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Bet you didn’t pick the seat
Seven months is a long time out of the game for Trevor Hohns, the former chairman of selectors. Hohns retired from his long-term post in April and has dropped dramatically on the ticket-priority list. Instead of dressing room and all-stadium access, Hohns was a row from the top of the Northern Stand, which almost requires complimentary oxygen masks.Keeping abreast of research
Only the brave or stupid have ever referred to Matthew Hayden as a boob. But by using a pink grip on his bat in the series he’s bringing attention to breast cancer research. Gray-Nicolls, Hayden’s bat sponsor, will donate $20 to the fund for every run he scores over the five Tests. Today he raised $420 before lunch with his 21.Eyes on the skies
War metaphors have been a constant part of the lead-up, so it was fitting that there was a military opening to the series. Two Blackhawk helicopters swooped over the Gabba to signal the engagement was about to begin and a couple of army officers raised the flags during the national anthems. Up in the Nine commentary box they were unveiling infra-red camera technology that is normally issued to track jet-fighters. But the “Hot Spot” isn’t there to alert the masses to any prospective terror threats. It is being shown off in another technological attempt to provide definitive answers on contentious edges.The last post
The Barmy Army trumpeter has been silenced by the Gabba’s anti-instrument policy. Despite entertaining crowds at grounds throughout the world, Bill Cooper was evicted along with the drunk, disorderly and badly behaved. “He tried to bring his trumpet in and was told to stop,” a police spokesman said. “However, the trumpet got in somehow and he was asked to leave.” Queensland Cricket has no plans to relax its regulations. Bring back the music!

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

It was minnow bashing at its best as Sri Lanka, led by Sanath Jayasuriya, pulverized Kenya, beating them by 172 runs at the Wanderers. Jayasuriya’s whirlwind 88 and Jehan Mubarak’s late fireworks lifted Sri Lanka to a record team score of 260 for 6, a target way out of reach for the opposition as Kenya managed just 88.Records tumbled as the victory margin of 172 set the record for the biggest ever in Twenty20 internationals. Mubarak and Mahela Jayawardene – who made 65 – came within striking distance of recording the fastest fifties and the score of 260 foretold the result of the match even before the Kenya openers took guard.Steve Tikolo’s decision to insert the opposition proved costly as Sri Lanka began with the intent of scoring over 200. The openers – Jayasuriya and Upul Tharanga, flayed at just about everything in the opening overs. Tharanga was the only one to miss out, owing to a lapse in concentration as he played across the line to a Thomas Odoyo delivery which hit the middle stump. While Odoyo bowled with control in his opening spell, the support bowlers suffered.Jayasuriya batted with characteristic freedom, shuffling across his stumps and disturbing the bowler’s rhythm at the delivery stride. Despite a few hits and misses early in the innings, it didn’t take long for him to find the meat of the bat. He set the ball rolling with the first six of the match, pulling a good length delivery drifting in over square leg and through his innings, he kept the fielders in the arc between square leg and long-leg on their toes.Sangakkara’s brief knock of 30 was characterised by technically correct strokes along the ground and his stand of 75 with Jayasuriya ensured that a record score was on the cards. Wicketkeeper Maurice Ouma stood up to the stumps to curb the batsmen from using their feet but it was to no avail. Jayasuriya unfurled the shot of the match, a short-arm jab across the line off Nehemiah Odhiambo which just landed over the square-leg rope.Sangakkara fell sweeping to Jimmy Kamande and the passage of play following his dismissal was forgettable at best for the Kenyans. Jayawardene announced his arrival with a slog-sweep six and batting never looked easier as swept and scooped while staying rooted to the crease.The carnage played on the minds of the fielders and a series of comical errors in the field followed. Fielders at the deep midwicket region struggled to time their jumps and a collision between Lameck Onyango and Odoyo gave Jayawardene a life as the catch was spilled.Jayawardene fell trying to sweep Jimmy Kamande and that brought Mubarak to the middle. Mubarak took to Onyango, carting three consecutive sixes and then a four over deep extra cover and the over was worth a whopping 29. He fell short of beating Mohammad Ashraful’s record for the fastest fifty but that record hardly mattered as the target seemed unassailable.

The Kenyans showed no semblance of a fight as half the side was back in the pavilion with the score on 50. Chaminda Vaas demonstrated the right line and length to bowl on the pitch and bagged the first two wickets with his nagging line at the stumps.Tanmay Mishra broke the shackles with a thundering six over long-on against the run of play. However, boundaries were few and far between and at the end of the 10th over, Kenya struggled to push the run-rate up to six an over, let alone match Sri Lanka’s.Lasith Malinga, brought in as the second change bowler, prised out a couple of wickets. Captain Steve Tikolo failed to inspire his side as he was caught in the slips for four while Collins Obuya fell to a tame loft, giving Malinga one of the easier return catches.Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Gayan Wijekoon took a wicket each as the Kenyans struggled to get close to 100. The innings was wrapped up after the fall of the ninth wicket as Odoyo was unfit to bat owing to the collision earlier on.

Graeme Smith said it was the players’ “biggest worry”; Tim May, the Federation of International Cricketers Association, warned of the possibility of a player strike; while Sunil Gavasker was “shocked” at players complaining over their schedules. The topic of player burn-out has elicited extreme reactions but Sachin Tendulkar, expectedly, chose the middle path.”It differs from player to player,” he said while speaking at an Airtel-promotional event in Mumbai. “Some have played a lot of cricket and feel the effect of too much cricket, while others have just started. It is important that the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) strike a balance between too much cricket and too less. It is also important from the spectators point of view – they shouldn’t be deprived of cricket; at the same they shouldn’t get too less.”When probed further on the issue, especially Gavaskar’s view on the topic, Tendulkar chose the diplomatic route. “Everyone is entitled to his opinion. As far as I am concerned, I have been happy with my schedule. It is important to physically and mentally recharge yourself after every series. One must make sure there is a break after matches and series.”Tendulkar was also asked of Ricky Ponting’s fantastic run recently, fast catching up on his record 35 Test hundreds. “I played against Ponting in a few exhibition games in 1991-92 and knew he will be the guy to watch out for. Sunil Gavaskar’s record of 34 Test hundreds stood for 22 years and such benchmarks help the next generation – whether it is Ponting, Lara or myself. That is the best thing about records.”

Division One

Michael Lumb and Sean Ervine hit rapid half-centuries as Hampshire gained a thrilling two-run win against Essex in a match reduced to 25 overs per side at The Rose Bowl. Lumb ensured Hampshire gained a flyer to their innings, taking 40 balls over his 62, and Ervine built on his work with a 38-ball 57. The hard hitting continued all the way down the order and when Essex lost three early wickets against James Bruce and Daren Powell the task became enough tougher. But James Foster (61) and Grant Flower (54) managed to keep up with an escalating run rate and strong striking from Ryan ten Doeschate and Andy Bichel kept the game alive. However, Powell came back to grab two vital wickets and Shaun Udal kept Essex down in the final over.Worcestershire gave their suffering supporters something to smile about with a seven-wicket win against Sussex in their relocated match at Edgbaston. Vikram Solanki hit a 51-ball 55 then Ben Smith and Graeme Hick calmly completed the chase with a stand of 110 and four overs to spare. Sussex had wasted a strong platform after Richard Montgomerie (65) and Murray Goodwin (52) added 106 for the second wicket as Ray Price and Gareth Batty shared six wickets. Sussex’s spin pair of Mushtaq Ahmed and Saqlain Mushtaq couldn’t produce a repeat.Gloucestershire held their nerve to secure a three-run win against Warwickshire in a tight encounter at Bristol. Darren Maddy (71) and Kumar Sangakkara (55), only recently back from Sri Lanka, gave Warwickshire a chance and Tim Ambrose kept them in touch. But Ben Edmondson pulled out a fine last over and removed Tim Groenewald with six still needed. Gloucestershire had Alex Gidman’s 88 off 74 balls to thank for their total of 212, after a delayed started reduced the match to 35 overs per side.

Division Two

Jacques Rudolph’s powerful 127 was key to Yorkshire’s nine-run win against Somerset at Scarborough, under the Duckworth-Lewis calculations, but it was nearly snatched away by Ian Blackwell’s brilliant 97. Rudolph faced 114 balls against an attack missing the rested Andy Caddick and Charl Willoughby. He added 72 with Craig White for the first wicket and a key 111 with Andrew Gale for the fifth. Gale and Tim Bresnan finished with a flurry of boundaries and when Somerset floundered to 98 for 6 the game appeared over. However, Blackwell cut loose and launched seven sixes while adding 115 with Craig Kieswetter. Richard Pyrah eventually had Blackwell stumped after 73 balls and Yorkshire held on at the death. Read John Ward’s full report here.Robert Key led from the front with 104 as Kent continued their impressive one-day form with a 10-run win against Derbyshire at Derby. Key took 96 balls to reach his hundred, adding 111 with Joe Denly who made 52 off 44 balls. Martin van Jaarsveld added 62 as the second wicket added 110. Derbyshire chased hard with Greg Smith hitting 88 off 68 deliveries, but Kent collected wickets at regular intervals and had breathing space at the end.Shivnarine Chanderpaul began his Durham stint in match-winning style as he stroked an unbeaten 80 in their seven-wicket win against Surrey at Guildford. Chanderpaul added 120 with Kyle Coetzer (76) and Chanderpaul remained to see the job home alongside captain Dale Benkenstein. Phil Mustard provided another view of his tremendous hitting power with a 42-ball 63 to make major inroads into the target. Chris Schofield was taken to the cleaners, his three overs costing 40. Surrey’s 247, under par on a small ground, was based around 84 from Scott Newman and well-paced 59 from Ali Brown.Middlesex’s seamers brushed aside Glamorgan in a 21-over game at Ebbw Vale. Chaminda Vaas and Chad Keegan took the first five wickets for 18 runs and Glamorgan were out of the game before Murali Kartik chipped in with three. Middlesex’s 183 was based around stylish half-centuries from Owais Shah and Ed Joyce. Shah took 34 balls over 59 and Joyce’s 55 needed just 33 deliveries as he hammered four sixes. Ed Smith provided early momentum, adding 101 for the second wicket with Shah.

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.

Ashantha de Mel, Sri Lanka’s sacked selection chairman, has lashed out at two of his fellow selectors, KM Nelson and Shabbir Asgerally, claiming that they were serving “vested interests” and “promoting their own agendas”.de Mel was ousted as selection chairman on Friday in a surprise move by Jewwan Kumaratunga, Sri Lanka’s sports minister, after the panel had been reappointed only three weeks earlier. Kumaratunga trimmed the committee to just five selectors as Ranjith Madurasinghe, a former Sri Lankan spinner, was also sacked.”I feel that in selection matters there has been too much of influence and some selectors have vested interests and work towards their hidden agendas,” de Mel told newspaper. “There were instances when a selector was on the phone for a long while talking to senior players, before and after meetings. I was disgusted with what was going on.”De Mel claimed that he was thinking of resigning anyway: “I told [Marvan] Atapattu while in New Zealand that I didn’t want to continue with the same set of selectors. Selectors should have the respect of the players but that wasn’t the case.”Both Asgerally and Nelson have limited cricketing experience, and neither played for Sri Lanka. Nelson, closely affiliated with Jayantha Dharmadasa and Sanath Jayasuriya, has a controversial past as a selector, famously writing off Roshan Mahanama prior to a Test against India in 1997, claiming that he would pull down his trousers in public if Mahanama scored runs. Mahamana scored 225 but Nelson’s pants stayed up.”How will the players respect a selector when he threatens to put his trousers down or scolds players in raw filth? Have Sri Lanka’s standards gone so badly? Don’t we have another Test cricketer who could do the job of a selector?”Sri Lanka’s selection past is strewn with controversy and allegations of club bias. de Mel predicted more problems for the future: “Some of these selectors weren’t independent. They were very much representing the interests of clubs.”de Mel’s 13-month chairmanship included a major public spat with Atapattu after de Mel accused senior players of blocking the progress of younger players. He dropped Tillakaratne Dilshan in apparent frustration, forcing Atapattu to blood an inexperienced batsman during a tight two-Test series in Pakistan.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Kevin Pietersen doesn’t like being overshadowed for very long so after two relatively quiet Tests he chose the opening day at Headingley to make his first major impact on this series. His century was far from chanceless – he had three clear lives – but his biggest inconvenience came when cramp forced him to retire. However, with Ian Bell supplying another composed innings, and Pietersen ready to resume in the morning, England’s Manchester momentum has transferred nicely across the Pennines.All the main batsmen contributed something to the cause and England’s only gripe will be that four of the top six played themselves in without going on. But that is the nature of Headingley; batsmen often say how they rarely feel ‘in’ at Leeds and the fact it was only a batsman of Pietersen’s class who could really dominate suggests batting is not a cakewalk. That shouldn’t take anything away from Bell, who was again faultless, and also Chris Read who was under immense pressure on his return to Test cricket.When Pietersen retired hurt with the total on 259 for 4, if Read had fallen early a decision would have needed to be made as to whether Pietersen returned or the tail was exposed. An inside edge (the bane of Pakistan’s day) opened Read’s account but then he played confidently with Bell, although it helped that there were six overs of loopy part-time spin.On another day, though, the outcome would have been very different for Pakistan, who probably won’t be exchanging pleasantries with Darrell Hair in the near future. When Pietersen was on 2, he got an inside edge via his pad through to Kamran Akmal but Hair declined the appeal. Pakistan could feel rightly aggrieved with that decision but when Pietersen was 29 they could have no complaints as Shahid Nazir overstepped. They will also feel Pietersen escaped two very close lbw appeals early in his innings, but the fact that he was shelled at midwicket the ball before he retired shows Pakistan didn’t help themselves.The height of Pakistan’s frustrations came in the first session despite three wickets before lunch. Shortly after Pietersen’s first let-off, Alastair Cook was the beneficiary of a missed inside-edge. Cook couldn’t take his second chance and popped a catch back to Umar Gul off the last ball before lunch, but Pakistan would have still been stewing about Pietersen, well aware of the damage he is capable of.

Pietersen wasn’t quite at his best in Pakistan during the winter – despite a century at Faisalabad – with his impetuosity often getting the better of him. However, this summer he has added another level of responsibility to his play and that was on show here as he played himself in, albeit with his moments of fortune.The first half of his innings was about steadying England from 110 for 3 and the recovery began with Paul Collingwood for company, before he disappointingly picked out deep square-leg after a stand of 82 in 22 overs. But, by then, Pietersen had already lit the blue touch paper. One shot, on the up through midwicket with a straight bat, signalled the start of his onslaught. Danish Kaneria soon ended up in the stands and, 44 balls after reaching fifty, Pietersen’s now trademark leap accompanied his fifth Test century and third of the summer.When Salman Butt grassed Pietersen at midwicket on 104 Inzamam just chewed his finger nails but the frustration must have been immense. He will have a sensed a moment of relief when Pietersen’s cramp, which had troubled him from when he was in the 90s, forced him off the field for treatment. The problem for Inzamam, as has been throughout the series, is that he had no strike bowler to turn to.Nazir, in his first Test since March 1999, deserved more than Strauss’s wicket but Mohammad Sami was again a major disappointment. However, during the final session Umar Gul backed up his hardwork from Old Trafford with a fine new-ball burst. There was enough in the pitch to keep the seamers interested and Read’s late dismissal to one that didn’t bounce much indicates that batting won’t become any easier.Pakistan ended with a touch of momentum as Gul squeezed one through Matthew Hoggard’s defences. But the thought that will keep them awake tonight is that although Pietersen has left the field once he’ll be back in the morning with the serene-looking Bell. Inzamam could be forgiven if he has the odd nightmare.

How they were out

Click here to read Cricinfo’s description of each wicket

Division One

Points TableDavid Hussey struck 157, his third for Nottinghamshire this season, as his side reached 336 on the first day of their match against Gloucestershire at Nottingham. Choosing to field first, Gloucestershire picked up three quick wickets: Jason Gallian, run out for nought, Darren Bicknell and Younis Khan. Tottering on 43 for 3, Hussey was joined by Russell Warren (60) and the pair put on 136 for the fourth wicket to stabalise the innings. Warren fell to Jon Lewis, who then bowled Chris Read first ball as Gloucestershire struck back. Graeme Swann swung freely at the end, striking five fours and a six in his brief knock of 38, but the home side were bowled out in the 82nd over. Lewis ended the day with 4 for 80 from 19 overs.

Match facts

Monday, May 5 2008
Start time 20.00 (local), 14.30 (GMT)

The Big Picture

The relief was palpable in the Bangalore camp on Saturday after they finally registered their first victory at home, against the Deccan Chargers. A team of experienced internationals wasn’t expected to struggle early in the tournament, but at least they salvaged pride in a match which nearly fell out of their grasp in the final over. While they have every right to cherish the victory, it goes without saying that they would have to double their efforts against a team on a high, now with four consecutive wins. The Yuvraj Singh-led Kings XI Punjab have moulded into a dangerous unit and after two early defeats, are currently third in the points table, tied with three other teams on eight points. There’s little to separate the top four at this stage and it would be fair to say they start as favourites, despite playing away from home.

Watch out for …

… Kumar Sangakkara taking on Dale Steyn and Zaheer Khan. Sangakkara leads the run charts for Punjab with 203 in six games with two half-centuries. Steyn came back well after a pasting at the hands of Mahendra Singh Dhoni in his first match to concede 20 runs in four overs. Zaheer is one of the leading wicket-takers in the tournament. Shaun Marsh would also be a tough nut to crack for Bangalore, like most Australians in this tournament.

Team news

Bangalore have in their ranks Cameron White, an Australian who can pack a punch with his big hitting. He was omitted after his team’s forgettable rout at the hands of Kolkata in the opening game of the tournament, but one would feel a player of his ability ought to get more opportunities. Jacques Kallis could face the axe after failing with the bat against Deccan and he hasn’t clicked with the ball either. It could be a gamble, as White is mainly a part-time legspinner and perhaps not the most reliable fifth-bowling option.Bangalore (probable) 1 Bharath Chipli, 2 Wasim Jaffer, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rahul Dravid, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq, 6 Cameron White, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Anil Kumble, 11 Dale Steyn.Punjab wouldn’t want to alter their winning combination. Depth in batting is one of their strengths and the lower order demonstrated that in the previous game. James Hopes had a poor outing with the ball after missing three games but Punjab should see that as a blip and play him, not least for what he can do up the order.Punjab: (probable) 1 Shaun Marsh, 2 James Hopes, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Mahela Jayawardene, 6 Karan Goel, 7 Irfan Pathan, 8 Piyush Chawla, 9 Sreesanth, 10 VRV Singh, 11 Gagandeep Singh.

IPL form

(last five matches)Kings XI Punjab: LWWWW
Bangalore Royal Challengers: WLLLW

Stats and trivia