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Australia overwhelmed England by 384 runs in just four days in the first Ashes Test at the Gabba. After declaring their second innings at 296 for five, setting England the mammoth total of 464 runs to win, Australia bowled the tourists out for just 79 in 28.2 overs.Man-of-the-Match Matthew Hayden set up and helped to complete Australia’s victory. The left-hander destroyed England’s attack with 197 and 103, but it was his two catches in the field, which broke the back of England.Too much emphasis should not be placed on Hayden as the Australians, as ever, rallied and worked together to set up the definitive victory. Glenn McGrath (4/34) started the rot, trapping Michael Vaughan leg before wicket before he dashing opener had scored. Jason Gillespie (1/13) combined with wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist to remove Marcus Trescothick (1) for the sixth time.The athletic Gilchrist dived to his left, taking the catch one handed to swing the momentum Australia’s way. England were three for two. Captain Nasser Hussain (11) and Mark Butcher (40) delayed the inevitable while they saw off Gillespie, tea and the shine of the new ball.But tea signalled the beginning of the end. Hussain nudged at a ball wide of the off stump from McGrath, edging to Ricky Ponting. Shane Warne (3/27) then bowled a ball down the leg side that missed everything, but Justin Langer, running round from fine leg, fired the ball in to Gilchrist who threw down the stumps to run John Crawley out for a duck after a late call.Alec Stewart completed a pair as he was out first ball, slashing Warne to Hayden at slip, who juggled the ball before raising his arms in jubilation once again. England had now crumbled to 35 for five and had lost three wickets for 18 runs in half an hour’s play. Craig White (13) and Butcher rotated the strike and hit the odd boundary, but not even the class of the all-rounder or the guile of Butcher could save England.White cut to a diving Hayden at fifth slip to give McGrath his 50th Test wicket at the Gabba. Ashley Giles (4) got a thick outside edge with Gilchrist doing the rest, leaving England at 74 for seven. Warne joined McGrath on 50 Brisbane wickets when Butcher tried to push a delivery to leg, giving Ponting a regulation catch. Andrew Caddick (4) and Matthew Hoggard (1*) adding five to the total before Caddick, trying to sweep Warne popped the ball high into the air for Darren Lehmann.It was the relentless aggression shown by Australia that did for England. Great bowling and good catching fuelled the momentum, while poor batting and a silly run out contributed to the tourists’ demise.Earlier in the day, Hayden, Gilchrist (60*) and Damien Martyn (64) enabled Australia’s declaration. Hayden scored his second century of the match, and Steve Waugh (12) declared to give Australia an hour at England before tea.Hussain, who admitted it was a mistake to bowl first, will have to regroup his side ahead of the second Test in Adelaide, starting Thursday fortnight. Before then England travel to Tasmania to take on Australia A in a three-day match.To add to England’s troubles, Simon Jones and Darren Gough are both returning to England and will take no further part in the series.

Jagmohan Dalmiya has been elected president of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), a position from which he was unseated in December 2006 following charges of embezzlement. Dalmiya, a former president of both the ICC and the BCCI, defeated the incumbent, Prasun Mukherjee, to secure a seat on the Indian board.Dalmiya won by 71 votes to 47, an overwhelming margin for someone virtually out of cricket for the past 18 months. His supporters also swept the polls for the other positions, including those of secretary and treasurer.”Cricket in the state needs me, that’s why I’m back,” Dalmiya told the , a Kolkata-based daily. “I’ll require a couple of days to sit down with colleagues and then chalk out plans. Initially, I wanted to make a comeback so that I could emerge without a blemish, but that changed once Bengal got relegated to the Plate Division in the Ranji Trophy. Nothing personal is a priority. Today, there’s much work to do.”The election has created interest far beyond Kolkata, because of Dalmiya’s bitter and long-running rivalry with the current BCCI administration. The charges of embezzlement – relating to the 1996 World Cup, and for which he was arrested before being released on bail – were levelled by the BCCI after Sharad Pawar took over as president. Dalmiya had used his casting vote to help his nominee, Ranbir Singh Mahendra, defeat Pawar in the BCCI presidential election in 2004. On Tuesday night, Pawar said Dalmiya’s win was an “internal matter”.Mukherjee – Dalmiya’s opponent in this election – had been part of Pawar’s camp within the board. The last time the two fought each other in an election, in 2006, Mukherjee had the backing of Pawar and the state’s chief minister but lost to Dalmiya by one vote. The embezzlement charge led to Dalmiya being expelled from the BCCI and forced to resign from the CAB post, which then fell to Mukherjee.Dalmiya challenged the expulsion in the Kolkata High Court and, in July 2007, the court stayed the decision and allowed him to contest elections. The stay came too late for last year’s CAB elections but his return to the fray this year was always on the cards.Dalmiya’s campaign was helped by a general decline in Bengal cricket, of which the lowest point was the Ranji team’s relegation from the Elite group. The Mukherjee administration had also seen several glitches, the most glaring and embarrassing being during the first IPL match at Eden Gardens, when the floodlights failed. Mukherjee had suffered a personal embarrassment too several months ago when he was forced to step down as the city’s police chief following a controversial murder case.Mukherjee, however, said the result was unexpected. “The members wanted Dalmiya back and this mandate is overwhelmingly in his favour,” Mukherjee said. “I have nothing to say and I congratulate Dalmiya and wish him all the best.”But this result is unexpected for me and I have not really understood why this happened. I don’t want to go into the reasons.”Since his ouster from the CAB in 2006, Dalmiya spent time fighting various legal battles relating to cricket; apart from the embezzlement case, being heard in a Mumbai metropolitan court, he has filed perjury charges against Pawar, his successor Shashank Manohar and BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah. He has also been the subject of investigations by the state government over irregularities in his tannery business.The Dalmiya panel: Jagmohan Dalmiya (president), Biswarup Dey, Arun Mitra (joint-secretaries), Samar Kar, Shib Kumar Kalyani, Shibaji Dutta (vice-presidents), Bablu Ganguly (treasurer).

The Australians continued where they left off against Pakistan, knocking over the Kenyans for a paltry 84. The most noticeable thing about the Australian team is that they never let the opposition off the hook, not relaxing in the field for even one moment. Their commitment in the field is unmatched by any other side, and that really adds to the very disciplined approach of their bowlers. What sets them apart from Pakistan is that they come into every game with a plan, and more often than not, it is executed perfectly.While it would have been understandable for them to have taken the Kenyans lightly, they came out with a full strength side and showed a tremendous level of professionalism. That is the hallmark of their game, the fact that they take each game seriously, and do not believe in resting on their laurels.If one analyses their performances on the field, it is like the working of a well oiled machine, disciplined and coordinated in every aspect. Their bowlers bowl in the slightly short of good length region, on or outside off stump, and let the opposition make all the mistakes. Their line and length is immaculate which means they are virtually impossible to get away, and the slightest of error by the batsman means he nicks the ball into a well-patrolled slip cordon. The Pakistanis on the other hand lack patience, looking to bowl a magical delivery each time; hence they try too many things and get punished. Wasim and Waqar are tremendous bowlers, but are often guilty of not bowling to their field, and each time they stray in length or width, top level batsman cash in.The second aspect of the Australian effort in the field that must be applauded is their quick changeovers. All the fielders hustle through and are ready for the next over within a matter of moments. This has a two-fold effect, firstly ensuring they are never behind the over rate and second, getting through the overs quickly means that the opposition batsman are never allowed to settle. The Pakistan team on the other hand wastes time in the change between overs, lazily trotting through to their positions. They get away with this when bowling second, but when asked to bowl first, they often face the dilemma of having a few overs docked. Afridi is possibly the only bowler who rushes through his overs, and manages to cover for the atrocious rate of the others.Another aspect that the Australians are head and shoulder above the Pakistanis is the extras or rather the lack of it. While it is customary to see Pakistan giving away at least 20 wides and no balls per match, the Aussies are highly disciplined and a no-ball or wide is rare. While wides are sometimes excusable if the ball is moving about, as it is was in Kenya, no-balls are inexcusable. All it requires is some discipline in the nets, if the over stepping habit is checked there it will not creep up in matches either. Even worse is the fact that the main culprit is Wasim Akram, the most experienced of the Pakistan bowlers.While the Pakistani cricket fans must accept that our fielding standards cannot match the Aussies, at least for now, the bowling effort can certainly be disciplined if more effort is put in. In the meantime we have to hope that the batsman will get their act together, and then only can we expect to challenge Australia on a regular basis and particularly leading up to the World Cup.

“I am an astrologer, but I am not predicting,” was SrinivasVenkataraghavan’s guarded comment on the eve of the Indian tour of theWest Indies in 1989. The former Indian captain was now the manager ofthe squad, and he had been asked for his views on the team’s chances.

Actually it did not need an astrologer – amateur or professional – topredict the result of the four-match Test series and five one-dayinternationals. The disparity between the two teams was so wide thatalmost anyone could have predicted a rout for the tourists. And thatis exactly how the tour ended, with the West Indies winning the Testseries 3-0, in addition to making a clean sweep of the limited-oversmatches.Looking back on the tour 13 years later, it is difficult to believethat any other result was possible. The West Indies, despite theretirement over the last few years of stars like Clive Lloyd, AndyRoberts, Joel Garner, Michael Holding and Larry Gomes, were still theleading team in the world. Players like Richie Richardson, CarlHooper, Gus Logie, Keith Arthurton, Curtly Ambrose, Ian Bishop andCourtney Walsh had stepped in to effectively breach the gap created bythe exit of the stalwarts. Besides, experienced superstars like VivianRichards, Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Malcolm Marshall and JeffDujon were still very much around.With their abysmal record abroad, the Indians became the proverbiallambs to the slaughter. Little went right for them. Both the battingand bowling presented problems, and teamwork and the fighting spiritwere missing. Dilip Vengsarkar lacked the leadership qualities toinspire the side, compounding the unhappy scenario by his uncharitablecomments against his teammates in a magazine interview towards the endof the tour.What was left to savour, then, were a few individual performances, butthese were hardly enough to test the home team, who romped home bymargins of eight wickets, 217 runs and seven wickets after the rainaffected first Test at Georgetown ended in a draw. Indeed, there wasplay only on the first two days of the game, making it the worstaffected by weather in the Caribbean side’s history.Over the next three Tests, the Indians encountered the full weight ofthe West Indian supremacy. The home batsmen scored runs handsomely,while the bowlers gave the Indians a torrid time. Players of thecalibre and experience of Mohammad Azharuddin, Kapil Dev, Arun Lal andVengsarkar were sitting ducks for the pace attack of Marshall, Bishop,Walsh and Ambrose. On the faster and bouncier tracks, they wereshocking failures, lacking both the guts and technique required tocounter the fiery pace of the quartet.The three exceptions were Navjot Singh Sidhu, Sanjay Manjrekar andRavi Shastri. To an extent, the trio displayed courage and the righttemperament, and each was rewarded with a Test hundred which, giventhe strong opposition, was a commendable feat. In addition, Sidhu, bygetting 286 against Jamaica, registered the highest first-class scoreby an Indian outside India, surpassing Polly Umrigar’s 252 not outcompiled against Cambridge University in 1959.If the batting lacked fight, the bowling, woefully inadequate, wasunable to withstand the might of the West Indian batting. Kapilploughed a lonely furrow, as his figures of 18 wickets at 21.50 apiecewill testify. Arshad Ayub, in his own restrictive way, was fairlyeffective. The Hyderabad off-spinner was rewarded for his toil withtwo five-wicket hauls.Chetan Sharma and Ravi Shastri, however, could make no impression,while Narendra Hirwani was the biggest disappointment of the tour. Thebespectacled leg-spinner had come to the Caribbean with a highreputation. Not only had he set a world record by taking 16 for 136 onhis Test debut against the same opponents at Madras a little over ayear earlier, he also had a total haul of 36 wickets in his first fourTests.But in the three Tests he played, Hirwani was simply blasted out ofshape, illustrated by his figures of six wickets at 57.50 apiece.Richards had promised revenge after the humiliation the West Indieshad suffered at the hands of Hirwani on an under-prepared Chepaukpitch, saying, “I have a long memory, maan.” At the end of the series,there was little doubt that he had exacted it in style.To some extent, the Indians were handicapped when vice captainKrishnamachari Srikkanth was hit on the right hand by a ball fromBishop in the final one-day international, played just before thefirst Test. The sickening blow resulted in a broken bone,necessitating the withdrawal of the swashbuckling opening batsman fromthe rest of the tour. Given his capacity to counter-attack the fastbowling threat in his own inimitable buccaneering manner, Srikkanthhaving to miss the Test series was a major blow for the Indians.However, the reasoning that he would have made a marked difference tothe final result must be open to doubt.

Matt Swarbrick blazed a magnificent 143 as Bournemouth kept leading ECB Southern Electric Premier League duo BAT Sports and Havant within their sights with a nine-wicket mauling of South Wilts at Bemerton.Swarbrick simply savaged South Wilts’ depleted attack, dominating Bournemouth’s first double-century opening partnership for 15 years as the Sports Club maintained third place in Division 1.Ironically, he was bowled by Dorset team-mate Tim Lamb – so depleted was the South Wilts attack that the Dorset wicket keeper had to bowl 7.3 overs – one short of Luke Ronchi’s season’s best 144 for Bashley against Calmore Sports the previous week.But, by the time he was dismissed, Bournemouth were 217-1 and well on course to pass South Wilts’ 229 all out.His opening stand with teenager Tom Webley, who carried his bat for a patient 70, was Bournemouth’s Southern League highest since Richard Scott hit 164 in a 231-run partnership with David Nesbitt in 1987 …. ironically, also against South Wilts !Bournemouth scored two immediate blows after Swarbrick had won the toss on a strip that provided assistance to the bowlers during the morning session.Left-armer Mark Mixer (3-55) had Jamie Glasson caught behind and then Tom Caines, a Dorset occasional several seasons ago, was run out at 13-2.Paul Draper (65) battled away and, after support from Jon Nash (23), Rob Wade (30) and Lamb, was fifth out at 138-5.By then, Jo Wilson’s on-the-spot bowling had begun to take effect – the balding Liverpudlian finishing with 5-66, including the scalps of Lamb (48) and Russell Rowe (23) as South Wilts slowly sank to 229 all out.When South African left-armer Shaun Adam suffered a back injury, South Wilts were left high and dry with barely any penetrative bowling.And how Bournemouth – and Swarbrick in particular – cashed in.The Dorset opener peppered the Bemerton boundaries on the way to a SL best 143 – his previous highest was 138 against Winchester in 1996 – as Bournemouth romped home in 42 overs.Somerset hopeful Webley, anxious to spend time in the middle, was happy to hit a circumspect 70.South African Christof Bothma returned a season’s best 5-33 as Calmore Sports crushed Andover, the early season pace-setters, by 139 runs at Loperwood Park.Bothma, who spent last summer at the South African Academy near Johannesburg, ripped out Andover’s entire top order to have the visitors reeling at 20-4.There was no way back for Andover, who had earlier dismissed Calmore for 225.James Hibberd maintained the pressure for Calmore, who eventually bowled the visitors out for a disappointing 86.Calmore’s 225 was based around a second-wicket partnership between Mark Boston (35) and skipper Tom Pegler (79), who was able to play after missing his flight to a cousins wedding in Denmark.Pegler was eventually seventh out at 201.Although Gareth Tate (5-41) worked his way through the lower order, Calmore’s 225 was always too many.Bashley (Rydal) had to settle for a draw at Liphook & Ripsley, where the relegation strugglers finished at 197-7, 23 runs behind the visitors’ 220-9.The saturated Ripsley Park strip was hardly conducive to quick scoring and Bashley’s total owed much to second-wicket pair Neil Thurgood (89) and Graham Pardey (33), who added 113 in 37 overs.Luke Ronchi, with 45 off 36 balls, enlivened proceedings, but Bashley’s later batsmen perished in the pursuit of quick runs – Alan Crawford finishing with 5-61 and Tim Wheatley 4-62 before the visitors closed at 220-9.Hampshire YCs all-rounder Chris Wright (50) gave Liphook hope, but his dismissal at 94-2 effectively ended any prospect of a positive result.South African Alistair Gray didn’t appear to appreciate the need to hasten the pace and went on to bat the best part of the Liphook innings for an unbeaten 82.Spin duo Dale Middleton (3-74) and Andy Sexton, who earlier hit 21, bowled in tandem for long periods before Liphook’s reply ground to a halt at 197-7.Former Hampshire left-arm spinner Raj Maru was the inspiration behind Portsmouth’s 59-run win over relegation-threatened Burridge, who are back in bottom place.Maru hit a league best 74 and later took 4-47 as Portsmouth moved into a highest-ever fourth spot on the log.Maru and Geoff Pike (52) shared a century opening partnership as Portsmouth, with subsequent support from Lee Savident (28), Michael Barnes (25), Warren Swan (21) and Steve Mitchell (21), moved on to 241 all out.Simon Creal toiled away for Burridge, finishing with a career-best 8-81 off a marathon 20 overs.Burridge were seldom in the hunt, Jo Dixon (56) top scoring in an all-out total of 182 (Ben Thane 31) – Maru completing a fine match with 4-47 and Savident taking 3-21.

The slimmer Shane Warne has shown he could yet beat Muttiah Muralitharan to Test cricket’s most treasured bowling record with his marathon performance in his 100th Test.Warne’s match figures of 8-231 from 98 overs in the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town boosted his career haul to 444 wickets and pushed him closerto Courtney Walsh’s title of Test cricket’s leading wicket-taker.Sri Lankan Muralitharan (412 wickets from 73 matches) is the only bowler with a realistic chance of beating Warne to Walsh’s record of 519 wickets and the pairare locked in an intriguing race.Warne needs 76 wickets to pass Walsh – the same number of wickets the Australian leg-spinner has taken from his last 16 Tests.Muralitharan has claimed 121 wickets from his last 16 Tests and Warne expects the off-spinner to finish with more career wickets than him, even tipping him last week to reach 1000.But Warne can still become the first Australian since paceman Dennis Lillee to claim the top spot among the world’s bowlers, especially with his new dedication to fitness.Warne has never bowled as many overs in an innings or a Test but without him South Africa’s batsmen would have put Australia out of reach on a Newlands wicket doing nothing for the quicks.His 6-161 in the second innings came from 70 overs – the most bowled by an Australian in one innings in the last 24 years.”When I hit the 60-over mark it was like a big night out – you get your third and fourth wind,” Warne said.”It gets past midnight and when you get to two o’clock in the morning you get that third wind and you just start to find a bit extra.”There was plenty to like about Warne’s composed performance at Newlands, including the leading role in a collapse of 5-42 as he blunted South Africa’s disciplined comeback in the second innings.The Proteas were dismissed for 473 and openers Matthew Hayden (50 not out) and Justin Langer (58) pushed Australia within 200 runs of victory at 1-131, withone day remaining.”I was knackered but I knew we weren’t that far from knocking them over and another 10, 20, 30 runs would have made a huge difference,” Warne said.Warne had already ensured his 100th Test would be memorable by scoring his sixth highest score (63 from 65 balls) in between his bowling stints.The 32-year-old’s fitness has helped his recovery but he has taken no chances to ensure he sleeps well, moving into an adjoining hotel room to his young childrenBrooke, Jackson and Summer.”We’ve brought our nanny over so they’re sleeping in the next room and I’ve locked the doors and bolted it and put the chair up against it and they’ve been coming into the room about 7.30am,” Warne said.”It’s been great to have them here.”In your 100th Test you always want to do something a little bit special and I’m very happy with my effort of bowling 70 overs and getting six wickets and with the batting in the first innings.”

Somerset, who were runners up in Division One of the county championship in 2001, travel to Hove on Wednesday to face Sussex, the Division Two champions last season, for their opening first class match of 2002.Since the introduction of the two tier championship the counties have not met. The last time that Somerset played at Hove was in July 1998 and on that occasion they had to settle for seven bonus points in a high scoring draw, the feature of which was Adrian Pierson’s maiden century.The following season when Sussex came to Taunton the Cidermen scored 503 for 8 declared in their first innings, thanks to centuries from Jamie Cox and Piran Holloway, and were victorious by 8 wickets.Over the years Somerset have generally come off second best from their visits to the south coast. Of the 83 matches played away, Sussex have won 39 times compared to 19 Somerset victories, with 25 matches resulting in a draw.With fast bowler Steffan Jones fully recovered from the ankle injury he sustained last Monday at Millfield, Somerset coach Kevin Shine has named his strongest available side to make the journey.The full squad is: Jamie Cox, Matt Wood, Mike Burns, Peter Bowler, Keith Parsons, Ian Blackwell, Rob Turner, Keith Dutch, Richard Johnson, Matt Bulbeck, Steffan Jones and twelfth man Simon Francis.Kevin Shine told me: "With Steffan Jones being declared fully fit after bowling in the nets today we are going into our opening championship match with a strong side. The boys are desperate to get going and are champing at the bit."How were Somerset going to approach the match, I asked. The coach told me: "We will approach it in the same way that we have all of our matches this season, and play it hard. Sussex are a strong side and were the outstanding team in the second division last season. They have got a good attack with Lewry, Robinson and Kirtley, and they also have a strong batting line up with Montgomerie, Adams and Goodwin."Who would open the bowling I asked the coach. He told me: "We will probably open with Matt Bulbeck and Richard Johnson, who complement each other, and then Steffan will probably bowl from the same end that `Johnno’ does."After hearing about his selection Matt Bulbeck told me: "I’m very happy to be playing against Sussex. I’ve worked very hard right through the winter and it’s starting to pay off. Now I hope I can concrete my place in the team."All rounder Ian Blackwell, who enjoyed a career best season in 2001 told me: "Everyone is looking forward to the game. We are going to Hove looking for a result. There will be high expectations from us after all doing so well in the pre-season matches. Everyone is fit, including Matt Bulbeck, and we are going there looking forward to knocking them over."Keith Dutch, another player who enjoyed considerable success in 2001,told me: "We have started off well in our pre-season games and scored lots of runs. It will be interesting to see what kind of a pitch we get. I have never played a championship match at Hove so I’m really looking forward to it."

Having whitewashed England 3-0 at home, Sri Lanka was thwarted by Pakistan in the thriller of an opening game of the three-nation ARY Gold Cup. It was a close run thing, but eventually the Lankan challenge to a modest Pakistan total of 255 fizzled out, by a mere 16 runs. The new Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis was an inspiration on the field. He led by example, bowling fast and taking wickets, four in all, but more importantly when it mattered most.Sharjah always has a rather refreshing effect on the Pakistanis, and Younis having a fresh start as captain, for the first time in his own right, couldn’t have wished for a better one. He won the toss and took crucial wickets, the most important of them being that of rival captain Sanath Jayasuriya in the very first over, to stop the Lankan run chase in its tracks.The Man of the Match award though went to Saeed Anwar, for his 90 off 117 deliveries, 10 short of what would have been his eighth hundred in the desert oasis, but still it was the highest innings of the match.It, however, was the Pakistan attack, which lived up to its reputation of defending whatever totals its batting line-up had built. And surely, it was 25 to 30 runs short of what they would have liked to put on the board considering the kind of start they had. The so-called slog-overs, the last 10 of the 50, had yielded only 56 with five wickets lost in the bargain.But a charged-up Waqar Younis made up for that, getting a wicket on his second ball, trapping the hard-hitting Jayasuriya leg before with a fast and straight one. The Lankans made a strong comeback through that pocket dynamo Romesh Kaluwitharana and a sedate Marvan Atapattu. Kaluwitharana did have his share of luck for the edges that flew off the bat, to the boundary as Younis quite inexplicably, took the slips off soon after the start. The diminutive Kaluwitharana however was quick to seize the initiative, and in association with Atapattu seemed to be taking the game out of Pakistan’s hands when the duo of off-spinners, Saqlain Mushtaq and his clone Shoaib Malik were introduced into the attack. Young Malik, who had played a little cameo with the bat, contributing a quicksilver 24 off only 20 deliveries and was nimble-footed in the field too, provided the breakthrough by getting Atapattu stumped by Humayun Farhat, the debutant `keeper’s first scalp. Bowling tidily, he accounted for Kaluwitharana as well; clean bowling him when he seemed to be destined for greater things. Three for 101 in the 23rd over, and Pakistan had partially swung it back.From then on wickets kept falling at regular intervals, with Shahid Afridi’s fastish leg-spin bowling sending back Mahela Jayawardene and Kumara Sangakkara. Russel Arnold and Indika de Saram in a 50 run stand partially swung it back in Sri Lanka’s favour, taking the score to 201 in a stand of 50 for the sixth wicket. Younis brought himself back at this stage, and his leg-cutter bowled Arnold, and his straight one on the last delivery of the 44th over proving too good for Muralitharan. Younis for good measure dealt the next vital blow by clean bowling de Saram and though Chaminda Vass tried to make a fight of it, Saqlain made sure that nothing untoward happened by taking the last two wickets in the penultimate over.Younis definitely had his say, but the three spinners – Saqlain Mushtaq, Shoaib Malik and Shahid Afridi – definitely had a big hand in ensuring Pakistan’s triumph.It generally was good for the spinners, for the trio of the Lankan spinners too had set Pakistan back after a rather decent start once Younis had won the toss and quite predictably elected to bat on the placid batting track. The toss was not the only thing that went right for Pakistan to begin with. Soon the openers, Saeed Anwar and Shahid Afridi, were stroking the ball to all parts of the park.Returning from a groin injury that had ruled him out of the recent Test series against the Black Caps, Anwar seemed to be in sublime touch and started off by hitting Nuwan Zoysa for a couple of boundaries in the second over to get the innings going. Then he was dropped by Atapattu, at 18, a straightforward chance at mid-off. That drop turned out to be a costly lapse as Anwar, on his lucky ground with seven of his 19 hundreds coming here, made the Lankans pay for it.Afridi on the other end was quite visibly trying to be patient, spacing his characteristic lofted drives with singles and defensive strokes. But having made 21 off 18 deliveries, his principal strokes being two fours and a six, off Zoysa and clouted out of the ground at midwicket, he tried to clear the infield, and holed out. Young debutant Imran Farhat too didn’t last long. That brought Inzamam-ul-Haq in, and with Anwar at the other end, the two most seasoned Pakistani campaigners were at the crease. The two between them put on 88 runs for the third wicket when Inzamam went. Anwar and Younis Khan together tried to continue in the same vein but the former got bogged down in the quest for his 20th hundred. Then Anwar and Younis went in quick succession and it was a struggle for the remaining batsmen.They ultimately put on 255, quite a few less than they thought sufficient at that point, but it turned out to be otherwise in the end.

Former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe has described his cancer as “very treatable” and blamed the disease on the rigours of a touring lifestyle with New Zealand for two decades. Crowe, who has been diagnosed with grade two follicular lymphoma, said his immune system had weakened after suffering illnesses on certain tours, like when he picked up salmonella poisoning in Sri Lanka in 1984.”It is very treatable. It is not aggressive,” Crowe said in a statement. “Treatment will be decided in due course after further tests and consultation in the next two weeks.”In the past, on travels during my cricket career, suffering salmonella and glandular fever has compromised me. The result of a weakened immune system over the last two decades is basically why I have become exposed to this sort of disease.”Crowe took the setback in a positive spirit and thanked his well-wishers for their support. He said the cancer had affected the lymph nodes in his neck, armpits and stomach.”I am overwhelmed by the support and concern by so many around the world and wish to say a massive thanks… it has enabled me to come to terms with the shock from my recent lymphoma diagnosis faster,” he said. “My mindset and fierce focus has kicked in just like it did when approaching a long innings in a Test match. I will focus on the important things in front of me, and nothing else.”One of New Zealand’s most celebrated batsmen, Crowe, 50, had played 77 Tests between 1982 and 1995, before he was forced to quit international cricket due to a bad knee. He had briefly attempted to return to competitive cricket last November, saying that he considered it a means of self-motivation and a tool to get fit, but his comeback lasted just three balls, after he pulled a thigh muscle.