Nothing is straightforward where Zimbabwean cricket is concerned these days. Less than 24 hours after three of the current new-look Zimbabwe side issued a public denial of weekend reports that they were planning on joining the banned rebels, a local journalist has claimed that the three only did so under duress.On Sunday, several media outlets carried articles suggesting that Dion Ebrahim, Douglas Hondo and Mluleki Nkala were all on the verge of withdrawing from the Zimbabwe squad.On Monday, the Zimbabwe Cricket Union issued a statement on behalf of the three, which concluded: “We the undersigned have no intention of boycotting or pulling out of the squad. We are proud to be selected and will fulfil our commitment to Zimbabwe cricket.”But the local pressman, who does not wish to be named, overheard a heated exchange in the team’s hotel on Monday which left him “convinced that [the players] were forced to make the statement”.He apparently witnessed Stephen Mangongo, Zimbabwe’s new convenor of selectors, shouting at Hondo. “You are being stupid,” he yelled. “How can you side with those white racists?”Mangongo, a known pro-Mugabe hardliner, is a key official at Takashinga, a club closely linked with the drive for more black players in the Zimbabwe game. An administrator of Asian descent met him last week, and the conversation is quoted in today’s Guardian. “When this whole Streak issue came up, Stephen looked at me and demanded, ‘Are you with the whites or the blacks? You guys must decide’.”There is also confusion surrounding the relationship between Dion and Maqsood Ebrahim. The ZCU statement claimed it was “untrue and false” that the two were related. But that doesn’t tally with what Dion Ebrahim has said in the past. “I once spoke to Dion Ebrahim and he told me that he is related to Maqsood Ebrahim,” said a local source. “He said Maqsood is his uncle, and now I am shocked that he is denying it.”The demoralising effect events are having on Zimbabwe’s cricketers was highlighted by comments from one of their up-and-coming players (who again, for obvious reasons, didn’t want to be named).”It’s so sad it has come to this,” he said. “I remember when I was 12 or 13, watching a Test match from the nets at the Harare Sports Club and looking at the players on the field, wishing … hoping that one day I would have the honour of playing for my country and wearing the prized baggy green. My Test cap sits at home now: whether I will have the pleasure of donning it once again is uncertain.”Why can’t I just play cricket and fulfil a lifelong dream of one day walking off the field for the last time while the sun goes down at the Sports Club, take my cap off and leave because it’s my time … Sit in the changing-room and say farewell to all my friends who too have fought for the honour to wear and fight under the baggy green. What a nightmare this is for all of us.”
England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Tim Lamb has admitted that Nasser Hussain’s decision to resign as captain of the England one-day team was far from unexpected.Hussain had criticised the game’s authorities during the World Cup campaign over the way the Zimbabwe issue was handled, but Lamb has said that he has a clear conscience on that and, in any case, there had been forecasts of Hussain’s resignation at the end of the tournament."I wasn’t entirely surprised because he had been giving speculation he might resign the one-day captaincy," Lamb said. "He did make it clear a couple of weeks ago he was considering his position."Of course the ECB takes responsibility for not going to Harare. It was our decision because we didn’t get the necessary assurances over safety and security. Nasser knows that."It was a stressful time for everyone. Nasser did feel under pressure. It was also a difficult time for a lot of other people. I can assure you he had the full support of the ECB."Hussain’s father, Joe, pointed to off-field pressures as the reason for his son’s resignation. He said: "You can take only so much and he has taken a lot this winter aside from being hammered by Australia, who are the best side in the world."There are other things outside of cricket which he has had to handle. Captaining the side on the field is one thing but captaining off it is another. You can’t be a politician and a cricketer."Among numerous tributes that have been paid since Hussain announced his retirement, perhaps one that will mean as much as any came from his opposing captain in his last one-day international, Ricky Ponting.Sunday’s defeat was the 14th in succession inflicted by Australia over England, but Ponting was fulsome in his praise of Hussain.”I think he has done a good job for England as captain in both forms of the game during a difficult period,” he said. “He has been under a lot of pressure but he has been a good leader and a tough player.”The past 12 months have been pretty difficult for him and lately he has had an Ashes loss, the tri-series loss and now the World Cup exit. I suppose England now has to look ahead and more towards making things good for the future.”
The difference the absence of just one player can make! If at all anyproof was required that the Indian team would greatly miss SachinTendulkar’s omnipotent presence, the first two matches in the Coca-Cola Cup in Colombo have proved it. The team just does not have thenecessary qualities needed to offset the advantage that Tendulkar’spresence gives it.Yes, one understands it is not easy for any team to recover from theabsence of a leading player, particularly one of Tendulkar’s sublimecapabilities. If anything is evident, it’s not just the batting buteven the bowling that has been weakened. But more than the batting,bowling or fielding, what has really hit the Indian team is the simplefact that Tendulkar is not around. His mere presence is enough to liftthe team’s morale.Mentally, the team has been hit and perhaps this has turned out to bethe most important factor. But it is true that Tendulkar’s absence hasalso led to a number of changes which may not augur well for the team.For starters, it was taken for granted that there had to be a newopening partner for Sourav Ganguly. But in the first two matchesitself, there have been two separate combinations tried out. AmayKhurasiya was chosen specifically as a replacement for Tendulkar,going by the statements made by the selection committee chairmanChandu Borde. But obviously the team management can’t seem to decideon the opening combination. Why has Yuvraj been pushed to open thebatting when his place is obviously in the middle order? And in theabsence of Tendulkar, should it not be imperative for Ganguly to openthe innings? And yet against Sri Lanka, Ganguly inexplicably droppedhimself down the order. Somehow Tendulkar’s absence has weakened notonly the top order but also the entire batting line-up. It has alsoled to a change in plans but the team is yet to hit upon a winningstrategy. They seemed to be going in for unnecessary desperatemeasures. Witness the needless tactic of sending Harbhajan Singh at No4 against Sri Lanka. It’s a confused team management out there inColombo.The bowling too looks thin in the absence of Tendulkar. His ODI careerfigures of 101 wickets at a strike rate of 56.4 with a best of fivefor 32 clearly illustrate Tendulkar’s value to the side both as onewho can curb the scoring as also his ability as a change bowler usedto break partnerships. And in the event of a leading bowler notplaying – like Ashish Nehra missing out the game against Sri Lanka -the Indian bowling really looked fragile. Against both New Zealand andSri Lanka, they let the opponents off the hook and on pitches thatwere helpful to bowlers. The batting, with the uncertainty at the topand the inexperience in the middle, really cries out for Tendulkar, asthe collapse in both the games clearly illustrates.The value of the bench strength in any side is vital if it is toovercome the sudden withdrawal of a prima donna. The Indian team justdoes not have the resources required to make good the absence of agiant like Tendulkar. That is the most obvious lesson driven home byevents in the first two matches in the Colombo competition.
Skipper Hrishekesh Kanitkar’s fine batting display placed Maharashtrain a commanding position on the first day of the West Zone Ranji Matchagainst Gujarat at the Shivaji Stadium, Karad.Gujarat won the toss and invited Maharashtra to bat. The Maharashtrabatsmen made merry of the conditions with big partnerships in the daypiling a healthy 318 for five in 90 overs. Opener Bhave (71) andKanitkar (94) shared a 121 run partnership for the second wicket.Kanitkar and Abhijit Kale (35) added 82 for the third and the fourthwicket saw Kale and K Aphale (53 not out) add 60 in their turn at thewicket. Kanitkar caressed the ball to the fence on 14 occasions of 170deliveries and Bhave smashed the ball 13 times in his 131 ballinnings. Hitesh Majumdar bagged three of the five wickets to fall onthe first day.At the end of play K Aphale and Mandar Sane (5) were at the wicket.
Dale Steyn will lead South Africa’s World T20 attack, subject to his regaining full fitness. Steyn sat out six of South Africa’s eight Tests this summer and broke down in the two that he played, first with a groin injury and then a shoulder niggle from which he is still recovering. He has not played any part in the ongoing ODI series against England and will not play the T20 series either, but should return for the T20 series against Australia in the build-up to the tournament.The rest of the pace pack has a fresh look about it with Kagiso Rabada and Kyle Abbott the frontline quicks and Morne Morkel, who has not been part of the T20 set-up since the series against New Zealand last August, missing out. Chris Morris and David Wiese provide the two seam-bowling all-round options. Albie Morkel, who was part of South Africa’s last T20 squad in India, was also left out.Albie Morkel was being primed for the allrounder’s role and took 3 for 12 on international return in Cuttack last October. He was due to play in South Africa’s ongoing ODI series against England but was ruled out before he could be included in the squad with a back problem. At the time there was some suggestion he would recover in time to play some part in the series, although it was never clarified. Morkel has since stated that he is “certainly not injured, not picked. that’s all.”There are two specialist spinners in Imran Tahir and Aaron Phangiso, who was preferred over Eddie Leie, and eight batsmen including two wicket-keeping options in AB de Villiers and Quinton de Kock. De Villiers was tasked with opening the batting and keeping in South Africa’s most recent T20 matches against India even though de Kock was also in the squad. De Kock sat out those matches but, having regained form in recent weeks, is certain to be included in starting XIs at the World T20.That may mean South Africa’s plan of using de Villiers in the top two and behind the stumps is scuppered and de Kock will assume that role with de Villiers moving down the order. An experienced middle-order made up of captain Faf du Plessis, de Villiers and JP Duminy will likely leave room for only one of Farhaan Behardien or Rilee Rossouw, with an allrounder to follow.Albie Morkel was being primed for that role and took 3 for 12 on international return in Cuttack last October but has since suffered a back injury that has kept him out of the England ODIs. Morris, the IPL’s newest dollar millionaire, and Wiese will compete for a spot with Rabada, Steyn and Abbott forming the core of the attack. There may only be space for two of them at a time if South Africa play both Tahir and Phangiso, although they may also call on Duminy’s offspin as an additional slower bowling option.Phangiso was not part of the squad that played T20s in India but he did play in the ODI series there, which South Africa won 3-2. He made headlines for his behaviour on the way home when he was prevented from boarding a flight from Dubai to Johannesburg because he had insulted airline personnel after overindulging in alcohol. News of Phangiso’s indiscretions only broke mid-January in the Afrikaans newspaper . CSA confirmed they had sanctioned Phangiso, although they did not make public what his punishment was, but said it did not involve leaving him out of national squads.Russell Domingo, South Africa’s head coach, hoped South Africa could build some momentum ahead of the World T20 with their performances against England and Australia.”We take some confidence from our T20 series wins against Bangladesh and India and kept relatively the same players who have had success on the sub-continent,” Domingo said. “We have been playing good T20 cricket of late and this is our opportunity to showcase our skills at a World event. The upcoming T20 series’ against England and Australia will be the ideal platform for us to fine-tune some combinations and to hopefully gain some winning confidence ahead of the tournament next month.”We are in a tough group in the tournament with England, West Indies, Sri Lanka and a qualifier. All of the top six teams on the world rankings have the skill and ability to lift the trophy so it’s a completely open competition with high stakes.”Du Plessis reflected on South Africa’s past heartbreaks at ICC events, and said the team was hungry to “lift that elusive ICC trophy”.”The ICC World T20 is the competition that we have been working towards over the last 18 months,” he said. “We have had disappointments in the past and this year is another great opportunity for us to lift that elusive ICC trophy. We have been playing together as a squad for some time now and are really hungry and motivated to put in the performances to bring us success. I’m really excited about the group of players who will be representing the country and hope we can make everyone proud.”South Africa squad: Faf du Plessis (capt), Kyle Abbott, Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Chris Morris, Aaron Phangiso, Kagiso Rabada, Rilee Rossouw, Dale Steyn, David Wiese.
Indian board president Sharad Pawar has said that plans for an international Twenty20 tournament would be unveiled within the next “10 to 15 days” as the BCCI stepped up its response to the Indian Cricket League (ICL).”We don’t see any threat from the ICL,” Pawar told AFP. “The BCCI has been working for the past two years [on a tournament] that will involve current players, newcomers, retired players and foreign players. We will be announcing our plans in the next 10-15 days.”It had been reported that the BCCI was on the verge of forming a two-tier cricket league – the Professional Cricket Leagues – that would involve domestic leagues in four countries and an international league. It was believed to be along the lines of professional football, with clubs being able to hire players from wherever they like to play in a Twenty20 format. Cricket Australia (CA) was believed to be involved in the process and the International Management Group (IMG), the event manager, was putting it all together.Echoing warnings from other administrators, Pawar said Indian players who joined the ICL risked being excluded from official cricket. “The ICL is a purely commercial proposition. It doesn’t do what the BCCI does for cricket at all levels in India. The players associated with the BCCI have to choose in which direction they want to go.”The ICL, bankrolled by Subhash Chandra, who owns Indian media company Zee Telefilms, planned to hold Twenty20 tournaments between six teams for the next three years. ICL officials said they had signed up several international stars and 44 Indian first-class cricketers, adding that more top players from around the world were expected to join.Former Test captains Brian Lara and Inzamam-ul Haq lead the ICL roster that also included Pakistan players Mohammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq and Imran Farhat, and South Africans Lance Klusener and Nicky Boje. South African allrounder Andrew Hall and former Australian batsman Damien Martyn have also been linked to the ICL.
Cricket Australia has cancelled 1300 Ashes tickets after an investigation into internet auction sales.James Sutherland, the CA chief executive, told reporters in Melbourne that people risked being turned away from match venues if they turned up with tickets bought off the web. “Where people purchase tickets from a scalper at a premium, they’re in breach of the terms and conditions,” he said. “We will, where appropriate, cancel those tickets.”Sutherland also took a swipe at online auction company eBay. “I’m disappointed. We had a number of discussions before tickets went on sale with eBay, unfortunately they have come to nothing. The position that we’ve taken all along with them is that they shouldn’t be assisting people to sell tickets in breach of our terms and conditions. What we’re trying to do is protect the Australian public here.”But an eBay spokesman told The Age that CA was also to blame. “Cricket Australia dumped hundreds of thousands of tickets in one day using computer and telephone systems that couldn’t keep up with demand,” he said, adding that eBay had requested details of the cancelled tickets so it could offer any affected customers compensation. He pointed out that CA had not done this.Sutherland went on to say that more tickets would in all likelihood be cancelled as the series neared. “We’ve still got an investigation agency out there that’s doing various checks and I would imagine that over the next few months that there will be more that are uncovered.”Demand for tickets has been unprecedented and the board was slammed for the way it handled sales on the first day they went on general release.The tickets were only made available to Australian residents but thousands of English supporters used contacts in Australia to bypass the system.
Chelsea ran out worthy 2-1 winners in the FA Cup final in this afternoon’s Wembley showpiece.
Records galore were broken at Wembley as Didier Drogba became the first player to score in four separate FA Cup finals, as the Ivorian inspired Chelsea to their 4th FA Cup win in six years. The 2-1 victory also saw Ashley Cole pick up a record seven winners medals, while John Terry is the first captain to lift the trophy four times.
The FA Cup win was no more than Chelsea deserved who dominated for the first hour and appeared to be in cruise control, until Andy Carroll came off the bench for Liverpool. The Reds £35m striker came on in Dalglish’s last throw of the dice and his towering presence unsettled the Chelsea backline throughout the last third of the game and not only did he score to put the Merseyside club back in the game, but had a goal controversially chalked off that would have put Liverpool all-square in the final.
Although replays proved inconclusive at the time, Petr Cech is convinced that it didn’t cross the line:
“I don’t think it was over the line. If the ball was behind the line I couldn’t have put it out,
“I’m sure it was not behind. I haven’t seen it but I’m persuaded it wasn’t in and I knew it from the first moment.” BBC
Chelsea managed to weather Liverpool’s late storm and the FA Cup win has once again added to the clamour for Roberto Di Matteo to be installed as permanent manager at Stamford Bridge. John Terry has lauded the contribution of the Italian during his time at the helm and the confidence he has instilled back into the players:
“At times people have slated us as being too old, past it or not together as a squad, but as a team we come together and unite when our backs are against the wall.
“We’ve done that superbly in the last 16 or 17 games under the manager. We’ve done Robbie the world of good with this win, and it can do him no harm [in his efforts to secure the position on a permanent basis]. We’ve still got a massive trophy, the Champions League, to come and that’s been the target for the owner [Roman Abramovich] from day dot. That’s the priority now.”
Roberto Di Matteo was delighted with the victory, but insisted that former manager AVB had played his part in this season’s cup success:
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“AVB should get some credit for this victory as well because he started our run in the FA Cup, but I’m very happy for the players. We’ve had a difficult season and a lot of criticism, but the players responded today to all the adversity we’ve faced this season.
“I don’t think many people have the opportunity I’ve had. I’m fortunate enough to have been able to play for this club and win the trophy, and now I’ve been able to lead the team out today and win the trophy as a coach. It is special. It doesn’t happen too often. But the players did really, really well today. I’m very happy with them.”
Uruguay won their first Copa America crown since 1995 on Sunday after a comprehensive 3-0 win over Paraguay in Buenos Aires.Uruguay, the 2010 World Cup semi-finalists, hit Gerardo Martino’s Paraguay with two goals in the first half at the Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti, courtesy of strikers Luis Suarez and Diego Forlan.
Atletico Madrid man Forlan completed his brace moments before the final whistle as Uruguay sealed a record 15th success in the South American continental competition.
Oscar Tabarez’s side made their intentions known right from the start, as Suarez went close with a shot from inside the six-yard box.
Controversy ensued moments later when Diego Lugano powered a header from inside the penalty area and Nestor Ortigoza appeared to stop the ball with his hand, drawing strong penalty appeals from Uruguay.
They were denied a certain spot kick by referee Salvio Spinola Fagundes Filho, but in the 11th minute, Uruguay had their opener.
Liverpool’s Suarez made his way down the right flank and unleashed a stinging shot, which deflected off Dario Veron and over the line.
Uruguay had a chance to make it 2-0 near the half-hour mark when Suarez released Forlan with an excellent through-ball, only to be denied by Justo Villar.
Minutes before half-time Uruguay did double their lead.
Egidio Arevalo stole the ball in midfield, and found an unmarked Forlan, who made no mistake this time as he powered a scintillating finish in the right corner of the net.
It could have been 3-0 in the 55th minute, when Suarez threaded a pass for Forlan near the penalty spot, but Veron made a vital interception and deflected the ball out of danger.
Paraguay enjoyed their best chance shortly before the hour mark, when Nelson Valdez powered a shot against the bar from outside the box.
The Hercules forward had another opportunity moments later when Cristian Riveros found him with a good ball from the right wing, but the Valdez failed to convert from close range.
Uruguay kept pushing for a third, with substitute Edison Cavani forcing a spectacular save from Villar with 11 remaining.
It was left for Forlan to put the finishing touches on a deserved victory, completing his brace with a cool finish in injury time, following a pass from Suarez.
Assistant boss Eddie Newton could not believe how poor West Brom were in Wednesday's Carling Cup quarter-final defeat to Championship strugglers Ipswich Town.
After beating Everton 4-1 at the weekend, the Baggies were on a high, but contrived to lose to Roy Keane's side, with Grant Leadbitter's 69th-minute penalty proving decisive.
After the loss, Newton said:"We've been changing the side since the start of the competition. We show faith in our players and they've been doing well. So, I have no regrets on the changes.
"But it was a poor performance. Individually and collectively we were poor from the start to the end. We didn't turn up and didn't show enough desire.
"Therefore, we paid a big price, except for James Hurst, who was a debutant and was fantastic. I was really pleased with him, especially in a side that didn't perform very well.
"There were too many poor performances though. We can't carry that amount of poor performances. It happens and you want it to happen as few times as possible in a season.
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