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The Bangladesh players have been fined five percent of their match fees for maintaining a slow over-rate during the third ODI against Pakistan in Lahore. Mike Procter, the match referee, also reprimanded Shahriar Nafees, the Bangladesh batsman, for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct.Bangladesh were found to be one over short of the target after taking time allowances into consideration. Players are docked five percent for every over their team fails to complete within the alloted time and captains are penalised double, resulting in a ten percent cut in the match fee for Mohammad Ashraful.Nafees was found guilty of breaching clause 1.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct which relates to “abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings.” Nafees kicked and damaged an advertising hoarding after a misfield, but was let off with only a reprimand.”It was Shahriar’s third misfield in the innings and he was obviously frustrated as it was a crucial game because Bangladesh was playing to stay alive in the series,” Procter said. “But it is not the sort of example that players should be setting at any time. Shahriar pleaded guilty, apologised for the incident and promised not to repeat it again.”All Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and a maximum penalty of 50% of a player’s match fee.Nafees had scored a duck in that match, and was dropped in the subsequent game in Multan. Pakistan lead the series 4-0.

The Indian board (BCCI) has given its players the go-ahead to give a percentage of their prize money to the Federation of International Cricketers (FICA) after Rahul Dravid reportedly wrote to the board last week seeking its permission to do the same.”We have told the ICC that we will distribute the entire prize money among the players,” Prof Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI’s Chief Administrative Officer, told the . “After that, it is up to the players to do as they wish with that money. All we are concerned about is that we cannot transfer the money to FICA on players’ behalf.”Shetty said that the board would not act as an intermediary since it was not affiliated to the FICA. “The players will have to do it themselves,” he said. “We have our players’ association which tackles players’ issues. So I am not sure whether this initiative will really take the players’ movement forward.”

Scorecard

Nottinghamshire completed a 142-run win over MCC to launch their season in fine style. Despite a defiant 123 from Alex Loudon and Tim Bresnan’s aggressive 94, Nottinghamshire’s attack completed an efficient display midway through the final session.Ryan Sidebottom finished with the best figures, 3 for 77 to add his first-innings haul of 4 for 42, and jolted his team into action with two wickets in two balls during the morning session. MCC had started confidently through Alastair Cook, who made up for his first-innings failure with a boundary-filled 51. He struck 11 fours in his 55-ball stay before being trapped lbw by Sidebottom, who followed up by having Ed Joyce caught behind first ball.Rikkie Clarke also fell before lunch and when Luke Parker and Steven Davies followed early in the afternoon session a quick finish was on the cards. However, Loudon didn’t waste the opportunity to show the talent that earned him selection for the tour of Pakistan before Christmas.He struck 19 fours and a six off 191 balls as he reached only his second first-class century, three years after his first for Durham UCCE. Even though it was his off-spin that primarily caught the selectors’ attention, at the end of last season, these runs will have done him no harm as England continue to search for players to bring balance to the one-day team in particular.Loudon wouldn’t have been able to post three figures if it hadn’t been for the support from Bresnan, who arrived in the middle with him on 74. When Loudon eventually fell, top-edging a pull, Bresnan delayed the inevitable with some powerful strokeplay. He was within touching distance of a maiden first-class century, but was left stranded with the tail, and was the last-man out when he clubbed a catch to midwicket off David Hussey.This match has provided a useful showcase for some of England’s promising young players. Cook will be hoping he returns to Lord’s next month as part of the Test team to face Sri Lanka, while Loudon and Clarke have put forward their claims to be considered as allrounders when the selectors next sit down.

It happened 25 years ago, but the passing of a quarter of a century hasnot dulled Raghuram Bhat’s memory one bit. The former Karnataka and Indialeft-arm spinner, who is currently manager of the Karnataka team, brokeout in unrestrained laughter when asked if he remembered the time SunilGavaskar batted left handed against him to save a Ranji match.”That cannot be forgotten. The ball was turning right angles on the day. Iwas just pitching the ball in the good length spot, because I did not knowhow much the ball was going to spin; sometimes I tried to bowl an armerand it turned,” he said, in a freewheeling chat on the sidelines of theKarnataka-Saurashtra Ranji Trophy match. “The ball was beating the bat andthe only way to play on that day was to play left-hand and play forwardand offer pad. That’s how Gavaskar played and he really played well andsaved the game for Mumbai. It was a great thing to bowl to him and theguts he showed in batting left-handed, for some 12-13 overs, was amazing.”It’s often been suggested that Gavaskar was wrong to batleft-handed, and that in some ways it was a disrespect to the bowler, butBhat will have none of that. “I won’t consider it as negative batting, hewas trying to save the game and that was his duty than to get embarrassedby losing outright. His footwork on the day was something to be seen to bebelieved. If I had recorded that game on video I would have shown that toyoung cricketers as an example. Sunny was middling the ball, no edges, notension.”For Bhat, that was the red-letter day in his 82-match first class career.Although the match was drawn, Karnataka advanced to the final of the RanjiTrophy by virtue of a first-innings lead, and Bhat had 13 wickets in thegame, taking 8 for 123 in the first innings that included ahat-trick. Strong performances in domestic cricket won him a place in theIndian Test team, but that was to last only two matches, where he pickedup four wickets, including that of Javed Miandad and Clive Lloyd, but hewas dropped after that, never to be picked again.Since he retired from first-class cricket, just as a young Sunil Joshi wasmaking his mark for Karnataka, Bhatt has served in many capacities – asumpire, administrator and coach. Today, when he watches cricket, he, likeother quality spinners of his generation, is amazed at the lack of back upfor Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. “Basically, we have forgotten thespin bowling department unlike in the earlier days. There are left-armspinners but the quality is not there. The talent is missing somewhere. Wehave to put our spin department back on track.”Unlike some other veterans, though, Bhat does not simply bemoan the lackof talent. He is encouraged by the cricketers he sees coming through theyounger age groups, and is working with the Karnataka State CricketAssociation to put systems in place that will unearth fresh talent.Already people speak highly of KP Appanna, the 17-year-old left-armspinner who has picked up 21 wickets in his debut season. “What I feel isthe most important quality in a spinner is the consistency. They shouldnot get carried away by the success; it is important. They have to workcontinuously, they cannot say that I have taken 25-30 wickets this seasonand sit back,” he says.Bhat insists that it is quality spin that will win India matches.”Ultimately, spinners have to win the game for us. If you look at therecently concluded Cape Town Test, we would have won the game if Anilwould have been a little bit effective,” he said. “A left-arm spinner would havemade a difference. With a left-arm spinner your team is complete.”India have not had a left-arm spinner to play consistently since VenkatapathiRaju played the part. Murali Kartik has done the job when called upon, buthas not been able to go past either Kumble or Harbhajan in the race to bepicked. It’s too early to tell if there’s a young cricketer rising up theranks who can do the job, but people like Raghuram Bhat are certainlysearching hard.

Having earned a Test recall after nearly two years, Mohammad Kaif said he was expecting to be picked based on his domestic performance. He was named as replacement in the squad for the second Test against South Africa after Sachin Tendulkar was ruled out with a groin injury.”I had scored some 1000 to 1200 runs,” Kaif told the tabloid . “A bulk of them were scored on tough wickets so the call was kind of expected.” He scored 687 runs at 59.73 from eight Ranji Trophy games for Uttar Pradesh and 266 at 52.46 from two Duleep Trophy matches for Central Zone this season.Kaif was dropped from the Test side after India’s tour of West Indies in June 2006 despite scoring an unbeaten 148 in the second Test in St Lucia. “I had learned a lot during this period. I think whatever happens, happens for some good only. So I think there must have been some good reason of my being away from the Indian side.”I must thank my supporters and those who stood by me in my bad period. I hope that the bad phase has ended and this selection will bring more good news for me in the future.”Though excited about being included in the squad, Kaif said India would no doubt miss Tendulkar. “Captain Anil Kumble will never have wanted him [Tendulkar] to be out of the side,” Kaif said. But now I have got a chance and if I play, I will try and make the best out of it.”

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

Parsimonious spells from Prosper Utseya and Hamilton Masakadza combined with Gregory Strydom’s hard-hitting fifty powered Zimbabwe to victory in the fourth one-day international against Bangladesh at Harare. This was Zimbabwe’s 12th series win since their entry into the international fold in 1983 and their fourth in a bilateral series against Bangladesh.Zimbabwe outperformed Bangladesh in all departments to win the series with a match to spare – their spinners restricted Bangladesh to 206 for 9 before Vusi Sibanda and Strydom marshalled the run-chase superbly to achieve the target in the 42nd over. Despite winning the toss for the first time in the series, Bangladesh got off to another poor start. In earlier games they lost their first wicket for 15, 17 and 4; today they managed 21 before Rajin Saleh, who replaced the out-of-form Javed Omar, pushed one straight to Stuart Matsikenyeri off Ed Rainsford.There was a brief revival as Aftab Ahmed flung his bat around. Having scored 40 off 24 balls and 53 off 39 in his last two games, Aftab smashed four fours off Rainsford in the 11th over. However, the rush of blood eventually worked in Zimbabwe’s favour and Aftab’s innings ended on 27. Bangladesh had added 52 in 44 balls during Aftab’s stay and his dismissal in the 15th over prompted Utseya to take the third Powerplay immediately.Shahriar Nafees had played a steady hand at the other end after surviving a testy spell from Anthony Ireland. However, it was his indiscretion – ball-watching in the direction of mid-off – that led to Mohammad Ashraful’s run-out. Thereafter Utseya and Masakadza took centre stage. Utseya, fast aquiring a reputation for his miserliness as explained in S Rajesh’s Numbers Game, started uncharacteristically with a short and wide long-hop that Ashraful promptly cut for four. Thereafter normal service resumed. Overs zipped by in double-quick time and runs came at a trickle. Utseya compounded Bangladesh’s woes when Alok Kapali lobbed a tame shot to midwicket.Zimbabwe struck a body blow when Masakadza breached Nafees’s defences. He finished with 2 for 36, Utseya 2 for 25 and Stuart Matsikenyeri none for 18 after five overs. Between them they had conceded just two boundaries between the 20th and the 38th over – a period in which Bangladesh managed only 61. Farhad Reza had just struck a six when he was wretchedly stranded a few balls later. Such was the nature of Bangladesh’s effort. There were several spurts of intent but they were just that – spurts, as they allowed Zimbabwe to make frequent inroads.

Zimbabwe got off to a perfect start in a crucial run-chase. Sibanda and Duffin bucked the trend of poor opening partnerships by putting on 57 runs – the highest first-wicket stand in the series for both sides. Instead of approaching the target cautiously, both openers took on the opening bowlers – Shahadat Hossain and Mashrafe Mortaza – at every possible opportunity. The batsmen took turns at finding the fence and Hossain, the hat-trick hero of the previous game, leaked 26 runs in his first three overs. Bangladesh could ill afford runs to flow at such a pace – 43 had come off the first seven overs – and Khaled Mashud was forced to try Abdur Razzak’s left-arm spin as early as the eighth over. The drop in the run-rate that followed was dramatic.The first Powerplay had yielded 50 runs off ten overs but Zimbabwe struggled to score 12 runs off five in the second Powerplay. Both batsmen were clueless against Razzak and Mohammad Rafique who induced an edge from Duffin off his second ball. Sibanda, however, survived tense moments against the spinners and found his groove again in the company of Strydom.Strydom muscled his first few boundaries to get going and, once settled, took charge after Sibanda’s departure. He kept the runs flowing with regular boundaries and brought up his first ODI fifty – of 47 balls – with a lofted hit in front of square. By the time he fell, to a leading edge, Zimbabwe were on the threshold of victory. If Bangladesh thought they had a flicker of hope, it was quickly stubbed out by Matsikenyeri and Brendan Taylor, who fittingly sealed the series with another massive six over wide long-on.

BangladeshRajin Saleh c Matsikenyeri b Rainsford 11 (21 for 1)
Aftab Ahmed c Utseya b Masakadza 27 (73 for 2)
Mohammad Ashraful run out Duffin 6 (82 for 3)
Alok Kaplai c Sibanda c Utseya 10 (102 for 4)
Shahriar Nafees b Masakadza 45 (137 for 5)
Farhad Reza run out Utseya 30 (157 for 6)
Mohammad Rafique c Sibanda b Utseya (160 for 7)
Khaled Mashud c Rainsford b Ieland (190 for 8)
Mashrafe Mortaza b Ed Rainsford 23 (197 for 9)
ZimbabweTerry Duffin c Mashud b Rafique 24 (57 for 1)
Vusi Sibanda b Reza 46 (91 for 2)
Hamilton Masakadza retired hurt 19 (156 for 2)
Gregory Strydom c Ashraful b Razzak 58 (159 for 3)

Greg Hay is one of 14 first-class players who will represent New Zealand at the Emerging Players Tournament in Queensland in July. The side will be coached by Andy Moles, the former Warwickshire batsman who has coached Kenya, Scotland and England Under-19s.Hay, the Central Districts batsman, missed out on the England tour despite averaging 49.33 in 15 first-class matches and 49.91 in one-day matches so far but this announcement will prove some consolation, as will his winter contract awarded on Monday. Neil Broom, Michael Guptill and BJ Watling have also been selected for the tournament and for a deal.The wicketkeeper Bevan Griggs, 30, has been included ahead of Peter McGlashan, who played two Twenty20 internationals in 2006, and the rising star Derek de Boorder. New Zealand Under-19 players Corey Anderson and Trent Boult got the nod as well.Nathan McCullum and Bradley Scott were left out, despite appearing in the tournament last year and receiving winter contracts. McCullum is playing club cricket in Europe, while Elliott is currently on tour with New Zealand in England.The Emerging Players team will play against sides from South Africa and India alongside the Australia Institute of Sport. They will then have one three-day match, a 50-over match and a Twenty20 against a Queensland state XI.”This is the fourth year of the tournament and it has become a key part of NZC’s winter training programme,” selector Glenn Turner said. “We have seen a number of players progress through to the Blackcaps after showing potential on such tours. The event also gives players competition experience and our teams have always performed well there.”Emerging Players squad Corey Anderson, Brent Arnel, Hamish Bennett, Trent Boult, Neil Broom, Leighton Burtt, Brendon Diamanti, Bevan Griggs (wk), Martin Guptill, Greg Hay, Brandon Hiini, Peter Ingram, Robbie Schaw, BJ Watling.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has offered central contracts to 33 players, with top-grade cricketers being offered a whopping Rs 60 lakhs. The retainership for various categories was hiked and the BCCI announced that it would offer contracts to a record number of players. All top players have received A-grade contracts, while an extra category, the D-grade, has been created to include promising cricketers.The A-grade contract, which comes with a retainer of Rs 60 lakh, was offered to Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Anil Kumble, Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan. Of this lot, Zaheer is the biggest gainer as he was on a C-grade contract last year.Grade B comes with a retainer of Rs 40 lakh, Grade C 25 lakh and finally grade D Rs 15 lakh. In the final category the BCCI has included people like Subramaniam Badrinath and Cheteshwar Pujara, who have done well for India A but not yet made it to higher honours.Any player from outside this list who played for India would automatically fall into the D grade, and when a player from the D grade notches up five Tests or 15 ODIs in the year he would automatically be upgraded to the C category.Dilip Vengsarkar, the chairman of selectors was part of the gradation committee that decided on which player would get what contract, along with Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president, and Niranjan Shah, the secretary. Soon after the contracts were announced Vengsarkar said, “This is very good for the players. They are being rewarded for their performances. This will create a wider pool of players.”Full listGrade A
Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Anil Kumble, Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer KhanGrade B
VVS Laxman, Harbhajan Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Wasim Jaffer, S Sreesanth, Dinesh Karthik, RP Singh, Virender Sehwag.Grade C
Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar, Ramesh Powar, Munaf Patel, Robin Uthappa, Piyush Chawla, Suresh Raina.Grade D
Rohit Sharma, Joginder Sharma, Manoj Tiwari, Ishant Sharma, Ranadeb Bose, Mohammad Kaif, Cheteshwar Pujara, Parthiv Patel, S Badrinath, Aakash Chopra, Yusuf Pathan.

Andrew Flintoff has given England another cause for concern ahead of the first Test after reporting discomfort in his left ankle following Lancashire’s Championship match against Hampshire at The Rose Bowl.He didn’t bowl in England’s net session at Lord’s on Tuesday – which is a worrying sign – but an ECB spokesman is hopeful he will bowl on Wednesday. “We will then assess his chances of playing.”He underwent a scan on Sunday after the Championship match, and the ECB said the results would be released on Monday. So far, there is no news.However, on Monday he was positive about his chances of playing: “I’m still hopeful for Thursday. Sometimes when it is the ankle the alarm bells start ringing a bit but I’m still very hopeful.”When I was operated on it was on the back and the inside of the ankle but this pain is more on the outside. This discomfort is something I felt during the winter so it is not something completely new.”Flintoff’s left ankle has been a constant source of problems and last summer he needed surgery following an aborted comeback for Lancashire. He was ruled out of the series against Pakistan before slowly returning to full bowling duties for the Ashes series. However, his workload continues to be carefully monitored by the England management.During his three appearances for Lancashire this summer he has bowled a total of 23 overs (14 in one-day cricket and nine at the Rose Bowl last week) and generated decent pace.England’s build-up to the first Test has been hit by a list of injuries with Michael Vaughan ruled out with a broken finger and Kevin Pietersen picking up a calf strain playing for Hampshire, although he is expected to be fit for Lord’s on Thursday.

Drop of the Day Mk 1
Ashwell Prince’s parry at square-leg had all the makings of a match-sealing moment. When you’re defending 193 and the batsman of the tournament, Scott Styris, gives a chance while still in single figures, there’s really no forgiving the culpable fielder. In mitigation, the ball was whipped through square leg with such power that it pulled up just yards inside the rope, but on the other hand, South Africa’s reputation in one-day cricket has long been based upon their superlative fielding. At 54 for 2 it was a vital opportunity squandered.Drop of the Day Mk 2
Ditto, with knobs on. Mark Boucher will need little reminding of the last time New Zealand and South Africa met in the World Cup. At Centurion in 2002-03, he dropped Stephen Fleming on 52 – a sitter of a chance off Jacques Kallis – and Fleming went on to make a fantastic match-winning 134 not out. Two weeks later, the hosts had been ejected from their own party. Today’s chance was tougher – a thin top-edge that a leaping Boucher could only parry onto his nose – but the impact on his team-mates was very much the same.Drop of the Day Mk 3
Ok, so it’s cruel to labour the point, but déjà vu is a powerful thing, especially when poor old Herschelle is involved. For eight painful years, he’s had to live with the memory of that aberration at Headingley in the 1999 World Cup, and like a particularly rubbish punchline, the joke gets wearier every time it is repeated. So, all together now, for (surely?) one last time: “You just dropped the World Cup, Hersch!” Of course, he could well cling onto a blinder to seal victory over England next week, and all will be forgiven. (At least, until the fourth-placed South Africans take on Australia in the St Lucia semi-final…)Call of the Day
Win the toss and bowl – it’s a tactic that’s been fraught with danger down the years. But today it worked a treat for Fleming, who unleashed his seamers in drizzly overcast conditions that were more Queenstown, Otago, than Queen’s Park, Grenada. Shane Bond was magnificent, James Franklin was rejuvenated, and at 66 for 2 at the end of the Powerplays, the pattern of the match had been established. Who knows what South Africa might have achieved if Graeme Smith had called correctly, but their decision to omit their leading wicket-taker and leading swing bowler, Charl Langeveldt, suggests they were not banking on bowling first.Bowling spell of the Day
If a cricketer could be designed to get under the skin of the rigidly orthodox South Africans, then he would doubtless look and sound something like Craig McMillan – a chippy, chirpy little irritant of a character who tempted three of South Africa’s finest into wicket-surrendering indiscretions. McMillan once got the better of Steve Waugh in a bouncer offensive, so his bowling is not to be underestimated. That, however, is just what Gibbs, Ashwell Prince and Boucher all did, as South Africa crashed from 128 for 3 to 149 for 6. Each wicket was celebrated with double clenched fists and a cheeky knowing grin, the sort of reaction that doubtless made the incoming batsman want to smack him even further …Duck of the Day
How good would AB de Villiers be if he could start every innings on 1? Unfortunately for him and for South Africa, that initial notch in the scorebook is proving infuriatingly hard to come by. Today was the fourth time in eight World Cup innings that he had been dismissed without scoring, and on none of those occasions has he survived for more than six balls. When he does get stuck in, however, woe betide the opposition. His other efforts have been 62 from 45 balls against Scotland; 92 from 70 against Australia; 15 from 39 against Bangladesh, and last week’s outrageous 146 from 130 against West Indies.Innings of the Day
Sporting a beard that makes him look like the celebrity chef, Anthony Worrall-Thompson, Styris is absolutely cooking in this World Cup. Today he produced his fifth half-century in eight innings. Three of those have been unbeaten scores of 80 or more, including the recent 111 not out against Sri Lanka. He is one of only three players to have made 400 runs for the competition (Jacques Kallis and Matthew Hayden are the other two), although his average of 108.75 is unsurpassed. And if that’s not useful enough, he’s also grabbed eight vital breakthroughs with his medium-pacers. It’s not a bad time to hit the form of your life.Number Crunching of the Day
The calculators were working overtime in the press-box today (at least, for those who have such things – one chap was too busy clacking away on his 1970s typewriter). But by the end of the New Zealand run-chase, the numbers were stark. South Africa’s net run-rate, that issue that Smith insisted was totally under control, is now drifting uneasily at a measly – 0.2097. That means that England (NRR +0.079) are as good as through if they win in Barbados on Tuesday. It’ll be a big “if” on the bouncier Bridgetown wicket but, should that happen, South Africa’s only salvation would then come if West Indies delivered a judgment of biblical proportions in England’s own final game next Saturday.