Scorecard

Tim Paine fought off a serious virus to earn Tasmania first-innings points despite a four-wicket haul from Shane Harwood at Hobart. Paine was unable to open the innings having been rushed to hospital but returned to bat at No. 7 and his unbeaten 63 helped the Tigers overhaul Victoria’s 283.Tasmania declared at 9 for 309, giving Victoria four overs to face before stumps. The Bushrangers’ reply began badly when Lloyd Mash fell to the last ball of the day, playing on to Brett Geeves for 2. At the close the visitors were 1 for 4, with a deficit of 21 runs.Harwood toiled away and broke through just often enough that no Tasmania pair could build a decisive partnership until Paine and Luke Butterworth came together. They added 74 for the eighth wicket, a stand that took them within 16 runs of a first-innings lead.Paine confirmed the selectors’ belief that he would regain his batting form without the burden of wicketkeeping, scoring 11 boundaries in his near three-hour innings. Butterworth’s 40 was important, as was the 39 from Sean Clingeleffer, the reinstated wicketkeeper.Harwood ended Michael Dighton’s bright start when he was lbw for 28 and Michael Di Venuto followed ten runs later. Harwood’s 4 for 75 gave Victoria hope after their declaration late on the first day but he had too little support and the visitors will need to rely on setting Tasmania a target and bowling them out to take any points from the match.

Ricky Ponting insists Australia will treat their opening warm-up match against Zimbabwe tonight (AEDT) as a “full-blown” game. Some sides are fielding 13 players in the practice fixtures, but that is not currently an option for Australia with injuries to Matthew Hayden (toe) and Andrew Symonds (biceps) while Adam Gilchrist is a late arrival after the birth of his third child.Ponting, who missed the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy defeat with a back problem, said there would be no let-up as his side looked to recover from a five-match losing streak. “It’s a game,” he said. “We’re not going to treat it as practice. It’s a full-blown game. The guys won’t be out there having a net.”With Gilchrist and Hayden missing, Australia are expected to choose Shane Watson and Brad Haddin, the reserve wicketkeeper, to open against Zimbabwe. Gilchrist is set to make his comeback in Friday’s warm-up against England at St Vincent’s Arnos Vale ground.Gilchrist, the vice-captain, missed the series in New Zealand to spend time with his wife and expanding family, but Ponting had no doubt he would make a fine return. “Generally, he does [come back well],” Ponting said. “In the last couple of games when he has had a break, he has come back with a bit of a bang.” Hayden is expected to play in Australia’s first group game against Scotland on March 14 while Symonds wants to appear against South Africa on March 24.

Greg Chappell brought the curtain down on a controversial tenure as India’s coach by announcing today that he would not be seeking an extension of his contract, which had ended along with India’s participation in the World Cup. Chappell informed the board president of his decision on Wednesday, citing “family and personal reasons.”Chappell, 58, had served as coach since June 2005.Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president, said that Chappell had informed him about his decision in the afternoon. “Chappell’s contract is over. It was up to the World Cup”, Pawar told reporters. “I got a telephone call from him in the afternoon. Due to his family and personal reasons he was not interested in continuing the contract. He thanked BCCI for the opportunity.”Chappell’s decision follows India’s early exit from the World Cup, and the resulting war of words in the media between Chappell and senior players. The BCCI had convened a meeting in Mumbai on Friday and Saturday to review the team’s performance in the Caribbean, and was expected to take several hard decisions.Chappell had been asked to attend the meeting – he is in Mumbai and is likely to keep that appointment – and present a detailed report on his tenure. The past few days have seen the Indian media carry what it claimed to be extracts from Chappell’s report that were scathing of the performance of senior players. That led to reactions, again in the media, by unnamed senior players.What resulted was a clear divide, as reported by Cricinfo, between Chappell and the team management, including captain Rahul Dravid, and the senior players.The simmering controversy seemed to boil over on Wednesday morning when published an interview with Sachin Tendulkar – known for avoiding comment on controversial topics – in which he made several pointed remarks about Chappell.”We do realise that we played badly and, as a team, we take full responsibility for that”, Tendulkar said. “But what hurt us most is if the coach has questioned our attitude.”Within hours of that interview being published, Chappell announced his decision to not seek an extension of his contract.There is no word from the BCCI on a possible successor. India’s next assignment is a Test and one-day series in Bangladesh next month and the Board may appoint an interim coach while scouting for a long-term prospect.Chappell’s tenure included a record-breaking run of India winning 17 ODIs while chasing, and a Test series win in the West Indies. It saw several young players, including S Sreesanth and Dinesh Karthik, breaking through into the national side to some acclaim. But it also had its share of controversy, which appeared to stem from a hardline, no-nonsense attitude.His tenure began with a bitter and public feud with Sourav Ganguly, who was team captain when Chappell took charge but was sacked, after Chappell suggested he sit out a match on a tour of Zimbabwe, within four months.Ganguly returned to the national team during last year’s tour of South Africa. He was among the runs then, and ensured his selection to the World Cup side; he continued scoring in the Caribbean but the team management was apparently unhappy with his slow scoring rate.In his letter, released to the media, Chappell, said, “I am grateful to the players with whom I have worked in this time for the challenges that they presented me with and which I tried to meet in a professional, methodical and interesting way in the interests of the team and the individual.”He went on to thank the support staff who worked with him for their efforts. “I would like to make special mention of my support staff without whom I would not have survived the rigours of the past 22 months,” he said. “Ian Frazer and Greg King deserve special mention for their efforts as do John Gloster, S Ramakrishnan and Ramesh Mane. I am particularly grateful for the wonderful support of my family, especially my wife Judy, who has enjoyed the experience as much as I.”Chappell also had a word for the people of India who followed cricket so passionately. “The people of India deserve a special mention as they are the ones whose attention, enthusiasm and love and support drive the great game, and business, of cricket in this country, and around the world,” he said. “I thank them all, especially those who have written to me and the thousands who have gone out of their way to come up to me with well wishes.”

Five of the New Zealand Under-19 team’s most promising players will join the A side’s winter training squad for close to three weeks in Darwin. New Zealand Cricket has decided to give Timothy Southee, Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Greg Morgan and Kane Williamson a chance for further exposure ahead of the teams’s departure for a tournament in Brisbane.All five participated in the Under-19 series against India at Lincoln University back in February. Southee and Anderson, both fast-medium bowlers, turned out for Northern Districts and Canterbury respectively in this season’s State Championship final.”This camp will provide a further opportunity to extend and stretch the experience of these players who may become important members of New Zealand’s Under-19 World Cup team next year,” said Dipak Patel, the former international off spinner and current Under-19 coach. “It will provide a unique opportunity for them to experience different conditions overseas and should stand them in good stead for their upcoming World Cup opportunity.”

Division One

Michael Di Venuto again showed what he brings to Durham with a double century against Kent at Chester-le-Street as he carried his bat for the second time in the season. His unbeaten 204 pushed Durham to full batting points in less than 87 overs. After Yasir Arafat removed Will Smith and Paul Collingwood in the same over Durham’s innings was built around a third-wicket stand of 181 between Di Venuto and Kyle Coetzer (74). Kent fought back through James Tredwell and Ryan McLaren and at 296 for 7 had a chance to wrap up the innings. However, Liam Plunkett (35) gave another demonstration of his batting credentials, adding 63 with Di Venuto, as Durham regained the momentum. Steve Harmison offered supported in a final-wicket stand of 40, pushing Durham above 400, as Tredwell and McLaren took four wickets apiece.Darren Maddy continued to excel in the Warwickshire captaincy role with his second century in four days as they formed a solid platform against Surrey at The Oval. His unbeaten 133, a first Championship ton since 2004, was more than half Surrey’s total for the day but he was provided with useful support by Ian Westwood, Jonathan Trott, who was bowled off a no-ball first delivery, and Jim Troughton. However, Ian Bell missed out when he played round a straight one from Neil Saker for 9. Maddy, though, couldn’t be shifted as he reached his hundred off 113 balls and when rain brought an early end to the day before tea 106 of his runs had come in boundaries including 24 off one Rikki Clarke over. Surrey’s attack again struggled to make an impact despite Matthew Nicholson’s first Championship appearance of the season. Saker, who impressed against Lancashire last week, was the main wicket-taker although his three wickets did come at a cost.Craig White fell three runs short of a century but Yorkshire were in a strong position against Worcestershire when the rain arrived at Headingley. White and Joe Sayers, dropped early by Ben Smith at slip, batted through most of the first two sessions as Worcestershire’s patched-up attack, including Scotland seamer Dewald Nel, were made to toil. Roger Sillence eventually made the breakthrough when White was caught behind for 97, but Sayers was again showing his appetite for the long innings. In his last match on the ground he made an unbeaten 149 and has now batted for more than 14 hours on home turf without being dismissed.Rain prevented any play on the opening day between Hampshire and Lancashire at The Rose Bowl. The umpires had numerous inspections and made their decision during the afternoon. It meant England trio Andrew Flintoff, James Anderson and Sajid Mahmood were left kicking their heels, but Kevin Pietersen was already ruled out of the match after picking up a calf strain.

Division Two

In the one match which started on Tuesday, Marcus Trescothick converted his opening day century into a career-best 284, leading Somerset to an imposing 641 for 6 against Northamptonshire at Northampton. Unbeaten on 185 overnight, Trescothick soon reached his double seven overs into the day off 306 balls and passed his previous best of 219 – made against South Africa at The Oval in 2003 – as the home side struggled to make an impression. He was within sight of a triple hundred until falling to a catch in the covers off Lance Klusener shortly before lunch, but there was no let-up from Somerset. James Hildreth, who added 227 with Trescothick, moved his own century off 131 balls before Ian Blackwell tore into a tiring attack. Blackwell launched 11 fours and four sixes in a 47-ball assault, then the rain arrived to help Northamptonshire escape further punishment.Derbyshire’s seam attack rifled through the Leicestershire top order at Derby but Paul Nixon and Mansoor Amjad managed to stop the slide until rain arrived mid-way through the afternoon. Left-arm seamer Graham Wagg removed the top three under overcast skies including Darren Robinson who batted 25 overs for 19. Alongside Tom Lungley’s removal of HD Ackerman for 1 – edging one which climbed on him – the innings stumbled to 46 for 4. Jim Allenby played his shots but when he and John Sadler fell in quick succession a capitulation was on the cards. However, Nixon has twice bailed Leicestershire out in tight one-day situations over the weekend and brought his form into the four-day game. Alongside Amjad, who recently returned from Pakistan’s training camp, they added an unbeaten 69. Ireland seamer Boyd Rankin made the Derbyshire starting XI and extracted lift form the service although went wicketless.Middlesex shaded the opening proceedings against Nottinghamshire on a truncated day at Trent Bridge with Bilal Shafayat holding firm against some impressive bowling from Tim Murtagh. Richard Johnson bagged the first breakthrough, Jason Gallian edging behind shortly after being dropped by Murali Kartik, but Murtagh made the main inroads. He had Mark Wagh caught behind trying to leave the ball and then broke a threatening stand of 79 between Shafayat and David Hussey before removing the in-form Samit Patel second ball. Shafayat, normally a dashing strokemaker, was forced to play a much more watchful role and faced 176 balls, but it was a vital contribution for his team, as he and Chris Read negotiated the period before play was curtailed.

Sachin Tendulkar and Wasim Jaffer missed out on the opening day of thefitness-specific camp for the batsmen which kicked off in Bangalore at the NationalCricket Academy (NCA) today. Tendulkar, who has been allowed to miss the start of the camp ”for personal reasons”, is scheduled to join on June 10 while Jaffer, who is already in Bangalore, has been diagnosed with flu and is unlikely to attend the camp.The nine batsmen who were present and Sreesanth, the lone bowler, underwent an indoor training programme on the first day, one that began with a yoga session in the team hotel. The players then moved into the indoor training facility at the NCA where they underwent drills to enhance core stability, associated with the torso and spine regions, and shoulder stability. There were multi-stage fitness tests too (also called bleep tests) and skinfold measurements, an indicator of the fat composition in the body.Physical trainer Gregory King is overseeing the camp, one of the three to be conducted ahead of India’s tour of Ireland and England. Sreesanth was expected to attend the first two days of the camp – since his selection for the Afro-Asia Cup Twenty20 match meant he missed out on the bowlers’ camp in Mysore. His fast-bowling partner VRV Singh, who had a viral attack last evening, was admitted to a local hospital but is expected to be discharged tomorrow.Four Indian batsmen – Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh – who’re currently involved in in the ongoing Afro-Asian Cup, are expected to join the camp after the three-match series concludes tomorrow. The batsmen present at the camp on the first day were Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman,Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Dinesh Mongia, Dinesh Karthik, Rohit Sharma, Mohammad Kaif and S Badrinath.This camp follows one that was held specifically for the bowlers, in Mysore from June 4 to 8. It will be followed by a conditioning camp from June 13 to 16 at the NCA, and will be attended by players selected to represent India in the tours of Ireland and England. These teams will be selected, in Delhi on June 12.

The news that the Africa Cricket Association had brokered a deal which should signal and end to Kenya’s internal crisis will mean that a full-strength side is fielded for the Intercontinental Cup tie against Uganda later this month.A meeting of the players in Nairobi today ended with an agreement that all those who had been refusing to play for the Kenya Cricket Association would make themselves available for selection. A number of leading players have been on strike since October over contract issues and outstanding payments, and others are believed that have made it clear that they would not play for any side fielded by the KCA.But obstacles remain. The KCA said today that it did not have any cash and so was unable to fund the team. It is thought that Percy Sonn, the ICC vice-president who was in Nairobi at the weekend, will ask the ICC to provide sufficient funds to enable Kenya to get over this hurdle.Kenya’s first match in the tournament, against Namibia, was due to be played last February but was postponed by the ICC when it became clear that the KCA was in no position to field a side.

The Dolphins have contracted Quinton Friend for the 2007-08 season after Duncan Brown’s retirement last season to pursue business interests.Friend, who took 95 wickets in 32 first-class matches at 23.89, was acquired by the Dolphins after he was released by the Cape Cobras.Cassim Docrat, the Dolphins chief executive, told Supercricket that they were still negotiating with Jon Kent. The Dolphins would be led by Ahmed Amla next summer and would have the experience of players like Dale Benkenstein, Lance Klusener and Doug Watson. Hashim Amla, Andrew Hall and Shaun Pollock would also play for the Dolphins when available.Dolphins squad: Ahmed Amla (capt), Yusuf Abdullah, Dale Benkenstein, Quinton Friend, Robert Frylinck, Ugasen Govender, Imraan Khan, Lance Klusener, Johann Louw, Saidi Mhlongo, Tyron Pillay, Darryn Smit, Kyle Smit, Morne van Vuuren, Doug Watson. Cricket South Africa contracted players: Hashim Amla, Andrew Hall, Shaun Pollock.

Boeta Dippenaar will lead a 14-man South Africa A squad on a short tour of Zimbabwe that includes two four-day matches in Harare and Bulawayo.It is a strong squad, with Andre Nel, Charl Langeveldt and Andrew Hall among 10 players with international experience.Ashwell Prince will join the squad after the funeral of his grandmother. He misses the first match in Harare and will meet up with the team for the second four-day match in Bulawayo.The first four-day game will be played from August 9-12 and the second from August 15-18.Squad Boeta Dippenaar (capt), Yusuf Abdullah, Hashim Amla, Friedel de Wet, Andrew Hall, Paul Harris, Imran Khan, Charl Langeveldt, Andre Nel, Justin Ontong, Alviro Petersen, Ashwell Prince, Thami Tsolekile (wk), Morne van Wyk

Andrew Flintoff has been made available for Lancashire’s Twenty20 squad for the finals day at Edgbaston this weekend.Flintoff, who returned to action after ankle surgery this week, batted and bowled during the County Championship fixture against Sussex at Liverpool, and has been included in a 16-man Lancashire squad.Lancashire’s first match will be against Gloucestershire in the first of the semi-finals, and their captain, Mark Chilton, was excited at the prospect of taking part in the day.”Everyone at Lancashire is looking forward to the chance of winning a trophy, particularly the Twenty20 Cup which is so popular with both players and spectators.”Andrew Flintoff looks like he is back after bowling some overs in our Championship match this week, and could be a key player for us on Saturday.”James Anderson has also been released from England duty and will turn out for Lancashire before returning to the national squad ahead of the third Test against India at The Oval.