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Former England fast bowler Simon Jones has signed for Hampshire on a three-year deal.Jones, who was released by Worcestershire after his knee injury prevented him from bowling a ball in 2009, was also offered a contract at his former club Glamorgan.He has managed only 14 first-class games in the last four seasons but showed during 2008 – when he claimed 42 first-class wickets at 18 apiece – that he remains a fine bowler when fit.Last month Glamorgan emerged as the front runner to re-sign Jones, and Matthew Maynard, their director of cricket, could not hide his disappointment. “If he had those intentions [of going to Hampshire] then he should have expressed them slightly earlier,” he said. “I’ve left a lot of the negotiations to the chairman although I did speak to Simon and his agent and one of the major concerns was that he would have to do the same fitness test as the rest of the players.”That’s obviously an issue. I don’t know whether Simon doesn’t believe he can get through it but that is his choice. It would have been great to have Simon back but if he doesn’t want to come back there isn’t much we can do.”

Dirk Nannes’ most difficult decisions are not limited to his country of allegiance, but also include whether to give up skiing while he’s still playing cricket. Nannes turned out in his first one-day international for Australia on Friday after upgrading his status from a World Twenty20 hero with Netherlands, who conquered England at Lord’s in June.Earlier in his high-energy life he was a freestyle skier whose speciality was moguls and he raced for Australia in World Cup events, competing last on the FIS circuit in 1999. The sport hasn’t left him, and his dream holiday is heli-skiing with friends in Alaska. He knows that trip will have to wait until he stops bowling and he also realises he has to be less extreme on his visits to the snow.But Nannes, 33, hasn’t given up totally and was teaching his four-year-old boy Max how to glide down a mountain shortly before he was called into Australia’s Twenty20 squad to face England over the next week. “I put a cheeky little run in here and there,” he said. “I took [Max] off jumps … maybe not me. Keep that on the down-low.”He’s a happy adventurer who can’t believe his journey. And for someone who has spent so much time in the mountains a few turns is not a threat. “It’s good fun,” he said. “I’m fortunate, I guess, in that it’s probably safer for me to be on skis than to walk on snow, so I don’t see it as a real risk.”On the field he wants to hang around for as long his body lets him. “If I’m fit I’ll bowl well and when I’m bowling well I’m pretty confident that I can do really well,” he said. “That’s really all that my goal is, and if that means I’m playing for another three or four years, great. If it means I’m playing for one year, great. It’s been a pretty good ride and I’m having a good time doing it.”He came to the game late because of his skiing and made his first-class debut in 2006. Since then he has attracted attention in Australia, where he is the leading wicket-taker in the domestic Twenty20 competition with 24 at 13.08. In India he kept Glenn McGrath out of the Delhi IPL XI, and he played two Twenty20s for Netherlands, including the Lord’s win, before Andrew Hilditch and his selectors finally realised his worth. That call resulted in a swift switch to his native Australia, a move allowed because Netherlands are classed as an associate country.To continue his cross-continent travels, his first game in green and gold came against Scotland in Edinburgh. “It’s a bit freaky isn’t it? I guess I’ve been lucky and bowled pretty well a couple of times. It’s been a pretty exciting journey, coming from not having much of a cricket background to coming out here, a pretty massive day for me.”Nannes sprinted in with a strong breeze and finished with 1 for 20 off seven overs. Most of the runs came from Fraser Watts, who hit two fours in Nannes’ opening over and then unleashed with a straight six in his third. Next ball Watts played on.”He shouldn’t have hit me for six, should he?” Nannes was smiling, something he does a lot. “I did that in the World Cup as well … so maybe that’s a message, don’t hit me for six.”If he plays at Old Trafford on Sunday he will hope for less wind, but he’s not certain of a start. “I think I’ll be better for the run,” he said. “I didn’t bowl fantastically but the figures say I did okay.” In the Twenty20 format his numbers are good enough to rank with any player and “when I’m bowling well, I’m good enough to be picked in most sides in the world”.David Hussey, his team-mate from Victoria, was still beaming at Nannes’ performances at the end of the game. “I was rapt that he got off the mark when he batted [he scored 1], he’s probably not the best batter going around,” he said. “And when he got his first wicket I was pumped for him.”Nannes doesn’t expect to be in demand for tips on England’s Twenty20 style over the next few days, despite his success against them already. “I think their mindset’s going to be a lot different to when they played us at the World Cup,” he said. “I think they went in a little bit conservative, I don’t think they’re going to be able to do that in a game like this.”It won’t be long before he refers to Australia as “us” instead of Netherlands. He said representing the two countries carried very different emotions. “The Holland one was a World Cup so that was a pretty big full house at Lord’s,” he said. “This one here, playing in Edinburgh, a beautiful spot, it’s my first game playing for Australia, where I’ve been brought up. It’s a pretty big deal.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Ross Taylor scored 60 off 45 balls•Associated Press

New Zealand put a small part of their tour blues behind them by clinching a thrilling three-run win over Sri Lanka in the first of two Twenty20s at the R Premadasa Stadium. The coloured clothing was out and with it a fresh look to New Zealand’s Twenty20 unit, but it was Ross Taylor, Daniel Vettori and Jacob Oram, with a hat-trick, who ultimately gave the tourists something to smile about.With the openers dismissed early, the pressure was on Taylor, who carried the team almost single-handedly with a busy innings until the 18th over after which, Lasith Malinga returned to stifle the tail. A total of 141 appeared under-par when Tillakaratne Dilshan blazed to 57 off 28 balls, but Vettori reminded everyone of his worth in Twenty20s with a niggardly spell and, aided by some dedicated fielding, New Zealand hauled themselves back in front of an enthusiastic crowd.Dilshan’s assault on Shane Bond in the first over had the crowd in raptures, and New Zealand almost cowering. What was touted to be a seminal moment in New Zealand’s bid for a comeback was smashed in four deliveries as Dilshan welcomed Bond back to international cricket with disdain. After bouncing Dilshan first ball, Bond was slapped for four consecutive fours.It didn’t look good for New Zealand when Dilshan unfurled his patent scoop to Kyle Mills’ second delivery and got four, but there was a moment of relief when Sanath Jayasuriya top-edged to Bond at fine leg three balls later. Bond’s second over only cost four, but Dilshan resumed against Mills in the fourth over, pulling and lofting sixes.Then New Zealand launched a stirring comeback. Jesse Ryder’s direct hit got rid of Mahela Jayawardene, after which Vettori got Kumar Sangakkara in his first over. Ian Butler struck in successive overs as Ryder cupped an excellent catch at backward point to cut off Dilshan and Chamara Kapugedera missed an ugly slog. At this stage Sri Lanka were 85 for 5 with 57 needed from 60 balls.Angelo Mathews took fours off Jacob Oram, but the pressure built up by Vettori was excruciating. Having given three runs in his first over, Vettori wheeled away off an nagging line and conceded five in his second and, crucially, just a single in his third. The debutant Gihan Rupasinghe found Vettori tough to score off and, backed by some alert close-in fielding, was frustrated into sweeping and missing. With his final delivery, Vettori trapped Rupasinghe lbw for 15 off 21 balls to finish with figures of 4-0-11-2.With 20 needed off 19, Mathews popped a return catch to Oram. Suddenly New Zealand, who till now had been athletic in the field, started diving over the ball and failing to back-up errant throws. Scampered single and doubles kept Sri Lanka ticking. With 13 to defend off 12, Vettori called back Bond. It was a wicketless return for Bond, but four singles in the final over sure beat four fours. Two wickets in the first two balls of the final over – that gave Oram his hat-trick – left Sri Lanka’s last pair too much to do.New Zealand’s bid to gain momentum after last week’s Test series defeat looked like it had hit a potential roadblock as they were kept to 141. Brendon McCullum appeared in the mood to get back into form, slashing a wide delivery from Malinga over point, but the combination of Ryder’s straight drive and Nuwan Kulasekara’s fingertips cut short his nine-ball innings. Ryder couldn’t lift the tempo in a lovely second over from Malinga, full of crafty changes of pace, and with Kulasekara cutting down the boundary options, he gave himself room and lofted a catch into the hands of Malinga Bandara running back from mid-off.Taylor and Martin Guptill were left to consolidate matters, and when Sangakkara called on Mathews, Taylor weighed in with consecutive boundaries, slashing past point and driving wide of cover. Another fortuitous deflection followed off Ajantha Mendis, when Guptill drove and edged past slip. New Zealand took 38 off the Powerplay overs.Taylor’s entertaining 60, including five fours and a six, went well with the festive atmosphere at the ground but he lacked support. Guptill, who was dropped by Mathews in the deep off Jayasuriya, launched Bandara for a straight six but miscued the next delivery to deep midwicket for 29. Jayasuriya’s left-arm spin was to Taylor’s liking and he slog-swept for four and six in successive deliveries in the 15th over.Oram looked as if he was at the wrong party before he fell for 8 off 13 deliveries, holing out to Kulasekara at mid-off in Mendis’ final over. Trying to get some momentum going, Taylor fell in Mathews’ next over, giving Kulasekara another catch in the deep. Mathews returned a flat throw to help run out Peter McGlashan and Malinga returned to york Kyle Mills and Vettori with consecutive deliveries in the 20th over.But Malinga and Dilshan’s efforts were not enough to deny a New Zealand side piloted to victory by three of their established stars.

Senior officials on the ICC’s decision-making executive board are unlikely to support any radical suggestion from the BCCI to shun the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) and opt instead for a cricket-specific code without off-season testing. However, they will endorse the Indian board’s objection to the contentious ‘whereabouts’ clause in the anti-doping code and ask the ICC to try and work out a practical solution with WADA during a year-end review.The ICC board is likely to discuss the issue soon over teleconference, rather than wait for their next scheduled meeting in early October. And officials from a majority of the ICC board constituents, including Australia and South Africa, have confided that they would support India fully on the ‘whereabouts’ issue, but would like to remain WADA-compliant for important reasons, not the least of which is the question of government support.For instance, government funding for grassroots cricket programmes in England requires the English board to be WADA-compliant and Australian legislation requires the same of its national sporting organisations. The BCCI, which will need the backing of these three major boards to make any headway on the issue at the ICC level, is an autonomous organisation that operates independently from India’s sports ministry.The consensus which has emerged is that the ICC board would ask the governing body to raise India’s concerns with WADA and hopefully, try to work out a cricket-specific solution when it meets officials of the anti-doping watchdog for a year-end review. Cricket Australia, for one, wants a “practical solution” but what remains to be sorted out, though, is whether India’s players should continue to be exempt from complying with the norms till then.On Sunday, the BCCI’s decision-making working committee resolved to back its players and reject the ‘whereabouts’ clause in the amended WADA code, which was implemented by the ICC from January 1. This clause requires cricketers in the ICC’s international testing pool to reveal before every quarter details of their location for an hour every day for the next three months to facilitate out-of-competition testing. The 11 Indian players in the pool have expressed security concerns in this regard, especially because some of them such as Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni face threats from terrorist organisations. The BCCI has said that this clause, which prescribes severe penalties for defaulters including a ban for up to two years, also violates the country’s privacy guidelines.Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni are a part of the pool of 11 Indian players who have expressed concern over the ‘whereabouts’ clause•AFP

Other international cricketers in the testing pool from other countries had also expressed privacy and practicality concerns about the clause but agreed to abide by it within the July 31 deadline. The Indian board has officially suggested that instead of players revealing whereabouts information in advance, the ICC or WADA testers should contact the BCCI, which will ensure that the player will be available within 24 hours at the required location for testing.WADA officials have clearly stated that there can be no exceptions on the ‘whereabouts’ norms, and the BCCI appears to be completely isolated on the issue at home with the country’s sports minister leading calls from top athletes and other non-cricket sportspersons for the Indian cricketers to abide by the internationally accepted code. But cricket officials from various boards are hopeful that a solution can be worked out on the lines that football has. Football’s governing body, FIFA, will abide by the ‘whereabouts’ clause but has been given greater freedom in deciding who gets to be tested. The cricketers in the pool were selected on the basis of their ICC ranking in January, but as one ICC board member asked: “Can the Indian board can be persuaded to join the system if some of their high-profile cricketers who face security threats be removed from the testing pool?”Cricket Australia, which became a founding partner of the BCCI’s Champions League Twenty20 tournament last year, is sympathetic towards the Indian board, and sources in Cricket South Africa (CSA), the other founding partner, said they would back India’s stand against the whereabouts clause. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) are tight-lipped on the issue except to reiterate that English cricket has always supported WADA but their players’ association has pointed out the link between government funding and grassroots cricket.”We are sympathetic to what the BCCI are arguing but we are bound by our own national requirements: under Australian legislation, national sporting organizations are required to have a WADA compliant code,” Peter Young, the Cricket Australia’s spokesperson, said. “If the BCCI identify a more practical approach to this then we support the work that they might be able to come up with. Nevertheless, we have sympathy for the BCCI’s view on this and its concerns highlight the value of world sport continuing to look at practical solutions to the particular issue which the BCCI has highlighted.”Gerald Majola, CSA’s chief executive, did not comment on the issue because his own board hasn’t discussed it officially yet, but there are enough indications from within the set-up and that of New Zealand that their approach will mirror that of Australia. England’s case is explained better by Sean Morris, the chief executive of their Players Cricket Association (PCA), who says WADA-compliance is a must though the cricketers are not happy with the whereabouts clause.”Genuinely, we understand why the Indian players have a problem, but where there a slight difference is because of the way our sport is funded; we have government money going to grassroot programmes,” Morris told Cricinfo. “That money is conditional upon certain criteria, one of which is the board being WADA-compliant. That is why it is a bigger problem for us. If we do not abide by the WADA code then obviously some of our funding would be impacted, and, that then has a knock on the grassroots. That is why it is more complex here.”It is ironic, really, that it is the players’ associations, whom the BCCI doesn’t recognise, who seem to be speaking the Indian board’s language. “We will welcome the removal of it and we support the stand the Indians are taking and hope that if it is removed for the Indian players it would be removed for all the other cricketers, too,” Paul Marsh, who heads the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA), told Cricinfo. “The solution is something we are not necessarily completely happy with but for public relations and the government funding of sport connected to the WADA code, we can’t help it.”Any ICC board resolution requires seven out of 10 full member votes and the one member who could raise some uncomfortable questions for India is Pakistan, considering the recent dispute between the two boards over hosting the 2011 World Cup. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is clear that it has, unlike India, absolutely no problems with the WADA code and the ‘whereabouts clause’. “PCB is totally WADA compliant now and the players had no issues signing that clause,” Salim Altaf, the PCB’s chief operating officer, told Cricinfo. Altaf said the PCB is also an autonomous body like the BCCI but “had become WADA compliant because the ICC signed on to it.”

ScorecardThe England women’s side after they had drawn with Australia to retain the Ashes•PA Photos

A day after the men secured a tense draw in Cardiff to stay level in the Ashes, England women retained their Ashes by drawing the one-off Test against Australia in Worcester. Their task was comparatively easier, though, for they had to survive less than two sessions and it rained after tea at New Road.Australia began the final day on 128 for 1 in the second innings, with an overall lead of 169, and were in no danger of losing. However, in order to push for a win, they had to score briskly and give themselves enough time to bowl England out. In the end, however, they were dismissed for 231 in the second session.Opener Alex Blackwell had remained unbeaten on 59 at the end of the third day but was caught and bowled by Katherine Brunt – her only wicket in the second innings – for 68 on the fourth morning. The rest of the top order got starts but failed to carry on and Karen Rolton’s 31 was the second-highest score of the innings. England’s bowlers kept pegging away and Holly Colvin took three lower-order wickets to help restrict Australia.Chasing 273 to win, or needing to survive the rest of the day to draw the match, England were jolted by the loss of Caroline Atkins – lbw to Sarah Andrews – for a duck. However, a rain delay deprived Australia of valuable extra time and even though England stumbled to 39 for 3, Charlotte Edwards remained unbeaten on 53 to secure the draw.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were outYuvraj Singh was done in by some excellent glovework and that was the turning point in the chase•Getty Images

‘You’re not Singh-ing anymore,’ chanted some English fans, and India certainly weren’t as they were dumped out of the competition that they won two years ago, with one Super-Eight game still to be played. With Lord’s bathed in brilliant sunshine, a capacity crowd watched as England held their nerve for a three-run victory which ensured that new champions wouldbe crowned on June 21. Around half of them would have gone home happy.Kevin Pietersen shared a 71-run partnership with Ravi Bopara, before RyanSidebottom and Graeme Swann picked up two wickets apiece to derail India’schase. MS Dhoni and Yusuf Pathan added 63 from six overs at the end as thegame wound to a frenetic finish, but India had simply left themselves withtoo much to do.The turning point was the dismissal of Yuvraj Singh, superbly stumped byJames Foster as he reached out to drive Swann. Yuvraj had smashed 17 – including twosixes – from eight balls prior to that, but Foster’s quicksilverglovework ensured that India were left a Snowdon-sized peak to climbwithout their most explosive batsman. They whittled it down to 19 fromSidebottom’s final over, but though Yusuf clubbed the fourth ball for astraight six to induce palpitations amongst the English support, a singleoff the next ball sealed India’s fate.Much of the credit needs to go to Pietersen, who came to the crease afterLuke Wright had ballooned a pull to short fine leg. With Bopara rotatingthe strike, the runs didn’t come in a torrent but they came steadilyenough. There were some eye-catching strokes too. Bopara played a stunningpull for four off RP Singh, while Pietersen said hello to Ishant Sharmawith a contemptuous flick for four over midwicket. When Ishant followed upwith a short delivery, Bopara deposited him into the stands behind squareleg.With Pietersen then smearing RP down the ground for four, 40 came from thesix overs of Powerplay. The entry of Yuvraj, who made a habit ofdismissing Pietersen in India last winter, gave India no respite, as 20came from his two overs. The cause wasn’t helped by some poor fielding onthe rope from Zaheer and a general air of listlessness. Harbhajan Singhmanaged to rein in the scoring rate, but by halfway, England had 71 on theboard and nine wickets in hand.

The complexion of the game changed with the introduction of Jadeja rightafter. Bopara was bowled going for the cut after a run-a-ball 37.Pietersen continued to scamper between the wickets with real energy, andwhen he hit a massive six over midwicket off Jadeja in his next over,England seemed poised for a late onslaught.It proved a bit of a false dawn though. The next ball arrowed into hispads, ending a 27-ball knock of 46, and Dimitri Mascarenhas and Owais Shahweren’t quite Pietersen’s match in the big-hitting stakes. Though Ishantproved expensive, Jadeja went through his spell for 26, and Harbhajanchipped in with the wicket of Shah to further stymie progress.The final flourish never came. Paul Collingwood clipped Zaheer Khan for onefour, but was then leg before trying to be too cute. And with Harbhajanpicking up both Foster and Swann in the final over, it took five wides totake England beyond 150.It was one of those in-between totals, and India’s hopes took a hit earlywhen Rohit Sharma played on while attempting a pull. By then, the Englishmethod was obvious, with nearly half the deliveries dropped short anddirected at the body. And when Suresh Raina miscued a hook of Sidebottomminutes later, the tactics were further vindicated.What followed effectively basted the Indian goose and put it in thetandoor. Neither Gautam Gambhir nor Jadeja could seize the initiative, andby the time Gambhir paddled Mascarenhas to short fine leg, the 38-runpartnership had taken seven overs. Yuvraj tried to inject some life intothe innings, and there was a late flurry from the impressive Yusuf, but itwas all a bit too late.Two years ago, Indian fans taunted Misbah-ul-Haq with chants of “Miss-ba five runs”. On Sunday, it was their team that fell three short. No Singh-ing, no glory. Just time to go home, after playing the next game – against South Africa – for formalities’ sake.

The PCB committee looking into fast bowler Mohammad Asif’s 19-day detention at the Dubai Airport for drug possession has concluded its work and will pass on its recommendations to the board chairman Ijaz Butt.”We concluded our work into this case today after meeting Asif,” Wasim Bari, PCB director HR and head of the three-man committee, told Cricinfo. “In a day or so, our recommendations will be passed on to the board chairman and they will take further action.”Though the committee has remained silent on the possible punishment – unconfirmed reports in recent days suggest he might receive a heavy financial penalty only – it is now clear that Asif was deported from Dubai and might not find it easy to travel there again. As Pakistan are likely to be playing in the UAE regularly in the future, it is a concern for the board.”Asif didn’t provide any document to us as he had said he would about his deportation and future entry into Dubai,” Bari said. “We have given him plenty of time to hand it in and given him flexibility but he didn’t provide us with anything. He did turn up today and we thanked him for his cooperation.” The committee itself has a letter from the Dubai public prosecutor stating that Asif was deported.Asif turned up for the final hearing today with his lawyer, but the lawyer was not allowed to attend, the committee arguing it was an internal board hearing and not a legal matter as such. Asif did not insist on the lawyer’s presence.Asif was detained in Dubai last June on his way back from the first season of the IPL. In documents in the possession of Cricinfo, prosecutors in Dubai confirmed that he was found with a small quantity of opium; he was let off without a charge ultimately, local authorities arguing that the offence was a ‘trivial’ one and a case not worth pursuing. But in the documents it clearly states that Asif was deported.Asif is currently banned from playing any form of cricket till September, after he tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid Nandrolone during the IPL last year. That was already the second time in his brief international career that he has tested positive for the same steroid, having once done so just before the Champions Trophy in 2006.

George Bailey has been confirmed as the new captain of Tasmania after Daniel Marsh stepped down from the position at the end of the 2008-09 summer. The Tigers did not immediately announce a replacement but the expectation was that as his vice-captain Bailey would step into the role.The Tasmanian Cricket Association confirmed the appointment on Friday and the wicketkeeper-batsman Tim Paine was named as the new vice-captain. Bailey, 26, has been next in command after Marsh since the 2006-07 season, when he took the reins for two important Sheffield Shield wins when Marsh tore his calf.Tasmania’s coach Tim Coyle said Bailey had been earmarked for the captaincy for some time and he had proven his leadership abilities in the past couple of years. “George has an excellent cricket mind and also an ability to engage people and earn their respect,” Coyle said.”I am confident that with his knowledge and unique style he will inject new life into the Tasmanian Tigers. He has also had the opportunity to work closely with and learn from Dan Marsh, who I regard as one of the best captains I’ve been involved with.”It is pleasing to see Tim Paine step into the role of vice-captain and this new leadership team represents a great example of two outstanding products of our cricket pathway system. It gives them a wonderful opportunity to shape Tasmanian cricket in the years to come.”Tasmania finished fourth in the Sheffield Shield and the FR Cup in 2008-09 and fifth in the KFC Twenty20. Marsh, 35, is expected to play on next summer.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were outShahid Afridi made the ball talk and picked up his best ODI figures of 6 for 38•AFP

A team desperate to erase painful recent memories immediately settled in at their new, adopted venue, with a four-wicket win against a struggling Australian side in Dubai. The devastation caused by Shahid Afridi’s career-best 6 for 38 had all but shut Australia out of the match before the halfway stage of their innings. A late recovery pushed them to 168 but it wasn’t enough to seriously challenge an unpredictable Pakistan outfit. Pakistan stuttered, rebuilt, stumbled again and a late push by Afridi, contributing an adrenalin-filled yet brief 24, pushed them towards a win.The ultimate difference between the two sides was spin. While Pakistan’s pair of Afridi and Ajmal shared eight wickets, Australia’s Nathan Hauritz bowled four overs and failed to pick up a wicket. It wouldn’t be fair to blame Australia’s lone specialist spinner for the defeat. It was a collective failure of their middle order to read the spinners who mercilessly ran through the batting and effected a top and middle-order crumbling to the tune of 8 for 27.Australia’s rapid demise was a reflection of their ordinary recent one-day form. A collapse of this magnitude exposed a weakness against spin which was also on show in South Africa, even with a number of familiar returning faces in the ranks. With the ball gripping and turning, Afridi’s mixture of googlies and topspinners caused most of the problems, but the relatively inexperienced Ajmal offered little respite with his doosras.At 95 for 1 in the 19th over, Younis Khan’s pre-match prediction of chasing a target of 260-270 seemed a reality. That was until Afridi got the ball and the crowd to dance to his tunes. He began by getting rid of the most well-set batsman, Brad Haddin, for a brisk 40, tamely chipping a flighted delivery to short cover. Michael Clarke’s struggles against the spin trio of Paul Harris, Roelof van der Merwe and Johan Botha in South Africa were well documented and the nightmare didn’t end with the move to another country. He was flummoxed by an Ajmal doosra and edged behind before Afridi worked his magic.A rusty Andrew Symonds nicked one to a refreshingly sharp Kamran Akmal, before Shane Watson, who had played neatly on his return to the side after injury by adding 54 with Haddin, was beaten by one which turned through the gate. Safe catching helped Pakistan and Misbah-ul-Haq showed his sharp reflexes to cling onto Callum Ferguson’s edge to remove one of Australia’s few in-form batsmen. Hauritz completely misjudged Ajmal’s line, shouldered arms and lost his stumps.The score suddenly read a shocking 110 for 7 and it brought back bad memories of their collapse at Centurion very recently. It wasn’t the kind you would expect of the second best team in the world even in the worst of days. The spinners sensed a weak link and exploited it with clinical efficiency. Afridi’s googlies proved too much for the tailenders Stuart Clark and Nathan Bracken as he collected his best ODI figures and Pakistan’s best figures against Australia.James Hopes enjoyed a free swing of the arms in the third Powerplay with an unbeaten 48 to push the score to 168, a big improvement from a hopeless 122 for 9, but the momentum was still with Pakistan.The Australian seamers failed to get enough early breakthroughs to cause a serious flutter in the Pakistan camp. The dangerous Salman Butt was trapped lbw for 5 in the seven-over period before the dinner break before a fidgety Younis Khan holed out to midwicket.Spin was introduced in the 13th over but Hauritz couldn’t extract the same turn and bite that Afridi and Ajmal managed against his batsmen. He overpitched too often and that allowed Akmal to get forward and drive through the line. He used his feet well and chipped down the track to bisect the gaps in the infield.Shoaib Malik contributed only 12 in a stand of 48 with Akmal, content to let his partner hog the strike. However, as Akmal motored along, a flashy drive outside off cost him his wicket and Clark had his revenge after being slashed for a four past slip two balls earlier. A loose dab by Malik brought Afridi to the crease, who began by clipping his first ball – a low full toss – past square leg and then pulling the next past midwicket.He took Pakistan within 31 of the target before mishitting one to mid-on. The chase thereafter was scratchy, with Misbah holding fort as Pakistan got home with 35 balls to spare. It wasn’t the most convincing of chases but good enough to prove a point. Moreover, they played with a hunger to win against a team dogged by injuries and knackered after a back-breaking summer.

Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara believes John Buchanan’s idea of having multiple captains in a team is an interesting concept that opens endless possibilities for the game’s future. Sangakkara said that Twenty20, which he called cricket’s maverick form, was a good testing ground for such “maverick ideas”, which need to be tried and tested for the game to evolve.Sangakkara, who will be making his debut as the full-time captain of Sri Lanka during the ICC Twenty20 World Cup in June, said he understands Buchanan’s concept because he believes that leadership is always situational. However, the wicketkeeper-batsman’s endorsement comes with a few lines of caution attached: a lot depends on team communication; it works better for a franchise rather than a national team; and hopefully, it’s not a marketing gimmick by Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of April’s IPL.Asked whether he endorsed the multi-captain experiment, Sangakkara told Cricinfo: “If it’s a way to go forward and it shows results, why not? Everyone is looking for the edge to win. If this is going to provide them that in the future, then it’s well and good.”Buchanan, the former Australia coach, had publicly unveiled the concept last week in Kolkata to spark a furious debate in India, where fans fear that the power of Sourav Ganguly, the popular Kolkata captain, may be diluted. Buchanan has shortlisted Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum, David Hussey and Brad Hodge to share the captaincy role with Ganguly.Sangakkara said the thought matched his own about captaincy. “I believe that leadership is always situational,” he said. “It’s a very interesting concept, and I think it’s all about using the best man for a specific situation. It will be tried and tested, and then you’ll find that some people are better at ensuring that bowlers are changed correctly, and someone might be good for field settings.”According to Sangakkara, Buchanan’s concept is not new in international sport, either. “Cricket is evolving,” he said. “In American football, you have an offense and defense, a defensive coach and an offensive coach. And cricket, going forward, might have to look at itself differently. Things like fielding captains and bowling captains are experimental tactics where teams are trying to find the best way forward in Twenty20.”The Sri Lankan veteran went to say that the basic thought behind this idea has been employed by his national team for many years now. “The traditional idea of one captain doing all the work is never really true,” he said. “In Sri Lankan cricket, at different times and difficult times, different people step up to lead the side. Also, we’ve always encouraged a team of leaders who are independent thinkers and who are not afraid to contribute ideas and information on and off the field. That feeding of information, as long as the captain has a clear idea of what to choose and what not to, has been the way we’ve been trying to nurture our cricketers. So the concept of having many leaders, many thinkers and so-called many captains has already been working in our side for a long time.”But the pitfalls that await such a revolutionary concept, Sangakkara said, are many: there could be a clash of egos on the field or as Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, pointed out, players may get confused over whom to turn to.”If you have two or three captains operating at the same time on the field with the same players, you can have temperaments clashing, ideas clashing, and there could be an overload of information,” Sangakkara said. “The players themselves may not know who to turn to or listen to for guidance in the end. So you see a potential for confusion.”The other concern, he said, was the thought that Buchanan’s concept – and the controversy it has generated – could just be a PR exercise with just 22 days to go for the second season of the IPL. “Hopefully, it is not a marketing gimmick,” Sangakkara said. “Something to create more interest towards that one franchise, and to get the public to say, ‘Well, we’ll follow the Kolkata Knight Riders from here on’.”Sangakkara, of course, will get a first-hand feel of the multi-captain concept when his IPL team, Kings XI Punjab, take on Buchanan’s Knight Riders on April 21 in Durban and May 3 in Port Elizabeth. Asked whether he would implement the idea – if it worked at the IPL – for the Sri Lanka team for the Twenty20 World Cup, Sangakkara said he would have to think hard about it.”When you play for a franchise, it’s completely different from playing for a national team,” he said. “You play with highly experienced international players; you play with top quality players in the national side as well but the feeling of ‘team’ here is different. We’ll have to wait and see how it works in multi-international teams as opposed to one national team.”Finally though, Sangakkara said, he firmly believed that the multi-captain idea needs to be given a good run before a judgment is passed. “Ideas like this which seem radical and progressive should be given a good run, and we should see how they come off,” he said. “If it comes off well, it’ll be a great innovation. If it doesn’t, it might look a bit stupid. Either way, it’ll be an interesting time for cricket.”