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ScorecardAn unbroken 47-run final-wicket stand between Deon Kotze and Louis Klazinga pushed Namibia to a thrilling victory in Windhoek, keeping their unbeaten record in the Intercontinental Cup alive and leaving Scotland with an almost impossible task to qualify for the final.Sarel Burger kept the innings afloat with 79 off 162 balls, although when the last pair came together it appeared they’d been left with too much to do. Boundaries were rare, but Kotze and Klazinga worked hard to tick off the runs, piling pressure on the Scotland attack as they tried to claim the final breakthrough.Scotland had controlled proceedings for much of the third day after Namibia started on 45 for 3 chasing 237 on a sporting surface where wickets have fallen steadily. They chipped away at the resistance with John Blain taking his match haul to nine wickets while Glen Rodgers chipped in with a couple.But the defeat leaves them well adrift in the table with three matches remaining. Namibia, however, go from strength to strength and now sit with 82 points from their 100% record. Kenya, with a game in hand, are their closest challengers with Ireland 33 points behind in third place although they have played two matches less.

Scorecard

Shane Harwood and Mick Lewis justified Victoria’s decision to field first, taking all ten wickets between them and restricting New South Wales to 249. Brad Haddin and Grant Lambert had the Blues in a reasonable position at 5 for 247 before Lewis and Harwood skittled the tail, claiming 5 for 2 in the space of 14 balls.Harwood, who has missed matches this season with a strained buttock muscle, did the damage at the top of the order and finished with 6 for 51, his best first-class figures.Ed Cowan was unable to reproduce his century-making form from Sunday’s one-day game and was bowled by Harwood for 1. Phil Jaques (57) and Simon Katich (40) played well until Harwood removed them both in successive overs.Lewis (4 for 52), who has also been on the sidelines with a hip muscle injury, made the vital breakthroughs after Haddin and Lambert put on 105 for the sixth wicket. Haddin continued his fine year with 66 and Lambert, in his first game of the season, made 51. Victoria were 0 for 19 at stumps.

After keeping New Zealand Cricket waiting, Mathew Sinclair has signed on for the next season.Sinclair was expected to stay in New Zealand even though he considered contracts from clubs in South Africa, and the top-order batsman has confirmed this.Sinclair won back his contract with New Zealand Cricket after a good performance last season with the Central Districts. His next assignment is a a tour with New Zealand A to Australia. All 20 cricketers offered deals by the national body have signed on.

Tim May has attacked the upcoming glut of games between Australia and India by saying it devalues cricket. May, the head of the international players’ association, warned the 21 Tests and ODIs the two sides will play against each other from June revealed money-grabbing motives of administrators.”It’s getting completely out of control,” May told the . “We’re very seriously worried that a few countries are playing too much cricket.”It’s our ongoing battle with the ICC. Australia will play India 21 times in the eight months from June this year. From the perspective of players and spectators, it’s going to dampen your interest. And it detracts from the commercial value of the product. Vision has been lost about what’s important and what is not.”Until the 2005 Ashes series an Australia-India series was considered one of cricket’s headline events. The sides clashed in three gripping Test series between 2000-01 and 2004-05, each winning one with the other drawn.Australia are due to play seven ODIs in India in October, before a four-Test series in Australia the following summer and seven tri-series ODIs. To this list has recently been added a three-match ODI series in Ireland in June.”They were already playing each other 18 times and now they’ve thrown in another three (in Ireland),” May said. “We’re concerned about that. Players have a passion for the game and want to maintain that passion every time they play. But it’s becoming harder to play every game as though it’s their last.”No one wants a two-bit product where blokes are only giving 75% because that’s all they’ve got left. Or because they need to pace themselves for more games coming up.” May, who has criticised the heavy workload on players in the past as well, also took a shot at the upcoming World Cup, arguing that it dragged on purely because of TV broadcasters.”Our World Cup is too long,” he said. “Everybody bar the people who sell the TV rights believe we could compress it. The ICC sells the rights for significant amounts of money and obviously the broadcasters want to get their money’s worth. We have to develop the game in some countries but there are arguments about whether the World Cup is the place for them.”

An Aussie player of the tournament (June 1)
Shane Warne, Shaun Marsh and Shae Waston will be competing for the Player of the Tournament award, which has a prize money of Rs10 lakh (US$23,500) prize; despite his success in the tournament, Warne said he is happy with retirement and playing the IPL for six weeks of the year; The Rajasthan Royals’ formula for success, according to Darren Berry, the team’s director of coaching, lies in creating an environment where all players are equal; and Geoff Marsh, the former Australian bowler, is pleased with his son Shaun’s performance in the IPL but he insists the team comes ahead of the individual.Fleming out of IPL (May 29)
Stephen Fleming will not be available for Chennai’s remaining matches as he is heading back to New Zealand for the birth of his child; Indian umpire AV Jayaprakash retires; Rahul Dravid believes two IPL tournaments a year will be difficult; and Pakistan selectors will not consider IPL performances while naming the squad for the triangular series in Bangladesh.Semi-final hopes, and a police complaint (May 27)
Kepler Wessels, the Chennai coach, believes Manpreet Gony is the find of IPL; a Senior Superintendent of Police lodges a formal complaint against Ness Wadia, the Mohali franchise owner for alleged verbal assault; and Wasim Akram calls for a shorter IPL.From purple caps to red badges (May 20)
IPL authorities announce an all-area accreditation badge to one member of each of the eight franchisees; Mohammad Asif is doubtful for the rest of the IPL and the tri-series in Bangladesh after he splits the webbing on his right hand; and the IPL Trophy is unveiled in Mumbai.Kolkata sign Mendis (May 18)
Eden Gardens has its second power-cut of the tournament, Ajantha Mendis, the Sri Lankan spinner, has been signed by Kolkata for three years; Neil Maxwell, the chief executive of Kings XI Punjab, has admitted there have been delays in paying the players; Mahendra Singh Dhoni believes the key to sucess in Twenty20 lies in a player’s fitness and not experience; and service tax authorities in Chandigarh consider issuing a notice to Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) for alleged evasion of tax in the IPL.Mumbai sign Nel as Bravo’s replacement (May 17)
Andre Nel joins Mumbai in place of Dwayne Bravo, who will fly out to join the West Indies squad ahead of the Australia Tests after the match against Deccan Chargers on May 18; the Kolkata franchise threatened to take legal action against a Pakistan newspaper which suggested Shoaib Akhtar was questioned at Karachi airport – en route to India for the IPL – on an “inordinately large supply of syringes in his luggage”; Adam Gilchrist is satisfied taken by the IPL organisers following the bomb blasts in Jaipur is adequate; Misbah-ul-Haq backs his Bangalore captain Rahul Dravid; and Yuvraj Singh says he hadn’t made any conscious efforts to be a good captain for Punjab.Support for Dravid (May 16)
Anil Kumble backs under-fire Bangalore captain Rahul Dravid following ranchise owner Vijay Mallya’s statement that his biggest mistake was to trust Dravid on matters of team selection; Sourav Ganguly hopes for an ODI recall after scoring 91 in Kolkata’s win over the Deccan Chargers; Following the Jaipur bomb blasts Nicholls Steyn and Associates, security advisors to the IPL, have been appointed to oversee the arrangements for May 17th match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium; Lalit Modi announces a donation of US$1.4 million from the IPL franchises and sponsors for the blast victims; Dwayne Bravo postpones his departure to West Indies by two days; Brad Hodge will re-join Kolkata if he is not picked for the first Test in Jamaica; and the income-tax department has sent a notice to the BCCI, seeking copies of agreements signed between the IPL franchises and the overseas player.Rajasthan’s stars consider leaving (May 15)
Darren Berry, the Rajasthan Royals’ team manager, says there is a “real option” Shane Warne, Shane Watson, and Graeme Smith will not return to Jaipur following a series of bombs that killed about 80 people in the city on May 13; the IPL organisers have banned spectators from bringing carry-bags to their venues in the wake of the blasts; the Kolkata franchise have been taken to court by the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS) on grounds of copyright violation for playing 14 popular Hindi songs without its permission during the IPL matches at the Eden Gardens.Kolkata fined again (May 14)
IPL organisers refuse to shift the venue of Bangalore’s match against Rajasthan from Jaipur following bomb blasts in the city; VVS Laxman backs Rahul Dravid, whose Bangalore team is in the middle of a torrid run; and Kolkata have been handed US$1000 fine by Talat Ali for maintaining a slow over-rate during their match against the Delhi Daredevils, the third time in as matches that they have been rapped for the offense.Laxman out, Prince goes back (May 13)
A hairline fracture puts VVS Laxman out of the rest of the tournament; Kolkata decide to release five of their players, since they won’t be required for the other games; and Ashwell Prince decides to return to South Africa to spend some time with his new-born kid.Tension in the Bangalore camp (May 12)
Vijay Mallya, the Bangalore Royal Challengers’ owner, says that he regrets not being involved in the team’s selection; Sachin Tendulkar indicates that he could be fit in time for the Mumbai Indians’ match against the Chennai Super Kings on May 14; and the DY Patil Stadium is the front-runner to host the final of the IPL.Kolkata monitoring Hodge’s next move (May 9)
The Kolkata Knight riders are hoping that Brad Hodge can re-join their squad after he was directed by his board to join the Australian squad for the tour of West Indies as a shadow player for Michael Clarke; Venkatesh Prasad, the Bangalore Royal Challengers’ coach, calls for “patience and trust” with his team; and Sudhir Nanavati, the BCCI commissioner, ends his probe into the slap-gate incident involving Sreesanth and Harbhajan Singh.Charu out, Brijesh in (May 7)
Charu Sharma, the CEO of the Bangalore Royal Challengers, is sacked after the team suffer five consecutive defeats; while the BCCI commissioner inquiring into the slapping incident involving Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth, denies saying that the attack as premeditated.Nanavati shocked, and Buchanan welcomes Shoaib (May 6)
BCCI-appointed Commissioner Sudhir Nanavati said he was stunned after seeing the video footage of the Sreesanth-Harbhajan incident; Wasim Jaffer has been ruled out for three weeks after suffering a fracture to the hand; Shivnarine Chanderpaul says he’s tired of sitting on the bench and John Buchanan welcomes Shoaib Akhtar to the Kolkata Knight Riders.A fine, a ban, and a rebuttal (May 3)
Sourav Ganguly and Shane Warne have been fined 10% of their match fees, while Pratap Kumar, the on-field umpire, has been suspended for a game following the catch controversy; the IPL maintains that Shoaib Akhtar cannot play; while the criticises umpire Amiesh Saheba.Warne v Ganguly, Sachin v groin (May 2)
Shane Warne, the captain of the Rajasthan Royals, has launched a stinging attack on Sourav Ganguly what he perceived to be a blatant disregard for the spirit of the game. Ganguly has retaliated by questioning whether Warne had the moral right to comment about the spirit of the game. Meanwhile, Sachin Tendulkar’s battle to get fit continues.Gony doubtful, and no cheergirls for Delhi (May 1)
Chennai Super Kings’ fast bowler Manpreet Gony is suffering from fever and may not be able to play against the Delhi Daredevils in Chennai on Friday. Gony has been Chennai’s best bowler with seven wickets in four games at an average of 19.New surface at the Eden Gardens, and a ban on cheerleaders? (April 25)
The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) announces that the next game at the Eden Gardens will be played on a new surface; the Mumbai Indians’ next home game on April 27 may not feature the much talked about cheerleaders.Bosman sent home, and a birthday wish (April 24)
Loots Bosman is forced to return home after immigration officials found that he had incomplete paperwork; Shane Warne says Sachin Tendulkar “should be allowed to continue till he wants to”; and an injured Chris Gayle joins the Kolkata Knight Riders’ squad but his participation is uncertain.Gayle doubtful, Burdett refuses (April 23)
Chris Gayle is all but ruled out of the first edition of the IPL after failing to recover from his groin injury; both the Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings are allowed centre-wicket practice before their match; and Les Burdett, the Australian curator, says he is unlikely to oblige an SOS call sent to him by the Kolkata franchise.Cheap tickets and the Dhoni aura (April 22)
The authorities in Jaipur slash ticket rates to fill up the 30,000 seat Sawai Mansingh Stadium; Matthew Hayden praises Mahendra Singh Dhoni; and the four West Indian IPL recruits will return to the Caribbean on May 18 in time for the home series against Australia A dicey pitch, and the arrival of Rajasthan’s stars (April 21)
The Kolkata Knight Riders ask the Cricket Association of Bengal to hire an Australian pitch consultant to work on the Eden Gardens surface; the lights go off and hold up play for 30 minutes, again at the Eden Gardens; Rajasthan are bolstered by the arrival of their foreign recruits; and none of Mumbai’s former Test cricketers get a pass to watch the Mumbai Indians’ opening game Gayle out, Bravo in (April 19)
Chris Gayle misses out on Kolkata’s opener owing to a groin injury; Mumbai recruit a host of former Ranji players into their support staff; and Dwayne Bravo replaces Lasith Malinga in the Mumbai team

Division One

Fourth day
Dominic Cork’s 154, his first-class century and second highest score, enabled Lancashire to collect full batting points against Durham at Old Trafford meaning they take 11 from the match. That prospect appeared unlikely at the start of the day as they resumed on 210 for 5. Glen Chapple began positively, but edged Gareth Breese to slip, before Cork entered the fray and joined Luke Sutton. The pair added 105 for the seventh wicket, but even when Sutton fell Cork wasn’t finish. If anything he went even harder at Durham and moved from 100 to 150 in 41 balls. Tom Smith reached his highest first-class score as they added 131 for the eighth wicket, which finally ended when Cork thumped a return catch to Gary Scott but Durham missed a vital bowling point. Lancashire had one final dart at the Durham batsmen, time enough for Cork to remove Scott, but thoughts had already turned to the final round of matches. Sussex will start with an eight point advantage at the top, while Durham have been pulled well into the relegation fight, as the season goes down to the wire.Yorkshire kept their division one survival hopes alive with an outstanding 68-run victory against Nottinghamshire Headingley. Once again they had their legspinners – Mark Lawson and Adil Rashid – to thank as the pair shared another seven wickets, the same as the first innings. Yorkshire had dangled the carrot, setting Nottinghamshire 282 to win after Michael Lumb’s unbeaten 84. Jason Gillespie struck in the first over, but the visitors progressed to a promising 172 for 4 before Deon Kruis removed Graeme Swann and Mark Ealham on the same score. The tail then folded to Rashid and Lawson, despite a second valiant innings from David Hussey who followed his 119 from yesterday with an unbeaten 86.The final day at Edgbaston turned into a farewell for Nick Knight as Warwickshire and Kent played out a draw. Once it became clear a result wasn’t on the cards, Knight was given the chance to take centre stage. In a rare spell of bowling he sent down nine overs of medium pace in his final outing for Warwickshire before retirement and also claimed two catches. Matthew Walker milked the easy offerings for a century before Kent declared and Knight had a final chance at the crease. He stroked the last two boundaries of his first-class career, meaning he ended his Warwickshire days with an average of 50, before stumps were drawn.

Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium provides one of the more festive cricket-watching experiences in Pakistan. With a capacity of 19,000 – packed even during bore run-fests such as the India-Pakistan 2006 Test – it is no heaving amphitheatre of sport, but its openness provides a delightful personal interaction with the contest.If you sit right, you can ask a fast bowler at the top of his run what he’ll bowl next; as a spectator you are expected to double as a fielder anywhere around the ground. The amusement park within the complex helps with the merriment. If the swing is timed right, the pirate ship should allow a decent if intermittent view of the game. Next door is an auditorium named after one of Faisalabad’s most famous product, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan; a stadium named after a poet and an auditorium next to it named after a means the venue must be one of the more artistically-inclined around the world.What happens on the field tomorrow, between South Africa and Pakistan, should add to the festivities. If we ignore last year’s ODI against West Indies (when Pakistan lost eight wickets chasing 152), the pitch is traditionally partial to runs. Mickey Arthur, South Africa’s coach, didn’t see anything in the 22-yard pale brown strip contrary to that belief. Add small boundaries and big hitters to the mix and a typically modern, run-heavy ODI awaits.”It looks like a very good deck. Much fresher than the last wicket we played on and we’re quite happy about that,” said Arthur. Criticising a pitch that produced over 500 runs and a century is a peculiarly contemporary condition but middle-overs spin, on a used surface, stumped South Africa as much as six wickets between two fast bowlers.But that has been South Africa’s only aberration through a commanding tour. And despite the loss, there remain few real concerns with morale or personnel. “We played really well through the tour and we had a little stutter at Lahore,” said Arthur. “We’ve set ourselves extremely high goals through this competition. We’ve set our team high standards and we need to maintain those standards. Lifting the boys after that loss will be no issue.”Arthur admitted, at a push, that only one position is under scrutiny, without revealing further, but also added, “we’ll probably given them a chance again.” Such is the mood that not even poor returns from Jacques Kallis and Justin Kemp (1 and 8 in the two ODIs) is a worry just yet. “I don’t foresee too many changes. We want to be pretty consistent. Our top order has been good. We didn’t get the start we wanted in Lahore. Everybody has performed their roles to their abilities.

“We’ve asked Kemp to bat at 5. It’s a role he knows and he can fulfill. He is wasted down the order as he gives us major impetus if he bats a long time. He’s done really well for us of late and we’re going to give him every opportunity to cement that position.”Despite levelling the series, a few issues remain to be resolved for Pakistan. From the top, Yasir Hameed is likely to replace Imran Nazir as a partner for Kamran Akmal, the third different combination in three matches. A more deserving change is hard to imagine: 41, 57, 71, 41, 10, 50 and 22 are Hameed’s last seven ODI innings (at number three admittedly) for Pakistan and yet, bewilderingly, the appearances are stretched out over 30 months.If picked, however, an opportunity presents itself for Pakistan are thinking long-term. “We have made so many changes because we have an important tour to India coming up,” said Shoaib Malik. “We are trying to find the right combination before then.”Apart from probably being without Mohammad Asif (he is to undergo a late fitness test), which is a sizeable headache, Pakistan’s other problem far predates the opening worry. As a unit, their ground fielding has been noticeably sharper but they dropped five catches in their win on Saturday.”Straight after we got here yesterday, we came and worked on our fielding,” Malik said. As well they should for winning games after fluffing that many chances happens about as often as a fair and free election in Pakistan.The series is now primed to tilt one or the other way; a win here could well be decisive with only two to play after it. “This is a vital match,” Malik acknowledged. “Whichever team wins it will take a definite edge for the remainder of the series.”Teams:
Pakistan (probable) Yasir Hameed, Kamran Akmal (wk), Younis Khan,Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Malik (capt), Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir, Abdur Rehman, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Umar Gul.South Africa (probable) Herschelle Gibbs, Graeme Smith (capt), Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Justin Kemp, Mark Boucher (wk), Shaun Pollock, Albie Morkel, Johan Botha, Makhaya Ntini, Charl Langeveldt.

Craig McMillan, the New Zealand batsman, will captain MCC in their three-day match against Sri Lanka A at Arundel starting on July 10.McMillan has played 55 Tests and 191 one-day internationals and following a recall to New Zealand’s one-day side in January, he played at the World Cup. In his ODI career McMillan has scored over 4,500 runs and taken 46 wickets. He also holds the record for the fastest one-day century scored by a New Zealander – 117 off 67 balls against Australia earlier this year.Keith Bradshaw, MCC’s chief executive, said: “I’m delighted that Craig has accepted our invitation to captain MCC. His talent and international experience will surely be a great asset to the team.”McMillan is currently in England playing for Nelson Cricket Club in the Lancashire Leagues. The rest of MCC’s line-up will be confirmed in the next few days and the match marks the start of Sri Lanka’s tour which lasts for a month.

Middle-order batsman Malinda Warnapura and fast bowler Sujeewa de Silva are certain to be included in the upcoming three-Test home series against Bangladesh, starting later this month, while former captain Marvan Atapattu is set to make a comeback to Test cricket after a long lay off.Selection committee sources confirmed that Warnapura, who has been in prolific form for Sri Lanka A on the tour to India and in the home series against Bangladesh A, and Silva, who has bowled impressively in both series, will be tried out during the series.Warnapura, a nephew of Sri Lanka’s first Test captain Bandula Warnapura, is yet to play a Test has not played in a Test before but de Silva has played in two Tests against Bangladesh in 2002, managing seven wickets.”We may probably rest Chaminda Vaas and also Tillakaratne Dilshan to give these youngsters a break in the international circuit and see how they shape up,” said a spokesman for the selection committee.He also confirmed that Atapattu would be selected for the Test series instead of veteran opener Sanath Jayasuriya who is expected to be rested from the series. Atapattu’s last Test appearance was against India in 2005 before a back injury forced him out of international cricket. He returned to the team early this year, only to be left out of the playing XI.Atapattu’s omission from the World Cup and three match one-day series against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi created a furore, putting enough pressure on the national selection committee to include him for the Bangladesh series.The Test squad of 14 is expected to be announced on June 11 after the return of captain Mahela Jayawardene who is currently in India leading the Asian XI against the Africa XI in a series of one-day matches.

Bangladesh struck more fours, but Zimbabwe were way ahead in the sixes tally in the third T20I in Khulna. The home side were not able to get any boundaries for 36 balls since the start of the 11th over. They had eight wickets in hand at the time, and needed to go after the bowling considering the asking rate was over 10.Zimbabwe stifling the runs during that period, and Malcolm Waller’s big-hitting 49 shaped their 31-run win to stay alive in the four-match series. He struck four sixes, one each in the 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th overs, lifting his team to 187 for 6 in their 20 overs.This win is Zimbabwe’s first in T20Is since November last year, which was also against Bangladesh and Waller had been the guiding hand again striking 40 off 27 balls in a final-over thriller.”Winning this game was very nice,” he said. “The guys are very happy. It is a happy change room. There’s a lot of laughter. To get a win was definitely good. In the last few weeks we have played games probably we should have won but couldn’t quite get over the line. So to do that today, we are happy for all of us.”Waller believed batting first had been an advantage in Khulna, where rain delayed the start of the match and also interrupted play in the first innings. “I think the way we were going about it, it was probably good to bat first on this wicket and set a target. Having a score on the board is obviously a good positive thing. No matter what the conditions look like, we will bat first and defend.Waller also made a point to say that wet conditions were not the deciding factor since, like Bangladesh, Zimbabwe’s bowlers also had a tough time on the field. “It was just as difficult for us in the field. The ball was really wet. It was tough for our spinners to hold the ball and seamers to bowl slower balls. I know the pitch got slower but we batted 12 overs in the wet conditions. So I am not sure rain had a big part [in Bangladesh’s defeat],” he said.Elton Chigumbura was rested for the second game in a row, but Waller said that it was just a ploy to test other players. “We have had a lot of cricket over the last four months. We have been away from home a lot.”This is a good time for us to try different combinations – rest Elton and watch other guys. He will be back but it is a good opportunity to show what the other guys can do before the World T20.”