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Old Trafford bound: Andrew Flintoff is heading back to Lancashire, but just as a batsman © Getty Images

Andrew Flintoff has been released to play for Lancashire in Sunday’s Friends Provident match against Yorkshire at Old Trafford. He was ruled out of the first Test against West Indies with a recurrence of his ankle problem and will only line-up as a batsman.Flintoff felt pain after bowling nine overs against Hampshire last week and England left it until the first morning of the Test to rule him out. There is a fear that given the concentrated nature of the series – four Tests in four weeks – that he could miss all the matches.However, Peter Moores wouldn’t have released him if there were major concerns over his long-term fitness and the match will show whether Flintoff can handle a match in the field and his role as a batsman. His condition will be reassessed before the second Test at Headingley, which starts on May 25.Given the form of England’s top order it is unlikely Flintoff will force himself into the England side while he is unable to bowl. During his last comeback from injury, in the Champions Trophy, he played as a specialist batsman for the first two matches and has performed the role in other one-day internationals but never in Tests.

Sialkot – winners of the 2005-06 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy © Getty Images

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has asked its Indian counterparts to postpone the first match of the annual clash between India’s Ranji Trophy champions and the winners of the Quaid-e-Azam (QA) Trophy till September.The inaugural tie of this series was to be played between Uttar Pradesh and Sialkot for the Mohammad Nissar Cup from May 4 to 8 in Dharamshala but Shaharyar Khan, the PCB Chairman, wrote to the Indians asking for a postponement.Shaharyar requested the Indians on the grounds that players from Sialkot would be busy with Eurasia Cup being played in Abu Dhabi and league cricket in England and it would be better of if the match is held in September. The Indian board, naturally, had no objections to this request and have changed the schedule of the inaugural clash of the national champions.However, the change has come as good news for even the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) who would’ve even been forced to field a second-strength side. “Our players have already left for England, “Rajeev Shukla, General Secretary of UPCA said. And some would’ve been resting before the West Indies tour, so it is better that we’ve the match at the start of the next season.”The Indian Board will now decide on a date and venue at the next working committee.”Earlier we had scheduled the match at Dharamshala since the heat in May would’ve been unbearable. But now we’ll have to choose some other place,” added a BCCI official. The annual match between the two domestic champions was agreed upon after the PCB put forward this proposal to Sharad Pawar regime after they took charge last year.

Countdown to victory© Getty Images

To all intents and purposes, the first Test ended at 12.55 this afternoon, as Harbhajan Singh holed out to Glenn McGrath on the fine-leg boundary, cueing an spasm of celebration from the Australian fielders. But symbolically at least, the curtain of this match was lowered moments before tea yesterday, when Shane Warne rolled into bowl and pinned VVS Laxman lbw with a perfect first-ball flipper.At that moment, a Bangalore crowd that had been waiting in vain for a Kolkata-esque miracle was forced to wake up and smell the cordite. And more pertinently, so too were the stadium authorities. As the teams trooped off for tea, the rowdy eastern section of the ground was enveloped in a cascading mesh of nylon nets, which stretched from the roof of the stands to the top of the security fencing. First and foremost, they were to prevent any irate fans lobbing brickbats onto the field, but the symbolism was potent.Unsurprisingly, the curtains were still drawn as the fifth morning dawned. More astonishing, however, was that there should still be any crowd still lurking behind them. But Indians are a resilient bunch – more resilient, perhaps, than the impression sometimes given by their batsmen. And so, with a Sunday morning to kill, and with the homeboy, Rahul Dravid, still in situ, there was sufficient reason for despair to be put on the backburner.The Chinnaswammy Stadium is nothing if not varied. It takes at least a fortnight to get to grips with the pavilion, press and hospitality part of the ground – a rabbit warren of interconnecting floors, passages and random pot-plants, where one wrong turn through a partially-bolted door can land you up in the middle of the players’ lounge, or at the top of an interminable flight of dusty outside stairs. The cheap seats, on the other hand, offer no such fripperies. A thin, single-file gateway leads to a large (and largely unused) courtyard, and then, after a couple of quick steps down a tunnel, you emerge onto a vast concrete terrace.If the stadium authorities were expecting trouble, then it was surely not from this section of the ground. Perched beneath the netting were rows upon rows of orderly, unassuming cricket fans, almost all of whom were sporting freebie cardboard sun-visors that made them look as menacing as a colony of toucans. A chap selling sachets of filter water (no bottles allowed in here) wandered up and down the stands, while towards the top of the terrace, a squad of beige-suited police officers sat dozily in the shade, twiddling their lathis and playing with their mobile phones.”We are well-behaved!” insisted Sanjeev, a Bangalore computer technician (what else?), who pointed out that, apart from anything else, they didn’t have anything to fling at the players: “not even chairs!” He had been to watch all five days, but had still not given up the ghost – not even when, just as we were speaking, Michael Kasprowicz struck to remove Dravid for 60.A disgruntled groan muttered its way along the terrace, but with India’s new darling, Irfan Pathan, spanking all before him, there was still plenty for the stands to celebrate, as a hundred cardboard cut-outs of Sachin and Sourav danced a merry jig with every boundary. There was even cause for an impromptu Mexican Wave, as a hawk (or was it a kite, a falcon, an eagle or even a vulture – where’s Simon Barnes when you need him?) swooped along the netting for a fly-past.That was as close as any of the spectators were coming to giving the Australians the bird. On the field, however, it was a very different story, with Warne in particular coming in for some fearful tap. Some keen-eyed observers (though maybe not the hawks) had noticed that, when Warne took the field this morning, he was wearing some rather snazzy new red-toed bowling boots – surely not an endorsement waiting to happen for the soon-to-be world-record holder?If that was the case, then Pathan and Harbhajan soon made him pay for his hubris, belting him out of the attack at close to four runs an over. Harbhajan, in particular, enjoyed the onslaught immensely, and could be seen tapping his bat in congratulation, after bringing up Warne’s century with a massive biff over midwicket.Of course, the resistance could never last, although try telling that to the fans. They continued to believe, even as the No. 11, Zaheer Khan, was flinching McGrath to the fine-leg boundary. And belief is half the battle won. There was enough bottle in the Indian performance today to suggest this series is not over yet.Andrew Miller is assistant editor of Wisden Cricinfo.

North Zone 279 (Dharmani 73, Powar 4-62) and 17 for 1 lead West Zone 172 (Mane 54, Mongia 3-13) by 124 runs
Scorecard
North Zone gained the advantage against West Zone at Dharmasala, and gave themselves a great chance of qualifying for the final at Mohali. After managing to post 279, thanks to a valuable contribution from Sarandeep Singh (42 off 38), the North bowlers did their bit.West were bowled out for a paltry 172, and barring Vinayak Mane, who made a patient 54, none of the others passed 25. Amit Bhandari, the medium-pacer, had a good day with the ball with 3 for 50, while Dinesh Mongia, with his left-arm spin, ended with fine figures of 3 for 13. The North batsmen had to negotiate nine overs before stumps and Aakash Chopra fell early for just 2 as he was bowled by Munaf Patel. However North lead by 124 and held all the aces at the end of the second day.

FULL NAME: Eddo Andre Brandes
BORN: 5 March 1963, Port Shepstone (Natal)
MAJOR TEAMS: Zimbabwe (since 1985), Mashonaland Country Districts(1994/95-1995/96), Mashonaland (1996/97-2000/01).
KNOWN AS: Eddo Brandes. Nickname: `Chicken George’
BATTING STYLE: Right Hand Bat
BOWLING STYLE: Right Arm Fast Medium
OCCUPATION: Chicken farmer
FIRST-CLASS DEBUT: Zimbabweans v Minor Counties, at Cleethorpes, 1985
TEST DEBUT: Inaugural Test v India, at Harare Sports Club, 1992/93
ODI DEBUT: 10 October 1987, v India, Hyderabad (World Cup)
BIOGRAPHY (updated January 2003)Eddo Brandes is probably the world’s most famous chicken farmer. He was the spearhead of Zimbabwe’s bowling attack for over ten years, and was just at his peak when Zimbabwe gained Test status in 1992.A few months earlier he had played the major role in an unexpected victory by Zimbabwe over England in the World Cup of 1991/92, breaking the back of the England innings with four cheap wickets. He received far more prominence, though, against England in 1996/97, the highlight of his career at the age of 33, when he appeared to be fitter and bowling perhaps better than ever before. Despite the presence of several promising young pace bowlers, Eddo was determined to continue to play a leading part in the Zimbabwean team, and his skill and experience kept him in the selectors’ minds right up to the 1999/2000 season, when he was unexpectedly recalled for what was probably his final Test match.Eddo was born in Port Shepstone, on the southern coast of Natal, but shortly afterwards his father, a farmer, moved to Rhodesia, as it then was, to work on a sugar estate near Triangle in the Lowveld. Although his father was not an active cricketer, he did shoot for the country. Eddo attended Murray McDougall Primary School at Triangle and played cricket there; he was inspired to take more interest in the game by the visits of national cricketer Brian Davison to coach while he was in Standard 3 (Grade 5). He both batted and bowled and, although in adult cricket his bowling has taken precedence, he has always been a potentially dangerous batsman against all but the fastest bowlers or the highest quality spinners. He was selected for the Partridges, the national primary schools team, in 1975. He moved on to Fort Victoria (now Masvingo) High School from 1976 to 1979, representing the Fawns, the national under-15 team, in 1978. In his second year there he recorded his first century, in an inter-school match. He moved on to Prince Edward School in Harare from 1980 to 1982, where he was also a boarder, and played for the Zimbabwe Schools team in 1982.After leaving school, he attended Pietermaritzburg University to study agricultural management; he also played cricket for the university, but his studies probably delayed his coming to prominence in Zimbabwe cricket. He made steady progress without any spectacular performances in Harare league cricket during the vacations and, with the selectors looking for a strike bowler to replace Peter Rawson, unavailable for the 1985 tour of England, he did well enough to be chosen. It took place during the university vacation, but he enjoyed little success.On his return to Harare the following year, he played for Old Hararians, the Prince Edward old boys’ club, and worked to start with in a furniture shop, fortunately with an employer who was kind enough to allow him plenty of time off to play cricket. He was soon opening the bowling with Peter Rawson, and once again Zimbabwe had a bowling attack with real firepower.Eddo really made his name in the season of 1986/87. After two unsuccessful outings against powerful Young West Indies team, he tore into their batsmen in the third match with his first five-wicket haul, after removing Phil Simmons and John Charles for 17. Unfortunately poor Zimbabwe batting resulted in a heavy defeat. Against Pakistan B he was the dominant bowler on either side, taking 17 wickets in three matches. His pace and hostility complemented Rawson well, although at this stage of his career he concentrated mainly on raw pace and was criticized for too much short-pitched bowling; he did not have extreme pace by world standards and the placid home pitches often resulted in the bumper being a wasted ball. As Eddo developed, he would slow his pace a little, pitch the ball up more readily and develop the skills of movement, becoming a more complete bowler in the process. He found Rawson a great help and encouragement in his development as a bowler, and also particularly mentions the support of such other players as Dave Houghton, John Traicos and Robin Brown.In 1988/89, Eddo wrote his way into the record books by becoming the first (and to date still the only) Zimbabwean bowler ever to record a first-class hat-trick. This came against Bert Vance’s New Zealand Young Internationals, when he changed the course of the match by first dismissing Gavin Larsen hit wicket, after a major partnership, and then immediately having Tony Blain caught and Mark Priest lbw.After that season, Peter Rawson immigrated to Natal and Eddo found himself Zimbabwe’s sole strike bowler. He had sometimes been forced to bowl long spells in the past due to the team’s limited bowling resources, but now he frequently found himself over-bowled. At times this proved counter-productive, as he sustained injuries and missed important matches. Another important factor was his decision to go into business himself and take up chicken farming in 1992, just before Zimbabwe gained Test status. Out at Ruwa, just east of Harare, he found it increasingly difficult to spend enough time in training and practice.Eddo has received considerable criticism for his injury problems, and he understandably resents them. He admits that he has not always been fully fit, but points out that this often proved impossible with his very time-consuming business. He went into chicken farming before professional cricket had taken root in Zimbabwe, and his foremost responsibility was to get his business established, which involved working very long hours and financial problems, as it was difficult to borrow money. He had to do all the administrative work single-handed and it was not always possible to find the time or energy that he wanted to play cricket in the peak of condition.However, he remained Zimbabwe’s number one strike bowler when the country attained Test status in 1992. After Zimbabwe had run up 456 against India in the inaugural Test, the team looked to Eddo as its main strike bowler. Unfortunately, after bowling only two overs he injured his ankle so seriously that umpire Dickie Bird thought it was broken, and he was unable to play any further part in the match. It was left to the veteran John Traicos to rise to the occasion with five wickets, enabling Zimbabwe to lead on first innings. And Eddo recovered in time to play in the New Zealand Test at Harare three weeks later, when he took four wickets. He also took 13 wickets in Pakistan the following year, but by now the increasing workload of international cricket was taking its toll.Injured early the following season, he was omitted when fit again from matches against the touring Sri Lankans, and looked a doubtful choice for the tour of Australia for the World Series Cup. While Zimbabwe were playing the one-day series against Sri Lanka, Eddo had been relegated to the Zimbabwe Board team to play Griqualand West in Kimberley. He rose to the occasion superbly. He pulverized the Griquas attack for 165 not out, including 10 sixes and 15 fours, and then ripped out seven Griqua batsmen in the first innings. Two more wickets in the second innings left him just one short of a rare match double of 100 runs and 10 wickets in the same match, previously achieved only by Percy Mansell from this country. This made his trip to Australia certain; unfortunately, another breakdown in Australia saw him return home early.Prior to his century, Eddo had generally failed to do his batting justice at first-class level. His only previous first-class fifty was an outstanding innings of 94 against the touring county side Glamorgan in 1990/91; he arrived at the crease with Zimbabwe struggling on 65 for six, and then shared a stand of 147 with the young Alistair Campbell, who went on to his maiden first-class century.Since then, he was never certain of his place in the Zimbabwean team for long. However, with his chicken farm now established, he was still determined to play a major role in international cricket. During the 1996/97 season he was fitter and bowling better than he had been for years, and fine bowling on unhelpful pitches in Logan Cup matches regained him a place in the national squad, when so many people had written him off.During the series against England, he showed that he was as good a bowler as ever, if not better. He bowled superbly in the one-day internationals, becoming the first Zimbabwean to take a one-day hat-trick in the third. His victims were all top-order batsmen: Knight, Crawley and Hussain. He bowled his ten overs without a break, taking five wickets and ensuring a Zimbabwe victory. He also contributed well with the bat in the first one-day match; coming in with eight wickets down and the match in the balance, he was told by captain Alistair Campbell to play his natural game. He responded with a huge six over extra cover, which greatly relieved the pressure, and was still there at the end. A twisted ankle caused him to miss the First Test, but in the Second he bowled very well without taking a wicket.Then came the remaining one-day matches, and Eddo overshadowed his younger partner Heath Streak, who was still not fully fit, to re-establish himself as Zimbabwe’s spearhead. In the second match he made a vital early breakthrough by dismissing England opener Nick Knight without scoring, but the third match was his greatest triumph. After Zimbabwe had scored 249, Brandes opened the bowling, unusually, from the south (city) end at Harare Sports Club. With 9 runs on the board, he had Knight caught at the wicket by Andy Flower and next ball dismissed John Crawley to a plumb lbw decision. That completed his over; with the first ball of his next over, Nasser Hussain was well caught by Andy Flower, diving to his right, and Eddo had taken Zimbabwe’s first hat-trick in one-day internationals. He later dismissed Alec Stewart and Mike Atherton to take five wickets in the innings, the first five batsmen in the order, and Zimbabwe won by 131 runs.This was followed by the triangular series in South Africa, with India also participating. Eddo opened the bowling with the big-swinging John Rennie, and seldom did they fail to achieve an early breakthrough. Eddo took five wickets in the tied match against India, and 12 wickets altogether in the three matches. He was not so successful on the spinners’ pitches in Sharjah, but he had completed perhaps the most memorable season of his career.Zimbabwe was looking forward to seeing Eddo continue his triumphs against New Zealand in 1997/98, but he began the season less fit than before, and with a long-standing Achilles tendon injury. He failed several fitness tests and missed the Test matches. He was selected for the first two one-day matches, but he was well below his best form and proved expensive, bowling too many half-volleys. He was replaced for the third match, and was forced to give his bowling a rest, although he continued to play club cricket for Universals as an opening batsman.With determination he forced himself into the side for the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur in September 1998, only to fall ill there with a virus. He recovered slowly and missed the first two one-day internationals at home against India, in both of which Zimbabwe were comprehensively defeated. He was fit for the third, and the selectors brought him back immediately, desperate to bolster an attack in which Heath Streak was the only possible match-winner. His return revitalized the team, who now knew they had a bowling attack to reckon with. It took the pressure off the batsmen, who responded with the highest total of the series, and then Eddo and Heath confronted the Indian batsmen with fire and purpose. Tendulkar and Azharuddin fell almost immediately and India never recovered the lost ground.Eddo was not yet fit enough for a five-day Test, and it looked unlikely that he would play Test cricket again; coach Dave Houghton saw his future role more in the one-day game. He went to Sharjah and began in devastating form, shattering the back of the Sri Lankan innings in the first match to take three for 19, with Gunawardene, Atapattu and then Jayasuriya all dismissed lbw, paving the way for another Zimbabwean victory. But after that he was less successful in unhelpful conditions. He bowled well in Pakistan, but without much luck, and had to return home after the one-day series due to business commitments.In the New Year he suffered another setback with injuries sustained in a minor car accident. He made a comeback for Zimbabwe A against England A at the end of the season, but without approaching full pace, and the selectors must have thought hard before including him in the team for the World Cup, making him the first Zimbabwean to play in four World Cup competitions. Unfortunately he was a disappointment in England and played in only two World Cup matches, never looking a threat and in fact being given only three expensive overs against India.It looked as if his career was finally over. But he came back to play club cricket and was still ambitious to regain his place in the national team. When Zimbabwe suffered injury problems among their pace bowlers, including Heath Streak, against Sri Lanka during 1999/2000, they brought back Eddo for the Third Test, and he responded with the best bowling figures of three for 45, including those of top-order batsmen Mahela Jayawardene and Sanath Jayasuriya, which reduced Sri Lanka to 29 for three at one stage. He was hoping for selection to the triangular tournament in South Africa and the tours to West Indies and England that followed, but Streak returned and the selectors overlooked him.He announced his retirement from all cricket at the end of that season. But the following season he was seen back in club cricket, playing for Harare Sports Club, and playing a valuable all-round role for them. Eddo says it was the departure of Murray Goodwin and Neil Johnson that prompted him to return. "I thought that maybe I would have a bit more to offer Zimbabwe cricket," he said. "So I made myself available again and came out and played this season."He was to enjoy statistically his best first-class season, although helped by the very seamer-friendly conditions at Harare Sports Club and the inexperienced opposition he was bowling to. For Mashonaland in four Logan Cup matches (three at HSC), he took 21 wickets for only 146 runs, at an incredible average of 6.95. He took six for 48 against the CFX Academy, and then 5 for 12 against Matabeleland as he and Bryan Strang bowled them out in the second innings for just 19, the lowest-ever innings total in first-class cricket in Zimbabwe. His final match was against Midlands in Kwekwe, where his match figures were seven wickets for 44 runs.He intended to retire at the end of that season, but did come out at need in club cricket during 2001/02 – and did well. He was appointed coach of the CFX Academy in 2002 in succession to Dave Houghton, but that lasted only a few months. The troubles in the country, which also affected his farm, persuaded him to immigrate to Australia, which he did at the end of 2002.His most memorable match, Eddo thinks, was the hat-trick match against England, but not far behind was that World Cup victory, where Eddo himself was man of the match with four prime wickets for 21. England needed a mere 135 to win, but Eddo, who bowled his ten overs on the trot, dismissed Graham Gooch lbw first ball, and then in quick succession removed Allan Lamb, Robin Smith and his former school-mate Graeme Hick, the last two with off-cutters that went through the gate. This set up a magnificent nine-run Zimbabwean victory.

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming was back among the runs for Middlesex on the first day of the CricInfo championship second division match with Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge today.Fleming, who scored his third century of the summer, was 120 not out at stumps with Middlesex 397/3.Having recovered from the dislocated finger which prevented him playing in Middlesex’s last county match, Fleming shared a double century stand with Owais Shah.Fleming moved from 50 to his century with ease, taking 22 runs off one A J Harris over with five fours and a two, and then completing 37 runs off 12 deliveries. His century took 190 minutes off 145 balls and included 20 fours.In the process he brought up his 700th run of the summer. Going into the game he had scored 583 runs at an average of 58.3.Shah was eventually out for 144, the ball after Fleming had posted his century with a single. Their stand was worth 206 runs.The innings is a timely one for Fleming who next week will be leaving to join up with the New Zealand team for the tri-series in Sri Lanka.

Tottenham have reportedly set a surprise price tag for the sale of star defender Micky van de Ven as Real Madrid plan a January move for the defender.

Tottenham set for busy January transfer window

Under-fire boss Thomas Frank has already confirmed the club’s intention to be active in recruitment next month, with the race heating up for Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo.

Tottenham are reportedly prepared to shatter their wage structure in pursuit of Semenyo when the January window explodes into life.

The Ghanaian’s £65 million release clause activates on New Year’s Day, and the north London club have emerged as one of the most aggressive suitors for his signature, according to recent reports.

Frank views the 25-year-old winger as absolutely essential to transforming Spurs’ stuttering attack, with media sources claiming Tottenham are willing to make Semenyo their highest-paid player to win the race against Liverpool, Man City and Man United.

David Ornstein revealed this week that Spurs maintain genuine interest in the Bournemouth star alongside City’s Savinho as alternative options for wide attacking reinforcements.

Related Tottenham hold 'formal' talks with star over personal terms in 'crazy market'

Spurs have a battle on their hands.

Posts 1 ByEmilio Galantini

The club will have funds available if the right profile emerges, with January viewed as an opportunity rather than a luxury, according to credible reports.

Semenyo’s release clause carries a time-limited activation period early next month, specifically until January 10, before dropping closer to £50 million next summer — creating intense urgency among competing clubs.

Bournemouth, meanwhile, have reportedly accepted his departure is inevitable and are already identifying replacements, including Tottenham’s Brennan Johnson.

Right now, Janaury reports at Tottenham centre around their potential deal for Semenyo as Frank’s side try to inject some much-needed dynamism and creativity into their forward line.

Their first transfer window post-Daniel Levy carries plenty of intrigue, with the Lewis family undoubtedly keen to make a statement after plenty of boardroom changes in the last few months.

Therefore, this latest report from Spain on van de Ven and Real comes as all the more surprising.

Tottenham set bizarre Micky van de Ven price as Real Madrid circle

According to Spanish media sources, Xabi Alonso’s side are plotting a January deal for the Dutchman, who has marked himself out as one of the Lilywhites’ most crucial players this season.

Van de Ven’s stunning solo goal against FC Copenhagen, which drew comparisons to Son Heung-min’s Puskas winner against Burnley in 2019, is merely the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the centre-back’s contribution this season.

The 24-year-old has been a key man for both Ange Postecoglou and Frank, but it is now claimed that Spurs have set a £44 million ‘asking price’ for van de Ven as Real circle this winter.

Subscribe for in-depth Tottenham transfer insight and market context Get the newsletter for sharp analysis of Tottenham transfer moves—from van de Ven valuations to the Semenyo chase—and broader transfer-market breakdowns, contract context and transfer strategy. Subscribe for expert transfer coverage and clear explanations. Subscribe Subscribe for in-depth Tottenham transfer insight and market context Get the newsletter for sharp analysis of Tottenham transfer moves—from van de Ven valuations to the Semenyo chase—and broader transfer-market breakdowns, contract context and transfer strategy. Subscribe for expert transfer coverage and clear explanations.

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It’s safe to say that, regardless of the Bernabeu being an obvious temptation for any player, this should be taken with a pinch of salt.

Van de Ven is only an ever-present leader for Tottenham, but his contract also doesn’t expire until 2029, meaning the club are in a very strong position to demand big money for one of the Premier League’s most elite centre-backs.

Spurs are also believed to be readying talks over a new van de Ven contract which would double his salary, even if club legend Glenn Hoddle believes he won’t sign it.

Even if van de Ven being tempted away is a genuine possibility at some point in the future, if Spurs don’t improve, it certainly can’t be for just £44 million.

Related Scouts urging Tottenham to sign £40m star who's impressed PSG instead of Semenyo

Spurs have a quality alternative to the Ghanaian.

Posts 1 ByEmilio Galantini

Tim May, chief executive of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), has distanced himself from comments made by Ian Smith, the association’s legal advisor.Smith was quoted in The Guardian as warning that the players are set to pass a vote of no confidence in the ICC. “People are increasingly seriously asking why aren’t we walking away,” Smith said. “The competence of the administrators is being called into question at a policy level. We believe that because the players are better organised and that talent has been radically revalued by the Indian leagues it’s time to look at whether the players can do a better job than the current policy makers.”But May moved quickly to clarify that Smith’s views were not those of FICA. “Ian’s comments represent his personal view on the matter and do not represent FICA’s position at this time. This is not to say, however, that FICA does not have concerns with the governance structure of the ICC.”After the World Cup last year, which was widely considered to have been poorly administered, FICA issued a poll in which 56% of players who took part expressed a lack of confidence in the ICC. “FICA stated its concerns with the governance structure of the ICC at that time and called upon the ICC to review its governance structure, to determine whether its current structure is the most appropriate for an international sport,” May said. “FICA’s position in regard to this issue has not changed.”May added that FICA was undertaking another survey with the results expected at the end of next month. “We will then communicate any relevant matters that relate directly to ICC, direct with the ICC.”

The Irish Cricket Union has confirmed the dates for India’s three-match series against South Africa in Belfast and also two ODIs where Ireland will play both teams.The three-match series will start on June 26 with subsequent matches on June 29 and July 1. Ireland will play India on June 23 and South Africa the following day in their first ODIs since the World Cup.”The Irish Cricket Union is proud that two such great cricketing nations as India and South Africa are coming to Ireland to play each other and against Ireland,” said ICU chief executive Warren Deutrom. “Following last year’s hugely successful match at Stormont between Ireland and England, the ICU is delighted that top-class cricket continues to come to Ireland, in the first ever matches between full Test nations here.”These matches will not only continue to put Irish cricket on the map after the success of the Ireland team at the World Cup, but should provide a real financial impetus to our objectives for the future of the game.”In original discussions it had been suggested that Australia would be India’s opposition but those plans fell through. The series will be South Africa’s first commitments since the World Cup although some of the players are due to appear in the Afro-Asia cup in early June. For India, the three ODIs will act as preparation for their tour of England which starts in July.

Sanath Jayasuriya could return for the second Test at Edgbaston © Getty Images

Sanath Jayasuriya has been recalled to the Sri Lankan Test side after reversing his decision to retire. The selectors met this afternoon, after Jayasuriya indicated a willingness to make himself available for Tests again, and decided to send him to England as soon as possible.Jayasuriya met with Ashantha de Mel, Sri Lanka’s new chairman of selectors, on Wednesday morning to discuss his possible return. The decision has been ratified by the Sports Ministry and although Jayasuriya’s travel details have not been confirmed he is likely to arrive in the UK midway through the first Test.”Jayasuriya indicated a willingness to make himself available for Test cricket again and we decided to send him to England as soon as possible,” de Mel told AFP. “Sanath can’t reach England in time for the first Test. But he will have enough time to acclimatise and get himself focussed for the second and third Tests.”The muddled scenario is an unwelcome distraction for a young team that ought to be using this tour to build for the future, and their coach, Tom Moody, admitted that the uncertainty would probably be weighing on the minds of his probable openers, Michael Vandort and Upul Tharanga.”I suppose it’s something sitting in the back of your head, ‘is he coming, isn’t he coming?'”, said Moody. “But we in the senior group are encouraging the younger players to stay focused on the opportunity they’ve got. They need to concentrate on that, there’s no point looking over their shoulders.”Whether it’s a senior player coming back or a younger player knocking on door, it makes no difference,” added Moody. “The pressure’s the same, and you need to take the opportunities when they come. We’ll just concentrate on our game. England go into contest as favourites, but there’s no point worrying what their expectations are, that’s irrelevant. We’re going in to win the contest, with spirit and self-belief.”Duleep Mendis, Sri Lanka’s chief executive, denied a report appearing in that claimed that the decision to send Jayasuriya to England had already been made, saying that he first needed a letter confirming that Jayasuriya had reconsidered his decision to retire. “At this stage I have not received a letter,” Mendis said. “When I do, the selection committee will have to meet to confirm and then his selection would have to be ratified with the sports ministry. Only then could arrangements be made for him to join the England tour.”Jayasuriya retired from Test cricket in April, midway through a home series against Pakistan, when the previous selection committee, headed by Lalith Kaluperuma, communicated their plans to blood new openers during the England Test series. Jayasuriya was offered the chance of a dignified farewell Test or an unceremonious sacking.But de Mel, appointed last week, made it clear that he wanted Jayasuriya to reconsider his decision to retire: “When the selectors knew that Marvan [Atapattu] is not going to make it to England with his back problem they should have continued with Jayasuriya. He just played a county season in England last year and and is the only Sri Lankan to have scored a double hundred in England. What more credentials do you want?”