Ramiz Raja, the Pakistan board’s chief executive, today expressed his disappointment after four New Zealand players and a team official chose not to tour Pakistan for the scheduled five-match one-day international series next week.Craig McMillan, Lou Vincent, Scott Styris and Ian Butler all opted out of the tour after the New Zealand board received a threat regarding their safety.In a statement, Ramiz said that the PCB was "disappointed with this news because it strongly feels that Pakistan is a safe place to play cricket as proven with five Tests and 10 one-day internationals against Bangladesh and South Africa."He added that they had hoped to host a full strength New Zealand side for the series, and stressed that even though they respected the decision, they would make their feelings known to the New Zealand board.

Australia have announced their 13-man squad for the final Test against India at Sydney. As expected, Steve Waugh gets a chance to bid farewell to Test cricket at his home ground. Jason Gillespie returns to the squad, while the 12 who did duty at Melbourne retain their places.Gillespie suffered a groin strain in the course of the second Test at Adelaide and was forced to sit out at Melbourne. His selection to the squad, which would be pruned down to 12 men in the lead up to January 2, is subject to a fitness test. Although rested, Gillespie travelled with the Australian team to Melbourne, and was monitored closely by team medical staff. Erroll Alcott, the Australian team’s physiotherapist, said, “Jason has undertaken a thorough rehabilitation program since suffering the injury in Adelaide and his progress is certainly encouraging. He has bowled off a full run a number of times now, and despite not showing any signs of pain, he will remain under daily review up until the Sydney Test.”Squad 1 Matthew Hayden, 2 Justin Langer, 3 Ricky Ponting, 4 Damien Martyn, 5 Steve Waugh (capt), 6 Simon Katich, 7 Adam Gilchrist (wk), 8 Brett Lee, 9 Brad Williams, 10 Nathan Bracken, 11 Stuart MacGill, 12 Andy Bichel, 13 Jason Gillespie.

After injuries hampered their tour to Australia, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra have announced themselves fully fit, and ready to tour Pakistan, in a report by PTI. Dennis Lillee is currently guiding both fast bowlers at the MRF Pace Foundation.”The advice of Lillee at the nets has made me feel better,” Khan said, “and I am raring to make the trip to Pakistan, if selected.”He has been of great help to our bowling and this was our routine trip to the foundation. I was not feeling fully comfortable last week. For over two years now, I have been taking Lillee’s advice before every tour.”Khan found himself out of the Australian tour after a hamstring injury during the first Test at Brisbane. Nehra, too, was affected by an ankle injury that hindered his bowling in Australia, but was confident about his fitness.”I made a comeback during the tour after being out of action for nearly eight months,” Nehra said. “I am fit now and always make use of Lillee’s visit to fine-tune myself.”Lillee worked with Khan and Nehra’s run-up after noticing the pressure they exerted on their legs.”I have advised Zaheer to take fewer steps in his run-up and avoid jumping too high before releasing the ball,” Lillee said. “Nehra needed some changes. He has been asked to be more side-on to avoid putting the load on his legs.”

Bangladesh’s selectors have included eight of the team currently touring Zimbabwe in a 25-strong Bangladesh A squad for two four-day matches and five one-day games against the Zimbabwe A team, who arrive in Dhaka on March 10 for their nmonth-long tour.Faruque Ahmed, the chairman of selectors, explained that the series of washouts in Zimbabwe had robbed the senior players of precious experience, which is why his panel had added Alok Kapali, Al Shahriar, Hannan Sarker, Manjural Islam Rana, Mohammad Ashraful, Rajin Saleh, Shahriar Hossain and Tareq Aziz Khan to the A-team squad.”The tour of Zimbabwe has been very frustrating so far,” said Faruque. “Only one Test match could be held properly, and the players hardly had any chance to take the field. That’s why we wanted to have them in the A squad.” He added that the team needed to be strong, as Zimbabwe’s A side included seven players with Test experience.Some of the players who helped Bangladesh win the Plate Championship of the recent Under-19 World Cup – they beat Australia in the plate final – were also included: the left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Junior, who was the leading wicket-taker in the U19 World Cup, the fast bowler Shahadat Hossain Rajib, his new-ball partner Nazmul Hossain, wicketkeeper Dhiman Ghosh, and opener Nafis Iqbal. Aftab Ahmed, an attacking batsman, missed out as he is sitting exams, while the fast bowler Talha Jubair and U19 captain Ashiqur Rahman were battling injuries.Faisal Hossain, a left-hander from Chittagong who has been a consistent success in domestic cricket this season, also got the call. He was the highest runscorer in the four-day competition with 730 in 18 innings.Bangladesh A squad for series against Zimbabwe A
Shahriar Hossain, Hannan Sarker, Alok Kapali, Rajin Saleh, Tareq Aziz Khan, Mohammed Ashraful, Manzarul Islam Rana, Enamul Haque Junior, Al Shahriar, Anwar Hossain Munir, Alamgir Kabir, Nafees Iqbal, Nasiruddin Faruque, Dhiman Gosh, Shahadat Hossain, Abdur Razzak, Rashedul Haq, Mazharul Haq, Tushar Imran, Mohammad Selim, Gazi Alamgir, Jamaluddin Babu, Nazmul Hossain, Faisal Hossain, Ehsanul Haque.

Guyana 248 for 7 (Sarwan 121, Chanderpaul 81, Collins 4-72) v Barbados
ScorecardFour wickets in the final hour gave Barbados the edge on the first day of their Carib Beer Series semi-final against Guyana at Bridgetown. Until then it looked as if the defiance of Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul had wiped out the early success Barbados enjoyed.Sarwan and Chanderpaul came together inside the first hour with Guyana on the rack at 29 for 3, and added 203 runs for the fourth wicket in a little under five hours. Sarwan, coming into the match in good touch, hammered 13 fours on his way to 121, driving with ease and confidence. Chanderpaul, more circumspect, was the ideal foil with a determined 81.But when Ian Bradshaw had Chanderpaul caught behind by Courtney Browne (232 for 4) the floodgates opened, Sarwan fell in an identical manner one run later, and then Pedro Collins struck twice in the closing overs as Barbados battled back.Collins was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 72 in 20 overs, while Bradshaw’s accuracy tied the batsmen down. He took 2 for 38 from 30 overs, and at one stage bowled eight consecutive maidens.Barbados opted for an all-pace attack on what was a hard and fast track. “I’m a fast bowlers captain. I like fast bowlers,” Browne, their captain, explained. “If I had to choose, I would always choose four fast bowlers, especially if they are of good quality. We do have four good quality fast bowlers, so for me, that’s what I love.”Guyana’s form this season – they lost all three games on the road and only scraped into the semis thanks to their 100 per cent home record – and the frailty of the batting today – Sarwan and Chanderpaul excepted – means that Barbados are odds-on to reach next month’s final.

Shaun Pollock overtook Allan Donald as South Africa’s leading wicket-taker in Tests on a day when little else went right against New Zealand at Auckland.Pollock’s landmark came when he had the opener Michael Papps caught by Nicky Boje for a duck. It was his 331st wicket, putting him 15th on the alltime list: his next target is Dennis Lillee, with 355.”It [the ball] was coming out sweet from the start,” said Pollock. “I was feeling really relaxed and the conditions suited me, I just knew Papps would be my man. I’m really chuffed about it. When you start your career you concentrate really hard on getting your first wicket. Now I’ve beaten someone like Allan Donald.”In a way, it’s sad to go better than someone’s record like that, but I’m glad I’ve done it and now I’ll concentrate on trying to win the match.”But the early breakthrough was followed by frustration as New Zealand reached 201 for 3 in reply to South Africa’s 296 on the second day of the second Test. Pollock finished the day with 1 for 31.

New Zealanders 128 for 3 (Astle 64*) drew with British Universities at Fenner’s
ScorecardNew Zealand were frustrated by the weather for the third day running, as the opening fixture of their tour of England – against a British Universities XI – was abandoned as a draw.Nevertheless, at least they made it onto the pitch today, and in the 35.1 overs available to them, Nathan Astle scored an unbeaten 64 to confirm that he is well on the way to full match fitness after his lengthy injury lay-off.Scott Styris thumped three fours and a six in a brief cameo before the rains arrived, after Mark Richardson had located the middle of his bat in compiling a solid 39. But for Michael Papps the day was less of a success. He was trapped lbw by David Wigley for a first-ball duck.Assuming the weather clears, New Zealand will have another chance to get their tour off the ground when they take on Worcestershire in a four-day match at New Road on Friday. The first Test begins at Lord’s in little more than a fortnight – on May 20.

Worcestershire 204 (Smith 54) beat Essex 183 (Flower 58) by 21 runs
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Worcestershire snuck through to the semi-finals of the C&G Trophy with a thrilling 21-run win over Essex at New Road. In a low-scoring match, Worcestershire batted first and made 204 – a total that owed everything to a level-headed 76-run stand for the sixth wicket between Ben Smith and David Leatherdale. Despite a similarly ropey start, Essex were on course for victory, but were undone by a pair of calamitous run-outs.Worcestershire won the toss and chose to bat first, but were soon given reason to regret that decision, when Stephen Peters wafted Scott Brant through to the keeper, and Andy Bichel was bowled by Darren Gough for a third-ball duck (14 for 2). That situation got even worse when Ravinder Bopara popped up with the big wicket of Graeme Hick in his first over.Vikram Solanki and Andrew Hall gave their wickets away to poor strokes, but Smith and Leatherdale steadied the innings with a cool partnership. Apart from one wayward over from Graham Napier, which went for three leg-side fours, they were content to rotate the strike, until Bopara returned to the attack and Smith steered him to midwicket (151 for 6). Bopara then clung onto a good catch at backward-point to send Leatherdale on his way for 42, and the innings subsided.Essex’s reply was inauspicious. They lost Will Jefferson, Alastair Cook and the captain Ronnie Irani inside the opening 15 overs (36 for 3), and at 75 for 5, everything was resting on Andy Flower. But when he was run out for an excellent 58 from 98 balls (116 for 6), Worcestershire had taken control of the match.Nobody told James Middlebrook, however, and with Darren Gough providing solid support, he set about hunting down the total. The match was tilting back into the balance, however, when Middlebrook was superbly run out by Kabir Ali at backward square-leg, who fielded and threw in a flash. There was a long delay as the third umpire decided whether Steve Rhodes had broken the wicket too soon, but once he was sent on his way, the game was up for Essex.

Imran Khan’s high-profile marriage to Jemima Goldsmith, the daughter of the late British billionaire Sir James Goldsmith, has ended in divorce after nine years.The couple’s marriage in 1995 caught the world’s imagination, although the differences that were evident then – she was 21 and Jewish, he was 42 and a Muslim – have become more apparent in recent years, especially now that Imran has stepped up his political ambitions.”I sadly announce that Jemima and I are divorced,” said Imran today in a statement released by his Justice Movement party. “While Jemima tried her best to settle here, my political life made it difficult for her to adapt to life in Pakistan. This was a mutual decision and is clearly very sad for both of us. My home and my future is in Pakistan.”Jemima, an ambassador for the United Nations children’s fund UNICEF, recently moved back to London, in order that their two sons – Suleiman and Kasim – could be educated in Britain. Imran became a Pakistani MP in 2002, although as yet his party has had little support.

Derbyshire had little difficulty in forcing a draw against Yorkshire in their Second Division clash at Headingley. Derbyshire followed on this morning 202 behind, but batted calmly through 92 overs to finish with 245 for 5. Jon Moss, their Australian import, top-scored with 87. Play finally got under way after two washed-out days at the Riverside: Durham were shot out for 231, with Gavin Hamilton top-scoring with 41. Simon Francis took five wickets for Somerset – and Rob Turner caught five behind the stumps – but it’s hard to see how a draw can be avoided. Somerset had reduced the deficit to 104 by the close. It was a torrid start for Shaun Tait, Durham’s new signing from South Australia: touted as the next Brett Lee, he sent down 14 no-balls in four overs that cost 43 runs.In the First Division of the Totesport League Warwickshire wrapped up a quick victory over Kent, bowling them out for 135 – Heath Streak took 3 for 7 in six overs – and then knocking off the runs in just 24.1 overs. Centuries from Mark Chilton and Iain Sutcliffe set Lancashire up for a victory at Whitgift School to make amends for their three-day Championship defeat there. Chilton spanked 19 fours and Sutcliffe 17, and they shared an opening stand of 223, only a dozen short of Surrey’s total. Surrey had been in disarray at 72 for 6 before Alex Tudor joined Adam Hollioake and they put on 128. At the Rose Bowl Matthew Elliott inched Glamorgan to a narrow three-wicket victory over Hampshire, for whom Shane Warne went wicketless for once.Down in Division Two Scotland fell to their 11th defeat out of 12 completed matches (they’ve also had two no-results), going down by 114 runs to Sussex at the Grange in Edinburgh. Michael Yardy made 83 of Sussex’s 263 for 6, then Mushtaq Ahmed, with 4 for 46, made sure there was no upset. Graeme Hick’s 120 set up an 83-run win for Worcestershire at Lord’s, despite Simon Cook’s 5 for 34 for Middlesex. And Nottinghamshire’s 249 proved too much for Leicestershire at Trent Bridge, where Stuart MacGill’s three wickets all came courtesy of stumpings by Chris Read.

County Championship Division Two

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Day 1 report: Flying start by Wood – The Telegraph
Day 2 report: McGrath continues fine form – The Times
Day 3 report: Draw looming at Headingley – The Sunday Telegraph
Day 4 report: Yorkshire lack cutting edge – The Daily Telegraph

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Day 1: no play due to rain
Day 2: no play due to rain
Day 3 report: Francis duo impress on familiar turf – The Daily Telegraph

National League Division One

Glamorgan 209 for 7 (Croft 52, Elliott 79*) beat Hampshire 208 (Adams 40, Crawley 56, Hemp 3-11) by 3 wickets at the Rose Bowl
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Match report: Croft’s payback robs Hampshire – The Times
Lancashire 238 for 2 (Chilton 115, Sutcliffe 102*) beat Surrey 235 for 8 (Hollioake 66, Tudor 56, Cork 3-35) by 8 wickets at Whitgift School
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Match report: Sutcliffe and Chilton hit Surrey with killer blow – The Times
Warwickshire 139 for 4 (Bell 51) beat Kent 135 (Streak 3-7) by 6 wickets at Edgbaston
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Match report: Streak burst takes pressure off batsmen – The Times

National League Division Two

Worcestershire 261 for 7 (Hick 120, Leatherdale 63, Cook 5-34) beat Middlesex 178 (Scott 42, Shah 55, Batty 3-41) by 83 runs at Lord’s
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Match report: Hick gives his Sunday best to close gap – The Guardian
Nottinghamshire 249 for 6 (Gallian 75, Singh 45, Pietersen 51) beat Leicestershire 229 (Maddy 75, MacGill 3-50) by 20 runs at Trent Bridge
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Match report: Maddy battles in vain – The Times
Sussex 263 for 6 (Yardy 83, Prior 44, Yasir Arafat 3-49) beat Scotland 149 (Mushtaq Ahmed 4-46) by 114 runs at Edinburgh
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Match report: Saltires cut down to size – The Scotsman