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Fidel Edwards has been fined 15% of his match fee for swearing loudly enough that he could be heard by spectators at the Chester-le-Street Test, and by television viewers. Edwards was found guilty of breaching the ICC Code of Conduct but his level-one offence was not deemed serious enough for the maximum fine of 50% of his match fee.Alan Hurst, the match referee, said there was some leeway for players to vent their anger but Edwards had acted inappropriately. “When bowling, and in frustration, Fidel swore loudly enough to be heard by spectators at the ground and television audiences,” Hurst said.”We are not saying that players cannot show frustration or demonstrate passion but Fidel’s means of doing that was totally unacceptable and does not set an appropriate example. The player regrets his actions and I trust this penalty will serve to ensure it does not occur again.”Edwards was reported by the umpires during the fourth Test between England and West Indies. He was found guilty of breaching clause 1.4 of the Code of Conduct, which relates to “using language that is obscene, offensive or insulting”.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has taken over the possession of the Niaz Stadium in Hyderabad (Sind), ending a decade-long struggle for cricket fans, players and organisers.Dr Nasim Ashraf, the board chairman, will arrive to take over the possession of the stadium and finalise the arrangements for upgrading it to international standards for meeting the requirements of the ICC.Ashraf will also sign the Memorandum of Understanding with the District Nazim Hyderabad, Kanwar Naveed Jamil, at the stadium. With the possession of this stadium, a historic cricket centre, it is expected that the board will not neglect Hyderabad in future while allotting Tests or ODI matches. It is the only venue in the country where Pakistan has never lost a Test or one-dayer.The venue last hosted an international match in September 1997, a one-dayer between India and Pakistan.

Scorecard

Chris Gayle kept his cool with an unbeaten 85 as West Indies nearly slipped up in dramatic style against Scotland at Clontarf. Chasing a revised 165, they lost six for 38 in seven overs and entered the final three overs needing 29 to win. But after a succession of team-mates had lost their heads with wild swings, Gayle guided his side away from a huge embarrassment and alongside Darren Sammy the victory came off the penultimate ball.The key blow came in the 28th over when he launched John Blain for a six that relieved the growing pressure. Four leg-byes followed off the next delivery and the requirement closed in on a more comfortable run-a-ball. But Gayle needed a calm head at the other end and Sammy, who showed batting potential during his Test debut at Old Trafford, kept his composure. He was facing when the final over began with nine needed and virtually sealed the result with a spanking drive past cover followed by a neat flick through midwicket.The main reason the match came alive was an outstanding spell from offspinner Majid Haq. Gayle and Devon Smith eased to an opening stand of 95, Gayle repeating the destructive form he showed against Netherlands, and everything appeared under control. However, when Smith top-edged a sweep to slip, Runako Morton struggled to maintain the momentum.Haq removed Morton with a quicker ball and next delivery the game came alive when Lendl Simmons missed his glide to third man and Haq was on a hat-trick. Dwayne Smith responded with typical bravado, launching the hat-trick ball out of the ground, only to miscue a repeat in the next over off Ryan Watson.Scotland now really believed they had a chance and they edged into pole position when Denesh Ramdin became Haq’s third bowled victim and Austin Richards succumbed to the pressure by missing his heave against Watson. It created a great finish to a match that had struggled to come to life with regular, heavy showers fragmenting Scotland’s innings.The first interruption came two overs into the innings and on resumption Daren Powell nipped out both openers. Watson put bat to ball and reached 21 off 20 deliveries before falling to Ravi Rampaul.Navdeep Poonia, who hasn’t been able to find a place in Warwickshire’s first team, guided the total into three figures without further loss, but two quick strikes by the impressive Fidel Edwards put Scotland onto the back foot as rain drove the players off for a second time.With less than five overs of the innings remaining when the weather relented, Neil McCallam boosted the total with a 23-ball 27, clubbing four boundaries, and Blain struck a handsome six off Powell in the final over. Coupled with a boost from the calculations, it nearly proved enough to pull off a major shock and, although West Indies sneaked through in the end, Scotland can be proud of their effort.

Former Bangladesh captains Habibul Bashar and Khaled Mahmud have expressed interest in participating in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) if they are offered contracts approved by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).”I have a contract with the BCB and I want to honour it,” Bashar told the , a Dhaka-based daily. “If the ICL offer does not clash with it, I will definitely play. I think I am fit enough to compete at the highest level and I will play at least three more years.”However, Bashar – who has a contract with the BCB till October – said he had not got any offer to play in the ICL. He was replaced as the Bangladesh captain by Mohammad Ashraful for Bangladesh’s tour of Sri Lanka and has not been picked for the Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa this September.Mahmud, who retired from international cricket in February last year but continues to play in the domestic league, said: “Realistically, I don’t expect any offer from any ICL team. But if there is any and the BCB permits me, yes, I can play.” Mahmud had been manager of the Bangladesh side during the Champions Trophy last year.When Mohammad Rafique, the left-arm spinner, was asked whether there was any possibility of his joining the ICL, he said, “Let them offer me [a contract], then I will think about it.”The ICL is a Twenty20 tournament proposed to be held in India around October. It plans to feature six teams, each including four international players and two Indian stars.

The two-man official team from South Africa visiting Pakistan to assess the level of security ahead of the Test and ODI series next month was promised full and foolproof security for the visiting team.Goolam Raja and Sean Gallaher, the two officials, were at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, on Friday and visited National Stadium in Karachi on Saturday as part of their two-day trip, which was termed routine by both sets of officials. They were briefed by the home secretary of Sind province on the security situation in provincial capital Karachi.”I have no doubts that Pakistan will provide us with the needed security and, God willing, everything will be alright,” Raja said. “It is difficult to say about our final assessments now but we will submit a report to Cricket South Africa and hope everything will be in place for the tour.”Zakir Khan, the Pakistan board’s director of cricket operations, said he was confident that the current situation will not affect the forthcoming tour. “A professional security plan has been put in place for the South Africans and they were briefed. We hope everything will take place accordingly and we hope to have a good cricket series.”The South Africans play a warm-up match in Karachi from September 27 while the first Test starts on October 1 in the same city.

25.5 overs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

If this was a final, as Ricky Ponting wanted his side to view the fifth one-dayer in Vadodara, it was reminiscent of the hopelessly one-sided conclusion to the World Cup in 1999. Mahendra Singh Dhoni let out a big smile at the toss, with the crowd cheering as if the result was a foregone conclusion, but trudged away in the knowledge that his side could no longer win the series. Even drawing level from here will take some getting.The distinctly brick-red surface, one that demanded application, was to leave India’s batsmen ashen faced. A combination of injudicious shot-selection, accurate new-ball bowling, efficient left-arm pace and outstanding wicketkeeping is often a recipe for a lop-sided contest. It resulted in India’s lowest home total against Australia. In fact the game was up much earlier; spectators leaving the ground after 25 overs of the game realised as much.Adam Gilchrist imposed himself on the series with his allround brilliance. He equalled his record for the most dismissals in an ODI, including two sensational one-handed takes, before rattling off a 77-ball 79 as Australia cantered to a nine-wicket win. Chasing 149 was always going to be a doddle, even though India tried their bit by opening the bowling with Harbhajan Singh’s offspin, and Australia faced little trouble in reaching the target just after the halfway mark. Gilchrist’s four towering sixes rubbed salt into India’s wounds and one hopes youngsters watching his brutal assault on Murali Kartik did so with parental supervision.He was invaluable behind the stumps too, making amends for his poor showing in Chandigarh with a wicketkeeping display straight out of the Ian Healy manual. He was alert to an inside edge from Yuvraj Singh, stooping to his right and pouching a single-handed take, before snapping up a leg glance from Dhoni, this time throwing himself headlong to the left and clasping on to a chance. Both instances demanded quicksilver reflexes and his reaction underscored the extent to which Australia raise their game when it really matters.India’s innings resembled an automobile ignition on a wintry morning. On a ground where the average total hovers around 280, it soon emerged that the pitch wasn’t the subcontinental shirtfront that everyone expected. Brett Lee’s first over saw a couple of deliveries that died on the batsmen, short-length deliveries often came with a spongy bounce and it was clear the strip wasn’t conducive for hitting through the line.

Johnson, ending with five wicket for the first time in an international, prospered by keeping things simple and had Gilchrist to thank for four of his dismissals (another arrived through a poor umpiring decision). Unlike in Chandigarh, where he came on first-change, he was asked to share the new ball and thrived in Lee’s company. Johnson didn’t rattle with pace or swing, instead he nagged away outside off and troubled with minimal movement off the pitch. He appeared to have assessed the pitch early, unlike some of India’s batsmen, and deserved his best international figures.India paid for some indiscreet strokeplay after failing to read the surface. Sourav Ganguly’s early run out, when Sachin Tendulkar didn’t respond to a risky single, started the slide and there was hardly any time to recover. Rahul Dravid’s struggles continued with a first-ball duck, rooted to the crease and beaten by a Lee inswinger, while Robin Uthappa, confidently punching during his brief stay, was unlucky to be adjudged leg before to a ball striking him outside off and heading past the off stump.Tendulkar, honoured before the game for reaching 400 ODIs, briefly promised a classic but he didn’t have much of an answer to a ferocious away-cutter from Lee, a candidate for the ball of the series, that breached his defences. Lee produced the killer blow when he returned for his second spell in the 26th over. The good-length ball swung in, gripped the pitch, and moved away just enough to beat Tendulkar and had him edge a simple catch to Gilchrist behind the stumps.The hopeless situation didn’t deter RP Singh and Zaheer Khan. They handled the lack of pace sensibly and their 41-run stand proved that runs could be scored if one waited for the right ball. Eventually it was a case of too little too late; India’s story in the next two games might just follow a similar theme.

Scorecard

Matthew Hayden’s powerful 179 combined with the inability of New South Wales’ all-star attack to finish off the tail left Queensland with a healthy lead of 316 at stumps. In reply to 467 the Blues were 3 for 151 with Simon Katich unbeaten on 70 and Dominic Thornely on 7.Katich’s 103-ball effort gave his side some hope as Mitchell Johnson’s first chance with a red ball in some time – he took 0 for 70 from 15 overs – was costly. Phil Jaques (34) did not convert his start but probably has the Test opening slot sewn up anyway after his main opponent Brad Hodge failed in Melbourne.It was a tough day for Australia’s contracted bowlers; Lee finished with 0 for 113 and Stuart MacGill 3 for 183 from 36 overs as Queensland moved to 467. Ashley Noffke was again useful with 50, while Chris Hartley (34) and Johnson (33) each contributed as the last four partnerships added 146.Michael Clarke’s part-time spin was required to clean up the lower order; he took 3 for 22 while Stuart Clark finished with 3 for 79, including the vital wickets of Hayden and Andrew Symonds, who made 44. Hayden hit two sixes and 20 fours on his way to 179, adding 76 to his overnight score.

ScorecardPart-time left-arm medium-pacer Brendan Nash starred with a four-wicket burst to lead Jamaica to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Guyana in the first semi-final of the KFC Cup in Bridgetown. This was the first competitive day-night match at the Three Ws Oval, and was reduced to 43 overs a side because of a wet outfield.In front of a crowd of around 2000, Guyana chose to bat and were looking good at 67 for 1 before Nash, turning in his second consecutive Man-of-the-Match performance, dismissed three batsmen at the same team score: first, he bowled wicketkeeper Darwin Christian, then trapped Narsingh Deonarine in front and got Assad Fudadin to nick one to Carlton Baugh.With wickets falling around him, Sewnarine Chattergoon held firm with a fighting 66 off 99 balls, but didn’t find enough support: the second-highest scorer was Neil McGarrell with 17. After Guyana slumped again, from 122 from 5 to 134 for 9, a 25-run last-wicket stand took them to 159, still way off a competitive total.The early loss of his captain Chris Gayle in the Jamaican chase didn’t deter Brenton Parchment who scored a brisk 35 before being dismissed lbw by McGarrell. Nash fell soon after, but Shawn Findlay and Danza Hyatt stitched together an 88-run partnership to complete the one-sided win.After the match, Nash played down his performance and praised his team-mates’ bowling. “The scoreboard will show that I had the best figures, but I got a lot of assistance from the guys at the other end,” he said. “We played brilliantly as a team.”Jamaica will face the winner of Friday’s clash between Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, in Sunday’s final.

Paul Collingwood says he has enough on his plate with the one-day captaincy without considering taking over the Test duties for now. His remarks were in response to statements earlier this week by Michael Vaughan, who said he saw Collingwood as his eventual successor as England Test captain.Collingwood was keen to maintain the status quo, playing down media talk of him succeeding Vaughan in the immediate future.”He’s [Vaughan’s] very much the master when it comes to captaincy,” he told ahead of the England team’s departure for Sri Lanka. “I’ve learned a hell of a lot from him over the past few years and will continue to do so.”I look forward to getting back into the ranks and trying to fulfil my role as a batsman and as a fielder, and hopefully bowl a few dibbly-dobblers as well.”Collingwood was also quoted by saying, “I’m sure he’s got his eye on regaining the Ashes and that’s not for a long time, so I’m very happy in the role I’m doing at the moment. I’m enjoying it.I’ve had a four-month period of one-day cricket and the experience of being captain can take its toll mentally.”England play a three-Test series, which will conclude before Christmas, having beaten Sri Lanka soundly in the one-dayers earlier this month.

Group A

After having won the toss and opted to bat, Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) were bowled out for a modest 200 runs at Asghar Ali Shah Stadium. By close, Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) were 63 for 3, after having been reduced to 29 for 3. Sohail Khan was once again the star for SSGC and carried on with his good form in his debut season by taking career-best figures of 7 for 80 to demolish WAPDA. The 23-year-old also became the first bowler this season to pass the 50-wicket mark and now boasts a tally of 56 wickets from nine matches. Nawaz Sardar was WAPDA’s top scorer with 53 off 81 balls as the innings was wrapped up in 61 overs. Sarfraz Ahmed did cause panic among the SSGC batsmen by grabbing three quick wickets, but Ashraf Ali and captain Atiq-uz-Zaman ensured SSGC didn’t squander the advantage.Faced with a must-win situation in order to have a chance of making it to the final, Habib Bank Limited (HBL) did well to restrict National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to 207 for 6 at NBP Sports Complex. After having been put in, NBP were in dire straits at 98 for 5 but wicketkeeper Rashid Riaz (73) shared a 108-run sixth-wicket partnership with Qaiser Abbas (54*) to take his side past 200. Mohammad Aslam picked up 3 for 75 while Humayun Farhat took four catches behind the stumps.Lahore Ravi to skittled Sialkot, national champions in 2005-06 and runners-up last season, for a paltry 88 in their first-innings at Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA) Ground. In reply, Lahore managed to reach 146 for 7 at close despite having lost all those wickets before even reaching Sialkot’s total. Put in to bat, Sialkot were flattened by Junaid Zia (6 for 30) and Waqas Ahmed (4 for 48) as they bowled unchanged for 26 overs. Faisal Khan top scored with a quick 35 while the rest of the batsmen failed to contribute much to the total. For Sialkot, the three Mohammads – Wasim, Imran and Ali – wreaked havoc in the Lahore line-up with frequent breakthroughs. Waqas, however, shone with the bat and smashed an unbeaten 41 to take his team past Sialkot’s total – gaining three points for the first-innings lead in the process – while sharing an unbroken 59-run partnership with Shahbaz Butt.Hyderabad, placed at No. 10 in the group, did well to score 260 for 4 against Multan at Multan Cricket Stadium. Fresh from a maiden hundred in the previous match, Azeem Ghumon, the 16-year-old opener, missed his second by four runs, with his 96 coming off 262 balls with eight fours. Azeem’s second-wicket partnership with Faisal Athar (65) yielded 100 runs after Hyderabad had lost their first wicket with only nine on the board. Ghumon went on to add 103 with Rizwan Ahmed (58) for the third wicket as Multan bowlers were made to suffer after Abdur Rauf elected to field.Pakistan Customs were lifted by an unbroken 121-run fourth-wicket partnership between Asif Iqbal and Zahoor Elahi as they reached 223 for 3 against Karachi Whites at National Stadium. Asim Kamal’s decision to put Customs into bat first seemed to pay off instantly as Karachi picked up the first wicket with only 18 on board. However, a 78-run partnership followed by the unbroken stand took Customs past 200. Iqbal’s 94 came off 206 deliveries while Elahi, a former Pakistan international, took 102 balls for his 74.

Group B

Samiullah Khan sent Lahore Shalimar crashing to 162 all out with a seven-wicket haul at the Gaddafi Stadium. In reply, Sui Northern Gas Pakistan Limited (SNGPL) had reduced the deficit by 78 runs while losing two wickets. Samiullah had Lahore reeling at 71 for 6 before Mohammad Hussain scored a fighting unbeaten 52 off 106 balls to add valuable runs to the total. Khan finished with 7 for 82, providing SNGPL’s batsmen a splendid opportunity to press for a huge first-innings lead.Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) dismissed Karachi Blues for a modest 188 at United Bank Limited Sports Complex and had reached 15 without loss at stumps. Karachi opted to bat but Kashif Daud struck to have them reeling at 95 for 7. Ali Asad’s 65 and useful 30s from the lower-order batsmen ensured a recovery Mansoor Khan (38) and Azam Hussain (39) put on 63 runs for the eighth wicket. For ZTBL, Zohaib Khan bagged four wickets for 58 runs while Daud finished with best figures of 5 for 37.At Diamond Club Ground, bottom-placed Quetta made a useful 243 for 9 by close against Islamabad. Rauf Akbar’s did well to restrict Quetta to 118 for 6 but Faisal Irfan’s 50 and Nazar Hussain’s unbeaten 29 took them past 200. Akbar ended the day with figures of 5 for 65.Peshawar scraped their way to 134 for 6 on a weather-affected day against Rawalpindi at the Arbab Niaz Stadium after opting to bat. Seven of the eight batsmen so far have reached double figures but none went on to make an impact as the top score was 36 in a poor batting performance by the home team.The first day’s play at Abbottabad Cricket Stadium between Abbottabad and Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) was totally washed out due to rain and bad weather.