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Wasim Akram has been fined by a Lahore court after failing to appear to answer changes that he hurt religious sentiments by appearing in an advertisement for an Indian liquor company.The civil court ruled against him by default as a result of his non appearance, although Wasim’s solictor later claimed that his client had never been notified of the hearing. He dismissed the claim as a "frivolous petition".The case was brought by a local individual who claimed that he had suffered as a result of the advertisement. He asked for a public apology and damages of Rs 25,000 (US$500).Wasim appeared in the advertisement last year, along with other cricketers such as Harbhajan Singh and Glenn McGrath. He previously denied the accusation, arguing he worked for the company which also manufactured sports equipments.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori has said that Bangladesh could have shown more resolve in chasing a mammoth target of 336 in the second one-day international in Napier yesterday. Bangladesh failed to build on a solid opening stand of 63, losing three wickets for the addition of only five runs and went on the defensive for the rest of the chase. Bangladesh ended on 181 for 6 before rain forced an early end to the match, handing New Zealand a 102-run victory by the D/L method, and the series 2-0.”There was probably a little bit of frustration about the style of play,” Vettori said. “We thought Bangladesh would chase a little bit harder – whenever you chase 330 [sic] you have to take a few risks. If you don’t, you stall and that’s what happened.”Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons said the quick loss of wickets, including that of captain Mohammad Ashraful, was rather unfortunate as it threw the team’s plans off balance.”We had a plan in mind and we were going along according to that plan but we lost three wickets for five runs and the plan changed,” Siddons said. “The batsmen really did not get going after that and we probably lost our biggest strokemakers.”Siddons also backed his batsmen to go for their strokes, despite several instances of experienced players throwing away their wickets in the first two matches. He said a lot of improvement was needed on the bowling front, after each of the New Zealand batsmen enjoyed a good hit in the middle, in particular Jacob Oram ,who clubbed 55 off 31 balls in the slog overs.”If the ball is not swinging or spinning, which it really didn’t today apart from the early overs where I think we bowled really well today, then it is a problem,” he said. “The pace is also not there.”Despite the heavy defeat, Siddons was willing to be patient. “These are young players and it’s going to take time. We are going to suffer some pain, there’s no way round it.”The other topic of discussion was Ashraful’s controversial dismissal, after he spooned a low catch to Ross Taylor at cover. Taylor claimed the catch while Ashraful stood his ground, convinced that it was a bump ball and that prompted the umpires to confer. Vettori backed Taylor’s honesty and the umpires’ decision.”You saw Ross’ reaction,” Vettori said. “He left it in the umpires hands and they made the call. From what I’ve heard it was the right call.”The third and final one-day international will be played in Queenstown on December 31.

India get into action with their first tour game against Victoria on Thursday, two days after their arrival in Australia. The Indians won’t be taking the game lightly given that it’s the only practice match before the first Test, but both sides have concerns over injuries and the weather with rain forecast for the next three days.Victoria have been in good form this season, equal on points with top-ranked New South Wales, and will take the game against India as a chance to blood allrounder John Hastings and batsman Aaron Finch.Victoria’s bowling will not be at full strength with fast bowlers Shane Harwood and Gerard Denton injured and Dirk Nannes being rested. Cameron White, the captain, is ruled out while Brad Hodge, who is to lead the side in White’s absence, is an uncertain starter and will be passed fit only after his back is assessed on Thursday.The visitors will look to playing most of their first-choice Test XI but Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer Khan, who didn’t take part in training on Tuesday, are uncertain for the clash. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who along with Tendulkar and Zaheer missed the final Test against Pakistan in Bangalore, is fit to play the opener and said the game was a crucial one for the team.”It’s always better to have a few sessions before a big Test match [and] we don’t really have much time for practice,” Dhoni told the . “Tomorrow is crucial … I think most of the players would love to play.”Tendulkar, Dhoni said, was improving, “[but] if he needs some more time to rest himself and recover, to be 100% for the first game, he can take it.”Dhoni played down talk of the team not having enough practice and of the importance of the forecast of rain. “You’d love to have more time [for practice], but that’s too many ifs and buts,” he said. “Even if it rains there’s nothing can be done about it – we’ll go indoors and have a knock, do whatever we can.”Dhoni said the team were aiming for a win. “If you are on the field and if you are playing you have got to win, there is no question of just playing the game for practice.”He said the team would have to adapt to the bouncy pitches in Australia. “Getting used to the conditions is very important … so the practice game is important, especially when you’re coming from a series in India,” he said. “When you’re playing in Australia, the length you’re bowling is very important, very different to where you bowl in the sub-continent or England.”Meanwhile, Greg Shipperd, the Victoria coach, said despite missing a few regulars, his team would give India a tough fight. “We will come out and play some good quality cricket and I’m sure probably surprise them,” he told sportal.com.au. “I think it [the pitch] will be quite grassy – it will be hard and I’m sure it will be a good cricket wicket with plenty of pace in it.”He said the team had enough strength in bowling and was expecting legspinner Bryce McGain to make an impression, which could aid him in winning the nod for a place in the Australian Test squad. Ricky Ponting revealed that McGain was considered by the selectors as a candidate for the Boxing Day Test.”A four- or five-for from Bryce McGain here certainly throws his hat into the ring for the second Test,” Shipperd said. “I was disappointed for Bryce [missing out on the Boxing Day Test] because I thought it was a 50-50 bet between him and Hogg.”Teams (from):
Victoria : Brad Hodge (capt), David Hussey, Aiden Blizzard, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Nick Jewell, Michael Klinger, Andrew McDonald , Bryce McGain, Robert Quiney, Peter Siddle, Matthew Wade (wk), Allan Wise.India: Anil Kumble (capt), Wasim Jaffer, Virender Sehwag, Dinesh Karthik, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, RP Singh, Irfan Pathan, Ishant Sharma, Pankaj Singh.

Tim May, the chief executive of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations, says the rights of cricketers must be weighed against the importance of retaining strong Test teams as speculation mounts that Shane Bond might join the Indian Cricket League (ICL). New Zealand Cricket is already encouraging its selectors not to choose players who have already taken part in the league and now a report in the suggests Bond has agreed to play in the ICL in 2008.”With New Zealand and these other poorly paid countries, it’s incredibly enticing at the end of their career, or even in the middle of their career, to look after themselves,” May told the paper. “It’s their job and they’re trying to do the best for their families.”You may well see more ICL contracted players signed up. So what are we going to do, have a New Zealand second XI out there? Is it in New Zealand’s national interest to put out a half-baked team?”Is it in world cricket’s interest? These are the questions people really need to sit down and think about. And there is also the rights of the players to ply their trade. We want to encourage people to play cricket professionally, don’t we? It’s not necessarily a bad thing, this ICL.”New Zealand Cricket has told its selectors that when they choose national and representative squads they should consider other players ahead of those who have taken part in the ICL. Daryl Tuffey was the only one of the six affected players who was realistically in the frame for further Test and ODI action.However, if Bond joined the ICL it would provide a major crisis for cricket in New Zealand. The reported that if NZC tried to stop Bond, or any other player, signing up with the ICL it could face legal action for restraint of trade.

Pakistan were so worried about the umpiring on their Australian tour that they completed a team investigation into contentious decisions which showed the home side was almost six times better off. “It went 29-5 against us,” Bob Woolmer, the coach, told the Brisbane Courier-Mail.Woolmer, who left Australia yesterday after three Tests and the one-day VB Series, said the players had taken the setbacks well, but there were five close calls against them in the opening one-day final, and a first-over knock-back in the second when Adam Gilchrist was “plumb”. “Quite frankly, Australia were the better side against us this summer, but some of these decisions made a huge difference,” he said. “You are talking about decisions which players’ careers rested on.”The Pakistan Cricket Board sent a letter to the ICC during the limited-overs tournament requesting two neutral umpires for one-day matches as well as Tests. One overseas and one local official stood in the VB Series, in line with ICC’s current regulations.Woolmer said Australia were very good at appealing, and that the adjudicators had pressure applied from the players and the crowd. “Umpires are not cheats,” he told the newspaper. “I would never accuse them of that. The way the Australians appeal and the way the crowd supports them creates subconscious pressure on umpires and it shows. People can say an umpire gives a decision on what he sees rather than the appeals, but I disagree. The appeal is very much a part of it. It is a very fine line.”Woolmer said he was looking at ways to improve Pakistan’s appealing. “Even if that means training at it,” he said. “Maybe we need to appeal only when we are certain it is out and appeal very strongly. There are also ways of conducting yourself when you are batting to get the message across to an umpire that an appeal against you is not out. We must look at that as well.”A fan of Hawk-Eye’s ball-tracking technology, Woolmer believes it should be used for decisions even though it is not perfect. “At the very least it is the same for both sides so you take all those other factors out of play,” he said. “I am not having a go at umpires because they get it right well over 90% of the time.”

Warwickshire’s Ian Bell has been declared fit to join his fellow England hopefuls at the ECB’s Academy in Adelaide this month.Bell, 20, has spent the last three months recuperating from a fracture in his lower back, but has now been given the all-clear and he will fly out to Australia on Thursday.Bell said: “I am certainly looking forward to two weeks intensive coaching from Warwickshire’s new coach, John Inverarity before linking up with my colleagues at the Academy and going on to tour Sri Lanka.”Naturally slightly longer term it is my ambition to break into the Test team, but given the opportunity I would jump at the chance of playing against the Australians.”Bell, a former England Under-19 captain who won a gold award in last year’s Benson and Hedges Cup Final, has also agreed a two-year deal with cricket manufacturer Slazenger.”After my recent injury worries it is nice to have some positive news – hopefully my relationship with Slazenger will prove very profitable in terms of runs,” Bell added.”However the next three months are crucial to me, as I start my preparations for the 2003 domestic season.”

West Indies batsman Marlon Samuels will fly to the United States to seek medical treatment for his left knee on Thursday.The decision was reached following dialogue between Rev. Wes Hall, the president of the West Indies Cricket Board; John Pinnock, Samuels’ United States-based agent; Samuels and two medical specialists in the United States."Marlon will fly to Barbados and onto New York on Thursday and will see Dr. Ainsworth Allen to get an evaluation of his knee," remarked Michael Hall, the chief cricket operations officer of the WICB."From New York, Marlon will travel on Monday to Baltimore to see Dr. Michael Mont, a highly-rated knee specialist, to get a second opinion."Samuels was withdrawn from the West Indies’ 15-member squad to the Cricket World Cup 2003 in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya after a medical report on his left knee – on which he had surgery earlier this year – revealed there was a strong chance it could deteriorate during the competition.

Day 1 of 3Berkshire made full use of a very flat wicket at the delightful Alderley Edge ground, batting to the 100 over 1st innings closure for a total of 466 – 5 wickets.Richard Howitt carried his bat for 170 not out-a career best score. His innings was a model of concentration, and chanceless, with a powerful array of shots all around the wicket.There were three centuries in the Berkshire innings, something of a rarity in Minor Counties cricket.Lee Nurse and Howitt put on 181 for the first wicket off 43 overs, before Robin Fisher bowled Nurse for a stylish 108.Julian Wood joined Howitt and runs continued to come freely before Fisher too bowled Wood for 29.The innings continued to gain momentum as Paul Prichard joined Howitt, the two adding 176 for the 3rd wicket in 35 overs, before Prichard departed for 101 off just 109 balls.Fisher was Cheshire’s most successful bowler. He worked hard through 42 overs of slow left arm for his 3 wickets on a wicket that gave bowlers little encouragement and certainly no margin for error.A mixture of bad light and drizzle halted play briefly, before Cheshire batted through the remaining seven overs untroubled, finishing the day on 16 for no wicket.Day 2 of 3Cheshire lost early wickets. Danny Leecha little unluckilycaught at slip, one of three wickets for Carl Crowe; Simon Ogilby caught at mid-wicket and Andrew Hall bowled by seamer Steve Bloyce.There was no further encouragement for the bowlers as Richard Hignett and Nafees Din gradually got on top- though both were badly dropped when well setadding 181 for the 4th wicket from 37 overs.Hignett departed with the score at 247-4, caught miscuing to mid on for 81. Mike Bolger was needlessly run out for 3 and at 260-5, a follow on situation was looming. Simon Renshaw gave good support to Din, 92 was added for the 6th wicket before Din fell lbw to Wood for an attractive 160.The declaration came at 409-6 from 93 overs leaving Berkshire 14 overs in the day to get their 2nd innings under way.Nurse and Howitt took the score quickly to 54 before Nurse was lbw to David Pennett for 16 and Howitt edged a good one to keeper Simon Ogilvy off the same bowler. Night watchman James Ettridge was caught-a little unluckilyat short leg off Simon Fisher and the day ended with Berkshire on 71-3, a lead of 128 going into the final day.Day 3 of 3Batsmen again flourished on the final day. Crowe and Prichard batted attractively, adding 82 for the 4th wicket before Prichard sliced to Hignett on the cover boundary for 61, scored off 48 balls.Wood and Crowe added 61 for the 5th wicket before Crowe departed for 39. Wood, batting at his forceful best, took his score to 158 from 123 balls before charging Fisher to be stumped by yards and promptly declared at 365-8.Fisher’s return of 5-87 from 27.1 overs was just reward for his control of line and length on a batting paradise of a wicket.The target of 423 in 51 overs was indeed a stiff one, but on a wicket that provided ideal batting conditions throughout, this equation was always going to be a difficult one, with a draw always the likely outcome.Unexpectedly, Cheshire were soon on the back foot as wickets tumbled. Leech played loosely to be caught at slip and Din drove uppishly to be caught and bowled by Steve Bloyce. Bloyce sustained his pace and direction to trouble the batsmen. He had Hall caught behind, Hignett trapped lbw and at 108 for 6 with 14 overs remaining, a Berkshire win was on the cards.James Whittaker and Mike Bolger had other ideas, taking the score to 143-7 before Whittaker was taken at short leg off Crowe. There was no further drama as Dave Pennett and Bolger batted out the last five overs, taking the score to 180-7 at stumps.Bloyce finished with 5-58 off his 18 overs – a first 5 wicket haul for the young Finchampstead seam bowler.Both sides take 10 points from the match. Berkshire lead the table jointly at this stage with 33 points, with Cheshire just 1 point behind.

The showdown between Phil Jaques and the England & Wales Cricket Board moved a step closer with the news that Jaques has signed a three-year deal with Northamptonshire despite being told that he is no longer regarded as an English-qualified player.In 2003, Jacques, a 24-year-old Australian whose parents are English, turned out for Northants as a domestic player, but in October he made his debut for New South Wales. Under ECB regulations that meant his qualification status changed to that of an overseas player – as even those holding British or European passports are classified as overseas players if they appear in first-class cricket in their homeland in the preceding 12 months.Jaques’s lawyers have warned the ECB that they are prepared to take legal action unless their client is recognised as a domestic player. He has the backing of Northants, who are known to be keen to challenge the existing rules.If the ECB backs down then it could open the floodgates to even more overseas players to play in England using their ancestral qualifications. And ff the board does not, then it seems likely to face a potentially expensive outing to the law courts.

Western Australia 512 (Campbell 144, Rogers 95, North 70, Wates 53) and 4 for 234 dec (North 78*, Campbell 53*, marsh 68) drew with Queensland 561 (Watson 136, Symonds 126)
Scorecard

Western Australia drew their Pura Cup game with Queensland at Perth after recovering from an early wobble. Queensland went away with two points for the first-innings lead, but for a brief while it appeared as if they’d end the day with victory points as well.WA terminated Queensland’s innings for 561 early in the morning when Brad Hogg clean-bowled Joe Dawes for figures of 4 for 121. Then Dawes returned with the ball in his hand and removed both openers with 24 runs on the board. At this point WA were still 25 runs ahead. Then Andy Bichel claimed Murray Goodwin for 21 (34 for 3). A partnership worth 138 runs between James North and Shaun Marsh followed. Both were patient and played for time. North’s unbeaten 78 came off 174 balls, while Marsh’s 68 took 134 deliveries. They hauled WA out of jail and paved the way for Ryan Campbell’s attack as the match came to a close.Campbell struck a boundary-filled 53 off 62 balls with nine fours and a six. His runs came in a 66-run partnership with North that was cut short when the innings was declared at 234 for 4.