The Central Zone under-22 match between Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthanat Indore ended in a tame draw on Sunday. There was some engrossingcricket over the first two days but rain washed out play on the finalday.Opting to bat on Friday, MP were all out for 189 early on the secondday. They failed to build upon a good start given by openers S Tomar(35) and N Ojha (40) who put on 70 runs. At one stage, the home teamwere 151 for three but then ensued a sharp collapse which saw sevenwickets falling for 38 runs. The visitors replied with 217 for five atstumps on the penultimate day. Skipper AS Jain who opened the battingscored a patient 44 off 102 balls. V Saxena who came in at No 3 got avaluable 57 which was compiled off 133 balls with seven hits to theropes. S Bhatia batted more aggressively in scoring an unbeaten 67 off116 balls. He hit five fours and a six. Rajasthan got five points andMP three.

An unbroken ninth-wicket partnership of 69 between Shaun Udal and AlexMorris enabled Hampshire to avoid the follow-on and a draw now seemsprobable at West End, Southampton.Udal and Morris came together at 323 for eight with Hampshire still needing a further 28 to make Sussex bat again.Both endured some shaky moments until the target was reached when Udal drovespinner Mark Davis through the covers for four. At the close in reply to theSussex first innings total of 500 for seven declared, Hampshire had achieveda respctable 392 for eight with Udal 26 not out and Morris hitting a six andfive fours in his unbeaten 41.Hampshire began the third day at 92 for one and on an easy-paced wicket appeared to be in no danger as opener Giles White compiled his first Championship century for three years with a patient 141 in six and half hours.Overseas signing Neil Johnson hit a fluent 60 with eleven fours to help White add 134 for the fifth wicket but from the moment Johnson was leg before to Robin Martin-Jenkins hitting across the line, Hampshire fell away from 276-3 to 323-8.White top-edged Jason Lewry to wicket-keeper Matt Prior and Martin-Jenkins dismissed Johnson, Adrian Aymes and Dimitri Mascarenhas in 15 balls.Martin-Jenkins got pace and lift from the wicket where others had not while Davis got through plenty of work, 51 overs in the innings for his three for 148. His best moments came in the morning session when he had Will Kendall caught at short leg and then clung on to a sharp return catch two balls later to remove Robin Smith without scoring. Hampshire are 108 behind with a day to play.

Jon Dakin was Leicestershire’s all-round star on a third day of twists andturns at Old Trafford.The 28-year-old all-rounder took season’s best figures of four for 53 asLancashire slumped from 264 for five to 292 all out, and a first inningslead of only 90.Then, after Muttiah Muralitharan and Peter Martin had each taken threewickets to reduce Leicestershire to 156 for six in their second innings,Dakin joined the patient Darren Maddy to hit 31 in an unbroken seventhwicket stand of 52 which gives them a lead of 118 going into the last day.The day had started with Neil Fairbrother completing his second century ofthe season and his third in as many games against Leicestershire.He reached three figures off 161 balls with a six and 13 fours, the last asquare cut off Dakin. But Fairbrother lost his off stump to Dakin’s nextball and although Warren Hegg, who had shared a sixth-wicket stand of 85,also completed an 80-ball half-century, Dakin’s spell dragged the visitorsback into the match.Muralitharan then undermined that work by sending back both Leicesteropeners before they had wiped off the deficit, bowling Trevor Ward andtrapping Iain Sutcliffe lbw to leave them 61 for two.Ben Smith and Daniel Marsh steadied the ship with a third-wicket stand of65 but then Smith went lbw to Murali and Martin bowled a super spell fromthe Warwick Road End to put Leicester on the back foot again. He had Marsh caught at cover, Vince Wells lbw and Neil Burns caught behind.But Maddy, who had batted 202 minutes for an unbeaten 57 in the firstinnings, grafted on and Dakin then collected three consecutive boundariesoff Andy Flintoff to revive Leicestershire’s hopes of completing aChampionship double over their hosts.

With just three days remaining before the start of the event proper, this year’s ICC Trophy tournament will move another step closer to reality today with the start of a series of formal practice matches between the teams in Toronto.Ten sides will take to the field of play in officially-sanctioned practice games, while eight will appear at various venues across the city tomorrow. The highlight of the opening five matches will be the Canada-Ireland contest at King City which pits two of the tournament’s most highly fancied sides against one another.Other nations, like the USA and Hong Kong sides that will be travelling to the nearby location of Guelph, will be staging their own practice games. Among the remainder, many will also be staging intrasquad practice sessions.To this point, the countdown to the tournament has been dominated by frenetic diplomatic activity on both sides of the Atlantic. Italy has already withdrawn from the event in the wake of the ICC’s ruling that four of its leading players did not meet the qualifying requirements to be eligible to compete for the country.The passages of other teams to the event have also been thrown into doubt in the light of problems that officials have encountered in obtaining visas for all of their players.But, complemented by the formal appearance of many of the teams on the field of play, attention is rapidly beginning to turn to the real focus of the tournament.

ECB Premir Division 1 (Time games)Andover 252-6 (R Miller 58, Brunnsweiler 42, M Miller 41, Keighley 37, Hayward 33, Caines 3-52)
South Wilts 215 (Woodhouse 71, Pauwells 33, Wade 26, Langdown 5-69)
Andover won by 37 runsBAT Sports 171 (Hayes 42, Adams 35, Goldstraw 25, Motchall 8-87)
Calmore Sports 136 (Cass 37, Archer 37, Goldstraw 4-44)
BAT Sports won by 35 runsHavant 278-2 dec (Perry 173, Hindley 66)
Burridge 237-5 (Francis 80, Hawkins 46, Jackson 38, Creal 27)
Match drawnHungerford 195-9 (Maier 64, Kidner 3-26, Waite 3-61)
Bournemouth 196-5 (Swarbrick 68, Park 47, Rintoul 32)
Bournemouth won by 5 wicketsLiphook & Ripsley 188 (Brown 61, Tyler 37, Whiting 5-38, King 5-58)
Bashley (Rydal) 190-1 (Sexton 103, Thurgood 67)
Bashley (Rydal) won by 9 wicketsPremier Division 2 (50 overs)Hambledon 210-7 (James 87, Barnard 62, Nolan 3-43)
Portsmouth 213-2 (Cook 99, Keech 92)
Portsmouth won by 8 wicketsLymington 335-2 (Clemow 213 not out, Peacock 46, Craft 31)
Cove 233-8 (Randall 71, Peacock 3-51)
Lymington won by 102 runsOld Tauntonians & Romsey 294-6 ( )
Old Basing 206-6 ( )
Old Tauntonians & Romsey won by 88 runsSparsholt 114 ( )
Easton & Martyr Worthy 115-2 ( )
Easton & Martyr Worthy won by 8 wicketsTrojans 128 (Subnaik 32, Durand 28, Carson 4-32, Geoghegan 3-13)
United Services 130-3 (Toogood 46, Braithwaite 26, Subnaik 3-49)
United Services won by 7 wicketsPremier Division 3 (50 overs)Alton 240-9 (Oliphant 114, M Heffernan 42, Chalkley 38, Shapland 3-32)
Flamingos 164 (Hitchings 47, Manthorpe 42, Chalkley 3-15, Gadsby 3-38)
Alton won by 76 runsBashley (Rydal) II 171-9 (Herbert 46, Tam 4-27)
United Services II 163 (Patel 62, Saunders 31)
Bashley (Rydal) II won by 8 runsHook & Newnham Basics241-7 (Gardner 71, Lovelock 58)
Havant II 245-7 (Ferguson 54, Mist 53, Gover 42, Rivers 5-27)
Havant II won by 3 wicketsLeckford 305-3 ( )
Lymington II 276-6 ( )
Leckford won by 29 runsNew Milton 258-9 (Wheeler 50, L Beck 38, Gargaro 35, Taylor 35, Love 4-31, Rudder 3-58)
Waterlooville 149 (Over 58, Wheeler 3-19, Beck 3-28)
New Milton won by 109 runsPaultons 303-9 (James 104, Darnton 51, J Adams 4-44)
St Cross Symondians 173 (Barrett 67, Lamb 3-27, Wilde 3-51)
Paultons won by 130 runsPurbrook 190 ( )
Gosport Borough 118 ( )
Purbrook won by 72 runsRowledge 284-2 ( )
Portsmouth II 183-7 ( )
Rowledge won by 101 runsWinchester KS 202-8 ( )
Hursley Park 115-9 ( )
Winchester KS won by 87 runs

A disappointed Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya blamed his batsmenfor not firing once again in their last round robin match of the CocaCola Cup which the home team lost to India today."It’s disappointing. The first 15 overs are very crucial and we lostthree wickets in the first ten overs and that’s where the game wentout of our hands."Sri Lanka’s strong batting line up has failed to provide the goods inthis tournament but the bowlers have been able to do the job for theSri Lankan captain. "In the previous games we had one batsmen whokept going. Either Russell, Marvan or me but today it didn’t happen,"he said.Right through this tournament, Sri Lanka has been sticking to the sixbatsmen policy. When asked as to whether they would deviate from thatpolicy in the final, the Sri Lankan captain said, "We want to persistwith the same combination. If we play seven batsmen, then we’ll beshort of an all rounder. I think we’ll stick to the six batsmenpolicy."Indian captain Sourav Ganguly meanwhile remained positive of a victoryin tomorrow’s game against New Zealand. "After today’s victory, we’vegot the same points as New Zealand. I am confident we can turn itaround in tomorrow’s match and book a berth in the final. We haven’tdone well against them in this tournament, but I am sure we can put upa much better performance."India started off poorly with the cream of their batting back in thepavilion with just 38 on the board. But at the end, they managed to gopast 225. "We lost a few very early wickets. But Yuvraj, Rahul andSodhi batted superbly to take us past 225," said Ganguly."When we had the wicket of Sanath Jayasuriya I knew we had the gamein our hands. Sri Lanka’s batting depends a lot on Sanath. If we gethim early that’s it," said the Indian skipper."If you look at Sri Lanka’s success rate, they’ve won most of theirmatches because of Sanath or Aravinda. One of them is not there,"remarked Ganguly.Man of the match Yuvraj Singh returned to form with a fine unbeaten98. The left-handed batsman has been shuffled between the opening slotand the middle order, but today when the team needed his services themost, he came good. However he seems to be content with whateverposition he bats. "I wouldn’t mind batting in the middle order oropening the innings. I play according to the team’s needs," he said.Yuvraj missed out on his maiden century by just two runs. At the endof the day reflecting on the innings, he said, "Yes, a hundred wouldhave been nice. I have not got one. I was unfortunate to slip on acouple of occasions while I was running. But once again that’s how itgoes. I don’t mind as long as we keep winning."

Hampshire chose from thirteen for the long journey to Riverside for the floodlit match against Durham on Wednesday evening (14th August)With Alan Mullally selected for the England test team, Alex Morris who usually sits out the one-day matches is drafted in. John Francis, brother of Simon is brought into the squad following excellent batting form for the Second XI.The thirteen are: Robin Smith (captain), Derek Kenway (wicket-keeper), Jason Laney, Neil Johnson, Will Kendall, Lawrence Prittipaul, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Alex Morris, Chris Tremlett, James Hamblin, Shaun Udal, Giles White and John Francis.

In defeating Middlesex so comprehensively in their Norwich Union League match, Sussex showed their all-round ability which has served them so well in both forms of cricket this season.Despite being in the middle of the Second Division table with 30 points, Sussex have put themselves in a position to challenge for promotion with this victory. They are already comfortably on top of the second division in the four-day game and their performance at Old Deer Park today highlighted their strength.To reach their modest target, they needed just 28.1 overs today as Richard Montgomerie guided them with a steady innings of 34 not out. Along with Murray Goodwin, 20 not out, he put on 43 in their unbroken stand for the third wicket.None of the six bowlers used by Middlesex could find penetration although Tim Bloomfield, coming on first change, claimed both Sussex wickets that fell in a space of four overs. The first went on 46 and then on 67.It showed in the end that there just were not enough runs on the board for Middlesex to bowl at.Earlier Middlesex, second from bottom in the second division, showed clearly why they are struggling in the Norwich Union League this season. They lasted only 37 overs, managing 109 with the help of 32 extras.Having been asked to bat on a slow pitch and in overcast conditions, none oftheir batsmen appeared to settle in. With tidy, accurate bowling Sussex keptthe pressure on as wickets fell at regular intervals.They were two down for 27 after the first wicket had gone in the first over.A revival seemed on the way as Owais Shah and Ed Joyce put on 35, the higheststand of the innings. But with the total 62 Joyce spliced his shot to becaught at cover and ten runs later Middlesex lost their fourth wicket.Fine off spin bowling by Mark Davis gave him four for 24 as he cut throughthe middle order. He had Shah, the top scorer with 23, held at long on andthen took two wickets in his sixth over, both with the total of 92.Stephen Fleming was caught driving to mid-on and Chad Keegan was bowledaround his legs after he had lifted the off spinner over wide mid-wicket forthe only six of the innings. Davis finally wrapped up the innings, bowlingTim Bloomfield with one that kept low.

Local league started in Bulawayo over the weekend and the most encouraging result came from the newly introduced Bulawayo Development team which recorded a comprehensive win over Milton by 184 runs. Both teams were making their debuts in first-league cricket.This innovation augurs well for cricket and the future development of black cricket in line with the policy of the Zimbabwe Cricket Union, and their progress will be closely followed.In the other match BAC beat Queens Sports Club by six wickets, with the highlight being the performance of 15-year-old Shaun Williams who took three for 21 in 5.1 overs.In the other matches played, Bulawayo Sports Club beat Macdonald Club by 44 runs while Jimbos – another club new in the league – lost to Crescents by 95 runs.Over the past few years cricket in Bulawayo has suffered from both lack of interest and apathy and it is most pleasing to see new additions to the league. The introduction of Test cricket, television coverage and the continual all-year-round cricket has provided the interest and realization that cricket and all that goes with this great game can and will be enjoyed by all races in Zimbabwe.To prepare for the forthcoming Logan Cup competition next year, Matabeleland are preparing to undertake a short tour to Kenya later in the year and are currently negotiating with the Kenya Cricket Association to organize dates. This will allow the Kenya team to prepare for the proposed overseas tour they wish to undertake early next year.

He didn’t quite come to the Adelaide Oval with a smoking gun, but Shane Bond has thrown his hat into the ring for New Zealand Test selectionnonetheless with an impressive performance late on the third day of the tour match against South Australia today. By stumps, the South Australianshad been reduced to a second innings score of 4/130 after they had earlier conceded a narrow deficit on the first.Bond (2/30), vying with fellow pacemen Daryl Tuffey (0/6) and Chris Martin (0/26) for a vacant Test fast bowling slot, had been forced to watchthe action from the sidelines for most of the day as his team patiently chiselled out a 17-run first innings lead.But, when his chance arrived, he seized it with both hands. He induced David Fitzgerald (0) to chop the very first delivery of the Redbacks’ inningsback into the stumps, and then rattled the castle of Shane Deitz (8) eight overs later with a classical yorker. He was bowling down-breeze on ablustery day in Adelaide – and television replays suggested both scalps had been obtained from no balls – but there was no denying the strength ofhis impression. He developed excellent pace and maintained disciplined line and length in each of two spells.Admittedly, Tuffey also bowled well and the spinning prowess of Daniel Vettori (2/43) continued to make life difficult for the batsmen too. But, asthe Redbacks were led most of the way to stumps by the experienced pairing of Greg Blewett (61) and Darren Lehmann (51), there was nomember of the attack more impressive than the 26-year old right armer.Earlier, Tuffey (56) had made a decisive impact of his own with the bat in the course of New Zealand’s progression to a first innings total of 314.Around more than two sessions of vigilant batting from the Kiwis, the powerfully-built right hander added some much-needed aggression to histeam’s innings in the lead-up to tea, clubbing two glorious sixes over mid wicket and slamming several inside-out drives over the off side on the wayto only the third half-century of his first-class career.Therein, he matched the standards of attacking entertainment that had been established by Adam Parore (48) before lunch, and had nearly evenoverhauled top scorer Lou Vincent (74) by the end of his cameo effort.Vincent, for his own part, again played well, but the exuberance that bubbled over into his play yesterday wasn’t quite replicated. Before he playeda delivery from fiery left arm paceman Mark Harrity (2/22) back into his stumps shortly after lunch, he remained keen to play off the front foot andunfurled more of his flourishing and technically correct strokes. But he was also tied down for long periods, never more so than at the outset of theday when the nagging accuracy of pace bowlers Mike Smith (1/38) and Paul Rofe (0/29) kept the accumulation of runs to a premium.The opening 31 deliveries of the day from impressive youngster Rofe were all dot balls, and just three runs were taken from his first 37 in total.At the other end of the day, Vettori also shut down the scoring rate when he lured Blewett into driving a catch to mid on and Lehmann into lobbingback a caught and bowled chance from the final ball before stumps.It all helped to bookend a generally laboured day of batting from both teams.