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ScorecardSairaj Bahutule spun out Gujarat in quick time on the final day as Mumbai ran away to an innings-and-64-run win. It took just 25.2 overs for Gujarat to be wiped out as Bahutule and Ramesh Powar, the offspinner, claimed seven wickets between them. Mukund Parmar, the Gujarat captain, and Parthiv Patel couldn’t bat because of injury. Gujarat had struggled in the first innings as well with Powar being the tormentor in chief. Barring Parthiv Patel, who made a gritty 87 on the first day, none of the Gujarat batsmen passed 50 in either innings.
ScorecardGnaneswara Rao steered Andhra to a tense four-wicket win against Bengal at Vishakapatnam. Chasing 191 on the final day, Andhra rode on Gnaneswara’s 63, which included eight fours and a six. There were handy contributions from Prasad Reddy, the wicketkeeper, and Venugopal Rao, Gnaneswara’s elder brother. Ranedeb Bose, the Bengal opening bowler, claimed three wickets and reduced them to 143 for 5, but RV Ch Prasad joined Venugopal and the two took Andhra to their first win of the season.
ScorecardNarender Pal Singh bowled Hyderbad to a thrilling 22-run win over Uttar Pradesh at the Gymkhana Ground in Hyderabad. Chasing just 143 for a win, UP faltered against the medium-pace of Singh and Vishnuvardhan, and collapsed for 120 in 36.3 overs. Suresh Raina’s breezy 36 gave the innings a much-needed surge, but the rest of the middle order couldn’t chip in with enough. Ali Hameed and Ashish Winston Zaidi got UP close, but neither could clinch the issue as UP fell 22 just runs short.
ScorecardKulamani Parida’s eight-wicket haul gave Railways a great chance but their batsmen couldn;t manage the 138 required as the game at Indore finished in a draw. Parida, the offspinner, knocked over all the MP batsmen to fall today to finish with 8 for 68. But Devendra Bundela, with a fighting 98, managed to eat up valuable time before being the last man to be dismissed with a lead of 137. Railways began in rollicking fashion, racing to 32 in just the fifth over, but a few quick wickets pegged them back and they finally fell 56 short of victory and had to settle for two points from the game, by virtue of their first-innings lead.
ScorecardTamil Nadu didn’t push for an outright victory on the final day against Punjab at Chennai and were content to take away first-innings honours from the top-of-the-table clash. Sreedharan Sharath (112) and Subramaniam Badrinath (97) added 163 for the fourth wicket, and collected some useful batting practice as the game petered out to a tame draw. Rajesh Sharma and Navdeep Singh picked up three wickets apiece for Punjab but it was too late to force the issue.
ScorecardDelhi were denied their first victory of the season as the Karnataka lower order resisted on the final evening at the Jamia Millia Ground in Delhi. After gaining a 135-run lead, Delhi raced to 115 in only 18 overs in their second innings. Aakash Chopra led the charge with a 61-ball 66, and Delhi declared 250 ahead. Karnataka were in the hunt at 134 for 3, with Barrington Rowland anchoring the chase, but he fell at that point and the lower order ensured that a defeat was averted.

Match drawn – Bangladesh A 54 for 2 (Shahriar Nafees 20*) v Glamorgan 380 (Powell 111, Syed Rasel 4-89)
ScorecardRain washed out the final day between Glamorgan and Bangladesh A at Abergavenny. Glamorgan were bowled out for 380 on the first day, with Michael Powell top-scoring with 111. Bangladesh had made 54 for 2 in reply, after Andrew Davies took both wickets in what little play – 10.1 overs – was possible on the second day.Bangladesh’s captain, Shahriar Nafees, was left unbeaten on 20 after the umpires Darrell Hair and Mervyn Kitchen called the match off just after midday.

Muttiah Muralitharan will miss the first leg of Sri Lanka’s tour of New Zealand after the selectors decided that he needed to prove his fitness first. Marvan Atapattu had urged the selectors to let Muralitharan accompany the team right from the start, but they have chosen instead to ask him to step up his rehabilitation at home.The selectors are also keen for him to bowl in a domestic match, and he will try to play in a board-organised internal practice game on Dec 27 to prove his fitness. This means that he will not be able to be monitored closely by CJ Clarke, the team physiotherapist, although he will have access to Sri Lanka Cricket masseurs. It will also reduce the risk of him being rushed back too early, as has happened in the past, particularly during the last tour of England in 2002.Nevertheless, Murali remains confident that his right shoulder will have recovered sufficiently for him to participate in the Test series, which starts at Hamilton on January 15. At the moment, he is working furiously hard in the team gymnasium at Sri Lanka Cricket’s headquarters, and is regularly treating the shoulder with ice-packs.He has also resumed bowling in the nets after Dr David Young, his Melbourne-based surgeon, pronounced himself satisfied with the speed of his recovery. Muralitharan currently bowls 24 balls every other day, and that workload will be gradually increased during the course of the month.The shoulder is still painful, but that was always expected to be the case until it had healed completely.

The United States of America claimed the final spot in September’s ICC Champions Trophy tournament, pipping Scotland by 0.028 on net run rate to win the Six Nations Challenge in Dubai.The USA overhauled Scotland’s 206 to win by five wickets in the 48th over, to scupper the Scots’ hopes. Meanwhile Holland, the tournament’s overnight leaders, blew their chances by losing to the United Arab Emirates. In an exceedingly close-fought competition five of the six teams finished up with six points (click here for the points table), but America squeaked home by virtue of a superior net run rate. Canada, conquerors of Bangladesh at the 2003 World Cup, lost all their five matches.The USA now take their place alongside the ten Test-playing nations and Kenya at the Champions Trophy, which is scheduled to take place in England in September. The Americans face group games against Australia, the world champions, and New Zealand. They will be the USA’s first official one-day internationals.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) plans to send Shabbir Ahmed, the fast bowler who is undergoing a one-year ban for a suspect bowling action, to Australia for lab tests on his bowling action before the ICC reviews his ban again.”Shabbir is at present playing league cricket in England and we are in touch with him. We have already worked on his action which has shown improvement,” Saleem Altaf, PCB’s director of cricket operations, told Reuters.”We are hopeful that by the time the ICC reviews his ban that his stint in Australia under bio-mechanic experts would strengthen his case for a return to international cricket.”The board had appealed to the ICC this January to review Shabbir’s case, but the ban was upheld by an independent bowling review group in Dubai. The group’s decision meant that Shabbir became the first bowler in international cricket to be banned for a period of 12 months on account of a dodgy action.The PCB must appeal to the ICC once the term of the ban is over. As per the ICC’s directives the bowler must submit evidence from experts that his bowling action has been corrected, only then would the ICC inform umpires that the ban had been lifted.Altaf also revealed that the ICC had rejected Pakistan’s proposal to organise six-day Tests for the home series against West Indies in November and December this year. “We had made a suggestion to have six-day Tests to save lost playing hours due to weather conditions in winter. But it didn’t come through,” he said.But he was hopeful that not too much time would be lost during the Tests. “They are being held in November and we also have the option of extending play under lights,” he added.West Indies will play three Tests in Pakistan beginning November 7 – one each at Lahore, Multan and Karachi.

Thilanga Sumathipala, Sri Lanka Cricket’s (SLC) president, faces further legal wrangles after Namal Balalla, the Colombo Additional Magistrate, announced this week that he had been discharged but not cleared. The magistrate has ordered Sumathipala to appear before court on January 8.Sumathipala is fighting a case filed by the CID under the Immigration and Emigration Act after being accused of aiding and abetting an underworld figure to obtain a British visa under a false passport. The investigation followed a series of serious allegations by a Sunday newspaper. If found guilty, Sumathipala faces a possible jail sentence.Sumathipala, who vehemently denies all the charges, had held a pressconference on Monday night to announce that he had been discharged.Sumathipala’s legal team had convinced a Poya Day court that the CIDpossessed insufficient evidence to pursue their case. He looked to haveemerged from the most difficult period of his life.But the manner in which the court was convened on a public holiday, without the presence of a representative from the Attorney General’s department or the CID, drew sharp criticism from the bar. Balalla rejected the submissions by the defence not to accept the plaint filed by the CID, arguing any evidence would be assessed in court on Jan 8.

The Pakistani fast bowler, Mohammad Sami, has signed as Kent’s second overseas player on a two-month contract. Sami, 22, will replace the Australian batsman Greg Blewett when Pakistan complete their three-match NatWest Challenge series against England later this month.Blewett, who has been standing in for his compatriot Andrew Symonds during Australia’s tour of the Caribbean, will continue to deputise for Sami in the short term.Pakistan’s international schedule has enabled Sami to join Kent on aneight-week deal – after which the club will review their overseas player policy for the rest of the season.

Hampshire’s bid to find an immediate replacement for Wasim Akram suffered a setback yesterday after they failed to sign Heath Streak as their second overseas player.Streak played for Hampshire in 1995 and scored 378 runs at an average of 15 and took 53 wickets at just under 31, but made a good impression with his positive attitude.Tim Tremlett, Hampshire’s director of cricket, said: “We have just talked to Heath but he can’t help. He has just completed a hard tour and has holiday plans before taking on Australia.”Streak’s refusal follows a succession of unlucky breaks concerning Hampshire and overseas players. Before Wasim’s departure, Shoaib Akhtar – now playing for Durham – turned them down for international commitments, and Shane Warne was unable to fulfil his captaincy role due to a one-year ban.And just to make matters worse, they have got problems with their English players. Ed Giddins, out of form and favour, has only played only three Championship matches and will today have talks with county officials to discuss his future. Add to that an injury list including Alan Mullally, Robin Smith, Shuan Udal and Alex Morris and all’s not rosy in Hampshire’s garden.

The results for the Batting Performance of the Year award are:The winner
Michael Vaughan
183 v Australia at Sydney (second innings)
England won by 225 runs
After ending up on the losing side at Brisbane despite having scored 177, Michael Vaughan went one better at Sydney, scoring 183. It was an innings of beauty, poise and technical rectitude and, most relevantly, it helped England to a rare Test win against Australia.The other nominees
Matthew Hayden
119 v Pakistan at Sharjah (first innings)
Australia won by an innings and 198 runs
In oven-like conditions under which Pakistan wilted for 59 and 53, and no other batsman crossed 50, Matthew Hayden gave a masterclass on batting and physical endurance both. The slow Sharjah wicket inhibited strokeplay, but Hayden dug deep, scoring 119 out of 310 in Australia’s only innings of the game.Stephen Fleming
274* v Sri Lanka at Colombo (first innings)
Match drawn
Sometimes, not losing can be equal to winning. The pundits didn’t give New Zealand much of a chance against Muttiah Muralitharan on home pitches. Yet, by the second day of the first Test, Stephen Fleming hadn’t only conquered Murali but ground him to dust. It was an innings epic in concentration, focus, perseverance and technical adjustment. Thanks to it, New Zealand returned home undefeated in the series – and that itself was a victory.Ramnaresh Sarwan
105 v Australia at Antigua (second innings)
West Indies won by three wickets
Classics are made of this. Chasing history (418 to get in the last innings), West Indies looked headed for a familiar collapse at 74 for 3 when Sarwan joined Brian Lara at the crease. He lost Lara’s company at 165, but crafted a stirring partnership with Shivnarine Chanderpaul (105), which took West Indies to the doorstep of a famous victory.Shivnarine Chanderpaul
100 v Australia at Georgetown (first innings)
Australia won by nine wickets
It was the unlikeliest of quick hundreds. Chanderpaul, he of limpet fame, launched an assault so severe that the world’s best bowling attack was found wanting for an answer. The hundred came off 72 balls, the third-fastest in the history of Test cricket. Peter Roebuck described it as “breathtaking in its audacity and inspired in its execution”. West Indies lost the match, though, and Chanderpaul had to wait till the last Test to score a hundred that proved matchwinning.

Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya will urge his players to be on guardagainst complacency before their fourth Pool B match against Kenya inNairobi on Monday, warning that one false step could shatter their World Cupdreams.Despite easy wins against Bangladesh and Canada, Jayasuriya will make itclear that it is essential to claim maximum points in their final low-keygame.

Moreover, the skipper will stress the need to further enhance an alreadyimpressive net run rate (NRR), a potential buffer against failure in theirfinal group matches.”One wrong move and the World Cup could be over for us,” Jayasuriya told AFPnews agency before the team’s flight to Nairobi.”The situation in our group is such that we need to win well and improveour net run rate,” added Jayasuriya.”With four teams in the fray, it could boil down to who has a betterrun-rate. We were aware of that when we went into the game against Canada.”In fact, barring a shock loss against the Kenyans, who will now be eyinga place in the Super Sixes having claimed four points against New Zealand,Sri Lanka’s progression to the second round appears assured.

Their massive 3.17 net run rate is the best in the tournament and fargreater than the other Pool B contenders, providing a safe cushion shouldany banana skins lie ahead.Two months ago Jayasuriya might have jumped at a second or third place spotin Pool B but expectations have risen so much that he’s now eyeing a cleansweep.”We want the top the group and take forward as many points into the SuperSix,” he said. “Which means it is important to beat both the West Indies andSouth Africa.”We should not be concerned at what is happening to other teams. The aim isto win all our games.”Jayasuriya – one of the key reasons behind Sri Lanka’s unexpected New Yearresurgence having smashing three hundreds and two fifties in his last seveninnings – maintains that his side are now comfortable playing in previouslyalien conditions.

“Playing in these conditions for three months, both here and in Australia,we have got used to them and know what to expect.”Everyone in the side knows the conditions. That’s a big help and that’s whywe are playing such good cricket.”The entire team is focused on the job at hand. We help each other out bothon and off the field. The batsmen and bowlers have stuck to the task, that’swhy we have been able to make a winning start.”