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When asked whether Pakistan preferred to play India or Bangladesh in the Asia Cup final, Misbah-ul-Haq smiled and said: “I can’t control this.” A Pakistan-India final will not take place if Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka in the final league game.Misbah’s words, however, might as well have been describing how he had felt on the field while Virat Kohli was mowing down the target of 330 to keep India in the tournament. Kohli seemed to have a plan for all six Pakistan bowlers and targeted each one.Against Umar Gul, Kohli was slightly cautious but also hit a six over wide long-off. He was watchful against Mohammad Hafeez and Shahid Afridi as well, while against Saeed Ajmal he decided to stay deep in the crease and play into the arc behind square on the off side. He managed to hit six boundaries off Ajmal, whom Kohli said was “quick and able to turn both ways.” While facing the left-arm pace of Wahab Riaz, however, it was a question of how many and how quickly. Kohli hit Riaz for seven fours in 17 balls – some pulled, a few flicked and one cover driven.Misbah praised India and Kohli for the way they approached the chase. “First of all, credit to them. Whatever the wicket or conditions, chasing 329 is difficult. The manner in which they batted, they outclassed us.Misbah-ul-Haq praised his openers for the platform they had given the team•Associated Press

“I think 329 is not a bad total. When you try to score 350-370, even making 329 is difficult,” Misbah said. “With our bowling, 325-330 was our target. I think it was a good total but the way they played, we didn’t have any answers.”Before Kohli wrested the game from Pakistan, though, Misbah’s team had performed impressively. They had their second-highest opening stand in one-dayers, with Nasir Jamshed and Hafeez adding 224 runs for the first wicket. The new pair thrived against a bowling attack that lacked bite and their teamwork paid off: when Hafeez attacked Jamshed batted steadily, and then they switched roles. Jamshed scored his maiden ODI century, while Hafeez made his fourth.”I think both played very well. Set a good platform for the team,” Misbah said. “It’s a good prospect for us that the openers are getting centuries and putting a good partnership at the top.”Despite playing an extra bowler, however, Misbah was unable to lead a successful defence in the field. It was the fourth time Pakistan had lost an ODI after scoring more than 300, and the first since 2000. Riaz was far from re-creating that magical spell in Mohali in the World Cup semi-final, while Aizaz Cheema had his worst day in international cricket.”We planned to bat first so we strengthened our bowling. His [Riaz] confidence was good; he took five wickets against India. We took him on that, but sometimes your decisions don’t pay off. It was a bad day for him.”I think our bowling has won us a lot of games. If you look at the performance in the last year and a half, they have done really well. It was a test against India, so such a day was possible.”

The fast bowler Brendan Drew and the batsman Nick Kruger are among eight players who will be axed from Tasmania’s contract list for next summer. A fortnight ago, Drew and Kruger were playing in the Sheffield Shield final but neither man did enough to encourage the selectors to retain them on the contract list.The wicketkeeper Brady Jones, the opening batsman Jon Wells, the seamer Ben Laughlin, the batsman Ashton May, the allrounder Matthew Day and the rookie spinner Marc Simonds will also be delisted.”While we are hopeful that some of these players remain in Hobart to chase their dream of playing cricket at the highest level, Cricket Tasmania wishes those who do not all the best with their cricket futures,” Tasmania’s chairman of selectors, Michael Farrell, said.The axing of state players is expected to be significant across most states this year with Cricket Australia keen to reduce the number of players offered central deals. That will create a knock-on effect with many players who were on national contracts needing to be squeezed into state lists.While 32 players held CA contracts by the end of the summer, including seven who were upgraded due to playing enough matches for Australia, that number could be slashed to as few as 15 when the new list is revealed. Tasmania are expected to have to find room on their state list to accommodate Tim Paine and Jason Krejza, both of whom hold CA contracts that are unlikely to be renewed.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsHashim Amla scored 62 before his dismissal in the final session confirmed New Zealand’s dominant position•Associated Press

A Chris Martin triple-strike just after tea justified Ross Taylor’s decision to bowl first on a placid Dunedin surface, as New Zealand first toppled South Africa’s top order giants, then made headway into the tail, to leave the visitors on 191 for 7 at stumps on the first day. Heavy clouds failed to deliver the swing Taylor had banked on, but Martin’s stunning spell against his favourite opponent among the top-eight nations, turned the innings, and drew first blood in the series.The drama of Martin’s surge was heightened by its abruptness. Following a sleepy first session that offered so little for the pacemen that South Africa seemed destined for a mammoth total, Martin snaffled Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and AB de Villiers in four balls to tear the guts out of the opposition top order.The rush of intensity was immediately apparent in Martin’s first few balls after tea. Twice he beat Smith’s outside edge, before hitting the batsman on the midriff with a straighter one. Having finished the previous session somewhat deflated, New Zealand suddenly sensed change. When Smith scooped the next one to short cover, they were positively buzzing.The first ball of Martin’s next over was sharp, short and angled. Too good for Kallis who could only manage an edge, which Taylor flew to his left to intercept. AB de Villiers was trapped by an indipper first ball. His review interrupted New Zealand’s celebrations momentarily, before replays confirmed the shout was as plumb as they come. From a comfortable 86 for 1, South Africa had slipped to 90 for 4.The recovery from South Africa, though somewhat short-lived, was swift and pleasing to the eye. Hashim Amla unfurled the offside strokes that bore him fruit in the ODI series, as he nullified a reinvigorated New Zealand pace attack that were once again searching for scalps. Purring cover drives and crisp square cuts found the ropes, and in 80 balls, he and Jacques Rudolph had scored 66.But having crossed 50, Amla fell to his nemesis from earlier in the innings. His tussle with Daniel Vettori had been the most engrossing battle of the earlier session, when the spinner’s turn beat his outside edge in his attempts to defend, and Vettori’s flight outdid enterprising scurries down the pitch. That time, the release had come for Amla when he finally connected to launch Vettori into the stands. But in his first over after tea, Vettori landed the knockout punch when he got one to kick, taking Amla’s edge.Mark Boucher was then the victim of the run-out South Africa looked like offering thoughout the day. Smith and Amla had survived one chance each, when fielders failed to hit the stumps. But this time, no direct hit was necessary. Boucher bounded from the non-striker’s end when Rudolph worked Vettori to point, and Bracewell swooped and found Kruger van Wyk’s gloves with his throw, to leave the visitors at 161 for 6. Dale Steyn succumbed soon after, with Taylor snaffling a rebound from Martin Guptill in the slips to leave his side much the happier of the two at stumps.The day had begun so promisingly for South Africa after almost four hours were lost to rain, when Graeme Smith progressed untroubled to a 31st Test half-century. New Zealand’s decision to insert the opposition on a slow, batsmen’s track seemed like folly when hopeful, full lengths from Martin, Trent Boult and Tim Southee were punched through the line by Smith in particular.Misjudgment on line, rather than significant movement removed Alviro Petersen for 11, but with Amla and Smith progressing smoothly, and the cloud cover expected to clear for the evening session, a large total beckoned. Smith was punishing on the leg side, when New Zealand’s pacemen abandoned their hopes for swing and muscled it in short, and his flick off middle stump for four just prior to tea epitomised his command of conditions. But things were about to change, and quickly.Edited by Nikita Bastian

Less than four months have passed since three of their most celebrated cricketers were jailed and once again Pakistan has been dragged into the murky world of spot-fixing.Danish Kaneria was not on trial at The Old Bailey, but his name dominated the day as he was presented as the influential figure who led Mervyn Westfield astray.Kaneria will captain Sind province in the Pentangular Cup final on Friday, and he still protests his innocence, but he now faces the possibility of a disciplinary tribunal in England. Essex police will now hand over the evidence to the ECB which will decide whether to hold its own investigation. The maximum penalty, if Kaneria is found guilty, is a lifetime ban from all cricket worldwide.A spokesman for the Pakistan Cricket Board told ESPNcricinfo: “We do maintain zero tolerance toward corruption, but since nothing is yet proven against the cricketer the status remains same as it was so he will continue to play the final as captain.”Farogh Naseem, Kaneria’s lawyer, played down suggestions that his client had new evidence to answer. “I think we can only take any step once the inquiry is finished,” he said. “It is Westfield’s words against Kaneria and a lot will depend on what evidences he puts before the court against my client.”Naseem reiterated that Kaneria had been cleared. “At the time of the police inquiry, Kaneria was not charged and cleared,” he said. “The ICC cleared him. We feel that Kaneria was discharged in the case.”Misbah-ul-Haq, the captain who has done much to stabilise Pakistan cricket in the wake of the scandal surrounding his predecessor, Salman Butt, and two fast bowlers, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, looked downcast at the courtoom allegations against Kaneraia as he prepared for an ODI against England in Dubai on Friday.”This is really very disappointing for Pakistan cricket,” Misbah said. “I wish that such things would vanish from our cricket. We want to keep away from such things. It’s not an issue for us. We have to concentrate on the game, and don’t let us bother about that. It should stop now.”The High Court in London heard how Kaneria was the alleged middle-man in a spot-fixing plot which involved Westfield conceding a set number of runs from an over during a televised Pro40 match between Essex and Durham in 2009.Kaneria was arrested alongside Westfield in 2010 but released without charge and denies all involvement in the scam. At the time the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) ruled there was not sufficient evidence to pursue a criminal case.The High Court also heard how, in 2008, Kaneria was warned by the ICC about his links to a bookmaker called Arun Bhatia, who is believed to live in England, and was told he was keeping “highly inappropriate company.”Kaneria has not played for Pakistan since the 2010 Trent Bridge Test against England after which he was omitted in favour of Saeed Ajmal and fell out of favour. He has continued to play domestic cricket in Pakistan.Kaneria has persistently pleaded his innocence since the initial arrest and he was selected for a Test series against South Africa in late 2010 before being withdrawn by the PCB because he was not able to obtain the required documentation from Essex police.Last year he also filed a petition in the Sindh High Court against the PCB’s refusal to clear him. The PCB’s integrity committee can now obtain the police investigation records against Kaneria.”His integrity was obviously under observation and this is why we asked him to satisfied the integrity committee,” a PCB official told ESPNcricinfo. “He was a bowler we actually wanted to play but there were so many questions that he could never satisfy.”He always pledged his innocence but was never able to get an Essex police clearance letter. For us the Westfield imprisonment is neither a development nor sign of guilt for Danish, but now we can apply for the transcription of the investigation record from the police.”

Boots worn by the young fast bowlers Pat Cummins, James Pattinson and Josh Hazlewood are being investigated by Cricket Australia as a potential source of the foot injuries that have cruelled their summer.Pat Howard, the Australia team performance manager, has requested the investigation after noting that Cummins, Pattinson and Hazlewood were all wearing the same type of Asics cricket boots while sustaining foot injuries.”I’ve asked exactly the same question,” Howard told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s a fair question, we’re not suggesting it is the reason, but it is something that has to be reviewed as part of the overall.”Workloads, body management, history, age, footwear, all those things have got to be reviewed as part of the bigger picture.”There’s lots of people wearing Asics that haven’t had that problem. It is definitely being reviewed, but the reality is they’re all young men and it is also about how much bowling have they done in the lead-up to this period [to getting injured].”Cummins complained of heel pain during his Test debut against South Africa in Johannesburg, and has not played a competitive match since after the early signs of stress fractures were spotted.Pattinson scooped 25 wickets in four Tests before complaining of foot pain during the second innings of the SCG Test, and was ruled out of the remainder of the series against India when scans also revealed stress hot spots in the metatarsal bone.Hazlewood, who made his ODI debut for Australia in 2010, returned to action for New South Wales this summer after a lengthy recovery from back stress fractures, but has been put out of action for the remainder of the domestic summer due to a fracture in his left foot.When he took the job as team performance manager from a background of rugby and pharmacy, Howard promised to ask awkward questions, and the one of fast bowlers’ footwear is not the most convenient. Asics, manufacturers of the boots worn by the fast bowling trio, took up a lucrative equipment and sponsorship deal with CA at the start of the summer.Asics boots have long been the favoured footwear of fast bowlers in Australia, and are also popular in England.Howard said that while the injuries had been unfortunate for those concerned, they had also allowed the selectors to expand the pool of fast bowlers they are confident of choosing for international duty, whether they be in the marquee series against India or lower profile engagements against New Zealand or the West Indies.”We have changed the mandate for what we look for out of different series,” Howard said. “What we have done well and the selectors and the coaches and the medical staff have worked really hard on, is having Mitchell Starc and Ryan Harris there around the Test team.”They were coming into the squad in Sydney, bowling in the nets in Melbourne, we wanted these guys in and around because we knew the workloads had been very high for the likes of James Pattinson and we had to make sure players were ready to go.”Part of it is mitigating injury and part of it is making sure the next guys are raring and ready to go. We know players will be injured and one of the positive things we’ve got out of this summer is we’ve got a lot of bowlers we believe in, and we actually believe there’s a couple more we can believe in. That’s been a positive out of the summer.”

Scorecard
Joe Burns helped Queensland consolidate their big lead at the top of the Sheffield Shield table with a four-wicket win over South Australia in Adelaide. Chasing 260 for victory, the Bulls reached their target with two overs to spare on the final afternoon, Ryan Broad and Michael Neser at the crease at the end after wickets to Daniel Christian and Peter George nearly salvaged a draw for the Redbacks.Burns made 74 and there were solid contributions from the rest of the top order as Queensland reached 6 for 260. They had been set their target after the Redbacks declared at 9 for 260, following a late flurry of wickets to the Bulls legspinner Cameron Boyce, who was expensive but picked up 5 for 110 from 18 overs.Callum Ferguson top scored with 62 and Adam Crosthwaite, in his second first-class game for the Redbacks, made 54. Queensland’s win puts them well out in front on the Shield table with five outright wins from five games, while the Redbacks are languishing on the bottom and have not won a match.

After half-empty grounds in Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata during the India-England ODIs, the venues in Cuttack and Visakhapatnam had strong crowds for the one-dayers between India and West Indies. According to local cricket association officials, the contrasting crowd response was because of the surfeit of major matches in the bigger cities, while smaller centres were starved of games featuring India.”In a big city a World Cup happens, the IPL happens. In Orissa, in two or three years, we get one [international] match,” Ashirbad Behera, the Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) secretary told ESPNcricinfo. “Our Orissa Premier League happened and the stadiums were jam packed. We are asking the BCCI to change the schedule, to switch matches from big cities to smaller cities.”The Barabati Stadium in Cuttack, which seats 45,000, was full for the first ODI against West Indies, whereas Eden Gardens was half-empty in October.The stadium in Visakhapatnam, which has a capacity of 20,000, also had a full house for the ODI between India and West Indies. It was the second ODI held there in just over 12 months. Before the Australia ODI in October 2010, Visakhapatnam had to wait nearly four years for an India game. It has had only four international matches since the new stadium staged its first ODI in April 2005.Indore, the venue for India’s fourth ODI against West Indies, will stage its first day-night match at the Holkar Cricket Stadium, where only two one-dayers have been held so far, in 2005 and in 2008. Before 2005, ODIs were played at the local government owned Nehru Stadium, which staged nine matches between 1983 and 2001.Narendra Menon, the secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association, said that all tickets available online for the Indore game – about 30% of the total – had been sold out. The association began selling the remaining 70% through local banks this morning. The capacity of the stadium is 26,000.”This match is [taking place] after three years. The last [international] match was in 2008. People are naturally waiting to have one-day match,” Menon said. “[In the bigger venues], if you include IPL matches, they have 25 matches like this. How can you expect all the time, houseful? You can’t.”Since December 2008 the Feroz Shah Kotla hosted eight ODIs and two Tests (it was also banned for a year by the ICC for a poor pitch); the Wankhede in Mumbai held the 2011 World Cup final, three other ODIs and a Test, while the Brabourne Stadium also hosted a Test; and Eden Gardens staged five ODIs, two Tests and a Twenty20 game. All three cities also have IPL teams, which play seven home games each season.Orissa has written to the BCCI asking to host Test matches and Menon said they would like to hold Test matches in Indore as well. “Definitely. Our ground and wicket is absolutely as good as all other grounds in India.” Unlike Orissa though, MP has not yet officially asked to host a Test but the plan on doing so in the near future. “We are going to have Duleep Trophy final this year, so I am just waiting for that match to be organised properly. We have never had any five-day match at this ground. If the Dileep Trophy match goes up to five days, we will see the behaviour of then wicket, and then we will ask.”When the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack was renovated to add 6000 seats to its previously existing 39,000, organisers said they improved facilities for spectators by adding more toilets and drinking water outlets, and arranged to have local music played in the stadium. And when they were unable to accomodate the demand for tickets, the OCA put up 10 giant screens outside the ground. Behara said, “Outside the stadium 25,000 people were standing.”At a time when a jaded audience and an overdose of cricket is emptying grounds in major urban centres, Indian cricket’s smaller, less glamourous venues are making a strong case to stage the big games.

For the first time in his seven months as captain, Michael Clarke faces the possibility of a series defeat. Since March, when Clarke was given the full-time responsibility of leading the team, he has achieved ODI series wins against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and was able to wrap up both victories before the final game. Now, with the three-match rubber against South Africa poised at 1-1, Clarke is facing arguably his biggest test.A visibly unruffled Clarke said his Australia outfit are not the only ones feeling the heat ahead of the series decider on Friday. “Both teams are under pressure,” Clarke said at Kingsmead. Instead of focusing on avoiding defeat, Clarke said he is encouraging the team to improve in every match, especially since the No. 1 ranking is secure. “To be the best we can be is the most motivating factor, individually and as a team,” he said. “That’s probably one of my mottos, I want us to try and become better. I guess there’s no better way to do that than to get out in the middle and play against quality opposition.”The standard of Australia’s opposition is high enough to include the world’s top-ranked ODI bowler and batsmen, Morne Morkel and Hashim Amla, which should provide Australia with a good yardstick to measure any progress. Clarke said that while they pride themselves on their status as the best in the 50-over format, they have not paid much attention to the individual positions. “It doesn’t really change much from our side of things,” he said. “South Africa have a strong team and if you look at individual rankings, there is proof of that. But, we have to beat them as a team not as individuals.”There are some individual issues Australia are grappling with ahead of the match. The fitness of openers, Shaun Marsh and Shane Watson, is yet to be fully determined, although the camp has remained hopeful that they will play. Marsh appeared to be back to his best during Wednesday’s net session while Watson also batted well, but did not bowl until Thursday.Michael Clarke: “I’m excited about what lies ahead.”•AFP

“He wanted to have a good bat yesterday [Wedneday] and run around,” Clarke said. “The bowling is more for his preparation for the game. He doesn’t feel as though he needs overs under his belt, he has bowled a fair bit in the last six to 12 months.” If Watson does not play, David Warner will keep his place at the top of the batting line-up.With players like Warner, James Pattinson and Patrick Cummins in the squad, Clarke feels the team is building well, and has a good blend of old and new. “Our mix is spot on at the moment,” he said. “I’m excited about what lies ahead, come tomorrow I think we will have a great game.”Australia have a good record at Kingsmead and have won four of the six matches they have played there, a stat Clarke was not aware of. “It’s nice to know and I will make sure the boys know as well,” he said. “It can help your confidence, to walk out on a ground you have had success on.”With two Test matches ahead, Clarke also thinks the team can take some momentum with them into those fixtures, if they win the crucial ODI. “More than anything, you will take confidence into the Test series if you win the one-day series,” he said. “There’s nothing better than winning as a team, it’s a great feeling.”

Brendan Nash, the West Indies batsman, has withdrawn from Jamaica’s squad for next month’s WICB 50-over competition, citing personal reasons. Courtnay Daley, chairman of Jamaica’s selection committee, said Nash had informed the board of his decision in a letter.”He [Nash] wrote to the Jamaica Cricket Association on Tuesday, asking that he be excused due to personal reasons,” Daley told the . “He explained that he was undergoing a challenging period in his life, as his mind was not where he wanted it to be. Given these realities, he did not feel him being around would serve the team well at the moment.”He is not retiring or anything like that. He just wants to take some time off and will be visiting his family in Australia.”Nash, 33, was named West Indies’ vice-captain at the same time Darren Sammy took over the captaincy in October 2010. However, a poor run of form, during which he made only 54 runs in last six Test innings, resulted in him being dropped mid-way through the India series in June.

Eoin Morgan has been ruled out of the remainder of the one-day series against India due to the recurrence of a shoulder injury he first suffered on the Ashes tour after he felt “acute” pain during the Twenty20 international at Old Trafford last week.Due to the first one-day international at Chester-le-Street being abandoned seven overs into England’s innings Morgan hasn’t batted again since the Twenty20 although did spend fifty overs in the field in Durham. As yet there is no time frame or clear outline for Morgan’s treatment and that will be determined after he is assessed next week.However, it would appear unlikely that he will be available for the two Twenty20 internationals against West Indies, at The Oval, later this month and, depending on the seriousness of the problem, may be a doubt for the one-day tour of India in October.”We really don’t know. We hope he will be,” Alastair Cook, England’s ODI captain, said when asked about availability for India. “At the moment we don’t know. It’s been ongoing for a while, and he woke up [in Southampton] and knew he just couldn’t play because it was too sore. So he’s off to see a specialist at some stage over the next few days, and then we’ll know far more.”England chief medical officer, Dr Nick Peirce, said: “Eoin initially developed discomfort in his right shoulder during the Ashes tour in the winter and has been managing the injury until now with a conservative program. Unfortunately there has been an acute flare in his pain which has not responded to treatment.”This is a chronic injury and predominantly affects Eoin’s diving and throwing,” he added. “He now requires a progression in his treatment and will undertake further specialist assessment in the next week before a decision on his forthcoming treatment will be determined.”Earlier this year Morgan suffered a finger injury during the one-day series in Australia but continued to play on after suffering the blow and by the time he was sent home two days before the end of the tour the damage was serious enough to stop him heading to the World Cup. However, he did eventually join the tournament after Kevin Pietersen suffered his hernia.Late last month Morgan made his international captaincy debut when he led England against Ireland in Dublin and has also begun to settle himself in the middle-order of the Test side. England aren’t going to name a replacement player for the current series with means a chance for Ravi Bopara in the middle order.