England’s prospects of staging a surprise turnaround from CB Series passengers to finalists have improved with Michael Vaughan expected to open against New Zealand at the Gabba on Tuesday.Vaughan has missed five matches since tearing a hamstring in Hobart, but he batted twice in the nets in the team’s final training session for the knock-out contest in Brisbane. “He seemed fine in practice and I’m sure he will be fine,” Andrew Strauss, the No. 4, said.England were due to finalise their team at a meeting on Monday night with Vaughan due to come in for Mal Loye and Paul Collingwood to return after missing the 92-run win over Australia on Friday with an illness.While New Zealand have concerns over Kyle Mills, John Bracewell, the coach, was “delighted” Shane Bond would be fit to face England after taking part in the five-wicket loss to Australia in Melbourne on Sunday. New Zealand had been avoiding using Bond in consecutive games due to his recovery from a back injury, but Bracewell felt it was time to “up the ante”. “He wanted to push it a bit by playing back-to-back,” Bracewell said, “and he’s really pleased with the way he’s come through.”England were so bad over the first three-quarters of the tournament that they were planning to fly out on Wednesday – they still might – but their success on Friday ended New Zealand’s easy run into the best-of-three finals, which start in Melbourne on Friday. “The times we got 120 and 110 were depressing for us, but that win was much overdue and made a massive difference,” Strauss said. “There’s a buoyancy about the guys and we’re all really excited about the prospect of winning this game.”While England do not have a workout after this tournament until the warm-up stage of the World Cup, New Zealand have the fallback of the Chappell-Hadlee Series against Australia if they are knocked out on Tuesday. “[A loss] would hurt in the short term, but in the big-picture context, with three games to go against Australia regardless of the outcome of this, we are going to get sufficient cricket leading up to the World Cup,” Bracewell said. “In terms of continued momentum, riding that wave, those little edges are important. We’d be disappointed to lose.”

Michael Vaughan insisted England did not have a drinking culture, despite the late-night incidents that led to the fining of six players and Andrew Flintoff’s dumping from the side. Flintoff was also stripped of the vice-captaincy for the World Cup after allegedly capsizing a pedalo at 4am on Saturday in the hours following England’s six-wicket loss to New Zealand.James Anderson, Ian Bell, Jon Lewis, Paul Nixon and Liam Plunkett were fined by team management for drinking into the early hours of the same morning, while Flintoff was fined and dropped for England’s match against Canada, which they won by 51 runs. Nasser Hussain, Vaughan’s predecessor as captain, hinted at a drinking problem within the squad but Vaughan said the episode was a one-off.”I don’t see a drinking culture within this England team,” Vaughan told . “I see a little bit of immaturity on Friday night and a little bit of a lack of common sense. It was a big mistake and a bad mistake but I don’t see any drinking culture within the England cricket team.”We knew we lost the big game against New Zealand, we knew we were playing Canada on Sunday. We know how hard it is to play two games in three days in this kind of heat and we just didn’t use common sense.”Vaughan said Flintoff’s actions were unfortunate. “He’s angry with himself for what he did,” Vaughan said. “He and I want him playing cricket for England. I wanted him out there entertaining the crowd today. The World Cup wants to see the best players.”Flintoff will be available for England’s final group match against Kenya on Saturday and Vaughan hoped the side could give some joy to the England fans. “There’s nothing that can repay what they did but hopefully a victory today, and us winning next Saturday and a decent run in the World Cup will be the only way we can say sorry to the supporters,” Vaughan said.”The supporters have been let down. They want to see the England cricket team focused on what is a massive tournament.”Vaughan said England’s inability to bowl Canada out was not a serious concern and their focus was now on beating Kenya. “We are the first to admit that there’s areas of the batting we need to improve, areas of fielding, and some of our bowling was a bit erratic at times” he said.”But the most important thing today was about winning. It’s going to be a hard game [on Saturday]. We want to be in the World Cup for a few weeks yet. We have to make sure we unite as a team and work hard this week leading into that Kenya game.”

.Today I informed the President of the BCCI that I would not seek an extension to my contract to coach the Indian cricket team for family and personal reasons.Firstly, I would like to extend my thanks to the BCCI for allowing me the honour of coaching the Indian cricket team over the past 22 months. It is, and it remains, one of the most challenging coaching positions in world cricket.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.To the media, my thanks also for constantly forcing me to question myself, my thinking and the way I went about my job of guiding the team through the many tests that we faced.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. 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.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. 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.I am also grateful for the opportunity to extend my knowledge and awareness of this region and for the wonderful friends that I have made here. I look forward to continuing my contact with India in the coming years and I wish Indian cricket and all those involved with it much joy and success in the future.

Marcus Trescothick, the England and Somerset batsman, made an astonishing return today with a rollicking 256 from just 117 balls in a pre-season friendly against Devon.Making his comeback after a winter recovering from the stress-related illness which forced him home from England’s Ashes tour, Trescothick hit 19 sixes and 25 fours on his home ground at Taunton, in Somerset’s vast 502 for 4 from their 50 overs.”It was phenomenal batting. We dropped him on 70 and then he went absolutely beserk,” Devon’s Robert Dawson told BBC Sport. “There were very short boundaries on three sides but it was an incredible effort. Quite a few of the sixes went 100 yards although a few were lobbed over the short side.”It was an incredible display of hitting, it really was. It’s just a shame he was playing against us and not against Australia.”In addition to his stress-related illness, Trescothick underwent a double hernia operation last month in Manchester which, as his innings today demonstrated, was a success and ought not prevent him playing in the opening matches of Somerset’s season.”Along with [Kevin] Pietersen, he’s by far and away our best player,” Dawson added. “Ed Joyce wouldn’t have got 250 against us today. You can’t express how much England have missed him.”

Today was one of Chennai’s less cruel summer days. Although the humidity levels remained high enough to drain the moisture out of you, the sun played hide and seek behind cloudy skies. That said, playing cricket in such weather is tough. Fast bowling in such conditions is tougher and if you’re a big and burly quick with a long run-up and heavy landing, you’re really in for a tough time. But Dilhara Fernando shrugged it all off saying: “It was really hot and was sweaty but we are used to such conditions back home in Sri Lanka.”Fernando hadn’t played the first game at Bangalore because Mashrafe Mortaza was preferred as the third seamer. Brought in for that role today, his responsibility was magnified when Zaheer Khan picked up a niggle after bowling just 2.4 overs. At the 2007 World Cup, Fernando wasn’t picked for Sri Lanka’s first two games against Bermuda and Bangladesh but when he got his chance against India, he delivered a knock-out punch by bowling Sachin Tendulkar for a duck. Today, he used the bouncer, the slower ball that he disguises so cleverly, and the yorker to lethal effect while bagging 4 for 36.Fernando has had trouble controlling the white new ball and perhaps that was why Mahela Jayawardene bowled a couple of overs when Zaheer went off the field, bringing Fernando on only as second change. Fernando kept the ball full in his first over, and tested Vusi Sibanda with a yorker. He produced another boot-crusher to Boeta Dippenaar early in the 13th over, which was dug out for a single. When Sibanda took strike for the next ball, he probably expected another one aimed at the toe, only to be caught unawares by a deadly bouncer.Pitched short on leg stump, it wasn’t short enough to allow the batsman to evade it calmly. Sibanda had backed away towards leg stump but saw the ball rise sharply towards his helmet. With a sharp jolt, he arched out of the way and as he did so, lost balance and fell to the ground. Visibly shaken, he prepared to face Fernando again.Instead of being predictable and following up with a yorker, Fernando bowled another short ball. Sibanda was late on the pull and top-edged it to Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Two balls later, a 140 km/hr in-cutter burst through Justin Kemp’s defence and pegged back the off stump.Throughout his spell, Fernando used the heavy ball to gain the extra bit of bounce that unsettled batsmen on a placid pitch. To ensure that he didn’t get too predictable, he varied pace and length regularly. He disguises his slower ball cleverly by spreading his fingers wide on either side of a vertical seam, while delivering it with no perceptible change in action. He set up Mark Boucher with a slow yorker, and followed it up with another slower ball that wasn’t as full. Boucher gotunder it, was too early on the lofted drive and hit it straight to long-on.Fernando then bowled Johan Botha to finish with 4 for 36 off ten overs. Given the heat, an unhelpful pitch and the fact that both teams scored over 300, it was an exemplary performance.

Former Pakistan fast bowler Aaqib Javed will offer specialised coaching and expert opinion to a group of select fast bowlers at the Grameenphone Pacer Hunt Phase Three camp.Aaqib, who was the coach of the world-cup winning Pakistan U-19 team in 2006, will arrive in Dhaka on Monday and will work with the pacers at the camp on the technical and non-technical aspects of fast bowling. He also serves as coach of the National Cricket Academy in Pakistan and accompanied the Pakistan Academy team on their tour of Bangladesh last month.Until Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) decision to opt for a foreign coach, Aaqib was one of the front runners to be appointed as Bob Woolmer’s successor.He will be there at the camp at the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protisthan (BKSP) from June 25 to June 28.

Having complained privately over the last year about playing crucial matches on lively, green pitches, Pakistan are now hoping more of the same will be on offer in South Africa for the Twenty20 World Championship in September.Pakistan were poleaxed by South Africa in the Champions Trophy in Mohali last year on an unusually lively pitch. In the first round of the World Cup earlier this year, they were outfoxed by Ireland on a grassy surface. Both results led to some players and officials complaining of a conspiracy of sorts against Pakistan by the ICC but with their pace attack likely to be back at full strength, they are keen for similar tracks.”We want to play on fast tracks,” Talat Ali, Pakistan manager, told . “All our top pacers are back and available for selection and we are confident that we will go to South Africa with a pace attack second to none.”Instead of worrying about their batsmen’s traditional inability to play on such surfaces, Talat believes Pakistan will look forward to letting their fast bowlers loose. “We have some of the best fast bowlers in the world in Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Sami and Umar Gul. If they make fast tracks I believe it will help us more than other teams.The batsmen are finding some form too; Salman Butt led the way with a century in one of the practice games that saw 371 runs scored in 40 overs. Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez have also been scoring runs in the practice games.It is likely now, however, that there will be only one practice match every other day during the camp, and not two, as was originally planned. Malik said players found it tough to maintain intensity levels after the first match in such difficult weather conditions.”We are planning to talk to officials about it and hope they will ease the schedule a bit. We were in full flow in the opening match of the day but by the time the second began most of us were feeling tired which is why the effort wasn’t the same.”

Ireland 210 for 8 (Morgan 51, Bukhari 3-45) beat Netherlands 209 for 6 (Bukhari 71) by one run
Scorecard

Ireland revived memories of their nerve-jangling World Cup successes against Pakistan and Bangladesh, as Kevin O’Brien turned certain defeat into an incredible one-run win, keeping his cool in the final over of the match against Netherlands at Stormont.After winning the toss and batting first on a sluggish pitch, Ireland posted an adequate but unimposing total of 210 for 8, thanks to Eion Morgan’s determined 51 from 112 balls, and a late burst of violence from Dave Langford-Smith, who clubbed three sixes in his 13-ball 31 not out. But it never looked like being enough as Netherlands cruised to 192 for 3 with five overs remaining.Then, however, O’Brien began to turn the tide. Peter Borren and Eric Szwarczynski had added 33 for the fourth wicket before Szwarczynski was excellently caught at chest height in O’Brien’s followthrough. Borren then holed out to midwicket without addition, and Ireland’s juices began to flow.With 16 needed from three overs, Geert-Maarten Mol was run out by the ever-alert Ken Carroll at mid-off, and the small crowd of fifty-odd spectators roared in approval. Billy Stelling slashed Andre Botha down to third man for a tension-relieving boundary but seven runs were still needed from the final over.O’Brien began with two dot balls before Stelling hammered the third to extra cover for a single. Hendrik-Jan Mol then, incredibly, decided to shoulder arms with six still needed from three deliveries, and his folly was exacerbated when O’Brien fielded his next delivery superbly in his followthrough. Though Mol managed to finish with a four to reduce the deficit, the match had effectively been won and lost.Ireland coach Phil Simmons was delighted with the character hisside showed. “I think it’s one of those things,” he said, “where inKenya we probably would have lost. So it does show we’ve made a stepforward, and we are able to win games – and the brilliant last sixovers from Kevin O’Brien and Andre Botha saw us through.”And although Netherlands did appear to panic, Simmons was quick topraise his bowlers – particularly O’Brien whose control in thedying overs strangled Netherlands’ intent. “I think there was a lot ofskill involved,” he said. “If you watch the last six overs, as far as I’mconcerned it was top-class death bowling – particularly from Kevin; hewas always hard to hit over the top. But at the same time, there was abit of luck, – they were cruising, and then they panic. If you panicin this game, you lose.”The result was hard luck on Netherlands’ main man, the Pakistan-born Mudassar Bukhari, who chipped in with three wickets in Ireland’s innings before launching the run-chase with a classy 71 from 114 balls. He was eventually run out by Kyle McCallan’s accurate return from the deep and Baz Zuiderent followed six overs later for 36, but Netherlands still seemed to be firmly on course. O’Brien and his team-mates decided otherwise.

Zimbabwe will wait until the last minute before naming their starting line-up for their first four-day match against South Africa A in Harare which starts on Thursday after a flu virus struck most of the squad.Vusi Sibanda, Tino Mawoyo, Edward Rainsford, Tawanda Mupariwa and Graeme Cremer are all suffering. Sources have indicated that only Cremer and Rainsford are serious while the rest could play. It is thought the players were infected as the team travelled from Bulawayo to Harare last week.In the event that Cremer is not available, left-arm spinner Keith Dabengwa or legspinner Tymicen Maruma are likely to replace him. Mupariwa, who did not play against India A is most likely to take up Rainsford’s slot.A change in the batting order seems imminent with left-hander Terry Duffin sure to replace the out-of-form Mawoyo who failed to make an impression in the twomatches against India A. Duffin and Sibanda should open the batting with Hamilton Masakadza dropped to No. 3. Tatenda Taibu, Stuart Matsikenyeri and Elton Chigumbura are set to complete the batting order.Zimbabwe face an uphill task against South Africa A as their neighbours have sent a strong squad for the two first-class matches.

The Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association has again delayed its reconvened AGM after some member clubs complained that they had not received the necessary notification.The original AGM in July – the first for three years – was a stormy affair at which clubs refused to pass the accounts or the chairman’s report. A follow-up meeting was due to be held in mid September but was cancelled by the executive.That was rescheduled for October 8 but last week Cricinfo was told by some Nairobi clubs that they had either not received formal notification or that they had but not in time for them to submit agenda items.It is not clear whether the elections will be held in accordance with the old constitution. The NPCA agreed in May 2005 to amend its constitution in accordance with the new one adopted by Cricket Kenya and the two other functioning provinces – Coast and Rift. However, this has not been done and a promised review of the constitution appears to be delayed by lawyers.