Bedfordshire’s Alex Wakely starred with bat and ball as England U19s overwhelmed their hosts, Malaysia, by nine wickets at Kuala Lumpur. On a rain-interrupted day, England won the toss and bowled first but were forced to withdraw their seamers early because of heavy cloud cover and bad light.And so it was over to the spinners, who took seven of the ten wickets to fall, with Wakely taking 3 for 20 in nine probing overs. Malaysia were bowled out for 104 with more than eight overs to spare, with Liam Dawson also starring with 2 for 21.Heavy rain in the interval meant that England’s target was adjusted to 100 in 43 overs, but opening the batting with Billy Godleman, Wakely made short work of the requirement, rattling along to 54 from 47 balls with eight fours and a six.Wakely would have been on hand to see his side to the finish but for a controversial run-out. With just 12 runs required, Malaysia’s wicketkeeper broke the stumps without the ball in his hands, but the umpire mistakenly upheld the appeal. It mattered not, however, as Godleman finished unbeaten on 32 as England eased home in just 18.1 overs.England’s next match is against India on Wednesday, a dress rehearsal for the Tri-series final on Friday.

Australia’s concern over Andrew Symonds continues to ease after he began throwing for the first time since tearing a biceps in Sydney last month. Symonds’ mood-lifting week of activities started with hitting tennis balls and he got through another examination with some fielding drills while Australia beat Zimbabwe by 106 runs in St Vincent.Symonds used a cricket ball for 12 light throws, according to The Australian, and he appears to be on track to fulfil his goal of playing in the group game against South Africa in St Kitts on March 24. The rehabilitation will continue as the team prepares to face England in their final warm-up game on Friday.Matthew Hayden, who is recovering from a broken toe, will miss the match but is still confident of returning for Australia’s opening contest of the World Cup against Scotland on Wednesday. “Symonds and Hayden have been doing their fair share of training over the last week,” Ricky Ponting said in The Australian. “They have both had bats in their hand. Matty has had a couple of really good hits the last couple of days.”

Ian Chappell, the former Australian captain, has come down hard on Sachin Tendulkar, saying the time had come for him to consider quitting the game. Chappell said that the Tendulkar decision would be crucial as India try and rebuild after their shocking first round exit from the ongoing World Cup.Tendulkar managed only 64 runs in India’s three first-round matches of the World Cup, and couldn’t make much of an impact against Bangladesh (7) and Sri Lanka (0), the two games India lost.”Before anybody else makes a decision on what will happen to Tendulkar the player himself has to have a good long look in the mirror and decide what he’s trying to achieve in the game,” Chappell, 63, wrote in , a Mumbai-based tabloid. “At the moment he looks like a player trying to eke out a career; build on a glittering array of statistics. If he really is playing for that reason and not to help win as many matches as he can for India then he is wasting his time and should retire immediately.”Chappell went on to compare Tendulkar with Brian Lara, the West Indian captain, and pointed out how the latter hadn’t changed his style of play over a 17-year career. “This is a credit to his technique and mental strength, as the aging process generally makesa player more progressively conservative,” Chappell wrote of Lara. “Tendulkarhasn’t worn as well; his last three or four years have been a shadow of his former self.Chappell took into consideration the slew of injuries that Tendulkar had suffered during his career, a factor that had forced him to miss a number of matches in this decade. “Tendulkar hasn’t been as lucky as Lara,” Chappell wrote, “the Indian batsman has suffered a lot of injuries in this period where his play has deteriorated and there is nothing that melts your mental approach quicker than physical handicaps. Lara has been relatively free from injury and he certainly doesn’t have the weight of numbers riding on his shoulders that Tendulkar does. However, the population of the Caribbean might be small but they are extremely demanding.”Despite all the fuss and the odd controversy that has surrounded Lara’s career he has remained himself; this is my game and that is how I play. For whatever reason Tendulkar hasn’t been able to maintain his extremely high standards for the last few years and unless he can find a way to recapture this mental approach he’s not doing his team or himself any favours.”If Tendulkar had found an honest mirror three years ago and asked the question; ‘Mirror, mirror on the wall who is the best batsman of all?’ It would’ve answered; ‘Brian Charles Lara.’ If he asked that same mirror right now; ‘Mirror, mirror on the wall should I retire?’ The answer would be; ‘Yes.’

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Games of football were one of the ways Bob Woolmer liked to break down barriers based on age and experience. With the ball at their feet, there were no juniors and seniors, just team-mates having a good time and aware that the goal couldn’t be reached without everyone doing their bit. So it was poignant that Pakistan started their pre-match preparation for Wednesday’s game against Zimbabwe with a game of football.Mushtaq Ahmed, Woolmer’s assistant, took charge of proceedings, and played himself, as did Inzamam-ul-Haq, who will captain Pakistan for the last time against Zimbabwe. Many in the team were absolutely devastated by Woolmer’s death, but back on the grass and with a ball to kick around, the smiles started to return to faces. There was even some of the banter that typifies these sessions, and it was only once the boys were sufficiently relaxed that Mushtaq took them across for nets.Pakistan have never departed a World Cup without winning a game, a fate that befell neighbours India in 1979, but Zimbabwe – who could still qualify for the Super Eights with a win – will pose a stern test. Mushtaq acknowledged that rousing the team for one last push would take quite some effort.”The worst news was Bob’s death,” he said. “For many of the boys, it was like a father passing away. And quite a few were also depressed about Inzamam deciding to retire [from one-day cricket]. I went to each and every room to comfort them. Some of them were in tears [after Woolmer’s death]. It’s the biggest blow in the history of Pakistan cricket.”As a player, Mushtaq had a reputation of being a bit of a practical joker, but he admitted that coaxing a laugh or smile out of his wards was difficult. “Whenever we lost badly, I’d do my best to cheer the boys up. But this is not a game of cricket that we’ve lost. It’s a life. I can’t even begin to explain how much passion Bob had for our country’s cricket, and how much he’ll be missed.”As for Inzamam, Mushtaq reckoned that history would view his time in charge with kind eyes. “He took charge at a time when many of the boys had no experience,” he said. “Some of them didn’t even think maturely. He helped to nurture them. At times, he would even forego his own practice to take care of them. He always thought first of the team.”He was a very good captain and role model for the boys. After he announced his retirement, they all went to talk to him. Some of them even told me: ‘We need another man like that to captain us’.”Mushtaq also said that nothing would change on the field against Zimbabwe. “The one thing Bob taught us was that you have to be professional,” he said. “My job is to organise things, Inzamam’s job is to captain them. Before and during the match, each person has a role to play, and we’ll all concentrate on that.”According to Pervez Mir, Pakistan’s media manager, the team would have a remembrance meeting for Woolmer after the Zimbabwe game. “Tomorrow evening after the game, the boys will come out and pay their respects. And some of them may speak about what he meant to them.”Those words may be of solace to the Woolmer family, but the best possible homage to the man who spent three years with them will be a victory, with some of the men whose careers he resurrected delivering keynote performances.To select your XI click here

Jon Lewis will have an operation on his left ankle to remove some troublesome bits of bone. Lewis, the England seamer and Gloucestershire captain, will undergo the surgery next Thursday.Gloucestershire expect him to be out of the game for two to three months. It’s obviously not great timing for the county season, but the club’s physiotherapist, Steve Griffin, explained that this is the best course of action for the long-term.”Hopefully it will resolve the issues that have been causing him problems over the winter months. The rehabilitation process following the surgery is very important and we will not be rushing Jon back until he is completely ready. “

Shoaib Akhtar has been included in the Asian one-day team for the Afro-Asia Cup in the first week of June. Shoaib was part of the 14-man squad, to be led by Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lankan captain, that includes Sachin Tendulkar, Sanath Jayasuriya and Mohammad Yousuf.Shoaib, who has played only a handful of one-dayers and a solitary day of Test cricket in the past year, missed Pakistan’s brief World Cup campaign and will not be travelling for the forthcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi, starting May 18.”I’m fit, I never said I was unfit,” he had told Cricinfo ten days earlier. “I had a knee injury before the World Cup but I just need a little bit more time to get fitter and get myself sorted out properly once and for all.”Shoaib will be partnered by Mohammad Asif, Lasith Malinga and Chaminda Vaas in the pace-bowling department. Like Shoaib, Asif also missed the World Cup, owing to an elbow injury, but returned to the Pakistan side as the vice-captain. Vaas, who wasn’t part of the Sri Lanka squad for the Abu Dhabi series against Pakistan, since he had been released to play county cricket in England, was chosen for this tournament.Mohammad Rafique and Harbhajan Singh will share the spin duties. Sourav Ganguly and Chamara Silva, who had enjoyed a memorable World Cup, were the notable omissions from the squad.Syed Ashraful Huq, the CEO of the Asian Cricket Council while announcing the squad, said that Rahul Dravid had opted out citing a packed upcoming season and that Younis Khan and Muttiah Muralitharan had county commitments.The team was chosen by a selection panel comprising SM Farooque (Bangladesh), Chetan Chauhan (India), Mohsin Khan (Pakistan) and Lalith Kaluperuma (Sri Lanka). Chauhan had said that former India captain Sourav Ganguly’s name was considered but, “finally we decided to go with youngsters.”The selectors also chose a team for the Twenty20 international on June 5 in Bangalore. Shoaib Malik was appointed captain in a team dominated by Pakistanis and Bangladeshis. Tillakaratne Dilshan, Farveez Maharoof and Munaf Patel were the only players from Sri Lanka and India.The tournament will kick off with the Twenty20 international and will be followed by three ODIs, on June 6 and 9 (Chennai), and 10 (Bangalore). This will be the second edition of the tournament – it was first held in 2005 in South Africa. The series was drawn 1-1 with one game being abandoned owing to rain.The total prize money for the tournament is $100,000, with the winners of each match getting $25,000. The Man of the Match would get $5000 while the Man of the Series stands to get $15,000.Roger Binny, the former India allrounder has been named coach of the Asian team.Asia ODI team1 Sanath Jayasuriya, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Upul Tharanga, 4 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 5 Sachin Tendulkar, 6 Mohammad Yousuf, 7 Yuvraj Singh, 8 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Chaminda Vaas, 11 Shoaib Akhtar, 12 Lasith Malinga, 13 Mohammad Rafique, 14 Mohammad AsifAsia Twenty20 team1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imran Nazir, 3 Mohammad Ashraful, 4 Shoaib Malik (capt), 5 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 6 Shahid Afridi, 7 Kamran Akmal (wk), 8 Farveez Maharoof, 9 Abdur Razzak, 10 Mashrafe Mortaza, 11 Munaf Patel

It’s 75 years to the day since India made their entry into the Test fold. It was a glorious summer day in 1932 when CK Nayudu walked out to lead a bunch of novices against England at Lord’s.The MCC is marking the 75th anniversary by commissioning a Pataudi Trophy, named after the Nawab of Pataudi Snr, who played for both England and India during his 14-year career. Interestingly India will soon embark on a full-fledged tour of England, opening the three-Test series with a game at Lord’s.In that debut Test the efforts of India’s two opening bowlers, Mohammad Nissar and AmarSingh, was soon to enter folklore. Nissar, an aggressive fast bowler from Lahore, had England hobbling at 11 for 2 before Singh added the big wicket of Wally Hammond. Nissar’s son, Waqar, who’s currently settled in Lahore still flicks through his father’s scrap book, and even presented a copy of it to Sharad Pawar, the Indian board president, recently.Singh, who named his son after Vijay Merchant, one of India’s finest openers, died at the tender age of 29 after contracting typhoid. Merchant reciprocated his feelings for Singh by naming his own son Amar.Several players from the team ended up in Pakistan, after Partition in 1947. Jahangir Khan, India’s first-change bowler in that match, was one of them. His son Majid Khan had an illustrious career for Pakistan while his grandson Bazid made his Test debut as recently as 2005. The Ali brothers – Wazir and Nazir – also settled down in the western side of the border. Wazir’s son, Khalid, managed two Tests for Pakistan in the 1954 season.

Naoomal Jaomal, one of India’s openers, however, reversed the trend – he was born in Karachi but settled down in Bombay. However, he did his bit for Pakistan too: coaching them in the late 1950s and guiding players such as Hanif Mohammad and Nasim-ul-Ghani. India’s other opener in that game, Janardhan Navle, was also their first wicketkeeper. He managed just one other Test and sadly, according to veteran statistician Vasant Raiji, “died in penury, uncared for in his final years”.Lall Singh, the only Test cricketer to be born in Malaysia, didn’t play another Test but will always be remembered, according to reports, as India’s “first outstanding fielder”. But if there’s one man permanently associated with the Test it will be Nayudu. “He always used to take pride in the fact that India’s Test journey began with him,” says his daughter Chandra, a retired professor in English and the author of the book .”Though it was the Maharaja of Patiala who was the designated captain and the Ghanshyamsinhji of Limbdi the official vice-captain, both made way for my father to lead the side. It was indicative of his abilities as a leader and the readiness with which even princes were willing to give way to a common man,” she told Cricinfo. As more and more youngsters make it to the national side from hitherto obscure parts of the nation, India’s cricketing saga continues even as the game’s popularity continues to soar.

Scorecard
A breezy 63 off 66 balls from Saurav Tiwary helped India Under-19 register a convincing 161-run win over their Sri Lankan counterparts, their third successive victory in the Tri-nations Under-19s Tournament. With this, India booked their spot in the final of the tournament, also featuring Bangladesh.India, opting to bat after winning the toss, piled 248 off 50 overs, with Virat Kohli (32)and Iqbal Abdulla (49*) helping Tiwary take India to a competitive total. Tiwary though was on song, hitting three sixes and five fours during his knock.In reply, Sri Lanka could muster only 87. Shiva Prasad and Amanpreet Singh bagged three wickets apiece as Sri Lanka were skittled out in 29.1 overs at the Nondescript Cricket Club Ground in Colombo.India were in trouble at one stage, having lost six wickets with the score on 108. Tiwary and Abdulla then put on a 88-run stand for the seventh wicket before Tiwary was dismissed by Sachith Pathirana, the Sri Lankan captain. Abdulla combined with Pradeep Sangwan to take the total to 245, before pacer Ishara Jayaratne wrapped up the tail. Jayaratne picked up a five-for as India made 248 off 49.1 overs.India bettered their performance against Sri Lanka in an earlier match of the tournament, when they defeated them by a margin of 159 runs.The team takes on Bangladesh in their last round-robin encounter before facing either hosts Sri Lanka or Bangladesh in the final on Saturday.

Worcestershire have given the go-ahead for New Road to host their next Championship game, against Lancashire starting on Friday, in spite of the recent flooding that caused the complete abandonment of their last home fixture against Kent.Following a meeting at New Road involving representatives from both Worcestershire and Lancashire, as well as the ECB’s Alan Fordham and Chris Wood, it was decided that the ground would be fit for an 11am start on Friday morning.The decision is something of a surprise given the controversy that was caused by last week’s washout against Kent. Although the ECB acted with leniency in what they described as “exceptional circumstances”, the decision to allow Worcestershire to replay the abandoned fixture was vehemently opposed by Yorkshire, who feared that a dangerous precedent had been set.Lancashire and Hampshire also backed Yorkshire’s stance on the decision. “It was a flawed decision and creates a precedent,” said a Lancashire statement, “opening the floodgates for future situations deemed ‘extreme circumstances’. We therefore urge the ECB to reconsider this decision.”However, Lancashire’s chief executive, Jim Cumbes, was more conciliatory after Monday’s inspection. “On arriving at New Road this morning I was surprised at how well everything looked,” he said. “It’s obvious that the staff at Worcestershire County Cricket Club have worked very hard over the last few days to get this ground and its facilities up to the standard they are.”There were one or two minor issues I had with the outfield,” added Cumbes, “but nothing a couple of days of drying weather won’t fix.”Worcestershire did have alternative venues on standby – at Kidderminster, Himley and Worcester Royal Grammar School, where a game against Sri Lanka A was played on Saturday. The forecast for Friday is more heavy rain.

New South Wales has beaten Tasmania to the hosting rights for Australia’s defence of the 2009 Women’s World Cup. Cricket Australia’s board chose the state’s submission on Friday and the chairman Creagh O’Connor hoped the event would continue to lift the game’s profile.”Women’s cricket is growing quickly and the Australian women’s team is looking forward to defending the World Cup on home soil,” O’Connor said. “This is an exciting time for the sport.”David Gilbert, the Cricket New South Wales chief executive, said the decision was great news. “Cricket New South Wales has a comprehensive range of international and first-class facilities,” he said, “is proven in the smooth running of major events and is a long-term advocate of the women’s game.”Tasmania was also interested in staging the competition and the state will be considered as a venue for the tournament’s warm-up matches. Australia won the 2005 World Cup after Karen Rolton’s century set up the 98-run success over India.