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Millions will have their eyes glued to television screens for the clash between India and Pakistan on March 1. It is the most anticipated game of the tournament, and the players carry the burden of the expectations of either nation on their shoulders. Both, Pakistani as well as Indian cricket fans are known to be unforgiving of losses to the arch-rival, and this time the tension is at its highest ever as the two have not played against each other for almost 3 years.This is possibly the first time in the last decade where the Pakistan heads into a match against India as underdogs. The Pakistanis have mostly had the better of India, especially in their encounters at Sharjah, but their record in the past World Cups is not quite as impressive. Pakistan has never managed to beat India in World Cup encounters, and it is about time that they break this run of defeats.The equation for Pakistan is quite clear they must win both their matches against India and Zimbabwe if they hope to make it to the Super Six stage. The only thing that could mess up the situation would be if England defeat Australia, then net run rates would be involved, where Pakistan are likely to suffer. However, it’s more important for them to focus on the task at hand, and that is beating India in this crunch game.The Indians come into the game with high spirits, and their batsmen looking in supreme touch. Tendulkar’s brief knock against England was simply awesome, and if he gets stuck into the Pakistan pace attack, then it will be hard to come back into the game. Sehwag looks to be in reasonable form as well, and the key for Pakistan lies in dismissing the opening pair early on. The Indian team looked highly pumped up against England, so this is by no means an easy task.Pakistan’s batsmen on the other hand seem to be going through the worst phase in their cricketing careers. Inzamam’s form is appalling and is his body language emphasized it more after being dismissed against Holland while trudging back to the dressing room. Youhana seems to be in reasonable touch, but has failed to carry on and get a big score after a few starts. Saeed Anwar is a mere shadow of his former self, while Younis Khan has been a huge disappointment over the last six months. Richard Pybus summed up the lack of consistency of our batsmen brilliantly, by saying that they either “operate in fifth gear or reverse.” Well, this is the right time for a gear shift!I personally feel that the Pakistanis should go into the game against India with the same side they played against Holland. There is a temptation to draft Afridi into the squad, but the management should refrain from that as Afridi upsets the balance of the side by being included at the expense of a genuine opener. Anwar and Taufeeq Umar must open, while there is a possibility of swapping Elahi for Younis Khan. Elahi is a good prospect as an opener, but doesn’t seem at home in the middle order. However the poor form of Younis Khan doesn’t warrant an automatic selection either. On performance, Inzamam deserves to be dropped, but while the mind may agree, the heart still feels that Inzamam might just have something up his sleeve for the big game. Either way, the Pakistani management could not be blamed if they persist with him. Youhana must be moved up the order, preferably at number 3 or 4.The bowling attack looks fine – it just needs the batsmen to be competitive if they are to win games for Pakistan. A special word of praise is necessary for Wasim Akram, arguably the best cricketer Pakistan has ever produced and maybe the best the world has ever seen. No praise is enough for what he has done for the side, and he thoroughly deserves the credit he is getting for reaching the landmark of 500 wickets. One just hopes that the World Cup 2003 will be a fitting swan song and that he can bow out of the game with dignity.For that Pakistan need to win and the match against India is the ideal way to turn things around. The Pakistan team has been known to be at their best when their backs are to the wall. Our cricket has sunk to the depths of despair, and hopefully there is only one way to go and that is up! It is difficult to be upbeat after viewing Pakistan’s recent performances, but the team only has a chance if the fans back them fully.The toss might just be the deciding factor, more so for Pakistan, as the Indians will opt to bat immediately if they win. Waqar must hope that fortune favours him at the start, and he should not think twice about batting first if he wins the toss. It would be foolish if he repeats the mistake made against the Aussies.So it’s all set for the big game, let us just hope that it will be close and exciting one! All the best, Pakistan, a nation is looking up to you!Ed: If readers wish to correspond with the author, please email Taha Noor

After seeing his side end the day on 385 for 9, 65 ahead of Lancashire, Somerset Coach Kevin Shine said: “It was an excellent day for us; good fighting cricket on a wicket where the ball was turning a lot.”Peter Bowler, Jamie Cox, Rob Turner, Ian Blackwell and Mike Burns all batted well for us, and at the end there was a super little knock by Matt Bulbeck and Steffan Jones.”Looking forward to Saturday the caoch went on: “Tomorrow we will be hoping that the last pair can stay together to get us past 400 to gain maximum batting points.”He added: “Keedy and Schofield bowled well for them, and the wicket is not getting any better. We have two spinners in our team and will be looking to get as many runs as possible so that we don’t have a nasty little run chase at the end.”

Crystal Palace are now considering “one of the best coaches ever” as a replacement for Oliver Glasner, amid doubts over the Austrian’s future.

Glasner could be set to leave next summer

With Palace winning the FA Cup last season and fighting for Europe this season, it shouldn’t be surprising that some top clubs are eyeing Glasner, with it recently emerging he is being considered as a replacement for Thomas Frank by Tottenham Hotspur.

Manchester United have also been credited with an interest in the 51-year-old, who may now be planning to leave Selhurst Park upon the expiration of his contract at the end of the season.

Steve Parish will no doubt be hoping for a late change of heart, with the chairman confirming he hopes Glasner extends his stay in South London, saying: “We are building a club which I believe is going to be institutionally capable of taking care of itself. We have to keep raising our ambition every year. I’d love that to be with Oliver, but he’s going to make the best decision for him.”

However, Crystal Palace are now assessing potential replacements, according to a report from GiveMeSport, which states Strasbourg manager Liam Rosenior is one of the options being considered, alongside Rayo Vallecano manager Inigo Perez and Getafe boss Jose Bordalas.

Rosenior is a particularly intriguing target, however, as he uses the same system as Glasner, and the Strasbourg boss has already been discussed internally.

However, Strasbourg’s owners, BlueCo, have made it clear they want to keep hold of the Englishman in the past, rejecting advances from other clubs, so it could be difficult to lure him to Selhurst Park.

Rosenior could be exciting Glasner replacement

The fact the 41-year-old plays the same system as Glasner is a real bonus, as it may not take him too much time to adapt to life at Crystal Palace, and he has received very high praise from pundit Clinton Morrison, who lauded him as “one of the best coaches ever”.

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Although Strasbourg have been on a poor run of form in Ligue 1, failing to win in their last four matches, they remain in a strong position to push for Europe this season, sitting just four points behind fifth-placed Lyon, and their manager has a solid record in France.

Liam Rosenior’s career Ligue 1 record

Games

49

Wins

23

Draws

11

Losses

15

Points per game

1.63

Related Shades of Zaha: Crystal Palace join race for £22m Champions League forward

Palace are looking to sign a new attacker.

Posts ByDominic Lund

Glasner’s reluctance to sign a new contract thus far will be a major concern, but should the Crystal Palace move on in the summer, Rosenior, who led his Strasbourg side to a 2-1 win against the Eagles in November, could be the perfect replacement.

	Yorkshire have ambitious, albeit necessary, plans for Headingley © Getty Images

Yorkshire have submitted plans for their new pavilion at Headingley as part of their multi-million pound investment in redeveloping the ground.The new pavilion, if approved, will be situated at the Kirkstall Lane end and, for the first time, will mean cricketers will no longer have to share the same dressing room facilities used by their rugby counterparts.”In 2005, with the help of Leeds city council the club purchased the freehold of the famous ground and in so doing went a long way towards protecting a 15-year staging agreement with the ECB to host international cricket in Yorkshire,” a club statement read. “However, the job is still not complete – because there is a need to invest in the ground before 2019 to improve player, broadcaster and spectator facilities as well as growing the capacity to over 20,000.”Although intensely proud of its pedigree, the club does not under-estimate the challenges that lie ahead and the increasing competition from other venues across the country to stage international cricket.”While the club has and will continue to have an excellent relationship with its rugby-playing neighbours, there is an acceptance that separate changing rooms and amenities are now essential – and these will form part of the new pavilion.”It was hoped that the new pavilion to be ready in time for the Ashes Test next year, but it was revealed in January that Yorkshire estimate the redevelopment work will only be half finished.

Kenya’s selectors have delayed naming a squad for their Intercontinental Cup match against Namibia, in view of growing doubts surrounding the future of the Kenyan Cricket Association.The selectors met in Nairobi this morning, but it soon became clear that some had deep reservations as to their authority to pick a side to represent the country against such a backdrop, and also with so many leading players either unavailable or on strike.Officially, the naming of the squad was delayed to allow the availability of certain individuals to be confirmed, but Cricinfo understands that it is unlikely that any announcement will be made until the ICC makes a ruling on the authority of Cricket Kenya, the government-backed new body, to run Kenyan cricket.Cricket Kenya was officially recognised by the Registrar of Societies in Nairobi earlier today, and meetings of all the provincial associations will take place tonight to decide if they are willing to support it and not the KCA.If the provinces do give CK their support then Ochillo Ayacko, the sports minister, is likely to request an urgent meeting with the ICC to ask for its backing. If the ICC does so – and given its recent attitude towards the conduct of the KCA, that seems a real possibility – then CK could be running Kenyan cricket as soon as the end of this week.That would leave the KCA totally marginalised. About all it would be left to worry about would be forthcoming legal action against it brought jointly by the Coast Cricket Association and the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association – that case is due to be heard in Mombasa tomorrow – and another action by Nairobi Gymkhana over an outstanding debt. A hearing over the legality of the minister’s action, scheduled for March 7, would then be rendered a virtual irrelevance.

Harbhajan Singh: If India picked their four best bowlers, he’d be playing © Getty Images

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Streaming Audio: Real :: WMAIndia surprised their supporters at the start of the Antigua Test, going in with six specialist batsmen and four specialist bowlers, deviating from their earlier strategy of being aggressive and playing five specialist bowlers. Sambit Bal, Cricinfo’s editor, tells Amit Varma that he is shocked by this negative selection. However, he points out that while the Indian think-tank has been conservative regarding the balance of the side, they’ve been adventurous with the bowlers picked: VRV Singh and Munaf Patel play while Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh sit out.Bal is not happy with Harbhajan’s exclusion, though. If teams pick their best batsmen regardless of conditions, he says, so should they pick their best bowlers.Listen in.Download MP3 (right click and select “save target as”)
Streaming Audio: Real :: WMA

Daren Ganga hopes that a strong showing by West Indies A in Sri Lanka can boost the morale of the senior team © Getty Images

Daren Ganga, the captain of the West Indies A team, said that it would bea great psychological boost for his senior side if the A team could perform well and beat Sri Lanka A in the upcoming ‘Test’ and one-day series.”I am sure it is going to give our senior side a lot of confidence if we can come out on top of the series against Sri Lanka A,” said Ganga at a press conference held at Sri Lanka Cricket headquarters yesterday soon after the West Indies A team arrived for a month long tour.”The fact that some of the players will be considered for selection to the senior team on their performances in the series is a motivation for us to do well as a team,” said Ganga. “Doing well here is going to do you a whole lot of good to your career. Every single player in this team is on the fringe of playing for West Indies, some have alreadydone so.”The senior West Indies team, led by Shivnarine Chanderpaul, is expected to arrive on July 1 to play two Tests and take part in a seven-match one-day triangular with Sri Lanka and India.”Five to seven guys have been here before with the senior team. Some like Jermaine Lawson have been here with the Under-19 World Cup side. We have spoken already of what we are going to encounter and we have worked out ways of dealing with the Sri Lankan opposition. We are quite aware that it is not going to be easy,” said Ganga. “The Sri Lanka A team is playing at home and they have got a nice blend of experience and youth. It is going to be a challenge for us to put our best foot forward. I am sure that when the series is over we’ll come out on top.”Ganga said the team was selected on performance in the Caribbean first-class competition and comprised ten Test players and three who had appeared in one-day internationals. “It is a very experienced and emerging team,” said Ganga, a 26-year-old right-handed opener who has played in 31 Tests and 28 one-day internationals for West Indies.”These young players have been given the opportunity to impress the West Indian selectors. Knowing that the West Indies senior side will be here for a full tour, all the members of our team are looking forward to do well,” said Ganga. “They want to impress the selectors and come July when the team is finalised they will want to be in the senior side. It is a very important tour for all of us.”Russel Arnold, the captain of the Sri Lanka A team, said that although their preparations had been hampered by bad weather his team was “really fit” and looking forward to taking on the West Indies in the contests ahead.”There are a few West Indies players who have played here before like Daren Ganga, Marlon Samuels. We do know some of the players. There are a few newcomers also as time goes by we will get to know them better,” said Arnold. “We have always wanted to represent the national team. That is the end result we want from A series. This is a very good opportunity for me to really impress the selectors. I am very happy with my form and the way things have been going in the past few months. I am looking forward to going out there and getting a few good scores behind me.”The first of three four-day unofficial Tests starts on Thursday at Dambulla. The second Test is scheduled to begin on June 28 at Colts grounds and the third starts on July 5 at the Saravanamuttu Stadium. Five one-day limited-over matches will follow this series from July 11-19.

ScorecardDay 4Bulletin – England romp home after Harmison’s stunning burst
Verdict – Harmison’s magnificent seven
Roving Reporter – A rum day for the locals
Quotes – “One of the best spells by an England player”
Stats – Best bowling figures at Sabina Park
The Paper Round – The tale of Grievous Bodily Harmison
Day 3Bulletin – Hussain and Thorpe resume the fight
Verdict – The Best just got better
Day 2Bulletin – Fidel Edwards rattles England
Roving Reporter – A morning on the mound
Verdict – England’s odd couple
Day 1Bulletin – Smith and Hinds revive West Indies
Verdict – Smith pops England’s bubble
Roving Reporter – Subdued in Sabina
Quotes – ‘This is what I’ve waited for’

The West Indian juggernaut just rolled over the opposition four yearslater. For the 1979 World Cup, the Caribbeans had an even strongerteam. The batting still revolved round Clive Lloyd, Gordon Greenidge,Vivian Richards and Alvin Kallicharran, while Desmond Haynes hadreplaced Roy Fredericks at the top of the order. But the bowling hadbecome much stronger with a string of fearsome fast bowlers in AndyRoberts, Michael Holding, Joel Garner and Colin Croft. In addition,they had an exciting all-rounder in Collis King. With this array oftalent and experience, they proved too strong and their retention ofthe title came as no surprise at all.

© ICC

There was no change in the format and as in 1975 the eight teams wereplace in two groups. Pool A featured the West Indies, New Zealand,India and Sri Lanka while pool B comprised England, Pakistan,Australia and Canada. Sri Lanka and Canada had qualified for thecompetition by finishing winners and runners-up in the newlyconstituted ICC Trophy for associate members.Not unexpectedly, West Indies topped their group with victories overIndia (by nine wickets) and New Zealand (by 32 runs). But Sri Lankabecame the first team to get points against the West Indies when theirmatch at the Oval was abandoned because of rain.Once again New Zealand beat India by eight wickets with three overs tospare to gain the second semifinalists berth from the pool. And Indiathen plumbed the depths by going down to Sri Lanka by 47 runs in theirfinal league encounter. This was a truly embarrassing defeat thataugmented the theory that India had still to come to terms with theintricacies of limited overs cricket.England and Pakistan were the favourites to qualify for the semifinalsfrom group B with Australia being weakened considerably thanks todefections to Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket. That was the way itturned out after a closely-contested game between the two that decidedthe pool placings. England after being 118 for eight scrambled to atotal of 165 for nine in 60 overs after Bob Taylor and Bob Willisadded 43 runs for the ninth wicket. A spell of four wickets for threeruns in eight balls by Mike Hendrick saw Pakistan reeling at 31 forsix. Asif Iqbal, however, counter attacked and played splendidly forhis 51.But Pakistan fell 14 runs short of the England total. Earlier, Englandhad shot out Canada for 45, still the lowest total in the World Cupand till 1992-93 the lowest in all one-day internationals.

© CricInfo

Even if they went according to form, the semifinals were not withoutthrills. New Zealand ran England pretty close before losing by nineruns while chasing a target of 222. Pakistan in the face of animposing West Indian total of 293 for six did not throw in the toweleasily and replied boldly.Majid Khan (81) and Zaheer Abbas (93) added 166 runs for the secondwicket and at 176 for one, Pakistan seemed to be in with a chance evenif the overs were running out. But then Croft and Richards got amongthe wickets and Pakistan were bowled out for 250.The 1979 final was not as closely fought as the title clash four yearsago but it was marked by one great hundred by the peerless Richards,some big hitting by Collis King and a destructive spell by Garner. Itwas fitting that the West Indies should provide all the highlights forthey dominated the match throughout, as the final margin of 92 runswill illustrate.A sell-out crowd of 25,000 was witness to England enjoying theascendancy in the initial stages, reducing the West Indies to 99 forfour. But then Richards and King initiated a recovery process thatended in a blaze of glory. In putting together a partnership of 139runs in 21 overs, both batsmen did pretty much what they liked withthe bowling, which to be candid was pretty mediocre. With Willisinjured, England had gambled on an extra batsman and that meant theyhad only four specialist bowlers with the likes of Geoff Boycott,Wayne Larkins and Graham Gooch having to do more than their fair shareof the work.Needless to say, Richards and King were not complaining! The 12 oversshared by the three went for 86 runs. King scored 86 while Richardsremained unbeaten with a breath-taking 138, his last-ball six offHendrick being talked about even today.The final total of 286 for nine in 60 overs was imposing enough butBoycott and Mike Brearley made England’s task even tougher. True, theyraised 129 for the first wicket but they consumed 38 overs in doingso. That left the remaining batsmen with the job of getting 158 offthe final 22 overs. This was never really on particularly with `BigBird’ Joel Garner in devastating form. The 6′ 8″ Garner just rippedthrough the order with a spell of five wickets for four runs in 11balls. He finished with five for 38 as England were bowled out for 194in 51 overs and Lord’s again resembled a carnival day in Port ofSpain.

The three-day first-class friendly match between Zimbabwe A and the West Indian tourists at Kwekwe Sports Club ended in a tame draw, as the tourists concentrated on batting practice. Three of their batsmen came close to scoring centuries, only to fall at the final hurdle, but they did provide good light entertainment for a small weekday crowd, mainly comprising schoolchildren.The West Indians began the day 57 runs ahead with all their second-innings wickets standing. Daren Ganga and Chris Gayle found no fears in the pitch or the bowling and it came as a surprise when, after twenty minutes’ play, Ganga (19) came down late on a full-length delivery from Travis Friend and played the ball on to his stumps to end an opening stand of 48.Gayle continued to bat with great fluency, contemptuously pulling anything short to the boundary with time to spare. He reached his fifty with a huge six over the sightscreen at long-on off the out-of-form Mluleki Nkala, and hit another next ball. Bryan Strang was still absent with an injured hand, a memento of his fifty the previous day – he expects to be fit if selected for the First Test – so the home side had a seriously depleted attack.Gayle continued his onslaught until he reached the eighties, whereupon he slowed down in anticipation of his second century of the match and third in succession. Chanderpaul (17) was out to a sharp return catch by Barney Rogers, while Gayle, completely changing his game, crawled to 99 and was then out to a low catch at short extra cover off Rogers, failing to reach a memorable achievement by just one run.Ramnaresh Sarwan enjoyed a brisk innings of 43 before being caught at short leg off the occasional left-arm spin of Gavin Rennie. Then Marlon Samuels and Carl Hooper, with some good clean straight hitting, knocked the spinners out of the attack. Hooper raced to his 50 off 39 balls, reaching the landmark with a fierce lofted drive for four over extra cover. Samuels, overshadowed for a while, later blossomed to match his captain, and both batsmen looked set for centuries when a mix-up led to Samuels being run out by Raymond Price for 84. The fifth-wicket partnership was worth 175.Hooper too fell frustratingly short, also run out, for 95 while attempting a quick single to Hamilton Masakadza at short fine leg for the benefit of Neil McGarrell on the stroke of tea. West Indies, clearly more intent on batting practice than the possibility of victory, were 370 for six at tea and batted on afterwards. As Ridley Jacobs was down with flu, they were probably not too keen to field anyway, but experience so far on this tour suggested that the tail, boasting Colin Stuart at number nine, were not likely to pay more than a flying visit.This time they did hang around for longer than usual, almost an hour, perhaps under instructions to see if they could prevent the West Indians from having to take the field again. The final total was 395, 424 ahead, with Jacobs absent ill, and a maximum of 21 overs left for play. Gayle kept wicket as Zimbabwe A scored 55 without loss before the match was called off.