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Abdur Razzaq is the senior-most member in the Pakistan side after Inzamam-ul-Haq, and he appeared keen to accept that responsibility. Before Mohammad Kaif stole the show, it was Razzaq who had started off the fireworks on a bright Friday morning. At the press conference, he talked about the team’s performance, and his own form.On such a weak batting performance on the eve of the Test match
Our main motive was to get some practise from this game as we hardly had any practice back home after the Australia tour. We wanted the batsmen to get some hits and get acclimatised to the wicket. Our batting, that way, is powerful.On his own batting in the game
It felt nice to do well and get a fifty just before the Test series, and I look forward to how the wicket will be at Mohali.On his bowling
It was raining in Pakistan so I could hardly train, but I was steadily getting back to my rhythm today.On his role as an allrounder
Considering that we don’t have Shoaib Akthar in the bowling line-up and without any senior bowler, there is a big responsibility on me to do well and guide the youngsters.On how they expect to fare if given similar kind of pitches
The conditions are completely different for international games, and the players also adapt accordingly.

ICC Europe has announced the schedule and venues for the ICC European Division 1 Championship to be held in Ireland from July 25 to 31, 2008.The 50-over round-robin tournament will see Europe’s top six Associate and Affiliate countries – Denmark, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Scotland – fight it out for Europe’s top spot. Six cricket grounds will be used to host a total of 15 matches that will see each country come face to face over five days.Current European champions Ireland will be looking to retain their title on home soil, and their campaign will begin against tournament newcomer Norway at The Hills Cricket Club on July 25. ICC Affiliate Member Norway gained promotion to Division 1 after finishing top of Division 2 in 2006, overcoming second place Jersey, and other Associate members including France, Gibraltar and Israel. The other opening matches will see Denmark face Scotland at Malahide CC and Italy take on the Netherlands at North County CC.”Winning the European Championships and retaining the title is still a hugely important goal for Ireland,” said Cricket Ireland’s chief executive, Warren Deutrom. “Although last year’s World Cup success gave us an exciting glimpse of the world beyond, we still consciously compare ourselves to our European neighbours, particularly our counterparts in ICC’s High Performance Programme. If nothing else, the fierce competition among traditional rivals makes for highly competitive cricket which, in turn, helps raise the bar for European cricket.”

Western Australia have nominated Tom Hogan, the former left-arm spinner, for the national selection panel following Allan Border’s departure. Hogan, 48, played seven Tests and 16 ODIs before joining Trevor Hohns on a South Africa rebel tour in 1985-86, and became a Warriors selector in 2003.Hogan told ABC Online he was thrilled to be given a chance to giveWestern Australia a voice on the panel. “The age of the Australian team is obviously getting up to that degree you would imagine that in the future there would be a changing of the guard, so there will be interesting times on selection,” Hogan said.Ray Bright, another Test spinner, is hopeful of getting Victoria’s nomination. “There’s a position up for grabs so I’d be only too happy to be the Victorian representative, if they see fit,” Bright, who played 25 Tests from 1977 to 1986, said. Border resigned from his position of seven years on Wednesday.

With the cricket world’s attention on sledging after the controversial Sydney Test, former Australian captain Ian Chappell, Sri Lankan wicketkeeper-batsman Kumar Sangakkara and former Indian batsman Sanjay Manjrekar said the problem could be tackled if more power was given to on-field umpires, and called for players to act with more responsibility.”If you have a CEO who is not even in the country and not even in the ground trying to call in and say, ‘Well I saw this’, that is never going to work,” Sangakkara said during Cricinfo’s Round Table, a fortnightly audio show. “Even a match referee is quite far removed from where the action is. The two guys who are in charge are the umpires and they should be allowed to handle it as they see fit.”Chappell was critical of the ICC for undermining the authority of the on-field umpires. “[The ICC have] diluted the decision-making process of the umpires on the field and in doing that, they have diluted the authority of the umpires on the field. They have also put layers of officials between the umpires and the players.”The three thought that while banter on the field was always going to be present, there are lines which should not be crossed. Sangakkara said a player’s colour, race, country or family should not be dragged into the debate. Chappell agreed, “There is gamesmanship, which has always been around and there’s always place in the game for that. But there’s no path for personal abuse or inane chatter.”Sangakkara also stressed that incidents should be left on the field. “Players have to be very honest with themselves that if they do engage in gamesmanship and banter, that is always something you can leave on the field. You should not go running around and complaining to the media or to the match referees.”Manjrekar was of the opinion that television was also a contributing factor to players displaying more aggression on the field. “Some players have realised that if they behaved in a certain manner, if they said some things or glared at the opposition, they would get a lot of attention via the television cameras,” he said. “Obviously, this is the cricketer who perhaps doesn’t get enough wickets or runs to get the attention. So he realises: ‘If I behave in a certain fashion that is slightly over the top, I tend to get lot of attention’.” (Click here to listen to the show or read the transcript.)

Former West Indies coach Roger Harper has been appointed as Kenya’s new coach, replacing Andy Moles who quit almost a year ago.Harper, who will spearhead Kenya’s preparations for the 2007 World Cup, quit as manager of the West Indies Under-19 side last week. He was recently shortlisted for the Kenya post after a number of candidates, including a former coach of a Test-playing side, were interviewed by the Kenyan Cricket Association (KCA) and the ICC.”It was a tough decision, but I am looking forward to the challenge, looking forward to getting back on the coaching circuit with Kenya,” Harper said. “I’m delighted and very excited at the opportunity to work with a Kenya side that has a fair amount of talent. My objectives now are to get the best out of individual players and the team as a whole and to move Kenyan cricket forward.” He is expected to leave the Caribbean for Nairobi later this month.Kenya have been without a full-time coach since Moles walked out, but former Pakistan allrounder Mudassar Nazar has been filling the void. He was understood to have also been shortlisted for the post.Samir Inamdar, the KCA chairman, said Harper will bring many qualities to the role: “Roger’s coaching credentials are extremely impressive, not just in terms of working with players but also on the technology side of the game. Also, his attributes as a splendid player in all disciplines – batting, bowling and fielding – mean he has hands-on experience to help coach those aspects of the game.”One of the main problems facing Harper is that Kenya are finding it almost impossible to arrange fixtures against other leading countries. Even though the ICC is known to have contacted a number of major boards asking them to see if they can fit in games against the Kenyans, the response has been poor. It was hoped that three one-dayers against Bangladesh could be played in early February, but a senior Kenyan official admitted that the chances of that now happening were rapidly diminishing as there had been no contact from the Bangladesh board.Harper coached West Indies from 2000 through to the end of the 2003 World Cup, but it was a difficult period as the side adjusted to their diminishing status. Under his tenure they won nine and lost 19 of the 39 Tests they played.As an offspinner, he played 25 Tests and 105 ODIs for West Indies between 1983 and 1996 and was regarded as one of the greatest fielders of his generation.

Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss cemented their names in therecord-books with an opening stand of 273, to swing a topsy-turvy matchback in England’s favour on the third day at Kingsmead. And at the close,Trescothick, who eventually fell for 132, was a contented man.”That was a fantastic day,” said Trescothick, “but we can’t get too happyor relaxed just yet. We’ve got two huge days ahead of us, and tomorrow’sfirst session will be crucial and will probably dictate the way this gameis going. They are going to be two big days of Test cricket.”Although England have encountered some difficulties while going for theirshots so far on this tour, Trescothick and Strauss had no qualms abouttaking the attack to South Africa today, and the approach paid dividends.”The wicket was pretty good,” said Trescothick. “We’re both positiveplayers and we made the most of our opportunities. The pace was differenttoday. It didn’t zip off the pitch so much, although it still does a bitwith the new ball when the seam’s hard. If we get through that periodtomorrow, we need to make the most of it.”In the course of their innings, Trescothick and Strauss passed 1000 runsas an opening partnership, and Strauss himself is just 33 runs away fromreaching 1000 individual runs. “Watching from the other end, he makes itlook pretty easy,” admitted Trescothick. “People keep bumping him,throwing everything at him, but it doesn’t really faze him too much.”We communicate well,” added Trescothick. “We talk a lot, and it doesn’talways have to be about the cricket – it could be someone walking past, ora song someone’s singing. We don’t have to focus all the time, but justrelax and enjoy what’s going on. Of course, it depends on getting to knowyour team-mates and how they respond,” he added. “Nasser never said a wordwhen he came to the wicket, but Straussy and I have a joke and relax eachother.And Trescothick admitted that Strauss’s unflappable temperament has helpedhis own game as well. “Of course it does,” he said. “If you’re playingwith someone who’s a nervous wreck, it’s bound to affect the way you play.But he’s full of confidence and taking it all in his stride. And he’s beenlike that all through his career. He’s calm, and it’s helped him do sowell so quickly.”Trescothick added that Strauss’s personality was precisely what theEngland team needed. “He’s an easy guy to fit in, and he’s perfect forwhat we need at the moment. His attitude is spot on, he works hard and heknows what he wants. As a partnership, we’ve got on well since he cameinto the team, and since we know we are going in together every time, wemight as well enjoy it.”For Trescothick, today’s century was an important landmark, as he hasattractedcriticism for his inability to replicate his home form on overseas trips.”This is a huge step forward for me,” he admitted. “I’ve not necessarilyfound the answer, but today, mentally, it was a big step in the rightdirection.”And just to be involved today was a high,” he added. “It’s a nice feelingto fight back from a difficult period where we didn’t bat or bowlparticularly well. But it showed the character of the team, which issomething we’ve worked on all year. We never give up, and we keep fightingand improving.”As for England’s situation, Trescothick refused to get carried away by onegood day’s batting. “A lead of 550 would be nice,” he joked. “But we can’tget too far ahead, as tomorrow’s a huge morning. We need to getpartnerships going, and the scoring-rate going, and set our totals.”

Chris Silverwood, the former England seamer, is set to sign for Middlesex after being told he has no future with Yorkshire. Silverwood has two years left on his contract at Headingley, but has been allowed to look for opportunities elsewhere.According to the his early release from Yorkshire could result in a five-figure payout and means Silverwood will join the list of frontline pace bowlers to have left the county. In recent years Darren Gough, Ryan Sidebottom and Steve Kirby have moved on, leaving Yorkshire struggling for strike bowlers.However, they have signed Jason Gillespie for the 2006 season and are now aiming to build their attack around him, Tim Bresnan and Deon Kruis in their first season back in Division One of the County Championship.Silverwood has played six Tests for England, the most recent being on 2002-03 Ashes tour when he bolstered an injury-hit squad for the third Test at Perth. However, he played just six Championship matches in 2005, taking nine wickets at 53 apiece.

Despite another delay, the PCB reiterated its aim to implement the new constitution by the end of this month.Nasim Ashraf, chairman of the board, told reporters after an ad-hoc committee meeting in Islamabad that the board is yet to receive the draft constitution back from the President’s house, as it has yet to be approved by President Pervez Musharraf, who is also patron of the board.The PCB was expected to receive an approved draft copy ahead of its ad-hoc meeting but will not get it until next week now because the attorney general was away performing last month.The PCB has been run on an ad-hoc basis for over seven years now, since July 1999. Each chairman since has promised a speedy implementation of the constitution but has failed to do so.The committee did, however, approve a scheme for a monthly retirement-pension fund for players who represented the country before 1978. Pre-1978 Test and international cricketers will now be entitled to monthly income of Rs15,000, Rs20,000 or Rs25,000, depending upon the number of matches they played.It was also announced that the board will soon be hiring a candidate for the chief operating officer position, after holding a number of interviews with potential candidates.

Former England batsman Ian Ward has announced his retirement to pursue a career as a full-time cricket presenter and commentator.Ward, 33, was a key member of Surrey’s Championship-winning side between 1999 and 2002. He was rewarded with an England call-up in 2001, against Pakistan and Australia, but was quickly found out by Glenn McGrath, and failed to make an impression. He moved to Sussex in 2003 and was half-way through his contract. He hit 8575 first-class runs in a 14-year career.”I have really enjoyed my time at Sussex and the club have been very good to me,” he said. “I am disappointed I wasn’t able to make more of a contribution this year. I’d never missed a match through injury before so to miss so many games in the second half of the season was very frustrating.”Sussex are a great county to play for and I know I’ll miss it when the new season starts, especially the camaraderie in the dressing-room and the adrenaline rush you get as an opening batsman facing quick bowlers.”Ward has spent the last two winters as a presenter and commentator on Sky Sports. “Television provides its own challenges,” he said, “and I am really looking forward to developing my career in a different direction.”Ward’s departure follows that of Tim Ambrose, the wicketkeeper-batsman who joined Warwickshire last week. But Sussex, for their part, have no plans to replace either man with a big-name winter signing. “The cricket management [at Sussex] are highly confident of being able to fill the void with one of our own young players,” said Mark Robinson, the county’s professional cricket manager. “I have every faith and confidence in their ability to take up the challenge to prove themselves at this level.”

Liam Plunkett, the England fast bowler, hopes the use of modern technology can help his team-mates prepare for their World Cup opener against New Zealand on March 16 in St. Lucia. Mark Garraway, England’s team analyst, has ensured footage of practice and matches, including that of opponents, were transferred onto players’ iPods and games consoles, a decision fully endorsed by Plunkett.”When we are batting I can go on the computer and have a look at the wickets I’ve taken and the way I’ve bowled,” he said. “The good thing about Mark Garraway is that he’s put a lot of the video footage onto our iPods and our games consoles.”Plunkett said the technology was beneficial for batsmen and bowlers alike, but that not everyone would need the boost of watching themselves play. “That’s obviously a good thing before you go in for a bat and you want a confidence boost,” he said. “KP [Kevin Pietersen] might want to have a look at himself scoring a hundred or a fifty to give him that bit of confidence, not that he needs it.””If Belly [Ian Bell] wants to have a look at how [Daniel[ Vettori grips the ball or how Shane Bond is running in or mixing his slower balls up, he can do that.”While players from all leading teams have long been able to sit at a computer and study footage, Plunkett said the iPod transfer had “only happened in the last week”.New Zealand aside, England will play Canada and Kenya in Group C, but Plunkett chose to focus on what he termed “a massive game”. “It will set the standard for the way we play in the rest of the tournament. We beat them and been through lots of plans against them so we know what each player does. They’ve got two good spinners who will play a massive part [Vettori and Jeetan Patel] and Shane Bond bowls plenty of slow balls so he’ll be useful on these wickets.” The winner of the England-New Zealand match will carry two points through to the Super Eights.England are expected to rest at least one fast bowler from Plunkett, Sajid Mahmood, Jon Lewis and James Anderson for that game. “I finished well [in Australia] but Jimmy and Lewy bowled really well at the start of the one-day series,” Plunkett said. “It’s good for the team but I want to play every game, especially in a World Cup. We’ve been getting together and chatting about the wickets. It’s been really valuable having people like Lewy around who has played county cricket for a long time and knows a lot about his game.”