Warwickshire, the defending champions, relied upon a “mad 20 minutes” to subdue newly-promoted Derbyshire on the opening day of the season

Jon Culley at Edgbaston10-Apr-2013
ScorecardChris Wright removed both Derbyshire openers•PA Photos

It says something about the spring in Derbyshire’s step as they begin life as a Division One county that 226 all out after being put in by the County Champions left them feeling less that they had fared respectably well than that they might have done a little better.Having battled through a tough morning, one notable for Chris Wright, Warwickshire’s leading wicket-taker last summer, enhancing the good impression he made in the curtain-raiser against the MCC in Abu-Dhabi, Derbyshire were looking well set for a solid afternoon after Dan Redfern’s aggressive hitting had begun to unsettle the home side’s plans.Redfern knocked the county debutant, Oliver Hannon-Dalby, out of the attack and even ruffled Wright for an over or two but then came what Karl Krikken, Derbyshire’s head coach, described as “a mad 20 minutes” in which four wickets fell for 12 runs in the face of Jeetan Patel’s off-spin, two of which he was particularly unimpressed with as Redfern took a swing and missed a straight ball and Ross Whitely ended up on the seat of his pants, run out when Chesney Hughes changed his mind about a single to backward point.”We played really well at the start to get through three down for a hundred but unfortunately from there we had a mad 20 minutes where we lost four wickets and from there we were always fighting,” their coach, Karl Krikken said. “The guys down the order pulled out the stops to get us to 226 but we would have liked 50 more. It is a learning curve but whether you are playing against First Division or Second Division opponents that passage of play where we lost the wickets was poor.”Nonetheless, Derbyshire were aware that life among the elite would be a challenge with little room for error and this was a tough introduction, even against a Warwickshire side lacking Boyd Rankin and Keith Barker through injury and with Chris Woakes rested. Then again, Krikken agreed that there was no harm in knowing the scale of the challenge right from the off.He follows the lead of Chris Grant, the millionaire former stockbroker under whose guidance as chairman the Peakites have risen above their downtrodden recent past, and whose presence at Edgbaston was a challenge in itself, two days after undergoing surgery for a broken toe suffered in a collision with a door on the last day of Derbyshire’s pre-season trip to Barbados. Heavily dosed with painkillers, Grant might not viewed the world quite so sharply as usual but he will have been no less delighted for that when the ninth-wicket pairing of Tony Palladino and Mark Turner secured Derbyshire’s first bonus point of their new status.Their partnership, the highest of the innings after Palladino had profitably attacked the second new ball, gave Derbyshire’s total a healthy respectability on a pitch that was a little too slow for fluent strokeplay and just zippy enough when the ball was new to give the bowlers something to work with. Palladino, whose highlights included a four and a six off consecutive balls against Hannon-Dalby, walked off with 68, his highest Championship score.It tempered Warwickshire’s earlier bullishness. Wright, their leading wicket-taker of last season, had been handed his county cap (as well as a new four-year contract) and had responded to the arrival of England head coach Andy Flower and national selector Geoff Miller by removing both Derbyshire openers in an 11-over spell that cost only 15 runs.Hannon-Dalby, the former Yorkshire seamer, claimed his first Warwickshire wicket early in the afternoon, yet Derbyshire, despite the slump that so dismayed Krikken, kept fighting back.Shivnarine Chanderpaul, on his Derbyshire debut, did not achieve much beyond hanging around for 34 overs but first Wes Durston, then Redfern and Hughes, seized the initiative before Palladino cut loose. Warwickshire’s response will determine to what extent 226 is below par, if at all.

Sri Lanka Under-19s stormed back into contention in the five-match series by beating Bangladesh Under-19s by six wickets

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Apr-2013
ScorecardSri Lanka Under-19s stormed back into contention in the five-match series by beating Bangladesh Under-19s by six wickets in the rain-affected fourth game in Mirpur. After rain interrupted play towards the end of the Bangladesh innings, the visitors were set a target of 197 runs from 29 overs.They reached the target in the 23rd over, thanks to Chamika Karunaratne’s unbeaten 49 off 47 balls, which had five fours and a six. His job was made slightly easier by Sandun Weerakkody, who blasted 42 off 16 balls with six fours and two sixes. Sadeera Samarawickrama also gave the visitors a fast start with his 20-ball 33.After winning the toss, Bangladesh had made 244 for 8 in the 48th over before rain stopped play. Joyraz Sheik scored 58 while the offspinner Ramesh Mendis took 5 for 43.The final match will be held on April 29, the series is level at 2-2.

Preview of the match between Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Mumbai

The Preview by Nikita Bastian12-May-2013

Match facts

May 13, 2013
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Can Sunrisers Hyderabad’s batting stand up to Mumbai Indians’ bowling?•BCCI

Big Picture

We have arrived at that stage of the tournament where the scramble to make the playoffs is in full swing. While the numerical possibilities say otherwise, Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals are in all likelihood through while the bottom four are out. That leaves a middle cluster of three teams vying for the remaining two playoff spots. Both Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad are in this cluster, meaning their encounter on Monday at the Wankhede will be vital.After 13 games each, Mumbai Indians have 18 points and Sunrisers have 16. Sunrisers face the tougher of the tasks on hand, and not just because they have fewer points; Mumbai have won six out of six games at the Wankhede so far this season. While Sunrisers too have a very good home record – they’ve scored points in five of six at Uppal – they have won only three away matches, all against teams below them on the points table.They can draw some confidence, though, from their showing on Saturday in Mohali against Kings XI. There they first recovered from 52 for 5 to 150 with smart batting, before their bowlers once again did the job. Also, as has been their style at Uppal, they had restricted Mumbai Indians to 129 earlier in the tournament, and then chased down the target with ease, courtesy Shikhar Dhawan. They’ll need all the confidence they can get when facing Mumbai at home.

Form guide

Mumbai Indians: WWWLW (most recent first)
Sunrisers Hyderabad: WLWWL

In the spotlight

The Mumbai Indians bowling v the Sunrisers Hyderabad batting. The Mumbai attack has lorded over the opposition batsmen in their previous two games, first against the might of the Chennai Super Kings and then against Kolkata Knight Riders. Mitchell Johnson has been particularly lethal with his swing at high pace, and will provide the stiffest of challengers on a relatively quick track for the unfancied Sunrisers line-up, which is most at home on the slow surfaces at Uppal. The numbers show why this line-up is not thought a lot of: they’ve played 13 matches, but only one batsman aggregates 200 runs so far. Apart from Dhawan, who missed the first seven matches due to injury, none of the specialist batsmen average even 27. Dhawan is just 30-odd short of topping Sunrisers’ run chart, despite playing only half their games. He will be central to their fortunes at the Wankhede.

Stats and trivia

• Parthiv Patel became the first Sunrisers Hyderabad batsman to touch the 200-run mark in the tournament, taking his aggregate to 218 at 24.22 with his 61 in the previous game
• Sachin Tendulkar is closing in on 300 IPL fours. He needs eight more to get there, and will be the first player in the league to do so

Quotes

“You get a leg up over everyone else by spending time here. [It’s] going to help me a lot in the future.There are a lot of tournaments in India throughout the year, so you have got to adapt to playing here. It is a massive advantage to get used to the conditions over here.”
“Yes, she is. Probably I should make another one to get even luckier.”

Darren Stevens led Kent’s second innings as they secured an honourable draw with Hampshire.

08-Jun-2013
ScorecardDarren Stevens’ innings was an essential rearguard action•Getty Images

Darren Stevens led Kent’s second innings as they secured an honourable draw with Hampshire. Eighth wicket pair Calum Haggett and Adam Riley held out for 22 overs
as Kent, set 342 to break a six-match winless sequence, fell 46 short at 296 for 8.Hampshire seemed to be on their way to only their second win of the season when
Kent were reduced to 41 for 4 before lunch but a stirring innings of 96 from
Darren Stevens removed the initiative from the home side which they never regained.The scene was set for an intriguing last day when Hampshire were fed 108 in 9.4
overs by Sam Northeast, who had never previously taken a wicket, and Robert Key
who had managed only three. Liam Dawson and James Vince gorged themselves on a
rich diet of full tosses and half-volleys before Hampshire declared at 207 for 3.Kent made a dreadful start in their search for a first victory, losing Key for
1 and Northeast for 13, both to David Balcombe, along with Brendan Nash
and Ben Harmison all in the first 13 overs. But on a blameless wicket, Stevens and Daniel Bell-Drummond launched a powerful
counterattack with a dynamic stand of 144 in 34 overs for the fifth wicket.The aggressive Stevens struck two sixes and 15 fours from 105 balls and
appeared certain to reach three figures before he misjudged a short delivery
from Sean Ervine and wicketkeeper Adam Wheater held the catch.At tea Kent were still not out of the reckoning at 194 for 5 and Hampshire
had a whole session to get the five wickets they needed.Bell-Drummond’s useful contribution of 66 ended with the score on 219 when he turned spinner
Danny Briggs to Vince at short leg and Geraint Jones fell to the same
combination three runs later. Kent were 222 for 7 with 32 overs remaining but they were in no mood to gift Hampshire some extra points.Haggett and Matt Coles began the resistance with a stand of 28 in 10 overs
before a mix-up over a run saw Coles beaten by a direct throw from Jimmy Adams.But that was the closest Hampshire got to a badly-needed win, Haggett and Riley
digging in with an unbroken stand of 46, surviving numerous appeals and bowling
changes to deny their desperate opponents.Young spinner Riley, who took seven wickets in Hampshire’s first innings, had
the unusual experience of recording best bowling and best batting performances
in the same match.

Russell Domingo is likely to begin his tenure as South Africa’s head coach without Dale Steyn, who needs about three more weeks of rehabilitation

Firdose Moonda03-Jul-2013Russell Domingo is likely to begin his tenure as South Africa’s head coach without Dale Steyn. The fast bowler still needs “about three weeks of rehabilitation” according to team manager Mohammed Moosajee, which could rule him out of the limited-overs series in Sri Lanka that begins on July 20.Domingo will announce his first squad, who will play five ODIs and three T20s against Sri Lanka, on Thursday. He will also unveil a new support staff, which could include his predecessor Gary Kirsten. ESPNcricinfo understands Kirsten may be retained in a consultancy capacity and will work a set number of days with the national team.On his appointment, Domingo indicated he would keep the same support staff Kirsten put in place which means Allan Donald will likely stay on as bowling coach. The only additions will be a new assistant coach – Lions’ Geoffrey Toyana and Cobras’ Paul Adams are considered frontrunners – and a new fitness trainer after Rob Walter was put in-charge of the Titans.Kirsten’s philosophy will continue to run through South African cricket but Domingo will be able to demonstrate the direction he wants to take the squad in through his selection. He takes over the limited-overs units which are struggling for identity after Kirsten’s Test-centric focus left them in an experimental phase. The manner in which they bowed out of the Champions Trophy – a semi-final loss to England, caused by an all-too-familiar batting collapse – underlined that status. The absence of senior players hurt South Africa as well and it will be up to Domingo to rebuild.He will probably have to start without Steyn, whose recovery will only be complete after the series gets under way. Even if he is taken on the tour, his workload will be closely monitored. Steyn sustained a side strain in the lead up to the Champions Trophy which ruled him out of South Africa’s first two matches and then had a groin problem, which kept him out of the semi-final.Better news for Domingo is that Morne Morkel should be available. Morkel left the Champions Trophy after South Africa’s first match with a quad strain but Moosajee confirmed he has returned to full fitness.Marchant de Lange, who regularly breaks the 150kph mark, is expected to be recalled after he made a complete recovery from stress fractures and a successful comeback to the domestic scene late last summer. That will leave Domingo to choose two from a pool comprising Chris Morris, who replaced Morkel admirably, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Rory Kleinveldt, which could see Kleinveldt left behind, although he may make a return in the twenty-over format.Public opinion will still call for Vernon Philander, who took 4 for 8 in his Friends Life t20 debut, but it will be a surprise if he is brought in. With a List A average of 35.74 and a body the administrators want to preserve for Test cricket, Philander is best employed elsewhere.Given the venue of the series, Domingo will be tempted to take extras in the spin department which includes Robin Peterson, Aaron Phangiso and JP Duminy. Imran Tahir may be in line after ending last season strongly for the Lions while Roelof van der Merwe has also been suggested. Van der Merwe, like Peterson and Phangiso, is a left-arm spinner, so Tahir may be preferred for variation.South Africa’s bowling was barely allowed to come to the fore in the Champions Trophy because their batting let them down and it will be that area Domingo has to pay careful attention to. The problems start at the top where one opening berth has yet to be filled. Hashim Amla needs a partner and since Graeme Smith’s recovery from ankle surgery is still months away Domingo could either continue with Colin Ingram or look elsewhere.Ingram had one significant score in the Champions Trophy, 73 against West Indies, but looked unsure in the role the rest of the time. Titans batsmen Henry Davids, who is in the national Twenty20 squad, would appear the frontrunner for the job. Wicketkeeper batsmen Quinton de Kock could also be in the reckoning.The result could be no room for Farhaan Behardien, who was benched during the Champions Trophy and has been surpassed by David Miller. With Faf du Plessis and Duminy making up the middle order, Domingo should be confident he has enough firepower on hand.Ryan McLaren, following a superb Champions Trophy, will be the first-choice allrounder again which should clarify the future of Jacques Kallis as a Test-only player. Names like Albie Morkel and Johan Botha will come up, but the former lost his national contract two months ago as South Africa look elsewhere for two-in-one players and the latter’s relocation to South Australia continues to make him unavailable for the national team.Domingo has a stern task ahead. Although keeping South Africa on top of the Test rankings is still considered the top priority, remoulding the limited-overs sides, especially the ODI one, into the consistent, winning teams they once were is a far trickier assignment. Considering that South Africa have only won one out of 11 ODIs against Sri Lanka at home and have bad memories of their World Twenty20 there last year, it’s also a tricky place for the Domingo days to dawn.

Joe Burns, the Australian batsman who has been representing Leicestershire as an overseas player, is to return home early due to injury

George Dobell29-Jul-2013Joe Burns, the Australian batsman who has been representing Leicestershire as an overseas player, is to return home early due to injury.Burns, who has previously suffered a shin problem, will return to Australia to have treatment on a minor hip injury in the hope that he is fully fit to represent Brisbane Heat in the Champions League from mid-September.”Joe has a hip injury which has gradually got worse,” Leicestershire’s head coach Phil Whitticase told the . “He said he was up for selection for our last two T20 games, but he needs to get back to Queensland for their physio to look at the injury.”They have the Champions League coming up and Joe wants to be part of that. So we are happy to send him back – had the roles been reversed, then we would want our player back.”Burns, 23, has enjoyed only modest success. In five Championship matches, he reached 50 only once, failed to register a century and averaged 30.57. He averaged 28.15 in the FLt20 (at a strike rate of 129.60) and just 16.40 in five Yorkshire Bank 40 games.Leicestershire are not expected to replace Burns. They plan to have the West Indies batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan back from international duty for the final few weeks of the season and will use Burns’ absence to take a look at a few younger players.Jigar Naik, the offspinner, has also been ruled out for the rest of the season after dislocating his shoulder. Naik had an operation on the shoulder after sustaining the injury in the T20 victory over Nottinghamshire and his rehabilitation is expected to take four months.Leicestershire are currently bottom of the Division Two Championship table, having failed to win any of their first 10 games, and failed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the FLt20.

Mohammad Azharuddin, the former India captain, has been offered the post of Jammu & Kashmir coach

Amol Karhadkar16-Aug-2013Mohammad Azharuddin, the former India captain whose life ban for indulging in match-fixing was overturned last year by the Andhra Pradesh High Court, has been offered the post of Jammu & Kashmir coach.Farooq Abdullah, president of the Jammu & Kashmir Cricket Association, confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that Azharuddin, now a Member of Parliament from Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh, was offered the position that has been vacant since Bishan Singh Bedi’s exit after the end of last season. “We still haven’t reached the final decision,” Abdullah said.Mujeeb Khan, Azharuddin’s secretary, said the former batsman hadn’t made up his mind. “He has been offered the post of coach by JKCA but he hasn¹t decided whether to take it or not,” Mujeeb said. “They want to avail of whatever services he could render. He is seriously considering it since he is desperate to give back to the game that has been so close to his heart.”Even if Azharuddin accepts the offer, his return to the cricket field, albeit as a coach, won’t be easy. When the BCCI banned Azharuddin for life in 2000, he was barred from participating in any cricketing activity. Though the ban was deemed illegal by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in November 2012, a BCCI official said Azharuddin cannot return to cricket in any role without the board’s permission since the ruling has been challenged.”The High Court verdict was based on a technicality. Nowhere did the court say he is not guilty of indulging in fixing,” the board official said. “Since the proceedings to challenge the verdict have been initiated, as far as the BCCI is concerned, any association that wants to appoint him in any capacity cannot do so without the board’s consent.”Since being banned, Azharuddin, 50, has had no involvement in cricket-related matters. Besides Azharuddin, Ajay Sharma was also banned for life and hasn’t been active in cricket. Ajay Jadeja, whose five-year ban was overturned by the BCCI, returned to domestic cricket for a couple of seasons before becoming a cricket expert on television. Manoj Prabhakar, who was also banned for five years, turned a coach after serving his ban and was the bowling coach of Delhi.

Monty Panesar will not readily forget his debut for Essex. He was required to do so much bowling that he seemed to be on at both ends at once as Northamptonshire racked up 531

Ivo Tennant at Colchester21-Aug-2013
ScorecardMonty Panesar was made to toil on a difficult day for Essex•Getty Images

Monty Panesar will not readily forget his debut for Essex. It was another hot day with the pitch still sluggish and taking spin only on the rare occasions when he gave the ball some air, the batsmen still rapacious for runs. He bowled the day’s first over, spearing yorker length and flat deliveries in at the nimble feet of Andrew Hall and Steven Crook with limited success. He was required to do so much bowling that he seemed to be on at both ends at once. His figures, when Northamptonshire were finally dismissed for 531, read 54-18-133-2.Having taken his first wicket on the opening day, Panesar had Crook held at slip, attempting to cut. Would he benefit from bowling a little slower, here as elsewhere? Robin Hobbs, fine legspinner from a happy era of Essex cricket, does not believe he can. “He finds it difficult to do so. But then Derek Underwood could never flight the ball.” The more the batsmen milked him for runs, the more Panesar bowled at a speed akin to Underwood’s medium-pace cutters. Hobbs was not meaning to be disparaging: he knows that throwing the ball up above the batsman’s eyeline does not work for everybody.As to whether Panesar will still be an Essex cricketer next year, Nigel Hilliard, the Essex chairman, said that it would depend on how he fits into the dressing room. “His ability is unquestioned and the members will always be glad to see an England Test cricketer playing in front of them,” Hilliard said. “We can afford him, having taken on his pay structure from Sussex. At the end of the season Monty will be a free agent.” What also has to be resolved is the future for Tom Craddock, who will not play for the remainder of the season owing to personal reasons.Four of Northamptonshire’s remaining first innings wickets fell to spin – but three of them were taken by Greg Smith’s off breaks. Hall, like Crook, finished with 63, ten fours as opposed to eight. He was bowled as he made to force the ball away. The theory is that the square in mid-August always favours the Essex spinners, but Hilliard, who played club cricket here at Castle Park, recalled Peter Such toiling away, over after over with scant reward. So it was now for Panesar, who must hope that there will be more turn for him if and when he bowls again.Robert Keogh had been first to go, his middle stump uprooted by Graham Napier, and Smith concluded the innings by bowling Trent Copeland and having Azharullah taken at short leg. Essex then required 382 to avoid following-on. If the pitch was to take spin, best they made a solid start. Instead, Jaik Mickleburgh edged Copeland to the wicketkeeper; Gautam Gambhir, having driven Hall nicely through the cover ring, was bowled by Crook, back on his stumps; Ravi Bopara was leg before to Crook.Northamptonshire barely concerned themselves with spin, even if James Middlebrook, another in this match to be playing against a former county, was in their side. The medium pacers were rotated to good effect. But in the last hour James Foster, the very person to come in when the follow-on is looming, and Ryan ten Doeschate, who batted with similar resolve, ensured Northamptonshire still have much to do. Their unbroken partnership amounts to 84 and there was a freedom about their strokeplay in the closing overs which reflected poorly on the batsmen who had gone before. Essex are 344 runs in arrears.

Ben Stokes’ performances in the ODI series against Australia could have pushed him closer to a spot in this winter’s Ashes touring party, according to Ashley Giles

Alan Gardner17-Sep-2013Ben Stokes’ performances in the ODI series against Australia could have pushed him closer to a spot in this winter’s Ashes touring party, according to Ashley Giles, England’s limited-overs coach. Giles, who is also a selector, said the panel would sit down for a “huge meeting” ahead of Monday’s announcement of the squad to tour Australia and that the one-day form shown by the likes of Stokes and Boyd Rankin may have a bearing, despite England’s 2-1 defeat in the series.Durham allrounder Stokes was asked to fill the role of England’s third seamer and his displays were increasingly impressive, culminating in a five-wicket haul at the Ageas Bowl on Monday; he also gave a glimpse of his ability with the bat during a crucial partnership with Jos Buttler to help England win the fourth ODI in Cardiff. His ability in the field, with Giles called him “one of the best in the world”, could also help push him ahead of the likes of Chris Woakes and Ravi Bopara for inclusion as a Test allrounder.Rankin, meanwhile, was the pick of the bowlers against Australia, demonstrating pace and bounce as well as impressive control (his 29.1 overs were delivered at an economy of 3.63). Since making his one-day debut against Ireland, he has taken nine wickets at 16.88 and, with a view to Australian pitches, his height may sway England, much as Chris Tremlett’s raw physicality did three years ago.”They certainly won’t have done it any harm,” Giles said of the pair’s prospects. “If you look at the attributes both of them have; Boyd is six foot 10 or something, a huge man, and he bowls at a good rate of knots. We tend to like our tall fast bowlers. Going to Australia, playing on those wickets, those attributes are important.””Ben is someone who has been on the radar for a couple of years and people are starting to talk about him, I think he’s a really exciting cricketer and there’s a lot more to come from him with bat and ball. Already, possibly, he’s one of the best fielders in the world – I know that’s a big call – he’s a terrific athlete so those all-round skills put him in an elite market. When you can do those sorts of things you will be talked about across all forms of the game. We just need to be careful that we aren’t pushing them too hard, it still takes time and the experience of playing. But, so far, so good on the report card.”Although England’s inexperienced attack struggled to contain Australia in two of the three completed matches – conceding 315 for 7 at Old Trafford and 298 at the Ageas Bowl – Stokes finished as their leading wicket-taker, coming on at first change and nudging 90mph on the speed gun. He only batted three times but twice passed his previous best score.”We did ask a lot of him as third seamer, we know that,” Giles said. “But some of the stuff we’ve seen this summer, even with red ball, has taken us down that path. He reverses it both ways, he bowls with pace – he bounced out Wade yesterday – he’s aggressive. We don’t make those big decisions without some evidence and it’s there that he’s made great leaps.”His batting is extremely dangerous, as he showed on occasions, but there’s a lot more to come there. The guy is a genuine allrounder, across the aspects of the game and quite possibly across all three forms. It’s very important we look after these guys and try to nurture them, they are our greatest assets and we’d be silly to take our eyes off the ball.”England are expected to named a 16-man Ashes squad, although in 2010-11 they later expanded the number to 17. Giles would not be drawn further on the make-up of the party, other than to say “the first 12 pick themselves”, but said that the selectors had plenty of options to consider. “It will be a good debate, because we’ve got some very good cricketers. Some of them have come into this series and really impressed, I think that’s healthy for some of the guys we have rested that we have young players chasing them up.”The decision to omit several players who had been involved in the home Ashes, including Alastair Cook, England’s Test and ODI captain, James Anderson, Ian Bell, Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad, was not met with universal approval and while Giles was pleased with the signs of progress, he admitted that losing a second bilateral series of the summer had not been part of the plan.”It has been useful. The win in Cardiff was obviously the most pleasing aspect,” he said. “That win centred around a lot of the young guys having a really good day. We thought at the start of the series that if we could move two guys on a fair distance in terms of creating a larger pool of players in one-day cricket then this series has done a lot of its job. In Rankin and Stokes, they have probably done that on their own but there are others too, so as a coach that’s really pleasing. Ultimately, of course, these aren’t practice games and we lost 2-1.”

Salman Butt, the suspended former Pakistan captain, has been called by the ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit to Dubai on April 28

Umar Farooq21-Apr-2015Salman Butt, the suspended former Pakistan captain, has been called by the ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit to Dubai on April 28. This comes after the PCB applied for his reintegration into cricket.”I am not aware about the purpose of the meeting,” Butt told ESPNcricinfo. “But I am sure it is related to my request to the PCB about my reintegration into cricket. I am happy that I am being heard and I am ready for the ICC meeting as well.”Butt was originally handed a 10-year ban from any involvement in cricketing activities for spot-fixing during the Lord’s Test in August 2010, with five years suspended on the condition that he would commit no further breach of the anti-corruption code and participate in a PCB-controlled anti-corruption education programme.But the ICC recently approved a revised anti-corruption code that allows banned players to make a return to domestic cricket before the end of their penalty if they meet certain criteria.Butt had told the PCB of his willingness to comply and requested the chairman Shahriyar Khan’s support. In June 2013, he had confessed and apologised for his actions and offered his full cooperation to the mandatory educational rehabilitation program.In a letter to the PCB, a copy of which has been seen by ESPNcricinfo, Butt said “I accept that I am guilty of breaching the ICC anti-corruption code in the manner found by the anti-corruption tribunal in its judgment dated 5 February 2011.”I unreservedly and unconditionally apologise and express deep regret and remorse for those grave breaches and recognise the harm they have done to the cricket and to the image of the Pakistan Cricket Board and Pakistan as nation. As the captain, I accept that I had a greater responsibility than any other player in the team.”I urge all persons playing or planning to play cricket to resist temptations of any kind which may be offered them to fix matches or to spot-fix or otherwise to participate in activates which damage the sports of cricket and beware of the adverse impact that such activities necessarily have on the sport. I urge all person who know of any corruption to reject the approach and report the matter to the appropriate cricketing authorities.”Butt, along with Mohammad Asif, had also been found guilty at Southwark Crown Court in November 2011, on charges of conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to accept corrupt payments over deliberate no-balls bowled during the Lord’s Test between Pakistan and England in August 2010. Mohammad Amir had pleaded guilty prior to the trial.Butt has served four and half years of his ban, and also served seven months of a 30-month prison sentence in UK. In 2013, he had appealed before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, to reduce his ban but it was rejected.