errors,” Trist said of his performance.Running between the wickets was not always an asset on the day. Captain Stephen Fleming, who looked to be relishing the chance for a good, long innings, was run out just after lunch when called by Richardson, and then sent back. He seemed capable of scoring far more than the 22 achieved.Richardson, who had two lives, on 35 and 73, was sent back to the pavilion a little sooner than he might have wanted when he too was run out, the result of a fine piece of fielding by cover field Henry Olonga.Sensing that Richardson was labouring after being called through by Astle, Olonga changed his mind in mid-stride and threw to the opposite end. It fooled Richardson who was well short of his ground.Despite his 75 runs, Richardson was not happy with his effort.”I came into the match with some goals, to play with more control and composure than in South Africa,” he said.The run out of Fleming had not helped that goal.”There was a bit of head-chatter there for a while. There was a lot of stuff going on up top,” he said of the battle he had to regain his concentration.”I had to get my thoughts back in order. It is not the sort of wicket you can look good on.”My responsibility was to go through and bat the day out. I want to improve on that in the future. As the wicket turns guys will have to have a solid game plan and stick to it,” he said.Matt Horne’s return from injury was short-lived and the method of his dismissal, wafting at a wide ball that was better left alone, was probably just as painful as his original broken hand.Of all the wickets, Mathew Sinclair probably had the least control over his dismissal, sent packing leg before wicket by umpire Steve Dunne with what looked a line call from a ball bowled by Bryan Strang.

Newcastle United have been handed a big injury lift over Joelinton ahead of their Premier League match today… 

What’s the latest?

Magpies reporter Jordan Cronin has claimed that the Brazilian central midfielder has travelled with the squad to Stamford Bridge ahead of their clash with Chelsea.

The former Hoffenheim forward missed out on Thursday night as the Toon beat Southampton 2-1 at St. Mary’s and he now looks set to make his return this afternoon.

Delight

Eddie Howe will surely be delighted with this news as it suggests that Joelinton will be available against the Blues today. It also means that the midfielder has not sustained a long-term injury and will not be out for a number of matches.

This is a major boost for the Magpies as he has been in terrific form since the ex-Bournemouth boss came in to replace Steve Bruce. He has been moved into a midfield role, after playing up front and out wide under Bruce, and is now thriving in black and white.

In the Premier League this season, he has made 3.4 tackles and interceptions and won 7.7 duels per game. This shows that he has been a powerhouse in the middle of the park as he is consistently winning the ball back for the side and working his socks off to beat the opposition in his individual battles.

He has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.9 or higher across each month from November to February and this illustrates the difference Howe has made to his performances. In October, he averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.0 across the month under Bruce and this suggests that he was struggling to find his best form for the now-West Brom manager.

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Howe has been able to get the best out of the Brazilian and his statistics show that he has been a key player for the club in recent months. This is why the head coach will be delighted to have him available for this clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Joelinton’s combative play in the middle of the park will be crucial for Newcastle if he is selected from the start. His ability to make tackles and intercept passes will allow him to dampen the effect Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho have on the game as he would be cutting out their attempts to find the likes of Kai Havertz and Mason Mount on the ball.

AND in other news,  Worse than Almiron: Howe must axe Newcastle “cheat” who averages 32.1 touches per game…

	Mike Procter: “It seems drama follows me wherever I go” © Getty Images

Mike Procter says dealing with the Harbhajan Singh-Andrew Symonds hearing in Sydney was even harder than handling the 2006 Oval Test, which was awarded as a forfeit to England after Pakistan refused to play amid a ball-tampering row. Procter was the match referee in both cases and he believes the two situations were completely different.”Being South African as well, and having seen the effects of racism first-hand, it was a really tough call,” Procter told the . “It was probably more tough and stressful than the events surrounding the Oval Test when the match was abandoned. It has been very difficult on a personal and professional level.”[The Oval] was a very unusual day. Everyone in the ICC … did everything in our power to make something happen, but with the rules of cricket being what they were, there was nothing that could be done. It was, in many ways, an impossible situation.”But I would say the issues and pressures that came out of Sydney were in many ways greater. Many of the situations that come up have never been dealt with before, and at the end of the day, it is you alone who must come up with the decision, drawing on your cricketing experiences and general knowledge. It seems drama follows me wherever I go.”The appeal over Harbhajan’s three-Test ban for allegedly calling Symonds a “monkey” during the SCG match will be heard next week. Procter said despite criticism over his handling of the case – a leaked report suggests he took the word of the Australian fielders – he did not have a bad relationship with India.”I can’t comment specifically about the case, but I will say that, despite some reports to the contrary, I have a good relationship with the Indians,” Procter said. “Now it is in the hands of the ICC, so I will leave it at that.”

Mickey Arthur is adamant that Roger Telemachus has an important role to play at the World Cup © Getty Images

In many South African cricket followers’ eyes, Loots Bosman, Roger Telemachus and Robin Peterson were the recipients of an all-expenses-paid jaunt to West Indies next month when they were named in South Africa’s 15-man squad for the World Cup on Thursday.Callers to radio stations and respondents to polls on internet websites have called into question their ability and some have suggested they are there just to fill a quota of seven players of colour in the squad.It must sometimes bring a tear to the eye for the players concerned and it was heartening that coach Mickey Arthur and selection convenor Haroon Lorgat backed the trio and gave clear, sensible reasons for their inclusion when they spoke to the media on Thursday night.All three have shown scratchy form of late, with Peterson and Bosman only appearing in the opening game of the series against Pakistan and Telemachus not playing at all.But Arthur was adamant the selectors have given him “the best possible bowling combination” and stressed Peterson and Telemachus had important roles in terms of the variation they bring to the attack.”If the pitch turns, then we are very confident Robin Peterson will do the job for us. He’s our man as far as a spinner is concerned and he is a wholesale cricketer who gives us three disciplines in one,” Arthur said.”If the pitch is slow, then Roger can bring us variation. He bowls wicket-to-wicket in the middle overs, can reverse the ball and is very good at the death.”Lorgat added that Telemachus’s particular role was to follow the new-ball bowlers, a job he is more suited to than the omitted Johan van der Wath.Lorgat also explained Bosman’s inclusion and Boeta Dippenaar’s exclusion by saying South Africa would like quick starts in the World Cup.”That decision was made around the game plan. We want to get off to a quick start in the powerplays, exactly the way Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers have responded at the top. Boeta is unlucky, but he had five innings at the Champions Trophy to cement his place,” Lorgat said.Arthur also defined the roles of those bowlers who will follow the brilliant new-ball pairing of Shaun Pollock and Makhaya Ntini.”Andre Nel’s job is to strike behind Makhaya and Shaun, while Andrew Hall and Charl Langeveldt provide variation, reverse-swing and bowl at the death. Jacques Kallis is our fifth bowler and can swing it, Graeme Smith has been working hard on his off-spin and Justin Kemp has been working really hard on his cutters.”South Africa’s squad certainly has a settled look about it with Smith himself, Mark Boucher, Gibbs, Hall, Kallis, Langeveldt, Ntini, Peterson and Pollock all having appeared in previous World Cups. Boucher and Gibbs will be playing in their third World Cups, while Kallis and Pollock were members of the 1996, 1999 and 2003 South African teams.South Africa have had a harsh time of it in recent World Cups (actually in all of them, bar 1996), but Smith believes his team ought to make an impression in the West Indies.”This team has come a long way since 2003, it is much calmer and more confident. Everyone fits in really well, it is a happy team. Now we just need to adapt to conditions and deal with the pressures in the Caribbean,” he said.Cricket South Africa president Ray Mali certainly backed his skipper.”This squad has set the world alight for the last two seasons by playing positive, brave cricket. I am confident they will mount a formidable challenge at the World Cup,” Mali said.Now it just remains to be seen whether the composition of that squad will be greeted with similar positivity in the Republic.

Muttiah Muralitharan: ‘Every country … England, South Africa, everywhere, people respect me. Here I don’t know what’s happening.’ © AFP

Muttiah Muralitharan has undergone another round of Tests at the University of Western Australia (UWA) to prove to the Australian crowds that his action is legitimate.”I’ve have gone to tests again … and still people are trying to bully me in a way,” said Murali. “Every time I bowl they shout it from the grounds, every time I go near the boundary line they say things, that means they are not accepting me. Sometimes you feel ‘Why do you want to come and play?'”The latest tests were done after local media reports suggested that Murali’s action was again under question because he was bowling more than 20kmph faster than when he was last tested at UWA. The tests showed that Murali’s average elbow extension while bowling the doosra at 86.5 kmph was 12.2 degrees and for the offbreak it was 12.9 degrees at 95 kmph, well within the stipulated ICC limit of 15 degrees.”There’s nothing more he could do,” said Bruce Elliot, a UWA scientist. “The latest testing shows, irrespective of whether he’s bowling a doosra or an off-break, all his deliveries were under 15 degrees, so none were illegal.” He said Muralitharan was bowling faster because of a shoulder surgery he underwent in 2004.Since he was first no-balled during the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne in 1995, Muralitharan’s action has been scrutinised and given the go-ahead four times by the UWA but the taunting at grounds across Australia have continued. He was unofficially reprimanded for making a gesture at a spectator who had painted his face black and had `no-ball’ written on his chest at Perth on January 31. “It happens mostly, you could say 99 percent in Australia rather than any other country I have been to,” he said. “Every country … England, South Africa, everywhere, people respect me. They enjoy my bowling and they enjoy the cricket. Here I don’t know what’s happening.”

Phil DeFreitas: retiring at the end of the season© Getty Images

Phil DeFreitas, the last active English cricketer who knows how it feels to win the Ashes, has announced that he is retiring at the end of the forthcoming season.DeFreitas, 39, made his England debut as a 20-year-old on Mike Gatting’s victorious Ashes tour in 1986-87, where he starred with five wickets and an important 40 in England’s first-Test victory at Brisbane.He went on to play 44 Tests and 103 one-day internationals in a ten-year England career, and though was one of several cricketers of his generation to be burdened with the label of “the next Ian Botham”, he was nonetheless good enough to take 140 Test wickets, and fell just 66 short of 1000 runs as well.DeFreitas was rarely at his most effective overseas – on the 1992-93 tour of India, he failed to take a single first-class wicket – but in favourable swinging conditions, he could be lethal. In 1994, he took nine wickets to see off New Zealand at Trent Bridge, and his best Test figures of 7 for 70 also came in a winning cause, against Sri Lanka at Lord’s in 1991.His batting remained frustratingly hit-and-miss, and an eventual Test average of 14.82 didn’t do justice to his talents. In the summer of 1994, he twice turned matches on their head with his long-handled hitting, against New Zealand at Old Trafford and South Africa at The Oval, and then did so again the following winter, with his highest score of 88, against Australia at Adelaide.DeFreitas began his county career as a teenager at Leicestershire, and went on to play for Lancashire and Derbyshire before returning to his original club in 2000. He went on to captain the club for the 2003 season, before standing down midway through 2004, but at the age of 39, he is currently the oldest man on the county circuit.”For England, Phil was a wonderful young man with a bit of pace, his fielding was magnificent and he had a bit of talent with the bat,” said Gatting in an interview with BBC Sport. “He’s one of those guys you want in the game. It’s sad he’s going to retire but he’s been good for the game.”

All that stood between Australia and victory was Rahul Dravid. And for a while, all that stood between Dravid and the target was Brad Williams. Bowling straight and fast outside off stump, Williams made Dravid look out of touch only a day after he scored 233. In one scorching over, he nicked a delivery to Adam Gilchrist – who dropped the difficult chance – and played at and missed two more that moved off the seam. Williams posed searing questions, and somehow, Dravid survived to score the winning runs.A breakdown of Williams’s bowling analysis reveals a persistent length and the near absence of loose deliveries, the reasons why India’s batsmen had such a hard time.

Length	Balls	Runs
Full	0	0
Yorker	0	0
Half-volley	4	4
Goodlength	30	11
Short-of-good-length	46	7
Short	4	12

If Williams did all the hard work, Stuart MacGill took on the onus of bowling like a millionaire, and gifted full tosses and short deliveries. Reputed to present one boundary opportunity each over, MacGill proved more generous towards the end of India’s innings. Though the turning pitch helped him dismiss Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar, bowling down the wrong line proved expensive for MacGill.

Line	Balls	Runs
Outsideoff	54	37
Off stump	11	12
Middlestump	7	5
Leg stump	9	4
Outsideleg	68	43

All India needed was 193 on a worn-out fifth-day pitch with the ball shooting through alarmingly low at times, and Brad Williams reverse-swinging deliveries at 135 kmph. Historically atrocious chasers, India’s batsmen braved it out under difficult conditions, and got home in relative comfort.

IndianInnings	1st	2nd
Incontrol	85.54%	77.52%
Not in control	14.46%	22.48%

The Selection Committee of the BCCSL has chosen the following 14 players for the Sri Lanka `A’ squad, from whom 11 players will be selected on the morning of the 3rd Unofficial Test Match versus the Kenya National Cricket Team, which is to be played at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium from the 14th of February to the 17th of February 2002. The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has approved the squad.The selection of the team to play in the match will be done by the Selectors in consultation with the Coach and Captain.1. Upul Chandana (Captain)
2. Avishka Gunawardena
3. Upekha Fernando
4. Michael Vandort
5. T.M. Dilshan
6. Chamara Silva
7. Prasanna Jayawardena
8. M. Pushpakumara
9. Ruchira Perera
10. Pulasthi Guneratne
11. Rangana Herath
12. Gayan Wijekoon
13. Dulip Liyanage
14. Ian Daniel

Manager/Head Coach:Roshan Mahanama
Coach: Hemantha Devapriya
Physiotherapist: Lal Thamel