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Left-arm spinner Nikita Miller took seven out of the 18 wickets to fall on the second day in St Elizabeth as Jamaica crushed Windward Islands by 10 wickets to win the 2008 Carib Cup.Miller had remarkable figures of 4 for 6 off 8.2 overs as Windwards collapsed for 61 in the first-innings, surrendering a lead of 171. He took 3 for 60 during Windwards’ follow-on as they were dismissed for 187, despite Andre Fletcher’s unbeaten 103, leaving Jamaica a target of 17 to win the championship. Jamaica’s openers Chris Gayle and Brenton Parchment knocked off the runs in the third over. The win gave Jamaica a regional double, and the 12 points they gained against Windwards took their tally to 58, which cannot be overtaken by any other team.”It is a great feeling to end this game within two days and to take thetitle with such authority,” Gayle told reporters after the match. “I have to say well done to the team.”
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Rain curtailed play on the second day between Guyana and Leewards Islands but Ramnaresh Sarwan’s unbeaten 89 and Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s 82 helped Guyana move on to 299 for 6, with a lead of 95.Guyana resumed their innings on 138 for 4, 66 runs behind Leewards’ 204 in the first-innings. Chanderpaul and Sarwan steadied the innings with a 145-run stand for the fifth wicket, which gave Guyana the lead. Chanderpaul attacked offspinner Steve Liburd, hitting him for a four and a six, before edging to Runako Morton at first slip. Derwin Christian joined Sarwan and had scored 13 when offspinner Anthony Martin trapped him leg before wicket at 279 for 6. Sarwan was on 89 and Esuan Crandon on 15, when rain halted play.
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Simon Jackson and Chadwick Walton scored half-centuries to lead Combined Campuses & Colleges’ (CCC) fightback against Trinidad & Tobago on the second day in Bridgetown. Having conceded a massive first-innings lead of 240 after being dismissed for 97, CCC’s batsmen regrouped to post 185 for 3 in the second innings and trail by only 55 runs.Jackson scored 11 fours during his 83 off 173 balls while Watson struck seven fours and a six, during his unbeaten 52 off 74 balls.Earlier T&T had secured a sizable lead after resuming on 224 for 5. they were eventually dismissed ten minutes before lunch after Ravi Rampaul took advantage of some mediocre bowling to score his second first-class fifty.T&T’s wickets were shared by offspinner Kevin McClean and captain Shirley Clarke, who took 4 for 54 and 4 for 53 respectively.

Lancashire 143 (Davies 7-33) lead Durham 114 (Flintoff 4-21, Anderson 4-31) by 29 runs
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Deficient techniques rather than deficient pitch were to blame on a day the county batsmen did not acquit themselves well on a bouncy Old Trafford pitch in conditions where the bowlers could swing the ball.Although Lancashire finished on top, leading Durham by 29 runs, the Man of the Match to date was Durham seamer Mark Davies, who started the entire batting nightmare by ripping through the home side’s middle order to return his best career figures of 7 for 33. True, he benefited from some incompetence at the other end, but that should not detract from a masterly performance. His personal pleasure soon evaporated, though, in the face of even more woeful batting from his own team.In sunny weather and on a good-looking shaven pitch, such carnage was hardly tobe expected. Lancashire batted on winning the toss and progressed withoutundue difficulty to 33, with Paul Horton making most of therunning. Then both openers fell on that score, both to catches in the slips asthey flashed unwisely at the ball. Steve Harmison dismissed Horton, but thebest bowler, coming on first change, was Davies, who kept an accurate lineand length just on or outside the off stump, and reaped a rich harvest.After removing Chilton, he beat Mohammad Younis twice in an over before inducingan edge to the keeper off a ball that flew, a fine delivery. Mal Loye handledthe bowling well, however, while Stuart Law played himself in carefully, andnot long after lunch Lancashire were fighting back on 93 for 3.After this, nothing was the same again; perhaps the batsmen suddenly decided thepitch was full of unseen terrors and adjusted their mental state accordingly.In seven balls, Davies took four wickets without a run being added,and a fifth 10 balls later. First to go was Loye (39), who sliced a ball intothe gully, where Ben Harmison took a sharp overhead catch at the secondattempt.Andrew Flintoff came and went first ball, pushing hesitantly at a ball thatbounced and moved away, and edging a catch to his England team-mate PaulCollingwood at first slip. It was his second first baller in a fortnight. Luke Sutton avoided the hat-trick, but then edged the third delivery he faced to the keeper; Kyle Hogg soon followed, snicking his second ball to second slip. The fifth wicket in this sequence was the big one of Law, who brought up the team’s 100 with a snick for four just over thekeeper’s head, and then was caught in the gully off one that flew from theshoulder of his bat.Lancashire were shattered. Saj Mahmood fought back with 31, looking moreassured than any of his team-mates apart from Loye, before Collingwood nippedin with the last two wickets. Lancashire had been skittled for 143 and anearly tea was taken.”Play the ball as little as possible.” This may have been Durham’s advice totheir batsmen, having seen the trouble Lancashire had got themselves into – allten wickets had fallen to catches between the keeper and point – but, if so, MarkStoneman (2) took it a little too literally, shouldering arms and seeing hisoff stump removed by a quick ball from James Anderson.Unlike Lancashire, Durham never even had a brief happy period with the bat.Anderson was the most dangerous bowler, constantly threatening the stumps,while Flintoff produced a vicious lifter that Kyle Coetzer popped up haplesslyfor a catch on the off side. Collingwood (3) slashed at Anderson and wasdismissed by the sort of fine catch at backward point that he himself usuallyspecialises in. The only batsman in the top six to reach double figures wasGarry Park, who fought hard but never looked comfortable in making 19.Durham’s highest stand of the day was a mere 24, for the eighth wicket, betweenBen Harmison (beaten and bowled by the sheer pace of Flintoff for 15) and MitchClaydon, whose assertive strokeplay in making his highest career score of 40 off38 balls (7 fours) put his seniors to shame. It was also the highest score ofthe day, a worthy achievement. He was the last man out, finally yorked by Flintoff, as Durham were dismissed for 114 in a single extended session.Anderson and Flintoff took four wickets each, with Anderson the best ofLancashire’s bowlers. At the present rate of progress, this match might notreach its third day. Or perhaps one of the teams will produce a batsman whowill display the technique and willpower to produce an innings of real qualityand turn this game on its head again.

The Punjab team has lodged a formal complaint against Harbhajan Singh to the BCCI, even as the Indian board took a serious view of the “slapping” incident during the post-match proceedings at Mohali and asked him submit his explanation before April 28. Harbhajan allegedly hit Sreesanth, his India team-mate and IPL rival, after Friday’s match between the Kings XI Punjab and the Mumbai Indians.”Kings XI Punjab confirms that a formal complaint against Mr Harbhajan Singh was submitted to the BCCI earlier today,” a media statement issued by the team said. “The complaint is in relation to yesterday’s incident following the match against Mumbai Indians, where Mr Singh made an unprovoked attack on Mr Sreesanth. The Kings XI Punjab team and management consider this behaviour unacceptable and against the spirit of the game.”Meanwhile, Niranajan Shah, the BCCI secretary, said that Harbhajan needed to clarify the reasons that prompted his act of indiscipline. “The BCCI has taken serious note of the incident that took place between Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth at Mohali after the IPL match. The BCCI condemns the behaviour of Harbhajan as a contracted player of the board and he is called upon to explain why disciplinary action should not be taken against him. And [Harbhajan] has been asked for a clarification by Monday evening [April 28].”Earlier Farokh Engineer, the match referee in the Mohali game, had told Cricinfo that he hasn’t received any verbal or written complaint from the Punjab team. Engineer also said he did not witness the alleged incident. “In the absence of any evidence I am in the dark. I don’t know what went on on the pitch and what triggered the alleged incident,” he said.Engineer has sought video evidence from the television broadcasters before taking any action. “If the incident is true some action will be taken. If there is definite, conclusive proof then it’s just not cricket.”Under the level 4.1 of the ICC’s Code of Conduct, physical assault of another player, umpire, referee, official or spectator will result in a ban of between 5 Tests of 10 one-day internationals up to a life ban for the player or official concerned.Meanwhile, there are unconfirmed reports that Harbhajan might be asked to step down as captain of the Mumbai Indians till the issue is resolved. Harbhajan was asked to lead the side after Sachin Tendulkar failed to recover from a groin injury. Bought at a cost of US$111.9 million, Mumbai are the most expensive of the eight IPL franchises but have yet to win a game.

The first international match in ten years at Hyderabad’s Niaz Stadiumheralds a potential return for a venue that, though not often used, is a significant one in Pakistan.The stadium has hosted only five Tests and six ODIs before Zimbabwe becamethe first international team to play here since 1997-98. But the venue isassociated with some key moments in Pakistan’s cricket history.This was the venue, for instance, when two Pakistan teams turned up toplay a Test against New Zealand in October 1976. The senior team was thenembroiled with the Board of Control for Cricket in Pakistan (BCCP) in apay dispute and the chairman, Abdul Hafeez Kardar, had selected and sentan entirely separate XI to play the Test. The issue was eventuallyresolved just before the Test started and Pakistan went on to win by tenwickets, sealing a first series win at home since 1964-65.Niaz Stadium is also remembered for what was then a world-record equallingpartnership between Javed Miandad and Mudassar Nazar, against India inJanuary 1983. The pair scored double hundreds and put on 451 runs for thethird wicket equalling the stand set by Don Bradman and Bill Ponsford in1934. Miandad was famously left stranded on 280, after Imran Khan, thecaptain, declared Pakistan’s innings on the third day. Imran later rattledIndia with a celebrated spell of five for 8 in 23 balls, leading his sideto an innings triumph.The ground hosted what turned out to be Test cricket’s 1000th Test,against New Zealand in November 1984. That remains the last Test to beplayed here, though it later staged the opening match of the 1987 WorldCup, between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. But since 1997, the ground has falleninto disrepair and at one stage, it was being used to host weddings. It also hosted the first hat-trick – Jalal-ud-Din against Australia in 1982.The current PCB administration has taken back control of the ground,however, and the successful hosting of the second ODI against Zimbabwe,said Nasim Ashraf, chairman PCB, is a sign that more international cricketmay be played here in the future. “We’re extremely proud that the stadiumhas been restored to international status. We’ve put in a fantastic newpitch and we’ve got this ground ready to host a game in four months. Thefacilities in the city and in the stadium are very good.”We want to develop a regional academy in the city and build more groundsto enable club cricket. Our policy now is to host matches on a rotationalbasis and we need to develop grounds in places like Sahiwal and Sialkot togive them more exposure.”The ground’s capacity is currently limited to only 7500 and it wasexpectedly full – and raucously so – for the match. But plans are underwayto increase that. There are also plans to build a five-star hotel, a keyICC requirement for any city hoping to stage international matches.”Crime is lower in Hyderabad than any other city in Sindh,” said KanwarNaveed Jamil, the city’s mayor. “The district government is planning tobuild a five-star hotel right next to the ground and that should attractmore matches in the future.”It may be hard to dispute that claim: despite worries before the match about whether the stadium – and the city – would be able to cope, the second ODI passed off without incident, in front of a healthy, appreciative crowd.

India Pistons set up a title showdown with Chemplast in the Moin udDowlah Cup in Hyderabad on Sunday with a comfortable 49 run win overIndia Cements. In the semifinal clash at the Gymkhana ground, Pistonswere dug out of a hole by the familiar crisis man Robin Singh whoshepherded the lower order to 218 with a priceless unbeaten 80. Inreply, Cements were never in the running, losing wickets at closeintervals and it was only a lone hand of 77 by Sunil Oasis whichhelped them to 169.In the morning, Tamil Nadu seamer J Gokulakrishnan bowled an incisivefirst spell of 5-0-26-3 to leave Pistons reeling at 33/3 after havingbeen put in to bat. Vikram Rathour and JR Madanagopal restored someorder with a battling 44-run stand before both fell in the space oftwo runs to leave Pistons in grave peril at 79/5. Pistons were missingReetinder Sodhi for this vital game, the Punjab youngster havingfallen ill after yesterday’s game and flown back home.Robin was thus the last hope and he responded with the typical gustoof a man who thrives under the challenge of a pressure cookersituation. Two more partners left him along the line after brief showsof solidarity to leave Pistons at 135/7. But although No’s 9, 10 and11 made precisely 13 runs between them, they helped Robin add 83 forthe last three wickets with the skipper running out of partners aftermaking 80 in 90 balls inclusive of six fours. Gokul finished top ofthe pack among the Cements attack with figures of 4/46.Robin led with the way with the ball too, dismissing Jesu Babu withhis first delivery. The other opener VB Chandrasekhar was not hisusual aggressive self, hanging around for 43 balls to make 19 beforeleg spinner Balaji Rao dismissed him. Balaji Rao delivered anothertelling blow by removing S Sharath for three and at 61/5, Cements werein dire straits. Left arm spinner Satyajit Medappa then stepped in andcleaned up the tail in spite of Oasis’ heroics. The Kerala Ranjiplayer was last out for 77 (106 balls, 6 fours, 3 sixes) as Cementsfolded up ignominiously for 169 with 14 balls to spare.

ScorecardHamish Bennett’s seven-wicket haul helped dismiss Wellington for 188 on a rain-affected third day at Basin Reserve and gave Canterbury a slender 27-run lead in the first innings of the State Championship final. Canterbury ended the day on 10 for no loss.Rain delayed the start until 3.15 pm local time and when play resumed Brandon Hiini broke the 48-run stand for the seventh wicket by having Dewayne Bowden caught behind by Kruger van Wyk for 22. The innings folded quickly thereafter – the last three wickets fell for 11 runs – with Bennett taking the three remaining wickets to add to his four on the second day. Luke Woodcock remained unbeaten on 35.Canterbury’s openers, Todd Astle and Michael Papps, batted for seven overs and remained unbeaten on 3 and 6 respectively.

Regional cricket associations have been knocked for seemingly withholding their best players from representing the West Indies ‘B’ team in the Busta Series.Additionally, team captain Roland Holder feels the cream of the regional Under-23s, with the exception of Test players, should be made to play for the ‘B’ team if it is to make a greater impact.A lot of the territories need to be honest in their nominations for the ‘B’team if it is going to serve the purpose for which it is intended, the experienced former Barbados batsman told NATIONSPORT yesterday.We had a couple of players who could not make their national trials or, in the case of one or two from the Leewards and Windwards, who could not make their national side.It was Holder’s forthright view that a player who is put forward to represent the West Indies ‘B’ team should be someone who is on the verge of making his national team.I think most territories have selected their 16, kept the best of the reserves and then sent basically what has not been a true representation of this team.As a reference, he pointed to Guyana fast bowler Reon Griffith who was kept in their 13-man squad for the first five matches. Griffith did not play a single match and was only released to the ‘B’ team for the sixth round.I know all the territories want to win . . . [but] it is all about the development of West Indies’ cricket, said the 34-year-old Holder, who played successfully for Barbados in regional competition between 1986 and 2001.In cases like that, I think we need to be honest with ourselves.West Indies ‘B’, which is participating in the Busta Series for the second successive year, are languishing at the bottom of the table ahead of their final match against Barbados, starting tomorrow at Kensington Oval.However, there have been encouraging signs, among them centuries from Guyanese Krishna Arjune and debutant Donovan Pagon.For a team which has passed 250 in six of their 11 innings and has only been dismissed for fewer than 200 on one occasion, four defeats in six matches might not been an accurate reflection of their performance.Defeats will always be defeats. It means that you didn’t play better or as well as the opposition, Holder said.We have been batting reasonably well consistently. We have scored on average 500 runs per game.The only problem is that we tend to score most of those runs in the second innings. By then it’s usually playing catch-up cricket.Holder described the overall performance of the team as indifferent.It is very difficult under this present structure to get the sort of results you are looking for granted I’ve seen lots of improvements in all of these players, he said.What needs to happen is that the WICB (West Indies Cricket Board) decides that the best Under-23 side, excluding those who have played Test cricket, be selected to play as this team.Under such a proposal, promising players such as prolific Windward Islands opener Devon Smith, West Indies youth captain Narsingh Deonarine, Barbadian fast bowler Tino Best and fellow pacer Darren Powell of Jamaica would have to play for the West Indies ‘B’ ahead of their national sides.

Players who appear in unofficial events will have their contracts cancelled under policy guidelines announced by Cricket Australia. The conditions do not apply to the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is sanctioned by the Indian board, but they do affect those considering joining the Indian Cricket League (ICL).The decision follows ICC regulations and similar guidelines forced Shane Bond, the New Zealand fast bowler, to terminate his national deal. No current Cricket Australia contract holders have publicly expressed their desire to be part of the ICL, but there is potential for younger domestic performers to be attracted to the competition. Stuart Law and Ian Harvey took part in the original tournament in India in December, but both have finished their inter-state careers in Australia.In one of two conditions released by Cricket Australia it said “selectors will treat players who take part only in ICC-approved matches more favourably than those who do not”. The other clause stated “players will not be offered contracts or be permitted to continue to be a party to player contracts if, during the term of those contracts, those players take part in unofficial cricket events”.The ruling pushes Australians towards the IPL and the planned Champions Twenty20 competition that is due to involve domestic teams from Australia, India, South Africa and England.

Sachin Tendulkar said he was happy to have notched up his first hundred at the Adelaide Oval, one where he hadn’t made much of an impact earlier. Returning to the city where he met Don Bradman in 1998, he brought up his sixth hundred in Australia and second of the series.”I knew that Adelaide hasn’t been a great ground for me,” he said after his unbeaten hundred at the end of the first day. “In 1999 I scored 65 runs here and that was my best, so I was determined to get a big one here. It also happens to be Sir Don’s home ground. I wasn’t thinking about that while batting out there but am very pleased to have got a hundred at this venue.”Tendulkar admitted that this was one of his most complete innings, talking about how certain balls went exactly where he intended. “The first straight drive off [Brett] Lee gave me a lot of confidence,” he said. “I middled it and the shot went exactly where I wanted it to go. In the next over I repeated it [against Mitchell Johnson]. So I took it from there.”There are days when you are moving well, days when you’re not. There are also days when you middle the ball and days when you don’t. You need to wait for that moment. I’ve felt those moments off and on in my career. Any hundred is special but when the team really needs one, it means more. Today there were big shots in between and defensive ones too. It was important we [Laxman and him] just stayed there and played according to the merit of the ball. We needed to play out the good spells properly.”Tendulkar has received an overwhelming reception in Australia, entering to standing ovations and being cheered throughout. No other Indian batsman has been accorded such a warm applause. “It’s truly special,” he said, “and sometimes I need to look at the scoreboard to figure out whether I’m 100-plus or zero. It means a lot to me and would like to thank each and every person for treating me like this. It makes every trip of mine very special.”Like in the first two Tests, Tendulkar was particularly severe on Brad Hogg but denied having “targeted” him for punishment. “Any bowler can get you out, you don’t want to take anyone for granted,” he said. “It all depends on the flow of my innings. If I pick the ball early enough, I will put it away. There were patches when he bowled well and patches when I felt I could put the ball away. Whenever I got the opportunity I made it count. That was my strategy.”Tendulkar went from 86 to 100 in a sequence that read 4,2,6,2, smashing the part-time spin of Michael Clarke. “I thought the wind was behind me and wanted to use it,” he said. “I knew if I middled the ball, it would clear the field. Even if I don’t middle it the wind would work.”I was very positive at that stage and if the ball was there to put away, I was prepared to do that again,” he said off the six that took him to 98. “When I played that off-drive [to get to 100], I played inside out, though it was not a half-volley. I had that chance to force the ball. I got the time to force it a little bit.”He was pleased to have weathered the old-ball burst from Lee – “he has been their stand-out bowler” – and thought India would need to bat as long as possible to increase their chances of leveling the series. “I think to put up a big total in the first innings would be the key. Later on I think the wicket might have some big cracks. Ideally we would like to score as many runs tomorrow. The first session will be very important.”

James Pattinson celebrated six wickets during West Indies’ first innings at the MCG, but you’ll only see four on the scorecard. Twice during the opening session of the third day, Pattinson dismissed Carlos Brathwaite, only to have the umpire ask for a review of the front foot. On both occasions, Pattinson was shown to have delivered a no-ball. Brathwaite went from not really out on 13, to not really out on 50, to really out on 59.It was all part of a frustrating session for the Australians as Brathwaite and Darren Bravo almost batted through until lunch without loss. Brathwaite was eventually caught and bowled by Nathan Lyon just before the break. That and some more lower-order fight pushed West Indies along to 271 and discouraged Steven Smith from enforcing the follow-on. Instead a potential three-day Test, the game was set to last four days or perhaps even five.That means plenty of work still ahead for Pattinson and the rest of the bowlers. While he was pleased to finish with 4 for 72 in a Boxing Day Test, he knows he created more work for himself. In the 48th over of the innings, Brathwaite was bowled trying an ugly cross-bat slog, and in the 66th over he hooked a short ball straight into the hands of fine leg. Both were called retrospectively as no-balls.”I’ve always been pushing the line, ever since I’ve been playing cricket,” Pattinson said. “It’s momentum and stepping over the line, it’s obviously something I have to work on because it cost us a bit of time today and a few runs. I have to work on it and try to improve that.”They were two of four no-balls that will show on Pattinson’s analysis at the end of the innings, but the lack of on-field calls for the wicket deliveries suggests that others might have slipped by unnoticed. Asked whether umpire Chris Gaffaney had warned him he was close to overstepping, Pattinson said no, but he took responsibility for the no-balls himself.”It was more after I bowled the no-balls, he wasn’t telling me before that,” Pattinson said. “I know I’m always up there, it’s quite hard. I’ve got to try and get into a rhythm where I can stay behind the line and not push it but umpires do try and help you out a fair bit.”So far in this series, Pattinson has collected nine wickets at 18.55, making him Australia’s leading wicket taker so far, which is a pleasing result given this series marks his return after a long injury lay-off. After initially rebuilding his action to be much more side-on, Pattinson has reverted to an action that is something of a compromise between side and front, and it seems to be working.”I still feel like I’m not 100% yet,” Pattinson said. “Obviously when you do bowl no-balls it is in the back of your mind a little bit. So I’m still not running in as hard as I would like to be, because I’m sort of a bit wary of that front foot.”I’ve just got to try to get a stage where I’m running in full steam and not worrying about overstepping, but apart from that I’m pretty happy with the way the ball is coming out. I feel like I’m getting better and better each time I bowl. If that’s the worst it’s going to get – bowling a couple of no-balls, I’ll take that.”Australia remain in a powerful position to push for victory with two days to play, boasting a lead of 459 runs with seven wickets in hand in their second innings, but West Indies at least showed some resistance on day three. Pattinson said he had been impressed by the way West Indies both batted and bowled after their underwhelming displays of the first five days of the series.”Darren Bravo didn’t give us much at all,” Pattinson said. “He was pretty solid. He made us work really hard for his wicket. The same as Carlos Brathwaite when he came out. We thought he was probably going to tee them up a bit more than he did. But he looked pretty solid and fought pretty hard.”When they came out they bowled pretty well in tough circumstances when they’re 300 behind and could easily have just dished up a few half-volleys for us. Our boys batted well. It was a pretty good day’s cricket.”