ScorecardWest Indies won the third and final one-dayer against Bangladesh by seven wickets at St George’s. After Bangladesh reached 118 for 7 from 25 overs, Devon Smith guided his side home with five balls to spare. Thus they took the series 3-0, and while the first two games were a little too close for comfort for West Indies, at least today was a more convincing win.The game was reduced to 25 overs per side after heavy rain, which originally threatened to wash out the game. Once play got underway in the afternoon, Habibul Bashar, the Bangladesh captain, won the toss and chose to bat.It was Bashar himself who played a captain’s innings of 42 to hold together Bangladesh’s innings after they again slipped to a stumbling start. Bashar, helped by Rajin Saleh, Faisal Hossain and Mushfiqur Rahman, who all made useful contributions, boosted their total to a respectable one. Dwayne Smith was the leading bowler for West Indies, taking 3 for 24, including the wicket of Bashar.Devon Smith, opening West Indies’ innings with Ricardo Powell in place of Chris Gayle, provided the backbone of the innings. After Powell was caught off Mushfiqur Rahman for 17 (21 for 1), Dwayne Smith gave proceedings some momentum with 23 from 24 balls, including four boundaries, and Shivnarine Chanderpaul then scored a handy 24 to put West Indies within sight of the finishing line.Ramnaresh Sarwan, West Indies’ captain, who was still standing in for the rested Brian Lara, kept his cool towards the end before Smith fittingly hit the winning runs from the first ball of the final over.

West Indies 559 for 4 dec beat Bangladesh 284 and 176 by an innings and 99 runs
ScorecardPreview – Windies determined to make ammendsDay 1
Bulletin – Bangladesh recover to reach 264Day 2
Bulletin – Lara and Sarwan hundreds put West Indies in controlDay 3
Bulletin – Sarwan’s 261 puts West Indies in control
Quotes – Sarwan: ‘I was pretty pleased’Day 4
Bulletin – Collins steers West Indies to innings win
Verdict – Too many snakes, not enough ladders

Sanath Jayasuriya, the elder statesman of the Sri Lanka team, was happy to take the blame for running out team-mate Kumar Sangakkara, a dismissal which contributed largely to their 149-run loss to Australia in the first Test at Darwin.Having got a close leg-before decision against him in the first innings, Sri Lanka were looking to the in-form Sangakkara to make a big score in the second innings. But he faced only four balls before he was run out. He responded to a call for a risky single by Jayasuriya and failed to beat Damien Martyn’s direct hit from cover point.”I misjudged the run and I admit it was my fault. I shouldn’t have gone for that single,” said Jayasuriya, whose own game seemed to be affected after that dismissal. “We had to rotate the strike otherwise if you get stuck on one side for four to five overs you will eventually get out, especially on this kind of wicket. I take full responsibility for that run out.”He added: “Normally I don’t worry about such things. But I was upset when Kumar was out because he was our batsman in form.” Sangakkara had come into the Test having scored an unbeaten double-century in the four-day warm up game against a Chief Minister’s XI at the same venue.Four overs after Sangakkara was dismissed, Jayasuriya was then out for 16 when he fell leg before to a fast swinging full toss from Glenn McGrath, who had openly said that he was targeting Jayasuriya’s wicket during the series.Jayasuriya also revealed that during the 73 minutes he spent at the wicket, the Australians were constantly chirping at him, saying that all they needed was his wicket for them to wrap up the Test.Reflecting on his second innings dismissal, Jayasuriya said: “I missed the ball totally. It swung late in the air in the last minute and I missed it. I didn’t want to play a cross bat shot. All I wanted to do was to play straight and occupy the crease. It was not easy to play shots on that kind of wicket. I thought I would stay as long as possible to see the shine off. Our task was made even more difficult by the accuracy with which the three Australian fast bowlers bowled.”McGrath, Gillespie and Kasprowicz bowled in the right areas constantly. They made very little errors for us to play shots. On a very good wicket we would have gone after them, but certainly not on this.”Sri Lanka are not due to tour Australia until November 2007 and, at 35, it is very unlikely that Jayasuriya will be seen again in Australia. Cairns, the venue of the second Test starting on Friday could probably be his last Test on Australian soil. “It could be my final innings in Australia, but retirement has been furthest from my mind. I am playing well at the moment and I am fit,” said Jayasuriya. “I want to take it tour by tour and see how I perform. Everything depends on my performance. I have been training and looking after my fitness really well.”He continued: “Getting runs in Australia is a big achievement for any team. It is not easy to perform against the best team in the world under their conditions. I have always wanted to perform in Australia. If I get the opportunity in Cairns I will. If I perform well it is good for the team.”Jayasuriya also said that to succeed against Australia you had to be aggressive. “You have to be on top of them all the time. We were on top of them from day one in the 1999 series which we won.”In the present series we have been able to dominate them only in the first innings which is not enough. We had this bad experience of losing to Australia even in Sri Lanka. It is disappointing. The players have realized what went wrong. The bowlers have done their job magnificently. The area that is a worry for us is our batting.”He added: “Whenever somebody gets in he should go on and play a big innings. That has been the unfortunate part of our batting. The batsmen should concentrate more and get through the hardest period and go and get a big one. Each individual must have his own responsibilities. We have been talking of not losing wickets during sessions. When you play the best side in the world you have to play hard.”

The agreement to arbitration by the Zimbabwe Cricket Union has given the rebel players some hope of playing international cricket again. Stuart Carlisle, who is currently in England on the rebels’ “Red Lions” tour, told BBC Radio Five Live: “If the right results come through, you may see a few players come back.” However, Carlisle added: “After three months of asking for arbitration, we are back to square one.”The ZCU agreed to arbitration in its ongoing dispute with the 15 rebel players after the ICC gave the two groups a 14-day deadline, starting from June 30, to start sorting out their differences, and also threatened to intervene if no solution was found. According to the ICC proposal, a three-member committee – with one member appointed by each of the two parties, and a third decided upon by those two members – would address the issues and come up with a solution which would be final. While the ZCU has agreed to this mechanism, the players have sought more time to consider the system. However, the ZCU has denied that the ICC has any jurisdiction to impose a binding solution on them, a viewpoint not shared by Ehsan Mani, the ICC president: “The ICC’s legal advice is clear in saying that it does.”The rebels, who play a Lashings XI in the first of six one-day matches in their three-week tour today (July 14), will be meeting Malcolm Speed, the ICC’s chief executive, to discuss the current situation, but Carlisle insisted there was no political agenda for the Red Lions tour.”It’s been a very stressful period for us and our families,” he said. “We are here to have a bit of fun and enjoyment. We need to have a bit of a break.” Carlisle would not comment on whether international teams should still be touring Zimbabwe, saying only: “It’s not for me to make a decision. It’s up to individual players around the world.”England are due to play five one-day internationals in Zimbabwe in November, and there have been reports that several players are unwilling to go on the tour.

In today’s round of National League matches, Glamorgan clinched the title for the second time in three years after Robert Croft’s 106 set up a five-wicket win over Lancashire in front of a capacity crowd at the Rhos on Sea ground. Set 219 to win after a half-century from Dinesh Mongia and 48 from Chris Schofield had resurrected Lancashire following an early-innings slump, Glamorgan cantered home with almost five overs to spare.Graham Napier picked up four quick wickets to send Kent crashing to a 35-run defeat to Essex at Colchester. Set 268 to win after 97 from the in-form Will Jefferson and 98 from Ronnie Irani, Kent were restricted to 232 for 7 despite half-centuries from Alex Loudon and Michael Bevan. Alan Mullally, at his miserly best, and Shaun Udal, with four wickets, sent Northants crashing to 171 all out in pursuit of Hampshire’s 238 for 9.In Division Two, Scotland fell agonisingly short of Somerset’s 253 for 8 at Taunton. Scotland were bowled out for 246 with four balls still to be bowled in the last over despite an unbeaten 55 off just 40 balls from Yasir Arafat.National League Division One

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Match report: Croft ensures Glamorgan title – The Telegraph

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Match report: Kent find no response to Jefferson and Irani – The Times

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Match report: Swann is sunk – The Telegraph
National League Division Two

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Match report: Wright performance but wrong result for Saltires – The Scotsman

Australia 235 and 150 for 4 (Gilchrist 49) lead India 376 (Kaif 64, Patel 54, Warne 6-125) by 9 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

An intriguing day’s play where punch was met by counter-punch and strategy was defied by grit set the second Test up perfectly going into the fourth day. Parthiv Patel and Mohammad Kaif stretched India’s lead on to a healthy 141 and then Australia, with Adam Gilchrist showing the way at No. 3, scrambled to 150 for 4, with a slender lead of 9.The Indian lead of 141 does not sound like an awful lot, but it was enough to put pressure on Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer. The two began shakily, but managed to get the ball away often enough to bring up the 50-run partnership before Langer’s flash outside off fell in Rahul Dravid’s lap at first slip. Langer had made 19, but it was ironic that he was the first to be dismissed, for Hayden had been the one flirting with danger. He was dropped twice by Patel behind the stumps, first when he hadn’t yet opened his account, off Zaheer Khan, and later on 21, off Anil Kumble.Eventually, though, Hayden fell on 39, but not before he had reverted to the tactic that brought him 549 runs at an uber-Bradman average of 109 on Australia’s last tour here. Hayden’s lusty sweeps were effective, but eventually caused his downfall on 39, when one ball climbed, took the edge and ballooned up for VVS Laxman to latch onto gingerly at mid-on (76 for 2).Gilchrist then showed why he was in at No. 3, sweeping Kumble, Harbhajan and Virender Sehwag for powerful boundaries in quick succession. Simon Katich, looking to be more aggressive in this innings than he had earlier in the series, reached 9 before being trapped in front of the stumps by a sharp reverse-swinging delivery from Zaheer Khan (121 for 3). Gilchrist galloped along, reaching 49 swiftly, but after a sluggish phase in sight of the half-century, was bowled around the legs by a Kumble googly (145 for 4). Only two balls before that, Patel had chalked up his third dropped catch in under 47 overs, when Gilchrist gloved Kumble down the leg side.But Patel’s day was not all about misses. Earlier, with Kaif, he proved that it was possible to bat long on this Chennai pitch. Kaif, curious stance on display – feet close together, buttocks stuck out, hands spread on the bat handle – took his guard outside the crease, and used a straight bat to great effect against the medium-pacers. Patel, waiting and watching the ball till the last possible moment before choosing his stroke, ensured that he was able to take toll when the opportunity arose.Both batsmen had just about blunted the seamers when Gilchrist turned to spin, and Patel cashed in with two quick boundaries – a pull off Katich and a heave to midwicket off Shane Warne. The partnership reached three figures and Patel had brought up his half-century.

Kaif’s selection for this Test, his first in three years, proved to be an inspired decision. His 64, coming when it did, pulled India away from Australia after Virender Sehwag had laid the foundation. Kaif’s half-century, his first in Test cricket, meant that the score had moved from 233 for 6 to 335 for 7. The partnership was broken when a delivery from Warne bounced a bit more than Patel expected, and he gloved it to the Gilchrist behind the stumps. In keeping with the spirit of this game Patel walked before David Shepherd could make up his mind.Then there was a moment of confusion as Kaif dehydrated and cramped up badly. Having dashed off the field in urgent need of relief at the stroke of lunch, Kaif remained in the dressing-room, temporarily retiring hurt. Anil Kumble (20), who had batted well in the reassuring presence of Kaif, was bowled by one that drifted and turned and Harbhajan Singh popped a return catch to Warne, as he finished with 6 for 125.Kaif (64) returned to the crease with Yuvraj Singh as a runner, but did not last too long. He came down the wicket and lifted Warne over mid-on for one glorious boundary, and ran himself out shortly after in dramatic fashion. Having reverse-swept one to the short third man region, Kaif forgot about his runner and instinctively set off down the pitch. Then he slipped and fell on the pitch clutching his leg and couldn’t make it back before the bails were whipped off. By then, though, he had done his bit.

Sourav Ganguly confirmed that India took the foot off the pedal halfway through the Kenyan innings. They won by 98 runs, but could’ve clinched the game a lot earlier. "We could have finished it earlier, but I wanted to give everybody a bowl in a match situation," said Ganguly in a press conference soon after the match. "Irfan [Pathan] and Ashish [Nehra] have been bowling well. Ajit [Agarkar] was coming back after a break and I wanted him to bowl his 10 overs."The fact that India did not bowl Kenya out was not the only blemish on their report card. Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh both failed to take the opportunity to spend some time out in the middle. "There’s a practice game on the 16th and that becomes important for them. We need to get them into form because they’re important players. When they score runs they win you games because they score at such a fast rate. I liked the way Viru applied himself, for whatever time he batted. He probably could have avoided that shot [the one that got him out] but we hope he fires in the practice match."Ganguly also rued the fact that he fell short of the three-figure mark yet again. "It’s unfortunate to miss two centuries in one week, but that’s the way it is one-day cricket. Sometimes you try to accelerate and get out, and I probably got a good ball today."Finally, when asked whether he thought India were ready for the big game against Pakistan, Ganguly nodded his vigourous assent.For Steve Tikolo, though, the post-match press conference provided another chance to underscore his grouse against the International Cricket Council for not giving Kenya enough opportunities to play international cricket. "We have not played any one-day internationals for nearly 18 months now and it showed today. If we had been playing without a break, we may not have let India get away with all those runs in the end overs."When asked if his team had taken any positives out of the match, Tikolo said that he was pleased with the way Maurice Ouma, the young debutant, played for his 49. He also said the match gave Brijal Patel, who has been out of form, a chance to get some valuable batting out in the middle.

Elite Group
Madhya Pradesh 255 and 222 (Bundela 139*, Kulkarni 5-55) drew with Mumbai 233 and 81 for 4 (Pandey 4-20)
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In what was one of the early season surprises, Mumbai conceded two points to newly promoted Madhya Pradesh at the Wankhede Stadium. Devendra Bundela’s battling 139 on the final day thwarted Mumbai’s hopes of forcing an outright victory. Madhya Pradesh were staring at defeat on the third afternoon when they were reduced to 13 for 4, having gained a slender lead of 22 runs. But Bundela was supported ably by the lower order as he inched towards his 11th first-class hundred. Sanjay Pandey, the No. 11, stayed with him for more than a session and Mumbai were left with just 33 overs to chase the target of 245. Although they made an effort to go for the target, they were thwarted by defensive fields and never had a chance once wickets started falling at regular intervals.Tamil Nadu 353 drew with Uttar Pradesh 136 and 157 for 8
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Uttar Pradesh held on for a tense draw at Lucknow as Tamil Nadu finished with just two points from their second game of the season. Ramakrishnan Ramkumar, the left-arm spinner, had given Tamil Nadu a great chance of a thumping victory as UP were forced to follow on on the third day. But Ramkumar and his team-mates managed to snap up just eight wickets in the UP second innings and had to be content with first-innings honours.Gujarat 330 and 307 for 4 (Timil Patel 78*, Niraj Patel 70, Akash Christian) drew with Karnataka 272 and 156 for 7 (Trivedi 6-52)
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The Karnataka tailenders defied Gujarat and managed to hold on for a draw on the final day at Bangalore. Needing to play out 38 overs, Karnataka were rocked by Siddharth Trivedi, the medium-pacer, and were reduced to 24 for 5 within the first seven overs. But a gritty 46 from Thilak Naidu took them to safety as they managed to limit the damage to just two points to Gujarat. Earlier in the day, two Patels had helped to extend Gujarat’s lead as Timil (78 not out) and Niraj (70) shared a 126-run stand. And a third Patel – Parthiv – then contributed a quick 37 as Gujarat declared on 307 for 4.Punjab 422 beat Assam 213 and 158 (Gagandeep 6-26) by an innings and 51 runs
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It took just six overs this morning for Punjab to wrap up their game against Assam at Amritsar. Gagandeep Singh, the medium pacer, finished with 12 wickets in the match as Punjab registered their first win of the season. Navdeep Singh and Rajesh Sharma ended up with two wickets apiece.Railways 348 and 217 for 6 dec (Pagnis 89) drew with Bengal 255 and 212 for 5 (Shukla 65, Arindam 60)
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Arindam Das and Laxmi Ratan Shukla helped Bengal hang on for a draw against Railways at the Karnail Singh Stadium in Delhi. Railways extended their lead to 310 this morning and were left with almost the entire day to wrap up Bengal’s second innings. However, they had to be content with just two points from the game as the Bengal batsmen doggedly resisted. Das used up 241 balls for his 60 while Shukla made a cheerful 65, with nine fours and a six, at the end of the day.Delhi 491 drew with Andhra 311 and 152 for 5 (MSK Prasad 71*)
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MSK Prasad, the former Indian wicketkeeper, helped Andhra secure a draw and deny Delhi an outright victory at the Roshanara Club in Delhi. After being asked to follow-on Andhra lost only five wickets in their second innings as Prasad’s patient 71 held it together. With this result, Delhi have four points from their first two games while Andhra have two, with a clash against defending champions Mumbai next week.Baroda 446 and 189 for 1 (Parab 100*, Powar 64*) drew with Maharashtra 387 (Marathe 110, Mohan 101, Pawar 5-79)
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Satyajit Parab helped himself to his second hundred of the match as Baroda got the better of the draw in their game against Maharashtra at Pune. Maharashtra resumed at 328 for 4 this morning, still needing 119 runs to gain first-innings points. Dhruv Mohan, batting on 87 overnight, managed to reach his first hundred in first-class cricket but Rajesh Pawar, the left-arm spinner, brought Baroda back into the game. The last five wickets fell for just 28 runs and Baroda picked up two valuable points from the match. Kiran Powar (64 not out) and Parab then got some useful batting practice in the middle as the game meandered to a draw.

Individual statistics for Tests played in 2004

Individual statistics for ODIs played in 2004

The two-man delegation from Pakistan has inspected the stadium in Mohali – the venue for the forthcoming first Test against India – after being shown around the ground today.According to Reuters, the Pakistanis – Zakir Khan, the general manager of the Pakistan Board, and Sohail Khan, the senior superintendent of the Lahore police – pronounced the ground and its facilities to be “excellent and very impressive”.Zakir told reporters that there was nothing sinister in his inspection, saying such visits were now commonplace and “a part of the cricket family system”.Sohail, meanwhile, claimed that reports that Pakistan were not keen on playing in Ahmedabad were only speculation. “It has all been generated by the press. We will talk to the local administration in Ahmedabad and the final decision will be taken by the two boards.”