In the build-up to this year’s showcase event, all the talk had centred on who would face Australia to win the honours. It was widely expected that the World Cup final would be a repeat of the last one; the pundits were only half-wrong. For Australia’s contestants won’t be New Zealand – which would be a repeat of the women’s final – but India, in a repeat of the men’s.If one team to make the final was difficult to pick – in truth, England, New Zealand and India all had a shout – then the four-times world champions Australia were a shoo-in. If you’re looking for a sure bet this weekend, forget the Grand National.”Our motivation is that we don’t hold the Cup,” Clark said simply, flatly, matter-of-factly, her side having been pipped to the post by New Zealand in 2000. The Australians responded emphatically: they rolled up their sleeves and have been polishing their skills for the last four years, their eye firmly on one thing.The results have, so far, come up brightly: they swept allcomers aside to march unbeaten into the final, having already brushed aside the holders New Zealand 3-0 in the annual Rose Bowl trophy leading up to this event. They now are on the verge of cleaning up.
But India could muddy the waters. While few would bet against Australia, the underdogs India, who have never been in the final, have an outside chance, and this a two-horse race. They beat Australia three times in the run-up to the World Cup, albeit in a series they lost 4-3.Yet to beat Australia at all shows they can do it, and coming back into that series after being down and out shows their bouncebackability. They have it in spades. If Clark embodies Australia’s vim and vigour, then Mithali Raj encapsulates India’s heart. Nobody evidences their tough spirit more than Raj, their brave captain, who has vowed to play through any pain her injured knee may inflict on her on Sunday. “I will definitely play the final, I cannot just leave my team now,” she said after her side beat New Zealand in the semi-final. That’s fighting talk.
Close Day 2 East Zone 287 for 8 (Arindam Das 70, Kiran Powar 69*) trail North Zone 330 (Paul 5-83) by 43 runs Scorecard Arindam Das and Kiran Powar stroked contrasting half-centuries for East Zone as the Duleep Trophy final hung in the balance at the end of the second day at Mohali. Arindam provided the stability after the loss of some early wickets, while Powar clattered the bowling after a middle-order slump. East Zone were only 43 adrift by the end, and Powar, whose brother Ramesh was recently included in India’s one-day squad, remained unbeaten with a crucial 69.There were some other good performances, too. Ashish Nehra proved his fitness with four spells of disciplined bowling, and extracted some decent bounce as the day wore on. After North Zone had folded for 330 in the morning, with Shib Shankar Paul finishing with 5 for 83, the attention shifted to Nehra and his untested limbs. His first spell was of eight overs – more of a loosener than anything else – but his accuracy ensured that it cost him only 13 runs. Even MS Dhoni (21), who was trying to smash every ball, couldn’t get him away.Nehra enticed Shiv Sundar Das (12) to fiddle at a slightly wide one, and Aakash Chopra easily pouched the catch at second slip (44 for 2). Nehra changed ends for his next two spells, but remained tight, conceding just ten runs from his next five overs. It was now that he managed to unsettle the batsmen with that bounce. And at the end of the day, he tilted the balance in North Zone’s favour with an important wicket. After bowling 20 overs with no sign of discomfort, Nehra should now have booked his ticket to Pakistan.Early on, Rohan Gavaskar was adjudged lbw to a ball that appeared to be heading over the stumps, and at 46 for 3, East Zone were in a tricky spot. But Arindam and Devang Gandhi shared a valuable 93-run stand, eschewing all risks and stabilising the situation. Arindam was solid in defence, getting in behind the line most of the time, and he unfurled a few crisp cuts after reaching his half-century. He was given a life on 65, dropped at second slip by Chopra, but was soon undone by a dream ball by Sarandeep Singh.Sarandeep’s first wicket had come with the last ball of a soporific second session. Gandhi (42) suddenly got one that zipped and turned, and ended up gloving it to short leg (149 for 4). But the delivery that got Arindam ensured that everyone woke up. Slower through the air and drifting a shade away, it spun in viciously after pitching, sneaked through his defence and dislodged the bails (174 for 5) – an offspinner’s delight.Laxmi Ratan Shukla and Saurashish Lahiri fell trying to step up the scoring rate, and, still 130 adrift, East Zone needed a fighting partnership. Utpal Chatterjee hung in grimly while Powar drilled some fierce cuts. He latched on to anything short, and pierced the gaps effortlessly. He also nudged and nurdled, when the field was spread out, and showed great maturity in handling this nervy situation. Chatterjee wasn’t as authoritative: he wafted at some wide ones, and edged a couple through the slips. This pair added 86 in quick time, to rescue East Zone from a perilous position. But Chatterjee fell to Nehra for 39 right at the end, which gave North Zone a slight edge.Karsan Ghavri, East Zone’s coach, wasn’t too perturbed about first-innings honours. “Even if we concede the lead, it won’t be more than 10 to 20 runs,” he reasoned. “We can still come back in the second innings and get back into the game.”Siddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Wisden Cricinfo in India.
The West Indies brought joy to the hearts of over 500 budding cricketers and supporters when they visited the Actonville townships, outside Johannesburg yesterday.Starry-eyed children and adoring adults were captivated by the presence of Carl Hooper’s team as the Windies took the day off to conduct a coaching clinic at the small field in the rural district.Batsmen Brian Lara and Shivnarine Chanderpaul were the main attractions for the fans in the area, which is a mile from the Willonmore Oval, the venue for the side’s match against Bangladesh tomorrow.The event was organised by the World Cup Committee and the Easterns Cricket Board, and the ground is said to be the main venue used by black players during the apartheid era.From the moment the West Indies players emerged from the bus at 2 p.m. they were mobbed by the fans, many of whom see them as greater heroes than members of the South African side."The West Indies players of the past are my real heroes," said Cynthia Constantine, who made the hour-long trip from Johannesburg."The West Indies have showed that black people can dominate at the highest level and I’m proud of `my’ team."Dudu Hlophe, 16, and ten teammates from her school’s girls’ team, made a 90-minute trip to be part of the clinic."I’m just so happy to be here and meet the West Indies," she said with a smile that rivalled the afternoon sun."I just wanted to meet Lara and I got a chance to bowl at him. He’s a nice man and the others are very cool."Tommy Padotan, a lifelong supporter, brought along his wife, son and four daughters to meet the team. He also had Press clippings from the West Indies’ heroics as far back as the 1970s."This is a real chance to meet the team I love so much. We would not have missed it for the world," he said.But it was not just an event for the fans.Sky Sports, the British-based television network; SuperSports, one of South Africa’s leading networks, and several other sections of the media were there.West Indies captain Carl Hooper praised the authorities for putting on the event and acknowledged that his players had a tremendous impact on the youth."It was great to interact with the youngsters today and impart some our knowledge," he said."They see us on television and this allowed the youngsters to realise that the players in the World Cup are not far removed from them."
After seeing his side end the day still needing one run to avoid the follow-on with the last pair at the wicket, Somerset coach Kevin Shine said: “It will be a very exciting first over tomorrow. Once we have got the run then it will be game on, and it could be very interesting.”With both sides in the pack chasing Yorkshire the coach suggested that “it’s likely that we would declare because we’re interested in getting a result from the game – we want to stay in the hunt.”Regarding Steffan Jones’ five-wicket haul he said: “It was an excellent sustained bowling performance from Steffan. He kept it going, and bore the brunt of the bowling when “Johnno” was called to Trent Bridge. He has now got 45 wickets for the season which is brilliant.”When I asked him about the team for the home game against Leicestershire which begins at Taunton on Tuesday he replied: “The England boys may well be back. The Test looks like finishing early, and then they will be without a match for ten days, apart from the semi-final. Andy Caddick bowled himself back into form in the Glamorgan game so it will be interesting to see what Duncan Fletcher decides.”He went on: “obviously it will be a disappointment for the two who get dropped to make way for Andy and Marcus, but they are world class players and we would love to welcome them back for the crucial Leicestershire game.”
Newcastle United have now reportedly set their sights on signing a midfield reinforcement who’s been compared to the iconic N’Golo Kante.
Newcastle chasing key midfield addition
It’s a fairly open secret ahead of 2026 that Newcastle are after an extra midfield star. Their usual trusty trio of Sandro Tonali, Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes has shown signs of wilting without much-needed depth and that’s something PIF must look to fix when the January transfer window swings open.
Joelinton has particularly suffered this season and now has an injury issue to contend with. Eddie Howe revealed the news earlier this week, telling reporters: “Joelinton is recovering from a groin injury. He is fit to a certain extent, but we would only use him in an emergency situation.
Same agent as Osula: Newcastle now offered chance to sign "excellent" UCL ace
Eddie Howe is once again short on defensive options.
ByTom Cunningham
“For example, to defend a corner in the closing minutes of the match. He is training, but perhaps not completing every drill at full intensity.”
Without him, Newcastle have been forced to turn towards the likes of Joe Willock, Lewis Miley and struggling summer signing Jacob Ramsey. Compared to the robust nature of Joelinton’s work, none of those three represent like-for-like replacements or upgrades in other departments.
One man who could arrive to solve those problems is Ruben Neves. The Al-Hilal midfielder has just over six months left on his contract in Saudi Arabia, but could leave earlier and in the January transfer window. Newcastle, alongside others, are reportedly interested in the Portugal international.
However, Neves isn’t the only name on the January shortlist. According to the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope, Newcastle are now eyeing a move to sign Lamine Camara from AS Monaco. The talented midfielder is being monitored by the Magpies ahead of next month.
Camara would be bargain Neves alternative for Newcastle
If they weren’t held back by their wage structure then Neves would be Newcastle’s man. Alas, the reality is that they’re unlikely to secure his signature if he wants to match his £15m-a-year Saudi wage back in the Premier League. So, those in Tyneside may need to find an alternative and that’s where Camara could come in.
Compared to Premier League winner Kante in the past, the Monaco star is still just 21 years old and yet to even reach the peak of his powers. A move next month may be unlikely as Camara is representing Senegal at AFCON, but Newcastle should look to secure a move beyond the winter window.
Dubbed a “complete midfielder” by Como scout Ben Mattinson this time last year, Camara could be the answer to Newcastle’s problems in 2026.
ScorecardGriqualand West’s left-arm seam duo of Charl Pietersen and Jandre Coetzee shared seven second-innings wickets to help clinch the Provincial Challenge title after bundling out Western Province for 174 on the final day in Kimberley. Dominic Telo, the middle-order batsman, led the chase with a half-century but ran out of partners as Pietersen and Coetzee inflicted a lower-order collapse after Western Province had progressed to 162 for 5, chasing 217. Telo remained unbeaten on 99, but his side finished 42 short of the target.The fast bowlers from both sides prevailed in a low-scoring encounter at the De Beers Diamond Oval. Lucian Simpson, the left-arm seamer, took 5 for 27 on the first day to sink Griqualand West to 144. Western Province floundered in reply, ending the first day at 142 for 7, and only managed a slender lead of 11. Pietersen and Coetzee were the main wicket-takers in the first innings as well, taking four each. Coetzee ran through the lower order to finish with miserly figures of 4 for 8 in less than seven overs.The Griqualand top order failed to get going once again, sinking to 96 for 6 before the lower order stepped up. Wendell Bossenger, the wicketkeeper, added 40 with Pietersen and another 24 with Audrey Swanepoel before he was dismissed for 38. Swanepoel went on the attack and his 47-ball 59, which included seven fours and two sixes, turned out to be the most crucial knock of the match as Griqualand pushed the lead beyond 200.Requiring 217 to win, Western Province got off to a shaky start, ending the second day at 43 for 3. Coetzee removed the openers while Pietersen claimed Levi, the first-innings top-scorer, to give Griqualand the edge.Western Province suffered due to their inability to build substantial partnerships on the final day – the only significant stand yielded 71 for the sixth wicket between Telo and Thami Tsolekile. Western Province lost their last five wickets for the addition of just 12 runs as Pietersen and Coetzee shared three of those wickets. Simpson was the last to go, off a run-out, leaving Telo stranded on 99. His knock – the highest of the match – included 14 boundaries, but it wasn’t enough to win the game.
The Indian board (BCCI) has set up a seven-member committee to select the next coach of the Indian team.A statement released by the BCCI today said the committee would meet at the earliest and give its recommendations to the board regarding the next coach or cricket manager for India. Dav Whatmore, the Bangladesh coach, has expressed an interest in coaching India and there are reports that Tom Moody, the Sri Lanka coach, is also being considered.Sharad Pawar, the board president, will head the committee which also includes former captains Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri and S Venkataraghavan. N Srinivasan, BCCI treasurer, and MP Pandove, the joint secretary are also members of the committee while Niranjan Shah, the board secretary, will be its convenor.After Greg Chappell quit as India’s coach the board appointed Ravi Shastri as the side’s manager for the tour to Bangladesh in May. But Shastri has reportedly informed the board that he would not be able to continue as manager after the tour because of his media commitments.India will play three ODIs and two Tests between May 10 and May 29 in Bangladesh. In June they host the Afro-Asia Cup before heading off to England for three Tests and seven ODIs.
Roger Brathwaite jumped – he was not pushed out – and so the West Indies Cricket Board will soon begin a worldwide search for its next chief executive officer.This was the word from Ken Gordon, the WICB president, in a wide-ranging interview with Cable News Channel 3, following the announcement that Brathwaite will pull up stumps after four years with the WICB and declare his innings closed on April 28. Brathwaite resigned from the position last Friday after an all-day meeting of the WICB at which his job came under review, but reports indicated he had been asked to do so by Gordon.”People resign,” was the initial response Gordon gave to a question about Brathwaite’s pending departure from the WICB. “Clearly, Mr Brathwaite wanted to get on with his career in a different avenue, and by mutual agreement we agreed to part.”In a dynamic situation where things are always happening every day, there are agreements and disagreements, but you carry on. If somebody feels that they have had enough, and it’s time they look for something else, you have got to understand this,” Gordon added.Brathwaite was appointed CEO of the WICB in April 2003. He first worked with the WICB as chief marketing executive in May 2002, and was installed as acting CEO in September the same year under the presidency of former West Indies fast bowling great Wes Hall, after Gregory Shillingford was asked to resign.Gordon, however, refused to give a review of Brathwaite’s performance, but disclosed that the WICB will soon roll out its advertising campaign for a new CEO, and hoped that candidates from far and wide would apply.”We are going to put it in the hands of professional people and try to get the best possible candidates, and we will hope that what we will have presented to us from them will be a shortlist,” he said. “We would hope to have the position filled by the end of the month, but it’s not practical. We will hope that the ads will appear very shortly, but as you know, these things take time. They have to be done thoroughly.”We are not talking about advertising it only in Trinidad, but we are talking about the Caribbean, and you’ll have to hope that you can even get something out to places like the United States and Canada, where West Indians are living and they may want to apply, so it has to be thorough. My hope is that we can get this transition completed within three months.”Gordon also outlined the prerequisites for the new CEO, who should ideally have a background in cricket, but whose skills in a top management position are without question.”The person has got to be an effective CEO,” said Gordon, who took over as WICB president last year July after Teddy Griffith decided to not to seek re-election to the post. “A person who is a problem solver, who can lead, who takes accountability, someone who has an understanding of dealing with the whole picture.”Some people are very good at pockets of these things, but a CEO is someone who first recognises the resources available to him, and the limitations in which he has to work, and then devises a plan to achieve results. This is the single-most important thing by which a CEO should live – a creed of delivering results – and that’s the kind of person we are looking for – someone who will deliver results.”Until then, the affairs of the WICB will be controlled by the remainder of the management personnel under the eye of Gordon, who will meet weekly with them to review the status of various issues.”You have people who are there, you have staff, and you have the chief financial officer, Barry Thomas, who is a very competent man,” he said. “I will be going to Antigua on Mondays to meet with the managers, so that you have a managers’ meeting the same way that you have in most companies, and have a good idea about what is being tackled and I will have various inputs into it.”So for the next few months, until we have a new person in place, it will put a little more pressure on me in terms of having to go up there on a weekly basis to ensure that’s done,” Gordon said.
England can finally claim a world-champion legspinner after Shane Warne announced he would base himself there when not playing in Australia. Warne plans to move to Hampshire, where he has a four-year county contract, within weeks and will return Down Under only in summer.”At the moment, it’s home and down the track it will probably be home for the family as well,” Warne told the Courier-Mail. “I’ll live over there and base myself there and come back and play my stuff for Australia and head back. I’m only in Australia for a couple of months each year.”Warne, who claimed his 1000th first-class wicket in taking 5 for 39 against New Zealand yesterday, has recently renovated his mansion in the Melbourne suburb Brighton, but he has bought a house and a car in the Hampshire city of Southampton. The lure of off-season commentary work in England, an escape from the intense local media glare and his wife Simone’s love of Spain were also seen as considerations for the move.”I like it over there, my family enjoy going to Spain and it’s only a couple of hours on the plane, so they enjoy that side of things,” he told The Australian. “My wife would love to live in Spain tomorrow, it’s a bit hard when you’re playing for Australia.”Now 35, Warne said he could end his career at Hampshire, but he has also re-set his Test goals to take 700 wickets and is currently on 573. “If I can keep playing for another couple of years it might be a chance, but it won’t be the main reason to keep going,” Warne said. “When I stop enjoying it I’ll stop playing. When little things come along, like today when I got my 1000th first-class wicket, you give yourself a little pat on the back. It was a pretty big achievement.”Warne, who first played for the county in 2000, has signed a two-year deal as Hampshire’s captain with the option to double the length, and Cricket Australia was not concerned where he lived as long as he completed his contractual obligations. “I’m looking forward and that’s showing some commitment to Hampshire,” he said. “I enjoy captaining the side. We had a very successful year there last year. Who knows? I might finish up my playing days down there at Hampshire as well.”
Javed Mianded, the Pakistan coach, has said Wasim Akram should know where to draw the line when it comes to coaching India.”What I am only worried about is that he does not give them tips on how to play reverse-swing,” Miandad said, adding that his own batsmen had developed a batting strategy to counter the late swing. Miandad was quoted by .Akram is currently working in Australia as a commentator, and has been observed mentoring India’s fast bowlers. This hasn’t gone down too well with many, considering India’s tour of Pakistan is little more than a month away.But Miandad said Akram was within his rights to teach bowlers how to reverse-swing the ball. “There is nothing wrong in that because a bowler must have the ability to pick up the art.”Miandad said that since Akram was a professional cricketer, there was nothing wrong if he was paid for his expertise. “Look, he is a retired player and this is his basic right to help out other players with his experience and knowledge.”He opined that players usually helped each other out, regardless of nationality. “As a former player, I know that in international cricket players do help out each other. Lots of people have approached me for advice if they have been going through a rough time. Similarly, I have also sought some advice at times,” he recalled.”But telling another team the trade secrets of our team, like how to play reverse-swing, I don’t think he would do it, and I hope he is not doing it.”